Movie: The Raven (2012)

Rating: C+

I really wonder if Hollywood is afraid of making anything provocative, shocking, and daring. The Raven had so much potential, and a wealth of back material to draw from. And while it was clever, it wasn't particularly smart. Where there were plot twists, they weren't particularly mind-bending. Yet another movie in this year's indulgence of mediocrity.



It's been said that John Cusack is probably the most natural actor of our time. And I quite agree with that. It's a shame that most of the other cast members in this film was not so natural. And while I feel that Cusack is miscast in this role, I think he did an admirable job as Edgar Allan Poe, I feel that the role would have been better served being played by someone a little darker, say perhaps, Johnny Depp.

The biggest problem of the movie was its lack of direction. There really would have been no difference if they completed this movie with 1 murder, or with a dozen. The clues of the murder led you to the next clue and not to who the killer was. So really, The mystery and chase was really rather pointless. And while ONE of the murders was decidedly graphic and macabre, none of the other ones had the same level fear, torture, nor blood.

Perhaps one would be more involved in the movie if they were more familiar with Poe's work, but I doubt very many know more than a handful of his life and work well enough to find the correlation intriguing. This movie could have had so much more depth. It could have been significantly more gripping. Or they could have opted to make it totally tragic. Instead, they opted for mediocrity.

~Cheers.

Movie: The Tourist

Rating: D

A movie about intrigue, mystery, and romance without being intriguing, mysterious, nor romantic.



I have a new rule. I will not watch any movie with Timothy Dalton cast in a human role. We`re talking about an actor whose last major North American feature film was The Beautician and the Beast, with....commence shuddering now.....Fran Drescher. Yes, he had a voice over role in Toy Story 3, but in a human role...New Rule.

Although, to be fair, it`s not really HIS fault the movie sludged around in mediocrity; you`d think that a movie with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp would be more engaging with more drama, passion, and anything else that makes an actor good. Instead, the two powerhouse actors seemed disinterested and unengaged. Even the generally entertaining Paul Bettany seemed like a total miscast in this 104 minute unthrilling thriller.

Beautifully shot in Venice... Sorry, that`s about the only GOOD thing I have to say about the movie. A suspense film that is unsuspenseful. A weak attempt at comedy that falls flat. Add in some totally misplaced romance, and you get a film that just leaves you with very little to care about. Quite honestly, The Tourist makes The Beautician and The Beast seem worth watching. Ok. Maybe not.

~Cheers.