That-Guy said:
No, I haven’t seen the film
It's unfortunate that you're treating the movie as some sort of sacrificial lamb to Hollywood as opposed to...I don't know...a MOVIE?? I've never understood why so many people on this board want movies they haven't even seen to fail! Same way with the whole Superman Returns thing.
I still haven't seen X3, but going by what I've read, I probably won't like it. Still, I never hoped the film would fail nor did I spend time talking about it like I had seen it.
That being said, it's hard to take anything you say seriously, since you're already biased against the movie without having seen it, and that is close-mindedness at its worst. Sorry, no disrespect, but that' s how I feel.
Mann’s cinematography in all of his films is damn near identical… I can understand that it’s his style, but it almost looks as if he’s trying to make the same movie over and over again.
Ali, The Insider, Collateral, Heat, Manhunter, Last of the Mohicans....those films are all very different looking, very different films period. Yes, there is a growing consistency in the cinematography, but that's called style. Kubrick's films have that look, certainly Scorsese does as well. Besides, similiar cinematography is hardly grounds for criticism. If its good -- and even you agree that it is -- then that's good for the movie.
Who compares Mann to Kubrick or Scorsese? I have never seen that comparison because frankly he isn't up to their level. It definitely could happen in 10 or so years, but not now. And I don't think anyone thinks he is up there with them.
Collateral always sticks out in my mind as being one movie that had an interesting concept but at the same time was so idiotic that it would never happen in a million years. The idea that some hitman would be stupid enough to hold a cabbie hostage as he drives around completing hits is ridiculous. And the way it’s explained is pathetic. Oh, he doesn’t know the area that well, so he gets someone who does. Yet they later state that he’s been in the area several times before and has done the exact same thing. You’d think that if you were going to make yearly trips to a city to kill five people in a single night, you’d at least take the time to learn the geography. But I digress.
Well, movies are escapist fare first and foremost. The idea that a movie couldn't happen in real life is rather flawed and useless, as we go to movies to see things we don't see in real life. It had more to do with the hitman needing a ride than not knowing the area, as he even told the cabbie where to go. Was the hitman supposed to rent a car or walk around in the city? Ride a bike?
As far as the show, yes, we're using to seeing NYPD Blue and The Shield, where the line is constantly blurred. Its still a great show, filled with some good action, stories, characters, and a lot of good cinematography. You really are taken to Miami, and its a seedy world. The show was extremely influential and groundbreaking, you have to admit. Don't let biasness blind you in that regard.
