This is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s gonzo 1930s take on The Bride of Frankenstein. Maggie wrote and directed.
She had a sex scene with Christian Bale where they were theoretically nipple-to-nipple (see below), for what it’s worth. I think it is really Jessie. Both Bale and Buckley went so far over-the-top in this film that they came full circle, finishing back below the top again.
The critic’s scores finish somewhere in the middle, making it appear to be a film that people are indifferent to.
Metacritic: 55
Tomato Meter: 57%
Popcorn Meter: 72%
IMDb: 5.9
Those are the kinds of scores you might expect from a safe, middling rom-com. That apparent mediocrity is misleading. It is not safe, and people were not indifferent. Many critics loved it, many hated it. It’s that kind of movie. It’s just way out there, a work of wild imagination, and not a little unhinged.
I do wonder if there was more nudity in the original cut. Although based on the reports, it might not be very pleasant.
This version may not be the one that comes out officially. I think – wait and see,
I just saw a report that it is bombing at the box office. It may be too much on the ‘strange’ side to find any substantial audience, albeit that did not stop certain other movies, such as Poor Things’, from doing so. The reviewers have indeed been all over the place in their assessment of this one, and it sounds like many did not quite know what to make of it. It at least seems to be ‘interesting’ based on what I have read and worth a look, but that does not mean that it is necessarily enjoyable. I thought Poor Things was interesting and very well made, but I can’t say that I actually enjoyed it that much. Seeing Jessie Buckley nude could be a plus, but it sounds like her nudity was not necessarily all that extensive and, in context, not that sexy.
Yes, the nudity is nothing special. The film is creative and strange, but nothing outstanding. Very actor brained.
I watched two eccentric movies yesterday. One was The Bride!, which I found reasons to admire, but not to like.
The other is Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, which reminded me a lot of Michel Gondry’s films and Charlie Kaufman’s scripts, two things I love, with a smattering of Ground Hog Day, another favorite of mine. It features yet another amazing performance by Sam Rockwell as The Man From the Future who has to keep coming back in time for a one-night mission until he gets it right. How does this guy have only one Oscar? He’s Daniel Day-Lewis without the pretentiousness.
That one I recommend.
Loved that Good Luck Have Fun Don’t Die movie. Feels like the kind of smart but fun adventure movies you don’t get much these days.
Thanks for the plug for GLHFDD and Rockwell. I’ll see that. As for Jessie, she knocked my socks off as Lyudmilla Ignatenko in Chernobyl. She’s incredibly talented and unusually versatile. Some of the things she’s been in aren’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea. Her nudity hasn’t been spectacle so much as another hallmark of her daring. She’s taking risks. There’s bound to be rewards and penalties.
“The Bride” is a self-indulgent art project… total worldwide box office of around $13.6–$13.9 million so far on a $90 million dollar budget.