17 recensioni
Where to begin, there were so many problems with this movie.
The written dialogue was often weak filler and the delivery was frequently unnatural. Almost as if the moments where the actors were exploring how to deliver the dialogue were captured and used to create the movie. At times there was dialogue when it wasn't needed.
Generally, a movie is good if the audience is not "aware" they are watching a movie. Thus when something in a movie forces the viewer to stop watching and think, it isn't a good movie. At one point in this film a character commits an action they regret right away, yet their dialogue states they didn't know *something* before they committed the action. However the character should still not know the *something*, yet they are lamenting what they have done because of the effect on *something*, which is unknown to them. Like a chunk of the movie is missing to explain what was going on, but actually it was just poorly written, in my estimation.
The big name actors both seem to be having a bad day on set, for almost the entire film. Michael Madsen & David Carradine are so very good in Kill Bill (1&2) yet somehow it seems they made no effort in Road of No Return. It is as if we are watching two actors who just happen to look like Madsen and Carradine, but lack their talent. Maybe they just could not get into their roles, perhaps the characters felt too similar to the characters they portrayed in Kill Bill.
Over acting and under acting were not the only weaknesses. The framing, lighting and dead end quality of some scenes creates an ongoing internal dialogue in the viewer. The voice in the mind of the audience is often saying things like: "Why did they shoot that scene in such a strange way?" "What was the value of that line of dialogue?" "Is this supposed to be a comedy?" "Why are the only good scenes the ones where someone is talking to the child actor?" "Is this whole movie a bizarre parody of a movie?" "Am I on candid camera as I watch this movie?"
The special effects are so lame the are almost non existent. With so much gun fire I was left wondering why there were so many poorly produced effects connected to gun fire? Less gun fire done well would have been a better idea.
Conceptually, the story line worked well, it was just the execution that sucked. (pardon the pun) In fact, the only reason I kept watching was to see how the story line played out.
Were the actors that bad or was there something else going on which caused this production to turn into card board cut out characters? I'm still not certain, but it felt like something was restricting all of the performances as they could not have all been uniformly bad actors.
In the end, this is a great movie for use in learning how NOT to shoot a movie.
The written dialogue was often weak filler and the delivery was frequently unnatural. Almost as if the moments where the actors were exploring how to deliver the dialogue were captured and used to create the movie. At times there was dialogue when it wasn't needed.
Generally, a movie is good if the audience is not "aware" they are watching a movie. Thus when something in a movie forces the viewer to stop watching and think, it isn't a good movie. At one point in this film a character commits an action they regret right away, yet their dialogue states they didn't know *something* before they committed the action. However the character should still not know the *something*, yet they are lamenting what they have done because of the effect on *something*, which is unknown to them. Like a chunk of the movie is missing to explain what was going on, but actually it was just poorly written, in my estimation.
The big name actors both seem to be having a bad day on set, for almost the entire film. Michael Madsen & David Carradine are so very good in Kill Bill (1&2) yet somehow it seems they made no effort in Road of No Return. It is as if we are watching two actors who just happen to look like Madsen and Carradine, but lack their talent. Maybe they just could not get into their roles, perhaps the characters felt too similar to the characters they portrayed in Kill Bill.
Over acting and under acting were not the only weaknesses. The framing, lighting and dead end quality of some scenes creates an ongoing internal dialogue in the viewer. The voice in the mind of the audience is often saying things like: "Why did they shoot that scene in such a strange way?" "What was the value of that line of dialogue?" "Is this supposed to be a comedy?" "Why are the only good scenes the ones where someone is talking to the child actor?" "Is this whole movie a bizarre parody of a movie?" "Am I on candid camera as I watch this movie?"
The special effects are so lame the are almost non existent. With so much gun fire I was left wondering why there were so many poorly produced effects connected to gun fire? Less gun fire done well would have been a better idea.
Conceptually, the story line worked well, it was just the execution that sucked. (pardon the pun) In fact, the only reason I kept watching was to see how the story line played out.
Were the actors that bad or was there something else going on which caused this production to turn into card board cut out characters? I'm still not certain, but it felt like something was restricting all of the performances as they could not have all been uniformly bad actors.
In the end, this is a great movie for use in learning how NOT to shoot a movie.
This movie was a disappointment to watch as it had a poorly written script and the acting was average at best despite several well known actors. The cinematography and special effects were however mostly good.
- bigbadjohn-46034
- 2 giu 2019
- Permalink
I caught this movie on my tv like 30 minutes into the actual movie, I thought it was supposed to be a comedy but after looking it up I realized the movie was supposed to be a serious action/thriller. You will probably like the movie a lot more if you take it less serious, but overall it's still pretty bad. The characters I guess were trying to be interesting but overall they were just goofy. It's pretty clear this movie was trying to go for a good mix of action/comedy but they just suck at doing what they were trying to do and could not mix these two together. They were trying to do what Pulp Fiction does but did it worse on every level. Surprised I caught this movie in 2023 because it feels like something that would just be completely forgotten. Watch the movie if you like to laugh at how mediocre it is, that's about it.
- Anonymous_Maxine
- 5 mar 2009
- Permalink
First off, the characters in this movie made me laugh. A black guy that holds his gun sideways and somewhat dresses like shaft, a redneck Nazi from NJ (huh?!), an Arabic guy, and a native American hit-man. only one believable was the Arabic guy. Everybody else were clowns. especially the white guy. Not to mention all of these guys are suppose to be "professionals". who the hell holds a gun sideways, then shoots different later on in the movie?? The story has holes and seemed to be written by a 16 year old kid. The acting was horrible along with the camera work. I Just couldn't bring myself to watch anymore of the movie after 15-20 Min's so I turned it off. Amateur film makers should learn from this movie and see what NOT to do.
- killbot1010
- 11 lug 2009
- Permalink
I saw a reasonable review for this movie and this combined with two well known actors persuaded me to give it a chance. Bad mistake, the characters were paper thin, the action was boring and badly executed, and the plot/script was very weak.
Caradine and Madsen were not the main characters (from length of time on the screen anyway) and so the film didn't really benefit greatly from their presence. I wasn't expecting a dumb action movie but that would have been preferable to what I did see, which was mostly dull and uninspired.
There were several attempts at comedy in the movie that I thought just didn't work very well. When I see Indie films they are quite often hit or miss and I often love or hate them, this one I just didn't like much. As a final thought, I think someone likened this film to Pulp Fiction but while there may have been some vague attempt at copying that style, sadly it falls far, far, far short of that movie.
Caradine and Madsen were not the main characters (from length of time on the screen anyway) and so the film didn't really benefit greatly from their presence. I wasn't expecting a dumb action movie but that would have been preferable to what I did see, which was mostly dull and uninspired.
There were several attempts at comedy in the movie that I thought just didn't work very well. When I see Indie films they are quite often hit or miss and I often love or hate them, this one I just didn't like much. As a final thought, I think someone likened this film to Pulp Fiction but while there may have been some vague attempt at copying that style, sadly it falls far, far, far short of that movie.
"Road Of No Return" was one of the last movies David Carradine made before his death. Curious about if he was still able to give an entertaining performance at this time like his past performances was one reason why I rented it. Another reason was that Michael Madsen was also in the movie. The front of the DVD box seems to suggest that they are the two lead actors in the movie, but that isn't so - they are given supporting roles. Not only that, I noticed that though they share several scenes together, not once do you see both actors at the same time. (Obviously, they were each filmed at separate times and edited together later.) And Carradine looks very old and tired in all of his scenes.
I probably could have lived with those facts had the rest of the movie been entertaining, but in actual fact there's not much entertaining here. The movie has a sense of humor that is occasionally amusing, but is mostly loud and tiresome. While the movie is decently shot on a poverty row budget, the other production values are often flawed, with stuff like one shot being repeated, stock footage, and obvious post-dubbed dialogue. But the biggest problem is that the movie eventually comes to a slow crawl, and it's tiresome making the slow slog to the end. Some more gratuitous action and pruning down of scenes would have helped considerably.
I probably could have lived with those facts had the rest of the movie been entertaining, but in actual fact there's not much entertaining here. The movie has a sense of humor that is occasionally amusing, but is mostly loud and tiresome. While the movie is decently shot on a poverty row budget, the other production values are often flawed, with stuff like one shot being repeated, stock footage, and obvious post-dubbed dialogue. But the biggest problem is that the movie eventually comes to a slow crawl, and it's tiresome making the slow slog to the end. Some more gratuitous action and pruning down of scenes would have helped considerably.
I'm also kinda surprised with the couple of five star reviews ... they truly have not judged this on peer movies that it apes or aspires towards. The film maker drove a few pegs into the wall: hire some banner actors, do some (great) static shots of desert and rail cars .... the premise had so much promise here, what could have been done. Watching the film, it was obviously a rock-bottom budget attempt at milking the Tarantino theme, and the props, stage sets and so on were just pathetic. Continuity was rank, acting was wooden at best, script was just awful ..... really, the waste of talent, manpower, money and audience loyalty was tragic. I watched to the end, and kept muttering to myself; I wish - given the great pedigrees from Madsen and Carradine - that this had been done by a real script writer and a pro director. Trust me, this film is a real stinker.
This was pretty entertaining. Definitely borrows heavily from Pulp Fiction but thats not a bad thing. There is some silliness but I felt entertained. Its pretty violent and the violence is well staged. There is enough action for action fans. Carridine and Madsen had some fun scenes together and I enjoyed watching them play off each other. Very tongue in cheek. Heck, its a decent movie. The plot is wild but not bad. There were some very amusing scenes and all the madness kinda works for the most part. A different kind of madcap action flick. Pretty good. I watched almost until the end when a jackash co worker knocked my portable DVD player over when he tripped on the cord. Kinda fitting way to wrap up the fun.
I liked this film not b/c it had spectacular action sequences but b/c it was a thinking man's action film, it had heart, it had characters that had a past and had something to say. You don't usually see that with Hollywood films in particular action films. So it was quite refreshing specially that you don't expect it. But I must say that I was a bit disappointed that Carradine and Madsen's time on screen was limited but I think others did a really good job carrying the film. However, the production value at times was weak, you could see that it had been made on a shoe-string budget. It was definitely an indie film and it showed but I like low budget indie films. The film worked for me and left an impression. If you don't like dialog this film is not for you.
I really liked this film. Real slick dialogue and likable characters. It reminded me of Pulp Fiction. Thought the story needed a bit more work and emphasis on drug trafficking but overall really good film. In particular I liked the encounters between the four hit men and how they all come around. It is really a story of coming face to face with your own demons and redeeming yourself. Carradine was really good so as the little girl and the hit men. One of the reviewers mentioned that the screenwriter is a doctor of some sort. If that's the case I hope more doctors write screenplays b/c I thought the lines were really smart and refreshing. If you can, see it in English b/c some of its effects will be surely lost in translation.
It started off really slow. I was debating on weather i should take it off or not. Horrible acting & plot was all that was bobbling in my mind. But i decided to give it a chance. Which is where all you idiots who gave up on this movie went wrong. Now im not gonna bore anyone by running down the entire film, but all i have to say is this. Im the kind of person who will analyze a movie when its done. I ask myself why did i waste my time watching this crap. Well you know what? I didn't have to worry this time. Yes it may have had some bad acting. Yes Michael Madson wasn't the main attraction, but when it ended, i thought to myself, it was well worth watching, and not as bad as i thought it would be. As a matter of fact, it was very intelligent and well done, from start to finish. It made me feel good, and put a smile on my face. For those who gave up on this film, read my post and give it another chance. And if you do, and still didn't like it, well go cry me a river....thats your problem!
I was pleasantly surprised when I saw this film. I expected a typical brainless action flick with Carradine and Madsen. But, what I saw was quite well written and intelligent. I must admit it is not your typical action film so if you are looking for a dumb action packed film, this movie is not for you. For an action film it is a bit talkie but the dialogue is very well written, funny and smart. It covers a wide range of topics from religion to politics to racism all within the context of the interaction between the hit men. The characters are also very vivid and unforgettable. Even though they are stereotypical but it seems it was meant to be that way to draw our attention to the problem of stereotyping in our society and that there is hope for all of us to come together regardless of our ethnicity, religion or skin color. I give it two thumps up for great dialogue, great characters and solid acting.
- mikepavarian99
- 5 lug 2009
- Permalink
I thought it was a really good film, clever and funny. This film was really about human relations touching on all aspects of life that affect us all such as religion, racism, nationalism, etc. The drug trafficking was just an instrument to bring these characters together. And I agree with the other reviewer that it was a conscious decision on part of the filmmaker to make the characters totally stereotypical. It worked for me. It was hilarious and drove the message home. Also the film had many heart-felt scenes and moments that tend to stay with you. The characters also stay with you. They were pretty likable and fun to watch. Having said all that, I think the film would have benefited from developing the story a bit more around the drug trafficking.
- kevin101978
- 4 ago 2009
- Permalink
I saw this film by chance because I am not necessarily a fan of carradine or madsen or action films for that matter. But I was quite surprised. I really enjoyed this film. It had great dialogue and good characters. But I think the flaw with this film is that because of Madsen and Carradine it draws a certain type of viewers who are less sophisticated and expect cheap action films. And I really think this movie is not an action film and is more of an extremely dark comedy with a lot of great intelligent dialogue that as one of the other reviewers mentioned covers everything from religion to politics to racism to stereotyping and more. In my opinion it should have had a different cast in place of carradine and madsen to draw more mature, educated and more indie film goers. By the way, you can shoot your gun sideways and you see that in the movies all the time.
- davidearth7
- 17 lug 2009
- Permalink
- katemuller2000
- 8 lug 2009
- Permalink