Donnie Darko

Donnie Darko is one of the most divisive films to come out in the past fifteen years. Those who love it praise it for being a complex work of genius while the detractors slam it as being a pretentious convoluted mess. I fall more in the former category and Donnie Darko is actually one of my favorite movies. I can understand why people may not like it and feel it's overrated, mostly due to my fellow fan boys not being able to shut up about it. While I like the film quite a bit on its on merits I think it remains as one of my favorites because it represents my introduction into the weirder side of independent movies.

I first saw Donnie Darko in the summer of 2004. I had just graduated from high school and was enjoying my last summer before being thrust into college and adulthood. I was getting deeper into film and was wanted to see more obscure movies. A friend of mine told me about Donnie Darko, he hadn't seen it personally but had some friends that liked it, and it seemed like it could be interesting to watch. I saw it knowing nothing going in and it made quite the impression on my young mind (the ideal way of seeing it is knowing nothing beforehand so all you haters need to just go back in time and watch it with a clean slate). It was like nothing I'd ever seen before and had me with my jaw on the floor in awe by the end. I really wanted to make sense of this visual rubix cube and forced many of my friends to watch it just so I had someone to talk to about it. The film was so unique to me and I wanted to seek out more movies that were on the fringe. I obsessed over the movie, watching it multiple times and reading all the fan theories I could find online. Donnie Darko was my gateway movie into the world of independent cinema and marks the shift from being a regular movie fan to full fledged cinephile.

I can't say how many times I've seen Donnie Darko but every time I watch it I get fully absorbed into the film. There is a really big sense of nostalgia when I watch the movie, it takes me back to that simpler time with no responsibilities when the future was so full of promise and possibilities. I love the conflicting tones of the film. At times it feels like a traditional high school movie but then it switches into a visual nightmare that stills gives me chills. All the scenes involving Frank are extremely unsettling and add to the dreamlike atmosphere in the movie. The soundtrack is perfect, mixing 80s rock with eerie instrumentals only further adds to the dichotomy of the film which I find so fascinating. It's a coming of age story that is extremely relatable smashed into the middle of David Lynch movie. There's something about that combination that I just find irresistible.

Sometimes I wonder if I hadn't been the first of my friends to watch Donnie Darko if I'd still like it. Would the hype of the movie ruined the experience for me? Would that disappointment discourage me from exploring more independent movies and ultimately change the very essence of my being? That's a reality I'm glad I don't have to live in.

Tomorrow we go deeper into the nightmarish rabbit hole with Eraserhead...

Shutter Island

I was super excited for Shutter Island to come out in the fall of 2009. I'm a huge Scorsese fan and my expectations and anticipation for this film couldn't have been higher. Unfortunately, the release date got pushed back and the film opened in February of 2010. My excitement didn't fade because of the delays but I did become a bit worried. The beginning of the year is usually a dumping ground for the crap movies that studios don't want taking up prime release dates. I had faith in Marty and kept positive as I waited the few extra months to see this movie.

When I finally saw it on opening night I left the theater feeling disappointed. Were my expectations too high? Was I distracted by my nerves because I saw it on a date? (Side note, the did went all right. The girl I asked out literally ran out of the car when I dropped her off so there was no chance for an awkward doorstep situation, which would have just ended up being extremely uneventful anyways) Well, to get into why I felt underwhelmed we have to dive deeeeep into spoiler territory, as if there is shallow water when it comes to spoilers for some people.

I felt very underwhelmed by the story, especially the twist. There are a lot of hints and clues to pick up on that Teddy is actually a patient but that revelation seemed extremely predictable. Knowing where the story was going took a lot of the suspense out of watching the film and I just waited until the big reveal. I wanted to like it more, I really did, but it fell flat for me.

Because of my prior experience with Shutter Island I thought now would be a great time to revisit it. While I wouldn't categorize it as a horror movie it does have some extremely horrifying imagery and a general gloomy tone throughout that makes it feel appropriate for the  Halloween season. Revisiting Shutter Island I was able to go in with tempered expectations and could judge the movie by its own merits.

I have to say that I enjoyed it on all levels a lot more this time around. While the story can be a bit predictable at times I was able to see a lot more of the subtext on guilt and shame. To an extent we all create false realities or memories to deal with bad things that we've done in the past. I found this exploration into the human psyche to be much more interesting than the thriller plot. However, looking for clues and giveaways of the twist did make the suspense elements a bit more radiant. It felt like being in a separate mystery all on my own, looking for the clues to solve the case.

Something I did admire the first time and perhaps was even more enraptured by tonight are the amazing visual and direction. This movie is a visual masterpiece and it's almost impossible to take your eyes off the screen . Even when it's depicting horrible atrocities it remains beautiful in its composition. I felt that every scene was stunning and it's truly a shame that it didn't receive any major awards for its technical prowess.

There are also great performances from the great cast as well. Leo brings his yelling intensity as usual (I'm not trying to knock Leo, he is one of my favorites but a youtube video brought to my attention that he does tend to yell a lot in movies and I'm not going to deny that truth). For me, the best scene is the conversation Teddy has with the patient while he's in Building C. It's somehow both intense and subtle with a very chilling atmosphere as Teddy learns that he may not be who he thinks he is.

I'm glad that I gave this film a second chance. It's masterfully constructed and if you look for the deeper meanings beyond the main twist and mystery then it becomes much more than just the average thriller.

Tomorrow, we face the end of the world with Donnie Darko...

And it begins...

Welcome to day one of this very festive hullabaloo. To preface this first review I wanted to lay out the details of how this is going down.

I'll be watching and reviewing the movies in real time meaning that no prep work or pre-written material will posted. The day the reviews are posted is the day I watched the movie. I, like many of you, don't like how holiday preparations creep up on us earlier and earlier so to get the most of this Halloween season I wanted to watch all the movies in October. As such most of the reviews will be posted late at night since scary movies are always much better to watch in the dark.

While some of the movies will be first time viewings a good portion of the films I've already seen. There are old favorites that I've seen countless times and there are others that I've seen once and haven't revisited for one reason or another. These reviews won't just cover what I think of the films but also my history with them. Things might get very personal so just prepare yourselves mentally and emotionally for that.

I'm very excited to have this month long celebration of my favorite holiday and I hope you all enjoy this journey with me.

Tonight, prepare yourself for a trip with two duly appointed federal marshals to Shutter Island...

Halloween Horror Hullabaloo!!

This October the Motion Picture Showsen returns with a vengeance! One month, over 30 horror films, 1,000 screams of terror!! Prepare yourself for the ultimate scary movie marathon! Join me as I re-evaluate, revisit, and discover the classics of the horror genre. Plus, exclusive to this blog is the Ultimate Remake Showdown where I'll be watching the original and remake of horror favorites to figure out what went wrong (or right, sometimes, rarely).

Check in October 1st to start the month long celebration!

Her

In many ways I feel like Her was made just for me. I know that is an absurd notion but the characters and themes were just too intimate and personal that I couldn’t help but feel that way. The connection that Theodore has to Samantha in the movie is eerily similar. The operating system is data that is universal to all who purchased it yet each person was able to build a strong, intimate relationship with their OS that felt so unique and personal yet the programming was universal. I feel that a film’s ability to make the audience feel that personal connection is what separates a great movie from the rest. Her is a great movie and resonates with me more than any other film I’ve seen in a while.

The premise of Her could have easily also been an Saturday Night Live sketch gone bad. A man, sad and alone, falls in love with his self-aware operating system and their relationship is able to develop like any human to human relationship would. It would be easy to make Theodore the butt of some bad joke, like he’s so alone and desperate that he’s resorted to loving his computer, but Her is handled with so much care and sincerity, with Spike Jonze’s directing and writing and the great acting by the cast, that we end up relating with Theodore so strongly and investing in his relationship with his OS Samantha. The characters and setting are so fleshed out and three dimensional that even with a crazy premise set in the near future everything that happens in the film seems incredibly authentic.

Joaquin Phoenix plays Theodore absolutely perfect. A woman Theodore is on a date with describes him as a puppy dog and that fits him perfectly. He’s complicated, depressed, struggling being alone, all he wants is to be loved, to be relevant in someone else’s life. Many scenes are shot close up to Theodore’s face and he seems so sweet and broken, it’s impossible to no want to love him like a puppy. Scarlett Johansson plays the disembodied OS Samantha and using just her voice is able to make Samantha seem real and actually tangible. It never for one second feels like Samantha is anything but real. The conversations between Theodore and Samantha feel like interactions that any normal couple would have with each other. They have the ups and downs any other relationship would have and it’s so important that the audience sees this dynamic to fully understand why they care about each other. Their relationship feels more real than most movie relationships, and even some actual relationships.

This film is extremely beautiful and for me it was impossible not to fall in love with it. Her is a gorgeous film to experience. It’s so beautifully shot and put together. I loved all the modern production design and building. The soundtrack is incredibly touching and fits the tone of the film perfectly. There’s nothing to not love about this movie. It’s the most inspiring, touching movie I’ve seen about love and companionship. With all the complexities of life a film like this is not only welcome but essential.

American Hustle

I wanted to love American Hustle, in fact, I expected that it would be love at first viewing. From the praise I’d heard from friends and read online I was certain that I would love it. There are so many things about American Hustle that are right in my wheel house. David O. Russell is a director that I admire and I have thoroughly enjoyed all of his films. The cast is impeccable, even the really small roles (Louis C.K.!!!). Seventies music, clothing, and hair, all things I love. Despite all of these positive attributes, American Hustle did not meet my expectations at all.

That isn'to say that American Hustle isn’t a good movie or isn’t worth seeing. It’s good for all the reasons you’d expect (good director/writer, great cast, etc.) but it hasn’t had any real lasting effect on me. I feel so indifferent towards the film. I have no real desire to revisit or analyze it. I got what I needed from it from one viewing and that’s fine.

There has been a lot of comparisons between American Hustle and Wolf of Wall Street, both delve into the different criminal sides of conning people out of money. Having seen Wolf first, maybe I was expected something more in that spirit. American Hustle is much more deliberate than the Wolf of Wall Street. It stays with the characters for long, intimate scenes to help build the relationship the audience has with them. Russell himself has said that he’s more about characters than he is about story and it’s very apparent here. These characters are very interesting but their lives are positively boring compared to the drug fueled debauchery on display in The Wolf of Wall Street. Maybe that’s more of what I expected, something flashier and bigger.

It’s strange that I would want something big or flashy. I usually go for films that are smaller, more intimate, and more real. What if I had seen American Hustle before I saw Wolf of Wall Street? Would I have found it as slow? Would I have wanted more flash? Would I have like Wolf less because less was going on? I can 

never know.

Even thinking about the films side by side now there are many things that I like about American Hustle more than Wolf of Wall Street. I thought the overall story was better especially how everything came together in the end. Usually movies that end cleanly feel very contrived but American Hustle’s ending avoids feeling false by being well written and acted. There is more of a story arc and better character arcs than Wolf of Wall Street which is more like a bunch of events shown one right after the other.

In my head I know I should like American Hustle more but it didn’t touch me like the movies I love have affected me. American Hustle didn’t affect me at all. It’s a perfectly adequate film and gives you what you want while watching but doesn’t leave the lasting mark you’d expect.

The Wolf of Wall Street

The first lines of The Wolf of Wall Street could easily have been “For as long as I can remember I always wanted to be a stockbroker”. Actually, that’s not quite true. Better yet, the first lines could have been “For as long as I can remember I always wanted to be rich” but even then, that doesn’t quite get to the heart of what Jordan Belfort is after. I think the line “For as long as I can remember I always wanted to be rich so I could do whatever I wanted” is more fitting. The film doesn’t have to say this line though, it conveys this much more effectively showing midgets being thrown at targets and cocaine being snorted off a hooker. The insanity and depravity is in full gear from the get go, it’s best to just strap in and enjoy the ride.

Wolf is less a movie about the inner workings of Wall Street and more about greed, excess, and ego. Belfort isn’t in pursuit of money for the sake of attaining the traditional American dream (nice house, white picket fence, etc.), he’s after the new American dream, power, money, and freedom to do as he pleases without thinking of the consequences. Long gone are the days of a man making an honest living, the only way to get ahead on Wall Street is to cheat and no one is better at that than Jordan Belfort. As someone who studied finance, this movie really shows all of the reasons why I didn’t want to pursue a career in stocks or on Wall Street.

DiCaprio plays Belfort perfectly. Charismatic, energizing, but at the same time shallow and manipulative. The way Leo gives his all for this role is remarkable. This is hands down the best he’s ever been. He’s fully committed to the big physical scenes, including what will surely be seen as one of the best drug related scenes in film, but also brings the nuance required to be convincing in some of the more emotional scenes. It’s hard not to feel pumped up when Belfort is motivating his brokers and that energy could have come off as trying too hard or stale in another actor’s hands but Leo brings the right level of enthusiasm without going over the top.

Excess is a strong theme throughout the film be it drugs, hookers, houses, yachts, cars and even the running time is a lofty three hours. What the film never is though is boring or preachy. Yes, it shows all sorts of acts of debauchery and the consequences of those acts but it never is melodramatic about them or even condemning. The film respects the viewer’s intelligence in handling these scenes of excess. It leaves it up to us, the audience to condemn or condone these acts. Many people respect and even worship those who make a lot of money and it’s important for films like this to exist to show that money alone doesn’t make a person worthy of respect.

What was most surprising about The Wolf of Wall Street is that it’s one of the funniest movies of the year, definitely the funniest that Scorsese has made (I know he’s not known for comedy but there is After Hours…and I think that’s it). All the actors are game for the crazy antics and help make things that are utterly ridiculous seem fairly normal. It’s refreshing to see Scorsese still make movies that are edgy and controversial. Some of his peers seem to have their craft diminish as they have gotten older but Scorsese is still a master and Wolf is an admirable entry in his already great filmography. This may be the most exhausting three hours I’ve spent all year at the movies but it was definitely the most fun.