I thought we were going to see Drive Angry. In 3D.

October 10, 2011 11:20 AM

A Detroit woman has filed suit against the makers of the Drive, because the movie's trailer led her to believe the film was a Fast and Furious-style action romp and not a Cannes-award-winning art-house meditation on violence.

Hollywood has a history of releasing trailers that aren't in sync with the film, often when a marketing department tries to force a movie into a more marketable category, like sci-fi thriller, monster horror, Narnia-style kids' adventure, slapstick comedy, teen comedy, romantic comedy, light-hearted drama, and not a musical.

I'm just glad she didn't see this trailer for The Shining.

posted by bpm140 (206 comments total)

FTFA: She reportedly plans to go class action-style, so if you've ever been lied to at the cinema you can join her Crusade for Integrity at the Movie Places and share in the settlement

Yeah, totally. No way was that $8 of popcorn.
posted by BigHeartedGuy at 11:24 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

Mike, why are we watching a crazy person?
posted by The Whelk at 11:25 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

While I don't support her case, I'm glad to hear this, because it increases the chances the Supreme Court will grant cert to The People v. George Lucas.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 11:27 AM on October 10, 2011 [44 favorites]

somebody's got too much time and money
posted by edgeways at 11:27 AM on October 10, 2011

I thought this was already settled in The People v. Hudson Hawk. Going by that case, she can expect a free small popcorn, small soda (no refills) and two tickets to Airheads.
posted by griphus at 11:27 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Yeah, the audience I saw it with sounded audibly disappointed as they filed out - wondering why the Michael Bay film they had wanted never showed up.

Fucking idiots.
posted by Trurl at 11:27 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'm going to sue because the Yogi Bear trailer I saw (SLYT) led me to believe that I was going to see a drama between life-long friends split over money.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 11:28 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

Drive was a skull crushingly good movie.
posted by The Deej at 11:28 AM on October 10, 2011 [13 favorites]

She reportedly plans to go class action-style

I will counter with my incompetent monkey style.
posted by dirigibleman at 11:28 AM on October 10, 2011 [18 favorites]

Did she miss the "Warning: Cannes winner" at the end of the trailer?
posted by swift at 11:28 AM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

Hey, easy now with the Hudson Hawk! Tragically misunderstood, I say.
posted by bpm140 at 11:29 AM on October 10, 2011 [19 favorites]

Why do I think a fan of Cannes-award-winning arthouse flicks wouldn't have sued if they'd found out it was an action film like The Fast And The Furious?
posted by dunkadunc at 11:29 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I didn't particularly like Drive either, but after the movie I kind of just went on with my life.
posted by pwally at 11:29 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

Eh, it wasn't really what I thought it would be, either. Kind of a bummer. I also didn't think the acting was that great--the long quiet moments of guy and girl looking at each either did not ring authentically to me. It was like, ok, stare at each other for a while so people think this is artsy. I've seen that done right, and this was not it.
posted by zeek321 at 11:30 AM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

AUUGGGGH BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA.
posted by sararah at 11:30 AM on October 10, 2011 [6 favorites]

This is the most blatant case of false advertising since The NeverEnding Story.
posted by avoision at 11:31 AM on October 10, 2011 [24 favorites]

from Gawker: “Drive ‘bore very little similarity to a chase, or race action film ... having very little driving in the motion picture,’ states the lawsuit (which also alleges anti-Semitism).”

Hrm. Buried the lede, did we?
posted by koeselitz at 11:32 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

AUUGGGGH BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA.

Hmm?
posted by eugenen at 11:32 AM on October 10, 2011

My favorite movie in recent memory and one so solidly cool that I even ordered the exact same denim jacket (Levis Slim Fit Trucker in black) and I'm wearing it right now. It makes me feel like I have awesomes too.
posted by Senor Cardgage at 11:32 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Hey, easy now with the Hudson Hawk! Tragically misunderstood, I say.

I am in the small, dark brotherhood who really enjoyed (most of) that movie, truth be told.

Also, my first Netflix rental ever was I'll Sleep When I'm Dead. Based on the trailer, I was expecting a testosterone-laden Guy Ritchie-style Cockney shoot-'em-up. It had about a half-minute for that and two hours of Clive Owen exhaustedly denying his true nature via beard.
posted by griphus at 11:32 AM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

Wow, where was this woman when Snow Dogs was released? I want some money too!
posted by Old'n'Busted at 11:33 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

from Gawker: “Drive ‘bore very little similarity to a chase, or race action film ... having very little driving in the motion picture,’ states the lawsuit (which also alleges anti-Semitism).”

Hrm. Buried the lede, did we?

I'm guessing this has to do with the fact that the mobster villains were identified as Jewish and played by Jewish actors.
posted by eugenen at 11:33 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Remember how In Burges was marketed as a punchy Guy-Ritchie-esque crime-comedy? Boy was that a surprise.
posted by The Whelk at 11:34 AM on October 10, 2011 [6 favorites]

In some ways it would be more exciting to be misled. Rather than seeing the.entire.arc of the movie in the trailer. I can't believe how many previews do that. If she didn't want a surprise, she should have gone to Fast and Furious 6. There's a reason why Mconald's is so popular- lots of people love a certain kind of predictability. (And have bad taste, if I'm allowed to be pretentious).ps Ryan, I've got your back- call me!
posted by bquarters at 11:34 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I didn't particularly like Drive either, but after the movie I kind of just went on with my life.

This is clearly a mistake on your part, and on mine. But no more! Instead of just moving on after I am indifferent to -- or actually dislike -- a movie, or maybe telling my friends to avoid it or commenting on twitter, I will now sue the studios. This is bound to have exactly the results I want.
posted by jeather at 11:34 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Why do I think a fan of Cannes-award-winning arthouse flicks wouldn't have sued if they'd found out it was an action film like The Fast And The Furious?

That actually sort of happened to me with Before the Devil Knows You're Dead - I thought it would be a meditative character study of a broken family, for some reason.
posted by muddgirl at 11:34 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Hudson Hawk was amazing.
posted by zeek321 at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011 [10 favorites]

Tagentially: Hudson Hawk should've been animated.
posted by pts at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

I am in the small, dark brotherhood who really enjoyed (most of) that movie, truth be told.

I liked it when I was ten.
posted by The Whelk at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011

It doesn't appear to be on YouTube, but there was a stunning (in the sense of WTH?!, not "Wow!") Christmas promo for Doubt that represented the film as this lighthearted seasonal romp. Because Church sex scandals are, of course, exactly the sort of fare one goes for after opening the presents.
posted by thomas j wise at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

The most misleading one I remember was the trailer for Nuts with Barbara Streisand and Richard Dreyfuss. It was a very dark film, but the trailer gave the impression that it was some kind of zany comedy.

There is this trailer on Youtube but I don't remember if it's the one that aired on TV back in 1987.
posted by smoothvirus at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011

Drive was a throat stabbingly good movie.
posted by NationalKato at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I lol'd at the Bridge to Terabithia reference. Not having read the book, I was totally surprised by the movie that wasn't what I came to see - nevertheless I enjoyed it immensely. Really, it was a better movie than what was advertised.
posted by Xoebe at 11:35 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Movies need a new rating system:

IQ - Includes Quality. May not be suitable for all viewers. Breath Right Strips recommended for snorers.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 11:36 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

Remember how In Burges was marketed as a punchy Guy-Ritchie-esque crime-comedy? Boy was that a surprise.

Thanks for saving me however the hell long that film is.
posted by griphus at 11:36 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

On the one hand, my initial reaction is "Oh for fuck's sake! Read some reviews before you pay for a ticket and this kind of thing will stop happening!"

But on the other, I would actually love to see Hollywood start exercising some actual control over what kind of information their trailers give out, because I'm sick to death of trailers giving away the entire plot of a film.

And it happens all the fucking time!

I'm not mad enough to start a lawsuit, but damn I'd love to see that go away.
posted by quin at 11:37 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Thanks for saving me however the hell long that film is.


It's really good! It's just heavier on the dark part of dark comedy. Your Colin Farrell tolerance levels may vary.
posted by The Whelk at 11:38 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

I was also really surprised by Drive for the first twenty minutes or so - we'd decided to go and see it on whim based solely on its Rotten Tomatoes score. I was definitely expecting a Fast and Furious type of film, and couldn't quite wrap my head around it for a while.

But then I got into it and totally loved it. What a nice surprise - to go in expecting brainless action and end up with a film that has stuck with me for weeks (as well as that amazing soundtrack). I'm pleased that I came in with the wrong expectations - I might have missed it otherwise.
posted by ukdanae at 11:38 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

While suing is ridiculous, even people I know who liked Drive all agreed that it was not what they expected based on the trailers (the exceptions were those who also read a bunch of reviews, etc -- but I don't think most people do that much research). I suppose misleading trailers may make money, but it is not a great way to get good word of mouth, since you're dramatically increasing the number of unhappy customers.
posted by wildcrdj at 11:38 AM on October 10, 2011

Very inventive publicity campaign!
posted by R. Mutt at 11:39 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Hands up, who didn't bother going to see Hanna because the theatrical trailer gave everything away?
posted by griphus at 11:39 AM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

I kind of felt this way when I realized that Kiss only rock 'n rolled until 2-3am and not "all night," and that they partied only every second or third day at most.

I just flagged it and moved on.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:39 AM on October 10, 2011 [17 favorites]

Dear Ryan Gosling,
I feel like I can call you Ryan because you and me are so much alike. I would love to meet you someday, it would be great to have a driving race. I know I can’t drive as fast as you, but I think you would be impressed with my speed. I love your hair. You drive fast. Did you have a good relationship with your father? Me neither. These are all things we can talk about, and more. I know you have not been getting my letters because I know you would write back if you did. And I hope you write back this time and we get to be good friends. I am sure our relationship would be a real home run even though that doesn't have anything to do with driving and doesn't really make sense.

Sincerely,
Señor Cardgage
posted by Senor Cardgage at 11:39 AM on October 10, 2011 [15 favorites]

Flag it and sue on!
posted by spicynuts at 11:39 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

IQ - Includes Quality. May not be suitable for all viewers.

But Drive wouldn't have had this rating anyway, because it was awful.
posted by twirlip at 11:40 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

This is absurd.

Hudson Hawk was fantastic!
posted by hincandenza at 11:40 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

Besides, if anyone deserves to be sued for tricking me into watching their movie, it's the creators of Skyline.
posted by ukdanae at 11:40 AM on October 10, 2011

The only thing wrong with this eyeball burstingly good movie was a criminally miscast Carey Mulligan.
posted by BobbyVan at 11:41 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

This doesn't seem absurd on its face to me. I have no opinion on the merits of the case in particular, as I've never seen the movie or either of the trailers, but it's not inconceivable to me that a movie trailer can be, essentially, false advertising. And if that can be shown to be true to the satisfaction of a court, then perhaps she's legally entitled to her eight bucks back. Why should movie studios in particular be indemnified against false advertising, as opposed to any other type of company?

Seems perfectly fine, if a bit trivial, to bring it up in small claims court, or as a class action suit.
posted by Flunkie at 11:42 AM on October 10, 2011

I did make the mistake of taking my high school boyfriend to see 'Black Rain' at an arthouse cinema. I assumed it was going to be the action movie starring Mel Gibson or whatever. We were both surprised to watch a black and white documentary of the devasting after effects of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. That was a strange two hours and follow up conversation. No lawsuit though.
posted by bquarters at 11:46 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

My favorite movie in recent memory and one so solidly cool that I even ordered the exact same denim jacket (Levis Slim Fit Trucker in black) and I'm wearing it right now. It makes me feel like I have awesomes too.

As I drove home, I kept a toothpick in my mouth - just like The Driver! - and edgily glanced at the other cars so I could peel out quickly in case any of them opened fire on me.

This Jew didn't find it the least anti-Semitic. The closest it came was people calling the Ron Perlman character ugly. But keep in mind that we are talking about the only actor who has ever been typecast as "not a human".
posted by Trurl at 11:47 AM on October 10, 2011 [20 favorites]

I've never seen the movie or either of the trailers

I mean I've never seen the trailer or either of the movies.
posted by Flunkie at 11:48 AM on October 10, 2011

I learned from Drive that in order to be a hero you must be a real human being... a real human being.
posted by shakespeherian at 11:49 AM on October 10, 2011 [10 favorites]

Have you seen Drive? You should see Drive. It's insane. So insane I could spoil every scene for you and you wouldn't believe me. You'd think I was describing some weird fever dream.

Ryan Gosling puts on a Steve Austin mask and does what?! In the ocean?!

Beloved comedy legend Albert Brooks does WHAT with a fork?!

And the silence. You will lose the staring contest with this movie's pauses every time.

What a joy.
posted by unsupervised at 11:49 AM on October 10, 2011 [11 favorites]

If nothing else, I'm glad this post exists because I had never seen the recut Shining trailer. Thank you for that, bpm140!
posted by cooker girl at 11:50 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

"Hey, easy now with the Hudson Hawk! Tragically misunderstood, I say."

I just watched it again last night, for the umpteenth-hundredth time. Gets better every time.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 11:50 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Also, if you have any pent-up resentment towards Christina Hendricks for whatever reason, you'll find the movie cathartic.
posted by Trurl at 11:51 AM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

I thought Kill Bill was going to be a documentary about Congress. Instead, it was a documentary about how I feel about Congress. It was an illuminating surprize. But sometimes great art is like that.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 11:51 AM on October 10, 2011 [15 favorites]

While I don't support her case, I'm glad to hear this, because it increases the chances the Supreme Court will grant cert to The People v. George Lucas.


Justice Antonin Scalia:“Why can't Lucas accede to the fanboy's wishes? Han shot first!”
posted by hot_monster at 11:51 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I fucking hate it when a movie does anything unexpected!
posted by shakespeherian at 11:52 AM on October 10, 2011 [7 favorites]

"I did make the mistake of taking my high school boyfriend to see 'Black Rain' at an arthouse cinema."

I avoid embarrassing oversights like that by living in Utah, where "arthouse cinema" is illegal.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 11:52 AM on October 10, 2011 [13 favorites]

I really liked Drive but the trailers were definitely pretty misleading. I went into the film knowing what I was getting into because I'd read the reviews, but I remember seeing a trailer for it on TV afterwards where they basically used all the action scenes in the movie. My wife hated it because she thought it was super-pretentious, and her expectation from the trailers didn't help either.

Still though, suing is a bit much.

(Also, Sally Sparrow can do no wrong.)
posted by kmz at 11:53 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I thought this was already settled in The People v. Hudson Hawk.

I remember that! Landmark ruling, that was, where they found against the people, because they were too dumb to realize that they were watching one of the finest films ever put together.

Sadly, it seems no one else, outside of my brain, was privy to that outcome.
posted by quin at 11:54 AM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

I loved Drive. I thought it was a movie that was so aware of how cool it was that it became even cooler.

As far as misleading trailers go, I remember being fairly indifferent to seeing The Terminal because it the whole trailer was about the (very secondary) romance between Tom Hanks and Catherine Z-J.
posted by hopeless romantique at 11:55 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

What if I watch the trailer and movie and they don't seem at odds with one another? Can I sue you guys? (YANML)
posted by TheRedArmy at 11:56 AM on October 10, 2011

Speaking of Hudson Hawk, what ever happened to Andie MacDowell?

*Checks filmography*

....oh
posted by The Whelk at 11:58 AM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

I went on a date one to a movie (chosen by my date) that was showing at the university. My date had described it as a numerous British family film. The movie was Life is Sweet, which I enjoyed, but it has more than a little despair in it. During the film, we shared a glance, and my date said "I. am. so. sorry." It all turned out OK, especially after we went to Ymadawiad Arthur, quite accurately billed as a Welsh-language science fiction film about time travel, King Arthur, and rugby.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:58 AM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

If you walked into a McDonalds, and you saw a picture of a delicious, juicy-looking hamburger with fries on the menu, next to the words "hamburger with fries", and you wanted a hamburger with fries, you'd order it. You wouldn't go to yelp and see if the "hamburger and fries" were really a "hamburger with fries."

Now, if the "hamburger with fries" were not actually delicious, and/or did not actually look like the menu item, you would probably shrug and just not order it again. And, had you ordered them for six people total and thus spent around $34 on the order, you might be annoyed.

Let's say the "hamburger with fries" came to you in a bag, and when you got home and opened the bag, you found a beef salad and au gratin potatoes. Now what? Would you shrug and not order it again? Would you be annoyed? Sure. You might even drive back to the store and try to get what you'd really ordered.

Now, say they wouldn't give you what you really ordered; they said "this is what we call hamburger with fries, and yes, the picture doesn't look like what you got, and the substance of what we gave you isn't what people would interpret as hamburger and fries, but no, you can't have your money back." Then you did some research and found out that every McDonalds around the world was doing this exact same thing.

Would you consider a class action lawsuit?
posted by davejay at 11:59 AM on October 10, 2011

We should just go back to simpler times when you could tell how awesome a movie was going to be by checking if Kenny Loggins had a song in the soundtrack
posted by any major dude at 12:00 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

This doesn't seem absurd on its face to me. I have no opinion on the merits of the case in particular, as I've never seen the movie or either of the trailers, but it's not inconceivable to me that a movie trailer can be, essentially, false advertising. And if that can be shown to be true to the satisfaction of a court, then perhaps she's legally entitled to her eight bucks back. Why should movie studios in particular be indemnified against false advertising, as opposed to any other type of company?

Look, if movie studios can't cut trailers for "Drive" that maybe make it look more action-packed than it really is, then awesome movies like "Drive" will never get made because there'll be no way to get butts in seats. See also: "Never Let Me Go," "Bug," "A.I.," etc.

This woman needs to suck it up and/or acquire better taste.
posted by eugenen at 12:01 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Andie McDowell lives on forever in 4 weddings and a funeral (with the title and inclusion of hugh grant leading you to know EXACTLY what you're going to get).
posted by bquarters at 12:05 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Would you consider a class action lawsuit?

If a movie was totally counter to what I expected it to be from trailers, and I didn't like it I would leave 1/2 way trough, make a detailed complaint and demand my money back. Filing a lawsuit just seems like trowing more good money after bad, and so, so stereotypically American.
posted by edgeways at 12:06 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't think "you have poor taste" is a particularly compelling argument against the lady's legal rights.
posted by Flunkie at 12:06 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Then you did some research and found out that every McDonalds around the world was doing this exact same thing.

Would you consider a class action lawsuit?

Would I sue McDonalds for replacing their shit sandwiches with actual food? Umm... no.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:07 PM on October 10, 2011

I am among the brotherhood of Hudson Hawk fans. That movie is every movie you will ever need.

I remember when Six Degrees of Separation was marketed as a wacky Fresh-Prince-style comedy.
posted by Navelgazer at 12:07 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

Woman Sues Movie Studio Over Misleading Trailer"

I remember when you had to leave the house and find an alternative weekly newspaper to get "News of the Weird"
posted by mmrtnt at 12:08 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Would you consider a class action lawsuit?
No, because if I'm going to drop some time and cash on something, I'll read up on it first. People do it with make-up, ffs, why not with movies, an artform which is widely reviewed?

Having said that, I was reading reviews on IMDB for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, which we went to see when it came out a couple of weeks ago. So many people commenting 'this is not the fast film with gadgets and michael bay stunts wot I thought it was' and complaining because you see Gary Oldman's character swimming in a lake for no particular reason. This country.
posted by mippy at 12:08 PM on October 10, 2011

Andie McDowell lives on forever in 4 weddings and a funeral

And Groundhog Day, although living on nearly forever was kind of the point of that film.
posted by quin at 12:08 PM on October 10, 2011

Remember when all those people sued those restaurants for replacing their coffee with decaf?
posted by mmrtnt at 12:09 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

The movie was Life is Sweet

At least it wasn't Life is Beautiful.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 12:09 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Also, I see more film trailers than anyone in this country bar those toiling in a post-prod house, and I went into TTSS with only the prior info gained from seeing said trailers, and I knew even then that it wasn't going to be a Jason Statham film.
posted by mippy at 12:10 PM on October 10, 2011

from Gawker: “Drive ‘bore very little similarity to a chase, or race action film ... having very little driving in the motion picture,’ states the lawsuit (which also alleges anti-Semitism).”

me: “Hrm. Buried the lede, did we?”

eugenen: “I'm guessing this has to do with the fact that the mobster villains were identified as Jewish and played by Jewish actors.”

I guess that wasn't what this woman was expecting when she heard this was a "race action film."
posted by koeselitz at 12:10 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'm want to see this film because Carey Mulligan has been consistently brilliant.

Wait.

The only thing wrong with this eyeball burstingly good movie was a criminally miscast Carey Mulligan.

Jeez.
posted by Anything at 12:10 PM on October 10, 2011

For the record, the theater has already stated that they would have refunded the woman's money to her.

I hope they sanction the attorney who filed this garbage lawsuit and that the film distributor and theater owner recoup their legal fees when all is said and done.
posted by BobbyVan at 12:10 PM on October 10, 2011

It was so romantic when he stomped a hole in that guy's face.
posted by Horselover Phattie at 12:11 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

GenjiandProust: “I went on a date one to a movie (chosen by my date) that was showing at the university. My date had described it as a numerous British family film. The movie was Life is Sweet, which I enjoyed, but it has more than a little despair in it. During the film, we shared a glance, and my date said "I. am. so. sorry." It all turned out OK, especially after we went to Ymadawiad Arthur, quite accurately billed as a Welsh-language science fiction film about time travel, King Arthur, and rugby.”

Life Is Sweet is one of the greatest films anybody has ever made about anything. It is indeed a British film about family, so I guess she was right. In any case, I would be shocked and delighted to be surprised by such a movie.

I guess the lesson here is that people should probably get in the habit of having no expectations when they watch movies.
posted by koeselitz at 12:12 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

And boy was I pissed after watching The Shining.
posted by Anything at 12:12 PM on October 10, 2011

Collateral is another contender for movies that were ill-served by their trailers. People expected an action movie, and got a meditation on place and character.
posted by Decimask at 12:13 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

Well, why doesn't this fall under the Michigan law? Because it's art?

"(c) Representing that goods or services have sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have or that a person has sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection that he or she does not have."

"(s) Failing to reveal a material fact, the omission of which tends to mislead or deceive the consumer, and which fact could not reasonably be known by the consumer."
posted by smackfu at 12:15 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

In any case, I would be shocked and delighted to be surprised by such a movie.

Perhaps I wasn't completely clear -- we enjoyed the film, but there was a bit of mental screeching tires (tyres) as we realized what kind of film it was. Also, not a really great date film, unless you have a Nutella and bulimia fetish....
posted by GenjiandProust at 12:17 PM on October 10, 2011

No, because if I'm going to drop some time and cash on something, I'll read up on it first.

You read up on purchases you make at a McDonalds? Really?
posted by davejay at 12:17 PM on October 10, 2011

When my wife and I saw Sex Lies and Videotape we were the only people in the theater other than two women sitting several rows back.

As the lights came up one of the women said loudly "Well, what was that all about"?
posted by pianomover at 12:18 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

McDonald's has built an empire on the provision of foodstuffs -- especially those damned fries -- that are exactly the same wherever you go. It's all designed to be bland, standard-issue fare, not especially spicy and not especially bland but middle-of-the-road, lowest-common-denominator drive-thru sustenance. Sure, there's comfort in always knowing what you're going to get, but it's similarly true that nobody will ever be surprised or delighted by what they find in a McDonald's bag.
posted by Joey Bagels at 12:18 PM on October 10, 2011

Would I sue McDonalds for replacing their shit sandwiches with actual food? Umm... no.

I went that direction because I personally think Fast n Furious is worse than an arthouse film...but okay, flip it around. Pick any chain restaurant that you like, that serves what you believe is good food, but you get McDonalds crap instead.
posted by davejay at 12:19 PM on October 10, 2011

The only thing wrong with this eyeball burstingly good movie was a criminally miscast Carey Mulligan.

Jeez.

That person is wrong wrong wrong.

But then I'd watch Carey Mulligan playing Henry VIII reading a phonebook, so I might not be unbiased.
posted by kmz at 12:19 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

Half the B-movies ever made had massively misleading trailers.

Also: I liked Drive but it was no The Driver, that's for sure.
posted by stinkycheese at 12:20 PM on October 10, 2011

Drive is a movie largely composed of long, glacial scenes punctuated by shocking violence. How does that translate to a trailer, exactly? Trailers are all about quick cuts, the fastest exposition possible, and scenes where things happen over scenes where things don't happen. Unless you take an auteur approach to the trailer itself and do something radically different, I just don't think there's any good way to get a feel for this movie in a couple minutes.
posted by naju at 12:20 PM on October 10, 2011 [6 favorites]

Such mixed feelings.

On the one hand -- lots of Mann / Soderbergh atmospherics, who can't like that? And Albert Brooks as a bad guy, Christina Hendricks as a dumb moll in blue jeans, and Bryan Cranston as a hapless guy over his head? Tasty. Opening sequence was genius.

But Ryan Reynolds quiet smoldering as a half-hearted criminal? Proving his virtue by instantly falling for the blonde single mother of a dark-complected kid? Dark-complected kid's father turning out to be a Hispanic guy in prison? Hispanic guy in prison turning out to have a heart of gold? [Predictable spoiler consequences omitted]?

This movie had so much more potential with just a little more story.
posted by MattD at 12:21 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

I absolutely loved it, by the way.
posted by naju at 12:21 PM on October 10, 2011

Pick any chain restaurant that you like, that serves what you believe is good food, but you get McDonalds crap instead.

Why on earth would I consider a class-action lawsuit rather than simply demanding my money back from the restaurant?
posted by Joey Bagels at 12:22 PM on October 10, 2011

"I can think of at least two things wrong with that title"
-Nelson Muntz, after watching the film Naked Lunch
posted by obscurator at 12:25 PM on October 10, 2011 [6 favorites]

A movie I've seen recently that was really good, but not what I was expecting was, "The American"
posted by mmrtnt at 12:25 PM on October 10, 2011

Barton Fink! Barton Fink!
posted by The Whelk at 12:26 PM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

Just watched the trailer, and I really don't think it represents it as Fast and the Furious. Maybe the first few seconds, but then it gets awful talky and then about halfway through it switches to orchestral music with lots of strings. Seems arty to me. You could definitely cut a much more misleading trailer than what they did.

OTOH, the quick description does make it sound like that: "A Hollywood stunt performer who moonlights as a wheelman discovers that a contract has been put on him after a heist gone wrong."
posted by smackfu at 12:26 PM on October 10, 2011

GenjiandProust: “Perhaps I wasn't completely clear -- we enjoyed the film, but there was a bit of mental screeching tires (tyres) as we realized what kind of film it was. Also, not a really great date film, unless you have a Nutella and bulimia fetish....”

Heh, yeah.

I am not really very good at picking date movies, admittedly. On a first date, I once took a girl to see The Happiness Of The Katakuris; she never called me back. Of course, I'd told her it was a "Japanese zombie horror musical," so I guess she can't really say that I didn't give her the right expectations about it.
posted by koeselitz at 12:27 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Yeah - I'd just send the food back and we'd all go on with our lives.

Also, I've seen plenty of movies that were hyped as high quality fare that I thought were utter crap (The English Patient - I'm looking at you). I didn't sue for false advertising. I just added their names to my list. I'm not telling what the list is for.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 12:28 PM on October 10, 2011

Peter Travers, get ready! That's my process server at your front door!
posted by benito.strauss at 12:28 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

This is such a bogus story. Nobody lives in Detroit anymore.
posted by srboisvert at 12:29 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

The "would you sue" question doesn't seem particularly relevant to me. Whether or not I would sue -- and I most definitely would not -- doesn't seem to have much bearing on whether or not I should be (or in fact am) legally allowed to sue.
posted by Flunkie at 12:30 PM on October 10, 2011

I read the book last month. Good book, but not quite as crazy good as The Getaway Man by Andrew Vachss which it is way more like than it maybe should be.

Look forward to the movie.

Oh, and this woman should be sued for wasting everyone's fucking time. Lady, you haven't noticed anything else fucked up in your world you could maybe devote some time and money to? I mean come on, at least try.
posted by From Bklyn at 12:30 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

she found drive racist for its portrayal of jewish mobsters, but doesn't find anything racist in the bad guys in the fast & the furious films?

also, it's the brother and sisterhood of hudson hawk lovers.
posted by nadawi at 12:30 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

But Ryan Reynolds quiet smoldering as a half-hearted criminal?

Ooh, what's that movie called?
posted by shakespeherian at 12:31 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

You don't get what is advertized at macD's. You get what you expect from experience and/or hearsay.
posted by mumimor at 12:32 PM on October 10, 2011

But Ryan Reynolds quiet smoldering as a half-hearted criminal?

misread as Burt Reynolds
posted by desjardins at 12:32 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

Someone took me to see A Simple Plan once under the pretence that it was a knockabout crime farce.
posted by mippy at 12:35 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Well, why doesn't this fall under the Michigan law? Because it's art?

"(c) Representing that goods or services have sponsorship, approval, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have or that a person has sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection that he or she does not have."

"(s) Failing to reveal a material fact, the omission of which tends to mislead or deceive the consumer, and which fact could not reasonably be known by the consumer."

Yeah, I think you run into a pretty big First Amendment problem if Courts start regulating advertisements for works of commercial artistic expression.

That said, we might be able to think of a movie trailer that would potentially qualify as "false advertising" (suppose the trailer says "starring Tom Cruise," but he never appears in the film), but this case is certainly frivolous -- no Court could be reasonably expected to rule that Drive should have had more than two car chases.
posted by BobbyVan at 12:36 PM on October 10, 2011

Ooh, what's that movie called?


Buried Driver.

It's spellbinding. The whole thing takes place in a car.
posted by Senor Cardgage at 12:36 PM on October 10, 2011

MetaFilter: Andie MacDowell, this is what the color blue tastes like.
posted by detachd at 12:38 PM on October 10, 2011

Also: I liked Drive but it was no The Driver, that's for sure.

And neither one of them was Drive (aka: the greatest Marc Dacascos film ever made.)
posted by quin at 12:42 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I think that bpm140 really missed the boat here by not naming this post, "The Fast and the Frivolous".
posted by Betelgeuse at 12:42 PM on October 10, 2011 [12 favorites]

That said, we might be able to think of a movie trailer that would potentially qualify as "false advertising" (suppose the trailer says "starring Tom Cruise," but he never appears in the film)

I don't think it necessarily has to go that far. For example, if this were actually released by the movie studio as a trailer, would it be "false advertising"?

I'm not a lawyer, so I have no opinion on whether or not it would legally be false advertising, but in the popular parlance I'd have no reservations describing it as such.
posted by Flunkie at 12:47 PM on October 10, 2011

I love Hudson Hawk.
posted by joannemerriam at 12:48 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

I am suing both my brother and the makers of the game Torchlight. He got me to play the game by telling me it was about taking care of puppies and kitties.

Wait, no I'm not, because that would be a crazily disproportionate response. Instead I get my revenge by buying him a copy of the devil's backbone and telling him it's an independent film about the Spanish revolution.
posted by winna at 12:48 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

It was much better than Cats. I'm going to see it again and again.
posted by hal9k at 12:50 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

Well color me pleasantly surprised! I love Ryan Gosling, but I had no plans on seeing this, as it looked like the exact movie that this woman was disappointed that it wasn't.
posted by Uther Bentrazor at 12:51 PM on October 10, 2011

Trurl : Yeah, the audience I saw it with sounded audibly disappointed as they filed out - wondering why the Michael Bay film they had wanted never showed up. Fucking idiots.

A bit harsh, don't you think?

Suing over it, completely absurd. But when the studio deliberately and deceptively markets a movie to a "wrong" (but larger) demographic, what the hell do you expect to happen?

Some people like self-important works of art, and some like 90 minutes of tits, robots, and explosions.
posted by pla at 12:51 PM on October 10, 2011

Some people like self-important works of art, and some like 90 minutes of tits, robots, and explosions.

You speak like those things are mutually exclusive.
posted by kmz at 12:54 PM on October 10, 2011 [21 favorites]

this can't have a good impact on the studios' willingness to take risks. THANKS LADY.
posted by fetamelter at 1:00 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't understand people who don't read reviews before spending money on things. Maybe it's my thriftiness or my love of research, but I never walk into a movie knowing nothing. For instance, I knew exactly how terrible each Transformers movie would be before I saw them in theaters--it's why I brought extra popcorn to throw at the screen.
posted by sleeping bear at 1:00 PM on October 10, 2011

A lot of people who don't read reviews do so because there are fewer and fewer movie critics these days who know how to write an actual review and not merely a plot summary full of spoilers. (Anthony Lane, I'm looking at you.)
posted by Lexica at 1:07 PM on October 10, 2011 [8 favorites]

I don't think it necessarily has to go that far. For example, if this [fake Shining trailer] were actually released by the movie studio as a trailer, would it be "false advertising"?

Good question. I'd certainly feel duped, and would want to see people punished for tricking the audience... but I think a lawsuit would probably be overkill -- any studio that did that would so damage its own brand as to make the consequences of a lawsuit pale in comparison.

You've also got things like this trailer for Greenberg. I thought the film would be inspirational and uplifting, but it ended up ruining a beautiful Sunday afternoon.
posted by BobbyVan at 1:09 PM on October 10, 2011

Hey, easy now with the Hudson Hawk! Tragically misunderstood, I say.

Yeah! That's probably what happened!
posted by curious nu at 1:13 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

We rented and watched "Greenberg" even though the clerk at the Blockbuster said it was stupid.

It was not necessarily fantastic, but it had... depth.

But then, the Blockbuster clerk thought "Bounty Hunter" was hilarious.
posted by mmrtnt at 1:14 PM on October 10, 2011

The Shining does have that lovely end credit music, though.
posted by mippy at 1:16 PM on October 10, 2011

I don't know.....I used to read up on movies before I went to them and would more often than not get disappointed - either by too much of the plot being given away in a review to enjoy it, being tipped off to a "twist" at the end or just unrealistic expectations based on glowing reviews (case in point: Gosford Park which according to reviews was the GREATEST MOVIE EVER but to me - and maybe it was just the place I was in at the time - was the most godawful boring thing I have ever suffered through in my life).

So now I just kind of go on my gut instinct on how I think a movie looks and by word-of-mouth recommendations from people. For example, Iron Man was a movie that didn't really interest me on the surface, but after hearing a lot of people who had seen it and liked it, I decided to give it a try and I really like it. Same thing with Planet of the Apes - I don't really like remakes, but I've heard great things about this one so I'll see it at some point. To me there are two kinds of movies: movies that I want to see, which I will see; and movies that I never thought about seeing but have heard so much buzz about that I figure it must be worth seeing. If I'm ever still up in the air about something, I'll check the score on Rotten Tomatoes just to get an idea of consensus. When I go to the Redbox with my roommate, he'll want to pick out some movie that I've never heard of and I'll nix it on the spot because I reckon if we've never heard about it it's not worth seeing. I tend to think that genuinely good movies will always get some buzz, but then again I read a LOT of media, so I tend to hear about things that way. This method has worked for me pretty well.

That said, I just saw Drive last week based on two friends each writing a quick little status update on Facebook. Both said they loved it and one said NOT to read anything about it before going in. I took that to heart and literally knew nothing about it so I was expecting a Fast and Furious type action movie as well. After about a half hour, I was like - wtf is this movie all about? But I did end up really enjoying it in the end. The violence was SHOCKING but I liked the performances and the cinemetography was beautiful so having thought about it I would definitely recommend this movie to friends, but with the caveat that they despite the title and the premise being about a stunt/getaway driver, they should not expect an action/thriller type movie.
posted by triggerfinger at 1:20 PM on October 10, 2011

This was the same movie as "The American," and they both weren't very good.
posted by zeek321 at 1:24 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

I tend to think that genuinely good movies will always get some buzz, but then again I read a LOT of media, so I tend to hear about things that way. This method has worked for me pretty well.

This unfortunately isn't true for really quality Asian films, especially not generating buzz in any timely fashion.
posted by hopeless romantique at 1:26 PM on October 10, 2011

Well color me pleasantly surprised! I love Ryan Gosling, but I had no plans on seeing this, as it looked like the exact movie that this woman was disappointed that it wasn't.

Heh, me too (except for the Ryan Gosling love).

I was avoiding the shit out of Drive because I assumed it was a fake Fast and Furious film.

One of my best cinema experiences was dragging a mate to a 11.00 showing of Reservoir Dogs because I'd heard it was good. We staggered out into the blinding mid-day sun our heads spinning from the fucking awesome film and turned round and went back in to watch it again.

Not knowing anything about a film before you watch it is a wonderful way to experience great cinema. Whether those surprising moments of beauty are worth ignoring all trailers and suffering through a thousand hours of shitty movies though, I'm not too sure about that.
posted by fullerine at 1:30 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

This unfortunately isn't true for really quality Asian films, especially not generating buzz in any timely fashion.

Very true, mostly my method just works for American films. I generally will do a bit more research on foreign films.
posted by triggerfinger at 1:33 PM on October 10, 2011

I was so happy that I saw Drive without seeing the trailer first -- not because of any false Fast and Furious expectations -- but because it gives away the whole plot.

One more thought -- how sad is it that a major studio releases an artistically worthy film with big name stars and action elements, only to be sued for not releasing typical Hollywood fare?
posted by BobbyVan at 1:34 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

TVTropes: Trailers Always Lie
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 1:44 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

If nothing else, I'm glad this post exists because I had never seen the recut Shining trailer.

That trailer is fabulous, but my favorite of this genre is still 10 Things I Hate About Commandments.
posted by adamdschneider at 1:46 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

I would like to sue Ronald D. Moore for tricking me into watching Battlestar Galactica by making it appear to be sci-fi.
posted by finite at 1:56 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

I was once taken on a school trip to see Ulee's Gold because my teachers were under the impression that it was a heartwarming family story about beekeeping. When the drug dealers showed up, the teachers were so incensed, I was half tempted to warn the theater managers to run while they still could. You would have thought they'd taken us to see Caligula thinking it was an educational film on Roman history.
posted by Diagonalize at 2:01 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

how sad is it that a major studio releases an artistically worthy film with big name stars and action elements, only to be sued for not releasing typical Hollywood fare?

Is this a major studio release? It seems like the distributor in the US is FilmDistrict who I have never heard of.

(And while looking that up, I found this line from the Variety review: "With its spare storytelling economy, this is the sort of film that would launch a career, if only it were Refn's debut, rather than his eighth feature." Burn.)
posted by smackfu at 2:05 PM on October 10, 2011

You people defending Hudson Hawk need to get your head examined. It is a terrible film. Go on, watch it tonight, you'll agree with me. Go on! You probably last watched it a decade ago when you were in your dorm room, high as a kite. It's not that it doesn't hold up, it's that it was no good to begin with.
posted by zardoz at 2:05 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

...eponysterical?
posted by muddgirl at 2:12 PM on October 10, 2011 [7 favorites]

My worst false advertising story is that my mom told me Happiness was really funny so my dad and I rented it and watched it together WITH MOUNTING HORROR. Then my dad spent 20 minutes trying to convince me (himself, really) that the little boy was played by a very small woman because he didn't want to believe that a child actor would be permitted to participate in those scenes.
posted by prefpara at 2:24 PM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

Oh, and I was like 11 or 12.
posted by prefpara at 2:24 PM on October 10, 2011

O_o Had your mom not seen the film?
posted by kmz at 2:27 PM on October 10, 2011

it's that it was no good to begin with.

Respectfully, I disagree, and here's why you are wrong:

"If Da Vinci was alive today, he'd be eating microwave sushi, naked, in the back of a Cadillac with the both of us."

This is one of those quotes, that even devoid of context, is still funny to me. And I was given just this, with no other direction, and asked to come up with a screen play, I'd like to think that the end result would have Bruce Willis singing show tunes while breaking it to European castles.

It doesn't make sense, but it does so in such a perfectly nonsensical way, that it becomes funny. The problem is that people wanted Die Hard Bruce Willis, and were mad when what they got was Moonlighting mixed with the absurd.

That and the fact that to this day, I still say "Bunny, ball ball!" whenever I pitch a tennis ball to my dog.
posted by quin at 2:33 PM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

It's Raining Florence Henderson: "Movies need a new rating system:

IQ - Includes Quality. May not be suitable for all viewers. Breath Right Strips recommended for snorers."

I went into Drive fully knowing it was not a Fast and Furious type of film. I never go to car race/demolition movies. I wanted to see the movie because the critics' reviews were overwhelmingly positive, and I was hoping for a quality low-budget sleeper film.

But wow, I really didn't care for Drive at all. I'm hoping those that liked it could tell me why they thought it was so great, honestly.

Albert Brooks, yes, was fabulous. I enjoyed seeing him in such a completely different and unexpected role. And Malcolm-in-the-Middle's Dad played his part perfectly. He was a loser who was always trying to find an easy way to get rich, the perpetual screw-up who couldn't understand why things went wrong for him all the time when he only meant well. Well done, those two.

But a good half hour of this movie is Ryan Gosling and the-Mom-with-husband-in-jail characters having picnics by the water, etc., in a perfectly typical getting-to-know-each-other montage. And, yes! The staring goes on waaaaay too long. So what should have been emotion-fraught scenes between a couple whose burgeoning love affair is sadly cut short by circumstances beyond their control just fell completely flat.

I didn't really care if Gosling got the girl; he could have easily turned into a pedophile halfway through the movie. I could never tell if it was her or the kid that drew him in the first place anyway. We are intentionally kept dark on his background; all that we know about him is that he is coldly professional, and his professional life was far more interesting than the love story the movie revolved around. So what do they do? They get rid of that, too. Gosling goes into personal vendetta territory, also completely predictable.

Even so, they could have taken it in a different direction. Things went wrong and he's not coldly professional any more? Hey, just go crazy in that direction instead. Gosling is most compelling when he is stomping people to death; show us how uncontrollable he is now that beast has been released! He's lost the reins and now he can't stop himself. When he starts doing stupid stuff like walk into nice restaurants in his blood-drenched jacket and stomping people in elevators, I thought they might be going there, too, embracing the madness in a "I drink your milkshake!" way.

But no, we are still being sold this heart-of-gold misfit at the same time: "Aw, shucks, can we maybe take this money and be a little family together?" Pffbt. How does that fit with the cold professional OR the insanely violent side of his character?

Then there's his love interest. Wow, does she go from cute to boring fast! We have no sense of who this woman is at all, really, except she makes incredibly bad decisions. Invite strange man into your apartment with your little kid because he helped with your car? Sure. Continue to see him while staying married to jailed Dad? Sure.

For the whole movie, she just kinda hovers around uncertainly, and pretty much cluelessly. My husband got beat up? Oh, it was just kids looking for money! It would have been a better movie if we knew whether she was lying to keep up the charade of the happy family (okay, so she is caught up in this web like an abused wife, gotcha) or whether she actually believed what she was saying.

The only time she steps up is when she decides to slap the Driver. What good is that? At least take the damn money, you're obviously going to need it. But wait until you really see the bad side of him! Then, boy, won't you be horrified at the Driver's propensity for over-the-top violence! Well, maybe, but that would make too much sense, so only for a little while, and then maybe I'll go knock on his door, see how he's doing. She's basically just a victim. Yay, how inspiring for a leading lady!

And I am not being facetious here, but does "arthouse" mean "has no clue how to end their own film"? Because that's what I'm getting from this kind of stuff. I don't mean that the loose ends are not tied up neatly, as that often is the case in real life. It's as if the writers have tied the characters up in knots they don't know how to unravel themselves, like watching a bad Stephen King story brought to the screen.

So, please, if you loved this film, respond here or Memail me WHY.

And please come up with something better than anyone who didn't obviously just doesn't know quality when they see it. Because to me that's just kneejerk elitist pedantry, and not supported by what I saw in Drive.
posted by misha at 2:35 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

My little sister got me to watch Sling Blade because she said it was a comedy.

I will be initiating legal proceedings against her as well. Ima sue everyone!
posted by winna at 2:43 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Hudson Hawk is an awesome movie. and I don't even like cappuccino.

I found it really funny how on 'adult' channels, Real Steel trailers primarily feature Hugh Jackman, while on Nick and Cartoon Network, it's all about the kid.
posted by nomisxid at 2:57 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

> On a first date, I once took a girl to see The Happiness Of The Katakuris; she never called
> me back. Of course, I'd told her it was a "Japanese zombie horror musical," so I guess she
> can't really say that I didn't give her the right expectations about it.
> posted by koeselitz at 12:27 PM on October 10

The DVD cover makes it look like The Sound of Music.
posted by jfuller at 3:02 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Heh, me too (except for the Ryan Gosling love).

Go watch The Believer and Fracture, and you may just take those strike tags back.

Also, if we're all getting our sue on, I'd like to file claim against the rest of my high school for encouraging me to sit through Doom Generation.
posted by Uther Bentrazor at 3:03 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I once took a friend to see Crash (1996) based upon some confusion.
posted by jeffburdges at 3:04 PM on October 10, 2011

I was nice baby sat by a copy of Cool World cause my mom saw it in the dollar bin and thought hey it's a cartoon, it's for kids.
posted by The Whelk at 3:06 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

*once baby sat by...
posted by The Whelk at 3:09 PM on October 10, 2011

Huh. This actually makes me a lot more interested in Drive, which I'd only heard good things about from one of my pals who usually has good taste in general, but is way too willing to let his crush on Gosling overcome any critical skills. I sat through Lars and the Real Girl on his account, and while I thought that movie was really good in some ways, it was not the amazing romance and howling comedy I was promised.
posted by klangklangston at 3:09 PM on October 10, 2011

I walked into Drive after watcing Refn's other films, and being really impressed how it moved seamlessly b/w hard pulp and high art--refusing the dialectic that is frequently still present, i found his use of silence, his control of spectacle, and his genre riffing without being all Tarintino about it, i really wanted to see it. Plus, I will basically watch any move about driving in LA.

I loved it. But I was not expecting any amount of versmillitude.
posted by PinkMoose at 3:11 PM on October 10, 2011

This is the trailer for the Michael Winterbottom movie Code 46. I had something to do with it. I can tell you that we scoured the movie for every single shot with some form of movement or lateral travel so we could imply there was something other than talking and ideas in this film. The one-second shot at 1'37 where Tim Robbins takes three quick steps up a flight of stairs? It's the only moment he breaks out of a walk in the entire 93 minutes. He jogs up some stairs. Action hero!

It's not a bad movie by any means. But it was a hard sell.
posted by Hogshead at 3:12 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

The greatest thing about Hudson Hawk (aside from everything) is that while on one level you'd think that everybody who loves it only loves it "ironically" or something, no. The enjoyment we get out of it is EXACTLY what was intended. No amount of surrealism I've seen since has topped it, and hollywood needs to option more improvised Bruce Willis open-mic-night harmonica songs.
posted by Navelgazer at 3:22 PM on October 10, 2011 [7 favorites]

jfuller: “The DVD cover makes it look like The Sound of Music.”

Well, it sort of is like The Sound Of Music. Just with zombies.
posted by koeselitz at 3:24 PM on October 10, 2011

The hills are alive!

With the wails of the dead!
posted by The Whelk at 3:28 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

Really, I'm just going to say that if every man, woman, and child on this planet were to watch The Happiness of the Katakuris, there would be no more war, there would be no more starvation, and they'd give out twinkies on the bus just to make you feel a little better every morning. It's that good.
posted by koeselitz at 3:44 PM on October 10, 2011

So, please, if you loved this film, respond here or Memail me WHY.

Well, I enjoyed it for a couple of different reasons. I've mentioned before that Drive shares some things with the best work of Michael Mann: an emphasis on men at work (specifically cops and/or crooks), a slightly chilly formalism, a vaguely Tangerine Dream-esque soundtrack. Refn doesn't do all these things as well as Mann does in, say, Heat, but as I said eariler, neither does Mann these days. Still, I liked that somebody was shooting for the same sort of thing.

Drive is also a great example of what someone (Ebert, I think) described as a "gearshift movie:" a film that starts as one thing and then shifts into something else altogether without seeming incoherent or nonsensical. Psycho is the classic example of this type of movie. Drive starts off as a quiet, moody character piece and then, about forty minutes in, turns into a revenge thriller. When done right, it's really impressive. I think it handles this transition pretty well, although I suspect many people might disagree with me on this point.

Finally, my inner 14-year-old responded to how cool it was. Who doesn't want to wear a badass scorpion jacket while driving fast cars and committing crimes and making googoo eyes at pretty girls? I'm not saying this made it a good movie, it's just part of why I liked it.

I will also agree with many of the criticisms made above. Refn doesn't know how to end the movie, Mulligan isn't miscast so much as completely irrelevant, Perlman is criminally underutilized. But on the whole, I liked it and am interested to see what Refn does for his next American picture.
posted by Rangeboy at 3:44 PM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

Both said they loved it and one said NOT to read anything about it before going in

This is what I need. I need a reliable critic who tells me whether or not to go see the movie without telling me a damn thing about it. I hate trailers and reviews because they give away too much. I sit there in the movie theater and my brain will not shut off. My brain has several puzzle pieces that it MUST fit together, pieces that it was given before the movie ever started and here it is now, the movie is half over, and my brain is going crazy thinking about that one scene that hasn't been shown. Some trailers show you things that happen in the last 10 minutes of the film!

I used to solve this by going to see Everything. I may be the only woman in the USA who saw both Hudson Hawk and Howard the Duck in a movie theater. I think I deserve some money for that.

Such mixed feelings.

On the one hand -- lots of Mann / Soderbergh atmospherics, who can't like that? And Albert Brooks as a bad guy, Christina Hendricks as a dumb moll in blue jeans, and Bryan Cranston as a hapless guy over his head? Tasty. Opening sequence was genius.

But Ryan Reynolds quiet smoldering as a half-hearted criminal? [...]

This movie had so much more potential

Oh God that takes me back to Gangs of New York. I went for Daniel Day Lewis, who was brilliant and riveting, naturally. The first...oh...15 minutes of the film my husband and I sat back in our seats with a glow of extreme happiness. Then Leonardo di Caprio appeared. And Ate the movie. I did not yet hate di Caprio, but I came to loathe him and his stupid romantic storyline. He singlehandedly ruined the movie for both of us.

In retrospect, the saddest thing about that experience was that was the last Martin Scorsese movie we ever went to-- from that time on he never made a movie without di Caprio.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 3:47 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Is this a major studio release? It seems like the distributor in the US is FilmDistrict who I have never heard of.

I stand corrected. Thanks.
posted by BobbyVan at 3:51 PM on October 10, 2011

she never called me back.

To be fair, using a Miike film as a date movie can have one of two bad outcomes:

1. Your date can be horrified and never talk to you again.
2. Your date can be enthralled, and you embark on a torrid romance that ends with you shackled to a pipe in a disused sewer tunnel as your lover eats the meat off your thighs. And shares it with you. By which point, you are OK with it.

Miike should only be taken in controlled doses under proper supervision.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:56 PM on October 10, 2011 [5 favorites]

It all turned out OK, especially after we went to Ymadawiad Arthur, quite accurately billed as a Welsh-language science fiction film about time travel, King Arthur, and rugby.

Reader, I married her.
posted by villanelles at dawn at 4:01 PM on October 10, 2011 [2 favorites]

People go to movies with expectations not with open minds. This is true of just about everyone from mainstream movie goers to art house cinephiles.

Unfortunately, a good many people also blame movies for not 'living up to the hype' or 'not fulfilling the promise of the marketing campaign.' It's so absurd because the filmmakers are often the ones who get the blame yet they are rarely the ones marketing their film.

Don't ever buy the hype. I have a bit of skepticism for every movie I see. As a result, I end up liking most movies I see.

[Of course, I was also a film critic for 15 years so I have a b.s. detector for most marketing schemes. Plus it's easy to tell the demographic the marketers are aiming for with the use of critic's blurbs, which often clues me in to the movie's merit and quality.]
posted by Rashomon at 4:39 PM on October 10, 2011

Actually I should sue my brother because he told me the "Airplane" (Leslie Neilson) movie on tv circa 1985?? was a depressing movie about a plane crash so that I wouldn't watch it with him and leave the room. Hey, is there a statute of limitations on these lawsuits?? And a clause for deprivation of hilarity?
posted by bquarters at 4:40 PM on October 10, 2011 [3 favorites]

That's just your perception, Rashomon.
posted by cazoo at 4:41 PM on October 10, 2011 [4 favorites]

I was wondering about "Drive." Thanks, mefi, for clearing that up for me.
posted by blucevalo at 7:16 PM on October 10, 2011

Oh God that takes me back to Gangs of New York. I went for Daniel Day Lewis, who was brilliant and riveting, naturally.

I have always thought There Will Be Blood was something akin to The Phantom Edit: Anderson realized that DiCaprio is the Jar-Jar here. Gangs of New York goes absolutely slack every moment that the Titanic pretty boy is onscreen pretending to be a feckless Irish-American thug* and yet is electrifying whenever Bill the Butcher is onscreen, so why not put Bill the Butcher in every scene?

I enjoyed Drive, and afterward I realized it reminded me of nothing so much as that other off-brand Michael Mann film, To Live and Die in L.A. And if nothing else, watching Gosling's blank, affectless face for two hours made me realize that here is a guy born to play Valentine Michael Smith.





*The movie might have been interesting with actual feckless Irish-American thug Mark Wahlberg in the role.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 7:37 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I found it really funny how on 'adult' channels, Real Steel trailers primarily feature Hugh Jackman.

To be fair, "Hugh Jackman" is a totally perfect porno name.
posted by rokusan at 8:04 PM on October 10, 2011

Gangs of New York goes absolutely slack every moment that the Titanic pretty boy is onscreen

Any movie that has Leonardo diCaprio in it goes absolutely slack whenever he's onscreen.
posted by blucevalo at 8:09 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

chiming in as someone who absolutely loves Hudson Hawk unironically
posted by radiosilents at 8:21 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Any movie that has Leonardo diCaprio in it goes absolutely slack whenever he's onscreen.

So why the hell does he have a career? He flat out ruins anything he is in and unfortunately he makes good movies, movies I would want to see if only he wasn't in them. I wanted to see Aviator-- I love period pieces, but just couldn't do it. He is the only movie actor who affects me this way. I find Tom Cruise annoying but I don't automatically shun all his movies.

I blame Scorsese. The man is besotted.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 8:49 PM on October 10, 2011

Drive was so great. Exquisite mise en scene. No exposition-hammer -- although, amusingly, as a raw percentage of total words the exposition is actually really high, simply because there aren't a lot of words. One of the best cross-fades in a movie ever, that will be a treasured image in my brain for a long time.

My girlfriend -- who is distinctly a non-fan of violence in general -- loved it too, and now has a huge crush on Ryan Gosling.

I get so fucking tired of the nonstop blahblahblahEmotionallymanipulativeMusicBlahBlahEXPLOSIONexposition. I've heard lot's of knuckleheads opine that it is absurd to relate Drive to Bullit (one of my alltime favourite films) because Drive has one very short car chase as opposed to Bullit's 9+ minute one. Very amusing. Drive is like a movie litmus test.

We plan on seeing it again, when the theatre won't be full of people who Don't Get It, because their reactions were jarringly discordant to our own viewing experience. That will be I think the third time in my life I'll have paid to watch the same movie twice.
posted by lastobelus at 8:51 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't know, I think I fairly "got" Drive but still found it to be obnoxious twaddle that in the final analysis isn't really anything more substantive than another Fast Furious Fucko movie. If that brands me a heathen, so be it.
posted by Horselover Phattie at 9:15 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

Drive is a classic polarizer: generally people either buy it or they don't.

For me, the arty moves fell completely flat, felt forced and totally ham-handed. All the silence could've worked if what WAS said had any grace to it, but no; the relationship scenes felt especially devoid.

Between the stiff/absent empotional side, the (occasional) driving, the sudden extreme violence, and (of course) the scorpion jacket, the movie also felt extremely adolescent to me.

Different strokes, though. I make no claims to authority: with art there is none.
posted by wemayfreeze at 10:56 PM on October 10, 2011 [1 favorite]

I haven't seen "Drive" yet, but I know I want to, because AMAZING CAST + I've seen "Valhalla Rising", which I like to call "the slowest movie I've ever loved."

I need to check out "Bronson" and the "Pusher" trilogy.

Plus, the trailers advertise a movie. It would have to be a live stage show, or a blank screen (the cinematic equivalent of 4'33"), or a cockfight or something to really be false advertising, wouldn't it?
posted by Mister Moofoo at 10:57 PM on October 10, 2011

I assumed the woman in Drive basically had a thing for bad boys and drama (husband in prison, yes?). I for one liked the long shots of the two of them staring at each other - it sure beats a montage of them eating ice cream by a fountain or whatever. I wouldn't want every movie to take this approach, but I thought it worked well here. Pure cinema.

Drive was similar in many ways to Valhalla Rising - long periods of silence punctuated by bloody violence, a meditative tone overall, a near-mute hero, a somewhat meandering storyline. Both films benefit from a certain distance on the part of the viewer: just sit back and soak it in, as though you were looking at paintings in a gallery.

Bronson, on the other hand... Wowzers. An amazing central performance, surreal touches in set design, less of the meditative quality, more Kubrickian style madness. Lots of bloody violence. If you like prison films, be sure and check it out. It'd make a nice double-bill with Chopper (both non-Hollywood biopics with strong leads about real 'celebrity' criminals and their time inside).
posted by stinkycheese at 12:14 AM on October 11, 2011 [1 favorite]

On winter break at my aunt and uncle's house in late high school, my cousin and his girlfriend forced me into an awkward double date with a friend of theirs. Here I am, cousin from out of town, there she is, mawkish, shy girl friends with a cheerleader and her football playing boyfriend. I really, really wasn't interested in going, and said so. To get me to go, they let me choose the movie.

And that's how I got my cousin and his girlfriend to watch Remains of the Day, as a date movie. He still hasn't forgiven me, but god, I thought that was a beautiful film.

And Hudson Hawk is one of my all time favorites. It's practically the only way I've ever been able to stomach even small doses of Sandra Berndhart. Fantastic film.
posted by Ghidorah at 1:00 AM on October 11, 2011 [2 favorites]

The worst case of false advertising for a movie has got to be Unbreakable. Ugh. I had to leave the movie to go play video games in the lobby while my friends watched the rest, it was so dreadful. Had I known going in that it was actually a superhero movie I never would have forked over my $10 in the first place. Too bad I've passed the statute of limitations on that one!
posted by banjo_and_the_pork at 6:10 AM on October 11, 2011

The trailer for Parenthood made it seem like a light-hearted comedy; the movie was surprisingly dark by comparison.

I remember seeing a trailer for it on TV afterwards where they basically used all the action scenes in the movie

Kind of like The Thin Red Line.
posted by kirkaracha at 7:01 AM on October 11, 2011

Wait...you can sue for that stuff? Holy crap! Imagine my surprise when I saw the preview for "the Road" and it looked like a standard post-apocolyptic action flick. My wife still gets all teary when someone even mentions that damn movie. 1-800-ambulance chasers here I come!
posted by ironbob at 11:13 AM on October 11, 2011

The worst case of false advertising for a movie has got to be Unbreakable. Ugh. I had to leave the movie to go play video games in the lobby while my friends watched the rest, it was so dreadful. Had I known going in that it was actually a superhero movie I never would have forked over my $10 in the first place. Too bad I've passed the statute of limitations on that one!

Well, this is a new one to me... In Unbreakable, the reveation was that the movie was a different genre than the one it seemed to be at the outset. Do I understand that you are pissed off that the marketing did not give away the twist?
posted by ricochet biscuit at 1:04 PM on October 11, 2011

What? Unbreakable was awesome. But then, I think superheroes are awesome, so...
posted by maqsarian at 1:22 PM on October 11, 2011 [2 favorites]

And Malcolm-in-the-Middle's Dad played his part perfectly. He was a loser who was always trying to find an easy way to get rich, the perpetual screw-up who couldn't understand why things went wrong for him all the time when he only meant well.

I take it from your description of Bryan Cranston as "Malcolm-in-th-Middle's Dad" that you are not watching Breaking Bad. This is much more important than any discussion about this movie or this lawsuit. Start watching Breaking Bad immediately. Seriously, stop whatever you're doing now and go watch it.
posted by Ragged Richard at 1:24 PM on October 11, 2011

The first three seasons of Breaking Bad are streaming on Netflix!
posted by Horselover Phattie at 1:29 PM on October 11, 2011 [2 favorites]

Yes, go watch it, but not at dinner time. Found that out the hard way.
posted by desjardins at 2:02 PM on October 11, 2011 [2 favorites]

It's telling that the French translation of the title is Sang-Froid. If the lady had known that title, she might have thought twice.
posted by Kitteh at 5:46 AM on October 12, 2011 [1 favorite]

Drive is overrated. "The driver" said maybe 25 lines total in the entire movie. I thought the experience was pretty boring actually. It's a stylized movie for sure, but barely anything happens and it had zero plot twists. Why didn't anyone ask the dude's name? What kind of chick would want to be around a guy who has the personality of a wet carrot?
posted by amazingstill at 12:13 PM on October 12, 2011

Start watching Breaking Bad immediately. Seriously, stop whatever you're doing now and go watch it.
posted by Ragged Richard

I've been wanting to, based on the reviews here, but my parents, who are from Baltimore, were really negative about the first few episodes and gave up on it, so now I am torn.
posted by misha at 7:35 PM on October 12, 2011

misha - are you thinking of The Wire? Breaking Bad is set in Arizona.
posted by muddgirl at 7:38 PM on October 12, 2011

Muddgirl, I was!

So now I am compelled to go watch BB, aren't I?
posted by misha at 7:56 PM on October 12, 2011

Watch The Wire also!
posted by Horselover Phattie at 7:57 PM on October 12, 2011

I suggest a class-action lawsuit against the spoiler trailer. I am very grateful I never saw that trailer. I heard about it and saw it and it was incredible. Really just fantastic in every way. Now watching that trailer...it gives away EVERY SINGLE SURPRISE. Would've neutered the suspense by at least half - if not entirely.
posted by electricsandwich138 at 7:13 PM on October 13, 2011 [1 favorite]

koeselitz: On a first date, I once took a girl to see The Happiness Of The Katakuris; she never called me back.

GenjiandProust: Miike should only be taken in controlled doses under proper supervision.

Occasionally I like to ambush unsuspecting friends with Audition. When asked I tell them it's kind of like a Japanese version of 'The Courtship of Eddie's Father.'
So far no one has sued me.
posted by the_artificer at 9:07 PM on October 13, 2011 [2 favorites]

I went to Remains of the Day as a date movie, but we both knew what we were getting into, being queer meloncholics in the middle of winter; it's a good movie for that.
posted by PinkMoose at 5:38 AM on October 14, 2011 [1 favorite]

Ah, Breaking Bad is actually set in New Mexico! This is minorly important in one episode in the 4th season.
posted by muddgirl at 8:03 AM on October 14, 2011

What is it about Drive that inspires people to do stupid and absurd things?
posted by twirlip at 4:29 PM on October 14, 2011

> What is it about Drive that inspires people to do stupid and absurd things?

To be fair to Drive, if you're at the point where it seems like a fabulous idea to toss a hotdog at a golf player to gain your bit of Warhol dust, then just about any media can be the tipping point when the time is ripe.
posted by Horselover Phattie at 5:37 PM on October 14, 2011