Edgar Allan Poe
Sir Anthony Hopkins jumps headfirst into the role of tri-fecta by directing, producing, and also creating the music for this random film that demonstrates the power of editing coupled with free thought. It is a simple story, but the way Hopkins narrates; he easily gives it a voice of his own as well as paying homage to several influential directors. As his wife produces and acts in this film, "Slipstream" transforms before your eyes from a confusing dream to a project of passion. As Hopkins gives you small puzzle piece after puzzle piece, the average viewer will immediately scrunch up their face, wonder where the explosions are, and not give this little gem an opportunity. This is not mainstream cinema. "Slipstream" forces the viewer to use your imagination, listen to the clues, watch the symbolism, and use every part of the brain possible. As this being a film by Anthony Hopkins it was surprising, for this critic, it was even a bigger surprise "Slipstream" is a cranial film that kept me on the edge of my couch the entire one hour thirty minutes.
We Have Lost the Plot
Where did this film come from? Hopkins said that he had never written a film before, and I must say, this freshman outing hurt my brain more than any other film ever has. It wasn't that it was boring, dull, overly stylish, or cliché, it was just intelligent. There were scenes that just felt more surreal than shall I say real? The concept that Hopkins developed, the idea of a dream within a dream, translated well to both being dream-like to even more literally, a film within a film. He built an entire film around a small concept, a poem none-the-less, and he built it sans the big explosions, the linear storytelling, and the overpriced stars. For the first time in my possible review existence, I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed a particular scene involving Christian Slater and Jeffery Tambor. Pre-"Slipstream", one could never imagine the two being such a dynamic pair, but their words, their connection between themselves in that one scene was breathtaking. I had to watch it again just to ensure that I understood their language. It was as if Hopkins took a page from Tarantino's play book with Oliver Stone looking on, that entire "I'm Not a Crook" coupled with the entire Yogi Bear references just sent shivers through my spine. They were phenomenal, and I applaud Hopkins for giving them the words and emotion to create such a superb scene.
This Stone-esquire scene was just the beginning of something startling unique. Hopkins creates these scenes further within the film, never quite giving us that full taste of the real plot, but just enough to keep us guessing. This isn't "Remains of the Day" Hopkins or "Silence of the Lambs" Hopkins, this is a film utterly his own. The average viewer will not understand his darkened message about life and existence, but those cinephiles that enjoy challenging films will fall over backwards. Hopkins choice of editor also creates this world with fresh new brush-strokes. At times the jumps are spooky spiced with some brooding foreshadowing, but Hopkins creates a story with the jumps, the editing is a part of the story choosing to ignore them will inevitably mean that you are missing the destructive nature of the film. "Slipstream" is a mystery; clues are heavily embedded in the language, characters, and choice of editing all created by Hopkins. It reminded me of a bit of "Primer" coupled with "Natural Born Killers", but uniquely Hopkins.
Overall, "Slipstream" came out of nowhere and proved to be an enjoyable hour and a half of unknown Hopkins. Just when you think you know his style, he creates something like this. The editing, the power of his actors (as small as they were), and his choice of language and sound blended a powerful film that will leave you guessing until the final moments and even then, you may not capture the full scope of his message. This is a challenging film to watch. It isn't you straightforward storytelling or compelling characters, and in fact, Hopkins is only in about half the film. It is the idea of using the tools around you to create a non-linear story based with a film of a film. If that sentence doesn't hurt, than you may not be ready for this film. That isn't to say Hopkins film doesn't have flaws it isn't perfect but it was intellectually powerful. This is a thinking-person's film, Hopkins realizes it, but he doesn't talk down to the average viewer. He creates scenes and emotions that literally come out of nowhere, leaving you in the dust asking for more. Again, watch the Slater/Tambor scene to see what I am speaking about surprisingly it will knock your socks off! If this constitutes the new world of Anthony Hopkins, I cannot wait for his second outing. "Slipstream" took me back to an era where challenging cinema didn't go straight to DVD release, but instead found its way into mainstream and finally gave us something to pay nearly $10 for. If you are looking for explosions, scantily clad women, and product placement go to any summer blockbuster if you are hunting for something to ensure brain cells are not decaying see "Slipstream", it impressed me from beginning to end!
Christian Slater/Jeffery Tambor 2008!
Grade: **** ½ out of *****
Sir Anthony Hopkins jumps headfirst into the role of tri-fecta by directing, producing, and also creating the music for this random film that demonstrates the power of editing coupled with free thought. It is a simple story, but the way Hopkins narrates; he easily gives it a voice of his own as well as paying homage to several influential directors. As his wife produces and acts in this film, "Slipstream" transforms before your eyes from a confusing dream to a project of passion. As Hopkins gives you small puzzle piece after puzzle piece, the average viewer will immediately scrunch up their face, wonder where the explosions are, and not give this little gem an opportunity. This is not mainstream cinema. "Slipstream" forces the viewer to use your imagination, listen to the clues, watch the symbolism, and use every part of the brain possible. As this being a film by Anthony Hopkins it was surprising, for this critic, it was even a bigger surprise "Slipstream" is a cranial film that kept me on the edge of my couch the entire one hour thirty minutes.
We Have Lost the Plot
Where did this film come from? Hopkins said that he had never written a film before, and I must say, this freshman outing hurt my brain more than any other film ever has. It wasn't that it was boring, dull, overly stylish, or cliché, it was just intelligent. There were scenes that just felt more surreal than shall I say real? The concept that Hopkins developed, the idea of a dream within a dream, translated well to both being dream-like to even more literally, a film within a film. He built an entire film around a small concept, a poem none-the-less, and he built it sans the big explosions, the linear storytelling, and the overpriced stars. For the first time in my possible review existence, I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed a particular scene involving Christian Slater and Jeffery Tambor. Pre-"Slipstream", one could never imagine the two being such a dynamic pair, but their words, their connection between themselves in that one scene was breathtaking. I had to watch it again just to ensure that I understood their language. It was as if Hopkins took a page from Tarantino's play book with Oliver Stone looking on, that entire "I'm Not a Crook" coupled with the entire Yogi Bear references just sent shivers through my spine. They were phenomenal, and I applaud Hopkins for giving them the words and emotion to create such a superb scene.
This Stone-esquire scene was just the beginning of something startling unique. Hopkins creates these scenes further within the film, never quite giving us that full taste of the real plot, but just enough to keep us guessing. This isn't "Remains of the Day" Hopkins or "Silence of the Lambs" Hopkins, this is a film utterly his own. The average viewer will not understand his darkened message about life and existence, but those cinephiles that enjoy challenging films will fall over backwards. Hopkins choice of editor also creates this world with fresh new brush-strokes. At times the jumps are spooky spiced with some brooding foreshadowing, but Hopkins creates a story with the jumps, the editing is a part of the story choosing to ignore them will inevitably mean that you are missing the destructive nature of the film. "Slipstream" is a mystery; clues are heavily embedded in the language, characters, and choice of editing all created by Hopkins. It reminded me of a bit of "Primer" coupled with "Natural Born Killers", but uniquely Hopkins.
Overall, "Slipstream" came out of nowhere and proved to be an enjoyable hour and a half of unknown Hopkins. Just when you think you know his style, he creates something like this. The editing, the power of his actors (as small as they were), and his choice of language and sound blended a powerful film that will leave you guessing until the final moments and even then, you may not capture the full scope of his message. This is a challenging film to watch. It isn't you straightforward storytelling or compelling characters, and in fact, Hopkins is only in about half the film. It is the idea of using the tools around you to create a non-linear story based with a film of a film. If that sentence doesn't hurt, than you may not be ready for this film. That isn't to say Hopkins film doesn't have flaws it isn't perfect but it was intellectually powerful. This is a thinking-person's film, Hopkins realizes it, but he doesn't talk down to the average viewer. He creates scenes and emotions that literally come out of nowhere, leaving you in the dust asking for more. Again, watch the Slater/Tambor scene to see what I am speaking about surprisingly it will knock your socks off! If this constitutes the new world of Anthony Hopkins, I cannot wait for his second outing. "Slipstream" took me back to an era where challenging cinema didn't go straight to DVD release, but instead found its way into mainstream and finally gave us something to pay nearly $10 for. If you are looking for explosions, scantily clad women, and product placement go to any summer blockbuster if you are hunting for something to ensure brain cells are not decaying see "Slipstream", it impressed me from beginning to end!
Christian Slater/Jeffery Tambor 2008!
Grade: **** ½ out of *****