Amelia Rhodes

A lost Fred Ward Classic! The genius of Michael Nesmith touches the project as well though Elephant Parts is his best work post Monkees.

A time waster. It could have been more than just another take on the whole shaky camera thing. SPOILER ALERT * * * * * Alluding to The Knights Templar and Egyptian influences in the catacombs? Undeveloped red herrings that took away from the experience. If they would have stuck with a plot concerning French Occult practices, real or just in the movie's reality I would have been less distracted. But finding a well preserved Knight's body was just silly. Equally as silly was the Indiana Jones-esque puzzle/lock of a hidden door. The ending was satisfying but there's a lot to forgive before you get there.

Really enjoy this film. More musical in parts than I expected it to be. Some fantasy. Family life is far from perfect. We see a young Reginald Kenneth Dwight as he is discovering his talents and inspirations. If not for his family, the music in the 1st Act made me think of Grease. We quickly move towards maturity, a Moulin Rouge 2nd Act if you will. Elton discovers his sexuality, it gets real. Then it gets really real. The film takes us though Elton John's excesses and beyond. Not a perfect film but it was surprisingly adult. Meaningful to me in ways I won't explain, some I can't explain. Glosses over some of his process in coming to accept himself and his beginnings but there was enough there to satisfy this rather jaded critic.

I'm surprised to see bad reviews for this one. Are we all so jaded? I'll admit I haven't been frightened by a film in a very long time. And I've seen it all, very few films surprise me. On this one I was along for the ride. Disbelief, suspended. It simply worked for me. I'd put it on the same level of satisfaction as Pontypool, Drag Me to Hell, and Gerald's Game (one of the better Stephen King movies compared to flops like Cujo and Christine).

Horrible effort, a total fail. Someone should slap Forest Whitaker or his agent or both. His character, I have to wonder if he even read the script before accepting the role. The effects were terrible. The situations unbelievable.This movie lacked the over the top dread of The Day After. It lacked the realism and relationship of The Road. A complete waste of time, two hours of my life gone.

Pleasantly surprised! Binging the 1st Season of a solid production.

Hostiles is a well managed production, in part post Clint Eastwood's The Unforgiven style brutal realism. Just enough Hollywood to make the movie more palatable for a wider audience. Christian Bale, I think in most of his films he's too pretty. Of course that wasn't the case in The Machinist. Perhaps he was doing a self parody in American Psycho to a degree. I enjoyed him in the role of Captain Joseph J. Blocker. And 3:10 to Yuma is also worth watching if less weighty and emotional.

This is a wonderful film. It's full of deeply meaningful moments that are gifts riding a core narrative. A classic Hero's journey and in classic Gilliam style a tale unlike what you expect it to be. There are many ways to be a hero and the Rites of Passage can vary from tale to tale. In addition, all heroes have their Achilles' heel, carrying the scars of his or her triumphs and battles.

So bad it might be good. It reminds me of a second feature at a drive in. The one you would be too busy enjoying yourself to watch but you might come up for air to see a scene or two and have a laugh. Other than value in a form a nostalgia? 90 Minutes of your life you will never get back.

This is As good as it gets? I'd rank it right up there with Reservoir Dogs, No Country for Old Men, The Way of the Gun. Am I the only one!?!