[Breakfast on Pluto] [Jarhead]

I skimmed the RottenTomatoes page for Breakfast On Pluto earlier this week, and one of the reviews said that the film never quite took off. Which is somewhat true, but I’m not entirely sure that I care. Why? Because Cillian Murphy was so damned good. (Also, I can’t believe it took me until the end of the film to realize that this is the second film he & Liam Neeson have been in together this year. Dude.) The book was more effective emotionally, but I’m wondering if that has more to do with my very American difficulty with accents. (I am very sorry! I try!) Maybe so. If I were to reread the book now, though, I’d hear Cillian whispering in my ear. Not that that would be a bad thing, mind you. Ahem.

In an unrelated moment of grrr, I am so annoyed by comments on how “nothing happened” in Jarhead. That’s the point! Also, it’s not true. There are things like narrative tension and character development and they can both happen even if shit is not getting blown up. Point being, I found the film satisfying indeed. Even if “nothing happened”. It’s one of my favorites for 2005, which is funny, because I never expected to love a Sam Mendes film. They tend to look much better than they actually are, thanks to Conrad Hall. I had wondered what on earth Mendes was going to do after Hall passed away, but he scored Roger Deakins who, among other things, has lit roughly a bazillion Coen Brothers’ films. But also, he somehow managed to create a compelling film. To -me-, anyway.