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maxwurr
Reviews
Tadpole (2002)
Not as clever as it would like to think
'Tadpole' is one of those small-scale, 'intelligent' New York comedies that either works brilliantly (see Six Degrees of Separation, for example) or just comes across as smug. Unfortunately, this film falls in the latter category. It's not half as funny as it thinks it is (and no funnier or more clever for the tedious references to Voltaire and the classics) and almost all the characters are more annoying than endearing (including the old-before-his-time lead). The subject matter, too, is hardly ground-breaking and the soundtrack is repetitive and obvious. Still, it has some nice touches and the acting is mostly convincing (although I wasn't convinced by the gaggle of middle-aged women that seemed quite comfortable with vocally expressing their delight for what amounts to paedophilia - he's FOURTEEN, ladies).
The 70-minute running time is unusual, but frankly if it had been any longer I'd probably have given up.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
As good as it was ever going to be
Once again, Jackson has surpassed himself with this, the denouement of the Rings trilogy. Some Tolkien purists will have reservations about the pace of the plot and the introduction of unnecessarily cheesy cinematic elements (Legolas's oliphaunt-scrambling being one example) and still others will wonder what happened to the final humbling of Saruman that provides such an unexpected but fitting final episode in the book. All in all, though, these are minor criticisms. It would be churlish to deny that Jackson has done justice to this beloved work. The performances are impressive and often affecting, the scenery is simply staggering and most of the CGI effects are seamless. I am not usually one for emotional films but I choked up on more than one occasion. Jackson has managed to put across the central themes of Tolkien's work perfectly. It will be many decades before anyone dares to try this again!
S1m0ne (2002)
Nothing without the cast
The premise of Simone is hardly original, the plot holes are too conspicuous to ignore and the satire is, well, not very funny. No matter how good the performances of Pacino, Keener et al, this is lightweight fare that would have gone straight to video without its cast. To make matters worse, the pseudo-CGI bits will look absurdly dated in a few years (remember 'Lawnmower Man'?). In short, I was not impressed (although I have just watched Jackie Chan's 'The Tuxedo' against which 'Simone' looks like 'Citizen Kane').