IkeaBoy
11-21-2001, 06:19 PM
Almost every year there's a movie or two that you hear every critic and 'smart' people rave about. you don't know what it's about but you know people say it's great so it must be great. It's also the type of movie that if you criticize you'll be accused of criticizing it because your not deep enough to get it.
This year it's the animated movie Waking Life and, well, there's a reason why no one says what it's about. The reason is that it's about nothing. People talk about their philosophical beliefs. You don't have time to comprehend them, or think about it, it's as if Linklater took a Philosophy 101 textbook and turned each chapter into a patch of dialogue. there isn't even interesting discussion, it's just people talking.
there's one point where I thought it was going to be a satire about 20-somethings who think they know EVERYTHING but don't until i realized it was made by a 20-something who thinks he knows everything but doesn't.
That's not to say that some parts weren't interesting. Sometimes when they are talking about dreams it's interesting, the animation is cool though sometimes it gets annoying. And you have to appreciate that such a pet project managed to get made.
But on the whole it didn't work for me. A lot of the philosophy was boring and not deep, and there is no chance to actually think about what each character 'poses' in terms of philosophical ideas. I also have nothing against philosophy in movies or movies where you have to think but a) I'd like philsophy as the subtext and not the text, b) I'd like somethign else to enjoy about the movie, as 'surface' as it is. It's not deep if your shoving the 'deepness' down the audience's throat.
In conclusion, I give Waking Life 4 out of 4 stars because I don't want to be clasified as an imbecile who doesn't have teh brain capacity to understand such a wonderful, magnificent film.
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Carrot Man to Big Apple: I Miss my baby carrot.
Pro-War NYU Student. We're not all peace fags.
This year it's the animated movie Waking Life and, well, there's a reason why no one says what it's about. The reason is that it's about nothing. People talk about their philosophical beliefs. You don't have time to comprehend them, or think about it, it's as if Linklater took a Philosophy 101 textbook and turned each chapter into a patch of dialogue. there isn't even interesting discussion, it's just people talking.
there's one point where I thought it was going to be a satire about 20-somethings who think they know EVERYTHING but don't until i realized it was made by a 20-something who thinks he knows everything but doesn't.
That's not to say that some parts weren't interesting. Sometimes when they are talking about dreams it's interesting, the animation is cool though sometimes it gets annoying. And you have to appreciate that such a pet project managed to get made.
But on the whole it didn't work for me. A lot of the philosophy was boring and not deep, and there is no chance to actually think about what each character 'poses' in terms of philosophical ideas. I also have nothing against philosophy in movies or movies where you have to think but a) I'd like philsophy as the subtext and not the text, b) I'd like somethign else to enjoy about the movie, as 'surface' as it is. It's not deep if your shoving the 'deepness' down the audience's throat.
In conclusion, I give Waking Life 4 out of 4 stars because I don't want to be clasified as an imbecile who doesn't have teh brain capacity to understand such a wonderful, magnificent film.
-----
Carrot Man to Big Apple: I Miss my baby carrot.
Pro-War NYU Student. We're not all peace fags.