Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close ————7/10
Directed by Stephen Daldry, Written by Eric Roth, Starring Thomas Horn, Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Max von Sydow and Jeffrey Wright
Fandango Synopsis- Oskar, who lost his father in the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center, is convinced that his dad left a final message for him somewhere in the city. Upon finding a mysterious key in his father’s closet, Oskar sets out in search of the lock it fits. Feeling disconnected from his grieving mother and driven by a tirelessly active mind, Oskar has a journey of discovery that takes him beyond his loss and leads to a greater understanding of the world.
Positives- I’m someone who has almost completely avoided ( not entirely actively ) the true life 9/11 stories and anniversary specials etc. Sadly, when I think of 9/11 it’s usually about the horrid abuses of power by the government and the infringements on civil liberties in response to the atrocity. So, as odd as it may be, EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE felt like a relatively fresh story to me.
I was surprised that I found it to be a sweet and sometimes touching film. It took me on a journey I wasn’t always sure I wanted to be on with a kid I wasn’t always sure I wanted to be with, but as a whole I’m glad I was along for the ride.
While his character could be annoying, I was impressed by Thomas Horn, who was tasked with carrying this behemoth, Oscar baiting picture. Oskar, who may have some form of Aspergers, is all over the place emotionally. He’s bossy, intelligent, secretive, driven, hyper-aware and often an emotional mess. Horn was good throughout, but truly nails the few big emotional breakdown scenes in a way that almost no child actor can and many adult actors struggle with.
New York was gorgeously filmed in an interesting way. You often get to view New York through the eyes of Oskar, as a big, chaotic, exciting, but terrifying place.
Andres Desplat’s score really worked for me.
Jeffrey Wright and Thomas Horn share a fantastic scene late in the film. This is the big emotional payoff as Oskar may have finally found what he’d been searching for throughout the film. It’s an emotional few minutes and the best scene in the film for Horn and the film as a whole. Jeffrey Wright was perfect. He is one of the best actors working and really needs to be in pretty much every film and get a ton more leading roles.
Negatives- As good as Thomas Horn was, his character was oftentimes irksome. The film was at its worst when Horn was doing the terrible voiceover. It was grating and almost always unnecessary. I place the blame on the writing rather than the acting there.
Some of the meetings Oskar had with people along the way hit the wrong note with me, coming across as unnatural and unrealistic, even for a highly contrived story like this one.
The story was highly unbelievable and contrived, but I mostly accepted that, therefore I could have completely done without the tying up and explaining of things from Sandra Bullocks character. Then, after those unnecessary scenes they offered up the swing scene, which pushed things too far and offered a quasi happy ending that felt wrong for this story. No one gets a happy ending out of 9/11 and even that little bit of an answer for Oskar seemed too perfect.
Verdict- EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE has plenty of flaws without a doubt. The narration is awful to listen to, your lead character annoys at times, there are some huge contrivances and a pretty terrible final few minutes, but the heart of the story and the film is in the right place, which does a lot to overcome its shortfalls. It’s a sweet and often touching film featuring a surprising and impressive lead performance by Thomas Horn. He nailed the emotional breakdowns in ways other child actors rarely do. There’s a strong supporting cast too which features Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Viola Davis, Max von Sydow and Jeffrey Wright, who is front and center in the best scene in the film. New York City is filmed in a uniquely frenetic way and Andres Desplat supplies a fitting score. It’s not too soon for a 9/11 film and it never was. I don’t think EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE is the Oscar Best Picture Nominee embarrassment that many do, but rather a very well made film that overcomes some major flaws and mostly delivers. I think it’s worth seeing.
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