Characters created to share their true selves, David Thewlis at his best, stunning, amazing portrait not of one man, not of a country... probably I must say the image of humanity and its decay, one of those films you can't skip, the ones you kept thinking about days after the first watch and with the promise and urge to comeback and re-watch it agan and discover something else, something new. A true gem
I watch film after film after film, sometimes three or four in a day, waiting patiently for something to come along and blow me away. It happens maybe once or twice a year. Today, I watched Naked and I very well may go through the remainder of 2012 without viewing anything nearly as impressive.
Mike Leigh's Naked is not always an easy film to watch, on account of the sexual violence, but wow, what a powerhouse performance by David Thewlis! Now, I wish I knew how much of Naked was transposed from Homer's Odyssey (which is namechecked), because the film seems to vaguely bridge the gap between the epic poem and Joyce's Ulysses, with Johnny as an unrepentant Odysseus trying to avoid his fate as per Tennyson. Is Sophie his Circe? Is Louise (a young Lesley Sharp, very striking in this) his Penelope, and therefore the landlord right out of American Psycho the suitors? How about the security guard and the woman across the street as Scylla and Charybdis? Or is the latter a Siren? There is no one-to-one, as it's all very twisted, but it might be interesting to explore the evocations. What it amounts to is a Ulysses who spends his time sparring with strangers using hurtful words and playing at finding what buttons to push. You do reap what you sow and Johnny's universe (the city, the sea, Poseidon - ok, I'll let it go) deals him a worse and worse hand as we move through the narrative. It's one he deserves, and in a sense, one he invites, so adept at rejecting social norms that he will reject his own salvation when it comes, as well.
The movie depicts a few days of a man who is dishonest, womanizer, liar, freeloader but intellectual. It is also sad that some of the audience sees the guy as an anti-hero. No no! This guy is no Raskolnikov my friend, he is a manipulative prick and if you are a wannabe that's sad for you.
Although the characters showed in a bit of cartoonish exaggeration the basics are truly accurate.
And the sequel starts with the opening scene in which Johnny f.cks Sandra on the sofa when Louise comes in.
I expected quite a lot of this movie as there is not a single sceptic comment over here and because of the good ratings on different websites. But I was highly disappointed after I watched it: I just didn't get what's great in this movie (except Thewlis' performance). It has got a looong, uninteresting script with a quite unrealistic combination of strange characters. That were two hours of no thrill and without any enrichment for me, I have to say. Wouldn't recommend it although the music reminded me of the great British movie 'The Long Good Friday'.
I can't wrap my head around people liking this one. It's not funny, it's not insightful, and it's not compelling. I don't want to be insulting, but I can't imagine someone enjoying it for any reasons other than because they think they're supposed to, because they identify with Johnny, or because they mistook Johnny's incessant self-aggrandizement for actual wit, based just on the tone of his voice and the speed of his words; any of which is a pretty pitiful option. As a nihilist, I find the movie offensive, and as a movie fan, I find it full of itself. It feels to me like what it is: a movie about a particular younger generation, written by a man who is older than them and feels sorry for them. Very stagy, borderline sitcom-y. Pretty clearly paved the way for the equally masturbatory Black Books.
one of the most waste of time movies I've ever watched.
nothing new, nothing shocking, nothing insightful, nothing provoking... some existential mumbo-jumbo with over-the-top acting and weird characters do not make a movie different, interesting or intellectual. utter, total disappointment.
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Comments 1 - 15 of 17
AdGuzman
Characters created to share their true selves, David Thewlis at his best, stunning, amazing portrait not of one man, not of a country... probably I must say the image of humanity and its decay, one of those films you can't skip, the ones you kept thinking about days after the first watch and with the promise and urge to comeback and re-watch it agan and discover something else, something new. A true gemdevilsadvocado
I watch film after film after film, sometimes three or four in a day, waiting patiently for something to come along and blow me away. It happens maybe once or twice a year. Today, I watched Naked and I very well may go through the remainder of 2012 without viewing anything nearly as impressive.johnnyg
Really dark and bleak humor in this one. Absolutely unrelenting.MMDan
Miserable characters having a miserable time.Siskoid
Mike Leigh's Naked is not always an easy film to watch, on account of the sexual violence, but wow, what a powerhouse performance by David Thewlis! Now, I wish I knew how much of Naked was transposed from Homer's Odyssey (which is namechecked), because the film seems to vaguely bridge the gap between the epic poem and Joyce's Ulysses, with Johnny as an unrepentant Odysseus trying to avoid his fate as per Tennyson. Is Sophie his Circe? Is Louise (a young Lesley Sharp, very striking in this) his Penelope, and therefore the landlord right out of American Psycho the suitors? How about the security guard and the woman across the street as Scylla and Charybdis? Or is the latter a Siren? There is no one-to-one, as it's all very twisted, but it might be interesting to explore the evocations. What it amounts to is a Ulysses who spends his time sparring with strangers using hurtful words and playing at finding what buttons to push. You do reap what you sow and Johnny's universe (the city, the sea, Poseidon - ok, I'll let it go) deals him a worse and worse hand as we move through the narrative. It's one he deserves, and in a sense, one he invites, so adept at rejecting social norms that he will reject his own salvation when it comes, as well.Rohit
Overwhelmingly extraordinarymonty
This movie always puts me in a good mood.heat_
The movie depicts a few days of a man who is dishonest, womanizer, liar, freeloader but intellectual. It is also sad that some of the audience sees the guy as an anti-hero. No no! This guy is no Raskolnikov my friend, he is a manipulative prick and if you are a wannabe that's sad for you.Although the characters showed in a bit of cartoonish exaggeration the basics are truly accurate.
And the sequel starts with the opening scene in which Johnny f.cks Sandra on the sofa when Louise comes in.
Staulphin
Great dialogue and acting! David Thewlis should have won an Oscar for this IMOnager
I expected quite a lot of this movie as there is not a single sceptic comment over here and because of the good ratings on different websites. But I was highly disappointed after I watched it: I just didn't get what's great in this movie (except Thewlis' performance). It has got a looong, uninteresting script with a quite unrealistic combination of strange characters. That were two hours of no thrill and without any enrichment for me, I have to say. Wouldn't recommend it although the music reminded me of the great British movie 'The Long Good Friday'.jlfitz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMwzvAt84P8Alias
A great movie.Fellini_Fiend87
One of the best films of the '90s. David Thewlis gives a brilliant performance. It's a shame the Academy overlooked it.manwithpetgull
I can't wrap my head around people liking this one. It's not funny, it's not insightful, and it's not compelling. I don't want to be insulting, but I can't imagine someone enjoying it for any reasons other than because they think they're supposed to, because they identify with Johnny, or because they mistook Johnny's incessant self-aggrandizement for actual wit, based just on the tone of his voice and the speed of his words; any of which is a pretty pitiful option. As a nihilist, I find the movie offensive, and as a movie fan, I find it full of itself. It feels to me like what it is: a movie about a particular younger generation, written by a man who is older than them and feels sorry for them. Very stagy, borderline sitcom-y. Pretty clearly paved the way for the equally masturbatory Black Books.deckard.
one of the most waste of time movies I've ever watched.nothing new, nothing shocking, nothing insightful, nothing provoking... some existential mumbo-jumbo with over-the-top acting and weird characters do not make a movie different, interesting or intellectual. utter, total disappointment.
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