Private-Witt There really isn't another film like Vincent Gallo's darkly comic and moving masterwork 'Buffalo '66'. Simply put, it is one of the most stylistically unconventional, aesthetically accomplished and distinctively singular entries in all of American cinema. Set in the bleak, harsh winter of post-industrial Buffalo, Gallo's debut is a deceptively radical and modern love story. The film tells the story of Billy Brown, a lonely and depressed ex-convict, who had a fragmented childhood that he has clearly never recovered from. His upbringing was plagued by inattention and absence, and the consequences of this are very real; he is devoid of love, happiness and purpose. The film opens with Billy being released from prison and there is only one thing he is set out to do: gain the approval and acceptance of his parents, something he has always so ardently yearned for. To do this, he kidnaps Layla, a wandering, frivolous tap-dancer, and forces her to act as his wife for one evening as Billy visits his parents.This is a fairly repugnant premise for a proclaimed romantic film. By all means, Billy is a hateful, spiteful character. He is resentful, vindictive and unpleasant. Yet, despite all of this, Layla sees something in him. Beyond all the ostensible hostility and anger is a sad, lonely man who has never experienced anything remotely close to real companionship before. So, as Layla begins to slowly uncover the true sorrows of Billy Brown, we do, too, and what ultimately unfolds is a unique, poignant love story that is more honest and endearing than most films could ever dream of reaching.The film is about letting go of one's disconsolate and dejecting past and embracing the happiness they have found. I have pretty much described the thematic foundation of the film in that one sentence. To elucidate, Billy Brown is a man living in the past and not in the present. He is determined to murder Scott Wood, an American football player who missed an important field goal which inadvertently landed him in jail after a bet went sour. Throughout the film, he is holding on only to the feelings he is familiar with; hate, revenge, depression and loneliness. This is all he knows. These are the only feelings he is intimate with. He is highly avoidant of Layla and constantly refuses to be touched or kisses. He is a damaged soul, incapable of forming any kind of intimate human connection. But something changes. Billy breaks down, opens up, and falls in love. To explain why this happens would simply be an injustice to the film. Allow me to instead describe one scene in the film that symbolically epitomises everything Gallo's masterwork is trying to say. Just before Billy leaves the hotel to confront and murder Scott Wood, Layla asks for a hug. Billy, initially, is hesitant but Layla insists. So, they hug. And it is the hug that says it all. Billy hugs Layla but does so in a way that denotes his inner detachment and depression. He is holding onto Layla's hair quite firmly in this almost dominant disposition, signifying a perpetual sadness and isolation of sorts. But then he let's go of her hair, vulnerably falls into her arms and embraces her intimately. It is simply one of the most beautiful, touching and moving scenes I have ever seen.A simple intimate gesture like a hug says something most films would feel the need to explain. Embracing the hug is embracing the love, as corny as that may sound. Billy deciding not to to kill Scott Wood and return back to Layla at the hotel shows that Billy will no longer feel like a victim. He will no longer let his depression and sorrow plague his very existence. He has finally found what he has always so heavily desired; love, companionship, purpose and happiness. And, really, that's absolutely beautiful. The film has, unsurprisingly, been criticised for being misogynistic on a few occasions. These arguments state that Layla is an object who is all too conveniently subservient to Billy considering she was... well, kidnapped. The fact that Layla falls in love with Billy infuriated many viewers, too, so they expectably dismiss it as a hateful film that portrays women as subordinate and clueless. These reviews see the film as a twisted, dark fantasy for Gallo, but they don't really seem to understand that Layla is anything but these things. Quite the contrary, actually. She is someone who sees through Gallo's resentful disposition and discovers what many in the film can not: a damaged man. Enough with that, though. Obviously, the film has a remarkable visual style. The static camera-work, reminiscent of filmmaker Yasjuro Ozu, in addition to its seamlessly transitional editing and fluid long takes are nothing short of impressive. The film captures the dreary and bleak post-industrial atmosphere of Buffalo astonishingly well, too, almost making the city, itself, a character of sorts. Indeed, Buffalo plays out like this omnipresent entity of constant gloom and darkness that overshadows Billy's life. And one can simply not forget the film's extensive use of progressive rock, either. Whether it is Layla tap-dancing to King Crimson's seminal Moonchild or Billy confronting Scott Wood to Yes' Heart of the Sunrise, the film uses prog rock in ways very few other works can. And while we're on the subject of music, is there a more apposite way to end the film with Yes' Sweetness playing into the end credits? I don't think so.Overall, Buffalo '66 is a masterpiece of filmmaking. It is my favourite film of all time, and a work that is very special and important to me. Vincent Gallo's craftsmanship is simply impeccable, and it's a feature that will be looked back at in the decades to come as a truly unique, highly original film from a misunderstood genius.
paul2001sw-1 Vincent Gallo's darkly comic, ultimately touching debut film, 'Buffalo 66', has a stellar cast playing unglamourous roles and a central turn from Gallo himself as insecure loser Billy, fresh out of prison and back in his native Buffalo, but with no real sense of home. The film departs occasionally from literal realism is a mostly effective, entertaining manner, but behind the quirkiness, this is a serious movie about the ability to be love and be loved. It is, however, all about Gallo: Christina Ricci's character presumably has some issues of her own (why else would she be hanging out with a loser like Billy?) but instead of exploring them, the film allows her at least a hint of the role of the forgiving angel, sent (or rather kidnapped) to rescue an otherwise doomed man. But it's still a successful film, one that visits some dark places, but brings the viewer out the other side.
Gordon-11 This film is about a man who has just got out of prison. He kidnaps a girl and makes her pretend to be his wife in front of his parents.You need to be in a certain mood to appreciate the subtle beauty of "Buffalo '66". The lead character Bobby Brown is not a likable person at all, as he is rude, aggressive, impulsive and egocentric. The plot might appear slow moving, but underneath this slow motion there is a wave of emotional undercurrent. Bobby is unloved throughout his life, which is so well portrayed by the shocking interaction of Bobby and his parents. The relationship between Bobby and Layla is strange and yet captivating. The motive of Bobby for finding someone to love is clear, but unfortunately we do not know why Layla cooperates with Bobby. She could easily have walked away, but she chose to stay. "Buffalo '66" would have been even better if Layla's backgrounds and state of mind were told.
