Nerdboy1423 Reviews

Freezerburn (2005)

Not really good

[1/10 · 26 October 2006]

Saw a screener of this before last year's Award season, didn't really know why they gave them out after the voting had ended, but whatever, maybe for exposure, at the least, but the movie was a convoluted mess. Sure, some parts were funny in a black humor kind of way, but none of the characters felt very real to me at all. There was not one person that I could connect with, and I think that is where it failed for me. Sure, the plot is somewhat interesting and very subversive towards Scientology, WOW! What a grand idea...let's see if that already hasn't been mined to the point of futility. The whole ordeal feels fake, from the lighting, the casting, the screenplay to the horrible visual effects(which is supposed to be intentional, I can tell, and so can everyone else, no one is laughing with you though). Anyways, I hope it makes it out for sale on DVD at least, I wouldn't want a project that a lot of people obviously put a lot of effort into get completely unnoticed. But it's tripe either way. Boring tripe at that.

The Butterfly Effect (2004)

Horrible Exploitation

[1/10 · 10 October 2006]

This is a film made by people who made X-Files, or maybe that's what they'd like you to believe, but also Quantum Leap, and every other good science fiction show of the '90's. Anyways, my point is this. This movie is trying so hard to be serious, and Ashton tries, he really does. But even though the performances are worthwhile, this film is ridiculous. The premise and outcome make absolutely no sense, and the rules that apply to the gimmick of the "Butterfly Effect" don't even apply logically, just only when called for. It's also a little sad because I read the movie as something for trauma-victims or just people who have been "victimized" to watch. Some of the content in here about younger victims and sex and violence verges on cheesy exploitation, both in narrative, and exploitation of the actors who had to perform the scenes on film that served no purpose to a film that could have thought of a billion different ways to shoot something and didn't. I just think this film has a little bit of a "Final Destination" quality to it that it shouldn't have. Sure, trauma and violence is real, but this film plays both like they are candy to be consumed, glossy entertainment products with "shock value" that will actually produce laughter instead of sympathy for the characters involved. It tries so many things. It does a "Stand by Me" thing with all the kids. It does a "Final Destination" thing with all the shocking violence. It does "Kiddie Porn Dungeon Sequence" that's just TRYING to make you squirm(this is the exploitation of which I speak), it does the spoofy sci-fi gimmick that has been around forever. What it doesn't do is stop for a moment for it's characters to reflect, and I think with a certain amount of reflection, the main character would have committed suicide a long time before the chronological time line that this film started in.

Crash (I) (2004)

convoluted racist exploitation film

[1/10 · 10 September 2006]

This is such a racist piece of garbage. When so many art independent films come out every year from new directors coming from the inner cities and vets like Spike Lee making films actually about racism from a critical point of view, Crash wins "Best Picture" I shouldn't be able to get that but I do. Crash was made by cynical Angelenos with Academy votes. More clearly, white Angelenos with Academy votes. It's a grossly simplified sophomoric view at the great west coast metropolis. It's artsy only to the extent that it looks artsy. But the cast and everything else about smells Hollywood. It tries to be something it isn't, and it comes off as racist, simple-minded, hyperbolic, and corny. Every cast member is stereotyped, every character is cookie-cutter and the directing and editing is stolen from a highly superior film, Magnolia, which is underrated and unappreciated compared to this pretentious crap.

Snake Eyes (1998)

Fantastic thriller, unexpected!

[8/10 · 7 August 2006]

In the vein of great pieces of Hitchcok, Snake Eyes succeeds, it has a mystery from multiple POV's and an excellent twist, which is character pitch perfect. Sure, Nicholas Cage plays an unlikeable character, a dirty cop with a woman on the side, but that doesn't make the fact that his old buddy Cmdr. Kevin Dunne thinks he's the perfect pawn and all the while, Nicholas Cage's Rick Santoro goes from pawn to in control of a wild hellish situation by doing one thing he loves to do, impress people. And so, in the efforts to try and impress people, namely his old military buddy, he does exactly what Sinise's Dunne doesn't want him to do. He acts like a cop. He does his job, and along the, discovers a pretty good conspiracy that can relate to our times. All the flash and style of the film, from the extended opening shot to the angles, lighting, color and mood help surround these characters in an overwhelming sense of chaos and thrills. I've seen a lot of de Palma's work, and I still think films like Mission: Impossible or the Untouchables or even Carlito's Way are better than this film, but it still does not fail to be a great movie.

The Insider (1999)

Perfect important film!

[10/10 · 30 July 2006]

I found this movie enthralling on almost every level. Emotionally, the story of a repressed man and his struggle with himself, his family and the world was at times heartbreaking and always interesting. The acting was top notch especially by Mann usuals Venora and Pacino, but also by Crowe, who did an Oscar worthy job in the main role, playing someone much older than himself convincingly. Visually, like all Mann films, it was experimental and breathtaking and the mood music perfectly complemented the colors and compositions of all the scenes. This film is also historically important for obvious reasons, and I felt that a biographical film like this is not usually given the thriller-drama that this film was given to such a quality degree, but Michael Mann never disappoints. What is disappointing is to see that this film is not higher on the top 250 list. A must see for edge of your seat memorable drama

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)

Horrible characters and a preposterous plot

[4/10 · 23 July 2006]

I liked the original Pirates of the Caribbean, I liked it, but I did not love it. For one, the whole going back and forth from Isle del Muerta to Port Royale and to the ships to the Isle del Muerta just became numbing after awhile. They could have tightened that script a lot and cut the amount of running around. That was basically my only complaint in a film that I bought solely for Jack Sparrow. I figured that since that complaint was not mine alone, many other critics found the film redundant, that the screenwriters would pay heed, but instead have thrown narrative completely to the wind and have made a film that is completely running back and forth from location to location with one ridiculously pointless excursion to a Cannibal island which was actually well done but didn't fit the rest of the film. And since everyone is just running around all the time, you can't really pay attention to the crappier acting by Johnny Depp, playing it more straight this time and the otherworldly visual effects that are probably some of the best I've ever seen wasted on a horrible film. The film feels completely all over the place and has memorable scenes but never stops to take it's breath and feel it's way around for an emotional moment or two. I know the end is supposed to be bitter and sad but I didn't feel anything since they basically said that Sparrow wasn't dead. So the movie was pointless, made to make money and to continue a franchise that may be funny but lacks the spirit of older better Pirate adventure films. So the short is, this is not a film, it is a visual effects demo reel.

Superman Returns (2006)

A virtuoso American masterpiece of cinema

[10/10 · 7 July 2006]

Last year I saw Terrence Malick's "The New World", and after seeing it, I felt like I had experienced a wave of euphoria, having experienced one of the most breathtaking visual feasts with a deeply resonating emotional core that I have ever seen. Last week, I saw Superman Returns and was equally stricken by it's use of rich imagery and metaphor to take me to a place of unimaginable life, on the silver screen. While some make take aim at Superman's running time and slower character-centric pace, I find that is what movies are, and should be about. At it's heart, Superman is still the everyman immigrant, he is every one of us. He represents something, and through all that has changed since Superman has left us on film, this return is the juggernaut it needed to be. It is not only a slice of American pop culture, but a piece of fine art to behold and witness. It's beautiful grace enveloped me, the visual effects were seamless and the character points and arcs were dealt with extreme care. The moments in which Superman is feeling and thinking and reacting are truly one's of cinematic history. No longer is Superman just a comic book adaptation or a film, he is a symbol, and what he symbolizes here is the resurrection of the Phoenix, the life and death of Siegfried, and Jesus Christ. If you are looking for a no-hold's barred action film, this isn't for you. Go watch Bad Boys II, which is, in all due respects, a wonderful action/exploitation film with unrelenting action sequences. If you want a thoughtful story with some awesome action pieces that resonate with the characters and visual that go above and beyond anything we have ever seen, Superman Returns is for you. The acting is top notch, the plot is tremendous and the meaning is all there. Every action taken has meaning and impact. If you see one superhero film, make it Superman Returns.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

too much, but still really good

[7/10 · 13 June 2006]

I don't know if it's just me, but I can't take that too information being being thrown at me 100 times a minutes just so it can so how all fit into a good, but not great and supremely over the top conclusion. If you think I'm going to bash this film, I'm not, I gave it an 7, and yes, albeit, I usually give all the films I rate on here tens, but that's because I only usually rate films I absolutely love. But I did love this movie. I loved all the little in jokes about Los Angeles, about actors and effed up females in California, I loved the dialogue especially, extremely witty and right to the point. But the thing about the film in general is that everything, while to the point, is pointed in every possible direction. The narrative is so boggling tangential that I couldn't find to focus on exactly what transpired. But I'll watch it again, I'm sure, and I'm sure I'll pick up more the next time, all the little details that just kind of flew right past me. And I don't have a problem with that, normally I love re-watching a film if it's clever like this, but usually that's with a film like Domino or Running Scared, where you got the basic plot and the characters and even some little things thrown out at you to pick up on, but this movie, this movie is so layered and slightly pretentious, I won't know where to start, who to pay attention to. Overall: acting good, dialogue good, action good, story...everywhere but where it ultimately needed to be for me.

Running Scared (2006)

Watch it more than once! Inspired Violent Brilliance!

[10/10 · 12 June 2006]

This is a great '70's style action film on speed, literally. I've never watched a film so fast paced or so insanely over the top than Running Scared, at least, not a film made in the US. In terms of content, it actually reminded me of some of the gangster films of Takashi Miike in terms of the graphic nature. But beyond the pretty grittiness of the film, the wild camera work and the nice visual effects, the film has a heart. One of the most memorable scenes of any recent film is a scene involving a couple of married pedophiles and Vera Farmiga, who turns in a solid and totally convincing role as Paul Walker's worried and caring wife. Not only Vera, but everyone else in the cast plays their roles very well, very solid and over the top, surprisingly, this is the first time I've actually been sold on a performance by Paul Walker, who usually is crap, but it seems that it is only the material that is crap, because he shines in this dystopic suburban gangster fairy tale that is inspired as much from Goodfellas as it is from the work of the Bros Grimm. The film's only vice, in my mind is the fact that it goes so fast you miss some of the great kernels of entertainment in the dialogue or character quirks the first time around. I had to watch it twice, and enjoyed it even more the second time, was even more glued to what was unfolding in front of me in the tightly wound gritty violent film by Wayne Kramer, who tops The Cooler, which was great by it's own standards with this film.

Schindler's List (1993)

Representation misused

[1/10 · 29 May 2006]

This is just another film like Amistad that Steven Spielberg thought might be important to put to film. But, after seeing a film like United 93, I feel that, going back to this film, I see it as exploitation. That it is exploiting the pain of the entire holocaust and the tragedy that it really was, and exploiting that for emotional reasons but worse, to give Oskar Shindler an opposite, and something to purify him from a narrative character perspective. It's not that I hate the film, it's well made in every aspect, but it is basically a Frank Capra picture set within a really huge tragedy. One character is not the hero or villain here, there is no black and white. Since it chooses to display the Holocaust so graphically, do it in a better way. But watching the film and contrasting it to what actually did happen, I have to wonder, is there a really truthful way of representing the Holocaust? It's such a monstrous tragedy, the big abomination of the 20th century, should it really be put onto film, and are the words now used to describe it, "Never Again", really a truthful representation? Is this how we want people to remember the Holocaust? Through a film that presents a hero struggling to be a capitalist and struggling to be a good man by Western standards by saving as many people as possible. If he had saved "one more" person, it wouldn't have mattered. The film is permanent, and the Holocaust itself is as well. I firmly believe this is not the appropriate way to depict something that actually happened and was so important. It's the singular voice of the director here, this film might as well by "It's A Wonderful Life", because that is essentially what it is. The same story, the same character arc for Shindler. It's just not appropriate and I think that the time has not come yet for us to truly be able to grasp the atrocity of the Holocaust. I believe the means of representation are not available for us or at our disposal.

Kingdom of Heaven (2005)

Director's Cut Review

[10/10 · 28 May 2006]

I believe that it was a grievous error on the part of Fox to release the trimmed down piece of crap Scott vignette that was the theatrical Kingdom of Heaven. It just wasn't a film, it was a bunch of battle scenes with some interesting but surface level philosophizing. The director's cut, adds depth, gravity and wisdom to the film as a whole, completing all the character arcs and creating a whole, more real temporal world. Balian is no longer a bizarre and cold character who turns into a leader, and Sybilla is no longer a sex-starved Queen of Jerusalem. Every character has layer upon layer of intention to drive their action now, and Sybilla's character I now believe is probably one of the more interesting characters in the story, given her arc with Balian, Guy, and her son who was not previously in the film at all. The thing that really upsets me though is that this is, unlike the LOTR directors cut, not filled with fluff for genre fans. This is an actual film, the film that should have been released but wasn't. Don't Studio executives know by now to trust Ridley Scott? Haven't they already botched and blundered most of his projects and haven't the director's cuts been viewed as masterpieces? The huge amount of film that was cut from the theatrical version that is present here was completely necessary to make a real experience for the audience. I'm am so deeply sad for Scott and so enraged at Fox, Warners, Universal, for never having faith in this talented genius artist. Please, if you can, watch the director's cut of Kingdom of Heaven, it was the film we were meant to see.

City of God (2002)

The Absolute Best Crime Film Ever

[10/10 · 5 April 2006]

When I saw this film I felt it was almost too real. I couldn't separate the fact that this was cinema from how it affects me so realistically. I wasn't exploitative or needlessly violent like most crime films, but showed a city for what it truly is on the underbelly where age, gender, drugs, sex, race and money meet head on. The film is spectacular, every performance feels completely authentic the characters emotions are completely palpable. It's a disturbingly blunt and stylish view at a world we don't know but can't deny. A world we hate that exists yet are totally drawn towards. This film is better than any film made in America in the past 10 years, it belongs on the top #20 where it's at here, but it truthfully deserves a higher post. It's not only a great film, but it's has a conscience that is lacking from other crime films. The protagonist, Rocket, is the guiding light in this world of darkness, who leads us from temptation to temptation, mixing us in with these impoverished people and drug-fueled gangsters on a Homeric odyssey that has one of the most poetic and cynical endings I've ever witnessed. Not to be missed, if you haven't seen City of God, you are woefully missing out.

The Descent (2005)

The best Horror Film since Alien

[9/10 · 22 March 2006]

I love me some horror films, enough so that when I was over at cinefile and saw the region 2 version of this movie on sale for 40.00, I quickly plunked down the cash based on the sole UK audience response to it. And I wasn't let down one bit. I was terrified to the point of screaming, and had nightmares for two days after I saw it. This is no cheesy B-Grade picture. It features themes and metaphors that are mature and has a statement on the value of human life, and the road to self-destruction. The Cave, the fact that all the characters are fully adult women, the issues that are on the surface and beneath for each character even if each character isn't put front and center is realistic and has a depth not seen in Marshall's previous film, Dog Soldiers. I really felt the pain of Sarah as she suffered internally throughout, and could feel the regret, the horror and shock of Juno as she makes her fatal mistake. The ensemble works greatly, each character not feeling like a cardboard cut out but a fully realized woman, with a past, present and future. The terror, which comes in the form of "Crawlers", is insanely claustrophobic and terrifying, considering this film takes place in complete cramped isolation and darkness. They are not portrayed as movie monsters. They have no over-dramatic flourishes. They are presented as wild animals in their natural habitat. And the body of the film takes place within that habitat, where these women meet abject horror and each deal with it in their own very personal way. It reminded me a lot of the original Alien, with a little Deliverance on top for good measure. It also contains some beautiful artistic flourishes which really put it over the top. The only complaints I have is that some of the action scenes involving Juno were shot a bit "posy" for me. She did a knock down drag out performance, but the way the camera framed her when she was fighting off the crawlers in some instances smacked of cheese. But that was it, and that's nit picking. Other than that, if you want the crap scarred out of you, if you want to be traumatized, see this film, it's not only good horror, but good cinema.

V for Vendetta (2005)

Review with a Huge Spoiler about V's Real Secret!

[10/10 · 17 March 2006]

Got to say, I absolutely loved this film. It was such an emotional, thrilling and fully fleshed out and rich film that I just couldn't control myself. I cried I loved it so much, and the ending and the sorrow in V's character is so palpable by the end, it drove me to tears. The action was insane as well, although not as rampant as in "The Matrix", this film chose it's action sequences well, especially the bloody finale, which gives a new meaning to the statement, "Blood Soaked Cinema". The acting was fantastic, with the supporting characters shining just as much as the main ones. Stand out stuff. The visual effects were really good as well. I only have one thing left to talk about, which I am slightly confused about...there is a spoiler so read with caution

SPOILER ALERT!!!!! SERIOUS SPOILER ALERT!!! okay, Iwalked out of the theater slightly confused about one thing and only this one thing. V is a woman who is transformed into a man through experimentation? Am I right? I think I am. Even the name, V, is the ultimate letter, symbol for femininity, and V's collection of antiques and relics, not to mention V's fashion spoke of a woman, or a trans-gender. The reveal on this is that the doctor whom V kills, the autopsy woman, worked in the womens section of the hospital. Totally a woman, I know it! Is this in the comic?

American Psycho (2000)

great film

[10/10 · 13 February 2005]

I have seen this film a number of times and it just continues to grow on me. It is the most quotable film I have ever seen and Christian Bale's Bateman is probably one of the best acted film villains I have ever seen in cinema. Christian Bale is so totally underrated for the talent he has and displays in every single film he is in, I would say even starting with his role in Empire of the Sun, to American Psycho, to The Machinist, that he has set himself up to be a great character actor. Besides his stellar performance in this film, everyone else I think does an excellent job as well, and the translation from Ellis' novel to the script by Turner and Harron give this film a satirical feminist edge that really subverts '80's pop culture and reganomics. Greed is the creed here, and Bateman is the product of such a heartless society. Perfect film.

Hellboy (2004)

Hellboy, the definitive Superhero movie, not without flaws

[30 March 2004]

I have to start out with the one bad thing before I can get to the good. In the beginning of the movie, there was not an even exposition for all the characters, Broom and Hellboy and Rasuptin and the baddies got the biggest exposition, while Liz Sherman's was satisfying but the human in the film, the audience's POV, Agent Myers was given almost nothing! I read all this Bio material on the Hellboy site for him, that del Toro wrote, but none of that was in the movie at all, so his character felt weak. Also, his short-lived romance with Liz started off way to fast with them just going out, no character interaction barely at all. Anyway, although these things weaken the film, overall it was brilliant. The actors gave great performances, with Perlman disappearing into the Hellboy character, and everyone else giving remarkably subtle, not over-the-top performances that fit their characters. Also, the movie was not Villain-centric, a la the Batman films, very centered on Hellboy and his team at the BPRD, which gave the film a unique strength, seperating it from other films in this genre. Also, great humor given in zingy one-liners by Perlman delivered perfectly, and fight scenes that don't distract, but are adventurous and inventive, with barely noticeable Visual effects, that don't pull you out of the Hellboy world. The monsters were fantastic looking and so was all of Liz's fire emanating from her body. I think this film really stuck to the source material all the way, although I don't remember Liz being in Seed of Destruction at all, and she did feel a little tacked on in the ending. Anyway, Perlman really is the show stealer here, followed by Abe Sapien's character voiced by David Hyde Pierce and performed by a really talented stunt man/mime(really fantastic looking, perhaps the most beautiful creature committed to film).Conceptually beautiful and obviously a milestone for Guillermo del Toro, Hellboy won't soon be forgotten as it is a true testament in Superhero cinema.