Talking To The Screen
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
Monday 2/10/03, 8:00 pm
United Artists Union Square Staduim 14
Chuck Barris was the creator of such game show phemonena as 'The Dating Game', 'The Newlywed Game' and 'The Gong Show'.
This is true.
According to Chuck Barris' "unauthorized autobiography", Barris was also a CIA hitman who killed over 30 people.
This might be true.
'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind' has an Hollywood heavyweight cast. Sam Rockwell ('Charlie's Angels') stars as Chuck Barris. Drew Barrymore, Julia Roberts, George Clooney and possibly the first
marquee screenwriter Charlie Kaufman fill out the supporting cast. Rockwell's portrayal of a depressed middle aged Barris is top notch, almost good enough to make me forget how painful watching
'Charlie's Angels' was.
In a major motion picture with a rookie director, it's difficult to piece out the component influences. The framing of the shots is unusual and very effective. There are a few really nicely edited
sequences. The performances have just the right blend of light hearted and dark. (I didn't hate Drew Barrymore in this.) The music is light jazz remeniscient of the theme to the Pink Panther. All
of these things could be part of George Clooney's directorial vision, or they may be additions from a D.P., sound designer, editor and all the other players. Regardless, Clooney managed to
orchestrate a visually engaging movie with a fun score and solid performances.
What excited me the most about this movie is something I've been looking for in film for a long time. A middle of the road version of truth. 95% of movies are transparent with their version of
truth. David Lynch goes out of his way to obfuscate it. Charlie Kaufman made me a happy boy by raising an eyebrow to the story, while not sabotaging its veracity. If you want to believe that Chuck
Barris was a killer-for-hire, a straight-ahead viewing of this movie will speak to you. If you are a skeptic, there are enough footholds in 'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind' for you to see Chuck
Barris as a delusional paranoid whose bored, depressed life is spiced up by the machinations of a mind in midlife crisis. This subtlety is exactly what was missing in John Nash in 'A Beautiful Mind'.
Charlie Kaufman is living up to and surpassing his reputation as screenwriter extraordinaire. This along with 'Adaptation' make him the first writer to compel me to see a movie. I'm off to track
down 'Human Nature' and await anxiously 'Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind' to come out next year.
'Confession of a Dangerous Mind' is great fun, and intelligent: an all too rare combination.
United Artists Union Square Staduim 14
Chuck Barris was the creator of such game show phemonena as 'The Dating Game', 'The Newlywed Game' and 'The Gong Show'.
This is true.
According to Chuck Barris' "unauthorized autobiography", Barris was also a CIA hitman who killed over 30 people.
This might be true.
'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind' has an Hollywood heavyweight cast. Sam Rockwell ('Charlie's Angels') stars as Chuck Barris. Drew Barrymore, Julia Roberts, George Clooney and possibly the first
marquee screenwriter Charlie Kaufman fill out the supporting cast. Rockwell's portrayal of a depressed middle aged Barris is top notch, almost good enough to make me forget how painful watching
'Charlie's Angels' was.
In a major motion picture with a rookie director, it's difficult to piece out the component influences. The framing of the shots is unusual and very effective. There are a few really nicely edited
sequences. The performances have just the right blend of light hearted and dark. (I didn't hate Drew Barrymore in this.) The music is light jazz remeniscient of the theme to the Pink Panther. All
of these things could be part of George Clooney's directorial vision, or they may be additions from a D.P., sound designer, editor and all the other players. Regardless, Clooney managed to
orchestrate a visually engaging movie with a fun score and solid performances.
What excited me the most about this movie is something I've been looking for in film for a long time. A middle of the road version of truth. 95% of movies are transparent with their version of
truth. David Lynch goes out of his way to obfuscate it. Charlie Kaufman made me a happy boy by raising an eyebrow to the story, while not sabotaging its veracity. If you want to believe that Chuck
Barris was a killer-for-hire, a straight-ahead viewing of this movie will speak to you. If you are a skeptic, there are enough footholds in 'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind' for you to see Chuck
Barris as a delusional paranoid whose bored, depressed life is spiced up by the machinations of a mind in midlife crisis. This subtlety is exactly what was missing in John Nash in 'A Beautiful Mind'.
Charlie Kaufman is living up to and surpassing his reputation as screenwriter extraordinaire. This along with 'Adaptation' make him the first writer to compel me to see a movie. I'm off to track
down 'Human Nature' and await anxiously 'Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind' to come out next year.
'Confession of a Dangerous Mind' is great fun, and intelligent: an all too rare combination.