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THE
AVENGERS (1998) |
Starring:
Ralph Fiennes, Uma Thurman, Sean Connery
The plot:
John Steed and Emma Peel have to stop a megalomaniac from
destroying the world with his total control of the weather
(although somehow, volcanoes crept into meteorological events
to be controlled...).
Comment:
It's a little difficult to categorise this film,
but it was loosely detective based in its original state...
I didn't think this film was as bad as the critics said
(who seemed unanimous in their condemnation). However, there
were two, very major flaws which one has to bear in mind
when watching this film:
(1)The director obviously couldn't decided whether he was
doing spoof of the 1960's cult TV show, or trying to reproduce
a serious version of The Avengers. 1990 movie remakes of
old TV shows show spoofs work better (Re: The Brady Bunch
Movie).
(2)Ralph Fiennes is so hopelessly miscast as John Steed
and so horribly terrible at this role, that is makes you
cringe every time you see him. Since he is one of the lead
characters, you unfortunately have to see him a lot.
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THE
MEXICAN (2001) |
Starring:
Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Gene Hackman
The plot: Jerry
has been inadvertently dragged into doing yet one more
trip for a hitman. His mission this time is to retrieve
an old family heirloom - a gun that is steeped in family
history. However, he's not the only one after the gun
- and people are also after his former girlfriend as a
means of making sure Jerry delivers the gun to them...
Comment: It's a complex
plot and for some reason because of that, the makers of
this film felt compelled to slow it down considerably
and the film just dragged seemingly, forever... It was
an IMMENSE shock to find out it was only 2 hours - because
it definitely felt like three! You can't help but feel
this film would have been much stronger in the hands of
a director like Guy Ritchie (Lock,
stock and two smoking barrels, Snatch)
than someone constrained by Hollywood ideals. Pitt and
Roberts delivered typical Hollywood performance and if
it wasn't for their presence in this film, it probably
would have sunk into oblivion. That doesn't mean they
were able to breath any life into the slow unfolding of
the film though. And as a word of warning, there is a
surprising amount of gory violence - as if the off jolt
or shock could stir us form the torpor one has sunk into
by the 30 minute mark...
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