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Reviews
Walker (2021)
Story is entertaining and family/Texas Ranger interactions are good
However, can't stand "Walker's" facial gyrations. Surely he doesn't talk in that choppy cadence and do those funny/odd grimaces in his everyday life. Will try to stick with it, but his swallowing and grimaces may signal the end of our viewing. We enjoy the pacing of the storyline and the interactions between the family and the Rangers, and the personal sub-plots. Especially like that the stories do not revolve around criticizing or lecturing the viewers, and the relationships are treated as part of life, not a billboard on the differences. Too many shows have a political view that is in-your-face.
Dreamgirls (2006)
What a slow movie!
Musical numbers were done well enough...Jennifer Hudson and Eddie Murphy greatly exceeded my expectations. I guess I just don't get Beyonce...pretty girl but not that exceptional in either looks or ability in my opinion. She can sing a nice ballad but was truly second fiddle to Ms. Hudson...what a set of pipes. I felt the plot dragged after the first hour and the anticipation level dropped to almost nil. Was anyone surprised with the death of Eddie Murphy's character, or the comeback of Jennifer's? Very predictable and just mediocre in it's entertainment ability. I've never seen a segment of American Idol and assume one of the big draws for those fans was interest in seeing Ms. Hudson's debut after being voted off. This was an outstanding break for a talented young lady, but other than that, I don't feel the movie will have much lasting appeal.
Batman Begins (2005)
Batman Begins and continues to bore for over 2 hrs
Won't take too much time from this unbelievably enthusiastic crowd to state all the reasons I found this flic so slow and tedious, but have to state quickly that I found the 3 younger actors to be the most lame and wimpiest of any in the Batman series (even though I thought Val Kilmer was a total farce!). Luckily Katie Holmes got a big diamond from Tom Cruise this a.m. at the Eiffel Tower so her future may not be too dependent upon her acting ability. Christian Bale was definitely not believable as having class and polish in his role of a young millionaire. Also, does anyone else think Cillian Murphy would be a good one to cast in a young Bo Derek role? Just throw a long blonde wig on him and he could pass for what she looked like in the mid 80's. (OK, so he'd need a built-up bra and some longer legs!) Thank goodness for popcorn, Morgan Freeman, Ruttger Hauer and Gary Oldman...at least I didn't fall completely asleep.
Sin City (2005)
Gross, juvenile and no-holds-barred violence just for brutality's sake.
I can't believe that our sneak preview crowd actually had some very small children in the audience. The 5 of us would have left after the first 30 min. of cannibalism, gushing blood, and gruesome let's-see-how-much-the-audience-will-take violence except we were seated in various locations and couldn't coordinate leaving. Our very mixed group all agreed that there was too much pandering to the very current headline makers of child molestation, female abuse and the apparently strong need of some to make victims of the more helpless in society. Entertaining? only if you enjoy the violence of the evening news. What a waste of talent from a group of actors who can mostly stand on their own and have had previous success without falling to this all-time low. Were they really this desperate for work? If so, will they next be seen in Pepto Bismol ads? Possible spoiler: and who could really believe that 10 yrs. after rescuing a 9 yr. old girl from rape/violence that the girl, now 19, and the cop, now 69, would be "hot" for each other. Yeah, sure....in who's dreams??? and how could that be sexy/fun/entertaining? Total sum of all parts is just boobs, blood, boorish and bad.
Lost in Translation (2003)
If you love rooftops, go...enjoy!
Among the most boring films I've ever had the discomfort to sit through. The interaction between Bill Murray and the young bored wife was interesting but not enough to carry a feature. The views of the rooftops of Japan and the gal's bedroom (split between her sitting at her window or laying on her bed in her panties and a t-shirt), just weren't captivating. The sad part was that absolutely nothing happened...no resolution, no great epiphany, no plot. Two boring hours of light interaction between two bored adults. I could go watch the neighbors watch tv and be as entertained.
Now, please, don't attack me for being shallow, not "getting it" or any of the other trite, artsy, or in vogue putdowns from the supposedly cranial elite. Just wasn't fun or entertaining!
Hulk (2003)
The Hulk (Dumb and Dumberer in disguise!)
I was unfortunate enough to go to a preview showing. Way too long--over 2 hrs. 15 min.--too short on plot, and details that would put you to sleep. It couldn't fill 30 min. of a decent sit comedy. A violent portrayal of an entertaining television program with an over the top performance by Nick Nolte, obviously taken from his recent encounter with the law, including that now-famous hair style. Theatre was filled will all age groups and the audience's laughter at some of the intense? emotional? scenes pretty much indicated the reaction by conversations overheard as we walked out. Waste of time, even for free. The Hulk himself became 4-5 times or larger than a normal human being...next time, bring back Lou for the role rather than just the cameo at the beginning. Wait for the $1 movie if you feel you really need to see this one.
About Schmidt (2002)
I agree, terribly overrated and a poorly acted fantasy
After waiting weeks to see this movie and receiving both positive and negative remarks from friends, I was anticipating an entertaining and realistic view of: retirement, family and loss of a spouse. However, what we saw was again 2+ hours of self-indulgence by Jack Nicholson. From the first minutes of total discontent and blaming his wife for apparently all his personal short-comings and unfulfilled dreams, to his 180 degree turn to being so totally overwhelmed by his losses, it only got more boring and distasteful. Do you actually know of anyone who would write such dribble to a 6 yr. old African orphan? or who would whizz all over his own bathroom, even if he didn't mind living like a total slob? Sorry, but think it was total drivel and may have appealed to Jack as just another way to thumb his nose to an easily duped public. Also, based on some of the comments, what made his bod any more attractive than Kathy Bates? Give me a break...nothing attractive about seeing him either in or out of his BVDs!
Undisputed (2002)
A poorly disguised Mike Tyson storyline...
and what was the point of Peter Falk's dialogue? Did he fail to memorize his lines and just substitute f... for every adverb and adjective originally written into the script? Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames and Peter Falk have done better movies with a lot more punch. Definitely for the men who enjoy pugilism!
Minority Report (2002)
Rubbish...
I was hoping for a decent Tom Cruise film for a change since Spielberg was directing. At the sneak preview I attended tonight, the crowd left with comments ranging from "what was that all about" to "Spielberg has lost it." After Mission Impossible I and II, then the snooze fest of "Vanilla Sky" I can't say I look forward to any film staring TC. I surely expected more from Spielberg and left empty on all counts. The only outstanding thing was the volume of the music...maybe trying to fill in for weak plot and poor acting?...but even the music was mediocre at best.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
P.R. has certainly hyped this dud into big bucks!
Given the choice of waiting 2 hrs. for "Ocean's 11" or heading into a nearly empty theatre (1 of 3) for "LOTR", we foolishly decided take our popcorn and drinks and relax for 3 hrs. What a poor decision!
Having read "The Hobbit" (which, according to a friend, would give me the necessary background for "LOTR"), then reading "LOTR," I thought I might finally understand the fascination and enthrallment by so many by seeing the film. Wrong! The film version was just more icing on an already bad cake. The one thing the film offered was that I finally understood the sizes of each respective group...who knew elves were men sized, or that dwarves were smaller than Hobbits? Both guys with me understood that Frodo was taking the ring back to the mines, with numerous hardships and lots of fighting along the way, but were bored for most of the 3 hrs. (Guess I won't get to pick the movie next time!)
A local movie critic had discussed the film the other night and the vote was not "see it now" but "wait for video"...I should've taken the advice and saved my $6. Or better yet, skipped the whole thing and popped my own corn at home while watching CNN. (Went back and saw "Oceans 11"...popcorn and flic were both good!)
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
How can you be ripped off at a free sneak?
By sitting through The Blair Witch Project. If they deleted 4 words...Heather, Mike, Josh & f--- (both as an adjective and adverb)...you'd be left with MAYBE 5% of the dialogue. A completely filled theatre, eerily still, then people laughing as they left about what a waste of time. Realized later that the 12 of us who were together weren't waiting quietly out of fear, but straining to hear/see and waiting for ANYTHING exciting to happen. Interviews with locals and last 5 min could have possibly passed off as a mediocre "One step beyond." Thought I'd wasted my time and money in the past, but never on this great a scale...and it was free!
Lake Placid (1999)
Far from the best, and definitely not the worst film I've seen in the last 6 weeks!
The dialogue was quirky and entertaining; the gore was very gratuitous and special effects obvious (like the flying cow in "Tornado"); and the ending was definitely a let down. Couldn't the creators have found 5 more minutes of dialogue/scenery to have tried to wrap it up? One good thing was that we only invested about 75 min. of our evening. Much less of a waste of time than "Instinct" where it took them over 2 hrs. to tell a very predictable 60 min. story, and squandered the exceptional talents of Anthony Hopkins, and a very capable Cuba Gooding. (On the plus side for Instinct...I was able to work in a little nap time and didn't miss anything of significance!)
Stepmom (1998)
Mediocre fare, at best.
With two of my favorite actresses involved, I still found it to be a very disappointing movie. In the first part, Susan Sarandon was overbearing, demanding, and petty so it was difficult to feel an appropriate response of sympathy when it was called for: I found it difficult to try to care about what happened to her. Julia Roberts was whiney or in tears over every snide remark or slight. The only time I felt emotionally involved was when the two women finally sat down face to face and discussed their views of what a wedding day may bring. Ed Harris was believable as the man in the middle, the son was adorable and the daughter should have had so many time-outs she'd still be in the corner!