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Reviews
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Slightly flawed, otherwise a great film
Yes, I did not give 2001 a perfect score. I gave it an 8- and 8 because of a few choice reasons. Instead of getting into every aspect of the film like others do, I will just explain these problems.
The first was about the first scene in space, where the music is playing and it's just showing the ship moving ever so slowly towards the space station. That part dragged on way too long, and I found myself growing restless as I sat there. The second complaint was that so much was left unanswered. What was the significance of the monolith? Why did HAL go mad? How did he turn into the starchild or whatever its called? Where the heck WAS he at the end? That irked me, and took away from the film (though I was thinking about these things for quite a while).
Otherwise, great film. Very entertaining when somethings happening, and expertly done by a masterful director, but if you're looking for action packed sci-fi or just a popcorn movie or something to watch on Saturday night, stay far away.
The Matrix (1999)
My favorite movie?
I love The Matrix. I remember seeing it my first time...I had no clue what was going on because my friends were talking too loud. So I didn't like it as much as I should have, but i bought it anyways. FINALLY I knew what was going on. And i loved every bit of it. The movie is cast perfectly. From Keanu Reeves as Neo to Hugo Weaving as Agent Smith, I feel the actors captured their roles perfectly. The plot was so incredible...The whole 'what is reality' aspect had me freaking out. I'm sure it had more than 1 person scared of it being the truth.
The visual effects in this movie are stunning, even as compared to many of todays higher-technology CGI effects. The most famous of all of them being the Neo bullet dodge sequence, spoofed in more movies than I care to think of. But thats just fluff-the meat of this movie is the movie itself.
I have seen this movie to many times. I can say the lines before even the actors do on screen. And i never tire of it. Just writing this makes me want to watch it again. And if you haven't, go watch it. Now. And answer the question that drives us- what is the matrix.
Rudy (1993)
My favorite sports movie
So many sports movies follow a similar story, either focusing on the coaches struggles or the team as it struggles to overcome a racist world. And then there's Rudy.
Rudy is not about overcoming racism. It's not a coach trying to overcome his own struggles to coach an underdog team. It's about 1 player on Notre Dame colleges football team. Throughout his life, Daniel E. "Rudy" Ruddiger has wanted nothing less than to play football at Notre Dame. He is told all the time he'll never make it- but Rudy believes. He gives it his 110% and, though not a good football player in terms of skill, is recognized because of his spirit. He doesn't have good grades so he can't make it to Notre Dame, but his dream doesn't die. He keeps trying, making it to the team, but his family doesn't believe him. He keeps pushing, giving his all, to suit out for 1 game, just so his family will believe him.
I love Rudy. It breaks from the mold of sports movies, carving its own little niche. And in the end we have one of the biggest tear jerking moments in all the movies i ever saw...If you love sports or just want to see a good movie, give Rudy a chance. If someone ever said dreams don't come true, tell them about Rudy.
The Da Vinci Code (2006)
Too long for too little
In the few days before seeing the Da Vinci Code, I had heard nothing but bad things about it. Critics found it a bore, a jumbled mess, and too slow for a film such as this. Going in I expected the critics to be wrong, like they usually are to my judgment. Well, they were a little right.
Halfway through the movie i began saying, wow, when will this end? Ironically enough i was basically praying for it to end, it just moved so slow. I'm sure Ron Howard had a reason for this, but I don't know what it was. the film could have easily been 30-45 minutes shorter and it would have only helped. However, even with its slow pace there's really nothing it could use to cut.
Along with the length i noticed all the supposedly big twists were either easy to predict or not as big as they wanted. One of them i was even sure they had figured out, because they'd said it earlier in the movie, i was certain. Then they revealed it at the end, and i was surprised only because they were just BARELY revealing it.
It wasn't necessarily a bad movie. Being a catholic, i wasn't offended (though i was shaking my head almost laughing at some parts). And the acting was top notch, just what you'd expect in a film by Ron Howard. If you can finish the movie without giving up on it because it seemed so slow, it was still a good movie. nothing great, but oh well.
Linkin Park: Live in Texas (2003)
halfway good
I like Linkin PArk. They're one of the few modern bands i actually DO enjoy listening to. So when I saw a copy of Live in Texas, i was more than a little disappointed.
If you're a big fan of the band, then the part that you're fans of-the music-is excellent. Sound quality is amazing, and the band sounds excellent live. The combination of all the members fits together exactly like on the CD. However, if you like the music i think you're better off just buying a CD.
The video did nothing short of bore me. I would have turned it off if it weren't for the music. The cameraman didn't really seem to know how to do this, as the camera seems to feel its a good idea to stay on the lead singer and only the lead singer. What about the guitarists? The DJ guy? Well, he does get a bit of time. But worst of all was how the lead singer didn't really do anything. He just stood and sang. No on-stage antics or anything. He ran around a little, but that's really the extent. Also was the slow motion effect. I don't mind slow motion...until now. They used it at bad times. It made me wonder what they were thinking.
What i found funny was when they were trying to incite a mosh pit. They wanted maybe 30 feet by 30 feet...i think they got 30 people in the end to join. That was probably the best part of this (after the music of course), and was certainly the only part i remember.
Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
1 of 3
This is one of the 3 movies i ever had to turn off because it was just so bad. It goes along with M*A*S*H* (the movie, the show may be the greatest thing to ever hit TV) and Baby Geniuses. Yes, I'm comparing it to baby geniuses. It was that bad.
This movie is a comedy, but for some reason I only remember laughing once. When the guy shoved him into the locker and Napolean kicked at him. That was the highlight of the hour i could bear to watch.
There was nothing memorable in the characters. Napolean was dull, his brother was an idiot, and it must be hereditary because so is their uncle. If there were any other characters, I don't remember them. Like I said, nothing memorable...
I don't know what was going on with the script either. There was no plot discernible-unless it appeared in the last 30 or so minutes. Not that there's a problem with no plot, I've loved some with a hardly discernible plot. The script itself was drab. It's like it's trying to be funny but it has an air of pathetic that suffocates the viewer, with thoughts of 'how dull can anyone get?'and 'what a bad way to start a career, Jon...you've just been typecast...'.
However there is some talent here. Jon Heder has Hollywood potential, but he's been typecast as a nerd, an image he's probability never going to be able to save.
I don't know why everyone liked this movie so much. Maybe i like movies to accomplish something. Or maybe everyone else can't spot bad movies from good ones. I see the rating of a 7 for this film as an insult to humankind...I would not recommend anyone see this. This is the most over rated film on IMDb.
This Is Spinal Tap (1984)
Brilliant Satire
Back in the 70's and 80's, rock and roll was getting out of hand. Everyone wasted it bigger and better...but in the end everything just got expensive and cheap. Stage shows were fun to go to but were so cheap and cheesy you had to wonder why you would watch it in the first place.
Rob Reiner and 3 clever British comedians seemed to have noticed this and created their own band-Spinal Tap-that was a satire of the whole hair band and metal craze going on in the time. And they captured everything. Well, almost at least.
This may be one of the most quotable movies ever. No line is out of place here. Everything has a purpose, and nothing is FORCED upon you, like in some comedy movies. However there may be a bit of a problem understanding Spinal Tap's British accents. So watch it on DVD-subtitles are a life saver.
If you don't find this even slightly amusing, I don't know about you. The actors emotions are portrayed through improvisation and are incredibly real. It seems like an actual documentary (which it is not-its a mock rockumentary) and as a result seems real...seems like a real band, going through real problems. If you know anything about 70's and 80's metal, this movie holds something for you. If you've played an actual gig, it holds even more. But if you have no clue, watch it anyways. It;'s almost impossible not to enjoy.
Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006)
Enjoyable, though somewhat flawed
I was a huge fan of the original Ice Age. God knows i went out and bought it like almost automatically when it came out... But when i heard there was going to be a sequel, a groan rose (though never escaped) in my throat. I knew it would be hard capturing the essence of the first, and I was right. For some reason, this film...lacked...especially when you see the end. I was thinking at the end...'So why did i watch that?' That's not the thing i really had a problem with. It was some of the moments like the pygmy shrews. They had no need to exist, lent nothing to the film. They didn't even make any influence in the slightest. Also was the part where Manny is talking to Ellie about her being an attractive mammoth. That part, as seen in the commercial was melted into a talk about her 'big butt'. I think this may have tried to hard to be funny, but people laughed, especially the intended audience of about 10 years old. All in all, however, Ice Age 2 was a good movie. It was a little flawed, but its enjoyable still, no matter what age you are. The voice acting is seamless, character design is top notch and the computer animation is some of the best seen. If you want to see a movie, you can do much worse than Ice Age 2