What's The Latest Film You Have Seen?

Engine · 07-23-2013, 06:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slow Groove

I've noticed people who dislike it really fucking hate it, and people who like it really love it. I really loved it, I just watched it again. It's more Valhalla Rising than it is Drive.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alfred

Only God Forgives
Taken at face value, the film won't satisfy you. Most of the appeal in this film is trying to figure out what exactly the characters and actions represent.

Spoiler for very minor spoilers:

I kind of disagree with you both. SG, I thought it was an entertaining 90 minutes but I really did not love it or hate it. I simply liked it. As for art films, I think Valhalla Rising is better than Only God Forgives but I found neither of them pretentious. Both rely on atmosphere and Refn has pretty much mastered atmosphere building.

Alfred, I think that what the characters and actions represent are right there on the surface, in plain view. I think the appeal is just watching the extremely simple story unfold. And the action scenes that are always brutal and/or gruesome.

Overall, I felt the minimal plot and story was rectified with an incredibly good atmosphere and I wasn't bored by the film at any point. I didn't find it to be particularly cerebral or "Lynchian" (Lynch uses a lot of story and plot, however much he distorts and and obscures them).

Kristin Scott Thomas really steals every scene that she's in, although maybe that's because she's the only one who has lines made of multiple entire sentences. Gosling's acting was as at least as minimal as everything else and it kind of validates this parody:

Alfred · 07-23-2013, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Engine

Alfred, I think that what the characters and actions represent are right there on the surface, in plain view. I think the appeal is just watching the extremely simple story unfold. And the action scenes that are always brutal and/or gruesome.

Overall, I felt the minimal plot and story was rectified with an incredibly good atmosphere and I wasn't bored by the film at any point. I didn't find it to be particularly cerebral or "Lynchian" (Lynch uses a lot of story and plot, however much he distorts and and obscures them).

Kristin Scott Thomas really steals every scene that she's in, although maybe that's because she's the only one who has lines made of multiple entire sentences. Gosling's acting was as at least as minimal as everything else and it kind of validates this parody:

Maybe it was because I mostly spoiled the major plot points for myself by reading post-Cannes discussion, but I really was not watching this film for the plot. I was watching it to see how the plot fit together, how the pacing was, how the tension was built, symbolism, etc. And of course to admire the film's technical aspects.

Where I find the film "Lynchian" is mostly in how Refn messed with tone and realism. A film like Blue Velvet begins with the tone of a normal crime thriller, before introducing some of its more bizarre characters and going full-on Lynch. This film had the same occasional tonal irregularities that only served to make the film more bizarre as it went along.

Spoiler for some plot points:

Engine · 07-23-2013, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alfred

Maybe it was because I mostly spoiled the major plot points for myself by reading post-Cannes discussion, but I really was not watching this film for the plot. I was watching it to see how the plot fit together, how the pacing was, how the tension was built, symbolism, etc. And of course to admire the film's technical aspects.

Where I find the film "Lynchian" is mostly in how Refn messed with tone and realism. A film like Blue Velvet begins with the tone of a normal crime thriller, before introducing some of its more bizarre characters and going full-on Lynch. This film had the same occasional tonal irregularities that only served to make the film more bizarre as it went along.

Spoiler for some plot points:

I can't really argue with any of that. Although, I do think that Lynch is both more plot driven and weirder than Refn.
Also, I wasn't bashing Gosling's general acting. I could do without the fake toughguy accent (that he uses in ALL of his films and, apparently, in real life) but I can't really criticize what he did in this movie because it was what the part called for. The guy's obviously got dynamic talent as seen here: