Southland Tales

Starring: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Mandy Moore, Seann William Scott, Justin Timberlake, Janeane Garofalo, Christopher Lambert, Jon Lovitz, John Larroquette, Miranda Richardson, Bai Ling
Directed by: Richard Kelly
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Science Fiction, Thriller
2007

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A movie star (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), a police officer (Seann William Scott), an Iraq War veteran (Justin Timberlake), and an adult film star (Sarah Michelle Gellar) all cross paths in this apocalyptic look at the future.

Review:

Tim: Richard Kelly followed up his superb directorial effort, Donnie Darko with this ambitious apocalyptic film. You have to give Kelly credit- this film is certainly unlike anything else, and it is so jam-packed with action, comedy, drama, and more sci-fi than you can handle. It is a little bit of everything, and therefore, almost nothing. The film is interesting as the different storylines cross, but the film almost borders on nonsensical at times.

The film's strongest aspect is the cast, many of whom play unconventional parts. The highlight has to be Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. His timid, nervous performance is excellent. I was really impressed with him, and I truly believe he is going to be an amazing actor if he keeps practicing his craft. He has presence, and his acting ability was stretched here. He's excellent. Sarah Michelle Gellar is decent, but she has a fairly annoying role, and isn't great to watch. Mandy Moore is quite unlike what you would expect from her, and the Gellar-Moore scene together is great. I've always been a fan of Seann William Scott, and I enjoyed his complex, multi-layered performance. He was fun to watch. I also have to mention Justin Timberlake, who gives a far better performance than I ever expected from him. He is surprisingly fun to watch for most of the film. As I mentioned previously, the cast is top-notch.

Kelly's story is complex and interesting, but the longer the movie goes on, the more ridiculous it becomes. Kelly wants to push the limits with this film, and he does so- but he pushes just a bit too far. The movie begins to unravel near the end, and we question how good anything we've previously seen has been. The movie's conclusion makes you second-guess yourself. Did you just witness a work of genius, or did you watch a spectacular effort that came up short? I tend to lean towards the latter. This is an entertaining movie, but not one that is particularly believable. I felt moments of disappointment, and wished the film was a little better.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Donnie Darko, The Box, Domino, Get Smart