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Reviews
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
Put that thing away!
Once upon a time, they made movies that didn't need full frontal nudity to tell a good story.
Despite that, it's mildly cute. For a chick flick. Seeing the trials and tribulations of brokenhearted Peter dealing with everything... it's very real... to an extent. Being someone out of love myself, I can sympathize with his character, which goes a long way; I'm guessing the producers felt this would go a long way with the audiences and critics.
However, the plot is utterly fantastical and unrealistic. The writer asks for the audience to suspend their disbelief one time too many; I found myself near screaming "OH GOD I'M IN A CHICK FLICK" one time too many during the course of the film.
Men beware.
Sydney (1996)
Can be deep, can be easy - something for both extremes
This movie has the unique characteristic of having a plot that appeals to the extreme ends of the moviegoing crowd.
The movie has a very deep and complicated plotline, which, in my opinion, is some kind of live-action metaphor for Freud's human psyche (for the most part... the analogy falls apart late in the film, and with a few odd points).
The movie also has stuff that appeals to the low-attention-span folks - the kids, if you will. You have John slinging profanities and rediculous statements early in the film, Sydney's "trick" of playing the casino for comps, John's hotel PPV movie trick, Jimmy's statements about women... Sydney's climactic scene (which I won't describe)... and Clementine's diner scene!!!! I think that REALLY sums up this section, and can also help with the previous
The movie appeals to both ends of the spectrum. It can suck you in with its deepness, and it can suck you in by keeping you interested by playing to your nanosecond attention span...
In short, it's a film that can be enjoyed by many.
Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation (2004)
They somehow managed to screw up everything.
This movie is unwatchable. I found every single feature of it to be revolting.
For one, we have the effects. Every single bullet shot is a lame CGed blue pulse.
Two, they obviously didn't have anybody research military tactics. When the bugs are about to attack, instead of holding out inside the base and killing the bugs in hemmed-in territory (a la Sun Tsu), they move outside the base and massively expand their front. When the troops send a runner to inform someone that the bugs were coming, they send a heavy weapons operator, complete with his heavy gun.
Moreover, the behavior of the General is completely stupid. He acts like a Corporal at BEST.
The music is VERY poorly chosen, and never fits the scenes. Foreshadowing is very overt. Even the directing is shoddy... when the psychic fellow hallucinates, they use very ambiguous effects to signify it.
Please, avoid this movie at ALL COSTS. I swear, it couldn't have cost more than $50,000 to make...
Escape from New York (1981)
Good action, great laughs.
For the silliness of the plot concept - making a giant prison of Manhattan Island - I think that Carpenter really pulled it off quite well!
Snake Plisken (Kurt Russel) is caught after robbing the Federal Reserve and is about to be transferred to the facility, and (Deus Ex fans take note) he is processed at the Liberty Island command facility.
The entire city island is full of nuts, as you learn early on in the "Chock Full 'O Nuts" scene. Between Cabbie (Ernest Borgnine), Harold "Brain" Helman (Harry Dean Stanton), The Duke of New York (Issac Hayes), and every other madman in the city, you should be laughing like mad at the movie.
The movie isn't perfect; there are a number of confusing and/or silly things. However, I think that it's action-packed enough to make up for it.
As for the music, get ready for 80s-style synthesized sounds. I wouldn't say that it's bad, but a lot of other people would. I rather like its beat.
Boogie Nights (1997)
More "feelgood" or "coming of age" than porno-type film
The first time I saw this film, I didn't really watch it deeply. All I saw was a story of sex, drugs, and unusual people.
However, I finally saw it again last year, and I fell in love with it. This film, in some sense, follows the same very basic story as Hard Eight, Magnolia, and Punch-Drunk Love:
Person (or people) begins in normal life, but something unusual happens triggering either a change, or at least deviation from normal behavior. There is this buildup of good events; it looks like things could only get better and better, but there is something obviously wrong going on. Something bad happens, and then begins the descent into hell. But, suddenly, there is an event that causes things to suddenly become perfect. And the hero goes back to life, but not as it was; he still has his experiences.
Dirk Diggler's speech-to-the-mirror in the end really seals this sort of plot pattern in the end. It also, in my opinion, cements in a coming-of-age theme.
Look beyond the surface of pornography, sex, etc. Realize that these characters (if they were real) are people, each with their own oddities, dreams, and soforth.
Zardoz (1974)
You won't like it, unless you're me
Most people will hate this movie, trust me.
It's... well, odd. It's one of those typical 70s movies that you saw on LSD when you were in High School.
It's one of those "dystopia" stories (think anti-utopia; everyone thinks it's great, but it's really horrible). There are a lot of things about distant, far off technologies, like ressurection machines, where, upon death, a clone is made of you and your memory is kept.
Sean Connery enters this dystopia from another dystopia; from a tribe of highly religious worshippers of "Zardoz," a flying stone head that vomits guns and ammunition out to its followers. Connery enters the head and stows away, basically.
But, watch the first 20 minutes or so; there's a line that you'll repeat forever and ever...
Storm Watch (2002)
Bad, bad, BAD!
OMG, this movie sucks so hard... it is absolutely lame.
It is better than The Matrix series, IMO, but I'd rate that series 0/10 if I could.
Basically, that guy from the Highlander TV show is in here, so is the chief of security from Babylon 5. Talk about star studded!
This movie has more plot holes than OpenBSD has remote holes.
Go watch something good, like 'Manos' the Hands of Fate.
Only good part was that it was <$5 at BestBuy for the DVD.
Alfred Packer: The Musical (1993)
Funny, funny, FUNNY!
I cannot express in words how extremely funny this movie is. There are several moments in this movie which are referenced later on in South Park (e.g. Kyle's hair, the little jingle that plays after the credits).
It's just hilarious. If this is a student film, I'd like to know what kind of grade it got.
It's a little bit "higher-brow" than South Park in scenes, but just stupid-funny in certain scenes.
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
The single best movie ever, period.
There is literally no way to top this movie. Nothing that has been released in my lifetime has been better than it.
Words cannot describe how good it is. Go and rent it, but preferably the letterboxed edition; the movie was made in a very widescreen format originally to show the vastness of the desert scenes. Watch it!
Clerks (2000)
Great offensive humor!
I fit into the niche of people who love humor which centers around otherwise offensive or controversial subjects being parodied for some cheap laughs; case in point, the joke where, in order to impress an all-black jury, Randal is told to make them believe that Dante is like them. He then proceeds to say that Dante "likes grape soda" and a few other things about food stamps and welfare checks.
I thought it extremely funny, but in a different context, I would've been offended.