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In Reply to: Arafat says "Panic Room" made him cry! posted by tinear on April 26, 2002 at 08:36:49:
Personally, I would always rather see a movie in a theatre than on video, so I see current movies. Just saw Frailty today. Read your comments just now. I really did not think much of this. Moderately entertaining, but quite ludicrous.The movies I have liked in recent weeks have been Nine Queens, the Argentinian Mamet-style con man movie, Monsoon Wedding, and a couple months ago, Italian for Beginners. And I enjoyed very much the re-release of The Last Waltz.
Follow Ups:
OK, tuneman, why "ludicrous"? I can think of many adjectives to describe this film, but that ain't one. My wife saw it yesterday also and discussing it with her, I feel now I may have undervalued it a tad. I mean, was the younger brother the only murderous sibling? Was he lying both times about his brother's complicity? And, what was the deal with the hallucinating victims and their murdering? Was that "real"? Not the best movie, but I think it did rise above the typical slasher or horror movie.
First off, I did enjoy the movie. It was definitely a cut above the typical slasher fare (pun intended). But I think it aspired to a sort of "Sixth Sense" quality and I could not take it very seriously or care very much about the ending.The idea of serial killing as a family bonding activity- I know it is a movie but even in a movie there must be a degree of plausibility. So out of the blue, the guy has a vision and starts his killing spree. A phrase popped into my mind- "the family that slays together stays together."
But I could swallow that if it led somewhere interesting. It led to revelations at the end, a surprise ending. It is not 100% certain, but there is a strong probability that the father actually was doing God's will. We see flashbacks of his victims engaged in horrible crimes. These could be further hallucinations, part of the insanity, but then there is the physical evidence. The video camera could not capture the son's picture, nor could witnesses recall his appearance. The son is apparently able to tell somebody is a "good man" by shaking hands with him. So it was all true. These were demons- this was a holy mission. Picking up strangers, chopping them up with an ax, locking your son in a cellar without food for a week, these are all now things that were done by the misunderstood hero, the father. Well to me, this twist is indeed ludicrous. It did not shock me into reevaluating the whole movie, as did the ending of Sixth Sense- it just seemed silly. For all that, the acting was good, the action moved along and held my interest, it was a good 2 hours- but I just could not swallow the story, especially that final twist.
I, in retrospect, actually enjoyed the strange twists. I'm not so sure the younger brother wasn't making it all up and we're seeing all this through his twisted mind. As far as the righteousness, not much difference between abortion opponents claiming God's license to deal death to doctor's and clinic workers that support women's right to choice. Anyhow, darn good entertainment, I felt.
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