Really?
I still like Joseph Gordon-Levitt (dude is gonna be big after Inception hits) and some of the scenes were funny, but I had no idea what they were saying and had to fast-forward through most of this to get some closure.
It's kind of like Shakespeare. You need cliff notes to get what they're saying.
i hope you choke on your bacardi & coke!
*Team Landa*
Yeah... I kept up with it. I'm 34. In fact, I'd bet its style will appeal more to older viewers than younger viewers.
sharewatch:
The Maltese falcon
Double indemnity
Murder my sweet
out of the past
the big sleep
for some great classic noirs with hard boiled, slang-filled dialogue.
Without an appreciation for classic film noir it is easy to get lost in such a film as Brick.
Exactly as "sammingrice" stated. It's in the same vein as it's classic noir predecessors.
I'm over 40 and followed it -- and loved it! Great attempt to set a noir in a modern high school.
"The whole world is about three drinks behind."
Humphrey Bogart
For what it's worth, I'm 32 and my husband's 36. We both kept up with and quite enjoyed the movie. I've got to admit though, before we got the film noir connection, we were having trouble. Once that clicked, it made perfect sense.
I think that maybe you need to have watched some classic film noir to get the references - something like The Big Sleep or The Maltese Falcon. I'm guessing, therefore, that older viewers would get more out of Brick because they understand what it was trying to achieve.
While I don't really think it's a masterpiece, it is a very interesting film with an unusual premise. It was an impressive attempt.
I agree. I think the young'uns are most likely to have trouble keeping up with this one. I'm sure I can use that phrase since I'm 38. It was an interesting movie and it was fun to see a recent noir style film.
shareI'm 21 and found it pretty easy to understand. It's just like reading. If you don't know what a specific word means, look at the context and it should become apparent.
If you didn't understand it, you should probably read more or watch more movies within the genre.
Well said, lifemadeez89. I was around 37 when I saw it and I kept up fine. The things I didn't immediately understand eventually made sense after a little thought. As you said I think it has more to do with understanding context and frankly, not growing frustrated when you don't understand something. It's nice to break away from the mold once in a while.
Back off! ... Way off!
It's not mainly supposed to be a funny movie, but okay... What do you mean if anyone over 20 managed to keep up? The way they talk is hard to follow in the beginning, but it has nothing to do with teenage-jargon! Kids don't talk like that, detectives in movies do.
And YOU have meddled with the primal forces of nature, and YOU...WILL...ATONE!
I was 60 the first time I saw this - and I didn't get all the references or slang the first time thru. Some of the dialogue was mumbled a bit too. But I know a great film when I see it and I've seen this one about ten times. The slang and dialogue makes perfect sense by the time you understand exactly what's going on. This is great noir transferred to a modern high school setting and it's well worth some extra effort to understand and enjoy the writing. Oh - it didn't take ten times to 'get' it - two was enough - the rest were for pleasure. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is one of the best actors I've ever seen.
shareI'm 32 and I followed it fine... You can't complain about having difficulty following something if you're not prepared to watch it. Also, subtitles.
shareI think if you follow patiently and, most importantly, pay attention, it all becomes clear. It really has nothing to do with age -- this isn't the kind of slang that ANYONE uses, ever, so being young doesn't help.
You might not understand what each individual word means, but if you get caught up on individual words, you'll get distracted and lost the plot. You have to just listen and let the words and slang give each other context.
It's the same as watching fast-paced British comedies (assuming you're not British) -- you may not understand every word, but in the patient listening, the words give each other context.
Couldn't understand? I guess you're not familiar with this style of writing; it's basically a modern day, if slightly surreal Dashiell Hammet detective story. As others have noted it fits into the film noir genre. Regarding your main point, I am 23 and not even American, I followed it perfectly.
shareI'm 27 and could follow along with the story, and English ain't my first language. I don't think it has to do with age.
shareI'm 26 and had almost no clue what was specifically being said in every scene, but I think I was able to piece together mostly what happened. Looking at imdb.com's FAQ helped.
The film is very difficult to follow and I was sometimes less than engaged because of it. I wish I had watched it with subtitles.