Film review :D Snakes on a Plane, A Scanner Darkly
K, I like movies. Who doesn’t? Thought I’d share my thoughts with you, oh worshippers of the immaculate buttfur. So this weekend I watched (on DVD but I’m evaluating the movie and not the bonus material as I usually don’t have time to watch that stuff).
First up is Snakes on a Plane. Probably one of the most overhyped films of the past year. Did it live up to its promise? Well it depends what you thought it’d promise. For me, it certainly delivered. The whole plot is as long as its title (cos the plot IS the film’s title!) and the acting is as cringe-worthy as you can imagine. Except of course from Samuel L Jackson. He could show up on the Teletubbies and make it look cool. It’s popcorn brainless fun and it’s mediocre at best, soporific at worst. But what can you expect from a film priding itself on being a bmovie?
Ah well - Frogbat Rating - 
Second film last night was A Scanner Darkly. If anything this proved to be a costly experiment in attempting to rotoscope captured action into something other than a 3d environment. The effect is very much something that reminds of old black and white scanned photos and digitised images that were then hand colourised afterwards (this in itself a process that dates back to early Hollywood). It took a bit getting used to because the animation provided something that was a bit too real. I prefer Roberto Roriguez’s approach with Sin City in his bringing to screen of another graphic novel. Besides the technical aspect, how was the movie. Well I’m not a big fan of junkies or drug culture and most of the film will appeal to those who relish it. The vivid depiction definitely shows it came from somewhere dark, and the performances by the likes of Robert Downey Jr infuse the film with authenticity. But really it’s all a long set up for the last 20 minute which is the real plot driven part of the movie. Oh and it has a twist worthy of an M Night Shayalaman script!. Actually, A Scanner Darkly was written by the same Dick (as in Philip K, sorry couldn’t resist) that penned Bladerunner so dystopia set plot twists seem to be a trademark.
I’ll be generous and give it 3 batoids, though perhaps, it might’ve worked better as a live action flick!