Mainstream

'Mainstream' was a very strange experience for me. It's one of the more unique films I've ever seen, however unique certainly doesn't always equal good. The main problem I found with the film were the characters. The type of people being portrayed - fame-seeking, do anything for money, selfish, entitled scum - aren't a lot of fun to watch, even when they are being portrayed by Andrew Garfield giving everything he has to a role.

Garfield is probably the one redeeming factor this movie has going for it. It was a strange performance to watch because I could tell he was putting it all out there and doing a great job of it, but his character was so strange and unlikeable that it almost all went to waste. Maya Hawke (daughter of Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke) on the other hand didn't have to do a whole lot for her role, but because she was the one mildly likeable character her performance came across quite well. It was a weird dynamic.

I don't think I can recommend this one. There's a world where I could see people enjoying this here and there, but for the most part people just aren't going to have a good time with this one. If you like unique and bizarre movies though then this one could be right up your alley. Otherwise stay away.

This movie caught my attention because of Andrew Garfield, who pour his everything in this somewhat of a mediocre movie. Though it had an interesting premise, the execution was just...bad. If you have one and a half hours to kill, you could check it out, but you'll surely get frustrated by the end of it.

So first I'll start with the cast,, Andrew Garfield acting was great, and the last scene was just wicked good .. Maya Hawke role was okay ,, Nat Wolff. Just got his everyday role, loving the girl - doesn't get the girl-then he gets the girl .. but it was a good casting overall.

The bad thing now is the storyline, as some has mentioned it does have a lot of clichés ,, Like the fist 10 minutes I was like things are going this way .. very expected ... It tries to draw you back but again it just felt predictable.

I do get it tries to send a message ,, a purposeful one I must say. But you also want to watch a movie with good writing /directing in which Gia Coppola was not successful.

Is the movie watchable ? Yes it is .. Is it enjoyable ? I'd say 5/10 .. now is it recommendable ? 6/10 for the message an all.

48/100

It hurts, doesn't it? Seeing one of your favorite actors carry an entire film that just doen't hold up. What's way worse, though, is seeing that movie -even though you'll regret it- just because of that same actor.

A tiny bit part about Mainstream actually knew what it was doing. It understood that, inside influencer culture, some of the people out there making content aren't the problem, but that they all share the chance of becoming emotionally-manipulated in a matter of seconds while also passing that onto their audience -and practically everyone around them-, creating a self-destructive yet stable community. But that was virtually it, despite some of the performances, of course.

From emoji-vomiting to 8-bit music, the movie acknowledges its natural weirdness, but fails at taking advantage of it. It was like watching a YouTube video without a structure, which could've been great to make a statement through its editing if it hadn't played it safe throughout the whole film.

Effectively everything in Mainstream feels like a mess for better or worse but, for neither cases did writer/director Gia Coppola could prevent from getting old since that ability to manipulate the subject matter to one's liking lacked the most.

It's honestly impressive how a movie can be so weird, yet very predictable. It all started of so simple and honestly pretty interesting. Garfield plays an outsider who is just so fascinating and entertaining to look and listen to. He is by far the best thing to come out of this as he gives more than 110%. He shows the light and fun side, but also the dark places that an internet star can go to. On the other hand, the rest of this movie is just not on his level at all. I know Maya Hawke is a very good actress, but this just wasn't it for her. Her chemistry with Garfield just wasn't there and in general her character was just very of to me. But the main problem with this movie is definitely the story. I like the message that it's trying to tell us that we should all just put our phones down and be ourselves, but it's just the execution of that message that is so wrong. The exaggeration and unrealistic moments are so bad in this movie. This is not how the internet works, and we all know that. It's kinda like are writer went on YouTube for the first time, clicked on a couple of channels, and made a movie about it. It's just too much for me. It kept me entertained enough all the way through, but it's just not that good.