steveha

There is a tradition in Chinese martial arts movies where people strong in "qi" power can jump around light as a feather, fight in treetops, and do other superhuman feats. (Example: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.) There is plenty of that in this movie, and additionally some characters seem to have special powers that other qi masters don't have, making this in some ways like a Western superhero comic story.

My favorite character was the girl who is stuck in a wheelchair, but whose qi powers are strong enough that she is far from useless in a fight. Her name is Yayu but her nickname is "Emotionless". Like Jedi in Star Wars movies can detect each other, she can also detect other nearby qi masters. Another IMDb user review speculates that she is simply a ripoff of two characters from X-Men, but I don't agree.

The movie has a confusing start, but if you stick with it the characters and plot sort themselves out. There is a shifty criminal in a city, and it turns out that three different groups have their eye on him: the police of "Department 6", the undercover police of "The Divine Constabulary", and some mysterious assassins. Additionally a bounty hunter is after him. The initial action is confusing, as it's not clear who is who. But stick with it, and the end of the movie pays off pretty well.

This movie also has a bit of a "steampunk" vibe, with unreasonably advanced clockwork mechanisms that might be partly qi-powered. For no obvious reason there is a giant clockwork crane that Emotionless uses to reach scrolls on the high shelves of a bookcase! And mid-way through the movie, Emotionless gets a nifty upgraded wheelchair that proves useful at the end of the movie.

At nearly two hours it runs a bit longer than necessary; I can think of a few cuts that would not have hurt. Still, I give this a 7 on the 10 scale. If you like fantasy martial- arts you might want to add a point to that! Also, I really liked the music.

Note: some plot threads are left unresolved, setting up for possible sequels, but this movie has a pretty satisfying ending.

This movie is just so fun to watch. Some parts of it are a bit strange to my American eyes, but that's fine with me. The story follows a perfect arc and the action scenes just get better and better as the movie goes on. The final scene makes a perfect ending for the movie.

Currently the Miramax DVD of this movie is available really inexpensively. This DVD has both the American cut and the original Chinese cut, and I have watched both. The American version chops out a lot of background plot material and a few slower scenes, and also some of the jokes that look odd to an American; it also adds in some material that was cut from the Chinese version. Overall I didn't mind the American version too much, but then my favorite scene came up and I discovered they had axed the original excellent music in favor of a bad cover of "Kung Fu Fighting"; this is a heinous crime. (If you are interested in just how much music can affect the mood of a scene, first watch the Chinese version, and then watch the final scene in the American version.)

I also really love the music, and I plan to buy the soundtrack. (It's only available as in import from Japan.)

I rate this movie 10 out of 10. I have watched it several times in quick succession and I'm still not tired of it. If you like fun action movies with comedy, definitely give this a chance.

Mild spoilers follow:

I really enjoy the scenes where Mui uses her Tai Chi. Where the men of the movie use linear, force-on-force style martial arts, Mui uses a circular style.

There is a sort of dance number that was cut from the Chinese version, but is present in the American version. If you want to see it, watch the American version; it comes when the main character meets Mui for the first time. (There are no "Deleted Scenes" or any other special features in the Miramax DVD, so that's the only way to see the scene.)

It's a goofy lightweight comedy. Mostly it's unremarkable, the kind of movie I'd give a 5 score out of 10. But the underwater scenes, especially the ones with the dolphins, are kind of fun; and it's also kind of fun to see Roddy McDowell, Jim Backus, and Ken Berry hamming it up.

There are several groovy 60's pop music songs, the costumes and haircuts are extremely 60's, and the 60's slang is so silly I wonder if they made up half of it. Merv Griffin appears in a cameo as himself. Tony Randall even sings one song!

You will probably enjoy seeing it once but you probably won't want to buy a copy. See it sometime when you are in the mood for a large dose of the 1960's.

This movie has some interesting ideas, but they never really jell. It puts a bit of a human face on Hitler, showing him as a destitute artist who doesn't really know what he wants. But more than half of the screen time is devoted to the title character, Max, and I have to say that much of that time is wasted. Connecting the modern art scene of 1918 with post-World War I Germany and with Hitler is intriguing, yet the ending is entirely too predictable and not much fun to watch. The best single scene is the one where Hitler triumphantly tells Max that politics is the new modern art.

For every merit I can think of a demerit. I don't really recommend this movie.

True Colors is an intelligently plotted drama that never insults your intelligence. John Cusack is excellent as Peter Burton, a man with an amazing knack to manipulate people. James Spader is also excellent as Tim Gerrity, who becomes Burton's best friend. Not a moment of this movie is wasted, nor a single line of dialog. We see Burton advance his political career by hook and by crook. We see Gerrity's idealism tested. And we see how Burton's choices cost him in the end.

The plot would not work if Cusack weren't so convincing. His Burton is so good at talking people into things, he can even talk himself into doing things he knows are wrong, dangerous, or both. While Cusack is at the center, all of the performances are solid; at no point did I focus on the acting instead of the story. The movie grabbed my attention and didn't let go.

I give this drama my highest recommendation.

I felt that the _The Mummy_ suffered from bad pacing and lack of a consistent tone. Sometimes it was goofy and funny, other times we were supposed to cringe in horror.

_The Mummy Returns_ has a generally light tone; in general we only see bad things happen to bad people, and the bad things aren't dwelt on.

This movie is less about horror and more about swashbuckling action, of which it has plenty.

If you watch it, try to ignore the plot holes and enjoy the action.

This is a truly great romantic comedy. Tomei and Downey both create characters you will love. The dialog sparkles, the location photography is beautiful, the pace keeps moving along and there are a few twists to the plot. It's fluff, but the very best quality fluff you could ask for. A *great* date movie. Guys, even if you think you hate movies like this... give it a chance!

I didn't enjoy this movie. The plot was a mess. Is it about air traffic controllers and the stress they are under? Yes, for about 10 minutes. Is it goofy and hilarious, like the previews made it look? Here and there, but not mostly. Mostly it is about a one-upmanship contest that makes no sense, between strange people I don't identify with. Then the one-upmanship contest results in personal disaster for one of the characters, and then there is a strange resolution that didn't resolve anything for me.

John Cusack, one of my favorite actors, did a fine job as always. All the actors did a fine job. But the plot sabotages the movie fatally. Not recommended.

The plot is a bit of a mess in places, but it works much more often than it doesn't. Anyone who likes comic books will love this movie, but even if you don't like comic books, give it a chance. The dialog is great (and very funny) and the special effects are well done. There is some fart-related humor, but no bad language, and very little actual violence.

Rated as a movie, this deserves about a 2. Rated by how much fun you will have watching it, it deserves about a 7.

If it took itself seriously it wouldn't be much fun, but fortunately it has a light touch. A man who is half machine, the "mandroid" John Doe, goes on a quest to find and kill the mad scientist who installed the half-machine part. Joining him are a scientist (Denise Crosby), an R2D2 wannabe, an Indiana Jones wannabe, and a ninja! Along the way, there are boat chases, a barroom brawl, inept bad guys, Roman soldiers, and goofy physical comedy. Roy Dotrice makes a fun villain.

If it sounds like it might be fun to you, give it a try.

It isn't perfect; it's only nearly perfect. Some downsized secret agents, no longer needed now that the cold war is over, now hire themselves out as mercenaries. We watch a group of them get hired and go into action. As in real life, their best-laid plans don't always go as planned! DeNiro stars as the all-around best member of the group, and he is so believable he makes you forget you're watching a movie. _Ronin_ reminded me of _Mission Impossible_, but I found it far superior in plot, characterization, and action.