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Undeserved acclaim for Payne? *spoilers*
posted by FergooseSTAFFMOD on July 17, 2019 at 5:31 PM
I liked the setting and some of the story, but I had a few serious beefs with this:
i) The main characters were so unsympathetic. Woody was an alcoholic, debt riddled philanderer who didn't care about his kids and it wasnt sufficiently established that his war experiences shaped his personality. Bad things can happen to bad people. His son David is largely gutless and the mother was a horror. I couldn't really care for the fate of any of them! This doesn't normally matter but the film clearly was trying to make us sympathise for these unpleasant/hapless individuals as it was at the core of the finale.
ii) Why shoot a film with scenic vistas in black and white? Sometimes I accept that this can serve a purpose, but not here.
iii) The ending. What a saccharine and unrealistic effort. How it should have ended is Woody losing control of the truck (possibly through illness) and wiping out one of the locals accidentally. Or with Woody dying on the drive home. Or with Woody leaving the truck and walking back to Lincoln again in a confused state.
I really enjoyed Sideways but I think overall it seems Payne just isn't for me (this was significantly better than The Descendants in my book)
6/10
Reply by rudely_murray
on July 17, 2019 at 9:03 PM
I enjoyed it, particularly June Squibb's treat of a performance, but it's not one I'm likely to return to. I much prefer Sideways, Citizen Ruth and (particularly) Election, but I'd take this over Downsizing, The Descendants or About Schmidt. Interesting that this is the only one of his films on which Payne does not have a screenplay credit. I have no issue with the use of black & white and did think the film had some reasonably striking shots. 6/10
Reply by VHS-VANDAL
on July 18, 2019 at 1:18 AM
I REMEMBER LIKING IT.I ALSO REMEMBER THINKING THE B&W WAS GIMMICKY.ALSO I DONT REALLY REMEMBER THE FLICK THAT WELL,WHICH IS UNUSUAL.