I Heart Huckabees

[Pozer]

I was just fuckabeein' about

[Just Withnail]

This will become a thing, won't it?

[Jeremy Blackman]

its just so awkward . . . the movie was either A. not funny enough or B. not thoughtful enough.  it was just too --- blah.  i dunno.

Although I loved the movie (I had no expectations and have completely avoided this thread until now), your description is somewhat accurate. The movie deals in philosophical ambiguities, and the only way for it to work as mysteriously as it does is the selective use of strategic awkwardness. The movie is not at all consistent, in the dialogue, in the story, in the characters, in the plot, in the tone, even in the frequency of randomness. It was consistently inconsistent... that's completely the point, and I think it worked beautifully. In that way it was almost exactly like a Wes Anderson movie. And the opening scene was a direct PTA homage. And (SPOILER) Naomi Watts' transformation was kinda like the one in Mulholland Drive.

[pete]

I enjoyed the movie a bit, reminds me a lot of 70s screwball films (maybe it's because there are detectives involved) but I didn't think it was deep or brilliant, it was witty, that was about it.  mark whalberg's speeches could've come right out of those Good Will Hunting monologues (about clubbing a baby seal).  it used a lot of words to draw on an overtly simple conclusion.  whereas someone like Woody might've been able to take it further (as he did in Crimes and Misdemeanors).  I thought it was going to be pretentious but it was never too pretentious, I liked that.
it thought itself to be too clever though.  every star was constantly winking at me.  I didn't like that.  I feel that way for a lot of these retro ensemble comedies--like Ocean's 11, have a bad habit of getting big stars to "show off" how not seriously they can take themselves.  it then lowers the material to this SNL level.

[modage]

The movie is not at all consistent, in the dialogue, in the story, in the characters, in the plot, in the tone, even in the frequency of randomness. It was consistently inconsistent... that's completely the point, and I think it worked beautifully. In that way it was almost exactly like a Wes Anderson movie.

so the fact that it sucked is what makes it great?  lets not go dragging wes andersons good name through the mud by comparing it to this dreck.

[Jeremy Blackman]

so the fact that it sucked is what makes it great?

The fact that it's inconsistent (and strategically awkward) makes it, well, what it wants to be... which you can like or dislike.

[cron]

consistently inconsistent?

[Jeremy Blackman]

You're such a psychoanalyst.

[cron]

of the cheapest sort

[Redlum]

I actually got return tickets to the Huckabees UK premiere last night. Great night. Made even greater when "bloody hell thats Jon Brion stood next to me in the isle. And with a guitar!". Great performance of 'Knock Yourself Out' which I've been listening to all week. Just him, a little guitar, an accordian strapped to his neck, and some foot stomping.

I 'd the film.

[MacGuffin]

Russell Bases Character on Thurman's Dad

Director David O. Russell is so grateful to Uma Thurman's father Robert Thurman for inspiring his latest movie I Heart Huckabees, he based the central character on him. The Kill Bill star's dad taught Russell ancient texts at college, and was such a profound influence on the young film-maker, Russell used Dustin Hoffman's detective character to pay homage to him. He tells British magazine Empire, "I was taught by Robert Thurman. He's one of the most brilliant scholars in the world, completely unpretentious but an expert in Sanskrit and all these ancient texts. The detective played by Dustin Hoffman is actually based on him."

[reelistics07]

Ebert said this is the only film that can exist without an audience in front of it, sounds pretty existential to me... which people usually take as self absorbed, but i want to see this and see how ridiculous or random it is. every time i hear "existential detectives" i think of schizopolis. now that i think of it, isnt schizopolis kind of existential as well? hmm, ill have to look into that.

[Finn]

I finally saw it and really liked it. It was kinda like Schizopolis where it seemd to be off the wall just for the sake of being different. But that was the point of the movie. The whole cast was great but particularly Mark Wahlberg and Jude Law.

[Ravi]

Didn't care for it.  It had some funny moments but I thought the whole thing was a mess.

[tpfkabi]

i guess i'll get to see it when it comes out on DVD