Ruth our protagonist (played by Melanie Lynskey) wants people to "not be jerks*" That is what this movie is about.
I watched the entire film from beginning to end, and I kept hoping that it would get better. It constantly gave me the sense that something was about to pick up in the next scene, but alas the credits rolled and I sat there wondering: "why did I dislike like this movie so much?"
It was not the cast or the acting, which was superb. The cinematography and atmosphere was excellent. It was the lack of direction that I had a problem with. It felt random, pointless and all over the place.
I believe that the reason it lacked direction is because if, as our protagonist states, the goal is for people to "not be jerks" then what the movie needs is a strong "anti-jerk" hero to contrast. But I didn't like any of the characters. Ruth herself was certainly not an example of "good person." She wasn't bad, but she wasn't fit to demonstrate what "not being a jerk" entails. She could have learned that throughout the movie. If that was intentionally (an "unlikely hero" perhaps?) then she could have had an epiphany along her journey and realized "whoa, it turns out that I'm actually a jerk too? So what does not being one look like and how can I achieve that?" Instead she was just a bumbling idiot that experienced a series of unfortunate events and never really developed all that much. She was never given that crucial moment (usually placed towards the beginning of a story) that wins the viewer, gets them on her side and has them rooting for her the rest of the movie. I found myself not caring one way or the other whether she succeeded.
The bad guys didn't seem particularly menacing to me either, probably because of how stupid they were. Rather than being sinister "jerks" for the hero to fight, they were idiotic drugged out addicts. Again not supporting the movie's stated theme.
Elijah Wood's character was interesting, and perhaps the most likable for me ... but he didn't seem to serve much of a purpose other than to be a plot device.
In the end I found the movie rather boring and pointless. 3 stars for acting and cinematography. -7 for not knowing how to stay on point and effectively tell a story with a strong central theme.
* (Ruth's actual wording was slightly different, but IMDb's guidelines request that we refrain from profanity so I'm erring on the side of caution).
I watched the entire film from beginning to end, and I kept hoping that it would get better. It constantly gave me the sense that something was about to pick up in the next scene, but alas the credits rolled and I sat there wondering: "why did I dislike like this movie so much?"
It was not the cast or the acting, which was superb. The cinematography and atmosphere was excellent. It was the lack of direction that I had a problem with. It felt random, pointless and all over the place.
I believe that the reason it lacked direction is because if, as our protagonist states, the goal is for people to "not be jerks" then what the movie needs is a strong "anti-jerk" hero to contrast. But I didn't like any of the characters. Ruth herself was certainly not an example of "good person." She wasn't bad, but she wasn't fit to demonstrate what "not being a jerk" entails. She could have learned that throughout the movie. If that was intentionally (an "unlikely hero" perhaps?) then she could have had an epiphany along her journey and realized "whoa, it turns out that I'm actually a jerk too? So what does not being one look like and how can I achieve that?" Instead she was just a bumbling idiot that experienced a series of unfortunate events and never really developed all that much. She was never given that crucial moment (usually placed towards the beginning of a story) that wins the viewer, gets them on her side and has them rooting for her the rest of the movie. I found myself not caring one way or the other whether she succeeded.
The bad guys didn't seem particularly menacing to me either, probably because of how stupid they were. Rather than being sinister "jerks" for the hero to fight, they were idiotic drugged out addicts. Again not supporting the movie's stated theme.
Elijah Wood's character was interesting, and perhaps the most likable for me ... but he didn't seem to serve much of a purpose other than to be a plot device.
In the end I found the movie rather boring and pointless. 3 stars for acting and cinematography. -7 for not knowing how to stay on point and effectively tell a story with a strong central theme.
* (Ruth's actual wording was slightly different, but IMDb's guidelines request that we refrain from profanity so I'm erring on the side of caution).