This week really threw us off by the time we got to the show. Killing Them Softly wasn’t heavily pushed, and there were certainly a plethora of “still in theaters” choices, but we had no idea had softly the film would hit. 7th at the box office is not what we were expecting from a Brad Pitt film.
Plus, we had, I think, unexpected reactions to the film. Considering my expectations going in, I was not thinking that I’d be struggling with myself, hoping I could rate it lower. It has a curious number of problems when matched up with all the things I loved about it.
An incredibly slow-moving 90-minute film, this is the odd case of a film experience in which the slow, almost dragging scenes are actually the best parts, and the parts that keep it moving and interesting. I can’t think of another film that created this dynamic, which left hoping it would slow down so that it would speed up.
Shane had a similar reaction, and that’s surprising as well. He was more comfortable with a slightly higher rating, but we seemed to see the film about the same, and I actually wasn’t expecting that.
It’s also a film that makes for a specific disappointment, because Brad Pitt was excellent, and he was surrounded by impressive performances. At a certain point I became truly desperate for the film to just stick with where it was going so right, but it ultimately refused.
In the end, we actually only covered the film for half our time, and focused on our continuing coverage of award season. This week, as it was a little early to get too far into the categories, we looked at the buzz heavy films that won’t be on our best lists this year.
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I also mentioned a cool, new connection Are You Screening? has during the show, and that’s a curator list that I put together for History. I put together a list of sci-fi movies for them, with mini-reviews, and you can find that on History’s Shop website here.
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