Love or hate him, Terrence Malick has a unique style. Personally, he’s not for me. The New World was a decent enough film, but it left me wanting more. I had such high hopes for The Tree of Life, only for it to result in one of my most frustrating and tedious theater-going experiences ever, that I was ready to write him off. However, there is often an anomaly. For me, it was his devastatingly beautiful portrayal of World War II in 1998’s The Thin Red Line. Rightfully or not, The Thin Red Line will forever be associated and compared with Saving Private Ryan, another World War II-based Best Picture nominee of 1998. And, if I’m being 100% honest, I did not know that Malick directed the Thin Red Line until after I finished watching it.
Category Archives: Adrien Brody
Wrecked (2011)
According to the International Movie Database, Michael Greenspan’s debut movie, Wrecked grossed under $5,000 at the box office. For its lead star, Adrien Brody (Best Actor Academy Award for 2002’s The Pianist), this is a far cry from the early part of the decade when his movies like The Village (2004) and King Kong (2005) were each earning over $110,000,000 at the box office. Brody has made some terrible movies since 2005. These have included The Darjeeling Limited, The Brothers Bloom, and The Experiment. The trailer for Wrecked looked intriguing enough. I also wanted to know if Brody had the ability to do what Tom Hanks (Cast Away) and Will Smith (I Am Legend) were able to do successfully…star in a movie in which he is (for a majority of the film) the only actor. After watching the film, there is a reason why Cast Away and I Am Legend each earned $233,000,000 and $256,000,000 at the box office, respectively, while Wrecked brought in less than $5,000.
Predators (2010)
My oh my, Adrien Brody, what has become of your career? Since winning the Best Actor Academy Award in 2002 for his role as Wladyslaw Szpilman in The Pianist, Brody’s career has been hit or miss. His successes were The Village (2004), the under-appreciated The Jacket (2005), and the blockbuster remake King Kong (2002). Brody has also had starring roles in such box office failures as Hollywoodland (2006 – $14.3 million box office revenue), The Darjeeling Limited (2007 – $11.7 million), Cadillac Man (2008 $8.1 million), and The Brothers Bloom (2008 – $3.5 million). In 2010, Brody had five movies set for release. Two of those films have been completed but have since been shelved. A third (The Experiment) went straight to DVD. A fourth (Splice) made just $17 million at the box office. The fifth, Predators, grossed $52 million but would have earned that money regardless of Brody’s presence.
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
In The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Francis Whitman (Owen Wilson – Marley & Me, Midnight in Paris) reunites with his brothers Peter (Adrien Brody – The Pianist, The Jacket) and Jack (Jason Schwartzman – I Heart Huckabees, Fantastic Mr. Fox) for the first time since their father’s funeral one year ago. The hope is that he can lead them on a quest for spiritual enlightenment as they embark on a train trip through India in hopes of finding their long-lost mother. If this plot + Owen Wilson as the lead actor already have you imagining how dumb this movie might be, keep the imagination rolling because you aren’t even close.