Have ideas, not good enough

Torrey 2021-12-13 08:01:03

Overall, the Coen brothers belong to that kind of highly stylized director. The work of this type of director has an advantage: even if it suffers from the birth defects of the script, it will not become useless. Fans can always dig out something that makes their eyes bright. This film may be the best example.

What impressed me the most was that the asthma killer mistakenly put the pistol into his mouth as a spray in a panic, and lost his life in confusion. The Coen brothers portrayed the deadly stupidity of the culprits with imaginative black humor (although the plot of buying murder in the second half of the film does not match the overall style). Coincidentally, in another "Strategic Master" starring Clooney, there is also a similar plot where the fat gangster rushed up the stairs and suddenly tripped his pistol and opened his head. But in contrast, the concept of the film is more sophisticated.

The similarities between the two films don't stop there. Soderberger and the Cohen brothers seem to pursue a classic Hollywood retro style in their respective works. In "Strategic Master", the romantic adventure of the hero and heroine huddled in the trunk of the car not only directly echoes the "72 Hours of the Condor" mentioned in the dialogue by Redford and Donna Wei, and the specific narrow space is even more involuntary. Reminiscent of the classic passage in "Steal It A Million" where Peter Otto and Audrey are crowded in the utility room of the museum; in the latter, the divorce lawyer and the "killing the rich" beauty are the kind of happy friends who are separated from each other. The role model seems to date back to the screw ball of the 3rd and 1940s. But the pursuit of this retro style is certainly not enough to rely on the director's personal ideas, and it must be interpreted by suitable actors. But the trouble is that today's movies obviously lack the classic temperament and charm of the predecessors of Hollywood's golden age. The method superstars Al Pacino, Robert Deney and others who have dominated the American film scene for many years, although their acting skills are superb, are limited in stature and mediocre appearance; and the new generation of popular idols led by Blatt Pitt are masculine, handsome and humorous and romantic. insufficient. Fortunately, there was a Clooney. This man who became popular with the TV series "Emergency Room Story" should be regarded as the only surviving male celebrity with classical temperament. Therefore, it is natural to become the best choice for the male protagonist in this style of film. But personally, I think that Clooney's so-called grace and light-hearted humor are still slightly artificial, and at the same time the wise and shrewdness between his brows is too revealing and ostentatious. Although it can be mixed with the reputation of "teacher killer", it can't achieve the true meaning of "male and female" (the editor and director of "Mizhongfan" commented on Gary Grant). Therefore, he still can't be Gary Grant, and "True Love" and "Strategic Master" can't be compared with "Northwest by Northwest" and "Mi Zhong Mi" in the end. The same is true for the heroine. But the performance of Zeta Jones in this film is slightly higher than that of the Latin queen. The temperament of European actresses is more suitable for such retro-style films.

Supporting roles in classic Hollywood movies and even a few shots are often very distinctive. And this fine tradition has disappeared in modern Hollywood blockbusters that rely heavily on superstars and computer special effects. Only a few directors are still persistent. Among them is the Coen brothers. In this film, Clooney's assistant is very interesting (the last anti-Ge agent in "Escape"). Although this person has been in divorce lawsuits for many years, he is almost naive and sentimental: often moved by the hypocrisy of eachother in tears. And Clooney's boss is an old stubborn stubborn man with an oxygen tube plugged in and gesticulating. And the stupid asthma killer with the spray, Jones’s rich ladies who gossiping by the pool, the gay baron who testified in court, the baron holding the puppy, and even the man with only one line. The shorthands of court women are more vivid and vivid.

From the film’s dialogue, it is not difficult to see the love of the Coen brothers for Princeton Sturges, the master of Hollywood's golden age of comedy. Clooney and his assistants discussed the case in court, and the one-to-one style when lobbying to dissuade the asthma killer in the apartment, which clearly inherited from "Sullivan Journey" and "Miracle in Morgan Bay." However, due to the over-realistic overall style of modern Hollywood movies (even if the story background is more classical), and the decline of talented performers with comedy talent, the Coen brothers' attempts in the film's dialogue style were not very successful. Relatively speaking, I still prefer the dialogue styles in "Ice Blood Storm" with local accents as a selling point. Modern, populace, without losing humor.

Although there are such bright spots, they cannot conceal the mediocrity of the film as a whole. The Cohen brothers seemed to believe too much in the charms of Clooney and Zeta Jones, but they didn't tell a story in a down-to-earth manner.

First, the agent Hongxing went out of the wall and was blocked at home with his wife; then the agent sexually abused her husband; the last customer was the old version who was caught and raped by the stalking company-Zeta Jones’ husband 30 years older than her . The three cases received were all challenging. But as an invincible well-known divorce lawyer, Clooney can successfully win the lawsuit and seek the best interests for his clients. But the strange thing is that the film does not show too much the process of court intellectual competition. Even digging out the "criminal evidence" of the spouse's infidelity, a cliché that can be thought of with a little brainstorming, has been used as a mutation point in the key plot.

There are also many plots that give people a perfunctory feel. Why did the gay baron expose Zeta Jones? There is no explanation. Jones's Jedi counterattack after frustrated by divorce for the first time-looking for someone to pretend to be an oil rich-is the least convincing. Because even if the protagonist is blinded by love, he can barely justify himself, but how can none of the dozens of guests at the wedding recognize that the groom is a soap opera actor? The plot of the rich businessman who won the lawsuit and died of a sudden heart attack in the carnival seems to lack the dramatic bedding: the wealthy businessman’s seemingly fragile heart was suddenly broken into the bed in front of him, and he was caught in the court. Homosexuals can calmly deal with the high-risk test of humiliation and furious anger. Why do they suddenly die? Is it really because the prodigal woman is as fierce as a tiger?

View more about Intolerable Cruelty reviews

Extended Reading
  • Nellie 2021-12-13 08:01:03

    No matter how sweet the love at first sight is, trust can only be established on the basis of the right one, just as the best strength of both parties in the contract is the key to good cooperation. From a certain point of view, marriage is not just a contract, so choose the signature side by side with Nong ~ ~ A Coen Brothers work that is not so good about the Coen Brothers. Not too black but more like light gray chick-flick.

  • Tina 2022-03-21 09:01:57

    I don't know why, any movie with Zeta-Jones in it is not good

Intolerable Cruelty quotes

  • Miles Massey: Tell me more about yourself.

    Marylin Rexroth: Alright, Miles. Let me tell you everything you need to know. You may think you're tough, but I eat men like you for breakfast.

  • Marylin Rexroth: No, no, no, no, no, this is all wrong.

    Miles Massey: What? Is it the kilt?

    Marylin Rexroth: Do you love me?

    Miles Massey: More than anything.

    Marylin Rexroth: Can I trust you?

    Miles Massey: Yes, you can trust me.

    Miles Massey: [Marylin grabs the Massey prenupt and tears it] Darling, you're exposed!

    Marylin Rexroth: A sitting duck.