Movies
A blast from the past. Dead Calm is one of those films I once caught on TV but never revisited since. I vaguely remembered bits and pieces of it, then again, it's also a rather basic thriller so I can't even be sure if my memories didn't get tainted by similar films. It wasn't too bad though, just not great in any way. John and Rae take a little trip on the ocean after their son dies in a traffic accident. They want to heal together, but not long after a man in a small boat rows toward their yacht. He had an accident at sea, and when John agrees to go take a look on his boat the man kidnaps Rae and leaves John stranded. Zane's performance isn't great and it's probably best to switch off your brain while watching because there are some leaps of faith required to follow along with the plot. But the soundtrack is cool and the pacing is solid. And the end shot is pretty iconic of course. It's not a terrible film, just a little mediocre.Read all
Harrison Ford as a 90s Jack Ryan isn't the most appealing sales pitch for a movie, but this was a pretty big box office hit back in the day. I have no idea why though, because it's a really bland and stale B-flick, made with an excessive budget. The worst part is, that excessive budget doesn't even show. Ford isn't really suited to play Jack Ryan and these 90s action/thrillers haven't aged very well either. The action lacks adrenaline, the thriller elements aren't all that exciting and the only thing more over the top than the cheesy patriotism is the runtime of the film. They could've at least cut an hour without losing anything substantial. At least the finale is slightly better than the rest, but you have to wait more than two hours to get there. The secondary cast is pretty poor too and Noyce's direction feels completely uninspired. A very forgettable and poorly executed film, let's hope time will bury this kind of nonsense, so future generations will be spared.Read all
Phillip Noyce's first feature film. I'm not a big Noyce fan and this film certainly isn't going to change my mind. It's a very raw, crude and unpolished flick that probably does a good job capturing a specific place, time and scene, but Noyce never managed to get me interested in his characters and their ramblings. Gary is a nobody who just wanders about. One day he runs into Jack, a minor criminal who steals a car in order to travels the back roads of Australia. Gary joins him, on the way several other hitchhikers join them on their journey. And so we're watching a road trip that doesn't lead anywhere interesting. Performances are poor, the dialogues are trivial and the characters are invariable irritating. I don't think Noyce cared much about the cinematography and the soundtrack is a serious drag. People with a love for the 70s might find something interesting here, I was glad the film was just an hour long.Read all