Domino
Prime
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Domino
Tony Scott may have some great movies on his CV, but the quality of his work has always been up and down. This is undeniably one of his worst films. The story is loosely based on the life of Domino Harvey (daughter of actor Laurence Harvey), a disgruntled rich-kid turned hardcore bounty hunter. The narrative of "Domino" is a hollow and incoherent mess, which makes it impossible to care about what happens to the characters. There is nothing beneath the surface of harshly color-corrected pictures, frenzied editing and a pounding score. We saw a similar mess recently in Scott's "Man on Fire," and it haunts us on MTV every day. The style is that of an eager-to-impress film student. You would think Scott had passed this phase by now.
1/2 ( Julie Vinten )
Very loosely based on a "true" story, Domino (Keira Knightley) is an English girl from a well-off family who becomes a bounty hunter after hooking up with Ed (Mickey Rourke) and Choco (Edgar Ramirez). Beyond that the story is largely incomprehensible in this utterly manic, chaotic and ridiculous film. Director Tony Scott seems stuck in a 1980s-timewarp, in which tattooed bounty hunters really existed and handsome dark-haired men take off their clothes in a Laundromat and put them straight on a whites-only cycle. If there is a story worth watching in "Domino" it is in the unbelievably hectic editing. Scott loves to tell a narrative by splicing and dicing into a kaleidoscopic narrative, but the problem is the plot is so damned stupid to begin with. Intriguingly idiotic.
( Tim Ochser )
Prime
Thirty-seven-year-old Rafi (Uma Thurman) takes counseling with therapist Lisa (Meryl Streep) to get over her recent divorce. When Rafi finds a 23-year-old boyfriend 's handsome and feisty in bed 's Lisa encourages her to forget about the age-difference and enjoy the moment. That is until Lisa realizes that the 23-year-old is her own son. Everyone knows that Thurman and Streep can act, so it must be the director's fault that they do such a lousy job in this lackluster movie. "Prime" completely misfires when trying to be funny, and comes across as corny in attempts to be deep. It's not just the acting and the entire movie that's poor, but also the script, which is so incompetent I'm surprised the film got as far as production.
1/2 ( Julie Vinten )
The title refers to the sexual prime of the two leads, 37-year-old Rafi (Uma Thurman) and 23-year-old David (Bryan Greenberg), who embark on a passionate love affair following her divorce. "Prime" is certainly an entertaining and good-hearted movie although it is ridden with tiresome ethnic stereotypes and slightly nauseating Cosmopolitan-style wisdom on relationships. Will true love win the day? Or will the chronological chasm between our heroes get in the way? Meryl Streep's turn as an all-Jewish psychoanalyst is both cloying and annoying, although it does provide some humorous moments. Uma Thurman shines as ever and lends the film some much-needed substance. Ultimately "Prime" is a prime example of the modern romantic comedy and just why this most predictable of Hollywood genres guarantees small but tidy box office returns.
( Tim Ochser )
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
After a long break from cinema, Shane Black, once the highest paid scriptwriter in Hollywood, tries his hand at directing - and succeeds with a bang. The quick-paced fish-out'sof-water scenario sees a small-time thief accidentally becoming a Hollywood actor and, while researching for a role, getting dragged into a murder-mystery. Sarcastic, dark, absurd and violent, the movie works splendidly as a comedy as well as a thriller. Clearly aware that it's a movie, "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" is a post-modern gem. It mocks Hollywood, draws reference to other movies and breaks the "fourth wall." The film's wonderfully hilarious, entertaining and has some extraordinary acting. The three main characters (Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer and Michelle Monaghan) are exceptionally good together.
1/2 ( Julie Vinten )
Now here's a film. From the moment Harry (Robert Downey Jr.) declares in his deadpan voice "I'll be your narrator," you know you are in for an above-average thriller. "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" is a gloriously inventive and irreverent film with Robert Downey Jr. perfectly cast as the petty criminal accidentally thrust into the film world. Val Kilmer gives perhaps his best performance yet as Gay Perry, the gay private investigator with an endless arsenal of wit and mini-guns up his dapper sleeve. "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" is not exactly new but it is definitely fresh. The complicated plot is a little hard to keep up with at times but it's so deliberately labyrinthine and the film is so thoroughly enjoyable that it doesn't much matter who killed who or why by the end.
( Tim Ochser )
