EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING (2004) - August 24, 2004 (S)
I'd like to see the original version of this movie. Stellan Skarsgard was good, but the movie... I don't know. It started off well enough. In fact, for the first half-hour or so, I was thinking "hey, this isn't so bad!" But then it just seemed to run out of steam and it pretty much went nowhere. It probably didn't help that it wasn't scary, creepy, or even shocking (I don't think there was a single legitimate, non-"oh, it was just the radio!" shock in the whole movie). Plus the character of the main woman was pretty much useless, and only really existed to get possessed at the end. And Stellan regaining his faith seemed a little too easy. I mean, come on, he only decides to stop being grizzled and to become a priest again after he personally sees the devil posses someone? I think I would become a priest after that. **
Short reviews of all the movies I see, rated out of four. Reviews containing spoilers are marked with an (S).
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
Alien vs. Predator
ALIEN VS. PREDATOR (2004) - August 18, 2004
A stupid movie. For a movie called "Alien vs. Predator" the aliens and the predators didn't fight nearly as much as you'd think they would (which is too bad, because the scenes where they do fight are probably the highlight of the movie). Plus the movie spends way too long setting everything up. Which wouldn't have been a problem, except for the fact that there wasn't a single decent character in the whole movie. I felt like Milhouse during that episode of Itchy and Scratchy with Poochie in it. "When are they going to get to the fireworks factory??" The action scenes were all incoherent and the violence was ultra toned down, which made all the stuff with the humans being hunted pretty pointless. Plus that crazy alliance between the predator and the human was just bizarre (there's just something wrong about a shot where a predator and a human run side by side away from an explosion). *1/2
A stupid movie. For a movie called "Alien vs. Predator" the aliens and the predators didn't fight nearly as much as you'd think they would (which is too bad, because the scenes where they do fight are probably the highlight of the movie). Plus the movie spends way too long setting everything up. Which wouldn't have been a problem, except for the fact that there wasn't a single decent character in the whole movie. I felt like Milhouse during that episode of Itchy and Scratchy with Poochie in it. "When are they going to get to the fireworks factory??" The action scenes were all incoherent and the violence was ultra toned down, which made all the stuff with the humans being hunted pretty pointless. Plus that crazy alliance between the predator and the human was just bizarre (there's just something wrong about a shot where a predator and a human run side by side away from an explosion). *1/2
Sunday, August 15, 2004
Old Yeller
OLD YELLER (1957) - August 15, 2004
A sometimes hokey, but entertaining movie about a boy and his dog. There certainly wasn't anything subtle about it, from the performances to the dialogue to the super-over-the-top score, but it worked for the most part. And then of course there was the ending, which ranks right up there with the death of Hooch in terms of harsh dog deaths in movies. ***
A sometimes hokey, but entertaining movie about a boy and his dog. There certainly wasn't anything subtle about it, from the performances to the dialogue to the super-over-the-top score, but it worked for the most part. And then of course there was the ending, which ranks right up there with the death of Hooch in terms of harsh dog deaths in movies. ***
Friday, August 06, 2004
The Bourne Supremacy
THE BOURNE SUPREMACY (2004) - August 6, 2004
An inferior sequel. It was essentially entertaining, though certainly overlong at around two hours. The main problem was Paul Greengrass' ultra-shaky direction. Almost the entire film was shot handheld, which got annoying after a while. And the action scenes were atrocious. They were like a parody of the standard quick-cut / shaky-cam action scene. It was almost impossible to tell what was going on, particularly during the last car chase, as there was seemingly a cut every millisecond. It was so bad I actually had to look away from the screen a couple of times because it was getting so unpleasant and disorienting to watch. Fortunately there wasn't that much action. **1/2
An inferior sequel. It was essentially entertaining, though certainly overlong at around two hours. The main problem was Paul Greengrass' ultra-shaky direction. Almost the entire film was shot handheld, which got annoying after a while. And the action scenes were atrocious. They were like a parody of the standard quick-cut / shaky-cam action scene. It was almost impossible to tell what was going on, particularly during the last car chase, as there was seemingly a cut every millisecond. It was so bad I actually had to look away from the screen a couple of times because it was getting so unpleasant and disorienting to watch. Fortunately there wasn't that much action. **1/2
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
Garden State
GARDEN STATE (2004) - August 4, 2004
A well-made movie by Zach Braff. Excellent performances all around. The direction was good -- it started off a little bit too over-the-top, but after a while it settled down. It seems like Zach's real strength lies in his writing, as the movie was really well written. The characters were all really good, and there was actually a surprising amount of humour in the film. ***
A well-made movie by Zach Braff. Excellent performances all around. The direction was good -- it started off a little bit too over-the-top, but after a while it settled down. It seems like Zach's real strength lies in his writing, as the movie was really well written. The characters were all really good, and there was actually a surprising amount of humour in the film. ***
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
Harold and Kumar go to White Castle
HAROLD AND KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE (2004) - August 3, 2004
An entertaining comedy about a couple of guys who, after getting stoned, decide to get some burgers from White Castle. Hijinks ensue. A few of the jokes fell flat, but for the most part it was reasonably funny, though not exactly laugh-out-loud hilarious (with the exception of one really funny part which was probably the hardest I've laughed in quite some time). The bizarre cameo by Neil Patrick Harris, playing himself, was also a highlight. Plus the movie was a prime example of the "lots of stuff happening in a short amount of time" genre, and yet further proof that you can't go wrong with a movie like that. ***
An entertaining comedy about a couple of guys who, after getting stoned, decide to get some burgers from White Castle. Hijinks ensue. A few of the jokes fell flat, but for the most part it was reasonably funny, though not exactly laugh-out-loud hilarious (with the exception of one really funny part which was probably the hardest I've laughed in quite some time). The bizarre cameo by Neil Patrick Harris, playing himself, was also a highlight. Plus the movie was a prime example of the "lots of stuff happening in a short amount of time" genre, and yet further proof that you can't go wrong with a movie like that. ***
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