Mark, after nearly being beaten to death, escapes into a fantasy world of dolls in a World War 2 setting he can control.
First off this is very slow and considered. The single goal of the story is to get Mark to attend a court date - that is it. But of course for him this is a herculean effort.
The characters are great, the action elements in the fantasy world are vivid and punchy and injects a bit of motion into a very sedate movie. Like "Sucker Punch" it gets a little bit repetitive as every problem Mark faces he retreats into his fantasy world.
Carell steps off the gas to give a heart felt performance, Leslie Mann does what she excels at: being desirable yet approachable. Merritt Wever holds it all together with an understated performance and she was my favourite character.
This isn't laugh-out-loud funny but it isn't as depressing as it might sound.
The only point I didn't like was that it framed Mark's attack as an encounter by strangers - which wasn't quite true. He was drinking with his attackers, otherwise they would know nothing about him. I felt like the writers were afraid an audience would lose sympathy for him if he knew his attackers in anyway. But I feel to the contrary: if some stranger attacks you just for being you there is little you can do about that - but if your actions put you into a situation that goes badly, then you are left wondering if it was somehow your fault, even if you are not to blame. Once I knew this I suddenly understood why the main character just couldn't move on and was stuck in a loop.
A very enjoyable, different film, a great watch but you will need patience and focus or this is going to feel long.
First off this is very slow and considered. The single goal of the story is to get Mark to attend a court date - that is it. But of course for him this is a herculean effort.
The characters are great, the action elements in the fantasy world are vivid and punchy and injects a bit of motion into a very sedate movie. Like "Sucker Punch" it gets a little bit repetitive as every problem Mark faces he retreats into his fantasy world.
Carell steps off the gas to give a heart felt performance, Leslie Mann does what she excels at: being desirable yet approachable. Merritt Wever holds it all together with an understated performance and she was my favourite character.
This isn't laugh-out-loud funny but it isn't as depressing as it might sound.
The only point I didn't like was that it framed Mark's attack as an encounter by strangers - which wasn't quite true. He was drinking with his attackers, otherwise they would know nothing about him. I felt like the writers were afraid an audience would lose sympathy for him if he knew his attackers in anyway. But I feel to the contrary: if some stranger attacks you just for being you there is little you can do about that - but if your actions put you into a situation that goes badly, then you are left wondering if it was somehow your fault, even if you are not to blame. Once I knew this I suddenly understood why the main character just couldn't move on and was stuck in a loop.
A very enjoyable, different film, a great watch but you will need patience and focus or this is going to feel long.