An enigmatic phone call from a psychic catapults a family into a state of suspended belief while waiting for their recently deceased mother to be resurrected.
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Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.
what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.
I watched this film a couple days ago and can't stop thinking about it. I generally like movies about altered states and know many people might not. At times the film feels literally timeless, evoking a complex ambiguity that must rest somewhere on the spectrum of grief (I think about 'the year of magical thinking' by Joan Didion). It's perfectly beautiful despite being awkward and stilted at times. The story is mildly confusing or maybe not - I don't know! But the sisters opposing points of view held my interest and plot holes seemed beside the point. The natural and sincere performances are gilded by a stylized world –it's almost like someone's saying death doesn't exist, which in some ways is more terrifying than death itself. Also: Chloe Sevigny has a daughter in the film that eerily looks like her, Luke Grimes is fun to look at and I loved loved seeing Jena Malone give it to her ex over the phone.
I first heard about 'The Wait' from a friend of mine. He recommended it to me on the basis of my interest in the work of David Lynch, and also because he knows that I'd lived in the Pacific Northwest for a little while. The first time I watched the film, I admit that I didn't really get what was going on. The plot moves very quickly at moments, and very slowly at others. But, upon a second viewing I felt I really started to understand. The film is very rich, and the characters go deep. I feel like a common reading/viewing of 'The Wait' – or at least from what I've read in other critics reviews – is that the film lacks any kind of depth. I don't think so, I think there is a very strange coherency to the film. It's like a fever dream, the characters emotional movements like tectonic plates, in that they shift imperceptibly at times, but there always is a shifting and movement. I'm thinking particularly of Chloe's character Emma, her scene where she sees her husband again for the first time in a while. They're out on a boat, her mania is palpable. I found that shift to be really interesting. Thank you M Blash, and looking forward to the next one. –Howard
This movie started out really good. Then it just got so confusing and didn't make a lot of sense. For example, who called her on the phone? Was it just her brother playing a trick on her? I couldn't tell. And what was up with the time capsule? And who was at the door at the end? As good an actress as chloe is, even her facial expressions were very confusing. And why did she seem so confused when jenna finally "saw the light" and thought her mom was going to return? Why? She was the one who got her to believe it in the first place? And did the puppy die? And since her daughter was with her when she bought it, how did she not know her mom had a puppy in a box? Just too many questions. Too many loose ends to make any sense.
This is the first time I have been moved to write a review immediately after seeing a film. "The Wait" is well-titled, because I kept waiting for this thing to get to the point - any point. Other reviewers are seeing artful imagery. I'm seeing self-indulgent clichés. We see film shot out of a car, from the side window, as the scenery flies by too fast to make out. We hear dialog delivered with unneeded, meaningless pauses that seem to be there just to slow things down even more than they already were. We see a tantrum of a phone conversation that makes no sense whatsoever, never explained, and not contributing to the plot, such as it is. Or isn't. Finally, the credits rolled, and I sat there for a moment, wondering what in the world was the point? So there's the spoiler, folks. Nothing. Happens. I can almost hear the makers of this film laughing "made ya look!"