MovieChat Forums > The Guitar (2008) Discussion > A few problems with the film(spoilers)

A few problems with the film(spoilers)

posted 15 years ago by eyjo12
27 replies | jump to latest

Melody seems to become an obnoxious narcissist after her diagnosis. She seems to abandon all morality. She stops being vegetarian, starts stealing, throwing boxes and garbage out the window, seducing a married man..

30 minutes into it, I was hoping she would hurry up and die already..

Cookie shows up, a couple of days after they first met(where Melody didn't display hint of personality, let alone a romantic interest in Cookie), with a pizza and wine, presumably hoping to get Melody into bed. And later we find out Cookie is not even a lesbian, she's getting married to her violent boyfriend.

She flirts slightly with Roscoe the delivery guy, and when he shows up days later with flowers, she doesn't hesitate to jump into bed with him, knowing well he is a married man. Obviously that's mostly his fault, but she doesn't seem to have any problem with him cheating on his [pregnant]wife

Melody is just not a very likable character.

[–] blehblehbleh 15 years ago

You are right.

They will make millions with the idea that this is a good movie, it isn't.
They get bonus sales from black males and clueless libs.

All that mattered to Amy Redford and the gang behind this piece of crap movie was showing a hot white female interested in a black man.

Notice there are NO pics of any black people for this movie? Yeh, because that might lose a sale. Why else would you avoid showing the delivery guy? Shhh, white males wont want to buy this if they know!

[–] edwardecl-1 15 years ago

Huh? I thought she was a likeable character, who wouldn't act the way she does if she thought that she was dying? All morality goes out the window, in this case quite literally :D.

If I were dying I would personally travel the world until I died, but it looks as if all she ever wanted was a guitar and that's what the films about. People treated her like crap so she treated them the same way.

The film is a bit far fetched with the whole sad story thing and the ending but whatever ^^. Go and watch Monsturd and Batman and Robin, then you will see this film is at least not on that level of crapness.

[–] eyjo12 15 years ago

There is nothing racist about it.

[–] inthepalemoonlight 15 years ago

There is nothing racist about it.

You're right. The dude who made that claim has a history going around IMDB and claiming any film with interaction between black men and white women as being racist. Of course by tracking his history you notice he only has posts like this for four such films which shows, despite his stance otherwise in other threads, just how rare such these types of interactions are in film.

[–] hajj628 15 years ago

You have a really limited worldview. This film was marketed as starring Saffron Burrows because she's the central figure of the film. There are plenty of african american actors heavily promoted in other films, in films in which they are the central characters. Please stop spreading your outdated divisiveness. Sorry for my harsh tone, but it's the truth. At this point in history, the only thing that's keeping america from being equal are those who play the victim. Life sucks for everyone, it doesn't matter what the color of your skin is.

[–] erskine_spencer 15 years ago

I have a question for Everyone especialy the so called liberal.Filmakers Actors act elites,but say that the want there films to be felt by everyone .Actors always act as if they live a seperate but hard life.Everything is a character never really connect with real people hang out only with people who could do something for them.Producers and directors are like slave plantation owners only concernerd with there next cash crop and every bodys playing this game like what there doing is so real and connects the world.I am a black male Atrist musician and the difference with music is that it can reach all ages all types of people it can connect educate and unify all at once.no wonder Joaquin pheonix wants to do music.Actors Directors And producers are not down to earth.They seggragate themselves the same way racisms of old it just disguised in art.We are better because we have more discipline to do nude and love scenes and be mature.Give me a break In the real world people are not always so professional so don't expect me to believe they are.One last thing with the new technolgy musicians can talk to there fans through blogs and im.I bow to no man we are all mortals.so why the pretensous elitisms?

[–] Screenwriter_Brandi 14 years ago

English please?

[–] loosearrow11 15 years ago

I felt the same way. I did like the movie, but I felt the film makers did many things to not make Melody a likeable character. You are suppose to feel sympathetic for the main character, but then she goes and does these bad things.

[–] jdrusk 15 years ago

Never believe Janeane Garofalo when she tells you that you have 2 months to live.

[–] lagartija1919 15 years ago

The point is not for you to like her or identify with her or grow up to be just like her. Films are not after-school specials, ok?
The film takes pains to show that Melody lives under constant attack from the world. People bump into her, jostle her, she gets fired, dumped, she gets a terminal disease (a metaphor for her growing depression and despondancy?), she lives in a basement, etc... she secludes herself, says bye-bye world, only deals with the world she wants (delivery of stuff she wants, only talks to her two lovers, delicious food, wine, no money problems, no aggressive humanity to deal with...) and finally she goes after her childhood dream. Then she's cured, and when the real world finally catches up to it, she's cured. The boxes she throws out the window are a very good cinematographical device. Of course the action shocks a bit, but it's supposed to startle us out of thinking that we're meant to identify with her on a realistic level. This film is much more like a fairy tale. Did you ever wonder if you actually liked Snow White, the person? No, because that was never the point.

Listen to the silence at night

[–] DreamMachinist 15 years ago

Hear, hear!

[–] jpb58 15 years ago

Never believe Janeane Garofalo, period.

[–] escapereality 15 years ago

melody is a very likeable character. she is free and alive for a brief moment. most people dont have the guts or opportunity to do what they want, i envy her. so do you.

[–] dcdemented 15 years ago

Not me. Doing what you want isn't quite as admirable when you hurt other people so you can.

[–] 15 years ago

[deleted]

[–] cflr 14 years ago

Who did Melody hurt?

[–] paulcreeden 14 years ago

Amen! This film was embarrassing. It screams "movie insider nepotism".

I would shrug it off as laughable, except for two things. (1) I was once given a terminal prognosis of 6 months, and (2) I am a cancer survivor (different diagnosis).

To say Melody is a CREEP is an understatement. She's a stupid creep. She throws boxes out of her window onto the street in NYC. She doesn't even know she's busted her credit limit. And, BTW, I'd love to find out what banks held those cards. They let her charge with an unlisted phone number for 3 months before pulling the cards???? Stupid banks too. The whole movie is stupid. The guy with the amp in the park, a homeless junky with expensive guitar and amp (right!)just happens to get busted conveniently.

I could go on and on. The whole film is a journey to Land of Stupid. Bad writing. Implausible premises. Cliche scene after cliche scene...right out of music videos of the 80s. Sterile sexuality. Not one fully developed, likable character. Wooden performances.

Please Ms. Redford and Mr. Poe, leave us potentially terminal survivors alone in future. We have enough to deal with without being insulted by your attempts at making a film.

[–] coccosoids 14 years ago

Listen to the man! And avoid this movie...

[–] pepeds2002 14 years ago

I understand how you people didn't like the character, but I really appreciated that this movie was not the typical: "I am going to die so I become a better person" Hollywood cliche, I really enjoyed that it showed her crossing the obvious morality and didn't stayed on the politically correct side: married guy? why not!, delivery girl? why not!... I mean, she didn't rape anyone, she merely let the door open to two consenting adults, what's so bad about it?, can't a girl let loose on her own sexuality on the last days of her life???...

I liked that about the movie, however I do have problems with the plot, it is too loose, and the main motive (the guitar) is underdeveloped... and the ending is just plain sloppy (did they run out of film or what???). It could have been a good film with some improvements to the screenplay.

PS: In a completely unrelated note: Saffron Burrows is just gorgeous.

[–] mb935 14 years ago

An ok film that just got worse and worse. The ending was laughable.

[–] Screenwriter_Brandi 14 years ago

Melody seems to become an obnoxious narcissist after her diagnosis. She seems to abandon all morality. She stops being vegetarian, starts stealing, throwing boxes and garbage out the window, seducing a married man..

And?

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] MargeGunderson-Brainerd 14 years ago

So you would become a vagitarian?

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] MargeGunderson-Brainerd 14 years ago

30 minutes into it, I was hoping she would hurry up and die already..

Soda shot out my nose as I read this and laughed. Because more than a year and a half later, I'm sitting here watching this dreck hit bottom and keep digging. Impatiently, I hit the remote to see how long before she finally died or found out she wasn't terminal.

Immediately came here for the agony-free way to see what happened. The time? Exactly 30 minutes in. :^D