Bean (Movie)

This was a DVD with Polish subtitles, a gift from Olga.

Mr. Bean always has a strange effect on me: on the one hand i like it and want to watch it, on the other, its extremely disturbing. He always shows that behavior in society we all (or at least i) try to avoid. So there is this great tension and resolution, which he plays with a lot.

Towards the beginning of the movie, its mainly filled with tension, and very little or no resolution. Then great resolution moments arrive all at once toward the second half and end of the movie, showing an ingenious and warm side of Mr. Bean which was not portrayed before. So first half, all failures, second half successes, however still maintaining the Bean characteristics. For example, he wakes up his host's daughter from coma, however, when he departs, he shows jokingly shows them the finger as an act of greeting, as he still didn't learn that it was actually insulting. The thing is, though, i really don't enjoy the tension, in general, in all kinds of movies. That's maybe also why i like documentaries a lot.

I think the movie had some messages as well: like the surgery scene, where he pulls out the bullet with his hands and saves the patient, rather than using complex machines and tools. This could be a critique to society that we are so getting addicted to toys and tools, that we are forgetting how to deal with human touch and sensitivity.

The fact that the person who brought Whistler's Mother back to the US is a military person, who has no interest in art at all, but just in nationalistic ego or a game of power i think also hides a strong message. I'm not sure which. Probably that when something pleasant happens, it is not always for the most intuitive or rational or most wholesome reasons. When we see that a politician decides to do something that actually helps society and not other politicians, usually there is something untold. Such that the "real" story is usually less romantic.

The speech he had was a little stereotypical: it felt like it was the only way he could save himself. Although it was surprising that he decided to save himself there, rather than making a fool out of himself.

Do i suggest the movie? If you are a Bean fan, definitely a must see. If you don't like Bean, then no. Watch one of his shorts first! Certainly there are no violent or free sex scenes, which is a plus. However, woman don't really have a big role in the movie, apart those to follow men around. Most characters are male, and the few female characters only talk to men. Even the wife who pulls out her teeth, really doesn't talk much about her needs. All she cares about is that Bean leaves the house.

duckone version: 1.1.4