Xixax Film Forum

I had the opportunity of seeing this film this afternoon and thought it was pretty good. Something about the first half couldnt get my attention but I eventually got in and really liked it. Sam Rockwell is great and Clooney did a good job, though I can see some Soderbergh influences. Some gripes with it though, nothing major, but the inclusion of some things were necesary or rewarding. Cinematography was alright, I liked the long takes and tricks.



SPOILERS

Something I didnt get was when Clooneys character started bleeding in the pool? Is there something obvious I am missing? Maybe somebody can shed some light on that.

I have this one scheduled for this afternoon. A rare opportunity to dump the kids with friends and go catch a movie with my wife.

I'm thankful for babysitters, otherwise I'd have to see Kangaroo Jack this afternoon!

I will report back with more ego-inflated opinions this evening.

OK. Movie has been viewed. My verdict:

HELL YES!

There were many times in this movie, I caught myself saying "wow, that was cool the way they did that..." George Clooney. Who'd have thought it?

See this movie. See it now.

Just saw it.

Thought it was okay, not great.

I don't think Clooney seems to be a very good director.  He was trying too  hard to make it stylized and kind of over did it.  And while I love Kaufman, the story-line was kind of weak (I know it was based on a book)... there wasn't that much conflict and once there was, it was resolved easily.  It was like the ending was jazzed up just to show that it was the end, but it didn't feel like the end because it hardly felt like it had ever began.

I think what Clooney tried to do was include every single stylistic and narrative technique that he ever liked.

I didnt get the whole clooney bleeding in the pool thing either, but whatever. This movie fell short of being good. Didnt balance the stories out to give it a main concentration. Disappointment reigns...

Oh yeah?

Let's take this to the parking lot!

Punk-ass mo-fo's!

Well, while I didn't like the film, I thought the Clooney in the pool scene was alright.

*****WARNING:  SPOILERS!!!!!!********

He had originally thought Chuck was the mole, that was until Julia Roberts shot him, which is why he was bleeding into the pool.  He just showed up to Chuck's to warn him that he better be carefull.

Quote from: RegularKarateWell, while I didn't like the film, I thought the Clooney in the pool scene was alright.

He had originally thought Chuck was the mole, that was until Julia Roberts shot him, which is why he was bleeding into the pool.  He just showed up to Chuck's to warn him that he better be carefull.

JESUS CHRIST, DUDE, USE SPOILER ALERTS!

Quote from: bonanzataz

JESUS CHRIST, DUDE, USE SPOILER ALERTS!

Sorry about that man... fixed.

Though it's nothing you couldn't figure out easily.  Even some of the t.v. spots gave it away.

Le Spoilers

Quote from: RegularKarateWell, while I didn't like the film, I thought the Clooney in the pool scene was alright.

*****WARNING:  SPOILERS!!!!!!********

He had originally thought Chuck was the mole, that was until Julia Roberts shot him, which is why he was bleeding into the pool.  He just showed up to Chuck's to warn him that he better be carefull.

Wait, so Julia Roberts shot Clooney?

Quote from: Duck SauceLe Spoilers

Quote from: RegularKarateWell, while I didn't like the film, I thought the Clooney in the pool scene was alright.

*****WARNING:  SPOILERS!!!!!!********

He had originally thought Chuck was the mole, that was until Julia Roberts shot him, which is why he was bleeding into the pool.  He just showed up to Chuck's to warn him that he better be carefull.

Wait, so Julia Roberts shot Clooney?

thats what i understood from it

Quote from: cecil b. dementedthats what i understood from it

Yeah, I think I'd agree.

Well thats good that we got all that straightened out, but after seeing this movie I am convinced that Chuck Barris did not do any of the CIA shit he claims to have done.

What are your feelings on this?

Quote from: Satcho9Well thats good that we got all that straightened out, but after seeing this movie I am convinced that Chuck Barris did not do any of the CIA shit he claims to have done.

What are your feelings on this?

i honestly dont know.

Quote from: Satcho9Well thats good that we got all that straightened out, but after seeing this movie I am convinced that Chuck Barris did not do any of the CIA shit he claims to have done.

What are your feelings on this?

Well, it's probably bullshit, but his co-workers all think it's kind of funny and say it's probably possible because he was gone for weeks at a time.

He was on Letterman recently regarding this.  He wasn't really saying it was true or B.S.  Letterman seems to think it's true.

He kept kind of suggesting it was true without saying it was.

example:
Letterman: "back in the eighties, you told Connie Chung that it was all made up"

Barris: "yeah, I was really scared...you don't mess around with those guys"

Letterman: "so you were lying to Connie Chung"

Barris: "probably"

I have seen other interviews where Chuck slipped up and said things like (I am paraphrasing from memory): "If that stuff really happened" or "if it had actually happened" or something to that effect. This leads me to believe that Chuck has a phenomenal imagination but little of the CIA story would be based in fact.

I saw an interview where he was stumbling pretty bad and concluded he had only killed 6 or 7 people.

he's always said that he only killed six or seven people and that the number was exagerated for the screenplay.

Quote from: RegularKaratehe's always said that he only killed six or seven people and that the number was exagerated for the screenplay.

Sorry God

OK, I need things clarified. Did anyone see Artie Lange Confessions as a Bellboy? Someone says they did, I however did not.

Quote from: Satcho9OK, I need things clarified. Did anyone see Artie Lange Confessions as a Bellboy? Someone says they did, I however did not.

IMDB says it's so, which is where he got that information I'm sure, but I certainly don't remember him in it.

Quote from: Satcho9OK, I need things clarified. Did anyone see Artie Lange Confessions as a Bellboy? Someone says they did, I however did not.

I saw Artie Johnson! Does that count?

OK, IMDB does list him as being in it. But I did not see him at all. Weird

imdb is my only source of knowledge, ever

Quote from: Jeremy Blackmanimdb is my only source of knowledge, ever

Duck Sauce is my only source of knowledge, ever.

MacGuffin is my only source of information, ever.

Okay, got my DVD today and just finished watching it.

The cinematography, compositions and editing were amazing. The transitions were beautiful and reminded me of those from "Tucker". It's too bad I didn't get to see them projected on the big screen. But as for a story, I never really felt that I got to know Chuck Barris, whether the whole CIA secret was real or not. I felt I knew more about the people around him that the man himself. Rockwell's portayal was great, but I didn't feel he had a complete character to play.

Quote from: MacGuffinOkay, got my DVD today and just finished watching it.

The cinematography, compositions and editing were amazing. The transitions were beautiful and reminded me of those from "Tucker". It's too bad I didn't get to see them projected on the big screen. But as for a story, I never really felt that I got to know Chuck Barris, whether the whole CIA secret was real or not. I felt I knew more about the people around him that the man himself. Rockwell's portayal was great, but I didn't feel he had a complete character to play.

I'm looking forward to seeing it over the weekend. Your mini review sounds similar to other things I've heard about the film: Some great acting and directing, but by no means a home run the first time out for Clooney. Hopefully it's the start of the start of a promising career though.

Quote from: MacGuffinOkay, got my DVD today and just finished watching it.

The cinematography, compositions and editing were amazing. The transitions were beautiful and reminded me of those from "Tucker". It's too bad I didn't get to see them projected on the big screen. But as for a story, I never really felt that I got to know Chuck Barris, whether the whole CIA secret was real or not. I felt I knew more about the people around him that the man himself. Rockwell's portayal was great, but I didn't feel he had a complete character to play.

I kinda sorta liked that though. It's supposed to be told from his POV. These are his Confessions of a Dangerous Mind after all.

Quote from: poserIt's supposed to be told from his POV. These are his Confessions of a Dangerous Mind after all.

All the more reason I should have known who this guy was, and why I felt I knew more about the people around him.

ok, what's with Soderbergh and Clooney and their obsession with showing bare male ass? i really don't want to see that.

(out of sight is on cable now)........after watching the deleted scenes i concluded that Clooney cut some of the best shots/scenes in the film........the extended shot of Burris behind the curtain looked great, especially that part where you saw the CIA training ground behind him with the sky moving..........the first killing assignment.......the dragging of the body with the car was great and by cutting that it really didn't make sense why they called him an amatuer in the film from what was left in........the entire scene would have made that clear...........i also loved the scene with the head blowing up, piano falling on old lady and dog, and massacred audience (kubrick-esque).........and i watched that triple split screen a couple of times to get the sense of space (although i'm not a big fan of split screen stuff

i was confused by the Clooney/pool thing too.......did he actually tell him it was Roberts or was he just supposed to get it? the way it was edited made me almost think that Burris shot him......confusing

i'm also kinda thrown off as to when the opening naked/beard scene falls in the time line with the ending marriage, etc?

Quote from: bigideasok, what's with Soderbergh and Clooney and their obsession with showing bare male ass? i really don't want to see that.

ii think that the sole reason is exactly because most people (most guys) "dont want to see that."

Easter egg, from //www.dvdreview.com

 
Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind

On the Buena Vista Home Entertainment release of 'Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind' you can also find some hidden extra if you know where to look for it.

From the DVD's Main Menu go to the 'Special Features.' Here, highlight the 'Gong Show Acts' menu entry and then press the 'Right' arrow key on your remote control. This will highlight a new option. If you press 'Enter' now, you will have the chance to see an exciting behind-the-scenes clip of the filming of the Gene, Gene Dancing Machine Gong Show segment, showing George Clooney directing the extras and dancing around the set like a loon.

Quote from: Cecil B. Demented

Quote from: bigideasok, what's with Soderbergh and Clooney and their obsession with showing bare male ass? i really don't want to see that.

ii think that the sole reason is exactly because most people (most guys) "dont want to see that."

i actually kinda enjoyed seeing clooney's ass in solaris.  :shock: he must work out.

hmmm. let's start using a warning system called "BMA."
if a film contains Bare Male Ass, it will be marked with "BMA"
this will let BigIdeas know to stay far, far away.

oh, the Kill Bill trailer in 5.1 was a nice way to start of the disc. it was a pleasant surprise.

I loved that movie ! Clooney's direction is incredible, even my friend who don't know so much about movies said while watching something like : "I like the way it's filmed and the scenes are well cut". I don't think he was trying to show off.

Rockwell's performance should have got an Oscar nomination. Much better than Micheal Cane in A Quiet American (boring movie if there's any)

Edit : Why the hell did I like this one so much ? I wonder...maybe it's because all we've gotten lately is mainly crap. Or Rockwell's ass ...one or the other

I really liked McGuffin's critical response I think it is very perceptive. That being said the last part of his statement ie. that while Sam Rockwell did a tremendous job his character was incomplete and hence made his job all the more challenging.

Well I dunno bout the rest of you who have seen it and have not posted but I have seen it 3 times in theatres and relish owning it on DVD. I love George Clooney as an actor, and quite honestly George Clooney as a director is seriously giving me pause as to reconsidering which team I bat for. I was flabberghasted by how utterly beautiful the technical composition of this film was. The editing, the cutting, the transistions as McG mentioned were highly stylized and really candy for the eye. The acting was fantastic (I'm a huge Rockwell fan too) and the plot was wholly engaging. I am gonna have to completely poo poo RegKarate's opinion on this one as I am polarly opposed to his views on the film.

If you like movies that are out of the ordinary and give you candid glimpses into the workings of other peoples minds and psyches without vomiting you back out into your own reality without a safety blanket and making you feel guilty for the vicarious pleasure or guilt you have experienced, then you HAVE TO SEE THIS FILM.

I guess I may be a far too biased source to acurately recommend this film given that the dialogue and directing was entirely indicative of what I am aspiring for. I guess I found the internal monologues all to familiar and through seeing them manifested onscreen emanating from another individuals mouth was far too satisfying for me to begin to describe. But yeah this movie is honestly now in my top 10. Give it a chance before you knock it.

what do you think about the deleted scenes? i touched on my thoughts above.

oh, i like that he did most of his effects with the camera and not with digital effects.....it was cool to see how he shot the scene where Drew is in the bathtub

i definitely think if it wasn't done by Clooney, it would have been looked at more seriously......what i mean is that because he is a star i think it was kind of looked over.

Quote from: bigideasi definitely think if it wasn't done by Clooney, it would have been looked at more seriously......what i mean is that because he is a star i think it was kind of looked over.

Because of him being George Clooney, or because of him being a actor/star? Because if it's the latter...

Robert Redford
Clint Eastwood
Kevin Costner
Mel Gibson
Ron Howard
Warren Beatty

...all Best Director Academy Award Winners

Quote from: RegularKarate
I don't think Clooney seems to be a very good director.  He was trying too  hard to make it stylized and kind of over did it.  And while I love Kaufman, the story-line was kind of weak (I know it was based on a book)... there wasn't that much conflict and once there was, it was resolved easily.  It was like the ending was jazzed up just to show that it was the end, but it didn't feel like the end because it hardly felt like it had ever began.

That pretty much sums up how I felt about it.  It's a story about a game show host who claims he was a CIA assassin.  The story has so much potential!.....how did Clooney manage to make it so boring?  After a while I got tired of the same camera moves being used over and over.  By the end of the movie I didn't care what happened to the characters.

Quote from: Pastor ParsleyThe story has so much potential!.....how did Clooney manage to make it so boring?  After a while I got tired of the same camera moves being used over and over.  By the end of the movie I didn't care what happened to the characters.

I hated this film, it was intensely tedious, and I spent most of the time admiring my shoes as a distraction. I appreciated the substitution of the character pov for any other kind of authorial voice (director, writer), but the problem was that Barris was so ordinary and utterly not dangerous that, yes, you didn't give a shit about him. I would like to think the whole thing was making a satirical point about his self-indulgent posturing, but I'm not convinced, since Clooney's direction was, as RK says, so painfully 'cool', with no indication that it was supposed to mirror Barris' state of mind. I dunno, maybe I'm wrong there - was the style deliberately self-conscious? Whatever, even if it was, it just doesn't make for a very absorbing film, because all you have is the small space of a very narrow mind.

Oh, maybe that's the point, and my hating it is an indication of how brilliant it is? I'm just not convinced that Clooney is quite that smart.

All I really know is that my shoes are beautiful.

Damn Budgie, wish you would have come with me to see this movie... then I could have looked at your shoes too.
Instead all know is that after popping my knuckles, I have to wait sixteen minutes before they can be popped again.

That is a beautiful avatar.

Thanks... if I go too long without a Dude-a-tar I start to feel... wrong.

Quote from: MacGuffin

Quote from: bigideasi definitely think if it wasn't done by Clooney, it would have been looked at more seriously......what i mean is that because he is a star i think it was kind of looked over.

Because of him being George Clooney, or because of him being a actor/star? Because if it's the latter...

Robert Redford
Clint Eastwood
Kevin Costner
Mel Gibson
Ron Howard
Warren Beatty

...all Best Director Academy Award Winners

oh, that's right.
Academy Award Winners = great artistic value?

PDL = no Academy Award nominations

What you said was that "Confessions.." was not taken seriously because Clooney was an actor/director (or at least how I took it since you just ignored my question to show your distaste for the Academy). I pointed out how actors as directors are taken seriously. I think it had more to do the film's subject as why "Confessions..." didn't find an audience and wasn't "taken seriously".

Quote from: MacGuffinWhat you said was that "Confessions.." was not taken seriously because Clooney was an actor/director (or at least how I took it since you just ignored my question to show your distaste for the Academy). I pointed out how actors as directors are taken seriously. I think it had more to do the film's subject as why "Confessions..." didn't find an audience and wasn't "taken seriously".

Congratulations, by the way, on your 3400th post. That is amazing.

ok, i think of it more as........George Clooney, who everyone knows as an actor / handsomest(sp?) man several years running, has made a film that's kinda odd, quirky.........(if he did a drama about family problems or something like that, something more safe, it probably would have been accepted with open arms)................and i kinda think that if this was done by an unknown first time director it would get a little bit more recognition

Just saw this. Fucking loved it. Brilliant.

Nice work Clooney!!. Good to see that somebody's trying to be a real director, and not doing shaky hand-held cam & super-quick editing to fake that the script is decent.

This is also the first time I felt like screenwriter Kaufmann had a real story, and didn't blow it...

Quote from: SoNowThenJust saw this. Fucking loved it. Brilliant.

Nice work Clooney!!. Good to see that somebody's trying to be a real director, and not doing shaky hand-held cam & super-quick editing to fake that the script is decent.

This is also the first time I felt like screenwriter Kaufmann had a real story, and didn't blow it...

Dude.. Kafuman's scripts are brilliant.  I don't know where you are coming from comparing a handheld hiphop style of editing a "faked" decent script to this script.. because.. this one is genius.  

Adaptation genius
Human Nature genius
Being John Malkovich genuis
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind genius

I can't wait for the next script from this man.

What I was saying is that it's nice that a director can just be a director (because he has a good script, as in the case of Confessions), rather than try to be a hip hand-held guy, like so many other movies I see now.

Well, it's no secret here that I despise BJM and Adaptation, so it was a surprise to me that I enjoyed this flick so much. Eternal Sunshine looks great as well...

That's strange you say that because Kaufman didn't like what Clooney did with the script

Well, I can't believe it took me so long to see this, because I LOVE what he did with the script.

Quote from: SoNowThenWhat I was saying is that it's nice that a director can just be a director (because he has a good script, as in the case of Confessions), rather than try to be a hip...

Are you sure you were watching Confessions of a Dangerous Mind?

That's all it was... Clooney trying to be hip... mis-stylized junk...

Clooney likes Soderbergh, so he tried to be Soderbergh, but he's not Soderberg so it was a bad movie.

It was certainly far from a "director just being a director"

I didn't see much Soderbergh rip-offs. I saw some Mike Nichols shots, lots of 60's-70's stuff. I thought it was good, in your face, fun shots, have some fun with the actors, directing.

Quote from: SoNowThenI didn't see much Soderbergh rip-offs. I saw some Mike Nichols shots, lots of 60's-70's stuff. I thought it was good, in your face, fun shots, have some fun with the actors, directing.

Exactly...it looked like they had fun on set. Clooney seems like a fucking blast to work with.

I think he mentions the Nichols rip-offs on the commentary.

It's funny, cos the shot where the camera zooms out and dollies over from the girl on the skating rink, to the two men talking -- that's one of my favorite shots from Carnal Knowledge, and I showed it to my actors and cameraman on the last short I did, so we could rip it off. So, last night, when I saw the shot in Confessions, I got all excited, and started saying to my buddies "hey look, Clooney's ripping off the same shot we ripped off a few years ago!!".

hehehe, I love shit like that...

Quote from: SoNowThenWell, it's no secret here that I despise BJM and Adaptation, so it was a surprise to me that I enjoyed this flick so much. Eternal Sunshine looks great as well...

Ahhhh.. Thats why I couldn't remember anything you have posted on here before...  You despise amazing scripts.

Quote from: 82

Quote from: SoNowThenWell, it's no secret here that I despise BJM and Adaptation, so it was a surprise to me that I enjoyed this flick so much. Eternal Sunshine looks great as well...

Ahhhh.. Thats why I couldn't remember anything you have posted on here before...  You despise amazing scripts.

Amazing scripts don't fall apart in the third act.  Just saying.

Clooney did some really neat stuff. The conception of the dating game, set revolve was excellent. Definately not trying to be Soderburgh, it was Mike Nichols all over and so what? He's done some of the best cuts and transitions in movie history Clooney ripped him off but did some new stuff too. Maybe the high contrast and under saturated film finish was a bit of 'style for styles sake' but most of the other stuff was just fun. I couldn't get "If I had a Hammer" out of my head for a long time, though.

If Clooney can help get movies like this made then I'm very thankful. The adaptation was excellent although to be honest I'd have preferred "actual" ending without the coffee trick.

Quoteand i kinda think that if this was done by an unknown first time director it would get a little bit more recognition

Tis true.

Quote from: Onomatopoeia

Quote from: 82

Quote from: SoNowThenWell, it's no secret here that I despise BJM and Adaptation, so it was a surprise to me that I enjoyed this flick so much. Eternal Sunshine looks great as well...

Ahhhh.. Thats why I couldn't remember anything you have posted on here before...  You despise amazing scripts.

Amazing scripts don't fall apart in the third act.  Just saying.

Which are you refering to?  Start a new thread like "(Insert Movie): How it falls apart in the third act"  and link it out of here considering this is a Confessions thread

Quote from: Onomatopoeia

Quote from: 82

Quote from: SoNowThenWell, it's no secret here that I despise BJM and Adaptation, so it was a surprise to me that I enjoyed this flick so much. Eternal Sunshine looks great as well...

Ahhhh.. Thats why I couldn't remember anything you have posted on here before...  You despise amazing scripts.

Amazing scripts don't fall apart in the third act.  Just saying.

Ono knows what it's all about!!

I'm jumping on this topic really late, but I just saw "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" for the first time.  I kept wanting to see it because of Charlie Kaufman but kept holding because it was directed by George Clooney, who I really had nothing to go on with and wasn't sure how he would fair.

I must say... I'm impressed.  This movie was done extremely well...

I loved watching the "Behind the Scenes" features and watching Clooney work.  I was mighty impressed with that one sequence where Chuck is standing in front of the mirror, talking to Penny in the bathtub and she helps spark an idea ("The Dating Game"), which at that split second... they roll him into a new set, the board room, where he's introducing his concept to CBS. No computer tricks, no anything... just great work. I thought that was truely unique.  Not to forget the scene where Sam Rockwell changed outfits in his trip to The Rockefeller Plaza. It was all filmed at once.  George really impressed me.

As far as the cast... everybody did a great job including Drew Barrymore, who often annoys me for some reason.  I don't know, I know a lot of people love her and she's cute but there is something about her, maybe it's her voice... but I find it annoying at times.  It worked here.

well, like, fuck yeah.  I was just gonna say that.  when will someone utilize beth orton like aimee mann?  haunting much...?

Quote from: private wittwell, like, fuck yeah.  I was just gonna say that.

well, like, fuck yeah, you were a year late.

film lives forever.  so will this thread.  "give my creation life!....LLLLLIIIIIFFFFFEEEEEE!!!!!!!!"

Quote from: private wittfilm lives forever.  so will this thread.

Or at least until March 18th, 2005.

lol

I'm seeing that guy in every thread... who is he? like we didnt have enough stupid posts already

Quote from: andykI'm seeing that guy in every thread... who is he? like we didnt have enough stupid posts already

Um..


..forget it, it's not worth it.

I stayed online just waiting for you to say something :)

Oh isn't that nice of you. Yeah, you waiting for me to say something shows that at least you were aware of the irony of your post.

no... I just know everytime I post that you're ready to say something!

Quote from: andykno... I just know everytime I post that you're ready to say something!

here, let me pubrick this for you really quick:

--------------------quality----------------------





















-------------------private witt-------------------





























----------------------you-----------------------

You hate everyone, don't you?

Quote from: MeatballYou hate everyone, don't you?

just you, sweetheart.  :kiss:

Quote from: cinephile

Quote from: MeatballYou hate everyone, don't you?

just you, sweetheart.  :kiss:

what about me?

Let's form an alliance against his evil.