This Must Be the Place (2012)

Lack of good storyline.

From my favorite movies..

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This film is a must watch. Without spoiling it, there is a scene after a rollerblading suited person stumbles, don't worry if you think you might miss it, it is a long scene and it reflects all that is good with the world. The ending is very very nice, and you will want to watch this film again, and probably once more, so, like me, buy the dvd, it is worth doing. I really did not look into the film before watching, so, imagine my surprise to see Penn as the main actor, i really do not like any films with him in, and then he does this, what was that about?, only he could have pulled it off, and with such confidence, not one moment did he falter in his character. I would not be the same person today had i not seen this film, it has firm beliefs in its making and delves quite deeply into what being human is, what we have been, and what we are, and how we process things, we can process them very differently, it is our choice, we decide how we react, maybe we need to take heed of this and make the human race into something more forgiving, no matter how bad the crime

Good start, confusing middle, dull ending. Set up was interesting, and you feel that it could lead to something profound. However, it takes off on a random tangent at some point and never regains its focus, or sense of profundity. Many red herrings though, and dead ends.Sean Penn plays the role he was required to play, but I am not sure I care too much about the character. Decent performances all round though. Also, as much as I like Talking Heads' "This must be the place", there are just so many versions you can hear, by various artists and actors, before you are irritated by the song...

From the trailer I expected an entertaining movie and a joy of observing another great Penn's performance. And I got way way more that this.I find it hard to pinpoint what this movie is about. For me it was about loneliness and emptiness, fear and courage, feeling lost and dealing with existential questions of life, about longing for meaning, love, acceptance, acknowledgment...And what might be the most important aspect is that the story is told in a gentle, warm way that makes the viewer feel included in the relations on the screen. While at the same time offering us visually enchanting and rhythmically impressive atmosphere, that just keeps resonating in the system...An unusual movie, well worth treating your eyes, mind and heart with.

Having said so much from my title, this is an entertaining movie. Sean Penn's take on an aging glam rock star is extremely engaging though, circumstances considered, a bit hard to accept at times. Aging Cheyenne's deadpan patter, especially with the everyday Americans he encounters in his quest, is hilarious. The problem with this black comedy is that it should be straighter comedy, less drama, less black. Cheyenne's Irish domestic circumstances are introduced then largely ignored until the end, when we're provided a final baffling scene which wants to tie together the film but instead makes it fall apart at it's seams. The plot's use of a quest driving Cheyenne across America is brilliant but the motivation's use of the Holocaust is far too heavy to fit the story. Consider, for example, the Irish domestic circumstances being cut (E.g., Cheyenne being simply bored) and the purpose of the USA trip to deliver an old love letter or similar lighter motivation. In such case all the better aspects of the film would be preserved and enhanced and the useless heaviness unloaded.