MovieChat Forums > Old Joy (2007) Discussion > how did people feel about the film?

how did people feel about the film?

posted 18 years ago by tua26387
80 replies | jump to latest

What did everyone think of the film out of curiosity?

I thought it was very beautiful and posed more of a question about our surrounding environment and what we are doing with our lives. We can look at it from a philisophical standpoint in that what shall we do in this environment where things are rapidly changing (which I believe is a theme) and how do we as the younger generation function within the world where things move so fast? I may be off very much, but I was left with many questions by the end about what should we do? Politics are rapidly changing, the environment (city, forests, etc.) are changing, and we're here to live. Do we accept this and try and make change while living in modern environment or do we just float around and just live?

Like I said I may be very off with my thoughts, but I think the film raises a question at the end that's like something of what I mentioned. I'm curious what everyone else thinks?

Chris

[–] cnwilks 18 years ago

I had the chance to catch this one at the Little Rock Film festival, and found it to be as interesting as watching paint dry. The fact that there were projection problems in the theatre didn't help, either.

I have been really surprised to see how much critical acclaim that this one has gotten. I go into art house movies expecting them to be pretty slow, but this one could be lethal if mixed with sedatives. Reading some of the commentary breaking the story down and analyzing it makes more sense, and perhaps retroactively makes me hate the movie less, but it still doesn't make me feel like I saw a great movie.

Experimental Art house movies by their very nature invite controversy, but my personal instinct as a filmgoer is that I don't want to have to work so hard to appreciate a movie. I want to escape into the world of the characters, and they really didn't have much to offer me in this one.

[–] filmmekker 18 years ago

Such a typical "Indy" film - very real and human and no plot whatsoever. Exactly the kind of flick critics fall all over themselves praising. Pretty scenery and music but slow, slow, slow. I prefer a film with a story.

"The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions." ~Confucius~

[–] tyboulder 18 years ago

@mhex

This wasn't a cheap digital movie. It was shot on film and it shows.

That aside, I feel a movie can take as much time as it wants to, with as little dialog as the director/writer feels necessary. This film though felt a little bare. I don't mind silence nor do I need everything spelled out, but there is so little context given to the character's backgrounds, opinions, etc that it made it hard to identify with them at times. I was expecting very little dialog, but what was said (or not said) didn't strike me as having [sometimes] enough substance or relevance. I can tell that I didn't "get it" as much as some others here, and that's okay. Even with my own hangups I found it to be a beautiful film and far more interesting than most of what's out there. Much like Gus Van Sant's films Gerry and Elephant, this movie is very visual, moody, and often says so much without "saying" anything. I really appreciate a director's effort in trying to sculpt an atmospheric, emotional and "existential" mood. Could anything be harder to successfully put on film? I didn't think Gerry or Elephant were perfect either, but for all the moments that didn't seem to work there were also many moments of sheer brilliance.

[–] Blad33 17 years ago

The film was decent but the short, which you can find on the DVD, titled "Slitch" was better than the feature, a very good short film.

"Thinking about it that's the easy bit...it's doing it that's difficult." -- Life Is Sweet.

[–] sumbitch212 17 years ago

You can really tell who the women are here

[–] shesamazingnyc 17 years ago

I really did not like it. Disclaimer: I'm a woman.

I thought the characters were annoying, irresponsible, self-indulgent slackers. I could not like them long enough to care about them or their "relationship."

The only thing I liked about the movie was the photography.

[–] NoUseForAName1 17 years ago

I find it somewhat interesting that most of the women posting here didn't really care for the film. While watching Old Joy, I wondered how a woman would be able to connect to the film, and it seems that most of the women in this small sample did not. Probably didn't help that the main female character was the dog, but I guess that's better than the female lead being Scarlet Johansson.

I really enjoyed the film. Great visual and audio work. I thought the lack of dialogue was a particularly nice touch.

It was nice to see something different for a change.

[–] Ohiowatha 17 years ago

I really liked it. It was very relaxing and pensive, and you don't get that often from movies these days. I know a lot of people will say "man, this movie sucked, yo!" and that's fine, it's not for everybody. However, if you open your mind to different sorts of films--not just ones YOU usually like--then almost everyone can find something good to say about Old Joy.

If you have an old friend with whom you no longer have as close a bond as in the past, this film will have something for you.

[–] tadcook-1 17 years ago

I just watched this movie on DVD from the library, and I enjoyed it, but there isn't much there. I did feel like I was sharing the outing with these guys. Kurt was definately on the edge of homelessness, and it was interesting that through the movie he was constantly smoking dope, and Mark was not.

When Kurt first appears with the wagon and the TV, that seemed weird, and I wondered if he stole them. He, not Mark, was definately the tense one. And he seemed to be unraveling. That provided some tension for the film, and at times Mark looked at Kurt like he might be afraid of him, or at least afraid of what he might do next.

I enjoyed reading the comments here, and was surprised that no one mentioned Kurt's weird statement early in the film in the car, when Mark was talking about his dad's health problems. Mark looks at Kurt very strangely when Kurt makes that asinine statement comparing Mark's dad's problems with the myth about old Eskimos going off to freeze to death alone when they get old.

I watched the movie again with commentary, which was with the director and two other people. The commentary was just as spare as the film. Every once in a while their voices would chime in with some observation, but mostly they were silent.

[–] edrisi 17 years ago

I found the silent commentary very helpful.

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Doodlebuggy12 17 years ago

After wards I wondered how anyone could sit through, enjoy, and actually like a film as boring as it was...

[–] fan-of-films 17 years ago

Just posted up on another thread but horses for courses: it really depends on what you want from movies. Some people like stuff set out plain and simple, and even if it doesn't appear to be plain and simple there's still the cimematic tricks underpinning everything which carries you along in familiar territory and makes the thing stand out as 'entertainment', delivering on your expectations as a viewer. It's like any artform, you only get out of it what you put in it. Sometimes you don't have to put anything in as everything is very clearly defined for you. Maybe it's an age thing but this movie seems to ask questions of the way two people reflect on their life choices in relation to the other. And, shock horror, that's all it's about: no drama, no 'incident' no classic 'fairytale' journey through emotional struggle ending in everything being ok. It's a small slice of life photgraphed beautifully and underpined by a sparse soundtrack that fits perfectly. It makes a refreshing change to watch something so seemingly 'anti-film' - that's not to say I'm anti-film but sometimes it's worth taking time to challenge your expectations. I don't think this film is even slightly pretentious as may have been suggested elsewhere. Just a contemplative journey through a couple of days in the lives of two former close friends who find themselves journying to a spring then going back home. A pretty humdrum thing to do which, without the transformation that all elements of this film bring about, would be akin to watching Big Brother (UK waste of time live broadcast from inside a house masquerading as some kind of social experiment, for those who maybe don't know) or something (which truly is dull, yet seems to have people entranced!) The trick is that it's well made with clear intention and direction.

[–] TheRealBambi 17 years ago

I'm old and this movie was made in my hood ... the beginning is my old neighborhood for starters. So even if it had been a dog, the scenery would have kept me watching.

It wasn't a great film, but it had a relevant message. I'm gonna be dead and the younguns are going to be forced to come with innovative, creative, and brave ideas to survive in a world that a lot of stupid, self serving idiots have screwed up.

The friendship between the two lads was very sweet and very Portland. I know a lot of young men like these two ... one of the many reasons I love Portland so much.

Bambi

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[–] teejay6682 17 years ago

this movie may not be for everybody but i love it. i love will oldham's performance and the scenery and the minimalism. it's the best road movie of the decade other then "brown bunny".

[–] LatigoMeans 17 years ago

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

~LjM
Step on it! And don't spare the atoms!

[–] CeciAnn621 17 years ago

I loved it. Watched it a second time with the DVD after comments and a third time without. Loved the scenery, the dog, the actors. I've urged people who live in the Northwest to watch it, but they don't seem interested. Maybe they know they live in paradise and don't need reminding.

I "get" the wife's attitude. But I also get Mark's need to be out in the woods, especially with the huge change heading his way, and he has no idea how huge. I'd like to see more movies like this, simple little epiphany movies without the blood and gore.

[–] heynow123 16 years ago

At first i thought, "What the hell is this?" But you know what? I'd watch it again!

It was basically a nature movie. I live in the city and there's really nowhere around here to be that isolated.

Now i know why my father says when he goes hunting, "I don't care if i get anything" and that, "he just likes being out in the woods." It's beautiful there. Peaceful. Natural.

[–] SallyBOBally 16 years ago

Not sure if this was touched upon, but I feel like despite being a woman, despite my age or upbringing, a film should speak to EVERYONE.

My being a woman has nothing to do with me not "getting" or liking the film.

There are plenty of other films about things I've never done or people I have nothing in common with but I love them because they goood.

And my love for Jenny Lewis has nothing to do with it!

I'm a Modern Girl, But I Fold in Half So Easily

[–] zurichpoet 15 years ago

The movie and the characters in it needed some Beach Boys music. Everyone does, really.

The One Plucky Guitar in this movie and that’s in about every other American Indy film was drab, uninspiring; and like in most movies this One Plucky Guitar is in, around the halfway point in the film and until its conclusion, it takes on the annoying mode of a phone's ring, buzzing in to interrupt one’s thoughts, emotions.

Also: I don’t get the whole massive and sad lament aspect of it; to lament one has to venture, risk and lots to be this sad as these people are in this movie and for it to resonate; but it seemed like everyone in the movie had ventured nothing in life, they hadn't even made it outside of themselves. Which is fine, but it's nothing to give up the cat's meow over.

[–] timboytx 15 years ago

One of my most common complaints about movies is how artificial the stories feel. They may offer some entertainment, but too often have a phoniness about them. The plot feels contrived. In "Old Joy" one finds a plot that is subtle, simple and more true to the kind of emotional journeys we take in real life. It is the film's ability to create this illusion of real life that I find remarkable. Young people who have not yet experienced the effect that aging can have on relationships will probably be unable to dock with this story's emotional tone. Or, if one is seeking a more traditional cinematic rollercoaster ride, this is not the film to watch.