In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.

[EX Q]: gothic murder - mystery yarns are not a new conceit .
in fact , they 've been around in books and on film for many , many years .
without the proper handling , they come off as old - fashioned , bland , and outdated .
"
the gift , " directed by sam raimi , is a tried - and - true effort that surprises very little , and includes everything from a wide array of suspects and red herrings , to mansions in the deep south with moss trees out front , to the eventual discovery of a waterlogged corpse found in a nearby pond .
it 's fairly obvious who the killer is ;
in fact , i predicted who it would be before the movie began and was correct in my preliminary suspicions .
the film ultimately should n't work , but it does , thanks to a sparkling cast that fills each character with so many memorable nuances , the most fun to be had is in simply watching the people interact with each other
.
annie wilson ( cate blanchett ) is a recently widowed mother of three sons who makes her living giving psychic readings to the residents of her backwater southern hometown .
some of her mainstay clients include valerie barksdale ( hilary swank ) , who is severely abused by her husband donnie ( keanu reeves ) , and buddy cole ( giovanni ribisi ) , an unstable mechanic who is confused by the nightmares he 's been having about a mysterious blue diamond that is somehow linked to his father .
for annie , she does not give the readings merely for money , but uses it as a way of seeking solace in finding the good in everyone 's future .
her late grandmother ( rosemary harris ) told her as a child that it was a gift she was given , and she should always remember that .
when annie 's eldest son is involved in a fight at school , she meets the nice - guy school principal , wayne collins ( greg kinnear ) , whom she finds herself attracted to .
but wayne is engaged to the wealthy jessica king ( katie holmes ) , whom annie immediately gets a negative vibe about .
at a party with her best friend linda ( kim dickens ) , annie stumbles upon jessica in a compromising position with lawyer david duncan ( gary cole ) .
soon after , jessica has disappeared , leaving everyone in a frenzy over what could have possibly happened to her , and annie starts to have nightmares and apparitions linking jessica with the vicious redneck donnie barksdale , and the pond behind his home .
"
the gift " may be cliched on a sheer storytelling level , but the performances and tight direction from raimi ( who has redeemed himself for his embarrassing last film , 1999 's " for love of the game " ) lift the picture up several notches .
slowly enveloping the viewer into the many intriguing characters and their individual plights , the disappearance of jessica at the 30-minute mark divulges the movie 's true intentions and transforms the proceedings into a taut , at times frightening , horror - mystery .
at the center of the film is the exceptional cate blanchett ( 1999 's " the talented mr .
ripley " ) , who turns annie wilson from what could have been little more than a run - of - the - mill protagonist into a very exact , down - to - earth , realistic person with valid troubles and a caring attitude towards those around her .
blanchett takes the unextraordinary material and runs with it , giving the entire film a truly classy aura that it otherwise might not have had .
we follow her at every turn because she is so mesmerizing , both as a character and an actress .
blanchett is n't the only bright performer , as she is ably supported by one of the best casts of the year .
in her first role following her oscar win for 1999 's " boys do n't cry , " hilary swank is excellent as the confused valerie , who seeks guidance from annie , but is too scared to take her biggest advice of all : to leave the grossly abusive donnie .
as donnie , keanu reeves ( 2000 's " the watcher " ) makes an utterly convincing backwoods meanie , so much so that it is difficult to believe he is an actor at all
.
for the often - criticized reeves , whose acting abilities have never been the best , this is the biggest compliment he could possibly get , and it is also one of the better performances he has given .
giovanni ribisi ( 2000 's " the boiler room " ) is heartbreaking as a mentally slow young man who sees annie as his only friend , and wants her to do nothing but help him understand why he is being plagued by bad dreams about his dad .
in the small , but pivotal role of the sleazy jessica king , katie holmes ( 2000 's " wonder boys " ) has turned in yet another stunning supporting turn .
her promiscuous role of jessica is one she has never played before , and
she is radiant in her few scenes .
finally , kim dickens ( 2000 's " hollow man " ) makes her usual strong impression as annie 's spicy best friend , linda .
the other notable aspect of " the gift " is its moody atmosphere that lays such a thickly foreboding air over every scene it 's almost suffocating .
thanks to cleverly construed editing by arthur coburn and bob murawski , and the successful use of different eerie sounds effects and a very good music score by christopher young , the movie not only achieves a scary undercurrent , but one that is filled with dread . helped along by a strong screenplay by billy bob thornton and tom epperson , which makes the most of its setting and delightful cast , " the gift " is
that rarest of thrillers that actually thrills , and offers up a fair share of chills , too .
it may not be groundbreakingly original , but it sure is an entertaining ride for the duration of its running time .
[EX A]: P

[EX Q]: you 'd think it would be easy to spoof star trek , but try spoofing it without cruelly mocking it .
that 's a bit more difficult .
the farfetched sci - fi series is , after all , enormously popular , what with its gigantic fan base and ongoing installments both on television and in movies .
if you 're not nice to it , you lose .
galaxy quest is to star trek what mel brooks 's spaceballs was to star wars ,
an affectionate , riotously funny parody that freely takes jabs at various elements of its subject but never seems mean - spirited or malintentioned .
"
the show 's been cancelled , but the journey is far from over .
"
that is the current tagline of " galaxy quest , " a star trek - type show that 's no longer produced but lives on forever in reruns .
it also lives on in conventions , gatherings of the show 's obsessive fans who never fail to dress in " galaxy quest " costumes and ask absurdly logical questions about its delirious technobabble .
jason nesmith
( tim allen ) played " commander peter quincy taggart " on the show and is the only one of the cast who still gets excited about the gigs they have to do .
the attitudes of the rest -- tommy webber ( daryl mitchell , gwen demarco ( sigourney weaver ) , fred kwan ( tony shalhoub ) and alexander dane ( alan rickman ) -- range from indifference to utter contempt .
dane , who played a spock - like alien , is especially disgusted , considering himself above his demeaning job and stubbornly refusing to recite his character 's cheesy trademark line " by grabthar 's hammer , you shall be avenged " ( or something like that ) for his die - hard fans .
one day , nesmith is greeted by an especially fanatical group of " galaxy quest " followers .
they are actually aliens from a planet known as thermia .
they have mistaken the " galaxy quest " episodes for historical documentation of actual heroic space travel .
the next day , the thermians whisk nesmith away to a spaceship to help them defeat the evil sarris ( named , in one of the film 's only mean - spirited gags , after village voice film critic andrew sarris ) .
nesmith thinks it is only an elaborate gig , and sort of blows it off , but when he is transported -- or i should say shot -- back to earth in a rather celestial manner , he believes .
next thing the cast knows , they are being dragged by nesmith to this spaceship .
of course , they all think he is out of his mind
and once he does convince them that there really is a spaceship , what they want to do is get out of there as fast as the transporters will take them .
but after some persuading , they stay on to fight the icky sarris and find a way to provide a peaceful existance for the flailing thermians .
i was quite surprised how well this comedy , which came off as utterly brainless from its marketing campaign , worked .
taking shots at both the obvious and not - so - obvious elements of star trek and its fandom , galaxy quest never goes for cheap laughs , opting instead for broad but smart parody .
nothing is safe -- not the cliches , not the fans , not the absurd taglines -- but on the other hand , everything is safe , since galaxy quest treats its subject with utter respect and sometimes even subtle admiration .
the highlight of the movie is tony shalhoub 's fred a .
k .
a . tech sergeant chen who , when in character , is the complete opposite of scotty from the original star trek .
while scotty , who was the technician for the enterprise would constantly yell " i need more power down here captain ! " ,
chen 's cry for help is more to the tune of " the core , like , wo n't take it or something .
" it 's a hoot , but it does n't stop there :
weaver , whose character has the menial task of repeating everything the computer says and rickman , with his relentlessly holier - than - thou attitude are n't far behind .
galaxy quest succeeds as a funny parody of star trek and while it 's not a masterpiece -- it tends to falter in its more serious moments --
it is immensely entertaining fluff and excellent counterprogramming to all the sober oscar contenders being released this holiday season .
by grabthar 's hammer , this is a hell of a movie .
[EX A]: P

[EX Q]: originally entitled dancing about architecture ( i .
e .
" talking about love is like dancing about architecture " ) , but changed because it sounded too much like the recent box - office dud dancing at lughnasa , this film slaps together a stunning cast of hollywood names , playing interesting and well - written characters , within a vignettes - styled plot arrangement a la robert altman .
plot : follow the lives of several couples falling in and out of love , finding themselves , regaining a clearer understanding of the people that they are , and who they want , and appreciating the fine emotional art of love .
critique : charmingly effective romantic drama , this film offers insight into various types of relationships , presents us with interesting characters and excellent performances from the cast , and scratches beneath the surface of love and its many complex subtleties .
how do people fall in love ?
why do people fall out of love ?
how do people fall back into love , once they 've been hurt and left to join the lonely hearts club ?
all of these questions and more , are touched upon in this film , within several types of variant relationships .
meet a hip , young couple going through their first date .
a divorcee attempting to date again after her many failed relationships .
a married woman " finding herself " while cheating on her husband .
a husband letting go of his inhibitions .
an older couple dealing with a past " love " of the man , a secret recently uncovered .
a son dying from aids , joined by his mother at the hospital .
there are many nuances to this picture , and many ideas and quotes to which we could all relate , but more importantly , there is diversity .
diversity of relationships helped me and my gang of friends enjoy this film on many levels .
some related to the younger couples ' issues .
others with the married .
there 's a little bit of everything for everyone in here .
and i would bet dollars to donuts that if i were to watch this film again in a year , i would relate myself to yet another predicament .
just like love itself , this movie is distinct and appreciated by all on many different levels .
the actors in this film are all also very , very good .
sean connery is solid as the older man with some issues to resolve , as is gena rowlands , as the aging wife with trepidations .
jolie comes out of this film a star with a great performance , while philippe is as pretty - boy as ever .
anderson leaves scully far behind with her wonderful portrayal of a damaged woman trying to re - ignite her love life , opposite a surprisingly admirable performance
by former talk - show host , jon stewart .
even dennis quaid manages to step outside of his overacting shoes in this film , and offers a convincing show of a man lost within his own imagination .
the only piece of this puzzle which left me somewhat detached , was the part surrounding jay mohr , the man dying from aids , and his mother , ellen burstyn .
the actors were fine , but somehow , the piece seemed out of place within the realm of everything else .
the ending of this film was also a little too saccharine for me , but i guess that 's just hollywood .
this film is actually a lot like your friends and neigbors ( 5 . 5/10 ) and happiness ( 4 . 5/10 ) in concept and style , but its complete anthesis in regards to character relatibility and likeness .
the characters in those films were too unique and inhuman for anyone to care , as opposed to this film , which offers rich and believable characters , living real lives and talking about real issues in today 's relationships .
all in all , this movie offers many interesting characters , talking and living genuine and engaging love lives , wonderful performances by its solid cast , too sweet of an ending , but an enjoyable and rewatchable movie nonetheless .
little known facts about this film and its stars : according to a story in the london sunday mirror , sean connery asked for only $ 60 , 000 for his role in this movie , as compared to his usual fee of $ 14 million , because he liked the script so much .
on top of that , he convinced his co - stars ( including gena rowlands , gillian anderson , ellen burstyn ,
et al . ) to do the same .
this is director / writer willard carroll second real foray into the world of " adult films " .
before this , he had written and produced many children 's movies .
gillian anderson stands 5'2 .
angelina jolie 's full name is angelina jolie voight .
she is actor jon voight 's daughter .
she has trained and performed at the lee strasberg theatre institute .
she divorced actor jonny lee miller of trainspotting ( 8 . 5/10 ) fame in 1997 .
they were married in 1995 .
actor ryan phillippe 's full name is matthew ryan phillippe .
he stands 5'9 , and spent his childhood in new castle , delaware .
his acting career started on tv 's " one life to live " .
he portrayed daytime television 's first gay teenager .
jon stewart 's full name is jonathan stewart leibowitz .
this film was originally entitled if they only knew and dancing about architecture .
watch for movie posters from swingers ( 8 . 5/10 ) , chasing amy ( 7/10 ) and the texas chainsaw massacre ( 8/10 ) at the movie theatre where the characters of joan and keenan go on their first date .
[EX A]:
P