Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is one of the only films I've seen recently that I have extremely mixed feelings about. Some parts of it I really liked, and some I really didn't. I definitely am shocked that it is a film that would be up for "Best Picture", but the Academy continues to shock me! So, without further ado, here is my review.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close follows an eccentric (and possibly autistic) young boy who lives in New York City. After his father's death, he searches throughout the city to find the source or item that the key unlocks that his father left behind for him. His father was always going on adventures with him, and they clearly shared a special bond.

The father died in 9/11, which is part of what I do not really like about this movie. I feel like it kind of utitlizes this specific event to try to make the film a lot more sad and emotionally resonant, which is a cheap (but effective) move. That being said, the scenes were very respectful, and I honestly think they were some of the better scenes in the film. There was certainly some haunting scenes, which to be honest was the only thing that made the film memorable.

The plot of finding the source of the key, however, I found to be really ridiculous, with a disappointing ending. It honestly felt like a National Treasure film to me, and the believablilty was so low that I couldn't take the film seriously.

The young boy, however (who was played by Thomas Horn), was a pretty powerful actor, especially for being so young. Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks also make appearances as the parents, but didn't do much special.

The pacing was pretty slow through some of the film, and even the exciting bits didn't engage me all that much. The tone was also extremely uneven.

Overall, this was not a bad film, but it wasn't a great one either. I am baffled to why it got a Best Picture nominee, but I still give it a 3 star review and recommend it (because I think most people won't be as hard on it as I was).

This review is Lean-N-Mean at 369 words.

Recommended: Yes

Movie Mood: Serious Movie
Viewing Method: Sneak Preview at My Local Theater
Film Completeness: Looked complete to me.
Worst Part of this Film: Plot