Coronado

There's absolutely nothing original in Coronado, the acting is average at best the script could use a serious polish but somehow it remains fun. The obvious comparisons to this film are the likes of Romancing the Stone and Sahara. But comparisons fail to take into account that Coronado was made on a 10th of the budget of Sahara which itself was no great film.

They've managed to squeeze quite a lot into the film for $4.7million and there is a bridge sequence which works really well. It's just a shame they didn't have more money to get some beter quality actors add a bit more to the script. The story is very predictable with a few twists and turns added it would have been far superior.

Fun on a budget, nothing original but if you loved Romancing the Stone you'll get some enjoyment out of this. 6/10

I feel compelled to write a review as I think that 'Coronado' represents everything that is wrong with cinema today: form over content. While viewers are forewarned that CGI will be omnipresent ('by the visual effects supervisors of Independence Day' proclaims the poster), I think that there should have been a warning at the beginning of the movie: "This is a movie to showcase our digital art, so please do not try to follow the plot, as we have made it mind numbingly dumb on purpose". With this warning, I would not have spent the entire 1.5 hour shaking my head in disbelief and trying to fathom how anybody in their right mind would agree to finance such a project.

The movie is an endless string of clichés, bad lines, and unbearable Hollywood-only situations. It is an insult to viewer's intelligence, and I can only hope that the 'creators' realized that they have failed to entertain us, if that was their goal. It is not worth watching, by any standard.

I'd compare this film to the made-for-TV movies by TNT titled, "The Librarian" (Quest for the Spear, etc). Like that series this movie contains:

• Relatively unknown actors; often nonsensical plot twists; cheesy dialogue; and out-of-place, over-the-top special effects.

Yet somehow, like the Librarian TV-movies, it had enough entertainment value to keep me sticking around to see it to its end. Granted I have no plans to ever watch it again, but to see a movie of this budget produce the effects it did made me glad I watched it.

If you are expecting blockbuster quality steer clear you will be very disappointed, but if you can accept it as more of a campy made-for-TV type movie and understand it only cost 5$M give it a peek.. you might just be impressed too.

The Coronado DVD was for sale very cheaply in one of the Danish department store chains, so I bought it. I have to say I'm pretty happy with it.

For one thing - the main thing, actually -, it stars Kristin Datillo. I haven't seen the Chris Isaak Show that has apparently made her something of a household name, but I saw her on Hull High, a 1990 TV series, and never forgot about her. I didn't even know what her name was until I got this DVD, so that was a very positive surprise. She's fabulous. Very strong on both looks and personality. And she fits this movie incredibly well, because there is a red thread of subtle self-irony that goes all the way through this movie, and Datillo has the same sort of attitude, while at the same time being a serious and convincing actress and giving a very cool performance.

The extra material on the DVD clarifies how incredibly far the producers stretched the budget, getting a grand, epic and expensive-looking movie out of a meager budget, a lot of well-done computer and miniature prop effects, and a cheap on-location shoot in Mexico ($30 to have a train speeding by: they bought the train drivers lunch!). Very impressive! Considering how difficult it is for the actors to pretend that they're in completely different situations than they really are, the performances given must be said to be all-round excellent.

The movie itself, storywise, isn't much. For a long time, there is *no plot* other than Datillo's character running around looking for her fiancé. As they get embroiled in a central-American revolution (with both sides getting weapons supplied by the U.S.), the plot picks up somewhat, but remains an excuse for the SFX. Technically, it's an interesting package, but the story really is quite weak. It is saved by Datillo's charisma and the genuinely suspenseful and impressive-looking action scenes. It ends on a kind of critical note in terms of U.S. foreign policy, as the rebels are abandoned by their U.S. weapons dealers (who decide to back the other side), but manage to seize power anyway, thus bringing a more democratic government to the country instead of a U.S. controlled puppet government.

All in all, this movie is (and was most likely made as) a study of just how impressive a special-effects spectacular can be created from a very small budget ($4.7 million), and as such it is quite successful. The DVD cover even claims that it looks like a $100 million movie, which in fact is almost true.

6 out of 10.

Coronado is a movie that has a very good balance of adventure, humor, and action. Actors I have not seen before were impressive in their roles, unlike the plastic Hollywood Shakespeareans demanding their closeups. The lead heroine, Kristin Dattilo, played an excellent role throughout the movie in both comedy barbs and more serious portrayals. I would like to see more of her work in the future as her talent in Coronado was the catalyst in making a fair script into an entertaining movie most arm-chair warriors relish. If you enjoy special effects as I do in adventure movies you are in for a treat. From a perilous bridge crossing to a remodeling of the Presidential Palace, special effects was formidable indeed. Watch the movie and enjoy the fun.