Boyhood

[Vasquez Rocks]

12 years in the making/filming! I can't wait to see this film. I'm a huge fan of Richard Linklater's and this looks like it's going to be one of his best. Such a cool idea for a movie. The trailer finally came out today.

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7Qjmu4lioA[/yt]

 

[Ethros]

I only heard about this yesterday really, but as a fan of the Before trilogy I'll definitely be giving this a look

 

[JarodRussell]

That's a cool, and quite risky, concept.

Reminds me that they should reshoot all the future scenes for TNG's "All Good Things" for the blu ray version.

 

[Ethros]

While on the subject of Linklater, anyone know why in the UK Before Midnight came out on DVD but not Blu-ray?

Pretty much everything gets released on both, and it's available in the US, but for some reason you can only get the DVD here; it's annoying (as I have my movies in chronological order and everything post-2009 I have on Blu-ray, so it would ruin the aesthetics of my shelf )

 

[Vasquez Rocks]

That is strange it hasn't been released on Blu-Ray for the UK. I'm not entirely sure, but isn't it true that unlike DVD players, Blu-Ray players will play foreign Blu-Rays? I swear I read that somewhere. Maybe someone with more knowledge of the subject can confirm.

Also surprising is Before Sunrise and Before Sunset aren't available on Blu-Ray, in any country. And then there is Linklater's sUburbia, which isn't even available on DVD, just VHS.

I'm really hoping those all get a proper release some day.

 

[Vasquez Rocks]

Wow! Boyhood is at 100% at http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/boyhood/ . 77 reviews so far all fresh. Wish it was playing somewhere close to me.

 

[Sto-Vo-Kory]

Wow! Boyhood is at 100% at http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/boyhood/ . 77 reviews so far all fresh. Wish it was playing somewhere close to me.

Same here. I've little hope that I will get to see this in theaters since Before Midnight never made it to screens anywhere near me. Oh, well, can't wait to see this on my TV screen at home.

 

[auntiehill]

Just heard about this movie yesterday. It's gotten rave reviews and certainly has me interested. I hope it plays in theaters around here.

 

[cardinal biggles]

I love the Before trilogy, and I remember Linklater and Ethan Hawke mention Boyhood in some of their interviews when Before Midnight came out, so my curiosity is definitely piqued.

 

[Drone]

I've read a couple of brief pieces about it. It seems to me that for this industry, such a project is brooking almost unprecedented logistical hurdles. I guess an unremttingly passionate belief in the story by the filmmaker and actors must have been the core of the determination to see it through.

 

[TedShatner10]

Admirable ambition this film has, but I'm not looking forward to the prospect of the 2000s and early 2010s not being too kind on Ethan Hawke's looks.

 

[Gaith]

I totally got this same idea a few years ago... but not twelve years ago, so I can't claim that Linklater beat me to it.

I'll definitely be catching this at some point, albeit probably on dvd. The New Yorker did a recent profile on Linklater, with some discussion of the movie, and here's a cool interview with him from The AV Club.

Now, given his history of making time-spanning sequels, who's gonna be the first to ask if he'll start filming Manhood for a few days next year, and the eleven years after that?

 

[Davros]

This is a shoe in for a best picture nomination.

 

[Venardhi]

I totally got this same idea a few years ago... but not twelve years ago, so I can't claim that Linklater beat me to it.

I'll definitely be catching this at some point, albeit probably on dvd. The New Yorker did a recent profile on Linklater, with some discussion of the movie, and here's a cool interview with him from The AV Club.

Now, given his history of making time-spanning sequels, who's gonna be the first to ask if he'll start filming Manhood for a few days next year, and the eleven years after that?

Jon Stewart brought it up last night and Linklater mused on the possibilities.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

I saw the film this past weekend at the local theater and loved every minute of it. It's one of the most ambitious films I've ever seen and manages to be both simple and complex at the same time: a straightforward storyline that covers philosophical questions similar to those found in Waking Life. I highly recommend everyone to watch this film.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Definitely a really good film. It's very reflective and almost Ozu-esque in the way it underplays the emotional moments instead of milking them for drama. The story comes off as an archetypal example of a Millennial's perception of the world growing up.

 

[JacksonArcher]

I saw it a couple of days ago and I'm still thinking about it. I think that's a testament to a great movie.

Although, I'm not quite sure I'd even call it a movie per se, at least not in the traditional sense. Movies usually have a basic three-act structure with a beginning, middle and end. There are moments that cause tension or moments that help along the plot and influence pacing. While Boyhood does have a beginning, middle and end - it's not paced or plotted like your average movie. Instead, it feels very much like a series of moments, much like life, happening one at a time. Yes, there are moments of drama, but they are under-played. There aren't huge dramatic moments of revelation or epiphany. The characters go through the motions of life just like every one of us.

At 3 hours, it's honestly an experience rather than a film. It's really quite fascinating to see the younger characters grow from being five-years old to young adults. It's also really interesting to see the older characters grow as well. Ethan Hawke & Patricia Arquette do fine performances here but the real achievement is how they grow as people. The film is as much about growing up as it is about being a responsible adult and parent. The two of them share a really genuine and authentic moment toward the end of the film that really encapsulates what the film is all about in a nutshell. It's a great, subtle moment. No one is screaming or yelling or throwing things. It's the subtle acknowledgements that make up life that make Boyhood so endearing and believable.

My only gripe with the film is the second half and that's mostly due to Ellar Coltrane's performance. Coltrane plays the lead character, Mason, and while he delivers a very convincing performance in the first half of the movie - once he matures into adolescence his performance leaves a lot to be desired. I was talking about this with a friend of mine after I saw the film. I'm not sure if this was an intentional choice on the director Richard Linklater's part - as we become more & more apathetic & stoic as we become teenagers - but it felt very jarring and made me lose interest in Mason. I know every one is different, but Mason becomes so apathetic that I started caring more for the supporting cast of characters than him. Even though I was fairly apathetic as a teenager, I still had moments where I got excited, angry, upset, etc. Mason becomes a Borg drone by the second half of the movie and intentional or not it really took me out of the film.

Regardless, Boyhood is still an impressive technical achievement. Even though it is massive in scope, it feels refreshingly intimate and personal. I don't think there's ever been a movie quite like this and we might never see a movie like this again, at least not done on this level. I really recommend it to anyone that enjoys these kind of coming-of-age stories or anyone that likes movies that offer a little bit more than what's playing at your local cineplex. Boyhood is not to be missed.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I saw it a couple of days ago and I'm still thinking about it. I think that's a testament to a great movie.

Although, I'm not quite sure I'd even call it a movie per se, at least not in the traditional sense. Movies usually have a basic three-act structure with a beginning, middle and end. There are moments that cause tension or moments that help along the plot and influence pacing. While Boyhood does have a beginning, middle and end - it's not paced or plotted like your average movie. Instead, it feels very much like a series of moments, much like life, happening one at a time. Yes, there are moments of drama, but they are under-played. There aren't huge dramatic moments of revelation or epiphany. The characters go through the motions of life just like every one of us.

If you've never seen a movie like that before you have been watching the wrong movies.

I recommend Tokyo Story for a film that underplays the dramatic emotional moments, and The Mirror for a film that doesn't use the traditional three act structure.

My only gripe with the film is the second half and that's mostly due to Ellar Coltrane's performance. Coltrane plays the lead character, Mason, and while he delivers a very convincing performance in the first half of the movie - once he matures into adolescence his performance leaves a lot to be desired. I was talking about this with a friend of mine after I saw the film. I'm not sure if this was an intentional choice on the director Richard Linklater's part - as we become more & more apathetic & stoic as we become teenagers - but it felt very jarring and made me lose interest in Mason. I know every one is different, but Mason becomes so apathetic that I started caring more for the supporting cast of characters than him. Even though I was fairly apathetic as a teenager, I still had moments where I got excited, angry, upset, etc. Mason becomes a Borg drone by the second half of the movie and intentional or not it really took me out of the film.

I disagree with that, I think he manages to express a lot of emotions in very subtle ways. That's what made his performance so strong, you can see him reacting internally like a real teenager rather than having meltdowns and ripping sinks out of the wall like a Joaquin Phoenix character. That makes me care more about the character, not less.