southland tales
what a wonderful mess of a film!
what if you took a story by of philip k. dick (not the hollywood versions of his stories, but a story like ubik with all the paranoia and dark humor left in), combined with the surrealism of buñuel (much more zany than david lynch) and topped off with amazing visual set pieces inspired by matthew barney. add the star spangled banner sung in spanish by the wonderful rebeka del rio with the section quartet. the lip-sync dance number with justin timberlake of the killer's "all these things that i've done" (i've got soul/ but I'm not a soldier) is almost worth the $7 matinée ticket.
did i mention that there is a commercial of simulated suv intercourse? (the link is to hand drawn animation, the real thing is in the movie)
there are sections that feel taped together where richard kelly (donnie darko) builds a scene with inspired montage of visuals and music (his use of the pixies wave of mutilation left me breathless) only to fall apart in the transition to the next scene. also the fine line between surrealism and stupidity is crossed many times in the dialogue. what seemed like a great idea on set (the rock mumbling to himself while touching his fingers together) comes off like a john waters bit in pink flamingos. but i'll still defend it, its worth seeing and look forward to the day when kelly gets his technique and storytelling down to write a movie everybody else can enjoy. manohla dargis (nytimes) sums it up better than i ever could:
ohh yeah... sarah michelle gellar (singer/actress/pornstar krystanow) singing teen horniness is not a crime. i don't think it actually is in the movie more than 30 seconds, but the song is spot on.
what if you took a story by of philip k. dick (not the hollywood versions of his stories, but a story like ubik with all the paranoia and dark humor left in), combined with the surrealism of buñuel (much more zany than david lynch) and topped off with amazing visual set pieces inspired by matthew barney. add the star spangled banner sung in spanish by the wonderful rebeka del rio with the section quartet. the lip-sync dance number with justin timberlake of the killer's "all these things that i've done" (i've got soul/ but I'm not a soldier) is almost worth the $7 matinée ticket.
did i mention that there is a commercial of simulated suv intercourse? (the link is to hand drawn animation, the real thing is in the movie)
there are sections that feel taped together where richard kelly (donnie darko) builds a scene with inspired montage of visuals and music (his use of the pixies wave of mutilation left me breathless) only to fall apart in the transition to the next scene. also the fine line between surrealism and stupidity is crossed many times in the dialogue. what seemed like a great idea on set (the rock mumbling to himself while touching his fingers together) comes off like a john waters bit in pink flamingos. but i'll still defend it, its worth seeing and look forward to the day when kelly gets his technique and storytelling down to write a movie everybody else can enjoy. manohla dargis (nytimes) sums it up better than i ever could:
Even so, I would rather watch a young filmmaker like Mr. Kelly reach beyond the obvious, push past his and the audience’s comfort zones, than follow the example of the Coens and elegantly art-direct yet one more murder for your viewing pleasure and mine. Certainly “Southland Tales” has more ideas, visual and intellectual, in a single scene than most American independent films have in their entirety, though that perhaps goes without saying.
ohh yeah... sarah michelle gellar (singer/actress/pornstar krystanow) singing teen horniness is not a crime. i don't think it actually is in the movie more than 30 seconds, but the song is spot on.
Labels: review
posted by paul bailey at
6:53 AM
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