It would have been nice if we had any insight into how Cleo, our protagonist, was feeling. Or what she thought. OR if she had a personality. OR if she had a voice.
Like, there are Pieter Bruegel-like scenarios happening in the background, in front of Cleo's eyes...she's watching humongous, tragic events unfold, but how does she feel?? Why is she impenetrable to the audience??????? Why is the episodic structure of the film FORCING us to move on so quickly???????
Beautifully shot, very very slow movie with little plot and even less dialogue.
If that's what you like in a movie, this is for you.
I only found it to be so long and so boring.
I feel like this could have been a beautiful and interesting 20 minute short movie and they didn't even had to leave anything out plotwise.
Someone needs to take that dog to a vet. Any animal that craps that much in one night has something seriously wrong with it!
Jokes aside though.
This movie and I did not click. 5mins in and I knew it. Ended up watching it at 1.25x speed and it still felt like an eternity for it to end.
The shots lengths were long for long sake and just made the movie longer than it needed to be. At one point I wondered if Cleo was mentally handicapped because of the length of some of the shots.
It also felt disjointed to me. It follows Cleo doing here daily routine. Step by step. Then it jumps 3 MONTHS. Make up your mind.
Yes a sad story, but so what? Bad shit happened to good folks all the time! How does that make it special? Because we watch her doing the dishes for 5 minutes? Because it is in black and white? Just felt pretentious to me, and people loved it, which confused me.
To each their own. You enjoyed it. Good for you. I did not. Good for me. Lets agree to disagree.
This is Alfonso. Alfonso makes a movie. Alfonso shows a lot. Alfonso shows in his own aesthetic style. Alfonso is a first class director. Be like Alfonso.
It is a nice movie that made me think about what my life is about, whether I made wrong turns or not, and so forth. It's good if a movie makes you think like that. Some movies just blow your mind (like Fight Club), and this movie is more calm and slow, even though it provokes emotions too.
I found the following topics/ideas in the movie:
1. Life of the rich vs life of the poor.
The family had 4 kids whereas Cleo couldn't have one. That could have been caused by her carrying heavy luggage while pregnant. Yes, she was part of the family, and even saved 2 kids. Still it was their life being lived, not hers.
.
2. Some things are common regardless of wealth.
A man left the wife just like Fermin left Cleo. "We, women, are always alone, no matter what they tell us".
3.
The revolution scene, especially the moment when women holds a dead body of her man, shows that life goes on. People are born and killed, and that's sad. But regardless of how painful and unfortunate your situation might seem, somebody's love one has been just killed on a street.
The movie doesn't have any pathos. It just portrays real life. And it does that beautifully.
It's been a long time since I've seen a movie where the director (and cinematographer) has such complete control of the mise en scene. This is where the movie excels more than anything. It is breathtaking. But, yeah, I wonder what we can come away with regarding Cleo.
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Comments 1 - 15 of 22
sacmersault
Overratedmysteryfan
Let me try to sum up the story in one line - "A maid becomes pregnant". Ya that's it.Pete Concrete
It's about the same as watching beautifully shot home videos of a family that you don't know, and you also don't care about.Limbesdautomne
Cuarón's madeleine swamped with turpentine.Read more in French on La Saveur des goûts amers.
Ebbywebby
Cut 45 minutes, and there's a fine, understated little vignette hidden somewhere in here.Earring72
Gorgeous looking movie with stunning black & white cinematography…….but it left me cold. So dull. Really tried but was glad it was oversatisfythecrave
It would have been nice if we had any insight into how Cleo, our protagonist, was feeling. Or what she thought. OR if she had a personality. OR if she had a voice.Like, there are Pieter Bruegel-like scenarios happening in the background, in front of Cleo's eyes...she's watching humongous, tragic events unfold, but how does she feel?? Why is she impenetrable to the audience??????? Why is the episodic structure of the film FORCING us to move on so quickly???????
elcid
Like the planes we see in background, I found this film distant and cold.norimee
Beautifully shot, very very slow movie with little plot and even less dialogue.If that's what you like in a movie, this is for you.
I only found it to be so long and so boring.
I feel like this could have been a beautiful and interesting 20 minute short movie and they didn't even had to leave anything out plotwise.
kennypickett
Just watched this and I gotta say this movie is significantly better than Green Book.Warrison
Someone needs to take that dog to a vet. Any animal that craps that much in one night has something seriously wrong with it!Jokes aside though.
This movie and I did not click. 5mins in and I knew it. Ended up watching it at 1.25x speed and it still felt like an eternity for it to end.
The shots lengths were long for long sake and just made the movie longer than it needed to be. At one point I wondered if Cleo was mentally handicapped because of the length of some of the shots.
It also felt disjointed to me. It follows Cleo doing here daily routine. Step by step. Then it jumps 3 MONTHS. Make up your mind.
Yes a sad story, but so what? Bad shit happened to good folks all the time! How does that make it special? Because we watch her doing the dishes for 5 minutes? Because it is in black and white? Just felt pretentious to me, and people loved it, which confused me.
To each their own. You enjoyed it. Good for you. I did not. Good for me. Lets agree to disagree.
heat_
This is Alfonso. Alfonso makes a movie. Alfonso shows a lot. Alfonso shows in his own aesthetic style. Alfonso is a first class director. Be like Alfonso.goldan
It is a nice movie that made me think about what my life is about, whether I made wrong turns or not, and so forth. It's good if a movie makes you think like that. Some movies just blow your mind (like Fight Club), and this movie is more calm and slow, even though it provokes emotions too.I found the following topics/ideas in the movie:
1. Life of the rich vs life of the poor.
2. Some things are common regardless of wealth.
3.
The movie doesn't have any pathos. It just portrays real life. And it does that beautifully.
Agrimorfee
It's been a long time since I've seen a movie where the director (and cinematographer) has such complete control of the mise en scene. This is where the movie excels more than anything. It is breathtaking. But, yeah, I wonder what we can come away with regarding Cleo.Fastkit
What a fantastic film! Best cinematography 2018Showing items 1 – 15 of 22