Stay (2005)
Psychiatrist Sam Foster has a new patient, Henry Letham, who claims to be suicidal. In trying to diagnose him, Sam visits Henry's prior therapist and also finds Henry's mother -- even though Henry has said that he murdered both of his parents. As reality starts to contradict fact, Sam spirals into an unstable mental state. Then he finds a clue as to how and when Henry may try to kill himself, and races to try to stop him.
Watch Trailer
Cast
Similar titles
Reviews
Save your money for something good and enjoyable
A waste of 90 minutes of my life
The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
What an utter load of pretentious nonsense. A film should be a story, that story ought to engage you, and entertain or inform you in some way. This film does none of that. I fell asleep twice while I tried to finish it, and I really resented having to watch til the end, I feel I let myself down and ought to have not wasted a full hour and a half on it. Some say it is Lynch-esque. That's simply trying to help justify wasting a small part of your life on it, and imbue it with some sort of historical validation from a supposed great director. The truth is it is Lynch-esque because like some David Lynch films, they're disjointed and disconnected scenes pretending to be art but instead simply being bad stories, badly filmed and with no real flow or point to them. Throughout the film Ewan McGregors character wears trousers much too short which shows him looking slightly ridiculous. Supposedly this is because in one tiny scene he appears to this way to Ryan Goslings character who is lying on the ground looking up at him. Firstly, we don't see that view, and secondly even if we did how could we possibly connect the two things? And even if it was possibly to connect the two things....why?? Why would you make a person seem ridiculous through a whole film just because of one view another person had that we didn't even see? I don't rate Ewan McGregor anyway I think he's highly overrated. Naomi Watts acts very well, but she acts the same person in every single film she does so I don't really rate her either. Honestly, if like me you came late to the party and haven't watched this yet...please, don't! You will regret the waste of time.
I've watched this movie a grand total of two times, and I can honestly say that the point of this movie does not get clearer no matter how many times you watch it. It's not like the Matrix, which is obviously trying to say something. This movie is boring, trite, and relies on good visuals to make up for it's pretentious laziness.I'm surprised this movie has gotten 6.9 stars. There are better movies that do worse than that.In a nutshell, this movie is about a young man's bizarre hallucination before he dies. It's got weird spiritual references about Buddhism, and about how life is just an illusion, etc. The young man acts like Jesus by predicting the weather and healing the blind. Trust me, though, the movie is not nearly so deep as to justify these plot elements. So much of the dialogue and characters are utterly pointless to the ending that it annoys me how much of a waste of time it is to watch it.
I just watched Stay again and had to change my rating from a 7 to a 10. I had seen Stay many years ago and it had always stuck with me. Probably because after watching it again I know why. Stay presents itself as a masterpiece of art and it does not disappoint. With so much happening it's a little hard to keep up. What it does though is draw you in. A quote from the movie about art states, 'We are drawn to the brightest parts.' After closely analyzing each scene I noticed that there are bright colours all around, subtly drawing us into the movie.Stay is a deep, calculating movie that hits you hard and makes you question your sanity and whether or not the world around us is just an illusion. The film references abstract artists, Shakespeare, and Psychology all throughout which fits well with the abstract camera angles, acting, and thought processes it evokes while watching. With the camera looking at characters on the other side of glass and also reflecting characters in mirrors and other objects, it sends the subconscious mind thinking about whether we are watching the real world like that through our own eyes. With allusions to previous scenes you won't realise at first, double entendres, artistic scenery, camera angles, and subconscious messages, Stay is a visual masterpiece unlike any other film and no other film will ever come close. If you haven't seen it already, watch it.
Ticking clock drama about saving someone from suicide, and it goes all twirly whirly with perceptions of reality.Is it a slight story, or profound? I dunno. Worth another watch, but I'm sure I won't.The professional critics give it high praise for the story telling through editing, and I did get a few aaah moments, but I was crying out for Naomi Watts to become the centre of the story. Ewan Magregor to me is just not convincing, and Ryan Gosling I can take or leave.There I go - focusing on the actors. Not a good sign.The Shakespeare was good, and I thought I was getting into it: "O God, I could be bounded in a nut shell and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams." Still not happening. I did let it sit for a day, but couldn't appreciate the quality. Maybe I'm being thick, so I'll generosify the rating to 6.