TASK DEFINITION: In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
PROBLEM: seen may 19 , 1999 at 5 p . m .
at the crossgates cinema 18 ( guilderland , n .
y . )
, theater # 1 , with my brother john for $ 8 .
50 .
[ theater rating :
*
*
* * : excellent seats , sound and picture ] ( critic 's note : this review is the longest i 've ever written and still only scratches the surface .
i 'd recommend this be read only by those who have seen the film as a form of critical analysis . ) as my friend and fellow film critic ted prigge said in his review of ` the phantom menace ' - how do i even write this review ?
never mind the fact that i 've been waiting for a new ` star wars ' movie since i was seven years old .
never mind the fact everyone on the internet had already dissected and discussed the movie before it was even released .
never mind that there 's so much going on in this movie in terms of plot , action , special effects and long - term story that to analyze every aspect would take a lot of time and energy and still would n't cover everything .
and also like ted
does in all of his reviews , i 'll try to review this in a way different from my usual reviews and instead write as casually as possible as if i was talking directly to you , the reader . before we can begin analyzing the specific aspects of the film , many of the most general and most significant factors must be considered ( to get the specifics of the film , skip this and the next four paragraphs ) .
as has been made obvious for the last several years , another trilogy of films will be produced to account for the [ missing ] initial three installments of the ` star wars ' series ( the first of the films was actually episode four , not one ) .
george lucas , the creator of the series , has probably just assumed most people know the first - produced trilogy ( ` star wars , ' ` the empire strikes back ' and ` return of the jedi ' ) is actually the second trilogy , chronologically .
in media interviews in the past he has explained why the movies were made out of order , but i ca n't recall his reasons .
with this new film he as writer and director has also assumed viewers are at least vaguely familiar with the storylines and significant plot points of the first trilogy ( err . . .
second trilogy .
. .
well you know what i mean ) .
and in order for this review to be thorough many of those significant points must be mentioned which , unfortunately , may serve as spoilers so proceed with caution .
[ critic 's note
# 1 : it is one my personal policy not to intentionally analyze spoilers because i would like my reviews to be able to make sense to the reader both before and after viewing the film reviewed , but it would be nearly impossible to do the film justice here without breaking the rule .
critic 's note # 2 : reviewing this film also breaks the universal critics ' law of reviewing movies , which as roger ebert coined , ` it 's not what a movie is about , but how it is about it . '
because so many outside factors come into play in the film 's plot and significance as part of a trilogy , and just considering modern society , it again would be difficult , if not impossible to simply review the film as a completely autonomous story . ]
first of all we have to catalog what we know about the film before even going into it .
we know that young anakin skywalker will grow up to become the evil ruler darth vader who is also the father of luke skywalker , who will lead a successful revolution against him and his empire .
we know obi - wan ` ben ' kenobi was the trainer of anakin in the ways of ` the force ' in attempts to become a jedi knight , but would fail and thus anakin would fall to the ` dark side . '
we also know something about ` the force ' itself , that it is some kind of universal force which determines fate and can be manipulated by those whose minds are expanded enough to believe in it and feel it ( the jedi ) .
what we do n't know for sure is the history of the ruling of the galaxy , which is most likely much longer and more complex than any government we have had here on earth .
to me , this was one of the most fascinating aspects of the first three films because there seemed to be a subtle , definite order to all the complexity .
also , it seems that we 're supposed to be familiar with a few other details about the story which have come out of the thousands of comic books and paperbacks published in the years since the movies ended .
most notably , details regarding the emperor from ` empire ' and ` jedi , ' and that he was once a senator and his last name is palpatine .
for those who have n't kept up with all the ` star wars ' paraphernalia over the years , there is still a way to know these details simply by recognizing an actor ( or his voice at least ) .
with ` the phantom menace ' being the first chapter of a long saga , one would assume the basic groundwork would be laid , including the history behind all the major factors of the series , especially ` the force ' and the jedi knights .
unfortunately , this film does more of the opposite as it simply builds on top of what must be a history so long and detailed it could never be explained .
i did n't liked that aspect to this film and is one of the reasons it falls just short of greatness .
if you 're going to tell a story from the beginning - tell it from the beginning ( is it possible that after this trilogy is complete there could be another trilogy of episodes -1 through -3 to clarify the back story even further ? ) .
but i digress .
i 've said so much and yet i have n't even touched on the specifics of the film itself .
all these necessary ` disclaiming ' elements should go to show just how vast the story of the ` star wars ' series is and this individual film itself .
what we get here is a movie not unlike any of the other three we 've come to know and love since the late 1970s .
its similarity to the other films helps to keep the spirit of the series familiar , but at the same time seems to be a flaw in the filmmaking process itself since it sometimes rings of unoriginality .
the basic story is rather sorted , complex and even confusing at times .
we 're told that an army known as ` the trade federation ' has set up a blockade around an seemingly insignificant planet called naboo .
we 're not given too many details to clarify the back story of what the federation is and what their purpose is , instead the film opts to get its story moving quickly .
we 're introduced to two jedi , the master qui - gon jinn ( neeson ) and his apprentice obi - wan kenobi ( mcgregor ) .
the two are acting as ambassadors of some sort in hopes of ending the obvious hostility between the federation and the planet 's queen , amidala ( portman ) .
the leader of the federation , an alien called viceroy , is following the orders of a strange , mythical character - an older human man whose face and body are covered and shadowed by the black robe and hood he wears .
he is referred to as lord sidious but considering his appearance , and especially that creepy evil voice of his , he is a obviously one of the most significant characters in the series .
sidious communicates to viceroy only through digital transmissions and never in person .
clearly his actual whereabouts are something he wants to keep secret because that would also reveal his identity ( which is never openly revealed in the film , but should be clear to most viewers .
i have a feeling we 'll delve into his background in the next two films ) .
but it does n't take the film long to spring into action and within minutes our hero jedi are fighting for their lives and the film 's story
begins to move along .
the film does n't have one specific plot and works in the same manner as the other films in the series where as what we get is one mini - plot and adventure on top of another .
there are so many of these mini - plots - within - plots in this film
i would not describe them all because it is what gives the movie its hook .
the other films have relied on this type of storytelling , but because of the limits of the technology at the time , the films ' screenplays were also limiting .
the sense of limitlessness here is what gives ` the phantom menace ' its unique traits .
as we already know , the film takes place at least a generation or two before the original ` star wars ' trilogy which means a lot of the background which was unclear and/or unexplained may be cleared up here as it is the beginning of the vast epic story .
and here the most significant storyline is that involving the discovery of 10-year - old anakin skywalker ( lloyd ) , by qui - gon jinn and his introduction to the jedi council .
to briefly summarize the story , jinn stumbles upon skywalker in an attempt to buy parts for queen amidala 's spaceship which was damaged in efforts to free her from the federation .
their meeting on tatooine is mostly chance but of course jinn chalks it up to the will of the force .
jinn can feel that skywalker has a great natural power in the force , and through another sub - plot involving a bet on skywalker in a fantastic race he will enter , more and more details of his significance begin to reveal themselves .
this also provides for a new elaboration and explanation of the force which has never been mentioned before .
in fact , it seems to be something so important it is upsetting it has never been mentioned before .
the element seriously undermines the mystical aspect of the force and transforms it into something more physical and scientific which is completely unnecessary .
by the film 's third act all the major significant elements become tied together in a rather familiar execution of the plot .
it 's funny how the reality of the ` star wars ' world seems so embedded in mythology , new age - like philosophy and religion and yet the solution to all the major conflicts in the series has been violence .
not that this technique has n't been used in movies and in real - life situations countless times throughout history .
and at least it 's all in the spirit of the ultimate powers of good versus evil in a fun and exciting matter .
it does border of the cartoonish sometimes , but that 's just the film appealing to our inner child , which is the basic reason the entire saga exists and has become such a big part of our modern society .
` the phantom menace ' delivers exactly what you 'd expect from a ` star wars ' film which is why it succeeds as well as it does
but is always why it never truly achieves greatness .
so many things in the film we 've seen before and done with more heart because the filmmakers concentrated just a bit more on story and character because they were limited .
but this film is far from bad because it at least embraces the spirit of sheer fun at the movies .

SOLUTION: P

PROBLEM: at first glance , it appears that the home alone movies are brainless slapstick intended for those with minds of 8-year olds .
that 's true of home alone
2
and i 'd bet money that it 's true of home alone
3 ( opening soon ) .
but home alone
actually has a lot going for it , and the cartoon slapstick does n't get in the way .
the mcalisters , all 15 of them , are going to france for the holidays .
four adults and eleven kids are spending the night together before heading to the airport en masse .
the littlest kid , kevin , is the victim of the older kids ' cruelty .
kevin 's patience runs out when he learns that his plain - cheese pizza has already been eaten , and he 's going to have to starve .
he attacks his big bully brother buzz , who had been teasing him .
the fight disrupts the already - chaotic dinner , spilling milk and soft drinks all over the table , a few cousins , and an uncle .
the knee - jerk reaction is for everyone to blame kevin .
nobody came to his rescue when he was being teased , but they all point their fingers when he fights back .
the ultimate punishment comes from mom ( catherine o'hara ) who sends him up to the spare bedroom in the attic for the night .
on his way up the stairs , he tells her that " families suck " and that he hopes never to see any of his family again .
that night the power goes out , knocking out the alarm clocks , so the mcalisters wake up in a big hurry to get to the airport .
in a surprisingly plausible setup , kevin is mistakenly accounted for , and the family heads off without him .
it 's interesting that , in a subtle way , his parents never noticed him missing because of their deliberate desire to separate themselves from their children .
first they delegate the headcount to an older sibling , and second , they put all the kids in coach while they fly first class .
they 're two - thirds of the way across the atlantic before they realize they are missing a child .
meanwhile , kevin believes that somehow his wish has come true .
he 's finally rid of his family !
life is a dream come true .
he can jump on the beds , watch r - rated movies , eat gobs of ice cream and potato chips , and dig through his big brother 's secret box .
slowly , the novelty wears off and he settles into the mundane .
he grooms himself , he does the laundry , he goes shopping ( " i bought some milk , eggs , and fabric softener " ) .
he also starts to miss his family , not just for their company , but for the security they bring .
the furnace in the basement is a scary monster , the old man next door is a snow - shovel murderer , and two crooks are trying to break into his house .
macaulay culkin is cute but he is n't much of an actor .
still , we can see that kevin 's character grows , thanks to some good direction and editing
.
for example , acting has little to do with the emotional impact of the scene where kevin searches out a seasonal santa at night , just as " santa " is getting in his car .
kevin asks the man to pass on his request - he wants his family back - to the real santa .
he learned how to deal with the furnace .
you turn on the lights and it 's not so scary anymore .
he goes to a church one evening
and there he sees the snow - shovel murderer , who actually turns out to be a nice man .
they talk about their fears and kevin learns that age alone does not make you less afraid .
finally , in the last 20 minutes , kevin confronts his last fear - the bandits , head on ( literally ) .
this last act is full of violent comedic slapstick , and after the movie 's genuine dramatic setup , it is dessert .
it 's a lot of fun , and it does n't overwhelm the rest of the movie
.
on the whole , home alone is a great holiday movie .
john williams ' original score has the sound and feel of holiday music without the disadvantage of being overplayed at the malls , and the christmas setting can put you in the mood for those family gatherings .
but it does have its flaws .
the smallest problem is that culkin does n't act very well .
as i said before , he is cute , but repeated viewings reveal more about how columbus covered himself than about culkin 's insight into his character .
the biggest problem is that during the cartoony coda , the villains threaten kevin 's life about five times .
instead of " i 'm gon na get that kid
" they say " i 'm gon na kill that kid .
"
some might argue that the tone is the same , but i strongly disagree .
mixing comedy with specific and viable threats of murder is a sociopathic faux - pas .
i 'll probably never see home alone 3 , and i wish i had skipped home alone 2 , but i do enjoy home alone almost every year
.
do n't let your impressions of the others detract from the original , which has much more to offer than cartoon slapstick .

SOLUTION: P

PROBLEM: when i first heard that romeo & juliet had been " updated " i shuddered .
i thought that yet another of shakespeare 's classics had been destroyed .
fortunately , i was wrong .
baz luhrman has directed an " in your face " , and visually stunning piece with this film .
it revolves around the two rival families , who in this version each run multi - million dollar enterprises .
these rival companies / families are the capulet 's and the montague 's .
the younger generation of these two families have formed gangs , who despise one another .
as the storylines goes , romeo montague ( played by leonardo dicaprio ) and juliet capulet ( claire danes ) meet at a fancy dress party , and it is love at first site .
i never believed love at first site was possible until i saw this film ,
the scene in which romeo 's eyes meet juliet 's through the fish tank
is one of the most memorable .
of course , they can not publicly reveal their love , for their families are arch enemies .
so they marry in secret
, this is where things begin to go wrong .
the story , as with all good shakespeare , ends in tragedy .
the cinematography is spectacular to say the least , and the soundtrack provides the perfect atmosphere in which to " lay our scene " , as the film says .
there is very little to criticise .
the performances are convincing , and several of the film 's younger stars may find that it provides a launch for their careers .
the modernisation of the script is ingenious and clever .
despite the well known storyline , this latest version still manages to cause tears among many members of the audience ( especially the younger generation ) , and this is certainly a great credit to the film .

SOLUTION:
P