[jackdied.com] The Anarchist's Cookbook

The Anarchist's Cookbook

[jackdied]

Feb 04 2006, 09:22 EST [updated Feb 04 2006, 09:33 EST]

The "On Demand" section of my cable box is filled with crap. Movies that cost five dollars to make but take up equal space with the stuff I might actually want to watch. The Anarchist's Cookbook is a five dollar movie I endorse as the most watchable of the genre. Faint praise but I did watch it to the end. If you liked SLC Punk (which I did) you will like this movie. The production values on this one reflect its price. It is grainy and they didn't reformat it for TV - they just stretched the vertical to fit the screen. The acting is decent, unlike other straight-to-video movies you don't notice the acting and you might even like it.

The plot repeatedly hits my soft spot. At no time does a character obey a cliche and do exactly what you expect them to do. At the same time no one picks the worst possible action simply to forward the plot. No giant plot twists, people just behave like people.

I can't promise it is a good movie but I was very pleasantly surprised that it wasn't a bad one. Especially considering the STARZ blurb:

Puck and his friends live in a peacefully rebelious world until the arrival of Johnny Black turns everything upside down. Ugh. So I went in with the lowest of expectations. I'd say the script should have been made with a real budget instead of SLC Punk. Again, if you like one you'll like the other.

As for the plot: it is a first person view of a squat of anarchists and hippies. The squat house is full of archetypes (60s die hard founder, black flag anarchist wannabes) with the protagonist as the Holden Caufield. The "Johnny Black" nihilist character helps out in the plot but he is no more central that anyone else.

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The Anarchist's Cookbook [jackdied] Feb 04 2006, 09:22 EST [updated Feb 04 2006, 09:33 EST] [permalink] The "On Demand" section of my cable box is filled with crap. Movies that cost five dollars to make but take up equal space with the stuff I might actually want to watch. The Anarchist's Cookbook is a five dollar movie I endorse as the most watchable of the genre. Faint praise but I did watch it to the end. If you liked SLC Punk (which I did) you will like this movie. The production values on this one reflect its price. It is grainy and they didn't reformat it for TV - they just stretched the vertical to fit the screen. The acting is decent, unlike other straight-to-video movies you don't notice the acting and you might even like it. The plot repeatedly hits my soft spot. At no time does a character obey a cliche and do exactly what you expect them to do. At the same time no one picks the worst possible action simply to forward the plot. No giant plot twists, people just behave like people. I can't promise it is a good movie but I was very pleasantly surprised that it wasn't a bad one. Especially considering the STARZ blurb: Puck and his friends live in a peacefully rebelious world until the arrival of Johnny Black turns everything upside down. Ugh. So I went in with the lowest of expectations. I'd say the script should have been made with a real budget instead of SLC Punk. Again, if you like one you'll like the other. As for the plot: it is a first person view of a squat of anarchists and hippies. The squat house is full of archetypes (60s die hard founder, black flag anarchist wannabes) with the protagonist as the Holden Caufield. The "Johnny Black" nihilist character helps out in the plot but he is no more central that anyone else.	Current Quickies Archives All Posts Jun 2010 May 2010 Apr 2010 Mar 2010 Feb 2010 Jan 2010 Dec 2009 Nov 2009 Oct 2009 Sep 2009 Aug 2009 Jul 2009 Jun 2009 May 2009 Apr 2009 Mar 2009 Feb 2009 Jan 2009 Dec 2008 Nov 2008 Oct 2008 Sep 2008 Aug 2008 Jul 2008 Jun 2008 May 2008 Apr 2008 Mar 2008 Feb 2008 Jan 2008 Dec 2007 Nov 2007 Oct 2007 Sep 2007 Aug 2007 Jul 2007 Jun 2007 May 2007 Apr 2007 Mar 2007 Feb 2007 Jan 2007 Dec 2006 Nov 2006 Oct 2006 Sep 2006 Aug 2006 Jul 2006 Jun 2006 May 2006 Apr 2006 Mar 2006 Feb 2006 Jan 2006 Dec 2005 Nov 2005 Oct 2005 Sep 2005 Aug 2005 Jul 2005 Jun 2005 May 2005 Apr 2005 Mar 2005 Feb 2005 Jan 2005 Dec 2004 Nov 2004 Oct 2004 Aggregators Instapundit Arts & Letters Daily Fark.com CNN FoxNews Content - Articles National Review Tech Central Station Content - Big Blogs National Review Volokh Conspiracy Content - Blogs Junk Yard Blog Mass Backwards Mass Right Thought Mesh Chicago Boyz
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