Southland Terrible
Added 3/13/2010
Southland Tales lacks any focus whatsoever. If Richard Kelly could do basic math, he would have realized that with about 30 characters in his movie, even with a 2.5 hour running time, that gives each one an average of 5 minutes of screen time. If he knew the first thing about ensemble storytelling, he would have realized that each one of those characters has a story. And I'm not saying that 5 minutes isn't enough time to tell a story, but when you're watching 30 different five-minute "Tales" chopped up and strewn together at random, you spend half your time just keeping track of everyone. Did Miranda Richardson even have any lines? or did she just sit there looking menacing the whole time? Likewise, Justin Timberlake's character didn't seem to serve any purpose, and the movie would have been better off without him, although he does spend the last seconds of the movie telling us his relationship to Sean William Scott's character, which he has to TELL us because Richard Kelly never SHOWS them in a scene together. Can you tell I was frustrated with this movie?
The most hilarious part of the disc is the bonus featurette, in which about half the cast confesses that they too had no idea what the movie was about or how their character fit into it. Richard Kelly might argue that the movie is about chaos, and therefore it should be disjointed. Perhaps that's true--and let that be a lesson to every filmmaker out there: don't make a movie about chaos, unless you want it to suck. What this movie is really about, though, is The End of The World (as the characters themselves tell us over and over, with all the subtlety of a a dead-horse-beating, "It ends not with a whimper, but with a bang"). In other words, Richard Kelly is really just recycling the same time-travel narrative that worked so well in Donnie Darko. But unlike Darko, Southland Tales IS sci-fi, so the big time-travel secret comes as NO surprise.
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I'm waiting for the Ultimate Edition with Commentaries.
Added 2/18/2010
I love this movie despite its flaws. My main complaint is that there isn't enough of it. It definitely needed to be fleshed out and re-edited to make the story more cohesive but then it would have been a miniseries and not a movie. I still chortle to myself when I remember Will Sasso snickering at Porno Buffy's grasp of ... Space stuff. I also liked the shout out to SMP's Emmy-winning sojourn on a soap opera in the scene at Mandy Moore's mansion where everyone was gathered in the wood paneled library and accusations and shameful revelations ricocheted around the actors like a pinball game and Bai Ling looked like she was picking grapes out of Wallace Shawn's scalp and putting them INTO her MOUTH. It's a shame this dvd didn't come with extras since this movie was obviously intended to be expanded upon. I'm especially curious about what else Avon Barksdale contributed to this film that did not make the final edit. I find Justin Timberlake disturbing but he wasn't odious in this film and he must have had a bigger backstory since it would be a waste to cast him with his huge fan base and not exploit his allure. What happened to the movie and the wealth of ideas and just FUN that came with it?
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Artistic and Innovative
Added 1/15/2010
First, this film is bizarre. You will likely be confused watching it and very few, if any, of your questions will be answered at the end. There is no catharsis here. That being said, this film has strokes of genius throughout, and if you don't mind something completely a-typical then I think you'll enjoy it. The casting choices here are absurd, which is precisely why they work so well. I would encourage you to give it a try if you're looking for something very different than what you're used to, or to anyone who is used to those very different movies.
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Get over that pesky sober-ness and enjoy!
Added 1/13/2010
Seriously, have three vodka martinis, settle down, and enjoy the movie of your lifetime. There is so much here that will blow your unsettled mind. I mean, "Cheri Oteri in the best role of her career!"--what does that mean? And yet, here it is! Richard Kelley poured his soul into this, and got absolutely nothing for his efforts. Is there even a cult following for this film? There HAS to be! It deserves it on so many levels. So many wonderful moments. So many surprising appearances. (Amy Poehler? A haunting Jon Lovitz?) Beautiful...odd...a weird, sparkly, deep-ish, end-of-the-world gift from a distinctive voice, aiming high and achieving...eh, something that deserves seeing. The cranberry and vodka is on me. Enjoy!
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Knowing the real Southalnd helps - a lot
Added 1/2/2010
The mixed reviews are to be expected because you have to know about the real Southland to see the comedic spoofs. Sadly spoofing Los Angeles and convoluted political and sci-fi story are all that carry the first half of the movie. I would expect viewers not getting the jokes will move on. In the end I think it has a lot to offer but expect to be board if you haven't lived in Los Angeles county.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Southland Terrible
Added 3/13/2010
Southland Tales lacks any focus whatsoever. If Richard Kelly could do basic math, he would have realized that with about 30 characters in his movie, even with a 2.5 hour running time, that gives each one an average of 5 minutes of screen time. If he knew the first thing about ensemble storytelling, he would have realized that each one of those characters has a story. And I'm not saying that 5 minutes isn't enough time to tell a story, but when you're watching 30 different five-minute "Tales" chopped up and strewn together at random, you spend half your time just keeping track of everyone. Did Miranda Richardson even have any lines? or did she just sit there looking menacing the whole time? Likewise, Justin Timberlake's character didn't seem to serve any purpose, and the movie would have been better off without him, although he does spend the last seconds of the movie telling us his relationship to Sean William Scott's character, which he has to TELL us because Richard Kelly never SHOWS them in a scene together. Can you tell I was frustrated with this movie?
The most hilarious part of the disc is the bonus featurette, in which about half the cast confesses that they too had no idea what the movie was about or how their character fit into it. Richard Kelly might argue that the movie is about chaos, and therefore it should be disjointed. Perhaps that's true--and let that be a lesson to every filmmaker out there: don't make a movie about chaos, unless you want it to suck. What this movie is really about, though, is The End of The World (as the characters themselves tell us over and over, with all the subtlety of a a dead-horse-beating, "It ends not with a whimper, but with a bang"). In other words, Richard Kelly is really just recycling the same time-travel narrative that worked so well in Donnie Darko. But unlike Darko, Southland Tales IS sci-fi, so the big time-travel secret comes as NO surprise.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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I'm waiting for the Ultimate Edition with Commentaries.
Added 2/18/2010
I love this movie despite its flaws. My main complaint is that there isn't enough of it. It definitely needed to be fleshed out and re-edited to make the story more cohesive but then it would have been a miniseries and not a movie. I still chortle to myself when I remember Will Sasso snickering at Porno Buffy's grasp of ... Space stuff. I also liked the shout out to SMP's Emmy-winning sojourn on a soap opera in the scene at Mandy Moore's mansion where everyone was gathered in the wood paneled library and accusations and shameful revelations ricocheted around the actors like a pinball game and Bai Ling looked like she was picking grapes out of Wallace Shawn's scalp and putting them INTO her MOUTH. It's a shame this dvd didn't come with extras since this movie was obviously intended to be expanded upon. I'm especially curious about what else Avon Barksdale contributed to this film that did not make the final edit. I find Justin Timberlake disturbing but he wasn't odious in this film and he must have had a bigger backstory since it would be a waste to cast him with his huge fan base and not exploit his allure. What happened to the movie and the wealth of ideas and just FUN that came with it?
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Artistic and Innovative
Added 1/15/2010
First, this film is bizarre. You will likely be confused watching it and very few, if any, of your questions will be answered at the end. There is no catharsis here. That being said, this film has strokes of genius throughout, and if you don't mind something completely a-typical then I think you'll enjoy it. The casting choices here are absurd, which is precisely why they work so well. I would encourage you to give it a try if you're looking for something very different than what you're used to, or to anyone who is used to those very different movies.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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