transoptical People who didn't suss this movie as an important bit of film making are escapists who simply don't know film as an artistic medium capable of delivering truth. This is an uncomfortably pointy satire laced with dark comedic vasodialators about the Jerry Springer act that we all live 24/7. The layering of the relationships, the fun house magnifying glass turned on Hollywood culture and the often questionable artistic justification of performance were done with a sublime insider's eye for irony and the casual vapidity of the little circuses of circumstance that we find ourselves thrown into on a daily basis. Any savvy movie goer will lap up the seriously fine acting detail, camera work and subtle interplay of partially met expectations motivating the plot structure in every sequence, even the green/red 3-D ones which was pure freaking genius along with the extreme soft focus porn scene. "Full Frontal" is Hollywood on an X-ray dissecting slab in 21st century cultural bedlam. Hitler in an off off-Broadway micro theater, populated by friends of the cast, on a couch rambling on to his shrink about controlling his eccentricities, was the kind of hilarity that sticks with you like an interstate truck stop breakfast. I got nothing but respect for Sonderbergh who has the chops to do a French New Wave Cannes quality film with one hand tied behind his back. If I taught a film class, this one would be in the lineup just behind the Orson Welles ones.

Terrell Howell (KnightsofNi11) Steven Soderbergh calls Full Frontal the "unofficial karmic sequel" to his debut film, sex, lies, and videotape. Now, I'm not exactly sure what that means. Karmic is basically the adjective form of karma, which is the Buddhist principle of retributive justice that determines a person's life and whether it is positive or negative. There are no parallels between the story lines of the two films and I can't draw any connections between the themes or motifs of either film. So I think what it comes down to is just ignore what Soderbergh has said and look at Full Frontal as a completely separate film.So now that we've cleared (or rather disregarded) any confusion I can continue this review without any necessary mention of sex, lies, and videotape. Full Frontal is about a group of people in the film industry whose lives intertwine in different ways, all primarily through a producer named Gus. The opening of the film displays character cards for all the main players, accompanied by voice over from that character. In this film we have a down on his luck writer named Carl Bright. His wife is a lawyer named Lee Bright and he is having issues with her that carry throughout the film. There is Lee's sister, Linda who is a massage therapist. There is a stage director named Arty who has been chatting with Linda online as the two of them use aliases that are much cooler than who they actually are. Then there are two actors, Calvin and Francesca, who for a majority of the film are in a film-within-a-film scenario that, honestly, finds itself much more profound than it actually is. These characters are all coming together for a party thrown by Gus, and along the way there are some surprises and discoveries made about themselves.This film is mostly just odd. It's offbeat, it's quirky, and it also tries very hard to be clever. Granted there are scenes that are clever, but there are others that sort of miss the mark. Soderbergh does a great job with the story structure and the way he brings the characters together. He has a clear cut goal for this film, but the process of getting there is pretty rocky. What Full Frontal suffers from the most is just plain dullness. This film really does get boring at times. But it isn't unbearable by any means. It is one of those films that just when you start to realize how slow it is getting something happens to bring it back and you are drawn in once again. I almost see this as cheating because a good film will keep you drawn in consistently from start to finish, not just throw in certain moments to grab your attention and then skimp on the rest. Full Frontal isn't as guilty of this as other films because Soderbergh makes an effort to keep the film entertaining in its entirety, but the effort goes to waste at some moments that just really drag the film down.But in spite of everything you have to admire this film for just having a good time. Soderbergh directs it in a sort of mockumentary fashion. When I see this movie I think of "The Office" and the way it is shot as if the camera crew is with these characters, filming their day to day business, and the characters know it. There is a significant amount of voice over work done in this film that is all interviews with the characters. Soderbergh allegedly filmed the actors in this film about their character and then used some of the results for the film. There is a lot of obvious ad libbing in the film that adds a sense of quirky authenticity to the look and feel of this film, making it unique, if only slightly.Full Frontal tries to be a lot more than it is. It is definitely a smart film with a nice touch of cleverness, but in the end it doesn't seem to amount to much. I think Soderbergh was trying to create a very in depth character study disguised as a quirky comedy film, but I think more of the quirky comedy came out than the profundities of the character study. But I can still say that I enjoyed this film for what it is. Would I ever sit through it again? No way. But it is something different, making for an amusing one time watch.

clintoncombined The explanation for this and Solaris maybe that the director was contractually obliged to make those 2 before leaving. Brad Pitt sole appearance is as he walks down a street in one scene and that is all he does. Almost the whole audience in the cinema screen I was in walked out. The same happened in the George Clooney film Solaris and Dancing at the Blue Iguana in which the cast seem to be trying to improvise lines whilst under the influence of semi sedation. Is a hodge podge which I have almost successfully blocked from my mind. Even if you are on a desert island and a passing native offers you the chance to watch this film in his solar power raft and you haven't watched films for 10 years. Do not watch this. It will make the effort of sustaining your life hunting and fishing seem worthless.

Vineet Upendra Question 1: *What* was this movie all about? Question 2: What or who prompted its selection as IMDb movie of the day?? (Which in turn has prompted this review.) This has got to be one of the most pretentious and pseudo-high brow movies I've ever seen. Soderbergh has made a movie that so labors on being arty, that you end up witnessing a massive exercise in an aimless and fruitless(one follows the other, I guess)story(?) telling.When I began watching this movie, I was all excited about it - what with such a massive star cast and Soderbergh's reputation. At the end of the movie, I felt cheated of my time and effort that this movie demanded.You're better off watching a re-run of "Traffic".