Tuesday, May 22, 2007 Rant Archive
Finale, thy name is anticlimax. After a season of twists, turns, more family surprises than a six-pack of soap operas (Hiro’s dad is Sulu?!?) and superpowers galore, HEROES ties it all together with a massive “feh.” Sure, the serial drama structure and dictates of the comic book genre require a few loose ends, but one of the things that made Tim Kring’s baby interesting was how he approached familiar material. People with superpowers probably wouldn’t buy long underwear and flit around helping old ladies, and that knowledge is one of the show’s dramatic strengths. But, in the pursuit of ratings, Kring et al went for the familiar instead of the interesting. It shows.
Look up APOCALYPTO on IMDB.com and check out the list of plot keywords. It reads like a FRIDAY THE 13TH sequel: Impalement, Shot Through The Mouth, Shot In The Head, Stabbed In The Arm, Stabbed In The Chest, Beaten To Death, Female Nudity, Stabbed In The Throat, Severed Head, Shaved Head, Heart Ripped Out, Topless, Testicle, Breasts, Male Nudity, Head On Stake, Bitten In The Throat.
Personally, I like how Female Nudity, Topless and Breasts are all separate categories.
Following the success of THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, allegedly reformed drunkard Mel Gibson embarked on what was touted as a groundbreaking and fascinating exploration capturing all the grandeur and gritty realism of the fall of the Mayan empire, complete with Spanish conquistadors, archaic languages, exotic locales and half-naked natives. Unfortunately, APOCALYPTO fails to deliver more than a high-speed, testosterone-fueled charge of action and bile.
Old film reels blended with grand orchestral scores and classic cinema cutting are just some of the elements that make THE GOOD GERMAN an incredible homage to classic studio pictures. Taking the helm as director, editor and cinematographer, Steven Soderbergh makes one very beautiful film. Too bad all that beauty can’t hide the lackluster story.
Capt. Jacob Geismer (George Clooney), an American military journalist, is assigned to cover the Potsdam Conference, but Jake’s mind is fully fixed on finding his old flame, Lena Brandt (Cate Blanchett). When Jake arrives in Berlin, he is greeted by his eager driver, Cpl. Patrick Tully (Tobey Maguire). Tully appears to be an all-American boy, but soon reveals his true colors as a sleaze-and-a-half who’s making a killing on the black market. Jake doesn’t discover this darker side until he runs into Tully in a bar, where he finds the kid talking to – who else? – Lena. Soon, Jake finds himself deep in a conspiracy involving Lena, Tully and a whole bunch of secrets.