Movie Schizo

random movie musings

Archive for category Crime

Sherlock Holmes: Elementary, my dear Jude.

Jan 8

Posted by Helmut in Action, Crime | No Comments

Sherlock HolmesI didn’t quite know what to expect of Sherlock Holmes (2009, directed by Guy Ritchie). In fact, I hadn’t even seen the trailer yet. But nonetheless I wanted to see what was going to be so elementary in this movie. The movie, based on the books (which I haven’t read) by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle chronicles one of the first cases that Holmes (played by Robert Downey Jr) and Watson (played by Jude Law) tackle together. After catching and imprisoning Lord Blackwood (played by Mark Strong) for several murders and practising black magic, the case seems wrapped up. But when Lord Blackwood mysteriously rises from the dead to continue his killing spree, Holmes and Watson dive back into the case, putting both of their lives in grave danger.

What struck me most about the movie was Holmes’s character. He’s very rough around the edges, socially ill-equipped, and doesn’t really fit into society. Sherlock Holmes always seemed more brain to me, but this time around he showed lots of brawn as well. I’m not sure how closely this corresponds to the books, though, since I haven’t read any of them. But something about the character seemed very familiar. I couldn’t put my finger on it, until my wife mentioned parallels to Gregory House (played by Hugh Laurie), from House MD. And thinking about it, the character of House was quite extensively modeled on the character of Holmes. It will certainly change the way I watch House MD from now on.

I enjoyed Sherlock Holmes, and thought some of the logical connections in the case were done very cleverly. Before watching the movie, I was gonna bet that the film would end with a setup for a sequel. And it did. As the film is concluded, the connection to Professor Moriarty is made, very strongly hinting at a sequel. But don’t wait for that! Go and see Sherlock Holmes now. If you like detective stories with some good physical action, you’ll find it very entertaining.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Surrogates: From 1st draft to movie in 1 step

Dec 16

Posted by Helmut in Action, Crime, Science Fiction, Thriller | 1 Comment

SurrogatesOne of the worst thought-out movies this year for me was Surrogates. I’ll explain in a moment. First, a basic run-down of what happens.

Some years into the future people live their lives through robotic replicas of themselves, called Surrogates, while sitting at home in a “stim chair”, through which they can control their surrogate as if it was them. Tom Greer (Bruce Willis) is an FBI agent who is called to investigate the first murder in many years. The victim was killed when someone destroyed their surrogate. When Tom’s own Surrogate is damaged beyond repair during his investigation, Tom must go out into the real world himself. Subsequently he discovers a web of lies as the conspiracy deepens.

Surrogates feels like a first draft that was never revised. It’s as if they asked some 12-year old to write down some ideas, and then they just went with that. Here are some examples:

  • At the beginning of the movie they state that 99% of the world’s population live their lives through surrogates. So, apparently at least one billion people, who live in poverty, could suddenly afford to buy a high-tech robot, along with a docking station built into their shack somewhere in Africa. And then what? Do they use their surrogate to fetch water every day? I don’t think so.
  • It is also stated that since surrogates were invented, crime has been almost eradicated. Specifically, they say that there hasn’t been a murder in years. So let me see. If I were a criminal, and suddenly I could conduct my crime using a robot, instead of putting my own life on line, I’m sure I wouldn’t just give up my illegal activities. And wouldn’t murder be so much easier? You’d know exactly where everyone was. At home, sitting in their “stim chair”.

Don’t get me wrong. The concept of surrogates is a great idea, but they went with assumptions that don’t make sense at all, and so the whole story is built on a shaky foundation. And the movie was less exciting than I expected. If you look at the trailer, it looks like an action/thriller. But the movie doesn’t have any more action than what is visible in the trailer. The rest is rather slow-paced and not really that interesting.

So, in the end, watching Surrogates was a rather disappointing experience. I wouldn’t recommend it, unless it doesn’t bother you that the basis of the story makes little sense. If you disagree with my thoughts, I’d be interested to hear what you thought; leave a comment below. :-)

Technorati Tags: ,

Tags: ,

Public Enemies

Jul 14

Posted by Helmut in Crime, Drama | 2 Comments

Public Enemies

Public Enemies

Public Enemies drew a fair amount of my attention, so I decided to go watch it. I guess the fact that it is based on a true story made it more attractive. And let me say right away that it wasn’t a superb movie. But I didn’t think it would be. Nevertheless it was interesting. The characters were slightly flat, so I didn’t find myself rooting strongly for anyone. I just watched the movie with interest in the story that took place in 1933. When I get a few minutes, I plan to read up on the actual John Dillinger, just to see how far from the true story the movie deviates.

During the movie I found myself looking for a formula in the plot. Apart from the obvious I also found another kind of formula. Here is a summary of events; see if you can spot the forumla. N.B. There’s a twist at the end! (Warning: mild spoilers ahead)

  1. John Dillinger: “I rob banks!”
  2. Melvin Purvis: “I will catch John Dillinger!”
  3. Dillinger robs a bank.
  4. 16 shots are fired. Dillinger escapes.
  5. John Dillinger “I rob more banks!”
  6. Melvin Purvis: “Dillinger is public enemy number 1! I will catch him.”
  7. Dillinger robs a bank.
  8. 256 shots are fired. Dillinger escapes.
  9. John Dillinger: “I can rob any bank I want to!”
  10. Melvin Purvis: “Dillinger will be caught, dead or alive!”
  11. Dillinger is found in the middle of the woods.
  12. 65536 shots are fired. Dillinger escapes.
  13. John Dillinger: “I will go watch a movie at the cinema.”
  14. Melvin Purvis: “We will wait for him outside.”
  15. Dillinger exits.
  16. Less than 4 shots are fired. Dillinger does not escape.

If you’re interested in movies that are based on true stories, go watch this one. An interesting performance by Johnny Depp, but not his best. Lots of southern accents.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

Technorati Tags: , , , ,

Tags: , , , ,