Movies (and trauma)

[tahnan]

In the last week or so, I've watched three movies that I can't really in good conscience recommend unreservedly, terrific though they all were. The first, last weekend, was Hard Candy, a light little tale with Ellen Page as a fourteen-year-old who gets herself picked up online by a single middle-aged photographer, and if you think that's going to go badly for someone, you have no idea. I'm finding it a little hard to watch her in Cisco Systems commercials. It's a terrific movie, essentially just the two of them alone in a house (once they leave the coffeeshop) and they both give great performances, but be prepared to be very uncomfortable.

The second was American Psycho, which I felt was one of those movies that I ought to be familiar with. It was somewhat less disturbing than the previous night's movie (which should tell you something about Hard Candy), and was a very strange (and interesting) take on the 1980s. On the other hand, if you suspect from the title that you wouldn't like it, you're right.

The third, which I watched last ngiht, was Pan's Labyrinth, which combined the uncomfortable casual violence of the latter of last weekend's movies with the wrenching emotional pain of the former. Was it good? My word yes. Would I watch it again? I'm not sure I could. If you're sensitive, I recommend watching it with someone who's already seen it and who can hand you peril-sensitive sunglasses at the appropriate times.

I've got to start finding lighter movies on cable. The fact that I considered Heathers tonight as a good option for something lighter should give you a sense.

Comments

[jeffurrynpl.livejournal.com]

My mother strongly recommended Hard Candy a few weeks ago but I'm still a bit chicken to see it. That tells you a little something about us.

[tactical-grace.livejournal.com]

Loved Pan's Labyrinth.

Didn't much love Hard Candy, although I will acknowledge the skill of the actors and the director. I have a hard time with movies that have no likable characters...

[jangler-npl.livejournal.com]

I watched a good 10 minutes of Hard Candy with my eyes closed. Pan's Labyrinth I've heard good things about, but I've seen a few of the director's other movies (The Devil's Backbone, The Orphanage) and they were both...unsettling. In an entirely different way from the unsettlingness of Hard Candy. I really liked "The Informant!", which I would consider light, though the subject matter is at times serious.

[sensational.livejournal.com]

I felt very much the same about Pan's Labyrinth. Haven't seen the other two.

[saphir23.livejournal.com]

Ditto re Pan's Labyrinth. So well done, heartbreaking, and I'd have a hard time watching it again.

[arianhwyvar.livejournal.com]

Yep. Same here on Pan's Labyrinth. So well done, so painful.

[thedan.livejournal.com]

As I've noted in my journal before, I liked the film version of American Psycho a lot. The book, in comparison, is really interesting from a stylistic point of view (pages and pages of descriptions of 80s bands and fitness regimens) but when it gets disturbing, it's eight to ten times as disturbing as the movie.

[justsomesleddog.livejournal.com]

I rented Hard Candy off of Netflix without reading the description because it was recommended to me after I rated Juno highly and I just clicked "Add to Queue."

Man, was I traumatized.

[recordersmith.livejournal.com]

Given those descriptions, I'm putting those movies on the "Carolyn should never see under any circumstances" list.