Before the Devil Knows You're Dead **
Sidney Lumet, 2007
US
@ BAM
This screening was kind of a disaster. I finally figured out that "Movies Start On Time" actually means that the opening credits roll at the time listed on the menu above the box office. It always seemed like one of those laughably pointless warnings, like "No outside food allowed," but apparently that is not the case. So I arrived eight minutes late--rather than two to seven minutes early--to find a packed theater. To make matters worse, the rows in theater 4 are just ridiculously wide (>25 seats with no center aisle) so it's just about impossible to find a reachable destination. I wound up having to walk out, down the stairs through the lobby, and around to the other side to sit on the end near the back, which was kind of a problem given the small screen for such a wide space. Also, the sound was not nearly as loud as it ought to be, especially since there was a pretty loud ventilation duct directly above me.
At any rate, it's been too long since I really enjoyed a Philip Seymour Hoffman role. This was worth the wait. It was actually most reminiscent in my opinion of his self-destructive widower in the little-seen Love Liza, though he self-destructs in a very different manner here. I was kind of surprised at the gasps from the audience during what I'll call the pizza party scene, where Andy attempts to take charge of the situation, particularly since we'd just seen very similar behavior a few minutes before.
Some reviewer made a point that this may be too dark and unrelenting for some tastes, but I was much more distracted by the visual style than the emotional tone. The near-Expressionist lighting got to me after about half an hour since it's used in every indoor scene. Outside the sunlight is scorchingly bright; everything looks brutal and unforgiving. I enjoyed the effect every once in a while, such as when Andy and his dad are sitting outside near the grill, looking almost completely gray and shadowy before a pretty distant background of verdant leaves. The colors are mostly blue, really cold. Perhaps it should have just been in black & white.
It's interesting the way family dynamics subtly overtake other concerns, so much so that the importance of relationships shifts almost completely from what we assume at the outset. I'll probably try to see this again on DVD.
See also: IMDb | Metacritic | J. Hoberman review
Sidney Lumet, 2007
US
@ BAM
This screening was kind of a disaster. I finally figured out that "Movies Start On Time" actually means that the opening credits roll at the time listed on the menu above the box office. It always seemed like one of those laughably pointless warnings, like "No outside food allowed," but apparently that is not the case. So I arrived eight minutes late--rather than two to seven minutes early--to find a packed theater. To make matters worse, the rows in theater 4 are just ridiculously wide (>25 seats with no center aisle) so it's just about impossible to find a reachable destination. I wound up having to walk out, down the stairs through the lobby, and around to the other side to sit on the end near the back, which was kind of a problem given the small screen for such a wide space. Also, the sound was not nearly as loud as it ought to be, especially since there was a pretty loud ventilation duct directly above me.
At any rate, it's been too long since I really enjoyed a Philip Seymour Hoffman role. This was worth the wait. It was actually most reminiscent in my opinion of his self-destructive widower in the little-seen Love Liza, though he self-destructs in a very different manner here. I was kind of surprised at the gasps from the audience during what I'll call the pizza party scene, where Andy attempts to take charge of the situation, particularly since we'd just seen very similar behavior a few minutes before.
Some reviewer made a point that this may be too dark and unrelenting for some tastes, but I was much more distracted by the visual style than the emotional tone. The near-Expressionist lighting got to me after about half an hour since it's used in every indoor scene. Outside the sunlight is scorchingly bright; everything looks brutal and unforgiving. I enjoyed the effect every once in a while, such as when Andy and his dad are sitting outside near the grill, looking almost completely gray and shadowy before a pretty distant background of verdant leaves. The colors are mostly blue, really cold. Perhaps it should have just been in black & white.
It's interesting the way family dynamics subtly overtake other concerns, so much so that the importance of relationships shifts almost completely from what we assume at the outset. I'll probably try to see this again on DVD.
See also: IMDb | Metacritic | J. Hoberman review
Labels: 2 Stars, 2007, Sidney Lumet, US
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