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gnosis1
Reviews
Mean Girls (2004)
Very well done. Thanks to the SNL cast.
I am almost ashamed to say I have a soft spot for teen/romantic comedies. And although I am nowhere near the target audience for this film I thought it was great. I have been saddened lately by the utter dreck coming from SNL writers, they have turned a show I used to love into one I barely tolerate. The beauty of this film is that it captures the SNL humor I so enjoy and does not get itself caught up in all the inherent problems that usually plague movies based on short SNL skits. For the most part the principle adult characters are former or current SNL alumns and they manage to give decent performances. Lindsay Lohan does a great job as well as most of the cast. Unfortunately for this film the target audience(11-14 year girls most likely) will not get most of the jokes in this movie. I spent most of my time laughing thankfully, but the only times the theater erupted with laughter were the 2 or 3 times that they played obvious gag jokes and one liners, which wasnt often. The comedy in this movie(like one prank in the movie where one of the characters tells a girls mom she is calling from planned parenthood) fell mostly on deaf ears as the audience was too young to understand. All in all I give this movie an 8.5. Well shot, well paced and packed with classic SNL comedy. Very well written and directed and hopefully will result in more quality movies stemming from(though not necessarily being of) the SNL universe.
Saints and Soldiers (2003)
Decent, but nothing that hasnt been done better before.
This is a fairly decent movie set in WW2 that follows the journey of 4 American GI's stranded behind enemy lines. With one gun and a few medical supplies the soldiers go on a journey through the woods back to friendly soldiers while trying to avoid the "Krauts". It was decently shot, and while the location was a good one, It wasnt breathtaking or inspiring and I dont think it was used to its full potential. The acting was solid, though the lines were pretty trite and often times totally cliche. Unfortunately the characters werent very memorable, and the dramatic parts werent very dramatic. At the end of the day the movie was nothing more than a long trek through the woods with a sprinkling of americans fighting nazis thrown in towards the end. I give the movie a 7.
Tian di ying xiong (2003)
Incredible. Best movie I have seen in a long time.
This movie is the story of an Imperial Agent sent to bring to justice a murderer, his final mission before he is allowed to go home to his family in Japan. The murderer, a former army officer accused of mutiny when he refused to kill a group of women and children. The movie is the tale of their trek across the desert fighting against each other and with each other. The dialog was great, short and delivered impeccably by an incredible cast of characters. It has been a long while since I have seen such thoughtful, dramatic acting. The movie is shot mostly in the desert but it is all done beautifully and with exactly the right tone and feel. I enjoyed the period costumes and the fight scenes were extremely well choreographed. It is seldom that I watch a hollywood movie and come away feeling satisfied, I can only hope that Asia continues to pump out incredible movies like this one and that Hollywood will wise up and stop trying to feed me drivel like the Last Samurai.
Bubba Ho-Tep (2002)
Offbeat, funny and strange.
The movie is a bit off kilter, and unlike most hollywood fare. The script and dialog are excellent. The acting is all subtle emotion but very well done. A few very funny parts and the fact that it is Elvis and Jack Kennedy fighting a mummy are a definite plus. My only qualms with this movie are the lighting, which is sometimes too light or too dark and the pace. Sometimes the scenes move too slowly for my taste. . I would like to see more of Bruce Campbell, but I guess this will do for a while. More producers should take the chance on interesting out of the ordinary scripts and plots. All in all I give it a 7.5
Welcome to Mooseport (2004)
Now leaving Mooseport...
Perhaps it is just that Ive spent too much time watching older releases as opposed to new ones, but this movie was truly a disappointment. The MPAA wonders why piracy is so pervasive, yet it is all made clear after watching Welcome to Mooseport. The movie is a rehash of a hundred movies I have seen before. The script is boring, the acting is lackluster and without emotion. The directing is uninspired and the cinematography and setting are not worth mentioning. This is a by the book comedy without a single thing to offer. In fact if I was not aware of the usual comedic clues, I would not have known that this movie was in fact a comedy. Save yourself the trouble and avoid this movie, do not even bother renting it. Maybe if enough of these types of movies flop hollywood will stop trying to force them down our throats.
Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004)
Had promise but did not deliver.
The movie was well acted, the scenes where they show how much of a 'drama queen' the main actress is were entertaining and different. Unfortunately, while the dialog was good, the direction and story were a bit lacking. I blame the director for not delivering a great movie with the potential he had to work with.
I feel if they would have taken her 'drama queen' antics a step further, perhaps emphasizing it a bit more, the film would have been much more entertaining. As is, it is kind of boring and poorly paced.
A good idea gone bad. Thanks for trying though. 5/10
Duplex (2003)
What happened to Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore
Duplex, is shallow, uninspired and a pox on the careers of its main actors. The best they can hope for is that everyone forgets they were in this movie. To be honest I have no idea which category this movie actually belongs in. I have heard people say Comedy, but I dont believe them. This movie was not funny at all. I am usually eager to see anything with Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore and am for the most part usually not disappointed. Not this time. The only redeeming parts of this movie were the cinematography and the locations. The dialog was dull, the acting was forgettable and the plot was paper thin. All the "funny" moments came and went without much fanfare, and at the end of the movie I felt drained. Its these types of movies that make we want to go outside and meditate in the sun, in the hopes I will forget ever watching it. I blame hollywood for another trite, overbudgeted piece of cinematic drivel.
Shade (2003)
Well acted and directed. Good movie overall. 8/10
Shade was well acted, no tour de force performances by any means, but still very well done. The cinematography and locations were excellent, and the entire feel and look of the film was some of the best I have seen in a while. The card tricks were quite interesting and the twists in the plot kept me quite thoroughly entertained. While overall a very good movie, the very calculated pace and flow of the movie was very much like a poker game. In some cases tense, exciting and often unexpected, and in others very slow, as if the movie were building up to a winning hand. All in all, a very well made movie, but not perfect. I give it an 8/10.
The Passion of the Christ (2004)
The Passion is boring, brutal and disheartening
The Passion of the Christ is a very controversial movie, speaking strictly as a moviegoer I give the following review.
In summary, the movie was slow, boring and brutal. The violence is intense enough to horrify any sane individual, and the cinematography is on par with something produced for television. Although I applaud Gibson for only having the dialog in Aramaic and Latin, I am sorry to say it is also stale. Too many shots in slower motion, crying faces and trite orchestral music(the kind you hear in the sad slow parts in many many movies) make the movie corny. The violence is extended and visceral and more disheartening than in any movie I have ever seen. If you are a Christian this movie may speak to you, if you are not however and you dont enjoy extreme torture and an overall boring movie, pass on this movie.