![]() The very best surprise endings are the ones where audiences can go back, re-watch the film, and see clues they didn’t even realize before. However once the twist comes, it raises far more questions and inconsistencies than it answers. There are a few instances of odd clunky dialogue in the beginning that seem like they’re trying to hint to it. Without giving away the idiotic twist, there’s much more going on in the film than the audience initially realizes. He’s dressed like and acts like one of the idiots from Entourage. Watching him just sort of play himself is legitimately entertaining.ĭespite doing some pretty despicable things, it’s hard to take Jason Clarke seriously. To his credit, McConaughey’s charm and charisma still shine, even with the terrible writing he’s been given. Jason Clarke is usually a brilliant actor, but he’s not given much to work with in terms of script. It doesn’t help that the villain Frank is practically cartoonish in how evil they try to make him. However, as the film goes on, its attempt to be a noir thriller begins to have all the cheesiness of The Tourist. Despite some weird, over the top editing choices, it does manage to capture a Strangers on a Train vibe early on. From the first act, it’s quite clear that Serenity is trying to be like the classic film noirs of old. His morality, desire for financial stability, along with his protective instinct for his ex-wife and son (both of which have suffered Frank’s abuses) are all at odds as he struggles to decide what he will do. She tells him that she’s bringing her abusive husband Frank (Jason Clarke) and that she will pay him to take him out fishing and throw him overboard. If she were removed, it would have no bearing at all.ĭill’s quiet life is made rather chaotic when his ex-wife Karen (Anne Hathaway) shows up on the island. One of the biggest sins of this film is that Diane Lane is a very talented actress but she’s barely used and her character has no real purpose to the greater plot. Whenever the tourism business doesn’t do well, or his customers refuse to pay him for poor service, he’s supplemented by a lonely cougar Constance (Diane Lane). He seems to live a quiet, admittedly broke life. He lives on a tiny island in a town where everyone knows everyone. Dill is a seemingly perpetual drunk who drinks to forget his troubled past. The film opens with Baker Dill (Matthew McConaughey) and his first mate Duke (Djimon Honsou) taking tourists out on their fishing boat. It’s brilliantly written and manages to keep the audience engaged even though the entire film takes place in the car with Tom Hardy on the phone! ![]() Honestly, it’s better to just skip Serenity and watch Locke instead. Most unfortunately, Serenity is anything but. So when Knight came back this year to write and direct a neo-noir thriller starring Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway, it seemed like it had all the makings for another modern classic. It deserves it.Back in 2013, writer/director Steven Knight wowed critics and fans alike with his self-contained and brilliantly compelling thriller Locke. I'll say this: I was never bored watching this film, which is more than I can for most films these days. ![]() Perhaps, that's what everyone is snickering at? When one of the most popular pass times is shaming people on social media to whom we feel superior, the idea of self doubt and uncertain morality are things we need to ridicule? I dunno. The plot twists aren't there to surprise the audience in the manner of something like 'The Usual Suspects', they exist to create the feeling of a troubled conscience. And that only comes about by having confidence in the film. Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jason Clarke give it everything. I loved the sheer ballsiness of everyone's commitment to this movie. The techniques employed become acceptable. ![]() Another thought: Imagine something like this film made during the German Expressionist period of cinema. ![]() Why do people enjoy films with an abstracted hyper style, like 'Shutter Island,' or Zulawski's 'Possession' but dismiss it here? Perhaps people are just primed to like (or pretend to like) a film directed by someone they think is important. ![]()
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