Necrotongue

Oh well, I didn’t enjoy The Darwin Awards as much as I did when I was younger. In fact, I was quite disappointed. The idea was great, no doubt about it, but the execution didn't quite work out. I enjoyed the stories of all those who were dying or harming themselves and others, but I wasn’t exactly thrilled about the central duo (or rather a trio). When romance started to creep its way in, it was the last straw. I’m also not a big fan of Joseph Fiennes (unlike his charismatic brother).

I had a surprisingly good time, and I can’t believe that Big Brother gave this the green light. It's not even a comedy, I’d call it a well-aimed satire about an increasingly topical issue. You can also see the movie from a completely different point of view, it's just that you won’t find it so hilarious. I mean, it’s much better to laugh at the tanks with ads on them and save the darker thoughts for later. For a movie that clearly didn’t have the highest of budgets, there's an unexpected amount of food for thought, which I appreciate. 4*+

In the first third, I was surprised by how much fun I was having. After that, things took a turn. The romance was amped up, and the bar was lowered for what passed as funny, which is not a good combination. It's a shame because this wasn't a typical romantic comedy (there were no students in it). If the quality hadn’t gone down after the first third, I would have added a star.

I liked these two weirdly connected families a lot. The drama was palpable, Tobey Maguire wasn’t spitting cobwebs everywhere (which was a good thing), Christina Ricci was like Wednesday again (which was even better), and I savored all the quiet desperation.

I'm no puritan or moralist – I found a lot of the dialogue hilarious, and I’m not going to give the movie less than a three. But the fact is that the ratio of good and not-so-good jokes here is about fifty-fifty. The movie also has a great cast, so voilà! a slightly above-average rating.

This is the second film I’ve seen in a short time with a non-actor/non-singer in one of the leading roles. I’m not thrilled about this one, either. It's true that Jon Bon Jovi, unlike Louise Veronica Ciccone, didn't offend my aesthetic sensibilities, but I can’t say his acting did the movie any favors. The story was far from original, but it was watchable. What bothered me more was the occasional overacting. I get it, they were theatre actors putting on a new play, but they were theatrical in their private lives as well, which didn’t work for me. It was no masterpiece, the performances were quite unimpressive, but I’m willing to give it two stars.

My relationship with Woody Allen's films has evolved (or perhaps is still evolving). There was a time when I was crazy about his films, but my enthusiasm has somewhat waned since then and I'll have to revise some of my ratings. This does not affect Match Point, though. Not only is it not a comedy, but it has an interesting plot, and the personality of the main "hero" goes through an interesting development. Personally, I always appreciate a film about a spineless, self-centered asshole. I can finally experience emotions that I don’t get to feel often when watching movies. Filmmakers always try to move me or thrill me, but sometimes it's also nice to feel disgusted and repulsed by some asshole's actions. To my satisfaction, this movie does a great job of it.

I've always found Madonna to be in bad taste. Calling her a bad actress would still be a compliment. I don’t think the term actress applies at all. The film failed in all respects, from the lousy script to Madonna. Even though Dafoe/Mantegna tried quite hard, there wasn't really much for them to do. It’s an awful piece of crap and an attempt to ride the wave of success of someone much more capable.

I've seen this movie a couple of times and I’m sure I'll see it a few more times because I simply enjoy it. The atmosphere and the story are nice, but what gets me the most are the characters. No one is just black or white (I mean character), everyone has been given an interesting mixture of traits, which is what makes this movie so great. I don’t think a movie like this would get away with it today, though. It does revolve around racial prejudice, but the only ones whose lives matter don't come off as complete good guys, which is where the problem lies. There were plenty of emotionally charged scenes. Thankfully, I didn't feel like someone was trying to forcefully jerk tears out of me.

The filmmakers made a major mistake already in the casting phase. How can you make a movie about the Italian mafia in the US and not cast Chazz Palminteri and Joe Viterelli at least in supporting roles? I kind of get it in the latter case, but let's not get hung up on details. The story itself wouldn't be bad, but I think a different writer would breathe more life into it. Throughout the movie, I felt that the plot was kind of holding back; like driving in a car race with your handbrake on. P.S. Alyssa Milano was a good choice for the lead role.