overwrought & manipulative

I saw 21 Grams a few days ago. I kept waiting for the funny parts, but there weren't any. Eventually, I made up my own:

Naomi Watts (grieving over the deaths of her husband & two daughters): "Dad, when mom died, how did you get over it?"

me talking over her dad's response: "Well, Naomi, I had two beautiful daughters ... oh, crap. I guess that doesn't really help you here, huh?"

I know, I know, it wasn't marketed as a comedy. But it was so relentlessly grim & bleak -- a laugh here and there would have broken up the monotony of anguish. A few funny bits would have added some needed contrast.

the L saw it too, & mentioned that he disliked it. He compared it to Magnolia, & I could see his point -- lots of bravura, very technically competent, but so oppressive. He said actors love parts like that, though. They get a chance to really dig deep for that well of pain & suffering.

the L also mentioned a review of the movie that he found interesting. He said the review posited that movies need a tense; past, present, or future. Most Hollywood movies are set in the present tense; things happen, something else happens, and so on. Other movies look at what has happened (internally, that is -- the past of the movie's universe, not necessarily the past of "our" universe), or what might happen. 21 Grams, on the other hand, had all three represented by characters -- del Toro is the ex con who's living in the past, Watts is the widow who only reacts, and Penn is the guy focused on his future.