is the word 'diary' better than the word 'blog'? probably not.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Must Not See.
Whatever you do, do not go see Wanted. That is my advice to you, my friend. There is nothing worth seeing about the movie, and nothing, absolutely nothing redeeming in its plot. In fact, I can't (or, truth be told, won't) even begin to offer an authoritative list of everything that is wrong with the movie. From its idea of what a "man" is, to its use of killing as a pastime, to its conceit that there is actually an ethics to the practice or any sort of idea behind what happens in the movie, man, what an absurd waste of time. I went to see it because I do love a summer blockbuster sometimes, Angelina Jolie is hott, and usually her action films are at least entertaining. Wanted is nothing. It is so nothing that it's not even nihilistic. And that's me being nice about it. Mostly it is just a truly ethically vacuous visual assault that continually beats up its own viewers for being wimps and losers because we (the viewers), unlike the movie's main character played by the normally interesting James McAvoy, have never stepped out of our pathetic cubicle-bound lives long enough to realize that hating fat people, solving problems with your fists, and killing people who have never done anything wrong is what makes you a MAN. (I wish I had decided to count, early on, how many times the word "man" was used in the movie, because that might have kept me more entertained.) That's right, the movie actually breaks the fourth wall verbally and, in its pathetic conclusion, visually, so that it can accuse its viewers of not quite living. And no, it's not Fight Club.
The thing is, I can imagine the possibility that a movie with a similar set of tactics and plot points might actually be interesting, and possibly not even ethically repulsive. I could imagine an interesting sci-fi plot based on assassinating "bad" people before they do their bad things. It is, after all, possible to make a violent action film that pays attention to the ethical ambiguities of the categories "good" and "bad." But none of that is the point of this movie, which spends the bulk of its time on repetitive close-ups of beatings and killings. It's not like I ask of TOO MUCH from a summer blockbuster. I'm fond of Christian Bale's Batman and, even though I hate Tom Cruise, I enjoyed some of those early Mission: Implausible movies. And I'll always go see Angelina Jolie play Lara Croft. I guess the real truth about Wanted is that it is stupid. There is no glimmer of thought behind anything that happens, and no sense to any of its action. The only good thing I can say about it is that in a couple of scenes Angelina's hair looked really pretty. But that could never make up for the unforgivable lack of thought and judgment behind every single moment of the film.
After a movie like that is over, there's not much you can say about it. That's why it was perfect when, as we were making our way down the escalators in the theater on Union Square, Gus said, "That wasn't very realistic." I laughed and said, "I am so sorry that we don't have time for some MOVIE MOUTHWASH!" Movie Mouthwash is a practice I learned from my dear friend Gayle. It involves going to see ANOTHER movie right after you see a truly horrendous movie.
Instead we went to Williamsburg and had wine, snacks, and a perfect view of the NYC 4th of July fireworks from Marian's new fancy-condo balcony, with Linda, Larisse, Wendy & Ruby. That was a perfect end to the day.
1:15 p.m. - July 05, 2008
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
