Gerry

GERRY (2002) - Sept. 30, 2005
About a couple of friends who go hiking in the desert and get lost, this film has absolutely no plot and barely any dialogue. And yet it's oddly compelling. The whole thing is basically just Matt Damon and Casey Affleck walking in the desert. But it's really well directed and strangely hypnotic. While it doesn't have the emotional resonance of something like Elephant, it's still quite entertaining throughout despite how slow-paced it is. ***

Serenity

SERENITY (2005) - Sept. 28, 2005
While this was definitely entertaining all the way through, it wasn't quite as good as I was hoping it would be. It probably didn't help that I've only seen one episode of the show, and the movie seems like it would work best if you're already familiar with the characters and their universe. The main problem is that the film never really slows down to allow us to get to know the characters (since they were already developed on the show, presumably); it just moves from plot point to plot point. There was also a richness to the pilot episode that this movie felt like it was lacking -- you really got a sense of the universe itself in that episode, but the movie seemed to be straight to business. I still enjoyed it, but I think perhaps I'll be able to appreciate it more when I watch all the episodes of the show. ***

Hostel

HOSTEL (2005) - Sept. 17, 2005
A surprisingly effective horror film about three friends whose trip to Europe takes a serious turn for the worse. Though there's at least 45 minutes before the bad stuff starts going down, the film is extremely entertaining throughout. And when stuff does start happening to the characters, its all the more effective because we know them so well. The film is really intense in some sequences, and quite gory. In fact, the last chunk of the film, with the main character attempting to escape, pretty much had me on the edge of my seat the whole time. As far as slasher movies go, this is essentially as good as it gets. ****

River Queen

RIVER QUEEN (2005) - Sept. 17, 2005
For a while, I was essentially entertained by this film. The performances were all really good (Samantha Morton was excellent in the main role, and Kiefer Sutherland - with a heavy Irish accent - was also really good in a smaller role), and the direction was bland but passable. But then there comes a point where it seems like the movie should end, and yet it keeps going for another twenty minutes. And then there was ANOTHER part where I thought, okay, now it MUST be over -- and it went on for another ten minutes! It was brutal. **

S.P.L.

S.P.L. (2005) - Sept. 17, 2005
Oh the humanity. This was a terrible, terrible film. It was a poorly-made, overwrought piece of garbage. There wasn't one decent character in the whole movie, nor was there even a single line of dialogue that seemed real. The whole thing was melodramatic and cheesy and so badly done. The performances were all over-the-top, the plot (involving a group of corrupt cops trying to take down a mob boss) was one big cliche, and the action scenes, for the most part, sucked. The director, up until the final action sequence, seemed to be taking a page from the Michael Bay school of direction, with lots of quick cuts during the action scenes. Plus, the whole movie had a glossy, Michael Bay type of look to it. But then there was the last fight sequence, in which the main character takes on Sammo Hung's main henchman, and then Sammo himself. This almost seemed like it was from another movie -- it was really good. I don't get that. If they were capable of making action this good, why'd they save it for the end? It the whole movie had been punctuated with action scenes of that caliber, it probably would have been decent (it certainly would have been a lot easier to overlook how terrible the actual movie was). *

Sympathy for Lady Vengeance

SYMPATHY FOR LADY VENGEANCE (2005) - Sept. 17, 2005
There are a lot of things that I really liked about this movie. It was really well directed -- the film was almost always interesting just on a visual level. The score was really good and complemented the visuals quite well. And there were a lot of sequences that were really well done. But then there was a lot of stuff that seemed superfluous, and the film got increasingly muddled as it went on (becoming downright confusing at times). The plot just seemed to be unnecessarily complicated. Plus the film really started to drag towards the end. It's too bad because this could have been a really good movie. **1/2

Winter Passing

WINTER PASSING (2005) - Sept. 17, 2005
While this movie was very well acted and reasonably well made, it was just so incredibly slow. I was able to go with it for a while, but towards the end the deliberate pace just got to me. It probably didn't help that none of the characters were all that interesting (with the possible exception of Corbit, played by Will Ferrell). **

The Myth

THE MYTH (2005) - Sept. 16, 2005
Well, this certainly wasn't Jackie Chan's finest effort. It started out well enough, but it started to really drag towards the end, and the final sequence, which took place in some kind of floating, zero-gravity mausoleum seemed to go on forever. The film was divided into stuff taking place in the past, with a romance between a general and a princess of some sort, and stuff in the present, with an archeologist and his scientist buddy (both starring Jackie Chan). One of the film's big problems was that for the most part, the stuff in the past wasn't all that interesting. The romance between Jackie Chan and the princess essentially didn't work at all, as they had zero chemistry together and in fact rarely even spoke to each other (despite the fact that a big chunk of the film was dedicated to their so-called romance). The stuff that took place in the present was considerably better, as Chan got to play more to his strengths (humour and elaborate martial arts sequences). The action (what little there was) was right up there with Jackie Chan's best stuff, with the highlight easily being a fight taking place in a rat glue factory. If this movie had been way shorter it may have been pretty good, but as it stands I was getting bored towards the end. **

Caché

CACHÉ (2005) - Sept. 14, 2005
A really bizarre film by Michael Haneke. About a couple who begin receiving tapes of footage filmed outside their home. Much of what makes this film so unique is Haneke's direction, which emphasizes unusually long shots. This, and the mystery of the tapes and who's behind it keep the film compelling, despite the movie's ultra-leisurely pace. ***

Trust the Man

TRUST THE MAN (2005) - Sept. 14, 2005
This started out really well. For the first half or so, I was enjoying it quite a bit; it was basically a better than average romantic comedy. The performances were all really good (David Duchovny and Billy Crudup were really good -- Crudup in particular was surprisingly good in a much lighter role than he usually plays, proving he is as adept at comedy as he is at drama). The dialogue was good, and there were also some genuinely funny parts. BUT... the movie was at least twenty minutes too long. As much as I was enjoying it at the beginning, it was completely plotless and in the latter half I was really just getting sick of it. It seriously overstayed its welcome. Which is too bad, because there's quite a good movie in here somewhere, it just needs some serious trimming. **1/2

The Proposition

THE PROPOSITION (2005) - Sept. 14, 2005
Though it took a while for me to fully get into it, this movie did eventually win me over. I liked the direction; the film contained some impressive scenes of the Australian outback. It also helped that Ray Winstone gave a really excellent performance, in fact probably his best that I've seen (it was a lot more subtle than his usual performances, relying a lot on facial gestures and such). I also liked the interaction between Ray Winstone's and Emily Watson's characters. The movie established a tone and a mood that really just drew me in, and there were some really powerful moments. ***1/2

Revolver

REVOLVER (2005) - Sept. 12, 2005
Well, I've been thinking about this movie all afternoon and I can safely say that I am baffled by it (but not necessarily in a bad way). Though it started out as what seemed like a straight-forward gangster movie, it just got stranger and more confusing and by the end I was scratching my head and wondering what it all meant. It was certainly well directed (though not as flashy as some of Ritchie's previous films) and well acted (Jason Statham and Ray Liotta are at their best, particularly Statham). But it was just strange, though thankfully not in a Miike or Lynch "strange for the sake of strange" type of way. Ritchie described it as "a chess game within a chess game within a chess game," which seems apt. I get the feeling that the movie will become a lot more clear and get a lot better on repeat viewings, but unfortunately I'm going to have to wait a while until I find that out. Certainly, kudos goes to Guy Ritchie for trying something different; I have a feeling that those expecting another Snatch or Lock Stock are going to be sorely disappointed. Who knows, I may watch this again and find that it is just as confusing and obtuse on repeat viewings, but I have a feeling that this is not the case. This has the potential to be a four star movie, I think, but right now I'm giving it a three. But then, since I wrote this a few hours ago, I've been thinking about the movie pretty much nonstop, so I'm going to have to bump this up to a three-and-a-half. ***1/2

The Exorcism of Emily Rose

THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE (2005) - Sept. 9, 2005
A creepy film about a priest who attempts to perform an exorcism, fails, and is forced to go on trial. Tom Wilkinson was really good (as usual) as the priest, as was Laura Linney as his lawyer. Most of the film is the trial itself, with the exorcism and such being seen in flashbacks. The movie is somewhat slow paced; the first creepy moment doesn't come until at least twenty minutes into it. But the pace worked, and I found that the courtroom stuff was just as effective as some of the scarier moments. But (and perhaps it helps that I scare very easily) this was still a really scary movie. It wasn't so much scary in a flat-out Ring sort of way, it was more eerie and unnerving. It helps that the movie avoids over-the-top supernatural stuff like the 360 head-turning and projectile vomiting of the Exorcist. The movie was really well directed, and some of the scenes were really suspenseful. In fact, when the credits rolled I noticed that my back and neck felt unusually tight; I must have been tensing up for extended periods without even realizing. ***1/2

The Transporter

THE TRANSPORTER 2 (2005) - Sept. 3, 2005
A somewhat disappointing sequel. It's especially disappointing given how good Unleashed was, Louis Leterrier's previous film. There were a couple of good action sequences, but the action was pretty mediocre for the most part. It didn't help that the whole film felt like a TBS version of an R-rated movie (it's really clear that this was originally supposed to be much more violent). It also didn't help that the movie was filled with action movie cliches (the generic European villain, the big quiet guy who does a lot of damage to the main character until he gets the upper hand, the fight on a plane in which the pilot is shot in the crossfire, and so on). It wasn't all bad, though. Jason Statham was quite good, and the film was essentially entertaining throughout. It was just mediocre. **1/2