If you are going to watch "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," don't think of it as a 9/11 disaster film. Instead, watch it as a coming-of-age story. Many moviegoers and critics expressed their disappointment at the way Stephen Daldry deals with the national disaster in the film.
But, it was still nominated for Best Picture at the 84th Academy. In fact, this film, having received an average rating of 46 out of 100 on Metacritic, was the worst reviewed movie to receive a best picture nomination...
If you are going to watch "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," don't think of it as a 9/11 disaster film. Instead, watch it as a coming-of-age story. Many moviegoers and critics expressed their disappointment at the way Stephen Daldry deals with the national disaster in the film.
But, it was still nominated for Best Picture at the 84th Academy. In fact, this film, having received an average rating of 46 out of 100 on Metacritic, was the worst reviewed movie to receive a best picture nomination in the last ten years. We'll take a look at how that was possible.
9-year-old Oskar lost his father in the 9/11 attacks, but he believed his father left him a final message. So, he began his journey searching around New York City for the lock that fits a key he found in his father's closet. In the process, he learned to cope with his loss and overcome his fears.
The part that unnerved most critics was perhaps the director's literary, sentimental, even pretentious presentation of the tragedy. The story is lead solely by the narrative of the little boy, who seems mature beyond his age but who has the tendency to indulge in fits of emotional outbursts. However, since the movie was adapted from Jonathan Safran Foer's novel of the same name, the director can be blamed for the adaptation but definitely not the sentimentality.
But if viewers look beyond the film's emotional and political intimacy of the 9/11 incident and contemplate the spiritual quest from the child's perspective, viewers may have just enough patience to sit through the 2 hours and empathize with the boy, watching him struggle to survive the absence of his father and come to terms with his mother and grandfather.
Speaking of whom, the acting from Sandra Bullock, the mother, and Max von Sydow, the grandfather, helped the director regain some lost favor from the critics. As for Tom Hanks, he lacked a certain exposure in the film, largely due to his death and limited time in the flashbacks and recorded messages. Compared to the imposing lead, all the supporting roles appeared much more natural and authentic. And their help was vital for the director to deliver his more tear-jerking combos.
So, if you'll kindly or carelessly ignore the 9/11 dimension of the film, you might be able to enjoy "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." Who knows, you may even shed some tears at this well-orchestrated drama. On a scale from one to ten, I think it deserves a six.
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