I Have Seen It....and It Was Good

I caught a matinee showing of The Two Towers today (and yes, that DOES mean that they finally let me go on vacation...Hoo-ray), but I'm going to hold off on a detailed review. Tolkien is all people are talking these days, it seems. So I'll keep it short. They didn't screw up Gollum, in fact, they did an excellent job of bringing him to the big screen. The true test for me was my girlfriend, who "Awwwwww"ed in the places where we were supposed to feel sorry for him and tensed up just a little bit when he was being sneaky.

And they didn't screw up Treebeard. He was just as ponderous yet menacing as he should have been, despite the fact that he sounded suspiciously like Gimli. It was almost as if they were played by the same actor. Hmmmm....

And as for the changes to Tolkien's plot? Jackson made a great thing even better, and kept me at the edge of my seat for the full three hours. And I finished the book only a month ago! Great acting, great direction, great special effects....well, pretty much great everything. Can I gush any more? Sure I can, but I'll spare you. You're welcome.

And as for the box office revenues....Spider-Man is so going down, if I have anything to say about it. Ya hear that? Yeah! ....I have no power over box offices whatsoever, do I?

Stacey and I also had the misfortune of watching Monster's Ball, and a what a load of formulaic CRAP that was. It so desperately wanted to be artsy, and didn't spare any of the tried-and-true Oscar nomination tactics. A pinch of out-of-focus background/foreground layering, a few splashes of repeated motifs, a pile of current, sought-after actors, a dollop of depression and hopelessness, two teaspoonfuls of social commentary, and la piece de la resistance, a southern U.S. setting. Voila! Gimme a golden statue!

Well, fortunately the Academy didn't honour it with a nod for best picture, but Halle took home the gold for her performance. I felt it was pretty undeserving. Just my two cents worth. If you really want to see what a Best Actress can do, check out Hillary Swank in Boys Don't Cry. Now THAT'S a performance.