Seems an appropriate title for an inappropriately late review of "The Hangover." Because it was so very long ago that I watched said movie, I'll stick to impressions in an effort to save face and keep the writing pure. It's a bromance of sorts, but with subtler personal changes than in "I Love You Man," and even though said changes are only slightly less obvious, that little bit makes all the difference. Bare bones plot summary: standard issue groom, two of his best friends and his awkward, soon-to-be brother-in-law (too many hyphens) hit up Vegas for a bachelor party to end all bachelor parties. We witness the approach, hotel check-in, and then first drink of the night, and then watch a sped up shot of the skyline going from night to morning, and then get to see the aftermath of the debauchery. The biggest consequence is that the groom has gone missing, leaving approximately two days for the friends to find him, bond, sort out their differences, mature, and have a hell of a funny time. The comedy is broad and physical at times, including a rather unnecessarily crude scene with tasers, but is occasionally smarter and sharper than the mass median style it promises (such as when brother-in-law Zach Galifinakis has a dramatic music, slow motion, old west-style showdown during the aforementioned taser scene). This is comedy in the broadest sense, but not comedy without a sense of humor. For every time someone suffers physical trauma or for every drunk joke or for every other sort of stupid but funny moment there... well, the ration isn't exactly 1:1, but the fine moments like a Mike Tyson cameo make up for the other stuff. And the acting ain't bad either- Zach Galifinakis does a great job being weird and uncomfortable, Ed Helms is good as the uptight friend, the douchebag friend (too lazy to look him up) does a nice job of slowly toning down his brashness, and the supporting cast also shines, especially Heather Graham. And the character transformations are entirely suitable, especially that of douchebag friend, whose self-confidence, originally a major defect, turns into practical resourcefulness as he turns his considerable skills of douchieness to recovering his lost friend. Although Ed Helm's rejection of his whippedness may be more satisfying. Bottom line: it may be a comedy engineered towards the bros, but we can learn to live comfortable alongside our broseph bretheren. Last note: the music selection is a pretty godawful combination of top 20 pop and terrible rap songs, save Kanye's "Can't Tell Me Nothing," which Galifinakis did a music video for. I thought that was a super-clever in joke.
Okay. I haven't forgotten Pac-Biggie, but it's really hard to find an angle for that. I promise more recent movies and reviews in the near future. Cool stuff, let's get to it.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Ya, Odd Horten. And guesties.
Y'all lucky, you get two posts for the price of one today. Our good friend Jake over at the Tartar Sauce (a more reputable blog of pop culture and all that is good) hooked us up with a little guest post gig. So for thoughts on up, direct your attention that-a-way. For strange yet pleasing Norwegian films, you've come to the right place.
It never really feels like I'm home until I see a foreign or indie movie at the local indie theater, so you could call this our homecoming review. Welcome back to the wonderful world of little-known joy and rewarding cross-cultural immersion. Forgive what could sound pretentious. Our movie today is "O'Horten," a very strange and dreamlike movie that is also deeply pleasing in an odd way (and no pun very much intended). The movie chronicles the adventures of Odd Horten, a Norwegian train conductor who has just retired. That's basically all there is to a premise; the rest of the movie follows Odd on the path that retired life takes him, occasionally funny and occasionally meditatively symbolic. The entire movie moves at a very subdued rate, and nothing is really explained, yet the beautiful images and unusual charm of Odd and his journeys yield a very consistent sense of wonder and pleasure. This is proving a very difficult movie to review, because like a dream the individual qualities tend to pale in description, while all that is left is a vivid memory. The amusing scenes are usually awkwardly incongruous, like a situation when Odd is detained while passing through an apartment (to get into the building he had to enter another apartment via scaffolding) and ends up falling asleep, only to be awoken by the family's morning routine. Or the retirement festivities, where the train engineers perform a bizarre chant and then sit around trying to guess the model of various trains by recorded sounds. Then there are moments that seem to be extremely pensive or spiritual, like an involvement with a lively old drunk who proves to be more mysterious than he lets on, or a sequence where Odd brokers a deal to sell his boat. And the images... lots and lots of trains and snow and slow, peaceful movement with twinkling lights in that profound northern darkness. This is bewitching filmmaking; all that prevents this from being a perfect movie is the mystery, which I certainly wouldn't change because it makes the film as wonderful as it is, although probably transient in the memory as a dream. Either way, definitely worth the watch. It is a very subtle and Scandinavian movie, and the lilt of the Norwegian dialogue is almost as comforting as the end feeling of peace. Retirement is certainly an adventure, but not one with explicit goals or understanding, and this story is glorious.
I still haven't forgotten about Pac vs. Biggie, and I also have a review of "Drag Me to Hell" pending, although the experience was overwhelming so I need time to figure out an angle. All together there's a pleasant sense of busyness around here, so stay tuned.
It never really feels like I'm home until I see a foreign or indie movie at the local indie theater, so you could call this our homecoming review. Welcome back to the wonderful world of little-known joy and rewarding cross-cultural immersion. Forgive what could sound pretentious. Our movie today is "O'Horten," a very strange and dreamlike movie that is also deeply pleasing in an odd way (and no pun very much intended). The movie chronicles the adventures of Odd Horten, a Norwegian train conductor who has just retired. That's basically all there is to a premise; the rest of the movie follows Odd on the path that retired life takes him, occasionally funny and occasionally meditatively symbolic. The entire movie moves at a very subdued rate, and nothing is really explained, yet the beautiful images and unusual charm of Odd and his journeys yield a very consistent sense of wonder and pleasure. This is proving a very difficult movie to review, because like a dream the individual qualities tend to pale in description, while all that is left is a vivid memory. The amusing scenes are usually awkwardly incongruous, like a situation when Odd is detained while passing through an apartment (to get into the building he had to enter another apartment via scaffolding) and ends up falling asleep, only to be awoken by the family's morning routine. Or the retirement festivities, where the train engineers perform a bizarre chant and then sit around trying to guess the model of various trains by recorded sounds. Then there are moments that seem to be extremely pensive or spiritual, like an involvement with a lively old drunk who proves to be more mysterious than he lets on, or a sequence where Odd brokers a deal to sell his boat. And the images... lots and lots of trains and snow and slow, peaceful movement with twinkling lights in that profound northern darkness. This is bewitching filmmaking; all that prevents this from being a perfect movie is the mystery, which I certainly wouldn't change because it makes the film as wonderful as it is, although probably transient in the memory as a dream. Either way, definitely worth the watch. It is a very subtle and Scandinavian movie, and the lilt of the Norwegian dialogue is almost as comforting as the end feeling of peace. Retirement is certainly an adventure, but not one with explicit goals or understanding, and this story is glorious.
I still haven't forgotten about Pac vs. Biggie, and I also have a review of "Drag Me to Hell" pending, although the experience was overwhelming so I need time to figure out an angle. All together there's a pleasant sense of busyness around here, so stay tuned.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
