Reviews

Just saw The Departed this afternoon and have to say that after all the hype--billed as a return to form for Scorsese--I am very disappointed. Gangs of New York is far superior as far as his recent outings go.

Scorsese's recent transference of old familiar themes (religion, sex, racism, violent pursuit of "success") from Italian Americans to Irish Americans is an admirable pursuit, but somehow not as meditatively treated as in the old days. At 2 1/2 hours, he may as well have given us a 3-hour movie with more heart and introspection. Somehow I felt that I could've sympathized with either or both of the main characters, if only I was given more background--not words, but actions. It felt like, OK, here's Matt Damon and here's Leonardo DiCaprio, you've seen them before, so why go into their backgrounds or histories. Too bad, because it could've been so rich, especially for the Damon character--as the "traitor" he was also capable of moments of real warmth and ambivalence.

Jack Nicholson did a good job, as always, but sometimes I felt like it was a joke for him--are we watching the character or the actor? He did not bring the weight to the movie that he is capable of, or that a more serious actor such as Daniel Day-Lewis did to his comparably evil Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York.

And are you kidding me? How could Frank not know who the traitor in his midst was? Why not kill the main suspect just to be safe? His bond with DiCaprio was very weak.

Sorry. I like Matt Damon; he's capable of real depth. Too bad his skills weren't used to their fullest potential. The supporting cast, especially Mark Wahlberg, was solid. I just found myself wondering how much of the movie was contrived to either adhere to or deviate from the original Japanese movie. If it were an original project, maybe Scorsese would've put more love into it.

I had intended to boycott Mel Gibson, not for his recent personal problems, but for his awful waste of celluloid, "The Passion of the Christ". That was one of the worst movies I've ever seen: no real plot, no real character development, just a two-hour, slow-motion unfolding of physical torture. However, I saw the "20/20" episode on "Apocalypto" and was intrigued, plus Gibson charmed me with his charisma, and it seemed he was wrestling with some heavy themes in his new movie.

Like "The Passion", "Apocalypto" takes place within a time span of roughly 24 hours. I wonder if Gibson is capable of directing a movie that unfolds over a longer time span. Like "The Passion", this movie deals with a lot of torture and human suffering--the ability to rise above one's suffering with superhuman willpower--as does every movie Gibson has starred in. However, he portrays suffering in a manner that does not increase the audience's empathy with the characters. It's like the true star of the movie is pain itself. Adrenaline can help a person overcome some amount of injury, but it becomes absurd. This is easily the bloodiest movie I've seen all year, so don't bring the kids.

I had expected a thoughtful thesis on the fall of the Mayan civilization; instead, the viewer is treated to a caricature of human depravity. The protagonist is marched through successive levels of hell: out of his Eden, he witnesses disease, deforestation, and famine. Comparing the deforestation of the jungle to the loss of natural habitat that eventually became our modern world (New York City), one Mayan soldier quotes Ratso Rizzo, "I'm walking here!" In spite of its faults, this movie was visually engaging. The jungle, the people, the costumes, and the Mayan city were filmed well. Also, I did enjoy the action, especially shots of the protagonist running through the rain forest. He does grow as a character, even if his journey is the frequently visited journey from boyhood to manhood, a la "The Jungle Book".

I was never bored during "Apocalypto", but I was never challenged, either. A more compelling movie dealing with similar issues is probably John Boorman's "The Emerald Forest".

SPOILERS IN LAST PARAGRAPH

Visually stunning, awesome soundtrack--not just the music, but all the sounds in the film: swirling wind, water droplets, clanging swords-- great choreography, sets, costumes, etc.

Unfortunately this movie is nothing more than pro-Communist propaganda, and while I'm not a jingoistic American vehemently against Communism, propaganda always bores me. "Yeah, we figured out what you were cramming down our throats 40 minutes ago. Ease up already." It's the same feeling I got when leaving the theater after "The Passion of the Christ": that I'd been used, manipulated and subjected to almost two hours of pure slow motion. Slow motion is a director's way of saying that the audience is too obtuse to grasp the beauty of motion in real time.

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How many times do I have to see one person die? It didn't intensify my feelings for him and his lover, the repetition made me not care.

SPOILERS

I was told this movie is really depressing, but in order for that to be true I would've had to watch a movie with engaging characters. Guess what? I couldn't empathize with any of these losers, because they were flat, one-dimensional and pathetic. Most stories of drug addiction give us some glimpse of a character's potential for success--their charm, their attractiveness, their intelligence, a successful career or academic promise--and then show it all going down the drain. Or maybe we'll see why they turned to drugs, what their problems were, what they need to escape. Here we get none of that. In this movie they start as loser/addicts and end as loser/addicts. Everyone gets what he and she deserves. Some initially neat camera and editing work that gets old very quickly--would've been cool in a music video, but that's about it. Why does Hubert Selby Jr. have to end all his movies with women whoring themselves in especially degrading ways (cf. Last Exit to Brooklyn)? 3/10

Contains Spoilers!!

This is a hilarious, non-P.C. spoof of Rocky in which our hero is too handsome to fight in anything but rigged bouts, yet he thinks he can be a contender. What he really wants, however, is to impress the Bensonhurst mafia boss enough to land a cushy job working for organized crime. Spike is a likable guy, who in any other movie would emerge as the triumphant hero. His problem is that he doesn't have any ambition, and there are some misunderstandings as the plot unfolds, so life deals him some tough lessons. Not only a hilarious movie, but sincerely touching too. Look for Mrs. Benjamin Bratt in her first role.