Night at the Movies: The Life Aquatic

[Scrivener]

Just got out of the theatre and as of right now I havn't decided specifically how I feel about it. Numb maybe. It's pretty typical Wes Anderson stuff - very very very dry... with occassional sparks of genious. The problem is (as with other Wes Anderson films, like Royal Tenenbaums) that you really have to wait for the good stuff. The first hour of the movie is slow and uninteresting setup, eventually leading up to some kind of startling and, apparently, meaningful conclusion.

I like the look of the film... and I don't mean the shocking amateurishness of the cinematography or the [intentional?] ineptitude of the editing... I'm refering to the sets and creatures and concepts. Wes Anderson has a great imagination - but just dosn't seem capable of qualitatively translating his ideas to film.

The problem is how sloppy the storytelling is. It's like a prime cut of kobe beef that has been poorly trimmed, overseasoned, and overcooked. While tighter editing would have made worlds of difference, I fear that if the movie had been properly cut there would be about 45 mins worth of actual content... hardly enough to call it a feature film. But as is, there is so much dead air and wasted time (and some odd soundtrack choices, especially earlier in the film) that you reach a point where you simply stop caring and begin to wish you were doing something more interesting.

Furthermore, a large number of the jokes fall absolutely flat. I could liken it the the fellow who tosses in his twopence at the end of a joke, trying to top it with his own - but succeeds only in killing the mood and making everyone feel awkward. It's the comedian who opens with the infamously unfunny lines "I just flew in..." and then waits vainly for laughs at the end.

Having worked all this out of my system in the course of this review, I think I have come to this numerical conclusion:

5/10

There's a good movie in there somewhere - you just have to sift through a whole lot of worthlessness to get to it. I think this could be a worthy remix project when the DVD is released. I could definately make it better - much better... and much shorter. If only the studios would support indy film remixing... such as with music... the world of cinema would be a much better, more rewarding place (George Lucas, I'm talking to you).

Later this week: Phantom of the Opera, and Darkness

[ 12-26-2004, 04:17 AM: Message edited by: Scrivener ]

[Supreme Cmdr]

quote:

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Originally posted by Scrivener:

Later this week:

Phantom of the Opera

, and

Darkness

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Wot? No Aviator?

[Scrivener]

quote:

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Originally posted by Supreme Cmdr:

quote:

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Originally posted by Scrivener:

Later this week:

Phantom of the Opera

, and

Darkness

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Wot? No Aviator?

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As much as I love Martin Scorsese The Aviator just isn't calling out to me right now. I have enough movies to catch up on as it is - so maybe if I have time I'll catch a showing later this week... but it's just not on my priority list at the moment.

[Kevin Trotter]

I don't know whether or not I like Wes Anderson as a director or not. I had the same feeling you did Scriv after leaving. I feel Wes is attempting to play with the medium of film in a very tounge in cheek look ma no hands method that in the end very hit or miss. More miss than hit..6/10