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mrclem
Reviews
Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane (1998)
great low budget action flick
A superb effort and entertaining action flick. The plot is logical though somewhat predictable (you just know they're going to get deeper and deeper over their heads). The dialog is intelligent, realistic fast and terse. The action hits fast and hard but is not gratuitous. The plot has some complexity to it, with different threads that tie together as the story unwinds. But they manage to do this with a short running time by having tight editing - no extraneous scenes. Hollywood should have movies with this kind of dialog, story and editing. The film quality is grainy, evidence of this flick's low budget. But the acting, dialog, story and action are all solid. Definitely worth seeing for those who like action flicks.
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
sentimental drivel
This is one of the worst movies my wife and I have seen in the past couple of years. It does not deserve to be called science fiction, since it contains no new or interesting ideas. It combines predictable, two dimensional characters with a meandering plot and scenes that attempt to insult the viewer's intelligence. The ending is a pathetic waste that makes a bad movie even worse. We were tempted to walk out on this one, but stayed through the end only out of a sporting sense of intellectual curiousity.
Unfortunately, many people continue to give this movie good ratings. I can only guess that this is because of the director's big name in Hollywood. But believe me, the emperor is naked. Don't waste your money.
Memento (2000)
exceeds all expectations; first rate!
This is one of those rare movies that has it all -- a tight, focused story, every scene develops the thickening plot, first rate acting, excellent dialog, and a story that will bend your mind. I thought hard for hours after this one, several times I thought I came up with a hole in the plot, only to realize upon further reflection that it was not a hole. This is solid, intellectual, action packed entertainment.
Movies like this put the standard Hollywood special effects bonanza claptrap to shame and restore my faith in the art form. This one rates up there with the very best; I say 9 out of ten.
12 Monkeys (1995)
it tried, yet failed
This movie tried really hard to have a tight plot and an unpredictable ending. It failed in both endeavors. Anybody who has read more than two science fiction books in his lifetime will see the ending coming in the first 10 minutes of the film. And the plot has the same obvious holes that so many time traveling movies have. That is to say, they have an unlimited amount of time to plan how to change past history, yet for some unexplicable reason they choose a particularly unfavorable scenario.
I tried really hard to suspend disbelief and be entertained, but the gaping holes in this film exceeded the limits of my credibility. And the meandering plot nearly put me to sleep.
Citizen Kane (1941)
best movie ever made
This is quite simply the best movie ever made. I never see current movies soon after watching this movie, because (with very few notable exceptions) it saddens me to see the dismally low state into which the art form has declined. I feel that somebody who has not seen this movie, is not prepared to judge any movie, because such a person does not know what a "10" should be. This one forms the standard by which all other movies should be judged.
Enemy at the Gates (2001)
it tried, yet failed
The plot was interesting and special effects were excellent. But it succumbed to the same problems that afflict nearly all Hollywood movies -- lack of focus and lack of editing, poor dialog and predictable situations.
It was frustrating to watch because it could have been such a better movie. All they had to do was to remove several scenes completely to shorten the movie and tighten the grip, and fix the dialog which was frequently laughably bad. But these problems were so bad they seriously detracted from my enjoyment of the movie.
If Citizen Kane is a 10 and Casablanca is a 9, then this movie could not be rated any higher than 5.