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Three Kings (1999)
My New Number 3 fave movie (may be Spoilers)
This is one of those strange films. Try describing it and you are like "Well.. it's about the gulf war and they try to find some gold but people get shot and gassed and so they rescue them" "Oh.. right, so it's a war/action film?" "well... more of a war/action/satire/comedy/thought provoking/heist/adventure movie" "Huh? Sod that, Let's watch the Terminator"
I think the reason a lot of people resist watching this is because this movie is a contridiction in terms. War - Satire, Thought Provoking - Action, Comedy - War. Very Confusing. But once people watch the movie.... they are like "DUDE!!! Let's watch that again!! (My mum did at least.... ;)
The Gulf War - War of the media, War on oil prices, War on Saddam, Whatever it was, it was a war unlike any other. "What did we do here, Tell me what we did here!" as Archie Gates puts it.
To begin with the film begins like any other war/action adventure movie. You have the Dumb guy Conrad Vig (Spike Jonze) The Black religious guy Chief (Ice Cube) The Simple decent hearted family guy Troy Barlow (Mark Wahlberg) and the selfish disillusioned Leader Archie Gates (George Clooney). As well as the other obligatory characters - the bull headed Army leaders, the determined pushy reporter, the dependant adoring wife. Cliche!
But so what if it is a cliche? You soon come to realise that that is how they start out but come the end... everyone of them is changed due to circumstance... maybe they are that way to begin with due to circumstance. Orphaned Conrad, no high school, no job. Chief, Years of racial abuse and dead end jobs. Troy, school sweetheart, working a dead end job just to get by, heck, he only joined the reserves to make money and never dreamed this is where he would end up. The same with Chief... to make money. For Conrad it was a chance to escape his life... and to shoot some people. Archie... Years in special forces... Very cynical and determined. And heck, he's retiring anyway.
So when they find a map and off they go ("we three kings be stealing the gold..").
So what is the most important thing in the world? Love? Respect? Gods Will? Or even Necessity? Or is it life itself, survival, living, dignity and safety? is it material possesions? the gold, the convertable, the computers, the blenders, jeans or jewellery. Or is it being free. To live in a democracy, free from Saddam and his army. To go somewhere where there are no soldiers, where business can take place, where children can play. Liberties most of us take for granted.
During the course of this movie, Necessity changes. But it doesn't change for them all at the same time, as one might expect.... there is no defining moment. Even when a woman is shot Troy still doesn't want to get involved
Troy - What Happened to Necessity?! Archie - It just changed
Necessity for Archie changes at the moment she is shot. He feels he can achieve both... "No bullets, we know what bullets do don't we Conrad?" however, at the end of the most amazing shooting sequence, unlike anything I have ever seen before, they are all scarred by war, all have killed. But has Necessity changed? not for all of them.
Conrad - "You had a choice out there and now we've lost Troy"
Archie - "I had No Choice" Conrad - "You had a Choice!" Archie - "I had no Choice"
But in the end necessity is the same for everyone. The basic human instinct, Survival.
This film takes you on a roller coaster ride of emotions. Laughing one second "What is wrong with michael Jackson" and shocked the next when he describes how is child was killed and his wife lost her legs. then laughing then crying then laughing.... this movie is a serious clusterf**k in the greatest possible way. A mash of everything thrown in for everyone and yet for no one in particular. Such is the nature of war.
5 Stars. Genius.
American History X (1998)
The most powerful movie I have ever seen
I only saw this film recently but it completely blew me away. I have been meaning to watch it forever, many's the time I picked it up in the video store only to see another film that I wanted to see and for some reason, American History X always went back on the shelf. This time though I decided to finally watch it, and I am glad that I did and annoyed that I didn't sooner. This film is unbelievable, I can't remember the last time I was unable to take my eyes from the screen, I was literally on the edge of my seat, completely entranced. At the end I was stunned, shocked you might say, this film really made me think and made it impossible to sleep afterwards (I guess deciding to watch it at 1 am was a bad idea)
This is an important film. First of all it gives us a real insight into the way the minds work of these white supremacists. Their completely irrational hatred. Not thinking for themselves, following like sheep because they now have a target for their anger. The way it affects the people around them and the costs involved.
I will give you a run down of the plot. Well basically what happens is that a young man (the ever brilliant Edward Norton) gets involved in a white supremacists group, eventually leading to him murdering two men. He goes to prison, and after 3 years he is released a changed man - only to find that his younger brother Danny (Edward Furlong, and yes, it is the annoying kid from T2!) is now involved in the same group, Derek now faces a struggle to get his brother and the rest of his family away from white supremacy and convince them that hating for the sake of hating is wrong and all it does is eat you up inside.
Like I said, this film completely blew me away, for many reasons - The script, the direction, the message and the fantastic acting ability of Edward Norton and Edward Furlong (once you realise he can act and stop praying that Arnie will pop up and shoot him).
This film has real power, it carries a message, a very clear message. It's not all preachy and patronising. It carries the message over very powerfully and movingly.
WARNING: You will feel drained at the end of this movie so make sure you don't operate heavy machinery :)
Dogma (1999)
Not Smiths best but an excellent movie non the less
I have read a great deal of things said about this movie. They are all extreme. By that I mean that people seem to love this movie or loath it. By no means do I loath this movie, but It wouldn't make it onto my 'best ever list'
One of the reasons I like it is because it does actually raise some excellent points. For example, Jesus WASN'T white. This is a fact (I mean come on, he is jewish born in Jerusulam, we made him western). He wasn't black either but the point the Rufus made is correct, it seems only a white person can be the worlds saviour.
Another thing that I found interesting was the fact that Joseph and Mary had more children and that there are direct descendants of them.
Now for the movie on it's own merit. The script, as ever, very talkative, quick and witty, more f***s than is necessary and I found myself actually switching off from what was being said due to the boredom of hearing it 1001 times. That said, the script is excellent.
the direction, never Smiths strongpoint, actually I heard him say on a TV show that he asked Robert Rodriguez to direct the day before they started shooting because he couldn't handle it, is not good, the second half does get boring but not so boring you want to switch off. It should have been quicker and tighter.
The cast is briiliant!! I like Damon and Affleck (especially Affleck, ruled in Chasing amy) Lee is just genius and Rickman is pure class (I'm English, call me biased :P) The female stars aren't the best, Fiorintino is OK, Hayek, obviously smart, Very beautiful but Cannot handle Smiths fast talking dialogue. Maybe if the movie was in Spanish....
In short, watch this movie with an open mind, religion is irrelevant, it's not meant to be blasphemous or anything like that, just a look at religion. Not as funny as Life of Brian, but nothing ever will be.