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<Mary L. Tabor>'s avatar

Lovely comment from Rebecca Holden. I would add that, as moviewise says, how the movie is crafted, when well done, gives us art through revelation over the arc of the story. As an example, I recently rewatched with a friend _Fracture_, made in 2007, that stars Anthony Hopkins as Ted Crawford, who shoots his unfaithful wife at the opening, and a much younger Ryan Gosling as Willy Beachum, who plays a district attorney. It's described on Wikipedia as a psychological thriller. My friend, a reporter for a major newspaper, and I, her former creative writing professor, discussed how the screenplay focused on the Gosling character's inability to lie and the Hopkins character's ability to not only lie but tell the truth only as he plotted against that truth. The screenplay is also crafted with layers of the conflict as the battle of wills between these two proceeds. Beachum appears at first to be obsessed with winning, in many ways like his adversary. At the film’s start, Beachum is about to join a well-heeled private law firm and even describes that move as “winning”. Over the arc of the film, Beachum comes up against his inability to lie. He studies intensively the law as the plot thickens and his motivation to win deepens to his desire to ensure that justice will be done. The Hopkins character gets revealed as increasingly manipulative and clever and we get some of his backstory that informs how he became who he is—both successful, perseverant and well-studied. Gosling’s character is also deepened with some backstory. Though the film has a certain slick cleverness, it has stood the test of time because these issues remain so au courant as we watch a manipulative former president’s ability to undermine justice. So, is this film art? On many levels, I would argue that it is, largely, because of the layers of conflict that lead to revelation unstated but instead shown. Brilliant performances also inform: The seasoned actor Hopkins comes up against the much younger and less-seasoned Gosling, whose subtle performance defines his now formidable stardom. Did the writers intend to teach us a lesson or did we learn one from the art of the telling?

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Rebecca Holden's avatar

Really fascinating post - it’s given me a lot to think about!

‘A movie that makes you feel and think about a subject matter is stimulating you more than a movie that does only one of those things, i.e. only feel or only think.’ Next time I watch a film I’m going to consider exactly what I’m getting out of it and why. :D

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