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psychcowboy
Reviews
Dead Awake (2001)
Underrated Gem -- Cerebral script and acting
One of a kind really. The script is super interesting and crafted. The acting is perfectly understated. Has the feel of Hitchcock vs. Bogart. Just to give you a hint of my taste; recent favs are Goliath series and Nightcrawler with Gyllenhaal. This film also reminds me a bit of Mr. Brooks.
Joker (2019)
Marginally crazy guy loses job and gets predictably more crazy... The End
Feels a bit like Requiem for a Dream meets Taxi Driver, but not nearly as good as either. Was there a single memorable script line or cerebral plot twist in the entire film? Not that I noticed.
Bosch (2014)
Contrived plot and cliche script.
Am I missing something? I usually trust IMDB user reviews as a good indication of whether a film/TV is good, but didn't notice any reviews that ripped this series to the extent it deserves to be ripped. I would say about 30% worse than Law and Order in terms of cliché script. I was going to pick a section of script that was really annoying to watch, but there were so many I just couldn't choose. When you are done watching all Law and Order episodes and no other crime drama TV is on or in syndication, maybe you can stand this for a while. I cannot.
Miss Sloane (2016)
Great DC lobbying intrigue, powerful job by Jessica Chastain.
We got a hint of Chastain's potential in Zero Dark Thirty. Miss Sloane takes her to the next level. A look inside the devious world of DC lobbying, with a handful of ever more insidious twists. Always love seeing John Lithgow from his virtually unknown appearance in Blow Out, fantastic in Pelican Brief, and does not disappoint here, especially in the face off with Chastain. If you liked Nightcrawler you will like this. BTW, see my review of Sicaro -- waste of time.
Sicario (2015)
Emily Blunt looks pensive and then...wait for it..wait some more.
40 minutes into this and Blunt has 70% of the screen time and 5% of the dialogue. Its like she was given the same instruction as A Quiet Place -- don't say anything. One reviewer compared this to Traffic. In that it is about Mexican drug wars, yes. Traffic however had script, plot, character development. Note to the director; maybe two or three shots per film you can extract some artistic value from an actor's facial expressions, if you do it 9 out of 10 shots it gets lame fast. Really unbelievable scene at the El Paso border just adds to the non-cerebral result of this film. Going to my review of Miss Sloan now; 9/10. Sloan has more dialogue in first 5 minutes than Blunt has in the whole film of Sicaro.
A Quiet Place (2018)
A movie with no script? What is there to like?
A family lives an austere life in a decrepit house in the woods and they cannot talk or make noise. Assuming you like austerity and no acting and no plot and no script, you may like this movie. Wait, there is a plot actually. Alien monsters attack you if you make noise; so the plot is that the family will accidentally or stupidly make some noise -- 5 minutes into the movie you figure that is the plot for the whole movie -- even though they know they are not supposed to, and the aliens will attack them in an escalating fashion. Imagine Alien or War of the Worlds where none of the actors get to talk and you get the feel of this movie. Then there is the dad repeatedly saying 'shshsss' to his kids, like they didn't already know that. The last minute or so is slightly inventive, but other than that...zzzzzz. BTW, if the aliens cannot see, how do they run all over the place?
Dismissed (2017)
If you like Nightcrawler...
I guess I am a fan of movies that start somewhat innocent or only slightly sinister and then progress as the full nature of the antagonist's narcissistic psychopathy escalates. Nightcrawler -- Gyllenhall, Mr. Brooks -- Costner held my attention the entire time. With no-name actors and no real budget the director here does a great job approaching those other two films. I also really like when you are trying to analyze the full impact of one scene, and the director starts the audio rolling on the next scene before the video starts. I also like it when no one believes the protagonist and then there is some really inventive plot twist that turns the tables and gets the authorities on the side of the protagonist. Anyway, looking for more from this director, and the kid actor. Predicting big things.
Safe Men (1998)
Quirky, unpredictable, and it works.
This film reminds me a bit like Bad Santa.. no real plot, no attempt to do anything great, but the understatement and unpredictable flow of the movie just keeps your attention. Lots of little quirky and unconnected plot moments that make you chuckle. Put it this way, any director that puts the spaghetti in the tub kid from Gummo in a movie has got a sense of humor just slightly twisted enough to be worthy of note. The wide disparity of reviews, mostly either 2 or 10 doesn't surprise me. Some people will get it, some won't.
Tenderness (2009)
Waiting for something...never happens.
This movie could have been much better. It was understated and cerebral, reminded me a bit of the feel of Nightcrawler or Mr. Brooks at first, so I was on the edge of my seat waiting for something to escalate or some mystery to be uncovered; kept waiting, kept waiting... Add to the 'never takes off' element is the unbelievable underlying plot for the entire movie of a twenty year old male released from prison who hooks up with a cute teen who is desperate for him... and he doesn't go for her? Thereis no sense of humanity or anything interesting in the boys personality but she ultimately professes her love for him? Why? He is good looking, but bland and anti-social. Also the unbelievable plot component of cops supporting Crowe's stalking and attempting to entrap the boy antagonist, although Crowe is a retired cop. This movie should be re-done and deviate from the book I guess so something interesting happens, the boy has a personality, Crowe's quest is believable...anything really.
Nightcrawler (2014)
Creepy-Tastic; Gyllenhaal and Russo crazy good.
After seeing this fantastic underbelly of Los Angeles film with Gyllenhaal, decided to see Nocturnal Animals, blah, don't waste your time with Nocturnal Animals, totally boring. In Night-crawler Gyllenhaal begins defining his creepy narcissism in the opening scenes, and stays true to it for the whole film as we follow deeper into to it. His relationship with Russo is equally disturbing but you cannot turn away. The 'moving the body' scene is excellent as a transition to the third act, and the sound track by John Newton Howard is mesmerizing there.
Excess Baggage (1997)
Best relationship development with Silverstone and Del Toro
A lot of films try to develop a relationship between characters that viewers can hope for, believe in, and have sympathy for. Take Sleepless in Seattle for example. Excess Baggage worked for me better on that level than even Sleepless; the heat and romantic tension between Silverstone and Del Toro creep up on you much more subtly than Sleepless, and to a stronger point. The scene by the lake where Silverstone says 'do you like my belly' was such understated power and so far from cliché it really hooked me. Likewise the main soundtrack song All Mixed Up is great. Then there is Christopher Walken; he keeps his sinister capabilities remarkably under wraps until you surmise that he throws a thug out a window, without actually seeing it.
The International (2009)
Guy takes off bullet proof vest during shoot out? Really?
For me movies can be divided into cerebral as opposed to just going through the motions. For example The Firm -- similar plot to this in that little guy tries to take down corporate organized crime, however the script and plot twists in The Firm are great. I found the script in The International to be inane from the get-go. No lines stood out as memorable, so I can't quote any here, but here are couple scenes indicating the unbelievable and 'just going through the motions' quality of this film; by the way, I heard it lost a lot of money, no surprise. A) During machine gun shoot out, somehow like 15 guys mysteriously appear to compete in it. Reminds me of a low budget kung foo film. B) In the middle of the shoot out a main antagonist asks Clive Owen to help him take off his bullet proof vest -- of course he gets shot again and dies. Why keep your vest on when the bullets are flying? C) With hundreds of rounds fired, only a few guys get hit, and then a chandelier falls and kills two bad guys? Why bring an AK47 to a shoot out when you can just drop a chandelier to kill the bad guys? D)Three times during the movie a character offers a pathetic 'Are you OK?' Once when Naomi Watts gets run over by a car, Once when Clive Owen gets shot in the ear. Are you OK? No you freaking idiot, I just got hit with a car. And what was the point of Naomi getting run over? I never figured that out.
In Conclusion, want to see a much better Clive Owen film, see Derailed. Inside Job with Owen not as good as Derailed, but still way above The International.
Apocalypto (2006)
Alternate Title: Some Savages Running Through the Jungle
I encourage Mel Gibson to restore the name of Apocalypto to the title of the original 'screenplay', i.e. Some Savages Running Through the Jungle. Naming this film 'Apocalypto' is like naming Caddyshack "The Rise and Fall of Western Civilization". I liked Caddyshack by the way.
If you like The Fugitive meets Lord of the Flies meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but with a completely linear plot and no real dialogue, you might like Apocalypto. Likewise if you are entertained by the plot imagination of Power Ranger's episodes you might be entertained by Apocalypto.
Ranks among the most over-rated movies of recent times, along with No Country for Old Men.
If you are looking for a good under-rated film check out Jennifer 8; note the scenes with Andy Garcia and John Malcovich. Why the director of Jennifer 8 dropped off the map after that film is a shame.
No Country for Old Men (2007)
anyone who panned "no country" want to co-write a screenplay?
Four questions to people who liked this movie:
1. What are the memorable lines? 2. Are the actions of the characters believable? 3. Outside of a graphic and bloody chase involving some drug money, was there a plot or plot twists that I somehow missed? 4. Can "no country" really compare even marginally in any way to "fargo"? As polite as I could get, I would say "no country" is potentially in the same league as "fargo" if you take out the scenes with steve buscemi and william macy, which is to say you spay and neuter "fargo" and you get something like "no country". 5. To anyone who noticed the vacant sign in any of the features that make a movie good; want to co-write a screenplay together? I am sure we could knock over "no country" with a feather.
PS: I would actually give "no country" a 3 or 4 on a scale of 10.
The Fast and the Furious (2001)
point break with lousy direction
Many pointless camera takes: (e.g. shots of some chick looking perplexed for no reason), lousy script: "so are you a serial killer?, um, no", and many pointless, unbelievable action scenes (e.g. asian gang shot up the cops 1st race car why?).
Due mostly to the lousy direction (and partly to lousy script and mediocre actors)this film reminds me of "point break" with with the overall quality a martial arts movie. If point break is a "7", then this movie is a "2" at best.