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Fay Grim
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Directed by Hal Hartley.
A single mother from Queens becomes unwittingly embroiled in international espionage indirector Hal Hartley's sequel to the critically acclaimed Henry Fool. Fay Grim (Parker Posey) is determined to raise her 14-year-old son Ned (Liam Aiken) so he won't be like his father Henry (Thomas Jay Ryan), who disappeared seven years ago after accidentally murdering a vicious neighbor. As Fay's brother Simon (James Urbaniak) serves time in a prison cell for aiding Henry in his daring escape, he gradually begins to suspect that the man who inspired him to take up writing in the first place is not the louse he appeared to be, but instead the keeper of some potentially explosive government secrets that, if made public, could prove quite dangerous. As Simon begins to explore the possibility that Henry's autobiography "Confessions" contains coded references to a wide variety of international atrocities committed by governments around the world, the CIA contacts Fay to inform her that her husband was killed in a hotel fire in Sweden shortly after fleeing America, and that the French government is currently in possession of two notebooks containing drafts of "Confessions." Convinced that the notebooks contain information that could endanger the security of the United States, CIA agent Fullbright (Jeff Goldblum) convinces Fay to travel to Paris and retrieve Henry's property before the information falls into the wrong hands. Now trapped in the middle of a cross-continental con and thrust deep into the world international espionage, Fay is about to find out that her ex-husband is not only still alive, but in more trouble than he could ever imagine. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
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RisseladaRisselada Fay Grim
by Risselada in Risselada Blog
loved it.
Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"Fay GrimThe sequel to my favorite Hal Hartley, Henry Fool. In a way it has almost nothing to do with that original movie. Or at least it seems to take everything that first movie was about or what you thought it was about and totally changes it, almost denying it. That's not a bad thing at all though. It's just counter to what you would expect of a sequel.Actually that does happen with some sequels (although I'm too lazy to think of an example right now). Where after you watch the second movie and you go back and watch the first one, you see everything in a new context and realize that certain actions taken and things said were not what they originally appeared to be since you now have new information about more of the back story. In a way the information presented in Fay Grim changes the what was really going on in Henry Fool more than any other sequel I can think of. But this case to go back and watch Henry Fool thinking about it with the context of the informa ... " [More]
wenweimarwenweimar Fay Grim: Quirky Enough?
by wenweimar in Wendy's Blog
is neutral about it.
Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"Hal Harltley, my favorite overworking and under-recognized director, decided to make a sequel to Henry Fool called Fay Grim. This film contains some of my favorite Hartley themes: international conspiracy, the unpredictability of the human condition, and the senselessness of love. In a way, Fay Grim feels like a sequel to all of Hal's films - a sort of homage to his own favorite moments. He includes his sexy but hopeless french girl, his seemingly clueless (but we know better) american suburbanite, and his multi-agenda ridden guru, to name a few. Parker Posey, as always, gives a lovable performance that makes the viewer want to wrap her up in a blanket and take her home. The formula seems to be there, but in the process of attempting to create a breakthrough work, Hartley loses the awkward cadence that makes his movies great. Perhaps it's an improvement on his earlier works, but personally I prefer the uncomfortable silences and almost stale delivery of The Unbeleivable Tru ... " [More]
azgukiazguki Parker Posey
by azguki in azguki Blog
is neutral about it.
Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"Maybe it's just me, but I could probably watch Parker Posey do anyting for 2 hours and not get bored (Party Girl excluded). Hal Hartley is quite an intriguingly unique filmmaker as well. That makes for a pretty solid combination. However, this one was a little bland. The style and the mood of the whole piece is cool and completely refreshing in its estrangement from modern filmmaking conventionality, but it is necessary to see HENRY FOOL (a truly exceptional film) before watching this one. AND THERE IS A SPOILER COMING FOR THOSE WHO WOULD LIKE TO AVOID IT!!!!! My biggest problem with FAY GRIM (and there are not many problems with it), is that the entire movie is leading up to a promise that Fay will, at the end, be reunited with Henry, or at least have a face-to-face encounter with him. That is what the entire plot built towards for myself. That was going to be the big prize at the end of the game. And it never came...................... I like Hal Hartley. I ... " [More]
RisseladaRisselada Re: Fay Grimm
by Risselada in FRESH
loved it.
"In some ways, no, you don't need to see Henry Fool first because this is in many ways a very different kind of movies (but still very much a Hal Hatley movie). And also the movie is full of any necessary exposition regarding what you need to know from Henry Fool if you haven't seen it. The exposition is part of the charm though. And soon the exposition goes way beyond what was known in the first movie to rediculous lengths.But in many ways seeing Henry Fool will make Fay Grim a lot more enjoyable however, and I would recommend seeing Hentry Fool anyways as it's one of my absolute favorite movies!Especially since in Fay Grim, the character of Henry Fool is spoken of for a long time before he finally appears on screen. " [More]
RisseladaRisselada Fay Grimm
by Risselada in FRESH
loved it.
"I saw Fay Grim on Saturday!I don't know if there are any other big Hal Hartley fans around here but I just wanted to get some discussion going if there are any.I thought this movie was fantastic. A sequel to my favorite Hartley film, Henry Fool, but a very different kind of movie. A Hartley version of an espionage movie. He's always had these sort of threats of global terrorism and doom lingering in his movies in certain respects before already, so it was funny for him to try to place an actual plot in that kind of situation. I think he really captures both some of the outrageousness and poignancy in these kinds of movies. But what's so interesting about Hartley is that his dialogue is so surface and direct, and yet it is often so difficult to describe.Well did anyone else see this? " [More]
RisseladaRisselada Top 5 movies where the title is ...
by Risselada in Top 5
loved it.
"Name your top 5 movies where the title of the movie is the name of the main character in the movie. I'm going to be strict about it. The title has to be the main characters name, and that's it. So as much as I might like to say Ernest Goes to Jail, I can't because "Goes to Jail" isn't part of his name. I don't care if the title is the person's whole name or just part of it. I don't care if it's their real name or their nickname, if you can convince me the entire title is something you would call the main character. Ok, so enough of me being picky. Hopefully you'll still enjoy this. Here's what I've come up with. 1. Henry Fool. What is poetry? Check this movie out. Hal Hartly has apparently just made a sequel which is titled after Parker Posey's character Fay Grimm. 2. Barton Fink. Struggling screenwriter. It seems like some of the things dealt with in this movie aren't that far from Henry Fool. 3. Amadeus. I didn't realize this when I started, but my first three movi ... " [More]
paulpaul Re: Parker Posey
by paul in Walk of Fame
hasn't rated it.
"Alright, I'll weigh in on Parker Posey. My favorite character of her's is Fay Grim from Henry Fool. So, I'm really looking forward to seeing the sequel, aptly named Fay Grim. I also really like House of Yes. Here's something I can't really say about any other actor. There's something totally disorienting to know Parker Posey as the Indie Film Queen, then see her show up in roles like Tom Hanks' girlfriend in You've Got Mail. It's like when I was a kid and my 5th grade teacher walked through the door of the restaurant where I was having my birthday dinner. " [More]
 



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