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Reviews
The Mummy Returns (2001)
Ridiculously entertaining
The Mummy Returns is so preposterous and ludicrous that I actually enjoyed it. No logic, no tension, the complete antithesis of what is called "art", but lots of silliness, corny one-liners, and fake (albeit quite eye-pleasing) background. It seems to rip off every movie I can think of, heck, it even rips off The Phantom Menace, that timeless classic. I mean how low can one gets? But it sure was good, clean mindless entertainment, on par with Gladiator. So hey, if the Academy continues to be as dumb... All the "horror" elements in the movie made me laugh; OK, almost everything made me laugh, even the fatal stabbing scene. The combat scenes are of two kinds, one-on-one and mass battle. The latter are interesting only in their preparation stages when the two armies set up; the former are not much better save the fight between the two Egyptian princesses during the flashback: it is good only because it is a direct rip-off of Crouching Tiger (the fight in the training room), even the moves are the same (they even switched weapons half-way through!), not as awe-inspiring, or as well done or shot of course. In conclusion, if you enjoyed watching the first one, don't miss this one: you'll laugh twice as much and for longer periods too, and that alone is worth the price of admission.
Jean de Florette (1986)
beautifully depressing (depressingly beautiful?)
This is a marvel of story-telling. Rarely have I felt so much pain for a fictional character. The "force of destiny" (great sound track motif selection!) is nowhere as evidently crushing as in this movie. I'm astounded and stunned by the beauty of human suffering, not, of course, out of sadism but out of melancholy. Great, great movie (though the Southern French accent is very hard to understand).
Enemy at the Gates (2001)
More good than bad
I actually like this movie more than Saving Private Ryan. Some of the criticisms leveled at it are just unfair. Sure, the actors have British accents. So what? If they were speaking with Russian accents, someone would complain that Russian troopers don't speak English. If they were really speaking Russian, someone would complain about the subtitles... History buffs can always find faults but Saving Private Ryan has as many if not more historical inaccuracies. The atmosphere here seems right. The dark, grey battlefield is very well rendered and more importantly, the character of Ed Harris, the enemy, has dignity and humanity despite his final act. The almost animal sex scene is remarkable in its symbolism of war: love mingled with death, tenderness mingled with brutality. Some of the scenes, especially the field of corpses at the beginning has a surreal quality to them. Sadly, though, the ending seems to have been an afterthought. But thanks God, there is no flag-waving and cemetery scenes to manipulate our emotions. 8/10
The Matrix (1999)
Hollywood cool
The Matrix is just COOL. It is a good thing that the cool factor is more an emotional response than an intellectual response, because if one starts to think about the story, the movie just does not make sense. Why would machines use humans as batteries? Cows have bigger biomass and need no entertainment. But why create a matrix for humans in the first place? Just make sure they're all chained up. Agents are fast enough to dodge bullets but run slow, as computerized characters, they should have perfect shooting skills but can't hit an elephant a foot away from them etc. As for the "deep philosophy", there isn't any. If you think there is, you haven't read any real philosophy. From Plato to Wittgenstein, the problem of the reality of the world has been thoroughly, and in a INTELLIGENT way, explored. The martial arts part is disappointing. Mr. Reeves and the gang are way too STIFF. The lack of fluidity is too obvious. So what we have left is a lot of explosions, bullet shells, gratuitous, cold-blooded murders, good-looking stars and awesome computer graphics. Hollywood cool. And I like Hollywood cool... when I need to spend a mindless afternoon, so mindless in fact that I didn't even mind the really BAD ending: next time she kisses him, he'll turn into a frog. 7/10 for the cool factor.
Cyrano de Bergerac (1990)
The pinnacle of Romanticism.
A marvelous take on Rostand's classic. Gerard Depardieu is a towering presence playing a towering character. Written in the late nineteenth century, the play was meant to be the last hooray for late Romanticism and conveys all the deep emotions of a Tchaikovsky or a Brahms. The cynics of our times will find its poetry laughable but nothing for me will ever top Cyrano's dying or the balcony's scenes. They are the pinnacle of Romanticism and, like the treetop chase in Crouching Tiger, remind us of the poetic beauty that is to be found in the human soul.
Gladiator (2000)
Dude, where's the great movie?
I remember seeing Gladiator last summer. I remember dishing out 8 bucks, paying for my Coke, watching the movie, and coming out entertained. But that was it. And, really, that was it. It didn't linger on my mind even a nanosecond after I have exited the theatre. And I certainly didn't have to fight the urge to come back for more. The word "great" wouldn't exactly have fluttered about had I been asked to describe it. Six months or so later, what do I read: Gladiator is set to be named best movie of the year. What? has the definition of greatness changed? And thus, I ordered it on pay-per-view yesterday. Well, big shock, I dozed off several times. The movie started well enough with impressive pre-battle scenery but then when the action started, nothing could be seen: there was too many quick cuts (which, in contrast, reminds me of that amazing shot in Crouching Tiger when you see a thug fall off the first floor to the ground floor in ONE seamless shot) and jerky camera movements (which, in contrast, reminds me of the gorgeous overhead shots in Crouching Tiger). Great action? Well sure, people lose limbs, get impaled but I don't call that great action. Great scenery? I hate over-reliance on CGI (read: the Phantom Menace), the Coliseum has no organic feel to it and thus it is difficult to imagine the characters inhabiting the setting (read: Keanu Reeves pretending to act in front of a green screen). Great introduction to Rome? Well, enough has been said on that. The only thing historical about the oft-lauded battle was the "turtle" formation adopted by the Romans when confronted with enemy arrows. Of course the ending was predictably condescending. Had the setting been an American one, we would seen the star-spangled banner 100 times before the credits started rolling. You get the picture. Overall it was just one of those blockbuster for the masses, one of those factory-movies churned out in droves by Hollywood every summer. Entertainment for a mindless afternoon. But great art it isn't. Not even close. 7/10
Wo hu cang long (2000)
The power of poetry.
Every five reviews or so, there is one harsh criticism of the movie bordering on hate. Yet, a look at the review ratings shows that the number of people rating it from 1 to 3 doesn't even represent 5% of the membership. A movie that elicits that kind of labour of hate from a vocal minority must be special. And it sure is. When I first saw it back in December, I was shocked to see the number of older couples in the theatre. This cannot be a kung-fu movie. And it isn't. Comparing it to Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan is at best ludicrous, at worst intellectually dishonest. When, fifteen minutes into it, Jen flew over Bo and onto the roof, the realm of reality became blurred with that of dream. When the drums started beating as Shu Lien sprang after Jen, the dream became impossibly real, its rhythm being that of our own heartbeats. There is something magically real about Crouching Tiger: the magic stems not from the "floating" but the je ne sais quoi, a haunting mood that only fairy tales and myths can achieve; while the reality stems from the archetypal characters with their universally recognizable feelings of honour and dignity, of betrayal and loss. The human dimension elevates it above and beyond the mere wizardry of the Matrix. Freud wanted to show that myths are dreams conveying outwards expression of repressed emotions. Crouching Tiger is a dream and its balletic physical prowess is but a metaphor for repressed love and aspiration. No metaphor has ever been so viscerally thrilling. When Li Mu Bai chased after Jen on the treetops of the bamboo forest, we know it is not a physical battle but a deeply spiritual one. The swaying branches, the occasional clash of sword, the meeting of eyes, they all have resonances in the dance of conflicting wills. "What do you know about a true heart" said Jen defiantly. The material world is just a backdrop. It is not about reality the same way it is not about the comb. Objects, materialness are to reveal their symbolic significance in the world of myth; and the world of myth is to reveal itself in the bending of the laws of materialness. Crouching Tiger is a transcendant movie and like poetry, it is not for everyone.