Reviews

Nearly everything that can and should be said about this movie already has been, so I will just put in my two cents and skip all plot summary.

This film most certainly has flaws. It is drawn out, has uneven pacing and strange unexplained events, and is at times a bit too aware of its cleverness for its own good. The ending I also found unsatisfying for reasons which can be boiled down to "inconclusiveness".

But I believe that the REASON this inconclusiveness is upsetting is to the films credit. Mr. Anderson has created an incredibly interesting cacophony of personalities that somehow manage to mesh beautifully, and the viewer cannot help but get caught up in their struggles. This film is a great example of a director creating with complete freedom, letting loose with all the flair and gusto he has. Virtuosity is a word that came to mind many times throughout its towering 3 hours.

Magnolia is big in many ways - its length, ambition, and subject matter to name a few; but this sheer ambitiousness of the movie in the end is its most stunning characteristic. The magnitude of confidence (cast and crew alike) required to pull off this movie, whether entirely successful or not, is most admirable, and at its best moments Magnolia could even be considered genius. Admittedly imperfect, Magnolia still manages to be a fantastic film, even if it does lose its way from time to time (and although it has been said many, many times - Tom Cruise delivers an unbelievable performance which I had not even thought him capable of, and is, even on his own, more than reason enough to recommend this movie).

This movie is absolutely HILARIOUS.

If people even know who Steven Segal is, they should already know what they are getting into before they start playing this movie (meaning that it is FULL of plot holes, jumps in logic, continuity errors, outrageous stunts, etc).

That having been said, this movie is so much fun to watch it more than makes up for its shortcomings. Watch this movie with a group of friends that enjoy laughing at unintentionally ridiculous action and I guarantee it will deliver in spades - I found it to be a lot funnier than most comedies.

A Beautiful Mind is perhaps one of the most touching movie experiences of my life. Admittedly, the symptoms of schizophrenia portrayed are skewed in the interest of the story, but the overall rendition of the hardships and successes of John Nash's life is an extraordinary accomplishment for Ron Howard. This film managed to overcome an enormous obstacle, being the task of showing the audience both the brilliant and the troubled sides of Mr. Nash's mind, and helped the viewer have an understanding of the enormous respect he deserves. Every aspect of this movie, from the score to the camera movement to the fantastic acting, is masterfully executed to create an enormously satisfying film (film snobs take note - this is not a bad goal). A solid 9 out of 10, and one of the few movies that can make me cry nearly every time I watch it.