Tag Archives: 2004

Movies or shows released in 2004.

Movie Reviews

Collateral (2004) Review – Anxiety, The Movie

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Collateral is one of those movies I have watched a long time ago (I believe around 2005/06) and haven’t re-watched until now. And yet, it stayed with me. I still remember the impression the movie made on me, but back then, I couldn’t word myself as well. Now, I’ve introduced this to my girlfriend. And while re-watching this gem for only a second time, it dawned on me why this stayed with me for so long. This movie is just a pure anxiety-riddled ride throughout, and when people discuss Tom Cruise, they barely mention how great of an actor he is. He rarely plays villains, but in this movie, you can see for yourself that’s a shame for us, as he kills. Not only a lot of people in this film but this role. With all respect to Jamie Foxx, who also excels in this film, it’s Tom, who steals the movie.

What’s fascinating is this movie could have easily been a failure. Because if you think about it, the story couldn’t have been any simpler! A hitman “hires” (that word does a lot of heavy lifting) a taxi driver to chauffeur him around while he’s… let’s say “running errands”. Most of the time we spent in a taxi cab with two actors, cameras on them, that’s it. And yet, in the hands of Michael Mann (looking at his filmography, this is his last truly great film. I hope he will make a comeback soon.), this turns into something more. Yes, some scenes are more expected than others, like the eventual meaning of life debate is on the schedule, followed by how both of these guys have their faults and can be hypocrites. But the film knows when to stop and shift into another gear when needed. And more importantly, it knows how to keep us at a level where we feel like something big might happen soon. And it doesn’t come. But maybe, the next minute…

We need to talk about the already hinted performances by both gentlemen here. Because the movie is purely about those two actors. Let me start with Jamie Foxx as he gives a solid performance, no doubt about that. You know everything about his character you are rooting for him. That makes it easier to believe him when he eventually snaps because he nailed that part. His only “downfall” was sharing a screen with Tom Cruise at one of his best performances. What gives the extra edge to his bad guy, more than other ones in recent memory, is how uncomfortably believable he makes him. Cruise has always been fit, but never “too fit”, never too buff. He looks like your average guy, talks like your average guy, and that is what he utilises in this movie. His hitman looks like somebody who can easily lose himself in a crowd full of people. Someone who always stays calm as he is constantly a few steps ahead of you. And he knows what he needs to do to kill you. And the most chilling part about all this is he is someone who still has “the charm” of Tom Cruise and uses it to his advantage. When comes to debating the best villains in movie history, some characters are given, like the Joker or Darth Vader. I think it’s time to throw a new name into the mix because he deserves to be there – Vincent. I don’t understand how Tom didn’t get nominated for an Oscar, but Jamie Foxx did. I am not saying he didn’t deserve it. But when you finish this movie, you won’t be thinking of Jamie.

Also, it’s always fun to see people appearing in a film you forgot they were in. And we have some big “before they were properly famous” names, like Mark Ruffalo or Javier Bardem would be the biggest ones. Fans of Prison Break (2005 – 2017) might be happy to see Wade Williams and Paul Adelstein. And in a super short cameo role, Jason Statham (who is presumed to play his character from his Transporter series). But don’t get too excited about any of these. Even Jada Pinkett Smith, who got the third billing in this film, isn’t there for too long, as this film is really about those two guys who met on that one faithful night.

There is one thing I love when films do. And Collateral does it so well, without pointing it out. I love when movies take place over one day, or in this case, one night. But where other films would have a character say something along the lines of: “Damn, what a long day/night this has been.” to “rub it” in our faces, this film never does it. It doesn’t need to, as we are aware of it, just by looking at our main protagonists, how tired they are towards the end. More movies like this, please.

Overall, Collateral is a film like no other. It’s a thriller that keeps you at a certain level of suspense for most of its runtime. And depending on how sensitive or not you are to anxiety, you might or might not realise that level is slowly increasing throughout the movie. Films like Collateral aren’t just something you can pop in anytime you want. You need to be in a certain headspace, in a certain mood to fully enjoy it, in my humble opinion. And if you do and you watch it at the right time, you will be exhausted afterwards, but the “good exhausted”. Like after a great workout session at the gym, but mentally. It’s one of those films that everyone should see. If for nothing else, let this be the brightest of examples, that given a chance, Tom Cruise can act and not “just” be a movie star.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke

Movie Reviews

The Final Cut (2004) Review – Is That It…?

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Exactly that is what you will say to yourself, once this film ends. Is that it? Really? Even my girlfriend, who slept through most of it, woke up, I briefly caught her up on the story, so she could finish it with me, felt underwhelmed. And to be fair, she said it first, while I was quietly thinking: “Well, that went nowhere.” It’s a paradox, that a film, that is essentially about editing, could 100% use a better cut.

Since The Final Cut is not a well-known film, let me describe it in my own words. In the not too distant future, there is this implant called Zoe (which means something, but I do not remember what exactly and I am too lazy to look it up for such a mediocre film), that records everything you do. And once you die, your family can hire a cuter, who extracts the implant, discusses with them what should be included in your “highlight” video and cuts your memories into a nice video. This leads to people sanitizing their lives, where somebody is remembered more fondly than they were etc. And the main crux of this film is one of the company executives, who was behind this implant, dies. And he’s the first one who can have this video done at the request of his widow. Except, he also was a bad man, so the anti-implant groups want to get hold of his implant, to showcase him, for who he truly was. On top of it, our main hero Robin Williams is dealing with his issues, where he thought he accidentally killed a kid he briefly met when he was a kid. Except he discovers that he might not have…

It sounds intriguing, doesn’t it? That is what I thought too when the movie started. Plus, Robin Williams is the main star in this not comedic film, and I know he can do drama, so what can go wrong, right? Well, nothing really went wrong, it just went nowhere. The movie touches on a few things (morality of sanitizing memories, is it right to have implants like this at all if some people might not know you are recording them) and does some interesting stuff with the premise, but overall, when the movie finishes, you can’t help but feel… underwhelmed.

Let me start with the things I liked about this film – the main idea and the world built around it was done well. If something like this existed (and to be fair, the sentence should probably start with “when”, not “if”, as I honestly believe it’s just a matter of years) there would have been anti-implant groups. There would be debates (and valid ones, might I add) on this topic, how right or wrong these are. What I also liked is how throughout the film, they show you people with face tattoos and it’s only explained towards the end of it, that those aren’t just normal tattoos, but they are special (can’t remember the explanation, I believe they were somehow electro-magnetic?) tattoos, that clash with implants, so those people won’t get recorded, even if they talk to somebody who’s got the implant installed. I liked how the movie didn’t tell us that straight away.

I can’t discuss the rest without going into spoilers, so…

Beware, SPOILERS are coming!

Let’s start with the accidental murder of the child. So, you can tell Robin’s character is haunted by this, as he believes he was responsible for the death of this kid. He tries to make everything as right as possible, living his life and effectively punishing himself for that. That is until he thinks he might have seen him on his client memory implant. But you know how he noticed him? Because when they were children (and most of the story takes place about 40/50 years after that incident, which is a crucial detail) the kid cleaned his thick glasses using his t-shirt and the guy in the “implant memory” also has similar glasses and is also similarly cleaning them! Yes, I am serious, that is how he recognizes him. Because of course, there isn’t a chance that more than one person could have had thick glasses, which they clean using their t-shirt, no way. You know when movies ask you to swallow some bullshit just so they can start the plot? Yeah, sometimes, it’s a lot of bullshit to swallow, and I honestly can’t remember the last time a movie would ask me to swallow something that would be as laughable as this one. Not only the fact that he would remember that one detail after 40/50 years after, but the fact he thought it might be him purely based on that act alone. Jesus-tap-dancing-Christ.

Another thing that bothered me – the movie teases a lot but doesn’t deliver on almost anything. For example, Mira Sorvino is playing Robin’s kind of girlfriend, who is only there to show us, how deep in his work he is. Oh and, she also destroys the most important implant of his career. That only leads Robin’s character to reveal that he also has an implant, which he knew nothing about, which of course, goes against the rules, as no cuter can have this implant. That gets him into some issues, but kind of fizzles towards the end too?

Now let’s talk about the ending, where Robin gets killed and afterwards, we see his protégé (Jim Caviezel), who wanted the implant to expose the powerful executive, how he is cutting Robin’s implant. And since we never got to spend time with his character, we only got a few lines about their friendship, it just fell flat for me. Yeah, I understand the story comes a full circle, he promised he would never cut again, but for Robin, he will make an exception… I get it. I truly do. And that might be the most disappointing thing about this movie.

This is why the movie feels underwhelming, not because the elements weren’t there, but they haven’t been executed in such a way, where it would hit you. Robin’s story, where he is looking for redemption, only to discover he never killed anyone, feels hollow, as the guy died on his own a year prior. His character having an implant (something forbidden in his profession) could have also brought more drama, yet it didn’t. Even his relationship with Mira Sorvino or Jim Caviezel both felt unexplored. This entire film felt like it was going someplace really promising, only to leave you hanging towards the end, without any hint of resolution.

Overall, The Final Cut is the type of movie that we should be remaking. Because as mentioned before, all the elements for a great story are here. The topic is great and can be explored further from several angles, it’s a story that’s not told as often, so it could stand out, even in today’s world full of “content”, and most importantly, this might be better as a limited TV show. It doesn’t even have to have eight episodes. I can see maybe three or four one hour, or possibly an hour and a half episodes, where we get to know the characters, explore the morality of this Zoe implant, deal with the past mystery and also focus more on the main crux of the story and I think we could have something great on our hands. But as it exists now, it feels like an unpolished diamond. You know something is there, but you need to let talented people near it, as those usually make it shine the most.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke

Movie Reviews

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) Review – Stay Classy, San Diego

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Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy is one of those movies, that just grows on you, or better said, it did on me. I still remember my very first time watching this film, I wasn’t ready for the amount of craziness, that’s in strange, chaotic comedy. I am not saying I didn’t like it at the time, but this movie became one of those everybody around me loved, and I just liked. I’ve recently re-watched it, just to see how this film plays out now and I am definitely more on board with this entire craziness. Almost to the point of loving it, or at least very, very close.

One thing I have totally forgotten, it’s how many people are in this movie. Obviously, you don’t forget the “main players”, but I was pleasantly surprised to see the likes of Kathryn Hahn, Seth Rogen, Danny Trejo or Jack Black in mostly tiny roles, most of them could be classified as “glorified cameos”. And yet, they all have a scene or two, where they manage to squeeze a joke (more often not just one).

The main thing about this film and why I might have been so surprised the first time watching it, is how it takes itself seriously in its abstract humour. How they have taken the Airplane! (1980, my review here) approach, and just went nuts, but they took the craziness even further. The prime example of what I am talking about, is the now infamous “battle of the reporters” scene. Specifically, how Brick (brilliantly played by Steve Carell, just before he became THE Steve Carell we all know and love) suddenly, in the middle of this chaotic fight (he starts with a hand grenade, because of course he does) has a trident and kills one of the reporters with it. Later on, they allude to that fact, acknowledge it happened and Ron (aka Will Ferrell himself, who was born to play this role) just says in this really calm, matter of fact manner: “Brick, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that. You should find yourself a safehouse or a relative close by. Lay low for a while, because you’re probably wanted for murder.” But then, this gets forgotten about and the movie goes on, like nothing happened. And that’s the kind of madness I enjoy or had to “mature” in some way to appreciate.

What I think is not talked about enough regarding this film, is how “woke” the film is, before being woke was popular. They not only displayed various forms of prejudices and sexist behaviour towards women at work, from the obvious ones, to the “tiny ones” (calling woman “honey”, “sweetie”, telling her to calm down, etc.), but they also address them and what’s more, the movie gives Christina Applegate the chance to prove herself. The best part is, her character isn’t tricking anybody, she isn’t scheming, she doesn’t have to sacrifice her integrity to succeed or anything like that, she’s just really good at what she does and when she finally gets that one chance to prove it, she nails where she can’t be ignored anymore, no matter how “old fashioned” the station’s management is.

I have really enjoyed re-visiting this film, but I still can’t give it the highest marks just yet. For me, the reason is simple – the movie slows down massively towards the end. I understand it’d be near impossible to have a comedy movie, that doesn’t have some slow spots, but the last 20 minutes or so, I thought the movie took the foot from the gas maybe just a little bit too much. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still one of the best (maybe even the best) comedies of the 2000s, as plenty of different quotes worked their way into our vocabulary, there are quite a few memes from this film too (which believe it or not, is also how to measure film’s/TV’s success nowadays) and most importantly of all, it’s funny. They really struck gold with this casting, nobody feels out of place, they all work together perfectly and you just sit down, relax and go along for the ride.

Overall, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy is a really great, fun movie, that will make you laugh, you will fall in love with basically everyone in this cast (as it’s impossible not to) and I think if you haven’t seen it (either ever, or in a long time), give it a watch. It definitely holds up. I am planning to re-visit the Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013) at some point too, as I have watched it just once too and remember not hating it as much as everybody and then catching good chunk of the film on TV a few years ago, and laughing way more than expected. That will be a good one to re-watch, as I know most people were really disappointed by it. But you won’t be disappointed by the original, I almost guarantee it.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke

Movie Reviews

Napoleon Dynamite (2004) Review – From Zero To… Hero?

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I don’t think there is a movie, that gained more of a cult status in the first decade of the 2000’s, than Napoleon Dynamite. I have not seen it until now and still I knew about the dry sense of humour this movie is famous for, how the main protagonist looks like and that there is a final dance number, that was supposed to be really funny. Well, let me take it step by step…

Any kind of really dry humour is really hit or miss with me. It either really works, or it doesn’t and I suffer through the movie/TV show. But this film is a rare exception confirming the rule, that was kind of in the middle…? I didn’t laugh nearly as much as I thought/wanted, but overall I had some decent chuckles here and there. And even the big final dance was… ok? It was nothing that would have me dying with laughter, maybe I’ve heard about it so much over the years I over-hyped it, or maybe I just don’t find any dancing funny, no matter how funny it should be…? And yet, in this instance, it didn’t bother me. The fact, I didn’t laugh as much didn’t really concern me as with other comedies.

My main thing about this film and why, even though I did not laugh as much as expected, I still rate it highly, I really liked the story. More importantly, how realistic it was, to the point it was almost too painful too watch at times, but at the same time, that’s what made this movie really special in my eyes. Let me give you an example with the ending of this movie. Now, it’s been out for 17+ years and it’s not exactly any twist/shocker, so I will just talk about it without the mandatory spoiler tag. Basically, Napoleon dances his ass off, “wins the day” (well, for his mate, who’s running for the class president) and receives a full on standing ovation. In that one moment, he’s the hero of this tiny, middle of the nowhere school, where nothing much really happens. And yet, the next week or so, where we see him playing with a ball, he’s all alone. He’s not surrounded by 10 new friends, he’s not the “hottest new thing” in his school… Because that’s not how people work and this movie understands it.

Behind this quirkiness, this weirdness of a movie, you will find a really simple story about a guy, who just wants something, but I don’t think he knows, what he wants. He’s really supportive of his friends, but he just wants to take it easy, chill and maybe play with a ball. Because he loves his simple, kind of strange life. And that one moment, a few minutes, even though it happened in front his entire high school, has not really changed that much for him or about him. I really liked that.

Napoleon Dynamite is truly one of the quirkiest, most straight forward movies you will ever see in your entire life. But in this simplicity lies the film’s biggest weapon – it’s honest. Behind everything, you are just seeing a film about a student, who lives in the middle of nowhere (literally) where nothing much happens and he likes it like that. I can kind of relate to this, as I also grew up in this tiny village (population around 3.000 people) where nothing much happened, but unlike Napoleon, that drove me insane, so I’ve changed it and moved.

Overall, if you are up for a movie, that just gives it to you straight, no hidden messages, that doesn’t want you to be a better person after finishing it, you know, just a really simple comedy, that based on your sense of dry humour you might find less or more funny, Napoleon Dynamite might be a film for you. Again, I have heard a lot about it, so maybe I might have overhyped myself, maybe this kind of humour is too dry for my liking, but I really appreciated the simplicity of the story and how natural those unnaturally acting people felt like 🙂

Rating: 4 out of 5.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke

Movie Reviews

Alfie (2004) Review – Stylish, Yet Cold

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Alfie is one of those “let’s re-do something, that was unique a few decades back” remakes. Unfortunately, the people behind this film failed to understand why the original Alfie (1966) was the unique hit, that put Michael Caine on the map. It wasn’t about him being the womanizing Brit, who can seduce pretty much anybody he wants. It was about that lifestyle, and consequences of that lifestyle (yes, that one scene), that didn’t shy away from talking about difficult issues, back in 1966!

Let’s take a look what these films have in common – objectively good looking English man, who’s playing the game, just so he gets “beaten” in the same game at the very end, learning (or maybe not) his lesson during it. Both Michal Caine and Jude Law are stylish, suave, and you believe them that they can pretty much get anybody who they demand. But, that’s where the similarities end.

This remake did something, that puzzled me – it took out any sense of risk, or “danger” the original had going for it. Let me explain – both movies have a subplot about Alfie possibly being sick with some sort of STD. The original spends quite a big part of that movie on this, and you actually are worried about Alfie, as everything seems dark for him. He’s in very bad place and you trust him that. Whereas this movie deals with this subplot in about 10 minutes, or what felt like 10 minutes, where it seemed like Jude Law isn’t even that bothered by that. It’s almost like this movie wanted to have all the “fun, glittery” bits of the original without any of the reality bits part of it. Which defeats the point of the movie. I do need to get into the spoilers for both this remake and the original film, so…

Beware, SPOILERS are coming!

The main thing about the original was the abortion scene. No matter where you stand on this issue, it will make you truly uncomfortable, as it is meant to do that. That is why the original made such a big mark on everybody, especially in the late 60’s! And this remake tried to do the same, except since it’s now taking place in America (oh yeah, in this remake, Alfie is a Brit who lives in New York, for reasons?) I guess the filmmakers felt like the audience was not ready to have that conversation (even though it was in 2004) so they make you believe it happens, just to undo it, and have a surprise “Alfie’s got a daughter” scene. Which is not really a surprise. And that totally undercuts anything this might have had going for it. I am not saying since this is a remake, everything needs to be exactly the same, no. It’s great when remakes try to do things differently. But maybe don’t change the most impactful part of the original movie? It’s like remaking Star Wars and instead of Darth Vader being Luke’s father, it would have been his great-uncle he’s never met and isn’t really important to the overall story.

To me, this Alfie is personification (or filmonification… that’s definitely a word, right?) of “having your cake and eating it too” movie, where they remake something, that used to be almost revolutionary, take the flashy, sexy bits, and leave everything of substance on the floor. And that is a shame, as this cast (already mentioned Jude Law, Marisa Tomei, Omar Epps, Nia Long, Susan Sarandon and Sienna Miller) is definitely deserving of a better movie. But I do need to say, especially Sienna Miller really did something here, as I don’t think I have seen her be as great, especially considering the limited time she had in this movie.

Overall, if you are looking for an easy watch, where you don’t have to think too much, you don’t want to worry about anything and watch couple of sexy people live their best and sometimes worst lives, Alfie might be for you. But if you are looking for something, that will stay with you for some time, even though it might make you feel uneasy, I would highly recommend the original version.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke