This movie is not great. While it does not deserve a perfect 10 it also deserves significantly more stars than one. People rating this movie a one wanted to hate it, or were very offended by the content at the beginning of the movie. I can truly understand why some did not like it. Arguably there should be a trigger warning for the first 15 minutes of the movie. I can understand that the shock value would not have been there had viewers been warned but then the director needs to ask, was it worth it? The first 15 minutes of this movie are intense and could have a truly negative impact on viewers.
Regardless, it was effective. The movie was captivating in a terrifying way and I was definitely watching. Even so, the execution was not perfect. I do believe I understood the intent of the movie. It was meant to confuse, contradict and, overall, make the viewer uncomfortable, or at least not create any allusions that they wanted the viewer to be comfortable. Well done there. I just don't believe the movie pulled it off 100%. I've seen this film compared to Lars Von Trier films, a truly intense director if you've never experienced one of his movies. I completely agree and actually had the same thought while watching Vox Lux. Vox Lux even features Stacy Martin, who has appeared in a few Lars Von Trier films.
The first half of this movie was watchable and interesting but it seems to lose its way throughout. This could be intentional but even if it is, to me it did not work. I was actually very disappointed with Natalie Portman's role as she is an actress I admire. I did not find her character believable. While you were meant to dislike her character, and they were effective at that, it was painful to watch because they didn't quite pull it off. I think they needed to bridge the gap better from where the main character starts off as a young teenager to the 16 year jump ahead where they transition to Natalie Portman. The two characters, young Celeste and older Celeste, are so contradictory to one another, no matter what amount of time has passed or events have taken place, the transition is just not believable. On the other hand, both Stacy Martin and Raffey Cassidy were excellent. I was very impressed by their portrayals in this movie and really enjoyed Raffey Cassidy's singing abilities.
That brings us to the music, which was, surprisingly, overpowered by the other aspects of this movie. Considering Sia provided original songs for this movie, and the music was excellent, in my opinion, it was disappointing that this movie did not get the attention it deserved, in that regard.
The first time I watched this movie I agreed with it's overall IMDb rating of 5.9/10, which is pretty uncommon for me. However, it has been a few weeks after I watched this and I'm actually giving this movie a 7/10 because I cannot get it out of my head. Scenes keep coming back to me, and not in a bad way (as in the graphic beginning of the movie is not necessarily what stuck with me). After letting this movie sink in for a while I have realized its affect is there. I don't necessarily want to see it again right now but the fact that I am still thinking about it weeks later says something. But more than anything I want to revisit the music, especially the song that launches the main character into Pop-stardom, "Wrapped Up". If you are even remotely intrigued by what this movie is about you should watch it but please know it is not a clean, tightly wrapped movie that will give you satisfaction in the end. The beginning is horrific. There's no need for me to spoil the reason why; if you really want to check before watching I suggest you google it.
Regardless, it was effective. The movie was captivating in a terrifying way and I was definitely watching. Even so, the execution was not perfect. I do believe I understood the intent of the movie. It was meant to confuse, contradict and, overall, make the viewer uncomfortable, or at least not create any allusions that they wanted the viewer to be comfortable. Well done there. I just don't believe the movie pulled it off 100%. I've seen this film compared to Lars Von Trier films, a truly intense director if you've never experienced one of his movies. I completely agree and actually had the same thought while watching Vox Lux. Vox Lux even features Stacy Martin, who has appeared in a few Lars Von Trier films.
The first half of this movie was watchable and interesting but it seems to lose its way throughout. This could be intentional but even if it is, to me it did not work. I was actually very disappointed with Natalie Portman's role as she is an actress I admire. I did not find her character believable. While you were meant to dislike her character, and they were effective at that, it was painful to watch because they didn't quite pull it off. I think they needed to bridge the gap better from where the main character starts off as a young teenager to the 16 year jump ahead where they transition to Natalie Portman. The two characters, young Celeste and older Celeste, are so contradictory to one another, no matter what amount of time has passed or events have taken place, the transition is just not believable. On the other hand, both Stacy Martin and Raffey Cassidy were excellent. I was very impressed by their portrayals in this movie and really enjoyed Raffey Cassidy's singing abilities.
That brings us to the music, which was, surprisingly, overpowered by the other aspects of this movie. Considering Sia provided original songs for this movie, and the music was excellent, in my opinion, it was disappointing that this movie did not get the attention it deserved, in that regard.
The first time I watched this movie I agreed with it's overall IMDb rating of 5.9/10, which is pretty uncommon for me. However, it has been a few weeks after I watched this and I'm actually giving this movie a 7/10 because I cannot get it out of my head. Scenes keep coming back to me, and not in a bad way (as in the graphic beginning of the movie is not necessarily what stuck with me). After letting this movie sink in for a while I have realized its affect is there. I don't necessarily want to see it again right now but the fact that I am still thinking about it weeks later says something. But more than anything I want to revisit the music, especially the song that launches the main character into Pop-stardom, "Wrapped Up". If you are even remotely intrigued by what this movie is about you should watch it but please know it is not a clean, tightly wrapped movie that will give you satisfaction in the end. The beginning is horrific. There's no need for me to spoil the reason why; if you really want to check before watching I suggest you google it.