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don-180
Reviews
Syriana (2005)
Terribly Disappointing !!!
We expected too much. We expected a thriller with a coherent, understandable storyline and good acting that would engage us to the characters. Instead, we got "whammoxed" with a disjointed, poorly written, un-cohesive, attempt to disclose something that we all know: The business of oil is "sticking it to the consumer and getting them to bend over for more" and this is our excuse for High Oil Prices. The acting was poor, wooden, uninspired and DULL. Amateurs from Off-Broadway would have delivered more imaginative and captivating performances. The story lacked Congruence and Continuity.
It ranks among the 10 Worst "movies" we've seen in the last decade and there is absolutely NO reason for any Oscar for George Clooney unless it was to compensate for the faces he made while pretending to be tortured.
A History of Violence (2005)
An Example for Our Nation to Follow
All of the comments I have read about this fine Film are excellent, but they all miss the hidden point of the story's Writer. ie: The film uses individual people to portray the actions of terrorist nations and the response of the attacked nation. The resolution of the "problems", caused by those who are terrorizing him and his family members, that is used by Tom Stall, shows us that the only permanent solution to terrorists is to eliminate terrorist nations. When you are attacked, as Tom was, you must not only fight back, you must also completely wipe out those who are at the root of the terrorism, no matter what your previous diplomatic relations may have been. Of course, for those who believe we can reason with terrorists to cure the problem, then continue to evaluate the film as you initially do.
I also agree that the acting and staging were very well done and the picture should get an Academy Award, but "Holywood" will surely ignore it. Don Schimpff Redding, CA
Crash (2004)
People behaving HONESTLY and how they change from experience
This movie cannot have been made in Hollywood because it is too good. It is saddening to know that such great movies are capable of being produced, but that Hollowwoodians are too stupid to realize that there are adults who also like good movies that appeal to mature minds, instead of the child's PAP that Hollowwood is putting out. All of the people in this movie have done a fine job of portraying life as it actually is in big-city America and in our society which is more diverse than any other nation's. To try to single out any one of the fine cast for special honors is hard because they all "lived their roles to the fullest". It is the same America that I grew up with in the 1930's and despite The Political Correct Police, has remained the same and will live under the cover of our P.C. facade. It is SO true to life that The Academy will ignore it. Sandra Bullock didn't. It illustrates how a person's actions can affect the lives of others they don't even know.
Final Destination 2 (2003)
a full-blown comedy ala the "6 stooges" (contains no spelling mistakes)
The only reason this doesn't deserve a "1" is because it is actually funnier than the original Final Destination comedy. It has strong Relligious overtones because it tries to make you believe that you have no control over your life and safety; that everything you do is pre-ordained by a higher being who can kill you at will. That belief is actually Religious: ie: Allah controls your destiny and you have nothing to say about it. Belief in a higher being that controls you is RELIGION. Anyway; as "haw-roar" movies go, "The Wizard of Oz", is much more a horror film than this laughing comedy could ever be. Even the ancient B&W Dracula and Frankenstein movies are scarier than this Thanksgiving Day main entree'. Abbot and Costello made scarier movies than this. As Abe Lincoln said: You can fool some of the people all of the time and those who actually think this is a scary movie are in that group".
Final Destination (2000)
Impossible to believe that any of these things could actually happen.
Maxine and I both agreed that some of the incidents that were supposed to be the work of some unseen force that pre-ordains the time and method of everyone's death, were so contrived as to be "laughing-out-loud-hilarious"! This movie actually "out-Keystoned" Max Sennett's famous comedy team known as the Keystone Kops (most of you reading this are too awfully young to have even heard of the Keystone Kops but "never mind", because the Destination Final movies are much funnier than Max Sennett's gang could ever have been at their finest). Perhaps Pre-Ordained Death should be renamed Max Sennett, because his methods of making up for the cheating of Death, are truly preposterously hilarious. Suffice it to say that if you are in the bottom two-thirds of your class, you will probably find this comedy to your liking and you may even think it is scary. Horror films tend to appeal most to those who will never make it in the top ten-percent of their school's class and will believe that most impossible events are highly possible. This same comment fits Destination Final 2 and 3, also.
Hide and Seek (2005)
Just a resurrection of many tired, overused "plot-boilers"
We were very disappointed in this movie and felt it was a waste of everyone's time (including the cast and crew as well as the viewers). DeNiro portrays a wimpy pseudo-psychologist who probably got his degree from the island of Grenada or over the internet. He definitely was incapable of giving advice to anyone as he could not even handle his daughter or himself properly. The "plot" consisted of a number of plagiarized themes from THE SHINING and PSYCHO, plus other hackneyed situations from old black and white movies, resulting in a mishmash of unbelievability. The best part of this movie is returning it to the video rental store.
Swimming Pool (2003)
Rampling's performance was subtly captivating.
An interesting story inasmuch as someone who should know better, aids and abets for no apparent reason other than to embellish her novel. It lost us at the end as we were not sure if the waving sequence was in the past or the future. The publisher's second daughter was inadequately explained. Other than the ending, it was an entertaining film. Charlotte is a very accomplished actress.
Distant Drums (1951)
Entertaining but Slightly Irritating
This picture was made when directors sacrificed authenticity for rapid gunfire. The trapdoor rifles and the Colt Single Action revolver were not even invented until 30+ years after the Seminole Wars. The under water knife fight reminded me of the face-to-face shootouts of "classic westerns". It never happened. The practical lawman of the old west (if he wanted to see the sunrise next day) captured his quarry while asleep or shot him from ambush. No sane person would willingly stand face-to-face against another armed man and yell "DRAW"!! Would YOU? There are no recorded shootouts of this type in Western history.