Dell's Good, Bad & Ugly Movie Reviews
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The Wrestler
2008. Rated R, 111 minutes.
Director: Darren Aronofsky. Starring Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood, Mark Margolis.
Plot: Aged pro wrestler Randy "The Ram" Robinson (Rourke) is 20 years past his glory days and struggling with life.
The Good: You may have already heard about Mickey Rourke's performance. It is indeed excellent. He conveys a real and permeating sense of sadness in not only every word but every action. That skill flips around on us and makes us feel even more sad when he finally seems to be happy. It sounds odd, but it's extremely effective. The women in his life are also very important, not only to how we see him, but to how he sees himself. His daughter Stephanie (Wood) is the physical embodiment of all he's failed at and/or lost. Cassidy (Tomei), the stripper he's trying to court is a female version of him. He's constantly trying to make amends with both, though he hadn't yet done anything to Cassidy. It's a wonderful metaphor for him trying to make things right with himself, even while he's battling that self. Director Aronofsky does a great job getting the most from his actors and creating a bleak enough world that they, and we, have a hard time imagining better for these people. Finally, the wrestling scenes are flat out brutal.
The Bad: Stephanie's relationship with her significant other could've played a bigger role. It's strongly implied that she is a lesbian, which is really neither here or there. But it could've been. This has little to do with her preference but lots to do with the seemingly nurturing relationship she was in. We get only a glimpse of it. Having the girlfriend interact with Randy more could've added another dynamic to the mix. Seeing how each of their relationships differed with Stephanie, or are similar would've been interesting. If you don't want to go down that road how about showing how different the life of Randy's "arch-rival" The Ayatollah (Ernest Miller) turned out. We're told he's done well for himself but being shown this in juxtaposition with Randy could've been really powerful. Those are both mere possibilities which could've taken the movie in drastically different directions. What should definitely have been done was having The Ayatollah fake a Middle Eastern accent, preferably a bad one, during "the show" (wrestling match). It seems small but would've fit perfectly into the world Aronofsky created.
The Ugly: Barbed wire and a staple gun. Yeesh!
Recommendation: Even though there's a good deal of wrestling, this isn't just for fans of the "sport." It's for anyone that enjoys a good character study. Old-schoolers, like myself, may have heard the rumblings that it's based loosely on the life of Jake "The Snake" Roberts. Maybe, but as rough as this movie is, a real biopic about Roberts would have to be even darker. I digress. Let me repeat that this is a great character study. It also has excellent acting and wrestling scenes that will make you flinch.
The Opposite View: Richard Corliss, Time Magazine
What the Internet Says: 8.4/10 on imdb.com (#76 all time as of 4/23/09), 97% on rottentomatoes.com, 81/100 on metacritic.com
MY SCORE: 9/10
Great review. Loved this movie as well. Prob gonna pick it up this weekend. Glad to see your finally getting to the good stuff on DVD. Seems like a lot of 08's best movies have finally started come out the past few weeks.Comment
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RocknRolla
2008. Rated R, 114 minutes.
Director: Guy Ritchie. Starring Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Toby Kebbell, Thandie Newton.
Plot: One Two (Butler) and Mumbles (Idris Elba) are trying to figure out how to pay old school gangster Lenny Cole (Wilkinson) the $2 million they owe him after a deal falls through. Meanwhile, Lenny is trying to keep the same from happening to his deal with a wealthier Russian investor/gangster. And they're all trying to figure out who is the informant that keeps getting everyone locked up.
The Good: In typical Guy Ritchie fashion, we get great circular story-telling, tough talking yet not as smart as they think they are bad guys and funny dialogue. We also get funny violence which is hard to do without totally sinking your movie. Another thing Ritchie consistently delivers is excellent performances from his actors. This proves to be no exception. Tom Wilkinson gives us the flashiest performance while Butler, Elba and Tom Hardy who plays Handsome Bob play off each other quite nicely. The two performances that make the movie tick however are Thandie Newton's almost lone female and Toby Kebbell's turn as drug addicted rock star Johnny Quid.
The Bad: It's a bit derivative. First, it's definitely a Guy Ritchie gangster flick so it feels familiar right from the start if you've seen some of his other work. The Wild Bunch, as our gang of lovable bandits is called, feels very much like the crew from the Ocean's movies. Finally, the very very ending that shamelessly sets us up for the sequel, The Real RocknRolla we're told, is peculiar in both content and execution. It seemingly remakes a certain someone into a totally different character so he can start the sequel with a clean slate.
The Ugly: Everything that happens whenever Victor is asked to "join us."
Recommendation: This is going to sound a bit odd. I recommend it moreso to people who enjoy gangster/crime movies but haven't seen any of Ritchie's other work. People who have will likely enjoy it but may get a "been there, done that" feeling. Still, those people might want to see it anyway just to get in on the ground floor of what Ritchie is promising will be a trilogy.
The Opposite View: Mike McGranaghan, The Aisle Seat
What the Internet Says: 7.4/10 on imdb.com (4/24/09), 59% on rottentomatoes.com, 53/100 on metacritic.com
MY SCORE: 7/10
Zombie Strippers!
2008. Rated R, 94 minutes (unrated DVD version).
Director: Jay Lee. Starring Jenna Jameson, Robert Englund, Shamron Moore, Roxy Saint.
The W Corporation, as in George W. Bush, develops a way to reanimate dead soldiers so they can continue fighting in the war. Of course, the test subject are uncontrollable zombies and have overrun the lab where they were created. A special forces unit is brought in to wipe them out. In the process, one of the soldiers is bitten by a zombie subsequently infecting him. Bada boom, bada bing he stumbles into the nearest underground strip joint. By the way, it's underground because all public nudity has been completely banned. Anyhoo, he infects Kat (Jameson), the star dancer. Zombie stripping, blood, guts and all manner of ridiculousness ensues. Long story short, how could you expect anything other than "so-bad-it's-awesome!" from a movie titled Zombie Strippers! and starring the world's most famous porn star in a "legit" role. Oh, a little FYI, she's had way too much plastic surgery done to her real face, nevermind the zombie makeup that was applied. To the movie's credit, it knows it's ridiculous but still fancies itself a sharp political satire in the tradition of George A. Romero's best work. Though its unquestionably ridiculous and certainly a satire, sharp is the absolute last thing I would call it.
MY SCORE: -10/10Last edited by dell71; 04-24-2009, 01:22 PM.Comment
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glad to see this thread here, i missed the Scarlett Street review when you did it on MM, Edward G Robinson Fritz Lang, damn I have to check that out, its not even on Netflix.
also I need to rewatch Quantum of Solace since many people agree with you about it, i thought it was good.Comment
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glad to see this thread here, i missed the Scarlett Street review when you did it on MM, Edward G Robinson Fritz Lang, damn I have to check that out, its not even on Netflix.
also I need to rewatch Quantum of Solace since many people agree with you about it, i thought it was good.
I liked QOS, it just had some gaping holes.Comment
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well i only saw QoS at the theater, since i own all the others i will be buying it as soon as the price comes down a bit, hard to buy movies when unemployed.
well if i could find Scarlett Street for 2 bucks i would no doubt pick that upComment
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What did you like about QoS? I can't think of any redeeming quality.Comment
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don't remember since i haven't seen in since the theaters, i guess the fact that its James Bond and I like Daniel Craig way more than Pierce Brosnan. I would say it probably a middle of the pack Bond Flick and better than all of PB's films except GoldenEye.Comment
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So, basically what you are saying is "I'm gay". Thanx.Comment
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Dammit Senser, you confused the shit out of me with the Bond avatar. I thought I was seeing double.Comment
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Last edited by dell71; 04-25-2009, 04:12 PM.Comment
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if the quality isn't good there is just no way, i can barely watch the Netflix movies on my computerComment
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