The Other Film with a License to Kill

Yes, I'll be heading off tonight to Casino Royale to relive memories of my youth, when going to see the new Bond film was a bonding affair (pun certainly intended) between my father and me. But I'm also very interested in another film opening this weekend -- Fast Food Nation, a fictionalized adaptation of the Eric Schlosser directed by Richard Linklater. Here's a bit from A.O. Scott's review in the NYTimes today:

“Most people don’t like to be told what’s best for them,” says Bruce Willis in a sly, brilliant, single-scene cameo, and the suspicion that the movie is doing just that may provoke some reflexive resistance.

Which is too bad, because “Fast Food Nation,” while it does not shy away from making arguments and advancing a clear point of view, is far too rich and complicated to be understood as a simple, high-minded polemic. It is didactic, yes, but it’s also dialectical. While the climactic images of slaughter and butchery — filmed in an actual abattoir — may seem intended to spoil your appetite, Mr. Linklater and Mr. Schlosser have really undertaken a much deeper and more comprehensive critique of contemporary American life.

[...]

Mr. Linklater is a nimble and versatile director, but what he does best — what he seems to like most — is to film people in conversation. His most characteristic movies — “Slacker,” “Before Sunset,” “Waking Life” — consist largely of unfettered, idiosyncratic talk, and “Fast Food Nation” is thick with debate, argument, rumination and repartee. Curiously enough, the talkiness is what saves the movie from turning into a lecture. Its loose, digressive rhythm keeps it tethered to reality, while the dialogue and the easy pace of the scenes allow the characters to register as individuals, not just as types.

Here's a YouTube video of some beind-the-scene promo reels:



And the official trailer:



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