7/10
Oh, to be 14 again...
20 September 2004
I really, really wanted to like this movie. I mean, I did like it, but I found myself losing focus and well, getting bored. Maybe I'm jaded.

If I were a kid who had not seen many movies yet, Sky Captain would really impress me. I was 14 when Raiders of the Lost Ark came out, and it made a huge impression on me. Raiders, like Sky Captain, was based upon the serial cliff-hangers of the 30's. But there's a huge and important difference between these films: Spielberg is a genius, Conran is a hack.

But maybe that's not fair. Maybe Conran is indeed a genius, but Hollywood committee rule has overshadowed his talent. Who knows?

What I do know is that Jude Law is pretty, but not convincingly tough for this kind of hero character. He doesn't even get into any interesting combat. (Bai Ling/Darth Maul just mops the floor with him in that catwalk scene.)

Gwyneth is pretty, but lacks the fire to pull off this kind of heroine/side-kick/love interest role. And what's with that "I've only got two shots left" shtick? That bit with the camera would have made a somewhat amusing running joke, had they not brought it up so often.

To sum, two hours after walking out of the theater, I found myself not thinking about this movie. That it made that little impression on me is impressive, indeed.
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