I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this movie. I'll confess one this right away: I am not particularly a fan of art-house type films. They often don't have much of a point to them and you're left trying to figure out pretty much everything that's going on and what it all means. In a way it's liberating because it allows you to draw your own conclusions and not be bound by a cut and dry story. In another way it's somewhat annoying because it lacks almost anything resembling structure.
The film itself sort of slogs along at it's own steady pace full of jarring moments and a soundtrack designed to put you that much more into the mind of a schizophrenic. That effect works very well...I imagine the mind of a schizophrenic is equally disjointed and maddening. If you can picture a film full of what sounds like a radio stuck between stations and random voices and you'll start to get the idea. I will say that I'm not entirely sure why everyone thinks Peter Greene's performance is so ground breaking. Sure, he was good in the film, but what does it really take to play a schizophrenic? Act twitchy and look confused a lot. I'm sure it's not quite THAT simple but Greene's performance, though good, wasn't anything that blew me away. To be honest nobody in the film absolutely floored me, but it is a very interesting glimpse into the life of a very troubled and disturbed man.
I consider myself a fairly average movie fan. I like movies that allow you to turn your brain off as much as I like movies that have a subtext to them and make you think. But I'll be the first to admit that if there is a real point to this film, I'm the wrong guy to ask as to what it is. It's almost like a real life case study of one man who has serious problems. In a weird way it's nice to see such a realistic portrayal of such a mental illness instead of seeing it dressed up and romanticized like in...say...A Beautiful Mind. All in all I'd recommend it but you have to be in the right mood (or at least I do). I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about it, but it's nothing if not interesting, especially as a debut film.
The film itself sort of slogs along at it's own steady pace full of jarring moments and a soundtrack designed to put you that much more into the mind of a schizophrenic. That effect works very well...I imagine the mind of a schizophrenic is equally disjointed and maddening. If you can picture a film full of what sounds like a radio stuck between stations and random voices and you'll start to get the idea. I will say that I'm not entirely sure why everyone thinks Peter Greene's performance is so ground breaking. Sure, he was good in the film, but what does it really take to play a schizophrenic? Act twitchy and look confused a lot. I'm sure it's not quite THAT simple but Greene's performance, though good, wasn't anything that blew me away. To be honest nobody in the film absolutely floored me, but it is a very interesting glimpse into the life of a very troubled and disturbed man.
I consider myself a fairly average movie fan. I like movies that allow you to turn your brain off as much as I like movies that have a subtext to them and make you think. But I'll be the first to admit that if there is a real point to this film, I'm the wrong guy to ask as to what it is. It's almost like a real life case study of one man who has serious problems. In a weird way it's nice to see such a realistic portrayal of such a mental illness instead of seeing it dressed up and romanticized like in...say...A Beautiful Mind. All in all I'd recommend it but you have to be in the right mood (or at least I do). I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about it, but it's nothing if not interesting, especially as a debut film.