#1 ·
Caught it last night. AMC, naturally, had to insist on an intermission for the necessary sustenance of exhausted viewers who can't sit still for 160 minutes—but I suppose we’ve grown accustomed to that nonsense by now. Regardless.
A dark masterpiece. It’s been quite some time since I’ve seen a story told with such compelling narrative depth and brilliant cinematography. I was genuinely impressed by the attention to detail; nothing is spoon-fed to you like the mindless drivel found in most modern cinema. Instead, the film trusts the audience to connect the dots and grasp the cause-and-effect relationships on their own terms. It’s a masterstroke how this thread weaves through the entire runtime, demanding active participation if you want to make sense of the whole picture.
The average viewer might find certain nuances and connotations a bit murky, but thanks to the standard American education system, anyone over the age of 28 should be able to recall enough history to contextualize the era being depicted—assuming they actually paid attention in class rather than spending their time terrorizing teachers. In fact, Roth has once again penned a script that is frankly dizzying because of how tightly it adheres to actual historical facts.
The direction is superb; I truly hope a Director's cut eventually surfaces, as it’s painfully obvious from the opening sequences that certain elements were trimmed. de Niro delivered behind the lens at a high level, just as he did with his minor role. The rest of the cast is decent, with the exception of young Edward, whom I simply cannot stand—though perhaps that's just my personal bias regarding his particular aesthetic. Angelina is Angelina, and it was actually refreshing to see her in a film where she—wait for it—actually acts. Even Damon is tolerable, though the makeup department could have aged him up a bit more for the final act, but whatever. Thank God they avoided the mustache trap; someone clearly learned from the ridiculousness seen in "The Aviator."
Aside from a few trivial inconsistencies mentioned on IMDb—which are utterly inconsequential in any meaningful way—The Good Shepherd is easily the best film I’ve seen in years, in every conceivable sense.
All those critics whining about the pacing or claiming it's "slow"—they couldn't be more wrong. A narrative this thorough demands even more time than the final cut provides. This phenomenal cast, the top-tier storytelling, and the unwavering commitment to real events and people (despite the use of pseudonyms) deserves immense praise in an era where even the supposed "smart" majority of films consist mostly of directorial bloat, script failures, or blatant rip-offs of Asian cinema that somehow snag undeserved Oscars.
A dark masterpiece. It’s been quite some time since I’ve seen a story told with such compelling narrative depth and brilliant cinematography. I was genuinely impressed by the attention to detail; nothing is spoon-fed to you like the mindless drivel found in most modern cinema. Instead, the film trusts the audience to connect the dots and grasp the cause-and-effect relationships on their own terms. It’s a masterstroke how this thread weaves through the entire runtime, demanding active participation if you want to make sense of the whole picture.
The average viewer might find certain nuances and connotations a bit murky, but thanks to the standard American education system, anyone over the age of 28 should be able to recall enough history to contextualize the era being depicted—assuming they actually paid attention in class rather than spending their time terrorizing teachers. In fact, Roth has once again penned a script that is frankly dizzying because of how tightly it adheres to actual historical facts.
The direction is superb; I truly hope a Director's cut eventually surfaces, as it’s painfully obvious from the opening sequences that certain elements were trimmed. de Niro delivered behind the lens at a high level, just as he did with his minor role. The rest of the cast is decent, with the exception of young Edward, whom I simply cannot stand—though perhaps that's just my personal bias regarding his particular aesthetic. Angelina is Angelina, and it was actually refreshing to see her in a film where she—wait for it—actually acts. Even Damon is tolerable, though the makeup department could have aged him up a bit more for the final act, but whatever. Thank God they avoided the mustache trap; someone clearly learned from the ridiculousness seen in "The Aviator."
Aside from a few trivial inconsistencies mentioned on IMDb—which are utterly inconsequential in any meaningful way—The Good Shepherd is easily the best film I’ve seen in years, in every conceivable sense.
All those critics whining about the pacing or claiming it's "slow"—they couldn't be more wrong. A narrative this thorough demands even more time than the final cut provides. This phenomenal cast, the top-tier storytelling, and the unwavering commitment to real events and people (despite the use of pseudonyms) deserves immense praise in an era where even the supposed "smart" majority of films consist mostly of directorial bloat, script failures, or blatant rip-offs of Asian cinema that somehow snag undeserved Oscars.