joelhoff Reviews

Beowulf (2007)

Unwatchable CG dreck

[2/10 · 5 July 2009]

I found this film to be virtually unwatchable. It is nothing more than a sequence of "gee! see what I can do in CG" scenes. There is nothing here that enables the viewer to identify with nor care about the characters, and that is a fatal flaw in an epic adventure if not in most movies/stories in general.

CG and visual effects can be useful to enhance the movie experience and/or to help tell a story that might otherwise be impractical to film as real action or settings. However, CG or animated characters are very difficult to identify with unless the actors, writers, and director focus extensively on creating an emotional tapestry that pulls in the viewer. Without the latter, a film devolves into a mere series of images and scenes that will have little if any impact.

Beowulf makes the mistake described above, and it is clearly reflected in the flat performances of the voice actors. Despite having a cast with several A-list and award-winning thespians, all of them sounded like they were reading from scripts. I don't doubt that they found it difficult to bring the "story" to life in their own minds given the complete-animation format, and the director clearly did nothing to address this fundamental problem.

As computer game, Beowulf might have had a chance, but as a film it is a complete waste of time. A few mildly notable sequences of CG gore that could be found in any "zombie hunt" video game do not a movie make.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)

Completely unwatchable

[3/10 · 2 July 2005]

I regret to say that I find this movie to be completely unwatchable and was forced to give up on it after the first 30-40 minutes. Despite the obvious effort and creativity which went into the visual style and appearance of the film, there is nothing to see here.

• The characters are utterly lifeless, making it impossible to identify with any of them. There is also no "viewpoint" created outside of the characters from which one could otherwise observe them and understand the story and/or themes.

• The film is shot with consistently visually dark scenes that cast a further dead pall on both story and characters. This is true of many of the action scenes, making them especially confusing.

• Due to either editing or the script, the plot of the story comes across as very confused. There is grossly inadequate time given to introducing any of the characters, the setting (time/place), or the basic conflicts at work (who are the "factions", what motivates them, etc.) In another film, some or perhaps even all of the above flaws could be overlooked or would perhaps be irrelevant, e.g., a horror movie. This, however, is supposed to be an adventure story. A good adventure story, though, consists of a relatively simple main plot line (usually), at least one character that the viewer is soon made to care about (frequently more than one), and a visually straight-forward presentation with non-confusing action sequences and relatively clear character motivations. None of this is true for this film.

With nothing in this movie that makes me either care about the characters or want to know what happens next, all that is left is a sequence of visually artistic scenes. This would be fine in an art gallery, but it is a very, very bad thing in the forums of film and storytelling. Even comic books require far more substance than is shown in this movie.

Other reviews I've read here either do not mention any similar reactions or reflect a much less negative perception, e.g., "style over substance". Other than differences in personal tastes, the only way I can reconcile these wide variations is that perhaps the film comes across better on the big screen (I saw it on video).

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

Moore's preening propaganda

[2/10 · 11 July 2004]

This film is incontrovertible evidence that Michael Moore is a propagandist, not a documentary filmmaker. As a propagandist, he is a competent spinmaster. In another time and place, masters such as the Nazis and Russian Communists would have been happy to have him serve them.

See this film if you must, but be a true free-thinking person if you do so. Whatever questions Moore may ask, be sure to ask your own. Whatever "substance" one may see here, be sure to combine it with the much larger body of other, objective evidence that Moore does not see fit to present on screen. Do not mistake his presentation of half-truths and outright deceptions as hard, lucid analysis of the film's subject matter.

Some may see this movie as a bold example of free speech, one that should be lauded for challenging America's political leaders. Free speech is indeed laudable, but so is objective truth. Ideals are virtues so long as they are fully and completely grounded in life's realities. When not so grounded, they are dangerous and ultimately self-defeating.

At its core, this film is nothing other than political profiteering. It is one man's self-aggrandizing attempt to milk the prejudices of one political faction against another. Is this what you really want either America or the world to be about?

Blade Runner (1982)

A compelling, thematically-deep SF film

[10/10 · 5 March 2002]

This is truly one of the greatest science fiction films ever made, one that requires a thinking viewer in order to understand and appreciate it. The director's cut is the recommended one to see as it omits a somewhat distracting narration and avoids an unnecessary Hollywood-style ending that is at odds with the rest of the film's tone.

A true science fiction story or film is about ideas, not spaceship battles, futuristic gadgets, or weird creatures. "Blade Runner" fully qualifies as this in its examination of the impact of technology on human society, existence, and the very nature of humanity itself. These themes are set in a fairly basic detective story that moves slowly but gradually builds power as the viewer is immersed in a dystopian futuristic Los Angeles.

Harrison Ford fans accustomed to the normally dynamic roles that he plays may be dissatisfied with the seemingly lifeless lead character that he portrays here as the replicant-hunting detective known as a "blade runner". They should be, for this dissatisfaction is part of the film experience, part of the dehumanized existence in the story's setting. However, as the story unfolds, we see Ford's character, Rick Deckard, slowly come alive again and recover some humanity while pursing four escaped replicants.

The replicants, genetically-engineered human cyborgs, that Deckard must hunt down and kill are in many ways more alive than Deckard himself initially. Their escape from an off-world colony has an explicit self-directed purpose, whereas Deckard's life appears to have none other than his job, one that he has tried to give up. By some standards, Deckard and the replicants have thin character development. However, this is a deeply thematic and philosophical film, and as such the characters are the tools of the story's themes. Each character reflects some aspect of humanity or human existence, but they lack others, for each is broken in ways that reflect the broken society in which they live and were conceived/created.

There are several dramatic moments involving life-and-death struggles, but most of these are more subdued than in a normal detective story plot. The film's power is chiefly derived through its stunning visual imagery of a dark futuristic cityscape and its philosophical themes.

Among the themes explored are the following: - The dehumanization of people through a society shaped by technological and capitalistic excess. - The roles of creator and creation, their mutual enslavement, and their role reversal, i.e., the creation's triumph over its creator. - The nature of humanity itself: emotions, memory, purpose, desire, cruelty, technological mastery of environment and universe, mortality, death, and more. - Personal identity and self-awareness. - The meaning of existence.

If you are not someone who naturally enjoys contemplating such themes, the film's brilliance may be lost on you. The climax involves a soliloquy that brings many of the themes together in a simple yet wonderfully poetic way. Anyone who "gets" the film should be moved by this; others will sadly miss the point and may prefer watching some mindless action flick instead.

"Blade Runner" is a masterpiece that deserves recognition and long remembrance in film history.