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The House of Yes

The House of Yes

List Price: $14.98
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Jackie Obsession
Review: There are many things about this film that are so wonderful. Two of them being Parker Posey and Genevieve Bujold. Between them, they have stolen this film from their costars.

Posey has been my favorite acid princess since Party Girl. It was great to see her waltz around the family mansion dressed in Jackie O elegance. She found this exciting balance between being good manners and boorish insults. I found myself wishing that everyone else would go away and the film would then center on her. Bujold was the perfect counterpoint as a distant waspy mother who is too impressed by her daughter. It was fun to watch Bujold smooth things out and make sure Posey gets her way. Bujold's kitchen scene with Spelling was a classic.

The rest of the cast did not hold up well. Prinze Jr. and Hamilton were boring. Hamilton only seemed to liven up with Posey. Tori Spelling is not a bad actress. But she did not fit the role of the fiance. This role had to be either very trashy, very young and innocent, or extremely beautiful. Spelling is none of the above. I found it too hard to believe that Hamilton would choose Spelling over Posey. There was no contest in my mind and there should have been.

This movie was too stagy. I loved the house it was filmed in but it needed to be taken up a notch. It was admirable that they stuck close to the stage play. But film requires more. Jackie O needed to be taken out and interact with people besides her family. The movie Quills did this wonderfully. It followed the play outline but took advantage of film possibilities.

The film footage of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis during the White House years left me cold. The real Ms. O was an elegant, generous women. Having her image preside over this movie about incest was horrible. On stage, this play is quite biting as a satire about the public obsession about Jacqueline. However the film makers miscalculated with showing the real Jackie. They confused the publics obsession with Jackie's glamor over the real deal. It was in very bad taste to mock this woman's pain.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Perfect Thanksgiving Film
Review: This wonderful comedy of manners had some of the best dialogue I've heard in ages. The ensemble cast plays off each other brilliantly. Despite showing Parker Posey (who's brilliant in this) on the cover with a gun, it's more talk than action in this blackest of black comedies.

Set 20 years after the Kennedy assasination, it follows a demented wealthy Washington family through about 12 hours wherein the brother brings home a fiance and the rest of the family tries to intervene.

Caveat: Don't watch it on a first date.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not even Parker Posey's brilliance can save this movie.
Review: Much like writer/director David O. Russell's "Spanking The Monkey", "The House Of Yes" gives us a disturbing look at dysfunctional families involving very taboo subjects. Since I don't like it when reviewers give too much away, I'll leave it at that for now. Although many reviewers have said (albeit incorrectly in my opinion) one's enjoyment of this film depends one's idea of comedy and how much tolerance one has for sick humor or subversive humor.

I disagree with the assessment because I disliked this movie not due to any "bad taste" sensibilities, I just thought that it was not entertaining in almost any level. I can name several movies that I have enjoyed that are rooted in dark or subversive humor that have made me laugh my ___ off, like "Heathers," "Welcome To The Dollhouse," "In The Company Of Men," "Jackass: The Movie," and even some of John Waters' early comedies, such as "Desperate Living" and "Pink Flamingoes," just to name a few. Accordingly, I know that my dislike comes not from the genre but from the actual movie.

"The House Of Yes" at first looks like its trying to spoof home-for-the-holidays flicks. To me this movie looks like a desperate attempt to be provocative but it winds up falling flat on its face because, although it does have some funny moments, it actually attempts to try and find an academic explanation for some of the behavior that it chronicles. So on top of not being very funny, much of the dialogue, especially towards the end of the movie sounds so pretentious that you want to slap the film makers into at least focusing on the humorous aspects the he began with instead of resorting to bumper-sticker psychological explanations that it attempts to provide for the leading character's behavior.

Speaking of the lead character, thank God that this mess at least was fortunate enough to land Parker Posey as the main protagonist. If not for what is an amazing and brave performance by Posey with strong support from Josh Hamilton, I would have stopped watching half way through, as I did with an equally bad movie titled "Secretary," which like this one falls prey to the belief that any independent movie is better than what the major studios spit out. While the world of film would be absolutely catastrophic if not for the work of strong independent filmmakers and those who back them, "The House Of Yes" be considered for viewing only for the aforementioned performances, who no matter how brilliant they are, can't save the movie; however their performances remind the viewer that there are actors like Posey and Hamilton who should be stars by now. Posey has such range and spark that it is only when she is on that the movie is bearable. If you love Posey and have not seen her work and want to see what all the rage is all about, I would suggest "Best In Show," "Dazed And Confused," "Scream 3," as well as her small but must see performance in "Tales Of The City," and her work on an outstanding episode of "Will & Grace", in which she steals the show from her fellow actors and proves that Posey not only should be a major movie star, but that she would also be amazing in a well written TV show.

In conclusion, like I said before, I won't tell you much about the plot of this movie just in case you happen to want to see it. My recommendation is that you don't, but if you do, you at least deserve to be kept in the dark about some of the give-a-ways that some reviewers sometimes forget take away from any surprise element that a movie may have. There is hope for the director of this movie as the director for the awful "Spanking The Monkey" went on to direct one of 1999's best films ("Three Kings").

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: a cult devour
Review: This is a cult devour and detour from the normal Hollywood formula but that does not mean it is free from melodramas and other histrionics. This movie is actually extremely watch-able - but for some selected audience only. First of all if you are not American then you will not understand the love between American population and the Kennedy family and backdrop or the canvas of the movie is that fatal attraction. If you have liked "blue velvet" then you will enjoy this movie. Actually it is very difficult for any non-American to enjoy this movie like it is very difficult for Americans to enjoy Kawabata. Parker Posey and Josh Hamilton has done an excellent job in the characterizing a family disaster. The movie revolves around this painful mistake. Definitely Mark Waters had to do this movie with a very limited budget and limited resources so taking that into account I will say it is extremely well made. Waters has treated a subject like incest very bravely and never looses the flow of the story line. My recommendation will be to rent the movie but please do not look in Blockbuster look in some local Indy store

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Witty, Wicked, Weird, and Wonderful
Review: This move is a trip. One I am sure some people will hate - but hey, it takes all kinds. Parker Posey's performance is just incredible. An unstable Jackie O' wannabe, her mood swings,rapid-fire one liners, and attitude make this film the winner it is.

Bujold as the matriarch shows a droll comic side that I have never seen in her before and it is perfect with the dialogue she has. "Talk? Why would we want to do that, it only leads to trouble." A scene where she is trying to ship Tori Spelling off in a cab is hysterical.

Tori Spelling does a good job as the naive Donut Queen who has no clue what she just walked into. I mean the poor girl grew up eating pancakes. Even Freddie Prinze Jr. does not do badly.

Yeah the plot is sick: incest, assasinations, mental instability, jealousy and denial. But mixed up with this cast it is very, very funny. Strange and wonderful if you are the dark humor type.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: "Do They Have Paintings In Pennsylvania?"
Review: I thought this movie was great! It's definitely for the more cultured and intillectual movie-goer. It's probably the best dark comedy I've ever seen (only to rival the masterpiece that is "Heathers"). The dialog in this movie with leave you with one-liners for years to come. After seeing "Party Girl" I fell in love with Parker Posey, and when I saw this I loved her even more. This instantly became one of my favorite movies of all time, but then again I'm a huge fan of good dark comedies and I have a sick sense of humor. Everyone I know absolutely loved this move (including my MOM!) In any event, this is a definite must-see for any fan of Parker Posey and dark comedy. Excellent.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Arguably the Best Movie Ever Made
Review: Some may consider this film "good" or merely "excellent." Others, such as myself, view it as the crown jewel of all cinema. A low-budget, high-quality independent film about a family brought together for Thanksgiving brings the electricity of playwright Wendy MacLeod's words to gleaming ferocity before your very eyes. You'll be disappointed if you're expecting computer-generated asteroid collisions or giant space-robots: the focus of this film is doubtlessly its dialogue. Tori Spelling, a naive outsider (Is she acting? Who can say?), is suddenly introduced into this family and taken completely unaware by their sharp wit and seething mindgames. Characters banter effortlessly in the closest thing I have ever seen to verbal fencing. The cohesive family unit is clearly abnormal, which gives every frame of this movie a twisted and dark feel to it. This movie is a must-have for any fan of Parker Posey, because she shines on the screen as the manipulative and vicious-yet-at-the-same-time-very-fragile Jackie-O Pascal. Upon watching "The House of Yes," you will be changed. Maybe a little, maybe a lot.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: "Do They Have Paintings In Pennsylvania?"
Review: I thought this movie was great! It's definitely for the more cultured and intillectual movie-goer. It's probably the best dark comedy I've ever seen (only to rival the masterpiece that is "Heathers"). The dialog in this movie with leave you with one-liners for years to come. After seeing "Party Girl" I fell in love with Parker Posey, and when I saw this I loved her even more. This instantly became one of my favorite movies of all time, but then again I'm a huge fan of good dark comedies and I have a sick sense of humor. Everyone I know absolutely loved this move (including my MOM!) In any event, this is a definite must-see for any fan of Parker Posey and dark comedy. Excellent.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Dark Comedy at its. . . almost best
Review: The House of Yes is not for the average movie go-er (such as people who prefer, say, summer blockbusters to indie films), but for those who appreciate (and can sit through) a film peppered with quick banter, taboo insinuations (i.e. incest), and comedic satire. I enjoyed Parker Posey's portrayl of a mentally-unbalanced woman who impersonates Jackie O. that cannot escape the feelings of oneness and amorous love for her twin brother. It is a smart, sassy look at dysfunction, but dysfunction from a surrealist point of view. Tori Spelling's acting is terrible, as I wanted Jackie O. to kill her and be done with it all. Yes, there isn't enough underlying "tension" between the characters and what's at stake is marginal at best, but for 85 minutes, the dialog and interesting story line will set you spinning.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not even Parker Posey's brilliance can save this movie.
Review: Much like writer/director David O. Russell's "Spanking The Monkey", "The House Of Yes" gives us a disturbing look at dysfunctional families involving taboo subjects. Since I don't like it when reviewers give too much away, I'll leave it at that for now. Although many reviewers have said (albeit incorrectly in my opinion) one's enjoyment of this film depends one's idea of comedy and how much tolerance one has for sick humor or subversive humor, I disagree with the assessment because I disliked this movie not due to any "taste" sensibilities, I just thought that it was not entertaining at almost any level. I can name several movies that I have enjoyed that are rooted in dark or subversive humor that have made me laugh my ___ off, like "Heathers," "Election," "Welcome To The Dollhouse," "In The Company Of Men," "Jackass: The Movie," and even some of John Waters' early comedies, such as "Desperate Living" and "Pink Flamingos," just to name a few. Accordingly, I know that my dislike comes not from the genre but from the execution of the movie.

"The House Of Yes" at first looks like it's trying to spoof home-for-the-holidays flicks. To me this movie looks like a desperate attempt to be provocative but it winds up falling flat, although it does have some funny moments, it actually attempts to try and find an academic explanation for some of the behavior that it chronicles. So on top of not being very funny, much of the dialogue, especially towards the end of the movie sounds so pretentious that you want to slap the film maker into at least focusing on the humorous aspects the he began with instead of resorting to bumper-sticker psychological explanations that it attempts to provide for the leading character's behavior.

Speaking of the lead character, thank God that this mess at least was fortunate enough to land Parker Posey as the main protagonist. If not for what is an amazing and brave performance by Posey with strong support from Josh Hamilton, I would have stopped watching half way through, as I did with a worse movie titled "Secretary," which like this one falls prey to the belief that any independent movie is better than what the major studios spit out.

While the world of film would be absolutely catastrophic if not for the work of strong independent filmmakers and those who back them, "The House Of Yes" should only be considered for viewing the aforementioned performances, that no matter how brilliant they may be, can't save the movie; however their performances remind the viewer that there are actors like Posey and Hamilton who should be stars by now. Posey has such range and spark that it is only when she is on that the movie is bearable. If you love Posey and have not seen her work and want to see what all the rage is all about, I would suggest "Best In Show," "Dazed And Confused," "Scream 3," as well as her small but must see performance in "Tales Of The City," and her work on an outstanding episode of what is usually a tired "Will & Grace", in which she steals the show from her fellow actors and proves that Posey not only should be a major movie star, but that she would also be amazing in a well written TV show.

In conclusion, like I said before, I won't tell you much about the plot of this movie just in case you happen to want to see it. My recommendation is that you don't, but if you do, you at least deserve to be kept in the dark about some of the give-a-ways that some reviewers sometimes forget take away from any surprise element that a movie may have. There is hope for the director of this movie as the director for the awful "Spanking The Monkey" went on to direct one of 1999's best films ("Three Kings").


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