Post by Pulpmariachi on Jan 4, 2006 0:54:31 GMT -5
SPOILERS may be present but I'll try to avoid them.
You won't be decieved by the title of this movie. Happy Endings is full of happy endings. In fact, there may be more endings in this film than The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. I don't know, sometimes it feels as tedious and other times it doesn't.
Happy Endings is one of those films weaving multiple story lines. And they're all inter-connected in someway or another. It's like Crash or Pulp Fiction, except a lot less dark, violent, and heavy.
There's the Lisa Kudrow story, which involves her seeing a massage therapist whom she also has "relations" with. One day she gets a letter in the mail from this kid named Nikki, who wants to get the AFI scholorship this year, planning on it with a documentary film that would involve Lisa Kudrow reuniting with her son who, long ago she was supposed to have aborted, but obviously didn't. She doesn't like this idea but helps Nikki with a different movie, that's some truth but mostly lies, about her massage therapist, Javier and how he pleases women and is an immigrant from Mexico and the like. The documentary they're making is very Steve Zissou.
There's the story next with Steve Coogan and his boyfriend Gil. They run a restuarant. Anyways, awhile ago Gil donated his sperm to lesbian couple Laura Dern and Sarah Clarke (that evil bitch in 24, whore whore whore) so they could have a baby. But Gil's sperm "apparently" didn't work so a different donor was selected. Or was it? Steve Coogan thinks the baby looks remarkably like his boyfriend and sets out to see whether or not the child is his and the lesbians are just trying to keep the kid all to themselves.
Next is the story with Tom Arnold, Jason Ritter (Otis) and Maggie Gyllenhaul (Jude). One night after hearing Jude sing, Otis asks her to be in his pretty crappy rock band since their other lead singer is in rehab. Jude agrees and sees a time to take advantage of Otis, who is filthy rich. Well, his dad is filthy rich but no matter. Yet, Otis is a closet-case (ie, he's gay but in denial, so he's obviously not OUT yet) and Jude has to turn her back on him while they have their fun intercourse. Seeing Otis as being gay makes a hindrance for Jude, who plots then to start dating Tom Arnold so she can gather all his money. And she seduces him into marrying her (though of course, she begins to actually CARE about him) and always is able to use Otis by always saying stuff like, "Oh, let's see what your dad says about you being a cock-sucker."
All the characters overlap and meet each other at one point in this two-hour-ten-minute movie. Any other mentions would be major spoilers.
The film has a narrator, but not in a tradition sense. Instead of someone giving a voice-over narration, title cards tell us what's going on. A black screen will sweep towards the center of the frame with words written all over it. Example: at the very beginning Lisa Kudrow is running away from something when she runs out in the middle of the road and is hit by a minivan. Freaked, Steve Coogan (who is her step brother by the way) starts screaming, then a black screen sweeps through half the screen, telling us: "Don't worry, she's not dead. Nobody dies in this movie--at least on screen. It's a comedy of sorts."
Personally, I liked the title card narration. I thought they offered fine insight and had some good humor of their own. Maybe I got relient on them because I began missing them in the middle of the film.
The constant overlapping characters doesn't get annoying or confusing or anything like that. It's all very focused on them and their stories, really. You won't feel for every character, as with most character ensembles like this, but you'll find your favorite and keep wanting more of them (a lot of other critics I read liked Jude. I liked Otis personally).
Almost the entire film is shot hand-held, and since it's shot in 2.35 WIDESCREEN, it's sometimes a lot easier to get nauseating than normal 16X9. BUt it's beautiful photography, with very warm colors and flooding lights. The film looks good, for sure.
The middle kind of drags a bit, but that's because this movie is about the beginning and the endings.
As I've said before, I think this film has more endings than The Return of the King. We're going to see exactly what happens to each and every character. And as the title promises, there aren't any sad endings. Everyone is happy at the end of the film.
Which is very optimistic.
Well, I really liked the movie. But that's me. Loads of critics call it more average than anything, but I almost fell out of my chair laughing at times.
This film, actually though, really is quintessentially queer cinema. I'm sure it'll be on Logo or something sometime. It's very gay, but not overly so, you know? It's very enjoyable at the very least.
And very happy.
***/****
You won't be decieved by the title of this movie. Happy Endings is full of happy endings. In fact, there may be more endings in this film than The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. I don't know, sometimes it feels as tedious and other times it doesn't.
Happy Endings is one of those films weaving multiple story lines. And they're all inter-connected in someway or another. It's like Crash or Pulp Fiction, except a lot less dark, violent, and heavy.
There's the Lisa Kudrow story, which involves her seeing a massage therapist whom she also has "relations" with. One day she gets a letter in the mail from this kid named Nikki, who wants to get the AFI scholorship this year, planning on it with a documentary film that would involve Lisa Kudrow reuniting with her son who, long ago she was supposed to have aborted, but obviously didn't. She doesn't like this idea but helps Nikki with a different movie, that's some truth but mostly lies, about her massage therapist, Javier and how he pleases women and is an immigrant from Mexico and the like. The documentary they're making is very Steve Zissou.
There's the story next with Steve Coogan and his boyfriend Gil. They run a restuarant. Anyways, awhile ago Gil donated his sperm to lesbian couple Laura Dern and Sarah Clarke (that evil bitch in 24, whore whore whore) so they could have a baby. But Gil's sperm "apparently" didn't work so a different donor was selected. Or was it? Steve Coogan thinks the baby looks remarkably like his boyfriend and sets out to see whether or not the child is his and the lesbians are just trying to keep the kid all to themselves.
Next is the story with Tom Arnold, Jason Ritter (Otis) and Maggie Gyllenhaul (Jude). One night after hearing Jude sing, Otis asks her to be in his pretty crappy rock band since their other lead singer is in rehab. Jude agrees and sees a time to take advantage of Otis, who is filthy rich. Well, his dad is filthy rich but no matter. Yet, Otis is a closet-case (ie, he's gay but in denial, so he's obviously not OUT yet) and Jude has to turn her back on him while they have their fun intercourse. Seeing Otis as being gay makes a hindrance for Jude, who plots then to start dating Tom Arnold so she can gather all his money. And she seduces him into marrying her (though of course, she begins to actually CARE about him) and always is able to use Otis by always saying stuff like, "Oh, let's see what your dad says about you being a cock-sucker."
All the characters overlap and meet each other at one point in this two-hour-ten-minute movie. Any other mentions would be major spoilers.
The film has a narrator, but not in a tradition sense. Instead of someone giving a voice-over narration, title cards tell us what's going on. A black screen will sweep towards the center of the frame with words written all over it. Example: at the very beginning Lisa Kudrow is running away from something when she runs out in the middle of the road and is hit by a minivan. Freaked, Steve Coogan (who is her step brother by the way) starts screaming, then a black screen sweeps through half the screen, telling us: "Don't worry, she's not dead. Nobody dies in this movie--at least on screen. It's a comedy of sorts."
Personally, I liked the title card narration. I thought they offered fine insight and had some good humor of their own. Maybe I got relient on them because I began missing them in the middle of the film.
The constant overlapping characters doesn't get annoying or confusing or anything like that. It's all very focused on them and their stories, really. You won't feel for every character, as with most character ensembles like this, but you'll find your favorite and keep wanting more of them (a lot of other critics I read liked Jude. I liked Otis personally).
Almost the entire film is shot hand-held, and since it's shot in 2.35 WIDESCREEN, it's sometimes a lot easier to get nauseating than normal 16X9. BUt it's beautiful photography, with very warm colors and flooding lights. The film looks good, for sure.
The middle kind of drags a bit, but that's because this movie is about the beginning and the endings.
As I've said before, I think this film has more endings than The Return of the King. We're going to see exactly what happens to each and every character. And as the title promises, there aren't any sad endings. Everyone is happy at the end of the film.
Which is very optimistic.
Well, I really liked the movie. But that's me. Loads of critics call it more average than anything, but I almost fell out of my chair laughing at times.
This film, actually though, really is quintessentially queer cinema. I'm sure it'll be on Logo or something sometime. It's very gay, but not overly so, you know? It's very enjoyable at the very least.
And very happy.
***/****
