Rating: 4/5 Check it out
The best summer blockbuster that no one will see.
Based on a 1974 film of the same name this movie has more of a classic movie feel than a modern summer blockbuster. This is the kind of movie they're talking about when they use terms like "thrill-a-minute", and "edge of your seat". It grips you from the start and doesn't let go. What's surprising about this movie is it doesn't rely on special effects or high speed chases. This is a thriller driven entirely by the level of acting and commitment of those who made it and that adds a very real element that you don't find very often. This movie's simplicity is it's greatest strength and it will also turn out to be it's downfall. No one cares about a drama that holds true human emotion. Give us robots, 3D, cars blowing up, and people in super powered suits.
The plot is rather simple. A New York City subway car is hijacked in the middle of Manhattan by a gang led by a man who simply calls himself Ryder (John Travolta). After the hijacking Ryder makes contact with the subway dispatch to make his demands. The dispatcher who receives the call is Walter Garber (Denzel Washington). Garber already has his share of hardships which is only compounded by Ryder's invasion of his day. Ryder has no interest in talking to a hostage negotiator (John Turturro), or even the mayor of New York(James Gandolfini). He finds a kindred spirit in Garber and the two take a ride through their past and their souls during the course of these hostage negotiations.
It is in the telling that this movie steps up and nails it. Denzel Washington and John Travolta give career-level performances here. Both actors play to their strengths, with Travolta playing a level of crazy he has only hinted at in the past, and Denzel nailing the everyman who has been pushed to the brink. The characters are so rich and their chemistry is incredible. The suspense and thrills unfold at a perfect pace and not once do you doubt these characters motivation. The language is rather coarse but it's not for shock value it just fits these characters. The movie is shot with a very gritty in your face style similar to some of Tony Scott's other thrillers (Man On Fire, and Domino). Thankfully they don't play around with the camera so much that you get sick but it definitely puts the action right in your face.
This movie is a testament to how powerful the right story can be. It just has two main characters in a struggle, only a handful of sets, minimal effects, and a dynamite ending. A true testament to what real cinema is capable of. Unfortunately it doesn't have enough bells and whistles to attract a large audience. Still I highly recommend checking it out if you get tired of the very polished garbage Hollywood usually throws our way. You may find that it makes you realize how wonderful a simple movie can be.
The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3 at IMDB
121 minutes
Rated R for violence and pervasive language.
My Statement Of Purpose
Friday, June 12, 2009
Friday, June 5, 2009
The Hangover (review)
Rating: 3/5 Worth watching
Finally! A hangover that doesn't need a cure.
Sure you still feel dirty afterward but otherwise there are no ill effects. This movie is exactly what you expect and what they sell it as. A raunchy laugh at guys taking the party way too far. So often these movies feature mindless idiots doing stupid things just for a laugh. However, this movie does a much better job showing you that these are some good guys that care about each other. They just made a series of mistakes that led to a serious problem but they'll do anything to set things right.
Doug (Justin Bartha) is scheduled to get married in two days. His two best friends Phil (Bradley Cooper), and Stu (Ed Helms) decide to take him to Vegas for a night. They also invite Alan, (Zach Galifianakis) Doug's soon-to-be brother-in-law, who is a little weird. The four friends set off for the party of a lifetime. The problem comes when they wake up the next morning and can't remember what happened last night. That problem is compounded by the fact that Doug is missing. The three groomsman set off to figure out what went on last night in hopes that retracing their steps will lead them to Doug. Along the way they have to figure out how they picked up a baby and why there is a tiger in their hotel bathroom. They meet some interesting people in their search for what went on including a stripper (Heather Graham) and a flamboyant mob boss named Mr. Chow (Ken Jeong).
Galifianakis is hilarious as the socially inept Alan and really drives the comedy by constantly creating weird situations and saying absurd things. Jeong is another key to the humor in this movie though his flamboyancy seems over the top at times. Cooper is a good leader and although he pretends to be a real man's man he cares deeply for his friend and his family. Helms' character has lived a rather mundane life and may be the character most changed by their trip, though all of them realize the value of their friendship over the course of finding Doug.
There's not much I can say without spoiling some of the jokes so I will keep this short. It balances wonderfully between the laugh out loud funny moments that you expect and the character development story that sneaks up on you. The scenery and shots of Vegas are beautiful and there is one reference to another film that was shot partially in Vegas that I found awesome. The comedy is absurd and vulgar but it never feels over the top.
This is the kind of movie that any man who's had a wild night, or any woman who's ever known a man who sometimes goes overboard (hint: that's every man), can understand and laugh at. Still, it shows us that if we have friends who care about us we can survive anything. Even the worlds worst hangover.
The Hangover at IMDB
100 minutes
Rated R for pervasive language, sexual content including nudity, and some drug material.
My Statement Of Purpose
Finally! A hangover that doesn't need a cure.
Sure you still feel dirty afterward but otherwise there are no ill effects. This movie is exactly what you expect and what they sell it as. A raunchy laugh at guys taking the party way too far. So often these movies feature mindless idiots doing stupid things just for a laugh. However, this movie does a much better job showing you that these are some good guys that care about each other. They just made a series of mistakes that led to a serious problem but they'll do anything to set things right.
Doug (Justin Bartha) is scheduled to get married in two days. His two best friends Phil (Bradley Cooper), and Stu (Ed Helms) decide to take him to Vegas for a night. They also invite Alan, (Zach Galifianakis) Doug's soon-to-be brother-in-law, who is a little weird. The four friends set off for the party of a lifetime. The problem comes when they wake up the next morning and can't remember what happened last night. That problem is compounded by the fact that Doug is missing. The three groomsman set off to figure out what went on last night in hopes that retracing their steps will lead them to Doug. Along the way they have to figure out how they picked up a baby and why there is a tiger in their hotel bathroom. They meet some interesting people in their search for what went on including a stripper (Heather Graham) and a flamboyant mob boss named Mr. Chow (Ken Jeong).
Galifianakis is hilarious as the socially inept Alan and really drives the comedy by constantly creating weird situations and saying absurd things. Jeong is another key to the humor in this movie though his flamboyancy seems over the top at times. Cooper is a good leader and although he pretends to be a real man's man he cares deeply for his friend and his family. Helms' character has lived a rather mundane life and may be the character most changed by their trip, though all of them realize the value of their friendship over the course of finding Doug.
There's not much I can say without spoiling some of the jokes so I will keep this short. It balances wonderfully between the laugh out loud funny moments that you expect and the character development story that sneaks up on you. The scenery and shots of Vegas are beautiful and there is one reference to another film that was shot partially in Vegas that I found awesome. The comedy is absurd and vulgar but it never feels over the top.
This is the kind of movie that any man who's had a wild night, or any woman who's ever known a man who sometimes goes overboard (hint: that's every man), can understand and laugh at. Still, it shows us that if we have friends who care about us we can survive anything. Even the worlds worst hangover.
The Hangover at IMDB
100 minutes
Rated R for pervasive language, sexual content including nudity, and some drug material.
My Statement Of Purpose
Land Of The Lost (review)
Rating: 2/5 Watchable
Some things should stay lost.
Like the movie's main characters the movie itself is lost in some sort of temporal rift. It's been marketed to appear to be a family adventure movie. This is not a family movie. It earns it's rating (PG13) and is closer to an "R" rating then a "PG". Despite the crassness of the humor it is still rather sophomoric bathroom humor and sexual innuendo. So ultimately I'm not sure who this movie is looking to appeal to.
Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell) has been laughed at by the scientific community because of his theories on traveling to alternate dimensions. One day he is approached by Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel), a Cambridge educated scientist who was kicked out of the program because of her belief in Marshall's theories. The two build the machine that Marshall designed to harness the energies allowing one to travel to alternate dimensions. The two of them go on a routine test in a cave where these energies are strongest. This area is part of a guided tour led by Will Stanton (Danny McBride). The test is successful. So successful in fact, that this unruly bunch is sucked into a dimension where our past, present, and future seem to meet. In this place the three meet Cha-Ka (Jorma Taccone) who appears to be from a race of missing link like monkey people. The three hopeless castaways must battle dinosaurs, giant bugs, and sleestaks (a race of lizard people) to find their machine and get back home.
Ferrell plays the buffoon well, but this is not news. We've seen it before and this time is not particularly inventive or creative. His character reminds us of those Saturday Night Live skits that go on far longer then they need to. Friel is decent but her character is mostly a prop for sexual humor. If you've seen her in Pushing Daisies you are well aware that she is capable of more. It's disappointing to see her first real mainstream role be such a misuse of her ability. McBride is easily the funniest part of this film as the sexist redneck tour guide. McBride's character is not new to us, it's just like his Kenny Powers (Eastbound & Down), but since the character's humor is based on quick gags and one liners as long as it's clever it's still funny.
Overall, the humor is laugh out loud funny at times but totally hit or miss (mostly miss). The effects are reminiscent of the 1970's TV show but not in an homage way. They don't look like 70's effects done with modern equipment, more like modern effects done with a low 70's budget. The plot is unnecessarily convoluted. Even the actors seem uninterested in which sleestak did what to who. This film had plenty enough plot with the travelers trying to find the machine to get them home. The whole film is too exaggerated, too ridiculous, and too much of the same thing. If they had cut out the adult humor this movie may have been passable as a fun afternoon for older kids, like the new Night At The Museum. If they had been a bit more clever with it's humor and a bit more interesting with it's plot, it may have had a good appeal to the adults who liked the show when they were kids. Instead it's stuck somewhere in between and it's a horrible place to be.
Land Of The Lost at IMDB
93 minutes
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, and for language including a drug reference.
My Statement Of Purpose
Some things should stay lost.
Like the movie's main characters the movie itself is lost in some sort of temporal rift. It's been marketed to appear to be a family adventure movie. This is not a family movie. It earns it's rating (PG13) and is closer to an "R" rating then a "PG". Despite the crassness of the humor it is still rather sophomoric bathroom humor and sexual innuendo. So ultimately I'm not sure who this movie is looking to appeal to.
Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell) has been laughed at by the scientific community because of his theories on traveling to alternate dimensions. One day he is approached by Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel), a Cambridge educated scientist who was kicked out of the program because of her belief in Marshall's theories. The two build the machine that Marshall designed to harness the energies allowing one to travel to alternate dimensions. The two of them go on a routine test in a cave where these energies are strongest. This area is part of a guided tour led by Will Stanton (Danny McBride). The test is successful. So successful in fact, that this unruly bunch is sucked into a dimension where our past, present, and future seem to meet. In this place the three meet Cha-Ka (Jorma Taccone) who appears to be from a race of missing link like monkey people. The three hopeless castaways must battle dinosaurs, giant bugs, and sleestaks (a race of lizard people) to find their machine and get back home.
Ferrell plays the buffoon well, but this is not news. We've seen it before and this time is not particularly inventive or creative. His character reminds us of those Saturday Night Live skits that go on far longer then they need to. Friel is decent but her character is mostly a prop for sexual humor. If you've seen her in Pushing Daisies you are well aware that she is capable of more. It's disappointing to see her first real mainstream role be such a misuse of her ability. McBride is easily the funniest part of this film as the sexist redneck tour guide. McBride's character is not new to us, it's just like his Kenny Powers (Eastbound & Down), but since the character's humor is based on quick gags and one liners as long as it's clever it's still funny.
Overall, the humor is laugh out loud funny at times but totally hit or miss (mostly miss). The effects are reminiscent of the 1970's TV show but not in an homage way. They don't look like 70's effects done with modern equipment, more like modern effects done with a low 70's budget. The plot is unnecessarily convoluted. Even the actors seem uninterested in which sleestak did what to who. This film had plenty enough plot with the travelers trying to find the machine to get them home. The whole film is too exaggerated, too ridiculous, and too much of the same thing. If they had cut out the adult humor this movie may have been passable as a fun afternoon for older kids, like the new Night At The Museum. If they had been a bit more clever with it's humor and a bit more interesting with it's plot, it may have had a good appeal to the adults who liked the show when they were kids. Instead it's stuck somewhere in between and it's a horrible place to be.
Land Of The Lost at IMDB
93 minutes
Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, and for language including a drug reference.
My Statement Of Purpose
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Tideland (review)
Rating 4/5 Check it out
some spoilers
"Children are resilient"
This movie is real, unflinchingly real, and that is it's great strength but it also makes it very uncomfortable to watch. I can understand people not enjoying it. To be honest, I didn't enjoy it. I don't think it's meant to be enjoyed. I think it's meant to show us that even in the midst of grim realities children will find hope, joy, and friendship because they need those things as much as food, water, and sleep. As the director (Terry Gilliam) says in his opening comments (found here on YouTube) before the film; "many of you aren't going to know what to think when this film finishes, but hopefully you'll be thinking"
Tideland is a surreal sort of fairytale told through the eyes of a child. Jeliza-Rose (Jodelle Ferland) is a young girl who is so innocent to the messed up world around her that she thinks nothing of it. After her junkie mother (Jennifer Tilly) dies, she and her drug addicted father (Jeff Bridges), go on a trip. They end up at his childhood home which looks like it's been long abandoned and is in the middle of a field somewhere in the Midwest. Shortly after they arrive her father overdoses leaving her all alone with the strangers (who truly are strange) in the next house over, some animals, and her doll heads. She creates a fantasy world that incorporates the tragedy in the real world around her and the childhood wonder she has inside her.
Ultimately this is a story about a girl who has every reason to think the world is dark and hopeless but just never sees it that way. It's really not intended to be taken as dark and disturbing. As Gilliam talks about in the opening. This movie is meant to be seen from a child's eyes. The problem is we put our prejudices and fears as adults into this kid's life. She thinks nothing of preparing heroin for her father, or being around dead things. These things are part of the world she knows, and she accepts them better than the adults around her do. We just have trouble watching that and see it as perverse, grotesque, or insensitive. This is where the movie makes us uncomfortable. It clashes with everything we have been taught to think as adults.
The visuals of this movie are a great contrast of harsh reality and surreal dream. Gilliam (known for The Fisher King, 12 Monkeys, and Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas) has once again created a world all it's own that takes place in our world but is not the same. Jodelle Ferland makes this world believable and engrossing by being so wonderfully invested in her character and the fictitious world that character creates.
We all create fantasies to deal with death or pain or rejection. This movie is just bold enough to make us think about that and make us wonder if children don't have the right idea by living in innocent joy at the world around them.
Side note: I feel it's important to reiterate that this movie is filled with disturbing images (drug use, decaying corpses, severe mental handicap, [spoiler]taxidermy of people, disturbing sexuality[/spoiler], and gruesome situations). All of it involves a child or happens in the child's presence. If you are easily bothered by things of this nature then you may want to skip this one. It is not done for shock value or in a gratuitous manner but it is still tough for some people to watch.
Tideland at IMDB
120 minutes
Rated R for bizarre and disturbing content, including drug use, sexuality, and gruesome situations - all involving a child, and for some language.
(watched on a DVD in my apartment)
My Statement Of Purpose
some spoilers
"Children are resilient"
This movie is real, unflinchingly real, and that is it's great strength but it also makes it very uncomfortable to watch. I can understand people not enjoying it. To be honest, I didn't enjoy it. I don't think it's meant to be enjoyed. I think it's meant to show us that even in the midst of grim realities children will find hope, joy, and friendship because they need those things as much as food, water, and sleep. As the director (Terry Gilliam) says in his opening comments (found here on YouTube) before the film; "many of you aren't going to know what to think when this film finishes, but hopefully you'll be thinking"
Tideland is a surreal sort of fairytale told through the eyes of a child. Jeliza-Rose (Jodelle Ferland) is a young girl who is so innocent to the messed up world around her that she thinks nothing of it. After her junkie mother (Jennifer Tilly) dies, she and her drug addicted father (Jeff Bridges), go on a trip. They end up at his childhood home which looks like it's been long abandoned and is in the middle of a field somewhere in the Midwest. Shortly after they arrive her father overdoses leaving her all alone with the strangers (who truly are strange) in the next house over, some animals, and her doll heads. She creates a fantasy world that incorporates the tragedy in the real world around her and the childhood wonder she has inside her.
Ultimately this is a story about a girl who has every reason to think the world is dark and hopeless but just never sees it that way. It's really not intended to be taken as dark and disturbing. As Gilliam talks about in the opening. This movie is meant to be seen from a child's eyes. The problem is we put our prejudices and fears as adults into this kid's life. She thinks nothing of preparing heroin for her father, or being around dead things. These things are part of the world she knows, and she accepts them better than the adults around her do. We just have trouble watching that and see it as perverse, grotesque, or insensitive. This is where the movie makes us uncomfortable. It clashes with everything we have been taught to think as adults.
The visuals of this movie are a great contrast of harsh reality and surreal dream. Gilliam (known for The Fisher King, 12 Monkeys, and Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas) has once again created a world all it's own that takes place in our world but is not the same. Jodelle Ferland makes this world believable and engrossing by being so wonderfully invested in her character and the fictitious world that character creates.
We all create fantasies to deal with death or pain or rejection. This movie is just bold enough to make us think about that and make us wonder if children don't have the right idea by living in innocent joy at the world around them.
Side note: I feel it's important to reiterate that this movie is filled with disturbing images (drug use, decaying corpses, severe mental handicap, [spoiler]taxidermy of people, disturbing sexuality[/spoiler], and gruesome situations). All of it involves a child or happens in the child's presence. If you are easily bothered by things of this nature then you may want to skip this one. It is not done for shock value or in a gratuitous manner but it is still tough for some people to watch.
Tideland at IMDB
120 minutes
Rated R for bizarre and disturbing content, including drug use, sexuality, and gruesome situations - all involving a child, and for some language.
(watched on a DVD in my apartment)
My Statement Of Purpose
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