Post by PhantomKnight on Oct 17, 2020 0:41:59 GMT -5
Oh, man. Talk about a trailer overselling a movie.
Antebellum is one of those movies that's hard to talk about without getting into spoilers, because the problems it has mainly have to do with its central conceit and the way it's handled. So, I think I have to do some spoiler talk here. But first, the bottom line is this movie's a misfire. It's technically well-crafted (its opening tracking shot is honestly pretty great) and features some strong performances, but it's a movie that not only thinks it's much more profound than it actually is, but also one where the filmmakers came up with the concept and just stopped there. It wants to be the next Get Out or Us, but fails to grasp what made those movies resonate with so many people. Those are my overall thoughts, but if you don't want to know the movie's twist, stop reading now.
Okay, so the trailer for Antebellum sort of promised/teased us one kind of movie, when in actuality, it's not that at all. Based off the trailer, I sat down expecting there to be some sort of sci-fi angle to this where slave traders somehow stumbled upon time travel and were using it to help populate their plantations. And truthfully, that might've made this more interesting. Instead, what it is is that everything we see is indeed happening in the present day, but what's going on is that there's this secret group of the wealthy/elite who are running this elaborate role-playing/reenactment facility where these racists abduct black people and force them to assume roles as slaves in the Antebellum South, right on down to all the hardships they'd endure at the time. So, it's basically 12 Years A Slave crossed with M. Night Shyamalan's The Village.
Okay, honestly not a bad idea for a horror movie. But if you're going to do that, then you also need some interesting/meaningful commentary, which is something Antebellum lacks. All it has to say is, "Racism hasn't gone away and it can still be brutal." Admittedly a valid point, especially given recent events, but it's a one-note stance as presented in tghis movie, and it provides no further insight beyond that. So we're left to watch these brutal scenes depicting the type of violence black people had to endure in these times, but it all feels empty. The First Act is also tedious because of the way the movie is structured; basically, the First and Second Acts are switched around. But while starting the film off in the middle of the story does get things off to an intriguing start, but kind of unnecessary, especially since things start to drag a little even before the switch. Then in Act Two, you've got Gabourey Sidibe, a one-liner dispensing character who feels like she's from a completely different movie.
But really, the whole Secret Plantation angle -- and by the way, it turns out to be located on some land that's part of a Civil War Reenactment camp -- opens up a whole issue of logic and questions of security, especially once we see how easy it can be to escape from it in the climax.
I don't fault the filmmakers here for them wanting to try to use the trappings of a horror movie to make a statement, but it really feels like they stopped once they came up with the basic theme and the central twist. Antebellum is a heavyhanded disappointment.
Okay, honestly not a bad idea for a horror movie. But if you're going to do that, then you also need some interesting/meaningful commentary, which is something Antebellum lacks. All it has to say is, "Racism hasn't gone away and it can still be brutal." Admittedly a valid point, especially given recent events, but it's a one-note stance as presented in tghis movie, and it provides no further insight beyond that. So we're left to watch these brutal scenes depicting the type of violence black people had to endure in these times, but it all feels empty. The First Act is also tedious because of the way the movie is structured; basically, the First and Second Acts are switched around. But while starting the film off in the middle of the story does get things off to an intriguing start, but kind of unnecessary, especially since things start to drag a little even before the switch. Then in Act Two, you've got Gabourey Sidibe, a one-liner dispensing character who feels like she's from a completely different movie.
But really, the whole Secret Plantation angle -- and by the way, it turns out to be located on some land that's part of a Civil War Reenactment camp -- opens up a whole issue of logic and questions of security, especially once we see how easy it can be to escape from it in the climax.
I don't fault the filmmakers here for them wanting to try to use the trappings of a horror movie to make a statement, but it really feels like they stopped once they came up with the basic theme and the central twist. Antebellum is a heavyhanded disappointment.
*1/2 /****
