Yes, No, Maybe So: "Monuments Men"
Thursday, August 8, 2013 at 3:33PM Weep not for the embedded trailer I was going to use to discuss Monuments Men which vanished moments before I hit "publish". Trailers are not works of art we must protect from the Nazis so it's okay if they regularly get yanked or are seen in non-embeddable ways. They are but commercials for movies that we hope are works of art themselves. If you'd like to see the trailer to George Clooney's latest Oscar missile, click here.
I keep meaning to read the bestseller this film is based on but it basically about a group of older men on a special war time mission. They make like thieving soldiers to steal art from the Nazis before its destroyed.
YES
- Run, Jean Dujardin, run!
- Shoot Nazis, Bob Balaban, shoot 'em! [more...]
- Any movie that finds fun things for those two to do and still has room for John Goodman, Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray AND two of the most famous movie stars on the planet might be worth being curious about.
- George Clooney has great taste as a director/producer/actor/writer so his films are usually safe bets for your entertainment dollar.
- It's an unusual angle for a tire overworked genre (The War Film, WW II division) that needs unusual angles in the worst way.
- "he really wanted it all" is a nice stickie moment with the lights going on in cavernous warehouse
NO
- That set-up at trailer's opening feels a little pandering, no? 'I shall tell you of this thing called plot'
- In one minute and 37 seconds it seems only kind of okay. Is it because that last joke about the landmine isn't particularly funny?
- When I saw Cate Blanchett in this setting I immediately thought The Good German, and that is not a Happy Thought Place! (not Cate's fault since she was good in that, I quickly add to prevent the wrath of Rabid Blanchettites from descending again)
Matty: How many men?
George: Six
Matty: Jesus
George: Well, with you it's seven. OCEANS SEVEN."
MAYBE SO
- I'm only counting six men (MD, GC, JD, JG, BM, BB) not seven. Who is number seven? Is that the Earl of Grantham himself?
- The plot might be a distant cousin to Inglorious Basterds but with paintings and sculpture instead of the cinema as its ignitable artistic spark. Though I doubt Clooney will really make use of the art in the thrilling way that Tarantino made use of the cinema. My guess is this is a nobler altruistic version of Oceans 11 in which people are trying to preserve culture instead of get rich at an enemy's expense.
- John Goodman can really lay the ham down if director's don't reign him in. And Matt Damon and George Clooney can overdue the 'aren't we charming?' cockiness if they're not careful.
- Does Cate really just play the Supportive Girl who Inspires Her Man. In trailer form this is the Freida Pinto to Henry Cavill role in Immortals (oh god. let us never speak of that again). It's hard for women to find good roles in WW II films unless the writer is as clever as Quentin Tarantino.
- Clooney has directed four movies and they're all pretty good but only one of them flirts with greatness (Good Night, and Good Luck.)
- Why does Bill Murray never speak in the trailer? omg does this mean he's playing a mute! If so, we must become vocal about him on the Supporting Actor Chart asap.
I'm a Maybe So for now. You?
Reader Comments (25)
I'm definitely in since, as you say, Clooney is always smart in his choices.
Cate doesn't play the gf. She's Rose Valland an art historian, curator and member of the French Resistance who has a major role in the events covered in the movie.
This is a yes for me mainly because of the interesting subject matter. Unfortunately Clooney is fairly pedestrian as a director, so I'm not holding out hope for greatness.
Maybe. It looks very dry in general but if it gets Oscar Buzz then I'll have to see it to keep up.
I am in for the ride...
Yeah... it looks decent. Not particularly exciting.
Bill Murray does talk though! He has two lines!
Looks like another classy, dull Clooney movie. I'd say I'm a "maybe" because I'm not really a fan of the Clooney/Heslov brain trust movies, but it's inevitable that I will see this. Resistance is futile.
Yes please.
@Roark: ditto
- about Cate's part: George Clooney really likes Cate Blanchett and I bet he's done quite a lot to write, direct and produce a good part for her.
- about Cate and Oscar: I really really hope she's good in this BUT at the same time wish for ZERO Oscar Buzz IN ORDER for the Academy to ONLY focus on her Blue Jasmine power => she wins the fucking thing. A nomination (again) in both Lead and Supporting just won't help. Plain as daylight. What will help is that "The Monuments Men" will pop up during Oscar season -> the perfect time for voters to remember (in case they've forgotten) about how marvelous she is as Jasmine.
Yavor -- that could definitely help yes. a little prestigey reminder "hi, i'm fabulous"
Maybe. This trailer just seems off. Odd music choice, (apparently) underwhelming production values, and fairly obvious comic beats. Hopefully, this was just a misguided attempt at selling the thing and the movie itself will be a vast improvement.
The trailer I wish you were talking about was the one released for her. Now that thing was a stunner. Just weird, funny, and sad. For me, Spike Jonze has yet to disappoint, and I hope the final product is a good as the trailer.
Love the cast, the subject matter, etc.--oddly, made me think of Clooney's OTHER war-leads-to-some-very-surreal-moments flick, "Three Kings" (on which he and David O. Russell supposedly went to the mat).
However, I think the music is what's wrong with this trailer--it's too flip, too anachronistic, and doesn't help sell the movie as either A) a WWII thriller about a previously unknown topic, a la "Valkyrie", or B) an offbeat comedy with dark undertones a la "O Brother Where Art Thou." (Or Clooney's own "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.") Redo the music, and this trailer will probably play much more strongly.
Nope. No. Nein! Sorry, I can't abide by George Clooney, director. For me his safe bets are just safe. What are they as pieces of cinema when they are not up for a million awards? People like to bring up he has been nominated in 6 categories (actor, producer, supporting actor, director, both screenplay categories) but does anybody remember half of what those movies were? It's like he just wants to be apart of the campaign and awards buzz for the rest of his life, which he clinched with that first Oscar speech.
This looks more Hogan's Heroes than The Dirty Dozen to me. It may not have helped that I just did not connect to Argo, a clear kindred spirit movie, in any way, shape, or form.
It's strange, even the trailer for Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom gave me hope for the movie's prospects (Mandela's rebellious side than a magical negro stereotype- finally!) for myself and the trailers Her and American Hustle have intrigue even with little context. This just looks like an Oscar bingo sheet as I feared.
No - Matt Damon in videos. Not tired of Damon, but he appears in so many parody videos, every time I see him my first thought is that this is a funny or die video.
Maybe So- Watched Leatherheads and really enjoyed it, so maybe this one is funnier?
Yes- Again, I saw Leatherheads, so whom am I kidding. I'll watch it. If I had to choose in between Clooney and Pitt as the ultimate male movie star, I'd pick up Clooney, so there you go.
Maybe-so to No - CMG and Dback sorta nailed my opinion about the trailer. It looks okay, but nothing special.
Nat: I'd say Confessions of a Dangerous Mind probably skirts closest to a dark and daring piece of greatness, where it's slight prestige elements were less important than just telling the story. Good Night and Good Luck gets the next closest, though it's also a good warning sign that Clooney's true interest is in "Awards Circuit Bingo" games. Leatherheads was a bit fun, but the only reason it was in the 20s was because "setting in the 20s = prestige" and it really should have just been a modern piece, to cut down on the laboured nature of it all. And Ides of March...well it, at least it made 2011 a testament to the fact that Gosling is rangier than people think.
"Leatherheads" being set in the 1920s is vital to the story.
Whatever "Yes" elements may exist are definitely not in this dreadful trailer. It's smug as shit. Ocean's Vierzehn? Bernie Mac is rolling in his grave.
Terrible trailer. Really terrible. I'm a maybe based on the cast but a no based on the trailer. Hopefully there will be a different one before release.,
Maybe because of Blanchett. But dude, the film looks silly. Leatherheads meets Basterds with Clooney being Clooney
I am so sick of Matt Damon. I loved this book and I agree that Murray, Blanchet and Goodman will be great. The book was so good, this trailer kind of makes me feel underwhelmed. The fact that they filmed this at the old UFA studios is even more depressing.
If you don't have the time to read "Monuments Men" there is a PBS documentary (and book) on the same subject called "The Rape of Europa" that is fascinating. The story is really a hidden gem in WWII history, and is perfect for Clooney and Heslov's humor with gravitas mode. And anything with Dujardin!
""Leatherheads" being set in the 1920s is vital to the story."
Clooney wanted a period piece with a screwball comedy. Undertaking a sports movie back-drop, particularly a sport that is really hard to film as cinema was probably not wise. Not to mention the casting choices around him. You get what he was going for but it is just dull.
I never got the Clooney as Cary Grant stuff that seems to be thrown around quite a bit by entertainment people. It seemed possible with the Ocean movies but he rarely is a box-office matinee idol. He seems closer to a Warren Beatty except he never made a movie as good as Reds.
Despite the big names behind, it is a Maybe So just for the trailer. It looks boring and kind of predictable.
Clooney has taste and that "let's be charming" thing always works for me. OTOH, no women except one who comes so late into the trailer I suspect she's playing "the girl." Also, it's RED and Space Cowboys and all those other Old Guy Team movies.
Maybe so.