SnoReptilePlenty Memorable, crazy movie

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

andy_mcm Well, I didn't enjoy it, but if you are a fan of 1950's Hollywood B movie films, then maybe you will. I didn't think it was possible to have such rubbish effects these days and I can't decide if it was a deliberate parody or simply the result of a tiny budget.Interesting to see it reflect real life in 1980s Britain, when it was gripped by the fear of BSE, also known as Mad Cow Disease. The mawkish love story was not interesting. The idea of Lenin as the first marketing guru was a new one on me and was interesting.However, the moral was clumsy and obvious, as were the effects. The credits at the end was about the most visually attractive thing in the film.Not for me.

brchthethird Talk about deceptive marketing. I remember seeing the trailer for this last year, and think this was going to be some mind-bending sci-fi thriller that commented on consumer culture. That wasn't even half-right. While the overarching message of the film is that branding and advertisement are bad for society, it isn't fleshed out enough and is too heavy-handed and simplistic to really make an impact on the viewer. Not only that, but the story is so disjointed and inconsistent in the way it's told that it's like watching two or three movies in one, such that it feels like a mish-mash of ideas rather than a cohesive concept. There are three main elements that one can divide the story into. There's the back story provided for the main character Misha, who is a marketing genius, which explains how he got to where he is at the beginning of the movie. Second, there's a segment of narrative which has Misha promote and produce a television show which is the Russian equivalent of Extreme Makeover. This venture which, unbeknownst to him at the time, is concocted by some shady fast food corporations, ends with it's star in a coma and Misha imprisoned. Shortly thereafter, he is released and he goes into hiding. Prior to, and during, this time he has a romantic relationship with a former employer's niece: yet another plot strand which is inexplicably part of the plot. Anyway, fast-forward six years later. His former love interest, Abby, finds him herding cows on the Russian countryside and one night he has an epiphany. After performing some strange ritual he had a dream about, he is suddenly able to see the world for what it is. Awkwardness ensues as he moves back into the city and proceeds to take on the marketing and advertising which has ruined the world. I won't divulge just exactly what happens, but suffice it to say, it's pretty far out and weird. Anyway, on to the criticism. What this movie had going for it was a cool concept and some potentially biting satire on consumer culture, however it failed to deliver on either of those counts. Still, the movie was interesting enough to keep me watching. Of the many faults this movie has are an unfocused storyline, lack of character development and some pretty ridiculous visual effects in the third act. The movie wants to make out branding/advertising/etc. to be some Communist conspiracy, but in the end with all branding and advertisement outlawed this completely destroys competition (in the real world, at least). How is that not Communist/Socialist? Maybe the filmmakers didn't really think it out clearly. They also didn't do a good job of making the audience care about the protagonist who, when he starts to take on the marketing/corporations ends up becoming (to an extent) what he despises. He even repeats some of the same dialogue, which comes off as too obvious and unoriginal. So, beyond the issues I have with the narrative, the themes are also handled in a very ham-handed way. Overall, it was a satisfactory movie with decent performances, but it tries too hard in the symbolism and themes department.

jalbert1 Not great. Not brilliant. Not terribly original (except for a few things that were extremely original). But not bad. Not bad at all. And a hell of a lot more interesting than the vast majority of movies being made today. The hatred this movie is receiving is very confusing to me. I hear a lot of people complaining about the previews being misleading. I've never saw a preview for it, so I don't know, but just having the feeling that you were tricked into seeing it shouldn't taint your feelings about the film itself. A lot of people also say it's badly made. Again, while it's no Citizen Kane, it's far and away better in every aspect of production than many, many movies that receive both public and critical acclaim these days. There also seems to be quite a few people that freely admit they just didn't understand the movie at all. That one I have no answer for. It's a little weird, but it's pretty straight forward. I mean there's even some extremely heavy-handed narration that lays it all out for you. I don't want to sound like a nut, but I think there really may be something to the idea that people just don't want to see these ideas. Maybe even if only subconsciously. Almost all of us are the blind, consuming public that this movie is about. The only way that can not be unpleasant to be reminded of is if you can convince yourself that you're somehow different. That sure, you eat at McDonald's, but you're not controlled or influenced. Maybe we're just not able to delude ourselves that much anymore. Maybe deep down we all know exactly what we are. But forget all that. This movie's not fantastic, but it is different and fairly entertaining. If you can handle that, give it a shot.

Coco Esteves It looks like written and directed by Barney (the purple dinosaur) on acid.I was going to give it two stars because Leelee Sobiesky was on the movie, but I think that extending her part was one of the main reasons this movie sucks. Not because of her acting but because her character was totally unnecessary and her scenes took the viewer away from the (excuse of a) plot.Anyway, I was going to give it two stars an then appears the constellation cow, the same from the beginning... and talking about the beginning of a new era.