Southland Tales

Apocalypse Rifts

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Southland Tales is a rather complex fictional output which is extremely easy to dismiss as a massively confusing piece, granted one refuses to give it the multiple viewings it undoubtedly demands. This is not an easy fictionfoam to swim trough without dangers of drowning, thus the piece possesses more to it than what you possibly might get away with via the one sit through some films do aim at. Writer and director Richard Kelly is considered to be a cultic face of entertainment by many, while others regard him as balloon phenomena, weighting in significantly lower than True, Decent Cultdome - oximoron there - would require, though his trademark effort Donnie Darko with the schizophrenic (?) dude/rabbit in it reigns in cultic position nevertheless.

After seeing both Southland Tales and Donnie Darko it seems safe to say that Kelly has evident fixation to Time Travel and All Stuffs Related, - though, according to Beelzebub: Time Travel Has No Future - yet
it would be an evident mistake to fail to spot and appreciate the quite nice supportive fictional elements Kelly invented to support his 2006 effort. Take part in Apocalypse, as the world does not end with a whimper, but it does end with a bang.

Your focal characters are portrayed by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Sean William Scott, figures functionalized in a carefully sketched out alternative history. Nuclear Warfare has gone rampant, yet Kelly focuses his attention solely on the political aftermath rather than biological or basic societal consequences. In fact, Kelly disregards these latter aspects pretty much completely and concentrates on primal political agendas and movements to establish themselves in a massively traumatized period. According to the author, the output is intended to communicate on sarcastic registers, yet fortunately Kelly takes and presents his ideas soberly enough to imbue even a serious quality to the buildup. This is the main "problem" you could stumble upon if choose to, as well.



Southland Tales is an idea-foam of fictional inventions, consisting of defendable ideas, ranging from acceptable to even brilliant ones, yet Kelly sews his narrative assuming you to be involved 100%, which I can't help but admit that I find: highly acceptable. It is almost sure you will be lost at some point, but the movie exhibits a rare, yet classic charm to it, the charm which does not stop bugging and telling you that the film needs another viewing. And funny thing is: Southland Tales becomes better of a movie when you see it for the second time. The basic buildup is coherent and simple on it's own merits: you have your different political interests with the extremely hardcore new movements present in it, like the NeoMarxists. Motto: Destroy Capitalism! Dethrone God! I would even propose a Third Goal: Redefine Ambition!

Naturally, you want to present an alternative history in a period that forces the different interests to function via their maximum capacity conceivable, what else that could be if not the Election Year. By the Election Year: everyone pays and everyone blackmails. Those who do not: are to lose. The Governing forces are the Republicans, now having blatant interests and relations with and on armed forces, they even enjoy an almost complete control over the Internet, giving them surveillance capabilities akin to George Orwell's 1984 vision. Nana Mae Frost, - Miranda Richardson - the primal coordinator force of the Republicans is a quite funny character: she is the Mistress of Puppets, controlling even his husband who hopes to be the next President. This Mistress spends most of her time watching a multitude of media streams, an effective reality show she can interfere in via any moment she pleases. The NeoMarxists are not happy about that, and this is the part where Dwayne Johnson and Sean William Scott do come in.



These focal characters are weapons in the hands of the NeoMarxists, as neither of them have any relevant memories of their past lives yet both have the potential to compromise the chances of the Republicans if exposed to the media via incrimination. Boxer Santaros - Dwaye Johnson - is a celebrity with strong ties to the Republicans, as his wife is the daughter of the Presidential Candidate of the Governing Forces. The NeoMarxists have a definite Ace on their hands if to possess footage of Boxer making it out with a porn star, while they have a plan arranged for Police Officer Roland Taverner - Sean William Scott - as well. They want him to fake a double murder as a racist cop, documented by none other than Boxer Santaros himself.

Let us complicate the matters slightly. Surely, the NeoMarxists have their mole at the Republicans, yet the mole has no idea whatsoever that the Government uses him as a mole, as well - he is a living broadcaster giving information to both parties without knowledge of his exposition to the Republicans. This is what a "Useful Idiot" is called in espionage circles. By definition, it is:

Someone who works for an Intelligence Agency and does not know it

Add a "party-in-a-party" to this mix, as there is the Baron, inventor of Fluid Karma and primal supporter of the Republicans. Fluid Karma is a new energy conductor that operates mechanical devices and vehicles remotely, generating fuel effectively from the ripples of the Ocean. It is not entirely sure if the Baron has his support for the Republicans indeed or has plans to gain the Good Old Dr. Octopus Type World Domination at the end of the day, though. Complex enough already?



Not quite, not quite. That little element we hinted at, namely how Boxer and Taverner have no recollection of their past lives is of primal importance in the buildup, also it leads to a quite smartly developed conspiracy foam in the end to left you wondering considerably of what exactly have you been subjected to in the previous two hours. Suffice it to say that the fictional buildup of Southland Tales is massively rich and does concern Interdimensional! and Religious! issues as well, taking you to a final interpretation field which has some quite memorable qualities and a tender message to it, no doubt.

Best thing about Southland Tales is that it does not refuse to make one big yet one massively serious joke about itself from time to time. At these hilarious peek moments the film claims and takes the liberty to slow down massively and present little vibrations that are immensely beautiful. My personal favorite is the Megazeppelin sketch in witch Boxer dances with his female partners to an enigmatically simple and enigmatically beautiful background music. Also Kelly's ability to refuse to get lost hopelessly in a masterful atmosphere is of note here: he literally blasts away this superb buildup with a gunshot, though he devotes enough time to account the special vibe prior to it's killing, a killing which bizarrely weights in similarly significant at the end.



Role of singer Justin "I Sung The Same Song 5000 Times Before And Now Me Has A New Variation On One Of Them" Timberlake is of note here. He portrays an Iraq Veteran, even better: he does that quite convincingly. As primal narrator he does an acceptable though not particularly great job, here is why: after a while you can't help but notice how Justin struggles to "steal" pathos and the gunslinga' badassness to his voice, an act that grows somewhat tiresome after a while - thank God the narrative method is not overused, so it remains tolerable. The Timberlake Thing wears some beard in the movie by the way, he looks totally different and gives you a highly defendable performance as an actor. Even a small, great video clip is included with him, singing: "I Got Soul But I Am Not a Soldier." Earing out the message there? Quite OK, in my opinion.



Dwayne Johnson gives you the stable performance you have reasons to anticipate from him, Sean William Scott is quite integral as well, while various supportive characters - including a great, brief Christopher Lambert - are depicted on solid comic book registers. You can even find a comic variant of the story if you are determined. At the end of the day, Southland Tales is a tale of rich and even successfully scaled fictional proportions, yet you definitely need that multiple viewing which it demands, and, without a doubt: deserves.



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