Anybody else seen "A History of Violence" (Possible Spoilers)

[eastbay]

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The one bit I found bizarre though was the sons character development or are we to assume he developed his fighting skills naturally form his father.

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I think the implication is clearly that he has a natural killer instinct inherited from his father, something that the father had long attempted to suppress in his son. The son's performance of his internal conflict and strife as he discovered this disturbing dichotomy within himself was phenomenal, IMO.

This thread of the movie was supposed to leave you pondering the nature vs. nurture question, not leaving the movie going "weird movie, dude. Kinda slow. Nice hooters, though."

eastbay

[CollinEstes]

Got to say that is an excellant interpretation.


Still though I can hear so drunk dude at a party saying, "Dude what if there was like this small town dude that was like bad ass at fighting and could kick everyones ass, but then like he wasn't really small town he was like in the mob, that would be so sweet."

[eastbay]

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Got to say that is an excellant interpretation.


Still though I can hear so drunk dude at a party saying, "Dude what if there was like this small town dude that was like bad ass at fighting and could kick everyones ass, but then like he wasn't really small town he was like in the mob, that would be so sweet."

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The movie works on multiple levels, like the title. That's part of what makes it interesting.

eastbay

[astroglide]

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I liked it a lot. This is not a simple popcorn movie. If that's what you wanted, I can see how you might be disappointed.

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are you [censored] kidding?

i was disappointed that it was a popcorn movie without the fun parts. i was expecting something deeper, more subtle, thought-inspiring, etc. instead i've got a bunch of crap like:

- a guy who knows there is an immediate and mortal threat to his family and doesn't have them get the [censored] out of town immediately, but somehow cares after he walks to work

- tough and smart outlaws. so tough they don't make references to 'casually' killing clerks at a motel, and don't even pay any mind to it after discovering it. so smart that they stay low in small towns. they're such good criminals that they have no money. but they can rob for it, right? and what's the best way to stay low? it's certainly not taking the money when offered and leaving. you've got to lock the door and make a production about killing people randomly to show that you "mean business." that way you'll...get the money that has already been given to you, with all of the risks of being there too long while somebody could have cell phoned the cops or could have seen what was happening from the street outside.

- ridiculous fight scene after ridiculous fight scene. got a few heat-packing thugs in your front yard? no problem! just grab the one who has his gun out, hook his arm, and punch him in the nose for about fifteen seconds because the other ones will just stand there and watch for a while. fights like the high school one are very common as well. because everybody takes out multiple people with standing strikes, there's no wrestling around or anything.

- a rich and successful criminal brother who brings you to his house to see you before killing you. understandable that he wants to see you. understandable that he doesn't want to mess up his house with gunplay and blood. not understandable that he doesn't have you taken somewhere outdoors where you could be shot, or have other people around with guns drawn incase you get loose, or can't quickly retrieve and gun and can't hit you within several feet of himself. it's also a nice touch that he goes for his keys instead of shooting the lock or even better running away, because going for the keys sure wouldn't have been a popcorn moment. this is maybe the most amazingly bad role i have ever seen a good actor take.

- just killed a bunch of people in a beautiful mansion? need to clean off some blood? is it night-time? no problem. you shouldn't use one of the 800 bathrooms in the house. since it's a house you've never visited and you can see in the dark, you know that there's a lake in the backyard. you also have a time machine to make it become morning. instead of using the shower you should chuck the gun and then FALL TO YOUR OVER THE [censored] TOP DRAMATIC KNEES AND SPLASH WATER ONTO YOUR WOUND WITH ONE ARM FOR REDEMPTION OR SOMETHING.

- some "message" of unwelcoming tolerance with the dinner scene at the end which wouldn't have even been poignant but becomes laughable when you consider the fact that there is roughly a 0.00% chance that the little girl is going to remain quiet for the 10 minutes it takes to draw out the scene and dramatically get a plate for you.

this movie [censored] sucked, dude. to say it's anything other than popcorn is a joke. that's not what i was wanting or expecting, but i would have liked it better if it were MORE popcorn since it's obvious that this movie had no chance of ever bearing meaning.

[rory]

david croenenberg doesnt know anything about finding good actors or having a script with a good plot and good dialogue, but he knows a lot about sex

and the movie was really shot well

Fair enough. That's your opinion.

What are you elaborate thoughts on "White Chicks"?

[astroglide]

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That's your opinion

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feel free to argue with any of the points that i made

The only real hole I thought in character development was: (Spoiler warning)

The kid realizes his father is a phony, and yet has the stones to get a shotgun and blast away some goon in his front yard while little Sally is selling Lemonade down the corner, then, (after rescuing his father from certain doom), he tosses the gun down and gives his dad the cold shoulder?

I mean, to me, he isn't going to grab that gun and help out unless he's embraced the fact that his father is a phony criminal. I don't think he had time to do that from the moment he went inside to when he grabbed the gun and came out firing.

And if he has embraced that fact, why is he now giving his dad sh** for being a professional bad-ass? That was a hole, IMO.

EDIT: Popcorn movie tidbit for ya (SPOILER WARNING #2): This movie reminded me of JOE DIRT when Clemm pulled some heroics and the mafia saw him on TV and came to pepper him with bullets.

[Dominic]

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david croenenberg doesnt know anything about finding good actors or having a script with a good plot and good dialogue, but he knows a lot about sex

and the movie was really shot well

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You have no idea what you're talking about.

The Brood
Videodrome
Dead Ringers
Existenz
The Fly
Scanners
Spider

Cronenberg is one of the most original and though-provoking filmmakers of the last 30 years. Period.

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- a guy who knows there is an immediate and mortal threat to his family and doesn't have them get the [censored] out of town immediately, but somehow cares after he walks to work


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You are probably right about this. I think they needed to do this so that viewers would be able to suspend disbelief that he is this Joey guy. Sort of a cheap way to do that, though. I agree.

Had it played out like you said, then everyone in the theater would have been like "Oh, he knows something...he must be this Joey guy. Lets go watch Hulk at the dollar theater."

BTW, you listed parts you didn't like. Did you appreciate ANY of the movie? You made reference to "high school fights with no wrestling around..". Didn't you appreciate the kids fight scene? That looked believable to me. A kick to the stones, a throw into a locker, a couple punches, then some mafioso-like kicks to the gall bladder when villain is down. I liked that scene.

People in the audience actually cheered at that scene. lol. I thought that was pretty lame of them, but whatever.