I watch movies every week and then write down my thoughts. Read my previous reviews!
My rating is simple, Watch It, It Depends, Skip it.
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| Spartacus - The scale and scope is matched by the quality. |
Spartacus (1960)
Watch Spartacus
Written by: Dalton Trumbo (screenplay), Howard Fast (based on the novel by), Peter Ustinov (uncredited), Calder Willingham (battle scenes, uncredited)
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
Starring:Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier
Rated: PG-13
Plot:
Spartacus leads a slave revolt from a Gladiator school, planning to sail away from Rome with his army of freed slaves. Befor reaching the coast, they must defeat the opposing armies of Rome.
Review:
Helmed by my favorite director, Stanley Kubrick, Spartacus is a sweeping, grand epic starring Kirk Douglas. It doesn't feel like a Kubrick film. It lacks a timeless quality present any many Kubrick films. While it doesn't diminish the impact, it possesses the sensibilities of an older movie. It's similar to Gladiator, but with much more depth and size to the story. The scale is simply stunning many times over. Long sweeping shots of armies and landscapes abound. This is without relying on video effects making it all the more impressive. "I am Spartacus." is an amazing line in an amazing sequence.
Watch it.
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| Spartacus - This is just one of many grand, sweeping shots. |
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| Alien Nation - A terrible, sci-fi knock off of Lethal Weapon. |
Watch Alien Nation
Written by: Rockne S. O'Bannon
Directed by: Graham Baker
Starring: James Caan, Mandy Patinkin, Terrence Stamp
Rated: R
Plot:
Humanoid aliens landed and now live and work beside humans. A human police detective and alien are paired together to work on a case with far reaching implications.
Review:
It's a buddy-cop movie at it's core. It's similar to Lethal Weapon in that there are two cops and a villain. The difference? Lethal Weapon is good. The characters are incredibly boring and the plot didn't start until two-thirds of the way in. The sci-fi element lends itself to a commentary on racism and immigration, but the portrayal of the aliens is overly simplistic. The main bad guy, who of course is an alien is paper thin. Mandy Patinkin, is unrecognizable as San Francisco, part of the cop duo. James Caan, as the other half of the duo, embodies every hard nosed cop cliche the writers could cram into the movie. District 9 excels much better as a commentary on racism. The plot contrivances propel the plot forward at the expense of believability. Salt water is acid for the aliens for no reason other than to manipulate an ending. This movie may have had lofty goals, but the story is so underdeveloped that it doesn't land.
Skip it.
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| Left Behind - Why did Nic Cage star in this? Why was this movie ever made? These are the big questions the movie begs us to ask. |
Watch Left Behind
Written by: Jerry B. Jenkins (based on novel), Tim LaHaye (based on novel), Paul Lalonde, John Patus
Directed by: Vic Armstrong
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Lea Thompson
Rated: PG-13
Plot:
Thousands of people vanish instantly. Those left behind must fight the chaos to survive. In summary, Nic Cage spends the entire movie trying to land a plane. Spoiler, he does.
Review:
How quickly did I realize this wouldn't be good? Within the first few seconds as I heard the score. It's like a bad, let me emphasize bad, made for television movie. I was hoping for the crazy Nic Cage we know and love. Crazy Cage did not make an appearance. The movie is incredibly hokey from the start reinforcing the sub-par production values. Do you like stilted dialog? There is plenty of that. Oddly enough, there must be some kind of glass breaking quota. There were at least three cinematic window breaking sequences. I'm amazed this was made. I double checked to confirm a movie of this poor quality was actually released in theaters. It was! I thought this would be a movie about character development and people bonding together. Instead it's just about landing a plane. You should not watch this. I was hoping the plane would crash just to end it the movie. Disappointment abounds.
Skip it.
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