JacFlash

An 80 year old grandmother walks down a sidewalk, steps off and the curb and lands face down in a puddle. Horrific. A well-to-do gentleman with a top hat and cane walks down a sidewalk, steps off the curb and lands face down in mud puddle. Hilarious. Comedy is all about set-up and perception, and so is violence.

Throughout this film we are subject to a multitude of forceful acts, all of them violent, all of them causing physical and/or emotional harm to another person, and all of them under vastly different circumstances. There were moments when (at my viewing) audience members applauded and cheered when act of violence was committed, they were also audibly horrified by others, and even found humor in yet others. Which acts are justified? Which are excessive? Is violence something that is passed from generation to generation? Can violence be funny, or even sexy? David Cronenberg plays the audience with this film, he asks us these questions, and we must think of how we reacted to each scene and find out where we draw personal lines.

Although the film is thought provoking, it indeed has it's flaws. There are points where the dialog is unintentionally laughable, and the film's family seems to be wearing their smiles just a touch wider than comfortable. But powerful performances from William Hurt and Viggo Mortensen tend to stick with us more than other distractions. See this film, think about it, and draw your own lines.

-3 stars for some iffy acting, clichéd supporting characters, and improbable situations even within the world the film creates.

I appreciate a good film, I dig Citizen Kane, Kubrick, David Lynch..etc. There should be no feasable reason that I find this movie appealing, yet I do! I'm not a moron, but this dumb, dumb, movie is so watchable it's a crime not to grab a tub of popcorn, a couple beers and dumb out for an hour and a half and see this one. You'll lose a few IQ points on the way, but it's worth it.

Although this is probably not the best documentary I've ever seen, the musical perfomances more than make up for it. After all these years, The Funk Brothers are tight as hell! It's also overwhelmingly inspiring to see musicians playing their music so well, and just enjoying it. The looks on the faces of the Brothers while playing are priceless. As for the "new" singers on each track, I was extremely happy with these renditions of classic Motown songs. Yes, Joan Osborne is mostly known for her 90s hit, "One of Us," but she also is an amazing soul singer who KNOWS her music. I defy anyone to listen to "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted" and tell me that it was not an inspired performance. Also Ben Harper and Gerald Levert do fine turns on classic Motown. Sure, these aren't "A-List" superstars of today. But would it really be about the music if (shudder) Whitney or Mariah got their hands on these songs? And lets face it, the few Motown artists from that era that are still touring today are shadows of their former selves. The vocalists in "Shadows" are well-picked, respected members of a musical elite, who are in touch with their roots, and show that respect in every note they sing, much like the Funk Brothers themselves.