Too much of everything

Fresh and Exciting

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

When he dies I hope they preserve Steve Buscemi and slice him up to figure out how someone could present such a Cretan, regardless of how his character is written on the page. I will always remember his persona from the first time I discovered him on screen in Reservoir Dogs, as the non-tipping Mr. Pink of Quentin Tarantino's crime tale.In the case of the film Interview, we are very lucky that he decided to pursue funding for what for many was a very individual film in the hands of the original filmmaker Theo van Gogh. Van Gogh's background was ostensibly journalistic and his outspoken voice got him eventually killed. That Van Gogh's treatment of his subject matter may have been more for explication than entertainment, this adaptation may be better than the original.Generally American remakes (I don't know why Hollywood constantly does it) are not as good as the originals. Al Pacino was in the remake of Scent of a Woman (ugh…!), and was award an Oscar for his acting in the thing! The TV series The Office with Steve Carell is a remake of an excellent British TV show that is so far above the American simulacrum, that I am embarrassed to admit that it is playing in a country I inhabit.But the Interview remake has a lot going for it that the original doesn't. Steve Buscemi does double duty as director and lead character, political journalist Pierre Peders, assigned the task of doing a fluff piece on the flavor-of-the-week Sienna Miller's self-involved actress Katya. At first this seems like a thin plot to hang an entire film on, but the movie touches on several cultural flash points that are sure to cause controversy in the viewer.There's a particularly vibrant live feeling about the film, and this comes about primarily due to the way the scenes are directed. Buscemi's direction is to tap into the truth of the relationship between Pierre and Katya, and this does come off as caustic at times, but the actors always seem like real people.The look of the flick is well-matched to its themes. Three camera operators shoot consistently each scene from specific vantage points so that many of the reactions from the actors are spontaneous. This is a two-hander and Buscemi and Miller carry the entire feature, and the dynamic that ignites between the two is memorable and will leave you thinking through much of what the characters say and do as the screen fades.The film at times may feel a little too much like theatre. Things happen without a convincing amount of set up. We may wonder why Katya brings Pierre into her apartment in the first place. Some viewers may see it motivated by a sense of guilt on her characters part. Once inside it seems that each character needs the other to fulfill a need. This is never overtly expressed and director Buscemi allows the viewer to supply some speculation.Whatever reason works to drive the story, the needs of each character come out in caustic, sometime violent ways, and the integrity of each is shown as completely devoid of substance. You may feel that the conflict is a standoff, and that viewpoint depends on what your value system dictates.

..slowely becomes contrived and repetitive.The concept of this movie is an old one. I'm not sure which movie was the first to bring it to the silver screen, but as recent as 2006 we had 'Five Fingers' with Laurance Fishburn which, like this movie, doesn't exactly pull it off.The one that most definitely does pull it off is of course 'The Interview' from 1998 with that other Matrix icon: Hugo Weaving. I've never seen the original Dutch version by van Gogh, nor do I wish to. Watching a Dutch person trying to act is like watching a bad TV commercial trying to to be artistic.Steve Buscemi is a wonderful actor and proved with this film that he can also write. The trouble with the movie is that near the end it loses focus too much, there are too many illogical scenes and we already know what is about to happen.I personally like my movies with at least a satisfying ending. And although the performances were quite strong, the movie could have been much better if they had worked on the ending a tad more. It felt like they got tired after writing the first 3/4 of it and then just gave the rest a good once over.Too bad, 6/10

Wow. This film is seriously addictive and I am completely surprised that I had not really heard about it. It is fast-paced, witty, sexy, gripping and utterly intense! The script is incredible and spot-on; every single word is the perfect choice for the two characters, Pierre (Buscemi) and Katya (Miller). You really don't want it to end!It is primarily set in one room with just the two characters and there couldn't have been a better way for it to have been done; you are entirely focused on those people and their feelings and how they react to each other. That and the use of the Dutch camera techniques, particularly the three camera technique means that the two actors are always on screen together, makes this movie about four hundred times more intense. In 'Interview' Steve Buscemi shows himself to be a very very skilled director as well as a wonderful actor. He knows exactly how to manipulate the feelings of the viewers so one minute you are crying and the next minute you are shouting obscenities at the screen making this film even more of an exhilarating journey. The sexual tension between Buscemi and Miller is at the perfect level to give this film a great balance between the emotional and physical connection. Every word the actors speak is delivered with a certain precision not often seen nowadays in modern films. They work perfectly together and completely embody their characters.I would recommend this film without hesitation to anyone. You must see it! And having, discovered that it was originally a set of three films I shall certainly be off to find the other two if this one sets any standard for the style.

This kind of effort is rare in Hollywood. I will not say it is the most intellectual thing I could expect to see, and it was predictable to me in places, but for general audience and intellectual wannabes, it might be more striking or less than it was to me.When you do expect something unorthodox, and you do get it, maybe you say "it was predictable" and maybe you feel kind of dull because you could not stand up and say "Brava! Brava!" thinking the film sort of beat your brainwaves to it, but you also feel glad, thinking someone is kind of thinking about demands of your level and trying to meet the same. From that point of view, I thank Steve Buscemi cordially.Pierre (Buscemi) used to cover the hottest political issues and scandals for a famous TV channel. But for some reason, his editor is sending him to cover "God-awful fluff pieces". Eventually, he has to let go of an important coverage over interviewing Katya (Sienna Miller). She does TV shows and B-movies, but mostly she is famous for the celebrities she sleeps with. Pierre's reactions can be easily imagined.He went to interview Katya thinking girls like her probably have "silicon for brain cells" and what homework should he possibly have done to handle people like that? But through a chain of events that are neither intentional nor unforeseen, they stick together for the night, conducting a one-of-a-kind interview.Some people have criticized this film rather harshly. That's rather unfortunate. If Antonioni made a film like this, most of them would not grab all of it, but would not be able to criticize so boldly because he was an intellectual behemoth. Now that Buscemi gave it a try, those who are happy with "The Departed" and "Chicago" started to say it's such a waste of talent made to look like intellectual crap. Well, it is not. It is an honest film. And may not be the mirror to the height of profundity of human mind, but still quite admirable a work.If Buscemi had more experience, he would perhaps work a little more on the ending. It is a popular trick to run the film slow and give a sudden end twist when audience was just about to "Is that all there is?" This film's end twist is rather subtle and it loses its impact due to a little naive direction.Sienna Miller was a wise choice for this. Those who accidentally bought the tickets without knowing what kind of a film they were about to watch, won't be 100% disappointed because looking at Sienna Miller is always a feast for sore eyes. She pulls off everything exactly like she Buscemi told her to, I am sure. She never came so much in focus before. I will eagerly wait to see more of her in days to come.In the end, bottom line is the same as always. It's your mind, it's your head. Either you will appreciate Buscemi's effort, or you won't. I did. He did what he could.