fitzcarraldo Blog

Forget Breakfast at Tiffany's...this is a Hepburn flick that guys may actually like -- an amazing film full of suspense and intrigue. Sure, it's been retold again and again by your local high school drama class, but this has me spellbound every time I see it. Maybe it's the intriguing Alan Arkin character, the crafty dialog and deception, or Hepburn's vulnerability that gets me going. It's also cool that almost the entire film takes place in one New York apartment, but you feel a huge range of emotion in it.

It's suspenseful, yet not in the vapid, "Halloween-like stalking by a goalie-masked murderer" sort of way. Well worth seeing if you're into classic suspense.

Having grown up reading comics (and the X-Men) I have constantly been disappointed with comic translations to real-life actors...starting in the 70's (or was it the 80's) TV's lackluster Lou Ferrigno bodybuilding Incredible Hulk (Hey Lou, your green cake makeup is rubbing off your feet, and why can't  you jump a mile? and where's the signature line "Hulk smash!" and couldn't another bodybuilder or defensive lineman basically crush you? I asked to myself)...and the even worse ill-fated tv series, Captain America (featuring the inimitable Reb Brown and his plexiglass frisbee shield) which I think may have been a ploy to capture the male audience who was instead entranced fantasizing about Wonder Woman (a lame DC comic).

Ok enough reminiscing...X2 delivers great characterizations of your favorite comic icons. The casting is spot on, from Patrick Stewart as Professor Xavier to Wolverine (although isn't he supposed to have a more Australian accent?)...the best example of a great comic translation to the silver screen is the Nightcrawler character. The signature BANFFF and cloud of smoke are awesome.

I didn't see the original and started with this film, due to reviews I'd read. It was satisfying and had plenty of action and superhero stuff that makes my wife roll her eyes. Basically, a decent escape film for grown-up comic-lovin' kids.

To me, this was a satsifying, Friday-night-with-the-kid-nothing-better-to-watch movie. It has a crafty storyline, with what I will say is a very clever concept for a perfect bank robbery. I asked myself, whoever wrote this script could be a good career criminal.

Overall, it's not very deep, and some of the character motivations are a bit far-fetched, but hey, it's supposed to be a cop thriller. But don't expect a lot of car chases and shooting sprees. It's a slightly more "think-y" crime drama. You can see Spike Lee's signatures in some of the racially-tinged conversations (between Denzel and a street cop) as well as a great dialog between a Brooklyn-kid and one of the robbers.

The acting overall was very good, Denzel and Jodie Foster are very believable in their roles, and Christopher Plummer is a good (bad) guy...casting Plummer for his character is an ironic choice, based on one of his major career roles (I won't spoil it for you).

This film doesn't even come close to a "Silence of the Lambs" level of thrill/intrigue, but it doesn't totally suck either. (How's that for a rave review?) Also, it's a lot better role for Denzel than the sucky "Bone Collector".

One quirk, I found the James Bondian-type musical score annoying at times, it was too grandiose for the film.