Does anyone else think that this movie is more than a lot like The Third Man (1949) but with a lot of swearing?
http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=31996616
Blueharvestblues,
I came to the page for "The Good German" to ask the exact same question! The Third Man clearly had a very heavy influence on this film. Unfortunately, it didn't have enough influence because the Third Man is way better!
Matt
It reminds me of The Third Man too. But, The Good German is not as good as The Third Man, especially the end which seems weak to me.
shareHa ha! My thoughts too! Blanchet IS excellent in this but the film comes nowhere near The Third Man. First of all beside this film, the use of Black & White in The Good German is pedantic! I think we're too far away from the time that you had to put meaning into B&W through frame and light to ever do it as well as they managed at the transition to colour. Then, and I hate to say it, Clooney was hopelessly mis-cast. Awful. Terrible. I don't know if they screen tested him because he IS a good actor, but here it is all wrong. It's like he played Syriana which worked in THAT context but not here. I'm beginning to sense a lack of versatility in his performances anyway. Michael Clayton? He's the same everywhere, anyone else think so? Anyway, the film's not bad, just a little too long and a little too self-important. Make dinner, grab a tub of ice-cream, don't strain too hard to get into it and it shouldn't be too bad.
shareMy early thoughts were also 'The Third Man' but with more of 'Casablanca' as it went on.
Clever hommage but not a film of real depth.
The Third Man + Casablanca + just a splash of Chinatown.
Missing only one line of dialog: "Forget it Jake, it's Berlin."
Clooney does kinda act the same in every movie but some actors have such on-screen presence that I think they can afford to act the same in every movie. I dont think some actors can afford to do that (ie. Tobey Maguire) It isn't like being a soldier has any specific characteristics though, soldiers were regular dudes from wherever b4 they put the uniform on. I just think he hasn't picked any crazy roles yet that require him to act outside of himself (ie. foreigner with accent, mental handicap, etc.) I still think you're right though, he had an accent in O Brother, Where Art Thou and it still felt like Clooney.
share
You just named my three favorite films.
Clooney is a movie star, who's learning to nuance his performances--like Eastwood. Like Kirk Douglas, you never forgot who you were watching.
I applaud Clooney, though, for gaing weight & shaving his hairline back, for Syriana.
I think he recognizes his limitations. He did say once, that he marvels @ DeNiro & could never bear his soul like that.
Carpe Noctem!
Steven Soderbergh did a commentary for The Third Man Criterion Collection. It's definitely one of his favorites and a huge influence. This whole film was probably a sweeping homage to that film.
share Third Man is awesome. Defintely one of my favorites.
I don't think that Clooney was miscast. He has the same solid, strong-jawed good looks as the leading men of the '40s and '50s. He looks like he belongs in a noir-period movie. Also, his somewhat emotionless style of acting is appropriate to the hero/antihero of the noir genre. I'm sure that he was cast largely for the homage-to-the-period factor. Cate Blanchett recalls Marlene Dietrich a bit so far as the strong cheekbones go. And Lena is German and world-weary, like Dietrich. Tobey Maguire is the one who is out of place. He is too boyish for a noir character, though I can appreciate that he manages to bring a certain likeability to an otherwise unlikeable character. It's almost hard to hate Tully for indulging his every selfish whim because he does it with the glee of a kid in a candy store.