FilmVomit

I thoroughly enjoyed certain parts of this film, and was thoroughly bored during others. The music was overt and unbecoming, and certain computer generated sequences looked a bit like Tron. But the bouts of pure isolationist madness were quite beautiful. And the flatness of it… the dullness of the picture… was really quite stunning. I enjoyed the places where we simply saw Sam going quietly insane.
The HAL re-visioning in the form of GERTY was interesting in that it was offensive to everything the sci-fi genre seems to hold dear about AI- that is, that it is inherently evil and never working towards the best interests of the protagonist. A bit of an interesting switch-up.
The overall plot leaves something to be desired, and should have left more to the imagination, but the individual scenes worked quite well. It is almost a collection of moments, rather than a cohesive piece.

I guess I don’t have much to say on this one, either. It was cute. And forgettable. And, at some points, incredibly obnoxious. I suppose that when your first effort is as exceptionally well regarded as Brick, it’s hard to follow.

I think I’d have to be Japanese to actually get it.
It’s amusing, but strange, and so outside of my vernacular that all I can do is shake my head and laugh. It’s distressing how much I just don’t get it.
The format is clever, mostly… mockumentary is always cute. But the fight scenes are so chopped in that it’s hard to quite get into the flow of the thing. Something seems missing, and I think it’s entirely on my side.

I have nothing to say, really.
It’s good enough. Nothing that will stick with me.
Clever and pretty only goes so far.

I was not expecting much from this film, I will admit that. I have a fondness for Dave Eggers but not a love, and the material seemed like a stretch for Sam Mendes- too upbeat hipster lovestory, to be perfectly honest. My low expectations, as usual, led me to greater enjoyment. The direction is, mostly, spot on. The film is warm and funny and honest. It doesn’t feel like film that will stick with you, like most of Mendes’ other works do. But it doesn’t really have to.
Part of the films effectiveness comes from the fact that Mendes, who works very closely with his cinematographers, seems to have left his comfort zone. His first to films were shot by the inimitable Conrad Hall, the second two by Roger Deakins. This film was shot by the impossibly hip Ellen Kuras. Conrad Hall was the fire behind such films as Cool Hand Luke and In Cold Blood. He made a safe choice going to Deakins, who imitates Hall quite well. Kuras, however, worked on Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Be Kind, Rewind, among other icons of the current film generation. And her sensibilities seem to have brought the joy out in Mr. Mendes. The shots are bare, in many cases, stripped of sentiment. They may lack the sheer aesthetic weight of something like American Beauty, but they make up for it in an almost effervescent honesty. I will sincerely look forward to seeing how their relationship progresses.
There isn’t so much depth here as one might like to see. Or perhaps I should look closer. But at the very least there is joy, and there is beauty. And that is enough.

I walked from the theater helpless and angry and blindly terrified of the world, of the unknowable future and the all too known past. There are so many mistakes made and so many yet to make. So many houses burning that we will refuse to leave until it is far too late.
And then I began to smile, and then I began to laugh. And I cursed Kaufman out of joy and I remembered where I am.

I don’t think I can write critically about this film unless I see it again. It’s possible that I can’t at all. But I have not seen anything that has left me feeling more filled with life in a very long time.