Jun 25 07
Appealing to fans of the Fantastic Four and comic book-based movies, there is nothing remarkably good nor excruciatingly bad here, just a mediocre film best saved for a lazy evening in front of the TV. Expect a lengthy explanation of how the fantastic crew (and the villain) got their powers, some cool special effects, a couple of attempts at character development, and an underwhelming final confrontation.
Rating: Good.
Jun 23 07
There’s no easy way to say it, but it’s true: the magic of the first two movies is over. This film takes us back to the pre-X-men days of mediocre comic-book movies.
The worst is the mishandling of Peter’s fall into the “dark side”, caused in equal parts by his growing conceit and arrogance, and by a dark symbiote substance from space. Well, apparently, the most visible consequence of embracing darkness is a tendency to act like a complete moron on the streets. Rather underwhelming.
Avoid this film and cherish your memories about the first two instead.
Rating: Avoid.
Jan 05 07
This film provides little more than Sunday afternoon entertainment for the younger set. The story is simplistic where not nonsensical, the plot is unoriginal and the acting atrocious. Except for the dragon, none of the characters has any personality.
I find films like this very frustrating. It is so hard to find quality fantasy movies, and Eragon is part of the way there: it has the believable young dragon, the crafty veteran warrior, the poweful evil wizard, the realm to liberate, the beautiful and resourceful princess. However, it just falls short due to a neutered, unintelligent script. A shame.
Rating: Good.
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.