Restless (2011)

Restless is an absolute pleasure to watch, i am a fan of Mia Wasikowska as an actress and I'm a fan of Gus Van Sant's more edgy stuff so i was a goer for this movie, initially it sounds like a kind of silly premise but quickly you fall in love with these two amazingly quirky characters and you suspend disbelief.

Rarely do young actresses like Mia Wasikowska come along, she is a fellow Aussie and she is in my opinion probably the most talented young dramatic actress in Hollywood today, with each film she becomes more and more terrific and this is no exception. The relationship between Anna and Enoch is just beautiful, Anna is a cancer patient who has very little time left to live, Enoch is a strange loner who likes to attend strangers funeral, they meet, become friends, that friendship turns into one of the loveliest romances i've seen in a movie in a very long time. These two people are just so strange and weird but instantly they get each other, its nice to see something a bit different like this.

Henry Hopper is my new crush now, he impressed me a lot, he has a very subtle nerdiness to him that is perfect for this character and his performance in Restless is wonderful, i cant wait to see what he is in next. This movie almost doesn't seem like the standard Gus Van Sant type of film, it still has the staple Portland locations but its a lot more accessible than say Elephant or Paranoid Park, but its a new style for him and it was one i found worked extremely well.

This movie is not going to affect everyone the way it did me i know that, but i really just fell in love with these two beautiful quirky characters and i think if you just let yourself be open and go with it it's something that is really rather beautiful.

Sad, Funny, Romantic, Quirky. The perfect movie for a rainy Sunday afternoon. Loved it, i cant wait for the DVD so i can watch it again. ;)

Fmovies: A Febiofest screening, nothing signposts that 3 years after multi-Ocsar nominated (including 2 wins) MILK (2008), Gus Van Sant will cook such a cancer-ridden romantic flick grappling with a soul-healing recovery of a parents-bereaved boy after his short relationship with a dying girl although death has been a persistent topic all through his omnibus.

The over-simplified structure may impede Gus from a more spacious platform to perform his mastery, and precipitating an out-and-out snub from all sorts of awards consideration and the disastrous box-office turnover is fatal to destroy its investor's confidence, a total domestic grosses of $164,000 versus its $8 million production budget, which is a far cry not only from MILK, but also much lesser than its indie-alike PARANOID PARK ($490,000), signals that only Van Sant's loyal zealots showed their precious appearances in the cinema. Although smaller the scale, the film still holds steady its stunning visual mode, with bountiful layers of spiritual remedies to cure any scarred heart.

Plot-wise, there are nothing really popped-out, only the Japanese ghost-friend deployment has its exquisite enchantment and exotic luster, but is far from sheer original, which also coincides the film's suffering from the paucity of a one-of-a-kind uniqueness once one can notice among Van Sant's better works (say, ELEPHANT 2003, GOOD WILL HUNTING 1997, and MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO 1991), the story tends to be more lachrymose while marching on the unavoidable finale.

The two leads are basically serviceable, the tenderfoot Henry Hopper, who had just lost his father Dennis Hopper (1936-2010), is inappropriately in time for the role, handsome boys are never amiss in Van Sant's work. By contrast, a burgeoning Mia Wasikowska is the main magnetism on-screen, a product only cannot be stemmed from fiction as it's too ideal to be real.

Personally the film pleased me in a gently soothing method, but it is Van Sant in its very comfort zone without challenging too much of himself.

"Restless" is the story of a boy who is restless with the living side of life and a girl, also restless with the living side of life since she just wants to get on with her own impending death. Enoch (Henry Hopper) is more interested in death since death claimed the lives of his parents and the life he once knew. Annabel (Mia Wasikowska) is a terminally ill cancer patient and instead of fighting her illness, is content living her final days studying nature. Until they met each other.

It's a story of boy meets girl, if you will. Except, these are not conventional characters, so this is not a conventional love story. The son of Dennis Hopper looks like he just walked out of the Cleary Estate from "Wedding Crashers" (2005) as the misbegotten son with creepy obsessions. The problem with this type of character in a drama is that he isn't endearing enough and he certainly isn't there for us to laugh at. Annabel doesn't hold her own life with much respect either (not that she has much choice with her terminal illness and all) but either way it's hard for us to care about her all that much too.

The most sympathetic character was Elizabeth (Schuyler Fisk, daughter of Sissy Spacek), Annabel's sister, who has no father, an inept, alcoholic mother who would be better off dead, and a dying sister who is perfectly happy with the finality of her life. I felt bad for her. The next most sympathetic character was Hiroshi (Ryo Kase). He was a ghost. If the film is starting to sound a little odd, that's because it is.

I certainly applaud the film for creating such odd characters with odd responses to life as it goes on around them. But because the characters were so far removed from anything I know, it was a little hard to fully appreciate them. It's still interesting enough and well written for those craving a small, independent movie about life, love and death. Mostly death.

Restless fmovies. I cannot tell you how much I adore this film. Restless is one of the greatest movies ever made. It's simple, but it's complex. It's confusing, yet it's still subtle. It's charming, dark, funny, romantic, bold, and shy all at the same time. It's truly a masterpiece, and it's one of the most under-appreciated movies of all time. 

The acting is phenomenal. Mia Wasikowski, is truly a little actress. She was the only good part about Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, and she adds charm, liveliness, and quirkiness to an already fantastic film.  I had never heard of the title actor before Restless, and after watching the preview, I wasn't that impressed with him. But during the actual movie, he took my soul on a journey. 

This movie is unbelievably good. It's honest. Not only about life, but about the moments in life that make it so special.  If I had to create a moral for the film it would be: Don't count the days until life ends, count the moments with the ones you love.

It truly is magnificent. It's A Walk to Remember, only with ghosts, snow angels, and a dash of lovable-ness that the Adam Shankman classic was always missing.

Director Gus Van Sant is renowned for films that explore the lives of lost or outcast characters, and reveal their strength and beauty. And his latest film Restless is no exception.

The film tells the story of two free-spirited teenagers - Annabel (Mia Wasikowska) and Enoch (Henry Hopper). Annabel is suffering a terminal illness, whilst Enoch splits his time between attending stranger's funerals and talking to the ghost of a kamikaze pilot named Hiroshi (Ryo Kase). As they fall for each other, it becomes clear that they are exactly what each other needs, and their lives revolve around making the most of each moment together.

Based on this summary you could be excused for thinking that Restless might be too melancholy. But I think it is more a celebration of life. Don't get me wrong, the film certainly does tug at the heart-strings, but there is an appreciation and acceptance of the fleeting nature of life that overwhelms the sadness.

Van Sant has created a beautiful film with vivid images and masterful direction. It's also quite quirky due to its interesting characters, script and film score. The performances are very good (especially from Wasikowska) which I think add to the strong emotions elicited in the audience. Annabel's zest for life is especially inspirational.

In this sense Restless is so much more than a love story. It certainly makes you appreciate life and loved ones, and this is what I really liked about the film.

Gus Van Sant probably understands the minds of youngsters better than any director around and he proves it again in this rhapsodic film about loss and love and loss again. His cast is so well selected that they seem to be an ensemble from a stage company, so well integrated are their relationships in this beautiful film written by Jason Lew.

Enoch Brae (Henry Hopper, son of Dennis Hopper, and a very fine actor) survived a car accident in which his parents were killed: he remained in a coma and missed their funeral and the chance to in some way say goodbye. Living with his Aunt Mabel (Jane Adams), he now spends his days not attending school but instead going to strangers' funerals. One funeral organizer (Christopher D. Harder) notices his repeated appearances and tries to have him arrested for trespassing but he is saved by a strange girl named Annabel (Mia Wasikowska in a brilliant performance). Annabel also attends funerals: she tells Enoch that she works with children with cancer at a hospital. Enoch is wary of making friends - his only ally being a Japanese kamikaze pilot ghost Hiroshi Takahashi (Ryo Kase) with whom he talks about everything. But gradually Enoch and Annabel bond and Annabel reveals to Enoch that she doesn't work with 'cancer kids', she is one - she has brain cancer and is on short-term time. Annabel's sister Elizabeth (Schyler Fisk) and mother Rachel (Luisa Strus) accept Enoch's growing supportive love for Annabel. As Enoch grows form his experience with Annabel he no longer needs the presence of his ghost or his need for attending funerals and instead spends his time giving Annabel the best three months (remaining) of her life. How the story draws to an end is so enchanting that to share it would deprive the viewer of the magic of this film.

This is one of those perfect little films that glow in the heart. Mia Wasikowska and Henry Hopper create such memorable characters that once seen they will never be forgotten. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp