I think it’s only opened to a very limited release, so most of you probably won’t be able to play, but I’ll go ahead and start us out:
“I have seven of them…”
-TomUm… sorry to interrupt the cacophony, is movie good Tom? Trailer looks very good.
is movie good Tom?
Yes, movie good. Very. Only playing in two theatres in LA now. Movie in more theatres next week.
What does the trailer show, BTW?
-Tom
Probably too much, they tend to do that.
Um… Sandler is sweet yet insecure. Asks his dentist for medical advice. Has several sisters who harass him. Meets phone sex operator who starts harassing him. Meets yummy Emily Watson. Romance in the key of quirk. Slimy but brilliant PSHoffman antagonizes. Triumph of the little Sandler? Oh, Guizman is briefly shown, yet I’m willing to bet he’s great in the picture. Plays a friend to our hero?
It’s online.
And yes, soon as it hits Milwaukee, I’m there.
Warning: spoilers! Don’t read this if you haven’t seen the fucking trailer!
I mean it, dammit! Go read a thread about anime or something.
Um… Sandler is sweet yet insecure.
Okay, no spoilers there…
Asks his dentist for medical advice.
Ouch. Great scene spoiled.
Has several sisters who harass him.
Ouch. One of my favorite lines in the movie is now fucked up.
Meets phone sex operator who starts harassing him.
Ouch. Great unforeseen development spoiled.
Meets yummy Emily Watson. Romance in the key of quirk.
No great spoiler there.
Slimy but brilliant PSHoffman antagonizes.
I loved not even knowing he was in it. There’s a cool reveal with him.
Triumph of the little Sandler? Oh, Guizman is briefly shown, yet I’m willing to bet he’s great in the picture. Plays a friend to our hero?
Okay, no great spoilers there.
Overall, though, I would be pretty annoyed at having seen the trailer. One great joke, one plot twist, and one great reveal are completely fucked up for you. But, yes, see it. Easily the best thing I’ve seen since The Royal Tenenbaums.
It’s a brilliant piece of moviemaking, an amazing script, and a stellar Adam Sandler performance. And I know that last one sounds particularly farfetched.
-Tom
Geez, Tom, next thing you’ll be telling us is that if Chris Farley was still alive he would’ve morphed into the greatest actor since Marlon Brando. Are you sure there’s not subliminal messages reading: “No, please, take us seriously. Adam can act. Damnit, stop laughing. Come on, give him a chance. Come on! Okay, Water Boy was pretty funny… hey! No! Really! Look! He’s acting right now! HELLO! He’s acting! A-c-t-i-n-g! P.T. Anderson says he can act! Look! P.T. Anderson knows all! He’s the guy who showed that Tom Cruise can act!.. Sometimes!.. While playing a sex-crazed motivational speaker!.. In one role in his life!.. Oh, fuck, I’m done trying.”
I’m convinced you’re not the real Tom Chick. Unless, of course, you are The Real Tom Chick ™ and Adam Sandler -can- actually act in this movie… oh god, another sign of the apocalypse. Forget snipers and suicide bombers, the worst SNL actor of all time actually… making… good movies? Run for your lives!
:)
Easily the best thing I’ve seen since The Royal Tenenbaums.
Oh, no.
I know the Adam Sandler angle sounds weird. Believe me, I was pretty dismayed when I heard that PT Anderson was doing “an Adam Sandler movie”.
I don’t really know how to make sense of it other than to say I remember when Adam Sandler was on Saturday Night Live and you could see glimpses of this sort of boyish honesty in what he was doing. Anderson keeps the focus on that in Punch-Drunk Love and it works.
I read a review of Mr. Deeds in which the reviewer said every role Sandler does seems like he just rolled out of his trailer onto the set without even changing clothes. But that’s definitely not what’s going on in Punch-Drunk Love. There’s a very moving performance here. It has range and it’s done with almost no affectation. Really.
And, BTW, Met_K, don’t go dissing Chris Farley. I really liked that guy, even though he was in some crappy movies. I guess I also better go on record as liking Will Farrell.
I can safely say, however, that I’m not particularly into Tim Meadows, Chris Kattan, or Molly Shannon. Or Mike Meyers, come to think of it.
-TomJoe Morgenstern, the WSJ movie guy who normally can’t stand being in the same theater as a Sandler movie, actually liked the show. Even called Sandler “amazing, and used amazingly well” by P.T. Anderson.
I haven’t even heard of the movie before Friday, any idea when it’s going nationwide?
Ditto.
-DavidCPA
I haven’t even heard of the movie before Friday, any idea when it’s going nationwide?
It opens “wider” this Friday, the 18th, but I don’t know how much wider. Since it’s essentially a romantic comedy instead of an art house movie, it’ll probably be a nation-wide release.
-Tom
Adam Sandler and Emily (could get an academy award nomination for a playing an emotionally damaged woman in a car commercial) Watson side by side in a movie? My brain is going to implode.
Finally saw it tonight. Really, really liked it. It does a great job of creating a world and staying in it.
Not a spoiler but a spoiler…
I liked the no titles in the begining, it made the movie feel unbalanced right off, I kept waiting for them to break in then when I got caught up in the movie, i forgot about it.
Am I the only one who didn’t believe Emily Watson would fall in love with a guy like Barry Egan? I don’t claim to know much about women, but I thought they would generally be wary of a guy who oscillates between sheepishness and uncontrollable violence, buys enormous amounts of pudding, and wears the same suit every single day. I just didn’t believe that the character would fall in love with him. The only explanation she gave was that she saw a picture of him at his sister’s house and she found him adorable. I wonder if should found his inability to make a “Healthy Choice” adorable.
I just couldn’t get into this film the way most people here could. I’ll probably get a good roasting for this, but I think Hard Eight was much, much better than Magnolia, better than PDL, and just as good as Boogie Nights.
Oh, and here’s another reason why I’m still unsure about PTA:
“When I watched it (Putney Swope), it was the first time I realized that you could be really punk rock in a movie. You could do just anything: it didn’t necessarily have to make sense.” - Paul Thomas Anderson
Am I the only one who didn’t believe Emily Watson would fall in love with a guy like Barry Egan?
I’ve actually heard this criticism quite a bit. Not only did it not bother me, but it didn’t even occur to me when I was watching the movie.
I guess my response would be two things, both of which might be considered cop-outs, but:
-
Why does anyone fall in love with anyone else? It’s just not something that can be explained or quantified. There was so much chemistry between them that I wasn’t bothered that she was grounded, successful, and confident while he was neurotic, withdrawn, and emotionally barren.
-
The movie is about Barry Egan. With the exception of a few asides in Utah, the movie only knows what he knows, is only present where he’s present. When he leaves a room, we don’t know what’s being said or what people feel. In fact, I’d say the movie tone, from the editing all the way through the sound and lighting design, is carefully calculated to reflect his state of mind. We didn’t need to understand her motivation because it wasn’t her movie.
I can understand the criticism.
And while we’re playing ‘rank the pt anderson’, here’s my list, in order of preference:
Magnolia
Punch-Drunk Love
Hard Eight
Boogie Nights
And just to remind those of you playing, here’s my Wes Anderson:
Royal Tenenbaums
Bottle Rocket
Rushmore
Finally, here’s my Brad Anderson:
Session 9
Happy Accidents
Next Stop Wonderland
-Tom
Hmmm…love may not be explainable completely, but that’s not to say it can’t be explained at all. I didn’t really feel her love was explained very much.
This isn’t really a big issue with me, however, two women I know who have seen the film both said this was a major criticism for them. They actually liked the film less than I did and really disliked the Barry Egan character. However, both of these women rate Titanic at 5 stars, so that may be the explanation.
Small side note: I have never seen so many people walk out of a film since “Kids.” I saw this film at (this is true) Downtown Disney, the happiest fucking place on earth. Most of the Saturday night patrons were expecting a different kind of Adam Sandler movie I guess. I didn’t start counting until about halfway into the movie, but I would have to say at least 15 - 18 people walked out. That’s not a reflection on the quality of PDL, I just found it slightly amusing. We don’t have the most sophisticated cineastes here in Orlando.
Yikes. Definitely don’t want to get into a discussion about Magnolia.
Just to round out the thread, here’s my list of Sherwood Anderson:
Winesburg, Ohio
Dark Laughter
Poor White
Many Marriages
You cannot play rank without including the Coen brothers…and it is a much larger library. I can’t recall them all but the ones that have stayed with me are:
O Brother Where Art Thou
Raising Arizona
Fargo
Barton Fink
Millers Crossing
It’s easy to cheese out and say, “Oh, it’s love, it’s unexplainable,” but she’s just as weird as he is, but her weirdness is less obvious. The scene that said it all was the “violent love banter” in the bedroom in Hawaii.
The scene that said it all was the “violent love banter” in the bedroom in Hawaii.
I loved that scene just for how abrupt and disconcerting it was. Almost right up there with the car wreck/harmonium abandonment scene. Great bold stuff.
Interesting that you mention the criticism being leveled by women, Jim. That’s also where I’ve heard it.
However, as a tip to make your life easier, try to avoid women who give Titanic 5-star ratings.
-Tom
P.S. I will kick the ass of any man who didn’t like Magnolia. Okay, maybe not. But I will call him names. Behind his back. When he’s out of earshot.
You cannot play rank without including the Coen brothers…
No, no, Graller, you were supposed to rank the Magnificent Ambersons!
The Coen brothers ranking is a good one. You can usually kick start any movie conversation by asking someone his or her favorite Coen brothers movie. Most people pick Raising Arizona. I love stumbling across the occasional Miller’s Crossing traditionalist or Hudsucker Proxy freak.
Myself, I’m was a Barton Fink guy. Until I saw The Man Who Wasn’t There. I know I stand almost alone on that one, but, well, someone’s got to stand here.
-Tom