pivko Reviews

Hide and Seek (2005)

Given up after 45 minutes

[2/10 · 16 April 2006]

Well, although generally not a fan of thriller / horror movies (unless they feature truly intelligent story accompanied with superb film-making) and I am even less fan of psychological thriller movies, I have to say that this movie disappointed me even more than average of this genre. As I read the final resolution of the movie here on the forum I find the entire story totally unbelievable, Robert De Niro's acting under his average, the dramatic music absolutely overused throughout the movie (perhaps they needed to tell us when we should be scared, because otherwise some situations in the movie would not work at all) etc.

Do not waste your time.

The Interpreter (2005)

Plot holes spoil this above average movie

[7/10 · 28 July 2005]

I saw the movie yesterday in one of Prague club movie theaters. First I had to give credit to the movie for overall good atmosphere, cinematography, music and acting. I was about to give 8 or 9 rating to this movie. After a second thought however I was forced to lower the rating due to the holes in the plot. As pointed out by other commentators here:

(a) it is hardly believable U.S. secret service agents would be as lame as they were in this movie.

(b) it is hardly believable that the murder attempt of Matobo president would be punished just by expatriation, under most legal systems the murder attempt is generally punishable by the same sentences as complete murder. And also, did not they say that she had a double citizenship? If the second was U.S. citizenship, the expatriation is impossible, you cannot expatriate the citizens of your own country.

(c) the bus ride does not make sense at all.

(d) i hardly believe that the opposition leaders would attend meetings at the abandoned stadiums without any military cover in the country where killings are on everyday's order.

Well, I must say that the said plot flaws are regrettable because the movie is good in other aspects. However, the plot is of great importance in this genre and therefore plot holes deserve decrease in rating.

So I gave 7, however rather weak one.

War of the Worlds (2005)

Movies like this should come in U.S. and European editions

[9/10 · 9 July 2005]

First, I have to say I was completely astonished by this movie. It is dark. It is crude. You can really believe the horror of the characters. Great music, camera, effects, everything, Tom Cruise as the lead is top notch. So far, I would say I was watching a 10/10 movie. However, there are some things that make me to subtract at least one point. First, THE ENDING. Why THE HELL? Ummm.... well, it is a waste of time to point out that the Hollywood endings can totally screw up entirely awesome film, as they did million times before. I really think movies like this should come with different U.S. and European editions. U.S. edition could have cheesy sentimental endings like this movie and European edition could end... well, the worst thing is, that I can exactly imagine where the movie should have ended - beware of spoiler here - do you see it? The hand of the dead E.T. comes out of the tripod, some music comes in, maybe a shot of Tom and the girl, and here come the end titles. I would be more than happy with the ending like this, which would not undermine the atmosphere of the movie.

Also, I think that bloody weed thing or whatever it was and ripping that guy towards the end of the movie were unnecessary, the movie would be better of without this scene.

As I said, otherwise perfect. I would not be surprise, if Spielberg gets another Oscar for this.

Lost in Translation (2003)

Very strong piece of work

[8/10 · 9 November 2004]

POSSIBLE SPOILERS HEREIN

It would be fair to say at first that I generally do not like so called "romantic" movies, unless they convey an authentic feeling with which I could identify. And I must say this movie gets it big time. First, I very much like the way it portraits the cultural shock. And second, I just cannot believe Hollywood can make an ending like that. I do not want to spoil it but I really expected that he will at the last moment turn away and run to her and stay with her forever :))). It is something like Pavlov's reflex because I have seen so many movies in which the ending would be exactly like that. Therefore I must praise the folks who made this for not fulfilling the usual expectation. Plus the lead actors very both very good and the music was very beautifully crafted.

My overall rating is a very strong 8 (of 10).

Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003)

How great it is to watch movies on a PC!

[1/10 · 6 August 2004]

Well, I cannot praise enough watching movies on PC. Back in the old days when folks used to go to movie theaters and had to pay hard $cash$ to watch movies anyone hardly ever stood up and walked out of the theatre in the event movie sucked. From this point of view watching movies on PC certainly represents a huge progress. I usually give movies 20-30 minutes and if they do not manage to entertain me within this period I simply shut it down. Charlie's Angels are quire remarkable in this respect, the movie was shut down after 10 minutes of watching. I think no further description necessary, if there was a vote for the most stupid movie of all times, this could be a hot candidate(it is even a lot worse that Part 1 which at least managed to be funny at some points, but the in this one the gags are entirely lame).

Maybe someone would give this movie a chance because of the easy-on-the-eyes chicks in it, for that purpose I would rather recommend to buy a Playboy!

1/10 (only because there is no zero vote). AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

21 Grams (2003)

One step short of movie heaven

[9/10 · 4 July 2004]

This movie is very, very good. Unlike some others I do not think the unchronological storytelling hurts the movie, on the contrary I think that the pieces that the viewer has to put together in order to get the picture of the whole story just make it more interesting.

On the other hand, no matter how good the movie actually is it is one step short of masterpiece. It is like you are climbing to heaven but you cannot make it over the last step. The story is good, the filming is good, the acting is good, but there is still SOMETHING missing for this movie to be added to my hall of all time faves. Maybe it is the music, this film does not have a strong score, maybe all the components do not add up well together... It is hard to describe why, but I was not as stunned as I usually am after watching movies I rate at 10.

Thus, I was deciding between 8 a 9, finally I voted 9 but it is a rather weak one.

Zelary (2003)

Even better for the second time

[10/10 · 23 November 2003]

When I originally wrote this comment, I predicted Zelary are on their way to Oscar for the best foreign motion picture of 2003. As we now know, this prediction was wrong. Nothwithstanding that, I have to say that when I saw this movie for the second time on Czech TV on 1 January 2006 I have absolutely no reason to change a word in my below comment. Perhaps the strongest 10/10s I have ever given.

I may be a little bit biased observer, since I am Czech local, but there are many great Czech films. The problem is that a vast majority of them are not understandable to international audience because they deal with specific Czech matters and the storytelling is primarily aimed at Czech audience. Then they are few that avoid this trap and may be interesting and appealing to movie viewers across the globe. Zelary definitely pertain to the latter group.

It happened by coincidence that I have seen two great movies somehow connected with World War II in a very short time. First was the Pianist a brilliant work of Roman Polanski, second is Zelary. Although may not seem so at first sight these two movies have a lot in common. The similarity lies in the basis of the story and in the way the story is told. Both these movies successfully try to portray awful times of World War II through a human destiny. They tell a story about human whose life was broke into pieces by war. Pianist Szpilman must have been hiding for several years, the main character of Zelary, Hana, must disappear from the city and attention of Gestapo to rural mountain forgotten area. Both survive, Hana in addition finds a new life.

But enough of comparisons, Zelary are also distinguished for wonderful cinematography, perfect music and excellent acting of the recent top-class Czech and Hungarian actors. If this movie ever comes near you either to the movie theater or on DVD or video, it is definitely worth while. 10/10

The Pianist (2002)

Why the best movies of the year hardly ever get an Oscar?

[10/10 · 28 October 2003]

Well, I am kind of used to that the best movie of the year never gets an Oscar recently (save for Forrest Gump and American Beauty of course). Most flagrant mistakes of the Academy are their choice of Titanic over As Good as It Gets in 1998 and awarding Chicago over the Pianist in 2003. And the worst thing is that the Schindler's List which is in some points similar yet worse than the Pianist was awarded. Well there is no justice on earth.

Anyway, the strongest point of this movie is the story. The survival of a jewish top pianist through the dreadful WW II in Warsaw, Poland. Of course, there have been numbers of movies like that but this one is so beautifully crafted that it leaves trails in your memory forever. After seing a movie like this one must be assured that the atrocities of WW II must never be forgotten.

Couple the wonderful story with a great acting and cinematography and there is a masterpiece and you bet this one is. Go see it, because words are not enough here.

10/10 - It is a no-brainer.

Road to Perdition (2002)

You can never make two great movies based on the same recipe

[7/10 · 2 February 2003]

Well, this movie is not bad. The problem is that it is directed by THAT guy (Sam Mendes) who achieved such a success with American Beauty. And the way the things are portrayed in the movie, the atmosphere, even the music resemble his first flick so much that one cannot avoid the comparison. And here it all comes to an conclusion that this movie lacks the ONE thing that makes the American Beauty one of the best movies ever: Clever, strong and realistic story. The story of Road to Perdition is weak and illogical in some points, in other words it is always bad when it is apparent that the things in the movie happen just because otherwise the movie would not make sense at all. The unbelievable characters do not add any points in favor of the movie either. The strength of American Beauty was in its believability, the movie was so stunningly real it made me shiver. I did not have this feeling when watching Road to Perdition, it was replaced by questions like why? and really?

I was convinced the whole movie through that I will rate it at 6, however finally I chose to upgrade to 7, for two reasons: First, the music. Thomas Newman, who was also one of the writers of music to American Beauty did a wonderful job here as well. And second was the ending. Although it was quite predictable at least the ending did not screw up the whole movie like it is quite common in Hollywood made movies nowadays.

Final word: 7/10 but the story is very weak 5.

We Were Soldiers (2002)

Not as bad as some people here say, not as good either

[6/10 · 23 November 2002]

SPOILERS HEREIN!

Well, this is not a serious and compelling war movie like the Platoon was. Rather than that it resembles Saving Private Ryan in many ways. We need to thank these movies for one major thing. They portray the war in the naturalistic way. I can imagine someone may walk out of the theater after seeing some scenes of this movie, but hey, the war is even hundred times more gross than any movie can be. But starting with Saving Private Ryan, the trend to unleash the evil spirit of war and bring it to the movie screen started and this movie continues in it, and does pretty well. Also I liked, that the movie did not try to bring up any philosophical aspects, just shown the plain war, nothing more but also nothing less. Also the music is well written and accompanies the movie nicely, particularly I liked the main song.

But then there comes the bad stuff. And that is the plot - well, although I definitely must give some credit to the writer for leaving out the usual Vietnam controversy stuff, there are numerous other unnecessary scenes, such as American flag waving in the highest emotional scenes, it has been currently some kind of fashion in the movies of this type, but is it REALLY THAT necessary? Also the scene with the soldiers gathering at the airport in the middle of the night to leave for Vietnam - come on, give me a break! And final, and the worst - why the heck Moore first leaves two thirds of his men die in the hellish battle and then second day suddenly calls for the airstrike? Does that make ANY sense whatsoever? And then, am I the only one who thinks the soldiers behaved like monks in the monastery? No f-words, no profanity. Would that really happen in the situation like that? A bit unrealistic, at least for me.

So the conclusion - I have to praise this flick for the portrayal of the hell of war. But I also have to put it down for unnecessary scenes, unrealistic political correctness and some flaws in acting. Lets break it even then - 5/10

The Odessa File (1974)

I wonder, why don't they make movies like this anymore...

[8/10 · 10 April 2002]

Well, yet another example of a movie, that is clearly representing 70's wave. These movies are remarkable for their plots. It does not mean that other aspects thereof are bad, but the plot is what makes them extremely strong. It is true about The Days of The Jackal and it is true about Odessa File as well. It is certainly true that there have been some attempts to make thrillers like this nowadays, but most of the time the spirit and atmosphere do not come even close (Jackal remake is the perfect example). The way of making movies is simply different, audience nowadays wants spectacular action scenes, simply strong plot is not enough anymore.

I do not know, to what extent is the movie based on reality but I would suspect, it is like half fictitious, half real. Anyway, there is almost everything believable, except the idea suggested in the movie, that the network of former Nazi top guys would be so strong even in 60's de-nazified Germany. Anyway, although all aspects of the plot do not have to correspond with reality, the movie can still be regarded as superb postwar thriller, that belongs to the top of its genre even almost 30 years after it was made.

8/10, for some unnecessary scenes.

A Beautiful Mind (2001)

Nice idea but not fulfilled

[7/10 · 6 April 2002]

The final thought that came into my mind when I saw the scrolling cast and credits of this movie was that it could have done better. It is not a bad movie, but there are some aspects that distort the picture. The idea of the movie is certainly extraordinary, acting is superb so is music and cinematography but dialogues destroy it. I have not seen so overdone dialogues for a long time and accompanied with strange way Nash speaks in the movie (which was probably intended to emphasis his difference from "normal" people) often left me wondering, "what the heck did he say?". Anyway, I do not know whether this is the best movie of 2001, but I give it 7. It is definitely worth watching but it is definitely lacking the sense of masterpiece.

The Cider House Rules (1999)

No thrills, just life. But for real!

[9/10 · 27 March 2002]

Well what is the most remarkable thing about this movie? I guess that would be the atmosphere. The plot itself is not breathtaking drama but quite simple real life story. The story about people whose life is harder than it is normal. And about their ability to enjoy it, despite of the hardships they have to overcome. I have not read the Irving's novel, which is this movie based on so I cannot say whether the adaptation is good or bad, all I can say is that I really liked the story line how it was developed through the movie. No wonder that screenplay won the Oscar.

Well developed plot is accompanied by charming music written by Rachel Portman and exteriors of New England.

As for acting, no superstars were cast but Michael Caine did a wonderful job as Doctor Larch and got an Oscar as best male supporting actor, which was very well deserved. Tobye Maguire and Charlize Theron were perfect as well.

My final thought - First I considered giving the full shot, but there some really minor flaws which prevented it such as the pace of the movie slowed down too much at some points. So it is 9, but rock solid one!

Dark Blue World (2001)

Sex can never prevail over friendship in the long run

[8/10 · 25 March 2002]

SPOILERS HEREIN

Yet another film made by the only Czech director who is considered world class nowadays - Jan Sverak. Many people thought this would be Oscar flick, but now we already know it was not. But anyway this movie was not so overrated as some think it is.

First I start with the good. Cinematography, music and effects are superb, especially when we consider the fact this movie is not made in Hollywood and the budget is rather limited in comparison with Pearl Harbor and other such films. Then acting, Ondrej Vetchy certainly did well on his part, as well as Tara Fitzgerald as female lead. Others were not so convincing, but I do not see anyone who acted really badly in the movie. Overall mood and style of the movie are excellent as well and even though many people thought the movie was far too sentimental I do not jump on this bandwagon. I am generally not against sentimentality and high emotions unless they are completely unnecessary, which is, I am sorry to say, the case of most American flicks nowadays. In this movie I think it fit pretty well into the story and after all it was believable with some (though major) exceptions about which I will talk later on.

Then the bad - the story. I do not have degree in history but I do not think that everything in the movie was fine from historical point of view, but major points were probably OK. Germans really seized all Czech aircrafts in 1939 and many pilots really went to England and also took active part in famous Battle of England. But there is one thing I have major objection to and that is the ending. I think the ending (Karel kills himself to save Frantisek's life) is totally unnecessary and destroys the adequacy of the whole story. There are some aspects of the Susan's character that could be objectionable too, but all of them are rather minor. On the other hand I liked flashes to the prison, which show pretty well what communists that took power in 1948 did to pilots and other heroes that fought against nazi Germany and their only crime was that they did so on Western and not Soviet side. I especially liked the character of German doctor which shows nothing in the world is only black or white.

So there are two most remarkable points on this movie:

First, it shows us that emotions are high and deep especially in times of war. Sex never prevails over friendship even though it may seem so in a short run.

Second, it brings the story of Czech war pilots to Western audience and it does it very well, without major historical mishaps. It also points out what happen to some of them after communists came into power in late 40's, which is something all Czechs should be ashamed of.

Final word - 8 but it is a solid one!

Finding Forrester (2000)

Pleasant and original

[8/10 · 18 March 2002]

(Minor spoilers included)

I noticed, that most of the people here gave 8 points to this movie and so did I. This movie might not be a masterpiece of all times but it certainly is a movie, which is not to be forgotten three minutes after you walk away from the theater.

Right after the movie started I did not feel too well about it, there were some redundant scenes, but the situation pleasantly changes after Jamal and Forrester start to respect each other. From that point on there is not much bad that could be said about the movie. Both main characters are portrayed equally well and even though you would not certainly expect somebody like Sean Connery to play really bad, he has certainly always something that can surprise. Plot is smooth and there are no abrupt changes that are typical for most dramas nowadays. Even the character of a bad guy, professor Crawford is beautifully crafted and acting of Murray Abraham was good as well.

The music and cinematography was soft as it should be in these movies but still strong enough to properly emphasize the strongest points of this movie.

And finally we should thank producers of this movie for not giving in to the temptation to expose us to the banal lovestory between millionaire daughter Claire and poor boy from Bronx Jamal, which, even though suggested at some points, was (fortunately enough) not developed.

8/10 - two points off for some redundant scenes and overall feeling that suggests this was not a masterpiece but definitely pleasant and far above average film.

Casablanca (1942)

What else to say - it is a classic!

[10/10 · 14 March 2002]

Well, it is hard to say anything about this movie which has not been already said. But even though nowadays film makers have millions $ and thousands of hi-tech effects to film whatever they want, they should always come to movies like Casablanca to see how great performance can be done just with cleverly chosen music, brilliant acting and dialogues. Of course the movie is dependent on circumstances under which it was made and nobody would believe that things would really happen exactly like that, but the heck with it - it can easily be forgiven. And regarding the fact it was filmed in 40's when the war was far from being finished, the propagandistic aspect of the movie could have been far worse. The atmosphere of the movie is absolutely awesome and I think that nobody can declare himself to be a movie fan unless he saw Casablanca.

The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Pure virtual reality

[4/10 · 11 March 2002]

Well, I was thinking a lot after seeing this movie. I was thinking why some people like this so much. Then I finally found out. Such movies are successful because they portrait the reality in the way people wish it to be. There are definitely many people who consider fast cars young chicks, adrenaline and all that other stuff around extremely cool. And this is a movie for them. Virtual reality, something that WOULD NOT HAPPEN IN REAL LIFE. The movie accomplished this task, no doubt about it. If you are in a target group - I would say that would be mostly men under 25 - you will probably like it. Fast cars, lot of racing scenes, dynamic music, clipish cinematography, easy-on-the-eyes chicks - nothing important is missing. You will be attracted by the atmosphere of the movie so much, you will forgive it apparent non-senses, lame plot, dumb dialogues and unbelievability - but gosh, who cares, virtual reality does not have to be believable.

All of us who expect movies to reflect reality at least to certain extent, and to portrait some aspects of life in original way, yes, we have to be disappointed. But we are not a target group. And makers of this movie hit THEIR target group big time, I am pretty sure about that.

4/10 since I am not the target group.

City Hall (1996)

Intelligent political thriller not pretending anything

[8/10 · 23 January 2002]

Well, there is a plenty of ways how to spoil a political thriller. Usually they are derivative or too ambitious, often they feature a conspiracy that is totally paranoic and unbelievable. But City Hall does not do neither of the above mentioned. The plot is cleverly crafted, story is believable. As far as characters go I would say this movie is a solid average. No character seems out of place and Al Pacino is brilliant as always. His portrayal of a charismatic NYC mayor is superb and proves again that Al Pacino belongs to the absolute top of American actors nowadays.

Enemy at the Gates (2001)

5/10 for lack of realism and redundant love scenes

[5/10 · 12 January 2002]

Some of the following might be considered as SPOILER!

Well this is exactly one of the movies you see and do not have to see again, even though you were not THAT disappointed. In another words, nice way to spend an evening when you have no better things to do.

Now, let's discuss the details a little bit. First, since Saving Private Ryan Hollywood enjoys grossly naturalistic scenes in war movies. I think it is right since war IS like that. Even the most famous war flicks made in 60's focused on production and cast, but were far too nice to the viewing audience in not exposing them too much to the real stuff. Saving Private Ryan did that and so did Enemy At The Gates. But the good ends right there.

I am not detail specialist and I cannot tell whether the guns, uniforms and stuff used in the movie is historically right, but there are still some major things that are so screamingly unbelievable even in common sense. First, the boy, I know Russians use the legend of heroic kids acting like spies so much, but in fact most kids are not mentally capable to do this at their age. Second, the major. Acting like cold blooded professional the whole movie through, right? Then WHY THE HECK does he come up to the open area without noticing person standing on his left side also in open area during the final showdown? Could the best Nazi sniper be so foolish?

And the love story? I refuse to give any comment on that. Americans just have to have melodramatic crap in every flick recently. So let them be.

5/10

The Crimson Rivers (2000)

Suspense raised gradually - to no conclusion!

[6/10 · 4 November 2001]

Well, at the beginning I thought of this movie as a masterpiece but I have to say this feeling has quickly vanished as I watch through. The plot - overdone, derivative, and pointing to nothing. It all starts pretty well, it raises a suspense but towards the end of the movie you realize how much unbelievable and pointless that is.

The cinematography, filming location and music are more than fine. It is actually the only originality in this movie. Actors are OK, Jean Reno is probably the best, but Vincence Cassel is not that bad either.

As a summary I would say, that this movie is just good arrangement of a very bad plot.

Snow Falling on Cedars (1999)

Very pleasant surprise

[10/10 · 21 October 2001]

I got to watch the movie by pure accident, when I saw one of my schoolmates has it as DVDrip on his computer. And I was delighted so much I gave it the best rating 10/10 which I really do not give that often at all.

What I liked about this movie:

The first thing is originality. The plot is clever and persuasive, the moral aspect is impressive and forceful. I liked the retrospective method and the flashbacks, but sometimes I found some of them little confusing and the past from presence was not so clearly distinguishable at least at the first sight. But that is the only flaw I found. The rest continues in superlatives. Music and cinematography which are both simply superb. The nature sequences (was it really filmed in Washington?) is very well chosen and gives the movie just the right atmosphere. As far as the cast goes, I especially liked Max Von Sidow as the old defendant's attorney, and his impressive ending speech.

My conclusion is: Since American Beauty I have not seen better movie than this. It definitely has SOMETHING, you can call it feeling or atmosphere that distinguish good movies from bad, masterpieces from average. Something that gives the movie the desired synergic effect. 10/10 for sure.

The Heroic Trio (1993)

Weird though interesting

[5/10 · 22 August 2001]

Well, I am not a fan of HK cinema even though I watch some of these movies from time to time. There is a lot of hype around this movie, most because of its female cast. But that is not the best on this movie. The best is the cinematography, mood and music. Makers of this movie did a great job of setting the atmosphere of weirdness, that was totally different of what we are used to see in Hollywood made movies of this type. What I do not like are the action scenes, which are staged, and poor. HK movies are well known for good action, but this is certainly not one of them.

Extreme Measures (1996)

Great dilemma, not only for doctors

[6/10 · 20 August 2001]

SOME OF THE FOLLOWING MIGHT BE CONSIDERED A SPOILER!

Well, this movie surprised me a lot. And the surprise went increasingly on the whole movie through. Based on the first minutes I was convinced I am seeing an usual "evil-tests-on-homeless" flick with bold hero pushing the good against the sinister opponents including a deceitful FBI agent, which is rather banal plot. But there were things that distinguished this movie from another similar. First, the acting, Gene Hackman and Hugh Grant did a very good job. As well as David Morse as the bad guy. Then the legitimate questions the movie raises about the ethics of the scientific research. These are the questions that every doctor has to ask from time to time and unfortunately it often comes out that there is no right answer. Also I liked the grading suspense.

Anyway, as strange as it may be, I gave it 9/10.

Update 15 August 2005. I saw the movie for the second time while it was on TV and I must say I greatly overrated it before. The movie is not that good after all and therefore I lowered its rating to 6/10 and do not seem to watch it again.

Shaft (2000)

rough, forceful, original, a bit clip-like

[7/10 · 5 August 2001]

This movie is original in many ways. The itself not that much. But filming, acting and music add to this movie a lot. The filming method is clip-like, music is jazzy somewhat but is works fine with this movie. There is a lot of violence in it, but it is not disruptive. Samuel L. Jackson did a good job as the lead and Vanessa Williams as his female co-star was not bad either.

The only thing I do not like on this movie was the plot simplicity which portaits Shaft as a invulnerable superhero in some ways

My final thought: It is a solid entertainment, I did not regret watching it, but it is not a movie that makes you think and remember it for a long time.

15 Minutes (2001)

Compelling, hollywoodism free, except for the ending

[8/10 · 26 July 2001]

Beware of spoilers!!!

First, I came to watch this movie just because famous Czech actor Karel Roden plays the bad guy. But I was very pleasantly surprised. The movie was original, with no popular cliches and hollywoodisms at all. The characters were believable and the acting was excellent. The only thing I have objections to is the ending. Even though not as blown up as usually (The Game with Michael Douglas is the good example for a such totally blown one) it will be much more to it, if it stayed how the story developed until then - the bad guy gets away. The way how it actually was - plenty of shooting and the great revenge, was typical americanism and increasing incidence of such endings to movies nowadays makes me really sick.

However, except the ending, the movie was excellent and it is definitely worth watching!