You won't be disappointed!

Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Plot abstract - brothers grow up with bad luck always looking for them; almost every imaginable thing that can go wrong does. But, they still have each other's back and their storytelling. From an acting, filming and creative storytelling pov it's a four or five but a couple of things moved it down the charts for me. First, no subtitles and for a film which is storytelling dependent that is a no-no. Not only difficult for any hard of hearing, etc. but the enunciations and unique dialogue were difficult to follow anyway. Second, the pacing and over redundancy of the main theme made watching really slooow. Perhaps intended to embellish the cold desolate mood which the director also provided with other filming techniques but it turned out to be too much. Like having the same meal repeatedly, it loses it's taste eventually.

Recently, I saw the The Motel Life with Emile Hirsch, Stephen Dorff and Dakota Fanning and thought it was really interesting, captivating and told a true, dark story of two brothers. Directed by the Polsky Brothers, they took on the adaptation of The Motel Life. I haven't read the book, but I wonder what the book fans thought of the movie. Emile and Stephen's performances are intense and both characters are challenged as they run from the cops, search for money and try to survive. I really enjoyed Emile's performance. He portrayed Frank very well and could see the struggle to keep his brother well. As well, the sketch animation that is incorporated in the film just added to the story. That was one of my favorite aspects of the films. Sometimes films that try to add in animation with real life does not turn out well, but in this case, it worked!

I just watched this movie and i realized that i had been a while since i watched this movie so strong. the last movie i could remember was 'into the wild' or 'motorcycle diaries'. Yes this movie invokes every human sorrow and splashes in the movie canvas. It is emotionally charged and the storytelling in epic by today movie standards. And Emile hirsch and is new Dicaprio. Hope Terrence Malick see this and cast him in next movie. Stephen Dorff should be noted by Oscar people, if justice is to be done for his acting. This movie about the movie and depicting the realistic human emotion. what this movie is not about is how it going to do in the box office. Neither its about Hollywood.

Movies like this only come around every half century or so. The last time, the name of the movie was "Midnight Cowboy." This time, it's "The Motel Life," which is based on a cult debut novel by Willy Vlautin published in 2006. It's the story of two close-knit brothers, bonded together by the untimely death of their mother when they're in their early teens. Since then, these brothers have been inseparable, living rough on society's fringes due to no fault of their own. When the movie opens, the brothers are living in their hometown of Reno, Nevada in the cheap-motel miasma on the "other" side of town. Although one's a gifted artist and the other is an accomplished storyteller, they live at the bottom of the economic pile with nothing but odd jobs for support.The two brothers, Frank and Jerry Lee Flannigan, are played by Emile Hirsch and Stephen Dorff respectively with about as much emotional depth and raw credibility as you're likely to ever see portrayed on screen. The supporting cast includes Kris Kristofferson—in a truly moving performance—and Dakota Fanning who also gives a terrific accounting of her character. The inspired animation of Mike Smith adds substantially to the movie as well, cleanly delineating the "real" world from Frank's fantasies.Like "Midnight Cowboy," this film deals with many dark, adult themes. "Midnight Cowboy" was made in 1969. It was highly controversial back then but it's now listed as #36 on the American Film Institute's Top 100 Greatest Movies of all time. If you're squeamish or prudish about what you see on screen, this might not be your film, but if you can stand to look at a portion of society that you likely don't see often or ever, you will be rewarded by the tremendous performances in this film.You're going to have to work a bit harder than usual to find this movie when it opens on November 8. It will open in only 20 markets. But it will be worth the quest. We saw it early as part of the ongoing efforts of Tim Sika and the San Jose Camera Cinema Club. After the showing, the audience talked with Stephen Dorff via Skype for 45 minutes. Dorff shared a lot of background that greatly enhanced the experience. Thanks Tim.