Man oh man. I saw this movie a couple of weeks ago and I'm still reeling from it. I started out with awkward giggling at the beginning (sorry, but it was Hammond getting a blowjob for crying out loud - my brain was stuck on DO NOT COMPUTE), and by the end I was practically falling out of my chair. Callum was just amazing, IMO. Though it's not perfect, it definitely got me thinking - I spent a good while after the movie was over mentally flailing at things because I had no one to talk to about it. And it took me over a month to look at Michael Shanks without physically shuddering, heh.
Interestingly, though, I didn't have the same problem with Callum. I mean, both of their characters are pretty high on the Creepy Fucking Bastard scale, but I actually found Callum's bastardness to be attractive. (Not in the omg marry me! sense, but more along the lines of ooh, kinky, let's go!) Which probably says more about me than I care to think about.
but I actually found Callum's bastardness to be attractive. (Not in the omg marry me! sense, but more along the lines of ooh, kinky, let's go!) Which probably says more about me than I care to think about.
*raises hand* Ha. Yeah, I agree. Before he turned that final corner (the Corner of No Return to Hotness, IMO) part of me was really digging him. I mean, it's part of the effectiveness of the performance, I guess. He was meant to be seductive, and he is.
Plus, there's a level on which you're watching CKR, not the character. You know what I'm sayin'? I think you do. ;-D
Yes, exactly! All questioning into my psyche aside, it really is a testament to Callum's skill that I was able to understand why Leila was so drawn to Gary, right up to the Corner of No Return, and to feel that same thing myself. Really, it would have been so easy for a lesser actor to completely drop the ball on that one and simply do what was (apparently?) on the page.
Plus, there's a level on which you're watching CKR, not the character. You know what I'm sayin'? I think you do. Oh yes! Yes, I do. :D
I actually found Callum's bastardness to be attractive. (Not in the omg marry me! sense, but more along the lines of ooh, kinky, let's go!) Which probably says more about me than I care to think about.
I love this film. When I first saw it, it sent me reeling for about a week. I think it was the first time I actually really disliked a character Callum played, for a start, but hey, you're not supposed to like him. But the way Callum played him was amazing - you like him, then you hate him, and somewhere along the line you feel kinda sorry for him.
Also, I'm a huge Stargate fan, so I had a moment when I was going - hey, Hammond's getting a blowjob! From a hooker! Ew! and, NO! Daniel's cheating on Jack! (Or Paul, or Mitchell, depending on who I'm pairing him with at the time). Which is the drawback to Canadian film, I guess. There's always at least one actor I recognise from somewhere else.
What else? Callum's accent bugged me. I don't like it. That, and the bits where he slips a bit kind of jarred me out of the film.
Other than a few little bits though, one of my favourite films.
Amazing post! Thank you :) You did wonderful justice to one of my favourite movies. Yes this movie is hard to watch at times and it is heartbreaking, but the performances are SO good.
And yes, in this, Callum is amazingly, frightfully, intensely, creepily, impossibly, mind-numbingly hot.
I'm glad you liked! I do love this movie a lot. It's not an easy film, but I do think it's a great one. It's wonderfully unassuming, yet does a lot, but does it quietly. I love it.
Great post! I love the transcripts from the director's commentary. This is really an excellent movie and a great CKR performance.
...and the reason is that he manages to play so many emotions in Leila (and the audience) at the same time. Yes, I agree completely! You said that really well and very concisely. I'm gonna go the long way
( ... )
Great post! I love the transcripts from the director's commentary. This is really an excellent movie and a great CKR performance.
Thanks! I'm glad you liked! The director's commentaries are always interesting to me b/c I like to hear what they were thinking when they made certain decisions for the film in question.
In this case, I was further interested in two things: what Lynne thought of Callum (since this is, after all, dedicated to him), and why she chose to film Leila's sex scenes the way she did, since she made some great choices there. People watching the movie walk away thinking that it was much more violent than it actually was. This also happened with The Dark Knight recently. People kept talking about how violent it was, but the violence is actually more implied than shown, yet it feels like the film was very, very violent.
The scenes in Suspicious River that amazed me were that apology that Lynne S. talks about and also the scene out in the country, in the car. Yes, he's manipulating her, but there is also real stuff
( ... )
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Interestingly, though, I didn't have the same problem with Callum. I mean, both of their characters are pretty high on the Creepy Fucking Bastard scale, but I actually found Callum's bastardness to be attractive. (Not in the omg marry me! sense, but more along the lines of ooh, kinky, let's go!) Which probably says more about me than I care to think about.
(*flings self into community* Uh, hi!)
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*raises hand* Ha. Yeah, I agree. Before he turned that final corner (the Corner of No Return to Hotness, IMO) part of me was really digging him. I mean, it's part of the effectiveness of the performance, I guess. He was meant to be seductive, and he is.
Plus, there's a level on which you're watching CKR, not the character. You know what I'm sayin'? I think you do. ;-D
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Plus, there's a level on which you're watching CKR, not the character. You know what I'm sayin'? I think you do.
Oh yes! Yes, I do. :D
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Tell me about it; I'm on the same boat.
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Also, I'm a huge Stargate fan, so I had a moment when I was going - hey, Hammond's getting a blowjob! From a hooker! Ew! and, NO! Daniel's cheating on Jack! (Or Paul, or Mitchell, depending on who I'm pairing him with at the time). Which is the drawback to Canadian film, I guess. There's always at least one actor I recognise from somewhere else.
What else? Callum's accent bugged me. I don't like it. That, and the bits where he slips a bit kind of jarred me out of the film.
Other than a few little bits though, one of my favourite films.
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And yes, in this, Callum is amazingly, frightfully, intensely, creepily, impossibly, mind-numbingly hot.
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Then there's the Callum hotness.
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Oops! I can see that viewing turning out psychologically scarring.
let's just fix that...
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...and the reason is that he manages to play so many emotions in Leila (and the audience) at the same time. Yes, I agree completely! You said that really well and very concisely. I'm gonna go the long way ( ... )
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Thanks! I'm glad you liked! The director's commentaries are always interesting to me b/c I like to hear what they were thinking when they made certain decisions for the film in question.
In this case, I was further interested in two things: what Lynne thought of Callum (since this is, after all, dedicated to him), and why she chose to film Leila's sex scenes the way she did, since she made some great choices there. People watching the movie walk away thinking that it was much more violent than it actually was. This also happened with The Dark Knight recently. People kept talking about how violent it was, but the violence is actually more implied than shown, yet it feels like the film was very, very violent.
The scenes in Suspicious River that amazed me were that apology that Lynne S. talks about and also the scene out in the country, in the car. Yes, he's manipulating her, but there is also real stuff ( ... )
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