Wait…what?
The Story
Colin Farrell stars as Marty, a screenwriter with a deadline. So far all he has for this already overdue project is a title: Seven Psychopaths. As we enter the story his friends are beginning to try and help him come up with characters to fill out his non-existent story. Some of those characters turn out to be fiction; some turn out to be real. Some of them turn out to be closer than would be considered comfortable.
The Verdict
What a strange, strange movie. I’m not a fan of the casual use of non-linear structure or the mixing of fantasy and reality without a strong
Colin Farrell
supporting framework. Both of those elements are at play here as Marty’s friend Billy (Sam Rockwell) essentially takes over the movie with his dognapping, psychopath creating, wannabe actor antics. We never quite know if what is happening is real or not, or will become real later, or is a flashback to something real from the past, or is pure fiction. It isn’t as confusing as it sounds; it’s more just an annoying contrivance to cover up the fact that the plot of the movie is very, very thin.
Sam Rockwell
All we really have here is a small group of people letting their stupid schemes get them in trouble. Wrapping that into a completely different story about some screenplay is just obfuscation and an excuse to do things like have Christopher Walken be his usual weird self, or have a scene with a Buddhist killer. It doesn’t really make sense, though it is occasionally funny in a violent, psychopathic way.
Some of the scenes are fun; Walken, Farrell and Rockwell are all entertaining at turns; but in the end Seven Psychopaths just doesn’t quite come together into anything coherent. 2 stars out of 5 and a recommendation only for hardcore fans of any of the three leads.
photos by gdcgraphics and David Shankbone
Sue reads a lot, writes a lot, edits a lot, and loves a good craft. She was deemed “too picky” to proofread her children’s school papers and wears this as a badge of honor. She is also proud of her aggressively average knitting skills She is the Editorial Director at Silver Beacon Marketing and an aspiring Crazy Cat Lady.
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