Sunday, December 28, 2008

I am seeing a lot of movies lately.


Tonight I saw Slumdog Millionaire. This is the absolute worst movie ever.
It's like a fake movie. It's similar in many ways to a real movie, except the characters are totally flat and the action is predictable and boring. I actively hated everyone in it while watching it.
But here's an interesting NY Times magazine article about Fischer.

21 comments:

Unknown said...

100% correct.

Gran Torino was good, as was vicky cristina barcelona.

Anonymous said...

she hates indian people. thats awful.

Anonymous said...

This may be a film like Napoleon Dynamite, I heart Huckabees or Team America World Police. One either finds it brilliant and sublime or predictable and disappointing. Basically we'll see clustering at extremes (loved it versus hated it). It should be interesting to see what it does to the Netflix prediction algorithm.

Anonymous said...

I suggest that you read The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga.

Anonymous said...

Elizabeth's pan of Slumdog Millionaire almost makes me want to see it more, partly because other friends, who strike me as part of a similar demographic, loved it.

David Koenig said...

*shrug* I liked the movie. Some of it was a bit forced, but I found it mostly enjoyable.

It's funny to me that I've come across Aravind Adiga's name for the second time within just a few days, in completely different settings each time. I spent a fair amount of time with him when we were at Columbia. I think I'm destined to read his book.

Anonymous said...

What were you expecting? Slumdog is a fairy tale. Of course the characters are stock and flat. What is it that just because the characters have dark skin a film can't be a fairy tale? I doubt that you criticized Cinderalla or Pretty Woman for a same flatness of characters.

Elizabeth Vicary said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Elizabeth Vicary said...

cmon, now. You can't call me racist because I don' t like this particular Indian movie.

Anonymous said...

So then Ms. Vicary, why is Slumdog worse than Cinderalla and Pretty Women. You did not state Slumdog is "as bad as those other fairytales" rather that "Slumdog is the worst movie ever".

You have yet to criticize it outside of genre. It is a movie with characters which are flat and events which are predictable. Of course it is, that is how a fairytale works. So it's the worst movie ever because you don't like fairytales? Maybe The Godfather is the second worst movie ever because you hate mob movies?

Do not make a post so late at night. You can delete it off your blog but not off the internet. It is stored forever. Sleep on it. That way you do not say things for which you feel regret.

Also yes you do seem racist when you said Slumdog is a "shitty Indian movie". It's an Indian movie? No it isn't it's a British movie set in India. I guess The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is a German movie? Somehow I doubt you hold belief of the latter.

Elizabeth Vicary said...

oh relax, I don't even know you, my deleted comment was reasonable, I only toned it down because I'm such a pacifistic, friendly girl. If you spend the next day scouring the internet for a rephrased comment, I think that's your issue, not mine.

I didn't pay to see Cinderella or Pretty Woman, so I don't see how the comparison is relevant.

Is it the absolute worst movie ever? I don't even know what that would mean, but if you are the hyperbole police, I guess you can try to fine me?

For some reason, I get called racist quite often. It's a nasty thing to say and also silly, I think. You really think I'm racist because I don't like a movie? I have no idea who produced the film or if they're Indian or British-- the comment about national origin you take issue with was in response to your insinuation that my judgment was based on the actors' skin color.

Still think I'm movie-racist? I liked Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle, and there are no sympathetic white characters at all in that movie.

:)

Greg Shahade said...

Reading this forum is a great example of seeing the stark differences that men exhibit towards women as opposed to other men. If I posted some negative review of this movie, there's zero chance in hell anyone would accuse me of being racist.

I have no idea why peolpe are constantly making completely insane allegations towards Ms. Vicary. Also why the hell does VoR get to decide that SlumDog Millionaire is a fairy tale? Not so many fairy tales have people jumping in a pile of shit, extreme profanity and violence and etc. The idea of comparing the movie to Cinderella seems quite odd to me.

Anonymous said...

Ms. Vicary I have looked up hyperbole on wikipedia and I see that I may have misunderstood your post. If this is the case I am apologetic. English is not my 1st language, I do not always understand remarks. I had believed absolute was a scientific word implying exact certainty. I infer I'm wrong?

Mr. Shahade I would have made the same comment to you if you had made a post identical to Ms. Vicary's. I do not decide Slumdog is a fairy tale. Common sense does. Common enough that 319,000 agree.

http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=slumdog+millionaire+fairy+tale&btnG=Google+Search&meta=

Anonymous said...

I highly recommend Seven Pounds.

Anonymous said...

The absolute worst movie ever is Elevator Girls in Bondage. Nothing else comes close. Nothing.

Please don't ask me to give specifics.

Anonymous said...

Greg Shahade is a racist, sexist, bloggist (one who hates blog commenters) who hates everyone except English women.

(See, you were wrong Greg. I would have jumped down your throat.)

:)

-Matt

Anonymous said...

Hi, Elizabeth. I enjoy reading your blog and all the comments. We played many years ago...alas I have rating envy as you have surpassed me :) I am awaiting your review of the chess instructor 2009...I can't wait much as the days keep going and I keep gettin older:)

Anonymous said...

i do not advise saying other people would not say something if you would have said it. you are then asking to be attacked verbally. however defening elizabeth is admirable.

how could elizabeth be a racist? i don't think racist go around on the internet parading their dislike for other ethnicities when their new president is black(call me a racist, i dare ya) and most of the kids on thier chess teams are minorities. only argue about things you are ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE ABOUT.

Anonymous said...

"Voice of Reason"

You are out of your mind, and way out of line, with your ridiculous allegations based on wrongful assumptions , and you most certainly are not a voice of reason. She didn't like the movie. Get over it. That does not make her a racist by ANY stretch of the imagination. Throwing around insults like that makes you a much worse offender than somebody criticizing a movie.

David Koenig said...

It's a fairy tale that people can discuss a movie on the internet without the conversation devolving into ad hominem attacks.

Anonymous said...

My wife and I just saw Slumdog Millionaire, and enjoyed it immensely. And judging by the reaction of the packed to capacity theater, so did the majority of the viewers.

However, I do think that Elizabeth expresses her honest criticisms of the movie. She is not a racist. In my experience, all of us have a lot to learn about people and cultures different than what we are familiar with.

Regarding the worst film ever made ... that would be "Under The Cherry Moon" starring Prince (You know, the artist formerly known as the artist formerly known as Prince).