So Inside Man had a lot of potential. The story was pretty good, and most of it was there, and the acting was right where it should be considering the cast. Unfortunately it was let down by the fact that it was to long and slow in several places. While not your normal hiest movie it still needing to keep tension and suspence up but it didn't. There was a lot of stuff that could have been trimmed if not cut completely to keep the pace better.
As for the cast, top notch like I said. Unfortunately the one person that the pacing issues hurt the most was Denzel. His character never came off with the since of urgency he truly needed. It was an interesting story in that all three main characters had so close to seperate storylines. Yes, they were intertwined with the robbery but because of the construction of the overall story they were very seperate. I at times found myself kind of wanting seperate movies for each character. Especially Jodie's character. I would love to see a movie about how she got into whatever business it is she is in exactly and what she's done over the years to get so many favors from such high powered people. At the sametime that construction of the story served to hurt it as well bringing up questions that would have aided in the story I felt.
Spoilers Coming Up:
My biggest question brought about by the story was exactly how did Clive Owens's character know about the secrect Christopher Plummer's character was hiding and how did he know the evidence was in that safe deposit box? If that question had been answered the story would have been 50 times stronger than it was.
When Clive told Jodie all about Christopher's World War II crimes I thought that was a nice scene. It was intersting how at first they showed the audience that he only took those documents out of the safe deposit box but that in the end he had taken all the jewels with the exception of the one that could bring Christopher's character down.
Very ingenious how he plotted to get away with it. I thought I had it figured out but I didn't. I did however, know that they never killed anyone. It was way to obvious for some reason that they killing they made sure the cops saw was totally fake.
It's very interesting that in the end you had Clive robbing a bank and yet the real bad guy in the situation was Christopher's character. Normally I'd be like no the robber can't get away with it but really I was hoping he would get away with it and that Christopher's character better get his. Luckily while you never saw him get his for sure you knew by the way it ended that he would be.
I didn't really care for all the talk and stuff about Denzel's characters girlfriend and her wanting to get married. I know it was designed to give the character more layers and depth but it really just didn't work for the story. Since their relationship had no real baring on the overall story it took away from the rest of his character. At the very end the whole she wants to get married thing came into play only because it gave Clive away to say I told you I'd get away with it by dropping a diamond in Denzel's pocket when he bumped into him. That still would have worked without the girlfriend angle, in my opinion. I just wanted more out of Denzel's character but they never gave him anything to really bite into. Denzel being Denzel did everything he could do with what he was given. Which means it's a good thing the got Denzel or it would have fallen flat because even when he doesn't have the best stuff to work with Denzel can keep you locked in to the story.
There is no other actress who could have played Jodie's part. Everyone else would have gone just a bit over the top with it. With it be the way they walked, the attitude they had, or the way they spoke it would have been over done. One of Jodie's greatest strengths is to know exactly how far to go with a character. I always think the hardest character to create are the small ones like that, that start in one place and stay there. That character never grows or changes she's just what she is from her first moment on screen to her last. It's not easy to be a character as underlying bad as that one without playing off the story or other people. The character seems good on the service but you know the things she does aren't not the nicest and that makes her bad. Even in the end when she confronts Christopher she sticks it to him a bit but is perfectly happy to let him get away with whatever war crimes he committed. That folks is not a nice character yet you can't completely hate her because Jodie takes her right to that line. You hate the things she does but you don't hate her.
Despite those pacing problems the over all story and the cast made it worth the full price I paid to see it.
Friday, March 31, 2006
Thursday, March 23, 2006
V for Vendetta
Over all this was a good movie. It could have been a bit tighter in places for pacing purposes but even those slower spots weren't bad. The story was really good. I was a little surprised that it seemed as though Natalie Portman wasn't quite as on her game in some places as she usually is. There were a couple places were I felt she could have done better, that doesn't usually happen with her. The dialouge for the character V seemed to be a bit wordy at times. Which wouldn't be a huge problem if you could understand him. There was a lot of places where his delivery was to fast and it ended up being really garbeled and thus hard to follow.
The overall message of the film was good and a bit scary. Scary because you know that we are sitting way to close to the edge of becoming the society in the movie right now.
Spoiler Alert:
The film opens with one of the primary reasons a society like that most never come to pass. Way to much abuse of power by those charged with up holding the law. Mainly police. That group of cops (although that isn't what they are called in the movie) that were about to gang rape Evey (Natalie Portman) when V saved her. The fact that the police are about to commit a horrid crime and yet V is the one made to be the villian by the nations leaders is to frightening a thought for words. Yes that is immediately followed by V blowing up a building but it is made clear that he's in trouble for saving her as well as blowing up the building.
There was almost to much back story for one movie to hold. Some of that stuff seemed a bit rushed and did cause for more dialogue to explain it. Again not a totally bad thing but different for something a little higher on the action and all the dialogue does slow the pacing.
The part when Evey is imprisoned was probably one of the most interesting parts of the film. Here she was a character that was so scared of V that she escaped while helping him in his mission to dispense of those who helped make him what he was yet she could not be broken into telling anything about him or his whereabouts. Very intersting character development. And made even more intriguing by the reveal that all that tourture was at the hands of V. A moment that is as uncaring and vicious as it is caring and strengthening. It's odd I know. But he did it to break her and make her free. He freed her of her fear so that she could live a free life and that is exactly what she ended up doing. And in the end it is her who is charged with making the decision to carry out V's mission or not.
In the end she does carry out his mission. I believe she does it because she finally understands that while blowing up Parliment is a rather violent act it is what the act will forever symbolize that is important and out weighs the violence of the act.
That being said, lets just hope that no nation anywhere is ever pushed to the extremes of having to blow up the seat of it's government to regain it's true freedom.
I did infact pay full price for this movie and it ended up being totally worth it.
The overall message of the film was good and a bit scary. Scary because you know that we are sitting way to close to the edge of becoming the society in the movie right now.
Spoiler Alert:
The film opens with one of the primary reasons a society like that most never come to pass. Way to much abuse of power by those charged with up holding the law. Mainly police. That group of cops (although that isn't what they are called in the movie) that were about to gang rape Evey (Natalie Portman) when V saved her. The fact that the police are about to commit a horrid crime and yet V is the one made to be the villian by the nations leaders is to frightening a thought for words. Yes that is immediately followed by V blowing up a building but it is made clear that he's in trouble for saving her as well as blowing up the building.
There was almost to much back story for one movie to hold. Some of that stuff seemed a bit rushed and did cause for more dialogue to explain it. Again not a totally bad thing but different for something a little higher on the action and all the dialogue does slow the pacing.
The part when Evey is imprisoned was probably one of the most interesting parts of the film. Here she was a character that was so scared of V that she escaped while helping him in his mission to dispense of those who helped make him what he was yet she could not be broken into telling anything about him or his whereabouts. Very intersting character development. And made even more intriguing by the reveal that all that tourture was at the hands of V. A moment that is as uncaring and vicious as it is caring and strengthening. It's odd I know. But he did it to break her and make her free. He freed her of her fear so that she could live a free life and that is exactly what she ended up doing. And in the end it is her who is charged with making the decision to carry out V's mission or not.
In the end she does carry out his mission. I believe she does it because she finally understands that while blowing up Parliment is a rather violent act it is what the act will forever symbolize that is important and out weighs the violence of the act.
That being said, lets just hope that no nation anywhere is ever pushed to the extremes of having to blow up the seat of it's government to regain it's true freedom.
I did infact pay full price for this movie and it ended up being totally worth it.
Friday, March 17, 2006
Ultraviolet
This really isn't a movie I would normally see. However, since the previews seemed to indicate there might be some good sword fights and the fact that I do enjoy Milla Jovovich's career path I decided to catch a matinee. Luckily I wasn't expecting much from it because it while it wasn't a complete disappointment it didn't exceed my expectations either. Talk about way to much digital. That opening escape sequence was like watching a video game. I'm pretty sure the only thing that was real in it was Milla and the motorcycle she was on. Some people might like that kind of stuff but I don't.
As for the story. It had so much potential but unfortunately they didn't develop it enough for the length of the movie. They could have put more into it so it was a little more interesting and not so transparent in places. It's really funny how this one had potential but they didn't put enough into the story where as with Aeon Flux they had to much story for the length of the film they made so it didn't get to play out enough. Somewhere in the middle lies a really good movie. Maybe someday we'll get to see it. Especially since there's a lot of similarities in the two stories.
Spoilers Coming Up:
The one thing they did do right in this movie was to give Violet a good back story. Her character was the most developed and layered character of the movie. Which does make since considering she's the heroine, it's her movie. But that's where it could have been so much better. If they had put a little more time into the bad guy and had him in the story more it would have been a lot better.
They got way to into the ultimate warriro thing with Violet. There were a lot of times when she would make her sword appear and then you would see anything you'd just hear this noise and the next thing you know she's wiped out like 20 bad guys. I lay some of the blame on how much time and money they put into the special effects in the movie. I don't think they had a lot of money left to pay for all the time it would take to orhastrate those fight sequences. Major bummer for the movie as a whole because when they did have those fight sequences they were really good.
I did like the final fight sequence between Violet and Daxus. That was cool how they did it in the dark with their swords being on fire. Probably one of the most original things I've seen in awhile when it comes to fight sequences.
Going in I didn't know that Violet and those like her had been infected with some sort of super vampirism. Considering the future time the movie was set in I let the fact that nothing about them aside from their teeth and enhanced strength was remotely vampire. However, it may have been a better story and movie if they had played a bit more towards the traditional vampire aspects.
As for the big twist ending. It wasn't a twist at all. I knew from the very beginning that Daxus had at some point been infected with the virus. Basically they picked the wrong twist to go with. The twist they shold have used was that instead of the boy Six being a clone of Daxus it should have turned out that he was actually the child they had forced Violet to terminate years earlier when she got the virus. A little more time in story development and that would have been a way better twist.
I went to a matinee of this and it really wasn't worth that. The discount theater would have been a better price to see it at.
As for the story. It had so much potential but unfortunately they didn't develop it enough for the length of the movie. They could have put more into it so it was a little more interesting and not so transparent in places. It's really funny how this one had potential but they didn't put enough into the story where as with Aeon Flux they had to much story for the length of the film they made so it didn't get to play out enough. Somewhere in the middle lies a really good movie. Maybe someday we'll get to see it. Especially since there's a lot of similarities in the two stories.
Spoilers Coming Up:
The one thing they did do right in this movie was to give Violet a good back story. Her character was the most developed and layered character of the movie. Which does make since considering she's the heroine, it's her movie. But that's where it could have been so much better. If they had put a little more time into the bad guy and had him in the story more it would have been a lot better.
They got way to into the ultimate warriro thing with Violet. There were a lot of times when she would make her sword appear and then you would see anything you'd just hear this noise and the next thing you know she's wiped out like 20 bad guys. I lay some of the blame on how much time and money they put into the special effects in the movie. I don't think they had a lot of money left to pay for all the time it would take to orhastrate those fight sequences. Major bummer for the movie as a whole because when they did have those fight sequences they were really good.
I did like the final fight sequence between Violet and Daxus. That was cool how they did it in the dark with their swords being on fire. Probably one of the most original things I've seen in awhile when it comes to fight sequences.
Going in I didn't know that Violet and those like her had been infected with some sort of super vampirism. Considering the future time the movie was set in I let the fact that nothing about them aside from their teeth and enhanced strength was remotely vampire. However, it may have been a better story and movie if they had played a bit more towards the traditional vampire aspects.
As for the big twist ending. It wasn't a twist at all. I knew from the very beginning that Daxus had at some point been infected with the virus. Basically they picked the wrong twist to go with. The twist they shold have used was that instead of the boy Six being a clone of Daxus it should have turned out that he was actually the child they had forced Violet to terminate years earlier when she got the virus. A little more time in story development and that would have been a way better twist.
I went to a matinee of this and it really wasn't worth that. The discount theater would have been a better price to see it at.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
When A Stranger Calls
I never saw the original When A Stranger Calls but anyone whose up on their urban legends knows how this story goes. Even without them giving it away in the previews. It actually turned out to be a pretty good movie. It was fun and a little suspenseful. One of those movies though where you need to let yourself get lost in it and not try to figure anything out. I'm really good at letting myself get lost in scary movies so overall the movie really worked for me. One big bonus it had was a good strong herione. And a smart one too. I really can't stand a stupid herione this days nor a whimpy one.
They did a really good job with the build up in the movie which helped. I don't know who (if anyone) this movie was offered to before they went with Camilla Belle but who ever turned this down was stupid. Some of you might be asking why I would say that? Well I shall tell you. Simply put this whole movie lives and dies on Camilla's shoulders. Anything you feel while watching it depends on her performance. Yes the situation lends itself to some of the tension but the true emotion comes from Camilla. If she lets down for a single second the movie is done, the tension is lost, and the audience is lost with it. And that is where she excels in this movie. Never for a second do you not believe in her fear of the person whose calling her even when he isn't saying anything. Her decision to take this role could turn out to be the smartest of her career. You see not only does she have to make you believe in that fear but she has to get to that fear alone. She really has no one to play off of. She has to slowly raise her level of fear for over an hour and a lot of that is done through body language and facial expressions. It's really a rather remarkable performance for that reason alone. And that is why any up and comer who turned this down may have hurt themselves. It was a great opportunity to show just what you are capable off and Camilla took that opportunity and ran with it.
I actually went to see this at the discount theater so I only paid $3 for it but I would not have been disappointed had I paid full price. And I think it will be a great movie on video as well. Probably should pass on watching it alone in a big house though.
They did a really good job with the build up in the movie which helped. I don't know who (if anyone) this movie was offered to before they went with Camilla Belle but who ever turned this down was stupid. Some of you might be asking why I would say that? Well I shall tell you. Simply put this whole movie lives and dies on Camilla's shoulders. Anything you feel while watching it depends on her performance. Yes the situation lends itself to some of the tension but the true emotion comes from Camilla. If she lets down for a single second the movie is done, the tension is lost, and the audience is lost with it. And that is where she excels in this movie. Never for a second do you not believe in her fear of the person whose calling her even when he isn't saying anything. Her decision to take this role could turn out to be the smartest of her career. You see not only does she have to make you believe in that fear but she has to get to that fear alone. She really has no one to play off of. She has to slowly raise her level of fear for over an hour and a lot of that is done through body language and facial expressions. It's really a rather remarkable performance for that reason alone. And that is why any up and comer who turned this down may have hurt themselves. It was a great opportunity to show just what you are capable off and Camilla took that opportunity and ran with it.
I actually went to see this at the discount theater so I only paid $3 for it but I would not have been disappointed had I paid full price. And I think it will be a great movie on video as well. Probably should pass on watching it alone in a big house though.
And the Oscar goes to...
The night went pretty much as planned. It was fun when Three 6 Mafia won for It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp. And I know there's people out there who didn't see Hustle & Flow who only know the song from the way it was performed on the show and are wondering how the hell that happened. Well simply the song is so much better than how they performed it. In the movie it is performed by Terrance Howard. It's much better with just his voice and then the background vocals of Taraji P. Henson. Three 6 Mafia over did it a bit and there were just to many voices. But it really is a good movie song and it's technically a writing award not a performing award.
As the night went on and there were no surprises I was getting more and more scared about the Best Actress category. When they got to it I was totally freaked that they were going to go the wrong way with it and then I couldn't have been happier when they said Reese Witherspoon. I don't know if I've ever been so excited by someone winning an Oscar. It's so well deserved and earned.
When Reese won that was the moment I knew Crash was winning Best Picture. I don't know exactly why but I just knew there had to be an upset somewhere and I was pretty sure it wasn't going to be Best Director. And as far as I'm concerned it may have been an upset with the odds makers but the right movie won.
Overall the show seemed really slow and there were way to many montages. No one watches the show to see montages. We watch the show to see who wins and what they will say when they win. Stop restricting the time they have to accept their award so much and stop with the stupid crap that makes for the need for such short acceptance time.
As for the fashions of the night. I love Charlize Theron and that dress would have been really nice if it didn't have that big huge bow on it. And what the heck was Naomi Watts thinking with that thing that looked like it had been through the shreader and the glued back together? Salma Hayek blue number was great. I also like Keira Knightley's dress it was a smart choice for someone wanting to look good be not take to big a risk and get slammed.
And speaking of Keira how great was she on the red carpet? I love that she was just an excited 20 year old out there. She didn't try to act all sophisticated and like it was no big deal. She was totally in the moment and I found that to be really refreshing.
As the night went on and there were no surprises I was getting more and more scared about the Best Actress category. When they got to it I was totally freaked that they were going to go the wrong way with it and then I couldn't have been happier when they said Reese Witherspoon. I don't know if I've ever been so excited by someone winning an Oscar. It's so well deserved and earned.
When Reese won that was the moment I knew Crash was winning Best Picture. I don't know exactly why but I just knew there had to be an upset somewhere and I was pretty sure it wasn't going to be Best Director. And as far as I'm concerned it may have been an upset with the odds makers but the right movie won.
Overall the show seemed really slow and there were way to many montages. No one watches the show to see montages. We watch the show to see who wins and what they will say when they win. Stop restricting the time they have to accept their award so much and stop with the stupid crap that makes for the need for such short acceptance time.
As for the fashions of the night. I love Charlize Theron and that dress would have been really nice if it didn't have that big huge bow on it. And what the heck was Naomi Watts thinking with that thing that looked like it had been through the shreader and the glued back together? Salma Hayek blue number was great. I also like Keira Knightley's dress it was a smart choice for someone wanting to look good be not take to big a risk and get slammed.
And speaking of Keira how great was she on the red carpet? I love that she was just an excited 20 year old out there. She didn't try to act all sophisticated and like it was no big deal. She was totally in the moment and I found that to be really refreshing.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Oscar Update
A quick revision of my opinions on the Oscar nominees. I watched Junebug this weekend and I now move Amy Adams from the bottom of the list since I hadn't seen her performance to number two on my list of Supporting Actress nominees. It was a nice performance the best part of the entire movie and the only likable character in the movie. I wouldn't be surprised or disappoint if she pulled and upset and stole this award from Rachel Weiz.
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