There is an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia called "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom" in which all the characters basically use sex as a means of screwing(pun intended) each other over, and in the end no one gets what they want.
This movie reminded me of that episode. Basically Glenn Close and John Malkovich try and one up each other with their sexual exploits and in the end everyone is destroyed.
It's interesting to me that where I really enjoyed "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom", I found it very difficult to watch "Dangerous Liaisons" even though the themes are essentially very similar. Obviously the tone of each is markedly different and that is the cause of my drastically different feelings about the two.
My question I guess is this: why does the tone make it okay for me to revel the ugliness of IASIP and feel uncomfortable at the malice of "Dangerous Liaisons"? I suppose the episodic nature of IASIP has allowed me to grow accustomed to the faults of the characters, and the fact that it's played mostly for laughs affects my feelings too. Also the ugliness is usually forgotten by the next episode, so you aren't forced to deal with the destruction of each character.
In contrast the characters of "Dangerous Liaisons" are seen to fall apart under the weight of their actions: Uma Thurman goes from chaste to whore, Keanu Reeves betrays his first love, John Malkovich falls in love with the very person he is trying to corrupt, Michelle Pfeiffer becomes corrupted, and finally Glenn Close as the gleeful orchestrator of this chaos comes to terms with her own emptiness.
I respect the movie for what it is, but I don't think I have ever watched a movie that is so mean spirited and contains so much malice. I realize that is the point, but it makes it an uncomfortable viewing experience.
PS everyone should watch It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, it's Seinfeld on crack, literally.
This movie reminded me of that episode. Basically Glenn Close and John Malkovich try and one up each other with their sexual exploits and in the end everyone is destroyed.
It's interesting to me that where I really enjoyed "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom", I found it very difficult to watch "Dangerous Liaisons" even though the themes are essentially very similar. Obviously the tone of each is markedly different and that is the cause of my drastically different feelings about the two.
My question I guess is this: why does the tone make it okay for me to revel the ugliness of IASIP and feel uncomfortable at the malice of "Dangerous Liaisons"? I suppose the episodic nature of IASIP has allowed me to grow accustomed to the faults of the characters, and the fact that it's played mostly for laughs affects my feelings too. Also the ugliness is usually forgotten by the next episode, so you aren't forced to deal with the destruction of each character.
In contrast the characters of "Dangerous Liaisons" are seen to fall apart under the weight of their actions: Uma Thurman goes from chaste to whore, Keanu Reeves betrays his first love, John Malkovich falls in love with the very person he is trying to corrupt, Michelle Pfeiffer becomes corrupted, and finally Glenn Close as the gleeful orchestrator of this chaos comes to terms with her own emptiness.
I respect the movie for what it is, but I don't think I have ever watched a movie that is so mean spirited and contains so much malice. I realize that is the point, but it makes it an uncomfortable viewing experience.
PS everyone should watch It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, it's Seinfeld on crack, literally.
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