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Directed by: Hughes Brothers Starring: Larenz Tate, Keith David, Chris Tucker This movie was a mess. The marketers apparently want you to think it's all about a big heist, but that's really just a small part of it. The idea doesn't even come up until the last 40 minutes. Lots of tired Vietnam cliches ("fire in the hole!", "we're in a world of poo poo"). It seemed like I was being asked to sympathize with the main character, but he totally dug his own grave. The whole thing was just all over the place. Still, nice photography and I think Larenz Tate is a very good, underrated actor. Kickass soundtrack too! RATING: 3 PROS: Tate is a fine actor; unbelievably great soundtrack CONS: film can't seem to decide what it is ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0112819/
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Jan 26, 2005 22:42
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| # ? Apr 24, 2024 00:41 |
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Whatever happened to the Hughes brothers? They were a pretty hot property in the ninties, but they seem to have disappeared as of late. This is one of the more interesting Vietnam films in my opinion, though it was a few years to late to really make anything of itself. I agree there's a lot of unevenness in the film, and this may have been a little too ambitious of a project for young filmmakers, working on, I believe, only their second feature. Still, it shows the potential of a great talent (or talents), and I await seeing more films from the Hughes. Preferrable not From Hell though.
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Jan 26, 2005 23:01
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Nearly all chapters of Dead Presidents' two hour runtime, on their own, are superbly written, filmed, and acted. When pasted together, however, the result is definitely less than the sum of its parts. I honestly expected a fairly typical heist movie, but the robbery in Dead Presidents comes so late that it feels like little more than an epilogue. Though I appreciate the extent of the character introduction and development, and enjoyed nearly all of it, it goes on for far too long. The direction and writing is superb, save for some of the overly-long Vietnam sequences (the Hughes brothers have a skill for shooting urban settings, not jungle warfare, and their attempt feels like a poorly budgeted made-for-TV Vietnam flick). In hindsight, I would've liked a little less backstory: when we finally get to the heist and its consequences, everything is rushed and poorly edited. Still, it's only in the light of the entire movie that these complaints exist. The movie is still extremely entertaining throughout and the last 40 minutes, although rushed, are awesome. 3.5
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Jun 25, 2005 06:15
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