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Barnyard (2006)
7/10
Short memories
17 December 2006
I find it hilarious that so many people are gnashing their teeth and saying,"it's just a copy of The Lion King". This type of story didn't start in 1994 - the plot is ancient, with even Disney admitting that it was based on some of their earlier films, Hamlet and - get this - Exodus from the Bible (not including the fact that it was alleged that the whole movie was stolen from "Kimba the White Lion, but that's another matter). So, the genre is several millennia old. If people are going to accuse "Barnyard" of plagiarism, they should at least check the original source material before throwing stones.

Anyway, onto the film. I thought it was lightweight, but had some very funny parts. Thankfully, my children (13 and 8) are able to separate fact from fiction, so the images of bulls with udders, getting loaded on milk, stealing a car and evading the police whilst joyriding probably won't have too much of a negative impact on their lives. However, if, when they're older, they fall into the company of a gang of cows with attitude and a propensity for car theft, I'll know who to blame.

Some people really need to lighten up.
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Elephant (2003)
4/10
Not nearly as clever as it thinks it is
14 April 2006
Deep, meaningful, topical and intense: I'm sure that Van Sant would have been aiming for this, but instead, "Elephant" tries far too hard and fails on all levels. When dealing with such an emotive subject, it must have been difficult to completely sterilise it and remove any empathy that the audience may have had for any of the characters, but somehow, the cast and crew managed it. Poorly acted, artistically directed (this is not a compliment, by the way), "Elephant" is in my list of "films I'll only ever watch again if I'm suffering from insomnia or need to enter an emotional vacuum for an hour and a half". Watch at your peril.
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