KILLING THEM SOFTLY Review

Frankie (Scoot McNairy) and Russell (Ben Mendelsohn) bask in the glory of their dirty deeds

Written and Directed by Andrew Dominik

Starring Brad Pitt, Ray Liotta, Richard Jenkins, 

Scoot McNairy, Ben Mendelsohn, 

and James Gandolfini

Killing them softly?! Lies. Nobody here gets killed softly. Their deaths are personal, at close range, and fairly bloody. But don't be deterred-- Eli Roth is not present here. The director, Andrew Dominik, even gives us a break, as there are only three on-screen deaths.

So why does this film still make me feel like I just marathon-watched the Hostel series? How does it inspire such deep-seated dread and horror in Jacob's little head?

Answer: Filmmaking, and of the highest order.

Killing Them Softly is a brilliant political allegory/satire masquerading as a crime drama. Don't get me wrong, it works perfectly as a thriller, but the ending is a metaphoric curveball to the face (haha, see what I did there?). Much can be said about the thriller aspect of the film (in my mind, unrivaled by any other movie of the sort from the last ten years), but what stood out the most for me was how Dominik handled suspense. Much like in Jeremy Saulnier's film Blue Ruin, the dark, gray visuals and seedy atmosphere of the setting (a recovering New Orleans) instills a sort of primal fear in the viewer. It just doesn't seem like a good place to be. That, coupled with the director's inherent brilliance in coaxing unease from the actors and taut apprehension from the camera, really elevates the film's sense of anxiety. The death blow is the undertone, commenting on the Bush-ravaged economic state and disillusioned milieu of the United States, especially that in New Orleans, victim of the worst natural disaster on US soil since 1928, as well as on crime and the (maybe) unexpectedly complex lives of criminals. The juxtaposition of the two offers a damning examination of the world of crime and social order in modern society. Some may argue that it is but a microcosm of said institutions (it depends on your political inclinations), but for me it runs deeper than that.


Best Line: (SPOILER WARNING)
Barack Obama (on TV): [on TV delivering his election victory speech] ... to reclaim the American 
dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth that out of many, we are one. Driver: You hear that line? Line's for you. 
Jackie Cogan: Don't make me laugh. "We're one people". It's a myth created by Thomas Jefferson. 
Driver: Oh, now you're gonna have a go at Jefferson, huh? 
Jackie Cogan: My friend, Jefferson's an American saint because he wrote the words, "All men are created equal." Words he clearly didn't believe, since he allowed his own children to live in slavery. He was a rich wine snob who was sick of paying taxes to the Brits. So yeah, he wrote some lovely words and aroused the rabble, and they went out and died for those words, while he sat back and drank his wine and fucked his slave girl. This guy wants to tell me we're living in a community. Don't make me laugh. I'm living in America, and in America, you're on your own. America's not a country. It's just a business. Now fucking pay me. 

Rating: 5/5
Recommendability: 3/5-- some may be upset by the political undertone (Sorry, but it's the truth!), and even though the violence is sparse, the context and cathartic nature of its occurrence, as well as the realism with which it is displayed may put some viewers off (pansies!).

Legend

5: See it now! (Amazing/Classic)

4: Very good. I would recommend it readily.

3: Good/ inconsistently great..

2: Not good/squandered potential/bad but had one great part/etc.

1: Walk away and forget about this one/so bad it’s good.

The Lobster Review

Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos

Written by Yorgos Lanthimos

 and Efthymis Filippou

Starring Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz

The Lobster left me sad, angry, and confused-- yet strangely satisfied. Despite its (often frustratingly) unorthodox direction and pacing, The Lobster really spoke to me. Beside its cynical perspective and overarching satirical mien, The Lobster has good heart and meaning.

When David (Colin Farrell) is left by his wife, he must be checked into a hotel where he is to find a mate. Every "guest" in the hotel is given a base allowance of 45 days, but can earn more by hunting down "loners", single people who skipped town and hide in the woods to escape the law, and turning them in to the hotel. If after those 45 days David remains single, he will be turned into an animal.

This forced condition of partnership, desperately feigning love for someone just to stay alive, is awful. "Love" can't exist without intent and sincerity. David and the other hotel guests are compelled to maintain ersatz relationships in order to survive-- a cruel Catch-22 situation. This meditation on the nature of love and healthy relationships is a great, timeless message I loved.

With that said, The Lobster is a very inaccessible film. I and the rest of this film's appreciative audience are of a cinematic minority. We enjoy the weird, the challenging, the subtle, and the obtuse. I knew what I was getting myself into, and I really enjoyed this wicked riddle of a movie. It's a shame, but many people will be put off by its composition and manner. The film's odd (but fitting) lack of affect in the hotel guests, deliriously nonlinear structure, dark and off-putting comedy, and refusal to explain itself will be loved by people like me, but unfortunately will not be appreciated by Joe Schmoe.

Rating: 4/5

Recommendability: 2/5

Best Line: Hotel Manager: Now have you thought of what animal you'd like to be if you end up alone? 

David: Yes. A lobster. 

Hotel Manager: Why a lobster? 

David: Because lobsters live for over one hundred years, are blue-blooded like aristocrats, and stay fertile all their lives. I also like the sea very much.

Legend

5: See it now! (Amazing/Classic)

4: Very good. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

3: Good/ inconsistently great..

2: Not good/squandered potential/terrible but had one great part/etc.

1: Walk away and forget about this one/so goddamned bad it’s awesome.

Overrated!: 17 movies that I found bloated, pretentious, simply overrated and/or outright bad, yet received critical acclaim. (In no particular order)

1. Les Miserables (Tom Hooper, 2012)
2. Frozen (Chris Buck, 2013)
3. Liar Liar (Tom Shadyac, 1997)
4. An American Werewolf in London (John Landis, 1981)
5. Henry V (Kenneth Branagh, 1989)
6. The Road (John Hillcoat, 2009)
7. Dangerous Liaisons (Stephen Frears, 1988)
8. Boyhood (Richard Linklater, 2014)
9. All Quiet on the Western Front (Lewis Milestone, 1930)
10. Inside Out (Pete Docter, 2015)
11. Amélie (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001)
12. Flirting With Disaster (David O. Russell, 1996)
13. Black Robe (Bruce Beresford, 1991)
14. Lincoln (Steven Spielberg, 2012)
15. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (Matt Reeves, 2014)
16. Gravity (Alfonso Cuarón, 2013)-- I hate this movie. It's a special effects show and nothing more. It has next to no plot, dialogue, or even writing. A very small, disingenuous effort at conveying emotion is made by referencing Sandra Bullock's character's daughter left back on Earth, and even that is forced. It is an amazing visual spectacle, but other than that, it is an empty carapace of a movie.

Criminally Underrated!: 52 favorites that I feel were unfairly maligned (either by critics or audience) or misunderstood, in no particular order. (Note that all of these movies are 4-5 stars in my opinion)

1. Election (Alexander Payne, 1999)

2. Submarine (Richard Ayoade, 2010)

3. True Romance (Tony Scott, 1993)

4. Pineapple Express (David Gordon Green, 2008)

5. Raising Arizona (The Coen Brothers, 1987)

6. Garden State (Zach Braff, 2004)

7. Rob Zombie's debut and Sophomore efforts: House of 1,000 Corpses The Devil's Rejects Halloween (2003, 2005, and 2007)

8. Blue Ruin (Jeremy Saulnier, 2013)

9. Goon (Michael Dowse, 2011)

10. House of the Devil (Ti West, 2009)

11. Starry Eyes (Kevin Kolsch/Dennis Widmyer, 2014)

12. John Wick (Chad Stahelski, 2014)

13. 21 Jump Street (Phil Lord/Christopher Miller, 2012)

14. American Ultra (Nima Nourizadeh, 2015)

15. The Virgin Suicides (Sofia Coppola, 1999)

16. Killing Them Softly (Andrew Dominik, 2012)

17. We Need to Talk About Kevin (Lynne Ramsay, 2011)

18. Adam Wingard's The Guest (2014) and You're Next (2013)

19. Burn After Reading (The Coen Brothers, 2008)

20. A Scanner Darkly (Richard Linklater, 2006)

21. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (Lorene Scafaria, 2012)

22. Scream 2, 3, and 4 (Wes Craven, 1997, 2000, 2011)

23. The Double (Richard Ayoade, 2013)

24. Punch-Drunk Love (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2002)

25. World's Greatest Dad and God Bless America (Bobcat Goldthwait, 2008 and 2011)

26. The Serpent and the Rainbow (Wes Craven, 1988)

27. Frailty (Bill Paxton, 2001)

28. Bernie (Richard Linklater, 2011)

29. Angel Heart (Alan Parker, 1987)

30. Shoot 'Em Up (Michael Davis, 2007)

31. Trick 'r Treat (Michael Dougherty, 2007)

32. Four Lions (Chris Morris, 2010)

33. The Guard (John Michael McDonagh, 2011)

34. In A World (Lake Bell, 2013)

35. Mean Creek (Jacob Aaron Estes, 2004)

36. Be Kind Rewind (Michel Gondry, 2008)

37. We're The Millers (Rawson Marshall Thurber, 2013)

38. Inherent Vice (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2014)

39. Step Brothers (Adam McKay, 2008)

40. It Follows (David Robert Mitchell, 2014)

41. Cabin In the Woods (Drew Goddard, 2012)

42. Gattacca (Andrew Niccol, 1997)

43. The Mist (Frank Darabont, 2007)

44. Red Dragon (Brett Ratner, 2002)

45. The World's End (Edgar Wright, 2013)

46. Idiocracy (Mike Judge, 2006)

47. Super (James Gunn, 2010)

48. Monsters (Gareth Edwards, 2010)

49. Hostel (Eli Roth, 2005)

50. Adventureland (Greg Mottola, 2009)
51. Only God Forgives (Nicolas Winding Refn, 2013)
52. The Green Hornet (Michel Gondry, 2011)

American Ultra Review

Directed by Nima Nourizadeh

Written by Max Landis

Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, 

Connie Britton, John Leguizamo, 

and Topher Grace

         
Most people will watch this and think “that was weird” or “that was a trip”. The brilliance of American Ultra that it is not merely a trip. Sure, it’s a delirious, comedic action movie that is admittedly “trippy” often. But suprisingly, it maintains a balance between that funny, trippy action/stoner/spy/comedy conglomerate and grounded drama. The latter entails the portrayal of the floundering relationship of Mike and Phoebe, two best friends and lovers languishing in young adult malaise, who also happen to be stoners. That may sound like the typical sappy subplot that is thrown in to almost every action movie— the one that mostly ends up coming across as forced or is ignored in the end. But it totally works. Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart have some of the most compelling chemistry I’ve seen recently. “Whoa there, Jacob, that’s quite a statement! Surely you aren’t telling me Kristen Stewart can act?”. Hey, come here— I got something to tell you. You’re goddamned right. She is great. She works well, and she has been for some years now. Forget her Twilight missteps. I digress… This balance of batshit dark comedy and tender, meaningful drama is rarely delivered in movies these days. Filmmakers try and often fail. Blending genres is very difficult; American Ultra’s success in this regard is one of its greatest achievements. Despite its self-consciously over-the-top and/or raunchy moments, that balance is seamless. This movie does what other (much loved by myself) action-comedies that subvert their genres (Shoot ‘Em Up, Crank, Kingsman, etc.) did not, which is to be more than the sum of its parts, and it is therefore better than those. I never thought I would say that a film in the same vein as Kingsman is better than it, but it’s happened.

Best Line: Phoebe: Okay, so just lead me through this one more time. Just so I'm clear. 

Mike Howell: Um, I hit him with a spoon and his lungs exploded. 

Rating: 5/5

Reccomendability: 5/5

Legend

5: See it now! (Amazing/Classic)

4: Very good. I would recommend it readily.

3: Good/ inconsistently great..

2: Not good/needlessly squandered potential/terrible but had one great part/etc.

1: Walk away and forget about this one/so goddamned bad it’s awesome.

The Cinemasochist's 10 Most Disturbing Movies (that he has seen)

1. We Need to Talk About Kevin
2. Hostel/Hostel II
3. The Devil's Rejects
4. Starry Eyes
5. The Descent
6. Oldboy
7. Leaving Las Vegas
8. Full Metal Jacket
9. House of 1000 Corpses (I put this lower than TDR because it's funnier and more batshit than TDR).
10. The Mist