Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

Miramax Films | Release Date: December 31, 2002

8.4	USER SCORE Universal acclaim based on 112 Ratings

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lasttimeisawMar 15, 2013

I have no idea who Chuck Barry is, but I guess I should not miss Mr. Clooney’s director debut, furthermore Charlie Kaufman is billed as the screen writer, so the premise looks rosy. The film kicks off with a self-inspective unreeling ofI have no idea who Chuck Barry is, but I guess I should not miss Mr. Clooney’s director debut, furthermore Charlie Kaufman is billed as the screen writer, so the premise looks rosy. The film kicks off with a self-inspective unreeling of Chuck’s life-long hustle and bustle jostling with his TV show-runner identity and a clandestine CIA assassin, interspersing with black & white snippets of interviews with people who know Chuck in the real life (but mostly are pithy soundbites whose only purpose is to mystify his personage), occasionally the film switches into an over-saturated, over-exposed hue which may engender some hallucinatory reverberation, since the most obvious selling point is the enthralling double life scenario and leaving all the traces which could be siphoned (by viewers) to make one’s own judgement whether it is plain fictional or not. But the ramifications are as much ambiguous as what George Clooney (an exemplar of the mainstream Hollywood mindset) wants us to believe, it does manage to shape a believe-it-or-despise-it logjam and according to the film’s depiction, Chuck Barry is nothing but a pipsqueak (there is no reference of any flair in his ascending in the show business), a lunatic has a very troubled mental state (a dreadful imagination of someone is going to finish him off), a repellent womanizer/sex-addict has big commitment issues if we simply remove the hit-man” halo, so from which one could imply is that the “other identity” suits well to rationalize his personal mire, it is his last straw, but from the eyes of an audience, it flunks by blatantly over-beautifying the double-identity situation, I never feel the frisson albeit the film is being cunningly shot in a retro-redolent grain, with a friendly comic tone and lively interactions between the cinematography and the editing, plus an ace soundtrack with the trademark of its time. But pitifully Charlie Kaufman’s script doesn’t have too much to bite. The biographic nature demands a wider range of chronicle, which may also be the Achilles heel of the genre, without zooming in any enhanced center-pieces, everything runs episodic, leaving no instant aftertaste at all to be amazed and appreciated. All sidekicks are come-and-go (with Drew Barrymore and Julia Roberts the female auxiliaries have longer stints, both equally awful I must say, Barrymore doesn’t age at all along a two-decades span which is so dragging viewers out of the picture), the sole comic relief is the performance from Sam Rockwell, who was largely unknown at that time and overlooked by the awards season (a SILVER BERLIN BEAR for BEST ACTOR is his only trophy), his panache proffers the vitality of the film against its slightly mind-bogging narrative tempo, also his personal charisma transcends his character, and sublimates his character Chuck, a connection has been substantially built across the screen, a triumphant achievement in deed. Rutger Hauer, a fellow assassin, said in the film “killing my first man (in the WWII) is like making love with my first woman”, which strikes a chord with my previous argument in DR. STRANGELOVE (1964, 8/10), war and killing may truly be the by-product of heterosexual men’s hegemony in the society, if actually the raving stupidity germinates from the biologic impulse, along with evolution, let us hope a less macho but peaceful world is ahead of us.… Expand

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SpangleJul 24, 2013

The acting is good and the plot is interesting, but at the end of the day, it just falls a bit short. I am not a huge fan of Clooney as a director and the way the story is told is unappealing. I am most certainly not a prude, but boy did theyThe acting is good and the plot is interesting, but at the end of the day, it just falls a bit short. I am not a huge fan of Clooney as a director and the way the story is told is unappealing. I am most certainly not a prude, but boy did they ever show Chuck having sex a lot, way too much there. Overall, the movie is nothing more than ok.… Expand

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tonyb.Nov 5, 2005

There's just something about this movie that i love. Just the way everything was put together like the scene when he goes crazy and they start playing the song if i had a hammer I cant get that scene out of my head. very creative movie There's just something about this movie that i love. Just the way everything was put together like the scene when he goes crazy and they start playing the song if i had a hammer I cant get that scene out of my head. very creative movie great acting great writing and i love the music.… Expand

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Compi24Oct 26, 2020

Easily ranking amongst the top three most underrated directorial debuts I've seen from a working actor thus far, George Clooney's "Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind" doesn't just rest on the merits of Charlie Kaufman's compellingly structuredEasily ranking amongst the top three most underrated directorial debuts I've seen from a working actor thus far, George Clooney's "Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind" doesn't just rest on the merits of Charlie Kaufman's compellingly structured and executed narrative. Echoes of Soderbergh and the Coen brothers are absolutely apparent, but on top of those elements you're also presented with a lot of experimental framing, editing camerawork and set dressing. Whether those were born out of the wackiness of Kaufman's screenplay or through genuine creativity on the part of Clooney himself, it's refreshingly atypical to see such stylized directorial work from an actor. Speaking of acting, Sam Rockwell is incredible in this. Considering the difficulty and flexibility loaded into this role, I'm a little disappointed this isn't brought up more often as one of the actor's best performances. He absolutely carries the movie, to be sure, but everything else checks out just fine or better. Truly solid work overall.… Expand

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BroyaxApr 9, 2017

Ce film est une putain de surprise : il est en effet réalisé par Monsieur Nescafé et le moins qu'on puisse dire, c'est qu'il ne s'est pas loupé. On ne s'attendait certainement pas à ça et on se doit de saluer sa mise en scène stylée, préciseCe film est une putain de surprise : il est en effet réalisé par Monsieur Nescafé et le moins qu'on puisse dire, c'est qu'il ne s'est pas loupé. On ne s'attendait certainement pas à ça et on se doit de saluer sa mise en scène stylée, précise et élégante, bref très maîtrisée.

En outre, l'acteur What else -habituellement transparent dans ses rôles déjà innombrables- s'y est octroyé un personnage secondaire (mais décisif) qu'il campe avec conviction ! putain, c'est Noël.

Evidemment, Sieur Clowney avait une belle matière à travailler, à savoir cette histoire à peine croyable d'un "créateur" d'émissions débiles pour la télé-poubelle qui bosse aussi pour la CIA à ses heures perdues...

Il avait également un joker dans sa manche, l'excellent Sam Rockwell éblouissant ici -et ailleurs comme souvent, sauf quand il tourne dans des merdes alimentaires pour pas un rond. Hélas, la Julie Robert pointe son groin et on déchante mais surtout le thon Drou Barrimort aussi charismatique qu'un tiroir-caisse qui vient tirer l'entreprise vers le fond (Scotty, faites quelque chose !).

Nonobstant ces bémols, Confessions est d'une belle ironie sur un fond de paranoïa et de remords de cet amuseur publique tueur à mi-temps : une activité dont on ne ressort certainement pas indemne (quand on s'en sort).… Expand

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amheretojudgeSep 18, 2019

The film flows in a reverse direction, the drug loses its effect and every bait comes out.

Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind Now saying that, for a debutant director George Clooney, this is an excellent achievement. It would be misleading,The film flows in a reverse direction, the drug loses its effect and every bait comes out.

Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind

Now saying that, for a debutant director George Clooney, this is an excellent achievement. It would be misleading, since this is an excellent achievement. But for any director. And I say that for the film juggles both humor and drama with such ease like even his, Clooney's crime partners weren't able to. And I am talking about Coen Brothers whose filmography in these genres never communicated to me. But I think he is deriving more from his old time buddy Steven Soderberg. The way he makes a hustle fun, it is simply inspiring. And Clooney has got that same sense of humor in his bones. From panning out cameras and using them as the gun to shoot jokes repeatedly is the best comic character of the film. Just take Brad Pitt and Matt Damon's cameo for instance. I have never seen a better use of a special appearance or having famous celebrities as friends. And it might not seem in early stages, but it is vital to the plot line. The images, the punch lines, the expression, everything stays with you, just as it should, just as Clooney was hoping for. What film lacks is the commercial structure that builds up towards an antic and ends on the highest pitch it can achieve for a cathartic finale.

Luckily, Clooney isn't looking to satisfy the audience but himself. And that's his big win. Obsession to please everyone didn't take his film away from him, contrary to what happened to the lead character. Charlie Kauffman's sharp screenplay and Sam Rockwell's balanced performance are just another factors elevating the Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind. As an intense drama, the film only fully comes alive when it focuses on individuality, the loneliness strikes a jaggering thunder in those quiet moments.… Expand

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KenROct 27, 2020

Matinee idol George Clooney puts himself in front of and behind the camera for this sleazy examination of the supposed life of TV game show creator and host Chuck Barris. Barris was responsible for several ‘reality’ type shows aimed atMatinee idol George Clooney puts himself in front of and behind the camera for this sleazy examination of the supposed life of TV game show creator and host Chuck Barris. Barris was responsible for several ‘reality’ type shows aimed at low-life Bogan audiences - lowering the bar for quality television by aiming towards cheap sensationalism. Clooney chose this as his first foray into directing but the influence (and ‘help’) from his close allies shines through (Producer Soderberg, and mates, the Cohen’s) This has the look and feel of a ‘clan’ production with money, etc, from another mate; Harvey Weinstein along with ‘you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours’, Democratic Party colluders: Matt Daman & Brad Pitt – seemingly supported by the Hollywood academy. Script wise, between himself and Charlie Kaufman, the aim seems to be to see who can out-swear the other, with an endless barrage of ‘trendy’ foul language - for no other reason than the sensationalised sake of it (hey man, all we ‘creative’ Hollywood types speak like this)

Barris, made highly suspect claims that between his TV game shows he was recruited by the CIA to murder numerous people worldwide, and Clooney has chosen to invest much of his movie to highlight these dubious claims. The visual style from cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel is neat but Clooney overdoes the sleazy sex scenes and grotty assassinations to turn in a mixed-up, more boring than interesting, pastiche of look-at-me style - with overly obvious pretensions on artiness. Unpleasant and slogs along unrewardingly – but, a few die-hard fans might follow along.… Expand

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