So many great questions posed by this movie… I think “what if disclosure day happened tomorrow” is the first one, but I’d take it a step deeper: what would that actually mean? For our religion, our sense of self, our place in the universe… so many alien enthusiasts are obsessed with what the government is hiding from us that I fear they don’t think about what to do if they actually told us. It’s like the dog chasing the ambulance.
It's a good film for some good time in the cinema. Well I won't lie if I say, I enjoyed it. But I also won't lie, if I say, that I also was a bit bored with the script. It's like the film was written with huge safety pillow under the paper. It played save.
I've seen similar views from others on the script and there were bits that felt off at times and, also like you, I enjoyed it in the theatre. I was fully engrossed and sucked into the energy of the final act.
Thanks Lloyd. Mixed indeed! Pretty bad. That's sad for me as I respect the deity Spielberg very much - he was a formative and inspirational influence on me as a film lover and screenwriter.
I may go and see it only because you've asked for my thoughts; but frankly I brace myself if and when I watch a film these days. I am seeing a trite 'cinescape' of missed opportunities and bias.
But maybe the IMDb reviews are bad because the film is too good for popcorn munchers. Maybe I'll let you know. In any event Spielberg's status is unassailable in my mind.
JAWS & CLOSE ENCOUNTERS? Benchmark story and structure, blocking, and beats rhythms.
Excellent review Lloyd. I liked it well enough i just felt my review came out to “its good”. Feels like i cannot explain why im not crazy about the climax without spoiling it
Thanks Peter. I checked for your review, but didn’t see anything. Do share a link if you have.
I’ve seen a lot of comments about the ending. I loved the tension but I wonder if seeing some things (not to spoil for other readers) came a bit too early. I think that’s a fair take.
Hi Nick, I’ve seen a lot of mixed user-reviews on IMDb. Although, as a big fan of the site (my brother-in law works for the company so he’s always preaching…) I know that we can all have different opinions. Save for a few recent inclusions, I’ve watched their top 250 but I’d be lying if every film resonated with me. I think that’s ok, though.
Here, I’ve tried to articulate my own personal experience of watching the film and have broken down that critique. Whilst I really enjoyed the viewing, it certainly wasn’t perfect.
On the screenwriting points, in particular, David Koepp is brave in starting the story with one of the plots already in motion. I think that could tangle things up from the start for a lot of people. As I mention in the post, there are some characters underwritten as well (for me, Colman Domingo’s character) and a lot of big themes are in play.
But once you’ve watched it, it would be good to know your perspectives.
After watching the trailers and hearing the sound of Margaret’s speech, I was thinking the story might be about language and would explore it in greater depth like Arrival, but also the sound from Close Encounters.
Good piece Lloyd. I had a different experience with it and left a little disappointed. II love Emily Blunt but thought she was miscast in this. I found her distracting and couldn't shake the sense I was just watching Emily Blunt the movie star, and not who she was supposed to be. I did like the more grounded 70s conspiracy thriller feel though and the restraint with CGI was refreshing. Overall I just didn't really connect with it, which is a shame
Thanks Joe, I appreciate the nice words and comment. It does seem that views are split on the film and given that there are so many thematics at play, it’s unsurprising. I had similar experience earlier in the year with Project Hail Mary. Everyone was raving about it but I felt it was just OK.
Thanks Olga. I was unsure about the jazz analogy for her performance but my gut told me to go with it. Let me know if you get the same vibe watching it (or not, of course).
So many great questions posed by this movie… I think “what if disclosure day happened tomorrow” is the first one, but I’d take it a step deeper: what would that actually mean? For our religion, our sense of self, our place in the universe… so many alien enthusiasts are obsessed with what the government is hiding from us that I fear they don’t think about what to do if they actually told us. It’s like the dog chasing the ambulance.
That’s a great viewpoint Ollie; they’re kind of blinding themselves to something by doing that.
It's a good film for some good time in the cinema. Well I won't lie if I say, I enjoyed it. But I also won't lie, if I say, that I also was a bit bored with the script. It's like the film was written with huge safety pillow under the paper. It played save.
I've seen similar views from others on the script and there were bits that felt off at times and, also like you, I enjoyed it in the theatre. I was fully engrossed and sucked into the energy of the final act.
Well, it's an exciting film to watch. I will try to read more about it. I did not have any time yet.
Thanks Lloyd. Mixed indeed! Pretty bad. That's sad for me as I respect the deity Spielberg very much - he was a formative and inspirational influence on me as a film lover and screenwriter.
I may go and see it only because you've asked for my thoughts; but frankly I brace myself if and when I watch a film these days. I am seeing a trite 'cinescape' of missed opportunities and bias.
But maybe the IMDb reviews are bad because the film is too good for popcorn munchers. Maybe I'll let you know. In any event Spielberg's status is unassailable in my mind.
JAWS & CLOSE ENCOUNTERS? Benchmark story and structure, blocking, and beats rhythms.
Excellent review Lloyd. I liked it well enough i just felt my review came out to “its good”. Feels like i cannot explain why im not crazy about the climax without spoiling it
Thanks Peter. I checked for your review, but didn’t see anything. Do share a link if you have.
I’ve seen a lot of comments about the ending. I loved the tension but I wonder if seeing some things (not to spoil for other readers) came a bit too early. I think that’s a fair take.
Hello Lloyd it is coming out in a few hours
Interesting, Lloyd. The user-reviews of DISCLOSURE DAY (the only thing I take note of as a screenwriter) on IMDb are extremely bad.
Hi Nick, I’ve seen a lot of mixed user-reviews on IMDb. Although, as a big fan of the site (my brother-in law works for the company so he’s always preaching…) I know that we can all have different opinions. Save for a few recent inclusions, I’ve watched their top 250 but I’d be lying if every film resonated with me. I think that’s ok, though.
Here, I’ve tried to articulate my own personal experience of watching the film and have broken down that critique. Whilst I really enjoyed the viewing, it certainly wasn’t perfect.
On the screenwriting points, in particular, David Koepp is brave in starting the story with one of the plots already in motion. I think that could tangle things up from the start for a lot of people. As I mention in the post, there are some characters underwritten as well (for me, Colman Domingo’s character) and a lot of big themes are in play.
But once you’ve watched it, it would be good to know your perspectives.
yasss i love the empathy side to this film so much - it also reminded me of Arrival too :)
After watching the trailers and hearing the sound of Margaret’s speech, I was thinking the story might be about language and would explore it in greater depth like Arrival, but also the sound from Close Encounters.
What a miss!
that’s very true! i liked that aspect of how Kellner can understand the language cause it’s math but yes it wasn’t expanded upon all that much!
Good piece Lloyd. I had a different experience with it and left a little disappointed. II love Emily Blunt but thought she was miscast in this. I found her distracting and couldn't shake the sense I was just watching Emily Blunt the movie star, and not who she was supposed to be. I did like the more grounded 70s conspiracy thriller feel though and the restraint with CGI was refreshing. Overall I just didn't really connect with it, which is a shame
Thanks Joe, I appreciate the nice words and comment. It does seem that views are split on the film and given that there are so many thematics at play, it’s unsurprising. I had similar experience earlier in the year with Project Hail Mary. Everyone was raving about it but I felt it was just OK.
Do you have a review for your thoughts planned?
Agree on Project Hail Mary, not amazing but decent. Yes hoping to get some thoughts together
OK cool. Look forward to reading.
Thank you for the review. I haven't seen the film yet, but your essay made me want to. And I'll be listening for that jazz rhythm in Blunt when I do.)
Thanks Olga. I was unsure about the jazz analogy for her performance but my gut told me to go with it. Let me know if you get the same vibe watching it (or not, of course).
agree Emily steals the show
Yeah, she literally had all the colour but never felt goofy or overplayed.
I've not seen her in a bad performance but this was on another lever compared to her current catalogue.