obiwan26
Lifetime Total
5+
IMDb Member
22 years
Reviews
The Rift (1990)
Laughably stupid
Only good if you are in the mood for an idiotic laugh-fest on the order of Plan 9 From Outer Space.
Here are a few of the more brilliant quotes from this movie that takes itself way too seriously:
"You're my kind of white boy, Wick"
"We're passing 45,000 feet!" -- the deepest trench on earth is the Marianas trench at 35,813 feet
"Reverse the polarity" and "Divert all power to the main engines" -- what is this, the USS Enterprise?
"Here we got nothing but darkness and goose bumps"
And some of the stupidest looking movie monsters you will ever see.
Here are a few of the more brilliant quotes from this movie that takes itself way too seriously:
"You're my kind of white boy, Wick"
"We're passing 45,000 feet!" -- the deepest trench on earth is the Marianas trench at 35,813 feet
"Reverse the polarity" and "Divert all power to the main engines" -- what is this, the USS Enterprise?
"Here we got nothing but darkness and goose bumps"
And some of the stupidest looking movie monsters you will ever see.
Starship Troopers (1997)
Better -- and more disturbing -- each time I watch it
This movie never fails to generate strong reactions, both positive and negative.
Much of the negative criticizes the wooden acting, soap-opera beautiful stars, and unreasonably military tactics that lead to an enormous human body count.
But that misses the whole point. The actors and plotlines are supposed to be caricatures of themselves. We are presented with a seemingly utopian society, where everyone is beautiful, the world is united under a single government, and patriotism is rampant.
The further the movie goes, the more the viewer realizes just how horrific this supposed utopia really is. Patriotism is exploited to trick young men and women into going off to a pointless war. The beautiful people are mercilessly chopped to pieces by their insectoid opponents. And the united world government uses its control of the media to brainwash the public into supporting this bloody war.
Yes, the Nazi symbolism is a little heavy-handed. But that's the whole point -- the intertwining of this "perfect" society with such a deeply evil subtext is supposed to be disturbing. What's even more disturbing is how close to our recent (American) history this movie truly is. Yes, it's a caricature, but it's a caricature of a very real and frightening phenomenon.
How different are the government propaganda ads in Starship Troopers from the "Loose Lips Sink Ships" campaign or the "10% for War Bonds" posters in 1940s U.S.? How dangerous is it to have a society where everyone looks the same, thinks the same, and acts the same, even to their own death? This is the message behind Starship Troopers, and it's a chilling one at that.
And for me, it works.
Much of the negative criticizes the wooden acting, soap-opera beautiful stars, and unreasonably military tactics that lead to an enormous human body count.
But that misses the whole point. The actors and plotlines are supposed to be caricatures of themselves. We are presented with a seemingly utopian society, where everyone is beautiful, the world is united under a single government, and patriotism is rampant.
The further the movie goes, the more the viewer realizes just how horrific this supposed utopia really is. Patriotism is exploited to trick young men and women into going off to a pointless war. The beautiful people are mercilessly chopped to pieces by their insectoid opponents. And the united world government uses its control of the media to brainwash the public into supporting this bloody war.
Yes, the Nazi symbolism is a little heavy-handed. But that's the whole point -- the intertwining of this "perfect" society with such a deeply evil subtext is supposed to be disturbing. What's even more disturbing is how close to our recent (American) history this movie truly is. Yes, it's a caricature, but it's a caricature of a very real and frightening phenomenon.
How different are the government propaganda ads in Starship Troopers from the "Loose Lips Sink Ships" campaign or the "10% for War Bonds" posters in 1940s U.S.? How dangerous is it to have a society where everyone looks the same, thinks the same, and acts the same, even to their own death? This is the message behind Starship Troopers, and it's a chilling one at that.
And for me, it works.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
Great ending to a mediocre film
NO SPOILERS
If you want to learn about the ending of this film, go ahead and read some of the other reviews here that contain spoilers. I'll just add my agreement that it was both well-done and fit perfectly with the overall tone of the three movies.
OVERALL REVIEW
There are so many plot holes and silly devices that are wholly unnecessary. It seems the director had a certain artistic vision and was going to make a movie to fit that vision, come hell or high water. Some obvious items of stupidity:
* If the female terminator (terminatrix?) is such an efficient killing machine, why does she choose to wear high heels which are totally impractical to the business of chasing people down?
* If she has such incredible powers to remotely control basic machines, why doesn't she use these powers to stop the very vehicles the good guys are using to get away?
* If the magnet is so powerful that it can hold back the super-strength of the terminatrix, how is John Connor able to keep carrying his guns?
* Why does Connor seem surprised that the terminator (Arnold) doesn't recognize him from ten years ago? After all, Connor helped destroy the terminator from T2, so he knows this one can't be the same machine, right?
Anyway, the movie as a whole doesn't really make much sense. The plot is basically identical to T2, with a few twists to make it interesting. The special FX are good as expected, but really don't have any of the "wow" above and beyond the type of stuff we have already seen elsewhere.
RECOMMENDATION
Rent it for a rainy Saturday, and definitely watch all the way through to the very-worthwhile ending.
If you want to learn about the ending of this film, go ahead and read some of the other reviews here that contain spoilers. I'll just add my agreement that it was both well-done and fit perfectly with the overall tone of the three movies.
OVERALL REVIEW
There are so many plot holes and silly devices that are wholly unnecessary. It seems the director had a certain artistic vision and was going to make a movie to fit that vision, come hell or high water. Some obvious items of stupidity:
* If the female terminator (terminatrix?) is such an efficient killing machine, why does she choose to wear high heels which are totally impractical to the business of chasing people down?
* If she has such incredible powers to remotely control basic machines, why doesn't she use these powers to stop the very vehicles the good guys are using to get away?
* If the magnet is so powerful that it can hold back the super-strength of the terminatrix, how is John Connor able to keep carrying his guns?
* Why does Connor seem surprised that the terminator (Arnold) doesn't recognize him from ten years ago? After all, Connor helped destroy the terminator from T2, so he knows this one can't be the same machine, right?
Anyway, the movie as a whole doesn't really make much sense. The plot is basically identical to T2, with a few twists to make it interesting. The special FX are good as expected, but really don't have any of the "wow" above and beyond the type of stuff we have already seen elsewhere.
RECOMMENDATION
Rent it for a rainy Saturday, and definitely watch all the way through to the very-worthwhile ending.
The Langoliers (1995)
Great idea, poor conclusion
The movie (filled with TV stars of yesteryear including cast members form St. Elsewhere, Perfect Strangers, and 30-something) gets off to a fascinating start.
Only a few people survive after an airplane flies through some sort of space warp/energy field/whatever. They land (the co-pilot survives) at a Maine airport, and nothing is right. Nothing works. All clocks are stopped. Matches don't light. Even beer has gone flat. And this disturbing noise is approaching, inexorably.
The set-up of this mystery is great, as the viewer is caught up in the same web of bizarre circumstances that the characters are trying to decipher. We know only as much as they do.
Unfortunately, the "langoliers" -- little beasties that destroy everything in their path -- are all too real. The movie's most dramatic scenes are our heroes trying to escape these computer generated fuzzballs. Remember "Critters"? That's what they're like, only Critters was *supposed* to be funny, whereas here, they are supposed to be scary. They're not.
The first 3/4 of the movie, full of mystery and suspense, is great. The climax is a poorly-animated set of Pac-men trying to eat the cast. It's laughable, and not at all frightening. Still, if you feel like watching three hours of good movie followed by about half an hour of silliness, give it a go. It's worth it just to see Bronson Pinchot (aka Belke Barthokamus from Perfect Strangers) as a murderous psychopath.
Only a few people survive after an airplane flies through some sort of space warp/energy field/whatever. They land (the co-pilot survives) at a Maine airport, and nothing is right. Nothing works. All clocks are stopped. Matches don't light. Even beer has gone flat. And this disturbing noise is approaching, inexorably.
The set-up of this mystery is great, as the viewer is caught up in the same web of bizarre circumstances that the characters are trying to decipher. We know only as much as they do.
Unfortunately, the "langoliers" -- little beasties that destroy everything in their path -- are all too real. The movie's most dramatic scenes are our heroes trying to escape these computer generated fuzzballs. Remember "Critters"? That's what they're like, only Critters was *supposed* to be funny, whereas here, they are supposed to be scary. They're not.
The first 3/4 of the movie, full of mystery and suspense, is great. The climax is a poorly-animated set of Pac-men trying to eat the cast. It's laughable, and not at all frightening. Still, if you feel like watching three hours of good movie followed by about half an hour of silliness, give it a go. It's worth it just to see Bronson Pinchot (aka Belke Barthokamus from Perfect Strangers) as a murderous psychopath.
The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)
One of the best unknown films out there
What a gem.
Part absurdist corporate-dominated reality (think Brazil) and part 1950's comic book characters (think Superman, especially the parts about The Daily Planet), this film is likeable, funny, moving, and at times even meaningful.
A mailroom employee, half dreamer and half dolt, improbably gets promoted to CEO of Hudsucker Industries. However, the movie does not make fun of him as he fails, rather, it cheers him on as he succeeds beyond anyone's wildest imaginations. Tim Robbins plays the comedic version of his introverted, thoughtful Andy DuFrane from Shawshank Redemption (another must-see), and he plays it perfectly. Despire being the CEO, he is at the center of a maelstrom of people trying to take advantage of him, and he has neither the personal nor the political resources to survive.
It very much has the spirit of other corporate-conglomerate-evil movies such as Office Space and Brazil, but is much lighter, funnier, and more likeable than either of those two. And, most importantly, despite being light humor, it is a moving portrayal of a small-town boy out of his element atop a giant corporation.
See this movie with no preconceptions (no, it's not like Raising Arizona or The Big Lebowski). Just enjoy it for what it is -- pure, clean fun, mixed with a wide variety of strong and subtle messages.
Part absurdist corporate-dominated reality (think Brazil) and part 1950's comic book characters (think Superman, especially the parts about The Daily Planet), this film is likeable, funny, moving, and at times even meaningful.
A mailroom employee, half dreamer and half dolt, improbably gets promoted to CEO of Hudsucker Industries. However, the movie does not make fun of him as he fails, rather, it cheers him on as he succeeds beyond anyone's wildest imaginations. Tim Robbins plays the comedic version of his introverted, thoughtful Andy DuFrane from Shawshank Redemption (another must-see), and he plays it perfectly. Despire being the CEO, he is at the center of a maelstrom of people trying to take advantage of him, and he has neither the personal nor the political resources to survive.
It very much has the spirit of other corporate-conglomerate-evil movies such as Office Space and Brazil, but is much lighter, funnier, and more likeable than either of those two. And, most importantly, despite being light humor, it is a moving portrayal of a small-town boy out of his element atop a giant corporation.
See this movie with no preconceptions (no, it's not like Raising Arizona or The Big Lebowski). Just enjoy it for what it is -- pure, clean fun, mixed with a wide variety of strong and subtle messages.