I saw this once, over ten years ago, and it has become one of my favorite films ever. It's hilarious and always takes an unexpected turn just when you'd think an ordinary movie would get boring. You can expect some majorly hilarious kink; the "gentlemen" do a great job of acting like VIPs in British society, and while some might take offence/offense at the stereotyping going on, just remember that this is (sorta) based on a woman's real-life experiences. This has an extra special connotation of you're an entrepreneur, because the movie's theme bears a strong metaphorical relationship to the life of anyone who is/has ever been in business for themselves and has had to do "all kinds of things" in order to survive the toughness of satisfying your "market". Heh heh. I highly recommend it!
Reviews
3 Reviews
The Wicker Man
(2006)
Bad to Great Until the Bitter End
3 September 2006
Warning: Spoilers
OK, while the top review did pretty much summarize my feelings about this movie, I had a few problems with it; yes, you could see the end coming about 20 miles off (about the distance of cell phone coverage in this movie, apparently).
I also love Nicholas Cage, and it clearly looked as if he was tired of the film about halfway through. The script did something that I think no director likes to be forced to do, which is to promise more than it delivers. You have a distinct feeling that something more is going on, something else is happening à la The Ring, etc, but in the end, he just plain dies. No twist, no nothing. Up until this point, there's been an undercurrent of whispery noises and just few enough references to this mysterious "Wicker Man" that you're interested enough not to walk out of the darn thing despite Mr. Cage's obvious ennui and the weird lighting (many of the night scenes' lighting setups were so yellow, they looked just like daylight streaming in through the windows/leaves, and the midnight forest was backlit as if by floodlights--all in the middle of an organic hippie commune).
Also, you find it hard to believe that these women could continue their plot, year after year, and get away with it, no-one noticing the disappearance of any male who goes there or meets anyone from that place, oh well... Cage's character did tell his friend he was thinking about going there, and on his cell phone which worked twice in the movie--oddly enough, miles away from the mainland shore--he yelled "help me!!", and cell phone usage location records are traceable by the police in a disappearance investigation.
Anyway, I could have put up with all of that, if there had just been a bit more to deliver at the end. End of story.
I also love Nicholas Cage, and it clearly looked as if he was tired of the film about halfway through. The script did something that I think no director likes to be forced to do, which is to promise more than it delivers. You have a distinct feeling that something more is going on, something else is happening à la The Ring, etc, but in the end, he just plain dies. No twist, no nothing. Up until this point, there's been an undercurrent of whispery noises and just few enough references to this mysterious "Wicker Man" that you're interested enough not to walk out of the darn thing despite Mr. Cage's obvious ennui and the weird lighting (many of the night scenes' lighting setups were so yellow, they looked just like daylight streaming in through the windows/leaves, and the midnight forest was backlit as if by floodlights--all in the middle of an organic hippie commune).
Also, you find it hard to believe that these women could continue their plot, year after year, and get away with it, no-one noticing the disappearance of any male who goes there or meets anyone from that place, oh well... Cage's character did tell his friend he was thinking about going there, and on his cell phone which worked twice in the movie--oddly enough, miles away from the mainland shore--he yelled "help me!!", and cell phone usage location records are traceable by the police in a disappearance investigation.
Anyway, I could have put up with all of that, if there had just been a bit more to deliver at the end. End of story.
Silent Hill
(2006)
Experimental, Rough in Places But Great Film
22 April 2006
OK it's truly scary. And there are spots where the dialogue and acting will leave you wondering if the screenwriter's mind was too much on the ambiance of the film instead of the story. This did little to detract from the film's more frightening aspects, and the feeling of mystery that pervaded even the most horrific scenery. If you've read Dante's Inferno or have seen Constantine, you will be well impressed by the vision of hell (or just a hellish environment?) that the makers have created. In many ways, this movie could be the progeny of films like The Ring, The Grudge, or mysteries with "teeth"--that is, a true or true-seeming story behind the horror. I was impressed. However, unlike Ebert, I found the plot easily understandable and worth the $7 it took to see this. Artfully experimental in many ways, but, if you're not younger than 14 and don't mind graphically-intense films, you should see go see and enjoy this film. I did not play any of the games related to the movie.
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