Mulling Over Movies With Merlot

[chaosvizier]

It may come as a shock to some of you, but I am, for the most part, an uncultured swine when it comes to the cinema. Why waste precious neurons contemplating the heavy issues of existence and civilization when I can burn calories cheering as Arnold Schwarzenegger uses gratuitous amounts of force to devastate entire nations? The answer is obvious

Comments

[ajmcoqui]

Yeah, I agree with you on pretty much all counts. I just saw it last night, and I was impressed, though I saw some of the same cons you did. With regard to the characters' evolution, it's a shame Jack didn't progress much on the maturity scale, but he did seem to realize that he needed Christine in the end (he was sort of lukewarm about her at the start). Miles, however, seems to have made progress: he goes back to see Maya in the end, whereas his old self would have wallowed in self-pity and depression after seeing a good wedding, complete with pregnant, newly remarried ex-wife.

I loved the crazy Asian woman. She was the best character, hands down, though her mother made me cringe like you wouldn't believe...

[chaosvizier]

Yeah, I agree. Miles does take some baby steps forward, although throughout the duration of the movie you see him hesitate, go forward, go back, stay the same, and not quite progress anywhere until that final scene. Jack, in a way, you don't really expect him to progress- he's the wild untamed side, and Miles is the rational calm quiet side. They both take their turns on The Other Side, and then return to their natural states.

The "Get The Wallet" scene was absolutely the highlight of the film. Almost made up for all the dull talky bits on its own. Heh.

[ajmcoqui]

Oh, I totally agree! That was nasty and hilarious all rolled into one beautiful scene.