Sunday, October 16, 2005

Domino

Domino is a head-scratching, eye-titillating, mind-numbing bitch-slap of a movie. But what else would one expect from Tony Scott?
Still, this may be one of Tony Scott's riskiest movies, one in which he slams images together and runs ripshod over narrative structure.
The movie is a beautifully realized mess of a movie, a homage to Domino Harvey's balls-to-the-wall mess of a life.
No fear, no regrets. Tony Scott seems to have plastered that message throughout the film, mixing raucous humor with almost gratuitous violence. And in the midst of all this craziness we find Ian Ziering and Brian Austin Smith from Beverly Hills 90210 playing themselves and Christopher Walken bringing his creepy brilliant persona to his role as a reality TV producer.
Somehow, it works. Not that the movie always makes sense. Not that you would for one minute believe that the events in the movie truly took place.
But Tony Scott isn't trying to make an biography of Domino Harvey's life. He's trying to embody her spirit. So that by the end, you feel as if you know Domino even if the movie fictionalizes her life.
Keira Knightley brings a tough girl charm to the title role, and Mickey Rourke shows that he has mastered his gritty shtick to near perfection as Domino's boss, Ed Mosbey.
This is a movie in which you just have to enjoy the rollercoaster, even if it might make you a little sick.

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