Change Your Image
kadler
Reviews
Heart (2006)
It is what it is
Saw this movie in Indonesia during the original release. It is about one hour too long and the plot itself is extremely hard to believe, but the music makes up for the lack of everything else this movie lacks. If you walk away humming Pencinta Wanita, My Heart, and Sampai Menutup Mata then it was worth the ordeal as the music ranks up there with some of the best soundtracks in the last 20 years. The great music can be credited to the talented Melly Goeslaw who wrote and recorded many of the songs in this film with a full orchestra including the title track My Heart.
If you're not from Indonesia then you don't know that for a while Irwansyah and co-star Acha Septriasa were a real-life item. Unfortunately, none of that connection translates to the screen. The best scene is when Rachel (Nirina Zubir) tries to run over her friend Farel (Irwansyah).
Inception (2010)
Breathtaking Cinema - Why we go to the movies
Inception is wonderful movie that takes you deep into the emotional dilemma of a man who is coming to grips with his wife's suicide. The visual medium never "felt" so real as you're presented with scenarios that draw out Cobb's feelings as he travels on his journey towards acceptance.
While much has been said about the on-screen plot, the emotional plot is what drives this movie. We're presented with visuals where the on-screen action is merely a trigger for deeper emotions. Take Mal's suicide scene with facing duplicate hotel rooms (one trashed, one in perfect order). It's easy to sense the symmetry of love and how Cobb felt helpless to watch half of himself die (as Mal says to Ariadne a half of a whole). It's obvious this isn't how Mal died, but you can feel the sense of concern, anger, sadness, helplessness, pain and emptiness that Cobb feels just from living through that scene. This is cinema at its best.
The two key elements that codify the ideas of the movie are held in two riddles: 1. The "Travelling on a train" riddle, which signifies the idea that Cobb had embedded so deeply into his mind that he and Mal would grow old together (the idea that like a virus was embedded deep into Cobb's mind) and 2. The "leap of faith" riddle which ends appropriately with "or become an old man, filled with regret, waiting to die alone" (Cobb knows he has to move on but has to travel the journey of denial, anger, bargaining and acceptance (which is what each level of the dreams represented) to get there.
To fully deal with her death Cobb had to realize that Mal did spend her whole life with him, but he can no longer live on just that memory of her and has to move on for the kids and himself.
The whole movie was a dream until he awakens on the plane surrounded by strangers he incorporated into his dream during the flight (he never talks to them and they never act like they truly know him). As Mal said it best "Feeling persecuted ... being chased around the world by anonymous corporations (wouldn't any husband feel people must blame him if his wife committed suicide?) ... I'm what's real" ... and she truly was.
This movie will be amongst the classics for a very long time.
Cast Away (2000)
Fantastic Metaphor for Divorce
On the surface this movie appears to be another "stranded on an island" story, however it's a very deep metaphoric exploration of a man's experience of going through a divorce.
The acting, pacing and audio are sensational. Great work by all involved with the silver lining that life does go on and you can find love again.
Hanks at his absolute best, and perhaps more deserving of a best actor award than any of his prior performances. Hopefully over time this movie will garner the staying power and recognition that it truly deserves.
Jarhead (2005)
Offensive, pointless, amazing!
I seldom find myself offended by a movie, however this movie was just a 2 hour parade of ignorance mixed in with an absolute disregard for entertainment value.
I am amazed someone actually wrote a script, someone read it ... then decided to make it and actually convinced actors to be in it. This movie makes Super Troopers look like Raging Bull. It saddens me to think of the materials and man-hours that will be wasted not just from watching this thing, but even worse producing a DVD. Couldn't they do something better with that energy? I'd even be happy if they used it to produce another Land Before Time cartoon.
There were lame clichés, attempts to create realism through offensive humor and characters so shallow that they make chalk outlines look like Marlon Brando's "Terry Malloy" in On the Waterfront.
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Quite simply the best movie ever made ...
For 10 good reasons ESB is the best movie ever:
10. Not the same formula
Studios love taking the same premise and characters and generating cash in a repeatable fashion without having to do much creative work. If they make $60 million on a movie about a talking dog, you can bet they'll try to make $50 to $60 million again with the exact same storyline and characters.
The original Stars Wars was a happy-go-lucky coming of age story where the good guys win. Even at 8 years old in 1980 I expected to see the same formula when I went to the drive-in to watch ESB. Instead, were presented with the best sequel of all time. Every sequel knows that if you wish to really establish your franchise in the second film you need to create the magic that ESB presents. NOTE: Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Kahn is very close is establishing a franchise with a sequel.
9. A change in tone
The first film was happy and carefree with no sense of real tension or drama (who didn't believe Luke would take out the Death Star?). The second film is dark and one inescapable dead end after another (Luke stuck in the snow, Luke's X-Wing stuck in the water, Han Solo in the carbon chamber, Luke on the edge, etc.).
8. Consistent motivation of characters
This movie is about friendship and sacrifice. Every major character in this movie from Luke to Darth Vader is used to communicate this message. Whether it's Luke not willing to sacrifice his friends or Vader manipulating Luke's weakness; his loyalty to his friends ... the message is always about friendship and sacrifice for those that we care for.
A great movie recently had a character (Jesus) say "You are my friends. And there is no greater love than for a man to lay down his life for his friends."
7. Humor
In a film with lots of drama, they managed to put lots of decent jokes that really balanced out the tension. Seeing Han Solo, who's always acting like he's in control, lose control when the Falcon won't jump to lightspeed is classic. Even C-3PO has moments of great humor (unlike in the new films).
6. Action Sequences
This movie has some of the greatest action sequences ever; the Astroid sequence being the best. There are many great moments to mention, but my #2 action moment all-time behind the opening to X-Men 2 is when they are in the Falcon being chased by Star Destroyers and Han Solo manages to nearly cause two destroyers to collide; pure joy.
5. Romance
The romantic tension between Leia and Han Solo is quite obvious. I can't think of many moments of cinema more heartfelt than when Han Solo is being lowered into the carbon chamber.
4. Cliffhanger
Will they save Han Solo? Will Luke join the dark side? Will the Rebels prevail? So many good questions. I can remember distinctly the time between ESB and "Return of the Jedi" as being too long.
3. Human Story
In a universe of ships, lasers and people in strange gear ... what stands out most is the human element of ESB. You could take this same story and put it in the 16th century or even as a drama set in modern times and it would translate well.
2. Music
The Stars Wars theme was already well established, but Yoda's Theme and the Imperial March are songs that will last maybe even longer than the film itself. This is John William's best work ever other than for JFK in my opinion. The music in this film creates a visual and audible masterpiece like nothing other I've ever seen.
1. Greatest plot twist in movie history
Four words ... "I am your father". I mean, does it get any more intense? Luke finds out the person he hates most, the one thing that he would love to rid the galaxy of most is his own father. Not only that, but he immediately realizes as well that someone he stood behind (Obi-Wan) had been misleading him (Obi-Wan told him Vader killed his father).
Super Troopers (2001)
No modern day Smokey and the Bandit
Though there were some funny parts, they were often dragged down by the large amount of drug, alcohol, and gross-out related gags. No Smokey and the Bandit; which is what I think some of the parents in the audience were hoping for. If you haven't seen Police Academy 7, this movie will seem funny and original.
The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000)
Take the good with the bad
This movie was really hard to rate. At times I could easily have given it an 8 because of the fantastic sets, effects, costumes, acting, and dialogue. Of course, I could also drive it down at times because of all of those same reasons. Either way, much better than the original (even without Halle Berry) and much more to the original series.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Good, not close to great
It was inevitable that the fanboys would come out in swarms to vote this dog to the top spot. It has happened in the past. Movies like Memento, Shichinin No Samurai, and American Beauty are all examples of the voting disparity of IMDB. The first hour of LOTR: FOTR is actually good. Right up to the point where we take to the road for a pointless and endless 2 hour trek to rid Middle Earth of the ring. I can only imagine that the next 7 hours of this "masterpiece" are filled with a continuation of this journey that takes us neither anywhere extremely interesting or original. When the credits role, your first reaction will be to throw your food at the screen in anger ... and your second reaction will be to wonder why some people in the audience are acting like this film is anything more than just another film. Some people actually applauded the no-ending film. I didn't read the book, and I have no interest in reading the book knowing now that there's no ending. There's so much wrong with this film from the hilariously embarassing wizard fight, to the use of the old Frodo is dead trick twice, the lack of any interesting female characters, the horrid music that would even be bad for an elevator. This movie is filled with zooming into Frodos eyes, shots of Frodo pulling the ring out of his pocket, and shots of people walking. I highly suggest the fans of this movie take a week off, watch movies like High Noon, The Godfather, The Empire Strikes Back, 12 Angry Men, and JFK. It's a 6, but keep in mind that films like Osmosis Jones and Dogma got the same vote from me. Get an ending film, and maybe I'll reconsider.
Monsters, Inc. (2001)
A waste of time
This movie didn't do anything right; the comedy was bad, the characters were completely undeveloped, and the story was just plain uninteresting and unintelligent. This film even failed visually with mediocre scenery. I thought it was a given that Disney would somehow manage to do something right after 2 years of sub par releases. I was wrong. This ain't no Toy Story 2 or Shrek. Safe your money for Harry Potter.
Zoolander (2001)
This was a comedy?
This film was many things, but a comedy was not one of them. Maybe a parody, but there really was no way to tell since I can't figure out what the real world items they were parodying were. Not a bad film if you don't consider it a comedy though.
Rat Race (2001)
I'll never look at Praire Dogs the same way again
Funny film, a diversion from everyday life. For 2 hours all my problems and worries went away. The laughs sometimes fall short, sometimes hit high. The great thing is that you can almost believe everything you see ... almost. Worth watching, though you'll never look at praire dogs the same way again.
The Matrix (1999)
Nice camera tricks, very little else worth seeing
Matrix die-hards aren't going to like my thoughts on this film. Beyond the cool camera stylings of the brothers, this film had less content than a 30 minute episode of Teletubbies. It's a shame that they have to make a sequel of this film, but with the other movie fair on the horizon it might actually present an alternative. I don't buy the story, mystique and cool music. In 10 years this will look as uncool as the Last Starfight and Red Dawn.
Shrek (2001)
Best Movie of 2000
Forget about the ape movie, Pearl Harbor flick ... this movie delivers. Not only is the movie worth watching over and over again, I'm hoping they release the soundtrack of Donkey singing On the Road Again. It does slow down towards the end and take the obvious route, but they make up for it with a spirited and funny Monkey's rehash. If you're going to watch one film this year, you must not get out too often ... but still, watch Shrek.
Titanic (1997)
Greatest film ever made
It will be another 25 years before a picture like this connects so well with the masses. The last film to do so was the immensely popular Dr. Zhivago. Just like Zhivago this film has seemed to fade away as time has passed. Gone, but not forgotten as director after director attempts to recreate James Camerons masterful film. If you didn't like the love story, the special effects amazed you. If you didn't like the length, the sets and waredrobes amazed you. There so much well done about this film that you couldn't possibly find something worth admiring. The only film to come close to achieving pure entertainment is the Empire Strikes Back.
Unbreakable (2000)
Unbelievable Unbreakable
If you watch this movie and don't get it, stop going to the bathroom or buying candy. This is the most intelligent film that has come along in years. A typical super hero origin film, that doesn't let you in on it until the very end. The film preys upon our inability to accept super heroes that are based in reality. The best movie of the year.
Gladiator (2000)
Good, but not great
I thought that there were many good things about this film, but the story played like an episode of All My Children, and plot holes leaked the rain from outside into the theater (if he could escape being executed by the soldiers ... why couldn't he escape being forced to be a Gladiator?). I think Russell Crowe did a good job, but nothing about the Maximum role required him to act that hard. The best moment for him in the film was when Lucious approached him in the Gladiator holding cage ... very genuine acting. This film need more humour and tender moments. The biggest problem I had was believing the ending.
Dinosaur (2000)
Some great effects, very little story
This film has ground-breaking animation (the water and hair animation is unbelievable), but the story is anaemic and atypical of the half-hearted Disney efforts we've been seeing the past few years. Good for little kids (except for the weak-hearted ... I was more afraid during this film than during Gladiator), but 1 hour and 10 minutes too long for adults.