Electra Glide in Blue
This film’s a strange one, really. The basic story is familiar enough: its ingredients are standard for the genre, and there’s nothing wrong with that. What keeps it from being a truly great film, despite some excellent acting and very assured cinematography, is the inconsistency of its central character.
There is a reason for that inconsistency, of course. The unevenness helps set up the film’s powerfully nihilistic ending, and in that sense it serves a clear dramatic purpose. Even so, the character’s shifts in behaviour and motivation can feel less like deliberate complexity than a weakness in the writing. The film wants us to see him as both an individual and a product of the world around him, but it does not always make those sides fit together convincingly.
That is a shame, because so much else works. The performances have real conviction, the film is beautifully shot, and its atmosphere is distinctive throughout. It has a grim, uneasy quality that gradually builds toward an ending that is both bleak and unforgettable. If the main character had been written with greater consistency, this could have been a truly great film. As it stands, it is still a very good and unusual one—and the ending alone makes it worth seeing.
There is a reason for that inconsistency, of course. The unevenness helps set up the film’s powerfully nihilistic ending, and in that sense it serves a clear dramatic purpose. Even so, the character’s shifts in behaviour and motivation can feel less like deliberate complexity than a weakness in the writing. The film wants us to see him as both an individual and a product of the world around him, but it does not always make those sides fit together convincingly.
That is a shame, because so much else works. The performances have real conviction, the film is beautifully shot, and its atmosphere is distinctive throughout. It has a grim, uneasy quality that gradually builds toward an ending that is both bleak and unforgettable. If the main character had been written with greater consistency, this could have been a truly great film. As it stands, it is still a very good and unusual one—and the ending alone makes it worth seeing.
Mini Review: This film's a weird one really. We know the basics of the story well - they're standard of the genre, and that's OK. What stops it from being a great movie in my opinion, even though there is some very fine acting and it is very nicely shot, is the inconsistency of the main character. Yes, there is a reason for it - it's to facilitate the powerfully nihilistic ending - but such unevenness is not appropriate for the character. Otherwise, this would be a truly great film, but the end is worth it