Passion Play

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source: Passion Play

I rented this movie and got to the 20 minute mark and pushed the eject button. The first 20 minutes reminded me of a film student's work. The script, editing, continuity and acting had been phoned in. If it had been a film student's work it would have been forgivable; it would have been judged as a student's work. The script must have read better than the movie that resulted from it. I expected a better performance from Bill Murray. Megan Fox is over-rated as an actor, as is Mickey Rourke. Most of the scenes that I watched were embarrassing and silly from a dialog and story perspective. Poor (silly) script, poor editing, poor continuity and poor (silly) acting. No wonder it went straight to video. How did this production ever get financing?

I found this film more touching than I would have imagined. Megan Fox was very good in her archetypal role. Beautiful music, some lovely photography, with nice turns by the various actors. If there was a problem with the film, it was the script. Rourke's character, Nate Poole, undergoes some changes that aren't fully worked out, even within the magical realism of the world the film creates, and thus, his actions don't entirely seem consistent or fully motivated. I've heard Rourke has criticized Ms. Fox's acting, and that seems unfair. The failure of the film at the box office is definitely a function of the script, not Ms. Fox. For all its flaws, it's still a moving, often strangely beautiful film.

Well what can one say about his "film" I like Billy Murray and was the only good bit of acting in film. Megan fox has her place in some films. Ryhs Ifans is good actor but given a horrible script. Never really like Micky Rouke. Why does he wear nail varnish ? The film leaps around with no explanation or credibility. Its drawn out and I feel is if I need another drink or 2 to stay sane. Yes I watched it from start to finish. If you are bored and need an hour and half to kill this is for you. Story line non existent, credibility non existent, acting ..... You get the gist.

I did not read the reviews, even the TIFF's disapproval, until after I viewed the movie. I can only wonder why this spiritual story bypassed the minds of men. It was a fabulous venture into a real death and life's reflective review. Sometimes a person just can't get out from under the control of bad people (Bill Murry's gangster character) until they die and are set free, and this is the case for Nate (Mickey Rourke) who views the flight of the Eagle at the time of his death and smiles knowing it and he is free. Letting go of life and taking a visionary look back into some of it's misery is the reason for this film. Let your spirit fly with Megan Fox (the bird-woman) as Lily (the flower of death) as she beautifully portrays the protector of man's spirit. The story is a sad one, and the characters are played as such. See it with your eyes open and heart ready to be full.

How is it that I never heard of this one? A fine movie... Megan Fox CAN act after all and many times I had claimed the opposite. Even though this movie was quite predictable, IMHO, it was still a great watch and we were spared the over-the-top violence that so many other lesser movies rely upon. The only murky part of the film was the whole sequence when Nate hooked up with that over-Inked junkie but I don't want to come too close to Spoiling. I mean I understood what and why it all went down but still... I haven't done a review here in eons but I saw the 4.5 rating for this and felt compelled to get people to give this a shot, well worth it. FWIW, also felt Mickey was the perfect Nate... not sure Bill M was a great Happy but not terrible either. BTW - MFox is only semi-* but gorgeous as ever.

I rather enjoyed this movie. I had absolutely no expectations and thought I was going to fast forward based on a few bad reviews, but I gave it a chance and it was not that bad. If you rent this movie just to see Megan Fox half-*, then you are going to be disappointed. She gives a deeper, more mature performance in this movie. The plot in short (contains spoilers): Mickey Rourke plays a washed up musician. He has been sleeping with a gangsters wife, so he is about to get executed by a hired killer in some remote mountains. Then a series of "unlikely" events take place. He mysteriously gets saved by three native Americans who shoot the killer and run off. He Starts walking and ends up at a carnival. He meets Megan Fox who is a half woman half bird creature. She tells him that she is not an angel, she hates being a freak and that she can not fly. He rescues her from the evil owner of the Carnival. The run off, fall in love, the gangster finds out about the "angel" and takes her in exchange for the musicians life. He goes back for her..... ... in the end they try to get away from the gangster and get stuck on a roof. He jumps off and she jumps after him and manages to catch him and suddenly she is able to fly. As they fly further and further away they arrive at the same mountains where he was about to get killed in the beginning of the movie. Then you see the killer driving away in his car and the musician lying dead on the ground. So he was dead all along. I think the whole movie was a bit symbolic. The musician tries to be good and saves the "angel" and ends up saving himself.

The original cut of this film was rushed out for the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival and got ROASTED by critics and Micky himself.... and its very easy to see how that could happen with such a delicate and light plot... it was completely re cut and then, due to the poor reviews, only shown on 2 screens grossing 2,000 (!) then to video.... ouch... I just watched the directors / DVD cut and was impressed. It is delicate and nuanced. If you are a viewer who appreciates life meaning and subtlety in film as you might see in Terrence Malik, you can see how Passion Play is sort of an attempt at a life view. There is good cinematography and all the basic elements, and I'd describe it as strong but not excellent. I'm not a Megan Fox fan, and while not top flight here, she is good. Who knows, if she can get a few more films to develop her career she may not regret the whole Michael Bay thing. Micky does a Wrestler echo with good effect. As usual, Bill Murray is by far the strongest talent, but in this case he doesn't have quite enough to work with and seems underused. While not top flight, It's not a waste of your time. If you re one of these people who's got to have a completely traditional film structure, you will be disappointed... but for the philosophical among you... there is something worth watching here....