User Reviews

A close view to people they try manage their unbearable lives. An interesting scenario with turns and Woody as always great, simple and to the point. Good playing of the cast. When everything is lost, always there is something, even fake,that gives meaning to our lives. A good film makes you search deeper. Not for under 15.

Not sure why this movie would even be considered a comedy, when in fact it had a very surreal flow to the story. I love movies like this because in the world in my head, I would love to be unfiltered like Woody was, with a heart of gold and speak my mind and, not have to worry about how other people my feel. Especially with my dickhead employer. For me this was a nice dramadey, and I don't agree with the other reviews about Harrelson not be able to save this film. In my opinion I loved his character and the rest of the cast. For a man to find out he has a child giving up to adoption and then trying to build a relationship with her, and for the child not to have a built up resentment towards their biological parents, is a very powerful message of relationship on the big screen. I have a on going visitation battle right now with my ex-wife from hell, and I swear, I'm fighting everyday to keep the relationship between me and my daughter alive. So to all you reviewers who didn't like Woody's role. I'm sorry this movie spoke volume to me. And to all you mothers and fathers out there that are not in your child's life they way you should be, Its time to really step up and man up....Great film

'WILSON': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

A comedy-drama, based on the 2010 graphic novel (of the same name) by Daniel Clowes (who also wrote the screenplay). The film was directed by Craig Johnson, who also helmed the 2014 indie hit 'THE SKELETON TWINS', and it stars Woody Harrelson (in the title role). The movie tells the story of a lonely, neurotic and extremely honest middle-aged man, named Wilson, who goes looking for his teenage daughter, after just discovering he had one. Laura Dern, Judy Greer and Isabella Amara also costar in the movie. It's received a limited indie theatrical release at the Box Office, and it's gotten mostly mediocre reviews from critics. I also found the film to be far from perfect, but it's also at least somewhat entertaining and insightful.

Wilson (Harrelson) is a lonely middle-aged man, who's lived alone most of his life. He's neurotic, and he's also uncomfortably open, and honest, with almost everyone he meets; which causes most people to distance themselves from him. Wilson was briefly married, to another mentally unstable, and now drug addicted, woman named Pippi (Dern). Pippi and Wilson conceived a child together, years earlier, but Wilson was told the baby was aborted. When he finds out the child was born, and she's now living with adoptive parents nearby, he feels the obsessive need to meet her (Amara).

I've never read the graphic novel that the film is based on, but I did enjoy the quirky 2001 cult classic 'GHOST WORLD'; which Clowes also wrote the screenplay to (and the comic book it was based on). I do really like the Wilson character though, and I can really relate to him in many ways (but definitely not in every way). I think Harrelson does an outstanding job portraying him too, and the movie is quite involving because of it. It's a little too unbalanced though, to highly recommend it; it's just way too dark at times, in comparison to it's otherwise upbeat nature.

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This film tells the story of a man who believes in human communication through conversation and physical interaction. People think he is a weirdo, but all he really wants is to connect with another soul, and be remembered by after he leaves the mortal world.

"Wilson" sounds like a silly and forgettable comedy, but it actually is way seller and thought provoking than it appears. It points out the fact that people being nice to each other unconditionally is a forgotten art, and even socially unacceptable in some circumstances. Wilson's deep desire to connect with others certainly connected and resonated with me, and I find myself reflecting upon the current state of human interaction in the modern world. The story is bittersweet, and I really enjoyed it. It's a pleasant and unexpected surprise.

I only write reviews when I see a film that has a rating that does not represent the value of the film. If your looking for a good drama that delves into the fragility and fear we all face towards our own death and need towards self importance. Then this film is for you.

It is an emotional roller coaster ride if you enjoy the quirky nature of the events within the film. I don't feel Woody Harrison was a good fit for this role and he doesn't do it justice, but I still thoroughly enjoyed this film and only watched it because Woody was in it.

It has a few holes, but had this film been made in the 90's it would have received much acclaim. The only downside to this film is that many people will overlook it and that is unfortunate.

From the writer of Ghost World, this film is also directed by an incredibly under appreciated director. Yet to make a meaningless film this Director is only limited by his budget and still managers to deliver.

If you like dogs more than humans this film will also move you in ways that you may not be prepared for. You have been warned.

Also the only distraction I got throughout the entire film was when they visited the set of the "Orange Is The New Black" yellow block set from season 2. Often used in films, they always shoot it from the same angle. Very annoying.

It may also help that even though Jurassic Park came out when I was 9, Laura Dern is still a fox.

Watch this film. You will not regret it.

The character woody plays takes you through the journey of his lonely life and on the jet coaster thereafter. He deserves an award for this one for sure. He is one sure reason for watching this movie. Good script and direction too!

Wilson is the "feel good comedy of the year" filled with interesting characters, quirky places and anchored by a strong, unique and Oscar-worthy performance by Woody Harrelson.

April Fools

What a mess this movie is.  It tries so hard to be a "quirky comedy" that it focuses all of it's attention on the quirk and very little on what makes quirky comedies work - the characters.

Let's start with the biggest problem with this film - the central performance of Woody Harrelson as the titular Wilson.  When we first see him, he is a "get off my lawn" grumpy old man.  In the next scene, he is an inappropriate "close talker", in the next it seems he has no filter.  In the next, he has a childlike wonder.  All of these adds up to various "quirks" of the character, but none of them equal a character.  What they do is confuse the audience as to what kind of character they are watching.  So when Wilson finally has the heart-breaking moment that will change him - we are left to wonder if he is changed for the better, or the worse or is he even changed.  And I concluded with the worst comment of all...

I don't care.

This film is based on a graphic novel and a screenplay by Daniel Clowes (Ghost World) and the Direction is by Craig Johnson (The Skeleton Twins) - both of whom has done good work in the past, but this just isn't.  The direction is all over the board bouncing from comedy to drama, but mostly landing in some mediocre middle area between the two, which drains the emotion from the proceedings.  Writer Clowes must know this character in his head, and I'm sure it makes sense to him, but it sure didn't to me and this effort fails miserably.

There are some redeeming qualities, as the film is filled with strong performers in the supporting roles filled with the likes of Margot Martindale, Judy Greer, Mary Lynn Rajskub and Cheryl Hines, but they are on the screen all too briefly and I would have liked to have seen a film digging deeper into these characters (without Wilson).  Only Laura Dern, as Wilson's ex-wife, acquits herself well.  Her damaged, healing soul was the lone bright spot that made me sit up whenever she was on the screen.

This movie was filmed in the Twin Cities, so at least I had some fun picking out the locations on the screen.  Unfortunately, the filmmakers, again, went for "quirky" so I become very cynical about what location was coming up next.  I have the feeling the location scout was told to find "the odd, the weird and the quirky" in the Twin Cities.  And, with that, they were successful.

Letter Grade:  C-

3 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)

If anything Wilson, the story of a lonely middle-aged man reuniting with his estranged wife to meet his daughter for the first time, accomplishes something no movie has ever done. It manages to take Woody Harrelson, a jewel of the large and small screen, and make him wholly unlikable. This is no easy feat, especially considering that his character's only real crime is being a watered-down Marc Maron caricature. The man cavalierly ponders the big questions and graciously oozes cookie cutter wisdom to anyone within earshot. He thinks he's being avuncular but really he's just being really, really annoying.

This problem extends to the film itself. It thinks it's intelligent and it thinks it's giving us earth-shattering insights into the human condition. It lazily employs an unstructured narrative of Wilson-centric coming-of-age clichés and pads its screen time with tonally discordant moments that fly at you fast then disappear without consequence. The results is a frustrating soup of characters, conflicts, themes and rickety-old shtick that goes no where and accomplishes nothing.

Of course this could be the point; the movie purports to be about life. Ergo, if life is messy then so is this movie. Yet the films total lack of focus seeps to its DNA with scenes and plot points that announce themselves as loudly as possible and climax too quickly. In one scene, Wilson (Harrelson) learns that his only two friends (Rajskub and Gelman) are moving to St. Louis. He doesn't take it well, prodding them until they erupt in what felt like years of pent-up frustration. It's a good little scene but we're never given any time to savor it before the movie switches gears like the slides of a carousel projector.

And at the front giving the presentation is Wilson who, for better or worse is the smartest person in the film. No one dares call him out on his bulls**t, especially not Pippi (Dern) his wife who's just barely keeping things together after a series of bad life choices. At times, she reacts like a prisoner to Wilson's somewhat terrifying mid-life crisis. But by the end of the story she succumbs to the idea that her surly former lover may just be wiser beyond his years.

Yeah no, the man's a petulant, mean-spirited, less clever, less literate Bukowski character made near-flesh by someone who saw a Woody Allen movie once and thought, "gee, how can I take out all this pesky pithiness." I guess in that regard Wilson can be accredited for one more accomplishment. It managed to take the daily struggles of a middle-aged white man and make them appear trivial and redundant.

From the director of 'The Skeleton Key', I can see his style of filmmaking as I'd watched these two films of him. That makes him a stylish filmmaker of his own style. This kind of story narration is not for everyone. But surely there are people for it. This is not a very good film, but simply a good film.

It revolved around a character who is kind of an anti-social. He has lost everything one by one in his life and now his close buddy who moved far away and then his father who has just died. So he decides to find his ex wife, and with that he comes to know some long hidden secret. Going after it, his life forever changes which is what covered in the remaining film.

It was Woody Harrelson's show. But I quite liked Laura Dern as well. It was a long time after seeing her in this kind of absorbing role, yeah, except recently from 'Wild'. And there was Judy Greer, who was not bad either. So the casting was fantastic and the story was a lot better than you could judge it from its poster.

Not an unusual storyline, but well adapted from the graphic novel of the same name. You might get impressed by it, so I say try it, despite low ratings. Anyway, I had a nice time with it. A sweet and short film, which's mostly out of real world logics. But serves its purpose, that's entertaining its audience.

7/10

Imagine how hard it must be to make a film about an obnoxious self-obsessed neurotic nobody. Maybe add several equally unlikeable characters then tell a story that starts and ends nowhere special with little of interest happening in between. This is the film Wilson (2017) and calling it a black comedy does nothing to lighten its dead weight. But it begs the question: why was this film made?

There are two ways to read Wilson and both depend on your threshold for finding people unbearable. Wilson (Woody Harrelson) is either a radically honest out-of-the-ballpark quirky communicator who has no filters, boundaries or respect for the normal conventions of social interaction; or he is a toxic human being who you would avoid at all costs. Or perhaps he is both. When his father dies, he is confronted by the ultimate existential crisis: divorced, alone and unloved, he ponders what does his life mean? He tracks down his ex-wife who he has not seen for 17 years in the hope that some spark of affection might be rekindled. She has not had an easy life, having been a 'crack whore' and a streetwalker. As if mentioning a mutual acquaintance they once knew, she tells him she had baby girl 17 years ago who was put up for adoption. Wilson's emotional world implodes and the rest of the film tracks his pathetic efforts to reclaim his alienated daughter and become the father he always hoped to be. In the final scenes, the story jumps to his release from jail after serving time for kidnapping his daughter, and we are meant to celebrate the reluctant reunion in a kind of 'blood is thicker than water' moral finale to this pointless story.

Conventional film review criteria like characterisation, filming and narrative coherence seem irrelevant for a story based on repulsive people doing stupid things. The dialogue is trite and unfunny, and attempts at absurdist humour fall flat, or worse, are alienating. For example, when Wilson enters a near-empty train carriage to pester a stranger with intrusive and out-of-place questions, we squirm with discomfort as we do when he ridiculously gawks at a stranger urinating. His insistence on paternal rights irrespective of his daughter's needs verges on irrational psychological abuse. There are many reasons to dislike this film, including the laboured sexual references disguised as humour and the implied linking of his daughter's body-image issues to her adoption. If there is hidden meaning in Wilson, this reviewer has failed to find it.

Don't let the negative reviews put you off. I really can't understand what people have against this comedy, it is quite a breath of fresh air since comedy has changed so much in recent years and has become quite lazy.

This is a movie you really have to give a chance. These days if you find it hard to come across a new comedy movie you actually like, this movie had me laughing at more scenes than not. If you feel these days like comedy movies have lost something, like the set up of jokes and lines that are actually smart and funny then this might be the movie for you. If you like satire, sarcastic type humour that pokes fun at today's society and you are not too sensitive to swearing, you will enjoy it.

The plot is simple, but put across in heartfelt yet hysterical way. Wilson is a very blunt lonely man who has fell out of place in today's society, largely down to the fact he is a bit of a technophobe when it comes to computers and smart phones. He prefers good old fashioned human contact and he yearns for it throughout. All he wants is a regular family, which thanks to his ex wife he missed the chance on having years ago.

I'd say the movie seems to be more put towards a British audience with the style of humour, its cracks at religion and the world today and even the strong language used throughout but used intelligently.

The only reason I haven't give this movie a higher rating is due to the rather rushed ending it had. Otherwise I'd have given it a ten.

The film opens with Wood Harelson (Wilson) walking his dog lamenting how disappointed in life and people he is. As this tale unfolds, you learn he and Laura Dern (Pippi) had once been a couple. Pippi left him when she found out she was pregnant saying she was going to get an abortion and go to LA. Fast forward 17 years, Wilson lives a marginal, "tin hat" life laced with forcing himself upon strangers in a desperate attempt for companionship. When his estranged father dies and his only friend announces he is moving out of state, he is struct with the thought there is no one left he can share common memories with. He then begins to wonder who's still left in his old neighborhood and wonders whatever happend to Pippi leading him on a path of disfunctional family twists and turns.

Both Harelson and Dern manage to play believable characters, Wilson as a nuerotic and Pippi just trying to get through the day without flipping out. What is a bit distracting is all the F-bombs, but maybe it was to depict the lack of understanding and communication among them. Not for young viewers due to language and adult themes, but older teens might benefit from seeing a film that shows life rarely turns out like you think it will.

In the beginning of "Wilson," Woody Harrelson's loser character laments the rise of people on social media and zoning out listening to earbuds, mourning the death of human interaction. Then, he shows us the reason why people listen to headphones in public: so they don't get in inane conversations with people like him. As with Ghost World (and Art School Confidential, less successfully) Daniel Clowes adapts his basically plot less comic into a feature length film, shoehorning a plot into what was just a character piece. Really, this is just the misadventures of a socially awkward, overly truthful, but extroverted person. But the pinned on plot concerns Wilson reuniting with his troubled ex, finding their bullied daughter who'd been adopted away, getting in trouble for contacting said daughter, and forming a new relationship with a yoga instructor. When his reunion with his daughter goes south, this previously lighthearted movie becomes too serious. The audience, who was all chuckles before, suddenly didn't know how to react to violent situations and dangerous people. I can't say the movie would have been successful without this situation. IT still concerns a man who it is hard to like. But adding dark elements to a comedy and then returning to the comedy does not seem to work. The seemingly upbeat ending, too, seems fastened on. The filmmakers wanted to end on a note of hope, so they stuck in a rather cliché sentiment that does not add much to either the story or the overall theme. I have enjoyed many movies about oddballs and social outcasts, but this one just does not manage to reconcile its story elements and its themes. I wasn't crazy about the source material either.

PS: Who came up with the advertising image of two men at a urinal? What are people making of it?

A slice of life is how I describe these movies, where one sees the common and mundane in a certain context.

Wilson is the story of an average misunderstood man from another time who is shown as hurting and caring but perseveres to try and find meaning in his otherwise drab existence. An average man who, by today's standards, is the bogeyman but as this poster can attest, speaks of an era where people were unique and opinionated instead of self-absorbed and indifferent.

I am looking forward to a second viewing to further see the depth of Harrelson's Wilson. And if there are other Clowes/Eightball fans out there who haven't seen Wilson yet, I recommend it. I also hope The Death-Ray and Ice Haven are made into movies.

The titular character (played brilliantly by Woody Harrelson) is a brutally honest man who has a very precise world view that combines polar opposites; positivity and nihilism. He is very lonely but after reconnecting with his ex wife (Laura Dern) and discovering he has an estranged daughter (Isabella Amara) he finds a new purpose in life and sets out to get to know his family. Adapted from his graphic novel and written for the screen by Daniel Clowes (Ghost World) it's a darkly comic portrayal of human interaction and deep family issues. Wilson is quite simply a fantastic character with worryingly accurate viewpoints on society; just the way he wishes to present them is undesirable to those on the recieving end. He is a very awkward character who is just trying to make a connection with someone. Boundaries created by communities however do not comply with his unorthodox behaviour. Although Wilson does say some outrageously bad things and is too honest for his own good, he is an incredibly sympathetic and likeable character which I think makes this film shine. The performances from Dern and Amara are also great and their interactions with Harrelson make for an entertaining and sometimes moving watch. The fantastic Judy Greer is on great form once again as Shelly; a housesitter and growing friend of Wilson's. Director Craig Johnson's previous film to this was The Skeleton Twins (2014) starring Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig as suicidal siblings. Wilson very much shares the same DNA with Skeleton Twins and I think is actually a more accomplished film but not without its flaws. There are occasional moments where the story feels like it goes off on a tangent much like Wilson himself and could lose its way but luckily it does get back on track. In a way its a compliment towards the story as it is genuinely unpredictable and you have no idea what the characters are going to do next. Often deliciously dark, funny and with a surprisingly compelling central character, Wilson is one worth catching!

I really enjoyed watching Wilson, it is perhaps a bit simplistic and this is probably because it was a graphic novel.

There is a part in the prison where Wilson pokes fun at the preacher and gets beaten up - why? Are the nazi thugs protecting the preacher? Then he becomes best friends with the thugs and I still don't understand why.

The character is well acted but I don't know anything about him. He is well intentioned but I think maybe too naive to be realistic. Still enjoyed watching it.

The definition of a comedy is: a (type of) film, play, or book that is intentionally funny either in its characters or its action. So that be said, I would think Wilson has to make me laugh at least once, or if not a true laugh at least a smile. Well guess what, none of the above occurred. And that's not because I have no sense of humor, not at all, I can pretend I have a pretty good sense of humor. But Wilson is just not funny, not even slightly. If I had to live with somebody like Wilson I would probably beat him up and end in prison. That's how annoying that character is. Extremely annoying but absolutely not funny. The acting is okay though. If they asked Woody Harrelson to play an extremely annoying person then he managed it very well. The story is long and boring, you just wait for the movie to finish, as quick as possible. Will I ever watch this movie again? If I have problems falling asleep maybe.

This movie isn't funny. It's uninspiring. It's even depressing. You start this film knowing that the protagonist is going to be full of quirks and an eccentric, socially un-adapted. But in the end he's just sad. There's nothing worth watching in this film. Although Woody is a great actor, as always. It's just not an interesting story.

You need a charismatic lead for this. Though not to take anything away from all the other actors in this, who also do an incredible job. But the neurotic and cynic filled lead is just greatly portrayed by Woody Harrelson. This movie obviously isn't for everybody, no matter if the quality of it is undeniable. And it doesn't have to be, tastes are different.

So don't judge those who like or hate this. There is merit to both depending on what you like in movies or in life in general. So try to be open minded, you don't have to be friends with the character, you don't have to agree with his lifestyle or his choices. But you can have empathy for him and his quest for something in life. And the quirky way it is portrayed ...

Had some funny moments and great dialog. This is a simple movie that is driven by dialog.

Have you ever met a person that was always so negative; a complete narcissist; a complete nut case who goes about doing all the wrong things, and makes the worst life choices ever? Well, if you do know a person like that and want to compare them to someone else as neurotic, Wilson is the movie for you. Woody Harrelson plays the titular title character with as much pizazz and life as possible while being an inherently bleak as can be.

Harrelson's Wilson can best be described as the ultimate misanthrope. Nevermind Ebenezer Scrooge, Wilson is the real deal when it comes to pessimism. Taking the world with less than a grain of salt, Wilson tackles the world with the most obvious sense of negativity, blaming people and society for all that's gone wrong in his life, including his; love life, family life and most of all, all of his own quirks and habits. Don't believe us? Just pay close attention to one very short and emotionally draining scene where Wilson visits his father on his deathbed. Like so many cases after this scene, Wilson seeks for retribution and peace in all the wrong places and times.

Clearly the oddball in his almost picturesque Minnesota community, Wilson's world shakes and shatters upon the discovery that an old flame and frequent drug user Pippi (Laura Dern) decided to keep a child they had together, who later independently decided to put the girl up for adaption. Upon the discovery of Pippi, and some sort of hope that the once love would rekindle, Wilson takes it upon himself to find his daughter Claire (Isabella Amara) and the beautiful urban family who has taken the responsibility to raise Claire as their own. As expected, in the most distasteful and awkward way possible, Wilson, along with Pippi, make it a hobby to include themselves in Claire's life almost forcefully.

Having an almost crude and grimy way of connecting with humanity as a whole, Wilson makes good-intentioned decision to involve himself in Claire's life, until things begins to spiral out of control, in familiar Wilson-fashion, leading Wilson to state penitentiary.

Luckily for us, Harrelson, one of the most versatile and interesting actors working today, allows Wilson to be a very engaging and interesting character film, focusing on the ideas of longing and loneliness. While we were fortunate enough to have the film written by Daniel Clowes, the original author of which the graphic novel the film is based off of, and Craig Johnson, director of the totally off-beat but satisfying tragic comedy The Skeleton Twins, Clowes and Johnson are able to keep the spunkiness of the almost two hour film somewhat light, keeping its flowing characters in serious need of redemption mostly entertaining and engaging.

Do not get it twisted, Wilson is a very dark and comedic film, just not dark in the sense that depression and pill popping may ensue after. While Clowes has a knack of making really funny situations and characters depressing and almost unchangeable, Wilson does progress towards a satisfying yet, in its own way, Hollywood ending. While I did long for a more in-depth look or analysis of Wilson's relationship with his father, it never comes.

While Wilson showcases the many levels and various temperaments of a very flawed and almost unlikable character, by the end of the film, one cannot help to kinda/sorta fall in love with Wilson. There is an illustrious comedic poignancy of the man who barely reaps the benefits of all of life's wonderful yet disillusioning obstacles. Decorated with slight glimpses of retribution for our beloved inane character, the world in which Wilson longs for is one that is slightly unattainable, yet charmingly whimsical.

Harrelson is an actor that can pretty well play anything and anyone. Slap on a pair of thick framed glasses, a shaggy silver-laced beard and Harrelson nails all of the nuances of a impulsive man for whom bell tolls for on a daily basis, blowing up everything and everyone in his crazy and directionless path.

Luckily for Clowes and Johnson (the original author of the source material and director) were able to assembler a quite impressive cast for a Sundance and indie darling. With the likes of Harrelson, Dern, Cheryl Hines and Judy Greer, giving a well needed spunk and kick in the ass to a somewhat joyless narrative, despite some uncomfortably appealing scenes of Wilson within a school playground and pet shop parking lot.

Overall, Wilson may probably not be your most beloved feature of 2017, nor will it be your most memorable. Luckily for us, art is always a reflection of the images we see on screen, and if there is anything Wilson does well, its reminding us that there is light at the end of the tunnel; and no matter how bad things may end up looking or really are, hope, happiness and redemption is always in store, just don't squander on the opportunities once they becomes apparent.