Aug 25 06
This story has been told before, and told better. A guy loses sight of what is important in life, gains wealth but is abandoned by his family, and only realises his mistake on the brink of death.
I really wish Sandler would stop relying so heavily on “dick and fart” jokes. He would be a better comedian without them.
The best part of this film, without a doubt, is Kate Beckingsale. Not a great actress but second only to Nicole Kidman in beauty.
Rating: Good.
Aug 20 06
(Original title: Die Geschichte vom Weinenden Kamel)
A moving, profoundly human story about birth, survival, love and music set in the desolate and unforgiving Mongolian desert. A poor mother camel suffers horribly during her little camel’s birth. She rejects (or rather, actively hates) the little one, contradicting all wishful thinking about motherly love and sacrifice. The nomads can’t afford to lose a single camel, though, and after everything else fails, follow an old and amazing ritual to rejoin them.
An absolute must-see, this film will keep you in deep reflexion for a long time.
Rating: Essential.
Aug 15 06
A big disappointment. I was all set for an entertaining two hours of crime, action, and chases. What I got for my money was a boring, predictable movie.
A good half of the film is devoted to Farrell and Gong making out. There’s never any real teamwork by Farrell and Foxx. The plot is unimaginative and predictable. It is too long by at least 20 minutes. Some scenes are too violent and gory, in stark (and disturbing) contrast with the tameness of the rest of the film — I overheard several people complain about this. It’s just not worth it.
Rating: Avoid.
Aug 06 06
This is a hard film for me to categorize. On one hand, the acting is very good, the story is interesting and relevant today, and Evey, Portman’s character, is well developed and intriguing. Hugo Weaving has the best voice among actors that I know, and he doesn’t dissapoint here. The production quality is also very good.
On the other hand, I tend to dislike movies with opressive, slightly surreal, dark environments. This movie is a bit twilight-zoney. However, I was still thinking about it more than a week after seeing it, and in my book that means it was excellent.
Rating: Excellent.
Aug 04 06
With well choreographed action scenes, agile camera work, and unrelenting pace, this movie is very entertaining. The action is up to par, and the way the impossible mission turns into a personal affair is well handled. There’s just about the amount of explosions, wrecks, high-tech equipment, flying bullets and pretty girls one would expect.
I especially liked the sequence where the bad guy is taken away from Cruise by an undercover special forces team. It’s very well executed, not too fast, and had me sitting in the edge of my seat.
Rating: Excellent.
Aug 02 06
A quite enjoyable film, although not up to the standards of the first two. This series remains behind only Spiderman in my favorite comic-book movie list. The conflicting personalities, the attempt at character development, and the appeal to tolerance mean this film is deeper than perhaps could be expected.
It’s not without its flaws, however. I’d like to point out what disappointed me most: the way Magneto goes down in the end. It’s similar to what happened to Anakin in Star Wars: ROTS. It makes me believe there’s a need for writers who can conceive truly epic, satisfying final confrontations.
Rating: Good.
Aug 01 06
This movie doesn’t raise itself above the Sunday afternoon crowd. The acting is below par, the characters are flat and lifeless, Luthor is never really menacing, and too many situations are left unexplained. This leaves us with a comic-based movie that is much less entertaing than the likes of X-Men or Spiderman. Superman’s disappearance plays no real role other than making Lois angry at him. I could never understand why Superman can’t just get over her — she’s got kids, for crying out loud.
Some of the special effects, though, are top notch. Not all.
Rating: Good.