Savages

If the Kill Bill movies and Blow had a baby, it would be Savages.  I personally enjoy Oliver Stone and was very much looking forward to seeing this movie.  However, after viewing, I was very excited to read the book.  Surely there is a more complete version of this story-one that actually makes sense and is cohesive.

First off, if someone is going to narrate a movie or even have lengthy VOs, I need that person to have at least a little inflection—there’s a reason why Keanu Reeves gets called out so I’m looking at you Blake Lively.  Let’s be honest, I love Blake Lively and think she was great in this movie.  However, this monotonous delivery is not working for me at all.  It makes me roll my eyes and takes me out of the story.

In addition to Lively, everyone else in the cast turns in very strong performances.  But in different movies.  It’s sort of like when you watch Twilight and you wonder, did Robert Pattinson and Kristin Stewart realize they were acting in the same movie?  But I digress.  Taylor Kitsch & Aaron Johnson play a fantastically sorted out double leg of the love triangle with Lively.  If this type of relationship could ever work in the real world, I’m guessing copious amounts of marijuana would need to be consumed also.  Benicio Del Toro & Salma Hayak have the perfect amount of old school grit to sell their characters while John Travolta seriously impresses as a spot-on, two-timing DEA agent.

All key crews put on a great show and it’s fairly easy to get caught up in the whimsical, backwards fairy tale until the VOs audibly assault us or dreaded graphics pop up that make me think of Cellular-that’s really not good.  The clock graphics are so 80s I can’t help but think maybe they were trying to rip on Drive a bit?  But I’m not sure.  I am sure that they were so weirdly out of place, that I was thoroughly confused when they appeared. 

Even with strong performances and excellent execution in most of the necessary areas, the movie drags.  To be telling a story about sex, drugs and violence, it just felt like it went on forever and not enough happened.  That being said, I felt like there was ample amounts of sex, drugs and violence but the way it was laid out did the story no justice.  And PLEASE don’t even get me started on the false ending which was so amazing, to then take it away from me wasn’t fair.  I wanted more and I expected more.  Especially from Stone—who started adapting the screenplay before the book was even published.  I would guess it suffered from Stone being too intimate with the finer points of the story to the point that he forgot to let the audience in on some of those finer points.  

Overall not bad, but not nearly as amazing as it could have been.  What would I have done differently?  Tighten up the story and have Blake come alive for her VOs.  I don't care if you're in your PJs in that booth, but at least make me think you're going on this journey with us because this is a really cool story and it deserved just a bit more.