“At this moment, I didn't feel shame or fear, but just kind of blah, like when you're sitting there and all the water's run out of the bathtub.”
-Holly Sargis, Badlands (1973)
And that’s kind of how I feel about this movie. I saw it nearly a week ago, and for the life of me I can’t find one interesting thing to say about it, any feelings towards it to convey. It moved me, but only in brief, fleeting moments that were crushed by bad symbolism at the end of the picture. But it wasn’t really a bad movie, per se. There was nothing in it overly obnoxious, the characters were pretty solidly-built, and it’s decently entertaining, but this really is territory Wes Anderson’s been over before in far more compelling ways, and so it’s just…it’s tedious. It’s an hour-and-a-half long movie, and it feels tedious. You wait for something new or unexpected to happen or be said, but it doesn’t, but what does happen and what is said is still pretty good. But not great. Or new. Just kind of blah, like when you’re sitting there and all the water’s run out of the bathtub.
And honest to God, that's all I've got.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Happy THREE Year Anniversary, John (and you too Karolyn!!)!
I love you!
-Karolyn
I love you too!!! ^ ^
-John
-Karolyn
I love you too!!! ^ ^
-John
Friday, October 05, 2007
THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD
I’ve been trying like hell to write about this movie without making it seem boring (wanted so badly to have this up last night, but I came down with a cold). But so many of the words I like to hear about certain films – slow-paced, two and a half hours long, made up mostly of conversations, taking its time to let scenes breathe and the characters exist more in a more open-ended plot and environment – just make the movie sound like a bore. Make no mistake, this is an exceptional film. It’s incredibly thrilling to watch because its cast is so strong and its shots so beautiful. But it’s easy to fall into a habit of apologizing and setting up expectations, rather than to just talking about how riveting an experience this is, a hard thing to convey with a film like this.
Let’s start with Andrew Dominik – a second-time director (who also adapted the book into a screenplay) who shows more capability and vision two films in than many directors do in five, if ever at all. He helped himself along by assembling an awesome team, starting with Roger Deakins, maybe the best American cinematographer today. There’s no question the film is gorgeous, and even if (big if) the plot starts to lose you, you can’t help but be taken in by its beauty.
Then there’s the cast, one of the more cohesive casts I’ve seen in some time. There’s a scene in the first act of the film (if indeed this film even has such a structure) with Paul Schneider as Dick Liddil trying to charm a woman (Kailin See, who’s more captivating in her tiny role than most actresses are for entire films) he’s been warned not to. This innocent back-and-forth has more to do with the events to come than we know (there isn’t a wasted frame in the film’s 160-minute running time), so all you can do is hope the actors are good enough to carry it. And, to their credit, the scene ends up loaded with sensuality without even getting to “the good stuff.”
Sam Rockwell plays Charley Ford, Robert Ford’s older brother. If anyone who’s seen Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (and you should) is still surprised by what this guy’s capable of, I can only ask “why?”
What did surprise me is Brad Pitt. Intellectually, I remember with great fondness his work in Se7en, Twelve Monkeys, Snatch, and especially Fight Club, but it’s been a long time since Brad Pitt’s been this good, and it’s refreshing to know he still can be. It doesn’t hurt that he was practically born to play this role. Jesse James comes with all the baggage of what we as an audience know about him (as does Pitt for that matter), but it’s the scenes of intense to crazed paranoia that makes Pitt’s performance stand out. It’s Pitt that puts these scenes right on the edge, where you really, truly believe anything can happen (and, if you see the film, you’ll know exactly the scene I’m thinking of – anyone who’s seen Fight Club knows no one laughs like Pitt, who with a mere chuckle can put the entire scene right on the edge).
But this is Casey Affleck’s film, and it’s about damn time. I’ve been rooting for this guy since I saw Gerry four years ago, and only now is he getting his due. I’d heard how good he was as the Coward Robert Ford, but man…still he surprised me. This is such a subtle performance, I just know the skill involved will go unnoticed by many, but it’s the kind actors admire, and the kind that’ll land him better and better roles (though this is one of those performances you watch and you’ll swear he’ll never be better, and maybe he won’t). His character is happening right underneath the surface, and Affleck brings it out with subtle, subtle gestures, inflections, smiles, and facial expressions. Beyond just the basics, this is an actor who has total command over every millimeter of his face. There are looks and smiles and discomforts he creates that maybe one percent of all actors can do. It’s amazing it took this long for Hollywood to really find out what this guy, who’s been in their films for ten years now, is made of.
This isn’t quite a perfect film, though for most of it I could’ve sworn it is. Everything after the assassination is quite lovely, but it’s evident that the studio decided no one would care much what happened after the titular event (we know there were heavy edits on this film, which was due to be released a year ago, and there have been reports of cuts running over 3 hours being screened), and it ends up playing like an extended, slightly uneven, epilogue. The problem, though, is that the studio’s half-right. I saw this film with a free-screening crowd, who’ll do whatever they damn well please with a film’s running time (thus far, unlike Portland, Boston’s free-screening crowds have the decency to stay quiet during the film). So in addition to the dozen or so people who had left by the halfway mark (this ain’t your typical Western, folks), I’d say at least another dozen left after Bob shot Jesse.
Also, the film doesn’t quite earn its voice-over narration (which I suspect played a much smaller role in Dominik’s original cut). I’m pretty harsh on narration in films because it’s a very, very easy way to communicate facts and feelings to audiences, but I’ve seen enough films that use it to great effect (Barry Lyndon and everything by Terrence Malick are my go-to films when defending narration) to not write it off completely. They do have a fantastic voice in Hugh Ross, but it feels like many of the narrated sections would’ve better been served simply being shown to us (again, I ache to see Dominik’s cut).
But these end up as minor quibbles. There’s no question this is a masterful work by an ambitious director with a fully-rounded cast. And, for my money, it’s the best film so far of 2007.
The film is continuing to play only in select cities, but I believe it goes wide next Friday. Go see it won't you please?
Let’s start with Andrew Dominik – a second-time director (who also adapted the book into a screenplay) who shows more capability and vision two films in than many directors do in five, if ever at all. He helped himself along by assembling an awesome team, starting with Roger Deakins, maybe the best American cinematographer today. There’s no question the film is gorgeous, and even if (big if) the plot starts to lose you, you can’t help but be taken in by its beauty.
Then there’s the cast, one of the more cohesive casts I’ve seen in some time. There’s a scene in the first act of the film (if indeed this film even has such a structure) with Paul Schneider as Dick Liddil trying to charm a woman (Kailin See, who’s more captivating in her tiny role than most actresses are for entire films) he’s been warned not to. This innocent back-and-forth has more to do with the events to come than we know (there isn’t a wasted frame in the film’s 160-minute running time), so all you can do is hope the actors are good enough to carry it. And, to their credit, the scene ends up loaded with sensuality without even getting to “the good stuff.”
Sam Rockwell plays Charley Ford, Robert Ford’s older brother. If anyone who’s seen Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (and you should) is still surprised by what this guy’s capable of, I can only ask “why?”
What did surprise me is Brad Pitt. Intellectually, I remember with great fondness his work in Se7en, Twelve Monkeys, Snatch, and especially Fight Club, but it’s been a long time since Brad Pitt’s been this good, and it’s refreshing to know he still can be. It doesn’t hurt that he was practically born to play this role. Jesse James comes with all the baggage of what we as an audience know about him (as does Pitt for that matter), but it’s the scenes of intense to crazed paranoia that makes Pitt’s performance stand out. It’s Pitt that puts these scenes right on the edge, where you really, truly believe anything can happen (and, if you see the film, you’ll know exactly the scene I’m thinking of – anyone who’s seen Fight Club knows no one laughs like Pitt, who with a mere chuckle can put the entire scene right on the edge).
But this is Casey Affleck’s film, and it’s about damn time. I’ve been rooting for this guy since I saw Gerry four years ago, and only now is he getting his due. I’d heard how good he was as the Coward Robert Ford, but man…still he surprised me. This is such a subtle performance, I just know the skill involved will go unnoticed by many, but it’s the kind actors admire, and the kind that’ll land him better and better roles (though this is one of those performances you watch and you’ll swear he’ll never be better, and maybe he won’t). His character is happening right underneath the surface, and Affleck brings it out with subtle, subtle gestures, inflections, smiles, and facial expressions. Beyond just the basics, this is an actor who has total command over every millimeter of his face. There are looks and smiles and discomforts he creates that maybe one percent of all actors can do. It’s amazing it took this long for Hollywood to really find out what this guy, who’s been in their films for ten years now, is made of.
This isn’t quite a perfect film, though for most of it I could’ve sworn it is. Everything after the assassination is quite lovely, but it’s evident that the studio decided no one would care much what happened after the titular event (we know there were heavy edits on this film, which was due to be released a year ago, and there have been reports of cuts running over 3 hours being screened), and it ends up playing like an extended, slightly uneven, epilogue. The problem, though, is that the studio’s half-right. I saw this film with a free-screening crowd, who’ll do whatever they damn well please with a film’s running time (thus far, unlike Portland, Boston’s free-screening crowds have the decency to stay quiet during the film). So in addition to the dozen or so people who had left by the halfway mark (this ain’t your typical Western, folks), I’d say at least another dozen left after Bob shot Jesse.
Also, the film doesn’t quite earn its voice-over narration (which I suspect played a much smaller role in Dominik’s original cut). I’m pretty harsh on narration in films because it’s a very, very easy way to communicate facts and feelings to audiences, but I’ve seen enough films that use it to great effect (Barry Lyndon and everything by Terrence Malick are my go-to films when defending narration) to not write it off completely. They do have a fantastic voice in Hugh Ross, but it feels like many of the narrated sections would’ve better been served simply being shown to us (again, I ache to see Dominik’s cut).
But these end up as minor quibbles. There’s no question this is a masterful work by an ambitious director with a fully-rounded cast. And, for my money, it’s the best film so far of 2007.
The film is continuing to play only in select cities, but I believe it goes wide next Friday. Go see it won't you please?
Sunday, September 30, 2007
INTO THE WILD
Y’know, a week ago I wasn’t even going to see this damn thing. For one thing, I don’t really care for Sean Penn all that much. Guy’s a fine actor and all, but he’s a big mess of ego and a little crazy, and while that either works wonders for, or doesn’t at all affect, his performances, it matters a LOT when he’s the guy in charge of the whole damn production (in addition to the directorial credit, he wrote the adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s book and produced the thing). But this film reads instead like the one he wanted to make his whole life.
The story revolves around Christopher McCandless, who just graduated college and is just about a shoo-in for Harvard Law School. Instead, he burns his money (literally), destroys all his identification, calls himself Alexander Supertramp and sets off…into the wild. His ultimate goal is his great Alaskan adventure, to basically live off the land somewhere in Alaska. It’s a vague goal, but he plans meticulously for it.
These kinds of stories have only a passing interest for me. People just packing up (or unpacking) their lives and heading on the road just “to be out there” are so often described idealistically by people who have no idea how tough it actually is out there. But while McClandless might not have known all he was in for, he definitely had an idea.
If there’s any fault in the movie (and there are a couple), it’s that Penn is in love with his subject. He tries to approach him with a critical eye by putting most of the narration on Christopher’s younger sister, but a) it’s pretty poorly written; it might be from the book, but it doesn’t sound as good as it may read, and b) in the end, we’ll end up with a beautiful (God, is this film beautiful) shot of Christopher against a sunset, away from the things of man. Another film that comes to mind constantly while watching this is Werner Herzog’s masterful documentary GRIZZLY MAN, which analyzes Timothy Treadwell, who spent a good chunk of each year in Alaska to live amongst the grizzly bears. That movie’s brilliance comes from its fascination with Treadwell’s life without celebrating it.
But in the end, it’s a minor quibble, because while Penn misses the opportunity for masterpiece, he ends up creating something that resonates emotionally deeper. It puts us right there with him, so when he fires a gun into the air over frustration of the lack of animals in Alaska, we feel that loss. When the people he encounters (people who almost seem invented, they’re so rich) question his goals, we also wonder how they don’t see the opportunity. It’s a young man’s ambition, but at least there was one young man who was willing to go for it.
I was just mentioning the people he comes into contact with along the way, and while they're great on page, they're even better onscreen. Penn casted the hell out of this one, even using Vince Vaughn as a wheat farmer (to perfection). Even better, though, are Catherine Keener and Brian Dierker (who isn't even an actor, but you wouldn't know it watching him) as on-the-road hippies. But the one that brings the house down is Hal Holbrook as Ron Franz, an elderly man who helps Christopher on the last leg of his trip before heading into Alaska. I don't want to discuss him too much, but his performance is more beautiful than any of the shots in the film.
I’d be remiss to not talk about Emile Hirsch, who plays Christopher. Hirsch first came on my radar with 2005’s LORDS OF DOGTOWN, a performance that (I’m told) didn’t work for everyone, but I thought was a downright revelation. I knew that if he was lucky enough, he’d be destined for big stuff, and this film solidifies it even more (and gives me hope for his starring role in next year’s SPEED RACER from the Wachowskis…no, really). It’s a spare performance, verbally, and so much is communicated with body language and his eyes, and at only twenty-two, Hirsch handles his character’s downfall better than other actors who have been doing this for much, much longer. He also looks freakishly like McCandless.
Anyway. The film’s long at 2 hours, 20 minutes, but there are parts that feel a bit spare. It often rushes from location to location and character to character, and in the editing stage, I can see why Penn made the choices he did. But somewhere out there (maybe among the films that’ll never be, hopefully in an eventual DVD release) is the real deal. One that doesn’t skirt the hardship Christopher placed on his family, and better tackles (what’s known of) the nuts-and-bolts of how he got from place to place. But as it stands, it’s a very impressive, deeply moving film. Man, those are overused words, but they definitely apply.
I just scored a pass to The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford for Tuesday, which I'm impossibly excited for, so I'll be writing about that as soon as the words come together. Next weekend also sees the release of the new Wes Anderson movie, The Darjeeling Limited (you can read my pre-release thoughts here), as well as the new Clooney flick, Michael Clayton. It's really starting now.
The story revolves around Christopher McCandless, who just graduated college and is just about a shoo-in for Harvard Law School. Instead, he burns his money (literally), destroys all his identification, calls himself Alexander Supertramp and sets off…into the wild. His ultimate goal is his great Alaskan adventure, to basically live off the land somewhere in Alaska. It’s a vague goal, but he plans meticulously for it.
These kinds of stories have only a passing interest for me. People just packing up (or unpacking) their lives and heading on the road just “to be out there” are so often described idealistically by people who have no idea how tough it actually is out there. But while McClandless might not have known all he was in for, he definitely had an idea.
If there’s any fault in the movie (and there are a couple), it’s that Penn is in love with his subject. He tries to approach him with a critical eye by putting most of the narration on Christopher’s younger sister, but a) it’s pretty poorly written; it might be from the book, but it doesn’t sound as good as it may read, and b) in the end, we’ll end up with a beautiful (God, is this film beautiful) shot of Christopher against a sunset, away from the things of man. Another film that comes to mind constantly while watching this is Werner Herzog’s masterful documentary GRIZZLY MAN, which analyzes Timothy Treadwell, who spent a good chunk of each year in Alaska to live amongst the grizzly bears. That movie’s brilliance comes from its fascination with Treadwell’s life without celebrating it.
But in the end, it’s a minor quibble, because while Penn misses the opportunity for masterpiece, he ends up creating something that resonates emotionally deeper. It puts us right there with him, so when he fires a gun into the air over frustration of the lack of animals in Alaska, we feel that loss. When the people he encounters (people who almost seem invented, they’re so rich) question his goals, we also wonder how they don’t see the opportunity. It’s a young man’s ambition, but at least there was one young man who was willing to go for it.
I was just mentioning the people he comes into contact with along the way, and while they're great on page, they're even better onscreen. Penn casted the hell out of this one, even using Vince Vaughn as a wheat farmer (to perfection). Even better, though, are Catherine Keener and Brian Dierker (who isn't even an actor, but you wouldn't know it watching him) as on-the-road hippies. But the one that brings the house down is Hal Holbrook as Ron Franz, an elderly man who helps Christopher on the last leg of his trip before heading into Alaska. I don't want to discuss him too much, but his performance is more beautiful than any of the shots in the film.
I’d be remiss to not talk about Emile Hirsch, who plays Christopher. Hirsch first came on my radar with 2005’s LORDS OF DOGTOWN, a performance that (I’m told) didn’t work for everyone, but I thought was a downright revelation. I knew that if he was lucky enough, he’d be destined for big stuff, and this film solidifies it even more (and gives me hope for his starring role in next year’s SPEED RACER from the Wachowskis…no, really). It’s a spare performance, verbally, and so much is communicated with body language and his eyes, and at only twenty-two, Hirsch handles his character’s downfall better than other actors who have been doing this for much, much longer. He also looks freakishly like McCandless.
Anyway. The film’s long at 2 hours, 20 minutes, but there are parts that feel a bit spare. It often rushes from location to location and character to character, and in the editing stage, I can see why Penn made the choices he did. But somewhere out there (maybe among the films that’ll never be, hopefully in an eventual DVD release) is the real deal. One that doesn’t skirt the hardship Christopher placed on his family, and better tackles (what’s known of) the nuts-and-bolts of how he got from place to place. But as it stands, it’s a very impressive, deeply moving film. Man, those are overused words, but they definitely apply.
I just scored a pass to The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford for Tuesday, which I'm impossibly excited for, so I'll be writing about that as soon as the words come together. Next weekend also sees the release of the new Wes Anderson movie, The Darjeeling Limited (you can read my pre-release thoughts here), as well as the new Clooney flick, Michael Clayton. It's really starting now.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE
As the Columbia logo came up at the beginning of this film, the only thing I could think was “I could probably do without seeing this movie.” It’d been a long week, and I’d already seen David Cronenberg’s awesome Eastern Promises a few hours earlier, and this was two and a half hours long and besides Roger Ebert’s four-star review (which came as a surprise), nothing out there made me believe this movie would be any good.
Don’t listen to any of it (except Ebert...good man that Ebert). This is an extraordinary accomplishment on every level – musically, cinematically…wow. I understand how this could have gone wrong for a lot of people, and I’m not going to say it’s a future classic, but for some circles. All doubts I had about the success of this film were shot from the second the “Hold Me Tight” montage starts up about a minute and a half into the film. It had me from then onward. And yeah, there are sequences that don’t completely work (putting “I Am the Walrus,” “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” and “Because,” with all the visual extremes that should accompany each, back to back to back is a little jarring), but this film falling short is ten times more interesting than many, MANY films “succeeding.” And yeah, sometimes it’s a little too clever for its own good (all the main characters’ names are taken from Beatles songs, and there are a ton of lines that reference songs), but that was far from what was on my mind when I walked out of the theater.
What was on my mind was the sheer joy I had watching it. Sure, it helps to have some of the most beautifully-written songs of all time, but my personal connections that come along when Lucy goes into “If I Fell” will only get a film so far. The rest is up to one of the true artistic visionaries, Julie Taymor. I’ve been loosely familiar with Taymor for a long time, but even without this, she’d have my loyalty for Broadway version of The Lion King. There are things Taymor does in this film that…I mean, I don’t know how to describe it. For those of you who love musicals, you’ll find this an extremely rewarding experience.
But to have any shot at getting this film, you’re going to have to love or be interested in any number of things – first, The Beatles. Not just some of The Beatles. Everything from the pop-rock “I Want to Hold Your Hand” (beautifully rearranged in this film) to the nonsensical insanity of “I Am the Walrus.” Second, musicals. If people breaking out into song doesn’t fly with you, why are you even reading this? This film is a musical from its opening frames to its last. It hits you over the head with themes, plot, characters, ideas, and emotions. THAT’S why I love musicals, and as much as Julie Taymor is breaking new ground, she’s not reinventing the wheel here, and I commend her. Finally…you have to buy into the romance of the story. The romantic ideals of a bohemian lifestyle, the romance of the music, and of course…the romance of love. It’s a musical, remember, so realism (and certainly cynicism) have little place in this world. Everything’s a little brighter, and all you need is love.
It came as a huge relief to discover the cover versions of the songs were (mostly) the cast themselves singing. One of the big issues a lot of people (myself included) had early on was that they were using all cover versions of the Beatles songs, without really realizing that the covers might be the cast’s versions, which is what you would do (naturally) if you were to stage it. Jude (Jim Sturgess) may be from Liverpool, but that doesn’t mean he’d sing like Lennon or McCartney. Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) certainly wouldn’t. Even more relieving is that they can sing damn well, and in some cases (“Hold Me Tight” for sure) they improved on The Beatles originals. Yeah, I said it. Look, I LOVE The Beatles, but I’m no purist for any band. And even when they don’t improve on the originals, they at least work wonderfully within the film.
Anyway…I’m spending too much space discussing the movie, but I couldn’t quite find the words to express how much fun I had watching it, and how easily it carried me for the entire two and a half hours (which, for you fans of musicals, is pretty standard if you include intermission). There are some rough patches, but this is ambitious as hell, and I always give some leeway for ambition. I’ve been saying over and over how exciting this fall’s gonna be, but I’d be surprised (and very, very happy) if anything this inventive hit the screen.
P.S. No, Ben, I'm not pumped for The Darjeeling Limited (I'm barely anticipating it on any level). I have a sinking suspicion writer/director Wes Anderson lost his magic as soon as he lost Owen Wilson as a writing partner, and he's stuck relying on the same story. I hope with everything in me I'm wrong, but my feeling about it (it comes out October 5, at least in some parts of the world) is one of dread.
Don’t listen to any of it (except Ebert...good man that Ebert). This is an extraordinary accomplishment on every level – musically, cinematically…wow. I understand how this could have gone wrong for a lot of people, and I’m not going to say it’s a future classic, but for some circles. All doubts I had about the success of this film were shot from the second the “Hold Me Tight” montage starts up about a minute and a half into the film. It had me from then onward. And yeah, there are sequences that don’t completely work (putting “I Am the Walrus,” “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” and “Because,” with all the visual extremes that should accompany each, back to back to back is a little jarring), but this film falling short is ten times more interesting than many, MANY films “succeeding.” And yeah, sometimes it’s a little too clever for its own good (all the main characters’ names are taken from Beatles songs, and there are a ton of lines that reference songs), but that was far from what was on my mind when I walked out of the theater.
What was on my mind was the sheer joy I had watching it. Sure, it helps to have some of the most beautifully-written songs of all time, but my personal connections that come along when Lucy goes into “If I Fell” will only get a film so far. The rest is up to one of the true artistic visionaries, Julie Taymor. I’ve been loosely familiar with Taymor for a long time, but even without this, she’d have my loyalty for Broadway version of The Lion King. There are things Taymor does in this film that…I mean, I don’t know how to describe it. For those of you who love musicals, you’ll find this an extremely rewarding experience.
But to have any shot at getting this film, you’re going to have to love or be interested in any number of things – first, The Beatles. Not just some of The Beatles. Everything from the pop-rock “I Want to Hold Your Hand” (beautifully rearranged in this film) to the nonsensical insanity of “I Am the Walrus.” Second, musicals. If people breaking out into song doesn’t fly with you, why are you even reading this? This film is a musical from its opening frames to its last. It hits you over the head with themes, plot, characters, ideas, and emotions. THAT’S why I love musicals, and as much as Julie Taymor is breaking new ground, she’s not reinventing the wheel here, and I commend her. Finally…you have to buy into the romance of the story. The romantic ideals of a bohemian lifestyle, the romance of the music, and of course…the romance of love. It’s a musical, remember, so realism (and certainly cynicism) have little place in this world. Everything’s a little brighter, and all you need is love.
It came as a huge relief to discover the cover versions of the songs were (mostly) the cast themselves singing. One of the big issues a lot of people (myself included) had early on was that they were using all cover versions of the Beatles songs, without really realizing that the covers might be the cast’s versions, which is what you would do (naturally) if you were to stage it. Jude (Jim Sturgess) may be from Liverpool, but that doesn’t mean he’d sing like Lennon or McCartney. Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) certainly wouldn’t. Even more relieving is that they can sing damn well, and in some cases (“Hold Me Tight” for sure) they improved on The Beatles originals. Yeah, I said it. Look, I LOVE The Beatles, but I’m no purist for any band. And even when they don’t improve on the originals, they at least work wonderfully within the film.
Anyway…I’m spending too much space discussing the movie, but I couldn’t quite find the words to express how much fun I had watching it, and how easily it carried me for the entire two and a half hours (which, for you fans of musicals, is pretty standard if you include intermission). There are some rough patches, but this is ambitious as hell, and I always give some leeway for ambition. I’ve been saying over and over how exciting this fall’s gonna be, but I’d be surprised (and very, very happy) if anything this inventive hit the screen.
P.S. No, Ben, I'm not pumped for The Darjeeling Limited (I'm barely anticipating it on any level). I have a sinking suspicion writer/director Wes Anderson lost his magic as soon as he lost Owen Wilson as a writing partner, and he's stuck relying on the same story. I hope with everything in me I'm wrong, but my feeling about it (it comes out October 5, at least in some parts of the world) is one of dread.
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