thefountainmenace

Wow! I don't really understand the hesitation coming from most of these reviewers - I found this to be an excellent, mesmerizing film. As with all of the works of Charlie Kaufman that I have seen, it is a bit challenging, but not insanely so - as long as you watch the movie and not skim it. Yes, there are sudden era jump cuts and a lot of bouncing around time in general - but that's what the technology of filmed stories allows for! So if it's done coherently - and I would argue that it certainly is here - it only makes a film more compelling. Clooney must have been more than a bit hurt that this brilliant film did not achieve more notice. I found it completely captivating. Brief cameos from Damon and Pitt were worth a grin, and Clooney and Robert's roles were quite fun. All the insanity of 60's network TV & random efficient killings in random Eastern bloc countries - who could ask for more? Who cares if it's real or not and if Barris was lying? I didn't - it's a movie!! What is historically fascinating is the Gong Show's unofficial status as the harbinger of that sludgy giant we call reality television. Sam Rockwell was excellent too - who is this guy? Definitely watch this - it's a must see if you like Kaufman's style.

This is not that bad for an eighties horror. I had to weigh in because of the overwhelming amount of bad reviews. Yes, the premise of odd tunnels directly under a newspaper building containing a Ratman (who does look a bit like Tiny Tim) and a bunch of jailed homeless people is not only stupid, but barely even coherent here. But it has quite a bit of camp value with John Saxon, Catherine Bach and Mel from Mel's Diner in the 70's sitcom Alice. Enjoyable little hour and a half flight for genre fans. That is, admittably bad 80's horror fans.