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2 Rabbits Review

By David Kempler

Wascally Wabbits

There is zero doubt that writer/director Alfonso Poyart is an enormous fan of Quentin Tarantino. It's pretty much a given from the very first moments of "2 Rabbits". It's a chaotic view of criminals in a constant state of clashing with each other. The problem is that it becomes increasingly difficult to discern who is fighting who and what exactly they are trying to do.

There are a lot characters that appear, disappear and reappear, but it's Edgar (Fernando Alves Pinto) who keeps reappearing most often. When we first see him, he is a lazy guy who spends his time watching porn and playing video games, but he is also a techie. And he has a plan. It's one that is difficult to follow, but we do know that he is seeking revenge and he returns to São Paulo to exact that revenge.

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The path that takes us through Edgar's plan includes people in all walks of life, including a crazed gangster, a corrupt politician, a pizza delivery guy, a defense attorney and lots of low-level dirtbags. One of the problems is that we never get much of a feel for any of them. They fly in and out of the story incredibly quickly. Add in Poyart's insane amount of quick cuts and your head will no doubt spin like mine did. It's akin to watching a movie at slight fast-forward.

Forget about trying to follow the plot here. You would need a couple of days to watch it over and over, while stopping periodically to take notes. This doesn't mean it's not a fun watch, but don't expect to extract too much information from it. It's more fun ride than coherent story.

The toughest thing about watching "2 Rabbits" is that, because of its frenetic pace, the subtitles fly by so quickly that it is near impossible to read them. Also, the subtitles that go by slower are also tough to read because the letters on the screen often blend into the picture, making them unintelligible. If you are fluent in Portuguese, it might make this a more pleasant watch. If you aren't, be content to watch lots of action that you may or may not understand.

What did you think?

Movie title 2 Rabbits
Release year 2012
MPAA Rating NR
Our rating
Summary Brazilian imitation of a Tarantino-esque crime story captures some of the flair, but none of the meat.
View all articles by David Kempler
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