Greg Stillson: I have had a vision that I am going to be President of the United States someday. And nobody, and I mean nobody is going to stop me!
Crisp photography, a few instances of gruesome violence, a great pro/an-tagonist pairing, and an excellent premise, but the movie moves way too slow and does too little. I suspect that the filmmakers tried too hard to stay true to the King story, and it left the film feeling sluggish and sparse on the most interesting elements of the plot.
6.5/10
The Criminologist: And crawling, on the planet’s face, some insects, called the human race. Lost in time, and lost in space… and meaning.
Whether you love camp or not, it’s pretty clear this is the finest campy film ever made. It can be a bit much at time, but the cast is fun, the music is great, and it is a really enjoyable film to watch.
8.5/10
Volumnia: Anger’s my meat; I sup upon myself, and so shall starve with feeding.
Obviously the script is unimpeachable, and the production values are pretty excellent as well, and exactly as violent and bloody as the story requires. The only major issues with the film are some poorly cast roles, and a plot that is badly condensed due to time constraints.
7/10
Rabbi Scott: Ha-ha-ha! That’s right, things aren’t so bad. Look at the parking lot, Larry.
Definitely the most enigmatic and open ended of the Coen brother’s films, but will all of the usual technical precision and artistic style that you can count on them for. As strange, meandering, and often confusing story, but extremely compelling and darkly funny, with a fantastic cast.
8/10
Warden: If I was to sink my teeth into your eye right now, would you be able to stop me before I blinded you?
It’s a film that has a stellar cast, a rich color palette, some really well done visual tricks, a strong score, and a really interesting plot hook that just doesn’t fail to work. With everything working in the film’s favor, the plot ends up being so silly and unconvincing that nothing really resonates very well.
5.5/10
Nikolai Luzhin: Sentimental value? Ah. I heard of that.
Perhaps not quite as emotionally edifying as a History of Violence, but the movie has an admirable sense of what to show and when. A movie that is remarkably restrained without being boring, with a brutally violent streak that never feels overdone, and a great cast and crew working behind it.
8/10
Dr. Ellias Cheever: Someone doesn’t have to weaponize the bird flu.The birds are doing that.
As stylish as every other Soderbergh film, and a uniquely sober approach to a nigh-apocalyptic scenario, with a massive and talented cast. The real problems arise from a plot that’s so sober it doesn’t really get too compelling, a cast so large some characters get lost in the shuffle, and a story so muted none of the actors ever have a chance to really show off their chops.
6/10
Ratso Rizzo: Frankly, you’re beginning to smell and for a stud in New York, that’s a handicap.
A movie that somehow manages to walk a line between charming and heartwarming and so dark you just want to curl into a ball and forget that humanity exists. Fantastically acted, with a directoral hand that seems to oscillate between experimental and not there, and as much as this movie effected me, I don’t really know how I felt about this movie.
7/10
Ken Castle: I hope one day to have the opportunity to breach your firewall, Miss Parker Smith.
By the premise this movie should just be a modern-day Running Man, prodding with social commentary but never taking itself too seriously, and reveling in the inherent silliness of it all. Instead its an ugly, poorly directed slog through dark sets and glowering characters, with a plot that’s somehow pairs an Luddite’s kneejerk hatred of modernity with a pubescent boy’s love of brutal violence and sex.
1/10
