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 You Were Never Really Here 

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 You Were Never Really Here 
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Keeping it Light
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Joined: Wed Apr 08, 2015 8:06 am
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Post You Were Never Really Here
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You Were Never Really Here is a 2017 thriller film written and directed by Lynne Ramsay, based on the book of the same name by Jonathan Ames. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov, Alex Manette, John Doman, and Judith Roberts.

An unfinished version of the film premiered at the 70th Cannes Film Festival in competition, where Lynne Ramsay won the Best Screenplay award and Joaquin Phoenix won for Best Actor.


Sun Apr 08, 2018 10:52 am
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Post Re: You Were Never Really Here
Solid flick, but it didn't really impress me. Phoenix is fantastic and there are some striking visuals, but as I was watching this all I could think of was that Drive did it a lot better. At least I was able to connect somewhat with Ryan Goslings character in that movie, and as brutal as the violence is in this movie it just wasn't as impactful IMO.

B


Mon Apr 09, 2018 9:25 pm
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You Were Never Really Here

Not quite the masterpiece I had hoped, but still an effective and powerful and poignant thriller. It suffers from a bit of what Only God Forgives suffered from; an over-confident director that strips bare-bone style so as to solely speak to the viscera. I still enjoyed it for its masterful and unwavering dedication to the style of direction, but I am disappointed I'm not instead comparing it to Drive.

B+


Sat Apr 14, 2018 12:25 pm
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Post Re: You Were Never Really Here
This is an audio and visual masterpiece. Strictly considered in terms of character and plot, it might not sound particularly special: the "sympathetic" brutal hit man (who specializes in rescuing victimized girls) is a bit of a hoary trope reminiscent of, say, Ben Affleck's nice bank robber and nice gangster in The Town and Live by Night, respectively, and the exact nature of the political corruption at play is rather unclear, perhaps in an example of storytelling ambivalence disguised by an aura of art-house chic.

But, damn, the presentation, from the anxious and hypnotic score by Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood to the fluidly beautiful cinematography, is spectacular, and there is not a single extraneous moment during the film's entire hour-and-a-half length. From first frame to last, it perfectly uses the medium of cinema to submerge us in the damaged head space of the antihero (played with clenched intensity by Joaquin Phoenix), and the result is a unique and vivid suspense-movie experience.

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Wed Jul 18, 2018 12:06 am
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Post Re: You Were Never Really Here
I was very, very impressed by this movie (honestly sometimes I feel like saying "ditto" to David's reviews... this is one of those times). The direction is outstanding. All the cinematic elements align to give the audience something wholly unique. The score and editing are awesome. I love that the movie doesn't "hit us over the head" (with a hammer) with the intricacies of Joe's backstory, instead allowing a number of visceral flashbacks to give texture and depth to his current situation. A number of sequences had me feeling a host of physical reactions: claustrophobia, nausea, a kind of panicky overwhelm; other times a thrill in my beating chest. Sorrow, disgust, and hope for redemption (or revenge).

This kind of story---violent crime---is not usually something that shows up in my 'favorites.' But the skill and uniqueness that the director used to tell this story elevates it to one of the year's best. (also I'm extraordinarily grateful this wasn't bloated to a two-hour run-time.... it is lean and precise and exactly what it needs to be). I don't get the comparisons to the movie Drive, which I experienced as pure style and violence for the sake of.... style and violence. This had much greater depth and meaning for me.

A

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Thu Jan 03, 2019 7:16 pm
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