A tour de force with its initial viewing, Christopher Nolan’s (Dunkirk, Interstellar) mind-bending Memento felt, more than 99% of the films I watch, worthy of a second viewing. What initially captivated but confused me equally would likely enthrall me further while clearing up plot holes. It turns out that this wasn’t the case. Not only did my second watch cause me to be more uncertain of the events, their timelines, and overarching structure. It also left me feeling bored by the premise and disengaged from the story. In a way, it feels odd to say that. At the same time, the film could be more straightforward in its attempt to entertain and differentiate itself in new and unique ways. Even in the early stages of his directing career, Nolan was, for better or worse, telling his viewers that he was the most intelligent person in the room and to get used to it.
Category Archives: Mystery
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
Name a movie that you like much more than you should. I could rattle off dozens, and right at the top of that list might be the incredibly flawed yet thoroughly engrossing The Butterfly Effect, the supernatural thriller co-directed by J Mackye Gruber and Eric Bress. This movie could be better with each subsequent viewing, but it still gets the job done. I watch it every four or five years. It captivates me each time, though I pick it apart more. It’s not a criticism but rather an observation. This is a movie that I admire. I enjoy its dark themes.
Zodiac (2007)
Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler, Stronger) makes every movie he is in better than it would otherwise be, regardless of it it’s a great movie, a terrible movie, or anything in between. Director David Fincher (Se7en, The Social Network) doesn’t make bad films. With Gyllenhaal and Fincher together, along with an ensemble that includes Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man 3, Natural Born Killers), Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher, Spotlight), Anthony Edwards (Top Gun, NBC’s ER), Dermot Mulroney (My Best Friend’s Wedding, Young Guns), Brian Cox, (The Ring, HBO’s Succession), and John Carroll Lynch (The Trial of the Chicago 7, Jackie), Zodiac was bound for success. While the film connected on all fronts, it felt like it left something to be desired, though this would undoubtedly be true for anyone familiar with the story.
65 (2023)
The first major letdown of 2023 is, without a doubt, the Adam Driver-led (Marriage Story, Paterson) 65. The trailer was amazing. There is much-deserved credit to those video editors for making a movie that felt bland and like it would be so much more. I really wanted to like a movie. Even as the poor critic reviews started coming in (34% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes), I remained hopeful. Sadly, that hope was distinguished throughout a poorly-directed movie that tried too hard to build mystique and tension before failing to deliver.
Watcher (2022)
Watcher is a movie that falls into one of two categories. It is either a movie you’ve never heard of, or it’s one you’ve not only heard of but have probably seen. Chloe Okuno’s (V/H/S/94, screenwriter of Bodies Bodies Bodies) revered, suspenseful stalker film already has a cult following among the “this could happen to you” film buffs. It is undoubtedly a film that needs to be watched in the right environment (dark, quiet, isolated) to hit on one of humanity’s most innate fears, the unnerving feeling of being followed. It also needs time to develop. That’s not so much to say that it is a slow burn as much as it is an “it won’t hit on all cylinders” if you aren’t willing to go all-in with it from the opening credits.