Friday, May 27, 2011

Tetro

d/Francis Coppola Vincent Gallo

I wish I could have liked this more. I wish I had loved it. Technically top-notch...great mix of B/W and color...editing was spot on...camera work perfect for each scene. This guy showed us forty years ago that he could make outstanding films.

The theme here...a generational father/son conflict...was fine but the entire enterprise was overblown. Too operatic without the intense emotional connection. Part of the problem was Vincent Gallo, a former model who just doesn't project enough to the audience. I found him, as usual, annoying rather than sympathetic. The rest of the supporting cast was very good but the center didn't hold.

It also became clear that the over-cooked excess of Godfather 3 and One From the Heart wasn't an aberration. The climax here in Patagonia made me groan out loud.

Too bad. Coppola's got the chops...he needs to find a story and a lead actor with whom an audience can connect.

5

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