Reviews

I read the Hobbit many times as a boy and I honestly wanted this to be a good film. There were a lot of special effects that were pretty good. The shire village was constructed pretty well, the orcs all looked fierce and the wargs were scary. But I was disappointed with the way the story was changed. He had Thorin Oakenshield being a hater of Elves! This just was not true and it is far too much poetic license. And then the movie was prolonged another 45 minutes by putting in a new quarrel between Thorin and the pale skinned Orc. The movie was too drawn out, it should have come to the point quicker. The Hobbit is already a good story and it is not necessary to add or subtract from it. 100 years from now people will still be reading the hobbit but I doubt they will be seeing this movie.

I liked this movie. Like never before I got the perspective of immigrants coming over to the US from Latin America. It gave me a better understanding of the extent of the gang culture. The natural scenery was beautiful. At the same time they were not shy about showing you human depravity. Not a film for the week hearted. I am shocked that IMDb rates it so low as of today. I think this is one of the best films of the decade. It would be a great tool to use the next time immigration becomes a big subject. The actors felt like real people that you can identify with. For someone that knows a little Spanish it is great practice.

I liked this film! It had many funny situations and dealt with real problems that people face. I would have voted higher but for the dance routine of Olive at the end. I thought it was highly inappropriate for a girl of her age to move and dress like that. If they would just take that routine out I would have given the movie a 10.

The film touched on many parts of life. A gay Uncle that is very smart and almost commits suicide because his life all but goes down the drain. And then you see him in many scenes with his straight nephew that is a classic goth type yet is in to Nietzche.

The fathers self help step spiel was a riot. Yet one more person with a method to achieve anything that no one will listen to.

It was touching how the whole family was willing to back this little girl.

The lure of the this movie was seeing the actors. Colin Farrel steals your heart away with his good looks and charisma, Angelina Jolie is a great evil woman and Anthony Hopkins does some great speeches.

But the idea that Alexander the Great was out there unifying the planet so that everyone could live free is just too insane for me to believe that they put in the movie. They keep throwing the word freedom around so much that it makes the movie seem like an extension of the Bush administration in the same way that it wants to name french fries - freedom fries. In addition, there were some scenes that just went on far too long with graphics and solemn music. Come to the point already! Glad I waited for video.

I ended up liking this movie but it was not the easiest to get through. What makes the movie great is the music and the scenery. The songs are beautiful and the musicians are talented. A great job was done to show different settings for the Rom people.

However, the viewer was not guided enough. A more in depth history of the Rom people would have been nice. Only a fraction of the of the spoken words were given English subtitles. In addition, more explanations about the settings and who was their and some of their challenges would have been appreciated too. It would have helped if there were a narrator too explain about customs, dress and music.

This movie speaks out against excess and false dreams. It shows how people can be deluded into following something that they think is right just to find out that it is wrong. Or worse, they end up never knowing they were doing the wrong thing.

Allow me to explain. I was once involved in a multi-level type marketing company called ds-max. Tappy's continual use of the word juice brought back a lot of bad memories about this experience. Ds-max affiliated companies have their own jargon which uses the word "juice" a lot. They will say "juice by (insert name)" to express praise, or "juice by that" to express approval or just "juice!" to stir up excitement. People will get caught up in the fake materialistic hype of dsmax and then spin there wheels and then get nothing for it in the end - just like the characters in the movie.

The son wanted to make money and make his mom proud. The mother wanted to follow an unrealistic dream and make her son proud. But they really should have just acted responsibly and been realistic and done the best they could to help each other. But they were too a like. There were many scenes that showed how the deceased father was the one that was able to keep the family going and set these two error prone souls straight. With him gone, the mother and son failed to use discipline and wisdom to correct themselves. And that is how people are when they are caught up in multi-level marketing company that uses cult like techniques to keep their corp of recruits faithful.

I would recommend this movie to anyone that has problems with any kind of addiction or multilevel marketing companies or unrealistic materialistic goals. It is a great tool to ground oneself.

1969 was the year I was born. Being a gen-xer I am often sick of listening to classic rock music and dealing with baby boomer culture. As I watched this movie I cringed a bit when I saw the old fashions. But this was all before I saw the commentary. According to the commentary easy riders was the first movie that really showed the counter culture as it was - not the stereotypical pollyanna ideal American youth that older generations wanted to portray. Now I really understand the cultural significance of this movie and I am glad I saw it. I also have noted how the characters did not have any idea about the consequences of drug use. Some of those same stereotypes are still the same today as they are 35 years ago. This film showed a commune, the hippie wandering spirit, the marijuana and the mentality of wanting to reconnect with the earth. You can still see this mentality today in seniors who were strongly influenced by this form of thinking and when you visit an area like Woodstock, New York or Parts of the San Francisco Bay area and Northern California. In addition, it was good to see where some of the songs I STILL hear on classic radio stations first came out.

The scenery was just breathtaking. I really have to give them credit for capturing all they did.

The only part I did not appreciate was near the end when they were all on what appeared to be lsd and the scenes all made no sense. I got the point early on and just wished that it had been significantly shortened.

I would highly recommend this to people over 18. It is without a doubt one of the best films to capture the consciousness of an era that influences the present.

I just saw this film at a gay lesbian film festival with some friends and we all enjoyed it. We liked the jokes and we could all relate to the pain of coming out. We were all hoping that we might see more revealing shots of the straight brother who is just adorable, but que sera sera. One of my favorite scenes was at the end when the star of the film is compared to his father. At first I could not see it, but then I saw the connection between the warped anger in each character. The angry father did a great job in making everyone fear him and truly believe that he was inflexible. The film took place in the early 90's. If I had one wish it would be for an epilogue.

This is a real movie for our times. Who could predict that President George W Bush would narrowly win the 2004 election riding a wave of Conservative Christian and Catholic votes? And at present gay marriage is an issue that is affecting our country. Roll all this in to a teen angst movie and you have something for our times. The sad truth is that many familys try to "de-gay" their gay children by sending them to instituitions and through the use of Doctors. You can not do that any more than you can change their blood type. I enjoyed the acting, the jokes and the speaking out against repressive evangelicalism. My only concern is that I would hope that a young gay person would not see this film and think that God and all Christian/catholic religions are out to get him. There are many ways to look at God besides through the narrow one sided view point of evangelical Christianity.

I loved it. It went into what it is like to be gay from many perspectives. Viewers get to see the pro and cons of some of the many ways people adapt. Being an out West Hollywood party boy that has no sexual scruples can be fun for the moment, but it is a life with no future. It was wonderful to see how the West Holly wood party boy learned some values. On the other hand, we see a person striving to live to abide by an unrealistic strict code of ethics, based on how he was born. Steve Sandvoss comes to terms with what he is, but not in a way that leads to utter debauchery. Whether a person comes from an upbringing that condemns or accepts homosexuality, society still frowns on it. Seeing Steve Sandvoss adapt to his obdurate family was just wrenching. I could feel the pain in him when he had the confrontational scene with his mother. Also, Jacqueline Bisset played a wonderful diva/maternal role. Kudos to her. Another thing I loved is how the Mormon churches role of condemning homosexuality was portrayed.

For years I have heard of party loving goal less people as being described as a "Holly Go lightly" and I never knew why. I am a genxer and the only thing I knew about breakfast at Tiffany's was the popular 90's song based on the movie.

What a wonderful treat! A fascinating insight for someone of my generation into life in that era. Audrey Hepburn was brilliant. She is my new favorite actress. I now want to see more of her work. It was good seeing what kind of an Actor George Peppard was earlier in his career. All I had seen of him was his role of Hannibal on the A-team in the 80's.

For a genxer or generation y person, seeing this film would make you realize why it is still so talked about to this day. Don't procrastinate any more and rent this! You have all heard of it, now just go fulfill your curiosity and see it.