People trying to find meaning in movies

Mr. Loverman

Many movies today are a bit weird. For example, Kill List.

Critics say

it is an interpretation of morality

but in reality I think

he got an idea about people being happy they are going to be assassinated and tried to build a movie around this.

Similar to the movie Cache:

Critics says

it is about how French people treat Arabs

but in reality I think

the writer saw Lost Highway and thought he could make a movie about the secret video taping and came up with some bull**** explanation.

Do you agree with me?

Do you think writer get an idea and then later come up with some bull**** intellectual explanation?

Are critics trying to find clever explanations when there are none?

johnny_ultimate

Some critics read in to things too much, yes. I completely disagree with your two examples though.

Caché is about the troubled history between French and Algeria (it's referenced repeatedly throughout the film). It's about surveillance technology and the impact it has on us. It's about making the audience question the way they interact with cinema and images, and places us in the position of the voyeur. The 'basic' story is absolutely loaded with potential allegorical interpretations. Michael Haneke is one of the few auteurs whose films are genuinely loaded with thematic, intellectual depth and the potential for analysis - in fact, I'd say as a director he very purposefully aims to provoke in-depth discussion - has any film ever concluded on such a beautifully ambiguous discussion point as Hidden? To dismiss such a wonderful film that genuinely is loaded with meaning as a Lost Highway knock-off is hugely unfair.

Mr. Loverman

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

Are critics trying to find clever explanations when there are none?

A lot of reviewers/critics/forum experts fancy themselves as intellectuals and find hidden meaning just for the sake of writing something verbose and pretentious.

marienbad

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

Some critics read in to things too much, yes. I completely disagree with your two examples though.

Caché is about the troubled history between French and Algeria (it's referenced repeatedly throughout the film). It's about surveillance technology and the impact it has on us. It's about making the audience question the way they interact with cinema and images, and places us in the position of the voyeur. The 'basic' story is absolutely loaded with potential allegorical interpretations. Michael Haneke is one of the few auteurs whose films are genuinely loaded with thematic, intellectual depth and the potential for analysis - in fact, I'd say as a director he very purposefully aims to provoke in-depth discussion - has any film ever concluded on such a beautifully ambiguous discussion point as Hidden? To dismiss such a wonderful film that genuinely is loaded with meaning as a Lost Highway knock-off is hugely unfair.

Best director- auteur in cinema today and one of the best ever(imho) .

e_e

People can see what they want to in movies, don't see why this is something to be discouraged.

The Caché example in the OP is very unfair considering how pretty much every Haneke film invites discussion and analysis within the audience. I tend to prefer movies that don't bombard the viewer with answers but actually make you contemplate things.

e_e

Code Unknown is an even denser and more ambiguous Haneke film than Caché even.

Goldstein

Worst possible choice of Director & film in Haneke and Caché if the point was to illustrate a lack of meaning. Nothing, absolutely nothing in his films is ever accidental or incidental. Every shot, every line of dialogue, down to the fonts overlaid on the screen are engineered with pinpoint precision and purpose. Caché can be summed up in a single word: guilt; but you would have no trouble writing a book deciphering its secrets.

marienbad

Goldstein wrote: »

Worst possible choice of Director & film in Haneke and Caché if the point was to illustrate a lack of meaning. Nothing, absolutely nothing in his films is ever accidental or incidental. Every shot, every line of dialogue, down to the fonts overlaid on the screen are engineered with pinpoint precision and purpose. Caché can be summed up in a single word: guilt; but you would have no trouble writing a book deciphering its secrets.

even 10 books

johnny_ultimate

Speaking of trying to find meaning that isn't there... http://kotaku.com/5926248/totoro-isnt-all-cute-for-some-hes-the-god-of-death

OldeCinemaSoz

I say go with your gut instinct and not with da herd!