MOST DISAPPOINTING FILMS OF 2017

MOTHER!

(Directed by Darren Aronofsky)

Well, alright, alright, alright… as a certain Mr McConaughey might say. We’re well aware that a sizable chunk of people and critics regard this as a genuine masterpiece and a great piece of unconventional cinema. We’re just not in that group. We also know that opinions are subjective, everyone is entitled to theirs, and this film was deliberately made to get one definite reaction or another. We also recognise that this is a well-made film with real talent both in front of the camera and behind it… We just didn’t like it, is all.

The (shrouded in mystery) plot shows a mismatched couple's relationship being tested when uninvited guests invade their perfect home… but of course that’s not what it’s about though is it? We have two main issues with it really. 1) The marketing was clearly misleading and promised at least some kind of coherent narrative that seemed to suggest a genre experience of some sort. 2) It’s hard to give a damn about characters in a movie when you suddenly realise that it’s basically a huge allegory that’s a step up from an Aesop’s Fable with its chicanery. This pretty much eliminated any possible shocks or emotional integrity for us. That’s just us though. If it works for you, then it works. We actually loved Aronofsky’s “Black Swan”, and in this movie Jennifer Lawrence and Michelle Pfeiffer do give excellent performances. But it just wasn’t for us. And we were pretty grouchy on leaving the cinema (and we weren’t the only ones in the audience to do so). The end.

Jigsaw

(Directed by Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig)

This is actually kind of painful. One of the YGROY group is a huge fan of the “Saw” franchise and was really looking forward to this, and a potential reinvigoration of the brand. Unfortunately this just left us underwhelmed and disappointed. All the promos and the previous films from the Spierig brothers, along with a returning Tobin Bell, seemed to indicate that this could be something special and return to the best entries of the series. However that wasn’t to be the case…

The plot has the classic “Saw” scenario, with five people fighting their way through deadly automated traps, whilst bodies are appearing on the streets pointing to the return of the departed Jigsaw himself, John Kramer (Bell). It’s not that the film is terrible; it’s that it feels like another tired re-run of some of the past entries. The final denouement relies on a repeated plot-development that has been used before, as does some of the manipulative progression in the storyline. It’s okay as a standalone movie, but it’s just not fresh enough or dynamic enough to warrant a new arc to the franchise. And as for the frickin’ laser beams… It could be salvaged by a more brutal and inventive follow-up, but that remains to be seen if it will happen after this one.

The Bye Bye Man

(Directed by Stacy Title)

BBM was one of those films that studios sneakily push on general release after a substantial holiday period. That doesn’t inspire confidence, and despite a good looking trailer and concept, it didn’t