Under the Silver Lake

My wife and I watched this at home on DVD from our public library. The DVD box doesn't give away much, "A delirious fever dream about one man's search for the truth behind mysterious crimes, murders, and disappearances in his East L.A. neighborhood."

The movie is a homage to 1950s film noir, and even the music was composed to evoke that feeling. Andrew Garfield is Sam, about to get evicted from his apartment for lack of payment, and about to have his car repossessed. But he doesn't seem to be in any rush to get work. He is only interested in finding out why a pretty neighbor disappeared suddenly.

Silver Lake is a community outside L.A., just east of Hollywood. There is also a reservoir there, which plays a role in the mystery. Frankly when it was over neither my wife nor I could explain a story in what we saw, but the style is so captivating that we kept watching.

I enjoyed it, my wife less so. It is not the type of movie everyone will enjoy.

Kinda makes me sad that this film could've been phenomenal if it was more considerate to the casual viewer. Bittersweet because it's great that filmmakers are able to make movies with little to no creative interference, but sometimes it's for the best. I'll start with what I like: this film has style for days. The lighting, production design, stilted characters were all mesmerizing. What I didn't: it felt meandering, bloated, and ultimately pointless. I know there's the "that's the point" argument to counter my "it was pointless" point, but when does "that's the point" become a cop out? I do think this film will garner an audience, but if it were just a bit more orthodox, it would've found that audience instantly.

Having heard very little about this film and but remembering its trailers, perhaps accidentally watched this film lesser on not so purpose.

Now this film has the feel of a neo noir type independent and lesser Hollywood atmosphere, and for those reasons it works. The atmosphere is very subtle and mysterious and there are a few things along the way which keeps are interest.

Unlike many films today, Under the silver lake is not so predictable which makes it a joy to watch. The runtime is quite length and at times may seem as if the film is about to end, then suddenly some other discovery occurs.

Enjoyable film simply for the adventure we see the character of Andrew Garfield goes through. Although the ending was somewhat of a letdown.

Finally released in my neck of the woods, A24's Under the Silver Lake starts off 2019 with a bang; an ambitious, labyrinthine, and transporting treat for all human senses. Its colors exquisite, its music delightfully old-school, and its story wonderfully bizarre and original, I've a feeling I already have one of my entries on my 2019 list set.

It starts with the young and aimless L. A. resident Sam (Andrew Garfield), who sees a mysterious woman played by Riley Keough at the apartment complex swimming pool. Although he finds a friend and maybe a lover in the woman, he later finds that she's disappeared without trace alongside her flatmates. Wanting to get to the bottom of this sudden departure, Sam finds out more than he expected, including the woman's connection with the death of a local millionaire, a recent series of dog killings, a peculiar indie band called Jesus & The Brides of Dracula, a "Homeless King", and other things that seem to eerily correspond with the plot of a zine he's been reading.

The side characters are many but they all leave an impression. We meet the adorable but strange Balloon Girl (Grace van Patten, niece of Dick), an actress known as The Actress (Riki Lindhome), Sam's conspiracy nut friend (Patrick Fischler), another friend (Jimmi Simpson) with his head oft in the clouds, a hipster friend known simply as Man at Bar (Topher Grace), and many more. Some are given cameos before they become important to Sam's quest but they remain entertaining throughout.

The director is David Robert Mitchell of It Follows and the composer is Disasterpiece, who provided the Carpenter-inspired synths for that very same film (I recall not being too hot on his music in that film but I've changed my mind). Like It Follows, this movie has an old-fashioned feel, albeit in its own ways.

Characters in the film prefer to hear their music on vinyl, play their games on a Nintendo Entertainment System, and get their porn from Playboy. Someone categorized this film as "hipster noir" and I can sort of see why.

This is an especially great film if you're into mysteries, urban legends, and conspiracy theories. It touches on everything from creatures said to lurk around Los Angeles at night, to secret shelters, to messages hidden within our music, to the idea that all of said music - whether it is rebellious or conformist, regardless of generation - was all masterminded by one person to shape our culture. On top of that is the directing and camera work; the clever, often Wes Anderson-like compositions as well as the long takes that involve many actors, extras and locations at once.

Under the Silver Lake is mystifying, to be sure, and some may be disappointed at its lack of answers. However, it is an original (yet classical) and at times mind-blowing film, even to those who aren't exactly conspiracy theorists. Those who end up liking it, as per my estimation, will end up REALLY liking it.

This movie was actually pretty interesting and kept me engrossed from the beginning. However there was a lot of stuff that wasn't explained and was left up for interpretation. Just gave me an uneasy feeling the whole time, but I think that was the point. I'd imagine that you'd need multiple viewings to "get" it, which I have not done yet. If you like creepy, weird, nutty thrillers then this is for you.