The Dissolve
July 10, 2013 1:31 PM Subscribe
Music review site Pitchfork has branched out. Today marks the debut of The Dissolve, which will be dedicated to film. With talent acquired from Slate, NPR and the AV Club, the website is starting with a high pedigree.
This is great. I've always liked Scott Tobias' reviews. It will be interesting to see if the site has a specific viewpoint over time.
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 1:34 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 1:34 PM on July 10, 2013
So THIS is what happened to all those AV Club kids.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:35 PM on July 10, 2013 [13 favorites]
posted by shakespeherian at 1:35 PM on July 10, 2013 [13 favorites]
Really looking forward to a week's worth of content on Repo Man soon, and Brazil in August.
What's up with that NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS ticker, though?
posted by jason_steakums at 1:35 PM on July 10, 2013
What's up with that NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS ticker, though?
posted by jason_steakums at 1:35 PM on July 10, 2013
Every now and then someone reminds me that Pitchfork still exists and I'm always surprised. I used to read it regularly something like 10 years ago, back when pitchfork.com was owned by a farm supply store.
posted by 2bucksplus at 1:37 PM on July 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by 2bucksplus at 1:37 PM on July 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
I am excited though, as I was one of the people who was particularly dismayed when the AV Clubs film staff fled en masse.
Yeah, I really like the way things have turned out; all of the AV Club writers that I liked are over here now, away from the growing pool of deadening snark that's taking over the AV Club.
The Dissolve pieces I've read so far are exactly what I'd expected and hoped for.
posted by COBRA! at 1:38 PM on July 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
Yeah, I really like the way things have turned out; all of the AV Club writers that I liked are over here now, away from the growing pool of deadening snark that's taking over the AV Club.
The Dissolve pieces I've read so far are exactly what I'd expected and hoped for.
posted by COBRA! at 1:38 PM on July 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
To be fair, the AV Club is still great for TV. But this looks a great site for movies.
posted by Cash4Lead at 1:39 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by Cash4Lead at 1:39 PM on July 10, 2013
I still really enjoy Todd Vanderwerff at the AV Club but yeah this is about everyone else.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:41 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by shakespeherian at 1:41 PM on July 10, 2013
What precipitated the mass exodus at AV Club, anyway?
They said that it was a project they were all working on.
So: The Dissolve precipitated the mass exodus at the AV Club.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:41 PM on July 10, 2013
They said that it was a project they were all working on.
So: The Dissolve precipitated the mass exodus at the AV Club.
posted by shakespeherian at 1:41 PM on July 10, 2013
What precipitated the mass exodus at AV Club, anyway?
The answer is right above you actually:
To be fair, the AV Club is still great for TV. But this looks a great site for movies.
Word is that the site, whose reputation was built on intelligent and approachable film reviews of all genres, was focusing more and more energy on its daily television coverage, which did not sit well with the film staff. Also rumors of new corporate management and general shittiness.
posted by Think_Long at 1:43 PM on July 10, 2013 [4 favorites]
The answer is right above you actually:
To be fair, the AV Club is still great for TV. But this looks a great site for movies.
Word is that the site, whose reputation was built on intelligent and approachable film reviews of all genres, was focusing more and more energy on its daily television coverage, which did not sit well with the film staff. Also rumors of new corporate management and general shittiness.
posted by Think_Long at 1:43 PM on July 10, 2013 [4 favorites]
I was wondering when this site would be released. AV Club's content has been pretty thin since this bunch left.
posted by octothorpe at 1:48 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by octothorpe at 1:48 PM on July 10, 2013
Interesting. The summer movie roundup suggests this will be worth watching.
posted by Artw at 1:50 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by Artw at 1:50 PM on July 10, 2013
was focusing more and more energy on its daily television coverage
I have moments of being really bummed out at the sheer volume of writerly energy, spread across the internet, being spent on episode-by-episode television recaps. I mean, there are a handful of shows that are well-served by it, and a handful of people who do it well, but the vast majority of it is just a big derivative jerkoff, and I think it must be a supreme bummer to be a talented 23-year-old looking to start a writing career by writing fucking recaps of So You Think You Can Dance.
posted by COBRA! at 1:52 PM on July 10, 2013 [10 favorites]
I have moments of being really bummed out at the sheer volume of writerly energy, spread across the internet, being spent on episode-by-episode television recaps. I mean, there are a handful of shows that are well-served by it, and a handful of people who do it well, but the vast majority of it is just a big derivative jerkoff, and I think it must be a supreme bummer to be a talented 23-year-old looking to start a writing career by writing fucking recaps of So You Think You Can Dance.
posted by COBRA! at 1:52 PM on July 10, 2013 [10 favorites]
I have skimmed through a bunch of the reviews, about half of them. They liked one of the movies.
That's a lot of website to like only a small fraction of movies.
posted by adipocere at 1:55 PM on July 10, 2013
That's a lot of website to like only a small fraction of movies.
posted by adipocere at 1:55 PM on July 10, 2013
Meh. There are already plenty of critics on the internet....
posted by schmod at 1:56 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by schmod at 1:56 PM on July 10, 2013
That's a lot of website to like only a small fraction of movies.
Sturgeon's Law remains in effect.
posted by stopgap at 1:57 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Sturgeon's Law remains in effect.
posted by stopgap at 1:57 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
I mean, there are a handful of shows that are well-served by it, and a handful of people who do it well, but the vast majority of it is just a big derivative jerkoff,
There is a frustrating amount of recapping that goes on during them, but a lot of it is just there to create a discussion space for the community of fans below.
posted by Think_Long at 1:57 PM on July 10, 2013
There is a frustrating amount of recapping that goes on during them, but a lot of it is just there to create a discussion space for the community of fans below.
posted by Think_Long at 1:57 PM on July 10, 2013
That's a lot of website to like only a small fraction of movies.
Looking at the movie trailers out there for this summer, there's a lot not to like. I'm putting it in my feed and seeing how it does.
posted by immlass at 1:58 PM on July 10, 2013
Looking at the movie trailers out there for this summer, there's a lot not to like. I'm putting it in my feed and seeing how it does.
posted by immlass at 1:58 PM on July 10, 2013
> The Dissolve precipitated the mass exodus at the AV Club.
So now they're part of the solution and the precipitate?
posted by jfuller at 1:59 PM on July 10, 2013 [8 favorites]
So now they're part of the solution and the precipitate?
posted by jfuller at 1:59 PM on July 10, 2013 [8 favorites]
That's a lot of website to like only a small fraction of movies.
It's not a movie *liking* site, it's a movie *criticism* site.
posted by weston at 2:08 PM on July 10, 2013
It's not a movie *liking* site, it's a movie *criticism* site.
posted by weston at 2:08 PM on July 10, 2013
Instead, he oozes the painfully average slime of modern critical voice into chunky excretions like discarded tubes of Go-Gurt garbage, and puts forth sentence after nauseating sentence propelled by the context that when a celebrity has been considered generally un-cool since 2004, the Internet is here to feed-bag your hater short-hand whenever he draws attention to himself in a manner which isn't nobly self-deprecating
Jesus. And that's only a single sentence's worth of tortured florid mixed-metaphors, there's 3 dozen more like it. In a blog post criticizing someone else's writing.
posted by kagredon at 2:10 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Jesus. And that's only a single sentence's worth of tortured florid mixed-metaphors, there's 3 dozen more like it. In a blog post criticizing someone else's writing.
posted by kagredon at 2:10 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
So: The Dissolve precipitated the mass exodus at the AV Club.
I'm confused here. Did it dissolve or did it precipitate? Are they in solution? *boggle*
This problem is insoluble.
posted by Devils Rancher at 2:13 PM on July 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I'm confused here. Did it dissolve or did it precipitate? Are they in solution? *boggle*
This problem is insoluble.
posted by Devils Rancher at 2:13 PM on July 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
The Dissolve was great this morning, but since then it's just gotten so corporate.
posted by Flashman at 2:13 PM on July 10, 2013 [16 favorites]
posted by Flashman at 2:13 PM on July 10, 2013 [16 favorites]
I hadn't paid attention to the drama at the AV Club so stumbling on this was like running into a bunch of old friends who'd agreed to quit hanging out with me. OH HEY IT'S YOU GUYS I LOVE YOU GUYS please like me.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 2:14 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 2:14 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Yeah, and pitchfork's review of metal have been absolutely stellar lately.
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 2:19 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 2:19 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Also, if this site doesn't have the same fucked up searching, tagging, and archiving issues as the AV Club, it is already winning in my book.
posted by Think_Long at 2:20 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by Think_Long at 2:20 PM on July 10, 2013
This blog post's author sums up what's wrong with the direction the AV Club's taken rather nicely
Except Sean O'Neal's been a curmudgeonly hater on the AVClub since, at least, the redesign in 2006. Soooooo I don't really know how it's "a direction they've taken" and not "a foundational part of the site." The biggest letdown for me was a few years ago when Amelie Gillette left for greener pastures and ended The Hatecast.
posted by muddgirl at 2:25 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Except Sean O'Neal's been a curmudgeonly hater on the AVClub since, at least, the redesign in 2006. Soooooo I don't really know how it's "a direction they've taken" and not "a foundational part of the site." The biggest letdown for me was a few years ago when Amelie Gillette left for greener pastures and ended The Hatecast.
posted by muddgirl at 2:25 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
It's fancy looking, hopefully not to the point of being un-navigable.
A+
Stray observations: Always nice to see a new site that doesn't employ unnecessary (or any) pagination.
posted by wensink at 2:29 PM on July 10, 2013
A+
Stray observations: Always nice to see a new site that doesn't employ unnecessary (or any) pagination.
posted by wensink at 2:29 PM on July 10, 2013
Pitchfork's graphics-and-javascript-heavy cover stories have been fantastic, the Daft Punk and Bat for Lashes ones especially.
posted by jason_steakums at 2:31 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by jason_steakums at 2:31 PM on July 10, 2013
Ooh, this is good. Much less annoying than Pitchfork, too, probably because fewer movies come out than albums so there's not enough volume to make the enterprise seem all hipster-ish. It's also very tastefully designed.
As far as the AV Club exodus goes, they snatched up some good writers, and I am so so so so so glad they didn't take Todd VenDerWerff as well.
posted by Rory Marinich at 2:48 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
As far as the AV Club exodus goes, they snatched up some good writers, and I am so so so so so glad they didn't take Todd VenDerWerff as well.
posted by Rory Marinich at 2:48 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
Pfff. I watched films before Pitchfork devoted a website to them.
posted by maryr at 2:51 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by maryr at 2:51 PM on July 10, 2013
For me, the Golden Age of the AV Club ended when they dropped their semi-regular Taste Test feature. It's not why I really read the site, but the very fact that it was a site that could plausibly produce both a hilariously over-the-top review of the Double Down and a thoughtful analysis of Army of Shadows was kind of nice.
It does feel like there's been a recent-ish shift towards quantity over quality (see: the completely unnecessary daily Watch This/Hear This features), which I'm guessing is because it's easier to attract advertisers by pointing to a high volume of short, frequently updated content rather than long-form column stuff. Which is a shame, because they still have plenty of great talent--VanDerWerff, Noel Murray (who it looks like is going to be contributing to both the AVC and The Dissolve), Donna Bowman, Steve Heisler, etc.
posted by kagredon at 3:18 PM on July 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
It does feel like there's been a recent-ish shift towards quantity over quality (see: the completely unnecessary daily Watch This/Hear This features), which I'm guessing is because it's easier to attract advertisers by pointing to a high volume of short, frequently updated content rather than long-form column stuff. Which is a shame, because they still have plenty of great talent--VanDerWerff, Noel Murray (who it looks like is going to be contributing to both the AVC and The Dissolve), Donna Bowman, Steve Heisler, etc.
posted by kagredon at 3:18 PM on July 10, 2013 [6 favorites]
"The Dissolve"? With that name it sounds like they're already angling to be bought out by the Awl or something.
posted by threeants at 4:15 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by threeants at 4:15 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
The part about Pitchfork that I actually started to like was that they didn't have a comments section I had to make a point of avoiding.
The Dissolve has already let me down.
posted by dogwalker at 4:30 PM on July 10, 2013
The Dissolve has already let me down.
posted by dogwalker at 4:30 PM on July 10, 2013
The AV Club would still be worth it if they did nothing but AV Undercover.
posted by jason_steakums at 4:37 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by jason_steakums at 4:37 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Yeah, I really like the way things have turned out; all of the AV Club writers that I liked are over here now, away from the growing pool of deadening snark that's taking over the AV Club.
Don't you dare talk about Sean O'Neal that way. He's the only good writer left at the old AV Club.
Why can't you search by writer? Is Nathan Rabin on the Dissolve?
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 4:42 PM on July 10, 2013
Yes he is. He wrote the White House Down review.
posted by Think_Long at 4:43 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by Think_Long at 4:43 PM on July 10, 2013
looks like they don't have columns like My Year of Flops or Direct to DVD Purgatory or New Cult Canon though, which is a shame
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:05 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:05 PM on July 10, 2013
looks like they don't have columns like My Year of Flops or Direct to DVD Purgatory or New Cult Canon though, which is a shame
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:05 PM on July 10 [+] [!]
I really wish Nathan Rabin would do his own site, with a special emphasis on new My World/My Year Of Flops-style features.
Nonetheless, this site has potential, and it's good to see Rabin and some of my other A.V. Club faves back in action.
posted by tantrumthecat at 5:12 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 5:05 PM on July 10 [+] [!]
I really wish Nathan Rabin would do his own site, with a special emphasis on new My World/My Year Of Flops-style features.
Nonetheless, this site has potential, and it's good to see Rabin and some of my other A.V. Club faves back in action.
posted by tantrumthecat at 5:12 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
They just launched today, dude, they're rolling out columns over the next week
posted by kagredon at 5:18 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by kagredon at 5:18 PM on July 10, 2013
They just launched today, dude, they're rolling out columns over the next week
posted by kagredon at 5:18 PM on July 10 [+] [!]
Touché!
Bookmarking the site now! :)
posted by tantrumthecat at 5:25 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by kagredon at 5:18 PM on July 10 [+] [!]
Touché!
Bookmarking the site now! :)
posted by tantrumthecat at 5:25 PM on July 10, 2013
Don't you dare talk about Sean O'Neal that way. He's the only good writer left at the old AV Club.
I know some people love him, and I acknowledge that he's good at what he does, and I honestly don't begrudge O'Neal fans their enjoyment of him; but his consistently sneering tone just puts me off (I could say pretty much all of this word-for-word about the New Yorker's Denby and Lane).
One exception to this would be the piece he wrote recently about Orson Scott Card, which really was a perfect match of weapon and target.
posted by COBRA! at 5:56 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I know some people love him, and I acknowledge that he's good at what he does, and I honestly don't begrudge O'Neal fans their enjoyment of him; but his consistently sneering tone just puts me off (I could say pretty much all of this word-for-word about the New Yorker's Denby and Lane).
One exception to this would be the piece he wrote recently about Orson Scott Card, which really was a perfect match of weapon and target.
posted by COBRA! at 5:56 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
One exception to this would be the piece he wrote recently about Orson Scott Card, which really was a perfect match of weapon and target.
Ah. So you only don't like him when he goes after targets you wish he wouldn't.
The above-linked article is pretty terrible for many reasons - over-written, unaware that this isn't a 'change in direction' so much as a 'way it's always been' - but also because the author is clearly unaware that O'Neal is parodying Zach Braff's Garden State in that post. It's not generic cooler-than-thou posturing, it's a specific joke about a specific target.
Like all sites, I find their material a little hit-or-miss, but I do still very much enjoy the AV Club. And I especially would shout out John Teti, whose Six Feet Under reviews are sublime, but who also did a great job with everything from Work of Art to Project Runway. His move to the Gameological Society made me sad, because he's easily my favourite reviewer they have.
As to The Dissolve - I'm glad to see the writers assembled, but that website is a wee bit over-designed, I reckon. I always liked Nathan Rabin on the film beat (too prone to errors when talking about TV), so I also hope his various film columns will make a resurgence.
posted by gadge emeritus at 7:32 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Ah. So you only don't like him when he goes after targets you wish he wouldn't.
The above-linked article is pretty terrible for many reasons - over-written, unaware that this isn't a 'change in direction' so much as a 'way it's always been' - but also because the author is clearly unaware that O'Neal is parodying Zach Braff's Garden State in that post. It's not generic cooler-than-thou posturing, it's a specific joke about a specific target.
Like all sites, I find their material a little hit-or-miss, but I do still very much enjoy the AV Club. And I especially would shout out John Teti, whose Six Feet Under reviews are sublime, but who also did a great job with everything from Work of Art to Project Runway. His move to the Gameological Society made me sad, because he's easily my favourite reviewer they have.
As to The Dissolve - I'm glad to see the writers assembled, but that website is a wee bit over-designed, I reckon. I always liked Nathan Rabin on the film beat (too prone to errors when talking about TV), so I also hope his various film columns will make a resurgence.
posted by gadge emeritus at 7:32 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Ah. So you only don't like him when he goes after targets you wish he wouldn't.
You're right. I'm a passionate defender of every piece of pop-culture ephemera except for Orson Scott Card. Never before has someone so totally had my number.
posted by COBRA! at 8:24 PM on July 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
You're right. I'm a passionate defender of every piece of pop-culture ephemera except for Orson Scott Card. Never before has someone so totally had my number.
posted by COBRA! at 8:24 PM on July 10, 2013 [3 favorites]
I think O'Neal is the obvious master of snark, which can be hugely entertaining. He's also written some very thorough and sensitive pieces for the site, including some wonderful obituaries.
However, lately it seems that the pop-culture scope has expanded quite a bit so that we are now getting daily updates on the antics of Bieber and Lindsay Lohan and co., and are getting crossposts from TMZ of all places. It's a little outside the original mission of the site, in my opinion.
posted by Think_Long at 8:36 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
However, lately it seems that the pop-culture scope has expanded quite a bit so that we are now getting daily updates on the antics of Bieber and Lindsay Lohan and co., and are getting crossposts from TMZ of all places. It's a little outside the original mission of the site, in my opinion.
posted by Think_Long at 8:36 PM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I think Sean O'Neal's daily snark was needed to balance out the long pieces by the other writers... hopefully he'll make an exodus too, along with the writers and, it seems, the AV Club's old commentators.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 8:50 PM on July 10, 2013
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 8:50 PM on July 10, 2013
I love all these writers to death and have been sorely missing them-- and have gone to the avclub a lot less as a result. But, I gotta say I don't love the design/layout of this new site. I dunno it just doesn't work for me. It's not easily navigable like avclub and has these weird floaty bits. Maybe I'll get used to it, I hope so. Love the writers.
posted by jcruelty at 9:59 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by jcruelty at 9:59 PM on July 10, 2013 [2 favorites]
Count me, too, as one of the people who's been bummed out/worried about the AV Club's direction lately as well. If anyone knows how to get feedly to filter out the countless newswire/watch this/great job posts, I'd be forever grateful, but it's getting to the point where finding the good stuff there is such a chore I'm reading the site less and less.
posted by Diablevert at 3:18 AM on July 11, 2013
posted by Diablevert at 3:18 AM on July 11, 2013
Having been there since 2006 doesn't make anything "foundational" at the A.V. Club. I understand he's up a lot of people's alleys and I've never heard a single negative thing about him personally, but writing-wise, O'Neal is emphatically not my thing, and I entirely agree that his tone seems to be leading the way, which is sad.
posted by Linda_Holmes at 4:47 AM on July 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Linda_Holmes at 4:47 AM on July 11, 2013 [1 favorite]
Much less annoying than Pitchfork, too, probably because fewer movies come out than albums so there's not enough volume to make the enterprise seem all hipster-ish.
I think we've reached peak hipster. Now volume makes something hipster. Whats the limit? 3 reviews a day: totally not hipster? But 4 reviews a day: HIPSTER CENTRAL!
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 5:52 AM on July 11, 2013
I think we've reached peak hipster. Now volume makes something hipster. Whats the limit? 3 reviews a day: totally not hipster? But 4 reviews a day: HIPSTER CENTRAL!
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 5:52 AM on July 11, 2013
The site isn't quite ready for prime-time. I clicked on the RSS feed link today for the Pacific Rim review and got sent to this non-existant page: http://techno-music.thedissolve.com/reviews/51-pacific-rim/
So I clicked on the 'contact' link on the main page and got an error saying: "You're seeing this error because you have DEBUG = True in your Django settings file. Change that to False, and Django will display a standard 404 page. "
Oops.
posted by octothorpe at 7:19 AM on July 11, 2013
So I clicked on the 'contact' link on the main page and got an error saying: "You're seeing this error because you have DEBUG = True in your Django settings file. Change that to False, and Django will display a standard 404 page. "
Oops.
posted by octothorpe at 7:19 AM on July 11, 2013
I hadn't realized all of those people had left the AV club. Having now located their RSS feed for just the actual reviews, I think I'll keep an eye on this.
(AV Club has no such feed, but you can fake it with a feed filtering service, all their reviews have a title that begins "Film: Movie Review: ")
posted by vibratory manner of working at 12:22 PM on July 11, 2013
(AV Club has no such feed, but you can fake it with a feed filtering service, all their reviews have a title that begins "Film: Movie Review: ")
posted by vibratory manner of working at 12:22 PM on July 11, 2013
Having been there since 2006 doesn't make anything "foundational" at the A.V. Club. I understand he's up a lot of people's alleys and I've never heard a single negative thing about him personally, but writing-wise, O'Neal is emphatically not my thing, and I entirely agree that his tone seems to be leading the way, which is sad.
he replaced Amile Gilette, The Hater, who wasn't as funny and who left to write for The Office
it looks like AV Club commentators are starting to migrate over to The Divide
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 4:40 PM on July 11, 2013
The world will survive (and mildly enjoy) MY LITTLE PONY: EQUESTRIA GIRLS
posted by Artw at 10:08 AM on July 12, 2013
posted by Artw at 10:08 AM on July 12, 2013
Only God Forgives, the latest Refn/Gosling collaboration, is the Dissolve's first advertiser. Be curious to see how, if at all, this impacts their review of the film. (fwiw The movie is currently tracking at 33% over on Rotten Tomatoes.)
posted by wensink at 11:46 AM on July 14, 2013
posted by wensink at 11:46 AM on July 14, 2013
I'm still amazed that people thought Drive was anything like a good movie.
posted by octothorpe at 12:46 PM on July 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by octothorpe at 12:46 PM on July 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
When in fact is was a stellar movie.
posted by shakespeherian at 4:20 PM on July 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by shakespeherian at 4:20 PM on July 14, 2013 [1 favorite]
S'right.
Still I am left wondering if some kind of backlash is in effect.
posted by Artw at 4:25 PM on July 14, 2013
Still I am left wondering if some kind of backlash is in effect.
posted by Artw at 4:25 PM on July 14, 2013
It just seemed like an exercise in style and it did look nice but it took me three days to watch the whole movie because I just kept losing interest. It had such buzz that I felt like I had to finish it just to see what the point was but there wasn't one. And I could go a long time without seeing a movie with Ryan Gosling in it again.
posted by octothorpe at 5:56 PM on July 14, 2013
posted by octothorpe at 5:56 PM on July 14, 2013
Bingo.
Also the makeout scene - head stomping seque was a little brusque for me.
posted by maryr at 6:32 PM on July 14, 2013
Also the makeout scene - head stomping seque was a little brusque for me.
posted by maryr at 6:32 PM on July 14, 2013
The world will survive (and mildly enjoy) MY LITTLE PONY: EQUESTRIA GIRLS
This is where Sean O'Neal's snark comes in handy.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 7:00 PM on July 14, 2013
So, in 2010 and 2011, I went to San Diego Comic-Con. SDCC offers a volunteer program, where in exchange for three hours of work, you get a pass into the convention for the day at no charge, repeatable across however many days you'd like. Most of the time, the work is easy-but-kind-of-boring; three hours of standing outside of a conference room to give directions or run for supplies, walking around the art gallery to make sure no one takes unauthorized pictures, patrolling outdoor lines in 100º heat (to SDCC's credit, the day that I got assigned to that job, paid staff checked in on us pretty regularly--every half-hour or so--with bottles of cold water.)
Anyway, the point is, during one of the days of the 2011 con, I lucked into a pretty choice assignment: handing out 3D glasses in Hall H. For the unfamiliar, Hall H is one of the two largest screening/panel rooms (the other being Ballroom 20) at SDCC. People regularly wait more than 3 hours in line (outside!) to get into Hall H, so volunteering in there--i.e., getting in at no cost and no wait in exchange for doing a fairly easy task--was actually kind of a treat.
One of the presenters that day was Guillermo del Toro. The first set of clips he introduced was from was a low-budget horror film that he produced on that everyone has forgotten about, to the best of my knowledge. People laughed and cheered at appropriate junctions during that, as they had through the preview for the various lighthearted computer animated fluff that had made up most of the panels for the past hour+.
The second set was the elevator scene from Drive. No one made a fucking sound during most of it, not even the low-level coughing or whispering that was not unusual during the other panels. There was a burst of nervous laughter when Gosling's character first starts fighting the thug; there was another room-wide burst of gasping/horrified laughter at the first head-crunch noise. Other than that, total silence, plus a palpable sense, even after the brief Q&A with Refn and del Toro that followed, of "what the fuck just happened here."
posted by kagredon at 7:27 PM on July 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
Anyway, the point is, during one of the days of the 2011 con, I lucked into a pretty choice assignment: handing out 3D glasses in Hall H. For the unfamiliar, Hall H is one of the two largest screening/panel rooms (the other being Ballroom 20) at SDCC. People regularly wait more than 3 hours in line (outside!) to get into Hall H, so volunteering in there--i.e., getting in at no cost and no wait in exchange for doing a fairly easy task--was actually kind of a treat.
One of the presenters that day was Guillermo del Toro. The first set of clips he introduced was from was a low-budget horror film that he produced on that everyone has forgotten about, to the best of my knowledge. People laughed and cheered at appropriate junctions during that, as they had through the preview for the various lighthearted computer animated fluff that had made up most of the panels for the past hour+.
The second set was the elevator scene from Drive. No one made a fucking sound during most of it, not even the low-level coughing or whispering that was not unusual during the other panels. There was a burst of nervous laughter when Gosling's character first starts fighting the thug; there was another room-wide burst of gasping/horrified laughter at the first head-crunch noise. Other than that, total silence, plus a palpable sense, even after the brief Q&A with Refn and del Toro that followed, of "what the fuck just happened here."
posted by kagredon at 7:27 PM on July 14, 2013 [3 favorites]
Bingo.
Also the makeout scene - head stomping seque was a little brusque for me.
"A little brusque" would be an understatement for me, and I liked the movie. Maybe Caché broke me on episodes of sudden, shocking violence.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 8:22 PM on July 14, 2013
Also the makeout scene - head stomping seque was a little brusque for me.
"A little brusque" would be an understatement for me, and I liked the movie. Maybe Caché broke me on episodes of sudden, shocking violence.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 8:22 PM on July 14, 2013
Maybe Caché broke me on episodes of sudden, shocking violence.
Are you maybe thinking of Irreversible rather than Caché?
posted by Flashman at 5:26 AM on July 15, 2013
Are you maybe thinking of Irreversible rather than Caché?
posted by Flashman at 5:26 AM on July 15, 2013
Oh no, I'm thinking of Caché. I haven't seen Irreversible. Considering my reaction to the bottle scene in Pan's Labyrinth, I'm not sure I want to. I'm not sure I would have seen Drive if I'd known the elevator scene was coming.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 6:08 AM on July 15, 2013
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 6:08 AM on July 15, 2013
Only God Forgives, the latest Refn/Gosling collaboration, is the Dissolve's first advertiser. Be curious to see how, if at all, this impacts their review of the film. (fwiw The movie is currently tracking at 33% over on Rotten Tomatoes.)
Update: Scott Tobias/Dissolve mostly dig the movie, giving it 3/5 stars. "Yet Refn’s filmmaking skills keep on sharpening with each successive effort: Only God Forgives is a sensual wonder, floating an ultra-sleek vision of Bangkok’s hotels, nightclubs, and flophouses on the keys and percussion of another score by Drive composer Cliff Martinez. It’s eye candy with a sour taste."
I watched the movie earlier today and I haven't felt so in need of a shower after leaving a theater since seeing Nicole Kidman pee on Zach Effron in The Paperboy last summer.
posted by wensink at 11:06 AM on July 19, 2013
Update: Scott Tobias/Dissolve mostly dig the movie, giving it 3/5 stars. "Yet Refn’s filmmaking skills keep on sharpening with each successive effort: Only God Forgives is a sensual wonder, floating an ultra-sleek vision of Bangkok’s hotels, nightclubs, and flophouses on the keys and percussion of another score by Drive composer Cliff Martinez. It’s eye candy with a sour taste."
I watched the movie earlier today and I haven't felt so in need of a shower after leaving a theater since seeing Nicole Kidman pee on Zach Effron in The Paperboy last summer.
posted by wensink at 11:06 AM on July 19, 2013
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