jfoobar

Unless my forum search engine kung fu is on the fritz, it appears that this film has never had a dedicated thread, despite a couple of Oscar nominations and a respectable pile of lesser nominations and wins.

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I just watched this last night off of Netflix instant watch. From the very start, it was obvious to me that the human condition was in very good hands with this director (Oren Moverman). I don't really recall a single note struck by the film that was less than genuine. The pacing was quite good and the director and editor sidestep a common pitfall of films like this; lingering too long on scenes that make the audience emotionally squirm. Moverman demonstrates that he knows just when to cut to the next scene.

This could be described as an uncomfortable and slightly destructive buddy movie. Harrelson is quite good and I certainly cannot say that he didn't deserve the Oscar nod. However, I would say that the nomination was more about giving recognition to the most conspicuous performance in a film with excellent performances across the board than to a single stand-out performance.

In addition to solid work by Foster and the always reliable Samantha Morton, I was impressed with Jena Malone. In multiple scenes where she says very little, she gives an exceptional performance with her expressions.

RocShemp

That looks fascinating.

Thank you for making this thread, jfoobar. If not for that, I would have never heard of this movie.

Solid Snake

Funny...I actually heard of this film on here before

JumpCutz

RocShemp

I somehow missed it.

JumpCutz

Oh.

Definitely worth checking out RocShemp.

jfoobar

Am I missing some basis for sarcasm? Yes, the film has been mentioned a few times, most especially in this year's Oscars threads as well as one thread about Woody Harrelson movies. I could not, however, find any dedicated discussion about the film specifically, just occasional comments.

Did I miss something?

RocShemp

I think everyone thought I was being sarcastic when in reality I'd never heard of the movie and was seriously thanking you.

Solid Snake

I was being serious. I couldn't remember where I heard it but it seems it was the Oscar thread. I thought we had a thread on it...go figure.

Dr Mabuse

I liked this film.

It's been quite some time since I watched it.

jfoobar

OK, cool. I don't mind being the target of sarcasm so long as I know it is sarcasm.

DeanoBKN

I really liked this movie. Powerful performances, and some of the scenes are very hard to watch.

It's a shame the buzz for this movie never really caught on.

islandclaws

I was sent a review copy of this a couple months ago. Watched it and was blown away by how emotionally intense it was. It'd consider it akin to The Hurt Locker in intensity, though this is just a different kind. Foster keeps on proving himself to be one of the best young actors working today - he's able to really transform himself for each role. And Harrelson's performance was both powerful and sad. The film took a few turns that I wasn't expecting, choosing the eschew the conventional route for something a little more realistic. I highly recommend it.

superdeluxe

I watched the movie this morning, great movie with some great performances. When Foster's character approached kind of the frumpy home wife..I was like no way is the widow that he hooks up with...I was pleasantly surprised.

Great movie. The conflict between the widow and her emotions along with Foster's character was great. I also enjoyed the buddy aspect of Foster andHarrelson.

filmerp

Incredible film. I did find the subplot with the wedding reception to be less interesting or believable, but everything else was just captivating. I especially liked the beautiful yet simple cinematography, and how many scenes were carried in one shot; it showed very confident directing.