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Reviews
Erased (2012)
2-dimensional characters and tired formulaic plot
I took a chance on "Erased" because I like spy novels and intrigue. But this film was a scrambled egg at best. If you take ten minutes from The Net, a Bourne movie, a Mission Impossible Movie, Ronin, a Liam Neeson thriller, and a made-for-TV father-daughter Movie of the Week drama, and then edit them all together, you might get an idea of how loose and disjointed this plot is. It's over-the-top but takes itself seriously, which just makes it sad. I actually felt sorry that the actors were forced to say some of these lines. One minute the daughter character was acting 13, the next minute she was assessing situations and taking action like a professional spy. The basic plot is revealed much too quickly and obviously, which is unforgivable for a spy thriller.
Atlas Shrugged: Part I (2011)
Disappointing in its oversimplistic plot and 2-dimensionality
Before watching the movie I had heard of Ayn Rand and watched some documentary about her but was not a fan yet. I knew she wrote Atlas Shrugged but it's such a large book I put off reading it even though I'd heard it was interesting.
Unfortunately, the movie is very unimaginative and all of the characters are 2-dimensional at best. The two main characters are flat and predictable, while their adversaries are incredibly dense and angry. The political messaging is clear, but it is so far to the right that it turns all of the characters into caricatures.
After watching the movie I was left with the feeling that this was written as a cautionary tale by someone who had a very slanted and somewhat paranoid worldview. The plot was so simplistic I kept hoping that there would be some interesting plot twist, but it never happened. It was a bore.
Of course Ayn Rand will always be controversial, but if the book is as cookie-cutter as this movie, I'll be happy that I only wasted 90 minutes on this movie instead of many hours reading the book.