The Skulls, société secrète

Though it poses a good moral dilemma, `Skulls' is presented in such an implausible way as to render it crippled at birth. Luke McNamara is a small town boy of modest means attending an Ivy League institution that is never really named but is obviously Yale. He is hoping to be called for membership into the Skulls, a secret society of great status and power. Members of this society have the doors of power, wealth and influence thrown wide to them. This is a dream come true for Luke, who spends much of his time fretting over the hundreds of thousands in student loans he is incurring. When he discovers that one of the members has committed a felony, he is torn between his desire for wealth, his loyalty to a friend, and his conscience.

Writer John Pogue (`U.S. Marshals') has conjured up a good moralistic tale, but it is so full of ridiculous premises that it becomes laughable. This is supposed to be a secret society where other than the members themselves, no one knows who the members are. Yet, Pogue and director Rob Cohen present it in such a way that they may as well be advertising their identities on TV. The building where the secret meetings take place is prominently marked with a Skull, and only members have keys to the building. So, Duh, anyone seen entering the building must be a Skull. New members get brand new $50,000 automobiles and $100,000 in cash, as if no one will notice this sudden burst of good fortune. The new members are branded on their wrist and we are supposed to believe that they will never be seen by anyone without their wristwatch on. The list of inconceivability goes on ad nauseam.

The acting is generally quite good. Joshua Jackson (`Cruel Intentions', `Urban Legend') is excellent as Luke. He plays the part with just the right combination of idealistic zeal and moral grounding. He gets great support from Paul Walker (`She's All That', `Varsity Blues') as Caleb Mandrake, the spoiled rich kid trying to step out of his father's shadow. Craig T. Nelson gives a wonderfully nefarious performance as the chairman of the Skulls and Caleb's father.

Maybe secret societies exist, and maybe they don't. The fact that no one is sure indicates that if they are more than mere myths, they are a lot more secret than depicted here. I rated this film a 6/10. It is an interesting idea that loses credibility in the telling.

OK the plot is old hat (a secret society that rules the government and covers up a murder or two) but the movie is entertaining. The plot is relatively intelligent and fast-moving; the cast is uniformally good--even Joshua Jackson!; there's no graphic gore (or nudity); and the action scenes are well-done and exciting. Not a great film by any means, but a fun, action-filled, entertaining two hours. Just don't think about it too much afterwards.

The Skulls is not art. In fact it's pretty bad but some films are just made to entertain. I'm a firm believer of that. When people complain about this films plot, acting, etc, i just go come on guys give it a break. The movie does what it was made for. it entertains its core audience. Teenagers. I'm a teen and i enjoyed it for what it was even if it wasn't the greatest film ever made.

The plot is intriguing but a little unrealistic. Luke Macnamara wnats desperately to be apart of a secret society known as the skulls. But he soon realizes that being in this society comes at a price.

The plot begins with some intrigue but falls short after awhile and that's when you realize that this film is just there to entertain and yo shold just sit back and enjoy the ride. The acting is actually pretty good. joshua jackson is a telented actor and i bet if he got a better script he could go places. Leslie Bibb is the best because she displays the most emotion. She's very good. Paul walker is the weak link. he needs acting lessons.

so guys don't go into this movie looking for a great script or anything like that. just be prepared to be entertained. i most certainly was.

Joshua Jackson plays a very smart student who is eager to get into law school. Then he is approached by Paul Walker's character who manages to get him to join a secret society only for the smartest of the smartest students known as The Skulls. It seems that everything is going well but then things start to get much more darker.

On the face of it, it seems like a brilliant idea for a movie. A good breakaway from the typical teen movie. However, it didn't really make good use of the potential it had to be a great movie. The story was made too thin than it should have been and some other details including character development and about this secret society itself were left rather sketchy.

I believe that if these details are elaborated on then this would be a much better and more memorable movie than it actually is.

While his character was believable, I could NOT take Joshua Jackson seriously in this film at all. He reminds me too much of Joe from Blue's Clues. Overall the movie was OKAY...wasn't too thrilled with it, but hey, at least I got to see Paul Walker! ;).

6/10