Mickey One

Beatty wouldn't seem like the first choice for this kind of film, but he really works the role well, giving it some strange curves and edges that accentuate the general melancholy tone that mixes the spirit of the era into an atemporal grab-bag that distills the essence of US urban life of the time. The cinematography helps at every step of the way, alternating between gritty realism and dreamlike surrealism that mirrors the film's slightly staggering but always compelling narrative.

This first collaboration between Beatty and Arthur Penn has the form of a crime thriller, but leaves all the details so deliberately vague as to have an aura of Kafka about it. Beatty is pursued (or not) by completely unknown figures for an undefined debt too large (probably) to pay off.

Estreava há 55 anos no London Festival. Eu estava realmente empolgada com a pegada desse filme na primeira metade, sentindo uma vibe meio Cassavetes mais do que Nouvelle Vague, mas por algum motivo fui perdendo o interesse, embora toda a alegoria do artista sendo encurralado pelo inimigo invisível do macarthismo seja bem potente, pois mesmo já havendo um distanciamento histórico da caça às bruxas da HUAC, ainda era anos 60 no auge da Guerra Fria. Box Versátil A Arte de Arthur Penn.

Arthur Penn sure makes movies I know 17 year old me would say are the best things ever. Still good shit.

A kitchen sink melodrama via the Nouvelle Vague. The movie looks and sounds great but whimsy should not be this heavy handed. There are enough moments scattered throughout to make it worth checking out if you're into mid-century experimental film (or a rabid Warren Beatty fan) but otherwise, it's a real slog.

Penn deserves credits for experimenting, just like its big influence the French nouvelle vague. But alas the result is just a big mess. The cinematography by Cloquet and jazz soundtrack by Sauter and Getz are its biggest redeeming qualities.

M.O was one of the first New Hollywood films influenced by the French New Wave that uses their innovative editing techniques to tell a homegrown story, but M.O is deceptively lightweight and playful and really incomparable to other films of the time. Penn handles the rapid tonal shifts with admirable skill and verve, and Beatty is surprisingly edgy in a completely atypical role. It's a dazzling exercise in style whose innovative impatience bristles with wayward charm and nervous energy.

A bizarre gem. Definitely the scariest movie ever made about a comedian. A lot of cool visual touches - there's a fade between two shots that has Mickey looking at himself on fire that's just mindblowing. Warren Beatty is, of course, awesome. As a straight man, I'll say he just looks fucking great in this movie. Great soundtrack.

Arthur Penn does Jean-Luc Godard. I am not a big Godard fan, so naturally I didn't dig this one either. The protagonist is a real butthair who I became tired of knowing. Despite all the '60s "mod" touches and experiments with film narrative, it was hard for me to stay awake during this one

An interesting experiment, but not completely successful.