Not every movie is made so that people can sit in their seats and get 90 minutes of mindless enjoyment. Not that mindless enjoyment is a bad thing, just not what some people want every time. 21 Grams is not mindless entertainment, not even close.

The three leads–Sean Penn, Naomi Watts and Benicio Del Toro–do outstanding work as do several of the supporting cast (Melissa Leo, Eddie Marsan). The cinematography by Rodrigo Prieto does some great things with light and contrast. The underlying concept, connecting three people who have no obvious connections, is smart.

But what really takes this movie out of the ordinary and out of the mainstream is the almost random sequencing. I was completely confused until about half way in because director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu was determined to strain the limits of comprehension. This will turn many people off but in the end leaving early will be their loss. To me the sequence is logical if you consider the emotional development instead of just plot.

recommended

Its a long way from Little Fauss and Big Halsy and Lady Sings the Blues to this 1999 film, but the connection is Sidney Furie directed all three. Really makes one wonder. Especially since this film barely seems to actually have been directed.

The Collectors is the story of a few days in New York City for AK and Ray, two big debt collectors for a New Orleans mobster who’ve tired of the gig. To say that the film makes little sense is giving Furie and writers Robert Anton and David Penotti more credit than they deserve. The only reason I watched to the end is because I was eating lunch and my hands were too dirty to pick up the remote.

The only remotely interesting thing about The Collectors is Rick Fox, ex-LA Lakers forward, who has been working over the last few years to transition into acting. You can see he has good moves but the facility with dialog and emotion is yet to come. He is pretty tall though and makes co-star Casper van Diem seem short.

not recommended in the least

Vivian gave the movie a moderately good write up. I laughed, after all the creative team are professionals, but overall thought it was formulaic and unoriginal. This third go-round with the American Pie gang dearly missed the pure romanticism of Chris Klein’s Oz and Mena Suvari’s Heather, the take no shit of Natasha Lyonne’s Heather and the sexuality of Shannon Elizabeth.

Director Jesse Dylan (Bob’s other son) and writer Adam Herz tried to simplify the stories and compress the missing characteristics, especially the romance, into Jason Biggs’ Jim and Alyson Hannigan’s Michelle but that removed what was interesting and different about the previous editions.

not recommended