tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163321594858726822.post830393734686790233..comments2024-01-30T04:32:47.585-05:00Comments on The Cooler: Shadows and Light: 25th HourJason Bellamyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18150199580478147196noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163321594858726822.post-31215339577287441642014-03-29T19:14:41.596-04:002014-03-29T19:14:41.596-04:00This is a movie that means so much to me. I wouldn...This is a movie that means so much to me. I wouldn't call it great or a masterpiece or anything, it has plenty of flaws, but somehow it seems to me more important (both personally and culturally) than many that are.<br /><br />Two sentences in your review strike me as particularly right-on: "Thus, he traded background whispers for foreground shouts." & "More so than many of the movies that are specifically about 9/11, 25th Hour is a time capsule for that moment."<br /><br />I covered the film for that "Counting Down the Zeroes" series a few years back, and realized I was writing on almost the exact date Monty would have gotten out of prison (assuming he wasn't paroled early). More than ever it occurred to me that, as you note, the film not only reflects the mood of the time but presciently predicts where we were headed. Just as Monty was off to 7 years of prison, with expectations of a brutalized body and soul which would make this last melancholy moment in the city seem more poignant than ever, so America was about to head into a terrible yet seemingly inevitable mistake which would dissipate any mutual goodwill and self-awareness which had seemed initially & erroneously to be the silver lining in the dark cloud of 9/11.<br /><br />In a way, just as Monty's bust was the overwhelming turning point but the his drive to the gates of prison is the crucial point-of-no-return, so 9/11 may be the catalyst that set our tailspin in motion, but the invasion of Iraq was the beginning of the actual freefall. <br /><br />That's how I see it anyway; and as I wrote in my piece of the time, if comparing the plight of a drug dealer to a national tragedy seems vulgar and crass, this is probably not the film for you. To me it's a movie that overwhelmed me with 2003 and sustains or even grows its effectiveness over time. Glad you've come around to it!Joel Bockohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163321594858726822.post-1646578304834709342014-03-12T16:05:09.325-04:002014-03-12T16:05:09.325-04:00This is fantastic, Jason. I haven't seen this ...This is fantastic, Jason. I haven't seen this movie in a long time, but I always loved it, and could never quite articulate why the 9/11 imagery in the film, though obviously grafted on and not really organic to the main story, didn't strike me as exploitative or crass. You've nailed it, I think. Ed Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18014222247676090467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163321594858726822.post-22868190076973400752014-03-07T12:14:26.774-05:002014-03-07T12:14:26.774-05:00Was glad to stumble upon The Cooler after several ...Was glad to stumble upon The Cooler after several months and see some new updates! I'm a big Spike Lee fan and when recommending his work to newcomers this is one high on my list. Really enjoyed your analysis of the 9/11 connection. When seeing it for the first time in the theater there was a chilly, heightened sense that came over me during those moments when ground zero was exposed from the window.<br /><br />Also, if you haven't Letterboxd is a great sort of social media hub for cinema fans. You can log the movies you watch, rate and review them, comment on others', etc. It's really developing. I'm over there under the handle "sabotage".Brianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11763424483642212311noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163321594858726822.post-87651018216305034932014-02-15T04:03:21.586-05:002014-02-15T04:03:21.586-05:00I like to appreciate your analysing skills. Really...I like to appreciate your analysing skills. Really wonderful, Love it:)<br /><br /><a href="http://instaphamous.com/" rel="nofollow">buy followers for instagram</a>SmithJohnsonhttp://instaphamous.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1163321594858726822.post-38701436955409887512014-02-14T11:22:06.362-05:002014-02-14T11:22:06.362-05:00This is an excellent analysis of a second viewing ...This is an excellent analysis of a second viewing of a film. Very interesting. I have not seen this movie, but your post makes me want to check it out. I will do so.<br /><br />This sounds like a good effort from Lee, whereas his recent World War II film, <i>Miracle at St. Anna</i>, is a poorly directed disaster.Richard Bellamyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12397053921647421425noreply@blogger.com