junkmail-5 Reviews

The Incredibles (2004)

I saw it. Absolutely INCREDIBLE

[10/10 · 12 October 2004]

I got to go to the first public screening of this on Monday, and holy holy holy crap.

This movie is absolutely incredible (har!). I'll even go out on a limb to say it's the best pixar movie yet. I got to talk to the director and got his autograph on a poster too, in an unrelated side note.

Pixar movies always have some of everything and something for everyone, but this one had MORE of everything and MORE for everyone. On top of that, in many ways it could be a standalone action movie, whereas previous pixar movies had to support their action with sight gags and comedy - they've evolved to being able to keep the viewer on the edge of his or her seat with straight-up action.

I'm trying not to say too much because Brad Bird asked us not to give anything away, but I'll say that the preview, as awesome as it is, really doesn't scratch the surface. Right from the opening scene I was laughing, and straight through I couldn't stop. Even the tense suspenseful parts, I found myself laughing at the sheer *goodness* of it, if that makes sense.

I can't wait to see it again on Nov 5!

Strangers with Candy (1999–2000)

genius

[9 November 2003]

the previous commenter, Mike, wondered if this show was written by white supremacists (no, "supremists" is not the correct spelling), simply because they named the principal "onyx blackman", and he happened to be a black man.

Mike seems to have missed the point. this show wasn't written to delicately handle interpersonal, racial, or societal issues. it was written to be funny and shocking, and in that the writers were very successful.

they broke every rule they could find, offended as many people as possible, and made it as obvious as they could so they couldn't be accused of being "supremists".

if nothing else, laugh at how many ways they can come up with to offend people in one episode. i'm personally just amazed by the number of great jokes in every episode.

Miller's Crossing (1990)

The Invincible Man!

[27 May 2003]

This movie was engaging, complicated and intricate, and well thought out and put together. I still don't think I'd put it on the top 250 list, but I'd definitely give it a 7/10.

My one qualm in this was realism. It was very realistic in many senses, and the characters were realistically portrayed, but it's the minor details that bugged me while I watched. My best example for this is Tom's apparent invincibility. It seemed like every time he stepped out of a doorway, phone booth, room, building, car, etc etc etc, he was getting punched in the face, and then kicked in the head, and then punched and slapped around and just generally having the crap kicked out of him. Repeatedly. Okay, I can believe that someone in his line of work would get beat up sometimes, especially if he's not a big guy. But you *have* to show some bruises if you get beat up that badly. The best we got was some short-lived blood, and once a small split in his lip (which vanishes very quickly). In general, two seconds after the baddies finish knocking him around he's back on his feet and totally fine, not even disheveled.

The other problem I had was more with me than with the movie, but when someone is standing right next to you or in front of you or over you with a gun three inches from your body *telling* you that you're about to die, the least you can do is grab the gun and hit the guy a few times and see if he drops the gun. Everyone in this movie seemed too afraid of the all-powerful handgun held half an arm's-length away, and unwilling to even try to escape its narrow range of effectiveness. It could be that I'm too well trained and am overanalyzing the potential combat situations which were to further the plot and not act as plot themselves, and it's true that this isn't a Jet Li action thriller, but the least they could do would be to take away the possibility of stopping the gun-weilder by having them step back one pace.

In all I enjoyed the film and marveled at its intricate construction and effective visual style, and everyone delivered excellent performances. My qualms with it are primarily superficial, so although this movie in my opinion isn't top 250 material it is still very good.

Daredevil (2003)

Triumphantly Cheesy!

[15 February 2003]

I went to this movie expecting a quasi-serious movie with some light-hearted moments, but all in all an action movie. What I got was a very pleasant surprise - a tongue-in-cheek, very funny movie that doesn't skimp on the action.

I have to say that right off the bat, this movie reminded me more of the old 1960s Adam West Batman series than anything else. The way the characters' oddities were used to develop their personalities, the situations surrounding the combat, and especially the incredibly cheesy dialogue with frequently wooden delivery all reminded me of the dynamic duo's exploits.

Colin Ferrell was clearly a crowd favorite - he obviously got into his character enough that he was enjoying himself tremendously as the cameras were rolling. Every time he was on screen, no matter how serious his character was trying to be, he always got a laugh at just the right time.

Unfortunately for the network "Alias" shows on (fox?) and for stunt coordinators in movies in which she is cast, Jennifer Garner isn't a very good fighter.. her wire stunts were painfully obvious, her movements weren't fluid, and sais just aren't used like that (that last one wasn't her fault, of course). But as guys everywhere will attest, she wasn't in the movie for her martial arts skills or her acting talent, both of which leave something to be desired.

I saw a movie which was entirely not what I expected. The fact that they billed it as an action movie and then presented it as a deadpan action comedy made it many times better than it could have been, and I will recommend that anyone who's up for a good time go see it.

Batman Fights Dracula (1967)

Filmmaking at its finest

[30 September 2002]

Most people will go through their entire lives without seeing a single film with truly breathtaking beauty and astonishing grace in construction. I myself was in danger of being one of those people until the day this movie appeared before me. Never before had my breath been so taken away by a film, a series of frames recorded on thin tape, and never again would I be able to truly say that I was touched to my very soul by veritable cinematic excellence.

The pure, undeniable genius of the simplicity of this film is staggering; The concept of a city's greatest superhero, Batman, combating a universal and eternal villain, Dracula, seems simple to the observer but, in fact, makes for a spectacular mind-altering experience.

Symbolism is consistently artfully drawn between Batman's bat-like nature and Dracula's own bat-like ways. If batman spreads his wings in a fearsome display, frequently it will be paralleled with Dracula's mystical transformation into the flying rodent.

I won't give away the surprising ending, but I will say that the battle betweeen good and evil bats is a clash of titans not to be missed. If you ever see this film gracing the shelves of a respectable movie-renting establishment, don't pass up the opportunity! If this movie doesn't make imdb's top 10 within three years, i'll be extremely surprised.

10/10

The Tuxedo (2002)

Brilliant Comedy!

[10/10 · 11 September 2002]

I was fortunate enough to see a restricted advanced screening of this film, and while occasionally I'm disappointed by these advanced screenings, The Tuxedo really delivered.

Jackie Chan, while always visually stunning and frequently extremely funny, has lived to his fullest potential in this movie. If his career were to be over now, I sincerely believe that this movie would be the one he was remembered for.

From the opening scene to the closing credits, this film keeps your adrenaline pumping and your laughter rolling. The chemistry is definitely there between Jackie Chan and the lovely Jennifer Love Hewitt, and the pair of them is funnier than either of them independently.

Of course, the actors get a great deal of help from a brilliant script. The dialogue in this movie is fast and smart, and an executive of any production company, from the smallest Acme or DCJ Production company right up to MGM or Miramax, would be absolutely thrilled to see it land on his desk.

All these elements together form a film which is strong enough, funny enough, and smart enough to be the end-of-summer blockbuster we've been waiting for. See The Tuxedo - you'll be glad you did!

Stripshow 2 (1997)

the title says it all

[11 September 2002]

the title of this movie really describes the entire movie, although it's not what you might think initially.. it's sort of a pun. essentially, this film is about a man whose last name is Lovers but who has a mental condition whereby he can't tell the truth, no matter how hard he tries. It's not comedic like Jim Carrey's "Liar Liar", either. It's heart-wrenching when he can't tell the truth to the love of his life and he's forced to watch her walk away. since he can't earn a love for himself, since he could never tell anyone his true feelings, he's forced to try to steal someone else's love, hence the "Thieves" in the title.

In order to accomplish this, Mr. Lovers (credited as "Madam", since that's his first name) goes through several edge-of-your-seat, slightly comedic hoops to try to deceive his co-worker Cowbow's wife into thinking that he (Madam) is in fact Cowboy.

The plot is somewhat confusing, but there's no way to deny that this movie keeps you guessing, and that it is very high quality entertainment. It deals with a facet of life and a group of people ordinarily hidden from us without a voice, bringing important topics into the open. Anyone valuing their even-mindedness about socio-political issues should see this movie before making any decisions about the veritasially disabled community. This film is truly inspirational.

Superman (1987)

quite the thriller

[10/10 · 7 May 2002]

This movie, though it's in a language I don't speak and is subtitled in a language I don't read, was perhaps one of the major focal points of my life. After seeing this film, all I wanted to do was go out and save people's lives, in the style of the great Superman himself... complete with underwear worn on the outside of my clothes.

If you are ever lucky enough to see this movie, I warn you: you can't be put off by the cheesy special effects or the lame combat sequences. It's the essence of what the movie is about, the basic understanding of the good which drives Superman to do the deeds he does for us on the silver screen, the meaning behind each and every meticulously selected tree branch which gives this movie its awe-inspiring, breathtaking quality. I give it three thumbs up.