What have you watched recently? 3D!
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Rain Man – 9/10
Where has this film been all my life? I’m a sucker for a brotherly love story and this is one of the best I’ve seen. It’s depiction of the mentally challenged may be somewhat antiquated, but it has charm in spades and two remarkable high calibre performances from Hoffman and Cruise.
Hoffman quite rightly steals the limelight and gets most of the plaudits, but (after being underwhelmed by him in Risky Business) it was Cruise that impressed me the most here. He expertly rides the line of being an irredeemable arsehole, but leaving just enough room to later become sympathetic. Him gradually realising that the bond with his long-lost brother is exactly what has been missing from his life is wonderful to watch. The bathroom scene where he finds out the truth about their upbringings is an incredibly piece of acting.
The severe autism that Hoffman’s Raymond suffers from constrains his performance. There isn’t much room for him to ‘grow’ within that character, so he has to rely on subtleties and precise comedic timing to convey his affection towards his younger brother. The amount of emotion he can get out of a few mumbled words and a slight head tilt is quite incredible.
The decision for Hans Zimmer to avoid using strings on the score to avoid becoming too sentimental pays dividends. The ‘At Last’ dance sequence is perfect.
“my main man” 😭
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