Sometimes they nail it, and sometimes not so much. Motherless Brooklyn debuted on HBO the other night, and I didn’t know anything about it, so I checked Rotten Tomatoes. It was barely fresh at 63%. Bad.
But I had a hunch. The cast looked great. I watched it. I loved it. I highly recommend it.
Edward Norton stars in it, plus he directed it and adapted the screenplay from a novel. He changed the movie’s setting from 1999 to the early 50s – mainly because he wanted to direct a period piece. The result was a phenomenal slick-talking noir thriller, with Norton as a self-designated detective terribly afflicted with Tourrette Syndrome.
New York never looked better. Norton even recreated the original Penn Station, with its classic iron and glass archways and ceiling, before it was replaced by a low-ceiling, bland rat trap. This is particularly notable because the storyline involves a character based on evil, racist New York City planner Robert Moses, who erased much of the charm of New York and drove the Dodgers out of town. It’s been said that Moses replacing Penn Station kicked off the architectural preservation movement in America. At least thanks for that, douche.
The point of this blog entry is that everyone should watch this film. You can blame me if you think 63% was accurate but I don’t think you will. It’s amazing, and when we’re stuck at home starved for entertainment, this delivers. Sure, it’s two hours and 25 minutes long, but another smart critic (Roger Ebert) once said: “If a movie is great, it can never be long enough.” I wanted even more.
