Box-office bombs 'The Beach Bum' and 'Serenity' put a final nail in the McConaissance's coffin.
By Sonia Rao Sonia Rao Pop culture reporter Email Bio Follow April 2 at 11:27 AM “The Beach Bum” contains so many absurdities that the act of singling one out can speak volumes — it’s a Rorschach test in the form of a Harmony Korine film. Perhaps it’s fitting that a writer would fixate on how Matthew McConaughey’s scraggly stoner, Moondog, describes his written work: “That’s great poetry,” he declares with a laugh that falls somewhere between a snicker and a tee-hee.
“The Beach Bum” follows the Florida man’s misadventures for a meandering 95 minutes, resulting in an iffy movie that nonetheless allows the actor to shine in what might be his kookiest role yet. It showcases McConaughey at his McConaughiest. Yet, as intriguing as that may sound, the public hasn’t yet bought into the premise: The plotless comedy grossed only $1.8 million this past weekend, marking what several reports have deemed the weakest wide release of McConaughey’s career.
The notion of a “McConaissance” went from floating around cinephile circles to firmly cementing in the public consciousness — perhaps McConaughey would find success as a consistent Serious Actor with a sprinkle of eccentricity, which his roles in “Magic Mike,” “The Wolf of Wall Street,” “Interstellar” and HBO’s “True Detective” seemed to indicate.
That motivation is clear as can be when it comes to “Serenity,” which ranks among the most confounding films released in the past year. Writer-director Steven Knight’s pulpy movie centers on McConaughey’s Baker Dill, a traumatized veteran who lives on an island called Plymouth and drinks way too much alcohol out of a mug that reads “World’s Greatest Dad.
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