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jimimoe-1
Reviews
In the Electric Mist (2009)
C'est huh?
I liked watching the movie, but i didn't like the movie. Why? I really enjoyed the bayou scenery, the cinematographic landscapes, a different cinematic tempo, and of course Tommy Lee. All were pleasantries in a world of crap films that abound. BUT, and here is the kicker... what just happened in the last 2 hours? At every turn the story is dished out like patchy comic book with no flow to the plot. Though i loved the tempo of the shots there was no meat on these bones... and other than tommy lee and the daughter, no other characters (except the cop with the mosquito/bat joke) left anything for us to hold on to or want to see more of. Plot wise i felt tossed from one awkward portrayal of some event or person to the next, each scene consistently lacking something important. Just as some French flicks can end, leaving you hanging like an abrupt slice of life does, this film felt like that the whole way through but not at the end! In some ways it flowed like Jules and Jim, and i can't put my finger on why i draw this distant similarity. But in the Electric Mist, the question, "what's the point?" was a recurring theme for me in the details and dialogs. Even though i felt kidnapped and tossed in the back of a van for a lot the film, being lost just really didn't matter, because we are spoon fed the step-by-step details of the choppy simple plot which left me feeling like all the details and the plot superfluously and inanely added up to very little by the end. You see, you ultimately get to the end, and i got there with a lingering "huh?". Again, don't watch this for the plot or the attempt at mystery, there is neither. Don't expect the thriller or action it tries to be, or even to be engaged by any deep social commentary, it fell short on all these too. Watch it to get out of the rut and repetition of Hollywood, and into some beautiful bayou through some French eyes with the ever enjoyable Tommy Lee as captivating guide who pulls off some good small town tough sheriff moments.
Juno (2007)
sassy sweet and smart
this is my kind a film! its a little nerdy and witty smart... characters are all so well done and very real... i don't think i blinked the whole movie. It is so nice to see a powerful movie where hot sexiness and the power of money NEVER enter the movie. The topics were serious and thought provoking, but Juno takes us by the hand and walks us through her frank perception of life. Every hero has to get through the trial of life, and the heroes do get through the trials with resolve, wit sarcasm, emotion and and and move on in the world. Maybe I liked it because i saw my self in it and wished i could have fared as well as any of the characters in there... in their normal, happy, middle class suburban multi cultural broken and repaired family life. and the sound track was great too. I should give it a 10, not sure why not.
Weirdsville (2007)
Weirdsville
Weirdsville = = the off kilter of After Hours + turns of 2 Smoking Barrels + twists of Trainspotting + a dash of Reservoir Dogs + the warmth of Broomstick Boys + a shake of Run Lola Run + a sprig of Fargo and Office Space.
Not what i expected in a small movie. I expected so much less, and got so much more. I was caught off guard in it's bright happy portrayal of very dark things. Drugs, crime, gangsters, prostitution, Satan cult and murder all felt like being at a cozy winter slumber party. The minimal cast and barren scenes were perfect, and lonely winter bleakness of the sets enhanced the characters lives and yet another level of warmth to them and to the script. I was on the edge of my seat most of the time... not in thriller suspense as much as the constant 2 hour smile and ongoing hearty feel-good laughs like i was on a crazy roller coaster of tickles in the Scooby-Doo haunted house... for adults.
I really wish there were more films like this.
Not a big budget, not a big name roster, not under scripted, not pretentious, not goofy slapstick. But it was well shot, well edited, well paced, well scripted, simple-smart, warm, fun and funny... and about drugs, crime, gangsters, prostitution, Satan cult and murder, and stand-by-me friendships in the winter. It never blew my mind, and never felt cutting edge original, but i really loved it because it held me, and quirked me, and it really felt so fresh, free, filling and well done from the title to the end of the credits... including a great soundtrack of music I have never heard of, but wish i had.