Southland Tales

Southland Tales
"I'm a pimp and pimps don't commit suicide"
Genre: Black comedy Thriller Directed by: Richard Kelly Produced by: Sean McKittrick Bo Hyde Kendall Morgan Written by: Richard Kelly Starring: Dwayne Johnson Seann William Scott Sarah Michelle Gellar Mandy Moore Justin Timberlake Cinematography: Steven Poster Distributed by: Samuel Goldwyn Films Universal Pictures Release date: November 14, 2007 Country: United States Germany Language: English Budget: 17 million Box office: 374,743

Southland Tales is a 2006 science fiction thriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly in his second feature length movie after his cult classic Donnie Darko. The film stars Dwayne Johnson, Seann William Scott, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Justin Timberlake, Mandy Moore, Wallace Shawn, Miranda Richardson, and Jon Lovitz. The film also features a soundtrack by Moby.

The film was released theatrically on November 14th 2007 to overwhelmingly negative reviews.

Why It Commits Suicide and Is Not a Pimp

1. WAY too much happens in this movie. There are multiple different characters who each have their own plots going on. It gets very hard to keep track of what`s happening.
2. The film`s tone is all over the place. Although the film is supposed to be a dark science fiction drama, the film is full of moments that are way too over the top to be taken seriously.
3. The film constantly steals ideas from much better movies such as blade runner, Dr. Strangelove, brazil, and others.
4. Throughout the film, there isn't really a feeling of plot progression, making the movie feel 10 times longer than it actually is.
5. Ridiculous lines of dialogue. such as the infamous line "I'm a pimp and pimps don`t commit suicide".
6. Bizarre casting choices. throughout the film, various comedic actors play small roles throughout for no real reason.
7. Throughout the film, Justin Timberlake's character is heard doing voice overs that barely tie into anything.
8. Very bizarre climax.
9. The film has no real ending and just kind of stops.
10. The film effectively ruined Richard Kelly`s career as the only feature film he directed after this movie was 2009`s The Box.

Redeeming Qualities

1. Some of the ideas in the movie were actually interesting and could have been good if they were executed better.
2. The actors do their best with what little they're given with Dwayne Johnson, Seann William Scott and Justin Timberlake actually giving pretty decent performances.
3. The special effects are good.
4. The film can be so bad it's good!

Trivia

• Although the film has negative reception, it has since garnered a cult following.
• In 2021, it was announced that Richard Kelly plans to expand on the universe of the film.
• This is the first movie starring Dwayne Johnson to drop "The Rock" from his billing.
• Jason Lee, Tim Blake Nelson, and Ali Larter were offered roles.

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