At the age of 21, Tim discovers he can travel in time and change what happens and has happened in his own life. His decision to make his world a better place by getting a girlfriend turns out not to be as easy as you might think. From: IMDb.com
Directed by: Richard Curtis
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy, Margot Robbie and others
The rivalry between the manipulative boss of an advertising agency and her talented protégée escalates from stealing credit to public humiliation to murder. From: IMDb.com
At the age of 21, Tim discovers he can travel in time and change what happens and has happened in his own life. His decision to make his world a better place by getting a girlfriend turns out not to be as easy as you might think. From: IMDb.com
Directed by: Richard Curtis
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy, Margot Robbie and others
Brian De Palma's fascination with femme fatales continues....and lesbians.
Good news about this movie is that it's definitely better than De Palma's other recent thriller attempts, such as "Femme Fatale" and "The Black Dahlia". The De Palma of the '70's and '80's has long been gone but with this movie he somewhat returns to form. The movie definitely has some hints of a great movie in it and there are some awesome classic De Palma touches- and moments of greatness in it but overall the movie still remains nothing more but a very average thriller unfortunately.
De Palma's biggest inspiration and influences always have come from Hitchcock- and Giallo movies. In this movie, both influences are all, once more, very noticeable. However, it's only really noticeable in its final 30 minutes though, which was also the only part of the movie that truly had me excited as a De Palma fan. Before that point, it's all buildup and the buildup in this case really isn't making it apparent where the movie is heading at with its story and characters. A bit annoying and it also certainly lets the movie drag at points but it's a technique that isn't uncommon for a De Palma movie. Sometimes it works out absolutely great for his movie ("Body Double" and "Dressed to Kill" for instance) but sometimes it just isn't the most engaging or interesting approach to take. The suspense and mystery isn't really all that great or much present throughout the movie its first half, which is a big problem.
It still shows some hints of a great- more classic type of thriller, with some strong female leads and a femme fatale type of character in it as well. Unfortunately Rachel McAdams isn't a great femme fatale though. She feels slightly miscast and perhaps she and Noomi Rapace should have switched roles. Noomi Rapace is much better as an actress in this movie and a good, strong, main lead for the movie its story.
The movie loves to present itself as an erotic thriller but is it really? It certainly isn't as erotic as perhaps its cover and title would suggest and there for instance is no real nudity in this movie either. There are a couple of sex scenes and some lesbian kissing but nothing too graphic or arousing really. It's certainly nothing we all haven't seen before in some mainstream modern movies and TV-series. No, even the lesbian stuff is quite tame and not as sensual as you would expect from De Palma, especially once you have seen his earlier movie "Femme Fatale".
And actually, now that I'm starting to think back more and more about this movie, lots of stuff that's happening in it really doesn't make any sense. I loved the ending for instance (I certainly did not see all of those twists coming) but at the same time, it's leaving way more questions than answers. Maybe I need to watch the movie again but I seriously doubt that is going to help me with all of the answers. It just isn't the type of airtight- and clever thriller. It feels more like entertainment instead, that isn't ever really trying to a very realistic and believable enough movie, all throughout.
On the one hand I'm very enthusiastic about the movie, seeing how it's De Palma's best out of recent years and how it has some real moments of greatness in it but on the other hand, I still have to be fair and say that it just isn't the best or most effective thriller you could ever watch.
At the age of 21, Tim is told an incredible family secret by his father - that all the men in his family have the ability to travel in time. He can relive any moment in his life to try things differently until he gets them perfectly right. From: IMDb.com
Directed by: Richard Curtis
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy, Lee Asquith-Coe and others
After visiting Mont Saint-Michel, Marina and Neil come to Oklahoma, where problems arise. Marina meets a priest and fellow exile, who is struggling with his vocation, while Neil renews his ties with a childhood friend, Jane. From: IMDb.com
Directed by: Terrence Malick
Starring: Ben Affleck, Olga Kurylenko, Javier Bardem and others
After visiting Mont Saint-Michel, Marina and Neil come to Oklahoma, where problems arise. Marina meets a priest and fellow exile, who is struggling with his vocation, while Neil renews his ties with a childhood friend, Jane. From: IMDb.com
Directed by: Terrence Malick
Starring: Rachel McAdams, Olga Kurylenko, Ben Affleck and others
"South Park" once perfectly spoofed Rob Schneider's career, by putting fake trailers for movies, of which in one he turned into a carrot. An obvious reference to this movie. It showed how he and all of his movies were always the same and often relied on just one simple comedy aspect. This movie is like that. It relies on just one big comedy joke; a popular hot girl and a dirty dumb old criminal accidentally swap bodies.
The humor and comedy is so simple and weak that at times you just can't help laughing at it. The sort of 'Austin Power's' effect, I would call it. So dumb, silly and predictable that it becomes hilarious at the same time . Such as the whole Biance plot line and rivalry, the story with the parents and so on. There really are some missed opportunities here and thats sort of weird since normally these type of movies are overfull with different often overly developed plot lines. Now everything remains mainly underdeveloped, which also doesn't make this the movie interesting or hilarious movie to watch. After a while the movie even starts to reuse some of its earlier jokes. Never a good sign when a comedy start to recycle its own jokes.
Rob Schneider is mostly overacting obviously but I think that's also one of the reasons why the movie still works out as a fun one. I also think he did a fairly good job at playing a girl who's suddenly in a man's body. It provides the movie with some good moments, the one more subtle than the other. The movie also has some good supporting actors but in much too small roles such as Robert Davi and Rachel McAdams before her days of fame. Adam Sandler unfortunately makes a totally unfunny appearance in the movie. There are some potentially fun characters in the movie but those remain mostly underused.
Of course the story also has some morals and messages in it. In my opinion it's a real shame that Hollywood comedies from this decade always feel the need to do this. But having said that, in this particular movie it isn't really distracting or anything but its still obviously present, especially toward the ending of course.
Obviously not a lot of things really make sense into the story but this is not just due to the ridicules concept but also some bad writing. For instance it doesn't get explained exactly why the school-losers and outcasts suddenly teamed up and get accepted by the 'hot chicks'.
In all fairness this is not a bad movie and it's certainly a watchable one. It's however also very simple, predictable and underdeveloped. That's why I just can't rate it any higher. But nevertheless I consider this a watchable movie. I guess it's especially hilarious with a couple of friends and A LOT of booze.
"The Notebook" is better than just your average romantic movie for a couple of reasons.
The first and foremost reason for me was the look of it. It had an obvious high budget (at least for its genre) that was well spent. The did a good job at recreating the '40's, with lots of nice looking sets, cars and costumes. The cinematography was beautiful and made the settings of the movie really come forward into the story.
As for the story itself it wasn't really anything new and was filled with the typical clichés you could expect from a movie about a boy and a girl falling in love, of which one is from the 'upper-class' and the big city and the other of the 'lower-class' and from a small town. Take away the movie its good actors and budget and you'll have your average romantic movie. The story certainly is not strong and thick enough to carry the entire movie on its own. Sure, the movie does have its original moments, especially in its non-linear storytelling but it on its own is not good or powerful enough to make the movie really any interesting.
The cast consists out of some really impressive names, mainly the supporting cast. Actors such as James Garner, Sam Shepard and Joan Allen help to make the movie an extra respectable one and they add a certain bit of extra. Really great in this movie was James Marsden. Lots of people criticize him for his part in the X-Men movies, in which he is quite boring but when you watch him in this movie and others you'll notice that he is actually nothing less than a greatly talented actor. The leading actors Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling are obviously not just mainly cast for their acting skills but more because of their 'natural' style and look. Every guy should be able to identify himself with Noah and every girl should be able to identify herself with Allie. They deliver their lines in a very natural way and the help to make the story more believable than it in fact really is.
Still I feel that the romance in this movie is flawed. It never becomes obvious what it is that makes Allie so great and perfect for Noah and vice versa and why their love is so much more special and powerful than anyone else's. It never gets fully obvious or explained in the movie, at least not to my satisfaction.
But for most part the professional cast & crew overcome the movie its clichés and weaknesses, until the ending. The ending was completely unnecessary, over-the-top and just mainly totally unlikely and unbelievable. You can say that it sort of ruined the movie its romantic and powerful feeling for me. I would had seriously rated this movie a 8 out of 10, right until the last couple of minutes. The movie should had ended earlier on and abandoned this crazy, unlikely, over-sentimental ending.
Still I feel that due to its professionalism involved, I'm talking about both cast & crew, this movie is still way better than just another cliché filled romantic 'chick-flick'. Even if you aren't into these sort of movies (like myself), this movie is worth seeing and worth your time. It's beautifully made and really no bore to watch, despite the obvious moments and stereotypical clichés.
See this movie for the whole package, not just the story.
