Memento
seen it twice, got nothing new out of it the second time. What am I missing?
Not much. Nolan’s films are extremely well made, but about as deep as a puddle. What you see is what you get. If you have been paying attention at the start, at the end you can put together the complete puzzle.
And that’s not meant as a dis, it’s extremely difficult to make a film like that. It’s easy to give the audience too much info or too little. But Nolan mostly gets it right.
Also, he tends to give you the answer in the first scene.
Edit: my pet theory for the different perspectives on Nolan films in that a lot of people just don’t retain information for which they don’t have context. So the first time around, they see the stuff that’s out of place, and that requires an explanation, and they just shrug it off. Then, after the reveal, they remember there was stuff that didn’t make sense, but don’t remember exactly what, so they need at least one watch to make sense of it.
On the other hand, others (mostly people trained by watching and reading tons of SF, to be honest) mentally put these observations in a “spare pieces” box and start actively fitting them to their current understanding of the plot. When they get the final puzzle, everything makes sense.
The trick is to watch it backwards
I caught new stuff on the 4th viewing. It changed my answer to a pivotal question.
Hot fuzz. Because the first watch is enjoyable, but every subsequent rewatch makes you appreciate Edgar Wright more and more. He is just the most incredibly meticulous story teller with the most dense movies.
Good pick. Definitely reawrding to rewatch. The supporting actor dvd commentaries are something special as well.
Fascist!
Hag!
And then you gotta go watch the breakdowns and side by sides on YouTube to fully appreciate it on another watch. Hot fuzz is one of my favorites.
Definitely Hot Fuzz! Every single throw-away line early in the film is a callback later on. It’s incredible trying to notice them all!
Quite a few are references to/from their other films too.
SHUT IT!
Everything Everywhere All At Once.
It’s just… really good.
I love how it makes just enough sense to hold the plot together. It was a lot of fun to watch.
Also, it’s the lead of the class of millennial parental apology fantasy films, one of my favorite genres ;)
Millennial parental apology fantasy… oh man I really love this.
This is a masterpiece for sure!
Good movie but how does it require multiple viewings to understand?
Not OP, but to me it’s one where getting to the ending gives you the context/lense to reinterpret the earlier portions. Sorta like memento or fight club, where the ending recontextualizes the earlier scenes.
I had to pause that movie several times on my first watching. Not because it was bad or anything, it was amazing, but because there was so much stuff going on at once. It’s now one of my fave movies to recommend to people
One of my favorite things i caught in a second watch was a simple thing, but i really liked the little touch they did to drive home the different realities they jumped thru. Did you notice the music playing in the car when theyre talking? Its a country version of “absolutely” -madding crowd. It also explains why short round ends up quoting the lyrics when he tries to explain how weird reality has become. It’s not just a funny call out, it fits.
I really liked that little touch. There are many like that, and the film is well worth rewatching to catch them
I didn’t! Definitely gonna give this movie another watch!!
Donnie Darko. Besides being confusing, it’s just a great story. Plus, it’s remarkably well cast.
If you have the opportunity to watch the deleted scenes, I highly recommend it - especially the one with the dad. His role in the cinematic version is pretty small, but there’s a deleted scene where he has a quiet chat with Donnie, and tells Donnie about his past mental problems. It’s fantastic, and rounds out his character perfectly.
I’ve watched this one 3 times and I still don’t understand it :) cool movie still!
Did you watch the theatrical or directors cut? The latter explains a LOT more.
TL;DW If I remember it all correctly. The plane crash caused a “Final Destination”-esque rift in spacetime? Or fate? Or reality? And Donnie should have died, but didn’t and because he didn’t the universe will implode unless he fixes it in time by dying. He also gains powers to see the future as part of the deal (represented by the weird trails in front of people walking) and he realizes the future is everything ending unless he dies to seal up the rift. Frank, the bunny is like a guide or messenger or something.
I don’t remember honestly. I remember having to read about the movie too kinda almost understand it.
Thanks for the explanation, now I probably have to watch it again :)
Y’know I don’t mind the “spoiler” because the realistic likelihood of watching this one feels kinda slim…
… But this sounds like a far better version of The Butterfly Effect, which was one of the most pointlessly edgy, pathetically nihilistic, manipulatively depressing films I’ve had the displeasure of seeing.
I saw that in theaters and it was one of the maybe two movies I’ve walked out of. It was so pointlessly depressing and just not enjoyable to us so we bailed.
Donnie is much better. Depressing? Yeah in a way, but also much more engaging and enjoyable.
Is that in the director’s cut? I tend to recommend the theatrical cut. I don’t find it confusing but I can understand how it might be possible to get lost if you miss a key scene or two.
Don’t know. It deserves to be.
I used to have a DVD of the theatrical cut, which I got before I even knew a director’s cut existed.
I like how this movie’s fanbase is split on a group of people recommending the theatrical cut and another group recommending the Director’s Cut. I haven’t found another movie that has something similar.
It’s been a long time since I saw the director’s cut. Having read the comment above about what the director’s cut includes I’m more inclined to continue recommending the theatrical cut. The magic of that story and it’s characters doesn’t need more exposition, especially about the fantastical elements. It’s enough to know that Donnie figure’s stuff out and takes decisive action with the knowledge he and by extension the audience has at hand.
One of my favourites for sure. I just love the struggle the character has for what is and what isn’t reality in that movie.
The Big Lebowski. I’ve never seen another movie gain so much value over time and rewatches
Okay, Dude, have it your way.
What makes a man a man?
A pitiful sack of lies!
Vanilla Sky! It’s a truly mind bending movie, with an absolutely perfect soundtrack. I’ve probably seen this movie more than any other. I still find personal meaning in it 20+ years after my first watch as a kid when my older brother decided to see it in the theaters and took me along. I was confused but moved by it and I didn’t know why. Love came after the second watch.
Do I need to have seen Iron Sky first to understand the plot?
Ya but I think you need to watch October Sky before that.
You could also skip the movies and go straight to No Mans Sky, the video game.
I’ve never been more attracted to a movie character than Penelope Cruz in this movie! 😍
And she’s in the Spanish original as well, I believe.
Jacks and cokes?
Primer because you don’t know what’s happening at the start, and then you start to piece it together, but you really have to watch it a few times because the details you pick up provide context for what’s happening allowing you to piece more of the puzzle together.
I really want to watch this but it’s not available on any streaming service in Australia. It’s been years too.
I might have to just buy it
it’s definitely worth it
https://rentry.co/megathread-movies-and-tv#streaming
Just make sure you have an adblocker so you don’t get computer aids
I heard Tenet sucked, so it was firmly in the maybe column on my list of movies to watch. I finally watched it and was really fascinated by it. I didn’t like it nearly as much as Inception and Interstellar, but it was a fun movie with unique ideas. I don’t know how it got such a shitty reputation. I think people were just dumb and rather than admitting that they didn’t get it they said that the movie was bad. It was certainly flawed in several ways, but it didn’t deserve the level of criticism it got when it came out.
I think a big part of the criticism is that it was kinda neat but came off as “Wrapping your head around director’s obtuse-gimmick-idea is the whole point of the movie.”
Which I guess you could argue was Inception as well, but I feel like it was overall more relatable.
seems like i read something to the effect that DiCaprio made a lot of suggestions to give depth to his character, and that the movie as initially written really was more just-the-gimmick. i hated Tenet; i imagine Inception without likable (edit - or at least interesting) characters would have felt more like that.
That makes a ton of sense and I feel the same way you do.
I fondly remember the characters from Inception and felt drawn into their plight in the bizarre dream world with its own rules.
I only saw Tenet once…but felt like the main character(s) were simply a pair of pants to walk the viewer through the ideas…backwards, half of the time. XD
I think people were just dumb and rather than admitting that they didn’t get it they said that the movie was bad.
Definitely me. I hated the aesthetic or lack thereof and couldn’t make sense of the events. Since it took itself so seriously I felt I couldn’t relate. But then again I watched it on the plane… I really should know better
I’d go with Possessor by Brandon Cronenberg. I’ve only seen it once so far, and the unfolding of the story was such that you had to work for it. It wasn’t impenetrably dense, but I definitely had to give it the attention it demanded.
That looks interesting. Thanks.
Snatch.
There’s like 15 main characters. Every scene is important but it is impossible for it all to be apparent on a first watch.
It’s really brilliant storytelling. Watching Lock To k & Two Smoking barrels, you realize that guy Ritchie might be a one trick pony. But that’s okay, it’s a great trick.
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It wasn’t till my 4th or 5th viewing that I realized when we first meet Brad Pitts character he is likely taking a shit behind some truck.
Titanic. The ending recontextualises everything and I’m still talking about it
Care to elaborate? It’s pretty straight forward to me.
Please see my reply to the unfortunate named user elsewhere in this thread
Wait… Like the boat sinking?
Whoa, spoilers man, c’mon!
I really thought they were going to clutch it at the last second tbh
can you talk about it some more? i didn’t think this movie was difficult
There are multiple lenses and been through many of them at different points in my life. I really did not like it when it first came out, but then came to understand the romantic fantasy from a young woman’s perspective, and then the class aspects about how the upper classes vampire the vitality, dynamism, and culture of the lower classes to rejuvenate themselves, etc etc.
I’m not sure I would say I even like the movie yet, but I have talked a lot about it with friends and partners over the decades. So I guess it’s a good movie to talk about
I want to put in my ticket for What Dreams May Come, one of Robin Williams more heartfelt and serious roles, and one rarely mentioned. You can “get” the movie on the first watch and only really begin to understand all the nuance and subtlety during the second or third run.
Akira. It’s weird and confusing. Goes from cyberpunk eye candy to bizarre metaphysical reality warp real quick.
Also body horror
Marathon Man.
It’s all in the details. The cab driver in the very first scene picks up a different character later in the movie.
Also, the torture scene gets worse every time.
Is it safe?
The Holy Mountain. I suggest just watching it.
