Maladies

Just came from the premiere at Cubix / Alexanderplatz (Berlinale film festival).

I still have no idea what hit me. I really like James Franco, Catherine Keener, and the other actors are also quite good performers, as they usually act absolutely authentic to me. but the script was as if stolen from some over-enthusiast in a middle school writing class. Not even one piece of dialog struck me. No dramaturgy. Just NOTHING catchy. I like different layers of meanings, I tried so hard yet couldn't find it here. The picture is good. That's it. I fell asleep for some minutes, maybe I've missed something important, which would make me reconsider the movie, but it's unlikely.

It started quite interesting, overall, very promising set of characters and their situation, but it just gets nowhere, for the whole movie. It is like you can actually feel how uncomfortable the actors must have felt with the script that has been handed to them.

Save your time. This is my first movie review since years, and I don't claim to be a good critic. But this is just worth warning people.

Just for a brief orientation, just to name a few (mostly popular) directors & writers of movies I enjoyed: Jim Jarmusch, Gaspar Noé, Werner Herzog, Wes Anderson, the Coen brothers, Alejandro González Iñárritu, David Fincher, David lynch, Quentin Tarantino

a strange , simple story . about solitude. and about relationships.a retreat soap opera actor, his sister, his best friend, a neighbor. a sort of Chekhov. or Ionesco. not real comfortable for a large part of public. but splendid occasion to discover James Franco and Catherine Keener as masters of great roles.in essence, a seductive story who has the real chance to have the perfect cast. because each gesture, each word, each meet becomes very important. and this is the detail who transforms Maladies in a sort of theater play, artistic experiment,mirror. because it is a touching pledge for see the other and the meet between James and the blind lady has the virtue to be pure poetry. short, one of the films who must see twice. for discover its beauty, admirable coherence, splendid acting.

This film tells the story of a household of three people, and a neighbour who all have some issues, or even psychiatric problems.

"Maladies" is a film that concentrates on the lives and interactions of four characters. James is the one that stands out, as he is a psychotic young man who seeks solace in listening to phone tones. Catherine is also interesting, as she perseveres through the hardship of living with James and Patricia. I like the fact that she stands up for herself and is assertive in the diner.

Though "Maladies" offer an interesting look at four different individuals who are tortured in some ways, I did not feel satisfied in the sense that I got something out of the film. It's like - now what, after the film?

The film itself differs from most films but underneath its surprising entertaining and at times very funny. James Franco is an absolute astonishing talent of an actor as well as the rest of the cast. More people should watch this film as it opens up the every day struggles of mental illness. I laughed, i cried and i was never bored despite the slow-pace of the film; ive come away feeling satisfied. Overall i would recommend to anyone who has experienced mental illness or even anyone who has a enhanced understanding of what it actually means to be cursed with a bad mental health.

This is seriously strange and tough to vote for on any scale. But it did touch a nerve with me. James Franco is incredible in the main role. The characters and the story make "sense" (maybe not in the traditional sense, but they do). It all fits together even when the movie seems to go in a completely different direction.

There is a story, but there are also bits and pieces that somehow do not make any sense. But the actors make this work. Like all the relationships in the movie are not really complicated, but it is told in such a fashion that it doesn't really feel like something you've seen before. I thought this was a good thing. I liked most of the ideas on display here (though there are obvious flaws too of course). If you can let yourself, you may be able to enjoy it too (if you are into these kind of movies that is)