The Interview

The Interview

Of course I went, I had to. This film was a product of a brofest between James Franco, Seth Rogan and other writers sitting around a table eating Cool Ranch Doritos, drinking Mountain Dew and Blitz soda and saying the word “cool” one million times. Sony had a choice between artistic freedom and stupid; they chose stupid. The guy who green lighted this film was either color blind or just blind. This is an ego movie where to mollify their stars the studio acquiesces to the film’s development. At a production budget of $44m this was a moderate bet for Sony. Not understanding or caring about the geopolitical fall out of this film rests on Sony’s shoulders. If they sought advice, they ignored it.

The movie met my expectations. It was juvenile with gratuitous violence and an abundance of overacting acting. If Franco’s horrible acting were a generator it could light up the east coast for months. Franco was so hyper he could be the poster boy for ADHD. Seth Rogan played the usual laid back lumbering dude with the basso profundo voice. Acting was not a factor since this was farce. The writing was just to get from point A to point B. Point B was assignation of Kim Jung-un and everything leading up to it was not worth the price of admission.

The point of all this is not this silly movie, but rather our right to see whatever stupid movie we want to. Our right shall not be abridged by some pudgy dictator with a bad haircut. I have written too much for this piece and paid too much to see this flick. I want a refund!

Big Eyes

Big Eyes

You have seen these posters. Those kids with huge dewy saucer plate eyes on the verge of crying. I always thought it was kitsch, produced in some Philippine sweat shop. But in the 50’s and 60’s Big Eye paintings were considered art; big money art. They were praised by Andy Warhol and collected by Joan Crawford and sold for thousands of dollars. This is the true fantastic story of Walter Keane and his wife Margret. Margret was the artist of the Big Eye paintings but Walter convinced her art made by a man would sell better and he posed as the artist. Walter was a great con man and extremely successful in promoting Big Eye paintings and posters. The story is Margret’s journey from subjugation to liberation.

Christoph Waltz’s acting was a bit over the top. He played the megalomaniac well but his mood swings were abrupt. He is much more effective playing low keyed emotional roles with simmering fury as he did in Inglourious Basterds and Jango Unchained.

Walter was the consummate poser and Waltz captured his persona with a toothy smile and a charming manner. What he lacked in artistic talent he made up in chutzpa. His fabrications of his artistic prowess grew so wild they crushed him. Waltz’s enjoyed riding this emotional roller coaster, and it shows in his performance.

Amy Adams truly inhabited her character. Margret displayed a mix of confidence in her art and at the same time subservience to her husband believing his lies. Her rebellion was slow in coming but when it came she owned it. She was loathsome of herself for letting her husband take the credit for her art. Her liberation is the apex of the movie. Adams plays Margaret with steady confidence, but with a dose of underlying fragility. She always believed in her art.

My favorite cameo appearance was Terence Stamp. He usually plays evil characters with his deep dark eyes and pursed lips. Here he plays the senior art critic for the New York Times; evil personified. His dust up with Waltz was priceless, shedding Keane with his caustic critique.

This movie is a time capsule. The 50’s and 60’s were not so long ago. Some of us even went to the World’s Fair in Flushing Queens (I did). Attitudes towards women back then are foreign today. Posters we think as schlock were considered art. This whole movie is a bit odd. All this fantasy and weirdness is Tim Burton’s hallmark. See it, the ending is great.