The Strange Thing About the Johnsons

Ah yes, Aster's a Bergman fan, isn't he? A one-USP short that could have done something... more with its premise, though I'm not sure I want to know what, but does what it does pretty well.

Not sure why this is being hailed as the shock of the century. The subversion of traditional family dynamics makes for a provocative and amusing watch, yet much like Munchausen, the initial impact eventually wears off as it leaves you with more answers than questions. The melodrama also becomes overwrought by the end. Despite shoddy production values, I'll take a weird and radical short like Beau any day over this.

Cocoon Man is a terrible title for a book. This film really undersells itself with its title -- it's certainly more than strange.

Errr.. okay..

That is some fucked up shit right there! I really loved the "psychoanalytical" dialogue of the father, which is emulated and perverted by his son.

Fellas, is it gay?

Very, very disturbing. "Johnsons" is a satire on the usual domestic melodrama but goes to such extreme lengths that it borders on horror. I've read quite a few reviews that panned the film due to the subject matter, but that is really where the impact of the film comes from, although it does suffer a little from being as subtle as a brick. The production values and acting are all excellent and it truly is a unique experience. The most disturbing film of the year.

The decision seems to have been to switch sexes and generations (and perhaps, to a lesser extent, races) in order to create an off-kilter comedy/melodrama designed to shock, but the violent culmination is probably the least interesting part. Still, evidence that Aster had some kind of courage from the outset. In addition to his thing for poison, he also seems to have a thing for people getting run over. Watched on what would have been Billy Mayo's 66th birthday.

The most shocking thing I’ve ever seen or will ever see

O Ari Aster é meio lelé da cabeça, né nom? O que é interessante aqui é o jogo reverso entre vítima e abusador, na hora que o pai renega existências de tabus na família no início do filme já é o prenuncio que tudo dará merda. Freud não escreveu o seu melhor livro à toa, o tabu é algo extremamente necessário no sistema civilizatório. WEBRip no MakingOff.

You can watch this free on YouTube. I'd say do it. It's the weirdest of all Ari Astor stories.

Goes way off the rails at the end, but it's a tense exercise on the taboo and perverse that plagues the lives of its characters before that.

I wanted to like this more, especially since I enjoy a lot of dark humor myself. It's worth checking out if you aren't put off by the subject matter. Nothing particularly bad about this, it has more strengths than weaknesses but I wasn't too engaged with it overall.