visually very well-done; i wasn’t too sure how they were going to animate Marjane Satrapi’s art, but what they arrived at was perfect. that said, it’s a bit…French. definitely a much different feel to it than the graphic novels. less hopeful and raw, more…French. but again, i suffer when i read the source material first.
really not as “BIG” of a movie as i was expecting, not melodramatic or epic at all. there are maybe some pacing problems, but not so’s you’d notice much (and better than most Van Sant movies), and just getting to hang out with these people for a couple hours is such an experience that really, it’s better than it even needs to be.
Sean Penn’s performance is so good, i was seriously vaguely unimpressed for about 30 seconds after the credits rolled, until it dawned on me that Sean Penn is NOTHING LIKE THAT. he just does not seem like he’s acting at all; my suspension of disbelief was so great that i stopped registering that he was an actor (if that makes any sense).
Abbie Cornish is AMAZING – i honestly only know her name from the tabloids, and was shocked at what a spectacular actor she is. she just IS her character, and can access such visibly real emotions that it literally took my breath away. Paul Schneider i recognize from Parks & Recreation, but he’s sharp and compelling here (with an adorable accent), while Ben Whishaw is suitably beautiful. young Thomas Sangster from Charlie & The Chocolate Factory is in almost every scene but gets only 3 lines!
why is Matt Damon so fucking adorable?! he is clearly having the best time ever in this movie, and makes it pretty fun for the audience as well. pretty much everyone else is pushed into the background by the force of Matt Damon’s personality, which i think is intentional, and the audience whooshes along the waterslide trajectory of the story. not as full a story as say, Catch Me If You Can, but much fun.
Meryl Streep’s half is terrific and fun and irresistible , but Amy Adams is totally incapable of playing a bitch – she comes off as merely neurotic and helpless, which just makes you feel bad for her and resent that Meryl isn’t on screen. also, Stanly Tucci = completely delicious.
I think this movie suffers most from the erroneous assumption that a story about a bitchy, self-obsessed 20-something writer is as interesting or compelling as a story about Julia Child. although perhaps if poor Amy Adams was able to give depth to her character, it could have been.
the acting is great, as is the Historic Male Fashion, but Michael Mann MUST BE STOPPED – he had all the pieces to make a masterpiece, and he couldn’t even muster up adequate. criminally bad cinematography – we need to suddenly switch to hand-held video shot from crotch level for this gun battle, really?! and the made-for-TV music was cheezy. Mann hasn’t made a decent movie in over 10 years and his losing streak isn’t broken here.