gregconquest Reviews

Postal (2007)

mostly 10's and 1's

[8/10 · 26 August 2008]

I'm apparently an oddball for giving this movie an "8". Most votes are for a "10" or a "1". Actually, the average score and the mean score reveal VERY little about the quality of this movie. It has video game style gore *of children*, so many people probably walk out/turn it off then and give it a "1" on IMDb just for those scenes. It is shocking.

OTOH, once you get over the shock, it is a hilarious movie. It does have a quirky style. It also has many crystal clear moments of lucidity, followed by utter absurdity the likes which have never been seen before.

I don't know much about Uwe Boll, but I do think I could actually get into film making because of the freshness of the scenes and plots.

So, offbeat funny but with ever-present political and satirical undertones. If this attracts you, you're perhaps another "10". If getting your brains blown out doesn't sound like a good way to clear your head, then you'd probably give it a "1".

Easy recommendation for most people.

Citizen Shane (2004)

a haunting look at a dark side of the new South

[7/10 · 25 March 2007]

This is a peek into some of the darker aspects of small-town Southern (USA) culture. Knowing that Shane Ballard's mom did die mysteriously, that the director, Ron Tibbet, died shortly after the film was finished, and that Shane himself committed suicide, all serve to draw the viewer into the film. I found myself wondering about everyone involved . . .

The movie is a bit slow at times. The telephone call with Charles Manson was long, but there were some subtle, psychological things going on there too.

--- slight, oh so slight, spoiler -- Oh, and Shane's final vote count for sheriff was not 666. It was 333, half the number of the beast ;-)

Ray (I) (2004)

Hollywood Shoots Itself In the Foot Again -- Historically Untrustworthy

[5/10 · 23 December 2005]

Seeing this movie, well-acted and directed IMO, makes me want to know more about Ray Charles, but I don't know how much I can trust what has been put before me in this film. The scene in Georgia is the only one I checked. Ray Charles is walking into a concert venue, and a young black man in the crowd talks him out of performing for the segregated audience, "You can make a difference, Ray!" Ray cancels the show, and is subsequently sued by the concert promoter and BANNED FOR LIFE from performing in Georgia. At the end of the film, the Georgia legislature "apologizes" for the earlier transgression and declares "Georgia On My Mind" as the state song.

Only it didn't happen this way at all. Ray canceled the show after fans "wrote" him, and the state of Georgia never banned him.

Was this historical shift by Hollywood so important for the entertainment value of this film? It was only a moment of tension that resulted from the distortion. Surely a historical bio-pic deserves more historical accuracy. Hollywood studios are just shooting themselves in the foot with this type of cheap spectacle.

I would have given the movie seven stars had it not been for the historical inaccuracy. Perhaps there are more allowances made for profit . . . I'd like to know the real story. Hollywood again falters.

Greg Conquest

Dreamcatcher (2003)

Finally, King makes a decent horror movie again

[6/10 · 31 January 2004]

Based on the other reviews, it does sound like the adaptation from the novel left much to be desired. However, as a standalone work of cinema, Dreamcatcher kept me intrigued -- and jumping -- throughout the movie. This flick is sooooo much better than the prior "horror" movies I had recently seen by King -- Rose Red and It. They were absolutely horrible -- grotesque without fright. I was thinking there was no horror left in King (as adapted to video). I was surprised with this one.

Greg Conquest

Game Room (1999)

slow, boring, unreal

[1/10 · 9 October 2000]

This movie starts slowly -- very slowly. A subplot is introduced (terrorists detonating an anthrax bomb near Sydney) that almost never matters to the main plot (the geek getting his revenge on his school mates.)

The acting/directing/script is horrible. Reactions to the death of one character are , well, nothing. Nobody reacts naturally. This is just one example.

And the vengeance the character does get isn't really satisfying either. not worth seeing not matter how you look at it.