Published by drockwood September 25th, 2006
in reviews.
Despite what it’s going to do to my “cred” among my devoted following of pretentious assholes it turns out that the film America has fallen in love with is actually pretty good, really funny and has a message that should be universally acceptable without ever being trite or saccharine.
The movie’s theme about losers striving for success is an interesting one. All the characters are shown at one point losing something that is important to them. The dad looses his business, the grandpa looses his life, the uncle looses the person he loves, the kid looses his dream of being a fighter pilot, and finally the daughter looses her competition. They are all losers who find success by coming together.
The son is the smartest character in the movie. He has contempt for his family because he recognizes them for what they are. His turning point comes when he realizes that he too is a loser. This is the point in which the family comes truly comes together, resolved towards and united in their loserness (loserocity?). Their arrival at the pageant reinforces this; they are misfits standing out in a crowd of conformists.
I’ve heard the family in this film described as “dysfunctional”; well I think that’s missing the point. First of all if these guys are dysfunctional then I don’t think there’s a functional family to be found out there. I mean they may have their problems but they stand by each other and support each other and so what if the grandfather is slamming H in the bathroom. He’s an old man; he’s going to die soon. I think the point that they’re trying to get across is that the average family has way more problems than are depicted by your typical mayonnaise commercial. I’ve known a few families in my life and they’re constantly fighting and yelling and stressing out over financial issues. What makes families functional isn’t a lack of problems but rather an ability to stand by each other in a supportive way and work through them.
The movie is full of interesting metaphors that underscore the themes of the film. The beauty pageant does a good job of representing the movies main theme of winners vs. losers in a comical scenario. Likewise the family’s unorthodox manner of starting their van shows the individual family members coming together in a comical and exhilarating moment of triumph. It’s a compelling visual metaphor.
Ultimately this film is about what you do after you’ve lost, where you go after loose, how do you live when you’ve realized you’re a loser. The grandpa explains the theme in so many words “real losers are the people who are so scared of failing they never try”, this is a story about people who won’t give up trying.
Popularity: 8% [?]
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Published by drockwood September 12th, 2006
in reviews.
People have always been too nice to Bryan Singer. He makes competent but uninspired entertainment that consistently gets praised as something more substantial.
Usual Suspects is as by the numbers a thriller as you’ll ever see. Minus the cheap thrill of a tacked on and arbitrary twist ending and the film couldn’t be picked out of a line up.
The X-Men pictures make a few smart decisions and a lot of bad ones. The first film in particular seems embarrassed by itself. Singer seemed uncomfortable making a movie about people with super powers and code names and costumes. But I’ll agree that the sequel is a big improvement and an enjoyable film.
If you think this Superman Returns movie works then you are a sucker. Singer makes a tiring lecture of a super hero flick. A movie that’s too busy being classy and prestigious to remember to put on a good show. A movie that gives us a climax about Superman lifting a big rock and worst of all a plot line that simply rehashes the ridiculous evil real estate plan from the original Superman film. When people tell me they enjoyed this movie I can’t help but wonder what would qualify as a disappointment in their mind.
Brandon Routh is a perfectly acceptable man of steel, even if he was cast solely for his obvious resemblance to Christopher Reeves. Twenty two year old Kate Bosworth is a ridiculous choice to play Lois Lane, and her performance is a total misunderstanding of the character. As Richard White, James Marsters is in the movie but he shouldn’t be. It’s inconvenient that his character’s more compelling than Superman. But the worst performance belongs to Kevin Spacey as Lex Luther. As the film’s villain he stands in opposition against a nearly omni powerful demi-god, but Spacey plays the part as broad comic relief. Anyone who thinks Luther isn’t a credible adversary against Superman has never seen the Justice League cartoon. There’s nothing wrong with the character, the problem is Singer and Spacey’s incompetent take that torpedoes the film.
Before I get too carried away I want to clarify that this isn’t the worst film ever, it’s not a Batman and Robin travesty. It’s not a holocaust; it’s a bay of bigs. It’s not a terrible movie it’s a misguided one. Maybe if it weren’t called “superman” maybe I’d be willing to entertain it’s conciet. But no one wants to see a Superman movie about “old boyfriends coming back into your life” as Singer famously described the movie. I wonder if the studio execs who heard him say that panicked, or if they were so possessed of blind faith in their golden boy they just let it go. Whatever the reason, someone needed to step up and point out that Singer was ruining this movie.
Popularity: 8% [?]
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