★★★✩✩ - Good.
I rented this on a whim despite it being uploaded in full to YouTube after seeing the Avatar rerelase in theaters recently. While I know he's not everyone's cup of tea, Sam Worthington is an actor I respect and enjoy - he did a great job in Avatar, and I actually really liked his performance here as well.
To be perfectly honest, heist movies have never been my thing. I end up getting confused as the plot twists get pulled out, and Gettin' Square ended up being no exception. Maybe it's the fact that I'm sleep deprived. Perhaps it's because I was having a hard time telling characters apart. It could even be the way the film is formatted - I genuinely thought that the movie was in chronological order, so my entire understanding of the plot was compromised when I figured out the first scene wasn't a flashback but a flashforward.
Whatever the case, I ended up losing track of the plot several times - but none of it mattered as I still found myself thoroughly entertained.
As an American who has never been outside the country, I did have trouble understanding the Australian accents - so much so that I had to turn the subtitles on. That being said, once I could understand what was being said, I began to really admire how good the dialogue in this movie is, particularly in any of the scenes involving David Whenam.
Whenam gives a shockingly good - and surprisingly humorous - performance as a withdrawal ridden druggie, with much of the film focusing on him as he steals the spotlight in every scene he's in. Sam Worthington does a great job as well, however, and I think too many people are harsh on his acting chops simply because of his struggle to use an American accent six years later. Personally, his character worked for me, and I could have watched an entire movie about him becoming a chef. I could also have watched a movie about his mended relationship with his brother - a plot point that gets disappointingly little screen time as the film goes on.
With a slightly above average cinematography style and a decent enough soundtrack, the quirky, twisty performances and smart script manage to make a surprisingly complex script work. Even though I didn't understand the ending at all, I still had a fun time and will definitely be watching it again at some point to try and catch what the heck is going on - preferably when I'm not so tired.
★★★✩✩ - Good.
I rented this on a whim despite it being uploaded in full to YouTube after seeing the Avatar rerelase in theaters recently. While I know he's not everyone's cup of tea, Sam Worthington is an actor I respect and enjoy - he did a great job in Avatar, and I actually really liked his performance here as well.
To be perfectly honest, heist movies have never been my thing. I end up getting confused as the plot twists get pulled out, and Gettin' Square ended up being no exception. Maybe it's the fact that I'm sleep deprived. Perhaps it's because I was having a hard time telling characters apart. It could even be the way the film is formatted - I genuinely thought that the movie was in chronological order, so my entire understanding of the plot was compromised when I figured out the first scene wasn't a flashback but a flashforward.
Whatever the case, I ended up losing track of the plot several times - but none of it mattered as I still found myself thoroughly entertained.
As an American who has never been outside the country, I did have trouble understanding the Australian accents - so much so that I had to turn the subtitles on. That being said, once I could understand what was being said, I began to really admire how good the dialogue in this movie is, particularly in any of the scenes involving David Whenam.
Whenam gives a shockingly good - and surprisingly humorous - performance as a withdrawal ridden druggie, with much of the film focusing on him as he steals the spotlight in every scene he's in. Sam Worthington does a great job as well, however, and I think too many people are harsh on his acting chops simply because of his struggle to use an American accent six years later. Personally, his character worked for me, and I could have watched an entire movie about him becoming a chef. I could also have watched a movie about his mended relationship with his brother - a plot point that gets disappointingly little screen time as the film goes on.
With a slightly above average cinematography style and a decent enough soundtrack, the quirky, twisty performances and smart script manage to make a surprisingly complex script work. Even though I didn't understand the ending at all, I still had a fun time and will definitely be watching it again at some point to try and catch what the heck is going on - preferably when I'm not so tired.
