I still smile when I remember chatting with my brother's friend (who was a Canadian version of a young GOP bro) about the movie when it came out and it was clear that the reason he hated it so much was because he knew it had torn him a new one.
Incredibly different film that evokes strong emotions by making you repeatedly uncomfortable is Everything Everywhere All at Once.
When we think about how the movie is both incredibly funny and incredibly dramatic and poignant, we don't always realize how the juvenile gross out humor provokes
a response in us that also primes us to feel the serious emotions even more deeply. Something about a little disgust, feeling shocked and aghast, shifts our emotional state for what else is to come.
I think excellent filmmakers love to play with that kind of a thing in different ways
A movie so divisive, most people probably don’t pay attention to its message. But they should, because it’s not just about the pleasures of conformity and the importance of trends, it’s also a statement about society itself.
I think these days people catch on to it more easily both because of the media we've been exposed to and because the violence doesn't seem as shocking, so it's easier to focus on the fact that it is intentionally unrealistic.
I also think it's easier on second watch because on the first you are
Agreed! It's big on nuance and it's a very self aware kinda film, not terribly common for a mainstream release especially then. It's very funny, in my opinion.
I find Man Bites Dog (1992, Belgian) to be very funny, but everyone I know who’s seen it looks at me like I’m crazy. I’ve been asked, seriously, “What is wrong with you?”
I think if I’d seen it in the theatre, I, too, would be the only one laughing. 😁
They shot the scene with Willem Dafoe three times! One take he played it like he knew Bateman was guilty, one take he played it like he wasn't sure, and one take he played it like he thought he was innocent.
Then they spliced all three takes together to make it completely inconsistent.
To me it appears to be a representation of psychosis and devilization through the lens of the person with psychosis. You know something is wrong but it might not be what you think and what you do think is happening might be something else entirely
I always enjoyed the concept that he isn't an unreliable narrator to us, he is an unreliable narrator to HIMSELF. He can't trust himself to know what happened or even to know his own identity.
So I actually have a podcast with a friend where we watch be horror films so I love this kind of thing. Movies where the villain is a sofa that comes to life and kills people or a piece of malicious spaghetti is kind of my favorite thing.
As an artistic endeavor, could it be multiple things? Satire of the worst of us, a mirror held up to wealthy white collars. Also a "haha" shoot myself comedy.
It's absolutely multiple things. But the reason I say it's a comedy is because I believe it was shot with intent to be a comedy. The humor isn't accidental and it is a fundamental part of the film. So I'm not saying it's exclusively a comedy, I'm just recognizing that it is one
Comments
Thank you
It's funny how the answer is never "maybe I should do some self-reflection" but "No it's the satire that is wrong"
How is this not hilarious?
It's so much absurdism
Somehow that degenerated into people either thinking it was a slasher flick or disaffected males identifying with the protagonist at face value.
Art that has elements of assertism and satire will always risk being missed entirely by some people.
What the heck voice to text I didn't even know assertism was a word
When we think about how the movie is both incredibly funny and incredibly dramatic and poignant, we don't always realize how the juvenile gross out humor provokes
I think excellent filmmakers love to play with that kind of a thing in different ways
I also think it's easier on second watch because on the first you are
I think if I’d seen it in the theatre, I, too, would be the only one laughing. 😁
Christian Bale said he saw it as a comedy when cheating it and when I watch it that makes sense to me
Then they spliced all three takes together to make it completely inconsistent.
Which is the mask and which is reality.
Is kind of the point
They're all psychos
Typo
This movie hit that spot