Parked Report
Mar. 26th, 2011 04:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gateslackerI had initially planned to write up these initial thoughts along with my other report on my trip to Boston. However, that seemed a bit overwhelming and there are photos to wade through and upload to boot so I decided to write about my reactions to the movie itself separately.
So, was the movie, Parked, worth a whirlwind trip from Tennessee to Boston? All fangirling aside, the answer is YES. Of course, the fangirling helps because, really, it is why we do what we do, yeah?
All in all I thought the movie was funny, sweet, poignant, and brutal. It somehow managed to be devastating and uplifting at the same time. I thought the cast was well chosen. Colm’s Fred is a sympathetic, everyman who is endearing from the start. You are drawn into his world and his predicament as he shaves from the trunk of his car and waters his wee little plant and I like that they introduce the Cathal character through him. Colin’s Cathal is also endearing and funny which makes his ever spiraling descent even more painful. And painful it was. I was spoiled, naturally, but even had I watched the movie without them, I think I would have felt the “tragic” coming.
Certain scenes stick out for me. One scene is where Fred walks over to Cathal’s car and then walks away without ever introducing himself. In hindsight, this tells you so much about Fred’s character and his fear before Cathal’s influence. I realize that the repeated scenes with the diving board were meant to be more symbolic of his fear and his inability to fully engage within his own life but that scene really struck a chord with me. His fear has cast him adrift and he can’t seem to let it go. I can relate!
The scene that struck me after Cathal’s influence is the scene with the car hi-jinks (spinning out? Doing donuts? Whatever you want to call it) and how Fred was elated that he had actually done it. I felt elated right along with him! When he comes to Cathal’s rescue by taking on the thugs, I had an inward “Hell, yeah!!” moment! I might have yelled it aloud had I been in the comfort of my own living room.
Of course, Fred is not the only one trapped as we also meet Jules (Jooles?Sorry, not sure now how it is spelled), who we find is another person adrift even if she isn’t living in her car. No, her fear and isolation are much more subtle because, on the surface, she seems to “have it together”. I won’t even go into what traps Jules even though I can relate a bit to that as well. And as Cathal helps Fred, Fred unconsciously pays it forward by helping Jules. I admit I don’t quite understand why Jules decides to leave in the end and I was disappointed she did.
Ah, Cathal. Trapped by his own drug addiction and unresolved family issues. It is devastating how he succeeds in helping Fred but cannot help himself. It is sad that Fred’s influence wasn’t ultimately reciprocal; that this watch couldn’t be repaired. There are so many scenes that just break my heart! (Probs because I was spoiled, the heart started cracking from the get go.) I knew the scene about the “leaf breaking from its branch” from the trailer, of course, but others stand out for me as well and many of them are heart-wrenching. The scene where Fred catches him injecting heroin and the immediate fall out from that just killed me, even though I KNEW it was coming. I am not a stranger to seeing blood, bruises, and people all broken up but the scene where the thugs pound on him a second time is visceral in its execution and visually. When he is dragging himself, beaten and bloodied, across the parking lot, I swear every muscle I have was clenched. His scene with his Dad totally slays me because he is so lost and his dad is so unyielding, possibly understandably so. And then I am completely gutted by the end when they take his shoes (His Shoes!) and he dies a lonely, tragic death by the bonfire, with fireworks going off in the sky. Gutted, I tell ya!!! It doesn’t help that Colin is brilliant and infuses every scene with that special sort of something that makes you want to reach out to him… even when he is injecting heroin into his great toe (Ugh). When he cries, tears automatically spring to my eyes. And his face!!! That has to be some sort of gift, I think.
(Well, I did cross over into fangirling when I had hoped not too. Much apologies.)
And the thing that bothers me the most; the thing that really fills me with sadness is that Fred and Cathal never saw each other again after that scene when Fred catches him injecting the heroin. Cathal died thinking that no one cared for him. Fred’s last words were words spoken in anger and betrayal. Ah, I get all choked up just thinking about it. Sob!
When I initially saw the trailer, I was moved to tears. That is the first time that had ever happened by watching a movie trailer. The cinematography and the music only added to the appeal. I am pleased that the film really lived up to the trailer and I already want to see it again
Certain scenes stick out for me. One scene is where Fred walks over to Cathal’s car and then walks away without ever introducing himself. In hindsight, this tells you so much about Fred’s character and his fear before Cathal’s influence. I realize that the repeated scenes with the diving board were meant to be more symbolic of his fear and his inability to fully engage within his own life but that scene really struck a chord with me. His fear has cast him adrift and he can’t seem to let it go. I can relate!
The scene that struck me after Cathal’s influence is the scene with the car hi-jinks (spinning out? Doing donuts? Whatever you want to call it) and how Fred was elated that he had actually done it. I felt elated right along with him! When he comes to Cathal’s rescue by taking on the thugs, I had an inward “Hell, yeah!!” moment! I might have yelled it aloud had I been in the comfort of my own living room.
Of course, Fred is not the only one trapped as we also meet Jules (Jooles?Sorry, not sure now how it is spelled), who we find is another person adrift even if she isn’t living in her car. No, her fear and isolation are much more subtle because, on the surface, she seems to “have it together”. I won’t even go into what traps Jules even though I can relate a bit to that as well. And as Cathal helps Fred, Fred unconsciously pays it forward by helping Jules. I admit I don’t quite understand why Jules decides to leave in the end and I was disappointed she did.
Ah, Cathal. Trapped by his own drug addiction and unresolved family issues. It is devastating how he succeeds in helping Fred but cannot help himself. It is sad that Fred’s influence wasn’t ultimately reciprocal; that this watch couldn’t be repaired. There are so many scenes that just break my heart! (Probs because I was spoiled, the heart started cracking from the get go.) I knew the scene about the “leaf breaking from its branch” from the trailer, of course, but others stand out for me as well and many of them are heart-wrenching. The scene where Fred catches him injecting heroin and the immediate fall out from that just killed me, even though I KNEW it was coming. I am not a stranger to seeing blood, bruises, and people all broken up but the scene where the thugs pound on him a second time is visceral in its execution and visually. When he is dragging himself, beaten and bloodied, across the parking lot, I swear every muscle I have was clenched. His scene with his Dad totally slays me because he is so lost and his dad is so unyielding, possibly understandably so. And then I am completely gutted by the end when they take his shoes (His Shoes!) and he dies a lonely, tragic death by the bonfire, with fireworks going off in the sky. Gutted, I tell ya!!! It doesn’t help that Colin is brilliant and infuses every scene with that special sort of something that makes you want to reach out to him… even when he is injecting heroin into his great toe (Ugh). When he cries, tears automatically spring to my eyes. And his face!!! That has to be some sort of gift, I think.
(Well, I did cross over into fangirling when I had hoped not too. Much apologies.)
And the thing that bothers me the most; the thing that really fills me with sadness is that Fred and Cathal never saw each other again after that scene when Fred catches him injecting the heroin. Cathal died thinking that no one cared for him. Fred’s last words were words spoken in anger and betrayal. Ah, I get all choked up just thinking about it. Sob!
When I initially saw the trailer, I was moved to tears. That is the first time that had ever happened by watching a movie trailer. The cinematography and the music only added to the appeal. I am pleased that the film really lived up to the trailer and I already want to see it again
