Jacobs43

First, nothing else I am about to say in anyway reflects poorly on Russel Crowe, whom I think is an excellent actor. Without him, this film could have been much worse. I'm generally a fan of Karen Gillan too, but she spoke with a bizarre affect for much of the movie.

The concept itself is quite odd too. Roy (Crowe) is suffering from Alzheimer's. In spite of this, an attorney tries to recruit his assistance in uncovering the truth of a past police case. But the Alzheimer's suffers from plot convenience-itis, as it it comes and goes to help the plot along. One moment Roy can barely recall his name (in fact, he needs to leave notes around his home to remind him of his name, address, etc.) all around the house. The next moment, all alone he's traveling to strange locations -- by car, using Uber, taking mass transit? Who can say, but it all seems a bit much to believe for a character with severe cerebral issues. He sways between these moments of almost near complete cognitive loss to having fluid conversations with people about details of a complicated case a decade earlier.

This was an interesting premise but ultimately the execution left something to be desired. Kudos to Crowe for making it better than it could have been though.

I'm not really sure how I feel about Nope except to say that it didn't elicit any strong feelings from me one way or the other. I can't say I liked this film, but I can't say I hated it either. It kept me interested enough to keep watching but in the end I didn't find anything too thrilling for the time I spent watching it. It's difficult to get invested in the characters. There are some light attempts at development and backstory that just don't lead anywhere.

To its credit, I often complain about the entertainment industry not having any unique ideas. Nope has that in spades though. I don't believe I've heard of a plot anything like this one before. I certainly wouldn't turn anyone away from it and perhaps their viewing experience will more enriching than mine.

I found this randomly on Hulu and gave it a shot. Sometimes that can turn out to be a disastrous decision, but not this time. The Way Way Back is just a good bittersweet film that doesn't try to muddle its plot or characters with any messaging. The characters are all relatable. It's been nice to see post-The Office Steve Carell playing characters outside of his past goofball comedy roles. He has a lot of range to show off. He's completely believable as a domineering and emotionally abusive partner in this film. Sam Rockwell, as usual, turns in a great performance also.

If I had to give one (fairly) big critique of the film, it would be that I wanted to see more definitive resolution with the Carell's and Colette's characters, but certainly isn't too detracting. I would definitely recommend this movie.