MovieChat Forums > The Limits of Control (2009) Discussion > Film would have been better if...

Film would have been better if...

posted 14 years ago by theunbeholden
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If it where edited better.. some scenes drag on for to long... some scenes where repetitious. The movie would still have conveyed the sense of being alone, and emotionally detachment of the main character without some of those scenes being as long and as many as there where. The Movie would have been better if it had more dialogue, while it is true that images speak alot louder then words, I think more dialogue would have made the film far more interesting and less boring. Ending would have been more satisfying I think...

More dialogue would also allow for the movie to have more plot, and make the plot more understandable. Also the dialogue should have been delivered better, while I do agree that philosophy is more important then story or characters, it doesn't mean that should have paper thin characters or story.

Would have been a good film, music was good, I liked the look of the lead; seems like the type for a hitman, his face makes him look strong, who would assume that hes smart, I didn't the fact that hes a men of few words, I would expect someone like him to be straight to business and quick to the point, not sit around and pretend to be a mute.

[–] jj-patton 14 years ago

I disagree.

What are looking for in a film? What do you require? And what is the point of requiring things to be as you expect? You may expect the hit man to be something you recognize as typical, so he's not - can't movies be made about atypical hit men?

Coming to this movie with expectations is natural, but not understanding you're being asked to leave them aside is watching with eyes shut. Don't expect plot to be driving every shot and you will see the editing in this film is sublime, the film being driven forward by the layered textures of beautiful Spanish countryside - the beauty of disinterested existence - contrasted with the character's fascination with man-made deliberate beauty in art galleries. What do you see while sitting in a Spanish cafe - Spain or the next assignment?

This is saying something about his atypical-ness, something about us. He is a mute observer as are all those other unseen but necessary participants known as audience.

This makes the film an allegory, and too much plot is the enemy of allegory. You understand this, right? If you are totally wrapped up in macguffins and the bad guy's next plan and whether the car is going to jump the drawbridge, when will you see the subtle? Or will you be like Bill Murray in this film, demanding adherence to a limited view of reality that doesn't want to admit Picasso is just as real as James Bond, perhaps even more so.