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Reviews
Daredevil (2003)
A Horrible Waste of Time
I wanted to wait for video on this one, but somehow backed out of my promise and ended up paying full price for it this past weekend. What a mistake. I have seen almost all comics movies, and I know that some suspension of disbelief and ability to overlook cheesiness is required, but this goes way beyond that. It's just barely better than Batman & Robin, the widely acknowledged worst comics movie ever.
Poor dialogue, rushed storyline, and choppy and confusing action sequences are just some of the reasons why you should stay away from this one. Oh, and did I mention a simply horrible soundtrack that made me wish my superpower was to be deaf? I am a huge comics fan, but this movie was a mistake. To take a mostly great cast, and to have the only good performance come from about 50 seconds of Jon Favreau, is a travesty.
The Thing (1982)
Genre Classic
Never having seen the original, I can only comment on this movie based on its own merits. Which is ok, because it has many. First, the good. The movie has some incredibly suspenseful scenes, and I don't think I have seen any other movie where paranoia and fear of everyone else has been captured so successfully. Also, although inevitably we scream at the characters for doing something we consider stupid under the circumstances, most of the actions of people here make sense. The great ending has to be mentioned as well - though it may disappoint some, I feel it was very gutsy on the movie makers' part.
The bad side of the movie has mostly to do with its age, which is showing. Although there are some genuinely creepy alien moments, most of the time it feels fake - the movie is much more successful in what it does not show us. The two computer sequences are laughable as well, the prediction program scene more so than the chess scene. But overall this is still an excellent movie, and I strongly recommend checking it out.
The Whole Nine Yards (2000)
Slapsticky and Weak
Sadly, this movie turned out exactly as I predicted - a few good laughs here and there, but all in all, a very predictable and somewhat boring picture. Matthew Perry goes from being a nervous psycho one second to Mr. Cool Guy with a Surefire Plan the next. Bruce Willis as a flower-loving benevolent killer - has this guy ever played a villain? There're two gorgeous women to occupy your time, but when one of them is shown topless, it's hard not to see this as being just plain gratuitous. I don't want to give away the situation, but there were much less dangerous ways to distract someone. I could go on, but I will just conclude by mentioning the ridiculous ending - anybody who's not even familiar with dentistry will have to laugh their gut off if you think it all the way through. This is a "wait for the video" if there ever was one.
Beyond the Mat (1999)
Not Worth It For Non-Initiated
Not really being a big wrestling fan, I somehow got dragged into see this movie. For my money, it was kind of ho-hum. Most of the Mankind's family suffering story has already been broadcast on 20/20, where most fans I'm sure got to see it, and there's little new in that area. I did however appreciate how this movie tried to show wrestlers at all stages without being too obvious about it. You see young guys who haven't really proven themselves and most likely will not even get a chance, people just entering pro wrestling, established stars, those with careers on the decline, and just plain has-beens. I have to give it credit for not being a WCW mouthpiece, but I don't think it will win the sport any converts.
Erin Brockovich (2000)
Sharp and Funny
I can see why Ebert compared this with a TV docudrama, since the plot and the resolution do sometimes verge on cliched and predictable. Nevertheless, the movie is hilarious in places, and found myself really liking it despite not really being a fan of Julia Roberts or that whole genre of movies. But since it was Steven Soderbergh, I had to see to see it, and I was definitely not disappointed. One of the rare occassions when the theatre burst into applause not just at the end, but at least 3 or 4 times during the show. Roberts actually makes this role of a beauty queen with a photographic memory believable. Great dialogue and great supporting cast make this movie something worth seeing.
The Car (1977)
The Car Spells C A M P
Please don't read this review if you wish to know absolutely nothing about this movie (also do not watch the trailer as it shows _every single_ cool moment from the flick). There's funny camp and B-movies, and there's just awful schlock such as this. While there are a few genuinely creepy moments, I spent the majority of the movie screaming at the characters for how stupid they were for not doing such and such to save their hide from being killed by ... The Car! It also seems silly that no background is ever given on the origin of the car. Having seen both the Exorcist and The Car on the same day, I had little difficulty deciding which devil incarnate was more believable. Rent this movie if you must, but only if you think it's worthwhile to get little laughs out of things like the fattest slowest cop never biting the dust, or the total number of cops never seeming to go down despite attrition in ranks.
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
War Masterpiece
I doubt I can say anything original about this movie that has not already been said before, but I did want to comment on the so-called "weaker" 2nd half of the movie, after bootcamp. I believe you can only think the 2nd half is slow if your idea of war is a game of Quake deathmatch. In real life, it's not kill, kill, die, respawn. When you die, it's for good. If you can't wait when your CO tells you to wait, you'll be dead. The sniper ending is one of the most suspenseful war movie sequences I have ever seen.
Full Metal Jacket is excellent because it shows you the progression of soldiers - made strong in boot camp, and ready to continue in combat after briefly grieving their friends who just fell. Not to mention the excellent political commentary, and the irony of filming the filmmaker as he is recording interviews with soldiers.
The Ninth Gate (1999)
Depp Saves This One Single-Handedly
Between this and Pitch Black, maybe I should stop listening to so called respected critics out there, who seem very quick to diss most movies lately. Ninth Gate's concept does sound rather unoriginal, "oh, it's another innocent man pulled into the crazy wacky world of devil worshippers." But the movie is actually quite enjoyable, especially with Depp as a well-known "book detective" and Seigner as his mysterious "guardian angel."
A specific criticism I read was that the movie was too vague, and the ending doesn't really tell you exactly what happened. This is from the same people that worship 2001 A Space Odyssey - there vagueness was ok because it was "an experience." It really annoys me when a character on the screen explains something that the audience has already figured out. If you're of the same opinion, then this should not be a concern for you. The movie explains what it wants and leaves the rest as a cool mystery. I advise you to see it, especially if you enjoyed the visual feel of that other recent Depp movie, Sleepy Hollow.
Pitch Black (2000)
Pretty Darn Good
While not being the best or most original movie, I really feel this movie has been unfairly lambasted by critics. There's a ton of cool effects, the characters are not one-dimensional as a whole, and there's some dark humor to keep things going. I think that as long as you buy into the horror formula of that when you think things can't get any worse, they do, and don't mind the fact that it's a little derivative of its predecessors, you're going to have a good time. Incidentally, without giving anything away, I think the movie does break one cardinal rule of the genre towards the end - I think you'll know what I mean when you see it.
Buffalo '66 (1998)
Simply put, Outstanding
I had to comment on this movie as soon as I saw it. I hesitated to see because of the description on the box - it seemed like a lame Charlie Sheen con on the run, kidnaps girl, girl falls in love movie, and that just did not appeal to me. Well, if that's what you think, you definitely have to give this movie a real chance.
This is an absolute winner, the only reason I'm not rating it a full 10 is b/c so little background is given on Layla/Wendy's character - what's her motivation, what makes her tick. But maybe the point is that it doesn't matter, the movie is all about Billie. And Vincent Gallo is outstanding as the social freak Billie. I was blown away to learn that he also wrote, directed, and scored the movie, impressive to say the least.
I don't want to give away finer points of the plot, but the movie has so many excellent sequences. The dialogue is hilarious. "Can I have a kiss goodbye?" "Look, I said I'd get you a hot chocolate, not a kiss" "Can I have a hug then?" "Let's just shake hands." If Election, Rushmore, or similar movies where the humor is above the heads of your average Britney Spears fan, you have to check this one out.
Some great cinematography work as well, though I'm sure the use of passing cars as wipes, as well as the way flashback sequences are framed are not completely original.
Arlington Road (1999)
Decent Movie, Somewhat Weak Acting
I'm not sure I have anything original to contribute to the discussion of this movie, but I did enjoy it. The acting is a little weak in places, and one can argue that the plot is a little contrived in spots, but if you gloss over all that, the picture is very solid. Jeff Bridges does an excellent portrayal of paranoia, and Tim Robbins characterization is great. The biggest thought that I dwelled on after the movie was the fate of his son, and how he would view his parents and the government.
Boiler Room (2000)
Good Movie, Worth Watching
Overall, the movie is very enjoyable. Dialogue is sharp and authentic, and the line between hero and villain is blurred, as it often is in real life, because the protagonist is a bad guy as well. I can see where Ebert was saying that certain parts of the movie are a little unclear, but I'm sure that has to do with editing issues. This is definitely one where I would want to see deleted scenes on DVD so that things could get cleared up a little bit more.