This is masterful when it's within the house, but trying so hard to be when it's outside the house, to which eventually you just want the movie to get on with it.
There's a lot to discuss on this movie that requires spoilers, so without spoiling anything, I'll just say that we know what to expect from Charlie Kaufman at this point, and it's no different here.
If my wifi connection ever becomes stable again I'll try to watch this one.
Blog!
And it's happened once again
I'll turn to a friend
Someone that understands
And sees through the master plan
But everybody's gone
And I've been here for too long
To face this on my own
Well, I guess this is growing up
One of the rare occasions that I wish I'd read the book or spoiled myself beforehand, as I would have spent more time marveling at how Kaufman goes about this premise by superbly swirling the reality-scape through disorienting tonal shifts and suggestive edits of unease, rather than wondering about what the hell is going on now. Also, I agree with Ignatiy Vishnevetsky hard about Kaufman's ideas being "generally better interpreted than illustrated", whether through other directors like Jonze and Gondry or another medium like animation (with Anomalisa by far being his best solo effort).
Most of the car ride stuff here fall squarely in the "illustrated" section, with dynamic camerawork and great actors unable to overcome how much it just feels like Kaufman monologuing straight at us (the reason why I was so put off and tedium-outed by Synecdoche, New York long before it ended). The reality shifts and familial discomfort insides that farmhouse are magnificent though, maybe the best stretch of Kaufman's directorial work ever. The ending is also captivatingly beguiling and so, so sad. This is one to rewatch now that its true premise isn't kept in the back half; I admire the restraint to abstract it to not make the story hacky or too thuddingly literal, but I feel the gambit hindered my appreciation of the film a fair bit. 7/10
Midnight Run (1988) - 9
The Smiling Lieutenant (1931) - 8.5
The Adventures of Robinhood (1938) - 8
Sisters (1973) - 6.5
Shin Godzilla (2016) - 7.5
I want more people to see this.
I've seen so many theories, but it's much better when discussing with people I know.
AA Dowd's (another a/v clubber along with IV) positive review is interesting. He goes into CK's long history of simultaneously criticizing and indulging in cinema's obsession with "dissociative identity disorder" (formerly "multiple personality disorder") that's been de rigueur since at least Fight Club, or even earlier, including using it as a general umbrella disorder for things like schizophrenia in A Beautiful Mind. He also mentions the James Mangold movie Identity, which is nearly uhhh, identical to the supposedly hacky script Donald Kaufman is writing in Adaptation ... but then there are certainly elements of the disorder here, even if it exists in more fiction / literature "life of the mind" type world.
Ratings on a 1-10 scale for your pleasure:
Top Gun: Maverick - 8
Top Gun - 7
McCabe & Mrs. Miller - 8
Crimes of the Future - 8
Videodrome - 9
Valley Girl - 8
Summer of '42 - 7
In the Line of Fire - 8
Passenger 57 - 7
Everything Everywhere All at Once - 6
Will be watching today or tomorrow.
Roulette pick?Quoting Skitch (view post)
Last Five Films I've Seen (Out of 5)
The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and the Horse (Mackesy, 2022) 4.5
Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (Crawford, 2022) 4
Confess, Fletch (Mottola, 2022) 3.5
M3GAN (Johnstone, 2023) 3.5
Turning Red (Shi, 2022) 4.5
Tokyo Story (Ozu, 1953) 5
615 Film
Letterboxd
Yep. I try to watch all Charlie Kaufman's stuff anyway.
This is a very apt description.
As with Unpronounceable, New York, I feel I appreciate this movie for what it does more than actually enjoying it.
I feel like this is Charlie Kaufman's The Notebook from a first person perspective? Am I in the ballpark of what was going on?
Whoa. Yes.
Kaufman as a director is too depressing for me, and this certainly didn't change my mind. I admire him for telling bold and unusual stories, and there's plenty to like here (Jessie Buckley for starters), but good lord his scripts handled by other directors were a lot more fun.
The past is a grotesque animal
I was really with this for the longest time (it is quite obvious what is going on as soon as []), but the dance scene and what follows pushes everything too far into "yeah, we get it" territory and the unsettling, melancholic tone seeps away. But the first two-thirds is excellent.
Last 10 Movies Seen
(90+ = canonical, 80-89 = brilliant, 70-79 = strongly recommended, 60-69 = good, 50-59 = mixed, 40-49 = below average with some good points, 30-39 = poor, 20-29 = bad, 10-19 = terrible, 0-9 = soul-crushingly inept in every way)
Run (2020) 64
The Whistlers (2019) 55
Pawn (2020) 62
Matilda (1996) 37
The Town that Dreaded Sundown (1976) 61
Moby Dick (2011) 50
Soul (2020) 64
Heroic Duo (2003) 55
A Moment of Romance (1990) 61
As Tears Go By (1988) 65
Stuff at Letterboxd
Listening Habits at LastFM
I did like this quite a bit even if the final act is a tad messy and the film takes a while to really get moving. Oddly this pairs up with Palm Springs in a certain way.
Blog!
And it's happened once again
I'll turn to a friend
Someone that understands
And sees through the master plan
But everybody's gone
And I've been here for too long
To face this on my own
Well, I guess this is growing up
How so?
Ratings on a 1-10 scale for your pleasure:
Top Gun: Maverick - 8
Top Gun - 7
McCabe & Mrs. Miller - 8
Crimes of the Future - 8
Videodrome - 9
Valley Girl - 8
Summer of '42 - 7
In the Line of Fire - 8
Passenger 57 - 7
Everything Everywhere All at Once - 6
I was going with weird movie featuring two people who may or may not love each other. But maybe then again perhaps not considering [].
Blog!
And it's happened once again
I'll turn to a friend
Someone that understands
And sees through the master plan
But everybody's gone
And I've been here for too long
To face this on my own
Well, I guess this is growing up
I'm not 100% clear on the ending to this movie. The pig was a funny touch though.
Blog!
And it's happened once again
I'll turn to a friend
Someone that understands
And sees through the master plan
But everybody's gone
And I've been here for too long
To face this on my own
Well, I guess this is growing up
I should give this one another watch. I loved, loved, loved most of it but I was also (like trans) a bit overwhelmed by the final third. Kaufman is still one of the most adventurous filmmakers out there, and I believe he deliberately wanted to put an extra spin even on the already surreal structure.
I didn't like it upon first viewing, and really I still don't like it. But thinking back on it there are elements that stick with me.
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