QUOTE(j0nes @ Jan 27 2009, 12:01 PM) [snapback]532865[/snapback]
Taken - Liam Neeson awesomness made the movie awesome!
I was actually sort of interested in seeing this movie.
I guess it's been out for about a year in France. It's not even out yet in the States. I was wondering why I couldn't find any reviews for it from people I know and usually agree with.
I've become intrigued with the idea of an old man being able to completely dismantle younger and stronger foes due to experience and insight into the weaknesses of man. Gran Torino is an excellent example of this. What was good about that movie is that it had more to it than just "Old man makes things right, sparing no one." Regrettably, this movie looks like it will likely lack anything beyond that. Which doesn't mean it won't be entertaining, it will just feel a little empty.
On that note - I just watched The Foot Fist Way. It was fairly underwhelming. There were some pretty funny lines sprinkled throughout, but not enough to justify some of the heavy-handed sentiment forced the entire time. Danny McBride's demeanor and appearance really do not allow him to be serious at all. Yet, throughout the movie he's put in situations where a lot of moral questions are asked, and someone has to think about it on the screen, and there's no one else there but him. But he just doesn't look like he's capable of doing that.
The problem with that movie is that, outside of the primary student characters (Julio and the lanky teenage guy) there are really no likable characters. The protagonist is such a unique kind of slob, that you can't identify with him, and when shit goes bad for him, you can't help but think that he deserves it. The audience needs to feel empathy for something in a film for it to have any sort of redeeming quality. This movie just lacks that emotion.
The ending of it is rushed and unsure of itself. It's like the writers couldn't decide if they wanted Simmons to have a final physical confrontation with Chuck the Truck. They wanted for Simmons to come out on top and superior in both character and in skill. But, they wouldn't go far enough to make that completely clear because Simmons was such a pig throughout all of the film, and the final "showdown" was such a shaky montage of ambiguous outcomes and same-old shit we saw throughout the entire film.
6/10. There are some endearing characters in his classes and funny situations that make great use of McBride's delivery and demeanor. For example, the scene where Simmons gives the lanky teen dude a ride home and ends up spying on his wife going out on a tryst with the slobs from her work. His forthrightness and frankness can really bring some lulz moments. "I'm so hungry I could eat a grown man's ass." But in the end, there just aren't enough of them, and the movie falls flat.
edit - Oh yeah, and, "Have you ever heard of yoga saving anyone from a gang-rape type situation?" lololol