Movie: 1/5

THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

I left the cinema’s with really mixed feelings, and spent the night thinking more carefully about it, and letting myself absorb what I saw. I thought the performances by everyone, especially Max Von Sydow were exceptional, the cinematography and editting was stunning, and there are a few moments where I laughed (they were supposed to be funny moments, I’m not talking about 9/11 related moments), but that’s all I can say I liked about the film.

I cannot begin to describe how angry the leading character, Oskar made me. He is an infuriating, bratty little asshole. I understand that he’s just lost his father, I understand that he’s still really upset about losing the only person he felt a connection with, I understand that he’s gripped with irrational fears, I also understand that his father had him tested for Asperges, I get all of these things. Some people will explain away Oskars callous behaviour in sweeping generalizations having to do with the ignorance of children or some undiagnosed medical problem. He is so mean to his grieving mother and indifferent about other people.

Oskar comes home on 9/11 to find the last recorded messages of his father, including an admission of love for his family. Oskar runs out and buys an identical answering machine, and sneakily hides the original denying his mother, a grieving widow the chance to hear her husbands voice one last time. He also gets mad at his mother for sleeping so much (how inconsiderate of her to grieve), and it isn’t like he’s alone, he has friends and his grandmother lives next door who I’m sure explained to him why his mother is the way she is, not that he would really need that since he’s very intelligent. And then he has the gall to tell her “I wish it was you instead of him!”, which was a moment intended to draw gasps, ripping the scab clear off whatever pretensions mother and son have with one another.

Tom Hanks is wonderful for the very brief screen time he actually has, Bullock does extremely well, and nailed the emotional scenes perfectly, I would honestly rather of seen the movie through her point of view.

This is an extremely manipulitive film. It’s shamelessly exploits 9/11 anxieties and trauma to tell it’s hardly interesting quest with the worlds most insufferable kid that I’m suprised didn’t get punched in the face at least once. I can’t even say that 9/11 is meaningfully connected with the overall story of loss. Thomas Shell (Oskars dad) could of died in a war, or had a brain aneurism. What 9/11 is used for, however is an easy device to stir the audiences emotions. Daldry (director) will flash back to it at seemingly random moments in the narrative, to remind the audiences “WAIT A MINUTE! YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO FEEL SAD! HERE, HAVE SOME MORE UNNECESSARY BULLSHIT!”.

I imagine most audiences will feel really sad throughout the movie, but that’s because the film makers are shamelessly manipulating the raw feelings we have over a national tragedy. It’s hard not to feel a lump in your throat seeing the towers smoking, frantic calls to missing or doomed loved ones and final recordings bearing the weight of compounded dread. it’s not too soon to talk about the psychic wounds of that terrible day, but exploiting? yes, that makes me mad.

Daldry’s direction will settle on treacle and contrived sentiment whenever possible, but the emotions never feel properly earned. He’s pressing buttons and forcing tears, and several viewers will be unaware of how effieciently they were manipulated into having a moving experience at the theatre.

Under new Academy voting rules, a nominee has to garner at least five percent of first place votes on members ballots. That means that at least 250 Academy members voted this crass and manipulitive movie as best film of the year, over so many other superior films, including the modern class