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Mudcat
Gone Girl (2014) - Man was I ever surprised. This was not what I was expecting it all.

Based on positive reviews and ratings, I thought it would be a rather fine, tense, psychological study of relationships and crime. What I got was a pulpy, plot-driven, chock-full-of-massive-holes exercise in silliness.

I realize some movies you just need to turn your brain off - but there are limits. This was too far over the top.

And Rosamund Pike, the female lead, is a bad actress. On top of all the cockamamie contrivances, I have to be pulled out of the action over and over because I am too aware of watching an actor trying to act. I saw reviews acknowledging how bad she has been in things in the past, but asserting she has turned a corner here and may actually get an Oscar nomination. So I figure, okay that person is with me on her body of work so maybe I will have the same reaction re turning-the-corner. No. Same Rosamund Pike.

Not that she couldn't possibly get an Oscar nomination. Some of the performances they have given those things to over the years ---> ack.

And some of the supporting cast was pretty weak too.

On the positive side, if it was bad, at least it was bad on the side of being busy. It's a page turner, not boring. Stuff keeps happening. There were actually a few laughs. A supporting turn by Tyler Perry of all people was a highlight. Ben Affleck is pretty good. I always like Kim Dickens.

But definitely not what I was expecting.

4.3 out of 10.

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We thought this was pretty good, lots of crazy unfolding plot development, very good performance by Affleck. Agreed that the blonde wasn't the best. We do think it could have easily been about half as long as the 2.5 hours that it was.

7.5 porkchops
 
Mudcat
The new Christopher Nolan 3-hour space epic Interstellar is coming out. Reviews I've seen range from, like, 3 out of 4 to frontrunner for Best Picture.

The 3/4 guys are the ones I have more trust in traditionally.
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My go-to guy gave it 3/4. Here's some excerpts:

Walter Chaw
Interstellar is sloppy in a bad way: poorly-written, overly-earnest, schmaltzy, of that particular variety of American determinism that does, and should, make everyone a little uncomfortable.
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Walter Chaw
It's a fairly shitty science-fiction movie, but as a metaphor for love it's kind of great.
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Walter Chaw
Interstellar has no big ideas, but it's ambitious. It has nothing original to say, but it goes all-in on saying it.
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Walter Chaw
It's grand, epic. It's a mess, indefensible and ridiculous--and it reminded me of my little girl and how when I'm with my kids, no expression of affection is too large or embarrassing. I loved it.
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I'm looking forward to seeing it.
 
Season premier of The Newsroom was good. It had some excellent media and general social criticism in there relating to the Boston Marathon bombing.

It's too bad Aaron Sorkin wouldn't hire someone who knows how to do characters. It could be a real nice show. I don't know if it's an ego thing or what. He's got very good ideas and concepts but his characters are terrible. Or perhaps I should just leave that singular - character - as everyone basically shares one personality.
 
Muddy why did Gone Girl get some much hype? I'm thinking Ben is hot shit because of Argo is the main factor. They tried to deliver one of those cool Fight Clubish flashback scenes about what REALLY happened and it felt tacky. I am now leaning closer to your review than mine. I'm really surprised they didn't know to cut that shit off an hour sooner. The movie has not changed but my digestion of it has.

Tacky.
 
I really don't know. What it reminded me of as much as anything was Basic Instinct.

Now I only saw Basic Instinct once and it was a long time ago so maybe that's a bad comparison, but in my memory it was the same kind of much-hyped, plot-driven, sketchily-acted, not-to-be-taken-seriously, crime-based time-killer.

But Basic Instinct, I see is rated 6.9. People are rating Gone Girl on par with American Beauty.



:dunno:
 
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