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Reviews
Immortals (2011)
Not so fast, Titanlover!
Yes, this movie is NOT block-cuneiform perfect, or even chiseled on fragments of statuary or inked on broken wine amphorae with the "timeless truth" as "only you know it to be." HOWEVER - it never claimed it was. It is GOOD entertainment, reasonably acted (no Oscars, but so what?) with decent special effects and enough of a story line to keep you watching until the end. So lighten up, Purity Pureheart, its only a movie. If you want a genuine "time before time" tale of the gods and their internecine battles and jockeying for power, May I suggest H.G. Wells? No, he didn't write deathless Greek iambic pentameter, but he did write about a time machine. I'd bet that if you scrabble around in London now, you can find the parts, reconstitute the machine, and go BACK to before Man existed. Perhaps the paradox will slap you on the flaccid buttocks and you will disappear.
It's Complicated (2009)
A giant among mice
I recently saw this and am amazed that it was accepted by Meryl Streep. Was she told that the ex-husband and the architect roles were going to be played by other actors? Did they offer her an obscene amount of money? Does she have an "evil" agent? Whatever the reason, seeing this movie is proof of nothing so much as "if you are going to hire Meryl Streep, you had better have some capable players on board as well." Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin don't have a chance in this film. Seeing Ms. Streep in this film, in their company, was like seeing Mt. Everest suddenly dropped down onto Kansas wheat field country.Everything is green, flat and boring and then - suddenly - you have Everest. The film suffers most from a lack of good pace and timing. Streep can do great comedy, but Baldwin's and Martin's efforts here are negligible, even ludicrous. The three actors cast as Streep's children are sweet eye candy, but the script (writing) has them behaving as infants instead of the young adults they are supposed to be. This film falls into the category of "chick flick" for many reasons (if the appearance on screen of Rita Wilson didn't clue you in, turn in your badge), the first of which is that Ms. Streep does her usual excellent job at reigning in her nuclear talent to serve a giggling, juvenile script that should get more serious treatment; shame on the writer/director for that. Shame on Baldwin and Martin for trying to fob off double-takes and raised eyebrows as comedic style, especially in the face of Ms. Streep. And, finally, shame on Ms. Streep's evil agent for talking her into this, for taking the money, for misrepresenting the role distribution and for trying to transplant Mt. Everest.
The Manchurian Candidate (2004)
I-n-t-e-r-m-i-n-a-b-l-y boring
Oh heavens, what a shame, but this movie is as flat and boring as Mr. Demme could make it. His assistant director should have stood behind him with a riding crop to whip his flanks every time he let the pace drag so horribly or refused to make so many needed edits. Not even Ms. Streep can save this movie, which should give an idea of how flat it is. She doesn't have enough screen time to do so. It would be pointless to compare this with the original, they are so completely different, with the original shining brightly as a work of genius while this one should never have been released. I am not a fan of Sinatra movies (he was a great singer, a lousy actor), but he was acceptable in the original Manchurian Candidate. Here, Denzel Washington is simply painful to watch - not on his game as he is normally a fine actor. If you simply must watch it, skip it all until the last fifteen minutes, then congratulate yourself you didn't waste any more time than that on this dreadful waste of film stock.
Outlander (2008)
Surprisingly good flick!
I didn't have many expectations for this film and so was very pleasantly surprised that it was so good. A twist on the Beowulf & Grendel story that is both imaginative and colorful, it even manages to intertwine sci-fi and old Norse legend in a creative and "yeah, that works!" kind of way. The cast is professional & decent, with the leads doing yeoman work with their parts. The FX are very good, the monster is as horrifying as one could wish, more dragon than 'Predator', the scenery beautiful and the plot decent enough if a bit patchy here and there. My only reservation was on the pacing - I found myself pausing often during the first 2/3 of the film to do other things, but remained glued to my seat for the last 1/3. Most definitely worth watching!
Junction (2008)
A nifty little movie
I liked this movie. Not a little, not a lot, but I liked it. It starts out a bit slow, the Arizona scenery is as dry and depressing as one could wish, and every single character is unsympathetic. Michaela (April Wade), the young wanna-be photojournalist, is one of the least attractive leads you will see in a while. She grows on you though, and eventually you reach the point that every movie wants you to reach, you care. All of the other unsympathetic characters do their jobs and there are some interesting role reversals along the way. Give it a viewing and in the end, I don't think you will be disappointed that you watched it.
The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
A disappointment
This was no more X-Files than my great-aunt Tillie's Sunday samplers. It isn't a bad movie, it isn't a great movie, but it is more like an episode of Medium (TV) dressed up in Scully and Mulder drag drawn out to full length than anything remotely X-File-ish. A pedophile priest is trying to help the FBI find a missing agent. There is the doubtful agent in charge, the frankly incredulous wrestler agent, etc. Scully convinces Mulder to go back and help. I won't detail any more of the plot, as, 1st) it doesn't matter; 2) you can see it all on any episode of NY Police-Whatever, and 3) it just ISN'T X-Files. Nothing unexplained at all, all very ordinary in light of the world we live in with its gruesome crimes and amoral criminal infrastructure. I was deeply disappointed. See the film if you want yet another dose of a police (yawn) thriller, but DON'T expect an X-Files film.
Doctor Strange (2007)
Disappointing
Unfortunately this movie was a disappointment for this Dr. Strange fan. Long on unhelpful (and not per the original) back story and too short on actual story, the film failed to capture all of the wonder and "strange"ness of the original comic book series. I know because I collected them all. Realization of Strange's character is okay as far as it goes, which is not far, but the romance and the family backplot are unnecessary and consume far too much of the film. Dormammu is poorly realized and Mordo is one-dimensional (or two-dimensional in the case of this not-so-sophisticated animated comic book film). Dr. Gina Atwater is an unnecessary addition as well which to the best of my recollection, without referring to my series collection, was never an element of any importance whatsoever. Throughout the comic book series, Dr. Strange gave a much stronger impression of willful mastery of magic, yet here he is rather the reluctant hero, which was never present in the original. The Eye of Agamoto is misrepresented and other devices usurp its place in the Strange mythos. All in all, this Strange fan was sadly disappointed in a film which seems sloppily tossed-off without careful consideration for the original source as well as a rather Saturday morning effort on the part of the filmmakers towards the technical side of the film. In fact, this SHOULD have been a Saturday morning offering for the kiddies, and not a theatrical offering.