Continuity, please.
Sep. 24th, 2002 11:52 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
raybearI feel I haven't written a significant journal entry in awhile. I'm not sure it's going to change right now, but maybe later. In the meantime, I watched the movie Frailty last night. I put off watching it in case MelRo came home early from her dinner, but then decided around 10 pm I'd watch it by myself because it probably wouldn't be that scary.
Well, it freaked me out a little bit, partly because it wasn't really the movie I expected -- more psychological and weird and lots of evangelical and moral violence. And I liked it and got into (sacring myself at times, especially when Sophie started pacing around and crouching in the corner), but then the movie's conclusion began. And I got very very angry. I guess I shouldn't ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it, so I'll give a warning of spoilers.
I'm so over lying narrators. And gratuitous twists and suprises, and inconsistency in storytelling and narrative, and unexplained plotlines. Okay, at first when he's all like "I'm Adam Meeks" I was uber-upset because there's no way he'd know the details of Fenton's life to that extent because he WASNT there every time. Also, I immediately thought of a few mistakes, such as the beginning phone call to the sheriff's office that identified him as Fenton. As the conclusion played out, it came out that he told the story deliberately in that way to set the agent up for being slayed. Hello? So elaborate and pointless. And the agent being a murderer? What? And why so overly gory and violent? And why should I believe it's true anyway if Adam was tricking us the whole time? Why is his version of the truth correct? And if we are supposed to believe it, than does that mean I'm down with Christian vigilantes who have visions from angels? Jesus Christ on a fucking raft, I hope not. Also, was Fenton a demon because they knew he would be a serial killer in the future? Or was he a serial killer maybe because he WITNESSES HIS DAD COMMITTING MURDER AND THEN MURDERED HIM AS A TWELVE YEAR OLD? What? I hate movies that are supposed to be 'psychological' but then don't stick to one school of logic or psychological analysis. And the beginning, was Fenton faking suicide for his brother or did Adam lie about that to the agent? Too many fcking loose ends.
I've only seen The Usual Suspects once. I thought it was pretty good. At the end I was like "okay, you got me, good job." But I've never seen that movie again because what's the point? It's a big lying story and the gimmick is over. Sort of like watching Blair Witch project twice. The first time is fun. The second time is better spent napping.
Gimmicky movies are only okay if I enjoy them once and then don't bother to see them again. I get so mad if I regret the first 90 minutes which I had previously enjoyed because they got fcked up by their stupid "let's throw in extra twists because we can't explain our way out of a paper bag" ending.
Don't get me wrong -- I like my movies complex at times. But contradictory does not mean complicated. And I even love surprise "gotcha!" endings, but only if they're consistent throughout the movie and there's good continuity.
So in the end, I'd rate the first 80 minutes of Fraility as 3 1/2 stars and the last 15 minutes as half a star.
Well, it freaked me out a little bit, partly because it wasn't really the movie I expected -- more psychological and weird and lots of evangelical and moral violence. And I liked it and got into (sacring myself at times, especially when Sophie started pacing around and crouching in the corner), but then the movie's conclusion began. And I got very very angry. I guess I shouldn't ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it, so I'll give a warning of spoilers.
I'm so over lying narrators. And gratuitous twists and suprises, and inconsistency in storytelling and narrative, and unexplained plotlines. Okay, at first when he's all like "I'm Adam Meeks" I was uber-upset because there's no way he'd know the details of Fenton's life to that extent because he WASNT there every time. Also, I immediately thought of a few mistakes, such as the beginning phone call to the sheriff's office that identified him as Fenton. As the conclusion played out, it came out that he told the story deliberately in that way to set the agent up for being slayed. Hello? So elaborate and pointless. And the agent being a murderer? What? And why so overly gory and violent? And why should I believe it's true anyway if Adam was tricking us the whole time? Why is his version of the truth correct? And if we are supposed to believe it, than does that mean I'm down with Christian vigilantes who have visions from angels? Jesus Christ on a fucking raft, I hope not. Also, was Fenton a demon because they knew he would be a serial killer in the future? Or was he a serial killer maybe because he WITNESSES HIS DAD COMMITTING MURDER AND THEN MURDERED HIM AS A TWELVE YEAR OLD? What? I hate movies that are supposed to be 'psychological' but then don't stick to one school of logic or psychological analysis. And the beginning, was Fenton faking suicide for his brother or did Adam lie about that to the agent? Too many fcking loose ends.
I've only seen The Usual Suspects once. I thought it was pretty good. At the end I was like "okay, you got me, good job." But I've never seen that movie again because what's the point? It's a big lying story and the gimmick is over. Sort of like watching Blair Witch project twice. The first time is fun. The second time is better spent napping.
Gimmicky movies are only okay if I enjoy them once and then don't bother to see them again. I get so mad if I regret the first 90 minutes which I had previously enjoyed because they got fcked up by their stupid "let's throw in extra twists because we can't explain our way out of a paper bag" ending.
Don't get me wrong -- I like my movies complex at times. But contradictory does not mean complicated. And I even love surprise "gotcha!" endings, but only if they're consistent throughout the movie and there's good continuity.
So in the end, I'd rate the first 80 minutes of Fraility as 3 1/2 stars and the last 15 minutes as half a star.
