Generation Um...

Phase 4 Films | Release Date: May 3, 2013

6.1	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 30 Ratings

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truthandbeautyMay 14, 2013

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I just watched generation Um… and despite the overwhelmingly negative reviews from “critics”, I actually found it quite a powerful statement- kind of a slow moving portrait of a dark mood, a lingering dissection of feelings of weakness and powerlessness– it was hypnotic and flawed and a completely unique piece of cinema…kind of a character study of a hangover in a way, both the real kind and the spiritual kind…

  It is also exciting and refreshing to me to see such a huge movie star like Keanu Reeves play such a vulnerable role in such a small risky piece of art– I’m wondering why all of these “critics” seem to have such an issue with this film and the filmmaker (Mark L Mann) who made it- seems to me that this sort of project should be encouraged rather than universally condemned by people who tout themselves as authorities on the world of cinema.   

As Zach Galifianakis so eloquently said in Due Date: I think the “critics” need to “check it before they wreck it.”

  In addition to the insulting and superficial American reviews of this film, I think it’s only fair to suggest checking out the many thoughtful REVIEWS by ACTUAL PEOPLE on IMDB and iTunes- so that it can be known that "The Critics'" unpleasant attitude toward this film might not include everyone…  and people can be encouraged to not miss out on experiencing this film for themselves.

One   IMDB USER REVIEW

    This film had to be made., 3 May 2013  from Russia
  10/10 Stars
I am afraid I’ll start saying in a round about way to reveal my thoughts about the film… A person is  moving through the life blindly by touch. We always try to create  comfort around ourselves, more often we do it unconsciously and instinctively. If we like something we want it to stay with us, if  something irritates and makes us angry we try to distance from it or leave it. Sometimes we feel by touch, sometimes by heart. The  older we are, the more comfortable place we get. Even a loser has an  old beloved sofa which he enjoys sleeping on after a hard day; he’s got a couple of good friends with whom he would have a drink or two. So, we have intimate friends and family, our fixed ways and favorite  food, our homes developed to our tastes; someone is lucky to have a  favorite job. We know well what type of people we’d better avoid or  never go to bed with. Thus, we create our own world in which we feel ourselves relatively comfortable, someone feels more comfortable and  someone less. But it is a trap to the soul. We are too busy with our everyday life, just with the things around us. We can’t reach to a  point where we could see eternal depth of the universe, we can’t even  feel the height of the place where we are standing. The holy  mysteries of life pass by. But when a person starts asking questions, searches someone’s heart, tries to understand people from inside, they can save themselves from the consuming emptiness and avoid the  feeling of useless life and going nowhere. The search is the only way  to be saved. This is my perception of the world which I saw in the film all in details. That is why the film is a true shock to me. ”Generation Um” is like a cake layered with signs and  symbols, questions and answers. The film has many points, the most ironical one I would put like this: no matter how long you will  search in your heart (conversations between friends throughout the  film), but you might be f***ed up by your life one day anyway (the  girls at the hotel). Even though the things are this way, there is  always a place for happy moments (the scene in the credits). But this  harsh generalization isn’t correct for that film, because every episode of it, even a small one, has a high concentration of  meaningfulness and it generates multitude microcosms. This film had  to be made. It is a guide for those who lost the point and depth of their lives, stepped on the way of search. “Generation Um” says to them that they are not alone.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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PinBBMay 11, 2013

"Generation Um…" is a very subtle and clever movie with fine actor's work. All characters of this story are very important even if they are absent in the shot (John's mother for example). Each role has certain semantic meaning. So what this"Generation Um…" is a very subtle and clever movie with fine actor's work. All characters of this story are very important even if they are absent in the shot (John's mother for example). Each role has certain semantic meaning. So what this movie is about? According to official short reviews it is about "three adults during a single day in New York City, one filled with sex, drugs, and indecision". But this is only the tip of the iceberg. The thoughtful viewer who isn't interested in action only, but in psychological and philosophical dramas also, will dig deeper. And after that it becomes obvious that the movie is kind of a very frank and shrill confession. Why the characters of the movie come to such point in their lives? The reasons are deep mental wounds, childhood complexes and bad experiences. And life apathy and inner uncertainty as a result of it It leads to the point when the adult person drives himself or herself into a corner and immures all exits, destroying thereby all their life. The movie is about the importance of understanding yourself, throwing the past mistakes' weight off the shoulders, and forgiving people that caused those painful scars on your heart. The most important is to forgive and just love yourself at least a little, and try to spread the wings as a new nation and start over with a clean slate. It is still very important to understand that it's possible to start a new life at any age. That's why the main characters are in different age categories (around 20, 30 and 40 years old). As it is written in medical literature, "the forming of the positive motivation can increase probability of the patient's recovery". We can see their recovery even though it's painful and uncertain. Keanu Reeves notes in the interviews that the ending of the movie gives hope for the future.… Expand

9 of 10 users found this helpful91

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KaneHaMay 11, 2013

This review may contain spoilers ***

I try not to make this a spoiler, but I have to say that they might as well have called it a documentary...though the actors are mere placeholders for a phenomenon i guess. I have travelled a great This review may contain spoilers ***

I try not to make this a spoiler, but I have to say that they might as well have called it a documentary...though the actors are mere placeholders for a phenomenon i guess. I have travelled a great deal around this world and had nights like the one shown in this movie quite many everywhere i went, though most of the people involved were not sexworkers. Uncountable conversations with glasses of whine, mostly without cameras though ;-),with people like me, randomly ending up in the same space for a limited period of time, living in the "grey zone"- a.k.a life. This film is a mere description of how blurry time, space and relation to what is perceived as reality and the suffering within it becomes sometimes, when you are stuck between awareness and maturity. My compliments to the director, the girls and Mr. Reeves. Somebody seems to have understood something. And its funny too!!!… Expand

7 of 9 users found this helpful72

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bob13bobJul 5, 2013

Did not like this movie. Long stretches of nothing happening that could be edited out, eg keanu spends 1min movie time eating a muffin. clips of actors sleeping. Going for indy feel, but I dont' see the point in this film.

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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