Film-noir meets high school in this exciting and cinematically beautiful film from writer-director Rian Johnson. The film opens with Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), squatting in a sewage run off, staring at a young girl in a blue dress...who is lying face down, dead, in the stream of slow moving water. A single shot (below) tells you everything you need to know about the film: it's dark, it's sexy, it's a murder mystery. Turns out the girl is Emily Kostage (Emilie de Ravin), or "Em," Brendan's one true love. Now he's hellbent on finding the murderer(s) and getting his revenge. Along the way Brendan encounters all sorts of shady characters, all of whom fit both particular film-noir and high school stereotypes: the rich girl who's dating the jock/femme fatale, the school principal/meddling chief of police, the really weird kid who deals drugs/king pin gangster.
Man I just love this movie so freaking much. Sure, it can be a little melodramatic at times, and the dialogue at times can seem a little off, but c'mon, it's about teenagers. And watching this movie just gives me an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia, for both high school and the classic all-American genre. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was born for this role. The original score is absolutely magnificent. Breathtaking cinematography and brilliant editing. It can feel long at times, and definitely a little confusing, but the confusing part is really just part of the genre. Highly, highly recommended.
Film-noir meets high school in this exciting and cinematically beautiful film from writer-director Rian Johnson. The film opens with Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), squatting in a sewage run off, staring at a young girl in a blue dress...who is lying face down, dead, in the stream of slow moving water. A single shot (below) tells you everything you need to know about the film: it's dark, it's sexy, it's a murder mystery. Turns out the girl is Emily Kostage (Emilie de Ravin), or "Em," Brendan's one true love. Now he's hellbent on finding the murderer(s) and getting his revenge. Along the way Brendan encounters all sorts of shady characters, all of whom fit both particular film-noir and high school stereotypes: the rich girl who's dating the jock/femme fatale, the school principal/meddling chief of police, the really weird kid who deals drugs/king pin gangster.
Man I just love this movie so freaking much. Sure, it can be a little melodramatic at times, and the dialogue at times can seem a little off, but c'mon, it's about teenagers. And watching this movie just gives me an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia, for both high school and the classic all-American genre. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was born for this role. The original score is absolutely magnificent. Breathtaking cinematography and brilliant editing. It can feel long at times, and definitely a little confusing, but the confusing part is really just part of the genre. Highly, highly recommended.
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