The Humbling (2014)
Unfortunately, because of my devotion to watching Al Pacino’s movies, I now have two films in my gray matter I wish I could remove: Donnie Brasco and The Humbling. I also sat through Heat, which was too graphically violent for my taste, but I read a book at the same time to save myself scarring visuals.
In this indie flick, Al Pacino is an actor losing his grip on life. His acting career is on the decline, and his memory isn’t what it used to be. While that in itself is incredibly sad to watch, the movie gets worse. After his failed suicide attempt, Greta Gerwig comes into the picture, and even though she’s his ex-girlfriend’s daughter and a lesbian, they start dating. Greta’s character is so flawed, so “confused”, and so irritating, I feel sorry for Phillip Roth, her creator in the original novel. He must have had the worst ex-girlfriend in the world and needed to cathartically writer her into one of his books, or he has a sick imagination and should be pitied.
Some movies are upsetting and the good acting makes that audience forgive what they’ve just sat through. I’m sure there are lots of indie lovers who will enjoy this depressing film because of the effective performances, but I’m not one of them. The ending of this movie is so horrible and so disturbing, I’m unable to say, “Well, Al Pacino did a good job, so everything’s fine!” I wish I’d never seen it, and I wish I’d never seen him in the film’s final scene.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to upsetting scenes, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.
More Al Pacino movies here!
In this indie flick, Al Pacino is an actor losing his grip on life. His acting career is on the decline, and his memory isn’t what it used to be. While that in itself is incredibly sad to watch, the movie gets worse. After his failed suicide attempt, Greta Gerwig comes into the picture, and even though she’s his ex-girlfriend’s daughter and a lesbian, they start dating. Greta’s character is so flawed, so “confused”, and so irritating, I feel sorry for Phillip Roth, her creator in the original novel. He must have had the worst ex-girlfriend in the world and needed to cathartically writer her into one of his books, or he has a sick imagination and should be pitied.
Some movies are upsetting and the good acting makes that audience forgive what they’ve just sat through. I’m sure there are lots of indie lovers who will enjoy this depressing film because of the effective performances, but I’m not one of them. The ending of this movie is so horrible and so disturbing, I’m unable to say, “Well, Al Pacino did a good job, so everything’s fine!” I wish I’d never seen it, and I wish I’d never seen him in the film’s final scene.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to upsetting scenes, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.
More Al Pacino movies here!