Bradford Maxwell
Not without its ups and downs, this is a quirky little piece that is accompanied by both laughs and occasionally poses philosophical consideration. In the end, this movie comes down to dealing with twin brothers who are complete polar opposites but still display the proverbial brotherly bond that most parents instill in us at birth. If you've never seen someone attempt to use a menorah as a weapon or grow pot in PVC pipe, this is your chance. Edward Norton does a remarkable job transitioning from playing roles as a well received professor/author and in duality playing the part of his drug dealing kinfolk. There may be conflicting opinions on this picture but I remain satisfied with the performances and the story. Take the time to decide for yourself and I doubt you'll be disappointed.
malcolm-mcewen
Whilst there is nothing deep and meaningful here the plot and characters are plausible. The pace is about right as is the mix between humour and action. Thus Leaves of Grass is excellent entertainment (which is what movies are for) and a movie which I felt came close to nearly having it all(plot, comedy, acting and direction) in just the right doses: with one notable exception... the ending. Whilst often the hardest part to write in any story the ending here was neither necessary nor plausible. A prof of Classic's just wouldn't end up trying to hawk his dead brothers grow operation in order to tie up all the loose ends. So whilst it brings the film to a close, it's a bad close that lets down what up to then was pretty plausible. If it were up to me I would just cut the whole crossbow bit out and let the audience go home five minutes earlier and with a far better impression of the movie as a whole.
itamarscomix
In his fourth feature film as a director Tim Blake Nelson proves once again that, if nothing else, he's an auteur in the strictest sense of the word - he's a director of his own vision and inspiration, but he's not quite there when it comes to making a film that works as a satisfying and complete experience. His most solid film so far has been The Grey Zone, but while Leaves of Grass is more scattered, it's just as surprising and intriguing - but it's also heavily flawed in terms of structure and pacing.In Leaves of Grass Nelson shows that he's very influenced by his good friends Joel and Ethan Coen; like many of the Coens' films, it's disguised as a genre film - a stoner movie in this case - but is actually a character study, and a half-cynical study of Americana and American culture; the characters are quirky, disquieting and very intriguing, and the actors all deliver wonderfully, especially Edward Norton in a dual role that stands with his wonderful performances in the late 90's.Nelson's directorial work is quite capable, but his script, unfortunately, has some problems, and while the film is very promising in its first half, it falls apart in the last thirty minutes or so, as the character study turns into a nonsensical action film. The ending is rushed and doesn't deliver on the promises made by the first half of the film, by the great aesthetics and the wonderful acting. The result is that the film is a great watch - especially for fans of directors like the Coens, Wes Anderson, Jim jarmusch and Spike Jonze, and independent film as a whole - but it's pretty forgettable and doesn't measure up to its own potential.
rooprect
A lot of films claim to be "dark comedy" when in actuality they're more like "comic horror". There's a difference.Dark comedy should make us laugh at the concepts of death, violence and tragedy. Examples would be the hilarious "Beetlejuice", "Grand Theft Parsons", and even campy stuff like "Men at Work" & "Weekend at Bernie's". The idea here is to take us to a goofy, cartoonish world where death & violence are meaningless. Either that, or the dead guys always deserve it.Other films, though excellent in their own right, are a little too rooted in realism, and unless you catch yourself in a somewhat sick state of mind they can come across as being disturbing (probably intentionally so). Examples would be "Heathers", "Pulp Fiction" and the Coen brothers films. I love all of those movies, but sometimes they just freak me out."Leaves of Grass" pulls off a violent story but does it in a way that's not upsetting. The movie takes the philosophical approach that it's irrational to fear death. Midway through, we get a quote from the Greek philosopher Epicurious who argued that death (or the state of nonexistence) should not be feared as long as we're alive because it can't touch us. When it finally does claim us, we're dead (nonexistent) so we're not able to feel it. In other words: what you'll never know can't hurt you.I loved the little bits of philosophy peppered throughout the movie (the main character being a philosophy professor). It was just enough to keep it on a deep level without getting us bogged down in heady psychobabble.The story itself is somewhat unrealistic, but that adds to the cartoonish vibe I mentioned earlier. You're not supposed to look for loopholes & inconsistencies. Just sit back & enjoy the ride. Like I mentioned above, fans of philosophy and literature (Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass") will get a kick out of it. If you're one of those, also check out the Jim Jarmusch films "Dead Man" and "Ghost Dog".
AD
