Explore
 Lists  Reviews  Images  Update feed
Categories
MoviesTV ShowsMusicBooksGamesDVDs/Blu-RayPeopleArt & DesignPlacesWeb TV & PodcastsToys & CollectiblesComic Book SeriesBeautyAnimals   View more categories »
Listal logo
Bully review
197 Views
0
vote

A disturbing movie

I already saw this movie but since it was such a long time ago and since I have it on DVD, I was quite eager to check it out again. Well, even if I still think it is a pretty good, to be honest, it didn't really blow me away like it did the first time around. I mean, the directing and acting were really solid but, the first time around, I enjoyed above all the intriguing plot, apparently based on real events. Indeed, the story was just really bleak and chilling  and I thought the whole thing was really spellbinding to watch, at least, during the first half. Basically, as long as Larry Clark was focusing on a small group of characters, the whole thing worked fine. Indeed, the tone was rather oppressive and depressing and none of the characters were actually likeable but they were highly identifiable. However, at some point, the group of characters involved suddenly pretty much doubled and it completely changed the whole dynamic. Unfortunately, it seems that Clark didn't really manage to handle these extra new characters and the whole thing became so much more random and less effective. The reason why this group became much bigger was probably because, during theses real events, they were all involved in the actual murder so Clark apparently felt obliged to include them as well but, as mentioned before, it didn't really work. In my opinion, he should have focused on all of them right from the start and develop all these characters properly or focus only on a smaller group of characters (Marty, Bobby, Lisa and maybe Ali as well) which would have been my favorite option. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, I still think it is a pretty good movie, by far Larry Clark's best directing effort, and it is definitely worth a look. 

7/10
Avatar
Added by johanlefourbe
13 years ago on 7 January 2011 15:27