Imagine opening your movie by having your main character describe himself masturbating to a young woman who he describes as "having a virginal quality that contrasted her ice cold outer shell", and then expecting the audience to buy this teenager as a genius savant who goes on to write the novel of a generation and gets nominated for a PULITZER PRIZE?

The main character speaks a line of dialogue that is perhaps the most apt descriptor of this manipulative and megalomanic (albeit handsomely shot and acted) film.

“It's just one long intoxicating masturbation session with no climax.”

so, if you’re planning on watching this:

1. DON’T WATCH THE TRAILER. go in completely blind
2. be prepared cause it’s a heavier watch than it seems (A24 needs to come up with less soul crushing stuff)
3. it’s gonna get a lot of hate, probably will be called bad/predictable/mediocre at best by so many (didn’t expect to adore it myself) but i loved it. lerman put some serious effort i didn’t think he really had in him, and i liked the non linearity. maybe it’s really just me being overly impressed but still please give this a chance

When you get older, your body goes downhill, but you get this incredible gift of perspective. Director Shawn Christensen doesn't seem that old, but he does have enough perspective to compare the characters during different time periods of their lives. There's some great editing. I hate when the editing is all over the place for no reason, but the technique actually builds curiosity and is effective when we reach the payoffs.

Great actors: even though Michelle Monaghan's character is brutally mean and Margaret Qualley is hardly in it, their presence is still very much worthwhile. Elle Fanning is in it plenty and welcomingly so. Other good performances from Kyle Chandler, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and the lead, Logan Lerman.

Vegan alerts:
-Sidney and Melody are eating ice cream that tastes like "tape" so they throw it away.
-The police send a dog to animal control.

This is the 158th film I've seen using Movie Pass.

Elle fanning and A24
Literally my favourite mix.

Imagine wanting to fuck Elle Fanning, now that's a small, delicate baby!

Blake Jenner is a national treasure and must be protected at all costs.

I guess I have a new least favorite A24 movie?
I know some people like this one, but for me it was ridiculous and pretentious from beginning to end.

If you have the opportunity to see this movie, you must do anything else instead. I wish I had time to personally contact every person on Letterboxd who gave this a good star rating so I can ask them if they're okay.

it feels like a 2012 movie to me

Dazed, empty vignettes of corporeal high-life and suburban purgatory. Boring little boys (re: astonishing wunderkinds!!), provocative and edgy and oh so prodigal among the madding good-neighbors and flashing cameras like overpowered street-lights. Self-important man-children played as tortured artists trapped within the drudgery of the ugly, dead, lifeless concrete shadings of their totally, unequivocally pained existences.

Maybe it's for the better that Mr. Hall disappeared, never to return.

cinematic equivalent to styrofoam rubbing against styrofoam

don't know why this is so bland and misogynistic. lerman is sleepwalking and elle is trying her hardest, but they gave her such a weak character its baffling. some of the worst story, editing and structure i've seen this year

in case you dont believe how sexist and stupid this is, the movie starts with logan lerman detailing his daily masturbation to elle fanning from the sixth grade to current times in an essay in front of his high school class and teacher who apprehends him, then cuts to lerman talking to a male teacher about how much he hates the teacher, despite her perfectly rational dismay. the teacher tells him that the woman is a good teacher and a published author, to which lerman replies "of what, romance novels?"

skip

Alright. Had the tortured artist thing going. Skipped timelines too much.

Hidden gem!!!!!!!!

The film jumps between three different times, always managing to clearly distinguish which time we are in. The story is revealed slowly and in a very intriguing way, where time itself is a character. A portrayal of madness, obsession; or a story of beginnings? This film is about actions and consequences; relationships and responsibility; truth and honesty.

Another film that I don't care about other's rating. So underrated.

género: muy trágico todo
clasificación: indie con demasiado presupuesto
logan lerman: tremendo egocéntrico zarpado en depresión y blando
elle fanning: una muy linda manic pixie dream girl

It has its moments, especially during the first part, but overall really chaotic.

I decided not to see the rotten tomatoes score on this one before watching it and most of the time I kept thinking "this feels like a movie I shouldn't be liking, but I do". And I did. I don't see how this got a fucking 11% though. Like, damn it's not the best thing ever, but why is everyone referring to the toxic masculinity in this film, and then a movie like The Spectacular Now, which is toxic af has like an 88 or something ridiculously high on rotten tomatoes. Nobody seems to care about that one. Was it cheesy? Yes, I didn't care for the "future" scenes too much, but I was really into the highschool, and early 20's scenes. It was kind of lame how each time period gets wrapped up with the same exact thing (no spoilers so that's all i'll say). But yeah. I've seen worse

I mean- Nathan Lane was good..

my favorite part was when she said she liked bob dylan and horror movies and he said “are u sure ur a girl”

“Bir ev. Hiçliğin ortasında. Gökyüzü kendi rengine kavuşmuş. Bir gün o evde birlikte uyuyacağız.”

filmi çıktığı sene listeme ekleyip sonra varlığını bile unutmuştum, iyi ki bugün tekrar karşıma çıkmış. biraz ağır bir temposu olmasına rağmen filmin içindeki gizem insanın merakını hep yüksek tutuyor. hikayeyi üç zamana bölüp anlatması bana çok sevdiğim bir kitabı okuyormuşum gibi hissettirdi. logan lerman ve a24 yine kalbimi kırmayı başardı.

On the surface, a perfectly average indie drama. But look deeper and it's just "the writer as tortured genius" wish fulfillment.