OK, here are 4 good movies that should have been great films. These movies had potential, and they all rate about 7 out of 10 stars. But the sad part is they never executed correctly, never took that creative risk or they just were too cluttered. (they are in no particular order). Also SPOILERS if you haven’t seen these movies.
1. MAGNOLIA—1999 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0175880
Paul Thomas Anderson, the writer/director of Boogie Nights, followed that great film up with this character study. He had different stories all connected by fate and characters, in six degrees of separation. Tom Cruise was great, so was Melora Walters, who played the daughter of Philip Baker Hall. (A lot of people involved in this had 3 names…hmmm). But while Boogie Nights had all the characters’ journey tied into the story of the porn industry, this film has no real backbone. There are too many subplots, and the one with William H. Macy is just unnecessary. I loved the way it depicted the San Fernando Valley, where I lived for a year. But the great direction, cinematography and soundtrack was not enough to make this more than a triple–should have been a home run.
2. DOGMA-1999 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120655/
Kevin Smith, the writer/director of Clerks, Chasing Amy, and Mallrats brings this strange movie out the same year as Magnolia. Of course, the characters swear, smoke pot, talk about sex, etc. But this is actually an attempt to discuss religion on a really grand scale. Specifically, Catholicism. Yes, Chris Rock plays Rufus, the 13th Apostle, and the hero of the movie is an abortion clinic worker who must stop 2 Avenging Angels from entering Heaven or the world will end. Ahem. In between all that, Smith cracks jokes while making comments on the Catholic faith. Some are very well deserved, like the fact that many Catholics only go to church because they are afraid they will go to Hell if they don’t. In the end, God is portrayed by Alanis Morisette, and the hero becomes spiritual. This doesn’t all add up, and the fake violence and gore are useless. Good try, good writing but a real director would have pared this down and added some much needed style. Bonus points for adding Bud Cort, the actor who played Harold in Harold and Maude.
3. RETURN OF THE JEDI-1983-http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086190/
OK, this movie falls into that 3rd movie category where the first two are imaginative and exciting, but by the 3rd, there seems to be a lack of new ideas. So they retread the first movie. See Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade for another example. We all know the story here, but the first problem is Death Star 2? Really? In the whole galaxy, all George Lucas could think of was….the same thing as Star Wars? With almost the same ending through a trench to blow it up? Disappointing. Also, the Ewoks. George wanted to do Wookies, which he eventually did for Episode 3. But the Ewoks take up so much time and put cool characters like Han Solo in the awkward position of playing with a teddy bear. Ugh. There was the cool Jabba the Hutt barge scene, the speeder bikes, etc. But again this could have been so much better–its called screen writing. The horrible scene( where Luke tells Leia they are related plays terribly, and is a mix of mediocre acting and cringe-worthy dialog. You could see the first two muddy prequels coming when you saw this. Too bad.
4. STAR TREK VI-THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY-1991 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102975/
Ok, I enjoy a Star Trek movie as much as the next guy. But the problems start with the title. Too long and awkward. The Shakespeare references hit you over the head right away and get way too much air time. A Klingon General quoting an Earth playwright from hundreds of years ago? Not likely. This was supposed the be the Cold War story, the fall of the Galactic Berlin Wall, between Russia and the USA. Instead they served up a mystery, a Manchurian Candidate in Space. The time wasted on that plot could have given the enemies, the Klingons, more development, a sense of real culture. Plus you had Captain Sulu. The movie is crisp, does deal with age, and passing the torch. But the legendary crew of the Enterprise deserved a better swan song than this.
What do you think? Any other movies that just missed the mark? Please leave a comment and let me know.
fitzsfolly 