Like a fungus, except not.
There are some movies that just don’t quite hit you the first time around. You walk away feeling a little underwhelmed, maybe confused, not quite sure how to feel about the whole thing. About five days later you realize you can’t stop talking about it and you want to see it again. You’re looking up clips on YouTube and browsing discussion forums on IMDB. (A dangerous game, but you simply can’t help yourself.) It’s never the same experience for everyone, but I have a feeling I’m not the only one who had this experience with some of these movies. As always, please light up the comments section with contributions of your own.
Magnolia
This movie is exactly what you would expect to happen if the director of Boogie Nights decided to make something even less commercial. P.T. Anderson had been knocking this idea around for a while, and he knew his post-Boogie success might be his only chance to make such a bizarre and uneven movie. Even if you’re completely baffled and unsettled, it’s impossible not to love Tom Cruise’s intepretation of a master of seduction (which earned him a Best Supporting nom amongst an ensemble cast). This viral infomercial gives a taste:
Yeah, that’s good stuff. And of course there’s everyone’s favorite: the Aimee Mann’s “Wise Up” singalong.
I didn’t love the movie the first time, but I think I’m starting to.
Gone Baby Gone
Ben Affleck, like many mediocre actors, has turned out to be a great director. This unsettling thriller left me in a state of mild anger and confusion as I tried to work things out, to understand how I was supposed to feel about it and who I was supposed to root for.
I still don’t have the answers, but now I understand that was the point.
True Romance
It took me a repeat viewing to fully appreciate this Quentin Tarantino-penned action/romance, but now I can’t imagine life without it. Everything from Gary Oldman’s Oscar-worthy performance as the pimp Drexl to Hans Zimmer’s upbeat theme music “You’re So Cool” is perfect. If nothing else, appreciate it for this: James Gandolfini got his job on The Sopranos after he was discovered playing essentially the same role in this film.
Oh, and Pineapple Express? Yeah, that thing. James Franco is playing the Brad Pitt character from this. Thanks, Brad.
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