MovieChat Forums > They Look Like People (2016) Discussion > Slightly Offensive (slight plot spoilers...

Slightly Offensive (slight plot spoilers)

posted 9 years ago by jonhopper217
30 replies | jump to latest

I will start off by saying, despite a nice look on a microbudget, I wasn't impressed with it as a movie. I think the internet reviews gave way too much credit to "doing so much with so little," but forget there are movies like Tangerine out there, filmed on phones.

I found the views of women and mental illness a little offensive. Yes, I get the point was to make a horror movie, but this has been done before, with so much tenderness and care for the real disease, that is came off as abusing mental illness as some kind of threat to society. Knowing people who have suffered from paranoia and schizophrenia, the idea that this man could essentially live a normal life and switch one and off, is incorrect. Also, the blame wouldn't be a girlfriend, a friend, or anything else, but a true fear that someone was after them....constantly.

I also didn't like that a woman was the basis for each character's demise and each character's weakness or realizing their weakness. The addition of a female character who is seemingly impervious to emotional attachment and/or pain made me feel like the director was hashing out some resentment and not really making a film about mental illness. This is actually a common theme for college film projects, which, despite the clean look, was exactly what this was.

I will say one thing for the movie....the opening scene made me hope there was more to that moment and if there had been, the movie could have taken a very different, much more original twist, than the obvious ending.

[–] panjin79 9 years ago

I don't think we watched the same movie...

[–] fermented666 9 years ago

No kidding, he completely missed the point.

There's a reason that the film doesn't present any hint of diagnosis: it's a HORROR MOVIE.

The word "schizophrenia" is not mentioned once. Notice that there are no scenes of psychotherapy, no psychiatry, no WebMD searches of "hearing voices".

"They Look Like People" spends its time submerged in lucid dread. In the moment where, alone with all the lights out, you suddenly feel like you're being watched from the darkest space between you and the light switch on the other side of the room, and the more you stare at that dark space, the weaker your knees get, the faster your heart beats. That moment when we realize just how vulnerably human we are, and the fragile barrier between rational and irrational breaks down.

That the film doesn't cop out to a supernatural explanation is the sweetener, not the message. His "madness" is not his indictment, and the onscreen conclusion of friendship is our route, as the audience, to catching our *^#%ing breath and regaining our sanity after the hour and a half staring contest with a moving shadow. It's an impressive study in nightmares and if you're watching it as a study in clinical mental illness, you're watching it wrong. Certainly true if you take actual offense.

[–] FriendLee93 9 years ago

The word "schizophrenia" is not mentioned once. Notice that there are no scenes of psychotherapy, no psychiatry, no WebMD searches of "hearing voices".

Actually you're wrong on one count there. He does say to the therapist "it's not schizophrenia" when they're standing by the lake.

The Titanic sinks, Bruce Willis is a ghost, and Rosebud is a sled

[–] king_of_bob 8 years ago

Agreed. The movie the OP described is not what I watched.

The new home of Welcome to Planet Bob: http://kingofbob.blogspot.ca/

[–] mattchanning 9 years ago

They're--a contraction for 'they are'.

Their--the possessive of 'they'.

There--as in 'there are movies like Tangerine filmed on phones.'

Were we watching the same film? He couldn't switch his affliction on an off. It manifested itself intermittently, and outside of his ability to control.

When are we going to see your film?

Matt Channing (Had Matter)
Composer,guitarist, sound designer, loop artist.

[–] jonhopper217 9 years ago

So aside from picking out the one grammatical error, does being a miserable *beep* fulfill your needs on a day to day basis? I only wish there (was that the correct one) was a day, when my life was so meaningless that I had time to pick on the one error in someone's post. It's people like you that have ruined this board.

[–] mattchanning 9 years ago

Hm. Name calling on a message board...interesting.

How did you arrive at that particular strategy? I'm pretty sure nobody's ever done that before.

Matt Channing (Had Matter)
Composer,guitarist, sound designer, loop artist.

[–] netsirc 9 years ago

Excellent reply.

[–] divisionbell-2 9 years ago

Just because your assessment of the film was joke doesn't mean you need to attack someone else here. Calm down dude.

[–] king_of_bob 8 years ago

Your inability to spell simple words correctly speaks to your intellect and thus your ability(or lack thereof) to critique the film intelligently. Further, the fact that you flipped out over a simple correction also speaks to your intellect.

The new home of Welcome to Planet Bob: http://kingofbob.blogspot.ca/

[–] jonhopper217 8 years ago

So what's your feeling about the movie? Since you came here to talk about it. Dazzle me with your intellect.

Also, you put a space between the last word before a parenthesis. You also shouldn't start a sentence with the word further, when you meant to use "furthermore."

A fairly solid rule to internet trolling and criticing people in general, is to use proper grammar and punctuation when pointing out their deficiencies in those areas.

You're welcome...or as you'd probably say Your Welcome

[–] Buginajug 8 years ago

criticing

[–] jonhopper217 9 years ago

I agree, the opening scene was amazing. I didn't expect horror at all. I expected this type of film, but just didn't like the way the mental illness seemed linked to this woman as was Christian's "wuss" factor. The recordings were odd, but then when it's Mara calling it was even sillier. I get it was mental illness, but why then tied to a man's voice, I assume the therapist later.

The whole thing felt like so many indies I've seen before, made by men. Poor guy is jilted, life falls apart, his friend is going through the same thing, they bond in a creepy way. No matter what budget or look is, I expect certain things from all movies and this didn't deliver any.

[–] jonhopper217 9 years ago

It is nice to hear a woman's perspective and Mara is definitely meant to be the strongest character, but she's also part of Christian's demise. His infatuation, coupled with his insecurities, lead to his slight breakdown, but why are the two men breaking down right after breakups?

Also, it is clear this movie is about mental illness and not a trick or a twist. Wyatt definitely didn't kill his ex. His delusions changed her in his mind. I read a little about the movie after seeing it and I'm not just guessing. This is not a supernatural or even implied horror movie in the sense of reality, it's all about mental illness according to the filmmakers.

I think my reason for using the word offensive is because I've known people like Wyatt and the shutting it on and off isn't there. It's always on, but the fighting it is what brings people to acting (lashing) out. I've obviously not known many people like this, but sadly, none ended with any of them seeking a connection, but actually in two cases, literally disappearing forever.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Buginajug 8 years ago

but why are the two men breaking down right after breakups?

Breakups are often emotionally tumultuous. Something as stressful as a breakup can cause a person to have a breakdown.

[–] opalfiction 8 years ago

I can see Christian breaking down after anything at all. He's very fragile. When Wyatt was telling Christian about his breakup I did wonder if he was lying. Maybe they'd actually broken up because Wyatt started to see his girlfriend change and it frightened him. Maybe he became erratic and the girlfriend left? He could have had a somewhat late onset schizophrenia.

[–] Doc_Blue 9 years ago

You didn't understand the film. Like, at all. In any way.

[–] jonhopper217 9 years ago

Thanks for clearing that up, like a troll, like a sixteen year old troll....Like!

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] WeJamEcono 9 years ago

I believe the point was to show not only how mental illness affects the afflicted person but those around them as well, and their reactions---and that and that alone. The way that Wyatt was treated by the two women was honestly a fairly reasonable (though I thought the death threat was a little over the top) albeit slightly closer to the side of extreme depiction of how they would treat someone who had done something like that, especially as neither of them seemed to be educated in the ways of mental illness--this may be societal commentary and I don't think it translates to a critique on women per se--to avoid that avenue of thought ;). I would say it was going for realism as oppose to criticism of mental illness. Besides the reaction of the girls, I don't see how any other part of this movie could be seen as critical of those with mental illness.

Also, I have heard that some people are able to question whether their delusions are real or not. I believe that this man was on the verge of an complete separation from reality, although he was not quite there yet. I have literally read that there are certain people that understand they are having delusions and teeter between believing them and not. On a side note, it was, in retrospect, kind of interesting to see Wyatt struggle through that.

Maybe you are right about some sort of underlying animosity toward women influencing the writing, but I don't believe there is any indication of that. No way of knowing.
Even if there is, I do not believe it matters, as it is still fairly realistic. I mean, break ups and rejection do mess people up. Hard. In this manner, where grown men have identity crises. It is not far from reality.

I read your statement above about Mara causing Christian's meltdown. I don't really see that at all. I think you answered your own misconception about what caused that: his insecurities.

I really just don't see this as being critical of women as a whole at all. I don't think it generalizes like that. We should be able to use women, without the emphasis on them being women, as characters that are flawed and that deliver a message without it being interpreted as an assault on them (or any other group) as a whole. THAT is a sign of an enlightened society, a part of what we should be striving toward, when we can completely look at the intellectual message of an artistic piece outside of the superficial elements of the characters therein. It is good that our society is acknowledging the plights of certain groups...it is time to start moving in a direction where the superficial identity is not made primordial to interpretation WHEN IT IS NOT MEANT TO BE. In this case, I just don't see it being relevant.

Overall, I think it was a decent movie with a hokey but welcoming (and at this point refreshing) positive message, that was encapsulated very nicely at the end. They had one anothers' backs!

[–] jonhopper217 9 years ago

I agree and disagree with certain things you've said, but I'd just like to add, that since this movie and some of the discussion has interested me, I've delved a little deeper into the background of the movie. This is entirely my opinion, but the director, from interviews, doesn't exactly sound like he's the brightest guy in the room. He stated that his research is based on friends of his who were "going through some stuff" and a video he saw on mental illness when he was younger. Now, that's not to discredit the movie, because with some simple google searches, he of course could verify what is mental illness and what is simply his friend's "stuff." That being said, he kept repeating in his interviews that he simply wanted to have fun working with his friends and he mentioned some influences like Take Shelter and a few others and I find it amusing that where that was so intense, his film sort of plays off idea this can be controlled, whereas Take Shelter lets it known this on/off switch isn't in the "victim's" control.

I think the problem for me, thinking about it further is sort of the standard theme of love, or in this case friendship concurs all. He does, in his interviews sound very 20's "Bro-ish" if that's even a thing. So I'm going to stand by my misogyny stance.

One thing I think people are forgetting is, this is supposed to be a psychological horror movie, not an in-depth look into mental health, heavily researched and with consultations from doctors. This is simply a budding filmmaker, using stories from college buddies and creating a somewhat cohesive story. It's literally not science, it's one guy's feeling about a serious subject, he has no background or knowledge about.

[–] panjin79 9 years ago

Just watched this again and think I know where the mysogyny feeling is coming from. Keep in mind that I'm viewing the movie as a work of fiction stylized into a psychological thriller, not a documentary on mental illness.

Ultimately, this is a story about friendship. It's very focused on the two main characters, to the point where side characters aren't completely developed. The job, women issues, etc are plot devices used to apply pressure to Christian and Wyatt. When enough stresses are applied, we get the ending sequence.

I think this is the biggest issue with the movie. Because the director doesn't spend the time to develop the female characters into real people, they turn into one-dimensional characatures. The movie drags because there isn't anything except for the central characters to hold our interest. We're left waiting for the ending to happen.

Not really mysogyny. Just poor plot development leading into the 3rd act. That said, this is ultimately a good movie from a promising new talent.

[–] erincarrott 9 years ago

After worki g as a nurse in a mental health facility, I thought the film makers did an excellent job trying to portray a very difficult illness. I will give an example of one of my patients, I will call B. B was an alcoholic, she used alcohol to diminish the feelings. She would be talking in the group and suddenly stop and ask if we could hear "that". She would see "followers" (she described them to me as shadow people, but not quite like shadows, more solid) and she was certain the red light on the smoke detector was a camera that he followers were using to watch her. It never "turned off", but intense episodes would get triggered by stress, or other emotional problems. This could range from relationship issues to simething as simple as we had the wrong type of bread. The buzzing sound, from what I've been told, is accurate. My only issue would be that once command hallucinations start (that's where he was being told to harm people, and this is the most dangerous time to be around an schizophrenic), the non-specific auditory hallucinations tend to end.

Many people understand that they are hearing things that others don't. B would look for confirmation about what she was hearing. It really depends on the degree, and type, of mental illness. If you have friends who display any of these symptoms, it is very important to not feed the delusion (the part where he states, "I don't believe what you believe, but I believe you believe it" is perfect), but he should have called the police. If anyone you know states they are having command hallucinations, call the police and have them take them to a hospital.

[–] Chief22 9 years ago

I didn't think the movie was saying anything negative about women. Wyatt's illness didn't seem to be directed specifically toward women and I don't think it stemmed from an issue with his fiancé. I had actually wondered if he had killed her from some delusion, or if she left him because she couldn't understand what was going on with him.

I agree that the movie didn’t seem negative toward women to me. The women seemed relatable, and if anything they seemed stronger than the men. I wondered about Wyatt’s fiance too; I got the impression (maybe from something he said to his psychiatrist?) that he had left her because his paranoia told him she had become one of “them.” Regardless, I didn't believe that she cheated on him and left him like he told Christian.

Also, although I understood why Mara ran out on Wyatt in the basement, I don't really understand why she was so angry later.

This threw me at first too, but after thinking about it more I think I understand it. We were looking at it from Wyatt’s perspective, knowing that he was struggling, meant well, and genuinely thought she was the person behind his nightly phone calls. From her perspective, he waited until Christian left then lured her down to a creepy basement where he made her uncomfortable and scared her. (Just because she was able to handle herself physically didn’t mean she wasn’t scared. Being scared of violence from men may well have been the reason she got into judo in the first place.) I can completely see how fear could turn to anger, after you get out of the situation and have time to think about it. It was really only once she incapacitated him on the street, therefore truly removing him as a threat to her, that she got over her anger and showed some concern toward him.

I don't get the significance of making Kat the narrator of the inspirational recording, and the need to mention that Christian and Kat were expecting a child. I feel like I might have missed something there, but I have to admit, I couldn't really make out everything because of the sound.

I thought that reveal made Christian’s situation even more tragic/sympathetic, so maybe that was the intent? I guessed that perhaps Kat and the child had died (in childbirth maybe?) and continuing to listen to the tapes kept her close. I could be wrong, but since there was no mention of child support among his many concerns I guessed that there was no child. I suppose the child could’ve died, and the trauma of that drove Kat and him apart?