91/100

Like Zonca's Julia, an improbable triumph in a "genre" I normally despise—here, the sensitive man-child who's saved/redeemed by the unconditional love of a fantasy babe. Both films push their noxious idea to an extreme that's at once comical and disturbing, demanding empathy for a nearly irredeemable protagonist; Gallo opens with a photo of Billy at age seven ("with his dog Bingo"), then proceeds to play the role as if still trapped at that age, with all of a child's destructive narcissism and no cuteness whatsoever. Ultimately, it's Ricci's miraculous performance that makes it work, beginning with the almost preternatural stillness of her extended close-up in the car, as she simply listens to Billy's insane request without making the slightest…

“Just look like we are a married couple, spanning time!”
-Billy Brown (Vincent Gallo)

Buffalo ’66 is the feature debut from Vincent Gallo, who also writes and stars as the lead. I feel I must first admit; I didn’t actually want to like this film. I had heard much about Gallo prior to seeing this (and not all sung his praises.), particularly that he is rather egotistic and self-absorbed, and that he complained about having to do all the work for Christina Ricci (Whom delivers perhaps the best performance of her career here.). As such, I concede that I didn’t exactly go into this with very high hopes. Against all odds, however, this film exceeded my expectations. Despite my predisposition,…

As I stand in line to punch Vincent Gallo in the face, I look back at this movie telling a tale of a broken man finding something to hold on or to just give into his revenge.

Buffalo '66 open with Billy getting out of jail after 5 years serving. He kidnaps Layla, a dancer along the way so he can introduce her as his wife on the lies he told his parents over the course of his term. From the longs shots in the cold as Billy runs from one place to another in search of a bathroom, Bufalo '66 becomes a story that feels about two broken souls meeting each other.

Billy's character is something you will hate,…

What a debut in all senses, to be honest. Gallo might be the biggest asshole in existence but he knows how to mostly make a good film.

Despite the obvious reasons, I found Billy's characters oddly relatable. I wouldn't kidnap a girl (duh), but his general persona paired with the natural perfomance give him a weird sense of familiarity and personal closeness, even though he's a huge cunt - which the people that know me will agree I am a huge cunt too, but fuck you. His infamous swift character development was, in my opinion, fairly realistic and relatable too, with Billy entering a sort of "what the fuck am I doing" state and realizing it's not worth the hassle…

Such a wonderful film. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t fond of this film at first but it grew on to me. Despite it having a bull shit First Reformed ending, this film is basically perfect. The cinematography is gorgeous. Every single shot is so intricate and precise. I love the birds eye view shots, they feel very reminiscent of the opening from The Shining. The dinner scene is brilliant, I love how each side of the room changes dramatically depending on which of the four characters perspectives your looking at. This is by far one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen, the characters play off each other perfectly. The flashback sequences are so expertly well done due to the…

I always love to see movies with jerk protagonists that peel back the layers of the character (e.x. Three Colors: Red), unlikable protagonists to feel bad for or root for (e.g. Good Time, Inside Llewyn Davis), or a protagonist that might be hard for the average person to relate to (e.x. Punch-Drunk Love, The 400 Blows, Mary and Max) because films are more than just relating to a character, they are also about empathy. These kinds of films teach the audience. In a sense, you could say these movies make these people more human. This is what I believe to be the true power of movies.

In Buffalo 66, the villain (the parents) turn Billy Brown into a villain to…