2013 Disney movie
Rating: 15/20
Plot: A family of four spend time at the Magic Kingdom and Epcot Center on the last day of their vacation. That morning, the father learned that he was losing his job. As the day goes on, he starts to lose his mind.
You might know the story behind Randy Moore's little movie here, but here it is if you don't. Moore filmed the majority of his movie at Disney parks--Disneyland, Disney World, and Epcot--without getting permission from the fine folks at Disney at all. And that's ballsy. It might sound like a stunt, but he had his reasons, none of which I'll really get into here. The actors, actresses, and crew all got season passes and filmed this thing, and it's so hard for me to believe that it ended up as good as it did. It's hard to pinpoint a genre with this thing. It's often really funny, but it's not really a comedy. There are some horrifying moments, and the monochromatic look at Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and It's a Small World are nearly capable of giving somebody nightmares, but I wouldn't call it a horror movie. There's a bizarre science fiction element in there, but it's definitely not science fiction. There's a very human drama that unfolds, though absurdly. So who knows what it is. I know one thing though--it's entertaining and, although uneven, pretty brilliant. I did really like the look of the movie. The cinematography is impossibly great, and that black and white really does creep things up a lot. Of course, the music used might here, too. Moore, probably knowing how litigious the Mouse can be, didn't use any of Disney's music. For the Small World sequence--a psychological mind-melter with the closest thing to straight-up horror in the movie--he uses this music that sounds like something Danny Elfman might hear in his nightmares. There are some special effects in some scenes added after the fact, and with the little Small World dolls, you'll either laugh or shit yourself. Or, like I did, a little of both. There's some very obvious green screen work used in this, but it somehow gives the whole thing this weirdo charm that I liked. So what's the movie about? Well, there's some stuff in this about father/son relationships. There's a lot of sex, too. Dad can't control his libido in the Magic Kingdom, probably because of all those princesses and Mary Poppinses running around, and a lot of the humor comes from his pursuit of some very young French girls. There's a Tiki Room phallic fountain shot that is just brilliant, and some very funny sex-related lines--a reference to Emily Dickinson's beauty, the line "Not in front of Tigger," and the funniest reference to a "hidden Mickey" that you will ever hear. The real meaning of all this is a bit of a riddle to me, to be honest, but I know Walt Disney wouldn't have liked this at all. You can't trust those Disney people anyway, photoshopping out all of Walt's cigarettes and all. Anyway, I doubt you'll think this is a great movie, but the surreptitious filming and the oddness of the finished product make it easy for me to recommend. Oh, and here's another poster:
This movie definitely creates a dichotomy of a haunting world and a somewhat fun acid trip. I really liked how the story flowed. It begins with this "fuck my life" vibe and introduces more rising action with good pacing. The French girls obviously begin to bring out themes of sexual frustration and youth with scenes like the bumper cars and the Tiki fountain. The 3rd act really loses me. I can't get a grip on what's what anymore. This is where the movie loses its cohesiveness and spins out of control and believability. Not that the story was always "believable" to begin with, but at least it had practicality -- it was all purposeful.
ReplyDeleteThe beauty of the filming is superb. Obviously some of the shots are filmed intimately, and there is a fair share of green screen, but I didn't mind the slight schizophrenia of the camera. Moore could have done that on purpose and I wouldn't know the difference. The sound editing, music, and lighting were spectacular as well. Love the music styling. It was triumphant when it needed to be and creepy when it needed to be. The music worked wonders with the visuals; really helped the viewer feel the roller coaster of emotions. The sound editing highlighted the psychology of the whole film with its voice over and over all added F/X. The choice to make this black and white was genius. It's almost like the beginning of the Wizard of Oz, and we never do get beyond the rainbow for out happy splash of color. We're forever stuck in a toilsome Kansas.
The acting was spot on in just about every way. Roy Abramsohn leads the cast brilliantly. He has control at all times of his character and played "Jim" with great precision. I'd almost want to hang out with this guy because with every tragedy he befalls, he meets it with a bit of comedy. He also had this way of switching from distraction to focus. He was a mid-life crisis man going insane, and yet played a great father. Whatever dialogue was written and whatever was improvised felt fluent and natural. It felt very effortless and helped me get lost in the story.
I'm sure every supporting character not in "Jim's" family represents a Disney character in some respect: The bully's dad, the French girls, the nurse, and of course the evil Queen with the medallion. The death of "Jim" has him morphing into the Cheshire Cat. The symbolism was pretty deep in this thing, and it would take me a couple of viewings to piece together all of the allusions.
All in all, I thought this was a great movie. The 3rd Act and the lack of an obvious moral keep it from being a perfect 20/20...but it definitely got my attention and sustained it for a great ride. 16/20
Well said, and I agree with everything you said there. That last bit did hurt things. It's almost like Moore knew exactly how he wanted to finish things, the last 3 1/2 minutes anyway, but he didn't know how to get from the middle of the movie to that end. It got muddy for sure.
ReplyDelete"lack of an obvious moral"
Yeah, that's a tough one. As far as I can tell, he's showing that something (and it's something to do with fathers, isn't it?) is cyclical. We end where we started, right?
The movies that end up being my favorites are the ones that simultaneously make me laugh and horrify me. This fits.
"played a great father"
Umm...where? I can't agree with that one. Wasn't he a consistently terrible father?
One of the more interesting movies I've seen in a while, and I'm glad you and Johnny checked it out.
I thought he was a good dad. He was never malicious toward his children. He realized when he made mistakes and immediately countered with undivided attention. He was very genuine with them (especially when he was one on one). He was never dismissive of his children's issues. A bully pushed his girl down, and he stood up for her. He lost her in the tree tunnel maze, and was seriously worried for her. His son got sick and he felt empathetic toward him. He has a "talk" with his son regarding girls and attractiveness. He asked if his girl had eaten.
ReplyDeleteTrust me, I've done worse to my kid, and I recognized the look on "Jim's" face as my own at times. He screwed up, sure. But, that didn't make him a bad father, did it?
I never judged him as a father; only as a middle-aged man with psychological boundaries.
The more I think about it I'm not sure if I'm more enamored with the finished film or the making of story. When you research it it is really amazing the lengths that they went to to make this movie (shot on handheld cameras, scripts were put on iPhones, they rode the moving walkway for hours to get the right shot, and they endured "it's a small world" more than a dozen times). They often only wanted to do 4 takes Max so in that way it was a throwback to traditional filmmaking. "Escape from Tomorrow" comes like a breath of fresh air in a room full of farts.
ReplyDeleteI tried, but I couldn't get into this and only made it halfway through. I thought the dad was creepy and a lousy father (especially after taking his kid on Space Mountain). I liked the subversive feel and thought it was going to go straight horror, but it wasn't and I tired of his pointless chasing of the young girls.
ReplyDeleteThat settles it, Josh. Cory and I both think the guy was a terrible father. Our children outnumber yours 6 to 1, so we're probably right.
ReplyDeleteSorry you suffered through part of this, Cory.
Everything you guys are saying means he's a bad husband, not a bad father.
ReplyDeleteHaving an army of children only says that you're jaded more than I am.