topaz024

this was better than the first; it most closely reminded me of lars von trier's 'dancer in the dark', only for someone who 'deserves' it. but arthur is himself a victim of abuse, who got high for a brief moment on the nexus of his own pain and society's, before the wrath of justice came calling. and here comes this external force of chaos, attempting to reignite a flame that was never really there. the music is the hell where her provocation and his desperation meet. a tragically beautiful film.

30 _1%

$Everybody\$

Everybody's Fine (2009) - Rated 11 Aug 2010

Drivel. Overbearing, meddling, inconsiderate, meandering, babbling father annoys his sneaky, dishonest, tortured upper middle-class kids for 90 minutes. Everybody's *not* fine until the last 5 minutes or so, at which point the filmmakers assure us they're fine...but we still dislike them. The fact that my sentimental nature teared up during the manipulative (and unearned) "cry now" moment felt like a self-betrayal. I need to watch some early De Niro to wash this from my brain. Good night.