sushifreak-1

As someone who loves the first film Vacation (and likes the others to varying degrees), I can easily say this film misses on every single mark. The original film had a story in which there were character arcs, lessons learned, and the humor came from the characters rather than simply artificially constructed moments or constant use of supposedly shocking words by kids. What angers me is that a remake could easily have been done that at least showed some appreciation of what made the original a great and funny film but instead millions were poured into absolute crap. Disrespectful of the original, poorly acted, horrible sets (the four corners bit looked like a elementary school production), and pathetic acting make this a miss in every way conceivable.

I came into Tideland as a huge fan of Terry Gilliam's work, but aware that Tideland had generated a great deal of disappointment and bad reviews, so I was a bit nervous and prepared to be let down. Big mistake. Tideland blew me away. Tideland weaves fantasy, insanity, tragedy, fairy tale sensibilities, and grotesquerie in brilliant fashion. The film delves into the mind of a girl who uses fantasy to cope with tragic circumstances. Tideland plays incessantly with the borders, such as those between tragic and comic, fantasy and reality, grown up and childlike, insanity and simple coping, and so on and on. But beyond the brilliance of the narrative, this film boasts tremendous acting (Jeff Bridges in all states is perfect throughout the film) and surrealistically compelling cinematography (pause the film at pretty much any moment and you have a perfectly composed, visually brilliant shot). I realize this film pushes the borders in many ways for people, and this feeling of discomfort is possibly the reason for the tremendous distaste some have for Tideland. I respect that and realize this is in no way a film for everyone, but, personally, I feel this is pure genius.

A movie I've seen and enjoyed possibly more than any other movie. I first saw it as a kid and loved the drama and the great climactic battle. As I got older, I enjoyed it as much or more than before, but now due to all of the components that work together to make a true classic. The acting is great (especially Keith as T. Roosevelt), the cinematography spectacular, the script is full of gems, and the directing pulls it all together wonderfully. It's loosely based on an actual event, and it shows rush of Europe and a newly emergent America to carve up the 'Sick old Man' (the Ottoman Empire) as it collapses in a fashion unlike any other 'historical' movie I've seen. Humor, drama, action, love...it's got it all and deserves far more acclaim (much like 'The Great Waldo Pepper').