johnwood-2 Reviews

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

Flaws of US movie-making are exposed

[3/10 · 31 December 2011]

The US remake of "Dragon Tattoo" is inferior to the original in every aspect of film-making: script, acting, directing, cinematography, music, editing--even credits. Fincher puts the story together with the energy and creativity of someone painting by the numbers. Daniel Craig, with his absurdly tight clothing, registers no emotional, intellectual or sensual qualities of the male hero. Rooney Mara has the stare of Salandar, but nothing else.

My wife and I looked at the original right after seeing the Fincher version on screen. Danish director Niels Oplev captured the characters beautifully, and his cast gave their characters distinct and rounded qualities. Fincher's version was also soft on Nazism compared with the original, weakening the political insights and critiques that are the skeleton of Larsson's works. Rapace makes Lisbeth as fascinating as she is in the novels; Mara succeeds in making her only weird and sullen.

The cobbled-together editing and crutch-like flashbacks make one wonder why Fincher decided to disrupt the original's great flow, energy and clarity with such ineffectual modifications, modifications that sap the story of its power. The annoying, modern- mechanistic soundtrack of the U.S. version, like the oily black credits, betray a desire to say "listen to me!" and "look at me" rather than to work organically with the story. I don't see how any serious movie lover could rate this pitiable remake as worth seeing over the original.

Confidence (2003)

Predictable, cliche, pretentious, boring

[3/10 · 9 May 2003]

What more need be said? The actors seemed trapped in same-old, same-old heist; they've fallen and they can't get up. Go see something good again, like "Spanish Prisoner." About the most you can say for this is that it's no worse than "The Good Thief."

The Good Thief (2002)

Nothing but leftovers

[4/10 · 9 May 2003]

The characters are only barely warmed-over versions of the type you've seen in many another heist film. Confusion stands in here for intricate plotting. And the theme? How about, There's no honor among thieves. A mind-blower, right? Only the French setting provides drama here and there and proves to be worth looking at. The Georgian starlet is attractive--until she speaks. And some of these heroines are getting so scuzzy that the old line, "Yeah, but I wouldn't kick her out of bed," needs revision.

Rum Runners (1971)

Pretentious turkey graced by Bardot. Three stars.

[28 August 2001]

Other than the unmatchably beautiful Brigitte Bardot, there is little reason to see this turkey. She made only one other movie after this, in the same year (1971). The action is mindless except for a bizarre sort of reverse-Russian roulette: instead of a player pointing a gun at his own head and taking his chances, the player stands before a group of armed men with loaded guns, the lights go off, and then he ducks and hopes he can dodge their bullets, as each fires once. Nonetheless, the plot, such as there is, is stupid, the attempt at period-piece farce pathetic, the acting poor (save for Bardot)). The Caribbean scenery is pleasant. The movie is neither funny, nor exciting. The hero is singularly unappealing. Three stars.

The Organizer (1963)

"Biography" of an academic turned labour organiser

[10/10 · 27 December 2000]

Along with the U.S. "Salt of the Earth" this is one of the few films from nonsocialist/communist countries to take a deep and sympathetic look at class struggle and the conditions that led to the formation and defence of labour unions. It's an emotionally excruciating film thanks to Mastroianni's greatest performances among so many great performances, and the superb screenwriting and direction.

Run for Your Wife (1965)

One of greatest neglected film comedies.

[10/10 · 6 September 2000]

One of the great neglected comedies of all time. Needs to be placed on video and also shown at film festivals. It is a hilarious satire of 1960s USA, as the Italian hero travels to the main regions of USA seeking a wife. Polidoro captures the absurdity of each region, the customs, mores and styles of the time and place.