djecatepec Reviews

Click (2006)

Surprisingly poor movie

[6/10 · 24 October 2006]

The trailers looked really interesting, but they were the only interesting parts of the movie, unfortunately. There are some great comedians like Bill Murrey and Jim Carey that when you take them out of the stupid, slapstick American-style comedies and put them in something where their manic impulses are controlled, they just shine. This doesn't happen with Adam Sandler. He demonstrates that without the constant, violent hysteria that is his mainstay and seems to pass for comedy in the US, he is really just an empty shell.

This film is sort of a rip-off on "Liar Liar," "Bruce Almighty," with a touch of a badly done "Meet Joe Black." Even the presence of the usually brilliant Christopher Walken is a wasted performance

Hercules in New York (1970)

just go and see it..........

[1/10 · 17 August 2006]

There are so many really great comments on this movie, that I really can't add anything much better. Except to tell you that you really owe it to yourselves to actually find a copy and see it. It WILL be worth it. It is perhaps one of the all time worst movies ever made, but so bad and because it includes the Governor of California in the all time worst performance of his career well, its just priceless! After you watch this you will never again be able to watch Arnold doing anything without a feeling of complete awe and respect. That the dumb body builder who played "Hercules" could possibly end up where he is today...........

(If you had been watching this movie in 1970 and somebody had said to you, "that guy is going to be a great star AND the future Governor of California" you would have laughed until you peed yourself!)

War of the Worlds (2005)

Its the Dysfunctional Family, Stupid

[3/10 · 12 May 2006]

It has been suggested that people are staying away from MI-3 because of Cruise's idiotic brainwashed Scientology comments, his stupid juvenile behavior with his latest teenie bopper love, his over the top screaming and so on. But I'll bet that the real reason they are staying away is that most of them saw "War of the Worlds" and like me, couldn't stomach the idea of sitting through 2 hours of such stomach churning drivel again. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Tom Cruise, despite his often ridiculous personal behavior. (I loved "Last Samaurai" and still love to watch Anne Heche, Angelina Jollie, Billy Bob Thornton, even Charlie Sheen and they all are complete Hollywood flakes, too.) No the real problem with "War of the Worlds" goes so much deeper than a bad acting job by Cruise. In fact, they properly should have renamed this movie "The Most Dysfunctional Family on the Planet Earth, Suffers Total Psychotic Meltdown During Alien Attack." That would have been a more honest and descriptive title. When I went to see "War" I was actually expecting to watch a story at least somewhat reminiscent of the famous H. G. Wells classic, "War of the Worlds," silly me. There is almost no similarity whatsoever between the Wells classic and this horrible piece of crap. (except perhaps that there are actually aliens and their machines have three legs, after that it becomes pretty much some Hollywood flake's bad acid trip.) The true problem with this awful movie is that is should have been all about an alien invasion, instead it degenerates into a horrible parody of the worst examples of modern American family dysfunction. I live in a society where the family is not only respected but even revered as a vital instrument to ensure the survival of each member. We respect the family unit exactly and especially because of the protection it offers to all when disasters, (like alien invasions) happen. In the movie theater here there was at first some nervous laughter at the unbelievable selfish, neurotic and ego-centric manner each of the characters dealt with the crisis by viciously turning on each other, the only people they had for support. But by the end all humor was gone and only embarrassed disgust remained. The alien plot was forgotten and everyone could only comment on how utterly insane and self destructive the "crazy gringos" were. Forget what George Bush says about, "...they hate us because we love freedom and democracy." The world hates America because of what Hollywood sends around the world in movies such as "War of the Worlds" as an image of the American family and American life. Most of us find that type of totally self indulgent behavior to be social insanity and moral suicide. It is simply beyond our capacity to even imagine such self destructive behavior, in fact it is a horror worse than the aliens themselves. I gave it a three which seems high now that I look back. If the aliens had actually killed the obnoxious little bastard, Cruise's son, I would have given it a "4" If the aliens had also gotten the shallow and vacuous Cruise, his neurotic screaming daughter, as well as the glib, social climbing mother and gutless step father, it might have rated a "6".

Downfall (2004)

The best German WW II movie ever....

[10/10 · 18 February 2006]

For the past 15 years it has been, the news from Germany has been, worrisome to say the least: religious intolerance and oppression, neo-Nazis, racism, xenophobia, especially the constant German comments like "it was the War, it was a long time ago, its over just leave it alone," one begins to wonder if in fact the German people ever really understood the magnitude of the crimes they actually committed against Humanity. Then this movie came out. It is without a doubt the finest German movie about the war ever made. In fact it ranks right alongside with the fantastic Jewish film "Shindler's List" as one of the truly definitive "Nazi-movies" of all time.

Normally I am so lazy, I just hate watching foreign language films. Even though I am fluently bilingual I have to put the English sub-titles on Spanish movies so I don't have to think too much. Hell, I'm so lazy and DVD-spoiled that I even put the English sub-titles on English movies! When we started the DVD, I was really annoyed. "German" its all in "German!" What a rip off! Well I have to admit that after watching the whole movie, I wouldn't have wanted to watch it in English after all. Hitler was German, the Germans speak German. Having seen so many movies with terrible doubling here in Mexico and just how much it can cost a movie's authenticity, I think this was a brilliant decision to put it out in German.

Bruno Ganz is simply spell-binding as Hitler. He makes every single earlier rendition of the man pale in comparison. While he can't quite get the mesmerizing, insane charisma just right, (and no-one ever will,) he hits everything else about the character dead center. This is as Oscar-worthy a performance as Kingley (Gandhi), Brando (Godfather), or Scott (Patton). He makes Adolph Hitler live on the screen for those 2 hours plus, like no other actor ever has before.

Corinna Harfouch as Magda Goebbels is truly compelling as well as really spooky. The personality, the fanaticism, the madness necessary to slaughter your own children rather than allow them to grow up outside of your own self centered, perverse reality is something no true loving parent could comprehend ever, and that is so well captured in the movie. Unlike most American flicks where we would have been subjected to endless drivel and senseless "psycho-babblings" to understand the "mind" of Magda, this film spares us that and simply shows what she does, its powerful and riveting.

Michael Mendl is also superb in his role of Wehrmacht General Helmuth Weidling. If you want to know how it was that the German military even came close to winning a war in which they were alway seriously outnumbered since the beginning in men, tanks and aircraft, study closely the character of Weidling as portrayed by Mendl, amidst all the whining toadies, hysterical cowards and drunken fools, he storms into Hitler's bunker and announces loudly, "appearantly I'm to be shot!" For better of worse, doing his duty to the bitter end, he was the exact type of German officer who made the Wehrmacht the most feared army on the face of the Earth. Great performance.

There are so many others who give great performances as well, its a shame that in English language films we won't get to see many of these superb German actors much in the future. With only a couple of exceptions the casting, scripting and acting was brilliant and really re-created the "last days." To some critics who complained about the historical accuracy, as a historian and writer, I have no idea what you are talking about. Compared to the absolute falsity and stupid unnecessary "glitter" of the majority American war movies, this was extremely accurate and mostly based on eye-witness accounts.

To the German people: a simply excellent effort and a brilliant look into a dark corner of a terrible past, as a nation, you should be proud of this movie, the best German WW II movie ever...

Get Shorty (1995)

A really great and fun movie

[9/10 · 10 February 2006]

This is just a great movie and one of Travolta's best. Great performances from Rene Russo, Gene Hackman and Denis Farina as well. Great cameo by Bette Midler. In fact I would have to say that Ferina's "Ray Bones" was perhaps the most unforgettable character after "Chili Palmer." I can't remember a movie that is just so filled with so many memorable and hilarious lines as this one: Ray Bones: "hey look, its "chilly" outside and its "Chili in here," (after walking up to Fay andpunching her in the face without warning..) "Fay, I want us to be friends, and we all know, friends don't hit friends. Unless they have to.." "they say the f***** smog is the f***** reason you have such beautiful f***** sunsets out here ..." "I'm gonna ask ya again, then I gotta kill ya..."

Ray Bones: "..you must be one of those quick draw artists cuz of the way you got your gun tucked way down in your pants like that.." Bo's goon: "...yah, well what's that, a 'wop 9'? The Fiat of handguns, always jammin' on ya... Ray's Beretta: "Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!"

Bo: "..and besides, there was a gazillion DEA agents out there..." Mr. Escobar: "a gazillion, hey, that's a lot..."

Just an unforgettable movie I even love seeing it over and over, just a really fun movie with a great cast.

Fantastic Four (I) (2005)

Where's Dr. Doom?

[8/10 · 12 December 2005]

Well, while not truly great it wasn't a total washout either. The Fantastic Four were actually the "flagship" for the early Marvel Comics. As such the personalities of their leader, Reed Richards and their arch-nemesis, Dr. Doom, were vital. Unfortunately while Ben Grimm, Johnny and Sue Storm were brilliantly portrayed, Reed Richards ends up an unsympathetic, almost pathetically anemic character and the real Dr. Doom never even makes an appearance. Viktor von Doom was always my favorite Marvel character. Never simply just a villain, always more complex, even misunderstood and more tragic than truly evil. He never lived in the US, never had an American corporation, never employed the other four, never had a "thing" for Sue Storm and was NEVER truly defeated by the Four. Stymied, delayed, annoyed, sure but never defeated. Totally without super powers, he was yet Marvel's most intelligent, powerful and dangerous adversary (aside from the omnipotent alien, "Galacticus.") That is my one real complaint of the movie, the total absence of the real Viktor von Doom!

Miss Congeniality 2: Armed & Fabulous (2005)

Armed and Odorous

[4/10 · 6 November 2005]

This movie was so "hyped," when it first came out that I was quite looking forward to seeing it. I really like Sandra Bullock normally. But this one was really, really bad. I keep wracking my brains to come up with some wonderfully insightful way to point out just what precisely was wrong with this movie, but alas, nothing comes to mind, I'll just have to go with "Everything!" Bad script, stupid plot, idiot humor, unfunny scenes, poor performances from a majority of the actors, and so on. This is one of the many movie sequels which had absolutely no business ever being made, a total embarrassment for all concerned. If any of you, like my family and I, normally, really like Sandra's movies, for Gawd's sake do yourselves a favor, don't see this one!

The Legend of Zorro (2005)

Zeta-Jone really stinks in this!

[6/10 · 6 November 2005]

Mostly dull and uninspired, the plot seems to wander aimlessly for the majority of the movie. It also seems to be filled with nonsensical historical inaccuracies and non-sequitors. If it wasn't for the always great performances of Antonio as Zorro and his son Zorro Jr. it would have been a total flop. And what's up with Catherine Zeta-Jones? This woman actually won an Oscar? No wonder the Academy is taking such heat for its lack of judgment! She sucks! No, I really mean it she just sucks BIG TIME! She is so bad and so unsympathetic a character that one spends most of the movie hoping and praying that one of the other awful characters would please just shoot her! I would have seriously considered giving this movie a 7.5 or even an 8 if Elena had been played by an actress who could actually act! (Selma Hyack for instance.) If you like Zorro, well, Bandaras has always been to me a really great Zorro, he just has the character down so well. Once we get to some Zorro action, its OK. But while you are waiting for that action, its generally pretty bad, don't go to see this one if you are tired!

Runaway Jury (2003)

Oh, come on, it wasn't all that bad!

[8/10 · 23 March 2004]

I don't know why so many people disliked this movie. My family all really liked it from our 10 year old son, my Mexican wife and even a crusty old, right-wing conservative like myself. Sure it did have a ultra liberal anti-constitution message, but that was incidental to the actual story. I was very disappointed that they did not stay with the book and make big tobacco the villain. As an ex-smoker who fought for years to break a three pack a day addiction I could have really gotten into that scenario with more gusto. But lets be real, the gun manufacturers were made into such obvious caricatures that the movie's value as propaganda is negligible. This was nowhere near the kind of obscene hatchet job as say Andy Garcia in "Swing Vote." Where there was a whole pretense of actually considering both sides of the abortion debate then coming down brutally hard totally on the extreme Atheist-Left of the issue without the slightest hint of fairness. Runaway wasn't like that at all. It wasn't actually about gun laws in the strictest sense, it was about the con. As such, it was extremely entertaining. I thought everybody did an excellent job, including Dustin Hoffman and John Cusack. John's dry, somewhat detached acting style may not be everyone's cup of tea but to me he's brilliant. I think that most people who rent this movie would not be disappointed. I give it an 8 and a half!

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

Could have been better

[9/10 · 12 January 2004]

This is, as so many have already noted, a great pirate movie, in fact one of the best ever. But it could have been better, I think. I'm not exactly sure just how, but somehow. Perhaps because it was produced by Disney. It seemed to have some of that usual Disney "insipidness" that tends to take the edge off of otherwise excellent movies. Some kind of pandering to an unseen and irrelevant "political correctness". I don't know exactly. It is great for kids, my 10 year old just loved every second, and when you have kids, that counts for everything. I personally enjoyed it, but I wouldn't sit through it again. (Unlike "Return of the King," which I could sit through another 17 times, I'm sure!)

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Simply and unequivocally, THEY NAILED IT!

[10/10 · 23 December 2003]

The third flick in a series is rarely the best. This one is! The film is rarely better than the book. This one is! I found that of the three books in the trilogy, Return of the King was the least clear and the least satisfying. In the movie version, the reverse is true. Its simply a really fun, really great roller coaster ride from start to finish. I have nothing more to say except if you've already seen it, nothing I could say could possibly match the film itself and if you haven't, you simply must. I would just like to say to the cast and crew, in the words of so many Olympic sports, Congratulations, you nailed it! (And to anyone who could possibly give this film less than a 10, you must have had the flu that day!)

The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

The action sequences alone deserves a "10"

[8/10 · 30 November 2003]

Yes, I agree that nothing could probably top the original "Matrix" for pure story line, you simply can't watch something for the first time twice! And yes, the story line in "Revolutions" was convoluted and obscure at too many points. I still think it was better than "Reloaded" and as for the action scenes especially near the end, well, it has to rank as one of the all time greatest! I went to this flick with my 11 year old son. He didn't go to see a "Sci-Fi masterpiece," or anything like that, he went to be entertained. His comment at the end, "Wow, wow, that was just the BEST...." You see, it all depends on your point of view.

Dreamcatcher (2003)

If you read the book, DON'T see the movie!

[3/10 · 4 August 2003]

I received this book last Christmas and just loved it! I waited impatiently for two months for it to appear in my local theater. Just like so many others I was soooo bitterly disappointed! It started out not too badly, and I must say the "shit weasels" were not too shabby, but then it just leaves the whole plot line of the book and fires directly into never never land! In translating a book onto the screen, especially one as convoluted and involved as this one, it is incumbent upon the producers of the film version to simplify and clarify many plot elements. This usually results in the movie emerging as a necessary disappointment to those who have read the book. In this case, the film version was far more obfuscated and incomprehensible than the original book! They not only failed completely to simplify the film version, but most of the gratuitous changes themselves simply add additional confusion! Then they changed the whole ending to create a far more ridiculous and incomprehensible story line than even King himself could have imagined!

(In the book, one of the characters notes to himself that if this had been a movie, Col. Kurtz would have to be played by either Christopher Walken or James Wood. If they had simply followed THAT piece of excellent advice, and also hired some script writers that WEREN'T into heavy substance abuse, well they might have had a chance....) As it stands, if you like gory Sci-Fi and you haven't read the book, well it might be ok for you...

Mr. Wrong (1996)

Sure, it wasn't that great, but....

[5/10 · 4 August 2003]

I sure didn't think this was one of the best movies I've ever seen, but I also never expected to find it on the all time 100 worst list either! Sure, Ellen and Bill weren't at their best, but hey, there were some good laughs here. Normally I wouldn't waste my time commenting on a mediocre movie, but I just don't think, with so many other truly BAD flicks to chose from, that this one is top 100 material, maybe I'm weird, sorry!

Heartbreak Ridge (1986)

Vintage Clint!

[8/10 · 4 August 2003]

Clint Eastwood is at his best in the role of "Gunny Highway." This is mostly a really excellent flick about patriotic values, military camaraderie and old grizzled military veterans. Gunny Highway comes across as the exact fellow you would want covering your ass in any tough situation you could possibly imagine. And Eastwood plays him perfectly with steely resolve, devotion, humor and a healthy touch of irreverence. Its great to see the transformation of Highway's squad, as well as the final moment of judgment for the totally hateful, obnoxious and bureaucratic Maj. Powers. (Oh, if only such b*****ds would get their deserved comeuppance in real life in such a manner, what a beautiful world it would be!)

The only real fault is the attempt to compare a minor police action in Grenada with Vietnam and Korea, "I guess we're not 0, 1 and 1 anymore." I mean, give me a break, Korea and Vietnam went on for years and killed millions! Grenada involved a couple of hundred casualties over a couple of days. Please! But I suppose in 1986 the American people were desperate for some kind of heroes. Its just that that kind of jingoism would have been much more appropriate after Desert Storm than Grenada. That being said, its still a very good movie with a fundamental message about values, loyalty and comradeship that we could easily have more of these days, besides, Clint is just great!

Legally Blonde (2001)

BIG SURPRISE! Its really good!

[7/10 · 30 July 2003]

Well, I'm a 54 year old male and one of those who put off seeing this movie for a long time. I did find the trailers interesting, but a syrupy movie about dumb blonds? Forget it! In the end there wasn't much else on the pay-per-view and we didn't feel like going to Blockbuster in the rain so we finally watched it. Surprise! We were all really impressed. Its really funny and it moves along well. I was contemplating seeing the sequel while watching an interview with Reese Witherspoon the other day when it hit me just why this flick was such a raving success. REESE WITHERSPOON. She just loves this role and she is a really fabulous actress. I'm sure that her own life fuels the power she delivers in this role of "dumb blond," I mean she looks the part doesn't she? You'd never know by looking at her that both her parents are doctors, she was a straight "A" honors student, was accepted into Stanford and might have easily have become a doctor herself if she hadn't decided to follow an acting career. Makes ya' kinda' think doesn't it? Odd that the greatest number of really negative comments and poor votes come from the group of 18-29 males. Come on dudes, just take a deep breath, forget that excess testosterone for a minute and actually WATCH the movie!

Gandhi (1982)

Great Man, Great Story, Great Film!

[10/10 · 30 July 2003]

This is one that absolutely must go on everyone's "must see" list. One of the truly greatest movies ever made. For those who found it "boring" or "too long," you folks need to just stick to stuff like "Star Wars," "Terminator," "Spiderman," or perhaps reality TV would be more your cup of tea.

For those who like to actually see real human history come to life on the screen, "Gandhi" is a true masterpiece for all times. A excellent summary of one of the greatest and most interesting lives of the 20th. century!

I find it odd that aside from a fine performance in "Shindler's List," that Ben Kingsley has really been a major disappointment as an actor following his role as "Gandhi." Perhaps like George C. Scott in "Patton," he was destined to play just one truly great role as an actor. And this was it!

For those who keep mentioning that Kingsley is "English," well, yes he is, but he is also "Anglo-Indian." His father is from India. In fact his father was born in the same small sea-coast town as Mahatma Gandhi! While filming the movie in the small towns of rural India, there were those older people who actually remembered seeing the original Gandhi who collapsed in shock when they saw Kingsley in his makeup. Hundreds became convinced that he actually was the Mahatma, returned! Also interesting is that Kingsley was born just after the asassination of Gandhi. I mean that's just a tad spooky, no....?

Groundhog Day (1993)

One of Bill Murray's all time best efforts

[9/10 · 13 January 2003]

Most of his career, Murray has epitomized that horrible, simplistic, overdone slapstick type of humor which Americans seem to be obsessed by and those of us in the rest of the world, well, it can make our skin crawl, to be honest. In two great movies, Murray rises above that infantile "finger up yer nose" stuff and really turns in a complex and brilliant performance, one such is "What about Bob?" with Richard Dreyfuss and the other is "Groundhog Day." Unlike such lame, childish crap as "Caddy Shack," this is simply one of the funniest movies ever made and proves that, like Jim Carrey, when Bill plays it "straight," he can really shine. Not only is this one worth seeing, it is worth seeing over and over and over and over........

Fargo (1996)

A dark tale of Crime and Consequences in the Frozen North...

[10/10 · 16 April 2002]

If you think this movie was poking fun of "Scandinavian accents", (they were much more similar to the Canadian accents just a hundred miles or so north, eh!) or was stereotyping pregnant women, Asians, rural people, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Norwegians, North Dakota etc., etc, you really are far too "sophisticated" to be watching movies in the first place!

This is one of the finest "black comedies" I have ever seen, (and I am not much of a fan of the genre.) I'm sure that many who have posted negative comments are simply overwhelmed by their own "political incorrectness" during the movie.

There are several moments in this movie when it is totally inappropriate to let out a good laugh, but also unavoidable. (When Mrs. Lundegard jumps out of the car blindfolded and tries to escape from her kidnappers through the snow, for example. Its a moment of obvious pure terror for her, but her callous and brutal kidnappers break down laughing and I'm afraid we do too.) That is what makes it so very good!

If you don't feel right laughing at black humor, DON'T WATCH THIS MOVIE!

And those who critisize the well-deserved oscar of Frances McDormand just don't get it at all. The very pregnant and rustic Chief of Police, Marge Gunderson, whose husband likes to paint mallards and ice fish, may be a little "folksy," for some, but believe it or not, most people in the States aren't actually from New York City or LA! Some of them really do have to jump start their "prowlers" at 4:00 AM in 15 below zero weather.

There are actually small town police chiefs just like Marge all over America. And let's not forget that as "goofy" as she may look and talk, when she gets on the case, she is onto the bad guys almost from the start and pursues them with the single minded tenacity of a laser guided missile. I'm sure that there are real cops across America for whom "Marge Gunderson," represented a very realistic portrayal.

No, I'm sorry some of you didn't like this movie, but for me it was a surprisingly deep, dark and astute piece of work for an American film. And I place Brainard Chief of Police Marge Gunderson right up there with Sam Spade, Columbo and Hercule Poirot among my all time favorite detectives and I would simply love to see her in action again.

If you still haven't seen it, you owe it to yourself to give this one a shot. Its a solid 9 out of 10!

Shrek (2001)

Mike Myers makes the magic happen!

[15 April 2002]

I really fail to understand many of the rather negative comments I've read here about this movie. For gosh sakes, its just an animated kid's movie, what were some of you expecting? "Gone with the Wind?" I personally would probably never have bothered to see it if my son wasn't an 8 year old. I really wasn't expecting much more than Toy Story or Monsters Inc. I was truly surprised.

That said, I must also confess that I found Camron Diez to be disappointingly weak as the princess. Eddie Murphy was way overdone and overboard as the donkey. I mean there wasn't one second that I was able to forget that the ever-chattering voice behind the character was just Eddie Murphy going on and on and on in his usual Eddie Murphy style. And one of my all time favorite actors, John Lithgow, was unfortunately, simply an anaemic parody of himself as the King.

However, this movie was saved as a great movie, animated or otherwise by a surprisingly stellar performance by none other than Mike Myers. It is still difficult for me to grasp that this very same idiotic SNL Pilsbury Dope-Boy who nauseated us all in such sick crap as "Wayne's World" and "Austin Powers" was the inspired genius behind that sardonic but yet wonderful character "Shrek."

No matter how many times you watch the movie, (and I have both the video and an 8 year old, so I've seen it plenty!) you will never hear or find Mike Myers in this film, only the persona of "Shrek." Like Jim Carrey in "The Truman Show," this is where Mike Myers proves to us all that he really belongs where he is in the industry. This movie is an easy "10", simply because Mike Myers or should I say "Shrek," makes it one.

One of the all time truly great characters in animation history!