Title: Sexy Beast
Year: 2000
Country: UK, Spain
Language: English, Spanish
Genre: Crime, Thriller
Director: Jonathan Glazer
Writers:
Louis Mellis
David Scinto
Music: Roque Baños
Cinematography: Ivan Bird
Cast:
Ray Winstone
Ben Kingsley
Ian McShane
Amanda Redman
Cavan Kendall
James Fox
Julianne White
Álvaro Monje
Rating: 7.4/10
Let’s assume you are a casting director, there are two roles: one is Gal, a retired safe-cracker enjoying the life of Riley in a beatific villa in Spain with his wife and friends; and the other is his former criminal associate Don Logan, a browbeating, invective-pelting psychopath who wills to recruit him to a new job and will not take no for answer. Then you are given two candidates: Mr. Gandhi himself, Sir. Ben Kingsley and a bovver heavy Ray Winstone, the choice is rather self-evident.
However, that is not the case for UK scenester Jonathan Glazer when he begins to work on his feature film debut SEXY BEAST, who does the obverse, fingers Mr. Winstone for the hapless Gal and Mr. Kingsley for the rivetingly menacing Don Logan, a delectable volte-face rewardingly earns him an Oscar nomination, meantime, Winstone also magnificently brings about an incarnation very different from his usual image, a rough diamond type, graced by the lovey-dovey intimacy between him and his wife DeeDee Dove (Redman), an erstwhile porn star.
It is a taut iteration in the UK gangster genre, the story is nothing too sparkling, it is Glazer's swift and impressive execution takes the full credit. The harbinger arrives in its opening, a boulder falls right in into the swimming pool of Gal’s villa (which betrays a sloppy CGI burnished effort), while he is sunbathing under the blistering heat, this portends an impending threat which will disrupt the placidity and imperil those who cannot get away, Don Logan is coming to visit, and he will not be in a pleasant mood if he knows that Gal determines to decline his very generous offer. So sparks fly, but not without a droll war of (swearing) words and things will inevitably get physical, Kingsley’s intimidating presence deviously pays off the looming dread simply elicited by the mention of his name, and after an ironical turn of events, he does manage to press-gang Gal into partaking in the action however reluctant he is, to break into a bank vault via water pressure, The suspense isn’t swelling during the action, but after, when the head of the criminals, Teddy Bass (McShane, another great villain, less showier but infallibly lethal), a character turns out to be far more ruthless than Don Logan, bluffly tells Gal that “he knows what they did in Spain” and promises he will come to visit in the due future. Well, why there isn’t a sequel to this?
Parlaying his reputation as an eclectic music video director into this breakout debut, Glazer has concocted up a stunning-looking fare seeped with robust characterization, pulsating rhythm of montage, scintillating chromatic disposition and optimal pop taste, ultimately transmogrified it into a beguiling conglomerate ofromanticism, perversity absurdity and bloody gallows humor like an arch cautionary take:there is no easy way of going straight, so think twice before you get your feet wet!
ps. accompany pieces: Glazer’s UNDER THE SKIN (2013, 8.2/10); Guy Ritchie’s LOCK, STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS (1998, 7.9/10), SNATCH (2000, 7.1/10).
像这样的作品,你很容易把它归类为烂片。可是,随着欣赏角度的不同,电影所呈现的感觉也会发生变化。在影片里,身处西班牙犹如身处热带中心,人的精神状态被逼向极端,而在偏离常规之后,在这股耐人寻味的炎热里,它不自然地就散发了另一种独特的魅力,哪怕这种风格带着失败的味道,致幻度也还是很高,适合大量运动之后伴随大量刺激性食物及廉价香烟使用。
确实是不同于那些流俗的犯罪电影,它聚集于前半段,实施窃案并非重点,反而将视觉放在“说服旧搭档再次实施犯罪”的段落里。普通的盗窃类犯罪电影只是将这个过程放在影片开头,再长也不过20分钟,然而,这个编剧却特立独行,将常规的局部片段化作他的全部表达。于是,不同以往,观众在此看到了“犯罪电影类型”的另一面,那是漫长的拉锯,是互相的磨蚀,是无法拒绝的焦虑,是大范围炙热里的一滴汗。
待全片结束之后,我又突然想起了影片的开头:山上的某块巨石滑落,刚好飞过他的头顶,砸向他的泳池。这时我才发现了那个在故事开始就被注入的完美象征:西西弗斯的巨石落在了他的头上,他自然要承担西西弗斯的宿命。想退出,在拒绝,但不断被“唐”这个角色(就是他要说服“我”参与下一场犯罪)所化身的梦魇要挟,他告知“我”:你不能逃脱你现在想脱离的犯罪生活。远离并没有那么容易。这里还不能成为你的藏身之处。除非死亡,否则西班牙就不是你认为的天堂。
在这个象征之后,就是刚刚所讲的互相拉锯了,“我”的精神状态逐渐被逼向极端,身体变成了热带的身体,一场炎热在局部内酝酿,波动在看似无实际意义的对话上铺开,坏情绪则不停聚拢。戏外的我已经体验到烧灼感了。
而按照这种表达,在我看来,自“唐”被一枪打死之后,影片就该结束了。导演没有必要非得向观众呈现一个无法选择之人的最后位置,这样的位置不该有,即便有,也应该是呈现一种幻觉中的徒然,否则导演将亲手打破他栽种于影片开头的那个神话。
认知命运既然是电影所要表达的主题,更深刻的结尾应当就是“我”终于知道了“我”是西西弗斯。换句话说,在和梦魇拉锯数日之后,“我”既然已深知自己是热带中心的西西弗斯,就不应该强求“你”再给“我”写上一个新的结局。
各种经验告诉我们,认知是导致改变的前提条件,首要得认知,然后才会有改变。这没有错,可是,我们又都常常忽略了这么一点,实际上,开头的自我认知往往要比日后的自我改变还要困难。
这部电影本来是有可能做到这个程度的:删去各种形容词之后,再去照镜子,面对自己,我们将看到什么。可惜,导演最终没能完成这样的表达。在影片后段,它还是走上了另一条流俗的道路,而在那之后,观众所看到的热带也不过是寻常的热带风景罢了。
Let's have a big round of applause for BEN KINGSLEY! Such a damn hot f**king tough! 黑帮西西弗斯,偷天换日却盗不回金盆洗手后的西班牙悠长假日。格雷泽的反类型处理是如此轻盈熟稔,对话密度之大、节奏之爽利,令人难以想象他日后会拍出《皮囊之下》这种黑洞般沉默而迷人的作品。不过可以看到,从首作开始,他就已经喜欢把谜底写在开头了。滚落的巨石砸出尘封的心魔,简单的象征域,映射成人世界无法摆脱的危险渴求。
不知所云——
本片获第74届奥斯卡最佳男配角提名。要不是不时地冒出一些无厘头的幽默,真的很难把影片坚持看完。影片是典型的文不对题,标题与影片内容没有半点关系。
看男人骂骂咧咧,看男人犯罪盗窃,看男男女女晒太阳,故事简单,氛围独特,节奏了得。
装腔作势...注意结尾还真有个beast
神马啊~!故弄玄虚半天,,还以为有神马爆点呢。。。结果弄这么个破故事,还能拍出部电影?你太给黑帮片丢脸了~~~~不过这种形式感不错。。。只是没有故事性。。
人物陷入一种莫名其妙的癫狂,导演应该是MV出身几段音乐和交差剪辑做的不错,故事做的很单薄。
冲着剧情来的可以略过了,本片只适合镜头控和演技控影迷观看,本·金斯利一个人提高全片档次,演得是真好,据说其他演员都怕自己的表演被他比下去,而事实也的确如此。全片每个角色都偏冷静,只有Don是最神经的,自然也就抢眼了许多,没有他的部分则有些平淡。故事很简单,但也算得上有趣,劫金库的段落还影响了后来的神作GTA5。
What's the fucking ending?What's the fucking title??What a fucking freak!!and all speaking the funny English!!
阳光下曝晒的男人肉体。。。
也就用来学学英国脏话....
这才是我的型,够短够简单,Ben Kingsley帅呆,ray叔还是很可爱><
山坡落石砸泳池惊艳开场,中段唠叨啰嗦,提供两大实力男星大飙演技空间,台词也还算有趣,然后就泄气了。。。套路般的爆窃,无聊无稽的结尾。。。
两个主演太棒了,电影是部短小精悍的英式黑帮片,从头到尾的脏话...
开始的大石头还蛮吸引我的
冥冥中的偶然,时空交错的隧道,看似突如其来的,实则命中注定。格雷泽也是拍一种电影的人,如同鲍姆巴赫,非常独立与坚持。预见《皮囊之下》将是一头完美的性感野兽!
define SEXY 张狂的剪辑镜头色彩最适合黑帮 看似荒诞的生活段落只是冰山一角 一切都不放在眼里最后张狂地往心魔脸上吐口水 所有元素能上升到之后的皮囊之下 太惊人了
年纪大了就不要搅基了
对Ben Kingley 连续骂N个fucking的那段台词太有记忆了...... bloody hell... the accent is just too sexy
ben kingsley萌翻了;砸墙需要对人选精挑细选吗?