Roemer
Joined Jun 1999
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Reviews17
Roemer's rating
A lot has been said here. But almost none of it is about Sam's Song, and even if it is, it often isn't rue.
Sam's Song is not unfinished. At least, I saw a movie that had opening credits, closing credits, and the rest made sense as well. And Sam's Song is NOT, I REPEAT: NOT "The Swap". Even though I saw the movie on a DVD which promoted it as "The Swap", and even if the cover said it would be about a porn director being killed: it isn't.
It's a fairly simple love story told in an uncommon way. Not much really happens, but that doesn't stop you from being intrigued. The film is not very much concerned about plot, but more about atmosphere and the characters. The film shows us four characters which are all unpredictable and yet very recognizable, maybe just because they are unpredictable and are not Hollywoodlike at all. The fact that De Niro plays a wannabe director hardly plays any part in this movie. It's a pleasant story about two couples: one that just met en one that has been together for years, seemingly destined to live happily ever after.
The film is intriguing because of the unpredictable dialogs, the weird pace, the uncommon silences and, of course, because it's a very honest en typical 60's/70's film, a time document. The director en the editor were clearly not untalented. De Niro plays very differently from his well known parts, but I would call it a different style, not per se worse.
The ending is a bit abrupt and feels weak. It denies the title "Sam's Song". Sam (De Niro) is the protagonist but the movie, in the end, is about the other three characters. That's where the main weakness lays: Sam is the main character, and he is intriguing (De Niro's talent already showing?) but in the end, he is unimportant.
Most votes and comments here are about "The Swap", a version with extra material which doesn't resemble Sam's Song in the slightest anymore. Don't be fooled. Even though that's hard: Sam's Song is sold as The Swap and vice versa. Sam's Song itself is definitely worth to be seen even if it's far from a master piece. 6.5 out of 10
Sam's Song is not unfinished. At least, I saw a movie that had opening credits, closing credits, and the rest made sense as well. And Sam's Song is NOT, I REPEAT: NOT "The Swap". Even though I saw the movie on a DVD which promoted it as "The Swap", and even if the cover said it would be about a porn director being killed: it isn't.
It's a fairly simple love story told in an uncommon way. Not much really happens, but that doesn't stop you from being intrigued. The film is not very much concerned about plot, but more about atmosphere and the characters. The film shows us four characters which are all unpredictable and yet very recognizable, maybe just because they are unpredictable and are not Hollywoodlike at all. The fact that De Niro plays a wannabe director hardly plays any part in this movie. It's a pleasant story about two couples: one that just met en one that has been together for years, seemingly destined to live happily ever after.
The film is intriguing because of the unpredictable dialogs, the weird pace, the uncommon silences and, of course, because it's a very honest en typical 60's/70's film, a time document. The director en the editor were clearly not untalented. De Niro plays very differently from his well known parts, but I would call it a different style, not per se worse.
The ending is a bit abrupt and feels weak. It denies the title "Sam's Song". Sam (De Niro) is the protagonist but the movie, in the end, is about the other three characters. That's where the main weakness lays: Sam is the main character, and he is intriguing (De Niro's talent already showing?) but in the end, he is unimportant.
Most votes and comments here are about "The Swap", a version with extra material which doesn't resemble Sam's Song in the slightest anymore. Don't be fooled. Even though that's hard: Sam's Song is sold as The Swap and vice versa. Sam's Song itself is definitely worth to be seen even if it's far from a master piece. 6.5 out of 10
As this films begins, the overly melodramatic music predicts exactly what kind of movie this is going to be. It is a story that takes itself much too seriously, a film that should have been made forty years ago to have the impact that makers intended. The story is predictable and lacks Hitchcock's basic rule : The viewer always has to ask himself "what happens next?". If you miss the second half of the movie, you haven't missed a thing: it's just more of the same in a slow pace and an ever increasing melodramatic tone, without variations.
Both main characters and story have a certain amount of depth, but not so much tpo prevent them from seeming simple and flat. This is probably due to the fact that neither characters nor story contain any surprising elements. The characters are too obviously formed too fit the story, instead of the other way around. For instance, the mother. She has children because she needs to have a family. But she has no feelings whatsoever for them in the movie, which is highly unlikable for the character portrayed, who is clearly a very emotional character, even though captured in a straitjacket of lifestyle and biased environment. The character of Raymond Deagan is too perfect and politically correct to be believable. This may have been a conscious choice, the way the role was acted it seemed like the character was from another movie and another era entirely. The character of the father is the most interesting, yet he is only there to move the story (slowly) forward. He deserves his own storyline.
So, the story sucks; the movie itself has some really good and subtle moments, in the first half, that is. The acting is decent, the art direction is superb, the directing is fine, although the pace is too slow. There are many subtleties and references I probably am not aware of in this movie. Yet for me, if the story sucks, the movie sucks. 5/10.
Both main characters and story have a certain amount of depth, but not so much tpo prevent them from seeming simple and flat. This is probably due to the fact that neither characters nor story contain any surprising elements. The characters are too obviously formed too fit the story, instead of the other way around. For instance, the mother. She has children because she needs to have a family. But she has no feelings whatsoever for them in the movie, which is highly unlikable for the character portrayed, who is clearly a very emotional character, even though captured in a straitjacket of lifestyle and biased environment. The character of Raymond Deagan is too perfect and politically correct to be believable. This may have been a conscious choice, the way the role was acted it seemed like the character was from another movie and another era entirely. The character of the father is the most interesting, yet he is only there to move the story (slowly) forward. He deserves his own storyline.
So, the story sucks; the movie itself has some really good and subtle moments, in the first half, that is. The acting is decent, the art direction is superb, the directing is fine, although the pace is too slow. There are many subtleties and references I probably am not aware of in this movie. Yet for me, if the story sucks, the movie sucks. 5/10.
I envy all people whose world changed when they saw this movie. I envy them big time. I fell asleep when I saw it, and I think this is the first and only movie that ever succeeded in doing that. There goes my reputation as an intellectual. I cannot enjoy the merits of the genius Godard, because the story gets in the way. What story? No story. Just a repetition of the same all over again, ad infinitum. I like story. I like development, story development, character development. I'm sorry. I know that's banal. This film is just too subtle and too storyless for me. I guess I'll have to stick to my favorite boring story containing movies like Amarcord or Playtime. Sigh. What do they see what I don't see and that keeps them awake? I'm seriously jealous.