Karry
Best movie of this year hands down!
Lumsdal
Good , But It Is Overrated By Some
Onlinewsma
Absolutely Brilliant!
bob_meg
Jeff Stanzler's second feature-length film is a lacerating gem of such unhinged chaotic force that it's hard to believe it got made in the first place. It's one of those movies that, especially if you know nothing going into it, consistently shocks and amazes you. It has a plot that makes a sick sort of cosmic sense but that couldn't possibly come from the mind of anyone but an independent film geek --- it's anti-derivative, if anything, and all the better for it.Robin Wright Penn gives what is probably the spookiest, most immediate portrait of a woman unhinged since Alex Forrest in Fatal Attraction. No...strike that. At least Alex seemed to have moments of genuine emotional regret. Penn's character is a hate-o-tronic machine, seething with disgust for the MTV-like cable station she slaves away at during the day, biding her time until she can trash luxury status symbols on off-hours, many of which belong to her former best friend, (Sandra Oh in another of her effortlessly breezy portrayals) whom she blames for wrecking her life.But Penn's character isn't just some random sociopath, she's a woman with a plan, and at the center of that plan is an innocent Muslim cab driver. After shanghai'ing him for a late evening-early morning cab ride out to Jersey from NYC, she lures him in with promises of legal help for his unjustly detained brother. It is gradually revealed that her motives are far more sinister and twisted, however, than just procuring an admirer for her over-active imagination.What's really incendiary about this film is the writing and Penn's performance. The script lets us know in a million little twists and slips-of-the-tongue just how bonko Penn's character is. She's like a human grenade on screen...her psychosis is ingrained so deep we never know just when the pin will fall out. It's a riveting performance.Much has been made of the finale, which, while shocking, is just about perfect in its style and execution. It's a great finish for a film that eloquently turns the tables on the myth that all hate, in America, comes from the outside. "Why? Why?" the cabbie beseeches Penn, after she has done much more damage than good for his brother's case. This is a question we often seem to be asking the terrorists...and the answer is no more comforting here than in real life. Sometimes hate isn't a grandiose statement...many times it's just cheap and ugly.
gailhyer
If you read the reviews, you'll see that the ending is the polarizing element of this movie. Reactions range from apoplexy to confusion to adoration. Some will argue that this is a movie about American/Muslim tensions. Some might say it's about the after-effects of 9/11. Still others might view it as study of madness. But ultimately it's an intelligent, complex film that will inevitably illicit heated debate. And more importantly, if you appreciate world-class acting, Abdel Kechiche's and Robin Wright Penn's performances are worth your time. As stated in the DVD's round-table discussion special feature, you feel like a voyeur watching Wright Penn's character interact with the people in her life. Her every on-screen moment, no matter how shocking, is utterly believable. This movie really stays with you.
thefan-2
The idea of this film is that you can push any man so hard that he will eventually snap and turn violent -- and if he doesn't turn violent, you can just commit the violence yourself and frame him for it. It is an illustration and an allegory of the relationship that's existed between Muslim Arabs and the rest of the world for many decades. When they complain about the humiliations inflicted on them by the West, this is precisely what they mean. The whole faux-benevolent "trust me" attitude on the part of the most sinister exploiters, the foisting of Western values on them by people spouting nauseating "PC" platitudes, the spectacle of Europeans and Americans loudly proclaiming themselves victims even as they occupy, by deception and terror, Arab land, the daily metastasizing spread of Western popular culture -- all of this is mirrored in this film.And what motivates the exploiters? Not illusions of benevolence, not even money. It is a lust for power that is itself a form of insanity. The reasons are so twisted you simply would not believe them.The film conveys all of this rather amateurishly. The plot is ridiculously fumbled. Robin Wright's performance is nothing but a lot of scenery-chewing. (A couple of her more over-the-top scenes actually provoke giggles.) But the idea is a good one, even if it hasn't yet found a cast and crew worthy of it.
cindymoon24
This film focuses on a few people in New York City whose lives have been altered indirectly by the events of 9/11...viewers will be thinking about it for a long time afterward. It forced me to look at my own thoughts and actions regarding prejudice, stereotypes and assumptions about other people. How many times have you unfairly formed an opinion of someone based upon initial appearances or pre-conceived notions? I know that I'm guilty of it (and too often). The movie's examination of this topic is especially timely - given the current level of intolerance in the United States, and the lack of accountability within a government system supposedly based upon liberty and justice for all.Although Phoebe (the blond, fair-skinned American) appears to be "normal" to the rest of the world...she is actually a very disturbed, dangerous person who has been poisoned by her own loneliness, paranoia and hatred. Meanwhile, the Muslim characters (who find themselves in a very unfortunate situation through no fault of their own) are deeply spiritual, well- educated and harmless. Phoebe's distorted perception is that she is the victim, and she empowers herself through acts of vandalism, self-mutilation (cutting) and violence.I won't give away the ending, but be prepared to say "Wow!" I was emotionally exhausted after watching the film, and discussion of the scenes and characters continued at our house for several days. Realism and great cinematography are the icing on the cake of this powerful film. I recommend it highly.
