moovemkr Reviews

The Purge (2018–2019)

!! BADLY PRODUCED CASH GRAB THAT DISAPPOINTS !!

[5/10 · 17 September 2018]

I have now watched two episodes and this is definitely not a very good TV show.

I had my doubts when I saw the show was on the USA Network. The Purge concept is hard R rated violence so being on basic cable made no sense.

You can tell the production is fairly low budget. I am guessing they figured they could capitalize on the films and make some money without a big budget but this is not only low budget it is often amateurish.

There is one particular scene where the character of Miguel has to run a gauntlet to live and the scene is not only comically low budget but the editing is confusing and basically makes no sense. I do not know if the scene was edited by the network for time or if they just did not have the money to make it work during production but its just bad.

Many of the reviews I just read here seem to be right about the number of commercials. As I was watching I kept thinking, another commercial, wasn't there just one three minutes ago. Would be interesting for someone to time them and get the actual data but my theory is that the network knew they had a stinker on their hands and figured they would edit the show down, stuff in some more commercials and try and pay for this mess until people quit watching. Which could explain the gauntlet scene.

What is really sad is that I still enjoy the concept and will keep watching with hope that it gets better. As insane as the idea of a purge is it works well as a metaphor for what is happening in our society. Life expectancies are going down in our country and if you think that is just random, think again. Yep, we live in a country in which living a long time may one day be only something the rich can afford to do.

Fierce People (2005)

This Is Not Escapist Entertainment But Intellectually Worth Watching

[6/10 · 27 August 2015]

If you just want to judge this movie based on the final product you see on the screen, it would be about 4 stars. I give it 6 because it wanted to be so much more and I will always find value in anyone or anything that aspires to greatness even when failure is the result.

Basically, would you rather see a prosaic movie that can only be boring and unimaginative be as great as it can be or a daring movie with interesting ideas, that could be great, turn out to be mediocre at best?

The talent the production attracted tells you that the potential was there but I am guessing the production either ran out of time or money or both as the finished product failed as a complete work of art.

It does make me wonder about Griffin Dunne, the director, I am intrigued by the subject matter he chooses to direct, you can always sense the potential, but he never seems to make a great film. I say that with the caveat that Addicted to Love is one of my favorite films, flawed, but it strikes a nerve with me.

Even as mediocre as Fierce People is, it will make you think, it is definitely intellectual, and the subject matter concerning humanity and the desires and motives and actions of modern day human beings as compared to primitive cultures is certainly interesting. The idea being that no matter how sophisticated modern man, especially in western cultures, thinks he is, when it all comes down to it we are still just human beings, animals, that want and need sex and food and shelter and comfort, and unfortunately, violence and cruelty and power over other human beings is often how we gain and protect what we have.

Bottom line, if you are simply looking for escapist entertainment, skip this one, you will be bored. But if you want to dig a little deeper and maybe think about the creatures you interact with on a daily basis in a different way, this film is worth a viewing.

Jimi: All Is by My Side (2013)

Not Really Understanding Why Anyone Liked This

[2/10 · 30 September 2014]

It seems like I have been hearing about this film for years and I was very excited about a movie being made about Jimi Hendrix and starring Andre Benjamin. After seeing the film I thought that there was little chance anyone would like this film at all as I found it as close to unwatchable as a movie gets. People were actually leaving the theater before it ended when I saw it. The movie actually gave me headaches with the crazy cuts and directing style that was beyond silly with pretension. I imagine the director thinking he was breaking artistic ground when all he should have done is tell the story. And lets talk about the story, it seems like it could have been interesting but the director, who also wrote the screenplay, turned it in to a snoozefest. I do think part of the problem is that I am guessing Hendrix was only interesting on stage and when you have a film that uses no original Jimi Hendrix music, well, you have a problem. If I was given three wishes I would use one to never allow John Ridley to make another film. Jimi Hendrix and Andre Benjamin, how do you screw that up? Oh, I know, John Ridley.

Spring Breakers (2012)

A truly bizarre movie that belongs on Skinemax.

[3/10 · 27 March 2013]

A truly bizarre movie. Imagine a skinemax exploitation flick mated with a dark comedy and then mated with a morality tale with no morals and no point of view and directed by a drunk Fellini at gunpoint and you have an idea of what to expect. This is a trashy film that seems to only exist because Harmony Korine the writer and director is a pervert appealing to the perverts that make a market for trash like this. With that said, the film does provide a few laughs that may or may not be intentional and the performances are not all bad. I am just a bit disturbed that these actors would agree to be in this film and that no one stopped it from being made. I have a feeling when the decline of the empire that is the United States is dissected by history this film will be a small artifact of evidence.

Larry Crowne (2011)

Wasted Potential

[4/10 · 6 July 2011]

The problem with this movie is that the producer, writer and star of this movie obviously has not had too many average guy problems in his life in quite a while.

Its hard to sympathize with Larry Crowne, and the movie only works if you do, when everything seems to come so easy for him.

Go back to school, here are the classes you should take that will change your life, do you want to be our friends, do you want to kiss me, do you want a job that works with your schedule, dump the house and mortgage, its OK, your neighbors will sell your stuff and then you can go start a new life with a hot teacher.

I do realize its a romantic comedy with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, we pretty much already know how it ends before we walk in the theatre but there is simply no struggle and almost zero conflict that would make you pull for the guy.

Tom Hanks has said in interviews he wanted to play "this kind of guy", its just that he seems to have no idea what "this kind of guy" really goes through in life.

Its like he and Nia Vardalos in writing the movie could come up with ideas to solve problems they perceive he would encounter without actually showing him struggle with any of the problems because they had no idea what that struggle would be.

It would be like asking someone like Larry Crowne in real life to make a movie about the pitfalls and struggles of being very rich and famous. He would only be guessing and would not really know the real issues and struggles.

The bottom line is that this movie had so much potential and it was wasted. Tom should have wrote this movie with a talented but struggling and hungry screenwriter and the results would have probably turned out much better.

Public Enemies (1996 Video)

One of the All Time Worst Movies

[2/10 · 1 January 2005]

Wow, pretty amazing that something this bad could actually be made. I am giving this movie a 2 because it is so bad it has a certain "car wreck" kind of appeal. Its so bad its comical and that does have a certain entertainment value. Plus there is a bit of gratuitous nudity and that is always appreciated.

So where do I begin. The acting is beyond awful, its like you are watching a high school play being filmed. Theresa Russell must have done something really bad to have been forced to make this movie and her acting reflects how happy she is to be in the middle of this mess.

The rest of the cast is simply silly with the casting of Dan Cortese as an FBI agent the cherry on the top of this piece of crap. His acting actually had me laughing at loud.

As for the screenplay and the directing C. Courtney Joyner and Mark L. Lester should simply be taken out back and shot.