Mozart and the Whale Sucks

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I finally saw it a few weeks ago. Josh Hartnett was great, and I did like that Aspergers was shown a huge diversity in personality as it is in reality (though the characters were pretty much stereotyped as all being savantes, I will forgive them this). I also like the author friend, he was very likeable. What really made the movie bad was Radha Mitchell.


She came onto the screen very obnoxious, but I simply assumed that this would be part of her character development, and that she would show a level of depth that would gradually warm the viewers heart. But instead, she got more and more shallow as the movie went on, from pressuring sex on the very first date, to forcing him into a job he didn't want so that she could control him. And on top of all this was an annoying HAH laugh, which I would have forgiven once or twice as an anomaly, but it was her real, normal laugh. And I didn't feel chemistry or connection, I just felt her wanting to have sex and control this guy.


So taking all this into account, I wondered, am I actually supposed to be rooting for them to make it together? The film makers take all of her flaws and turn it into the "relationship obstacle". Well if the entire relationship obstacle the two lovers must overcome consists of one of them being selfish and unlikeable, I see no reason to root for them. I kept thinking, run away, run away while you have the chance.


But no. They end up together after she attempts to commit the most selfish act of all; suicide. I have sympathy for the mentally ill and suicidal in general, but with her I did not.


So that being said, Mozart and the Whale was well produced and had positive elements in it. But ultimately the weight of its fault, Radha Mitchells character, and basing the story on it, outweighs these, and I can say Mozart and the Whale sucks.

Don't worry; you're not the only one who thinks this. I hated it as well.

Suicide is not a selfish act by any means. More ofen than not it only takes one unselfish person in a suicidal person's life to begin changing things for the better.

What is selfish is demanding that someone who is suicidal suffer through pain and dispair so unbearable they can hardly get up out of their bed each day, if they can get up at all, and so unbearable that it is physically hard for them to eat even if they haven't eaten in several days, and all so that YOU don't have to suffer temporary sadness at their loss that is incomparable to the pain they are feeling, the pain that makes it a greater effort for them to move than it would be for you to move if you had twenty pound weights strapped to your arms and legs.

If people weren't so focused on their, "YOU must suffer to keep ME happy. Think about ME, ME, ME. Bear your pain. Its MY happiness thats important." beliefs and instead would look at what was going on in the suicidal persons life and try to help in order to help the suicidal person as opposed to theirselves, the life of the suicidal person would be much better.

Too true Triangular_Trees, I would add that the being told to 'cheer up, stop looking so miserable' and generally being critisized for being depressed (usually because again this impinges on the other person's enjoyment of the world) doesn't help suicidally depressed people either.

The saddest thing about suicide is the depth of pain and despair that person went through before they died.

I like radha mitchell in it.

I didn't like it either; the dialogue came too easily while the progression of the movie was awkward--in reality it should have been the other way around. The actors were bad. The music was EXTREMELY annoying; flat and trying to tell you what to feel. And the girl's apartment was way too nice; I don't think she would have been able to afford it on a hairdresser's salary, and the decor and furniture was too mainstream-looking, and too neat. Also, I didn't buy that he was a math genius simply because he watched the numbers on the microwave or quoted some well-known number facts.

1. Suicide is NOT selfish

2. In all probability, this was a film based on the story of 2 aspies, but made mostly by NTs and aimed at and NT audience, so it was inevitable that there were going to be problems with accurate and appropriate portrayal.

My point wasn't about suicide at all. I was simply mentioning that Michelle Radha's character was so selfish and unlikeable that her suicide attempt came across as selfish and so it was exemplary of her, and I am not obligated, and certainly cannot make myself, feel empathy or pity for a bad or unrelateable person simply because something bad happens to them--so it's not just because she tried to kill herself that I didn't like the movie. Believe me, I have in the past struggled with suicidal thoughts, so I know exactly what a suicidal person is going through.

I didn't see the connection in the film between the events and the suicide attempt, there was not enough exploration of the darker side of her personality and what she found difficult to cope with.

I have ordered Snowcake on dvd and so hope that is a better portrayal.

Hmm... My mom and I really liked that movie. We didn't feel it was a bad portrayal of Asperger's at all.

I liked it. Josh Hartnett was good and, while I can see the points about Radha Mitchell's character, I still think it represented the diversity of how AS can affect different people. It would have been nice to say more development of her character to add some depth, but overall I had a good feeling watching it and could connect to it through my own experience.

I wasn't too sure I wanted to see it...but I decided to use my free rental at **** movie rental place. I'm going to agree that Radha was really annoying, and it actually scared me to the point of fast forwarding through her tyrades and when I could see that she'd calmed down, I was able to watch again.
Actually, I had to turn off the movie for a while. Watching it freaked me out a little because I don't want to come across like that to other people, and it made me think about things - a LOT - before I could turn the movie back on.
I don't act like that. At least I'm pretty sure I don't.
I DO like to laugh out loud, but it's not a single HAH that makes people stare at me as if I don't realise there's a bug up my nose....

Anyway, it wasn't too bad after all the fast-forwarding.

And who wouldn't want Josh Hartnett to be your boyfriend?!

The movie did suck. The only part that made sense was when she was rattling off all the stuff she wanted to do and he freaked out like "how am I supposed to pay for all that!?" The rest was over-stereotyped and irritating.

I didnt care for it all that much. It was too textbook and really had a choppy story line. Radha's character was irritating. It made me ask myself " do nt's really see us like that?" The only character that i noticed any depth was Hartnett's character's friend. He could hardly speak a sentence in front of everyone else, but as soon as he was alone with Hartnett, he could keep up a perfectly good conversation.

I did notice and this was a really nitpicky thing, but when Radha's character whistles in the movie, its synthesized. The first few bars are whistled and then the camera moves off her face and then.... fake. Couldnt they get someone to whistle the tune instead of using some crappy imitation.? i am sorry, but synthesized music pisses me off. I just really had a problem with relating to the characters because they didnt dig very deep when writing them.