Eragon

Just saw the premiere, here in Portugal, and after reading all the terrible reviews, I was ready for the worse case scenario. Fortunatly, it wasn't THAT bad, I actually enjoyed the movie, but one cannot stop wondering why the hell they trashed a lot more of the original tale then necessary. The CGI is great, the cast is actually quite decent, and it really looks like the team that brought us this, wanted the movie do be bad. The "catch phrases" are as awful and basic as any B-movie, and the interaction between characters should have been worked a lot better. But it's fair to say that who hasn't read the book, will overlook some of the flaws.

I'm giving it a 6. A 7 may also be adequate, but... I've read the book.

Say what you will, but Eragon can be a compelling story regardless of what you think it ripped off. With that in mind, I give you Edward Speelers...who probably wouldn't know something compelling if it hit him in the face. In fact, I doubt he would even flinch if something hit him in the face. The biggest problem with Eragon is who plays Eragon himself.

There's an innocence-turned-hard required for this role, but Speelers has one facial gesture: solemnity. When he laughs or smiles or cries (tries to, anyway), it is not believable. He is as wooden a leading actor that I have ever seen in a mainstream film. The fact that the story and the movie is carried upon his shoulders is a problem.

The rest of the performances are at least a little better; John Malkovich chews up the scenery like no other, and it works here. Carlyle's Durza is truly a menace, even though his most prominent scenes are often shrouded in special effects.

That is another thing: the special effects. Some are absolutely stunning (Saphira, the journey through the mountains), yet some are so shoddy that they make you roll your eyes. It's almost as if the filmmakers spent far too much time on Saphira and the accompanying flying scenes to be bothered to put much effort into the rest of them.

In summary, it can be thrilling and visually stimulating at times, but Speelers falls so flat that it ultimately is forgettable. It's a shame that this is a such a mediocre film.

I didn't think this movie was as horrible as many make it out to be. It is not exactly "good" or, for the most part, "bad"... What I WOULD like to see, is someone actually try it again and stick more to the actual story line. There could be a trilogy there if done right. Love the books and I would love to see it done right, or at least better.

The movie follows nothing of the book's plot line. I think someone read like maybe ten chapters of the Eragon book and decided to make the movie. If they decide to make Eldest (The sequel to Eragon) it would be nothing like the book because they have changed too many things in this movie to carry the plot correctly. The plot of the movie shares nothing with the book and the characters (the ones they actually decided to add) share no similarities to the book's idea of them. The storyline used in the movie could have possibly been acceptable if it hadn't had such bad writing. The lines were mediocre and no one other than Brom, Eragon and Saphira had ten lines. Murtagh had like eight or nine lines through the whole movie, Nasuada and Ajihad had like two or three (and Nasuada doesn't say who she is) and Hrothgar had maybe one or two lines. They completely rushed the movie too quickly. Unless you read the book, you have no idea how Eragon learns to use magic and are left in the dark about most things. The actors did the best job they could with the horrid lines they were given to read. The special effects were great except that Saphira isn't supposed to have feathers. What dragon has feathers? Christopher Paolini says like fifty times in the book that Saphira's wings are a thin membrane. Also that Eragon is fifteen, not seventeen. Every problem comes back to the horrid writing. Bottom Line: Could have been a great and timeless movie. Not Lord of the Rings worthy.

How to describe a movie based on a lovely book, that could have had a wonderful franchise, but was so hurriedly done, and so poorly directed as to become a horrible flop? First lets say that while the book has some flaws, this movie is really a disservice to it; a more or less complex plot is reduced to its bare elements making it a very predictable ordeal (as any other story would), the photography doesn't reach the standard set by LOTR or HP, becoming quite bland, the casting -while good on the stronger characters (Brom, Durza, Galbatorix)- is really lacking, particularly on critical characters like Murtagh and Arya, and the music -so critical to convey the emotions of the movie- is so corny and clumsily placed that rather than enhance takes away from the experience. So little works on this movie and so many details are ruined using the cheapest tricks, that any sequel would never make it to the big screen (more so when critical plot points were stripped from the movie).

Having read and enjoyed the books with my 11 year old son, we had high hopes and were both devastated with this ... thing promoted as a movie.

It is indeed a sad, sad adaptation, a proof that some movie execs in its eagerness to make a quick buck have indeed killed what could have been a geese of golden eggs.

Hopefully Mr. Fangmeier will go back to do special effects and never return as a movie director. At least I know that I will never see a movie made by him again.