Tetro (2009)

This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

Thanks for the memories!

Redundant and unnecessary.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

Francis Ford Coppola never really got it back after his incredibly successful run of films in the 70's. Ever since Apocalypse Now in 1979 he's released things that range from absolutely awful to pretty good. There has been nothing that can even compare to his earliest works of pure genius. But in every range of data there are outliers. Tetro is the outlier in this situation. You can't expect The Godfather going in, and if you don't then you are actually treated to a very good film. Vincent Gallo stars as Tetro and Alden Ehrenreich plays his brother, Bennie. Bennie is visiting his estranged brother in Buenos Aires in order to revamp their relationship. The film tells a story that is as brutal as it is touching, telling of all the hardships these two brothers must endure to find peace with each other and become brothers once again.What Coppola has done here is a very risky and fascinating move for a director of his stature. He's attempted to revert back to an independent art house style of filmmaking. Tetro is an incredibly artistic film that captures a surreal beauty in its glorious black and white cinematography. An arbitrarily unique style of lighting is used here to create a very dream like and imaginative atmosphere. Watching this film is mystifying in a way. It has a certain hypnotic power to it that has a very strong allure. Tetro's immaculate visual quality is something that draws you in whether you have an interest in the content of the story or not.However, chances are you will have some interest in the intriguing plot of this film. The story that develops between these two brothers is fascinating and compelling, and told in such a way that reality is blended with fantasy and we are never entirely sure of what is going on. There is deep subtext under the surface of Tetro, and this is something that is interesting to read past the already interesting surface story. The two leads give it their all when playing their compelling characters and, although we never develop a strong connection to them, we are still fascinated by the story they have to tell.Tetro is a beautiful film and Coppola has surely outdone himself after a run of such mediocre films. This is one I can say I truly enjoyed and felt deeply moved and fascinated by this immaculate film. It is a strange film that isn't put together perfectly, but the bizarre and chaotic patterns of the film make it work in a unique way. I definitely don't regret watching this film.

This not-particularly-involving-drama is well-cast and has a rather good script but Francis Ford Coppola has done his best work now. It doesn't help that he tries to articulate emotional episodes 'through the medium of dance' in sequences that don't measure up to the ballets already name-checked, The Red Shoes being the obvious elephant in the room.The narrative has a considerable twist towards which it can wind up. Unfortunately, the breezy manner in which the characters circle one another, combined with the coming-of-age/road trip sensibility of the film (the beautiful Maribel Verdú of car-trip flick Y Tu Mamá También overbalances the story occasionally) mean that we have as hard a time believing the reveal as the disabused principal.The wonderful Klaus Maria Brandauer is wasted. I always enjoy watching Vincent Gallo and his performance is excellent - I kept asking myself why he seemed rather more 'on the leash' than elsewhere. However, his work is also boxed ineffectively in the final showing. 4/10

TETRO is the first original film from Francis Ford Coppola in quite some time, and it is also his most personal film in a long while. Tetro is a melodramatic tale about family secrets, and the complicated relationship between a father and his wayward son, and between brothers, and is reminiscent of the films of Douglas Sirk, et al. It has been shot in luminous black and white by cinematographer Mihai Malaimare Jr (Youth Without Youth, etc), which enhances the mood, although flashbacks and a couple of fantasy sequences have been filmed in color. Osvald Golijov's music score also enhances the drama, and gives it an almost operatic quality. Vincent Gallo plays Tetro, the gifted son of a famous maestro (Klaus Maria Brandauer), who has turned his back on his family and is living in Buenos Aires. A once talented writer he has not produced any thing for a while. Then Tetro's 18-year old brother Benjamin (played by newcomer Alden Ehrenreich) arrives, when the cruise ship on which he works breaks down and undergoes repairs. Benjamin stays with Tetro and his wife in their small apartment, although the relationship between them is strained and tense. But Benjamin's curiosity about an unfinished play leads to an understanding about their painful past and eventually brings about reconciliation. Tetro may not be Coppola's best film, but it is certainly amongst his most interesting and emotionally powerful work for some years.

After a career that has consisted of the "Godfather" movies, "Apocalypse Now", "The Outsiders", Bram Stoker's "Dracula" and "Youth without Youth" - to name just a few - where would Francis Ford Coppola go next? He directed "Tetro", about the secret history of an Italian-Argentinian family.Benjamin Tetrocini (Alden Ehrenreich) arrives in Buenos Aires and goes to visit his brother Angelo (Vincent Gallo). The embittered Angelo is now going by the name Tetro. As the movie progresses, a series of important topics about the family gets revealed, and how it has always affected the relationship between the two brothers.Coppola uses one of the most unusual devices to tell the story. The present is filmed in stark black-and-white, while the past is shown in a slightly grainy color. It's as if the past was supposedly apparent - to show that the characters thought that they knew everything that was going on - while the present is supposedly unclear (to show that there are things to be discovered). I read that the movie pays homage to "The Tales of Hoffman", but I don't know that one, so I have to take the movie at face value. And what I saw certainly impressed me. I definitely recommend this movie.Also starring Maribel Verdú, Carmen Maura, Klaus Maria Brandauer, and Rodrigo de la Serna (who co-starred in "The Motorcycle Diaries" and is a relative of Che Guevara).