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Phenryss
Reviews
Alice in Wonderland (2010)
Fun but...eh...
I was prepared to love this movie. I love Burton and I am a Depp fan too...but it just left me feeling...meh. It's fun, kinda shut your brain off and enjoy the ride...but not much else.
I liked the choices in actors, Depp, Bonham-Carter, Rickman and Fry all did good. Just left me a little flat on the whole.
I guess I was expecting more. Maybe if it had been all CG or Animatronics, it would have worked better.
I did not see the 3D version. I honestly think 3D needs to go away again for a bit.
Oh well.
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
Feelin like a little kid!
This movie thrilled me and made me feel like a little kid again. I can now fully imagine what my parents went through when they went to see the old serials at theaters. That's how this made me feel. True escapist adventure.
There were many influences plainly seen. In the first 20 minutes I felt like I was watching a Fritz Lang movie...silent splendor with all the neat angles and visuals. From then on, I could see references to "King Kong", "Wizard of Oz" and, of course, "Metropolis". It was visually stunning and a joy to watch. So much so that I saw it twice this weekend. That is a rare thing for me. Only "Spiderman" and "The Matrix" have inspired me do this in recent memory.
Jude Law, Angelina Jolie and Gwyneth Paltrow give wonderful performances. Amazingly enough one of those shining moments happened to go to one of my least favorite performers, Giovanni Ribisi.
Joy! True Joy!
Nothing in Common (1986)
Memories
This movie along with Field of Dreams really hits home with me, due to me losing my dad. Both of these films dwell on the idea of trying to make peace with a distant father.
Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason worked very well off each other. They were very believable. It made me think alot of my relationship with my father and how distant we really were. I loved him...but he just kept his distance. This film just makes you think about the fragility of life and how short it can be. It also foreshadows how much potential Tom Hanks has as an actor. Yes, it has it's comedic moments...but most of it is very serious and thoughtful.
Finding Nemo (2003)
Dude...Where's My Wave??
Okay...so my favorite characters are Crush and Dori! I have seen this movie 3 (yes THREE) times already. I very RARELY do that. I just had alot of fun with this movie. Ellen DeGeneres makes it for me. Andy Stanton is amazing as Crush...dude!
It's one of those movies you can just sit back and enjoy...and kinda shut your mind off and laugh at. Have fun with it...go with the waves...(pun fully intended)!
I just really liked it. I forgot it was computer animation midway thru the first half hour! Pixar really had fun with this one, and it shows...big time!
Go see it...I did!! :-)
Finding Nemo (2003)
Dude...Where's My Wave??
Okay...so my favorite characters are Crush and Dori! I have seen this movie 3 (yes THREE) times already. I very RARELY do that. I just had alot of fun with this movie. Ellen DeGeneres makes it for me. Andy Stanton is amazing as Crush...dude!
It's one of those movies you can just sit back and enjoy...and kinda shut your mind off and laugh at. Have fun with it...go with the waves...(pun fully intended)!
I just really liked it. I forgot it was computer animation midway thru the first half hour! Pixar really had fun with this one, and it shows...big time!
Go see it...I did!! :-)
Metropolis (1927)
Film Before Its Time
Very simply put, this is a masterpiece. Fritz Lang's vision has affected everyone from Dark City to Star Wars to Madonna and Queen Music Videos. If it were not for this movie there would be no C-3PO!! George Lucas has often said that the robot Maria in Metropolis was the inspiration for the visual of C-3PO...
The visuals and use of light and shadows make this a very interesting movie. Unfortunately there is no ONE version of this film as it was butchered by each country that showed it. Parts of it are lost forever. Kino Video has done a wonderful restoration recently and it should be in every film buff's library!
Lilo & Stitch (2002)
Stitch Rules!
Okay so this is not "The Little Mermaid" or "Beauty and the Beast", but it is not too shabby either! I liked the approach of the movie, to make it a little more intelligent than just strictly kid stuff.
Lilo - Little girl with big heart...but likes to get in trouble.
Stitch - Little alien with a big heart...but also likes to get in trouble!!
Stitch made this a fun movie. Seeing how he adapted to his surroundings and so on was fun. I liked seeing it.
The music was a little bit much...Elvis Pressley is an alien...ehehehe...sorry could not pass that up! Would have been nice to have more of the Hawaiian music interspersed throughout.
Voice casting was wonderful...as was the animation, although I wish they had not made everyone look like Muppets!! Teeth people Teeth!!
Overall a fun movie for all!
Minority Report (2002)
Strangeness
This is another expected oddly-twisted take on a Phillip K. Dick story. The combination of Cruise-Spielberg is wonderful and works in this movie. The story was good and it kept you going throughout.
Having seen Blade Runner and Total Recall, I knew that Dick's work would be fairly left of center. I was NOT disappointed! Although, one has to wonder about how much of working with Kubrick rubbed off on Spielberg. There are definite tips of the hat toward Mr. K. Which is actually fitting for this movie.
Once again Max von Sydow shines in a strong showing. He has yet to disappoint me in a movie. He can make really dull dialog work to his advantage, not that that problem existed in this film, but in past films. He was a beacon!! Great!
Spider-Man (2002)
Wow!
Well, I saw this movie 3 times in the opening week!! Wonderful adaption of the Comic Book Characters. The few updates and minor changes did not effect the on-target direction of the movie. The changes actually made sense in this decade...the original comics were in the scare-era of the 1960's...so some change was needed with the information we have now.
Tobey Maguire is AWESOME!! Some people have griped about his deadpan delivery of the narration, but I kinda took that to be just nerdy enough to be believable.
Willem Defoe was also wonderful as the Green Goblin...but the costume they gave him STUNK! He is great at playing twisted characters (See Shadow of the Vampire)
Kirsten Dunst, I will try to be nice here, was just wrong. MJ is supposed to be a strong character, not a bubbly bimbo. Sorry.
The costumes and effects were all right-on. Thanks to Sam Raimi for a wonderful homage to this character.
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
Yoda...it's all Yoda!! (Spoiler)
All I can say is that Lucas really needs to rethink his writing skills. The romantic stuff was VERY slow and uneven. If it were not for Yoda, Jango Fett and the Jedi, I would have given this a really bad rating.
Yoda kicks butt and takes numbers...and that was very impressive.
Much better than Episode I - The Phantom Movie....but not nearly as good as the previous 3 movies in the series.
Let's just hope that Jar-Jar Binks is obliterated by Darth Vader in Episode III!!! Preferably in the very beginning... :-)
Charlie's Angels (2000)
Huh???
Well, I know expecting to have some coherent plot would be asking too much from a Charlie's Angels movie...but did it have to be SOOOOOOO bad? They wasted alot of good talent. Cameron Diaz, Lucy Lui and Bill Murray can and HAVE done so much better. It was sad. I expected to laugh...I just wanted OUT!!! I have never felt so much like leaving a movie...mid-way thru...just wish they did not cost so much, or I would have!
Battlefield Earth (2000)
and my final answer is...NO!!!
Well, the TRAILER looked COOL...unfortunately this overlong, dull and pathetic movie is NOT!! Not even good actors like Forrest Witaker could save this monster. It D-R-A-G-S...way too long...and the question would be would anyone want to see this movie again??? see One Line Summary for the answer. UGHHHHHHH!!!
Mission to Mars (2000)
Yeah and the Point is???
I went into this movie all geared up for a cool Science pic. What I got was a boring Travel log. It had NO point..NO plot...and NO reason for being. All these great actors....and not one could save this flounder. Mr. DePalma should stick to Crime Dramas! Truth hurts.
The Ninth Gate (1999)
Have you had your Devil today??
This was an interesting, albeit by-the-book story. The premise was good, the acting very good, but could not for the life of me figure out what happened in the end. Johnny Depp and Frank Langella did pretty good...Better than some of the End Of All Things movies that ran the end of 1999...although this came out in 2000, it is still in the same season as the other Revelations movies. Could have been better...and where did Polanski get the Musical Director? Sesame Street??? That was the one bad part throughout the film. *Plink plink plank plink* YAWN...Concentrate on the characters!
Supernova (2000)
waste of space
So, you have all these talented actors in one place...and see them WASTED!! Whoever put this together was asleep in the character development meetings. Yeah great effects...but no plot, no characters, and ta-daaaa...no movie. Nothing I would want to spend money on again ever! This movie puts new meaning to the phrase "waste of space" James Spader, Lou Diamond Phillips and Angela Bassett...dont EVEN put this on your resumes...you have all done better. Wilson Cruz...cheer up there are much better things to come...
The Green Mile (1999)
Powerful Stuff
WOW!! This movie is worth the 3+ hours you sit in that darkened theater. There is power on that screen...far beyond the story...there are the characters and moments of sheer movie magic ...wow. I did not feel the real thrust of the movie until about ten minutes after leaving the film. Stephen King writes good ones...this is one of the best. Kudos to Frank Durabont! Tom Hanks, Michael Jeeters, James Cromwell...and especially Michael Clark Duncan...Oscar stuff if ever I saw it! Wow...just wow!!!
Joan of Arc (1999)
Luc and Milla Make Historical Mess!!
I was SOOOO looking forward to this, in spite of the director and star. Well, they let me down big time. Luc Besson is all style and no substance. Miss Jovovich screamed her way thru 2.5 hours of painful cinema. She once again, proved she can not act!! She was too old, too pretty, and too passion-less for this powerful role. Clare Daines, Wynona Rider, or even an unknown would have had more passion in their eyes than MILLA!!! Ugh!!
Dogma (1999)
Kevin Smith Rides Again!
Kevin Smith released his best film so far!! It had alot of wit and style that made me laugh and think. It comes barreling at you with one (pierced) tongue in firmly in cheek. Chris Rock and Matt Damon made this movie for me! Snoochie Bootchies!!
The 13th Warrior (1999)
the Reluctant Warrior...and film...
I really liked this film...just wish they had paced it better. I liked all the Nordic touches that they used in it. For once Antonio's accent did not hinder the movie. The people behind the scenes may not have agreed with what was seen...but it worked well for me. Good legendary tale.
Inspector Gadget (1999)
UGGGGH!! NO NO Gadget NO!!!
Why?!! This was an insipid, uninspired and embarrassing film. The embarrassment comes from being from the city where they made it...Pittsburgh PA! Why did they let these people do such a BAAAAAD movie there?
When this movie was originally to be released...it was more of a romantic comedy...and no ROBO-anything. That all got changed along with cuteness courtesy of Disney. WHY???? They did a terrible interpretation of this classic comic character. Seeing Matthew Broderick make fun of his own movies was not fun either. Sheesh!!
The Iron Giant (1999)
Wonders Never Cease!! A++
I am constantly amazed when a really good film is released...and it is NOT from Disney! I loved the IRON GIANT and knew the story from when (Executive Producer/musician) Pete Townshend wrote songs based on Tom Hughes story. It was a delight to see a good movie...that both kids and adults can enjoy. I went to opening night with a theater full of QUIET kids all the way thru. Amazing!!
The animation was great...the voices dead on...the music set the time...the CGI stuff did NOT interfere with the movie's story. WOW!! Now if more companies would just do the same!!