The Man Who Wasn't There
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Movie Reviews of The Man Who Wasn't There
Movie Review: Very strong noir-modèrne
Summary: 4 Stars
The Coen brothers have the reputation of being excellent, if not a bit quirky, filmmakers. "The Man Who Wasn't There" continues with this reputation. This film, at all once, parodies and worships the film noir genre. The main character, Ed Crane, is a barber in a small Californian town where everyone lives under the guise of perfection: A sort of Western Levittown. Crane (played by Billy Bob Thorton) speaks slowly, without varied emotion, while narrarating this film. The premise of the plot is Crane's attempt to "go in on" a dry cleaning business with a rather seedy passing-through businessman. When the business man is found dead, Crane is the primary suspect. Crane's wife is having an affair with her boss. When Crane eventually confronts him, he (Crane) also winds up killing him. In the typical noir style, there is a vague detachment of the protagonist from his surroundings: Regardless of what events may come forth, Crane's voice and disposition do not change the slightest.
Probably the biggest downfall of "The Man Who Wasn't There" is the ending. It almost seems that the Coen brothers aren't satisfied with having created a strong film, and therefore they felt obligated to tinker with the ending. Unfortunately, this does not work. The ending leaves something to be desired: It does a poor job of ending the film, and mismatches the previous parts of the film (ie, like pairing plaid shirts and striped pants). The ending itself wasn't bad, it was simply that it deviated so much from the film's style that it essentially wrecked the ending of the film.
While I do not believe this to be one of the Coen brother's strongest films, it must still be viewed. It is a relatively large deviation from many of their movies (that is, the typical dark humor). There must be artistic kudos given to them, as they have again demonstrated that they may adroitly expand into other "genres" of film, without ever entirely abandoning their style.
Movie Review: excellent film noir from the Coen brothers
Summary: 4 Stars
A friend of mine who is a serious fan of the Coen brothers loaned me this film recently and I loved it. It really goes out to give you that 1940's film noir feel and it succeeds masterfully. The Coens have shown us their range before, giving us a film like Raising Arizona, one of the funniest movies of all time, and then a movie like Fargo, which had some in your face shock moments you will never forget.Now we have Ed Crane (Billy Bob Thornton), a barber who puts more cigarattes into his mouth in the film than speaks words out of it. He is the second chair in the barbershop and he "just keeps cutting the hair". One day, he has a customer who has the newest phenomenon for America, dry cleaning. He has done all the research, just needs some start up capital to get going. Thornton knows just how to get the money, and decides to go in with the stranger.
This sets off the events seen during the rest of the film, including blackmail, murder, courtroom trials, and a strange fascination with the musical talents of a young teenage girl. Through it all, Thornton seems more like an observer of life than willing to take control of things. His wife, (Francis McDormand) is a burn out who doesn't really love him and his friend, Dave (James Gandolfini) may not be as good a friend as he thinks. Crane doesn't seem to give a rip regardless of the situation. It's one of the most interesting characters we've seen recently. Thornton was a perfect choice for the role.
In the end, this is not a happy movie. Not by any means. But unlike depressing films like Leaving Las Vegas, we are not dragged down into the abyss. Maybe that's because we have learned to look at life like Ed Crane, just keep plodding along.
Movie Review: ALMOST A PREQUEL TO "ABOUT SCHMIDT"
Summary: 4 Stars
Ostensibly like Albert Camus' book called "The Stranger", this movie is basically an unfurling retrospective of an ordinary barber's life. There really is no other way to describe this quaint offering from the Coens. Depending on whom you ask, the attempted film noir could be about several of the many themes that it broaches: simplicity of small town life, fidelity, friendship, entrepreunerism (the barber has a perpetual but unfulfilled wish to get into the dry cleaning business that was apparently the hot thing back then in 1930s), about the "what does around comes around" (the barber pays for what he has done), pursuing your dreams (encouraging a young girl to take up piano as a career). At one point, I also felt the Coens would go down the "Lolita" road, and hinted at it with a driving scene, but an accident pretty much killed that possibility. Above all, in a somewhat bizarre twist, we also have UFOs thrown in.
If all this is too heavy for you, there's a hint of humor in between these deep crevices. The barber's lawyer is almost a caricature of the legal profession.
But ultimately, the movie is a scattershot rambling of a man about his life gone awry. Somewhat like an "About Schmidt", just less hopeless and more definitive in its conclusion. Bob Thornton is as convincing as he was in "Monsters Ball". Come to think of it, the three movies have a similar relaxed pacing.
On a positive note, the movie has an atmospheric story-telling feel to it. If, like with poetry, you don't necessarily NEED a movie to be about something SPECIFIC, this movie may be well worth a ride.
Overall, an enjoyable movie but perhaps not for every pallete.
Movie Review: Less is more
Summary: 4 Stars
The Man Who Wasn't There is the Coen brothers slow-moving film-noirish movie about a chain-smoking barber named Ed Crane (Billy Bob) who has an opportunity to get into the dry-cleaning business, and blackmails his wife's (Francis McDormand) lover (James Gandolfini) for the $10,000 needed to get into the deal with a dry-cleaner (Jon Polito). As with most Coen brothers movies, the simple plot gets involved in subleties that may help or hinder it.
Billy Bob plays Ed with a sedate, reserved manner. Scarlet Johansson has a supporting role as a piano-playing young girl who Ed wants to help get lessons. She turns out to be only a mediocre player, and has no interest in a musical career. She does show her gratitude toward Ed in an oral, yet non-verbal way, however.
There are no English subtitles which could have come in handy during the giggly commentary by the Coen's and Billy Bob. The "making of" documentary was a bit below average. The conversation with cinematographer Roger Deakins could have benefitted from his voice-over on top of clips as examples, rather than having to try to remember scenes he is talking about. A few deleted scenes, photo gallery, filmographies and a trailer round out the reasonably-priced DVD.
Rated "R" for some neck-stabbing violence.
Not for everyone, but fans of the Coen brothers, Billy Bob, or Scarlett Johansson should like it. Perhaps generous with 4 stars, I'm giving the movie and extras the benefit of the doubt.
Movie Review: Coen Brothers: Film # 9
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a special Coen Brother's film. It is special because it is more for people who are fans of the Coen Brother's or film noir. While I believe others will surely like this film if they simply put it in their players, I also believe that they will not even give it a try because it is in Black and White. Well, I say, try it. Not surprising, we have a great film here. It is great because it is in black and white as a matter a fact. Like older films, the B&W brings forth a whole new perspective into this film. Where color would distract, a film in Black and white will show you exactly what needs to be seen. The Coen Brothers and Roger Deakins do a superb job with the black and white film here.
Billy Bob Thorton does a wonderful job with his character here. In fact, in my mind, he is the film. I have never seen a character like Thorton's character in other films. In this film he is a quiet man. But unlike other films, where we develop an understanding of this quiet man through moral dilemmas, explanations from other characters, in this film Thorton's character remains quiet. We are not later given a monotonous dialog of who this guy really was, he just was and that is all.
In the end, this is film noir at its finest and, mind you, it was made in 2001!