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Reviews
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
One of the best movies ever.
I just had to add a huge raving review for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I think it's one of the best movies I've seen in a really long time. Very creative, very original, it's one of the greatest love stories of the deepest kind, but yet so much more. It has an enticing storyline, excellent acting, and the visual presentation is spectacular.
I'll have to admit that in some ways I was a little reluctant to see the movie. I haven't been a huge fan of Charlie Kaufman's work to date. Don't get me wrong. I like Being John Malkovich and Adaptation, but I don't necessarily love them. Eternal Sunshine keeps the quirky creativity that is trademark Kaufman, but the tone of the movie is so much different. It's intelligent, but not condescending, thought-provoking, yet entertaining.
All in all, if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it without reservation.
The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
My theory on the Matrix - how it all resolved and why I don't hate it so much (Warning: SPOILER)
Ok, so the first time I saw Revolutions I left completely confused in the "that didn't resolve a darn thing" kind of way.... but then I thought about it a little more, watched the movie a second time, and I think I have a theory that, at least in my mind, resolves everything, and puts a nice little frame on the three movies... So let me know what you think about my little theory.
Agent Smith and Neo were both created by the Oracle as a means of initiating a truce between the humans and the machines.
Sounds like a lot, so lets start at the beginning. First of all, a small line, that many probably caught out of its sheer weirdness is when Agent Smith called the Oracle "mom". As we'd seen in the beginning of the movie, it is possible for programs to create other programs, and this in an of itself is enough for me to think that quite possibly Smith was created by the Oracle. Smith is, in my mind, most easily characterized as a virus. And there's something unique about Smith, even before the scene in the hallway in the first movie. Of all the Agents, he's the only one that expresses a desire to get out of the Matrix. There's something different about him, right from the beginning.
About Neo... I think, given the end of the movie, Neo could be most easily characterized as a "virus fix," so to speak. Now, it seems unlikely that the Oracle would be talking about "The One," directing the humans towards finding "The One" if she didn't know that a virus fix was out there, and exactly where to find it. And, given that the Oracle created Smith, it also seems most unlikely that the Oracle would create a virus without creating a "virus fix." So that's why I think that the Oracle not only knew Neo would stop Smith, but had deliberately created Neo for that purpose.
First of all, addressing the who flabbergasted "What?!?! Neo a program?!!? Can't be!!!" cries: to begin with, Agent Smith proved that a program can inhabit a human brain (ex. Bane). Secondly, the Oracle says that the powers of "The One" extend all the way to where it came from, which is "the source" which I believe to be further proof of his possible "programic roots" so to speak.
Why did she do it? To facilitate a truce between the humans and the machines. At the beginning of the trilogy, the power balance is highly in favor of the machines. To ever end the war, there needed to be a shift in power, ever so slight that would give the humans a right to demand a truce. That is why the Oracle created a problem (Smith, the virus) and offered the solution (Neo, the fix). But she put the fix-it program in a human, which gave the humans an advantage over the machines (imbalance of equation) and gave them the opportunity to demand a truce
My last and final evidence for my theory. In the very end scene, the Oracle and the Architect meet up. The Architect's line: "You play a very dangerous game." This shows that a) The Oracle was indeed a key player in the turn of events, not just a watcher, b) The Architect and the Oracle were on opposing sides of this whole game (further delineated by the later discussion of terms for the release of the humans who wanted out of the Matrix).
That's my story and I'm sticking to it... What do you think?
Adaptation. (2002)
My thoughts on the ending...
Spoiler alert I've been glancing over a few of the comments here. Some say that the ending is great. Others say that while it is better than the ending to Being John Malkovich it is something that must be excused to really enjoy the rest of the movie.
Well, I simply wanted to add my two cents, not because I believe I have anything particularly unique to say, but just because I can. I thought the ending was hilarious. I actually had to stop the DVD until I could compose myself, I was laughing so hard. I don't know if this is a common reaction (I personally couldn't see many other people reacting this way) but if anybody else has had a similar experience, I would love to hear about it.
To many people, the reasoning behind my reaction may be obvious, but to enlighten those who may have missed the point, let me elaborate. The complete irony and total turn around from the screenplay that Charlie wants to write in the beginning of the movie, and the way the story turns out was just too funny for me. Everything he didn't want to have in the movie to begin with was jam packed into the ending (which was the advice Charlie got from McKee - you have a good script if you have an ending that will wow them). Orlean and La Rouche fall in love. The whole search for the Ghost Orchid becomes a drug scandal. There's a violent shoot-out in the end. Practically verbatim what he didn't want to add to begin with.
I know the writer(s) did this on purpose :) And I think anyone who hadn't caught on to this would have been totally confused and a little disappointed. However, once I caught on it was like I suddenly got the punchline to a great big joke. :)
The Boondock Saints (1999)
Hollywood's Hidden Gem
Boondock Saints is one of the best movies that I have ever seen (and I've seen a lot of movies). I found out about this movie purely through word of mouth. It seemed to spread like wildfire among my friends. Before I knew it, everybody had heard about it, seen it, and loved it (guys and girls alike). If you haven't seen it yet, you're missing out. That's all I have to say.
Insomnia (1997)
Liked it better
I liked this original version better than the US remake with Al Pacino. The Al Pacino version had more "stuff" in it (the investigations in LA, the infatuation between Pacino and Hillary Swank, Robin William's kidnap of Hillary Swank, etc. etc. etc. It deterred from the main message. Here there was a clear parallel between Jonas and Jon Holt. They both had committed an "accidental" murder. The "good guy" and "bad guy" were one and the same.