With very few dark comedy thrillers out there, or thrillers at all for that matter, I had decided to check this little film out. The gimmick is telling the story backwards, which has been done a 1000 times and rarely works. Instead when gimmicks are used, it takes the focus away from the story which is usually ill conceived and predictable, as with this film. When gimmicks are used as a storytelling device, it must be used to enhance the story (Irreversible, Memento are two brilliant ones) not just as a way to tell a story. Putting cohesive stories together within the framework of a gimmick takes precision and this film clearly lacked it.
For anyone that did not get the story from the Thursday (second day) reveal, and I am talking the entire story, you simply were not paying attention. Telling a story backwards has to be more than just a simple delivery method, it must be apart of the story. This film is not that funny, despite the other reviewers, and the moments that are suppose to be funny are forced, because of the abundance exposition. Literally, every character tells you what they are thinking and what they are doing. No one is thinking in this film. It simply is poorly written. The direction is less than as Ron Livingston who is great is just a cog in the oil-less machine. All the comedy is forced down our throat because it is not naturally written or performed and that falls on the director. I found myself bored and playing on my phone. Not to mention, it is a simple revenge story that has no imagination to it. UNLIKE FARGO that someone mentioned in a review, this film has no heart, no sense of what it is and what it wants to say about the subject matter. Very flat.
For anyone that did not get the story from the Thursday (second day) reveal, and I am talking the entire story, you simply were not paying attention. Telling a story backwards has to be more than just a simple delivery method, it must be apart of the story. This film is not that funny, despite the other reviewers, and the moments that are suppose to be funny are forced, because of the abundance exposition. Literally, every character tells you what they are thinking and what they are doing. No one is thinking in this film. It simply is poorly written. The direction is less than as Ron Livingston who is great is just a cog in the oil-less machine. All the comedy is forced down our throat because it is not naturally written or performed and that falls on the director. I found myself bored and playing on my phone. Not to mention, it is a simple revenge story that has no imagination to it. UNLIKE FARGO that someone mentioned in a review, this film has no heart, no sense of what it is and what it wants to say about the subject matter. Very flat.