I recently watched the movie Art School Confidential. It Looked good and featured supporting rolls by John Malkovich, Anjelica Huston and Steve Buscemi. Thats a beefy supporting role for any film. The main roles where filled by actors and actresses that I had never heard of aside from Ethan Suplee. I figured why not, Im in art school, this could be a funny movie made for people like me. now, getting to the point, it sucked. Im not one to throw the suck label down on just any movie. In case you would like a reference point other movies that fall in to "suck" are Pool hall jumkies (aside from Christopher Walken's cameo), Speed (Sandra Bullock's acting can stop a speeding bus) and Starship Troopers.
I hate the word but contrived is the only one that really fits the bill here. I think that this movie should be shown in class for the same reason business students study Crystal Pepsi. The reason being when you have enough money and enough time to offer something to the world you should make it good and not suck. I could go into so many things about why this movie was 102 continuos minutes of suckage. I could even offer some suggestions as to how easily this movie could have been made way better. Im exhausting myself just thinking about it.
I would like to close this blog by saying, watch it yourself. Thats right, go rent a movie that Im saying sucks. The fact of the matter is none of you know me. My opinion holds no weight. It shouldnt. Im just some guy in your class. Thats why Im saying, go out and rent it. If you like it then Im just some ranting bitching guy at school who hated a movie you liked or didnt mind. Thats fine with me. But if you think it sucked to, then lets talk about it. One of the perks I jumped at by choosing to go to school here is to be around like minded people. Sure some of my friends will talk movies with me but most of them get to drunk to make any sense after a couple of hours. I cringe at the thought that people could view this place as a contest, pitting them self against the other students.
Im getting off subject, watch it and lets talk.
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Warning: PLOT SPOILER -
do not read if you have not seen ART SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL
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I think I love Art School Confidential for the same reasons that Biesel hates it. ( If you haven't seen it, its a cartoony, over the top, portrayal of a skilled, passionate 18 yr old who goes to art school and, basically, gets eaten alive by it. He gets, in a roundabout way, framed for serial murders he did not commit, because he passes off a deceased artist-turned-serial killer's art work as his own. He does this because he is desperate to achieve artistic greatness and win the affections of the woman he thinks he loves.)
All of the characters are cartoons: The romantic young innocent, the jaded flunky, the oblivious wannabe filmmaker, the emotionally unstable art chick, the not-yet-out-of -the-closet fashion design major, etc., etc. Shallow, caricatured, one liner, cartoons that work effectively to tell a kind of parable about the state of the arts at this time in this culture, and to make a stinging jab at art institutions of any kind, but especially the ones that people pay a lot of money to send their 18 year olds to.
So, it sucks, yeah, but in a way that is completely controlled by its maker. Its a depressing caricature of a depressing caricature of the depressing caricature that the art world has tragically become. And I think thats smart, and funny and interesting and effective.
But HOW do you think it sucks? Define suckage, please.
I will say that at the end of the movie it makes a great idea present. Ill make a list of reasons without getting to in depth. 1. The movie never takes the time or right angle to mesh between different cliches. In that way it jumps all around, then moves story line, then jumps around, then moves story line. If you cant get a none plot line element into the plot line maybe it doesnt belong there. 2. It was edited in a way that ruins most punch lines to jokes. The first problem can be accounted for in editing also. It just didnt flow together. I guess I figured an art school would be a great place to set a movie and I was really let down. They also never give you a frame of reference for time in the movie. The main character is told to explore painting styles and life styles and the next thing you know he is smoking in every scene and drinking straight booze. You have to work things like that into a a character or it ruins the characters worth. Changing a characters make up in one scene to the next is lazy. I like more depth and reason to my characters.
I saw this movie a few months ago and immediately after it was over, I thought "Wow, that sucked" too! Seriously. I think part of the reason why it sucked so much is that I originally rented it thinking that this would be a good movie. Like you mentioned, the cast looked pretty decent. Topic, rather interesting. I think the preview that I saw even made it look rather entertaining. So I guess when I actually saw it, I was expecting it to be a lot better than it was and so I was upset that it let me down. I mean, there was potential for a good film. It started out okay, but then it's like I was watching a different movie by the end. It started out kinda funny, then serious and then just stupid. Maybe I'm missing something. Or need to take more art classes (I think I've taken enough in my life so far) to understand the deeper complexities of this movie. But on the other hand, I think it just sucked. The cliche art school characters weren't even that well defined or funny. And towards the end of the movie all that crap about the serial killer and the kid taking credit for his art, and the undercover cop posing as a student was just lame.
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