Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2012)

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  May 9, 2012

  hobster1

  Extremely Loud is a picture of undeniable heart and it honestly moved me. Oskar's hike through the streets of New York City is quite stirring. It starts out as a seed of an idea, but the concept develops into a full fledged scavenger hunt, much like the interactions he used to ha... read moreve with his father when he was alive. It takes time, but the purpose slowly germinates until before you know it, it has developed into a quietly poignant emotional journey. His interactions form the basis of the story with actors Max von Sydow, Viola Davis and Jeffrey Wright logging the most screen time. They're interesting as well, but the biggest surprise is that Sandra Bullock provides the film's best scenes. By the end, I was overcome by emotion. There's one particular moment of such pure virtue, it made the film for me.

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  April 23, 2012

  jlewis07

  I went in wanting to not like this movie after it got the Oscar nomination for best picture over some much more qualified movies were snubbed based on critic opinion alone even though I had not seen it. While I still don't think it was quite deserving, I can see why it was nomina... read moreted. It's a tearjerker for sure and one that feels truthful in what it is depicting on screen. The tragedy of 9/11 is seared into many peoples brains even 10+ years after the events have happened and this movie definitely shows just how hard it could hit even when it shouldn't have. The main character is certainly pretty detestable at the beginning and had me scoffing at how ridiculous he was, but he grows and matures throughout the story and by the end you feel his pain. There's some memorable characters along the way too, not the least of which is the Oscar nominated performance by Max Von Sydow.

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  April 14, 2012

  jamers2011

  One of the most interesting films of the year...

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  April 12, 2012

  jonnyjason

  Better than I thought it would be. I had every reason to hate it (as it stole a Best Picture nomination better suited to Drive, Harry Potter 7.2, Bridesmaids, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Warrior, or Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy). It didn't deserve the nomination, but it's a lot... read more better than critics proclaim. An excellent debut from young genius turned actor Thomas Horn, in the best performance from a child actor I've seen this year. In general, I just thought this was a good coming-of-age story. It's about a kid who probably has Aspergers, and who has to learn how to comprehend the complexities of the world around him without the help of his father (this is shown through flashbacks later, where we see his father un-complicating everything). It's pretty touching that way, with a solid if melodramatic approach from skilled director Stephen Daldry. A touching portrait of an imporatant story with good acting across the board, even if it wasn't as good if it could've been.

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  April 12, 2012

  LitelBluHli

  Thomas Horn plays an amazing kid who goes on a journey searching for "Black" after the death of his father, played by Tom Hanks. It was very different, but an inspiring story. I enjoyed the ending.

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  April 8, 2012

  blkbomb

  Thomas Schell: If things were easy to find, they wouldn't be worth finding. 
  
  "This is not a story about September 11th. It's about everyday after."
  
  This is a really hard movie to decide whether I liked or not. At times it was a moving and heartfelt film that really had me feeli... read moreng for Oskar and his mom. At other times, it was Extremely overdone and Incredibly annoying. Oskar's narration annoyed me a lot, but it wasn't all that annoyed me. There was too much that annoyed me to even talk about. But it also seems that for every detail or scene I hated, there was something that balanced it out. No matter how much you hate the movie(as a lot of people have), you can't argue that it isn't technically well made and that there aren't good performances. You could argue however that in how well made it was, there are a lot of gimmicks and the director never turns away from a potential tearjerking scene. If you have problems with movies that are overdramatic or over sentimental, you won't like this because it is both. It definitely doesn't shy away from sentimentality and tears.
  
  I just don't know how I feel about this film right now. I didn't hate it, but I couldn't, with any confidence, say I liked it either. There's definitely elements of the film that I had major problems with, but to just completely right it off like many have done; seems wrong. I believe it has its merits and that if you give it a chance it could potentially affect you. It may not be an Oscar level film, but it is an interesting film nonetheless. Had the director gone a different way with a few plot details and had he avoided all the predictable moments, this could have been one of the better films of 2011. As it stands, it is just okay.

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  April 6, 2012

  spielberg00

  The first few minutes of EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE, a title I won't dare to abbreviate because it entails grand only in its entirety, are bound to cause wonder as to why it was nominated for Best Picture, but once those first few minutes have passed, it's quite clear: the... read more writer, cast, and director have all taken the subject matter into their hands together and handled it very seriously as it should be. Granted, their are quite a few flaws that are almost impossible to not pick up on, such as that there is humor placed where it shouldn't be (i.e. the "lie-counting" Oskar does); Oskar goes a bit over the top with his rambling (rather than commiserating, we start to plead for the moment when he closes his mouth); and it sometimes doesn't seem all too realistic (i.e. Oskar is always skipping school without consequence or warning). Other than that, this is a nice film that should leave you thinking. (It's not every day we see a movie about a kid's experience with 9/11, is it?)
  
  READ MORE ABOUT THIS PLEASANT SURPRISE:
  http://themoviefreakblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/review-extremely-loud-incredibly-close/

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  March 6, 2012

  aliceinpunderland

  Jonathan Safran Foer's books are nigh unadaptable, or so it seems from the two forays thus far. The movie versions of both Everything Is Illuminated and EL&IC neglect the rich histories of the protagonists' ancestors which are essential to understanding the human tapestry Foer w... read moreeaves. It's really a shame because as most critics have trumpeted, EL&IC is a maudlin mess that capitalizes on tragedy whilst the book is certainly not so.
  
  There are definitely more obvious tear-jerking scenes in the movie, but perhaps my positive bias towards the book enabled me to forgive the face-value and actually be moved to some extent. Thomas Horn is precocious and alienating in a great way. His big anime eyes express a vast chasm of loss, guilt, awkwardness, and misunderstanding. His monologues detailing all the things that scare him, the eccentric habits of the people he meets, and the meticulous calculations that will bring him closer to finding the lock that fits the mysterious key are frenetic and Rain Man-esque.

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  March 2, 2012

  blacksheepboy

  This overly sentimental drama could have been genuinely sensitive and moving, but got mined by bad narrative choices. It is not only manipulative, given the exploitative matter, but also has an extremely obnoxious protagonist that pushes our patience to a very limit.

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  March 1, 2012

  CloudStrife84

  Heartfelt and well-intended, if also labored and partially obnoxious. I can see why the opinions are so split when it comes to the ratings of this film. On one hand we have a poignant family drama, that draws great radiance from its wonderful actors. On the other, however, not mu... read morech of what they say feels very genuine or natural, and the young boy upon which the story has its focus, does repeatedly cross over from precocious to annoying. Somewhere around the middle though, it got a lot better. Once I accepted its evident flaws, I was quite moved by the story, as main character Oskar Schell deals with the loss of his father, whom tragically lost his life during the 9/11 attacks. It's also a compelling adventure set in beautiful New York, where Oskar searches all over the city, for the lock that goes with a mysterious key left behind by his late father (played terrifically by Tom Hanks). In some scenes he comes off as a very weird and awkward kid. Like when he meets a woman who is in tears after a recent divorce, and the first thing Oskar does is asking if he can take her picture. I mean, how is that not creepy? It felt more like I was watching the humble beginnings of a future serial killer. What saves the film from pretentiousness, however, is the pathos-laden plotline, along with the superlative supporting cast including John Goodman, Sandra Bullock, Max von Sydow and, as mentioned, Tom Hanks. Sydow especially gives an extraordinary performance, even though he plays a mute old man, who never speaks a word, save through his pen and paper block. At an impressive age of 82, he's not showing any sign of fading, doing his character just as brilliantly as he would have 20 years ago. It is in regard to all this fine acting, that I quite liked the film overall. Many will call it contrived and to that I can agree, but once the mind stops judging the film and the heart takes the helm, that's when the movie shows its true colors and grips you through and through. So as long as you can overlook its weaknesses, you may be surprised to find that it's well worth the investment. Both time-wise, emotionally and in the slight thinning of the wallet.

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• Tom Hanks as Thomas Schell
• Thomas Horn as Oskar
• Sandra Bullock as Linda Schell
• Zoe Caldwell as Oskar's Grandmother
• Dennis Hearn as Minister
• Paul Klementowicz as Homeless Man
• Julian Tepper as Deli Waiter
• Caleb Reynolds as Schoolboy
• John Goodman as Stan the Doorman

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• • Oskar Schell: That's an oxymoron!
• • Thomas Schell: What would this place be if everyone had the same haircut?
• • Oskar Schell: If the sun where to explode, you wouldn't even know about it for 8 minutes. Because that's how long it takes for light to travel to us. For 8 minutes, the world would still be bright, and it would still feel warm.
• • The Renter: Sometimes we have to face our fears.
• • Oskar Schell: Sometimes I think I'm staring at a brick wall. [hits himself on the forehead]
• • Oskar Schell: My dad said the way I saw the world was a giftâ?¦

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• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: Tom Hank On Oskar Finding The Key
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: The Greatest Reconnassaince Mission
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: How Come You Don't Speak?
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: My Dad Was In The Building
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: Was There Really A 6th Borough?
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: What's He Looking For?
• Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close (Spanish)
• Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close: Max Von Sydow (Featurette)

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