Great story, but poor acting or directing (and possibly both) left me feeling somewhat disappointed. While I still enjoyed the film, I just felt delivery of the lines was too stiff and looked at times forced. The cast was very likable, but I attribute that to the writer and not their performances. I would love to see this movie made with a better cast and/or director.
Reviews
5 Reviews
Double Jeopardy
(1999)
Wake me up when it's over
2 October 1999
Not that it's a horrible movie, but it was certainly nothing new. I didn't find a single surprise in the movie and overall found it to be almost boring.
I thought Ashley Judd and pretty good as was Bruce Greenwood. Tommy Lee Jones was OK, although his character was weak and never really developed.
As for the story, it's a good idea, but the execution leaves something lacking. There were no surprises in the story (something very important in a "thriller"). Without the twists and turns expected in a good thriller, the story seems to just meander to the inevitable ending. I (as did the group of people I was with) knew the ending about 15 minutes into the movie. There was no suspense of "who did it" or "will he get away with it".
All that can really be said about "Double Jeopardy" is that it had potential--great cast and good story idea. However, it just never came together. Part of this might be attributed to the marketing of the movie. As an example, "The Sixth Sense", released just a few weeks prior, managed to keep the ending a (sort of) secret, until it was seen. With "Double Jeopardy" though, the viewer goes into the theater knowing who did it and able to guess the ending without much thought.
I thought Ashley Judd and pretty good as was Bruce Greenwood. Tommy Lee Jones was OK, although his character was weak and never really developed.
As for the story, it's a good idea, but the execution leaves something lacking. There were no surprises in the story (something very important in a "thriller"). Without the twists and turns expected in a good thriller, the story seems to just meander to the inevitable ending. I (as did the group of people I was with) knew the ending about 15 minutes into the movie. There was no suspense of "who did it" or "will he get away with it".
All that can really be said about "Double Jeopardy" is that it had potential--great cast and good story idea. However, it just never came together. Part of this might be attributed to the marketing of the movie. As an example, "The Sixth Sense", released just a few weeks prior, managed to keep the ending a (sort of) secret, until it was seen. With "Double Jeopardy" though, the viewer goes into the theater knowing who did it and able to guess the ending without much thought.
Dancer, Texas Pop. 81
(1998)
Big City Dreams, Small Town Hearts
28 July 1999
Coming from a small town in West Virginia I was able to understand the plight of the 4 boys. My friends and I also made a similar pact, although ours started with going to college together and then moving to some big city and living a glamorous life. That's why this movie really struck me.
This movie is for anyone who has ever felt like there has to be more out there. It captures both the charms and pitfalls of small town life. In "Dancer" Squirrel and John both find a situation that suits them, giving them a glimmer of hope for the future, while Keller and Terrell Lee both realize that they will never be able to find the happiness they wish for in Dancer, Texas. At one point, though, both almost hit a point of acceptance that this is what their lives are to be and resolve to themselves that they must stay and make the best of it.
The theme through for this movie is that each of us must find what makes us happy, assessing what we have, what we need, what we want and how we're going to balance these. We can't always have everything we want, and sometimes to get something we have to give up something. And furthermore, we have to remember that what is right for one person may not be right for someone else, no matter how much you might wish it is.
This movie is for anyone who has ever felt like there has to be more out there. It captures both the charms and pitfalls of small town life. In "Dancer" Squirrel and John both find a situation that suits them, giving them a glimmer of hope for the future, while Keller and Terrell Lee both realize that they will never be able to find the happiness they wish for in Dancer, Texas. At one point, though, both almost hit a point of acceptance that this is what their lives are to be and resolve to themselves that they must stay and make the best of it.
The theme through for this movie is that each of us must find what makes us happy, assessing what we have, what we need, what we want and how we're going to balance these. We can't always have everything we want, and sometimes to get something we have to give up something. And furthermore, we have to remember that what is right for one person may not be right for someone else, no matter how much you might wish it is.
Next Stop Wonderland
(1998)
"Next Stop, Boredom"
20 July 1999
This film is perhaps the most boring I have seen in sometime. I rented it based upon critical acclaim (I guess that should have given me a clue that it would be dull), expecting it to be funny and different. However, "Wonderland" ended up being stale and formulamatic (don't know if that's even a word). The characters were listless (or was it the acting) and the story lacked any substance. I'm not sure if the problem was in the script, the direction or the acting, but I suspect it was a combination of all three
Kicking and Screaming
(1995)
Post-college Life Sucks!
13 July 1999
While I graduated several years ago, I was able to identify with the characters in this movie. Going from college to the "real world" is a tough transition and few college students want to do so. This is probably the best movie I've seen in depicting the resistance to let go of college and move on. I have seen so many people struggle to move on after college, some, like Chet, never doing so and accepting their role as a student (those are some of the people who become college instructors). "Kicking and Screaming" could have been filmed with a hidden camera on almost any campus in America. That's what I liked. It felt real; the characters weren't overblown, the dialogue sounded real and the storyline was "slice-of-life." This film, along with Edward Burns films, should be seen as a model for young film-makers on how to capture "real life" and make a movie that doesn't end up looking and sounding "hokey."
Tell Your Friends