Beau is Afraid

Thought I might have a more opposing view on this considering I really enjoyed Aster's other 2 features but, although I came out positive overall, this film doesn't quite hang together. I weirdly didn't feel its runtime at any point until perhaps the last 10 minutes, but yet I still feel this film did not need to be 3 hours long to say what it basically says within the first 15 minutes. If it had been funnier (or perhaps had I not felt I had to sometimes stifle my laughter out of anxiety (ironic) that I might disturb the couple in front of me who were the only other occupants of my screening and who had not audibly reacted to the film even once to clue me in to how they felt about it) then I think I would have enjoyed it more, because once you take out the jet black comedy there's really not a lot of substance to what the film is trying to say. A lot of obfuscation through absurdity to essentially say the same thing over and over.

Despite all these complaints I was overall positive on the film, if just barely. The visuals were striking, the acting was great from everyone (it's always fun to see Patti LuPone do her schtick), and like I said I enjoyed the comedy, I just wish there was more of it because the film doesn't give you much else to care about. The ending also landed like a wet squib and I think I would have preferred the original ending you can find in the script online because at least its so ridiculous it'd be a funny note to end on.

Impressive it didn't even feel like two hours considering it was three hours long! Agree that it did not feel its length which was probably the biggest surprise.