Tuesday, June 24, 2008

I, Myself, Were About To CHOKE to Death

So, i went to the LA Film Festival and watched a prescreening of Clark Gregg's adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk's book, Choke. And to be a good director, one doesnt necessarily need professional schooling or anything but the fact that it was directed by an actor turned director, it just made me feel kind of uneasy. it seems like they couldve done more with it and gregg just ended it a bit abruptly. oh whatever.

The story and actors were exceptional and wonderful. Gregg couldnt have assembled a better cast with such a low budget film. Anjelica Huston was simply so entertaining to watch as the cynical mother of Sam Rockwell's character. People love Kelly Macdonald, but i didnt really feel like she really brought the character to life. maybe it was all part of the character but i didnt really picture her playing that character.

and after the screening they had a q&a with clark gregg. and he said beforehand that someone special was going to come and speak and in the back of my mind i had a idea of who it was but i was in denial and when he came out, i almost burst into tears. CHUCK PALANIUK CAME OUT! IT WAS WILD. THE AUDIENCE WAS JUST GOING CRAZY. (I WAS GOING CRAZY!) he is such an amazing person. he shared some of his influences to his stories and his real-life experiences that transcended to the pages of his books. it was just an entertaining and gratuitous night for me...

honestly, the film itself is entertaining due to palahniuk's wicked humor and dialogue, but the direction seemed kind of whatever. i dont know thats just my opinion... maybe its cause im so used to such exceptional direction from the likes of kubrick, fellini, and scorsese that i cant really see the decent work of clark gregg.

*pst: if you want more details on Chuck, just ask me..