[Bullitt68]

I thought this was a great film. Here's what I said about it in the past:

Brad Pitt was brilliant, George Clooney was---surprisingly to me---almost just as funny as Pitt, Malkovich was a little disappointing but still good, Tilda Swinton is one of the most unattractive actresses I can think of, Frances McDormand was great, and J.K. Simmons was fucking hysterical (his scenes with David Rasche were the funniest parts of the entire film, their last scene together being IMO the overall funniest).

The Coen's are masters at blending humor with suspense. The entire film you're wondering what exactly you're watching, a suspense film or a dark comedy. . .and that's the point. The Coen's don't quibble over genre labeling, so why should we?

It was a very tight, well-executed story, but at the end, to be honest, I wasn't completely satisifed. I liked the characters, the story, and the atmosphere so much that I wanted more out of them.

Numerically, it's probably a 7 or 8 out of 10, but every second Brad Pitt was on the screen was a 9 or a 10 IMO. The Coen's talked about how much fun he had on the set and how he took his role of being a complete moron very seriously and it came through on the screen. Without question my favorite comedic performance in recent memory, and his scene in the car with Malkovich was his funniest. The way he was squinting his eyes at Malkovich the whole time and the way he was trying so hard to sound smart and devious was just completely money.

The scene where he and McDormand first call Malkovich was hilarious, but the scene in the car with him and Malkovich was better. From the second Malkovich sees Pitt come into view in his rear-view mirror---in a suit, on his bike, and listening to his IPod---to when he gets out of the car is pure hilarity.

And I just can't get over how good Clooney was. I don't know why, but I just didn't expect him to be that funny. Maybe it's because I still haven't gotten over how awful O Brother Where Art Thou? was, but I just had very low expectations for him and he completely shocked me with how great he was. His last scene was the best and had me laughing out loud. I'm not some stickler---despite what some of my posts may suggest---that sits there trying his best not to laugh, but at the same time, it's rare that I actually laugh out loud and uncontrollably in the theater. Maybe it's because of the public setting or---and this is what I think---the movies I see in theaters aren't all that funny, but I haven't laughed in the theaters as hard as I did in Burn After Reading since I saw Anchorman.

Like I've said: The Coen's are very hit or miss with me, but when they hit, it's usually a home-run, and I consider Burn After Reading just such an at-bat for them.

It definitely comes recommended from me.