Gone Girl

Love is a dish best served cold.

Part thriller, part romance, part social satire, David Fincher`s latest commodity is as elaborate and intelligent as you would expect.

The story, as the title suggests, springs from the conspicuous disappearance of Amy (Rosamund Pike) from the life of husband Nick (Ben Affleck).

Piece by piece, it is revealed to us, what started as a picture perfect relationship, starts ripping in the seems. This is, at least initially, a whodunnit, and Fincher eloquently shows us fragments of their history as a couple, confusing us as to how, and by whom, the loss of Amy came to pass.

As the book upon which it was based, we are deliberately being played, as to who`s the good and who`s the bad, and this segment of the movie is quite a ride. The truth, as in real life, is grayer, of course, but I like that you get the chance to make up your own mind about the two.

There is also stark media criticism to be found here, as the press and TV quickly turns the case into a witch hunt for the easy prey Nick.

Beforehand, my greatest issues were the two leading actors, of which neither are of my favourites. Ben Affleck basically has two expressions; dead-eye stare, and smirk. Put him in Armageddon, or any rom-com and he will do fine, by his good looks alone, but for any more diverse drama where a multifaceted palette is required, he will fall short. To his defense, I must state I am a fan of the director Affleck. If only he would have the foresight to limit himself to stay behind the camera, as he did in the impressive debut Gone Baby Gone, where he left the acting to his much more interesting and expressive little brother Casey. Whilst Argo, an excellent film, was sadly marred by Affleck`s usual wooden and emotionless presence. This is also the case in Gone Girl, although, like in the Town, this is a role which suits him better.

Rosamund Pike is far, far worse. If Affleck has the dead-eyed stare, Pike suffers from gigantic tin plate eyes syndrome, with the mimicry of a porcelain doll. I have never understood why they put her in A-movies. She even was the worst thing to appear in Doom. D O O M. But, apparently a pretty face is enough.

However, having said that, the actors never destroyed the film for me, and in honesty, these are among the better performances of both, undoubtedly for Pike. They are both suited for their roles in a way, but I generally just can`t avoid being unconvinced by these two actors.

Another problem is the supporting characters. The police officers, are just cardboard figures to me, lacking in depth and strangely idle in their police work. I keep waiting for them to say or do something vital for the plot, but they are just there.

Despite its flaws, the movie is never uninteresting, as we gradually learn the truth, and the final stage of the movie neatly offers several rewarding twists and shocks. There is however never a real feeling of suspense, and I am not sure if there should be. Maybe the movie suffers as much as it gains from its cross-genre-covering ambitions.

The verdict: Smart and elegant, but flabby. I am never bored, but I am never truly engaged either. Would the movie have been better with better actors? most definitely.

4 Bruces on the Campbell scale.

IMDB

The 5 best and the 5 most overrated movies of 2013

2013 was not a year to remember in movie history, but it delivered a few nuggets. Here comes a summary of the best/my favourite movies ( not necessarily the same, an interesting debate for another time), and the most overrated. Why not the most underrated as well, you ask? Well, in my book, vanishingly few movies are underrated, especially on IMDB. Undeserved and hype-affected adoration however, is a big, fat elephant in the room, which I for one would like to address. My theory is kind of based on the Emperor`s New Clothes; no one would like to admit that they are the only who are not seeing that he is fact naked. Or at least, not so well dressed as everyone claims. So when The Dark Knight ludicrously has 9.5 points after a few days, people have a predisposed opinion that it is in fact a masterpiece, and must grant it equal praise, or become the  black sheep, the sourpuss, the despised critic. Well, I guess someone has to be that despised critic.

But let`s start at the top. Here are my favourite five of 2013:

1. Django Unchained

Meta-director Tarantino does the western after his equally successful WW2 treatment. More comedy than ever, something no one but Tarantino could combine with the stark, dark and ofttimes unflinchingly brutal slavery source material.

2. Prisoners

Best thriller of the year by far; dark, twisty about what ordinary people are capable in the face of bereavement, with a great, believable turn from Jackman and Gyllenhaal, especially the latter. The only drawback is the implausible lack of effort from family to intervene in the vengeful atrocities of their close ones.

3.12 Years a Slave

Simply strong and moving, with great performances from Ejiofor, Fassbender and Ny`ongo.Wide-ranging as it should, but still with traces of art house in its lingering, beautiful shots.

4. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Not perfect, but all in all an excellent Middle Earth rump, with great effects, and some fantastic action sequences. Jackson still has darlingicide issues; the Smaug scene is too long!

5. Man of Steel

The guilty pleasure of the year. Dallas Buyers club, Gravity, Captain Philips among others is better, you may argue, but I left my brain at home and simply had a great two hours in the cinema!

Then, over to the most hype-inflated offerings of the year:

1.The Place Beyond the Pines.

Praised for its original structure of skipping between character perspectives, I found this overlong melodrama not credible and increasingly unengaging.

2.Lone Survivor

All in all, a tolerable war drama, but soaked neck-deep in sticky patriotism. The war scenes are at times powerful, but also at times reaching levels of downhill-rolling, slow-mo stupidity. Plus, the hail America-end, with the pictures of the real heroes, with that terrible, terrible song knocked it down one Bruce.

3.The World`s End

Simply don`t get the Pegg/Wright/Frost humor, and this is the poorest offering so far.

They are not funny, it is not funny, and along with the Apatow-wave, these guys are the most overrated in comedy the recent years.

4.Sightseers

Black comedy is my cup of tea, but this road movie about a dysfunctional couple on a killing spree is pure roadkill. I get the idea, but the two are simply obnoxious and unlikable, and the film is unfunnily violent and at best curious.

5.Fruitvale Station

This is actually an ok movie, but still overrated. It deals with heavy source material, the true story of a police shooting of young, African-american Oscar Grant, but important isn`t necessarily good. The movie trods along, proving that Grant was a normal, somewhat troubled, good-hearted young man until he meet his untimely demise, but I don`t really get the motivation of the movie. How about showing some alternative perspective, what made the shooter tick?

Fury

The new Pitt war vehicle was quite anticipated in my book. Not because of expectations of premium filmmaking, but because decent war movies, especially WW2 ones, are hard to come by. As an average male I have a weak spot for combat action, and a massive well constructed  battle scene is the closest to a filmic orgasm I can get. *ehem*.
Fury depicts the closing act of WW2, as the allied forces are battling their way into a devastated and desperate Hitler Germany.
The mood is set quickly, with bleak images of smoke-veiled battlefields, after which we are introduced to Pitt and his battle-hardened comrades.
To start with the personae, this one does not stray from the cliché mantra. The tank ensemble consist of the hard-ass leader, you have the streetwise hispanic, the (seemingly)semi-retarded red-neck, the believer and soon the innocent recruit, who will be sure to have his coming of age.

In spite of this, the first part of the movie actually overwhelms me, with it`s grittiness, solid setups and acting. Do not expect originality, but there are a couple of strong scenes, where especially the seemingly dehumanized Pitt excels, proving director Ayer`s devotion to showing the true, grim face of war. And; of course the battle scenes are excellent.
Then, gradually, the Hollywood flavour grows stronger in intensity, and then I mean the music. That Ayer and co has put their faith in the total orchestra treatment becomes fairly obvious, composer Steven Price is even let loose in the midst of the battle scenes, as if  the hordes of Greek where hurling themselves upon the walls of Troy. However, in modern, more realistic war scenes, I would dare claim it unusual, and just a tad curious. Price`s Wagnerian themes grow more and more bombastic, and at times he is firing upon us with more artillery then the combined forces on the screen. Also the emotional scenes are heavy with piano and string moods, which we would do better without, relying on the performances, which are adequately strong.
The standout drama scene which it seems Ayer wants you to remember, happens midtime, where Pitt`s Wardaddy and Logan Lerman`s young, stainless Norman, chances upon two German women in their apartment.
This is scene which lets us go deeper into Wardaddy`s layers, and show the alternative aspects of war. There is undoubtedly invested intellectual ballast here, but sadly, you remember the scene for the wrong reasons. I find myself feeling awkward, trying to figure out what is trying to be conveyed. The scene is too long, too clumsily orchestrated and in the dramatic climax, you are not moved.

Overall, the characters continuity and journeys do not convince. For example Jon Bernthal`s Coon-Ass is first being a total, well, coon-ass, to little Norman, and not long after, he is suddenly apologising, which is clearly out of character. Also Norman goes quickly from total pacifism to “f***ing die, nazis!”
Though with sound and realistic beforehand expectations, this is not a dealbreaker. As the war continues, I find myself much more comfortable, and the finale is a massive showdown of epic proportions. That being said, if the beginning of the movie gave me the feeling of Saving Private Ryan, the end is more Rambo. It`s over the top, but madly entertaining.

All in all, a solid action war movie. The set pieces and battle scenes are great, and especially Pitt is solid. When the shooting stops, there is a lot to be desired. The main issue is the identity problem. The movie can`t decide whether to be a pure action movie, or a realistic war drama. If the former is true, a lot more dialogue deadweight should be cut, and if the latter is true, a lot more should be invested in the human department, plus lose the horns  of the Valkyries. But, like Wardaddy hammering away at the gerries from the top of his tank with a 55 mm, although a bit of a bastard, this is an effective bastard, and is in the end worthy of 4.5 Bruces on the Campbell scale.

Links:

IMDB

Soundtrack

Welcome to the Moviexutioner

I love watching movies, and I love dissecting them. My goal with this blog is to express honest reviews, free of hype, political correctness and the greatest beast of all; servility. I am no art movie goon, and I enjoy a blockbuster as much as the next guy. However, production value and big names should not be enough to score 7 stars or more on the IMDB, or say 3 or more in Empire Magazine. With this blog I aim to cut through the hype and adulation, and offer real reviews. Or in other words, simply say my opinion. I for one, would rather be wrong than indifferent. See you soon.