Change Your Image
MrInitialMan
Reviews
The Great Train Robbery (1903)
Excellent, but beyond modern critique.
To modern eyes, this film is ludicrous. The plot is simplicity in itself (a gang robs a train), but it's sufficient (barely) for a 12-minute film. The special effects are almost laughable: an obvious dummy and equally obvious matte shots would never get by today, especially when they're the only special effects shots in the movie. The camera shots are almost unbelievably simplistic; it hardly ever moves.
So what does this movie have in common with horseless carriages of the 19th century? This: neither can be judged by modern standards, for they are more than a century old, and no modern standards apply.
To judge it, you must first spend a few hours watching what movies existed at the time. You'll probably be bored out of your tree with cute little dances and scenes of a couple people kissing, but watch them anyways. Then watch The Great Train Robbery. That way, you will be able to see that this had NO peers whatever in 1903.
After proper standards had been set by watching its contemporaries, I can now see why this work was the groundbreaking classic it was.
Dungeons & Dragons (2000)
The Ridleyest movie I've ever seen.
Hilariously awful. A fantasy movie that seemed fun at first, but ended up being the most overacted piece of tripe I've seen. While the movie has its high points and the plot had promise, the actors (particularily the evil characters) turned this movie to hash.
Profion was the absolute worst, a cartoonish caricature of a villain. He'd have been more believable if he'd been animated with crayons.
The dwarf was a disgrace to dwarfs everywhere, a drunken, bumbling sot with no use.
The thieves were the best and the most human, and watching them joke around was kinda fun; at least they gave the movie some humanity.
But all in all, I agree with Snails. "Ridley" is another word for "stupid", and this is the Ridleyest movie I've ever watched.
A must see, if you like Brainburn.
The Wave (1981)
Not much can take away from this movie
I saw this movie in high school. By then, the movie was more than 15 years old.
Acting might not have been the greatest, but I didn't really notice. It wasn't unbearably overacted, anyways.
Some have mentioned the movie is dated, but hey, it's 1981. 26 years old at the time of writing. Star Trek is dated, but it's still a great show.
The plot. Well, kids want to know how people got caught up in Nazism, and the teacher, having difficulty explaining, decides to demonstrate to them by creating an atmosphere of order and discipline.
The impact: Brrrrrr! This was down-right chiller, since when one watched it, one realized that it could so easily happen anywhere, as it was perfectly true to simple human nature. One of the scariest movies I have ever seen, and not a masked madman in sight.
In the Company of Men (1997)
NOT a Comedy.
"In the Company of Men" is an excellent movie for people who enjoy a mind-screw. It is a twisted film of a twisted man (Chad) who cares for no-one, convinces another man (Howard) into emotionally ruining a woman (Christine), and succeeds in ruining both of them.
Rare is the movie where the villain is the central character; rarer is the movie where this actually works. "In The Company of Men" is one of those rare movies.
Now, this movie has been called a comedy. If it is, it is a joke far too bitter to laugh at. It is though-provoking, it is sweet at times, it is indeed amusing at times, but in the end, this movie is VICIOUS. Chad is cruel beyond description, and enjoys nothing more than twisting people for his own pleasure, simply because he can (he even brags about this).
My personal opinion? I utterly despised this movie. It was well-done, and I hated every minute of it. This must be the ugliest film I have seen in my life, because I know Chads, I know Howards, and I know Christines. All Neil LaBrute need to do is make "In the Company of Women," and show how women destroy men.
No, this movie is no comedy. Not because it isn't funny, but because in the end, it is profoundly UNfunny. Movies that are "not funny" simply have their intended humor fall flat; movies that are UNfunny are quite simply never intended to be humorous in the first place (or at least seem that way).
And I cannot see any way this movie was intended to be funny.
The Boondock Saints (1999)
Not bad at all!
Boondock Saints was lots of fun. Yes, there were definite plot holes, but all in all, a worthy watch.
It is said that the most evil thing is for good men to do nothing, and this movie is about two brothers who take it to heart. They discover they can take on a bunch of Russian thugs, and take it to the next level.
Defoe is a bizarre actor, but one that had me laughing the entire time. So enjoyable seeing a gay character that does not fall into the handiest cliché.
It also does a good job as blurring the line between hero and villain, as two brothers set out to do what a detective wishes would be done.
There are surprises, but I didn't click the "Contains spoiler" check box, so I'm keeping mum.
Sonikku za hejjihoggu (1996)
Ridiculous but fun.
Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie.
First law of watching movies: If it says "The Movie" at the end of the title, it won't be good, and should not be taken seriously.
Second law of watching movies: If it's based off a KID'S GAME, it's gonna be a KID'S MOVIE. Do not expect a wonderful plot, impeccable dialog, or deep personalities in the characters. It's a KID'S MOVIE. Such movies are quite shallow, and, again, should not be taken seriously.
Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie, fulfills both laws, and thus, should not be taken seriously. Deal with it.
Okay, now to my own impression of this cartoon. It was a silly movie, but I kind of enjoyed it. Nice action, a few characters worth a snicker (like a kooky owl), and the setting of some scenes were great.
That it was set on Freedom Planet gave me the idea that this had little to do with the continuity of the games. Such suspicions were confirmed by a few new characters (a gutless king and a screaming brat of a princess), with only Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles as familiar characters.
I did have a few complaints. Number one, the princess drove me up the wall. I hate screaming brats; I hated the screaming girl in "War of the Worlds" and I hated this one. However, it was a Japanese movie, and I thought I read somewhere that the Japanese see temper tantrums and behaving like a little girl as a good thing. Whether or not that's true, I found it a little annoying.
Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles sounded like KIDS. Seriously. Mind you, in the comics, they are teenagers. I thought Sonic had way too much of a "screw you" attitude. Some might have thought it cool, I found it irritating. Tails was often hollering for help, especially in the beginning of the movie. (Interesting note here, Tails' real name is Miles.) Knuckles, I thought, was the best of the lot. He was laid-back, confident, and mature. Too bad he showed up so late in the movie.
Unlike a lot of movies with a shallow plot, this one's actually possible to follow. Maybe rather strange, but it does pick its way through a sequence of events, that are, at least when you let your inner child out, believable.
All in all, this wasn't a bad movie, if you know what to expect. If you're looking for something great and thought-provoking, don't watch this. If you want to watch a kid's movie that requires no thought whatsoever, enjoy.
The King and I (1999)
"It was such a cliché"
That was what I told my parents after I saw the movie. EVERYTHING was a cliché.
The Characters were clichés. Let's see, you've got The Noble But Naïve Man-In-Charge, The Evil Scheming Second-In-Command, The Evil Scheming Second-In-Command's Convenient Toady, the Know-It-All Lady (White, of course), the Witless Kid: clichés, stereotypes, cookie-cutter characters ALL.
The plot line was as predictable as a paint-by-numbers, connect-the-dots, or a jigsaw puzzle, except more so.
As for the romance, you couldn't get more predictable than that. Set apart by class, family disapproval... again, complete cliché.
Please, do me a favor. Surprise me. Have the king best the white lady once in a while. Have HER show some interest in what is right about Thai culture, rather than trying to correct it. Come to think of it, this movie was rather racist, with the white lady teaching the "foreigners" how to behave properly.
The animation, well, it was comparable to animated films in days gone by... something in the 60s or earlier, to be exact. But 1999? Give me a BREAK.
By the way, I think this movie was banned in Thailand because it made the King look ridiculous (A serious social sin over there, and I'm not being sarcastic or mocking). I don't blame them one bit.
Double Dragon (1994)
An enjoyable turkey.
Sit back, relax, turn your brains off, and enjoy! Do not think, as these two brothers battle their way through the remains of Los Angeles, to save the world from the Evil Whatsisface. Oh, God, I can't remember his name! Oh, yes, Kogo Shuko aka Guisman. Got that off the credits listed on the site. Interesting that he has a seemingly Asian name, while his appearance is entirely Caucasian.
Come to think of it, those two boys don't look like brothers either. Heck, they don't even look like they're of the same race. Must be half-brothers or something. Pardon my rambling.
The trick to understanding the plot is simple. If you look for a plot, you won't find one. If you expect NO plot, it will reveal itself. Worse yet, if you truly don't expect it to make a lick of sense, it kind of will, especially if you're willing to take plot holes big enough to swim in in stride.
One thing is for certain. You expect a good movie, and you'll wonder why you ever rented it. If you expect utter dreck, you'll walk away with a grin. I know I did.
1 star for quality, and 4 extra for the laughs.