I can't believe I sat and watched this thing the whole way through. This movie was terrible. Was there some kind of existential message I was supposed to learn from watching this movie? Honestly, I've seen a lot of bad movies in my life, but this one was one of the worst. I would not recommend seeing this.
Reviews
7 Reviews
Missing Some Emotional Beats
18 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
I'm really conflicted about this movie. There are some really nice parts of this movie from the cinematography to a few of the action scenes. However, I have to say that overall, I was really disappointed. I think the film hit a double when it could have hit a home run.
The emotional beats are really what is lacking in the movie. And that's because we are missing some character development with many of the main characters. I expected so much more with Kasdan doing some of the writing on this. But where is the mystery, the magic, and the depth of Empire Strikes Back? TFA doesn't quite reach the level of the original trilogy.
Granted, the expectations for this film were sky high. But they should be. There are numerous great storytellers out there in the film business these days. I mean, I've seen better episodes in the Game of Thrones series. TFA missed out on continuing the saga by having a weak story with thinly developed characters. (Poe Dameron and Finn really would've worked better as one character, by the way. Not two.)
Another frustrating point to make is the lack of consistency with regards to the 'rules' of our world. For heaven's sake, the female lead goes from being a naive newcomer to a Jedi master in a matter of 30 minutes!! I think that's what ticked me off so much about this film. I thought the Force was difficult to master. That one needed to really practice and experience years and years of training to even grasp the basics. Nope. Not in this film. If your character suddenly needs to know the Force to serve the plot, so be it. Ugh.
There wasn't enough conflict between the good guys either. In the original trilogy, even the main characters have fights and disagreements from time to time. Think Obi Wan and Han. Luke and Han. C-3PO and R2- D2. Chewbacca and Lando. This kind of conflict helps to develop them as real people rather than cardboard characters. But in TFA, everyone just seems to get along so honky dory except for the bad guys and all.
Oh, and when Han Solo dies, there's no feeling going on. Chewbaca, who is Han's life- long bodyguard rarely gets a moment of screen time to mourn his friend! Instead, he walks out of the Falcon right by Princess Leia and I'm scratching my head wondering why Chewbacca isn't just utterly destroyed by his friend dying.
Final note: the Maz Kanata character really was a useless character. So, she was the oracle that's supposed to give the hero the magical weapon as they start their journey. That's fine and all, but there's nothing really special about her other than she's played by an Academy Award winning actress. She doesn't really DO anything interesting other than talk. And she has the light saber how?
There are a few positives like the fight scene between Rey and Kylo. No more aging Sith Lords doing double front-flips off a balcony. Thank God. Also, the Falcon flying near the surface of the planet Jakku in an epic dogfight. The great set pieces. The humor and warmth of BB- 8.
Overall though, really kind of disappointed in this movie. The potential was there to be great. But it's really the 4th best film of the series - a notch between ROTJ and ROTS.
Update: After taking a few days to really digest this movie, I've come to the sad conclusion that was was a money play by Disney. Because Disney has such a HUGE investment in this franchise, the directive must've been to make a movie that was safe. The producers realized that the risks were too high too allow for Abrams and Kasdan to go in a fresh, new direction. That has to be the only answer on why this movie was such a letdown.
The emotional beats are really what is lacking in the movie. And that's because we are missing some character development with many of the main characters. I expected so much more with Kasdan doing some of the writing on this. But where is the mystery, the magic, and the depth of Empire Strikes Back? TFA doesn't quite reach the level of the original trilogy.
Granted, the expectations for this film were sky high. But they should be. There are numerous great storytellers out there in the film business these days. I mean, I've seen better episodes in the Game of Thrones series. TFA missed out on continuing the saga by having a weak story with thinly developed characters. (Poe Dameron and Finn really would've worked better as one character, by the way. Not two.)
Another frustrating point to make is the lack of consistency with regards to the 'rules' of our world. For heaven's sake, the female lead goes from being a naive newcomer to a Jedi master in a matter of 30 minutes!! I think that's what ticked me off so much about this film. I thought the Force was difficult to master. That one needed to really practice and experience years and years of training to even grasp the basics. Nope. Not in this film. If your character suddenly needs to know the Force to serve the plot, so be it. Ugh.
There wasn't enough conflict between the good guys either. In the original trilogy, even the main characters have fights and disagreements from time to time. Think Obi Wan and Han. Luke and Han. C-3PO and R2- D2. Chewbacca and Lando. This kind of conflict helps to develop them as real people rather than cardboard characters. But in TFA, everyone just seems to get along so honky dory except for the bad guys and all.
Oh, and when Han Solo dies, there's no feeling going on. Chewbaca, who is Han's life- long bodyguard rarely gets a moment of screen time to mourn his friend! Instead, he walks out of the Falcon right by Princess Leia and I'm scratching my head wondering why Chewbacca isn't just utterly destroyed by his friend dying.
Final note: the Maz Kanata character really was a useless character. So, she was the oracle that's supposed to give the hero the magical weapon as they start their journey. That's fine and all, but there's nothing really special about her other than she's played by an Academy Award winning actress. She doesn't really DO anything interesting other than talk. And she has the light saber how?
There are a few positives like the fight scene between Rey and Kylo. No more aging Sith Lords doing double front-flips off a balcony. Thank God. Also, the Falcon flying near the surface of the planet Jakku in an epic dogfight. The great set pieces. The humor and warmth of BB- 8.
Overall though, really kind of disappointed in this movie. The potential was there to be great. But it's really the 4th best film of the series - a notch between ROTJ and ROTS.
Update: After taking a few days to really digest this movie, I've come to the sad conclusion that was was a money play by Disney. Because Disney has such a HUGE investment in this franchise, the directive must've been to make a movie that was safe. The producers realized that the risks were too high too allow for Abrams and Kasdan to go in a fresh, new direction. That has to be the only answer on why this movie was such a letdown.
District 9
(2009)
Dumbing Down of America
1 September 2009
Ranked #44 on the list of all-time movies? Are you kidding me? I am flabbergasted that this movie would be ranked so high. District 9 should really be called Titanic 9 because if it was screened for a group of rationale, intelligent lifeforms, it would sink under the weight of its own implausibility. Would an intelligent alien lifeform simply toss the key to its freedom in the bottom of a cannister so easily found? Isn't there a more plausible scenario there? Would a superior in charge of so many logistics accidentally put the alien piece of technology up to his face and smell it to see what it is? Ridiculous! With its cardboard cutout characters of an evil father and doting wife, District 9 is not even close to being in the top #500 of the all-time greatest movies. It's simply a mashup of more eye-popping, special effect/CGI crap that relies less on substance and more on gadgets and guns.
However, the biggest problem of District 9 is its continuity and frame of reference. The first 30 minutes have us following around a nitwit character, documentary-style. It's kind of like watching a crappy episode of COPS. Instead of maintaining its frame of reference, the narration turns into an action flick with no sign of the documentary film crew around. Where did they go? Why start with the documentary style, then switch in the middle of the film? Alfred Hitchcock would be turning in his grave if he saw this movie.
I get the allegory to apartheid and the persecution of minorities. I understand where the filmmakers where going. It was a different angle, that's for sure.
I really wanted to enjoy District 9 and I am a very forgiving movie-goer. But don't get caught up in the hype. Just because a movie has some cool special effects, that doesn't make it a great movie. Just an expensive one.
However, the biggest problem of District 9 is its continuity and frame of reference. The first 30 minutes have us following around a nitwit character, documentary-style. It's kind of like watching a crappy episode of COPS. Instead of maintaining its frame of reference, the narration turns into an action flick with no sign of the documentary film crew around. Where did they go? Why start with the documentary style, then switch in the middle of the film? Alfred Hitchcock would be turning in his grave if he saw this movie.
I get the allegory to apartheid and the persecution of minorities. I understand where the filmmakers where going. It was a different angle, that's for sure.
I really wanted to enjoy District 9 and I am a very forgiving movie-goer. But don't get caught up in the hype. Just because a movie has some cool special effects, that doesn't make it a great movie. Just an expensive one.
Chuck and Borrrrinng
20 August 2007
What a huge disappointment of a movie. Again, the classic example of a production company putting all the great moments of the film into the trailer and then leaving us with crap for the remainder. What was so lame about this movie was that it was so contrived. I wanted to go watch this movie and believe that these two guys really had a reason to fake their marriage, but their marital arrangement was so utterly contrived and full of holes, it made me physically sick (Michael Caine from Dirty Rotten Scoundrels). I mean, couldn't the Kevin James character find a woman to "pretend" marry him instead of a man? Do we really need another climactic courtroom scene to wrap up an entire film's worth of holes? Do we really need to be bombarded with the same lame storyline of a girl who loves the guy who can't reciprocate her love because he's pretending to be something he's not? C'mon, hire some decent screenwriters for a change and either scrap the entire script or re-write it so it's plausible.
Little Nicky
(2000)
Not quite the worst movie ever made, but close.
16 November 2000
For those who said that this was a movie for Sandler fans only...what b.s. I enjoyed Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, Wedding Singer, but Little Nicky was downright awful. Perhaps the joke is on me, as I paid to see the darn thing. I kept waiting for the film to hit its stride, make me laugh...but unfortunately, that moment never came.
Some silly special effects (talking dog), but haven't movie-goers seen this before?
Sandler fans...wait til this one comes out on video, or maybe cable...which could be in a few weeks...2 out of 10.
Some silly special effects (talking dog), but haven't movie-goers seen this before?
Sandler fans...wait til this one comes out on video, or maybe cable...which could be in a few weeks...2 out of 10.
Mission to Mars
(2000)
An Alan Smithee Project; A Plea to Hollywood
1 April 2000
Brian DePalma should have left this one for Alan Smithee to direct. "Mission to Mars" is lacking so many necessary tools, that I'm surpised it was ever made. I wonder how many rewrites, if any, were done before they decided to give this project a go. Granted, the visual/cinematography aspects of this film were pleasant, but as an audience member, I want STORY. I want to see characters that mean something to me-emotionally. I want to see characters that I care about, characters that make me "feel" for them. Great movies are made by great moments. Some would say that maybe 5 or 6 moments, make a movie a hit. Mission to Mars has one.
Why are movies like this made? Because people like you and I fork out the 8 dollar admission fee. As a screenwriter myself, I urge audiences to avoid movies like this in an effort to make movies better. And I make a plea to Hollywood to make movies that are character driven, not plot driven. Alan Smithee...nice to see you're still in the biz.
Why are movies like this made? Because people like you and I fork out the 8 dollar admission fee. As a screenwriter myself, I urge audiences to avoid movies like this in an effort to make movies better. And I make a plea to Hollywood to make movies that are character driven, not plot driven. Alan Smithee...nice to see you're still in the biz.
The 13th Warrior
(1999)
Where's this going?
11 September 1999
What's unfortunate about this movie was that it had potential. The concept was new and original, but the story led me to believe that the first draft was shot. Usually, dialogue is used to progress a story. But in this case, dialogue is a distraction. I found the cinematography pleasing, but not to the extent that it was true visual storytelling. Aside from his small role in Philadelphia, Banderas hasn't accepted a decent role in his career. I would recommend that only serious fans of Banderas and those who enjoyed the Beowolf theme gamble with their money on this film
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