Reviews

I liked Donnie Darko.

Hmn... after reading many reviews, I've decided that if I post any of my own on this website from here on out I'm only going to post a 10 if I liked it overall, or a 1 if I didn't enjoy it. Enough of this accusatory bull.

If you liked the damn movie, say so, and if you didn't, say so. Say something intelligent instead of ranting to people who disagree with you. Too many people get on here and waste their time preaching to other people about a freaking movie they saw. A review is an opinion, right? So if someone doesn't hold the same opinion as you, what's it to you? They're opinion probably won't change if you call them an idiot and list a whole bunch of reasons why they're idiots which they probably don't understand anyway. Maybe you don't understand the reasons why they think you're an idiot. If no one changes their mind, we'll all live. No one's getting hurt.

Then again, if you like arguing and getting all worked up over something not really that important in the grand scheme of things, who am I to tell you not to? We all get our kicks in different ways.

I therefore retract this post.

Enjoy!

This movie sat in a dusty stack of videos in my house for ages before we watched it. We knew it was there- every time someone wanted to watch a movie, it was suggested. It almost became a joke... "I know, let's watch Throw Momma from the Train"... I don't know why it was always turned down, it just was. Little did we know what we were missing out on. It still befalls me why it took us so long...I mean it stars Danny DeVito, Billy Crystal, and Ann Ramsy (who we referred to as "The Lady from the Goonies"), an all star cast that should have appealed to everyone in my household. But there it sat for nearly ten years. Until one day it was suggested and we could turn it down no longer....

It was like finding King Tut's tomb...

No movie has ever made me laugh so hard, and I doubt any movie ever will. I had to rewind for almost every line because I was still laughing at the line that came before it, and lost ability to hear or pay attention. Not just simple laughing, either... the kind of laughing that expends more energy than running ten miles in the cold. The kind of laughing that you cannot control, that causes rolling around and spasms, and tears and snot running down your face because it's just that freakin funny. Once I learned the movie by heart I will say this effect has lessened, but I don't think I will get tired of watching it and finding new quirks in it to appreciate. I think that's all I can say. I would recommend this movie to anyone, but if you don't enjoy it please don't let me know, I will probably be offended.

I think I might cry. I feel so hopelessly misunderstood. This movie is brilliant.... I feel as though the epitome of my sense of humor has been rated "two stars"... this is depressing...

It's just... brilliant. It's completely nonsensicle and pointless and brilliant, much like a dream I might have when on too much cold medicine. Much like the dreams that I find most delightful...

It's one of those movies I find myself quoting all the time just to hear the lines again. Everyone thinks I'm nuts when I quote it because of course no one has ever heard of it. I've taken to making the little "plop" noise that Steve Martin does when he gets too flustered... when I get too flustered. Madeline Kahn is my hero. I relate too well to Mrs. Munchnik, sanity surrounded by chaos only to find that deep down, she too is a nut. If I were stuck on an elevator, I would have acted just as she had, making up little raps... It's the simple stuff... simple stupid stuff. That's what makes this film so brilliantly refreshing. It's so dumb! Take Adam Sandler, for instance. There was no reason for this character whatsoever. It was entirely random and uncalled for. It was almost as if he happened to be walking by and they called him over and said "Hey, Adam! Wanna be in a movie?"... the only thing he did was show off his mad ukulele skills. And he made me laugh... he was there for the sole purpose of being funny, no strings attached. It was so refreshing. As was this whole movie. Like a good dream! To me it is proof that when you have fun making it (which it appears impossible that they did not), you have fun watching it. At least I do... I'm gonna watch it tonight and appreciate it's wonderfulness.

I was enormously relieved that the end of this movie was... sort of... happy. I don't think I could take much more sorrow. Some might say the down-trodden feel this movie had was overdone, however I think every bit of the misery shown in this film is necessary. It is true to life. Anyone who watches the news can see that the world is full of sad stories like these, and to say it is "cliche" or "overdone" is a bit blind. The brutal reality is what really clinched me and kept me involved up until the end.

Each character in this beautifully casted film had moments that wowed me, but Thorton and Berry by far stole the show. This was the first Billy Bob Thorton film I had seen, and one of the best. The transformation he undergoes is amazing. Going from such a stone-hearted man to a loving caretaker(/sex god) was not only impressive, but enjoyable. It really makes you believe that it's never too late to find happiness. I think that's really what this movie is about- finding happiness. Or rather, not being alone. It makes a lot of statements about racism, and the differences between generations, but at the root of it, it's simply about two lonely people coming together. Halle Berry as Leticia shows that sometimes it is a struggle to accept happiness when it is found. After being stripped of it for so long, it's a wonder she managed to accept it in the end. It was a risk, but obviously she made the right choice. The final scene stole my breath. When they sat beside each other on the back porch you couldn't help but feel this wonder... it was somewhat inconclusive and mysterious. We don't know what happens next, it seems their story continues... but we know that whatever happens next they will face together, in contrast to the desperate loneliness they both experienced in the start of the film.

Ah I have more to say, but I'm kinda tired of typing. I'm sure you can find it in other reviews there's like fifty billion of them anyway.

When you have a story as good as the Phantom of the Opera is, and music and words that reflect the powerful meaning of that story, everything else either falls right into place, or falls by the wayside. In this film, I feel it fell right into place. Andrew Lloyd Weber's score remains in both the stage version and the film version- the heart of the story. Everything else simply had to fit with that. And the visuals (lighting, costumes, sets, everything) certainly fit. The vocals weren't exactly breathtaking by most of the cast, but not bad either. What stood out to me was the overall performance of Gerard Butler as the Phantom. A character I already sympathized with, he pushed even further and made me simply fall in love with. The scenes between Christine and Raoul were also sturdy and believable, and they allowed me to relive a story I already knew well, even forming new opinions about. It was worth my money, and I'd see it again, but I've been dying to get back and see it live once more. That's just me, though.

I was surprised and impressed to find out this movie was released in 1940, before the United States entered World War II. On the surface, satirizing something as solemn and horrible as Nazi Germany could be misconstrued as rash. But Chaplin's brilliance isn't limited to making a joke out of everything. In fact, the seriousness of his message wouldn't have been nearly as valid if not for the excellent use of humor in this movie along with the moments of stark drama blended in. Drama alone wouldn't have had the bite and resonance that this film did. Laughing at someone (Adenoid Hynkel) can be the best way to attack them, while laughing with someone (the Jewish Barber) can be the best way to love them. In the Jewish Barber's final speech, I forgot for a moment that the war he was talking about happened more than half a century ago. They are words that have meaning now, and in any time of war. For this reason I believe the film did far greater good than harm, as it still has the same profound effect today.