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skaterfreak809
Reviews
Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984)
Just Read the Book
READ THE BOOK, simple as that. This movie version of 1984 is MEDIOCRE at best and is guaranteed to leave any enthusiasts of the book sorely disappointed. The masterful scenery/imagery from the novel translates very poorly to this big screen adaptation, leaving one who has not already read Orwell's 1984, to have little to no understanding of what is actually going on. The pace of the movie, in opposition to the book, seems too fast - and causes for a number of important scenes/events to be barely skimmed over or skipped completely. Character development, scene depiction, the chronological order of events, all seems sacrificed for the sake of promoting a poor movie version of a classic novel. Initially, i thought it'd be nice to have some sort of visual aid to help with what was described in the book, however after watching the film, I felt betrayed that I must now have such a sub-par tool for reference between the two versions. The movie will offer you NOTHING not already presented in the book, and does a bad job in ever believing it can. Please, for the sake of your own time/enjoyment, do yourself a favor and just READ THE BOOK
5/10 stars
Black Swan (2010)
a dark, twisted, psychological roller coaster
Its hard to think any words can really do this movie the proper justice. Darren Aronofski has made himself a true masterpiece, that when finished, leaves its viewer completely astonished at what just unfolded before them. From the opening scene to its conclusion, the movie is brilliant. The film entrances you with its story, and like a ballet, elegantly dances your mind down the rails of a dark, twisted, psychological roller coaster. You will leave the movie astonished at what you just saw.
Natalie Portman offers a transcendent performance with her role as Nina, the quiet, hard working ballet dancer; a perfectionist who believes she is qualified to play the lead in her ballet company's new rendition of Swan Lake. However, her chase for perfection becomes halted with the entrance of a new dancer to the company, a young woman named Lily (Mila Kunis). Nina sees Lily as competition, and therefore little reason to trust her. The rest of the film then becomes a psychological thrill ride. The viewer witnesses Nina's paranoia begin to undo her as she must out perform her new competition, win the eye of her ballet director (Vincent Cassel), and continue to please her ballet-obsessive mother (frighteningly well played by Barbara Hershey) - all in the chase for perfection.
Leaving the Theater, I immediately wished to view the film again. The director's inclusion of the ballet's harrowing music, his keen eye for the colors of black and white, and his constant inclusion of mirrors, all add to the chilling, psychological uncertainties the film has to offer.
Truly amazing, 10/10
The Last Exorcism (2010)
What happened to horror movies??
What's happened to horror movies these days?
"The Last Exorcism" should be exactly as the title predicts, the LAST of its kind.
The movie follows a preacher, Cotton, and his small film crew as they try to document him performing an exorcism on a young girl thought to be possessed by a demon. You learn quickly of Cotton's dying faith and that his performed "exorcisms" are no more than scams he puts on so that his family can pay the bills. However, Cotton may have taken on more than he bargained for as he reluctantly learns there may be more to this scenario than meets the eye...
So when I first sat down for this movie, I initially thought it was only me and my group of friends who had a hard time connecting with what was being displayed in front of us. Yes, there were a few moments of panic in the theater, a few quick jumps and screams made by all, but in the end the most common noise heard was laughter... well, laughter and outrage. EVERYONE seemed to be making jokes about this movie. The people behind us, in front of us, next to us... it seemed no one was able to really find any connection with any of the characters or what was going on in the film at all. It was for the most part predictable, to the point where half way through the movie they pretty much just tell you exactly how it will end.
And so with the end enters the outrage. Never before have I gone to a movie that ends with literally the entire theater crying out in anger at what they had just witnessed. It was almost as the people making the movie just gave up, giving the audience anything but a thought provoking ending and instead just giving everyone an abrupt smack in the face. They give you no time to let what you are seeing sink in, and you leave the theater so disappointed that you don't even care to fill in the holes. Even making the connections now, I find myself more disappointed than anything that I had to sit through such a film.
I give the movie 2/10. It would have gotten 1/10 except as I mentioned, it did deliver I guess what you could call a few minor scares. Overall it was pretty bad... if you have any plans of seeing this movie, you may want to reconsider you options.