Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

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  • #31
    Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

    If you're going to build a world, whether a real world or ficitional world, whether something we can identify with or something we've never comprehended before, you have to build the framework and the rules that define your world then ruthlessly live within it. And to me, the rules and the framework have to make sense, they have to be cohesive. You can't just make a bunch of shit up and expect us to release ourselves into that world just 'cause. So the argument, "Why can't you just suspend your belief?" doesn't always work. Sometimes I will just respond, "Because it's all fucking stupid, that's why."

    I had a real problem the first time I watched The Matrix. There were things happening in John Anderson's world that didn't make any sense, I spent a good deal of time (while the movie was rolling) trying to make sense of them, and getting really pissed off in the process. And then the big reveal made it all make sense, and I immensely enjoyed the rest of the movie.
    Screenwriting is like stripping. You don't just dump your clothes on the floor. You tease as you go. And then you get screwed in a back room for money. - Craig Mazin

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    • #32
      Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

      Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
      So I am curious as to why some people can't accept that, as with The Adjustment Bureau, the clockwise/counter clockwise thing. I also find it strange that people can accept the concept of angels/aliens and doors leading to all sorts of locations but not the fact that a hat is required. The hats and the clockwise thing is set up and thus it's believeable. But if someone acts unrealistically or some action goes against the grain (without being set up) then that's when a problem arise about suspending disbelief.
      Nice post, though I dunno if the problem is not having "an imagination". Some people just don't buy into the premise of a given film, then it's down-hill from there.

      Also, I have a hunch that a lot of it's retrospective - in this sense: If they like the film, they like it; If they don't like the film, then it's got lots of things that "make no sense" or are "too gimmicky".

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      • #33
        Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

        Originally posted by Manchester View Post
        Nice post, though I dunno if the problem is not having "an imagination". Some people just don't buy into the premise of a given film, then it's down-hill from there.

        Also, I have a hunch that a lot of it's retrospective - in this sense: If they like the film, they like it; If they don't like the film, then it's got lots of things that "make no sense" or are "too gimmicky".
        Exactly.
        "I was dreamin' when I wrote this, forgive me if it goes astray." - Prince

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        • #34
          Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

          i didn't have any problem with suspension and i loved the idea of the doors. the hats-as-access is where i ran into a little difficulty. they set up the idea well, it's just that a hat is... well, just a hat. they are easy to put on and take off, come in a range of shapes and sizes, and a slight wind can remove it from your scalp leaving you with a bad day of bed-head. i guess to my mind, magical doorways to neverland should require unique items to access them. anyway, just joining the convo; the hats weren't a huge deal-breaker for me, more like a small annoyance, as i still enjoyed the film.
          life happens
          despite a few cracked pots-
          and random sunlight

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          • #35
            Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

            Originally posted by asjah8 View Post
            i didn't have any problem with suspension and i loved the idea of the doors. the hats-as-access is where i ran into a little difficulty. they set up the idea well, it's just that a hat is... well, just a hat. they are easy to put on and take off, come in a range of shapes and sizes, and a slight wind can remove it from your scalp leaving you with a bad day of bed-head. i guess to my mind, magical doorways to neverland should require unique items to access them. anyway, just joining the convo; the hats weren't a huge deal-breaker for me, more like a small annoyance, as i still enjoyed the film.
            Yeh, that's the thing. For some it's strangely simplistic. For others it's simply elegant.

            For some: "All that magical stuff and all it takes is a hat? WTF?"

            For others: "All that magical stuff and all it takes is a hat. Cool."

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            • #36
              Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

              Originally posted by asjah8 View Post
              the hats weren't a huge deal-breaker for me, more like a small annoyance, as i still enjoyed the film.
              Ditto for me about the Jedi powers that are never used when chasing David. They happily cause drinks to spill and Elise to fall when dancing yet not once did they trip David up when he was running away from them. But I forgive them, lol.

              As for the rest of the convo, though I get where many people are coming from with their answers, I just don't get how someone can buy into the outlandish concept of us being controlled by a bureau and magic foors but then balk at these magic doors having a two way mechanism.

              But most of all, I struggle to understand how people can refuse to suspend their disbelief to watch a film about ghosts or aliens (because they don't believe in them) when it simply asks you to imagine "what if" and to be fair, neither have been proven to be myth so they may be real after all. I can happily watch films about toys coming alive, fairies, monsters, demonic possession and alternate universes - so why many people can't truly baffles me.
              M.A.G.A.

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              • #37
                Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                A solid concept...but unfortunately wasn't very well executed.

                This would have been a great flick had the writer/director and his producers really tackled the source material to its highest potential. But sadly, one can argue about a lot of sh*t that gets released with half developed stories and useless talent.

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                • #38
                  Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                  Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                  As for the rest of the convo, though I get where many people are coming from with their answers, I just don't get how someone can buy into the outlandish concept of us being controlled by a bureau and magic foors but then balk at these magic doors having a two way mechanism.
                  I get where you're coming from, I truly do. But, I think perhaps it's the idea that when it comes right down to it; we, as a human race, like to believe in some cosmic sense that we're not alone.... like someone will catch us if we fall even if we can't see them/him/her (whatever an individual's personal faith may be...)...? Granted, that's a sweeping observation, but there's also a whole lot of religious history; regardless of individual faith, that somewhat supports the concept of a spiritual caregiver. So given that, I think it's entirely reasonable for an average audience to accept the concept of an entity/group proactively working to keep us in line.
                  life happens
                  despite a few cracked pots-
                  and random sunlight

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                  • #39
                    The Adjustment Bureau

                    I only wasted a couple of hours, (a free viewing).

                    I think that the "Chairman" would have looked like J. Edgar Hoover, if I ever saw him. The Bureau's "caseworkers" struck me as being more like G-men from the 1950s, (obsessed only with sticking to the "plan"), than anything angelic.

                    That anyone could call this "science fiction" says exactly how this thinly-disguised "religious fantasy" was wrongly hyped. The story was IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, turned upside-down, with lovers being kept apart by shadowy men, (wearing their magical hats, no halos).

                    "Very few humans have seen what you've seen today. And we're determined to keep it that way. So, if you ever reveal our existence, we'll erase your brain. The intervention team will be sent, your emotions, your memories, your entire personality, will be expunged. Your friends and family will think you've gone crazy."
                    Clarence would never have said that to George Bailey!
                    JEKYLL & CANADA (free .mp4 download @ Vimeo.com)

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                    • #40
                      Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                      Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                      I just saw this film and did a search on it here and found this thread. As a newbie I don't recognise your name but from what I've read I assume you're the biopic/true life drama type who doesn't like anything with imagination like monsters, ghosts, possession, sci fi, time travel, body swaps etc. (If I'm wrong then cool but that's the impression I get). ..........

                      Can they not enjoy the wonder of Pixar's array of monsters and talking toys?.........

                      I don't believe in ghosts or angels but I can buy into the concept of them..........

                      .......just an honest inability to understand how people struggle with buying into concepts that require imagination.
                      Very interesting that you correctly identify/perceive me as "the biopic/true life drama type"--which is exactly what I am and was the subject of a thread you may not have seen that I started about making stuff up in "true-life" movies.

                      However, you go a little overboard with sweeping generalizations about a "struggle with buying into concepts that require imagination."

                      As I recall, Bureau offered its various explanations/gimmicks as it went along--these things weren't "set up" in advance. That technique made the story feel contrived, expedient, jerry-built, and a little silly. I went into the movie expecting to like it--I knew the basic premise. The way it played out simply felt overly mechanical and artificial.

                      Perhaps it will reassure you to know that I thoroughly enjoyed--for example--Rise of the Planet of the Apes, all Toy Stories, Back to the Future and Ghost.

                      But I'm also a very big fan of biopics and historical dramas--movies like Ray, Thirteen Days, Monster and The Conspirator.

                      Read any collection of movie reviews on Metacritic or RT. You'll notice that the range of opinions on any given movie always varies widely, but does not automatically denote that a reviewer who disliked a certain movie always has a problem with that type or related types of movie. However, I'll fess up: horror movies are at the bottom of my list of priorties for movie-watching.

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                      • #41
                        Re: The Adjustment Bureau

                        Originally posted by Fortean View Post
                        That anyone could call this "science fiction" says exactly how this thinly-disguised "religious fantasy" was wrongly hyped. The story was IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, turned upside-down, with lovers being kept apart by shadowy men, (wearing their magical hats, no halos).
                        And Star Wars was a fairytale set in Space. Any story can be transported into a myriad of settings. Seven Samurai was turned into The Magnificent seven which was in turn transposed into Battle Beyond the Stars. Add/remove ray guns and hyperdrive and you have/don't have sci fi. I don't see how to constitute as sci-fi you cannot have romance, as in this case, as a central theme.
                        M.A.G.A.

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                        • #42
                          Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                          Originally posted by Manchester View Post
                          Yeh, that's the thing. For some it's strangely simplistic. For others it's simply elegant.

                          For some: "All that magical stuff and all it takes is a hat? WTF?"

                          For others: "All that magical stuff and all it takes is a hat. Cool."
                          Very good point, I hadn't looked at it from that perspective. My friend who saw the film with me didn't have a problem with the hats, so there you have it. Film-watching is definitely a subjective experience.
                          life happens
                          despite a few cracked pots-
                          and random sunlight

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                          • #43
                            Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                            So what do you suppose is going on when people can't even bring themselves to watch a ghost story because they don't believe in ghosts? I don't believe in talking dragons but Disney did some great stuff with them.
                            M.A.G.A.

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                            • #44
                              Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                              Watched this last night and I liked it. It's not fantastic, but I would say it's about as good of a film as one could make from such a radically unconventional concept.

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                              • #45
                                Re: Adjustment Bureau. Anyone Seen?

                                Originally posted by Biohazard View Post
                                Watched this last night and I liked it. It's not fantastic, but I would say it's about as good of a film as one could make from such a radically unconventional concept.
                                Woah, this guy liked a movie? And a movie I thought was pretty good as well?

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