104 in 2008 Week 12: The Long Kiss Goodnight and After Life

Short reviews this week, since I'm already a few days late.

The Long Kiss Goodnight
Renny Harlin, 1996

Here we are with another Shane Black script, and a much better one than the last I saw (Lethal Weapon, for those who don’t remember). It still pales in comparison to Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, but then again, most things do.

There’s not a lot of sense to be found in this movie, but there is a lot of fun, from the ridiculously over-the-top action sequences to Samuel L Jackson’s ridiculously over-the-top wardrobe to – eh, you get the point.

7.5/10

After Life
Hirokazu Kore-eda, 1999

This is an interesting movie that raises plenty of questions and has a very appealing aesthetic to it. The performances are strong, in a minimalist sort of way. Theoretically, I should love it – but it left me somewhat cold, due to the fact that there were too many (or too few) characters that received focus. Several of the recently departed (the man in the plane, the woman on the rope between the bamboo trees, a few others) are given roles in the film that fall into that nebulous zone where too much time is spent on them to allow them to pass as minor aspects of the story, but not enough time is spent to fully flesh them out. As a result, the segments focusing on them tend to drag tremendously. The story involving the lead characters also does not get the time it needs as a result, although the problem is less pronounced in this case.

Also, the snow-punching tantrum at the end was just kind of embarrassing. Still, I give it a lot of credit for the wonderful premise, the look of the piece, and the ambition to make something a little different.

8/10

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