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wagnerad
Reviews
Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
All over the place.
Just returnes from watching with my family. I'm.kind of sad to see that the great Star Wars franchise that I have loved with passion since 1977 has ended not with a bang, but a whisper...
The movie is all over the place with the plot. The actoin was good, the acting OK, but the plot was just to much for me. Kylo Ren cannot hold a candle to Darth Vader in ruthlesness...
Sorry.. it had to be said...
The Perfect Game (2009)
Appalled!!!
I went to the movies last night and I saw the preview for this film. I have heard about this story all my life, and I am glad someone is making a modern version of it. There is an much older Mexican film version, but it doesn't get much airtime. But I must say that I was Appalled by what I saw in the preview.
First of all, let me say that I am sucker for a good underdog sports story. I come form a region where baseball is the top sport, as opposed to soccer, which is king in most of Mexico. One of our native sons is Fernando Valenzuela, who helped the Dodgers win the 1981 World Series. Among my favorites I can name Major League, Hoosiers, Glory Road, and the great German film Das Wunder Von Bern. But I am also a stickler for accuracy.
The film portrays the players as coming from an impoverished background, which is true. However, My jaw fell to the floor when I saw Monterrey depicted as a two-burro village where the children played ball in the dirt choked streets with pigs and chickens serving as bases. I went to college in Monterrey, and I lived there for four and a half years. Monterrey has been one of the leading industrial centers and largest cities in Mexico for over 100 years, well within the time frame of this story. An impoverished URBAN setting would have been more appropriate.
The scene that showed the players crossing into Texas from Mexico at a nearly-forgotten, out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere border crossing also made me gag. As anyone with basic elementary school geographical knowledge would know, there is a big river smack in between Texas and its neighboring Mexican States. It is called the Rio Grande, which, coincidentally, means "big river" in Spanish. There are a great number of automotive, pedestrian and rail bridges spanning this river.
The scenes in Texas seem to be something that would have take place in the 1940's rather than the 1950's. Texas was still very rural in the 50's granted, but the clothing styles and hairdo's on the women seem a decade out of place. There was plenty of bigotry in Texas at the time, and that seemed well depicted.
I normally do not take offense when my country is misrepresented like this in a film, mainly because some people just can't help being ignorant. I do admit that there are severe poverty issues here and yes, there are still many places that don't have pavement. But... COME ON!!!! Do your research!!!! Does anyone remember Ross Perot's claim that a Mexican's biggest ambition in life was to own an outhouse? Yours Truly Arturo Wagner Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico
The Departed (2006)
Somewhat of a disappointment
Don't get me wrong. This movie is OK, but it wasn't what I was expecting with all the hype the movie was preceded by. For one, I thought that the acting was somewhat formulaic and overdone. Neither Damon, Sheen, Nicholson, Di Caprio, Wahlberg or Baldwyn's performances were up to par. They were just phoning it in. There was no background on the plot for those of us who don't know much about Boston, Southie or the Irish mob. What was the motivation for the characters to do what they did? There was not much conflict of character, no near misses or suspense. Everythinbg was so predictable. What is the deal with an Irish mobster with a name like Frank Costello? Wasn't Frank Costello a REAL LIFE Italian mobster from the 1930's and 40's? I thought the movie was going to be about him. While the movie is entertaining, it is no Celtic version of the Godfather. The thing I liked the best was the ending, because it was unexpected. But there is too much violence, to much coarse language. Does anyone really talk like that? Mr. Scorcese has disappointed me. 6 stars out of 10.
Fever Pitch (2005)
Loved it, but...
I loved this movie. I recently rented it and saw it with my girlfriend and she loved it to. I have been to Boston a few times and seeing all the sites , and listening to the thick Boston accents really brought back good memories. Ironically, I have never been to Fenway park or seen a Red Sox's game at the stadium. The film really captures the undying loyalty the fans feel for their team. Rooting for the Red Sox is as Bostonian as lobster, clam chowder, and baked beans. Overall, a very good date movie.
Now what I didn't like. While I really enjoyed this film, I sadly realized how badly it had been butchered in the editing room when I saw the deleted scenes on the DVD I rented. A lot of these scenes were important, because it had references to jokes in scenes not edited out further along in the film. I'm not going to list them here, so please rent this DVD and enjoy it very much. It is a great date movie.
AW