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Post by pupdurcs on Apr 6, 2024 0:27:31 GMT
Got to watch this today and it's....not bad. A bit better than the reviews suggest
Not a great film, and it's probably just going to be a one-time watch for me, but as a solid rental, it's worth a watch. The main positives are in the central performances, specifically from Michael Keaton and James Marsden, who really dig into their roles and create a believable dynamic as father and son. They have the best parts and they make the most of it. Their work keeps the film watchable. Keaton really does some excellent work as an actor here. He knew a good role when he read this script, and knew how to execute it. Joanna Kulig is also quite good as a call girl in a relationship with Keaton' s dementia suffering hitman, John Knox.
Unfortunately, Michael Keaton the director isn't at the level of Michael Keaton the actor. The directing is workmanlike and anonymous (like a lot of the set design), and the pacing drags at times. The script is solid enough that a more ambitious or skilled director could have improved it a lot and made more interesting choices. Big name actors like Al Pacino and Marcia Gay Harden felt a bit overqualified for the roles they had. They did solid professional work in support as you'd expect, but you could have cast lesser known and less decorated actors in those kind of stock roles, and they'd achieve the same results.
The plot has a lot of twists and turns, so no spoilers. But worth watching for Michael Keaton's excellent performance, and James Marsden's very good one.
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Post by Martin Stett on Apr 6, 2024 1:39:15 GMT
Sounds a bit like Keaton's The Merry Gentleman. Kelly Macdonald was absolutely wonderful in it (one of the best performances of the decade, imho), and the friendship she developed with Keaton's character was cute and pretty well written. But Keaton as a director let his stars down, with the most generic, cookie-cutter framing, music, etc.
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Post by pupdurcs on Apr 6, 2024 5:15:35 GMT
Sounds a bit like Keaton's The Merry Gentleman. Kelly Macdonald was absolutely wonderful in it (one of the best performances of the decade, imho), and the friendship she developed with Keaton's character was cute and pretty well written. But Keaton as a director let his stars down, with the most generic, cookie-cutter framing, music, etc. I haven't seen The Merry Gentleman, but it seems like directing might not be Keaton's thing. He's a great actor though, and he showed that once again in Knox Goes Away. I feel it's a lost opportunity that he didn't let a stronger director have a crack at the script and just concentrated on playing Knox.
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