Out of the Furnace (Scott Cooper)

[Ezee E]

IMDB

[Ezee E]

Oh man. This movie made me giddy in it's greatness.

When was the last time we had a true neo-noir?

The pace and use of time in this movie is unlike anything as of late. It seamlessly ties together several years without any problem at all. All while pushing the theme of a post-Iraq setting, but never losing track of its blue collar, family love, and brutality.

I also forget how amazing of an actor Christian Bale is when he's not Bruce Wayne. I even like him as Bruce Wayne, but he simply escalates his other roles to something bigger. This is a perfect role for him, and could very well be his best movie.

AND WOODY HARRELSON outdoes him. Jesus, he is a mean motherfucker in this, and nails the hell out of it. I really hope he gets recognized for this role, because he's a brute. Jesus.

Yeah, I'm still giddy over this.

[MadMan]

I'm deeply interested in seeing this, and I hope any potential awards buzz results in it coming to my area. The same thing goes for 12 Years A Slave.

[Ezee E]

I'm deeply interested in seeing this, and I hope any potential awards buzz results in it coming to my area. The same thing goes for 12 Years A Slave.

I think Christian Bale brings it to your area. Hopefully, at least.

[Grouchy]

Yeah, this was a good movie. The ensemble cast is just magnificent, it's hard to argue with that sort of acting prowess. There were a couple of contrivances I took issue with - like, these have to be the dumbest drug dealers in the world. Who leads an unknown person into the main stash and gives him free information?

But overall, like Ezee says, it's nice to get a gritty neo-noir with A-list stars every once in a while.

[Qrazy]

The story for this kind of sucked which is too bad because the other aspects of the production are quite solid.

[Grouchy]

Ok, I'll play. Why does it suck?

[Qrazy]

Ok, I'll play. Why does it suck?

It's just very straight forward, fairly cliche macho filmmaking. The trajectory and ending did not feel earned or honest. And there are lots of character motivations revolving around the debt payments that don't really add up. Check out some of the negative reviews on RT. I agree with many of their points.

[Grouchy]

I guess I didn't mind. The crux of the plot is Bale's character, and his motivations worked for me. I don't get why "macho" is used as a negative when you're making a movie about two male brothers, either.

[Ezee E]

I guess I didn't mind. The crux of the plot is Bale's character, and his motivations worked for me. I don't get why "macho" is used as a negative when you're making a movie about two male brothers, either.

I'm not really even sure what macho filmmaking means.

[DavidSeven]

I'm with Q on this one.

This is a lot of talent attached to a fairly dopey story. I've read that the original script was lauded for evoking Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men. Well, either Cooper botched the re-write or this must really read better on the page than it does on film. In terms of plot and substance, this is as sparse as it gets. The cast makes it watchable enough, but it's ultimately a fairly shallow and predictable experience.