Decent but in the end a missed opportunity that Sean Baker will hopefully learn from going forward.
Sean Baker is definitely one of the best indie filmmakers out there in terms of style and authenticity. He still has a way to go, but I appreciate his efforts and approach to filmmaking.
Simon Rex plays a washed-up adult entertainer going back to his estranged wife to live after a bunch of mishaps where he meets Strawbetter played by Suzanna Son.
The good thing about Red Rocket is that it's a simple but effective story that feels very real with real people and places.
I would recommend this film and it's probably Baker's best film so far, but like all his other films it's not without some issues. The main issue is it's too long, so Baker needs to hire an editor and not edit himself as he hasn't learned to cut the unnecessary fat yet likely due to being too married to what he shoots during production. Unlike the Florida Project which was also good, but too long, Red Rocket does move quicker because he keeps the scenes much shorter and snappy, which helps the pacing, but in the end, it could still be cut 20 minutes from much of the repetitive scenes and shots.
I also think the story could have been improved with better focus. There were a tad too many side characters and stories that were introduced but never really went anywhere. For example, it took too long to get to the Strawberry story.
One of the aspects I like about Baker's style is the naturalistic approach by using non-actors, but that is also part of the issue. All his movies feature non-actors, but their issue is the lack of being "in the moment." This is an issue with non-actors in general. They almost seem like they are looking into the camera. The best way I can explain it is when someone knows they are being filmed they become camera aware and their body language gives off their awareness. That isn't there with experienced professional actors who can get rid of that awareness and stay in the moment so they don't look like they break the fourth wall. There is just a certain amount of levity that inexperienced actors bring. I've seen it too many times on sets when unprofessional actors "act" they are on the verge of laughing and sometimes do laugh while in the scene. In other words, they can't act.
Are they huge issues? Kinda, but if Baker got rid of that in his films, they would be even better.
I didn't like the turn of events with the truck accident at all. Seemed too random and didn't fit the rest of the theme of the movie. It was an unnecessary plot twist and ruined the story, which should have focused on Mikey and Strawberry and the estranged wife and mom. I just felt like it was thrown in there to add additional drama, but it was so random it didn't match the film. It could have been cut from the film and it wouldn't have lost a beat.
The same goes on for the ending. Just another random turn of events that didn't feel truthful. It literally made no sense and was too forced. So there were too many loose ends for the unnecessary side stories that never came into fruition and the story that mattered (Strawberry) never really materialized, so it was a missed opportunity.
I'm also a bit iffy about Simon Rex. He played it a bit too comedic like everything was a joke. It was slight, but it was still noticeable to me so a better casting choice like Caleb Landry Jones would have served the movie better.
Small, but the framing of some of the shots were weird. The actors' heads were cut off or the composition was discombobulated. E.g. You see one actor's face and the other actor's nose in the shot.
I think the biggest story problem that was never reconciled was the fact that they never gave a really good reason why Mikey was broke and down on his luck because throughout the movie he said could make 1000s doing adult films with a girl. There was never a good explanation why he couldn't just have found anyone to do that with. Why was Strawberry the only one? I just think the story wasn't thought through well enough which is why this is a missed opportunity for a better film than what we got.
In the end, I think the film would have worked much better if Mikey was a local loser, not an established/washed-up adult actor, who dreamed big to become an adult star and convinced Strawberry into doing it creating even more problems with his estranged wife.
I would recommend it, but with the foregoing caveats.
5 stars normally, but 6 for Baker's efforts simply supporting indie filmmakers. 8 if the above issues weren't there.
Sean Baker is definitely one of the best indie filmmakers out there in terms of style and authenticity. He still has a way to go, but I appreciate his efforts and approach to filmmaking.
Simon Rex plays a washed-up adult entertainer going back to his estranged wife to live after a bunch of mishaps where he meets Strawbetter played by Suzanna Son.
The good thing about Red Rocket is that it's a simple but effective story that feels very real with real people and places.
I would recommend this film and it's probably Baker's best film so far, but like all his other films it's not without some issues. The main issue is it's too long, so Baker needs to hire an editor and not edit himself as he hasn't learned to cut the unnecessary fat yet likely due to being too married to what he shoots during production. Unlike the Florida Project which was also good, but too long, Red Rocket does move quicker because he keeps the scenes much shorter and snappy, which helps the pacing, but in the end, it could still be cut 20 minutes from much of the repetitive scenes and shots.
I also think the story could have been improved with better focus. There were a tad too many side characters and stories that were introduced but never really went anywhere. For example, it took too long to get to the Strawberry story.
One of the aspects I like about Baker's style is the naturalistic approach by using non-actors, but that is also part of the issue. All his movies feature non-actors, but their issue is the lack of being "in the moment." This is an issue with non-actors in general. They almost seem like they are looking into the camera. The best way I can explain it is when someone knows they are being filmed they become camera aware and their body language gives off their awareness. That isn't there with experienced professional actors who can get rid of that awareness and stay in the moment so they don't look like they break the fourth wall. There is just a certain amount of levity that inexperienced actors bring. I've seen it too many times on sets when unprofessional actors "act" they are on the verge of laughing and sometimes do laugh while in the scene. In other words, they can't act.
Are they huge issues? Kinda, but if Baker got rid of that in his films, they would be even better.
I didn't like the turn of events with the truck accident at all. Seemed too random and didn't fit the rest of the theme of the movie. It was an unnecessary plot twist and ruined the story, which should have focused on Mikey and Strawberry and the estranged wife and mom. I just felt like it was thrown in there to add additional drama, but it was so random it didn't match the film. It could have been cut from the film and it wouldn't have lost a beat.
The same goes on for the ending. Just another random turn of events that didn't feel truthful. It literally made no sense and was too forced. So there were too many loose ends for the unnecessary side stories that never came into fruition and the story that mattered (Strawberry) never really materialized, so it was a missed opportunity.
I'm also a bit iffy about Simon Rex. He played it a bit too comedic like everything was a joke. It was slight, but it was still noticeable to me so a better casting choice like Caleb Landry Jones would have served the movie better.
Small, but the framing of some of the shots were weird. The actors' heads were cut off or the composition was discombobulated. E.g. You see one actor's face and the other actor's nose in the shot.
I think the biggest story problem that was never reconciled was the fact that they never gave a really good reason why Mikey was broke and down on his luck because throughout the movie he said could make 1000s doing adult films with a girl. There was never a good explanation why he couldn't just have found anyone to do that with. Why was Strawberry the only one? I just think the story wasn't thought through well enough which is why this is a missed opportunity for a better film than what we got.
In the end, I think the film would have worked much better if Mikey was a local loser, not an established/washed-up adult actor, who dreamed big to become an adult star and convinced Strawberry into doing it creating even more problems with his estranged wife.
I would recommend it, but with the foregoing caveats.
5 stars normally, but 6 for Baker's efforts simply supporting indie filmmakers. 8 if the above issues weren't there.