Z/Web

Director: Ridley Scott

I’d heard really good things about this film, but frankly, I wasn’t impressed. In the first 30 seconds I’d figured out 80% of the plot, and though there were a couple surprises, my predictions were quite accurate. The ending I found anti-climatic and improbable (not to give away the ending, but I didn’t feel Commodus’ character would really do that). That said, this isn’t a bad movie: the dialogue was impressive, and the performances and sets were excellent. But this is not a great film; it’s certainly no Spartacus. The special effects were the kind you don’t notice (like the digitally created Roman Coliseum), which I usually like, but in this case, the film seemed to expect us to be awed by the spectacle, of which I wasn’t. Perhaps I just expected too much, or maybe the big screen theatre presentation is much more dramatic than seeing the widescreen DVD, but I was left with a feeling disappointment and wondering what all the fuss was about.

Author: Ethan Black

Interesting, though uneven, thriller about New York’s first female serial killer. Perfect for reading while watching the Gore election contest hearing going on today. Parts of the plot depend too much on coincidence — like the fact that the main detective happens to be on the victim list — why? Overall, though, I liked the serial killer’s psychological history, though the story itself seems to depend more on sensationalism than a realistic look at what could be a female serial killer.