My Movie Journal is Better Than Yours

Notes History

Date Viewed	Venue	Note
08.25.16	Internet	The flip side of the Trumbo coin: Jay Roach and Bryan Cranston telling the story of LBJ's first year in office, with a little MLK thrown in for good measure. The main difference here is the script. Since it's based on a play, I definitely felt moments where the scenes stretched out, the cinematic momentum slowed, and we were just watching Cranston work. It didn't feel 100% like a filmed play, but the pacing and structural issues I had with the film were definitely rooted in my aversion to that type of movie. Cranston did well though, even under a considerable amount of makeup. Anthony mackie less so. I think he didn't want to fall too out of his Marvel physique to match MLK's physicality. This is definitely an HBO movie kind of movie though. It's probably a bit too long, more focused on performance than rhythm. Watching this and Trumbo back to back has been an interesting study in what makes an Oscar type movie and what makes an HBO movie.