Lolcano

I don't think Anderson can write a decent screenplay, but he he can nevertheless direct a decent movie. Event Horizon attempts to be a schlock horror films full of cliches and trite characterisation: it really does. Cue foreshadowing, the whittling down of characters, and a healthy dose of gore... but in reality this movie is far more than the sum of these genre stereotypes and the critics should have seen this . This is as much a psychological thriller as it is a horror movie. It is a movie in which the "aliens" never do appear - never can appear - but can get into the minds of their victims to make them prey, antagonists and tools.

Okay, first off, this movie won't be for everyone. Some people will find the ending far too ridiculous. Hell, many people will find the premise far too ridiculous. A lot of people will be turned off by the silly slasher element. All that aside it is a sci-fi movie that makes the most of what sci-fi has to offer: a vista of our solar system that will take your breath away and a claustrophobic environment that makes Alien look like a relaxing trip. Spectacular and truly memorable visuals. Shame that the film had so many holes.

Desperately disappointing. Could have been so much more but, despite amazing visuals, a vaguely interesting twist, and an intriguing justification for China's... unique style of governance this movie is a waste of time. Both the plot and fight scenes were far weaker than anticipated.

Ponderous (where's the battle?), navel gazing (not naval, unfortunately), sentimental, cliched, misses the big picture. Anything else? Actually, the battle scenes are quite impressive, even though the movie attempts to remove it from the screen altogether. The iconic photograph of the raising of the Stars and Stripes was somewhat inaccurate and was used as a part of US war propaganda? Got that? No? Then watch a movie that is two and a quarter hours long that bleats on about it. Alternatively.... look at the far superior Letters From Iwo Jima instead!

I swerved this movie for a long while after watching the appalling cliched sentimental mess that was Flags of Our Fathers. I am pleasantly surprised that Letters From Iwo Jima is among the best WW2 movies I have seen, combining an authenticity, attention to detail and even-handedness that is highly unusual. Provided that its accuracy is verifiable, it is virtually faultless.

My expectations were high. I had heard so much about this film - THE defining Vietnam film. Gritty, unnerving, fearless and provocative, and with a wide scope that broached all the mores of the times... What a load of guff. I'm serious. Perhaps when the film was released in 1978 it was such a great achievement to even attempt a film about Vietnam that it got a by on artistic merit. Here's the lowdown (no spoliers): *An incredibly long wedding scene that has no particular bearing on the plot (including the memorable line "f**k it" which nicely defines the movie). *Lot's of irrelevant hunting scenes (is killing a stag like... killing a man? Am /I/ the stag?). *A combat scene in Vietnam that lasts 20 seconds (when we had to sit through the wedding scene for a half hour). *A lot of repetition of the Vietnamese word 'Mao' (and slapping) *An unrealistic firefight. *Survivor guilt *Lots more survivor guilt *A bit of amnesia and one of the characters who couldn't get enough of the Vietnamese word 'Mao' in the first place. It might seem unfair to sum up a movie like this - but the fact that the movie believes its irrelevance is portentous makes it merely pretentious. Besides some very good acting from De Nero and co. the film in reality has very little to say apart from the overarching theme of "f**k it". It does not look at America in any real way, and certainly makes a determined effort to not look at all at Vietnam. It comes in at the very tail end of the Vietnam conflict, makes some overarching gesture saying: well war makes you go mad, and then stands back at a distance marveling at the tragedy of it all. If you are going to have irrational characters, at least give their irrationality due cause. If you are going to make a film, hire an editor at some stage. If you are going to write a story about war, attempt to the utmost of your ability to feature that war. If you are going to make a film about deer-hunting, make a film about hunting deer. Do not give it an hour of screen time just to facilitate some tenuous symbolic meaning.