I wrote like 600 words worth of rambling thoughts on AwardsDaily when I saw it last week, but I'll be brief here - this is absolutely a delight to watch, and completely deserving of the hype that's come out of Sundance and Cannes. Though I'm guessing a lot of people are assuming that this is really arty, it's actually a very classical story, just presented in a very fresh and compelling manner, with tech work that any Hollywood filmmaker should be jealous of. And the two leads (Wallis and Henry), despite not having any acting experience before this, are absolutely great in this, and would be wholly deserving of awards attention.

This'll almost certainly stay one of my favorites for the rest of the year, and I really can't wait to see what Zeitlin does next.

I can't wait to see this.

The most poetic, lyrical and beautiful film since The Tree of Life. Quvenzhane Wallis is tremendous. A

Review: http://www.worldofkj.com/article.php?i=775

This film threw me a bit. How do you, at the end of the day, absorb a movie you consider a triumphant accomplishment in nearly every way (the performances! the dialogue! the visuals! the music!), but also suspect is, at its core, a tad exploitative and cynical?

The secret might just be to absorb it the way you would most summer action films. Just let the experience, with its sights and sounds and textures and sense of motion, grab hold of you and then remember it fondly, if broadly.

The more you reflect on it and consider it on an intellectual level, the more the feeling becomes, "All right, fried gator might be tasty, and it can be fun to run through fields and shout and light fireworks and be free and of nature, but the sun will be down soon, so let's get this girl clean clothes, a real bed, a reliable foster parent, and a modern classroom with books and calculators."

I liked it while it remained magical and fantastical and essentially free from real-world signification. But once it becomes clear that it's steeped in contemporary history, and perhaps even attempting some kind of pseudo-political message, it loses something, and the rest of the film just rang false for me.

It's still a remarkable achievement, most notably for the performance of its lead, but I felt like it could've been so much more.

I'm not sure I'll hear a better movie score this year. That and the leading actress were simply terrific. The rest is "just" very good.

It's good and at moments touches on sensual filmmaking brilliance. The sentimentality of the Henry storyline didn't do a lot for me. I preferred it when he appeared to be full on nutcase earlier in the film

Actually put it this way: Beasts tries to do 3 things at once. It wants to be an art film, it wants to be a docu-drama type realist film and it wants a Hollywood plot resolution. While an ambitious idea, I would say the merger of those sides of the film is not as smooth as if it just went in one direction

I really liked the music, not much else. The lead girl really annoyed me and the only character I emphasized with was the dad. Also lots of SHAKY CAM. Which only works in movies that have things happening. I'll give it a C+ for its wonderful score though.

lol, I enjoy how Flava'd hates the innocent child, but sympathizes deeply with her alcoholic, raging, incredibly flawed father.

Hey he might have had all those flaws, but watching him deal with his own near-demise and knowing that he needs to make his little girl stronger was a little touching. I think I would have liked this a lot more had he been the main protagonist.

And innocent girls don't set their houses on fire.

i thought this was quite terrible..

The first hour is fairly strong though it loses itself a bit in the third act. The acting is fine, if unspectacular, but the score is quite amusing.

The score is, hands down, the year's best.

It is good, but a bit overrated. I prefer the scores for Anna Karenina, Cloud Atlas, Dredd, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and Life of Pi.

BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD

This movie didn't work for me. I felt it was overrated. Best picture? This film? No way. I was quite bored with this film about a bunch of poor hobos. As for the girl, quevazane wallis I would think any five year old or most five year olds could have done this performance. Truly. I was not mesmerized in the least. I did enjoy the relationship of the dad and the girl. Also a lot of her dialogue was just narrating as well. I was very disappointed with this and now if I do that amc marathon this is a gonna be a dread.

Grade - C

I loved this movie. I watched it a second time last night and loved it just as much. Different strokes for different folks.

If I could nitpick one tiny thing, it's what she says to the aurochs at the end. It isn't perfect. But it doesn't take away from the whole experience.

****

If the best scene in a film titled 'Beasts of the Southern Wild' takes place in a dive kitchen, something went wrong. This year's 'The Artist'. 5/10.

Man, when it comes to this film, I just don't get it. I don't hate the film, but it will be a very long time before another one reaches this level of overrated.

Loved it.

Beasts of the Southern Wild

I didn't enjoy my time watching this. It is probably a perfect example of a forced-praise awards season film. The type of film that everyone praises because they feel guilty, but that nobody ever watches again because it's mediocre. The score is amazing, but everything else is overrated.

C

I saw this long back and have fond memories of it. The lead was great, don't remember much of it but it was slow and I would not go out of my way to revisit the movie but if its on I will definitely not skip it.

6/10.