I'm a fan of David Fincher's films and "who-done-it" suspense films so I saw this with my wife on Saturday night because it appeared to be a film we would enjoy. I briefly checked the Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic scores to make sure we weren't going to see a "clunker" (yes, I do check out the scores briefly because generally speaking, I happen to agree with the consensus critics ratings) and it appeared that the scores were very favorable. We also did not read the book so we went into this film pretty much "spoiler free".
I have to say that I while the acting was good (I think Rosamund Pike should be nominated for her performance), I'm questioning the direction the film went in the latter third of the film.
I guess we kept waiting for that last "turn" in the movie, but it just never seemed to come. So Amy used Nick's sperm he put in the fertility clinic to get pregnant and she wants the man back who wanted to taste her "sugar lips" so to speak. In the end, the wife turned out to be a cold, calculating psychopath (in a sense) and the husband just turned out to be somewhat of a jerk; and they're going to have a child together - great; I remember my wife and I having a conversation on the drive home discussing how horrific of a parenting job those two would do. To me, the movie was more about the media's spin on things than anything else - but that's something we already knew and I had the "nothing new here" reaction to that. Also, there were a number of plot holes in this that just easily jumped out (example: it showed in the beginning of the film the old man who lived across the street informing Nick of the cat being left out. Yet later in the film, Amy's story of how she was abducted by Desi doesn't add up - wouldn't the old man or somebody else have seen Desi's vehicle there?)
Pros: good acting (especially the lead actress), solid writing, beautifully shot and good score (Fincher & Reznor), but it's too long (well over 2 hours when it didn't need to be) and it doesn't grab you all the way through - only the first two thirds are you on the "edge of your seat". Probably a 2.5 out of 4 stars for me and certainly not worthy of any Oscar buzz outside of the actress's performance.
I would have liked if the movie had been longer up to the point of the reveal that she staged the whole thing and then the movie simply end with Nick defeated. Honestly, when he opens up the woodshed and sees the presents while she is narrating her perfect crime I was completely enthralled in the movie. Then another hour happened and I wasn't as gripped.
A two-and-a-half hour movie that felt like 5 hours. There were too many plot twists, the movie seemed to be more focused on adding them as opposed to knowing where it was going, and everything after the initial "ending"-that-turned-out-to-not-be-an-ending-just-kidding-we-have-three-more-hours-to-go progressively killed all suspension of disbelief.
A two-and-a-half hour movie that felt like 5 hours. There were too many plot twists, the movie seemed to be more focused on adding them as opposed to knowing where it was going, and everything after the initial "ending"-that-turned-out-to-not-be-an-ending-just-kidding-we-have-three-more-hours-to-go progressively killed all suspension of disbelief and caused the movie to mire in plot holes.
Really, I don't know what the point of the film was. I really don't. Events seem to happen solely for the purpose of continuing the story. It feels like one of those novels that's submitted to a literary magazine a chapter at a time, so twists and turns keep happening primarily to justify adding more chapters rather than say anything.
The one thing I will say: Tyler Perry was great in this movie. Good on him.
A two-and-a-half hour movie that felt like 5 hours. There were too many plot twists, the movie seemed to be more focused on adding them as opposed to knowing where it was going, and everything after the initial "ending"-that-turned-out-to-not-be-an-ending-just-kidding-we-have-three-more-hours-to-go progressively killed all suspension of disbelief and caused the movie to mire in plot holes.
Really, I don't know what the point of the film was. I really don't. Events seem to happen solely for the purpose of continuing the story. It feels like one of those novels that's submitted to a literary magazine a chapter at a time, so twists and turns keep happening primarily to justify adding more chapters rather than say anything.
The one thing I will say: Tyler Perry was great in this movie. Good on him.
It started off as an interesting thriller, but it quickly devolved and ended with the biggest anti-climax I can remember in recent history.
I have to say that I while the acting was good (I think Rosamund Pike should be nominated for her performance), I'm questioning the direction the film went in the latter third of the film.
Pros: good acting (especially the lead actress), solid writing, beautifully shot and good score (Fincher & Reznor), but it's too long (well over 2 hours when it didn't need to be) and it doesn't grab you all the way through - only the first two thirds are you on the "edge of your seat". Probably a 2.5 out of 4 stars for me and certainly not worthy of any Oscar buzz outside of the actress's performance.
What were your thoughts?
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Really, I don't know what the point of the film was. I really don't. Events seem to happen solely for the purpose of continuing the story. It feels like one of those novels that's submitted to a literary magazine a chapter at a time, so twists and turns keep happening primarily to justify adding more chapters rather than say anything.
The one thing I will say: Tyler Perry was great in this movie. Good on him.
It started off as an interesting thriller, but it quickly devolved and ended with the biggest anti-climax I can remember in recent history.
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It's bizarre to me that this movie holds such a high rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
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