Well, coming soon you'll find an interesting array of films being reviewed. On deck, I have Touching the Void, The Ring, Birth of a Nation, Breakin' and more. I'm covering all bases, eras, genres, etc.. You'll never know what I'll see next. So, keep coming back.
The Terminal
Review by Jon Waterman
**
While Viktor Navorski was on a plane heading to New York City, his native land of Krakozhia begins a civil war. The political coup that happened overnight left Navorski without a valid passport or visa, since the country in turmoil is not recognized by the United States during the unrest. Viktor is not allowed to enter NYC, nor is he allowed to fly back to his home. Instead he’s left to live inside the airport’s international terminal until things get resolved, however long that may be.
The idea sounds pretty far-fetched, but it’s based on a true story of a man that still resides in an airport terminal. What’s more contrived is the reason that Viktor comes to New York. I’m a little surprised the writing team couldn’t think of anything better, something less tacked on. However, it is a Steven Spielberg picture, so cheap sentimentality isn’t out of the question. Otherwise, the story/script isn’t terrible, but it hardly addresses everything it probably should. Jeff Nathanson (who did “Catch Me If You Can,” but also “Speed 2” and “Rush Hour 2”…) wrote the script with Sacha Gervasi based on the story Sacha conceived with Andrew Niccol (who did “Gattaca,” but also “S1m0ne”…). They produce a strange amalgam of virtually every family-friendly sub-genre possible that verges on being too much, but somehow stays within the borders of watchability. It draws too heavily on self-referencing conversations. That means, too often a character brings back some bit of dialogue from earlier in the movie that should have been left alone. And the whole bad guy thread went from non-existent to lame duck. There were also side stories galore, some of which should have been cut.
Speaking of cut, did Viktor find a buddy with some scissors, because I swear that in all that time, his hair doesn’t grow an inch. That’s a minor point. A major one is that superstar actor, All-American boy Tom Hanks is playing the foreign “immigrant.” I realize that the movie wouldn’t have had the box office impact were he not attached. But, as charming and likable as he was in the role, I can’t help but think that more authenticity would have been better.
The movie is somewhat interesting at first, but rather quickly loses steam when you realize that they essentially ditch the concept in favor of more conventional stories, such as the romantic threads. Overall, I could say that it’s cute, but over two hours of that makes the films wings a little heavy. Like Viktor, this film just never really goes anywhere.
++++++++
Coffee and Cigarettes
Review by Jon Waterman
*
There really isn’t a plot to this movie, so I can’t give my usual paragraph synopsis. What I can say is that the film is comprised of eleven self-serving (no pun intended) segments where people sit at various locales while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes. That’s about it. It’s a limited menu, and non-smoking’s all filled up. Still want to stay?
What a horrible collection this turned out to be. Basically the movie takes these short films that writer/director Jim Jarmusch did on his spare time and clumps them together. They all deal with coffee and cigarettes. They almost all have big name stars. They all take place in a diner/restaurant. Aside from a couple late references to earlier segments, that’s about all the vignettes have in common.
Well, that’s not entirely true. They’re all incredibly awkward to watch. Most also suffer from being unbearably slow moving. Let’s get something straight right now. Awkward pauses in conversations usually are not funny. Reaction shots to awkward dialogue can be. Unfortunately, everyone in this movie plays it completely straight. They are lifeless beyond belief. Why not call the dang thing “Robots and Cigarettes?” Steven Wright and Roberto Benigni star in the first short, which is surprisingly devoid of laughs or any sort of reasonable pace, thus crushing the chance for any momentum to be built up as the picture moved along.
I don’t know. I must be missing something. I’m not seeing what the point is of making this compilation film. There doesn’t seem to be any real statement made about coffee, cigarettes, diners, or these social situations. None of the segments capture anything relatable, either, because they mostly deal with first meetings between two celebrities. Oh, and the cinematography and editing were incredibly bad. Jump cuts abound. I don’t need to see the top of the table so often, either. Thanks. Honestly, most of the shorts give off this poorly executed student film vibe. Instead of covering the story, Jarmusch covered the scene. That’s the wrong way to go about it. This doesn’t really matter, but couldn’t one of the stories have happened at someone’s home? People still drink coffee at home, right? Why not make a segment about a couple in the morning? Just an idea. I’m probably way off base with whatever is the purpose of the piece.
A couple of the segments would work very well on their own as quirky short films. However, once they’re balled up with the rest of the movie, the life is virtually sucked out of them. Bill Murray with Gza and Rza of the Wu-Tang was fantastic; Tom Waits with Iggy Pop had their moments – mostly thanks to Waits’ great acting; and the final chapter starring William Rice and Taylor Mead should charm the hell out of anyone watching. But three (really two and a half) out of eleven isn’t enough to make it worthwhile.
No refill for me, thanks. Just the check. Don’t expect a big tip, either. Service was terrible.
The Terminal
Review by Jon Waterman
**
While Viktor Navorski was on a plane heading to New York City, his native land of Krakozhia begins a civil war. The political coup that happened overnight left Navorski without a valid passport or visa, since the country in turmoil is not recognized by the United States during the unrest. Viktor is not allowed to enter NYC, nor is he allowed to fly back to his home. Instead he’s left to live inside the airport’s international terminal until things get resolved, however long that may be.
The idea sounds pretty far-fetched, but it’s based on a true story of a man that still resides in an airport terminal. What’s more contrived is the reason that Viktor comes to New York. I’m a little surprised the writing team couldn’t think of anything better, something less tacked on. However, it is a Steven Spielberg picture, so cheap sentimentality isn’t out of the question. Otherwise, the story/script isn’t terrible, but it hardly addresses everything it probably should. Jeff Nathanson (who did “Catch Me If You Can,” but also “Speed 2” and “Rush Hour 2”…) wrote the script with Sacha Gervasi based on the story Sacha conceived with Andrew Niccol (who did “Gattaca,” but also “S1m0ne”…). They produce a strange amalgam of virtually every family-friendly sub-genre possible that verges on being too much, but somehow stays within the borders of watchability. It draws too heavily on self-referencing conversations. That means, too often a character brings back some bit of dialogue from earlier in the movie that should have been left alone. And the whole bad guy thread went from non-existent to lame duck. There were also side stories galore, some of which should have been cut.
Speaking of cut, did Viktor find a buddy with some scissors, because I swear that in all that time, his hair doesn’t grow an inch. That’s a minor point. A major one is that superstar actor, All-American boy Tom Hanks is playing the foreign “immigrant.” I realize that the movie wouldn’t have had the box office impact were he not attached. But, as charming and likable as he was in the role, I can’t help but think that more authenticity would have been better.
The movie is somewhat interesting at first, but rather quickly loses steam when you realize that they essentially ditch the concept in favor of more conventional stories, such as the romantic threads. Overall, I could say that it’s cute, but over two hours of that makes the films wings a little heavy. Like Viktor, this film just never really goes anywhere.
++++++++
Coffee and Cigarettes
Review by Jon Waterman
*
There really isn’t a plot to this movie, so I can’t give my usual paragraph synopsis. What I can say is that the film is comprised of eleven self-serving (no pun intended) segments where people sit at various locales while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes. That’s about it. It’s a limited menu, and non-smoking’s all filled up. Still want to stay?
What a horrible collection this turned out to be. Basically the movie takes these short films that writer/director Jim Jarmusch did on his spare time and clumps them together. They all deal with coffee and cigarettes. They almost all have big name stars. They all take place in a diner/restaurant. Aside from a couple late references to earlier segments, that’s about all the vignettes have in common.
Well, that’s not entirely true. They’re all incredibly awkward to watch. Most also suffer from being unbearably slow moving. Let’s get something straight right now. Awkward pauses in conversations usually are not funny. Reaction shots to awkward dialogue can be. Unfortunately, everyone in this movie plays it completely straight. They are lifeless beyond belief. Why not call the dang thing “Robots and Cigarettes?” Steven Wright and Roberto Benigni star in the first short, which is surprisingly devoid of laughs or any sort of reasonable pace, thus crushing the chance for any momentum to be built up as the picture moved along.
I don’t know. I must be missing something. I’m not seeing what the point is of making this compilation film. There doesn’t seem to be any real statement made about coffee, cigarettes, diners, or these social situations. None of the segments capture anything relatable, either, because they mostly deal with first meetings between two celebrities. Oh, and the cinematography and editing were incredibly bad. Jump cuts abound. I don’t need to see the top of the table so often, either. Thanks. Honestly, most of the shorts give off this poorly executed student film vibe. Instead of covering the story, Jarmusch covered the scene. That’s the wrong way to go about it. This doesn’t really matter, but couldn’t one of the stories have happened at someone’s home? People still drink coffee at home, right? Why not make a segment about a couple in the morning? Just an idea. I’m probably way off base with whatever is the purpose of the piece.
A couple of the segments would work very well on their own as quirky short films. However, once they’re balled up with the rest of the movie, the life is virtually sucked out of them. Bill Murray with Gza and Rza of the Wu-Tang was fantastic; Tom Waits with Iggy Pop had their moments – mostly thanks to Waits’ great acting; and the final chapter starring William Rice and Taylor Mead should charm the hell out of anyone watching. But three (really two and a half) out of eleven isn’t enough to make it worthwhile.
No refill for me, thanks. Just the check. Don’t expect a big tip, either. Service was terrible.
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