It is hard to take
Michael Bay seriously sometimes. But I tried and
it changed how I see his films now. Now, regarding Michael Bay as who he truly is, an auteur, I re-watched, perhaps the most critically acclaimed film by the director, the 2022's
Ambulance. And I got to tell you, this is a fucking masterpiece.
On a technical level Michael Bay sometimes can be a little unhinged. The shots
jump to the other side of action breaking spacial awareness. But I'm starting to truly believe that Michael Bay does all of this on purpose. That the way his movies are done, the chaotic nature of them. The crazy editing. The insane energy. All of those are deliberate choices, unlike what could have been with other films that are edited, on the surface, somewhat similarly.
Critics often think Michael Bay doesn't give a damn about characters, but how can you believe that when everything in the film is shut deliberately to be from a perspective of a character? Michael Bay is
Lars Von Trier of action. Lars uses strange chaotic camera work and weird editing choices to elevate the emotion on screen and Michael Bay uses chaotic camera work and weird editing choices to elevate the emotions too. If you take him seriously everything clicks into place. It's just Michael Bay likes it louder.
The film has killer performances from... and again, it might sound like I'm messing with you, but please... try taking Michael Bay seriously and you will see for yourself... killer performances by:
Jake Gyllenhaal who is very good at this kind of unhinged psychopath type character;
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II who's performance is heartbreaking to the bones;
Eiza González with an incredible and very emotional arc, and most importantly, and I cannot stress this enough,
Briella Guiza who is fine, it was just a movie, she was not actually impaled by the metal gate. I dare you Michael Bay making something like
The House that Jack Built. Don't go full Lars Von Trier, I will die from a fucking heart attack!
When I watched the film for the first time, I didn't really get the gimmick of the racing drone shots. But taking the film seriously made me realize how utterly awesome those are. For the uninitiated eye of a casual movie-goer, those can be a little bit jarring, because this is a different type of tech and therefor the movement they produce is kind of unnatural. But Michael Bay is Michael Bay and Michael Bay knows how to utilize newest and coolest tech in the most exciting way possible.
Needless to say, I fucking cried in the end. Bravo! This is a masterpiece!
Happy Hacking!!!