Steve Pulaski
I've stated before that I love to venture out of my comfort zone when it comes to film, and I believe everyone should as well. We can't simply conform to what mainstream Hollywood spoonfeeds us and forces us to see and believe, like American cinema is the best and only kind of cinema. We must challenge our tastes with films of different countries, by different directors, of different styles, and different mediums. I've been swimming in the sea of mumblecore recently, and have now reached my last stop in the Duplass brothers', Jay and Mark, filmography. That stop is Baghead and it was more like being kicked off from a good ride.The brothers would later go on after this film to make what I call "mumblecore with actors," meaning the films are true to the roots and definition of mumblecore, but instead of utilizing amateur actors, they would recruit more well-known stars and challenge their abilities. Baghead is inept in almost every field of filmmaking and even at eighty minutes feels like an assault on patience and tolerance.We get a story concerns two couples who, after attending a film festival hosted by a good friend, become inspired to go to a remote cabin in the wilderness, crossing their fingers that inspiration will dawn on them and they will be able to whip up something. Soon, they start seeing a man with a paper bag on his head outside, and begin penning a screenplay parallel to this. Then, the simple sights become more prolific until the man is visibly stalking them in their cabin.The couples are Matt (Ross Partridge) and Michelle (Greta Gerwig), and Chad (Steve Zissis) and Catherine (Elise Muller). Along the way, convoluted love interests start to form between the two couples and I will spare you the details because it would become a chore on my part and you, the reader, to read about it. It becomes something like Matt likes Catherine but is too afraid to ask her out, and Chad has liked Michelle for a while, etc. These characters are so stock and faceless that it's hard to even make out who is who at times. Assuming you're even interested.At this point in time, the mumblecore movement in cinema was still forming and, while the movement is more ideal for whimsical comedies and light-hearted dramas, nobody ever said a horror film couldn't be constructed following the rules of the genre. Unfortunately, crossbreeding the genres resulted in an unsuccessful film. No atmosphere is created, no believability or interest is structured, and the dialog for the film, which, by the brothers, is the part that is usually taken very seriously, is taken in a haphazard, disorganized manner, with only fragmented screams and vague arguments brewing. It's a complete mess.Baghead concludes on a cheap, indie note, but before that, we have a truly unbelievable twist that isn't even examined or further developed. I conclude by saying it was a smart move on the brothers' part to try and nudge the genre into the limelight by having popular actors in the roles of amateurs. The acting here is yet another problem in this parody (?), satire (?), homage (?) of errors.Starring: Ross Partridge, Steve Zissis, Greta Gerwig, and Elise Muller. Directed by: Jay and Mark Duplass.
pturner1010
So this is 'mumblecore'? This is the first 'mumblecore' film I've watched and on this evidence, it's unlikely I'll watch anymore.I was hoping for a silly horror film parody, something similar to the recent and infinitely better Rubber featuring a nasty rubber tyre that likes to blow peoples head ups with the power of its little rubber mind.Unfortunately, though Baghead does feature a guy who stands menacingly outside four friends' cabin in the woods with a bag on his head, it also features no surprises, not much of a script and DV cinematography that just seems downright lazy.Beginning with a preachy bit about still being able to make good films on a very low budget, it then proceeds to prove that it doesn't matter what size your budget is, you need some likable characters and some interesting plot developments that aren't obvious about 10-20 minutes before they are revealed.I guess this might be likable if you like 'mumblecore' films like Funny Ha Ha and In Search of a Midnight Kiss but after this I won't be in too much of a hurry to seek them out.If you fancy an unconventional, silly horror film... go watch Rubber... NOW!
iflapsimh
Well, more fun from the mumblecore scene (wish they came up with a better term but hey ho). I must admit to laughing quite a bit at the opening scene, it was almost as if the filmmakers were mocking the genre itself with the Q&A. There's also a couple of funny gags in there that work as they're believable at the same time. The romance side of things works as well, just like it did in The Puffy Chair, and the horror is just lots of fun.I just enjoy watching this type of movie, actors always seem a lot more at ease and it just means that I've a much better viewing experience. Some say it's not a comedy but I laughed even at the parts that weren't 'supposed' to be laughed at. That's how it goes. Another thumbs up for the Duplass brothers.
galmstadt
First off there's something going on in Hollywood. All the mid level independent's are disappearing. The Duplass Brothers who made a couple of shorts both of which I've seen and thought were great ( the Intervention and Scrapple) with wonderful acting and amazing scripting have been producing their work on minuscule budgets. Great!... sounds great to me were it not for the fact that their work is getting worse and worse at an amazingly rapid pace. From impressive shorts to the ultimately lukewarm and overly cute Puffy Chair to this uninspired and utterly disposable filler. I don't know much about the rest of the cast but Steve Zssis is a great actor and I know Mark Duplass himself is a fairly solid actor and knows what's up...so why is it that just about every desperate aspiring actor I've ever met in LA or elsewhere is more interesting and moving and has more behavior than the characters in this film? I found this film pretty dumb and insulting. it wants so badly to be liked and to work kind of well on a number of fronts and to show Hollywood it can make their kind of entertainment with next to nothing that it has done just that...made Hollywood garbage for next to nothing. Big whoop. Gerry Bruckheimer's waiting....I personally hate entertainment most days but I even suggest watching a bigger budget film from a few years back with Neve Cambell. This one works poorly on just about all fronts and is even more repugnant being as these guys actually could probably do something pretty strong if they weren't pandering Hollywood scabs. As a character study of struggling actors and precarious relationships (probably the most interesting approach it could have taken) it's shallow, unfelt callous and uninsightful ....as a scary film it makes you jump successfully all of once and as a comedy it's barely funny at all. What a goddamned shame. waste of talent.
