Batman Begins -- 2005 -- PG-13

The revival of the Batman franchise by taking us back to Batman's roots and tweaking them to be exciting. A LOT goes on in this film from Bruce Wayne trying to learn who he is to his return to Gotham to his antics around town before discovering what he needs to "be" Batman. To survive the trek from Bruce to Batman, though, takes some patience as it doesn't happen for the first hour of the movie.

The only disappointment is the attempted inclusion of a Batman villain, Scarecrow. When he was there, he was frightening, but he was way underused and never acheived any measure of being threatening. And his "defeat" was nothing short of shameful (he wasn't beaten by the bat). The real villain was very good, however, and Scarecrow could have been dropped entirely, and we would have lost nothing.

Don't get this film mixed up with the four that have come before. The implications here are that we're gratefully starting the franchise over (and forgetting about that Batman & Robin debacle). Unlike Burton's Batman film from 1988, Mr. and Mrs. Wayne were killed by a rogue hoodlum, just like they were in the comic books. There is an implication of a sequel that may include the Joker.

It was a very good film overall, and one of the best super hero films to come out.

Ultraviolet -- 2006 -- PG-13

This was a film with a decent premise done in by a bad script. The effects were clever enough but a little on the low budget side. The fights were well-choreographed, but strangely, completely blood-free.

When I first read the synopsis of this movie, I blanched. The plot seemed similar to something I had written and that I'm rather proud of. However, a weak script, hole-ridden storyline, and general cheesy-ness have quelled my concerns about this little film usurping my eventual domination of the genre.

My major problem was a lot of stuff that just didn't make any sense. Apparently whatever is going on makes perfect sense to those on the inside, but to me, I got lost in the shuffle. They figure out this kid Violet is toting around is supposed to be able to kill off the Hemophages (the vampire type people). Well, the plot moves from this to weirder places and then off to somewhere where I got lost. Sheis supposed to have 36 hours to live, and not only does she survive longer than that, she survives beyond the death or something, and I don't know why. The kid dies, then lives. I don't know why. Violet cries tears which are suppose to mean something. I have no idea what they mean.

The fight sequences are overdone, and waaay overacted. They were mostly laughable.

The characters are cardboard cutouts there to jump through the hoops the plot provides. They have no apparent motivation. Whatever the point to this movie was, it got lost somewhere after, oh, it was conceived.

It is apparently based on a comic book character. Perhaps this is a case of fanboy mania where those who have read the comics understand the movie, and the rest of us...well, we're out of the loop.

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children - 2005 - PG-13

I saw a preview for this film, and when I saw the title, I thought they were putting me on and advertising a video game. It looked pretty neat from the trailer, and upon discovering it was a movie, I had to see it.

The best part of this film is the animation. It's CG like Pixar and Dreamworks are famous for, but this animation kicks both of those studios' butts when it comes to the CG work. It is absolutely incredible. Realism is beyond compare for computer animation. It's one of those that you must see to believe.

This medium, of course, allowed for some amazing action sequences. The opening motorcycle chase was just incredible. There was also a one on one melee in a gutted church that was rather good as well. Lots of great shots that were nothing short of picturesque while some high speed this and that went on in front of it. Just a feast for the eyes.

This is, however, where the good part ends.

This thing is based on a video game, and I can only guess it translated well. There was a ton of exposition running non-stop from one end to the other to make sure the audience had a clue as to what was going on. This means that the character development was almost completely sacrificed. They tried to squeeze too much into their running time, so elements of the plot seemed odd or out of place at several moments.

Then, comes the friends of the main character. Who the heck are these guys? We go from ex-soldier guy with skill to these superheroes with no introduction. They come into the story completely out of no where like a deux ex machina finish to a large monster (who also came out of no where) in the middle of the film.

Then, it turns out the main villain is someone who does not exist until certain requirements are fulfilled. It was a neat final battle, but the final resolution escaped me.

I can see fans of the game throughly enjoying and understanding this film, but this is another that for me, who watches the movie and expects to understand, I got lost in the overwhelming plot laid out here.

Aeon Flux -- 2005 -- PG-13

This is a movie version of an MTV animated series involving a group of people in the distant future -- survivors of an ancient plague that has decimated the entire world's population and relegated everyone to a small patch of one country.

I've never seen the MTV series, so I'm approaching this from a cinematic angle, and I found the movie to be quite good and complete. the story was creative and original with no glaring holes. I thought some of the things that happened we a little forced, but not so over the top that it stuck out real bad.

The characters were decently developed and I felt for them to an extent. I did occasionally find them to be a bit over the top in their actions, but it all worked out fairly well. The only complaint I would have involves the main villain (once he is revealed). The megalomaniac thing works sometimes, but I thought it was kind of silly in the context of the film when the full reasoning came to light. He just felt a little too cold hearted. His reasoning didn't quite make sense.

In addition, I felt that the main character was too powerful in many things she did. She survived some pretty outlandish things.

So in the end, it was a good film, but some contrivances from the filmmakers served to decrease its perfection in my mind. These things might work for superhero type films, but I want to deal with real people in extraordinary situations.

The Island -- 2005 -- PG-13

From the moment I saw the first trailer, I knew this was a remake of a film I saw on TV a long time ago called Parts: The Clonus Horror, and the film followed that plot line perfectly. However, this being a modern movie, it really improved upon some of the cheese that permeated that old plot and made for a better and more satisfying film overall.

We begin in an environment that reminds me of a cross between 1984 and THX-1138 where people are in a mostly sterile environment wearing nothing but white jumpsuits. They all long to go to a place called "The Island" which they believe is the only place to have survived a catastrophic contamination that destroyed much of the earth and forced them into the world they now live in.

While I had an idea of where this was going based on this earlier film, this movie was still satisfying and had its own surprises going along making it not a total waste of over two hours. Some of the chase sequences ran on too long, but they had some great effects here and there.

So in the end, a lot of it is very familiar, but it is tied together in such a way to make it worth watching.

Doom -- 2005 -- R

I watched the DVD Unrated version.

I don't know what it was about this movie. It's like a guilty pleasure. We're talking about a film that is mostly cliche sci-fi action.

I don't mind admitting this. Rooms stay dark for some reason, even though the lights get turned on in some rooms. In the dark rooms, no one tries. The guys are pulled off an imminent leave for the mission. Yeah, didn't see that coming... The group is from the Marines. always a sci-fi favorite. Each Marine has his own nickname. One was killed moments after his flashlight conveniently went out. Shots are clearly setup for something to appear in that big open space to the character's right. Kinda takes away the surprise. I asked myself why one sequence was so freakin' long as a guy conveniently dropped his gun clip causing it to skitter across the floor just out of reach. He was in a bathroom and instead of just going for his clip by opening the bathroom stall door and diving for it, he crawls under the door and reaches for it. I'm waiting for him to get pummelled, but as these movies go, that's too easy. It wasn't suspenseful; just annoying.

The character development is remarkably decent. Even though we get a whole slew of characters to likely give us a high body count, the development of these characters was done as well as it could be. Each had his share of a combination of cliches and flaws. My only complain on these was the character who was apparently added at the last minute to fill the need to be a kill. He had no development at all. He stood guard for awhile while everyone else ran around, and then inexplicably, he was used to come in a rare threesome to a particular room where he remained out of sight until the bad creature thing came by and lopped off his head.

However, in the late second / early third act, something happens. The movie actually starts to get interesting. Character development comes to a head as characters get knocked off. With the numbers dropping, characters get more screen time and you learn more about them. It even got exciting. The revelation of the creatures' origin was not much of a twist, nor was an escape by them. The big twist was the leader's solution to the problem. It was completely whacked, but made perfect sense. 

But then we had something big happen. Here's the point where if you allow yourself to be sucked into the film, it becomes the guilty pleasure. A five minute plus continuous shot first person sequence styled right out of the game. The camera zip-pans around finding creatures coming up behind you and on top of you, and the gun is just going nuts as you're being attacked. From a forensical perspective, it's a little silly, but as just an entertaining sequence, it was awesome.

We ended with the obligatory and somewhat silly fistfight / wrestling match (we're dealing with The Rock here). You know, the kind where they put down their guns and duke it out like men (or monsters or whatever). 

So when the credits rolled with its heavy metal rock parental advisory lyrics song at the end, I found myself stunned to discover I liked it. The movie is very entertaining. It had a decent plot, good characters, and some decent directing. It has some weak points, but I am able to overlook them.

But here's the catch: This movie is based on a video game. Personally, I think linking movies to video games is a horrible idea because the video game audience doesn't understand the drama in the film, and the movie audience doesn't understand the video game elements. The filmmakers here wisely made a film loosely based on the game and it's essential plot, but did not duplicate the video game. If you loved the game, you'll hate the movie. If you can detach yourself from the game, or have never played Doom 3 (the game this movie's plot is based on), you just might enjoy it. The title was this movie's doom as it lost over $40 million at the box office according to IMDB. Hope its video sales are better. I admit to buying a copy. I told you it was a guilty pleasure.

The Fog -- 2005 -- PG-13

This is a remake of the 1980 John Carpenter film that I have yet to see. We have a little island town with a dark past that finally comes back to haunt them in the form of a fog hiding the supernatural attackers.

Like many teen scream flicks, this one lacks in the character department first and foremost. The main male lead, whose name I don't even remember, has little to no development at all, even though he seems to be the main character. More time is given to the female lead, Elizabeth, but she up and does silly things that no one in their right mind would do (like hearing a noise and walking outside all the way down to the beach in her underwear). There are other characters, but what development they are granted is limited solely to the scenes they are in....if you're lucky.

One question I wanted to know waswhy these spirits chose this moment to return. There seemed to be a bigger backstory here that they never got into. The spirits seem to have a tie-in with the lead female, Elizabeth, but rather than explore this thread, the movie moves onward to another impressive, special effects-laden kill. 

Elizabeth's final actions in the film save the day...but why does she do them? Nothing to this point indicated what needed to be done, and likewise when she did it, it occurred without reasoning or explanation. I thought I had a clue as to what was going on based on what I did know, but it didn't go that way and instead, did something that didn't make a lot of sense.

So while the pacing was decent, the characters were paper thin, and the plot had multiple pitfalls. I wanted to know why this started, or at least someone say there was nothing to trigger it. It might have been triggered by a bag of goodies that was torn open near the beginning, but that really doesn't make a lot of sense...however, it's all we have to go on.

The Cave -- 2005 -- PG-13

So this movie follows a bunch of cave divers who like to explore the underwater world deep within a cave. They go deep in one cave, and once trapped, they discover sinister creatures down there. 

The premise is clever and really shows how a good premise can get a movie made, but some of the execution is shoddy. Some of the shots seemed premature in that they didn't make sense until some later shots occurred. 

one of the character actions didn't make sense until they explained, again, later. They hopped a ride on a water slide leading down a waterfall. I'm thinking, why are they going down? I thought they wanted out. Learned later in the film (not explained, but I picked up on it) that the water has to come out somewhere, so that worked.

Sometimes, the characters did things that really didn't make sense either. For instance, if I went down a tunnel into a chamber where I was attacked by a bunch of cave scorpians and then one of these freaky demon creatures, I wouldn't go back to everyone and say, "hey, I found the way," and then RETURN TO THAT CHAMBER! Children, we call that stupidity and find another way out.

This happened multiple times during the film too. 

Finally, the group inevitably splits up after disagreeing about the best way out. One group climbs up some walls and down others which would put the fittest climber to shame and wear him out. The other decides to follow another underground current and see where it comes out.

Well, the climbers win when they find an exit. However, one of them heroically (or stupidly) goes back in climbing up and down walls AGAIN to find everyone else who followed the current! I'm thinking wait a minute! You don't know where that current went. It could have led straight out as well. Of course it didn't so he's a big hero, but somehow the tunnels led through a few more passages and...ta-da! right into the chamber where the first group was waiting. Wow, what are the astronomically minute chances of THAT happening? The climb was more believable.

Finally, there was this deal with a parasite in the cave water which was clever. It gave the thing a bit of a time element...except...what you're telling me is that through all that climbing, falling, bumping, and crashing, no one got a single scrape on their perfect form to admit this parasite? Having some trouble here.

Characters were ok. They weren't spectacular, but these types of films tend to lack in that area. Thin if any backstory, and very little motivational explanation beyond the character stereotypes. Overall, the combination of the attempt to make us care along with the sheer stupidity of some of the actions balanced us out to curiosity but not a relationship.

The plot itself was well formed and relatively sound. The pacing was fine. The underwater shots were amazing. I liked the creatures and the concept behind them. It basically had a big problem in believability allowing our hero to do too much to be heroic. If you can suspend your disbelief enough, it's good. If you prefer believability, not so good.

Constantine -- 2005 -- R

If you watch this one, you'll like it or hate it. It's the type of fime that requires you to shut off the logic center of your brain and simply go with the ground rules that the movie lays down. If you try to make it religious, you'll hate it.

Now that we've gotten past that, this was a decent film. The main character had a huge flaw and a backstory that tied directly into the body of the film and the story. It was actually quite brilliant. The plot flowed very nicely throughout, and once you hit the end with minimal untied ends.

The only real complaint I had was this guy that was at the beginning. He kept showing up here and there throughout the film without any real intro of who he was or why he was doing what he was doing. We slowly get the idea that he is carrying an artifcat most necessary to the completion of the main plot, but how he becomes supernatural is really never fully explained. Pondering it after the movie ends, I can come up with an explanation plausible within the structure of the film, but I shouldn't have to. This film explained everything except that one point...maybe I missed it.

I might as well hit on the inevitable all-knowing character who lives is a weird location, but seems to have all the answers as long as you know the question. Constantine also has a "sidekick" that disappears for the central portion of the film when he isn't needed. It seems he serves his base purpose in the plot and goes "poof" when we don't need him.

Overall, it made for a good action film, and makes a borderline superhero type of film. I could see it as an underground comics type of hero, and I believe he is actually based on a comic book character. The most difficult part of watching this film is forgetting everything you know about religion and accepting what the film is saying for the duration. However, if you can do this, it's a great ride.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith -- 2005 -- PG-13

This is the story of a couple that has been married for 5 or 6 years. They both own their own companies, and seem to be well of. Of course, their companies are competing assassination companies, and they end up being assigned to kill each other. If you ask me, that's not a bad premise.

The movie flows with some good pacing from point to point, and feels rather natural in its presentation. The fact that they've been able to keep their secrets from each other is a little hard to swallow, but if we let that slide, it works pretty well, especially in their confrontation against each other. 

The believability slips in the final battle. I can't slip much without spoiling the movie, but since this is my primary complaint, I'll try to speak without spoiling. Let's say the outcome is hard to believe, and I don't feel like it ties up the loose ends of the movie well enough to accept the ending as being truly satisfying.

This rather large point aside, it makes for a good ride and not too big a waste of time like so many films tend to be.

Casino Royale -- 1967 -- NR

This "send-up" of the James Bond films to date (those being Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, and Thunderball) was not as good as I imagine the filmmakers were hoping for. 

Having seen all of the other Bond films released now as well as read several of the books, this film failed to even make a mediocre Bond film. It had its share of silliness, but most of it wasn't funny. It spoofed very little of the Bond empire and made only passing references to its nature of women and gadgets. The majority of its comedic attempts fell absolutely flat; several scenes had no bearing on plot, character, nor did they produce any laughs; at several points in the movie, there were glaring holes in the structure as if there were supposed to be scenes, but they don't exist. 

If you want a good spoof of the James Bond empire, try Austin Powers.

I can now say, however, that I have seen every Bond film that has been released. Yay for me.

The French Connection -- 1971 -- R

1971 must have been a slow year for movies. If ever you wanted to know just how boring a detective's job can be, this film exemplifies it. It's 104 minutes I'll never get back. The characters experienced no growth during the course of this film, and the story never took off to any degree that I noticed. The only note-worthy scene was an interesting chase of a car following a city train. The car was under the tracks swerving and speeding. However, the setup for the chase was poorly executed and since I had no emotional investment in the picture by this time, it came off as really anti-climactic. 

How this film managed to win 5 Oscars including best picture, best director, and best screenplay is a mystery I'll never know the answer to. For best picture, it beat out Fiddler on the Roof and A Clockwork Orange, both of which are vastly superior to this film.

But hey, not all films are for all people. I didn't like it, but maybe I missed something.

The Crow -- 1994 -- R

This film was based on the underground comic book of the same name and was very gritty and dark. It followed a guy who was brutally murdered with his girlfriend, and then comes back a year later to avenge his own death under the watchful eye of a crow. Overall, the film was very good with lots of action, feeling, and plot. I really feel the weakest point was the beginning.

It opened with the death of our main character. If the filmmakers had tried to flesh out the guy and his girlfriend just a little bit before they were murdered (get some of those hopes and dreams stuff going), then their deaths would have had more impact. We would be expecting a movie about them, and then wonder what just happened when they get killed.

Doing this would have spoiled nothing since the guy learns most of it during the first 10-15 minutes of the film anyway. I think knowing the relationship between himself and the girl would have helped this movie tremendously. As it is, it's good, but it could have been better.

Blade Runner -- 1982 -- R

A futuristic sci-fi offering with Harrison Ford as a Blade Runner named Deckard, a person who tracks down a certain model of android and "retires" them. The movie follows 4 of these androids and his quest to take them down.

The movie was very cerebral in nature with lots of exposition about genetics and making these androids who are lifelike. There were some action scenes, but not very many of them. The characters tended to be very flat in nature, which would have been more expected had this film delivered more of a thrill ride. Ford's character, though ostesibly the main character, didn't get rounded out very well at all. We learned nothing of his past at all to give him any kind of depth, so his actions appeared to be primarily plot driven. 

The final scene climbing around the outside of the building should have had more punch to it, but it felt very anti-climactic since I was uncertain as to why he would have chosen outside as a viable option since the stairs would have been far more logical.

The androids' fear of dying was put forth fairly well, but it didn't really create much tension as it was probably intended to. To finalize the whole thing, the movie ended somewhat ambiguously, whch considering how ambiguous the movie was throughout, was entirely appropriate.

The verdict? It was ok and kind of weird, but lacked a little something to make it good.

Duel -- 1971 -- PG

Gives road rage a whole new fearful meaning. This film follows a salesman as he goes to try a get an account. He takes a road trip and on the way, he passes an old ugly truck. Well, the truck passes him and then hits the brakes. The film is off.

This film equates to one really long suspenseful chase between the salesman and the truck (who is, incidentally, the antagoinst of the moive, not the driver of the truck). This does what movies do best: take a mundane everyday situation and blow it completely out of proportion, and it does it well.

Some minor complaints I had were quelled for the most part. I thought he should call the poice from the beginning, and thank the Lord the character touched upon the idea, but explained why he couldn't at the time. His later attempts to contact authorities were stifled by the truck's presence.

My only other possible complaint was that the whole thing could have been stopped if the guy just went back home. The truck was always waiting ahead of him on the road, so a simple move of turning around and kissing the account good-bye (or at least delivering a solid reason why he didn't show) would have been what I'd've done if I were being chased by a murderous truck. The account was made out to be very, very important, which is probably why he kept going.

This aside, for Spielberg's directoral debut, it was really good. It had a lot of suspense and kept me watching a truck and a car driving down a road for the 90 miute run time...and that is really saying something.

Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery - 1997 - PG-13

Having watched all of the James Bond films since the last time I saw this first installment of the Austin Powers Trilogy, I found it funnier than ever before. It follows Superspy Austin Powers (a clear James Bond knockoff) as he is crygenically frozen in case Dr. Evil (a clear Ernst Blofeld knockoff) returns to wreak havoc on the world. Not only are several Bond locales and lines and situations spoofed in this films, but several spy film standards are commented upon and torn apart (such as placing the victim in an easily escapable situation using an overly elaborate scheme to destroy them while all the while, a modern character insists he just get a gun and shoot them, but he is told tht's not the way it is done).

I thoroughly enjoyed this film, and having a thorough understanding of the Bond saga made it all the more funnier. 

I caught references to Dr. No, Goldfinger, Thunderball (lots), You Only Live Twice, and Diamonds Are Forever. There are likely more. This is a really great send-up on the Bond films. But as a stand alone films, if you've never seen and spy flick, it still works just as well, has a solid plot, well-rounded characters, and a solid and satifying resolution.

Alexander -- 2004 -- R

This extensive film covers essentially the rise and fall of Alexander the Great in a style that intercuts elements of a documentary with standard drama of dueling storylines. One storyline begins in Alexander's youth and follows him until he becomes king. The other starts at his first battle as king and follows him to his death.

With only a couple of minor hiccups at the beginning of the film, mostly due to the tri-fold skippage of the style from documentary told by one of Alexander's generals to the two other storylines, the film flows pretty well after the first half hour is over. I watched the director's cut which boasts a run time of nearly three hours. It comes top about 2 hours and 38 minutes without the credits.

Though it ran long, the film occasionally tried to do too much. It had multiple relationships for Alexander to go through including those with his mother, father, wife, male lover, generals, his army, and his people along with an ongoing inner conflict with himself. Tackling all of these relationships along with delivering a solid war movie caused the relationships to founder here and there as the movie progressed, which some taking off very well and then falling away as the movie went on.

What happened over and over again when a new relationship was introduced is a quick rundown of how the relationship works and some conflict inherent between that relationship and the rest of Alexander's life. Beyond this, the matter is dropped until needed and then there is relatively little development, just a little plot that uses what was established. In fact, a lot of the development is attempted through the documentary portions rather than viewing the character interaction. In my opinion, this hurts much of the character progression, but it does keep the film moving.

Overall, if you are into Greek history or historical or war dramas, it works well from the angle, but as a straight drama, I think it falls a little flat.

The Day After Tomorrow -- 2004 -- PG-13

Wasn't sure what to expect from this one, but I was happy to find it had a satisfying action plot and a complete ending, which is hard to get out of some disaster movies. 

The premise is a little hard to swallow. Apparently, global warming has progressed to the point that the earth's own climate steps in to fix it. In order to cure the melting polar ice caps and the warming atmosphere, there is an enormous ice storm that will fix it all and once all is normal, the storm will end. If you can suspend your disbelief and go with the flow on this one, it works well within the story's confines. 

There were some odd bits within the plot. The love interest gets herself injured forcing those huddling and waiting to be rescued to do something dangerous on the verge of getting frozen to death while fighting hungry wolves. Yup, it's that out of place. There also seemed to be a few scenes completely missing where characters completely disappear; their fates get implied or mentioned later. It's weird to not see the fate of some of these characters.

All in all, if you can go with the main premise of the movie, it's a good film. The action is constant, and the suspense is well placed. This and a bucket of popcorn makes for a good movie night.

Alien Vs. Predator -- 2004 -- PG-13

This is based on the extended version DVD.

This is a movie that works as a decent action flick with bad dialogue the first time through. Once you understand the rules and storyline the movie is laying down, you quickly realize that many of the earlier scenes don't work in the storyline given. The Predators, for instance, watch the humans as they walk through the temple, and they take off as soon as the humans take their weapons. That's when the fun begins, but you learn later what these weapons are for, completely derailing that sequence. The Predators come in and attack the humans at the base camp. Then you learn what the Predators did with the humans of old, derailing that sequence and indicating that they should not have killed them. 

The first time through, it's a fun enough movie to watch, but the more you learn, the more you realize the movie makes no sense.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon -- 2000 -- PG-13

This film won 4 academy awards, and none of them (except maybe best foreign film) had anything to do with the quality of the storyline or the film as a whole. Having heard good things about this picture, I knew I'd watch it eventually, and after doing so, I was grossly disappointed.

I can't really fault the dialogue since it was filmed in Chinese and dubbed into English, although the dialogue was rather lifeless through most of the film. While the film got off to a decent start, it was a painfully long time before anything remotely interesting happened. Just a lot of wordy, boring, slow scenes. And when we hit a fight scene, it was boring as well. 

The only point of interest in this first fight scene was the almost divine jumping ability of the combatants, however, it quickly turned into shoddy wire work as the actors were clearly "flown" from rooftop to rooftop, their legs flailing as they went along like watching the Broadway version of Peter Pan. I'm thinking, "You've got to be kidding."

I was completely removed from the experience after this point since it looked so ridiculous. The characterizations were fine attempts, and had the plot not been so paper thin, I might have been able to get into them. Once again, though, the scenes were wordy and boring. Fight after fight was poorly choreographed. I was just waiting to see how they would turn it out, and the ending didn't even make sense. I'm sure it was very impressionistic and deep, meaning (if you know about impressionistic art) it doesn't make sense -- don't try to make it make sense.

I did finally figure out, however, the deal with the shoddy wire work. Apparently, this martial arts discipline knows how to suspend their weight, and for all intents and purposes, fly. Had I known this BEFORE the first battle, I'd've totally been into it. Without this very vital piece of info, though, it was just another Broadway production of Peter Pan.

If this was the best foreign film of 2000, I would be frightened to see the other contenders. This is actually really sad since the Japanese Ringu 0 was a far, far, far superior film to this tripe.

But hey, great cinematography, music, and art design.