The Old Man & the Gun, possibly Robert Redford’s last picture, had some problems along with its requisite charm. It also had a lively spirit more times than not. A high 6/10
Casey Affleck
VOD Log: A Ghost Story
I’ll start with a side note. I saw the trailer for A Ghost Story about three times, I think two of which were at an AMC. And then the local AMCs collectively failed to ever show the film, or if they did it was for no more than a week or a day. When it was still showing in theaters outside my area, e.g. in LA, I went to one of the main AMCs to watch another film and was surprised to see a super-sized lobby cardboard poster display for the film. I inquired about it, and was told there were no plans to show the film.
A theater showing trailers and setting large promotional items on display for a movie seems only to make sense if said theater will at some point show the movie. But that’s indicative of numerous areas of mismanagement on the part of AMC. I went to a film lately and a couple of the seats had such a strong fecal odor I moved.
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I point out the AMC nonsense above because I felt like A Ghost Story, starring consummate actors Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara, was one of the more significant indies of the year, and given short shrift by the cinemas. Nonetheless, I was determined to watch it to consider among the films of 2017, so I did something that is rare for me these days: saw it at home.
The movie is intriguing, and certainly compelling — but falls short of providing that grand a-ha moment. In other words, I liked it despite a thin story. 7/10
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Note: This film is presented in a square (1.33:1) frame with rounded corners, for no particularly obvious or excellent reason. An affectation, perhaps, but in this case it does not distract from the movie — unlike in American Honey. I like a lot that A24 Films does, but the square frame trend I hope can be put to rest.
Comparison Notes: Recommended: To The Wonder; Not Recommended: Ain’t Them Bodies Saints (previous project with Affleck and Mara)
Film Brief: Manchester by the Sea
Manchester by the Sea — especially in the early going — is as clunky as its title. Poorly executed flashbacks, a bane of cinema, and a general lack of mastery behind the lens greatly hinder the picture. Yet from these inauspicious roots a strong story, held together by solid performances, pans out.
No doubt this will be one of the dozen or so pictures nominated as best of the year; for me: good but not great. 7/10
Comparison Notes (recommended): My Name Is Joe, Crazy Heart
Interstellar: Up and Down
Interstellar has been compared to 2001: A Space Odyssey, so let’s get one thing out of the way: I know 2001. I love 2001. And Interstellar is no 2001, any more than Dan Quayle is Jack Kennedy. Nor even is it Gravity, and reaching under the sea nor is it The Abyss.
I mostly agree with the Rotten Tomatoes consensus, except for the part about expectations from Nolan, which I’ll get to in a moment:
Interstellar represents more of the thrilling, thought-provoking, and visually resplendent filmmaking moviegoers have come to expect from writer-director Christopher Nolan, even if its intellectual reach somewhat exceeds its grasp.
Critics are sharply divided over this movie. Some are calling it a must-see masterpiece, which it certainly is not, while others have panned it. Joe Morgenstern for the WSJ:
Christopher Nolan’s 168-minute odyssey through the space-time continuum is stuffed with stuff of bewildering wrongness.
That had me laughing! I’m in the middle. Lots of holes share space with entertaining, well acted sequences and moments of true wonder to fill this overlong movie. But there’s a lack of clear, penetrating vision here, and we can blame only one person.
Christopher Nolan does not have the ability to construct a cohesive narrative. I thought Memento completely implausible; Insomnia let the raw power of its concept and acting talent slip from its grasp; I remember little about Inception other than not liking it. And when it comes to Batman, although I appreciate the darker, more authentic shading of the Dark Knight tales, I’ll take Tim Burton over Christopher Nolan any day of the week.
After all that you might think I’m saying thumbs down to Interstellar. But the good parts outweigh the bad, if barely; so I give it a marginal recommendation. To all the normal caveats add a theater with a very good sound system, good enough to shake the walls and your seat during those extra-loud moments. 6/10
ALTERNATIVES: If you’re in the mood for some truly outstanding science fiction, check out my post Sci-Fi Do or Die.
Film Brief: Out of the Furnace
THERE’S PRETTY MUCH NO REASON for Out of the Furnace, unless you’re interested in seeing Woody Harrelson in an even more evil role than Rampart. It’s got a giant, very talented cast — besides Harrelson, there’s Christian Bale, Casey Affleck, Willem Dafoe, and Forest Whitaker. I really liked Affleck, who’s turning out to be someone like Mark Wahlberg or Ryan Gosling as someone who’s always compelling on screen.
But this is a lackluster, tired, big so-what of a story. With inconsequential commentary on a soldier returning home from war, I reckon it’s trying to be a sort of modern-day Deer Hunter — but this is no Deer Hunter. The cast is mostly wasted here, but they do a good job with what they have, and individual scenes are well handled. The main fault I have with this movie is the uninspired plot framed by an amateurish narrative structure. 4/10
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Comparison Notes: Recommended: The Deer Hunter, Mystic River, My Name Is Joe, Prisoners, The Machinist; Not Recommended: The Place Beyond the Pines
I Ain’t Likin’ It
I had been looking forward to Ain’t Them Bodies Saints for months as the next big dramatic indie of the year, following The Place Beyond the Pines and Mud (see prior posts). My expectations of something good — based on the trailer and a cool poster — makes me dislike this film even more for how terrible it is.
It’s story was like a trimmed-down Mud, (6/10) — but very trimmed down. Mud combined the familiar outlaw on the lam trying to get back to his love theme with a boy’s perspective à la Stand By Me. Mud was more complex, and infinitely better. Ain’t Them Bodies Saints has a paper-thin plot and supposedly smoldering, smoky and deep performances by the stars Rooney Mara and Casey Affleck (to see him with the Texas drawl — which he nails again in Saints — but in a good movie, watch The Killer Inside Me). Affleck and Mara aren’t remarkable here, but I think do what the director asks of them. But the director had no vision.
It’ll be a sin if Rooney Mara is nominated for her role here — which I doubt will happen — instead of for her job in Side Effects, a much better movie. I will give one positive: the small-town Texas sheriff is portrayed as a nice guy, bucking the obvious stereotype. If you’re curious about this movie, watch the trailer — you won’t get any more out of the non-story which is Ain’t Them Bodies Saints. Such a waste. 2/10
Coming in August: Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
This looks like it could be good; it’s getting a lot of advance praise. First with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, then with Side Effects [prior post], and now with this trailer, I am liking Rooney Mara more and more. And the trailer makes me think of another film I liked Casey Affleck in, The Killer Inside Me (2010, with Jessica Alba and recommended).
I like the poster, too, though I expect to see a more conventional version around its release time…
Click below for trailer at Apple:
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