xtoph00
Lifetime Total
1+
IMDb Member
18 years
Reviews
D'Artagnan et les Trois Mousquetaires (2005)
be warned
they turn milady into a ninja sorceress, for no apparent reason. the ensuing special effects are lame. lackluster wirework, sword fights few and far between. some of the actors are pretty (boys and girls, with character) but there is no real chemistry nor, alas--and this is the real kicker--any 'panache'. a long, humorless, horribly misguided waste.
there really isn't anything more to say of any importance. they retain much of the outline of dumas' story, but it is perfunctory, and disposed of as quickly as possible in order to move on to pointless development of the devil sorceress "plot".
also, us DVD release of this movie is dubbed, badly, with no option to view with original soundtrack.
there really isn't anything more to say of any importance. they retain much of the outline of dumas' story, but it is perfunctory, and disposed of as quickly as possible in order to move on to pointless development of the devil sorceress "plot".
also, us DVD release of this movie is dubbed, badly, with no option to view with original soundtrack.
Zardoz (1974)
good film-making
it seems like most folks who view this see only cheese. i don't get that; there are definitely moments that qualify, but i don't think any of them are unjustified by the plot and premises. if they seem cheesy, that's really what we bring to it, not an intrinsic fault. if you have ever enjoyed a modern dance performance, you can handle this without sniggering; if the words 'modern dance' transform you into beavis, well, then you won't get the most out of the movie.
look at how the story gets told here-there's some really good film-making going on. it jumps all over in time and still makes sense. the various reveals really do expand what the movie is about, rather than just constituting tricks on the viewer. the futuristic tech holds up better than just about anything else imagined in that era that i've seen. the special effects are simple yet effective and certainly not cheesy in technique (as distinct from content). there's a whole lot more here to think about than most films. i don't happen to agree, quite, with boorman's macho ideology positing how violence and death are essential to renewal, though he's hardly alone on that point, and i disagree with his narrow gender interpretation of the necessity and inevitability of the attraction of 'opposites'. but unlike most sci fi, which is basically spaghetti western in spandex, this film makes a real effort to imagine a different world, the circumstances of which reflect and inform our own, but are not mere caricature of our own.
it's true, you probably shouldn't see this when you're really sleepy--the pacing isn't the usual stuff (perhaps it is meant to evoke the mood of immortality), and yes, most of us will find ourselves shaking our heads and groaning a few times. but it is really worth it. it is a kind of movie making a sincere attempt at serious subjects that you hardly see anymore. it is a great reprieve from all the winking, hip flicks you see these days which hide behind their too-cool- to-care attitudes.
look at how the story gets told here-there's some really good film-making going on. it jumps all over in time and still makes sense. the various reveals really do expand what the movie is about, rather than just constituting tricks on the viewer. the futuristic tech holds up better than just about anything else imagined in that era that i've seen. the special effects are simple yet effective and certainly not cheesy in technique (as distinct from content). there's a whole lot more here to think about than most films. i don't happen to agree, quite, with boorman's macho ideology positing how violence and death are essential to renewal, though he's hardly alone on that point, and i disagree with his narrow gender interpretation of the necessity and inevitability of the attraction of 'opposites'. but unlike most sci fi, which is basically spaghetti western in spandex, this film makes a real effort to imagine a different world, the circumstances of which reflect and inform our own, but are not mere caricature of our own.
it's true, you probably shouldn't see this when you're really sleepy--the pacing isn't the usual stuff (perhaps it is meant to evoke the mood of immortality), and yes, most of us will find ourselves shaking our heads and groaning a few times. but it is really worth it. it is a kind of movie making a sincere attempt at serious subjects that you hardly see anymore. it is a great reprieve from all the winking, hip flicks you see these days which hide behind their too-cool- to-care attitudes.