Lord_Frog Reviews

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

A classic masterpiece

[10/10 · 23 March 2024]

The movie is of course a masterpiece and the best action movie of the 90s.

But I wanted to share what happened tonight. One of my best friends somehow managed not to have seen the Terminator movies, at the age of 31.

I'm on a mission to show him the best movies he missed, so I had to do something about it.

We watched the first Terminator on Blu-ray last week, which he liked, and tonight I showed him T2. I told him it was much bigger than the first one, and I played the Blu-ray and had fun watching him reacting to it.

After it ended, I asked him if he liked it. He replied: "It was incredible, the best action movie I've ever seen!"

Enough said!

The Color Purple (2023)

An insult to the original

[1/10 · 2 March 2024]

I grew up watching Spielberg's masterpiece and I'm shocked that he's involved with this bland, boring, sanitised version of the original.

I had to leave the cinema after one hour as I couldn't take it anymore. The directing, acting, music, cinematography... nothing comes close to the original. What was powerful is now bland. So sad and not in a good way. The actress playing Shug was completely miscast, as was most of the cast. Give me Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover etc every day over this horrible version. Going home now to rewatch the original, really sorry that this new version even exists!!!!

Pearl (2022)

Like watching paint dry

[3/10 · 5 February 2023]

I really enjoyed X, which was surprising to me as previous Ti West movies such as The House of the Devil or The Innkeepers bored me to death. So I was looking forward to Pearl. Unfortunately, this was the most boring film I've seen in years. This is definitely NOT a horror movie, more of a character study drama and I could live with that if anything remotely interesting happened, sadly this is not the case.

The cinematography and the colour scheme are gorgeous, the acting is ok, so I give it 3 stars for that. Everything else is abysmal. Complete waste of time, please do yourself a favour, save your hard earned cash and pick something else to watch.

This movie confirms that Ti West is a hack, and that X was an anomaly, being the only decent film in his career. I just read that the sequel to X , "MaXXXine" is coming soon, I don't think I'll bother. Truly done with Ti West after this garbage.

Pet Sematary (2019)

Very average adaptation

[6/10 · 5 April 2019]

Just saw the new movie. I was super excited as it's one of my favourite Stephen King books, and I grew up with the original but it does have aged a bit so I was looking forward to a new version.

I left pretty underwhelmed. It was ok, but I was hoping for more.

The acting is better than in the original overall but that's it. The cat was freakier and nastier in the original. The burial ground was massive with the overhead shot in the OG, here it feels like a poorly dressed set in the corner of a soundstage. I could get behind the "big twist" seen in the trailer as it gives the returned Ellie a couple interesting scenes but ultimately I feel the change made the story less poignant and horrifying. Yes, they used a puppet for some shots in 1989, but they also had the real kid playing Gage do some pretty intense stuff and nothing in this new version comes close.

The new ending didn't work for me. That said, the ending of the book is one of the best ever (that last paragraph still gives me chills), but impossible to replicate on film, as nothing will beat how your imagination interprets it. The original did try but the new ending is way too off the mark. I really think they should have gone with Gage again, their excuse of not wanting to use a puppet is weird, surely 30 years later they could have had an extremely convincing animatronic/sfx mix. It was probably more a budget issue, or fear to offend, or more likely both. 6/10, not a bad movie but still a disappointment. The book remains the best version by far!

Hereditary (2018)

Embarrassing disaster, don't believe the hype!!!

[1/10 · 17 June 2018]

As a horror fan, I have been waiting for this movie for months after seeing the very good trailee and all the hype from festivals. My favourite horror movies are The Exorcist and The Shining so seeing all these reviews comparing Hereditary to both I was hoping for a new horror masterpiece. Well wow. After an interesting but far from scary first hour, the movie descends into a ridiculous, over the top, laughable mess that was embarrassing to watch. Yes the acting is good, at least until **SPOILER ALERT** the "seances" and it all goes downhill from there. The ending was so awful and stupid that I could not believe that was it. Really??? The stupid demon thing with the crown and everything, with the music volume turned to 11 as if it would make it scary??? It was laughable. And many in the cinema were laughing. I wasn't - spending £12 for such a turkey is no laughing matter. Avoid like the plague!!

Insidious (I) (2010)

An unofficial remake of Poltergeist - good for the first half only...

[6/10 · 20 August 2011]

Honestly, I didn't think it was original at all because it felt like an unofficial remake of Poltergeist. It's basically the same plot.

**SPOILERS** **SPOILERS** Poltergeist: a little girl disappears into limbo after paranormal activity at the house. The parents ask a team of paranormal researchers, comprising of an old eccentric lady who is a medium and two younger male assistants, for help. The little girl is in danger as all the ghosts in the netherworld are attracted to her, so is the Beast, who wants to use her to cross over into our world. The mom, with the help of the medium, crosses over to the other side and brings her daughter back. All seems well but then all hell breaks loose in a spectacular ending that sees the ghosts take over the house.

Sounds familiar?! Insidious: a little boy disappears into limbo after paranormal activity at the house. The parents ask a team of paranormal researchers, comprising of an old eccentric lady who is a medium and two younger male assistants, for help. The little boy is in danger as all the ghosts in the netherworld are attracted to him, so is a Demon, who wants to use him to cross over into our world. The dad, with the help of the medium, crosses over to the other side and brings his son back. All seems well but then all hell breaks loose in a spectacular ending that sees the ghosts take over the house.

Of course there are many differences between both films, but as you can see it's basically the same story. I thought the first hour was great, then it became ridiculous and other the top. Poltergeist is much better in my opinion! THAT was the original one.

Antibodies (2005)

Silence of the Lambs meets Seven meets Bambi

[5/10 · 18 January 2010]

Alright, I've just finished watching the DVD laughing my @ss off, I just can't believe how ridiculous it was§

**SPOILERS** a herd of crappy CGI deer save the day as an act of God symbolising the innocence of one of the characters. They appear out of nowhere in the climax of the movie, causing a WTF?! moment in the audience. Pixar would laugh at them. But even if they used real deer, the scene would still be an awful way to end a thriller.**END SPOILERS**

I can't believe this has a 7.1 rating, and such good reviews. Come on, so much was borrowed from Silence of the Lambs that I thought I was watching an unofficial remake.

Other hilarious moments:

**SPOILERS** Our hero, the married Christian cop is "infected by evil" after chatting with the suspected killer for 5 minutes (evil works fast!), picks up a girl, cheats on his wife, and when the girl asks him to "stick it up my @ss", he obliges, with this loud ominous music on the soundtrack, it's hilarious - anal sex is EVIL!!!! And then there is another laughable scene where a cop suddenly realises what the viewer guessed 15 minutes ago and looks totally shocked by this revelation while driving, priceless. **END SPOILERS**

All in all it was ridiculous but I'm glad I watched it, only for the ending that is so bad you have to see to believe it!

Triangle (2009)

Very good and intriguing

[8/10 · 27 August 2009]

I just came back from the world premiere at FrightFest in London, it was the festival opener as well so expectations were high and it didn't disappoint! Much better than Creep and Severance, this is Christopher Smith's most ambitious film. A mind-bending story that is as puzzling as it is original, Triangle is more a mystery than a horror movie in my opinion. Gorehounds will be sorely disappointed. This is more about a situation which becomes more and more surreal, almost dream-like, I thought during the film that I've had similar nightmares as a kid... nightmares going around in circles and getting more and more frightening because I knew when or how the monster would inevitably come back...

The plot (no spoilers): after their yacht is overturned during a freak storm, a group of friends are desperate for help. A cruise ship suddenly appears and they see a figure looking down at them from the bridge for a few seconds. They climb on board but there is no crew, no passengers, nothing. Saying anything more would be ruining the movie, so I'll stop here.

After the movie ended in a round of applause, Christopher Smith said that it took him 2 years to write the script, and in the end it's not surprising as this is a very complex plot and to make all the pieces fall into place must have been a daunting task! Good acting by Melissa George and the rest of the cast, but her haunting performance takes center stage very quickly as the movie goes on a WTF / Twilight Zone-ish mode. All in all I recommend it, I really enjoyed it and it kept me guessing the whole time so if you like unconventional, mind-f*** movies, this is one for you!

Martyrs (2008)

Not just a great horror movie... an excellent film!

[10/10 · 7 March 2009]

After all the hype and months of waiting for the French DVD release, I got to watch this masterpiece last night. As a French guy based in London, I could not wait 2 more months until the UK DVD release, so forgetting the credit crunch I bought it from France with next day delivery and I'm glad I did!

First of all, while the movie is indeed very violent and quite disturbing, I was expecting MUCH worse after reading so many crazy reactions. For one, it's not that gory, compared to Inside/A l'Interieur for instance - that one really went over the top. I would say that Haute Tension/Switchblade Romance was just a bit more suspenseful too.

BUT Martyrs is the sum of all its many parts and turns. In retrospect, I'm GLAD that Martyrs didn't turn up to be as gory as Inside on top of being as suspenseful and violent as it is. Each element is there and will be turned up or down during the whole movie, but never to maximum effect were it would become unbearable to watch - just walking a very fine line. However, while the physical violence is tough to watch, its ideas hit you even deeper, which makes it quite unique. I never felt that while watching the above-mentioned flicks or any recent horror film.

My reaction at the end was that it was a great film, not just a horror movie. It's actually a bit restrictive to label it this way - and I love the genre- as it is much more in my opinion. I keep thinking about the ending which is really open to interpretation but at the same time it was the perfect way to end the film. I would describe the film as a gory metaphysic revenge drama ;-). Darker than your worst nightmares...

I really don't want to spoil it for anyone - I wish I had gone into it without reading anything about the plot, so I won't add any spoilers here.

Still hesitating? My advice: don't be put off by the warnings. This movie delivers and then some. Just see it and go through this very special and intense experience. It's unlike anything you've ever seen, and you're unlikely to forget it anytime soon.

Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)

Are you afraid of the dark?

[1/10 · 23 May 2008]

The only way to enjoy this movie is to be scared of the dark, since about 80% of the movie is about watching a dark screen and trying to figure out what the hell is happening. Not that you will care too much after a few minutes, as what you get to see when the directors suddenly remember to switch on the lights on the set is neither exciting nor remotely interesting.

It starts well enough for 5 minutes **SPOILER** when a little boy and his dad are both "impregnated" with aliens and give "birth". It's not so often that kids are killed in this kind of movie. **SPOILER** So I thought it may have a nasty edge... but nope it's almost Alone In The Dark from then on, in terms of what's on screen and also it's as bad as the Uwe Boll shittypiece. Maybe worse, as it's really almost impossible to see a thing.

The trailer for this was very good, so kudos to Fox's marketing department... it seemed to blow AvP 1 out of the water. But compared to this, AvP 1 is The Godfather. Avoid at all costs!!

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

I left the theatre with a huge grin on my face!

[8/10 · 22 May 2008]

I was 9 when I first saw Raiders at the cinema... ever since I've been the biggest fan of the Indy series, watching them over and over again. After reading the mostly positive reviews, but disturbed by some of the negative ones, I finally saw it at midnight last night.

As soon as Indy is on screen, bang you feel like you are a kid again. The opening sequence in Area 51 is amazing and hilarious - some may argue that Indy's escape is over the top and unbelievable, but every single movie in the series also asked for suspension of disbelief. Yes it was over the top but THIS IS AN INDY MOVIE, of course it has to be that way! I'd still like someone to explain how Indy goes from the submarine to the island in Raiders for instance... or how he even survives most of his adventures at all! The plane escape on an inflatable boat in Temple of Doom comes to mind, as well... this opening sequence is classic Indy, with amazing stunts and special effects.

The Marshall College sequence had me grinning from ear to ear - from the classroom scene so reminiscent of Raiders and Last Crusade to the excellent motorbike chase. Shia LaBeouf is introduced there, and he's very good in the part and very funny.

The middle section is a bit too long as some have noted, however I never found the film boring, even in its quieter moments.

Then we're on to a non-stop thrill ride until the very end, with one of the best chase sequences in the series, almost matching the truck chase in Raiders. That jungle chase scene is a joy to watch, extremely inventive and spectacular. I do agree that a short scene involving Shia and monkeys was ridiculous though - thank God it's very short. But it stinks of George Lucas - a very Jar Jar Binks moment, but thankfully the only one in the film.

As for the ending - well I love SF so it wasn't a problem for me and I thought it fit quite well with the series overall - let's say the Crystal Skull is a very different kind of "religious" artifact... well the natives at least would think of it as being religious lol. My only small gripe is that I wish that Cate Blanchett's demise would have been more spectacular and gory. The end did feel a bit rushed, but it is spectacular. I don't get the CGI complaints, of course there's going to be CGI nowadays, but the stunts are very real. CGI is saved for digital matte paintings, creepy crawlies that could not possibly have been trained to perform this way on cue, and of course the ending.

It's as if people would complain at the end of Raiders if it was released today. "The wrath of God?! Come on it's ridiculous, it would NEVER happen!!" Well people who react like that can't possibly love the Indy series. Don't get me wrong the film has some flaws but all in all it's a great Indiana Jones movie, and I left the cinema very happy. As a matter of fact, I just booked my ticket to go back tonight.

I would say it's the 3rd best of the series - I prefer it to Last Crusade which was great but didn't have enough action in my opinion compared with the other two movies. Crystal Skull is full of it, and very funny as well. There are references to all 3 movies and it's great to see Karen Allen again! I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did! 8/10

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)

Absolutely amazing!

[10/10 · 10 May 2007]

Anyone who loved the book should see Perfume: The Story of A Murderer. I did when it was published 15 years ago, and all this time I was hoping that one day, a film adaptation would be made.

Over the years, I read that Kubrick himself had passed, as he couldn't find a way to transcribe the book's descriptions of smells on the big screen. Director Tom Tykwer not only succeeds but knocks it out of the park! I could almost smell what I was seeing, it was magic! All the actors are magnificent. Ben Whishaw is fantastic as Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, and should go far. Hoffman and Rickman are excellent too - there is not a single bad, or even average, performance. The music is haunting, the photography sublime and the script stays very close to the book, including the extraordinary final scenes that were as I imagined them and more.

I only wish that the film was longer (and it's 140 minutes already, but they fly by). A total masterpiece. I was so excited by it that I watched it 3 times in a weekend, as I was playing it to all my mates! They all loved it, whether they read the book or not. Give it a try!

Silent Hill (2006)

Disappointing

[4/10 · 23 April 2006]

I took 2 friends to see this and none of us liked the film. Both said it was one of the worst movies they've ever seen! I won't be so harsh but still I was embarrassed to have dragged them into Silent Hill.

I played the game years ago but I didn't remember much of the story, just that I enjoyed playing it. My friends did not now the game. This may be for fans only, judging by the other reviews.

The good things about the film: it looks great, and Pyramid Head is excellent but has very little screen time. The climax is OK and ultra CGI-gory with some nightmarish visions, but what a drag to get there. I was bored most of the movie. The dialog was very bad at times, and the screenplay is simply go there, find clue, go somewhere else, find another clue... OK for a game, but for a movie? it sure feels like watching the game, but in a bad way.

I loved Brotherhood of the Wolf and my main motivation in seeing this was to see if Christophe Gans could pull it off. Compared to Doom or Uwe Boll's disasters he did - it's probably the best video game adaptation I've seen, the only that vaguely resembles a real movie. But it never becomes more than that. Worth a rental at best.

Basic Instinct 2 (2006)

The Bitch is back!

[5/10 · 17 April 2006]

So, Basic Instinct 2... as crap as they say? Nope, just very average. I've seen hundreds of worse movies. As good as the first one? Nope, lightyears away actually. Worth watching? I only wanted to see this because I loved the 1st movie and Catherine Tramell's character. So after reading the reviews, and expecting the worst, I went to see it anyway.

The premise is an interesting one, unfortunately the producers hired the writers of "Desperately Seeking Susan". WTF? Why?! The result is a by-the-numbers screenplay without much excitement, sex scenes or murders. The problem is that audiences have become used to the fact that sequels are supposed to at least try to be bigger than the original movies they're based on. But here, it's a much smaller film. Apart from the opening scene, there's no action at all. Lots of mind manipulation through dialogue instead. It kind of works since when the end comes it becomes harder to be sure of the killer's identity. Did Tramell do it? One minute you're sure of it, the next other possibilities are creeping in your mind. I enjoyed that aspect of the film, even if it's far, very very far from a masterpiece.

Sharon Stone camps it up big time compared to her performance in the original, but I thought she was fun to watch, and even though she definitely doesn't look 30 anymore, she's still good as the evil temptress.

Doom (2005)

How was the script ever approved? How is that possible?!

[1/10 · 16 April 2006]

I fail to understand how studio execs can decide to gamble $70 million on a such an awful screenplay. Guys, of course it's gonna tank at the box office! Have you even read the bloody thing? Or did you decide that the audience was dumb enough to enjoy that drivel??

I haven't played Doom, so I wasn't expecting much more than a mindless action movie - I mean come on, The Rock is in it - with some monsters and gore, perfect for a lazy Friday evening.

Well that's exactly what I got in a sense. The Rock? Check. Some monsters? Check. Gore? Check.

Now let's have a closer look: The Rock usually stinks but here he's outdone himself. Even his fans agree that he sucks in this. This is sub-zero acting. The next Schwarzy my arse! Zero personality, zero charisma, nothing in fact. Oh yeah muscles. But that was to be expected.

Next

Some monsters. Well there are a few zombie-like thingies, I mean 3, which you see for a few ridiculous seconds every 45 mins or so. They look about as scary as the Muppet Show, which is probably why you see so little of them, in the dark if possible. I suspect they used Gonzo.

Gore. This is so lame it could be a PG movie. With the exception of the opening scene which is OK but fools you into expecting more.

So this could be a so-bad-it's-funny flick, but it just gets SO boring I kept hoping for something to happen, ANYTHING! The characters just walk around the same corridors back and forth for the whole movie, with lame "boo" effects. When a monster finally pops in to say hello, he's destroyed immediately, then they walk around for another half hour, filling the time with boring dialogue about genetic manipulations blah blah blah. Apparently this has nothing to do with the game's story. I'm glad because after seeing that piece of junk, I was wondering how the game could be so popular.

I fell asleep half an hour into the film during my first attempt at watching this. The next day I decided to give it another go, thinking there was still an hour and 10 mins left, and that finally all hell would break loose at some point, which was - it seemed - the premise of the story. I was shocked to discover that nothing happened until the end, with the stupid FPS scene etc.

I had to skip a few chapters because it was too boring and painful to watch. My friend who had finished watching the film while I fell asleep the night before was filling in the "plot" details... I don't think I missed anything of interest. I've seen 1h20 of the whole 1h40 and I think I've seen enough to sum it up in 2 words:

It sucks.

Green River Killer (2005 Video)

Horrifying in all the wrong ways

[1/10 · 8 March 2006]

Having survived Guy Ritchie's Revolver recently, I thought it would be months to find a worse movie than that, but nope. Fate had thrown a friend's copy of GREEN RIVER KILLER my way. Having never heard of it, I checked the rating on IMDb. 2.2. Pathetic. Even Uwe Boll's movies score better! But reading the few comments made me laugh out loud, so I decided to watch the beginning to see if it was as bad as the reviewers said. I became hypnotised by the atrocious acting and awful video-8 (it seems) camera work. I could not believe my eyes, it was so bad. I don't know where they found the "actors" but they didn't seem very experienced to say the least LOL! It was probably their first appearance in front of a camera. That would explain the overacting, particularly the killer's two work colleagues, both hilariously bad! It looks like the worst made for TV movie ever. I was shaking my head in amazement. So will you.

Lord of War (2005)

Good, but not great

[7/10 · 8 March 2006]

I enjoyed "Lord of War", although I was expecting more from Andrew Niccol. That said, this is an extremely interesting movie that took some courage to make. Nicolas Cage is believable and doesn't overplay for once. The script is a little clichéd sometimes but for mere details.

The best thing about the movie is the really dark humour through its snappy dialogue. For instance when Cage describes the AK-47. As informative as it is shocking, and it brings uneasy laughs sometimes... proof that it works! The opening sequence following a bullet from its factory to the skull of its victim is well done and sets the tone for the entire film.

Give it a try, worth watching.

Into the Blue (2005)

Average. Impressive shark footage though

[5/10 · 7 March 2006]

Nothing to call home about. This is the kind of movie that you will forget a few hours after watching it. It starts OK but descends quickly in familiar thriller territory, nothing we haven't seen before... This is actually quite similar to "the Deep", but more fun and sexier. Forgettable as well. But I loved the sharks!

If I were you I'd wait until it plays on TV or something. It's OK but not worth spending cash on it. There's surely a better film in the video shop.

Or you could simply watch it to see Jessica Alba in a bikini, or / and Paul Walker's fit body yum yum. Lots of eye candy that's for sure.

Revolver (2005)

Atrocious

[1/10 · 7 March 2006]

I made the mistake of renting this thing on DVD, despite having read some bad reviews. I was just curious to see the new Guy Ritchie film. I can confirm that this is one of the worst movies ever made. It was embarrassing to watch. That long scene where Jason Statham goes into Gollum mode, screaming "I AM YOU!!!" makes you wonder if Ritchie was on drugs when he made the thing. No story at all, just pretentious and empty dialogue that takes itself way too seriously. The whole thing reeks of pretension, like Ritchie wants to be an "auteur" or something. He falls flat on his face. Avoid at all costs - it's even worse than you think.

Hide and Seek (2005)

Lame twist

[4/10 · 26 July 2005]

I rented this last night, despite the bad reviews. I just wanted to check Dakota Fanning's performance, after being impressed by her in Taken, Man on Fire and of course War of the Worlds. Well she is the best thing in Hide & Seek. De Niro is on autopilot, in a part that doesn't really challenge him. The story is interesting and creepy at first, but unfortunately that doesn't last... The twist is just so lame that it ruins the rest of the movie. It ends up being something you've seen a thousand times before. The last reel is so full of clichés, all you can do is roll your eyes in disgust. On a separate note, it was nice to see Amy Irving (if only for a few minutes). She should be seen more often!

Constantine (2005)

A total disaster

[1/10 · 22 July 2005]

It's with a certain glee that I am submitting my opinion on this "movie". Once in a while comes a movie that is so atrociously bad that it becomes fun to hate. CONSTANTINE is one of these movies. It's easily (too easily) the worst movie of 2005, but it's also a strong contender for the worst movie of the last 5 years. Before you dismiss me as a Keanu Reeves hater, know that I love (and own on DVD) the full Matrix trilogy (yes, even Revolutions) and My Own Private Idaho, definitely his best role to date. I'm also a big horror movie fan. So all in all I was really excited when I went to see that film. The trailer was awesome, I couldn't wait! The film starts well, I mean the first 5 to 10 minutes. It's all downhill from there, culminating in the most unexciting climax of all time, with Peter Stormare as the most ridiculous and non-threatening Satan ever. Keanu Reeves kind of proves his naysayers right by offering one of his most awful and wooden performances ever, on a par with his "work" in Brad Stoker's Dracula, but worse, as in that movie he didn't have such a long time on screen. Here, he's there constantly, non-playing. Ewww. Rachel Weisz is good (as always), but not enough to save the film. I lost any interest whatsoever after half an hour, and the only reason I didn't leave the theater was that I didn't want to be rude to my mate, who I had dragged to see this. I thought maybe he was enjoying it. However, when the stupid and absolutely unexciting climax happened, I turned to him and asked "Are you enjoying this?" He replied "Are you kidding??" "Should we leave then?" did I ask... "It's almost over, we might as well stay". Well we shouldn't have. The ending was as bad as the rest of the movie. Oh, for those of you who think "it might not be fantastic, but I'll watch it for the special effects"... a word of warning: the CGI looks like a cheap video game, absolutely not realistic. Rent it if you must, but don't make a blind buy, you will regret it bitterly!

The Descent (2005)

Oppressive and scary!

[9/10 · 19 July 2005]

***Slight spoilers*** I went to see this last night and I wasn't expecting much. I wasn't that impressed with DOG SOLDIERS, but a friend wanted me to come with her and I'm glad I did! If like me you are a bit claustrophobic in real life, I can promise you that you'll be squirming in your seat even before the nasty "crawlers" are revealed. Just watching the girls go down such narrow wormholes sent my heartbeat into overdrive. There are a few nail-biting moments in that 1st part of the film. After that, the first shock is very effective and then the jumps keep on coming until the end. Well done Mr Marshall! I am a horror fan and I see almost everything in that genre, but the Descent managed to freak me out a few times, and that doesn't happen very often! Well recommended.

War of the Worlds (2005)

War of the Worlds = WOW indeed!!!

[9/10 · 1 July 2005]

I just came back from seeing the movie a second time and after reading some of the awful comments here, I felt I had to add my own comment.

First of all, yes, I am a Spielberg fan, mostly because I was 10 years old when I saw E.T. and ever since I've had a passion for his movies. That said, each time I see a new movie from him, I keep expecting to be as thrilled as I was as a kid or a teenager. However, even though I like his recent films, I never felt thrilled or awed watching Catch Me If You Can or the Terminal. I still enjoyed them, but they didn't seem very "Spielbergy" to me. Minority Report was close, but not jaw-dropping.

I went in to see War of the Worlds with HUGE expectations, and I was bracing myself for at least a slight disappointment. After all, I felt as excited for Revenge of the Sith, but came out bitterly disappointed. And just before War of the Worlds started, I was sitting in the theater reading a 2 star review from the Evening Standard, that was quite harsh so I got a bit worried as the lights went down.

Well that didn't last. Spielberg fan or not, I was absolutely BLOWN AWAY by what was shown on the big screen. It's one of those movie experiences when you are glued to the screen in total awe, your mouth wide open. You can't believe what you're seeing because you've never seen anything like it - ever. For me it felt like seeing the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park for the first time, or seeing the first Matrix for the first time. It was that awesome, and my jaw was on my knees quite a few times. There are some incredible images in that film, that stay with you after seeing the movie. Classic Spielberg! As for the ending that lots of people are complaining about: well that's exactly as Wells wrote it, and as it happens in the original film. You don't like it? Blame Wells! If Spielberg had done it differently the fans of the book and the original would have been screaming for his blood. It could have been extended a bit, yes, but frankly this is a minor gripe when you consider the whole movie. How people can give this movie a 1 simply because they didn't like the faithful ending or because they hate Tom Cruise is beyond me. A 1 is for Catwoman OK? There is so much genius on display here... just go and see it and be awed. I can't wait for the DVD!

Willard (2003)

Wow!

[8/10 · 29 October 2003]

I saw the DVD last night and I really enjoyed it. I haven't seen the original, so I can't add my thoughts on the debate "better/worse than the original". I was expecting a scary movie, I got a finely crafted thriller instead. True, it's not scary but what a story and what a performance from Crispin Glover! He deserves an Oscar, he IS Willard more than he is playing him. I was blown away by Ben as well. I still have to watch the making of documentary, and I am unable to tell if Ben was an animatronic or a real rat (probably a combination of both) but he did look really evil and his presence itself brings tension.

An excellent surprise, well recommended! Plus, don't miss Glover's weird and hilarious "Ben" video!

4 out of 5