The Burn After Watching

It's really very rare that everything you've heard about a movie from reviews and other people is exactly right. Well, that's how I felt about Burn After Reading.

Here are the things I heard before going into the movie:
It's extremely twisted and the plot is hard to describe
Brad Pitt is hilariously awesome
It's not as good as No Country for Old Men


If you read movie reviews at all there's really no need for me to delve into those because you've probably already read it somewhere else,so I'll try not to repeat.

I cannot honestly say that I am a fan of the Coen brother. I mean there's certainly not anything to dislike about them, but I just haven't seen many of their movies. I've currently only seen Three: O'brother where Art Though, Big Lebowski, and Fargo and I still have yet to see all of No Country for Old Men. I know I know, whatever. My point being I didn't go in with overly high expectations and come out disappointed by an average film.

Obviously he would describe it perfectly, but I think Joel categorized the movie best when he said the sountrack was "something big and bombastic, something important sounding but absolutely meaningless." That's pretty much what the movie itself is. What seems like a stab and the CIA and internet dating and idiots is just a silly light-hearted movie focused more on the characters than plot, without any kind of bigger message.

Some critics would (and have said) say that this movie is perfectly cast. Really I just like to think that's what all of the actors are like in real life. Brad Pitt is a generally good-hearted idiot who has no real motive for his actions and is a little on the vain side. Tilda Swinson just looks like a bitch. I think it might be because she's ugly, and has really pointy abrasive looking facial features, or maybe I just think that because I can't bring myself to like her after seeing The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. George Clooney is undoubtedly a ladies man in real life who is probably so neurotic from all of those years having to play a doctor on E.R. Doctors are all a little neurotic if you ask me, and you should because I work for one. I don't really know John Malkovich personally although, I can imagine having Cameron Diaz and John Cusack crawl in and out of your brain all the time would make you a bit touchy.

Anyway, The best way I can describe this movie is droll and completely unpredictable. None of the characters are really all that loveable with the exception of Brad Pitt who you feel bad for because he is just retarded. Frances McDormand has some potential for compassion because she was just looking for love in all the wrong places, and I would have felt bad if she just wasn't so annoying. After it was over both Sean and I decided we would have rather waited to see it on Netflix.