iadams-3 Reviews

Red Tails (2012)

Awesome true story, impressive air combat scenes, lots of tension throughout - Better than critics' reviews suggest

[7/10 · 29 January 2012]

When I saw the advertisements for this movie, I was afraid they might make a mockery of this important story by going too over the top (in the style of Michael Bay/Jerry Bruckheimer.) After seeing George Lucas talk about the movie on the Daily Show, however, I definitely wanted to see it. I knew about the Tuskegee Airmen's heroic performance during World War II, and I was very happy to see the story being brought to the big screen by someone like Lucas - I felt that the film might have the budget to really shine.

The movie got off to a shaky start with some truly wooden dialog and dodgy acting which made me fear that the critics might have been correct in their panning of the film. There was, indeed, some very poor acting in the film, but after the first few minutes the primary cast were assembled and they were fortunately much better than some of the secondary actors (bomber pilots' dialog was totally unbelievable for example).

From the first combat scene things pick up and the film becomes rather engaging. There is a surprising level of tension throughout the film, balanced between the struggle between the red tails and the German military (in the air and on the ground), and sadly between the fighter group and their still painfully segregated military back home.

This movie's screenplay has its share of triumphant victory, terrible loss, and unexpected good news at times in the movie when it's very much needed. Anyone familiar with the story will know the historical record, and if that record is something you care about (and it should be), then I would urge you to go see it. I'm glad I did.

Religulous (2008)

Major Themes of Religulous (IMHO)

[8/10 · 6 October 2008]

It's no surprise that a few people are curious about this movie - You've got to expect that when Bill Maher dedicates an entire feature-length film to religion that it will at very least be "interesting".

The movie covers a hand full of different religions, starting with Christianity, and then moving through Islam, Mormonism and Scientology with a brief stop in "Canthiesm" (a set of beliefs apparently based on the smoking of Marijuana). The movie was pretty funny and there were a few major themes that I walked away with: 1) Religious beliefs are generally varied, and are often based on some pretty wild stuff. Regardless of the religion, you can find things like Jonah and the whale (or fish), parting seas, virgin births, etc. It's certainly not a feature unique to Christianity, but these teachings require some serious imagination if taken literally (see item #4) 2) It is more than a little presumptuous to think that your religion is the "right one" and the others are wrong. The assertion here is that strict adherence to any religion's teachings would directly dispute the teachings of other religions that don't believe the same thing. The "if we have different positions that are in conflict, we can't all be right" argument.

3) Double standards abound. It is interesting as Maher talks to people from different religions that some things appear to be "OK" for them to do, but not for those of other faiths. For example, Maher interviews a militant Muslim rapper who considers his violent lyrics free speech, but doesn't think that right extends to folks like Salman Rushdie in his criticisms of Islam.

4) Literal interpretation of religious texts is probably not a good idea. Here, Maher interviews a very interesting guy who used to be the head of the Vatican observatory (George Coyne, I think). Coyne points out that the Bible cannot have any consideration for, or reference to, science because science as we know it did not exist until relatively recently (long after the period when the bible was written) 5) There is no allowance in most religious texts for the accumulation of wealth (especially by religious figures). Despite much discussion to the contrary in the New Testament, many churches and religious leaders have "found peace" with becoming very wealthy through ministry, though that notion is in conflict with the core tenets of religious teachings.

6) Religious texts allow for violence toward "non believers" or "infidels". Correct or incorrect, these references ares frequently used as justification to commit violent acts.

In summary, the movie is a position statement about religion that may offend many devout religious followers. For that reason, I would not recommend this movie for people who are set in their religious beliefs and not open to dissenting opinion. To atheists, agnostics, or religious people who are still "searching" or who can otherwise tolerate counterpoint, I think the movie is very worthwhile and entertaining. I could actually see watching this movie with the Pastor of my old church back in Bentonville, AR. I think it would generate a lot of good debate with him, and he was never afraid to talk about other religions or to challenge his own beliefs.

Real Genius (1985)

Consummate 80's Period film - Exceedingly Witty Dialog

[10/10 · 3 September 2005]

As a child of the 80s, I have a soft spot in my heart for creatively-executed movies from this period. At their worst, 80s movies become dated more quickly than films from nearly any other period in film history. At their best, 80s movies reflect the cultural undertones of an exciting time where humor and optimism were rampant in films despite the specter of cold war, the advent of AIDS and a rocky economy.

Real Genius takes the happy, go-lucky optimism of the 80s and superimposes it on the grim topics of military research, cold war espionage and assassination. The movie is set in a west-coast college (see Caltech, Berkeley, Stanford) and makes full use of the hyper-intelligent, eccentric dialog you might expect in elite California academia. The sound track from Thomas Newman (Less than Zero, American Beauty and many others) is technically complex and involving and fits the movie perfectly. At times, the movie suffers from the usual poor depiction of science (see lame computer applications and some bad blue screen work on aircraft) and unbelievable scenarios (see water slide in lecture hall and ice sledding in dormitory). Despite these forgivable breaches, the Neal Israel's unique dialog is truly brilliant, the situational comedy is eccentric, and the humor is uplifting. Val Kilmer is outstanding in his portrayal of Chris Knight and I lament his departure from this odd and extremely intelligent form of comedy (See Top Secret) - Though Kilmer has been involved with "better" movies since, I don't think he has ever been more genuinely entertaining.

I think this movie is a must-watch for anyone who enjoys science, comedy and the 80s genre, or for anyone who is planning on attending a technology school on the West coast. This movie may not depict reality, but it communicates a hopeful spirit we could all use more of in today's world of harsh reality.