Review of Old Joy (2006) by Nikolus Z — 25 Jul 2009
Old Joy contains very little of substance (this coming from a person who admits that style is substance, and that less is often better than more). The problem with the film is not that it's slow (it isn't), or that it's too elliptical (it's fairly upfrontly-stated), but rather that the entire concept of the film is intentionally banal, and the execution is not innovative or cathartic enough to overcome that banality.
Think a mix of Gerry and Brokeback Mountain. Wendy and Lucy, Reichardt's later film, is significantly better. In fact, it succeeds in being the kind of elegant, elegiac statement I believe she was aiming for with Old Joy.
No matter how you feel about Old Joy, I recommend the latter film.
This review of Old Joy (2006) was written by Nikolus Z on 25 Jul 2009.
Old Joy has generally received positive reviews.
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