Elizabethtown - A look back
When I watched the promos of Elizabethtown my heart skipped a bit. Firstly it was directed by Cameron Crowe whom I rate as one of the finest of our generation.I have always felt a deep connection with all his movies (Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky) but none more so than what I consider his best work to date - Jerry Mcguire which for some odd reason (most likely the timing of it's release) has had such a huge impact on me. No movie in the recent past (save perhaps, The Matrix) boasts of so many memorable oft-quoted lines. I've watched it oh so many times and yet it never seems tiring. Secondly, the promos looked promising.
So given my little history with Cameron crowe movies, watching Elizabeth town, Crowe's most ambitious project (in terms of screenplay) proved to be absolutely heartbreaking. Cos it's a colossal disaster. If the success of a movie can be attributed to the vision of the director, then Crowe's vision in this case is hopelessly incoherent and disjointed. The problem lies in the screenplay which tries to do too much and cover too much ground - suitable for a 600 page novel- but on the screen it ends up under-cooked and disconnected. Somewhere there is a really good movie trying to escape but it's buried deep within the walls the screenplay puts up and what could've really helped was some tight editing. One brilliant scene followed by 2-3 cliche' scenes, which don't work and yet, is allowed to go on and on, far beyond required, tests the patience of the viewers and as a result the movie seems much longer than it really is. Brilliant dialogue which is the essence of any Crowe movie is rather dull here, although there are plenty of memorable quotes sprinkled throughout the movie (some of them are listed below) but they are too few and far in-between to have any significant impact.
There are 3 stories within Elizabethtown, each pulling the movie in it's direction and all of which could work as a stand alone movie.
First layer - Drew Baylor (Orlando Bloom) once the blue-eyed boy of his company, subsequently fired, facing a personal, emotional crisis (loss of his father) goes on to find true love Claire Colburn (Kirsten Dunst), rediscovers his roots and re-connects with his dead dad which in turn begins his healing process.
Second Layer- A fascinating look on the quaint, small southern town of Elizabethtown and Drew's interactions with his dad's family residing within...a look into their lives, the drama and problems
Third layer - A man and his family - Mom (Susan Sarandon) and sister (Judy Greer) coping with the death of the father
The first layer, which is essentially the core of the movie, which contains the best parts, is too similar to Jerry Mcguire in it's theme. Hence Crowe's need to add more layers. The second layer proves most distracting and out-of-place. Significant parts of the the 2nd layer could've been safely excised without effecting the story. Little attention is given to the 3rd layer and Drew's attempts to re-connect with his father. By the time Susan Sarandon performs her stand-up comedy routine the audience has moved way past caring the outcome.
Also infuriating is Crowe's need to plug every scene and also every moment of silence with music where subtle instrumental background music (or silence) could've made those scenes more poignant.
The movie contains three BRILLIANT scenes. The first where Drew discusses the difference between failure and fiasco on his way to being fired, the all-night phone conversation between Drew and claire, and the road-trip at the end.
The connection between Drew and claire is depicted beautifully. The phone conversation scene is one of the best I’ve ever seen, where they’re talking on the phone all night (after seeing a wedding party Drew feels utterly lonely and calls her out of desperation) about every conceivable topic and they keep saying “Well, I’ll let you go,” and then something new comes up and they can’t stop and they’re doing laundry while they talk and clandestinely going to the bathroom and wandering around, the phone pressed to their ears so long they start to hurt. And the whole experience is bright surprises. You fall into this comfortable embrace. You found someone, you’re shocked to realize, that thinks just like you. Has the same sense of humor. And this person is really a stranger. But you can’t stop yourself from disclosing everything there is about you. Crowe handles this scene like a poet.It’s something we’ve all experienced -- not just the phone call and not just the conversation, but that click of something that feels right -- and that’s what Crowe does so well: he gives us that starry, cute, Hollywood romance stuff, but in a way that is so true and honest, so attuned to his characters and to the small details of reality, that we’re instantly involved in something that feels intimate and genuine.
It's thus heartbreaking that the rest of the movie just doesnt lift itself to that level.
Memorable Quotes (Courtesy IMDB) -
Drew Baylor: In that moment I knew success not greatness was the only god the world served.
Claire Colburn: I think I've been asleep most of my life.
Drew Baylor: Me too.
Claire Colburn: Men see things in a box, and women see them in a round room.
Drew Baylor: You know the way people look at you as if it's the last time? I've started collecting these looks.
Drew Baylor: I've just recently decided that the things we know aren't black and white.
Claire Colburn: And so we all became helpers, which I *so* can't help. I can't help helping.
Claire Colburn: I've spent so much time thinking about all the answers to the problem, that I forget what the problem *actually* was.
Drew Baylor: [embracing] Please don't take this as rejection.
Claire Colburn: I really don't.
Claire Colburn: You know, You're always trying to break up with me, and we're not even together.
Drew Baylor: I know... We're not?
Drew Baylor: I'm gonna have to call you back...
Heather Baylor: Okay, just dial HELL and i'll answer.
Claire Colburn: Trust me. Everyone is less mysterious than they think they are.
Claire Colburn: We peaked on the phone.
Drew Baylor: So what are you doing right now? Claire Colburn: [referring to Drew] I'm checking out this cute guy... Drew Baylor: [disgusted face] Why are you telling me that?
-Nav
So given my little history with Cameron crowe movies, watching Elizabeth town, Crowe's most ambitious project (in terms of screenplay) proved to be absolutely heartbreaking. Cos it's a colossal disaster. If the success of a movie can be attributed to the vision of the director, then Crowe's vision in this case is hopelessly incoherent and disjointed. The problem lies in the screenplay which tries to do too much and cover too much ground - suitable for a 600 page novel- but on the screen it ends up under-cooked and disconnected. Somewhere there is a really good movie trying to escape but it's buried deep within the walls the screenplay puts up and what could've really helped was some tight editing. One brilliant scene followed by 2-3 cliche' scenes, which don't work and yet, is allowed to go on and on, far beyond required, tests the patience of the viewers and as a result the movie seems much longer than it really is. Brilliant dialogue which is the essence of any Crowe movie is rather dull here, although there are plenty of memorable quotes sprinkled throughout the movie (some of them are listed below) but they are too few and far in-between to have any significant impact.
There are 3 stories within Elizabethtown, each pulling the movie in it's direction and all of which could work as a stand alone movie.
First layer - Drew Baylor (Orlando Bloom) once the blue-eyed boy of his company, subsequently fired, facing a personal, emotional crisis (loss of his father) goes on to find true love Claire Colburn (Kirsten Dunst), rediscovers his roots and re-connects with his dead dad which in turn begins his healing process.
Second Layer- A fascinating look on the quaint, small southern town of Elizabethtown and Drew's interactions with his dad's family residing within...a look into their lives, the drama and problems
Third layer - A man and his family - Mom (Susan Sarandon) and sister (Judy Greer) coping with the death of the father
The first layer, which is essentially the core of the movie, which contains the best parts, is too similar to Jerry Mcguire in it's theme. Hence Crowe's need to add more layers. The second layer proves most distracting and out-of-place. Significant parts of the the 2nd layer could've been safely excised without effecting the story. Little attention is given to the 3rd layer and Drew's attempts to re-connect with his father. By the time Susan Sarandon performs her stand-up comedy routine the audience has moved way past caring the outcome.
Also infuriating is Crowe's need to plug every scene and also every moment of silence with music where subtle instrumental background music (or silence) could've made those scenes more poignant.
The movie contains three BRILLIANT scenes. The first where Drew discusses the difference between failure and fiasco on his way to being fired, the all-night phone conversation between Drew and claire, and the road-trip at the end.
The connection between Drew and claire is depicted beautifully. The phone conversation scene is one of the best I’ve ever seen, where they’re talking on the phone all night (after seeing a wedding party Drew feels utterly lonely and calls her out of desperation) about every conceivable topic and they keep saying “Well, I’ll let you go,” and then something new comes up and they can’t stop and they’re doing laundry while they talk and clandestinely going to the bathroom and wandering around, the phone pressed to their ears so long they start to hurt. And the whole experience is bright surprises. You fall into this comfortable embrace. You found someone, you’re shocked to realize, that thinks just like you. Has the same sense of humor. And this person is really a stranger. But you can’t stop yourself from disclosing everything there is about you. Crowe handles this scene like a poet.It’s something we’ve all experienced -- not just the phone call and not just the conversation, but that click of something that feels right -- and that’s what Crowe does so well: he gives us that starry, cute, Hollywood romance stuff, but in a way that is so true and honest, so attuned to his characters and to the small details of reality, that we’re instantly involved in something that feels intimate and genuine.
It's thus heartbreaking that the rest of the movie just doesnt lift itself to that level.
Memorable Quotes (Courtesy IMDB) -
Drew Baylor: In that moment I knew success not greatness was the only god the world served.
Claire Colburn: I think I've been asleep most of my life.
Drew Baylor: Me too.
Claire Colburn: Men see things in a box, and women see them in a round room.
Drew Baylor: You know the way people look at you as if it's the last time? I've started collecting these looks.
Drew Baylor: I've just recently decided that the things we know aren't black and white.
Claire Colburn: And so we all became helpers, which I *so* can't help. I can't help helping.
Claire Colburn: I've spent so much time thinking about all the answers to the problem, that I forget what the problem *actually* was.
Drew Baylor: [embracing] Please don't take this as rejection.
Claire Colburn: I really don't.
Claire Colburn: You know, You're always trying to break up with me, and we're not even together.
Drew Baylor: I know... We're not?
Drew Baylor: I'm gonna have to call you back...
Heather Baylor: Okay, just dial HELL and i'll answer.
Claire Colburn: Trust me. Everyone is less mysterious than they think they are.
Claire Colburn: We peaked on the phone.
Drew Baylor: So what are you doing right now? Claire Colburn: [referring to Drew] I'm checking out this cute guy... Drew Baylor: [disgusted face] Why are you telling me that?
-Nav
posted by Nav at 8:05 AM
1 Comments:
Thale...wht no more entries??
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