Magnolia movie review response
This is the review of someone who reviewed Magnolia and only gave it 2 stars.
"The opening scene had me absolutely hooked - coincidences don't just happen. I was all set for something glorious. But three very long hours later I'm so confused as to what I just saw.
Julianne Moore, Phillip Seynour Hoffman, John C Reilly and especially Tom Cruise were absolutely mesmerising. I couldn't look away when Cruise was on screen. But there were way too many characters (William H Macy's subplot had little to no relevance), and I can't comprehend that a three hour film could leave so many characters neglected and questions unanswered. The camerawork was weird - it often faced away from the main characters who were doing the best acting, and the soundtrack was so loud that you couldn't hear half the dialogue.
I can see why people would love it, but this was not a film for me."
Below was my response...
"Everything is relevant. Life often isn't a question that gets answered. A fucked up childhood can lead you to become the adults in this tale. That's why William H Macy's story is so important and relevent. If the gameshow kid doesn't stand up to his father he'll end up like him, broken.
Either you stand up for yourself and find/lose your footing or you give up (hense the reason they all sing the song Wise Up). The connection to each other isn't some silly modern cinema twist where everyone's secretly related to each other. It's a recognition of people going through seemingly very different things when it's actually all the same shit.
It's life, with the volume turned up. I just love it's honesty in both the acting and writing"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_9EpBL5Txc
He replied with more questions...
"So what was with the Murder at the start of the film? The little black kids rap to reveal everything? What happened to Jimmy gator after his failed suicide attempt? where did the molestation subplot come from and why wasn't it resolved? Did he do it? Why can't he remember? Why did tom cruise lie about his mother dying?
If anyone could answer the above id be much grateful."
My response....
"I'm going to start off with what's wrong with modern Hollywood movies. The majority think their audience are monkeys, unable to process any information and need to be spoon fed it. This leads to many films having voice over when half decent acting can potray what's going on between the lines. Also movies don't need resolution to plot, they just need to fully explore the themes. What happens to character's beyond their character arc often doesn't matter. Reservoir Dogs is another great example of resolution being the revelation the character has. Unbreakable is all about the character journey and ends when most Superhero movies start their second act (3 act structure). A lot of movies now just use a bunch of plot to avoid any character development at all. With Magnolia every scene is speaking about the characters in it. The way they react in certain situations is the point, the situation they are in is mainly irrelevant.
I can't remember the murder, was that the person found dead in the closet? That wasn't important. It's John C Reilly's way of dealing with it that is important.
The kid's rap and the cop's reaction was representative of the disconnect between adults and children. People not being able to relate or communicate, even when they're open to it like John C Reilly's character and have a common goal is a running theme throughout the movie.
The molestation subplot comes from another central theme, which is be careful how you treat children because it can fuck them up for life. Case in point his daughter, who smiles at the end at the very moment she lets go of her past and tries for a new one. The song Wise Up is saying to all the characters they can let their past destroy them and they "give up" (suicide) or they can liberate themselves from it and "wise up". They do not need to define themselves by their fuck ups (or other peoples). He molested her, he remembers, hense suicide attempt. He denies remembering because he is in denial not because he's having a lapse in memory.
Tom Cruise's character is wonderfully complex, it's the best role I've seen him do (which isn't hard compared to the roles he's done in the past). His fucked up childhood made him reconstruct himself into a façade of alpha maleism. His character completely remodels himself because he could never understand why his father was a womaniser that left his mother while he looked after her on her deathbed. He obsessed with it to the point where he had to become it to understand it. It all ties into the disconnect, the striving for understanding, and the messing up of children themes. This movie is a study in human psychology.
Experiencing this movie's themes through my text without picking up on it naturally through the film is a sterile experience. Go back to it in a few years and you may see it in a different way."
I googled to see if anyone could say it better. I came across Syd Field's analysis and it's like we're the same person... except he's regarded as one of the leading authorities in the art and craft of screenwriting in the world today.
"When Phil drops the liquid morphine into Earl's mouth, it's the end, but as it turns out, Earl's death is really a new beginning because it's the catalyst that brings everyone together. As the rain thunders down, we see the nine characters singing about their pain and guilt and lack of self-worth, knowing it's just not going to stop 'til you wise up.'
'Now that you've met me, would you object to never seeing me again?' Claudia asks Jim Kurring. Until they can accept themselves for who they are, until they can forgive themselves and accept their own sense of self-worth, until they can let somebody love them for who they are and let the past go, it's not going to stop. Just 'wise up.' "
http://www.writersstore.com/magnolia-an-appreciation/ "
"The opening scene had me absolutely hooked - coincidences don't just happen. I was all set for something glorious. But three very long hours later I'm so confused as to what I just saw.
Julianne Moore, Phillip Seynour Hoffman, John C Reilly and especially Tom Cruise were absolutely mesmerising. I couldn't look away when Cruise was on screen. But there were way too many characters (William H Macy's subplot had little to no relevance), and I can't comprehend that a three hour film could leave so many characters neglected and questions unanswered. The camerawork was weird - it often faced away from the main characters who were doing the best acting, and the soundtrack was so loud that you couldn't hear half the dialogue.
I can see why people would love it, but this was not a film for me."
Below was my response...
"Everything is relevant. Life often isn't a question that gets answered. A fucked up childhood can lead you to become the adults in this tale. That's why William H Macy's story is so important and relevent. If the gameshow kid doesn't stand up to his father he'll end up like him, broken.
Either you stand up for yourself and find/lose your footing or you give up (hense the reason they all sing the song Wise Up). The connection to each other isn't some silly modern cinema twist where everyone's secretly related to each other. It's a recognition of people going through seemingly very different things when it's actually all the same shit.
It's life, with the volume turned up. I just love it's honesty in both the acting and writing"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_9EpBL5Txc
He replied with more questions...
"So what was with the Murder at the start of the film? The little black kids rap to reveal everything? What happened to Jimmy gator after his failed suicide attempt? where did the molestation subplot come from and why wasn't it resolved? Did he do it? Why can't he remember? Why did tom cruise lie about his mother dying?
If anyone could answer the above id be much grateful."
My response....
"I'm going to start off with what's wrong with modern Hollywood movies. The majority think their audience are monkeys, unable to process any information and need to be spoon fed it. This leads to many films having voice over when half decent acting can potray what's going on between the lines. Also movies don't need resolution to plot, they just need to fully explore the themes. What happens to character's beyond their character arc often doesn't matter. Reservoir Dogs is another great example of resolution being the revelation the character has. Unbreakable is all about the character journey and ends when most Superhero movies start their second act (3 act structure). A lot of movies now just use a bunch of plot to avoid any character development at all. With Magnolia every scene is speaking about the characters in it. The way they react in certain situations is the point, the situation they are in is mainly irrelevant.
I can't remember the murder, was that the person found dead in the closet? That wasn't important. It's John C Reilly's way of dealing with it that is important.
The kid's rap and the cop's reaction was representative of the disconnect between adults and children. People not being able to relate or communicate, even when they're open to it like John C Reilly's character and have a common goal is a running theme throughout the movie.
The molestation subplot comes from another central theme, which is be careful how you treat children because it can fuck them up for life. Case in point his daughter, who smiles at the end at the very moment she lets go of her past and tries for a new one. The song Wise Up is saying to all the characters they can let their past destroy them and they "give up" (suicide) or they can liberate themselves from it and "wise up". They do not need to define themselves by their fuck ups (or other peoples). He molested her, he remembers, hense suicide attempt. He denies remembering because he is in denial not because he's having a lapse in memory.
Tom Cruise's character is wonderfully complex, it's the best role I've seen him do (which isn't hard compared to the roles he's done in the past). His fucked up childhood made him reconstruct himself into a façade of alpha maleism. His character completely remodels himself because he could never understand why his father was a womaniser that left his mother while he looked after her on her deathbed. He obsessed with it to the point where he had to become it to understand it. It all ties into the disconnect, the striving for understanding, and the messing up of children themes. This movie is a study in human psychology.
Experiencing this movie's themes through my text without picking up on it naturally through the film is a sterile experience. Go back to it in a few years and you may see it in a different way."
I googled to see if anyone could say it better. I came across Syd Field's analysis and it's like we're the same person... except he's regarded as one of the leading authorities in the art and craft of screenwriting in the world today.
"When Phil drops the liquid morphine into Earl's mouth, it's the end, but as it turns out, Earl's death is really a new beginning because it's the catalyst that brings everyone together. As the rain thunders down, we see the nine characters singing about their pain and guilt and lack of self-worth, knowing it's just not going to stop 'til you wise up.'
'Now that you've met me, would you object to never seeing me again?' Claudia asks Jim Kurring. Until they can accept themselves for who they are, until they can forgive themselves and accept their own sense of self-worth, until they can let somebody love them for who they are and let the past go, it's not going to stop. Just 'wise up.' "
http://www.writersstore.com/magnolia-an-appreciation/ "
posted by TopcatPlayer at 12:15 am
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