I’m not sure yet how I feel about it because it’s an odd little film. I kept hearing “Oh, it’s film noir” everywhere I turned, and it is in terms of all the script stuff: dialogue, plot, key stock characters (the brooding flawed hero, the femme fatale, etc.). The aesthetic decidedly isn’t noir, though, but I think that helps destabilize the viewer and prevents the movie from becoming an empty pastiche. [I mean really, how many stupid parody movies do we need? American Dreamz, I'm looking at you.] Better yet, though, is that it’s set in a high school, something that could easily have been absolutely ridiculous but isn’t; it almost feels like the Gilmore Girls as twisted through a 1930s gangster flick directed by Quentin Tarantino but minus the supremely messed up timeline. Or something. Pretend this doesn’t sound like the weirdest movie ever.
Brick
Smart!
IMDB Plot Synopsis A teenage loner pushes his way into the underworld of a high school crime ring to investigate the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend.