Why Was This Movie So Disliked?

I saw this movie after hearing all the negative reviews. It was probably why I waited so long to see it. But once I did, I was enthralled by it. People said it was boring, and though I was expecting to be bored, I wasn't. Although I tend to be pretty dismissive of most films, for their lack of ambition and eagerness to please, I loved this film for never trying too hard to be pleasing or to provide easy answers and explanations. It was engaging, I think, for being so obscured and enigmatic.

It plays out like a Greek tragedy, with the specter of divine retribution haunting us and punishing those who use revenge as a justification for any lapse in humanity. So many films about revenge get a pass on all the gore and violence although all they do is present justification for the carnage. This film seeks no justification for it. The carnage is not entertaining and it's not cathartic. It's simply violence. It's the harshness of life in all the tawdry glare and impassivity. Terrible things happen and either we let them happen or we seek them out.

Perhaps this film was too ambitious for its own good, but I love it. The violence is meant to be disturbing and it's meant to provoke thought. When there's too much happening on screen and when plot lines get too contrived, it's easy to turn off our thoughts. But I had to think about this film because it refused to lend itself to easy, disposable consumption.

This is one of those rare films that isn't afraid to be hated, and perhaps relishes our discomfort. But I'm relieved to find a film that doesn't delight in it's own nastiness and viciousness but, rather, almost feels ashamed of it. It's beautiful to look at, yet so unutterably hideous.

I wonder if people didn't like the film because it places humanity up to such a harsh light and we seem to fall so short. It's not exactly inspiring. But there's an undeniable truth to it that makes other more plot-driven sideshows feel like even more of a waste of time. This film isn't trying to score easy points with special effects, throwaway humor and plot contrivances.

This film will get more credit one day, but we live in an age of many distractions and minimal patience. The only reason people prefer the violence of Tarantino films is because Tarantino makes violence fun. But why can't we show it up as something ugly without people getting upset?