This movie is a solid courtroom drama wrapped around a sordid child sex case. The ending doesn’t do justice to the subject matter, and the court proceedings aren’t gripping enough to overlook it. And knowing where the narrative is headed takes the tension out of the preceding scenes.
Content warning: language, female nudity
Closest comparison: It’s like American Beauty by way of A Few Good Men.
Setting: Courtroom Drama
Plot: Detective
Tone: Sordid Drama
This movie is a decent modern crime thriller, with a surprisingly effective antagonist and some great suspenseful scenes. Unfortunately, some other scenes are drawn out so long they fall flat and there are one or two comebacks characters make that are so unbelievable that it undercuts the stakes of the film. Nevertheless, it’s a bold entry into the noir genre and definitely worth a watch for those who don’t mind subject matter that gets a bit gritty.
Closest comparison: It’s like No Country for Old Men by way of Fargo.
Setting: Noir
Plot: Crime
Tone: Thriller
This movie is very confused. It’s too dour and gritty to be a kids movie, and too whimsical and frivolous for adults. The tone is too lighthearted in some places where it needs to be serious, and the resolution is underwhelming given the scope of the journey. And to make things worse, in an attempt to make the subject matter kid-friendly the dinosaurs ‘drive off’ attackers instead of tearing them to pieces, which actually causes plot holes later on. It’s a mess.
Closest comparison: It’s like The Searchers by way of Rango (2011).
Setting: Western
Plot: Adventure
Tone: Tragedy
This movie is predictably funny, sweet, quirky, and occasionally a bit harsh in the signature style of Wes Anderson. It’s an evolution of The Fantastic Mr. Fox visually, but the story is more classic rescue adventure fodder with some fantasy and sci-fi elements thrown in. Its quirkiness will impact audiences differently, but where Darjeeling Limited and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou had the quirkiness on full display Isle of Dogs relegates it more to the deeper levels of story and narrative structure.
Closest comparison: It’s like The Fantastic Mr. Fox with a more grounded story.
Setting: Near Future Sci-Fi
Plot: Adventure
Tone: Quirky
