love for the wrong reasons

Rating: 7/10 (16 February 2001)

Those who say this is the greatest film of all time simply love it for its technical genius. A film has to be a lot more than that to be truly great. It has to have an emotional bond with the viewer. Something that's truly great could be shot on a 1987 Sony handycam on a tripod the whole time, as long as the message gets through to the viewer. Not saying that CK shouldn't be studied for technical framing and achievement, but it lacks the connection it needs. Watch a movie like Shawshank Redemption and you'll see this connection I'm talking about. And all those little things like beautiful cinematography, perfect dollies, and framing just add to it to give it balance.