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I hate movies like this.
No, not sci-fi. Not Spielberg movies. I'm talking about movies where
I walk out not knowing what I thought about it. Awash in boos and
hisses, I emerged from our horribly annoying neighborhood theater
completely overwhelmed by what I had just seen. Considering the glut
of amazingly underwhelming films made in the last few years, this
isn't such a bad thing. I'm sure the booing throngs had come expecting
to see E.T. II or Romeo Must Die II or something.
What they were treated to was basically a Spielberg film wrapped in
a Kubrick shell. Everything creepy and empty and Kubrickish is there,
but beating at the heart of the film is Spielberg's deep spirituality
and quest for God/mother/good that pervades almost all of his movies.
Most of Kubrick's movies explore interactions between people and madness
with an icy, standoffish approach. It's almost as if he made documentaries
about the human psyche. How does war affect the human mind? How does
violence affect the human mind? How does isolation and addiction affect
the human mind? How does sex affect the human mind? Sit back for two
hours and we'll take a peak inside the world of these people. It's
as if Kubrick has nothing invested in these characters. It is merely
his duty to report the facts. Spielberg, in the other hand, gets involved
with his characters and story. He loves his creations, and wants them
to love him back. He is the guide on their journey to enlightenment.
His characters are bound for an epiphany. They are changing characters
that become stronger, better people because of their circumstances
and their journey. Kubrick destroys his characters. Spielberg builds
them up. Before seeing the movie I realized that these were two motivations
that were mutually exclusive. After the movie, I thought Spielberg
did nothing to reconcile these approaches. That's when I got on the
phone and discussed the movie with my buddy. I realized I had completely
misinterpreted the ending of the film. People hated the end of the
movie. I haven't seen such animosity since John Rocker dared disparage
the 7 train and its occupants. Now that I understand the ending, I
realize that Spielberg is even more of a genius than I thought he
was. The guy didn't sell out his vision, nor did he trample on the
hollowed ground that is Kubrick. I've heard people say that they could
have ended the movie right before the last act, skipped the happy
ending and it would have saved the film. If people were to just put
some thought into it and realize the implications of the last act
and how truly apocalyptic it is, they'd realize that Kubrick's dark
vision is maintained, and Spielberg gets to write an ending that completes
David's journey. Think about it (and if you haven't seen it, go see
it and think about it.) Anyhow, Haley Joe Osment is on the screen
almost the entire movie, and manages to carry the entire thing. I
hate to give praise to child actors, but he deserves an Oscar nomination
for this one. It's creepy how good he is. I wish I could go into detail
about different symbolic things in the movie, but I'd be spoiling
things for the two of you who might be reading this and haven't seen
the movie. Regardless of what you think of the movie after walking
out, you won't be able to help talking about it, theorizing and wondering.
This isn't the typical mark of a Spielberg movie. They're usually
wrapped up in a nice little bow. You might think on first watch that
this is another one of those, but guess again. I always say that if
a film can elicit discussion and debate afterwards, it has to have
something going for it. Of course, teenage girls talking about which
character was cuter doesn't count. [movie theater]
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