gerhajdu Reviews

Avatar (2009)

A movie achieving it's goal - entertainment

[6/10 · 28 March 2011]

After a year of reading or listening to others' opinion I released why is this movie so successful. It has achieved very simple goals - simple entertainment, thrills, laughters and feeling for the protagonist.

I also realized that the real hero in Avatar is not Jake but the Na'vis are all the heroes. Sure they had an adult male, warrior who had laughed at Jake almost always but he was likable at least. Also the natives almost killed themselves when they tried to save one woman's life which is honorable.

The Na'vis are still amazing. There's a lot of dialogue where the good guys are making the natives look weak and the planet precious but this image comes to turn upside down making the natives and Pandora much more than that. That's where Cameron's genius lies except for the amazing visuals. Like in his Terminator movies he gives the out-of-this-world beings a simple feature or motivation until the end where you have to realize it is more complex you believed. I almost started to cheer loudly at the twist in the end.

If you watch only at how amazingly the movie looks or the various creatures and sites Cameron came up with you are missing the real meaning of the story. Of course it's not so original for a feature film but there are times you are pleased with GENERIC fantasy plots and not ones that top dramas with deep characters.

This movie is important for me so please stop bashing it for being successful. It's one thing you don't like or understand it.

Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)

In every way or even compared to it's huge budget The worst movie ever

[3/10 · 14 July 2008]

I just can't find any value in Attack of the Clones to give it any credits. Worst SW movie, worse than Phantom Menace, worst man-hand ever created. I really liked TPM even right after seeing the original trilogy. However bad plot it has, it has the Magic and atmosphere to leave cinema with satisfaction. SW movies always had unreal moments (remember Luke's missile turning 90desgres into DeathStar or the Falcon avoiding Star Destroyer's shots? or ewoks beating stormtroopers?) still they have magic, good direction and good characters. Star Wars is a huge fantasy-tale not science-fiction, you should get the magic in TPM. If you play a bad Starwars video game or just see a Starwars toy, you get bored in time: you realize there's much skill and other that makes SW movies engaging and enchanting or even a movie that demands watching. In AttackoftheClones there are not. There is nothing either. Many truly negative parts of this movie ------------------------------------------- Horrible, wooden acting(speeching words given in the actors' mouth) - Unrealistic effects(mostly because actors can't interact with a non-exist world) ------------- Not much of Palpatine ----------------- Horrible Hayden ------------------------------------------------------ Worst love-story ever(Anakin is surprised Padme loves him.) ----------------------------------------------------------------- Unreal lines ------------------------------------------------------- Yoda bouncing with lightsaber ---------------------------------------- No memorable spaceship-action (sonic-bomb stupidest thing ever) - Everyone acts like they have to beat each other, a Jedi master like Windu seems to show no obedience or respect ----- Stupidest scene in movie-history, the arena-scene (first: why do you chain a Jedi only at his hands)(reinforcement arrives at the last second).

You can learn from Episode 2 that you must slice everyone who looks at you ugly, and you should marry your love in secret if it's forbidden.

That's just one thing the movie completely lacks in feel of danger or any feeling. Even Phantom Menace made fear when a the Great Droid Army was finally activated(which was brilliantly done in my opinion) -you can imagine the financial power of trade federation. In AOTC the army just moves in and that's all.

The only positives I found were Obi-Wan and the open shirt of Natalie Portman:) If Episode 1 disappointed you, you may enjoy Episode 2 cause there is not much JarJar. But that doesn't makes a movie especially an enchanting StarWars movie. I don't say to skip this movie but I can hardly recommend it.

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Truly great movie if you watch close

[6/10 · 14 June 2008]

I never understand what made this movie a top one. I was never into this gangster, mafia, drugs'n'pistols world. Pulp Fiction is surely remarkable and I must say I liked it. Most of the dialogs were hilarious, I was surprised at myself enjoying the whole movie. Any disgusting it was I had to laugh hard at the corpse-cleaning scene. Or when Travolta is talking to himself in the mirror. All these things are usually disgusting to me, some are hard to talk about but when Tarantino makes it funny or brings depth to it, I feel he did something great. I also liked that Tarantino makes an opportunity to show the actor's abilities. How much time and retry it must take to film that 60 second-long scene- in one shot? How much this director added to the actor's performance? I definitely enjoyed Pulp Fiction but I couldn't agree it is a cult-classic. Maybe something misses. I don't know. There movies much closer to my heart.

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)

To offer..

[8/10 · 21 March 2007]

I should offer this movie to everyone, but especially for fans of films, boys and girls more than group of friends, and for people who think themselves earnest enough because deep inside i found this a very serious and complex movie. This movie is also filled with love, despair, fear and comedy. Comedy is not so important but Hoffman really demands appreciation and gives much to the film. I'm absolutely about to rent and buy the DVD.

Everyone who wants humanity, feelings and fun, this movie is just to entertain you. ...................................................... I gave it 9 because it's near perfection.

Envy (2004)

take a "vaPoorize" and let bad reviews vanish

[5/10 · 2 November 2006]

i really agree with everybody at IMDb who says avoid the film-stamper bad reviews and i disagree avoiding this movie. Some say there were no jokes, well it's crap, as comedy it's to be funny and that it is or not you have to decide. In my opinion there were some holes, unfunny and odd things, but listen it has jokes, good jokes, idiot situations that make your head laughed off. The only thing I agree with those reviews that Walken is fantastic - oh and the horse-killing accident scene too:). Fun.

Not the biggest comedy ever but believe me it's a big fun with so good actors you cant miss until it finishes. This time Im not polite to the wretched kill-joys. Have fun or lets hate it and you'll be sure of that: instead of avoiding it because of some who has no sense of humor. True, the trailer showed it funnier, but remained funny.

A silly laugh-muscle mover weekend comedy for everyone.

Doom 3 (2004 Video Game)

piece of FPS art - IDs' are animals

[10/10 · 8 October 2006]

I just finished Doom3 and I am STUNNED. It's hard to say a word about. This is a game cannot-be-told, but I try.

The first thing is visuals. Sraightly, it rocks even beside the overrated disappointing (HL2 fans, sorry) sequel of my ever favorite FPS. While the very hyped game looked unreal, dull and dead in medium settings too, the graphics of Doom3 make me see real world like virtual world in low settings in 640x480. The beautiful per-pixel shadowing and plastic/organic materials (somehow feeling the 3dimenzions) look unbelievably good. And I still didn't talk about sound effects, roars, cries, screams etc. So I found Doom3 engine the greatest of our days. Beat it Source.

The next good score is atmosphere. It wasn't scary, but something more. You get little shocks, experiences, pictures and they slowly make you feel Hell gets louse. Demons for nightmares, skulls and corpses (living dead without lower jaw uh) and bloody skeletons, pentagrams on floors on screens, line of candles, creepy noises, evil laughs. Yes, Doom3 is rather creepy, depressing, thrilling, engaging and chill-run-down-spine feeling. Cutscenes are really stylish and Doom3engine makes them like movie. The best is on first level (demo level, no spoilers) and the ending scene.. well, I feel chill run down my spine all the time I see this (don't miss it). So it's gory and hellish. I can offer my psychologist friend for IDs, just if they'd like to:).

Well, this game became my favorite. The only bad score is playing time: it could be just a little more faster. In fact, I found it more exciting and more story-telling than criticizers wrote they had.

Some tips: -ALWAYS hold your fingers on Flashlight(F) and Reload(R) button. The first one is for lighting dark corners because creators can hide bullets, armors and healths very nasty. If you press F again you get your gun back, don't worry. The second one is simple: reload your weapons regularly, never go into a big room with empty magazine and don't shoot to nowhere. Keep some shotgun bullets, they come in handy:). -Quicksave many times (F5) -And watch your back. Good playing and good luck!

The Butterfly Effect (2004)

A great surprise

[10/10 · 25 July 2006]

I watched this movie on a night when I had nothing to do and knew nothing about the film and it stunned me much more. I'm surprised how creative and thrilling it is. An unforgettable story about the complication of life. We can't understand our whole life and every moment has good and bad sides. There is no best decision, no perfect life for everyone, you always have to experience things you don't want. Great acting, thought-provoking storyline. I couldn't think a movie can impress me like this. A simple film has impressed me, like vibration of a butterfly's wing the half world.

A movie you must see.

Half-Life 2 (2004 Video Game)

This is not Half-Life

[7/10 · 24 July 2006]

I liked Half-Life. I am still it's fan. It was frightening, intelligent and challenging. I don't tell any news it is one the best FPS ever made. Maybe I'm too hardcore Half-Life fan but the so called Half-Life 2 is not Half-Life 2.

And I have a question: is THIS the next chapter of Half-Life? Maybe the creators -Valve- thinks so but I don't. Where are the intelligent enemies? Where is the frightening atmosphere? Nowhere. I believe they wanted to make a bit different Half-Life (instead of another research station story), but they didn't just made a very different one, they made something that has to do with Half-Life like for example Quake does to Doom. The entire game so unsightly and unreal that it's almost forlorn.

Though the physics are truly great and there were a few good level to play, the idea to make a revolutionary physic-driven gameplay has utterly failed. When you get the Gravity-gun, that can move objects, you can expect with rights to use it as a weapon- that would turn the schematic FPS gameplay upside down. The truth is, you can't use Gravity-gun as a real weapon. Why? Because the best you can do is throwing boxes and barrels that don't do much damage. If you want to keep an object in front of you to protect it can fall from about 3 shots. If you want to throw an exploding barrel to your enemy it can explode in your own "hand". The gravity-gun doesn't work as a weapon. The best usage is solving some physic-puzzles. I ask Valve: Why? The truth is you must use your boring, schematic FPS weapons to the end(except for last level) Weapons are not that made original Half-life a classic. If Gravity-gun would be always like at the last level -a real weapon- I'd admire what Valve did. But not this. This is disappointing.

So if you want Half-Life then you are searching at the wrong place. Maybe you will enjoy it but I repeat: it is everything but not Half-Life and even not a faithful continuation of that. This is the greatest disappointment of all time. Valve have shown they can make awful games too. They have managed that.

Treasure Planet (2002)

One of the best animated films

[8/10 · 22 July 2006]

Simply stunning. Treasure PLanet is an adaptation of Treasure Island and I didn't know that movie but I think it's very good as a pirate story, so I didn't care how faithful adaptation it is. The first score for the film is the visuals and atmosphere, it is the most fascinating animated film I've ever seen. Combination of old-fashioned technology and hi-tech is a great idea that makes the film look really unique.

The second score is characters, because they are so lifelike and lovable. The connection between Jim Hawkins and the cyborg John Silver is touching and memorable, it's absolutely the best part of the film. I loved the major characters too, especially because of humour, like Dr. Doppler, Morph and B.E.N. (who can be usually too annoying). In fact, my favourite is Captain Amelia who is a hard, refine and brave captain and her half-cat appearance very suit her. I loved.

The story after all is enjoyable and it is serious enough to adults enjoy it. The end is great and (at leas for me) surprising. I have found some plot holes but eventually main storyline is beaten.

I can recommend Treasure Planet for anyone who likes good traditional animation and fairy-tale-like science fiction. Just take a look at Disney's new masterpiece and you will surely have a good time.