PeterJackson

It's been ages since Woody Allen made a decent movie. Small Time Crooks, Match Point, The Curse of the Jade Scorpion, Cassandra's Dream and this one: all of them terribly clichéd, hollow and with a total lack of movie-making skills.

Take this one: an annoying voice-over, which does nothing more than literally describing each and every scene ("They go to a restaurant, have some wine and talk") sets the tone. The acting too isn't terribly engaging with Rebecca Hall more irritating than sexy, Scarlett Johansson terribly under-used and the usually fine Patricia Clarkson in the typical Diane Keatonish role of the kind of woman you rather not want to get into a conversation with. Only Penelope Cruz is decent, but has such a small and confusing part that one can't really understand why she won prizes for this.

And the story? You tell me. Two American female tourists get caught up in a complex relationship between a Spanish painter and his ex-wife. Could be interesting, but the result is not. This is all presented in typical Woody-fashion: all talk and nearly no play. But if you expected any insights, a slight bit of entertainment or something else than the usual clichés about Spain and his inhabitants: look further.

Can we make a deal that from now on Woody Allen gets the treatment other directors who make this hollow, borderline amateurish and self-indulgent fare get? Time for some retirement, mister Allen.

When you watch a Dario Argento flick, you know what to expect. Still, being a sucker for a good slasher pic, I still give these movies a chance. You get the gore, you get ... Well, that's about it. The acting, of course, is awful. The script? Well, I wonder if there ever was one. Seems like they improvised this one over some good pot. Thrills? Not really. Even the killings are fake as hell. I know, that's what Argento stands for, but one has to wonder: why has this guy gathered such a reputation? Is it because "it's so bad it must be good"? I read someone's comment here that if you don't like this film, you know nothing about movie making. No kidding?

This is one of those films that critics deem to be "in bad taste". A film with a reputation like e.g. RHINESTONE (though MEATBALLS definitely has a cult following). I don't really understand the fuzz about it. This film isn't bad, isn't good, but is really nothing special at all too. BUT it has an enjoyable Bill Murray performance, some chuckles along the way and characters that are, well, tolerable (unlike many other similar movies). The overacting is cut down to a minimum and the "villains" are sized down as well, which is a good thing. In short: don't expect a believable, dramatic story, nor big laughs or great acting. But on its own terms, this is decent stuff. 6/10