T.K. Stewart

PTA has made some of my favorite movies. This, unfortunately, is not one of them. If someone asked you what the movie was about, the answer would require some deep thought. As I was walking out of the theater I was aksing myself the same question. Where would I begin with the answer? Where would I end with the answer? What was the message in the film? Was there a message? It had some great scenes. Some of the acting was very good - in some scenes. Cinematography was excellent. Benicio del Torro almost saved the whole mess. If there was more of him it might have been better because he is just that good. Penn overplayed the character he was given, and it was just over the top in terms of credulity. Let's be honest, his character was a cartoonish buffoon, right down to the last name. Leonardo was Leonardo, but I felt like I'd seen this character before in mixes from other movies - think a blend of Arnie from 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape' to Calvin Candie in 'Django Unchained.' The problem was that the movie couldn't decide if it was comedy or parody or serious and it never found its way. Some of it was believable, whereas some of it was almost foolish in a way. The story wasn't tied together well and it felt like there were holes in the story. It could have been tighter and tied together better. It was a poor man's Tarantino. The ending was - not good. Again, just not plausible or believable to me. And the ending song? Please. I went into the theater with a great sense of anticipation and I really wanted to like this film. But, PTA tried too hard to make something here. Boogie Nights and Magnolia felt effortless and easy and they were great films that fit together with exquisite timing, flow and character development. This one was like a kid that stayed up for two nights cramming for an exam, only to get a "C" grade. A lot of consternation and a lot of effort, but a poor result. Painful. I don't know. This film went off the rails right from the start, and while the train got back on the tracks from time-to-time, it never built up sustained steam.