November 07, 2005

Last Days

i've seen a number of movies since i last wrote, only one i give a complete thumbs up and one a thumbs down. before i talk about last days, i'll give a quick rundown...

  • Admissions -- had the chick from six feet under in it and was fairly interesting. 3 of 5 stars.
  • The Lords of Dogtown -- basic story of the beginning of skateboarding. kudos for the tony hawke cameo. 3 of 5 stars.
  • Metallica: Some Kind of Monster -- you get to see how metallica makes albums and goes through therapy. i liked it, but wasn't quite what i was expecting. a co-worker said he no longer likes metallica now because he couldn't stand them looking like "pussies". i guess that is getting it out in the open. 3 of 5 stars
  • Fever Pitch -- cute movie which is about what you expect from drew barrymore these days. fitting. 3 of 5 stars
  • Mindhunters -- had all the makings for something good and just didn't seem to follow through. still good enough for... you guessed it 3 of 5 stars.
  • Kingdom of Heaven -- not quite on par with gladiator, but perhaps a touch better than troy. i'll be a little different and give it 3.5 of 5 stars.
  • Batman Begins -- absolutely the best batman movie i've seen. this is exactly how it should have been done. 4.5 of 5 stars.
  • Last Days -- supposed to be about a kurt cobain-alike. read on.

so last night we watched gus van sant's last days which was a story that was inspired by the last days of kurt cobain. as a long time nirvana fan, i must say that i'm totally disappointed. yeah, i know they said it was inspired by, but casting michael pitt as "blake" and making him look very much like kurt all but says --- this is about kurt but we just can't say it is because we don't have the rights to his story.

i could say all the things i didn't like about the movie, but i'm going to try and take it from a positive spin. if you want to see someone that looks a lot like kurt, this will be a win. the story definitely had a tormenting feel about it. if van sant wanted you to feel like kurt blake possibly did in the last hours, there i think he did a good job. it was tormenting, yet there always seemed like there might be hope, but it never arrived. had i been in a depressed mood, this movie would have just dug a deeper hole for sure. it was artistically sad -- not in that someone killed my dog sort of way. it was more of a yeah, life totally sucks sort of way. if that is what gus van sant wanted you to feel, i think he did an almost excellent job. he captured lonliness and despair along with the playfulness of someone depressed trying to crack through their shell. the aimless wandering to find an answer. the hiding from yourself and those around you. he honed in on this well and tried to suck the viewer in.

as for entertainment or providing a unique insight into the death of kurt blake, he missed the target completely and frankly this is what the flick appeared to be billed for.

i give the film 1.25 of 5 stars simply because it evoked emotion. i'd have gone as high as two if the characters didn't mumble so damn much.

Posted by ac at November 7, 2005 07:28 PM