Sunday, December 7, 2008

Mini-movie reviews (#6)

Heckler(Sorry for the watermark on the poster, it was the biggest one I could find)
Directed by Michael Addis and Jamie Kennedy
Starring Jamie Kennedy and "over 100 comedians and performers."
Released in 2007
Good: The best parts are the ones that are recorded times of heckling. The two standouts are the Bill Hicks and Uwe Boll scenes.
Bad: Though it was a good premise for a documentary, it feels like it dragged on far too long, and strayed from the subject matter (into critics rather than hecklers). That, and I felt really bad for Jamie Kennedy throughout the movie. Jamie, if you are reading this (which the movie shows you are likely to do) I love you and find your standup comedy hilarious.
Rating: 5.5/10

Constantine (3rd viewing)Directed by Francis Lawrence
Starring Keanu Reeves, Rachel Weisz, and Shia Labeouf
Released in 2005
Good: The scenes in hell and involving any sort of demon or other supernatural being are awesome. The opening exorcism scene is one of my favorites in the action genre. Bush frontman (and Gwen Stefani beau) Gavin Rossdale looks awesome in a grey pinstriped tux. And Rachel Weisz is hot.
Bad: Reeves' acting in some parts is laughably bad. Shia Labeouf's character is annoying and unnecessary.
Rating: 6/10

The Illusionist (5th viewing)Directed by Neil Burger
Starring Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, Paul Giamatti, and Rufus Sewell
Released in 2006
Good: Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti's performances are fantastic. The storyline is intriguing and original. The ending reminds me of The Usual Suspects; in the sense that everything comes together flawlessly.
Bad: A few parts (namely the "bedroom scene" between Norton and Biel) drag on a bit.
Rating: 10/10 (one of my favorites)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

as far as "the bad" parts of the film, shouldn't a 10/10 movie have no bad parts?

T. Walters said...

In my humble opinion, no. There is no such thing as a "flawless" film (yes, even Clerks is flawed). I give my 10's one "get out of jail free" card.
That just happened to be this movie's mistake; that one or two scenes dragged on.