Sujos e Sábios

Jesus wept. I wish that was all I could say about this blundering, self-indulgent idiot of a movie. I am still reeling from the public humiliation meted out to Eugene Hutz and Richard E Grant in this, as another commenter so aptly described it, car-crash of a movie.

The script they were handed and the movie they ended up embroiled in was the equivalent of them being packed into a bright pink Lada, tweaked up to the gills on meth and viagra, naked, before being forcibly driven at top speed into an oncoming bus-load of school children, with a haul of child porn sitting conspicuously on the back seat.

Madonna's unmistakable, drooling brand of pretentiousness is smeared all over this particular steaming pile of waste. Although pretentiousness might be a bit generous, as that would suggest at least an entry level modicum of intellect with which she had to work with; this is unadulterated idiocy.

Watching this movie I was constantly reminded of that scene from A Fish Called Wanda where Klein, after being accused of being stupid, responds indignantly 'Do stupid people read Russian philosophy?'. Curtis' answer kept running laps around my attention span: 'Yes, they do, they just don't understand it.' This sums up the driving force behind the pretentious, empty-headed fumbles this movie attempts to make in an effort to inject it with some kind of profundity, the like of which will no doubt appeal to people who have never experimented with thinking before, but alas will leave anybody who can spell the word 'wheelbarrow' without spell check smacking their heads off the nearest hard surface with contempt for the foolishness being hurled in steaming handfuls at their functioning brains.

They spray-painted Richard E Grant's hair gray for crying out loud. Not content with humiliating the man through the woeful string of drivel that was disingenuously entitled a script, they physically marked the man's person to make him look as foolish as the movie itself. There should be some kind of association for prevention of cruelty to actors set up if you ask me, Madonna would surely get the chair for what she did to Hutz and Grant. For shame...

I've given this movie 1 point because I like Hutz and Grant, 1 point because I like Gogol Bordello who provide much of the music and style evident in the movie, and I would give it another point for the car-crash quality that kept me glued to it in disbelief, reveling perversely in how progressively terrible it kept getting by the second.

It's that kind of morbid fascination you get if you smell a really bad fart, disgusting, repulsive, but morbidly fascinating that it can actually be that bad and actually be getting more repellent. But since there are clearly people commenting here who insist on over-rating this nonsense, waste-of-time testament to Madonna's failed education, I will withhold that third point.

If you like Grant or Hutz, avoid this movie at all costs; it's like watching them ritually humiliated by an idiot in the crudest and most unfortunate of fashions for a length of time that could qualify for a human rights violation. You will weep for them. I wouldn't be surprised if Guy Richie decided to distance himself from his missus on the strength of having seen this movie alone.

At least you could be forgiven thinking exactly that, if you look at the main player (also some sort of narrator) in Madonnas movie. Strangely (or maybe not) the movie seems to appeal more to women. I can't really explain this, but it did work better for woman. If it's only a Madonna star factor or a genuine nerve she hit with this one, is something I can't tell you ...

I can tell you though, that the performances are good, in a strange kind of way. Let's say, that the movie has Madonna written all over itself. You will most likely, either hate or love the film. Off beat and although it looks like a mess, it can be a lot of fun. That is, if you let yourself into the mood of the movie. So leave the prejudices at the door or don't enter at all!

I really liked the film. I admit I almost didn't go to see it because of all the bad press, but Im happy I did. And for those who haven't seen it and consider not to based on all the criticism, you really should go and see it for yourself.

I wonder what these critics were really expecting? Something a little more Hollywood? And what do you consider to be a "good" movie, if you don't seem to like this one very much?

I found the movie to be very honest. The only part I wasn't so convinced of was the the blind guy, his facial expressions didn't match the character, I think he smiled too much.

But other than that, where is the problem? Have any of you ever worked as a Dominatrix or known any sex workers? Or professional dancers who turned to working at a strip club to earn a living? You say "cliché" but often clichés/stereotypes exist for a reason, because actual human beings (re)act in certain ways in certain situations.

I think Madonna should feel proud of her work here! It was inspiring in its way, regardless of what some might say.

OK, so let me just say that I came into this as a huge fan of Eugene Hutz and Gogol Bordello and while I don't enjoy her music, I like Madonna's persona and was very excited to see the film.

On the upside, this movie did have some interesting ideas on, well... filth and wisdom, sex work and art. Unfortunately, the story-telling vehicle meant to get us to these ideas was so appalling that Mr. Hutz had to narrate them to us fairly explicitly. For ideas to work in a film WITHOUT an engrossing storyline, those ideas better be pretty profound (which these aren't) otherwise it just looks like the amateurish work of an angsty teen (which this did).

To make it all the more disappointing, the character set ups were GOOD. I wanted to like and know about each of the three protagonists and their relationships to each other. Unfortunately, everything goes downhill after we meet them. Their back stories are only hinted at, their motives and personalities one-dimensional and their stated relationships lacked the slightest chemistry. The secondary characters were worse.

So, what happened and who do we hold accountable for ruining this film? Someone was handed a great cast to play exciting characters, a nice little premise and some passable thematic ideas and yet it bombed. The real achievement of this film is that it managed to be as unwatchable as it was. The only real reason to sit through this pile is for the the sheer erotic thrill of seeing Eugene Hutz as a male dominatrix, and if that doesn't get you rocks off, then I'd just skip it all together.

A profound idea and Madonna put together sounds like a futile attempt to mix water and oil, but, being a guy who likes both Hutz as an actor and indie film alone should all by itself be testament to my willingness to be open-minded about unusual forms of art and interpretation. So, I watched Filth And Wisdom with no preconceived notions even after reading so many bad reviews.

Now that I've seen it, I'll just say that this film makes no effort to force you to think and ask questions, but simply lays out the overall message up front then just goes through the motions of showing it. There were moments of potential, but at no point did I even remotely wonder how things might turn out for each character in the end. It just didn't occur to me to care enough.

In short, if you're a fan of Hutz's former roles in acting, no less Gogol Bordello, you'll probably enjoy seeing Hutz play himself in this role at most, which features a scene of Gogol Bordello performing at the end. Filth and Wisdom, however, doesn't even come close to what you might have walked away with in Everything Is Illuminated. This film is just Madonna's effort to cash in on a new spotlight that no longer shines on her, in my opinion.

If you have no clue who Eugine Hutz or Gogol Bordello is and can care less, on the other hand, I advise you avoid this movie all together..... unless you're on a drug that can make almost anything interesting.

Either way, don't expect much and you won't be disappointed.