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Doodles23
Reviews
September Dawn (2007)
Why few moviegoers shared my opinion of this historical drama
After seeing the movie last night, and thinking about it, I now understand why it got so many negative reviews. The movie did not deliver the pizza that was ordered by the moviegoers. What they got instead was a black, smoldering mass of burnt toast. They killed off the central characters that were portrayed as good, honest people just looking for a place to rest their horses. And the perpetrators of the barbaric action were not punished as explained in the epilogue (with the exception of John Dee). So we exit the theater without any uplifting ending to show the triumph of good over evil. In the movie Titanic, which ended in almost total disaster, especially for the central characters, was way more acceptable. Why? Because the villain(s) of the movie was Mother Nature, not a group of law abiding American citizens. So no bad taste was left in your mouth after watching it. In Schindler's list, as another example, you are assaulted with the mindless violence of the Nazi's against the concentration camp victims. Surely you noticed that no reviewer complained that the movie was "one sided". The Jewish slaves were all good, honest people subjected to brutal treatment by the most evil people on the planet. As a result of Schindler's efforts, many Jew's were saved from near certain execution. This ending leaves you with a good feeling of the ultimate triumph of good over evil. There was no such triumph in September Dawn. And it's not the fault of the director or screenwriter, it's the facts of history that were adhered to in the movie that are unpalatable to viewers. The movie had a story to tell, and the story was told in a vehicle that was neither a documentary or docudrama. The story had to be packaged as a historical drama with a love story adding human interest. This was undoubtedly necessary assure adequate financing that would be difficult for a documentary to attract.
Movies are now considered by Americans to be vehicles that deliver entertainment. This movie broke those rules to deliver to the audience the gruesome, disgusting reality of unspeakable brutality and mindless slaughter that went unpunished. The director decided his job was to deliver the unvarnished facts of history which unfortunately had no uplifting ending or even a silver lining in the black cloud. And for that I thank him. The movie has inspired me to examine the foundations of Mormonism. This movie did not meet my minimum standards of entertainment either. I'm sorry, but I regard it as far more important than the fleeting enjoyment and good feeling I had when I left the theater after the Simpsons Movie.
There has been an abundance of criticisms about the "one sided" portrayal of history. The viewers were upset that there was no presentation of the "fact" that the emigrants were not all good people, but were accused of poisoning the streams and other nasty abominations. I am glad that bizarre accusation never got credence in the movie because a careful reading of the history does little to advance that theory. There is nothing I could say that would change the mind of the detractors to reevaluate the merits of this movie. The mob of discontents seem determined to use perceived historical inaccuracies and one-sided viewpoints as the most politically correct weapons to shoot down a movie that failed their own unstated psychological need for entertainment. This movie has taught the whiners a lesson: Check the reviews first to make sure the movie you are about to pay for is entertaining, or if not entertaining, at least has a spiritually uplifting ending.
As for me, I applaud the directors and producers for providing us with a high production value historical reenactment of this tragic event, warts and all, on it's 150th anniversary. Finally, I hope readers of this review will take a moment to notice the distribution of ratings the movie received. The distribution is not the usual bell curve but with the vast majority of votes of 1 star and 10 stars with few in between. Somebody please show me another movie with such dichotomy as I have yet to see one.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)
A major let-down for those who have seen the original
The original movie, which consisted of 6 - one hr installments, had extremely tacky special effects and cheap looking props. However the story and character development in the original series generated so much laughter that my wife and I have watched it at least 3 times . Like many other reviewers we enjoyed the opening and then watched the movie immediately go flat. I was amazed to see Ford Prefect cast as an amiable goof rather than a focused intergalactic guide as in the original. Even the depressed robot Marvin's body language and dialog lacked the punch of the original. And of course the dramatically different ending seemed to be tacked on as an adjustment to a test audience screening. The ending of the original series which takes place in a cabaret type bar at the end of the universe, which was superb, was discarded in favor of an ending that the writers thought would run the least risk of displeasing any audience members. In a way I'm jealous of those moviegoers who never saw the original. I heard a few laughs from that group in the theater.
Somebody should of hired a writer who read the original rather than a script surgeon whose main focus was to assure a wholesome, neatly wrapped, unoffensive ending.
Luther (2003)
A Masterpiece of Historical Presentation
It is unfortunate that this film has such limited distribution as it to become one of the shining stars of historical dramas. Here in Miami it is only showing in 3 theaters. On opening day at 4:10 in the afternoon there were less than 10 people in the theater! Its attention to historical accuracy is commendable. The acting by Fiennes and Ustinov could not be improved in my view. I was swept away with drama and emotion of the portrayal of Luther at this time of crisis in Christianity. Interestingly the pivotal moment of the nailing of the 95 thesis to the door of the church in Wittenburg is regarded as fictional by most careful scholars of Luther! But the legend is so ingrained that I am glad it was presented. If you have any interest in the foundations of the schism with Catholicism you must see this film.