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Reviews
Shanghai Noon (2000)
Shanghai Noon
This is not the type of film that I normally watch. Two of my friends insisted that they thought it would be stupid but that it really was funny and that I should watch it. I watched it. It was not funny. At all. It was really bad. I mean really bad. I don't think it is even worth mentioning that both the editing and cinematography were at times startlingly bad, or that the plot line (which is full of holes) was completely predictable and stupid. These things we would of course expect. The so called humor is also bad. Virtually every joke in this film is recycled. I've seen them all used (better) before. Also, the writing for this movie is soooo bad. Laughably so. (Yes, I did laugh a few times during this, but it was only when I couldn't believe just how bad it was). The writer must think very lowly of his audience. Not only are his characters completely implausible, saying and doing stupid things, but at times the film is completely irrational.
Microwave Massacre (1979)
Microwave Massacre *SPOILER (if such a thing were possible)
This is one of the most stupid, schlocky B-movies I have ever seen, which means although it's a horrible film it is quite entertaining. Everything in this is pretty much as bad as it could be. The acting is absolutely rotten - and hilarious. The storyline is virtually nonexistent. The special effects are also laughably bad. The picture quality is rotten - adding to the cheese factor a bit. * SPOILER?: Some highlights of the movie: when the man gets mad at his wife, gets up on the couch and begins to urinate all over it. When the guy is at work and the gratuitous nude scene occurs with the woman who puts her breasts in some hole in a fence in front of ogeling construction workers. (? This is one of the most unintelligible parts of the movie. And, of course, when the guy feeds his work buddies the human flesh sandwiches and they're like "Mmm, this sure is good." In terms of really bad B-Movies, Microwave Massacre has little competition. If that's your thing then see it.
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
The Maltese Falcon
Although it seems I am against the whole world on this, I say The Maltese Falcon is a relatively poor film. This may have been one of the first noirs, but does that alone make it one of the best? Perhaps in its time it was influential, but now it's just boring. There is nothing of interest or significance to keep my attention. In my opinion a far superior Bogart noir is The Big Sleep, directed by Howard Hawks... This ranks up there with Some Like It Hot as one of the most overrated films of all time; I think both are films that people call classic simply because they've been called that for so long.
When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
When Harry Met Sally
This is an enjoyable film, but certainly not great. It is very much indebted to Woody Allen. The similarities to Annie Hall abound and there are similarities to other Allen films as well. While that in itself may or may not detract from the film's greatness, it simply does not compare to Allen's work. Annie Hall, for example, is much more witty and original, the writing is better, and it has greater depth. *WARNING, SPOILER in the next sentence: This is a basic Hollywood re-work, complete with the happy ending Annie Hall did not have... Why spend so much time talking about Woody in a review of this film? A. Other people have already given enough synopsis of this film and B. it owes that much to his work... That said, this is a good film - light hearted entertainment - but not anything more.
Snatch (2000)
More of the same.
Let me preface this by saying that I very much dislike Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. (If you liked that, you'll probably like this.) I say the same thing for this new piece of drivel by Ritchie. Why? How could I dislike such a riveting piece of modern cinema by such a visionary young director? Oh, come on.... There isn't that much to like here. The style is more of the same - stealing, as I've said before, from the likes of Trainspotting and Tarantino (with Scorsese added in here for good measure?). This is not creative stuff. He takes what they've done and churns out a completely shallow, worthless rendition of it, creating what so many people in this post-Tarantino era do: this brand of "hip," violent cinema, with the aloof, jaded humor about the whole thing. What is lacking is any sort of redemptive value at all; there is no depth, no character (people seem to love the characters in this; they're all more of character sketches, of violent criminals at that), and really there is little here that could be called a human emotion. If not substance, then what? The humor is generally lacking and low brow, attempting to get laughs off the most base, disgusting things. The entire content of this film is like staring into a toilet really... Don't misunderstand me. I'm really not just a huge prude - afterall, I like the aforementioned film and directors. I simply feel that there should be something in all of this nonsense which makes it worth my while. There isn't... This is empty virtuosity (where it is even that). Unlike someone like Scorsese, Ritchie will make us bask in filth with no payback; instead, it may glorify it and is rather like watching a kid play with a new toy.
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
This is the worst film that the Coen Bros have ever made. I was looking forward to this film for quite a while but was severely disappointed. I generally like the Coen's very much, but this has missed the mark. While it still contains some of their signature eccentricity I feel that this was created to please the masses. It seemed to cater to a different audience. The cinematography certainly had its moments (the Klan scene), and I laughed once or twice, but overall I could not wait for it to end. To be kind, the characters were drab; more often they were just obnoxious, unfunny and sometimes completely unbelievable. Most of the time I get annoyed when people say a movie "had no plot;" however, that is true of this film. It meandered through the old south (a good idea, I admit - it could have been great) and pretty much got nowhere. Quite uninteresting altogether... On a scale of 1-5 (1 being poor) I would probably give this a 2 and hope to not hear much about it again in the future.