Wrong (2012) Reviews

• Wrong: because, you know, palm trees make sense

  ianfarkas92012-01-26

  Saying that Wrong, the new film by French director and lover of all things non-sequitur Quentin Dupieux, is strange does the film somewhat of an injustice. Not because the movie surpasses the limits of strange (although, to be fair, it does), but because strange implies something nonsensical, content that defies explanation or logic. Wrong is a film that, despite being so bizarre, manages to come around full circle and make sense at the end. All its surreal imagery has purpose at the end, and the film is at its strongest at the last moments where one can step back and appreciate it as a whole. Wrong begins with Dolph Springer, a man who inhabits a slightly off- kilter universe in which trees "make sense" based on their own unique place and offices shower their seemingly unaware employees with torrential rain. He is a simple man: he goes to work every day and enjoys the company of his gardener Victor, a man who seems to be forcing an unneeded French accent. Dolph wakes up one morning to find his dog has gone missing, and embarks on a journey to rescue his pooch from whatever peril it seems to have run across. To summarize the movie any more would be a disservice, as the best part of the film is the pleasant little surprises that come along the way. What I can tell you is that the film is absolutely absurd. From William Fichtner's restrained but subtly outrageous performance as this world's version of a zen master to a strange sequence that refuses to define itself as reality or dream, there is enough outlandish content to fill any surrealists imagination. Although these elements are certainly bizarre, it still feels like they deliver a message. They contribute to a feeling that there is something deeper being said, and by the end one walks out with a feeling that Dupieux subtly and ever so brilliantly schooled the audience. That being said, the movie has problems. For large chunks of the film, especially during a tour of a small animals digestive tract (don't ask), it feels like the director is treading water. In fact, I would go as far as to say that a good quarter of the movie loses its surreal edge, and becomes more than a little monotonous. These scenes clog the movie, and get more than a little frustrating as it holds back an otherwise breezy and enjoyably silly movie. It's a shame I can't go deeper into the movie, to explain the emotions that built inside me by the end or the flaws that made the movie shy of greatness. It's a movie that works better the less you know about it, plain and simple.

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• For once ignore the serious one star reviews!

  OrderedChaos2013-02-08

  Let me start off by saying this, if you have taken a look at the movie poster and shown interest from that alone you will enjoy this film. Yes its mental and most of the time makes hardly if any sense but still some how delivers. All the seriously demented one star reviews must be clueless movie hunters to not have seen what was coming. Did they simply see the title with no trailer or poster and then watch the film. Had you no idea what you was getting into? I am a huge fan of movies from the likes of "Nohing (2003)" and although this is not as good its much more mental. The quality of the production was mint and the content is strangely amusing enough to keep you watching. Unless your a one star reviewer that can only live and breath on mainstream crud. Overall if you have the time or want to freak out a party of friends that do have patients and don't fear the strange please watch this film. "I want 90 minutes of my life back" Sure thing why not use your next 90 odd minutes to go see the fast and repeated 6 or Twilight 26 where i heard Bella gets neutered.

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• "Monty Python meets Michel Gondry"

  blbl12013-01-13

  "Wrong" is the new absurdist comedy by Quentin Dupieux a.k.a. Mr. Oizo the French house DJ who serves as the director, the writer, the editor, the cinematographer and the composer. "Wrong" is the follow-up to the 2010 movie "Rubber". Jack Plotnick stars as a seemingly regular guy who wakes up one day to discover his beloved dog gone. With such a casual premise Dupieux sets out into a very weird journey, trying to deny everything the viewers would think they knew about storytelling. Through a series of bizarre encounters with increasingly insane characters and situations, the protagonist finds himself more and more lost, as the movie grows more and more illogical and surrealist. Jack Plotnick is well-suited for the role of a neurotic guy always on the edge of losing his mind. But don't be fooled, "Wrong" is not just about wacky characters and non sequiturs (even if it IS very funny). Dupieux never loses the satiric edge, the writing never feels boring or forced, instead it's always quite witty and original. To Dupieux life a nothing but a series of chaotic unpredictabilities, strange inconsistencies, pointless formalities and surreal misunderstandings, all rarely explored in your typical movie, and even if you don't quite share this almost paranoid notion, I think Dupieux' vision is so strong and ingenious, it's very hard not to embrace it. Wrong is a very unique movie that shows a lot of promise for Quentin Dupieux's future work. I'm actually quite excited to see what he does next, as I found this movie to be a surprisingly big improvement over his previous movie, "Rubber", especially in terms of writing. He really has found his unique style, which I could describe as Monty Python meets Michel Gondry. Verdict: a pretty funny movie.

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• Unusual, human and very moving.

  mk_doogs2013-01-22

  I can't say that I fully understood a lot of the happenings in Wrong, I am not sure if I was supposed to, but I enjoyed it none the less. It is an emotional journey; the central premise of a man loosing his dog is something that I could identify with as a dog lover as being an incredibly harrowing, discomforting and disorientating experience and the imagery of the film does a lot to reinforce those feelings. Wrong feels like an art house film, abstract, beautifully shot with a surreal edge that somehow never feels random or out of place and never goes too far with weird for weirdness sake. There is a point (as opposed to the directors last feature -Rubber). Wrong avoids alienating the audience by virtue of the great characters, they're actions given the context of the film seem perfectly understandable and you will identify with them. Also, the film has made me reconsider my relationship to my dog, in a way that no other film has done before. I cried.

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• Delightfully quirky and beautifully shot

  LynchpinHags2013-05-11

  This movie isn't for everyone; you will see many a 1-star review from people who like movies like "Bad Boys" and "The Expendables". Like Rubber, Wrong is shot in a very artistic fashion, and if you appreciate such, the movie is a joy to watch for that alone. It has a great story to go along with the cinematography though; it's full of quirky, off-beat humour (and not like anything by Wes Anderson, for example - it's another beat removed from "off-beat" entirely) and the characters are brilliant. I felt that William Fichtner stole the show in terms of the characters on offer; every line he delivered was fantastically strange. As I said - it's not one for everyone; but if you are a fan of unique cinema, you'll watch this with a half-smile on your face for the entire 90-odd minutes.

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