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Reviews
The Ghost Writer (2010)
Really Terrible
I am astounded at the number of positive reviews this is receiving. I see a lot of films and not infrequently I see films that I generally do not like for one reason or another but really enjoy or respect due to certain aspects or qualities they contain. Not so here. This was just boring, boring, boring with almost no tension or drama and the "plot" was simply laughable.
The climax was would have been sleep inducing had you not been wondering why anyone would really care about the secret that was revealed. The final scene was like something out of a high school project that the kids waited until the night before to script and film. A more minor gripe is the multiple, annoying commercials for BMW.
I am appalled this is being compared to Hitchcock's work. Some of the shots were impressive, the atmospherics were good and the performances good to average but I simply did not care because there was no story or intrigue to hold it all together.
I cannot recommend this as even a video rental unless you are perhaps doing a study of one of the principals work.
Avatar (2009)
Visually Amazing But Not Without Weaknesses
This is a movie like no other in the realm of visual experiences. The CGI segments rang true and rarely did the realization they were not real encroach.
This is simply not a film to be missed. It is groundbreaking in its technological achievements and also entertaining enough to carry it all along.
The not so good: The story was a bit heavy handed. I could not agree more with the message but I think the way it is delivered is not so useful.
The flow was a bit rushed or even choppy in some spots as though scenes had been deleted or shortened. Perhaps a director's cut will fix that.
I eagerly await a non-3D version as I thought the glasses and effects detracted from, rather than enhanced the experience. Perhaps I will feel differently if I see a 2D version.
The visuals sometimes reminded me of those black-light posters from the '70s. The neon-color thing just got pushed over the top in a couple of scenes.
In a few scenes, the clarity and reality of the CGI really rose above the rest of the movie and it made me notice that in many others scenes they were a bit muddied in comparison.
This is no Star Wars - I saw Star Wars when it came out and this simply does not have the story power it had. The improvement in visual technology is not as great or profound either - this film is a big leap, just not of the magnitude of the first Star Wars.
The human characters, especially in their non-CGI persona were a bit flat in my opinion and/or rehashes from the standard Hollywood character bin.
This is a great film and deserves to be seen but it is just not the be-all, end-all of modern cinema some are making it out to be.
Meet Joe Black (1998)
Really, Really Long
Anthony Hopkins is wonderful in this film. Marsha Gay Harden was also spot on.
Brad Pitt...well, that was a head scratcher. Can't say that I would know how to play death and it appeared Mr. Pitt did not either. The only thing I could gather from the performance was that death appears to have Asperger's.
The film was very long and drawn out, scene after scene. If there had been more delivered, that would have been fine but the film seemed to be so enchanted with it's "deep" message that it just KNEW we would need lots and lots of time in every scene to take it all in. Ummm, nope, not that deep, tell me the story and move it along, thank you very much.
Beautifully filmed but plodding and overly enamored with itself. Could have been a real gem in the right hands.
My One and Only (2009)
Decent but not a Must See
I did not care for the writing in this movie, much of the dialog was uninspired and most of the characters were something of a charactature.
The performances were good, almost without exception. All the more so for the four leads. Watching Mr. Bacon's junk bounce around in his boxers was fun, but that alone is no reason to see a movie really (OK, maybe for some people it is).
The story was not very imaginative. Not realistic but not terribly funny either, even when it was trying to be. Many smiles but almost no laughs.
I expected more of a period exposition but the only thing that stood out for me was the car and Ms. Zellweger's outfits. My favorite thing in the entire movie was the car and I guess that is telling.
Pacing was inconsistent during the last quarter of the film. The story really began to drag toward the end but then suddenly sprang to life and finished like a highlight reel in the last few minutes.
This is not a bad film and if you feel drawn to it for any reason, it is probably worth seeing. If you are just looking for something good at the movies, there are probably better choices. Not sorry I saw it but might choose something else if I had it to do over.
Watchmen (2009)
Liked It
I had not read the comic but still enjoyed the movie. A bit of research on the net got me up to speed on the overall plot but I had to see it twice to really start to take everything in.
I thought the characters and actors were adequate for their parts, with The Comedian and Rorschach being outstanding. Ozymandias was the only portrayal that seemed a bit off center.
I related to Dr. M much more strongly than any of the other characters. I have read many who could not get into his head at all. Guess it just depends on the person.
The violence was just way out of bounds in a couple of scenes - I simply closed my eyes for those parts as there are some things I do not want my brain to contain. Sad the filmmaker felt the need to "spice things up" by taking it over the top.
The "huge" glowing blue penis - huh? It was not THAT big considering his size and frankly, if I had to reconstruct myself from subatomic particles anyway, I'd make me well hung too. Human males have penises and you can see them when they are naked - it is amazing to me that this is noteworthy - but it shows up in every piece I read about this movie....
I liked this much more than I expected to, even though I do not agree with all the messages the movie contains. If you care about film and/or the genre, I think it is definitely worth checking out.
Wendy and Lucy (2008)
Long, Slow Road to Nowhere
(Spoilers - first and last paragraph are safe, though)
I could relate to the main character's predicament - being young, at least somewhat naive, in a strange place without enough money to do whatever it is they are doing. But Wendy's actions quickly started to lose me.
You leave your dog tied up in front of a store without telling anyone in the store she is there and you will only be a few minutes and to please help watch our for her?
You have over $500 in your pocket but you choose to shoplift a few dollars worth of stuff?
You get hauled off in a police car and do not ask the store staff to look after your dog until you can get back?
And what was her plan to begin with? She did not have enough money to make it to Washington and then take herself and the car on the ferry to Alaska, even before figuring in auto repair costs. And again, what about the dog?
With all these moronic oversights and goofs, it was hard to feel much sympathy for her, especially since no background is given.
Then there is the matter of the movie's plot. I could recount every major (and most minor) plot points for the entire movie in under two minutes. The film did not deliver anything worthwhile to justify so little story given its runtime. Not recommended.