Be a lot better if the music and camera work / colours wasn't so over done and in the audience face.
Way too long and criminally poor ending.
Waves is sometimes disorienting, but it was a massive punch to the guts. The trailer had gotten me hooked since it came out but I only just got around to watching it.
Boy am I glad I did watch it though!
Love the cast. Here for the music. Definitely will look forward to what the director has coming next.
Everything from the story to the cinematography to the soundtrack to the acting - & GODS damn do all of these actors have superb acting chops - creates this immensely impactful story that rings true to real life. It's an emotional gut-punch from start to finish in the best way possible. I discovered that this film was coming out because I had heard bits of the soundtrack (by Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross) that my partner was listening to. He pulled up a written preview of the film & we found out that there was an upcoming screening at a small theater in Philly that immediately bought tickets to. One of the best impromptu decisions regarding media that we've ever made.
Waves is a boomer in millennial's clothing because it's a tired old story with a flashy style that's so mismatched it's jarring and doesn't fit because it's far too long.
Waves is a 2-part film (which explains the 135-minute run time) where the director's touch is so present it chokes the film and the music (Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross) is doused on top of the images rather than blended in them.
The second part is more palatable than the first, somewhat because the director steps back and gets out of the film's way, but mostly due to a knockout performance by Taylor Russell who is a walking miracle and absolutely makes Waves.
I liked the first half more than the second. The third act seemed to drag a little. The cinematography and music are great.
Crashing waves of anger, regret, consequence, and hopelessness. Crashing waves of love, redemption, forgiveness, and hope. This film is awash with many moments of high emotion and feeling, and while it doesn't always come together as hoped, it is still a commendable effort.
A reminder for dudes out there to wear a condom, or your life is destined to screwed if she changes her mind about abortion.
What an incredible audiovisual experience. I’ve seen people calling it ‘showy’, ‘over colour corrected’ or ‘disorienting’, which I think goes to show how accustomed audiences have become to the bland, unimaginative filmmaking served up by mainstream studio films. The soundtrack is also incredible, all of the needle drops are purposeful and every song bangs. Shults uses every tool at his disposal to create this emotionally reasonant experience; the blocking, lighting, aspect ratio, colour and sound choices are all very well thought out and serve the story. The performances are impressive. The story is surprising and interestingly structured, though the second half isn’t as much of an emotional rollercoaster as the first half. It kinda starts to lose its way in the third act, however. It introduces this new storyline relating to Lucas Hedges’ character, which I thought was unnecessary. It’s supposed to add some more meaning about different parental relationships, and while emotionally it hits the mark, the subtext remains vague and messy. Overall, it’s an impressive piece of work that’s recommended to fans of psychological dramas. Fans of PTA (and especially Magnolia) will probably get a lot out of this.
8/10
Bleak, but not despondent; brilliant, but not for everyone
If you're into formalism, you'll find plenty here to keep you happy; elaborate camera moves, varying aspect ratios, extreme colour correction, unusual shot composition, a sound design which bleeds into the soundtrack/score (and vice versa), a quite audacious shift in focalisation at the half-way point, and a stunningly concise closing shot. On the other hand, it's an emotionally bruising, deeply upsetting film, which takes its sweet time getting anywhere. It also asks much more of the viewer than your average Marvel movie, and some simply won't want to put in the legwork. Nothing wrong with that, of course, and if you consider cinema as entertainment only, I'd imagine Waves will leave you bored and frustrated. However, if you have the patience and are willing to take the journey on which the film wants to bring you, the cathartic rewards are many.
For my complete review, please visit: https://boxd.it/YDizB
This movie means a lot to me, and I identify very closely with it. I feel like I understood the director/writer/exec. producer's vision so clearly, and it is a truly beautiful way of looking at the ups and downs of life. Not many people seemed to have had the same intimacy with this movie that I did, but I watch it with the people closest to me nonetheless to see the way they interpret it (and me, by extension). I think this movie has a lot to say about a lot of things, without using many words. Hopefully it will touch many others the same way.
The murder scene alone was fantastic, but Taylor Russell? Wow, what an actress
Waves might have the single biggest 3rd act flop I have ever seen. it's a tragic testament to the quality of it's 1st and 2nd act that I give Waves a 6/10. I highly recommend if you watch this that you leave around the 90-100 minute mark for a solid 8/10 film.
LIFF33 2019 #4
I went into this blind, but as soon as it was over, I instantly knew I witnessed something special.
This is gonna be hard to talk about since the movie doesn’t follow a conventional narrative. Although I believe that these type of movies will stay with you much longer, as the emotional connection you had will be remembered for years. In other words, I will try my best to keep myself collective through out.
‘Waves’ is an absolute gut punch of a movie. Incredibly unique with its film making and overall presentation.
From ‘It Comes At Night’ to ‘Waves’, Trey Edward Shults is a director to look out for. I still haven’t seen ‘Krisha’ yet. The way he crafts stories and the close examination of these characters feels so close to life. It hit me on a emotional level. I love how the aspect ratio changes whenever the mood changes in terms of tone. There’s some impressive and effective use of camera work through out, but the scenes that stood out for me was every time someone drives, the camera will spin clockwise at the front - which reminded me of ‘It Follows’ clockwork-like spin. There was also some free flowing camera work that also reminded me of Terrence Malick movies.
The performances and characters were all fantastic. Sterling K. Brown delivers a fantastic performance as a strict and yet flawed father who’s method of parenting is incredibly demanding. He has a son and a daughter, but in the first half we only see him hang around with his son and sculpt him to be the very best, while not realizing his putting the weight of the world on his sons shoulders. We barely see him with his daughter and when we do there’s a sense of regret on his face, as if the painful realization is killing him.
Newcomer Taylor Russell truly shines as the heart of the family, which you later find out was from her perspective this entire time. Alexa Demie, Kelin Harrison Jr., and Renée Elise Goldsberry are all terrific, but most effectively was the characters portrayal that was both dynamic and soul crushing. Lucas Hedges is perfectly cast as a sweet young man with one of the kindest smile you could’ve imagined; warm and welcoming.
There was a lot of music from Frank Ocean and Radiohead, but it's something that the characters would listen to rather than the directors own playlist. It actually sets the tone throughout. While at times it can get a bit too much music, but that didn’t ruin the overall experience. I don’t know why, but this entire movie reminded me of ‘Moonlight’.
The best complement I can give to this movie is how unpredictable it is, because I had no idea where it was going. Putting aside that I went into this knowing nothing, but that wasn’t the reason. It's a long movie, but I was invested the whole time. What took me by surprise is how the movie is structured and how every act unfolds a new chapter. The first act was a rush of energy in terms of pace, but the second act is almost a different movie and feels almost mystical. And every action the characters make will lead a massive impact to other peoples lives...
Because when pain and tension rises, expect it to come crashing down and shatter you into million pieces.
‘Waves’ is great, but really underrated.
A little overlong and relies a little too heavily on the music to tell the audience how to feel, but that does not altogether belie the ultimate heart of Waves. There is a great film hiding agonizingly close to this final cut--but I'm not sure that it quite hits. It does, however, contain genuine empathy and emotion.
Shout by KyriaCrosszeriaBlockedParent2020-02-23T00:20:24Z
A good movie about a topic that's been made movies off a lot lately, what with dysfunctional families/millenials, drugs and America, and all that. American Honey did it quite well, too.
The camera-work in the beginning almost nauseated me, but it was interesting camerawork nonetheless. I liked how the director used lights and colours in this. Very dramatic and neo-noiresque, I appreciated that.
I also enjoyed the different angles and takes. I had not expected the main focus and main character to shift – a pleasant surprise.
A lot of tragedy packed into one film, and many moments I was moved to tears.
So sad how hard it seems for people to just love another (and stop capslocking about important issues).
When we realise how all things have causes and effects and everything influences each other, it gets tougher to assign blame too.
But holy damn was I bothered by how they ruled a homicide by accident as "second degree murder" and "lifelong prison". What the actual fuck, that justice system is seriously fucked. Also wondering what it would have been ruled if he'd been a white guy. Yikes.