A punk rock band witnesses a murder in a
neo-Nazi bar and are forced to fight for survival. HORROR
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Green Room (2016)Written and Directed by Jeremy Saulnier
Starring Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots, Patrick Stewart, Alia Shawkat, Joe Cole, Callum Turner, Mark Webber, David W. Thompson, Macon Blair, Eric Edelstein |
On paper, Green Room sounds insanely awesome. A film where British thespian Patrick Stewart plays a psychotic neo-Nazi? Sign me up. Unfortunately, the film itself does not live up to its exciting trailer and intriguing premise. Quite frankly, it's boring. It takes forever for anything to happen and once it does, you're so confused by everyone's motives that you really just want it to be over so you can move on. The characters are one-dimensional and the cinematography is abysmal. When I watch a movie, I'd quite like to see it. I didn't think that had to be said.
This is one of Anton Yelchin's final roles before his tragic death earlier this year. His performance as Pat is phoned in and flat as hell. Even Patrick Stewart is completely unbelievable as a neo-Nazi. His turn as Darcy is just as flat, if not more so. He seems to be putting on a bizarre accent, like he's trying to hide his natural brogue but not by much. Combine the unlikable characters with an incoherent and ever-changing plot that doesn't know what story it's trying to tell and you've got yourself a bad movie. Green Room wanted so badly to usher in an era of punk rock horror films, despite it being about as punk rock as a Rihanna concert. Its terrible lighting made everything impossible to see without squinting. By the time it was over, I was relieved. With a better crew behind it and a well-polished script, Green Room absolutely could've been a solid horror hit. I, however, was not impressed and do not recommend this unfortunate misfire to anybody. |