Dissappointing message board for a great film - Inherent Vice (2015) Discussion

[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

Definitely. Don't get me wrong, I get the people who have their beefs with it. But there are so many movies that are incredibly cryptic and even if they get their share of hate on the message boards, there's still an active group of posters who communicate to figure out the film. The Master is a good example of that.

This film, to me, is no worse than many others out there and I'm surprised to see very little discussion on this board.

If you're jivin' me my man, I say to you 

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[–] goatboy969 9 years ago

I agree. The truth is it's not that hard to follow. With a rewatch and good attention span, it really makes perfect sense. And that'a a good point that there are plenty of cryptic and information-overload type movies out every year that generate good discussion. Vice is greatly loved by some, but it seems to have went right through the majority's radar. At least for now.

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

Very true, yeah. An attention-span on a couple of rewatches would definitely do somebody good.

Vice is greatly loved by some, but it seems to have went right through the majority's radar.

That's how it was for the Master when it came out. Now I think the consensus has warmed up to it. Not sure how long it'll take Vice though. Not sure what it'll take either. Maybe Pynchon's reputation needs to grow in order for people to understand what the source material is. Or maybe people should just nut-up and give it another watch now that we all know what Vice is. Or more people just need to spend some time dissecting and discussing with others, hopefully changing the film's status via word of mouth.

I don't know. Didn't the Long Goodbye have a harsh opening as well, and wasn't recognized as a cult classic up until recently?

If you're jivin' me my man, I say to you 

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[–] Barbed_Wire_Strawberry 9 years ago

Question for you two: have either of you watched it after doing what Brolin suggested - a few bong hits?

It was definitely part of the marketing for this movie, and it was beautifully ironic that non-stoners commented on the film itself making them feel high.

Buy The Ticket, Take The Ride

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[–] mulholland_empire 9 years ago

i think the master and inherent vice are two of the best movies of the 2010's. but i can understand why most film goers would not appreciate the slow style and become bored with it.

In the film world now, everyone wants a movie fast paced, short & sweet. so when a director like pta comes along channeling antonioni with his last 2 or 3 pictures, its understandable too me why people discard it.

just be thankful that you guys have good taste and the attention span to sit down and watch a 2hr 30min long movie and enjoy it, because i don't know many people who can anymore.

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[–] bigdaddyboxmeal 9 years ago

Strangely I really enjoyed Inherent Vice and hated The Master. I think IV had strength in its humour that wasn't present in The Master and that was what endeared the film to me a lot more.

Personally I love a film that doesn't explain itself explicitly and allows the audience to find it own way, but some films of this ilk are done with no sense of fun and it can come off as either pretentious or at the very least unlikeable. Inherent Vice, however, was a film filled with colour, fun and weird flair and regardless of whether I understood the plot 100% or not, I enjoyed the ride.

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[–] therefdotcom 9 years ago

yeeeeah, that's why michael haneke's love was such a failure ... oh wait.

the "argument" that the film was not well received, because people did not get it or are just used to watching action movies never seize to crack me up.

"just be thankful that you guys have good taste and the attention span to sit down and watch a 2hr 30min long movie and enjoy it, because i don't know many people who can anymore."

you are so full of crap, it must leak out of your ears.

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[–] franzkabuki 9 years ago

Crack up all you want, but it's obvious that unconventional movies such as IV will never have a universal appeal amongst audiences. And one certainly has to "get it" on some level in order to appreciate it.

"facts are stupid things" Ronald Reagan

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[–] kmags84 9 years ago

Too many people get upset at these comments but it's the simple truth. It doesn't have to be taken as a slight against someone who may not like it... However, it's made for a Core Audience who understand the film and enjoy it as well.

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[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] rallyinthestreets 9 years ago

That's IMDb for you. Lowest common denominator viewers flood this site.

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[–] alan_ryder 9 years ago

I see that on most message boards. It's puzzling that people would berate a movie that others obviously like and are interested in discussing. I thought that it might be agents of competitors. I'm sure people rarely have their minds changed by disparaging remarks, I know mine isn't. If I did not like a movie I surely won't go on a message board for it.

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[–] Krustallos 9 years ago

If I did not like a movie I surely won't go on a message board for it.

The film made people feel stupid I think, that in turn made them feel angry, hence the venting.

Most of the films I dislike are those where the film-maker appears to feel the viewers are stupid. The "Star Wars" reboot would be a case in point. (Not that the original was much better). But since that doesn't reflect negatively on me personally it doesn't annoy me enough to make me go and insult the film-maker and the people who liked it.

I used to want to change the world. Now I just want to leave the room with a little dignity.

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[–] franzkabuki 9 years ago

"If I did not like a movie I surely won't go on a message board for it".

Why not? It's cool as long as you're not being an ass about it or get so obsessed with it as to haunt the board for months or even years, repeating yourself ad nauseum.

"facts are stupid things" Ronald Reagan

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[–] alan_ryder 9 years ago

Fortunately the title of troll's posts simplify the matter. And I'm getting good at ignoring most of the rants and wisecracks. It's sad when the debates degenerate into insults. The unreasonable remarks make me think that competitors are trying to reduce the audiences for the movie. I admit constructive criticism is sometimes interesting. In most cases however, the director has heard it already and gone ahead anyway. I guess it is valid to point out their limitations for the benefit of other filmmakers, and hopefully the critic actually knows the details.

I read message boards mostly to divine themes and symbolism, and learn about the artists. Whether they are 'good' or 'bad' is subjective and just about meaningless.

Good examples are the boards for 'Inland Empire', Mulholland Dr.' and 'Eyes Wide Shut' to name just 3. Lots of fun.

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[–] yahko_kun 9 years ago

I blame the people who make the trailers. I got a the impression its a Snatch story line with a comedic twist. I can understand why people hate the movie.

It was a parody on noir movies like Chinatown, LA Confidential,
The Talented Mr. Ripley a bit through the eyes of Half Baked.

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

^ Very true, though I can't blame the marketers. There's really no way you can fill the seats for this movie without bending the truth

Howard Huges was Italian?

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[–] yahko_kun 9 years ago

I despite the people who release the trailers and giving the wrong impression. Maybe its done for purely financial reasons because they need a larger audience to attend and the only way they can do it is give a wrong imporession. Maybe I dont know.

They did it with Fight Club, I cant remember a few more examples but I was almost furious when the trailers are giving a complete wrong impression about the movie.

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[–] kenny-164 9 years ago

I was all set to love this film. Very good cast right down to the excellent Eric Roberts in a small part. and the acting was in fact effective for the most part.

But to my mind this is a film at war with itself. On one hand it wants to benefit from setting it up as a vibe driven film, true to the period covered, with a thick druggy overlay. Both in the characters and in the setting.

But then it also wants to be plot driven and in a way that seems to refer back to film noir classics like The Big Sleep. Meaning very complex and confusing. But in The Big Sleep the confusion served an important purpose, allowing us the experience of the main character's own encounters with mystery and an elusive reality. Here I could not tell of the confusion was just because Doc was too stoned.

And then there's imo the way I just do not like Pynchon. He seems to want to drag his readers into a world where all the details seem so cool in the counterculture sense, but then his characters are essentially unlikeable or worse. I don't find that at all convincing. It's merely cynical.

I know one or two repeat viewings would help me better understand the narrative. But I did not like the film enough to want to give it that much effort. 6 out of 10 almost entirely due to the positives of the cast. But on the whole I would not recommend seeing it.

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[–] lazarillo 9 years ago

Well, as I've said, half of the problem is they're apparently illiterate. But I will never understand why people will haunt the board of a movie they HATED. I might do it with a movie I was disappointed with maybe, but if I saw a movie I hated, I'm not going waste MORE time complaining about. As for not UNDERSTANDING a movie, it's ago to visit a board to get some insight, but why come here and insist to people that got a lot out of it that the movie "made no sense".

"Let be be finale of seem/ The only emperor is the Emperor of Ice Cream"

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

Nobody's calling you or anybody else who dislikes the film morons. If you don't like it, then that's fine

Howard Hughes was Italian?

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[–] pretentiousanderson 9 years ago

Nobody's calling you or anybody else who dislikes the film morons.

Now you are being extremely disingenuous Sportello (or whatever you have now changed your screen name to). Maybe Anderson's fans don't always use the literal word "moron", but they constantly belittle Anderson detractors with terms such as:

"illiterate nitwits" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1791528/board/thread/242558245?d=242558245#242558245

"Loser[s]" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1791528/board/thread/241715473?d=241718668#241718668

And imply that they only like films that Anderson fans would describe as mindless action flicks. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1791528/board/thread/243777941?d=251728315#251728315

ItsThatGutMe is hardly the only one to voice this criticism against Anderson's immature fan base. Proof here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1791528/board/thread/250364053?d=250437309#250437309

And these examples are just from a 1 minute search on the Inherent Vice board. Give me 30 minutes to go over the discussion boards of ALL of Anderson's films and I will be able to cite you countless of other examples of Anderson fans calling detractors the equivalent of morons, even if they don't always use that exact term.

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

1. Using 3 posters on a message board as a representation for entire group is not very convincing. Every film/director/actor/whatever has its equal share of LOVERS and HATERS. But even if that were the case:

2. The poster that ItsThatGutMe responded to did not call him a moron, nor was he rude towards anyone who did not like the film. ItsThatGutMe seemed to have taken offense at the fact that he (and I) discussed our analysis on the film and why we feel it's underrated, and made the assumption that we (I guess "we" being everyone or a majority of those who like Inherent Vice) were calling those like him (Those who do not like Inherent Vice) "morons." That's not the case at all , and three random posters on a message is not clear-cut proof of that assumption either. Overreaction on ItsThatGutMe's part, I'd say. If he truly did feel compelled to respond to someone who called those who disliked the films morons, then he sure as hell chose the wrong post and the wrong poster.

3. It's Smilax, not Sportello. Like, Sauncho Smilax (That's a bad ass name)

Howard Hughes was Italian?

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[–] pretentiousanderson 9 years ago

I guess you failed to read (or comprehend the meaning of) the last paragraph in my previous response.

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

Such compelling evidence from a one minute search lol. You can go ahead and spend 30 minutes looking for all of those detractors, I'm sure you'll find them. I don't really give a sh_it to be quite honest but hey, feel free to look 'em up.

Howard Hughes was Italian?

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[–] pretentiousanderson 9 years ago

I know you don't give a sh_it Sportello. That's what makes your assertion that "Nobody's calling you or anybody else who dislikes the film morons" to be so disingenuous.

You can go back to playing your video games now.

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[–] Tothedeath 9 years ago

I just imagined Bigfoot saying this 

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

Holy sh_it, I thought the same thing. It's brilliant 

Howard Hughes was Italian?

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[–] Christopher_Smilax 9 years ago

Bigfoot, man, you called me disingenuous? ..... C'mooooooooooon.

Howard Hughes was Italian?

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