“Southland Tales” is probably the craziest movie I’ve ever seen. I’m trying not to exaggerate for effect, but it’s sort of the logical child of The Holy Mountain, The Cremaster Cycle, and every David Lynch movie including Dune. I mean, the movie’s just batshit - totally insane, completely incomprehensible, so hilariously relevant and zeitgeist-attuned that it’s like it was written last week. It’s also probably the biggest trainwreck I’ve ever seen, and will all but ensure that Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko) never gets more than about $14 to make a Hollywood movie again.
I’m not even going to go into the plot or anything like that, but I just marvel at the fact that someone made something so completely crazy and unmarketable with such a HUGE budget and BIG stars. I mean, it sort of feels like a gigantic cinematic LOLcat or YTMND starring the Rock, Buffy, Sitffler, Justin Timberlake, and Cheri Oteri.
It looks like a trillion dollars. There’s a part where an SUV fucks another SUV in its tailpipe. Justin Timberlake quoting from the book of Revelations throughout. A senator named “Bobby Frost” who menacingly quotes Robert Frost throughout. The second coming. Sarah Michelle Gellar singing “Teen horniness is not a crime.” Druuuuuuuuuugs. Jon Lovitz. It’s inexplicably part IV-VI of a larger narrative.
I guarantee massive cult movie within a year, tops. I’m going to buy it tomorrow.
I’ve been looking forward to Southland Tales for a few years now, and especially ever since I saw the Brazil-esque trailer online last year. It never opened anywhere in Orlando, and most reviews I’ve read have savaged it. I’m not the biggest Richard Kelly fan in the world (I hated Domino and thought Donnie Darko was merely “interesting”), but this movie was described to me as an action/sci-fi/musical/comedy about the end of the world, so I don’t see how I can miss it. Also, I think Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Justin Timberlake, and Mandy Moore are all solid and enjoyable actors, and I’m also fond of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Jon Lovitz from past projects.
It is #1 on my list of movies to rent. I have a feeling everyone else I know (including my girlfriend and best friend) are going to hate it, so I’m saving it for a quiet evening at home alone.
OH, Parts I, II, and III were told in graphic novels that came out over a year before the movie did. I haven’t read them, but I’m told the movie will make more sense and be somewhat more enjoyable if you do.
We went to see Southland Tales yesterday - it’s by the guy who made Donnie Darko… it’s very long, very confused (and confusing) but also very watchable. It got slagged at Cannes(?) last year and he reshot some scenes and so on to make it a bit more comprehensible. He didn’t really succeed! I have a feeling that one late addition was a voice-over explaining stuff as the film progressed - without it I’d have been totally lost, not just fairly lost! But it is (deliberately) quite funny at times… a couple of big musical numbers in it, too!
It’s set in early July 2008 but given the background, it feels like it should be a few years later. This may be because of the long time in development and production, I guess!
If you pay attention at the beginning, you may find out what the character is that The Rock plays - he’s the lead and not knowing why he was important was a little baffling! Miranda Richardson was good, as were Kylie and SMGeller, but I’ve no idea which part Jason Timberlake played as I have no idea what he looks like… Maybe he played twins?
The whole film is like somebody took half a dozen PKD books and ripped sections out at random and tried to made a film out of them! OTT weird ending scenes as well…
A bizarre companion to The Nines, which we saw last week…
Recommended if you don’t mind a meandering mess with some really neat sections buried in it… and I should really go looking for a novelisation or graphic novel or something for an explanation of some stuff in it. It’ll probably acquire minor cult status over time but I don’t really see it making it’s money back, unfortunately.
And, if you want to see it, see it on a big screen as some of the shots are really wide.
And I have since read the 3 graphic novels and they did add to my understanding a bit…
But it is (deliberately) quite funny at times… a couple of big musical numbers in it, too!