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Moriarty Caught THE LOOKOUT!!
Scott Frank’s pretty much the textbook definition of a good Hollywood screenwriter. He’s got real chops on the page... reading what he writes is a pleasure. But beyond that, he writes movies. Not just screenplays, but films. You see them as you read his scripts. It’s no wonder directors have always snapped at the chance to work on his material. He lays it all out for them, and when the directors have collaborated with him, the results have been distinctive and original. OUT OF SIGHT. HEAVEN’S PRISONERS. MINORITY REPORT. GET SHORTY. MALICE. DEAD AGAIN. LITTLE MAN TATE. All of those films play with their genre in a very knowing way, and I’m not sure Frank gets enough credit for his influence on the films.
With THE LOOKOUT, he’s finally the guy in charge. He wrote and directed the movie, and the result is a simple, unadorned pleasure, a thriller that actually thrills. This isn’t a post-modern riff on the noir genre or a stylistic throwback that knowingly twists the conventions of noir or anything of the sort. It’s not meta-text at all. There’s no smirk. No wink. It is not pastiche or homage or whatever. It’s just a good story. Well told. And characters that live and freakin’ breathe.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s been working on one hell of a resume lately, and I admit it. I’m impressed. I don’t think anyone can argue anymore. He’s the best in his weight class, and he’s so good that he’s started to remind me of someone, a name I rarely invoke: River Phoenix. I think he’s that good, and I think as long as he works with strong creative partners, he’s going to be a heavy hitter in the next few years. Even in a film as godawful as SHADOWBOXER, he acquits himself with a performance that simply outclasses the material. If you’ve seen the trailer for this movie, you might be tempted to compare the film to MEMENTO. Don’t. This isn’t a game on the viewer that builds to some sort of surprise twist. Instead, it’s a character-driven thriller, and it builds to a very fitting finale, never trying to outsmart you in the process. Gordon-Levitt plays Chris Pratt, a small-town golden kid who fucked up one night in high school when driving three of his friends. There was a horrible car accident, and when Chris finally woke up, he was different. Damaged. Permanently changed.
At first, that’s all the film is about. Chris has a frustrating daily life, and he does his best to keep his cool. When it does become too much to take, he can count on Lewis (Jeff Daniels), his roommate, to talk him down every time. Lewis is blind, a sardonic, obnoxious presence who fills every room he walks into, and he’s a good influence on Chris. Chris has a job as a janitor at night at a small-town bank. He goes to classes at a life-studies program to help him deal with the after-effects of his injury. Sometimes he loses control of himself. Sometimes he cries. He remembers everything leading up to the accident, and everything after the accident, but he doesn’t remember the accident. He drives past the site of it every couple of weeks. He thinks about it every day. He carries the scars of it.
When he finally runs into Gary (Matthew Goode), it doesn’t feel like plot mechanics kicking in. Gary’s a monster. There’s no other way to put it. He’s a well-realized monster, a character with interesting edges and quirks, but he’s also genuinely menacing. I didn’t recognize Goode when I was watching the film, and I’m still having trouble connecting him in this movie to the excellent work he did Woody Allen’s MATCH POINT. The guy’s a chameleon, and his work here should open even more doors for him. Isla Fisher plays the honey trap, and the only issue I have with the script is the lack of resolution regarding who she really is or where her sympathies really lie. She’s great in every single moment she’s onscreen, and her work with Gordon-Levitt is sweet and sad. Greg Dunham, who I’ve never seen in anything ever, is a strong menacing presence as Gary’s main henchman Bone.
Alar Kivilo’s been building a solid track record over the last few films, shooting some lovely commercial films. No matter what you thought of them as scripts or finished films, THE LAKE HOUSE and THE ICE HARVEST are both visually accomplished films, as are movies like FREQUENCY and A SIMPLE PLAN. Kivilo does a nice job here of setting a tone and gradually turning the screws on Gordon-Levitt. He’s talked into helping with something that he regrets, and when he tries to dig himself out of it, things go from bad to miserably shitty real quick. Like I said... no one’s trying to set you up for a twist here. The pleasure is simply watching Chris try to dig himself out of this moral quicksand before he drowns.
In this way, this isn’t an imitation of noir or an exercise; this is the real deal. And so is Scott Frank. Here’s hoping this marks the beginning of him making his own work, because this first time out is a heck of a debut.
The film opens the SXSW Festival next month, and then opens in limited release on March 23.
Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles
Drew McWeeny, Los Angeles
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If not a tad depressing, but emotions are emotions I suppose.
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I must agree with Mori... The guys got talent...
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I thought "Mysterious Skin" was a good flick, and I think he's the real deal, like you ... all that said, I couldn't get into "Brick." I don't know why yet, as I haven't watched the whole thing all the way through. I've tried, half-heartedly, twice. When I'm done with this paper, maybe I'll give it another, final shot.
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This script has been floating around for a while. The trailer does not do the material justice. Everyone I talk to refers to this thing as a memento rip off. That is a mistake.
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I'm glad this knocked the 'HOT FUZZ BLITZ' "story" off the no.1 spot on the much coveted hot stories list. amen.
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It does look interesting however, and looks worth checking out.
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Fill in the blanks, my esteemed fanboy compatriots.
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J. Gordon is great. But he's no Ryan Gosling. That young buck even made Murder by Numbers watchable. And he goes home to Rachel McAdams. Actually, on second thought, I think I hate him.
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Isn't Frank writing the screenplay for a Sharkey's Machine remake, supposedly to star Mark Wahlberg in the Burt Reynolds role? I'd be in line for that right now if it happens.
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I'll be going home to your MOM and give her my 8inch buck that'll make a sodomized 13yr old sweatshop boy bend down on his knees and suck! J. Gordon is in the same league as Ryan Gosling my friend, Rachel Mcadams is sexy but not exotic sexy like Penelope cruz. Hey Gargageman33 did i mention my penis was the first living organism to have read Anne Frank's Diary during the Nazi regime. Oh yeah i fucked your mom!!!!!
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That movie was baaaaaaad. Eeek. (and good lord gotta be proof that Teri Hatcher's had a boob job, because her titties in that thing downright fugly) Yea I dig Levitt too but please let's refrain from any forthcoming praise hyberbole for "Brick". The thing just played as more silly than anything, a bunch of friggin high school kids talk like they were all living a 40's film noir. Advice to that writer/director: just be natural, bro. It's so obvious when you're trying too hard to make something that'll make people oooh & aaahh. Puhhlease. Give up attempting to be the trickster and a real hepcat.
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The best part still to come.
This looks tight...hope to find a way in at SXSW -
Original, sly, and incredibly witty. Not only is Levitt great in that film but it's so much fun to watch the movie over and over again just to catch that awesome dialogue again.
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Forget Gosling, there's no comparison. Joseph has done "Mysterious Skin" and "Brick" in, what, two years - and those are two modern CLASSICS. He has the angst-ridden, isolated loner role down to a science, but he never comes off as whiny or posturing. Also, fans should seek out an indie movie he did with Don Cheadle called "Manic." Not a *great* movie but it does a good job revealing the lives of some troubled youngsters at a detention center, without glamorizing them...plus music from Aphex Twin. And Don Cheadle!
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Joseph Levitt i think is a more intense and dynamic actor than gosling. Loved mysterious skin and brick, and was overlooked by the major awards corporation a couple of yrs ago!!!
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Yes, I will say it again, Dead Again rocked. It should be a must see for everyone!
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This movie has my attention. I did not read too much of the story. I want to see this one knowing very little before going in. Oh yeah and by the way Mori where the hell is the GYMKATA dvd review!!!?? Its only the greatest cinematic masterpiece of all time.
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Could Levitt have done The Believer? Maybe. But probably not as well.
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They are both two of the best actors of their generation. They both should enjoy equal praise, especially given that it's on of the more shallow generations of actors to come down the pipe.
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Granted, I only have the trailer to go by, but does Levitt's character really see money as some kind of magic bullet for reclaiming his glory days as a swingin', sporty high schooler? He's going to buy his way to his pre-accident, hockey-star existence? Money's great, but it doesn't seem to fit as a motivation for someone with a psychological issue. Cash can't fix what ails him. At the most, it seems the $ is just useful to ward off the thugs who barge into his life, but that's all post-accident anyway, so what's the connection?
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I think that's the point. Money won't buy it back, but he's convinced (by conniving thugs) that it will. Then, poof, it all blows up in his face. Hence, the plot moves forward.
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for even being convinced that money can do the impossible, his character doesn't look terribly bright.
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... that's not the premise.
Basically, he sees the money as freedom from the life he's living. Since his accident, he is totally dependent on others. His father keeps him on a tight leash, giving him only as much as he needs. No one thinks him capable of making his own decisions anymore, and he wants that freedom more than anything. -
Condensed as a trailer is, I didn't get how resolution for his traumatized state would be achieved via an extra few thou, but the money-as-independence, I can see that.
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... because he's a kid they just barely trust to push a mop at night.
Seriously. Debilitating head injury. Permanent brain damage. It's a little harder to qualify for a bank loan than you think it is, evidently. -
Is everyone reading this review and posting to the talkback a damn fool moron? Are you people going to have a problem with every film out there where the choices of the characters don't correspond to the choices you would make? I'm not advocating you go get yourself some brain damage, but why not try putting yourself in the shoes of the character and challenging yourself a bit? Or is everyone going to just go to work at their service industry job, coming home to play Guitar Hero and posting random BS to AICN.
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...GOTTA EAT!!!
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I thought as part of becoming an AICN member you 'go get yourself some brain damage' as part of the deal. I got a free hospital stay with mine (I have good insurance). Then again, I'm not so sure...now...
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http://www.aintitcool.com/?q=node/30052
check me out dudes!! -
here, maybe this will
http://tinyurl.com/2242ty
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He's got the acting chops so you know any performance he brings to a movie is gonna be elevated and the trailer shows that.
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