Interesting, but not worthy of the top 200

Rating: 5/10 (29 January 2001)

**SPOILERS**It had it's charms. The cinematography was great, the acting was good, the fight scenes were fluid and magical. But over all, it seemed... murky. The plot was convoluted, with subcharacters weaving in and out, and new characters violently forced into the picture through looooong flashbacks or inexplicable meetings. Most people (including myself) don't understand the ending, completely or at all (see below, for notes with spoilers). Some of the fighting/violence was just grisly and cringe-inducing, and some of it was gracefully done and poetic. Unfortunately, the two extremes often grated on each other, and produced uneasiness and lack of focus.
I could talk about this thing for hours, but here's a distillation of my opinion: I had more fun in Dude Where's My Car. I was more on the edge of my seat in Thirteen Days. Neither of those films had the splendor or beauty that CTHD did, but in the end, I enjoyed them more. Nothing got in the way of the experience (be it dumb sub-Python humor, or tense historical drama). That's really what counts, to me.
*spoiler* Why did she jump? Yeah, I know, the fable, make a wish and your dream comes true. What the heck dream did she want to come true? Seems to me she had everything. And what good is realizing a dream if you die/float away before you can enjoy it? These are a few of the questions I have come up with or heard from others. *spoiler*