Topic: Tom's Random Reviews

[DJ Doena]

played by Jon Favreau, who will always be Pete Becker from "Friends" for me

He was that IT guy friend of Monica's who wanted to be the Ultimate Fighting Champion, wasn't he?

[Tom]

played by Jon Favreau, who will always be Pete Becker from "Friends" for me

He was that IT guy friend of Monica's who wanted to be the Ultimate Fighting Champion, wasn't he?

Yes, the multi-millionaire with his software company.

[Sanuye]

Jon Favreau will always be Daniel Bateman from The Replacements for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UM7m6YUCiU

(I could not find it in english!)

hilarious...

[Tom]

Title: Planet of the Apes
Year: 2001
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: PG-13
Length: 120 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, English: DTS 5.1, French: Dolby Digital Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Mark Wahlberg
Tim Roth
Helena Bonham Carter
Michael Clarke Duncan
Paul Giamatti

Plot:
Get ready for "a wild ride" (The Washington Post) as legendary director Tim Burton's unique vision of the future roars to life in this "amazing display of imagination" (San Francisco Chronicle).

In the year 2029, an American astronaut (Mark Wahlberg) crash-lands on a strange planet where talking apes rule over the human race. Now he must evade the advancing gorilla army to reach a sacred temple that my hold the shocking secrets of mankind's past - and the last hope for its salvation!

Extras:
Commentary
DVD-ROM Content
Featurettes
Multi Angle
Music Videos
Production Notes
Scene Access
THX certified
Trailers

My Thoughts:

It has been exactly five years to the day, since I have last watched this movie. I always enjoyed it since I first saw it in the cinema. Great ape make-up!
I also did like the ending, which has garnered a lot of criticism. I always thought that it had just the right amount of an "Huh?" effect, which was needed, because, let's be honest, everybody expected some kind of surprise ending like the original Planet of the Apes had.
Much of the criticism stems from the fact, that for most people it did not make any sense. But it makes perfect sense to me.
In the beginning of the movie, we have three instances, where someone passes the anamoly from the Earth side (I assume, that the space station is in our solar system), and is transported to the other planet (space-travel) and through time. The later someone passes the anamoly, the farther along the timeline this someone arrives. This is why the crew of the space station arrived thousands of years before the main protagonist on that planet (there was probably some time between Mark Wahlberg's travel through the anamoly and that of the stations). And this is why the monkey arrives relatively soon after Wahlberg (a few days maximum) because there was only about a minute between their travels through the anamoly (the monkey went first, therefore arrived later).
Now in the end, Wahlberg traveled back. Thade presumable was freed or escaped some time after that, he went to the lake were Wahlbergs pod crashlanded (which Thade knew about), and traveled with this pod through the anamoly. And as he traveled a lot later through it, he arrived long before Wahlberg on Earth.
Now of course, we still have to give a lot of creative license into account, that the changed Earth looks a lot like the Earth we know. But I think it is needed for this cliffhanger to work.

Rating:

[Najemikon]

Now of course, we still have to give a lot of creative license into account, that the changed Earth looks a lot like the Earth we know. But I think it is needed for this cliffhanger to work.

All power to you, but I cannot comprehend how anyone can defend that ending. Even Burton can't explain it! I had this for a while and listened to the last chapter with the commentary. Burton gets tongue tied trying to explain it and just trails off.

The explanation I heard made more sense: Burton, usually an indie filmmaker, was getting huge hassle from the studio, so he made the ending more like the original book just to make it impossible to do a sequel. A kind of "screw you" to the suits!

So now I've found you, all the person that liked the movie I need to ask, did you prefer it to the original?

 

[Tom]

So now I've found you, all the person that liked the movie I need to ask, did you prefer it to the original?

I know at least one other, who liked it 

In my opinion, between these two movies it is hard to take a side objectively.
Both show the use of make-up effects which were state-of-the-art at the time of release.
Besides there being apes which are suppressing humans, these two movies are not that similar. The new one is more action oriented.
It is been a while since I have seen the original, but I remember it being rather boring 
And I think, wouldn't it have been for that classic ending, nobody would have this movie in their must-see list
The new one will never be a classic, it's just a well-made run-of-the-mill blockbuster movie.

So, do I prefer it to the original? Not really. Because of the ending and the innovation in make-up effect, the original is a classic. The new one will always be remembered as the movie, even the director does not want to know anything about. But seen as a stand-alone effort of an action movie, I found it rather enjoyable.
And I like the fact, that because Mark Wahlberg was insubordinate because of a monkey in the beginning of the movie, he has doomed mankind 

[Najemikon]

So now I've found you, all the person that liked the movie I need to ask, did you prefer it to the original?

I know at least one other, who liked it 

In my opinion, between these two movies it is hard to take a side objectively.
Both show the use of make-up effects which were state-of-the-art at the time of release.
Besides there being apes which are suppressing humans, these two movies are not that similar. The new one is more action oriented.
It is been a while since I have seen the original, but I remember it being rather boring 
And I think, wouldn't it have been for that classic ending, nobody would have this movie in their must-see list
The new one will never be a classic, it's just a well-made run-of-the-mill blockbuster movie.

So, do I prefer it to the original? Not really. Because of the ending and the innovation in make-up effect, the original is a classic. The new one will always be remembered as the movie, even the director does not want to know anything about. But seen as a stand-alone effort of an action movie, I found it rather enjoyable.
And I like the fact, that because Mark Wahlberg was insubordinate because of a monkey in the beginning of the movie, he has doomed mankind 

"Boring"?

Actually it's hard to say what I think. I first saw PotA when I was a kid, so I knew the ending before I appreciated the film as a whole. But when I saw it again recently I made an effort to concentrate and to me it seems to be a mix of hokey, 60s surrealism (the boring bit, or as I call it, "Farting About")  , followed by a superbly realised and paced section in the ape city. It's simply incredible and I think really captures Heston's plight.

It could have been all about the ending, but I found it more powerful than I remember, mainly because it's not that much of a shock if you watch the proceeding story properly (actually, I think if there really is a twist, there's something wrong with the story!). And there he is, trapped. It's the girls face that makes it for me; she has no idea, which just underlines how lost Heston really is.

But dated as the original is, the new one feels forced. I suppose I prefer my sci-fi to be contemplative, rather than pure action; or in other words, if the characters and environment are strong enough, you shouldn't need to force it.

Incidentally, I went to Lake Powell in 2006, where they filmed some of the sequence where the astronauts first land. It was obvious where I was really!

[Tom]

I probably should watch the original again. The problem is, that I have the habit, that when I start to watch a movie boxset, then I have to watch them all. And watching five movies is a little time-consuming.

[Najemikon]

I probably should watch the original again. The problem is, that I have the habit, that when I start to watch a movie boxset, then I have to watch them all. And watching five movies is a little time-consuming.

  I don't suffer that condition. No-one can make me watch Omen IV, no-one! I haven't even bothered with the other Apes movies. I've seen them over the years, but I think I'd only watch them again for curiosity value.

[addicted2dvd]

I probably should watch the original again. The problem is, that I have the habit, that when I start to watch a movie boxset, then I have to watch them all. And watching five movies is a little time-consuming.

  I don't suffer that condition. No-one can make me watch Omen IV, no-one! I haven't even bothered with the other Apes movies. I've seen them over the years, but I think I'd only watch them again for curiosity value.

Sounds like I need to take a trip with my Omen set... and put a gun to Jon's head and make him watch Oman IV with me! 

[Jimmy]

No-one can make me watch Omen IV, no-one! I haven't even bothered with the other Apes movies. I've seen them over the years, but I think I'd only watch them again for curiosity value.

It seems that you are the same guys who was saying that he will never watch Alien 4 in the horror marathon 

By the way I like the Planet of the Apes movie's (even the remake isn't that bad), just ask my mother about this. My favourite is the third one even if the make-up is cheaper, I like the fact that we see why the apes begin to be more like us. The only one that I don't really like is the second : too much like the first one and nothing really interesting in it (the nuclear mutant is a really weak idea).

[Achim]

I also enjoyed the remake for what it is (or is trying to be), and action sci-fi romp. The ending, while in theory rather cool, is too much of a stretch to really work (D.C. looks all the same even with the apes being the superior race...?). I forgot if it made sense to me otherwise (I tend to not pay enough attention to those technical bits; and Tom is a lover of time travel movies, so it's very natural for him to pick up the workings here).

[Tom]

Title: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Year: 1936
Director: Frank Capra
Rating: NR
Length: 115 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital Mono, Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono
Subtitles: Chinese, English, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai

Stars:
Gary Cooper
Jean Arthur
George Bancroft
Lionel Stander
Douglass Dumbrille

Plot:
When a small-town idealist (Gary Cooper) goes to New York to collect a $20 million inheritance, he finds romance with wisecracking journalist Jean Arthur, becomes the target of ruthless businessmen and relatives, and finally decides to give his fortune away because it's so much trouble. This milestone film is one of the most charming and best-loved romantic comedies ever made.

Extras:
Closed Captioned
Commentary
Featurettes
Production Notes
Scene Access
Trailers
Vintage Advertising

My Thoughts:

A classic comedy which did enjoy this time just as much, as when I first saw it. I like the fact, although Longfellow Deeds is potrayed as a little naive (as in not up with the city people), he is acutely aware, when he is made fun of and counters well.
The showdown of the movie takes in a court room, where is antagonists try to get him declared insane. Although this court room scene takes about 40 minutes, and never gets boring.

Rating:

[Tom]

Title: Mr. Deeds
Year: 2002
Director: Steven Brill
Rating: FSK-6
Length: 93 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85
Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, German: Dolby Digital 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles: Commentary, English, German, Turkish

Stars:
Adam Sandler
Winona Ryder
John Turturro
Allen Covert
Peter Gallagher

Extras:
Commentary
Deleted Scenes
Featurettes
Music Videos
Outtakes
Production Notes
Scene Access
Trailers

My Thoughts:

Not as good as I remember it being. I remembered it as being a worthy remake of the original "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town" movie, where my only real complaint was the stuff with that black foot. Now watching it directly after watching the original movie, it lost quite a bit.
But I still enjoyed it. It is a decent Adam Sandler style comedy remake (in parts more like a parody) of the original.

Rating:

[Tom]

Title: Keinohrhasen
Year: 2007
Director: Til Schweiger
Rating: FSK-12
Length: 116 Min.
Video: Widescreen 2.35
Audio: German: DTS HD Master Audio, Audio Descriptive: Dolby Digital Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles: English, German

Stars:
Til Schweiger
Nora Tschirner
Matthias Schweighöfer
Alwara Höfels
Jürgen Vogel
Rick Kavanian

Plot:
Rainbow press reporter Ludo is sentenced to 8 months, but is released on probation. But he has to work 300 hours for a local daycare center and meets Anna who has unfinished business with him.

Extras:
Commentary
Deleted Scenes
Digital Copy
Featurettes
Music Videos
Outtakes
Scene Access
Trailers

My Thoughts:

A fun German romantic comedy, which can easily hold up against Hollywood RomComs. At first I was a little sceptical about this movie, as it stars and is written and directed by Til Schweiger. But after having heard a lot of good stuff about it, I have bought in a recent Blu-ray sell.
The German Blu-ray disc provides English subtitles, if someone should be interested in this movie.

Rating: