Important topic, edgy filmmaking, subpar Blu
Added 7/12/2009
Before anyone gets too upset, the star rating reflects the product rating, not necessarily the content or film making quality. This is a passion piece with poverty activism as its theme, and understandably the director wants to get his message out there, but the Blu package was not utilized in the slightest.
The story follows twelve people in the heart of Philadelphia living out their lives, good and bad, over the events of one summer (2007). Each story gets an introduction (some longer than others) of what to expect, with the last character being introduced at the 37 minute mark. The Crash-esque style editing mixes urban music, painting art reflecting the characters, an assortment of individual camera work in each story (camera pulls, hand held pans, steady-cams) and slightly interlaced stories. This movie deviates from all of the stories having any connection except for the activism march at the end, so do not expect things to come together otherwise.
I did not care for some of the characters (for what the story was trying to convey about fighting poverty) as they ingest/inhale every drug they come across, are typically in a delusional state in each sequence, but then we are supposed to care that they are marching? There were some excellent performances by the young crowd, but there were too many characters to get enough back story and not enough time given to see the outcomes of any one subplot.
There are no special features whatsoever, except for a few paragraphs about what the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign Outreach is about. The picture quality is DVD level without any upgraded clarity. The sound is fine and the outer channels really only get used with the music mix. The cover art and description do not appear to be entirely accurate (Rated R for "some" drug use? - Throughout the story we see a variety of characters taking a bunch of drugs 10 different ways); the description says "DVD" features so the Blu cover wasn't given any treatment; since this was an activist film I expected for there to be tons of material and documentaries about the making of and the cause, but they did nothing.
A realistic film with a few good performances, but not a solid Blu. Usually I would say save your money and get the DVD, but today the DVD costs way more than the BD, so maybe it might work out better for you.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
|
Is it over yet?!
Added 9/28/2009
From the first impressions that I derived from the trailer I was anxious to see what I thought would be a very moving story of reality and poverty right here in America. Sadly, this was a poorly written attempt to convey such reality to others. It simply was.., all over the place with absolutely no continuity of story. Aside from a good cast, I could hardly wait for this one to be over!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Quietly powerful urban drama
Added 8/9/2009
Crumbling, hollowed-out buildings, trash-strewn alleyways and weed-infested empty lots provide the backdrop for "Explicit Ills," a low-keyed, understated account of a group of largely unrelated people struggling to make a go of things amidst poverty and urban decay in Philadelphia. Yet, despite the grimness of the setting, the movie offers a basis for renewal and hope through a cast of characters who don`t exactly fit into the stereotypical slum-drama mold - and in the film's commitment to social justice through unity and action.
In terms of form, Mark Webber's film is more a series of vignettes than a conventionally structured narrative, an approach that actually works quite well given the slightly amateurish, rough-around-the-edges nature of the piece. Yet, despite limited financial resources, Webber has fashioned a stylish, sometimes even quite visionary work that clearly cares about its characters and the community to which they belong.
Those characters include a young couple caught up in the web of drug addiction; an aspiring actor who's struggling with depression; a seven-year-old chess player who gets picked on at school; a sweet-natured teenager who's trying hard to impress his girl; a pot-smoking mother who's having to counsel her son to stay away from the drug till he's older; and another mother (played by Rosario Dawson) who's desperate to get some much-needed medicine for her asthmatic child. The characters have little in common with one another except that they happen to live in the same geographical locale and they're all trying to do the best they can with what fate and, in some cases, their own choices and actions have led them to. The movie ends on a powerful note of optimism and reconciliation after a heartbreaking and gut-wrenching event befalls two of the main characters.
When all is said and done, Webber's first directorial effort is more a work of "promise" than a fully realized work of art in its own right. But if your taste runs more towards the experimental and the "hip" and less towards the stale conventions of commercial moviemaking, then "Explicit Ills" might well be the movie for you.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Thriller That Doens't Make Much Sense
Added 11/14/2009
Sometimes the production history behind a film is more interesting than the film itself (like, say, "Town and Country"). Even if you don't know "Horsemen," directed by Jonas Åkerlund, ("Spun") went through re-shoots and re-edits, you will know something is wrong with the thriller that has only 90 minutes. Several parts are never explained (and not in the way that will make the film intriguing). The film opens promisingly, but soon loses its way and the wrap-up is terribly rushed. In short, the story of "Horsemen" doesn't make much sense.
Dennis Quaid plays a Detroit police detective Aidan Breslin, whose beloved wife died recently. The hardened detective has to investigate a string of grisly ritualistic serial murders, and he discovers Kristin (Ziyi Zhang), a beautiful daughter of one victim, knows the truths behind the cases.
The film's effective photography captures the cold, chilling atmosphere that perfectly matches the story, and Ziyi Zhang's rather campy acting is kind of attractive, but the storyline remains weak and unfocused throughout, not strong enough to attract the viewers. Cryptic messages left at the crime scenes are not really interesting, neither are the film's biblical references. Dennis Quaid's police detective actually has little to do while investigating. Reliable and talented actors like Clifton Collins Jr. are wasted, or just forgotten.
There are some moments in "Horsemen," where the incredible story shows a sign of improvement as a thriller or a drama. That never happens, however. At the end of the film, you will be left wondering "Did I miss something?" Sadly, no, you didn't.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Worse than CSI and Criminal Minds combined!
Added 11/8/2009
A "B" movie with a normally good main actor. But, that is the GOOD news. The graphic violence is not well documented in many reviews. This is a sick movie without a single redeeming factor. If you choose to watch this movie, please send the kids to bed. The creators of this movie are probably as sick as the movie they created - no doubt for shock value, but, hey, I like Halloween. This is sordid, sick and should be shredded! It could actually help sick people become violent, in my opinion. YUK!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
'Come And See' One Of The Year's Most Under-Rated Movies
Added 11/6/2009
A psychological horror thriller, Horsemen follows detective Aidan Breslin (Dennis Quaid) and other officers on the Detroit police force as they investigate a series of connected brutal murders in which the victims have been tortured to death and the words 'Come And See' are left at the scenes, both goading investigators on and hinting at something bigger yet to come. Breslin, already dark and distant since the death of his wife several years earlier, is drawn into obsession on the case and further away from his increasingly estranged children at home. It's eventually deciphered that the 'Come And See' warning and certain other clues left at the crime scenes tie in with Biblical references to the coming of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Things get weirder as suspects for the killings start emerging - not the people the police thought would be involved with acts this horrific, and as very disturbing facts about the pasts of some of the victims get called into question. Horsemen takes a different route than Saw - Unrated (Two-Disc Special Edition) and other recent horror movies with a torture theme: most (though not all) of the grisliest acts take place largely offscreen, seen in glimpses or in the still shots of crime scene photos, and in the reactions of the characters who come upon the crime scenes, who view video footage that turns up, etc. It fits in well with the air of mystery the movie builds as to who the real killers are, what the ultimate agenda is, and all the other facets of the film that stay largely in the dark until the end. There are major surprise revelations throughout - not just at the end - and the ultimate revelations at the end are dramatic and jolting. With the secrets Horsemen has set itself up to reveal, there are so many ways this movie could have fallen on its face, but it avoids every one of them. A powerful, frightening and very under-rated movie, superbly acted by the whole cast.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Zi, Quaid and the Swedes
Added 10/25/2009
I mildly watchable, mildly grotesque whodunnit so full of clichés that vital twists are predictable. I watched it intently, however, for 3 reasons: Zhang Ziyi (in an English language role), Dennis Quaid and the visuals by two Swedes, Jonas Åkerlund (director) and Eric Broms (DP). If it weren't for them, this film would have gotten 2 stars from me.
Dennis has gotten beefier and more eccentric -- and also more effortlessly magnetic. He was in every scene as the relentless detective with family issues -- and, as an actor, he never flagged. So it was quite an accomplishment for Zhang Ziyi, in a much smaller role, to share a few scenes with him and still be memorable.
The rewriting to accommodate her casting was sloppy (primarily, she's too old for the role as written). But that was the fault of the writers. She did wonders with what was given her. And she's sexier in this role than in any other role I've seen her in -- and she spends most of her time heavily covered up.
Ultimately, a disappointing story -- but much of the journey kept promising something better. And, unlike most Hollywood films today, this was a visually pleasing movie (except for the gore, that is).
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Decent movie for the first half, but then...
Added 10/15/2009
I picked this up because it looked interesting, Dennis Quaid is a really good actor, and Zhang Ziyi was in it. The movie seemed pretty interesting and enjoyable for the first half, even though it was obviously something of a "Se7en" copycat. I was surprised by the turn involving Zhang Ziyi's character, which was good, since a suspense movie is usually improved when the story has some surprises in store for you. Alas, from that turn, the movie started to go downhill. It was painfully predictable from that point on. (Read no further if don't want spoilers.) I knew just as soon as they set Detective Breslin's (Dennis Quaid's) oldest son Alex up as a very bright, but unmotivated student, and made a point (over and over again) of the fact that Breslin's work keeps him from spending much time with his boys, that the oldest kid was going to be the ringleader of the four murderers who call themselves "The Four Horsemen." At the end, we're obviously supposed to be torn up at the heart-wrenching conclusion, when Breslin discover's what his son has done, and his son suicides in front of him to confront him with his failure as a father. I had almost the opposite reaction. My first thought was "have we really become so self-indulgent as culture, that we are supposed to feel sympathy with someone who commits multiple, horrific torture-murders because his daddy didn't pay him enough attention?!? Are you kidding me!?"
Another problem is that this whole thing just doesn't feel true. Breslin's son really isn't all that believable as a serial killer, given his character background. Perhaps it's just because, thanks to my work, I know too much about them and their usual characteristics. John Doe, in "Se7en" was a believable serial killer, because he was given several characteristics of a psychopath -- which almost all serial killers are, and which is defined as someone who lacks empathy and guilt, who is egocentric and impulsive, who can often convincingly fake the human emotions he lacks, and who does not conform to social norms, conventional morality and society's laws. John Doe was also a classic "mission-oriented" serial killer (as opposed to a lust killer whose crimes sexually gratify him; a hedonistic serial killer, who derives pleasure from killing; or a "visionary" serial killer, who suffers psychotic breaks with reality, and acts out of his delusions). Breslin's son is obviously meant to be a mission oriented serial killer like John Doe was, but again, his history doesn't fit, and his obvious care for his younger brother isn't consistent with a real serial killer's psychopathic personality. Also, almost all serial killers underwent some form of actual abuse, whether physical, sexual, or psychological/emotional as a children, which doesn't apply to Alex either. In fact, nothing in this kid's past is really characteristic of a serial killer. The only character in the film who does have typical serial killer factors in her past is Zhang Ziyi's, but her behavior is more characteristic of male serial killers than the female ones (who almost always have a different MO).
Anyway, this is a movie that started out well, but once it became clear where they were going with it, it quickly lost steam and became just another mediocre copycat picture.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
