|
|
|
|||||||||
|
. |
|
|
||||||||
|
. |
A virtuoso creation by Mendes. Hanks shines,
as expected, in a very non-traditional Tom Hanks role. The film, while under
the cover of a gangster film, isn't really about the cliched hollywood gangster
genre, much. It's really about father-son relationships and the consequences of
your actions, for good or bad. And loyalty- what it means as a individual
concept, and as a group concept.
Some will decry the detached (yet intensly focused upon the characters and their
reactions)feeling that the film has, but I think that was necessary. It's even
spoken during the film. But, really, this is a gangster film (at least on the
surface), cutting to the root of how the mob works. The Mob has to be detached
from the world, and their own conscience, in order to do the work they do. None
of them are going to heaven, and they know that. Another reason that the film is
detached, is that a great deal of the characters were unable to release their
emotions- they were closed off from the outside world, primarily because they
didn't know how to deal with the problems they faced, or caused.
The directing, by Sam Mendes of American Beauty fame, is really the star of
this film (well, along with the cinematography, and the musical score). There
are scenes in the film- one towards the end of the film, shot in the rain,
which have to be seen to be believed. Films like this make those huge CGI
monstrosities and those MTV cutouts even more glaring. Personally, while
watching the movie, I felt as though Mendes was doing his best impression of
Akira Kurosawa. And succeeding. Everything in the movie is slow, delibrate, and
precise. It starts out a bit slow, but builds like a cresendo, eventually
crashing down on us like a giant wave. The music works along with the direction,
pacing itself until it's time to let loose. An apt analogy would be to say that
the film is like a caged tiger.
The acting preformances are first rate, as expected, from Newman, Hanks, Tucci,
and Law. What suprised me, was that Michael Sullivan Jr, played by Tyler
Hoechlin, worked quite well with Hanks.
Is the film predictable? Yes, it is, in a way. But that's not the point of
the film. The whole point, is that there are ways to build relationships and
ways to kill them. And there are also ways to conduct business, and some of
those ways will have unforseen consequences.
The film will most likely have and ellicit different feelings in each and
every one of us. It's definitely worth it, and it'll be up for quite a few
Academy Awards.
By Fafhrd
|
. |
. |
"Here's the site which an anime
fan actually speaks his words. If you agree with his thought or would like
to offer suggestions and comments, please mail him by clicking below:"
Home Anime Plastic Models MP3 Movies Links Last Update: |
. |
|||||
|
|
||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
