Christina Ricci Neked in Monster?

[Chest Rockwell]

Well either way, I saw a clip of Theron acting and it seemed like terrible overacting....granted, i haven't seen the actual movie.

I still think Naomi Watts or Scarlett Johannson deserve the Oscar

nay.

Sucks to your ass-mar.

[Pedro]

*MINOR SPOILER*
someone here earlier seemed to complain to a moment of the film being scored to journey.  wow, i really disagreed with this.  i think the moment of ricci and theron kissing right as that buildup finishes in "don't stop believin'" was one of the best movie moments ive seen in a long time (no sarcasm).

the crimson and clover moment was a little too soft pornish, but hey, i got used to it after about 20 seconds.

[Weak2ndAct]

someone here earlier seemed to complain to a moment of the film being scored to journey.

That was me.  I just found it incredibly insulting that the only two pop songs used in the movie were used to sell the 'romance' scenes.  I felt Jenkins did not earn the emotions she was trying to elicit, so she forced them on us with music (and I can't even begin to describe my feelings about the utter insanity of playing that music again over the end credits, only moments after Eileen's tirade in court).  But what I do know?  I thought the movie was a mess, top to bottom.

[SHAFTR]

So I just came from this and I liked it quite a bit.  Charlize Theron was very good, I spent the first 30 minutes of the film and 30 minutes after the film saying, "that's charlize theron? from fuckin' Reindeer Games?"  The key thing to remember is that after the first 30 minutes I forgot it was her and she really became that character.  Either her or Watts deserve the oscar.  I think Ricci's performance is being discounted though, I thought she was just as good.  I found no problems with the pacing or the "style".  Sometimes I don't want to notice the style of a film.  OFten the "style" of the film distracts from the story itself.  As for the use of music, I agree it was a bit forced.  The part that kind of upset me was when she snaps the 2nd time the music builds up to emphasize that.  The performances were amazing, the music isn't needed to underscore it (or in this case overscore).

[Ravi]

Christina Ricci's performance is overshadowed by Charlize Theron's more dramatic transformation, but she was nonetheless very good.  Selby is insecure and unsure of herself and the scene in which this is displayed most obviously is when she goes to the bar by herself and tells the women at the bar Aileen's story about telling off the lawyer.  It goes by quickly but it is revealing of her personality.

The style was about what I expected for this type of film, i.e., a lot of handheld shots and unobtrusive cinematography and editing.  I found that the use of the "small town girl" song was too on-the-nose.

[nix]

people complaining about lack of style should go start a michael bay worship thread or something.

This movie was astounding.

"One of the best performances in cinema history"? A premature statement to say the least. But I can't think of a better one this year (and there were a few other great ones).

As far as pacing goes, I thought it was perfect. What did you want? A sereal killer thriller pacing? This is a character piece based on a true story. It's gonna be somewhat episodic.

In short: Raw, brutal, brilliant.

[modage]

http://www.xixax.com/viewtopic.php?t=5319

[MacGuffin]

mod-age, did you see this movie?

[modage]

no, i was just responding to the bay bit.

[Ghostboy]

I finally saw it this evening, and it's mostly good. I'd say Theron definitely deserves the Oscar. Her performance was heartbreaking (sometimes you could see her natural beauty just pushing the limits of the makeup, but that actually worked to the benefit of the character), and it saves the movie from what I thought was an uneven execution. I agree with Sanjuro that the pacing was off, and I also think that Ricci wasn't quite right for the part. I never believed her as that character, someone that naive -- I appreciated the gestures that suggested Selby was improvising her way through things, but I still think the role would have been better filled by someone else. I didn't have a problem with the directing -- simplicity was the right approach for this kind of movie -- but the writing never reached the depths I wanted it to.

Obviously, though, it's worth seeing. It clearly works for some people, extremely well in some cases, and I can't imagine not being moved by Theron's performance. It must have been quite a relief to let that character go after shooting the film.

[nix]

oh, okay. Well... go start a McG worship thread then...

[Ravi]

Those of you who had problems with the pacing, could you please elaborate?

What did you think of Charlize Theron's accent?  To me it was pretty good, though I don't have a frame of reference for it.  Sometimes I find that non-Americans doing American accents don't succeed.  I watched The Devil's Advocate a few days ago and her accent came on and off.

[Pozer]

I finally saw it this evening, and it's mostly good. I'd say Theron definitely deserves the Oscar. Her performance was heartbreaking (sometimes you could see her natural beauty just pushing the limits of the makeup, but that actually worked to the benefit of the character), and it saves the movie from what I thought was an uneven execution. I agree with Sanjuro that the pacing was off, and I also think that Ricci wasn't quite right for the part. I never believed her as that character, someone that naive -- I appreciated the gestures that suggested Selby was improvising her way through things, but I still think the role would have been better filled by someone else. I didn't have a problem with the directing -- simplicity was the right approach for this kind of movie -- but the writing never reached the depths I wanted it to.

Obviously, though, it's worth seeing. It clearly works for some people, extremely well in some cases, and I can't imagine not being moved by Theron's performance. It must have been quite a relief to let that character go after shooting the film.

I think this is the first time I slightly disagree with you.
I also don't understand why people keep mentioning the pacing. Can you explain the pacing you were looking for. Did you think it was too slow or quick?
also, I thought Ricci was a perfect choice and that she did a really nice job with that character. Everything was crazy and chaotic at the time so I felt she played the naiveness very well.

[RegularKarate]

I just saw this today and it was pretty good.
Theron deserves to at least be NOMINATED for the oscar.  I don't know if she deserves to win.

I agree about the Journey song scene being great.  one of the best kissing scenes in a LOOOOOOOONG time

the movie kind of slowed towards the middle and basically fizzled out toward the end, but I still really enjoyed it.

I've finally had to admit that Ricci isn't really that great of an actress (as much as I LOVED the scenes with her in a T-shirt).  She really wasn't that good in this.

anyway, nothing fantastic overall, but definitly glad I saw it.

[Ghostboy]

I think this is the first time I slightly disagree with you.
I also don't understand why people keep mentioning the pacing. Can you explain the pacing you were looking for. Did you think it was too slow or quick?

Overall, I'd say it moves too quickly and then slows down for big dramatic scenes. It felt to me like there are big chunks missing. This was most exemplified in the scene where they go to the amusement park, which fluctuates between being a scene of romantic bonding (being with Selby on the ferris wheel), personal growth (getting on the ferris wheel, the titular monster, in the first place) and painful separation (Selby running off to hang out with the other lesbians) -- all very important points for the film to hit, but all crammed awkwardly into one scene.