This had elements to be compelling, but just wound up a complete bore. So unrealistic, so pretentious, this film I had to fast forward through to get to the end without tearing my hair out. The thing that disturbed me most about this is the character of Paterson who is portrayed as a working class, sensitive, good guy but who shows no appreciation for the people around him, his coworker, his bartender and especially including his highly creative and loving wife. The city of Paterson and the job of a bus driver are also completely inaccurately portrayed. Most bus drivers I have ever seen are not riding around cities with light traffic and not dealing with the public including putting a lift down for disabled folks, dealing with difficult customers and the basic chaos of any small or large city. Jarmusch wants to make Paterson, NJ look like some European city while he glosses over the difficulties of the city as life is really lived within it. The most boring fairy tale you might ever watch.
Reviews
6 Reviews
Lion
(2016)
Great Story, not a Great Film
31 December 2016
Lion is an a amazing story of an exceptionally lucky child grown up to be a man. Lion is not a great film however. It becomes overbearingly melodramatic and overwrought in the second half. I felt like screaming at the main character, go to India and see your family already! This would have been a good documentary. Spare us the Aussie attempt at angst, it just doesn't work. Here we have a lucky young man with a loving family, all grown up in the "lucky country". What's the problem? He can figure out where to go in India to see his birth village, but we have to endure an hour of film with him being moody around his supportive girlfriend and family. Talk about manufactured drama. The scene with Nicole Kidman and Patel seemed pointless - just a contractual opportunity for her to show off her acting chops and make this sellable overseas. Don't be fooled. This is a great story, but poor filmmaking in my opinion.
Meetings with Remarkable Men
(1979)
Unintentionally hilarious
14 October 2016
This is a beautifully shot and composed film that is made up mainly of set pieces of small vignettes and amazing central Asian scenery. The story itself is interesting to those who enjoy stories about spiritual searches. But the acting is so stiff and wooden as to be almost unwatchable and you can tell Mr Brook, the director, is primarily a theater director as each scene is so over-directed it's almost painful to witness. The main actor has a Russian accent that is distracting and also inconsistent with the actor who plays him as a younger man, and he doesn't even look "young" like Gurdjieff is supposed to be during this time period - he looks middle-aged. I understand followers of Gurdjieff may treat this film as almost a sacred document, showing his early life as he was on his way to his discoveries, but that doesn't make up for an otherwise forgettable film filled with forced set pieces that are almost unintentionally humorous to watch today.
Brüno
(2009)
You get the idea
7 April 2010
It's pretty obvious reading a lot of the reviews here - Bruno is just not as good as Borat and I have to agree. Although I admire the work of Cohen and his "team" for doing what they do, I think they kind of lost the plot on this one, producing a sub-par Borat 2 (and who can't compare Cohen's characters to one another - they are pretty much interchangeable what with the poor command of English and their strangely naive but socially 'offensive' behaviors). Also Bruno is a bit more mean-spirited and even more low-grade than Borat which I think shows this film was merely a cash-in on the popularity of Cohen and Borat rather than a step in any new direction.
Three Dollars
(2005)
Poor movie, but I couldn't look away
4 April 2010
This movie I found to be cringeworthily poor, but it was something that I couldn't look away from and due to its slow pace, fast-forwarded through until the end.
I think it was because I was hoping for some kind of payoff for investing time with these characters and a story that rings true to many adults.
Instead all this is is a purely emotionally manipulative film, catering to the audience's basic fears of unemployment and being poor - the fact that this successful couple could be so under "stress" after 2 days in which (however unlikely in real life) they both lose their jobs despite having family and friend support networks (and like a poster-er above said, Australia's welfare state to rely on) and wind up digging in garbage bins is just laughable. Even as a metaphor it's just pathetic and manipulative.
What was the point of this film? I just wasted 2 hours of my life on it and there was little redeeming quality.
Plus, the flashbacks were very bad in terms of clothes and using the same actors. Also the timeline just didn't work as Joy Division came out in the late 70's until 1980 (bonded over by the 2 main actors couple who looked like they were in university) and the movie takes place in 2004 which would mean they were together for 25 or so years by that point and yet only in their mid-30's?? The movie seemed like a big advert for mental health services as it's supposed to be about the changing nature of society and how it's "okay" to be a little stressed and depressed, just get some professional help.
I think it was because I was hoping for some kind of payoff for investing time with these characters and a story that rings true to many adults.
Instead all this is is a purely emotionally manipulative film, catering to the audience's basic fears of unemployment and being poor - the fact that this successful couple could be so under "stress" after 2 days in which (however unlikely in real life) they both lose their jobs despite having family and friend support networks (and like a poster-er above said, Australia's welfare state to rely on) and wind up digging in garbage bins is just laughable. Even as a metaphor it's just pathetic and manipulative.
What was the point of this film? I just wasted 2 hours of my life on it and there was little redeeming quality.
Plus, the flashbacks were very bad in terms of clothes and using the same actors. Also the timeline just didn't work as Joy Division came out in the late 70's until 1980 (bonded over by the 2 main actors couple who looked like they were in university) and the movie takes place in 2004 which would mean they were together for 25 or so years by that point and yet only in their mid-30's?? The movie seemed like a big advert for mental health services as it's supposed to be about the changing nature of society and how it's "okay" to be a little stressed and depressed, just get some professional help.
Samson & Delilah
(II) (2009)
A heartbreaking, original feature
11 March 2009
I just saw this film at a screening in Melbourne following its premiere at the Adelaide Film Festival and was highly impressed. Not often are we shown Aboriginal stories shown on the big screen and told with sensitivity and realism. The filming of the Central Australian landscapes are beautiful and the characters are sweet, endearing and maddening at times (the grandmother is the most joyful character and worth the price of admission alone). Following the story of two star crossed lovers and the reality of Aboriginal life in the Territories, this is a film that should be shown widely and help to dispel the myth that the Australian film industry is somehow lacking - with films like this being produced, it's certainly not - we just need to see more of it.
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