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jomidi
Reviews
Black Snake Moan (2006)
Great, great film
I went into this movie thinking it would be a fun, goofy exploitation flick. Thankfully, I was wrong.
This is a movie about two people who need to find each other in order to find the redemption they so desperately need. The way we're told this is subtle and (I think) beautiful.
At one point in the movie, Lazarus explains the reals source of his pain to Rae. We thought it was his wife running off with his brother, but it's really the fact that his wife aborted their child. I imagine that's where his marriage started going wrong, leading his wife to look elsewhere for what she needed.
Later in the movie, Rae confronts her mother about the sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her stepfather, which is the root cause of her pain, anxiety and compulsive behavior. In response, her mother expresses the regret she's had that she never aborted the pregnancy that brought Rae into the world.
Those two scenes are the key to the movie. Lazarus is a parent in need of a child, and Rae is a child in need of a parent. The chain with which Lazarus restrains Rae becomes the parental discipline that she never received. Just like a child, she resists at first but comes to appreciate it. It comes to a point where clutching the chain eases the compulsive desire that periodically overcomes her. And when the chain comes off, she doesn't run. She also doesn't engage in any more compulsive sexual behavior, even in a sweaty roadhouse filled with sexually charged blues music and sensual dancing.
Combine the chain with the prescription cough medicine Lazarus cons the pharmacist into giving him, and Rae finally has the two things that she's never received from her parents and which every child needs: discipline and loving care.
That's what the movie's about: a father and child finding each other. It's a sweet story expertly told with a lot of grit, a fair dose of humor and a lot of heart.
I also loved the non-judgmental minister. His character was the truest expression of Christian love that I've seen in a movie in a very long time... maybe ever. To put a character like that in a movie that doesn't shy away from portraying some very uncomfortable subject matter is a somewhat strange and beautiful thing. We are spiritual and profane beings, and so is this film.
Admittedly, this movie's not for everyone. For a thinking adult, though, it can be a great experience.
Johnny Be Good (1988)
Almost the worst...
I'm astounded that anyone has anything positive to say about this thing. It's almost the worst movie I've ever seen (Doom Generation still holds the title for me). This thing has nothing going for it. The storyline doesn't progress, it bounces all over the place. I'm not even sure the scenes were put together in the correct order. Johnny's above the recruitment tactics, then he's suckered by them, then he's above them, and then he's falling for them again. Nothing seems to follow from what comes immediately before it. It's a mess.
If any gag in the thing were funny, I wouldn't mind the fact that it's a very poorly made movie, but there's not a laugh to be found in it. It's garbage. Precious few movies can claim to be worse.
Flesh for Frankenstein (1973)
Pretty Garbage
It's not a good movie. That much is simple. It's slow and contrived and disjointed. However, it most definitely has entertainment value. Udo Kier's performance is hysterical. Joe Dallessandro's accent and acting inability will make you laugh out loud repeatedly. It's pretty garbage. It has no redeeming qualities, but it's quite watchable. Good for a laugh, but don't expect to get anything more out of it.
Deconstructing Harry (1997)
a pointless mess
I'm a great fan of Woody Allen. This film, though, is a pointless mess. I don't know where to begin, or where to end. I can't say enough bad things about this film. Who needs insights into a character with no depth and no redeeming qualities? Why display the soul searching of a man who doesn't appear to have a soul to search? The idea of the author's conversations with his characters holds promise, but Allen doesn't do enough with the idea to make the results worth watching. The only thing that works in the film is the out of focus gag.