Ghostbusters II

Ghostbusters II (1989) 

Starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and Peter MacNicol

Directed by Ivan Reitman

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

The French Dispatch

 The French Dispatch (2021)

Starring Bill Murray, Elizabeth Moss, Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson, Benicio del Toro, Léa Seydoux, Tilda Swinton, Adrian Brody, Tony Revolori, Bob Balaban, Henry Winkler, Lois Smith, Frances McDormand, Timothée Chalamet, Lyna Khoudri, Liev Schreiber, Jeffrey Wright, Willem Dafoe, Mathieu Amalric, Edward Norton, Winston Ait Hellal, and Saoirse Ronan

Directed by Wes Anderson

Written by Wes Anderson

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: D

A Very Murray Christmas

 A Very Murray Christmas (2015)

Starring Bill Murray, Paul Shaffer, Michael Cera, George Clooney, Miley Cyrus, Dimitri Dimitrov, David Johansen, Rashida Jones, Jenny Lewis, Amy Poehler, Chris Rock, Maya Rudolph, Jason Schwartzman, and Julie White

Directed by Sofia Coppola

Written by Bill Murray, Sofia Coppola, and Mitch Glazer

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B-

Little Shop of Horrors

Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Starring Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Vincent Gardenia, Steve Martin, Tichina Arnold, Tisha Campbell, Jim Belushi, John Candy, Christopher Guest, and Bill Murray

And the vocal talent of Levi Stubbs

Directed by Frank Oz

Written by Howard Ashman

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Tootsie

Tootsie (1982)

Starring Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Bill Murray, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, Sydney Pollack, Doris Belack, George Gaynes, Geena Davis, and Charles Durning

Directed by Sydney Pollack

Written by Larry Gelbart and Murray Schisgal

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: A-

Isle of Dogs

Isle of Dogs (2018)

Featuring the vocal talents of Bryan Cranston, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton, Bob Balaban, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Liev Schreiber, Kunichi Nomura, Greta Gerwig, Frances McDorman, Scarlett Johansson, Harvey Keitel, F. Murray Abraham, Yoko Ono, Courtney B. Vance, and Tilda Swinton

Directed by Wes Anderson

Written by Wes Anderson

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - The Jungle Book

The Jungle Book (2016)

*viewed in 3D*

Starring Neel Sethi and featuring the voice talent of Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong'o, Scarlett Johansson, Giancarlo Esposito, and Christopher Walken

Directed by Jon Favreau

Exquisitely filmed with some of the best integration of computer-generated animation and live action acting I've ever seen, director Jon Favreau's reimagining of Disney's 1967 version of The Jungle Book is stunning to watch.  Unfortunately, it also left me feeling somewhat bored, pondering the notion why Disney feels the need to keep rehashing their prior successes instead of formulating new and original ideas.  Much like last year's Kenneth Branagh adaptation of Cinderella and, to a lesser extent, 2014's Maleficent, the production quality of these recent live action updates is undeniably stellar, but I have to wonder if I'll ever be emotionally moved by them seeing as how I've already seen the animated originals.

We all know the story here -- Mowgli (newcomer Neel Sethi) is a young boy who was somehow abandoned in the jungle and ends up being raised by a pack of wolves led by Akela and Raksha (voiced by Giancarlo Esposito and Lupita Nyong'o).  Thanks to a bit more ominous storyline than in the original animated film, it's decided that Mowgli must be taken to the man village to be raised with other humans.  Panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley) begins the journey with Mowgli, but they are soon separated at which point the young boy comes across a lazy bear named Baloo (Bill Murray) and a friendship quickly ensues.  With Baloo willing to keep Mowgli company, Mowgli sees no reason to continue on to the man village, but little does he know that the vicious tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba) seeks to end the young boy's life.

I'll give the film credit for going darker than the original and giving Mowgli's initial existence in the jungle a bit more of a backstory, but beyond that, the film mirrors very closely to the original in terms of overall plot.  Admittedly, when I reviewed the original, I found it a little episodic and Favreau's version is surprisingly able to solve that issue.  This live action version flows like a more singular piece of material rather than a melange of character meetings.  However, it never gripped me and pulled me in to the story in any way.  There was never any sense of dread for any of the characters nor any sense of excitement because I knew where the story was heading.

Young Neel Sethi deserves a lot of credit.  As the only speaking live-action human in the cast, he more than captivates and holds our attention.  His comedic timing is spot on and considering he stars with a cast of all computer animated creatures, his acting ability deserves commendation.  The voice cast is also stellar.  I loved the mellifluous slyness of George Sanders' vocalization of Shere Khan in the original, but Idris Elba's menacing anger in this updated version may win out for me in the end.  Similarly, Bill Murray as Baloo and Ben Kingsley as Bagheera strike a nice balance of paying a bit of homage to the original vocals while also crafting their own tones.  However, by the time Christopher Walken's King Louie comes into the picture, I found myself shrugging my shoulders and not really caring because I knew exactly what the end result was going to be at the end of the scene.

Admittedly, I find myself in a bit of a conundrum with 2016's The Jungle Book.  I think it's a better movie than the original and the special effects are incredibly realistic, but I also find myself oddly detached from the proceedings in the update because the story is too similar.  Therein lies the problem with these recent Disney updates.  Although they may be well-crafted, they lack any emotional oomph because they don't do enough to reinvigorate or reimagine the stories we know so well.  Maybe my mind will change when next year's reimagining of Beauty and the Beast comes out...but I will not get my hopes up in the slightest.  As for this version of The Jungle Book, it's certainly good, but perhaps it'd be better if you were completely unfamiliar with the Disney source material.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Aloha

Aloha (2015)

Starring Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray, John Krasinski, Jaeden Lieberher, Danielle Rose Russell, Danny McBride, and Alec Baldwin

Directed by Cameron Crowe

There are moments of clever wordplay in director-screenwriter Cameron Crowe's Aloha that pinpoint that this lauded filmmaker (by others, not myself) has an ear for dialog that evokes a sense of spontaneity and naturalness while still feeling somewhat elegant and eloquent.  However, these small moments aren't enough to make a film work or carry a story and Aloha is a near disaster in the story department.  An hour into the film I found myself pondering what in the hell is the main storyline here?  The flick was a jumbled mess until that point and, quite frankly, doesn't get much better in its second half.

In the end, I think Aloha is trying to tell the tale of a beginning and an ending (how clever in that "aloha" can mean "hello" or "goodbye") when it comes to relationships for its main character Brian Gilcrest (Bradley Cooper), a hired defense worker who is employed by the filthy rich Carson Welch (Bill Murray) to do computer work (I think?) on Welch's new space communications satellite launching off the coast of Hawaii in the near future.  Hawaii used to be Brian's home and while living there, he was in a serious relationship with Tracy (Rachel McAdams) who is now married to Air Force pilot Woody (John Krasinki) with whom she has two kids.  Brian's return to the 49th State creates a bit of havoc in Tracy and Woody's relationship with long buried feelings resurfacing between the former couple.  Also thrown into the mix:  pilot Allison Ng (Emma Stone) who is tasked with escorting Brian around the island and begins to fall for him;  Tracy and Woody's son Mitchell (Jaeden Lieberher) believes that Brian's arrival signifies the beginning of some Hawaiian lore that will cause volcanic eruptions and new islands to form; and, just for kicks, Tracy and Woody's daughter Grace (Danielle Rose Russell) may or may not be Brian's biological daughter.

While another film may be able to balance all these storylines, Aloha is unable and proves to be a painful experiment to watch.  As mentioned, sixty minutes in, I had no clue what was supposed to be the "big" storyline here.  I figured it would be the love triangle between Brian, Rachel, and Allison, and while that proves ultimately to be true, this segment is so poorly laid out and structured in the film's opening hour that it's impossible to feel any connection to these characters or have any desire to see this plot point reach its conclusion.  Instead of honing in on this three-cornered relationship, much of the film's beginning is focused on Brian attempting to convince native Hawaiians to allow Carson Welch to build a bridge through their land along with a huge emphasis on "mystical" and "mysterious" ancient Hawaiian folklore.  And the kicker -- neither of these two concepts make much of an appearance in the film's second half.  Throw in some incredibly weird, purportedly comedic moments that just stick out like a sore thumb (or an extra toe which literally makes an appearance here) and Mr. Crowe's script just proves to be laughably bad.

Given the mediocrity of the script, the typically solid cast isn't given a lot to work with and they find themselves floundering for motivation.  McAdams and Krasinski fare the best, but their characters are supposed to be incredibly unhappy with one another and this never comes across despite the actors' best efforts.  The typically charming Cooper is all over the place in a role that never determines whether it's supposed to be comedic or dramatic or a mix of both.  The equally typically charming Stone is like a cartoon character, never once feeling real or based in reality.  Aloha is a huge miss and one that I couldn't wait to say "good-bye" to nearly as soon as I had said "hello."

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - The Monuments Men

The Monuments Men (2014)

Starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Hugh Bonneville, and Bob Balaban

Directed by George Clooney

Director George Clooney's The Monuments Men definitely feels like a throwback to the days when "Hogan's Heroes" was on tv.  That show went straight for the comedic aspects of WWII, but The Monuments Men attempts to mix comedy and drama and Clooney and his fellow screenwriter don't quite mesh the two together.  Unfortunately, this creates a film that never finds its footing, feeling slightly off balance all the way throughout with the comedic aspects never quite being funny enough and the dramatic aspects never quite mustering up the emotion they likely should.

Clooney's trademark charm is evident throughout the film -- and not just in his acting.  The film itself feels deeply rooted in 1960s cinema, a time when things were perhaps more innocent.  Yes, The Monuments Men is a war movie, but this is no Saving Private Ryan in terms of blood, guts, and action.  Instead, the film focuses on a band of merry older men with backgrounds in art who are brought together to retrieve important European sculptures, paintings, and other artistic media that Hitler's Nazi army took upon their take-overs of various countries.  These men -- played by Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Hugh Bonneville, and Bob Balaban -- have no military experience yet are thrown head-first into some war-torn parts of Europe where the Nazi regime -- although now retreating as the war comes to an end -- has not quite abandoned.

Unfortunately, Clooney's desire to create a more lighthearted romp with the serious subject matter doesn't work in the film's favor.  While I understand the drive behind the film and Clooney's inclination to imbue comedy into this tragic war, the humor waters down the serious moments whenever they pop up.  Rather than feel an emotional connection to several tragic occurrences that happen in the film, the relationship the audience has with the characters isn't there in the way that it should be which is a big detriment in the film's serious moments.  Perhaps a more deft director could have righted the ship, but Clooney doesn't quite have the chops yet.  I certainly appreciate the charming vibe he brought to the piece, but The Monuments Men simply doesn't balance itself out on the scale between humor and seriousness and this off-kilter nature is its downfall.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - St. Vincent

St. Vincent (2014)

Starring Bill Murray, Melissa McCarthy, Naomi Watts, Chris O'Dowd, Terrence Howard, and Jaeden Lieberher 

Directed by Theodore Melfi

St. Vincent treads familiar territory.  There's nothing that happens at the end of director-screenwriter Theodore Melfi's flick that you couldn't have telescoped from the first fifteen minutes.  However, the familiar story of a curmudgeonly old man who befriends an ostracized young kid only to have both their lives changed for the better is buoyed by some great performances and a charmingly funny script.

Bill Murray is the Vincent of the title, but the saint moniker is certainly questionable.  He's a cantankerous old man addicted to alcohol and gambling with a penchant for a certain Russian "lady of the night" named Daka (Naomi Watts) whom he just so happens to have currently knocked up.  Recently divorced nurse Maggie (Melissa McCarthy) moves in next door to Vincent with her young son Oliver (Jaeden Lieberher) and Vincent reluctantly agrees to babysit the kid after an incident at school leaves Oliver stranded without his keys to the house.  Oliver clicks with the no-nonsense Vincent, and Maggie agrees to allow Vincent to continue to watch her son.  Needless to say, Vincent gets Oliver into some crazy situations while Oliver begins to soften Vincent's hardened exterior.

At the helm both directorially and script-wise, Theodore Melfi is perfectly adequate.  His script is sweet and gentle with three well-rounded main characters in Vincent, Maggie, and Oliver.  While the rest of the cast (the aforementioned Watts and Terrence Howard as a bookie, to name a few) are left to make the most out of more caricaturish characters (Chris O'Dowd succeeds the best at this as Oliver's schoolteacher who happens to be a hilarious priest), Bill Murray, Melissa McCarthy, and Jaeden Lieberher get some nice plot lines to build their acting around.

Don't get me wrong -- I truly enjoyed Melissa McCarthy in Bridesmaids, but every role she's tackled in movies since then seems like a rehash of that same character.  Here, she's kind, sweet, and still funny as a good mom who's finding it difficult to transition to being husband-less.  I've recently been re-watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix and that show along with this role in St. Vincent remind me that McCarthy has what it takes to bring more than just hilarious raunch to the table.

Making his debut, young Jaeden Lieberher has the comic chops to stand opposite comedic heavyweights like Murray and McCarthy.  In his debut performance, Lieberher's Oliver gives a believable performance and is hopefully racking up additional roles in the future.

But St. Vincent is Bill Murray's movie.  While Murray's Vincent isn't necessarily an unknown character to anyone who's seen films like this, Murray brings a good amount of heart to the role that makes the title character into a more well-rounded individual.  His character goes through quite a few ups and downs (the "downs" of which get much more serious as the film progresses), but Murray does a great job of keeping that tinge of humor always believably present.  It's a nice role in a nice movie.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Moonrise Kingdom

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Starring Jared Gilman, Kara Hayward, Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Bob Balaban, Harvey Keitel, and Jason Schwartzman

Directed by Wes Anderson

Wes Anderson is a director whose films often feature style trumping substance.  When he succeeds at finding a perfect balance, the result is one of the best movies of the new century.  When he disappoints, at least he always lets us down in an interesting way with a wonderful visual flair.  Moonrise Kingdom falls a bit in the middle of those two spectrums.  His trademark quirkiness is omnipresent in his typical storybook world he has created here, in this case the island town of New Penzance in New England circa 1965.  With beautiful color blocking and visually impressive camera work, Moonrise Kingdom never fails to be a lovely film to gaze upon.  Storywise, however, there's just not a whole lot upon which to heap praises.  It's all a bit too simplistic, feeling even a bit more unnecessarily padded than its short 96-minute runtime would have you believe.

When the film opens, twelve year-old Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) has run away from his Khaki Scout summer camp.  As Scout Master Randy Ward (Edward Norton) frantically rallies his troop members into a search party, across the island young Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) has also run away from home, leaving her parents (Frances McDormand and Bill Murray) worried about her whereabouts.  It turns out that the two tweens have met up with one another to rekindle a budding puppy love romance that began a short time ago.  They plan on running away together and spending a lifetime with one another letting no one in town stop them from their entwined destinies.

That's Moonrise Kingdom in a nutshell and, quite honestly, not much else of importance happens.  There are some quirky side stories that fail to add much to the overarching tale and, as mentioned previously, the main story just doesn't have enough to sustain itself.  Sure, the whole thing is cute as could be, but that doesn't necessarily always cut it.  Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward are nice together as the young couple, but (and this always sounds harsh when critiquing younger actors) it took me quite a while to be won over by their mannered and wooden performances.  Ultimately, I think their director wanted their roles to be exactly as they have played them, but they aren't exactly emotionally riveting, falling instead on the side of bland as opposed to interesting.  The rest of the cast is fine, but with the exception of Mr. Norton's whimsical Scoutmaster, they really aren't given a whole lot to do.  None of the characters have a bit of depth (or at least any depth that proves meaningful) and that is a bit of a disappointment.

Ultimately, Moonrise Kingdom is an enjoyable diversion, but beyond the visuals (which, once again, I find beautiful and make the film certainly worth watching), this proves to be a film that I likely never need to see again sheerly because of the throwaway nature of the whole thing.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

(I realize that the above review sounds overly harsh for a 'B-' rating, but the visual style of the flick carried a lot of weight here.  And the plain and simple truth is that the story just didn't have enough oomph to warrant a higher rating.)

Movie Review - Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters (1984)

Starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Annie Potts, and Ernie Hudson

Directed by Ivan Reitman 

***Ghostbusters is being re-released in select theaters for one daily show only on Thursday evenings in October.***

Without a doubt, 1984's Ghostbusters still remains a classic flick from my childhood.  Certain movies just maintain that nostalgic feeling and this is one of them.  At a certain point, your mind may get clouded by these thoughts and allow yourself to overlook what some may perceive as flaws, but that's what nostalgia does to you.  And that's not a bad thing.

With all this talk about a third film being added to the series, it's completely obvious that without Bill Murray (who is apparently the lone holdout on the movie's progress), the best part of the series would be missing.  Murray's parapsychologist Peter Venkman is one of those characters that is iconic to me.  Full of wry, witty, and dry humor, I found myself chuckling (or at the very least smiling) after nearly every single line reading of his.  His interactions with his ghostbusting partners Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) and Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis) are priceless and coupling that with his flirtatious attempts to bed Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver as a customer who needs the help of the paranormal experts), Venkman is comedic genius.

That certainly isn't meant to belittle Aykroyd, Ramis, and Weaver who, along with Rick Moranis as the geek living next door to Dana and Annie Potts as the overworked and sassy Ghostbusters' secretary, provide ample reason to watch.  In fact, with the exception of Ernie Hudson as newly hired Ghostbuster #4 Winston -- a character who is given nothing to do and adds nothing to the plot whatsoever in terms of either comedy or purpose -- Ghostbusters is filled with characters you'd desire to see again.

Despite moving at a rather rapid pace, the film's conclusion does seem a little anti-climactic to me and feels like a jumbled mess at moments.  For that reason, Ghostbusters doesn't quite make it into The Personal Canon despite the fact that I did enjoy taking this nostalgia trip with the gang on the big screen again.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Scrooged (1988)

Starring Bill Murray, Karen Allen, Alfre Woodard, and Bobcat Goldthwait
Directed by Richard Donner

Maybe it's because this is the third version of A Christmas Carol that I've watched in four weeks or so, but Scrooged just didn't hit the mark with me. I had certainly seen this before, but I'm honestly not sure whether I sat and watched it all the way through in one sitting -- perhaps I just caught bits and pieces from tv airings. Anyway, despite a winning turn from Bill Murray, this version really falls flat.

Murray plays tv executive Francis Cross and he's quite the curmudgeon. Just like the other versions of this tale, he's visited by four ghosts who, in the end, convince him to change his ways and become a caring guy.

Murray is great here. He's off-the-wall and very funny. Unfortunately, everything else around him falls flat. The "Tiny Tim" storyline here featuring Cross's secretary (played by Alfre Woodard) and her child who won't talk just doesn't hold nearly as much resonance as the typical "dying Tiny Tim" version. With no emotional connection in that part of the story, Scrooged relies on the viewers to be involved in the plotline involving Cross's ex-lover (Karen Allen), but Allen's character is so bland that it's tough to give a darn there either.

So, overall, despite some cool effects and a great role from Murray, this Christmas tale really didn't register for me at all.

The RyMickey Rating: D+

Movie Review - Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Featuring the voice talents of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Michael Gambon, and Willem Dafoe
Directed by Wes Anderson

I can't even begin to tell you how thrilled I am that this movie lived up to all my expectations. I've been desperately trying to not get excited about this film, but from the first preview, I was in love with the look of this thing and I couldn't wait for its release. Unlike some flicks that have had kick-ass trailers this year and failed to live up to expectations (*cough*Where the Wild Things Are*cough*), Fantastic Mr. Fox lived up to and exceeded my hopes for this film.

Mr. Fox (Clooney) has become "domesticated" in his later years. Once a criminal known for breaking into chicken, turkey, and squab farms, his wife (Streep) convinced him to give up that life upon the birth of their child, Ash (Schwartzman). A few fox-years have passed and Mr. Fox, having somewhat of a mid-life crisis, decides to move his family out of the foxhole they reside in and into a tree that happens to face the factories of Boggis, Bunce, and Bean, who specialize in raising poultry and making alcoholic apple cider. Mr. Fox's old "wild animal" tendencies arise again and he decides to tackle one last caper. Little does he know that the three factory owners decide to join forces to fight back against the fox and his animal friends.

Quite simply, this film is a joy to watch. The stop-motion animation here is exquisite. I'm a big animation buff and this has got to be the best-looking stop motion animation I've seen on the big screen. The thing that's really neat about it is that it looks totally old-school, bringing to mind the Rankin-Bass Christmas classics like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. The stop-and-go style isn't seamless, but that's what makes it so darn cool to watch. The colors, character movements, costumes, and backdrops simply add to the stellar production.

The voice acting -- wow. Sure, you knew you were listening to George Clooney and Meryl Streep, but their subdued voices just fit with the tone of the movie so well. Particularly winning was Jason Schwartzman as Mr. and Mrs. Fox's son, Ash. That character and his relationship with his fox cousin, Kristofferson (which is seriously the coolest name ever), was absolutely my favorite part of this movie.

No doubt the script has a quirky nature that may not appeal to all. It's certainly felt like a live-action Wes Anderson film that just happened to be animated. Granted, I've only seen two of Anderson's other works -- The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic -- but the flick certainly reminded me of those previous works, filled with odd characters and dry humor. As I mentioned above, the production design -- colors, set design, costumes -- was reminiscent of those two Anderson movies I've seen as well. I remember reading a ton of Roald Dahl when I was a kid and I loved all of his books. (Perhaps as one of my final books in my Book-a-Week Quest, I'll wind up reading one of his books again.) His style and tone certainly seems to fit Wes Anderson very well.

I find it much more difficult to write about movies that I love...I simply don't want to write about them, but instead just want to get back to the theater and watch them again. So, this may seem like a lack of enthusiasm, but whatever I say won't begin to convey my love for this movie.

The RyMickey Rating: A
(Finally! My first A of 2009!)

Movie Review - The Limits of Control (2009)

Starring Isaach De Bankolé, Tilda Swinton, John Hurt, Gael García Bernal, and Bill Murray

Written and Directed by Jim Jarmusch

Edited 230am 5/21/09
Peer pressure forced me to head up to Philadelphia and watch some movie I had no desire to see earlier today. Despite the fact that I told my two "friends" (the quotation marks are there because I'm not sure I can forgive them for the two hours I wasted today) that I had read that the movie was horrible, I was suckered into going.

At first I thought I was maybe in some allergy-induced haze (as my allergies are hitting the peak of awfulness right about now) that was hindering my ability to fully concentrate...I would later realize that wasn't the case at all. I'd love to tell you what happens in this movie, but that would mean that I myself would have to create a story because there was no story here. I guess there's a guy who's some type of hit man who meets a bunch of different people and then kills Bill Murray for reasons unknown (spoilers be damned!).

This is a movie that if anyone tells you that they like it, they're lying to you because they want to look smart. It was ridiculously awful. I think that the film is trying to say that censorship of the arts is a bad thing (the film spends ample time discussing art, film, music, and dance)...but I could be totally wrong about that. Who the hell knows? The movie sure doesn't know what it's talking about.

Yes, the film actually looked nice cinematography-wise, and there were decent performances from Tilda Swinton and the main guy (Bankolé), but overall, it was just utter garbage.

Two people got up and walked out during the screening we saw if that tells you anything (although, admittedly, one came back in after being gone for 40 minutes...he didn't miss anything).

Part of me is happy I saw it, if only for the fact that I now feel I can force the two said "friends" to see something they have no desire to see...

EDITED---
I originally had this rated an 'F', but after seeing two other movies tonight (one in particular), I realized that this movie isn't nearly as bad as I thought it was. Still, it was no good, but it was not deserving of an 'F' if only for the cinematography and Tilda Swinton. Plus, the fact that I'm still thinking about it 12 hours later has to say something, right?

The RyMickey Rating: D-