2015 Blind Spot Series: The Crying Game

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What I knew going in: The big reveal - which did not play out like I thought it would.

 *****Spoiler Alert!*****

 Ah, The Crying Game. This movie is rather infamous by now, isn't it? I have a friend who saw this in theaters and said people actually walked out. I wish I had been old enough to be there and yell "Y U MAD BRO!?!?!" after all of them. 

 Jody (Forest Whitaker) is an English solider kidnapped by some IRA soldiers. Fergus (Stephen Rhea) sympathizes with him and in the three days he's held captive, they share stories. Jody talks about his girlfriend, Dil (Jaye Davidson) and how if something happens to him, he wants Fergus to find her and tell her that Jody loves her. Well, something bad happens, so off Fergus goes to find Dil.

 Okay, I think everyone knows that Dil is a guy. Literally everyone knows that about The Crying Game, but what surprised me was this is actually revealed in the middle of the film. I expected them to kind of go the Sleepaway Camp route and do it at the end. Obviously in 1993 this was a much bigger deal then than it was now, but it was a pretty genius marketing ploy on their part.

 The film is so much more than that though. It's interesting, touching, brutal. The performances are great. Neil Jordan is a wonderful director. (have you seen Breakfast on Pluto? You should.) The film is nearly two hours, but it feels much shorter. I'm happy to say that this is yet another positive mark on my 2015 Blind Spot list. 

 Recommended: Yes

 Grade: A-

 Memorable Quote: "Told you I was fast." - Jody (Forest Whitaker)

Comments

  1. AnonymousApril 21, 2015 at 9:06 AM

    LOVE THIS MOVIE! Like, MY GOD this movie is so not what you expect, and it's such a rich character study. So glad you liked this one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamApril 21, 2015 at 12:03 PM

      Yeah, it definitely didn't go the way I was expecting it. Wonderful film. I'm glad I saw it.

      Delete
  2. DellApril 21, 2015 at 1:19 PM

    I'll be honest. I've never seen this specifically because I already knew the twist. Didn't see the point. Now I have reason to give it a shot since I now know that's not the big final moment of it all. Great review.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamApril 22, 2015 at 7:02 AM

      Thanks! Yeah, it's very different from what I expected, so it was still a nice surprise.

      Delete
  3. thevoid99April 21, 2015 at 7:51 PM

    It's a film that I need to re-watch though I think the twist did kind of ruin its surprise.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamApril 22, 2015 at 6:54 AM

      I imagine that was a pretty big deal back then. It still surprised me how the movie actually played out. I was expecting something different.

      Delete
  4. JoshApril 27, 2015 at 7:33 PM

    Yay! I LOVE this movie! Neil Jordan always gets great performances from his actors, but I still haven't seen Breakfast on Pluto yet. Must do that!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamApril 28, 2015 at 6:40 AM

      OMG, please, please, PLEASE see Breakfast on Pluto. It's so wonderful!

      Delete

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