Another movie review? Yes yes, I’m sorry, I don’t intend for this blog to be “Alex blathers about old movies” but I happen to be on a string of good ones! At least, I think they’re good ones. Hopefully I’ll have something else to talk about soon.
Anyway, I just watched Smokin’ AcesSmokin’ Aces reviews
, which I only got in the mail because I forgot it was in my Netflix queue and it worked its way to the top. I’ve seen the movie probably a dozen times so it shouldn’t have been in my queue to begin with, but there ya go. I am pretty glad I got it though. I adore the movie. I recognize its many, many faults without any denial whatsoever, but I still somehow love it.
The movie was dripping with style, and the cast is full of incredibly fun-to-watch people. Ryan Reynolds, Alicia KeysAlicia Keys Juicy reviews, Jeremy Piven, along with a little bit of Jason Bateman? Yeah, I’m down with that. I am absolutely down with that, especially when we get to see Ryan Reynolds all roughed up with that amazing beard of his. No, I’m still not gay, I promise.
Again, the reason I love this movie comes back to the ‘characters’ thing. I love watching unique characters interact. Love love love. If I could watch a 2 hour long movie that is just about two interesting people talking back and forth throughout their work day, I would probably watch it! In Smokin’ Aces, there was quite a bit of that. Taraji Henson’s character was, by herself, not a terribly likable person. She was pretty crude and obnoxious. But when you put her and Alicia Keys’ characters together, there was magic. That’s the kind of stuff I love. There’s a history there between those characters. We don’t know it and we won’t ever know it, but their interaction makes you want to know.
It’s very stylish, like I said. The scene outside of the elevator (spoilers in the linked clip, FYI) with the sniper rounds ripping through FBI agents was pretty much visual bliss. The characters were all extremely distinct, which was only mostly a good thing. I could have done without the Tremor Brothers altogether. Somehow they became the most popular characters of the movie ’round the world, but I personally loathed their presence. They were not only unlikable, but they fueled the few scenes I couldn’t actually watch. I love me some gunplay and swordplay in movies, but I actually can’t physically handle things like on-screen dismemberment and such. The Tremor Brothers love dismemberment. Though, one of them is Chris Pine… so maybe I can forgive them. A little.
The only significant problem is that the movie’s tone shifts wildly. Very, very wildly. It’s silly some moments, dead serious other moments, and that’s okay to some extent but Smokin’ Aces didn’t quite hit that mark. The very end of the movie completely changes its tone. It flies from one end of the spectrum to the other. And don’t get me wrong, I liked the end of the movie, I thought it was brilliant. It just didn’t feel like it belonged with the rest of the film. It’s a bit like if Pirates of the Carribean ended with Captain Jack Sparrow being hanged. Sure, that ending could be very meaningful and tear-jerking… but considering the tone of the rest of the movie, it would be jarring as all hell. That being said, if you’re a very observant individual, you can figure out the ending from the first 10-15 minutes of the movie. Still doesn’t mean the tone was right, though.
There’s a second Smokin’ Aces movie in production, but… I actually probably won’t watch it! Why? Because it’s a prequel with a significant focus on the Tremor Brothers, the part I hated most about the first movie. So. There goes that.
As always, I have a mini-review on blippr.