The wolf of Wall Street (2013)
»Stratton Oakmont is America!«
Excess, more excess, and some extra excess on top of that! After a while, things gets rather boring despite the obvious entertainment value of money, drugs, and sex in many inventive combinations.
This might have worked if someone had trimmed away an hour or so. Not in my book of greed and misogyny.
Started counting, and in addition to the few new ones still not even seen, there were far more unreviewed oldies remaining than I had thought. It seems I will be a very busy blogger for longer than expected, my guess is that all this backtracking probably will take me a couple of years from now. It’s not a dirty job though, and I’m quite happy to be the someone to do it!
More off-putting than expected, this legendary »erotic drama« turns out to be a rather harsh and repulsive male fantasy – with some surprising twists.
Controversial, talkative, dark. In my weird book of stifling confinement and impossible anonymity.
The combined lunacy of Herzog and Kinski has given us several masterpieces, this unholy quest for nothing being the first and probably strongest.
Magnificent and decaying. In my book of El Dorado.
وجدة [Wadjda] (2012)
The first Saudi feature shot entirely in the country, and the first with a female director. These facts alone make the movie important even if it had been abysmal – but it isn’t! Simple, strong, and straightforward, it depicts the absurdities of everyday life in contemporary Saudi Arabia, becoming a warm, character-driven quest for what little freedom can be obtained in a bizarre patriarchy built on control.
Lively, effective, and uplifting in spite of everything. In my oldfashioned book.
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
Almost everything – music, scenography, colours, lighting, casting, details – is skillfully and meticulously pieced together. Too bad then, that there is neither story arc, character depth, nor focus – just an ultimately unsatisfactory loop.
Then again, a slight disappointment from the Coen brothers is perhaps just perfect for a movie largely about failure. Maybe in my book of deft and loving time pieces.
Rambling, unfocused, and deceptively simple. An automotive and emotional showdown that is considered a cult classic in cineastic circles – especially those cherishing counterculture and/or cars.
Fillled with interesting Americana of course, but this male daydream/nightmare ultimately doesn’t interest me enough. Not in my book of existential racing.
