Freedomland...
A few nights ago, I went to see Freedomland with Samuel L. Jackson and Julianne Moore. I had read in the reviews that the script was a bit weak at times, but that the performances were pretty good, so I was looking forward to seeing it.
Samuel L. Jackson is one of my favorite actors and he does a fabulous job in this film. However, I'm getting the feeling that Sam is being typecast a little too much lately. (I was justified in this opinion when I saw Frangela's Black History Month Awards on Best Week Ever last week...they wondered, as I had, why white women can't seem to hold onto their children and why Sam has to step in and help them all the time!) That doesn't change the fact that he plays his role very well, though. His relationship with his son is particularly poignant and, at the end, briefly offers a glimpse into the depths of his character.
I always feel like I love Julianne Moore as an actress, but as I was watching this movie, I honestly couldn't remember a single other role I had actually seen her in (since then, I've IMDB'd her and realize I've seen her in The Shipping News, Magnolia, Evolution, and several others). She is generally well received as an actress and I always like her in interviews, but I don't know why I couldn't place her in that moment. Perhaps some would say her portrayal of the character was so riveting and believable that I couldn't separate her from it. Maybe that's partly true. Unfortunately, though, I think it was more that her performance was so distracting that I couldn't imagine liking her as an actress in any other movie. I know that sounds harsh, but it's true! In the first half of the film, she was the very definition of an over-actress. Towards the end, her performance got better (or maybe I was just used to it by then) and I ended the movie liking her character and her interaction with Samuel L. Jackson's character.
The star of this movie was Edie Falco. She has only a supporting role, but in a moment of complete silence, she communicates more than either of the two leads do in the entire film. She is brilliantly sympathetic, yet willing to do whatever it takes to find the missing child.
Overall, the movie was good. It's a very heavy movie that takes a little while to process, but it was definitely worth watching.
Samuel L. Jackson is one of my favorite actors and he does a fabulous job in this film. However, I'm getting the feeling that Sam is being typecast a little too much lately. (I was justified in this opinion when I saw Frangela's Black History Month Awards on Best Week Ever last week...they wondered, as I had, why white women can't seem to hold onto their children and why Sam has to step in and help them all the time!) That doesn't change the fact that he plays his role very well, though. His relationship with his son is particularly poignant and, at the end, briefly offers a glimpse into the depths of his character.
I always feel like I love Julianne Moore as an actress, but as I was watching this movie, I honestly couldn't remember a single other role I had actually seen her in (since then, I've IMDB'd her and realize I've seen her in The Shipping News, Magnolia, Evolution, and several others). She is generally well received as an actress and I always like her in interviews, but I don't know why I couldn't place her in that moment. Perhaps some would say her portrayal of the character was so riveting and believable that I couldn't separate her from it. Maybe that's partly true. Unfortunately, though, I think it was more that her performance was so distracting that I couldn't imagine liking her as an actress in any other movie. I know that sounds harsh, but it's true! In the first half of the film, she was the very definition of an over-actress. Towards the end, her performance got better (or maybe I was just used to it by then) and I ended the movie liking her character and her interaction with Samuel L. Jackson's character.
The star of this movie was Edie Falco. She has only a supporting role, but in a moment of complete silence, she communicates more than either of the two leads do in the entire film. She is brilliantly sympathetic, yet willing to do whatever it takes to find the missing child.
Overall, the movie was good. It's a very heavy movie that takes a little while to process, but it was definitely worth watching.
posted by Michelle at 6:52 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home