Review: Stop - Loss + ˹ѧ¿ÍÃìÁàÅç¡æ ·Õèª×èÍÇèÒ The Dark Knight + Chaos Theory
The word "Stop-Loss" comes from US Military policy that concerning an involuntary extension of a service member's active duty service under the enlistment contract in order to retain them beyond their initial end of term of service date (thanks again, Wiki!).
Imagine what if you have one damn good subject on your hands, but you don't have any idea how to tell it properly. Stop - Loss is the movie with such a great potential. But all they’ve accomplished was spending times on far less intriguing plot that building around the story. In the end, this is just one big frustrating motion picture that should have …no, must have been excellence.
Brandon (Ryan Phillippe), Steve (Channing Tatum) and Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) are three childhood friends and decorated war heroes who just got back from Iraq. Each of them has a goal in life to fulfill. For Brandon, he thinks he had it enough with the whole war things. But soon he realized that he have been stoplossed that required him to go back duty to Iraq. Against his will, Brandon and Steve’s soon-to-be wife, Michelle (Abbie Cornish) decided to go to Washington DC and seeking help from senator. Since leader of the gang like Brandon was AWOL, it's only Steve to take a full responsibility for their group instead. And it’s a bad time indeed, since in the most troubled friend like Tommy is about going to lose his grip.
From the sound of this, it should be an important film since this “Stop-Loss” policy obviously has a big loophole. And it’s going to be interesting, if they decided to do an expose piece to point out that what went wrong with that policy. But somehow the director, Kimberly Peirce (her second directorial gig since disturbingly masterpiece Boy Don't Cry) interested in brotherhood and post-war traumatize instead. And bad new is she didn't exactly did such a good job at all. An only three dimensional character I saw was a leading man Brandon (more on that later). In the meantime, his fellow friends are left unexplored (especially Joseph Gordon-Levitt‘s Tommy who has not only an absolute caricature character, but also poorly used to create any necessary tension between other characters). And while Brandon and Michelle travel together, there is a sexual tension going on between them. But the film did a poor job depicting it, and that’s mean the whole point of that plot structure have gone completely wasted.
Like I've said, considering the topic they aimed for, the story itself is really weak by comparison. For the whole time, we saw Brandon travels to get some help. But after the trip came to an end, it kind of makes you feel that it is an absolutely unnecessary trip. Brandon can’t get help as he hoped for. And his alternative solution (to run away) is planned and then dumped in a last minute without a proper explanation. Even when something really bad happened that eventually made everybody to re-evaluate their life, its feel shamelessly manipulative and cliché (which end up with unintentional hilarious macho-bonding thing between two lead characters). In fact, an intermission when Brandon visit his comrade who is simply beyond crippled (lose one leg, one arm and two eyes) is more touching than everything else in the movie.
If the cast will make you drool (especially girls), you're not alone. Stop-Loss packed with "next best thing" casts. But only Ryan Phillippe is worth watching (probably the most mature role of his career to date). Brandon is an important character, since he is a centerpiece to the story. It required him to show a lot of layers, anger, frustration, etc. And the good thing is Ryan knew his character so well and did a very good job (by the scene he beat up thieves who stole his belonging, I entirely bought his character already). On the other hand, there's too limited time for Channing and Joseph to start doing something mesmerizing like their leading actor. I don't know that it would be an improvement or not, but it would be really nice if they decide to share an equal screen time for those three young actors.
Stop-Loss is yet another anti-war drama like its predecessor (In the Valley of Elah, Rendition, Redacted). I don't really know why those movies weren’t really successful in United State (in term of box office). My guess (since I'm obviously not one of those people in that "The greatest nation in da world") is they might fed up with the whole war things that they've seen in the media every single day. So why should bother go seeing another one on a big screen? Well, that’s why I’m glad that I’m not American.
¶Ö§áÁéÇèÒÍÑÈÇÔ¹áËè§ÃѵµÔ¡ÒŨÐäÁèÊÒÁÒöàÃÕ¡ä´éÇèÒ à»ç¹Ë¹Ñ§·ÕèÊÃéÒ§¤ÇÒÁʹءʹҹµ×è¹àµé¹ãËé¡Ñº¤¹´Ùä´éÍÂèÒ§àµçÁ·Õè¹Ñ¡ áµèÊÔ觷ÕèàÃÒä´éÃѺà»ç¹¡Ò÷´á·¹¹Ñé¹ Áѹ¡çÍÒ¨¨ÐÊÃéÒ§»ÃзѺ㨠·ÕèµÃÖ§µÃÒäÇéã¹ã¨ä´éÂÒǹҹ¡ÇèÒ ¶éÒà»ÃÕºÇèÒ Batman Begin ¤×Í Star Wars: New Hope ·Õèà»ç¹¡Òú͡àÅèÒ¶Ö§¡Òö×Í¡Óà¹Ô´ ¢Í§ÎÕâÃèµÑÇàÅç¡æ¤¹Ë¹Öè§ ·ÕèµéͧạÃѺ¤ÇÒÁËÇѧ¢Í§¤¹·Ñ駡ÒáÅ礫ÕèàÍÒäÇé The Dark Knight ¡ç¤×Í Star Wars: Empire Strike Back ·Õè·Ø¡ÊÔ觷ءÍÂèÒ§´ÙàËÁ×͹¨ÐäÁèä´éà»ç¹ÍÂèÒ§·Õè¤Ò´ËÇѧàÍÒäÇé áµèÁѹ¡çÂѧ¤§ÁÕáʧÊÇèÒ§àÅç´ÅÍ´à¢éÒÁÒÃÓäà ¨Ò¡»ÅÒ·ҧ·Õè·Í´ÂÒÇÍÂÙèàº×éͧ˹éÒ «Öè§Áѹ¹èÒ¨Ðà¾Õ§¾ÍáÅéÇ ÊÓËÃѺÍÑÈÇÔ¹áËè§ÃѵµÔ¡ÒŤ¹¹Õé...
The Dark Knight à»ç¹Ë¹Ñ§·Õè¹èҴٹФÃѺ áµèÊÓËÃѺ¼ÁÃÙéÊÖ¡ªÍºâ¨ê¡à¡ÍÃì·ÕèáÊ´§â´Âá¨ç¤ ¹Ôâ¤ÅÊѹÁÒ¡¡ÇèÒ ÍÒ¨à¾ÃÒйÔâ¤ÅÊѹÁպؤÅԡẺàªè¹¹Õé¨ÃÔ§ æ¤×͵šÃéÒ ÊèǹÎÕ´¹Õè´Ùà»ç¹¤¹¨ÃÔ§¨Ñ§ÁÒ¡ä»Ë¹èÍ äÁèÃÙéàËÁ×͹¡Ñ¹¶éÒä´éä»´ÙÍÒ¨¨Ðà»ÅÕè¹㨡çä´é
You could have brain tumor by watching this contaminated turd. Nothing in Gentlemen Broncos pays off, it’s incoherent mess, and chock-full of incredibly annoying characters. You will not only loath this movie, but it also makes you want to punch someone who responsible for this abomination in the face.
BloodyMonday Rating:
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
Imagine if Akira got Live-Action treatment by... say Alfonso Cuarón, you know how awesome it might be? That’s what happened to "Fantastic Mr. Fox". Wes Anderson's auteur perfectly captured the quirkiness and blissful tone of the material. Its stop-motion technique might be a little crude and... somewhat unsophisticated, but that's the charm of it. You’ll feel like pop-up book unveiled before your eyes. This is an exceptional animation of the year.
Up in the Air is a blockbuster movie for people who think blockbuster movies are dumb, as it chock full of brilliantly written dialogue, and acting showcase for three talented actors (especially star-making turn by Anna Kendrick). But in the end, there's little to love, not so much story to chew on (plus disappointing third act), and no real connection to the meaning of human interaction as it intended to be.
BloodyMonday Rating:
I Love You, Beth Cooper (2009)
Cliché-ridden plot about a bunch of annoying characters get together in one idiotic circumstance, "I Love You, Beth Cooper" is shameless exploitation & biggest insult to 80s teen flicks. It's like memorizing magic trick from internet, hoping to perform like David Copperfield. Neither sense of wonder nor magic flare happens here. Only good thing is, it makes me wanna cleanse my soul with genuine 80s teen movie night marathon.
BloodyMonday Rating:
Everybody's Fine (2009)
Meh. The movie serious lack of originality & characters development. Only Robert De Niro comes out fine in this schmaltzy, "Lifetime" movie-of-the-week plot.
BloodyMonday Rating:
Paper Heart (2009)
Twee delight... That's only two words I can think of right now.
BloodyMonday Rating:
Adam (2009)
A perfect companion to Mary & Max (one of the best animation of 2009), Adam is star-crossed love story (pun intended) between Adam, Asperger's Syndrome bearer, and Beth, free spirit woman. The picture wouldn’t be this intimate without stunning performance by Hugh Dancy. On the other hand, the lack of depth on why Beth would love someone like Adam, preventing me from wholeheartedly embraces her choice in the end (which is nice & perfect but requires a leap of faith). Otherwise, this is touching romantic film, which putting its feet firmly on the ground, making the world full of hope and seems nicer place to live.
BloodyMonday Rating:
The Invention of Lying (2009)
Expected to be like “Click” or “Yes Man”, where high-concept plot turned into endless gags, with moral lesson (forcefully) shoving down your throat. But "The Invention of Lying" is thinking man’s film. The whole concept is not seeing how first lying man exploits the ability. But it's about him finding the way not to lie, in order to find genuine happiness. Great stuff.
BloodyMonday Rating:
Give ‘Em Hell Malone (2009)
This is one damn frustrating experience. It’s like watching an infant trying to stand up and walk. They would take a few steps then fall their asses. In fact, kiddie film like “Bugsy Malone” has done better job paying a tribute to film noir than this borefest.
¹èÒʹء¹Ð¤Ð..˹ѧ anti ʧ¤ÃÒÁ..ªÍºÍÂÙèáÅéÇ
½Ò¡¢éͤÇÒÁËÅѧäÁ¤ì
Rss Feed
¼ÙéµÔ´µÒÁºÅçÍ¡ : 1 ¤¹ [
ÍÑÈÇÔ¹áËè§ÃѵµÔ¡ÒÅ ¶×ÍÇèÒà»ç¹µÑÇÅФ÷ÕèÁըشÂ×¹ÍÂÙèµÃ§¢éÒÁ¡Ñº¤ÓÇèÒ "«Ø»à»ÍÃìÎÕâÃè" ÍÂèÒ§ÊÔé¹àªÔ§ ¹ÕéÍÒ¨¨Ðà»ç¹ÀҾ¹µÃì·Õè·ÓÍÍ¡ÁÒä´éÍÂèÒ§àËÁÒÐÊÁ ÊÓËÃѺ¼ÙéªÁ·ÕèäÁèä´éÁÕ¤ÇÒÁ¹ÔÂÁªÁªÍºË¹Ñ§á¹Ç«Ø»à»ÍÃìÎÕâÃèÁÒ¡è͹ áÅйÕéÍÒ¨¨Ðà»ç¹ÀҾ¹µÃì·ÕèäÁèä´éÁͺÊÔ觷ÕèàÃÒ¤Ò´ËÇѧàÍÒäÇé ¨Ò¡Ë¹Ñ§·ÕèÍÍ¡©ÒÂ㹪èǧ«ÑÁàÁÍÃìàÃ×èͧ˹Öè§ à¾ÃÒлÃÐʺ¡Òóì·ÕèàÃÒ¨Ðä´éÃѺÃÐËÇèÒ§¡ÒÃÃѺªÁ Åéǹ¤×ͤÇÒÁâÈ¡àÈÃéÒ ¤ÇÒÁ¡´´Ñ¹ áÅÐʶҹ¡Òóì·Õè´ÙáÅéÇÊÔé¹ËÇѧáÅйèÒ·éÍá·éã¨à»ç¹ÍÂèÒ§ÂÔè§ äÁèÁÕÍÕ¡áÅéÇÊÓËÃѺ§Ò¹â»Ã´Ñ¡ªÑè¹´Õ䫹ìÍÅѧ¡Òà ·Õè¨Ð¤ÍÂáµè´Ö§¤¹´ÙãËéÍÍ¡ËèÒ§ ¡ÑºÊ¶Ò¹¡Òóì·Õè¡ÓÅѧà¡Ô´¢Öé¹ÍÂÙèàº×éͧ˹éÒ äÁèÁÕÍÕ¡áÅéÇÊÓËÃѺ©Ò¡¡ÒõèÍÊÙé ·Õèä´éÃѺ¡ÒÃÍ͡ẺÊÃéÒ§ÊÃäìÁÒÍÂèÒ§´Õ à¾Õ§à¾×èÍ·Õè¨Ðä´éµÍºÊ¹Í§¤ÇÒÁµéͧ¡Òâͧ¼ÙéªÁ ã¹Ë¹Ñ§«ÑÁàÁÍÃì»ÃШӻÕàÃ×èͧ˹Öè§...
¡ÒâҴ¤Ùèµè͡÷Õè¤Ùè¤Çà ·ÓãËé Batman Begin à»ç¹¡ÒÃÊÃéÒ§¤ÇÒÁÊÁºÙóìã¹µÑǵ¹¢Í§ Batman à¾Õ§¿Ò¡à´ÕÂÇ «Öè§Áѹ¡çä´é¶Ù¡àµÔÁãËéàµçÁ ´éÇ¡ÒÃà´Ô¹·Ò§ÁҢͧÊͧµÑÇÅФÃãËÁèã¹ÀÒ¤¹Õé ·Ø¡æ©Ò¡·Õè Joker ä´éÂèÒ§¡ÃÒÂà¢éÒÁÒ Áѹ¡çàËÁ×͹¡ÑºÅÁËÁعÅÙ¡àÅç¡æ ·Õè¡ÓÅѧ¨Ðá»Ãà»ÅÕè¹à»ç¹·ÍÃì¹Òâ´·ÕèÊÃéÒ§¤ÇÒÁËÒ¹Ðä´éã¹äÁèªéÒ ã¹ÊèǹµÑǢͧ Harvy Dent àͧ¹Ñé¹ ¡çà»ÃÕºàÊÁ×͹ÃÙ»á¡ÐÊÅÑ¡·ÕèÊǧÒÁ ·ÕèÅÁ¶Ù¡½¹¡Ñ´¡Ãè͹ ¨¹ã¹·ÕèÊØ´¡çä´é¾Ñ§·ÅÒÂŧÍÂèÒ§ÊÔé¹àªÔ§...
¶Ö§áÁéÇèÒÍÑÈÇÔ¹áËè§ÃѵµÔ¡ÒŨÐäÁèÊÒÁÒöàÃÕ¡ä´éÇèÒ à»ç¹Ë¹Ñ§·ÕèÊÃéÒ§¤ÇÒÁʹءʹҹµ×è¹àµé¹ãËé¡Ñº¤¹´Ùä´éÍÂèÒ§àµçÁ·Õè¹Ñ¡ áµèÊÔ觷ÕèàÃÒä´éÃѺà»ç¹¡Ò÷´á·¹¹Ñé¹ Áѹ¡çÍÒ¨¨ÐÊÃéÒ§»ÃзѺ㨠·ÕèµÃÖ§µÃÒäÇéã¹ã¨ä´éÂÒǹҹ¡ÇèÒ ¶éÒà»ÃÕºÇèÒ Batman Begin ¤×Í Star Wars: New Hope ·Õèà»ç¹¡Òú͡àÅèÒ¶Ö§¡Òö×Í¡Óà¹Ô´ ¢Í§ÎÕâÃèµÑÇàÅç¡æ¤¹Ë¹Öè§ ·ÕèµéͧạÃѺ¤ÇÒÁËÇѧ¢Í§¤¹·Ñ駡ÒáÅ礫ÕèàÍÒäÇé The Dark Knight ¡ç¤×Í Star Wars: Empire Strike Back ·Õè·Ø¡ÊÔ觷ءÍÂèÒ§´ÙàËÁ×͹¨ÐäÁèä´éà»ç¹ÍÂèÒ§·Õè¤Ò´ËÇѧàÍÒäÇé áµèÁѹ¡çÂѧ¤§ÁÕáʧÊÇèÒ§àÅç´ÅÍ´à¢éÒÁÒÃÓäà ¨Ò¡»ÅÒ·ҧ·Õè·Í´ÂÒÇÍÂÙèàº×éͧ˹éÒ «Öè§Áѹ¹èÒ¨Ðà¾Õ§¾ÍáÅéÇ ÊÓËÃѺÍÑÈÇÔ¹áËè§ÃѵµÔ¡ÒŤ¹¹Õé...
BloodyMonday Rating: