Thelma & Louise
2.5/4
Starring: Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, Harvey Keitel, Christopher McDonald, Michael Madsen, Brad Pitt, Stephen Tobolowsky
Rated R for Strong Language, and for Some Violence and Sensuality
"Thelma & Louise" is one of the most famous "chick flicks" (a term I dislike intensely, by the way...a good movie is a good movie, regardless of whom its intended audience is). So much to my surprise when I put the movie in the Blu Ray player, I found that not only is the movie overrated, it's not even very good. There are some elements of the film that work, particularly in the second half, but on the whole its a mishmash of inept screenwriting and a wildly uneven tone.
Louise (Sarandon) wants to take a fishing trip with her friend Thelma (Davis), despite the fact that neither one knows how to fish (one of Louise's friends is about to lose his cabin in a divorce, so he's inviting everyone he knows to use it while he still has ownership). Thelma is a meek housewife who is under the thumb of her now-cruel high school sweetheart, a vile individual named Darryl (McDonald), so it's going to take a lot for her to get the nerve to ask him. Eventually she decides to go without telling him, and they're off. Thelma is excited about the opportunity to have fun, so they stop at a bar, where she wins the affections of a man named Harlan (Timothy Carhart). But instead of the kind stud that she thinks he is, Harlan is a monster who attempts to rape her when she's drunk. Louise saves her, and after he insults her, she shoots him dead. Now they're on the run, but as they're beginning to break out of their shells, they're digging themselves into a whole heap of trouble.
I'm surprised that Callie Khouri won an Oscar for her screenplay (her first produced script), since it's the film's biggest problem. For all the time we spend with the two leads, they're stick figures for the majority of the film. Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon give it their all, but there's only so much that they can do with such subpar material. Other characters fare even worse. The detective on their case, a man named Hal (Keitel), is so sloppily written that his motivations change with the needs of the plot. His caring for his prey is almost totally unmotivated. Then there's the case of a perverted trucker (played by Marco St. John) that's just doesn't work at all. This is due in no small part by the fact that St. John is terrible in the role, but the writing is awful too. Director Ridley Scott (an odd choice...) should have known that the admittedly amusing payoff just isn't worth the time we spend with this annoying hick.
The supporting performances are good, but this is all about the title characters. Harvey Keitel is always welcome in a movie, even if his part is underwritten. Brad Pitt got his big break as the hot stud that Thelma and Louise run into (he got the role over future bromance partner George Clooney, who refused to watch the film because he lost the role, although when he did, he admitted that Pitt was the better choice). He's perfectly adequate, although not nearly good enough to shoot him into mega-stardom (in this case, the end totally justifies the means). Christopher McDonald goes a little over the top as Darryl, but we still hate him. And Michael Madsen plays a character who isn't creepy for once. And veteran nerd Stephen Tobolowsky plays a completely normal guy.
Ridley Scott should have taken a less realistic approach for the start of the movie. These characters live such rundown lives that it's pretty depressing. I got a grimy, ugly feeling while watching it. Once the film's storyline takes off, Scott proves unable to save the radically shifting tone (considering the script, it's not entirely his fault). Sometimes it's a gritty thriller, other times it's a breezy adventure. The film eventually finds its groove, but only in the home stretch.
Ironically, there is another film that deals with similar characters and situations in a much more skillful and successful way. I'm thinking of the criminally underseen Jada Pinkett Smith/Queen Latifah movie, "Set it Off." Both movies feature similar characters and situations but F. Gary Gray did it better. The 1996 thriller featured a much stronger script, better characterizations, and a more engaging story. That's the one you should see.
Starring: Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, Harvey Keitel, Christopher McDonald, Michael Madsen, Brad Pitt, Stephen Tobolowsky
Rated R for Strong Language, and for Some Violence and Sensuality
"Thelma & Louise" is one of the most famous "chick flicks" (a term I dislike intensely, by the way...a good movie is a good movie, regardless of whom its intended audience is). So much to my surprise when I put the movie in the Blu Ray player, I found that not only is the movie overrated, it's not even very good. There are some elements of the film that work, particularly in the second half, but on the whole its a mishmash of inept screenwriting and a wildly uneven tone.
Louise (Sarandon) wants to take a fishing trip with her friend Thelma (Davis), despite the fact that neither one knows how to fish (one of Louise's friends is about to lose his cabin in a divorce, so he's inviting everyone he knows to use it while he still has ownership). Thelma is a meek housewife who is under the thumb of her now-cruel high school sweetheart, a vile individual named Darryl (McDonald), so it's going to take a lot for her to get the nerve to ask him. Eventually she decides to go without telling him, and they're off. Thelma is excited about the opportunity to have fun, so they stop at a bar, where she wins the affections of a man named Harlan (Timothy Carhart). But instead of the kind stud that she thinks he is, Harlan is a monster who attempts to rape her when she's drunk. Louise saves her, and after he insults her, she shoots him dead. Now they're on the run, but as they're beginning to break out of their shells, they're digging themselves into a whole heap of trouble.
I'm surprised that Callie Khouri won an Oscar for her screenplay (her first produced script), since it's the film's biggest problem. For all the time we spend with the two leads, they're stick figures for the majority of the film. Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon give it their all, but there's only so much that they can do with such subpar material. Other characters fare even worse. The detective on their case, a man named Hal (Keitel), is so sloppily written that his motivations change with the needs of the plot. His caring for his prey is almost totally unmotivated. Then there's the case of a perverted trucker (played by Marco St. John) that's just doesn't work at all. This is due in no small part by the fact that St. John is terrible in the role, but the writing is awful too. Director Ridley Scott (an odd choice...) should have known that the admittedly amusing payoff just isn't worth the time we spend with this annoying hick.
The supporting performances are good, but this is all about the title characters. Harvey Keitel is always welcome in a movie, even if his part is underwritten. Brad Pitt got his big break as the hot stud that Thelma and Louise run into (he got the role over future bromance partner George Clooney, who refused to watch the film because he lost the role, although when he did, he admitted that Pitt was the better choice). He's perfectly adequate, although not nearly good enough to shoot him into mega-stardom (in this case, the end totally justifies the means). Christopher McDonald goes a little over the top as Darryl, but we still hate him. And Michael Madsen plays a character who isn't creepy for once. And veteran nerd Stephen Tobolowsky plays a completely normal guy.
Ridley Scott should have taken a less realistic approach for the start of the movie. These characters live such rundown lives that it's pretty depressing. I got a grimy, ugly feeling while watching it. Once the film's storyline takes off, Scott proves unable to save the radically shifting tone (considering the script, it's not entirely his fault). Sometimes it's a gritty thriller, other times it's a breezy adventure. The film eventually finds its groove, but only in the home stretch.
Ironically, there is another film that deals with similar characters and situations in a much more skillful and successful way. I'm thinking of the criminally underseen Jada Pinkett Smith/Queen Latifah movie, "Set it Off." Both movies feature similar characters and situations but F. Gary Gray did it better. The 1996 thriller featured a much stronger script, better characterizations, and a more engaging story. That's the one you should see.
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