disappointing

Rating: 4/10 (21 August 2005)

I had a great deal of expectation for this film, and perhaps in a way, that interfered with my enjoyment of it. I had heard loads of positive things about it... the plot sounded intriguing and original, and I had read that it had a Terry Gilliam sort of sensibility.
Unfortunately, few of these positive traits were actually borne out in the film. It did kind of seem a bit like a Terry Gilliam film, but it felt a lot more like a cheap Gilliam knock-off than any sort of inspired film-making. There was a lot of potential in many of the ideas of the film, but most often they were executed without the finesse of a truly creative director. Instead of seeming original and innovative, most moments in the film just seemed like half-assed attempts at creativity.
Which is a shame, and in a sense made the experience of watching it even more distressing. Because there were definitely inklings of a great film somewhere in there, they just never really made it to the light of day.