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Reviews
Battlefield Earth (2000)
Bad, but not quite as bad as it was made out to be
I watched this to see if it was really as bad as critics made it out to be. I was expecting it to equal, if not surpass, anything on the Bottom 100 list, in terms of bad filmmaking and pain inflicted on the viewer.
The film was bad, and required a lot of suspension of disbelief, but it was not as bad as many made it out to be. The dialog, costums and cinematography were not good. It easily qualifies as one of the worst films of the year (if not the worst), and probably deserves a spot on the Bottom 100. However, there are plenty of movies from the Bottom 100 that are worse (such as Santa With Muscles), and even some not on there (Batman and Robin was at least as bad).
The Usual Suspects (1995)
Decent crime movie with a bad ending
For most of the movie, we are treated to a fairly good crime movie. The plot fair and the acting is good. The end, however, is a let down. The end does come as a surprise. After I got over the surprise and thought about it, I realized the ending invalidates the rest of the movie. I don't want to spoil the movie for others who haven't seen it, so I won't comment more here.
Good surprise endings should make you look back on the rest of the movie in a different manner. They shouldn't make you think you just sat through a bunch of stuff which didn't really matter.
Dinner (2000)
dark modern fairy-tale
This short starts with the premise that fairies have been forced out of their homes in the European forests and emigrate to the USA. The story follows Jack, who proposes to his fairy girlfriend, Jill. Before she can accept, he must convince her mother, Baba Yaga, to allow the marriage.
People should note this is not a children's story. It follows many fairy-tale concepts, but there are modern twists to it, and it is very much dark fantasy. Like Neil Gaiman's written work, this is a fairy-tale for adults who enjoy them.
The Haunting (1999)
Eye candy with little substance
Instead of a creepy haunted house movie with no special effects, like the original, we are instead given a special effects extravaganza that is lacking in plot. It's not scary, but is more unintentionally funny. It's pure eye candy, and very little substance.