Reviews

The day I saw this Film, I had already seen Collateral. There could not be a greater contrast between two films, and I could especially appreciate that contrast, since I had only 30 minutes between the two shows. Both Films are enjoyable, for different reasons. Collateral is a masterpiece in Film-making, something akin to modern Film-Noir. It is a thrill-a-minute film, with hope suspended for its duration and fear always present. The Terminal is a film which while duly showcasing various fears about Security and Terrorism, seems to swell with Hope from the word go; Hope that the Human race may one day understand that kindness and understanding can overcome anything.

The Film deals with Victor Navorksi (beautifully played by Tom Hanks), a traveller from a (fictional) country called Krakozhia. As he arrives in New York, a civil war erupts in Krakozhia, which creates a diplomatic problem, since the American Government doesn't recognise the sovereignty of Krakozhia anymore. Navorski's passport is no longer valid and all of a sudden he is stuck between two worlds, Krakozhia and America, unable to step into either. Instead, the diplomatic impasse means that he is forced to spend his time in the Airport until his case can be sorted out. In some strange extended transit stay, Navorski literally becomes a a part of the fabric of the International Terminal, much to the anger of Frank Dixon (Stanley Tucci), the guy in charge of the Airport's security. Try as he might, Dixon cant find a way to get Navorski to leave his Terminal. Meanwhile, Victor adapts to his new life and begins to 'live' in the Terminal. He meets new people, like the Airport staff, all of whom try and help him and he eventually falls for Amelia (Catherine Zeta-Jones), an air-hostess, who's in a relationship with a married Pilot and who ends up forming a special bond with Victor. We get the feeling they're soul mates - She talks, he's a patient listener. It seems like a match made in heaven. It only adds to Victor's experiences inside the Airport where he gets to see American life in a confined space, thus enjoying America while still not technically in America.

The film gives us an insight into the way Airports function in America today. There is the hovering presence of the Department of Homeland Security, the heightened post 9/11 fears about Air Travel and a slightly generalised attitude towards naive foreigners entering the USA. Navorski's story is shown compassionately and with a great deal of understanding, as are the little side stories about the Spanish Truck driver who's in love with the Immigration Officer or the Indian Janitor, who has a bit of a dark past. But the beauty is that these side stories never deflect from the main storyline, which meanders along at a slightly sedate pace, as Victor juggles his life at the Airport with his feelings for Amelia and his desire to help his new-found friends.

This film was really the perfect antidote to Collateral, which, like I said is another form of film perfection, but also a film which leaves you cold and worried about the fact that Human beings could kill so easily. Here too, humans are shown to be uncaring and cold-hearted, but there is also hope and that is what drives this film - the hope that we may all understand each other one day.

When H G Wells wrote the War of the Worlds, it was meant to be a critical look at the British Empire and its rather idealistic self-appraisal as the Greatest Empire in the World, which is shown to be so comprehensively inconsequential when the Aliens invade and start destroying Earth, with Humanity (and the British Empire) seemingly powerless to stop it from happening.

Since the British Empire has been dead and buried for the better part of the last 50 years, a new Empire was needed as the main protagonist for an updated version of the War of the Worlds. Steven Spielberg chose the only real empire left in the World today, the United States of America. This modernising of the story is understandable, yet it is hard to ignore the fact that this movie tries to put into perspective America's dominance of the world and the fact that when thinking of the universe as a whole, America and the human race in general are inconsequential.

The updated Story revolves around the character of Tom Cruise, a crude and egocentric father who's life centres around himself. He's taking care of his son and daughter for a weekend while his ex - wife (Miranda Otto) is away with her husband on a trip to Boston. Unfortunately for him, that weekend happened to be the time a group of Aliens decide to attack Earth. The Story is easy to follow since Spielberg keeps it surprisingly simple, concentrating on the 3 main characters as they attempt to flee the strange tripod-like Alien machines.

This movie is not about confrontation, it is about escape. Only at the very end do we get to see Tom Cruise slip into Ethan Hunt mode and try and fight back. The ending of the film is the same as the book's, but while it worked for the book, when employed here, it seems to cut the story short rather than finishing it. At the beginning, Spielberg chooses to spend no time developing the story preferring to jump right into the action. The ending suffers similar problems; it ends all too quickly, considering everything the protagonists have been through. As for the acting itself, there's nothing spectacular, though there is a wonderful cameo by Tim Robbins, as a man who has lost his family to the Aliens and who now stubbornly believes that fighting them is the best course of action. There is more than a hint of Irony about this role. Dakota Fanning plays Cruise's daughter; yes, I know she's only 11 and that she's supposed to be a great actress for her age, but she seemed to be overacting here. Either that, or I'm not making an allowance for the natural exuberance of a 11-year old girl.

The special effects are all standard fare, as you would expect from an accomplished director like Spielberg, but he doesn't really do the story justice. This movie gives me the impression of having been put together in a hurry, in a rather hotch-potch way, which is not surprising, since the release date was brought forward by almost two full years. There is a marked difference between this movie and The Terminal, which was Spielberg's last film set in post September 11th America. In The Terminal, Tom Hanks attempts to approach his predicament with optimism, despite the mess he finds himself in. Here, there is no optimism, just plain fear and desperation. I was disappointed, though the story deserves credit for its pace, never slacking anywhere, especially in the middle, when films tend to slow down. For that and the fact this is not bad overall (I was more disappointed with Spielberg that the movie itself), I'll give it 6 on 10.

Normally when it comes to voting for movies on the IMDb, I'm quite liberal. I don't set very high standards for movies. I always tend to rate films based on how much I enjoy them and this means that most of the time I always rate films highly cos I try and find something good in every film I see. I saw this film when I was vacationing in England. BBC One actually transmitted this at 11 PM, since they believed that The Peacemaker was a film more deserving of the 9:00 slot. Unlike the Peacemaker, Shooting Fish is a film that almost anybody would enjoy, unless he/she was the kind of person who found simple effective storytelling a turnoff.

Everything about this movie seems in perfect harmony. The chemistry between Dan Futterman and Stuart Townsend is perfect, word for word. And Kate Beckinsale is a perfect third piece to the puzzle; When the conversations in the movie occur, you never get the feeling you're watching a contrived conversation written by someone else, you get the feeling you're watching real life unfold. That's a hallmark of a good scriptwriter and the people who wrote this deserve credit for the story.

As for the story itself, it never lets itself become too complicated and lends itself to a lot of funny situations. Fast-talking Dylan and socially naive Jez (Futterman and Townsend) are two con men trying to raise money to build their dream house. They end up enlisting Georgina's (short-haired Kate Beckinsale in a beautiful role from her pre-Hollywood Glamourpuss days) help on a particular scam. Soon she discovers what they're up to and the story unfolds from there, with both Dylan and Jez seemingly falling for Georgie. Here again, the movie doesn't nosedive and morph into a conventional love story; rather, the romance builds in a backdrop to the main story and culminates in a heartwarming finale. As for Dan and Jez, some of their schemes may not be very believable and yet you cant help but be amused by the way they go about implementing them.

This film is a good reason why small budget comedy romances are popular - simply put, they work. On every level. Watching this film gives you the same kind of feeling as watching While you were Sleeping, for example. For the sheer sweetness of the film and for Kate Beckinsale's performance, I'd give it 7 on 10.