Primer Review

The title of this blog is Primer.  That is also the title of the movie I have just watched.  Primer is one of those movies that you don't anticipate for months or see eight hundred trailers and commercials for.  It's one of those movies (at least for me) that you just sort of happen upon.  Like some constellations aligned in a certain pattern just so you'd end up seeing a movie that will affect you in such a way that you're glad the powers that be took all the extra effort to get it in front of you.  Example:

A few weeks ago before I came home to Maryland for the summer, my sister and I bought tickets for my parents to see Hairspray in New York.  So my sister, her boyfriend, and my parents all took a little trip to NYC.  While there I saw some fellas putting up posters on a wall that advertised the new issue of Giant Magazine.  I caught a glimpse of the cover (featuring Katie Holmes) and knew I had to have it.  Obtaining a copy became my goal for the day, and I succeeded in this goal.  Approximately a three weeks later (that'd be this past Monday-ish) I got around to reading said magazine and found a little "What's Hot and What's Not"-esque article featuring a two sentence review of Primer which reads (The following quote is hidden because it contains some information that you'd probably be better off not knowing if you intend to see the movie, but if you wanna read it, just highlight the gray area to reveal the text.  You've been warned.):

"A fun, low-budget movie about regular guys who invent a time-travel machine.  Ignore the technobabble in the opening scenes and enjoy the ride."

Then, it just so happens that that night I ended up in Blockbuster video with a pal-o-mine by the name of Ricky, and we had a two-for-one coupon, but only one thing to rent.  Primer caught my eye, and after reading the description on the back of the box I knew I wanted to see it.

I finally got around to watching it today, and wow...

You know that feeling you get when you're watching a movie by yourself and it's dark out and it's really cool but in an odd sort of way, then you get to the credits and you're paralyzed just sitting there thinking about how cool what you just watched was?  That's what this movie did to me.  If this feeling is foreign to you, other movies that have done this to me were Se7en, Fight Club, and Blowin' Smoke (or as I knew it then, Freak Talks About Sex).

So, basically, my recommendation is that if you like the same kinds of movies that I have listed in the "Favorite Movies" section on my page, or at least appreciate a good sci-fi (and we're talking sci-fi as in cool ideas and theories, not cool fight scenes and special effects) that you should see this movie ASAP.  End of story.

P.S. - If after seeing the movie (after, mind you...don't ruin it for yourself...you'll thank me later) you are a little confused (and you probably will be), check out the official site to get a little more insight on what you've just seen at P R I M E R M O V I E.

Random Reviews - Early '05

The following reviews were done on a whim in early 2005. I obviously hadn't committed to a routine or level of quality yet in my writing, but here they are anyway...

12 Angry Men (1957) - Quite a good movie. They made a remake in 1997 with Jack Lemmon and Tony Danza. To be honest I can't decide which version I like better. Both are so similar that it makes for a tough choice. I would recommend both versions to anyone who's interested.

Magnolia - I rented this on a whim as I had a two for one coupon for Blockbuster and planned to get both versions of 12 Angry Men. However they only had the original and I'd never seen this so I figured "what the hey?" All in all I found the movie (although long) to be very interesting. My only problem with the movie was the ending which I'm not going to give away here. A warning though to viewers who have yet to see this movie: get ready to suspend your disbelief.

L.A. Confidential - If you haven't seen this movie, you really must. Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce are amazing in their scenes together in this movie. This movie is packed with great actors though such as Danny DeVito, Kevin Spacey, Kim Basinger, and James Cromwell. All I can say is that having just seen this for the first time last year I can't believe it took me so long to see it. Great movie.

Identity - The first time I saw this movie was right after it was released on dvd. I rented it and liked it so much that I went out and bought it. This is the first time I've seen it since then and I must say that it wasn't as good as I remembered it. I have a feeling this was due to the fact that I already knew the surprise ending.

Boogie Nights - After watching Magnolia I was discussing it with one of the fellas I live with here in New Jersey (by the name of Scott Ewen) who didn't like it. It was during this conversation that he told me that of all of P.T. Andersons movies that he'd seen, this is the only one he found at all interesting. I too found it to be quite good. Especially during the scene where Heather Graham gets nekkid. Aside from that though the movie gives an interesting behind the scenes look at the adult film industry. All in all I think I liked Magnolia better though...except for that ending...

Apt Pupil - I've wanted to see this for a long time and it only barely got beaten out by Magnolia last time I went to Blockbuster to rent something. It was well worth my money though as it is incredibly acted and directed. Director Bryan Singer and actor Ian Mckellan especially left an impact on me. Highly recommended.

Pleasantville - I've seen this movie a number of times but just bought it because it was on sale for $9.99. This movie is all around great but I especially think that William H. Macys acting in the court scene in the end is incredibly moving. If nothing else this movie delivers amazing visuals as colors begin to enter a black and white world. This movie comes very, very highly recommended from me.

Constantine Review

SPOILER WARNING - I give a good bit of the movie away here, so read with caution if you haven’t seen the movie and intend to.

So I saw Constantine the day it opened. That’d be February 18th, 2005. I was quite disappointed. Perhaps it was because I was a fan of the comic before I saw the movie. Oh, perhaps nothing...that is why I didn’t like it. I was accompanied by two other people; one male, one female, one a comic book fan, one not, and neither of whom knew anything about the comic book Hellblazer before seeing the movie. And they both (and I quote) “loved it”. Albeit I’ve just begun reading the Hellblazer comic books in the last few months I feel that I have a pretty good handle on it. I’ve read 3/4 of the trades or so including “Dangerous Habits” by Garth Ennis which the movie is loosely based on. Here are the problems I found with the film Constantine.

The Plot:
The portion of the movie that was new (i.e. the stuff not taken from “Dangerous Habits”) wasn’t all that bad in my opinion. However I feel that the stuff taken from Garth Ennis’ first storyarc of the comic was poorly represented in many cases. First of all we get the idea in the beginning of the movie that Constantine has lung cancer. Then until the final confrontation at the end of the film it’s almost not mentioned again. Second that very confrontation which I just mentioned pales in comparison to the one in the fifth issue of Dangerous Habits. I got that feeling where you recognize someone, but you don’t know where from. Overall I feel that if I hadn’t read the comics (or at least not Dangerous Habits) that I would have found the movie much more enjoyable. But in comparison I just don’t think it stacks up.

The Setting:
The fact that the movie takes place in Los Angeles as opposed to London like in the comic book is a HUGE difference. However aside from the ways that the characters were affected by the change (i.e. Constantine’s accent; or lack thereof) this didn’t bother me all that much. This may be due to the fact that Constantine has traveled to the U.S. on several occasions in the comic (and occasionally to L.A. such as in the Mike Carey penned “Hellblazer: All His Engines”).

Constantine:
Where’s the accent? In case you didn’t know, John Constantine is very much English and sports the accent to prove it. In the movie this fact was tossed away like so much useless garbage. At no time during the movie does Constantine call anyone “Squire” or use the terms “taking the piss” or “bollocks” which (in my opinion at least) robs the audience of a large portion of the experience of witnessing John Constantine’s life. Where’s the blonde hair? Where’s the tan trench coat? These two things may not seem all that important. Look at any cool anti-hero and what will you see? The color black all over them. Dark hair, dark clothing, et cetera. In my opinion, two of the things about Constantine that really separate him from all the other “bad” good guys out there are the hair and the coat. He doesn’t seem all that dark until you get to know him. Tatoos? Since when? Not since the comics; that’s for sure. Then there’s the lighter. This may also not seem very important but in the comics Constantine does not have a zippo which he can whip out at any given time. My main problem with this is that it’s cliche. Zippos are cool. I think that’s the only reason he has one in the movie. Pointless...

Chaz:
In the movie Chaz is a child. Why? In the comic he’s in his forties, married, and has a daughter. What the shit was the point in changing that? The only similarities between the comic book version and the movie representation of the character are the hair color and the fact that he drives a cab. In the comic book Chaz neither wants anything to do with/nor cares at all about John’s knowledge of magic. In the movie it would appear that Chaz is to Constantine as Robin is to Batman which couldn’t be further from the truth. Also, in the film Chaz seems to be somewhat of a hesitant wuss whereas in the comic he is trained in several forms of hand to hand combat and has saved/stood up for Constantine’s ass numerous times. Then to top all of that off in the movie Chaz dies! He is very much not dead in the comic. Now, I didn’t stay for the credits myself, but the word on the street is that after the credits there is a scene in which Chaz turns into an angel...........re-fuckin’-tarded!

The Effects:
All around the movie was very pretty. I wasn’t all that big of a fan of the action scenes though as there really aren’t any to speak of in the comics. I especially felt that the fight with the “bug demon” in the streets towards the beginning of the film was forced upon the audience.

Keanu Reeves:
Bearable. I know a lot of people claim that he can’t act but if this movie achieved anything I think that it proved those people wrong. Aside from the changes the character went through during the transformation from page to screen I think that Keanu was a worthy choice for the role.

Shia LeBeouf:
Absolutely the wrong choice for this role. Maybe if this movie were made about twenty years in the future he’d have been able to pull of Chaz. I liked him in The Battle of Shaker Heights, but not here.

Rachel Weisz:
Quite attractive. I couldn’t have been more happy when Constantine said the words “fully submerged”. Unless of course he’d answered yes when she asked him if she had to take more of her clothes off to go to hell.