|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Dec 27, 2004 23:29:07 GMT -5
Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. The (December 25th, 2005)
A very enjoyable film, but I probably would have enjoyed it more if I had seen any other film by Wes Anderson. Bill Murray was funny as usual, but Willem Dafoe I felt had the most interesting part. In all, it was a bit of a letdown, but there was some nice direction, cinematography, and overall it kept me entertained, which is always a good thing.
8.5/10
|
|
|
|
Post by Heineken Skywalker on Dec 28, 2004 0:57:32 GMT -5
A very enjoyable film, but I probably would have enjoyed it more if I had seen any other film by Wes Anderson. Not sure I understand what you mean by that. 8.5/10 is pretty damn good for a "bit of a letdown". Most movies that I only "like" don't get a 8.5/10. |
|
|
|
Post by Phoenix on Dec 28, 2004 11:59:56 GMT -5
Not sure I understand what you mean by that. 8.5/10 is pretty damn good for a "bit of a letdown". Most movies that I only "like" don't get a 8.5/10. I thought it was long and boring. I am sad I wasted my money to see it. Wes Anderson's worst film. That is definitely a way high score Smitty! |
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Dec 28, 2004 13:38:42 GMT -5
I considered the Life Aquatic a bit of a letdown because I was expecting to give it a perfect 10. Ultimately, I felt if it weren't for the quirky characters and the actors who played them, the movie would have been very dull. Thank God for people like Bill Murray and Willem Dafoe.
Still, I'll be revising my criteria soon, I have too many 9.5's.
|
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 2, 2005 1:51:14 GMT -5
Beyond the Sea (December 31st, 2004)
Another winner for Kevin Spacey. Considering biopics have been coming in full force this year, it's good to see none of them are following any specific formula. This is an example of a non-formulaic biopic. There's a style to it, a very unique, original style in the storytelling of Bobby Darin's life.
Kevin Spacey was excellent, and surprisingly enough, so was Kate Bosworth. I was really surprised by her performance, I didn't really think of her as much of an actress.
The film is part musical. It's not entirely a musical, but there are a couple of Bobby Darin songs that have been performed in the style of a musical. I don't want to give too much away in the storytelling, but I felt it was brilliant. Definitely worth the price of admission, I think.
9.5/10
|
|
|
|
Post by LivingDeadGirl on Jan 2, 2005 10:42:15 GMT -5
Glad to hear that glowing review of the movie. Really wanna see this one & I was hoping it would be good being Spacey & all, and basically his brain child. I'll have to make it a point to see it soon!
|
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 4, 2005 13:10:44 GMT -5
House of Flying Daggers (December 3rd, 2004)
The movie started off strong. A half hour into the movie, it was already better than Hero and creeping up on Crouching Tiger. Unfortunately, the pace doesn't keep up and things begin to fall apart.
The second half of the movie is a love story reminiscent of that in Pearl Harbor. That's when the movie started losing points. In the end, it started off as a great movie and ended as a good one. Great cinematography, great fight scenes, but a love story with too many twists for its own good. In the end, I felt Hero WAS better.
7.5/10
|
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 8, 2005 0:53:51 GMT -5
Million Dollar Baby (December 31st, 2004)
I was completely blown away. I wasn't aware they made movies like this anymore; a very powerful human drama. Great performances all around, especially that of Hilary Swank. I'm putting my money on her, she is GOING to win the Oscar, no doubt in my mind about that.
This is definitely a must-see for the year 2004. If you haven't seen this yet, make time to go see it.
10/10
|
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 11, 2005 19:25:46 GMT -5
Kinsey (November 12th, 2004)
Just like its subject, this movie goes all the way. Of course, that's the only way to do the man justice, by going into his research and showing us in often graphic detail his findings. Great performances from Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, and Peter Sarsgaard. The movie never seemed to drag. It was as entertaining as it was powerful. This was definitely one of the best movies of the year.
10/10
|
|
|
|
Post by Phoenix on Jan 12, 2005 11:20:40 GMT -5
Kinsey (November 12th, 2004) Just like its subject, this movie goes all the way. Of course, that's the only way to do the man justice, by going into his research and showing us in often graphic detail his findings. Great performances from Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, and Peter Sarsgaard. The movie never seemed to drag. It was as entertaining as it was powerful. This was definitely one of the best movies of the year. 10/10 This is def a great movie with fantastic acting and a great subject matter. BUT be prepared to see some graphic sex stuff - two old couples walked out of the theater when I saw it! |
|
|
|
Post by Bartwald on Jan 12, 2005 11:41:59 GMT -5
Kinsey joins my To Be Watched list, then. And it's NOT only because of the scene Phoenix mentioned, of course.  |
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 13, 2005 1:01:02 GMT -5
Oh, there's a very graphic scene involving Peter Sarsgaard. Caught my friend and I by surprise, and we spent a large portion of the scene turning away from the screen. We're not immature, but we aren't very fond of full frontal male nudity.  In other news, I saw the Phantom of the Opera again. The first time I saw it, it was good enough to be my second favorite movie of the year, beaten only by the Passion. However, this time around, I enjoyed it even more. The things that bugged me the first time through didn't the second time. I was more appreciative in the cinematic excellence conveyed by that film. Still doesn't surpass the Passion, but I doubt I'm going to see another film this year that I will like more than this. |
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 14, 2005 3:05:18 GMT -5
Darkness (December 25th 2004 USA/October 11th 2002 Spain)
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
...
...
...WAIT! I'm not finished holding my sides.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
A HA A HA A HA Uh...
AHAHAHAHA...
HA...
God, this would have made a great episode of MST3K. What is Anna Paquin doing in this movie?
1/10
|
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 16, 2005 3:50:35 GMT -5
In Good Company (December 29th, 2004)
Not much I can say in this one. Brilliant performances by Dennis Quaid, Topher Grace, and Scarlett Johansson in a feel-good comedy. Not one of the year's best, but it comes highly recommended nonetheless.
8.5/10
|
|
|
|
Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 18, 2005 3:50:56 GMT -5
Hotel Rwanda (December 22nd, 2004) One of the most powerful movies of the year; of all time actually. A movie like this is only rivalled by the likes of Schindler's List and the Pianist. Don Cheadle's performance was excellent; I feel he is a very underappreciated actor. Very sobering, and very well directed. It almost feels like a documentary. Powerful imagery, I'm surprised they got away with a PG-13 rating. Definitely a must-see. 10/10 Appleseed (April 17th 2004 Japan/January 14th 2005 USA) Let me start by saying the animation in this movie was AMAZING. Brilliant usage of CG animation and anime. Now to the facts: amazing animation does NOT a great movie make. See (as in refer to, don't actually see it) Brother Bear. So let's cut to the chase. Story-wise, this movie stole from more films than the Matrix. They probably stole from the Matrix itself. What I'm seeing in this movie is a movie trying to be like Akira, which is superior. The concept for this movie would have worked a whole lot better as a video game. And the usual reference to the obvious: DUBBING IS A VERY, VERY BAD IDEA. I probably would have liked this a lot better if it was subtitled. (but then again, I don't know where I would be if I hadn't heard "TETSUOOOOO!" when I saw Akira  ) The story is very unoriginal, the voice-acting was sub par, and there were some pretty ridiculous moments in the movie. For instance, WHAT THE FUCK IS UP WITH ALL THE MONOLOGGING? Jesus, do these people need to explain everything? Stop insulting my intelligence! IF monologging MUST be done, don't have the hero (or heroine in this case) REPEAT what their nemesis just said for clarification. If you can appreciate some bad-ass animation, by all means check this out. Just don't expect much in terms of story. 6/10 Also:In case you haven't noticed, I HAVE revised my criteria. 1. Closer has been moved up to my top 10. 2. Sideways, after being dropped from a 9.5 to an 8.5, climbed back up to a 10/10. It's just one of those movies that you only like for a few weeks, and then you realize you actually love it. 3. The Punisher and Hidalgo were dropped from a 9.5 to an 8.5. I loved those movies a lot, but they're just not 9.5 material. 4. Blade: Trinity dropped from a 9.5 to an 8. See #3. 5. National Treasure dropped from a 9.5 to a 7.5. See #3. 6. Around the World in 80 Days was added to the list. I somehow missed it when putting the list together. It has a 7/10, by the way. 7. Flight of the Phoenix dropped from an 8 to a 7. I watched some of it during a break, and I realized I didn't like it all that much. That is all.
|
|
)