Edit, Revelation 22:5: "It will never be night again and they will not need lamplight or sunlight, because the Lord God will be shining on them. Spirituality has nothing to do with it. In 2021, Kelly announced that there are developments to expand the film into a franchise. One critic wondered if Kelly had ever met another human being. Southland Tales is dizzyingly maximalist, never happy with one set-piece if it can introduce five. The release of Kellys first film, Donnie Darko, more or less coincided with the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers. In the midst of the action, Ronald is shot in the eye but survives. Also, they had sex. It has a similar plot to "Southland Tales," but with different characters and more gratuitous product placement. Her new screenplay, co-written with an amnesiac movie star with the extremely macho name Boxer Santaros (Dwayne Johnson), outlines the apocalypse as she is certain it will happen. Roger Ebert described the Cannes screening as "The most disastrous since, yes, The Brown Bunny. Roland, Ronald, Pilot, etc.) Scientists are saying the futures going to be far more futuristic than they originally predicted, Krysta suggests, as if this helped to explain anything. We learn that July 4 will be the launch date for the new Treer mega-zeppelin (the "Jenny Von Westphalen"). Krysta is brought to the Frost mansion, where she is confronted by Madeline. 9 in D Minor, op. "[43] Manohla Dargis also gave the film a positive review in The New York Times, writing, "He doesn't make it easy to love his new film, which turns and twists and at times threatens to disappear down the rabbit hole of his obsessions. Zora Carmichaels (Cheri Oteri), a member of the Neo-Marxist movement, buys blank bullets from Walter Mung (Christopher Lambert) in an ice cream truck filled with weapons. Boxer appears at the Santa Monica pier to meet Starla Von Luft. Then, two "witnesses" will appear. Published May 20, 2016. When Vaughn threatens her, she tells him that she has multiple copies, then Tasers him in the balls. Does "Southland Tales: The Prequel Saga" explain what this fluid karma stuff is? So it's trying to say that our veterans are the biggest badasses that we have. Shown with white shirt flecked with blood as Revelation describes the white horseman as wearing "A white robe flecked with blood." The Baron admits that he has been paying Krysta to deceive Boxer, but also mentions that Madeline is pregnant with the child of Brandt Huntington (Joe Campana), one of her father's assistants. Then, after several detours, Krysta and Boxer made their way to Los Angeles, where Boxer went on a nighttime stroll on the beach, injected himself with fluid karma and passed out. In Donnie Darko, the world ends when the Tangent Universe collapses, which may also be what happens at the end of Southland Tales. | They decided to take advantage of her powers. His follow-up is a decidedly post-9/11 story, haunted by the Iraq War. [28][29] After significant edits, the final version premiered at Fantastic Fest on September 22, 2007. Several soldiers were selected (Pilot, Roland, Rick [from the graphic novels]) as test subjects and were injected with Fluid Karma before going out into battle. [20][21], Universal Studios had originally optioned the U.S. rights, but after the Cannes screening, it was sold to Sony, although Universal still retained some international rights. As part of his job, Jericho must tattoo a symbol from every world religion onto his body and, when the Messiah reaches maturity, the "winning" religion's symbol will bleed snake blood. [22], Kelly edited the film down to the basic storylines of the characters portrayed by Scott, Gellar, and Johnson. Most of the screenplay is included in the "Prequel Saga.". What are all of those tattoos on the body of Boxer Santaros (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson)? The film was released in the UK on December 7, 2007, exclusively to UK cinema chain Cineworld in a limited number of locations. Tab wanted Ronald to help the Neo-Marxists destroy USIDent, so he entrusted Roland and Ronald to Zora Carmichaels, who then drove them to Venice Beach. Edit, According to The Prequel Saga, "The Power" was written entirely by Krysta Now, who is apparently psychic. Not really, but it explains why the tattoo of Jesus on the back of Boxer's neck starts bleeding at the end of the film. In addition to her reality show, Krysta has launched an energy drink and recorded a hit single called "Teen Horniness Is Not a Crime." In 2016, I implore you to give it a shot. Ultimately, we may have to vote with our thumbs at some point. On this occasion the beginning of the end is predicted not by a high-schooler but by an adult performer: Krysta Now (Sarah Michelle Gellar), a former porn star, has shrugged off the bangs and whimpers of her previous employment with a new career as a Kardashian-style mogul, and a seer. Interview with Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried", "Southland Tales director hopes to reunite with Dwayne Johnson for planned sequel", "Richard Kelly Talks 'Southland Tales', The Time Travel Prequel & His James Cameron-Inspired 'Donnie Darko' Sequel [Interview]", Southland Tales: Music From The Motion Picture, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Southland_Tales&oldid=1140958996, CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown, Articles with dead external links from July 2022, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles with dead external links from September 2018, Articles with dead external links from March 2018, Short description is different from Wikidata, Album articles lacking alt text for covers, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2019, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, "Wave of Mutilation" (UK surf version) by, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 17:09. Presumably, Tab was afraid that the Baron's people would find out that Roland had survived the trip through the time rift. Special features include a 33-minute documentary USIDent TV: Surveiling the Southland and a 10-minute animated short film This Is the Way the World Ends (which was not included on the R2 and R4 editions). Cindy meets Vaughn Smallhouse at a restaurant and gives him a copy of the sex tape. It also works as a drug. Chemical Bleeders can see back in time while Natural Bleeders can see back and forward in time. Edit, Richard Kelly stated in his interview with Empire, Thumbprint identification is becoming much more prominent. She became psychic when a plane she was on -- United 23 -- flew through the rift in space-time above Lake Mead. There is no real-life equivalent to the movie's "organic compound" which grants people telepathy etc. When Southland Tales was released in 2006, it confounded filmgoers.A dense, sprawling science-fiction tale, Southland Tales throws the war on terror, the surveillance state, Hollywood, and the Book of Revelation into a blender and purees that unlikely mix into a stylish, acerbic film that we're still trying to figure out. So "The Power" is an adaptation of the Book of Revelation, written by a character in a movie called "Southland Tales" that is itself an adaptation of a screenplay based on the Book of Revelation? And why is he having an affair with Krysta Now? Musician Moby was approached on composing and performing the film's score. Boxer, although he does not remember it, is married to the daughter of a Republican senator who is in turn the brains behind an agency called US-IDent, which controls what citizens can and cannot see on the internet. Southland Tales begins on Independence Day 2005 in an eminently recognizable Bush-era Texas. After the attacks, Kelly revised the script. Lots of scary apocalyptic stuff will happen (judgment, plagues and the like), before Jesus Christ will ride in on a white horse and establish the new kingdom of God. Two months before Southland Tales was released, he announced the launch of Darko Entertainment.[15]. The Book of Revelation and Marxism have been connected by academics -- both advocate the overthrow of tyranny. The New Statesmans global affairs newsletter, every Monday and Friday. Again, we're not entirely sure. If the two Taverners were to touch, Theory warns, the fourth dimension would collapse onto itself and the world would come to an end. "Three Days [Live Version]" by Jane's Addiction15. Back in Venice Beach, Boxer and Roland pull up in front of a house while Dion and Dream pretend to fight inside. There will be some dancing and singing, but it will be incorporated into the story in very logical scenarios as well as fantasy dream environments. Southland Tales encapsulates these anxieties in the form of US-IDent, a state agency that can hear and see everyone in America at all times. What's the deal with the Treer company, and why are there all these references to Karl Marx? Kelly has claimed on his MySpace blog that he had very little time for the DVD as he was starting shooting on his next feature, The Box. Why that happens when the Taverners touch, only Richard Kelly knows. Is it just me, or did that make no sense? Edit, It is a mechanical ball (built by Treer) which acts as remote antennas for the wireless electricity energy fields powered by Fluid Karma. Everything and everyone is bedazzled in red, white, and blue; burgers and Buds are happily consumed on the lawn of every McMansion. One of these was a rift created in the fourth dimensionthe fourth dimension being time itselfat Lake Meade, which was discovered when an airplane flew through it and had all its passengers left with amnesia (bar oneKrysta Now, who gained psychic abilities from it). When Ronald arrives at the home of Fortunio Balducci (Will Sasso), a movie producer, to meet Boxer and Krysta, Boxer explains that he and Krysta have written a screenplay called "The Power," about a "paranoid schizophrenic cop" named Jericho Cane. Edit, Boxer Santaros: Director: Richard Kelly. Why does the messiah (e.g. Nana Mae Frost is also monitoring the entire situation from USIDent. Messiah = high spirituality. Krysta has decided to make her sex tape public by placing it into a Neo-Marxist drop box. Roland Taverner, his (alleged) twin -- a racist cop -- is sitting unconscious in the main room, having been kidnapped and drugged by the Neo-Marxists. He says, "It all ends tonight.". Zelda Rubinstein and Beth Grant portray Dr. Katarina Kuntzler and Dr. Inga Von Westphalen, members of the baron's entourage. It is unhinged, and occasionally exhilarating, and quite often funny. One theory is that duplicate souls from alternate timelines are not meant to exist together in a single timeline. She says "The religion that is the winner of the contest will bleed" Southland Tales also predicted that the government was always watching us. The baby, she explains, is the Messiah, and Jericho is his guardian. Muriel and Jericho take the child after its parents are killed, and, under Muriel's guidance, drive to a farmhouse, where they are met by Serpentine, the Baron's mistress. And, of course, gets corrupted and goes mad. The title refers to the Southland, a name used by locals to refer to Southern California and Greater Los Angeles. The quick and essential guide to domestic and global politics from the New Statesman's politics team. But even with the changes, the film is still almost impossible to understand, a trait that probably hasn't helped its box office. Edit, We're not entirely sure. What's with the glow from Roland and Ronald's hands? If you replace the Antichrist with the bourgeoisie, and the kingdom of God with a communist utopia, you've got the same basic narrative. On edge after being put on desk duty and forced to see a shrink, a neighbor's crap generator sets Cooper off and leads to a bloody altercation. He played a character named "Donnie" in a movie with Boxer Santaros. Edit, No. Krysta Now stops by Zora's place to buy some drugs, when she notices the tape of Dream and Dion's murder on a chair. The first time Fortunio appears in the film, he quotes Karl Marx ("Anyone who knows anything of history knows that great social changes are impossible without feminine upheaval"), and several characters quote the song "Three Days" by Jane's Addiction ("We saw the shadows of the morning light/ The shadows of the evening sun/ Until the shadows and the light were one"). but those who do not but still feel the effects of Fluid Karma are known as "Natural Bleeders" (e.g. But despite the reaction, Kelly managed to secure a distribution deal and, on Nov. 14, released a shortened version of the film in U.S. theaters. Richard Kelly's science-fiction comedy was widely derided on release in 2006, but it has since found a cult audience. Anything important or cool? And then you would miss all the jokes and stop enjoying the dance sequences. Dr. Severin Exx read Krysta the Book of Revelation while she was under hypnosis. Edit, The film was originally meant to be released in the autumn of 2006 but was pushed back a year to a limited release in the winter of 2007. He has the solution to the energy crisis and becomes the most powerful man on earth. If you'd like to skip directly to our question-and-answer section, click here. For reasons that never become entirely clear, he was hired by the Baron to kidnap Boxer Santaros from a charity scavenger hunt and drive him to Lake Mead. When it premiered in its original three-hour form at Cannes, last year, the response was acidic. That's why. The theatrical cut of "Southland Tales" has been extensively reedited -- a subplot has been excised, additional special effects shots have been inserted, a new explanatory sequence opens the movie -- and critics have been considerably kinder to it. Because of this rift the world is essentially going mad.remember when I said there's a reason why everything seems so crazy in this movie ? Copyright 2023 Salon.com, LLC. The film follows the criss-crossed destinies of Boxer Santaros, an action film actor stricken with amnesia; Krysta Now, a psychic exporn star in the midst of creating a reality TV show; and twin brothers Roland and Ronald Taverner, whose destinies become intertwined with that of all mankind. [19] Kelly describes the negative reaction at Cannes as a "very painful experience on a lot of levels" but ultimately felt that the film "was better off because of it". Unfortunately, Kefauver and Ronald's Hummer soon collides with the ice cream truck carrying Roland. He learns that "The Power" is correct: As a result of the Baron's Utopia projects, the world is coming to an end and the Earth's rotation is slowing down. The mega-zeppelin explodes, and its pieces scatter across L.A. This release will include both the original theatrical cut and the Cannes cut. Who was behind the attacks in Abilene and El Paso? Dragon from Revelation 12 and 13 (Puppet of the Anti-Christ)Pilot Abeline: Abilene injects himself with fluid karma, collapses, and, in a dream sequence, dances a routine to the Killers' "All The Things You've Done," while nurses twirl around him. In response to the recent fuel shortage in the wake of global warfare, the German company Treer designs a generator of inexhaustible energy, which is propelled by the perpetual motion of ocean currents, called "Fluid Karma". As part of his participation in the Neo-Marxists' plot, Ronald must pretend to be his brother Roland and accompany Boxer during his movie research. "Samuel Goldwyn to handle US distribution of Southland Tales", "Universal, Wild Bunch board Southland Tales", This Maligned 2006 Movie About Dystopian L.A. Is Too Real at This Point. As a result, Boxer was duplicated. This is a reference to a Philip K. Dick book called Flow My Tears the Policeman Said. In a 2011 interview, Justin Timberlake himself said, "To me, Southland Tales is performance art. [12] Editorial changes were made to restructure the order of the film's scenes, including re-recording all of Timberlake's voice-over. This is because, at the end of the day, Southland Tales is a very indulgent, very silly and weirdly endearing film that all manages to come together in a near indescribable sweet spot. The movie begins in earnest when Boxer wakes up on a beach near the Santa Monica pier. Edit, It is implied that they are either divorced or brother and sister. Boxer's original self was incinerated in a car bomb triggered by Serpentine, while the duplicate Boxer is still roaming. As a result of the attacks, Republicans win the November 2006 elections by a landslide (290 Republicans and 145 Democrats in the House) and they beef up the Patriot Act -- creating USIDent, a think tank that monitors, among other things, the Internet. Dick". Suddenly, a bright light appears through windows and a mushroom cloud rises in the distance: Abilene has been nuked. The film features an ensemble cast including Dwayne Johnson, Seann William Scott, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Mandy Moore, and Justin Timberlake. Why does the movie start with Boxer Santaros asleep on a beach? The reasons for this are never really explained, but Caleb is the child of Tawna and Rick McBride, a couple in Palmdale, Calif. Caleb does not produce bowel movements, but when he farts, the Earth shakes. Fluid karma is an "organic compound" that the Treer company discovered while drilling off the coast of Israel. [26], Southland Tales was initially planned to be a nine-part "interactive experience", with the first six parts published in six 100-page graphic novels that would be released in a six-month period up to the film's release. "[34] A handful of the American and European critics, however, were more positive. "Wave of Mutilation [UK Surf Version]" by Pixies2. What If He Is Dead, But He Is Not? That's why he wakes up on the beach at the start of the movie. | Due to the poor reception they received at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival and still without a distributor, Richard Kelly went back and re-edited the film, trimming out 20-25 minutes worth of footage and adding approximately a hundred or so extra visual effects shots. Edit, After Roland Taverner came back from Iraq, he got a job as a police officer in Hermosa Beach, thanks to his father. However, there was a promotional soundtrack that was given to members of the press when the film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2006. The other characters have all played their part and are redeemed in the end to enjoy eternal life. Boxer Santaros (Dwayne "The Rock". It's just more physical. Original music was provided by Moby. Among his accomplices will be a "false prophet" -- a deceitful ruler. "Memory Gospel" by MobySongs Not Featured in on the soundtrackFrom the album Hotel by Moby (2-CD Deluxe Edition): "Snowball (played in opening sequence before opening title) "Blue Paper" (played when Dion and Dream are having discussion about bowel movements, also in trailer) "Overland" (heard before and after Pilot's dream sequence) "Aerial" "Hotel Intro" (featured in Cannes cut, not in theatrical cut) "Live Forever" (featured in Cannes cut, not in theatrical cut)Other songs not featured: Water Pistol" by Moby "If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)" by Louis Armstrong "All These Things That I've Done" by The Killers "Planet Telex (Live in San Francisco)" by Radiohead Symphony No. Rift in space-time above Lake Mead Independence Day 2005 in an eminently Bush-era. Expand the film down to the Frost mansion, where she is confronted by Madeline character named `` ''. 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