instruction:
In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
question:
here is a film that is so unexpected , so scary , and so original that it caught me off guard and threw me for a loop .
okay , it is n't quite original ,
considering it is a sequel to the box office hit species , but
it certainly is smart .
most films of this genre are reminiscent of those cheesy b - horror films from the 50s and 60s , and some even become them .
however , as we learned with the 1995 small - budget horror / sci - fi film , sometimes expectations can be shattered .
a lot of criticism has gone against this film ( from what i have read so far , anyway -- yep , all two reviews ) , and it makes me wonder why these types of films are automatically dismissed as gory , laughable pieces of trash .
but , the thing is , it is n't .
it 's well made , well acted , and quite intelligent .
i can see most of the critics now complaining about the level of gore or the level of sexuality in the film .
but the species series is n't about the lack of these elements .
it 's about how much it can get into one film .
and yet , behind it all , it has this basic premise that allows it to get away with doing so .
species ii begins in the present day , though it seems to be an alternate universe .
many films ( especially sci - fi ones ) create similar timelines as our realistic one , but change it to fit the film 's needs .
species ii begins with the arrival of an american spacecraft , the excursion , landing on the surface of mars .
aboard is patrick ross ( justin lazard ) , a very bright and very handsome astronaut .
patrick is the son of senator ross ( james cromwell ) , who just wants patrick to succeed .
well , it would seem that he has succeeded .
landing on the surface of mars , he is the first human being to ever do so .
of course , he is n't the first ever .
about a billion years ago , an alien species supposedly landed on mars and destroyed the perfect living conditions that were able to sustain life .
now , of course , the red planet is cold and rocky .
no life lives on it .
that is , no visible life .
patrick , upon leaving the spacecraft and landing on the red soil , collects samples from the ground .
he takes them aboard , and puts them in storage .
unfortunately , one of the samples contains a form of life , and it gets loose when it is heated aboard the ship .
just prior to heading back to earth , this life form creeps along the floor and inhabits the earthlings .
they pass out for approximately seven minutes , and then shrug it off as nothing , because they ca n't even remember .
they blame it on a technical malfunction .
back on earth , patrick begins to have strong urges to mate with as many women as possible .
as we know from the original , this is because the alien wants to breed and take over the planet .
however , the children that are bred are half - human , as their father is .
patrick is really looking for another alien to breed with , and he finds it in eve ( natasha henstridge ) .
eve was cloned from dna taken from sil , the original alien .
however , this time around , most of her " alien " urges have been either decreased dramatically , or lie dormant .
the project is led by dr .
laura baker ( marg helgenberger , reprising her role from species ) , and her motives seem respectable .
since she was involved with the original alien attack , she wants to learn how to stop the alien should it come again .
and it has .
story - wise
, species ii is much stronger than its predecessor , but it is also much stronger than , say , aliens
( hey , i love the film , but you ca n't tell me it was strong on story ) .
what surprised me the most with this film was the incorporation of historical facts into the screenplay .
in my search for extraterrestrial intelligence course in college , we learned about a piece of rock from mars which landed in one of the poles .
this piece of rock contained fossils which may have been proof of life on mars ( later , it was proven that it was not a living creature that created it ) .
the script uses this effectively , but also manages to provide a well - balanced plot .
beginning with the first man on mars ( something i have always dreamed of seeing ) , i was hoping that the film would turn this element into a useful starting point for the movie .
and it does it quite well .
the characters are all smart , and they know what to do and what not to do .
the only character that seems a little cliched is the general ( george dzundza ) , and yet
, he remains logical in everything he does .
there are the obvious flaws of course , mostly lying in the technical aspects .
the special effects are only mediocre , and some are just plain bad .
but for the most part , they remain believable
( i even noticed a homage to the alien series when the mothers gave birth to alien children ) .
also , the most realistic ones are usually the goriest , ranging from people being torn open , or someone 's head being blown off .
however , some plot elements also may elicit laughs from the audience , including a menage a troi that is all but necessary .
many people dislike the species series because all it is is an excuse for sex , nudity , and gory violence .
however , i tend to disagree .
what were the alien films about ?
and , if an alien species ever did come to earth , and their sole purpose was to destroy us , would n't you mate as quickly as possible with as many people as possible ?
my only gripe with this is during the scene where patrick goes searching for a mate in a grocery store .
i did n't realize that aliens were that picky on choosing women to mate with
( i just assume it is his part - human side looking for the most beautiful one ) .
the acting is quite good for this kind of film .
it is a vast improvement over the first film , at least .
the acting is the key element to this film : if it was bad , it would have lowered itself into camp ; if it was good , it would have asked for comparison with films like aliens .
okay ,
so it is n't that good .
george dzundza is probably the most obvious mistake on casting , as his over - the - top impersonation of a general makes him annoying and distracting .
natasha henstridge is limited this time around , as she is usually enclosed in a cage .
however , she does manage a very impressive performance with this aspect hindering any of her talent .
oh yeah ,
and she 's quite fun to just plain watch .
marg helgenberger is immensely better this time around , and her performance is probably the best in this film .
michael madsen is so - so , but he is n't annoying ,
and he soon becomes rather appealing
( with his nice cynic personality ) .
james cromwell has a small part , but he makes it much better than what it could have been with a more incapable actor .
as i say , any film with james cromwell dramatically increases in likeability .
mykelti williamson gives an enjoyable performance , and he gives the film a more down - to - earth feel .
and , of course , justin lazard .
lazard has so far been ridiculed for his performance ,
but i think he is effective .
sure , he is wooden , but is n't that what his character is like ?
the moment when he touches the glass separating henstridge from him was extremely well done , due to the couple 's acting .
species ii is rated r for strong sexuality , sci - fi violence / gore and language .
this is definitely an r rated film that young kids should not see .
more than likely , they would probably have nightmares and never have sex for the rest of their lives .
hell , i do n't even know if i will .
what is sure to be a critically lambasted film turns out to be the surprise film of the year .
i probably wo n't see another film where i was expecting so little and got so much for quite a while .
director peter medak has crafted a very suspenseful , and sometimes very scary movie out of a mediocre series .
medak has also mastered the wonderful " jump !
" moments , and has probably the second scariest moment i have ever seen on film ( scream still has the first ) .
strong acting , smart dialogue , intelligent plotting , and a sure - handed director , species ii is exactly what these films should be : entertaining .
answer:
P

question:
kevin smith is like a big kid .
his humor is that of a sophisticated juvenile 's .
he grew up idolizing star wars and loves comic books , having also written a few .
he also has a cult following , mostly composed of teenagers , college students , and smith 's own fellow adolescent - minded grownups .
smith is hilarious in person and in writing , but when he tries to be earnest and moralize , that is when he goes wrong .
kevin smith is a better writer than director , and he 'll be the first to tell you that .
that might also be part of the reason why his moralizing comes across as so heavy - handed .
great directors show us their theses instead of having the characters sermonize them .
this was true in the overrated chasing amy , and it is true for dogma as well .
that is not to say smith 's message is a bad one .
in dogma , smith tells us that problems arise when people believe beyond any doubt that their insight into god and god 's desires is superior to anyone else 's .
basically , dogmatism is bad .
changing the minds of the dogmatic is virtually impossible , and since the dogmatic believe that they have special insight , they also know what is best for you , whether you like it or not .
this is not exactly a new message in movies ( see inherit the wind ) , but i have no problems with recycling old ones , particularly since dogma 's protesters are proving smith 's point .
smith 's own problem with delivering this message is that he beats us over the head with it like we are reading a dogma for dummies book .
but this is smith 's personality , and his simplistic views neglect such adult issues as how does one interpret the bible ( or koran , etc . ) correctly ( or if there even is a correctly ) and how one settles disputes of heretofore dogmatic concerns .
the story concerns abortion clinic worker bethany ( linda fiorentino ) being chosen by voice of god , metatron ( alan rickman ) , to prevent the destruction of the universe by two fallen angels , bartleby ( ben affleck ) and angel of death , loki ( matt damon ) .
along the way , forgotten thirteenth apostle , rufus ( chris rock ) , stripper muse serendipity ( salma hayek ) , and slacker duo jay and silent bob ( jason mewes and kevin
smith himself ) come to bethany 's aid .
fallen muse , azrael ( jason lee ) , proves to be the behind - the - scenes manipulator for all the chicanery .
the logical but convoluted plot only exists as an excuse for the jokes and to make smith 's points , and in itself , has little dramatic momentum .
among the supposedly outrageous claims made by the film is that god is a woman , jesus was black , and the bible was written by a bunch of racist , misogynistic white men .
of course , kevin smith does not necessarily subscribe to these ideas himself .
they are a metaphor for the fears and insecurities of the dogmatic .
smith says as much in his amusing disclaimer that precedes the movie .
when harvey weinstein asked smith to put it into the film before cannes , smith thought it might give validation to protesters ' claims that the film was sacrilegious , but then he rethought it and turned the disclaimer into a joke .
the film 's humor is uneven .
some parts are very funny
as when bethany goes for a fire extinguisher when metatron makes a burning - bush kind of entrance .
but many of the film 's jokes just bomb , as in virtually anything involving salma hayek 's serendipity .
also , some of the jokes can be seen coming from a mile away .
still , smith keeps the zingers coming at a sufficiently rapid pace . among the actors , fiorentino and rickman stand out by far .
fiorentino virtually by herself gives the film emotional weight .
damon and affleck are fairly lackluster .
rock and hayek exist in the film pretty much only as comic relief as are mews and smith .
but the latter duo fare much better because jay and silent bob , who recur in all of smith 's movies , are much more in line with smith 's brand of humor .
bud cort , george carlin , janeane garofalo , guinevere turner , and alanis morissette all make cameo appearances .
answer:
P

question:
gordon fleming ( peter mullan ) is in a bind .
he has a new , unexpected baby and his business , hazardous material removal , is in danger of going under .
when he and his crew get a job opportunity at the long - abandoned danvers state hospital , he underbids the competition to secure the contract and promises to get the three - week job done in one .
it will prove to be a fateful week for them all in " session 9 .
" gordo gets the job to remove asbestos and other hazardous materials from the spooky old mental hospital in preparation for relocating town offices there .
their guided tour of the facility by a local official , bill giggs ( paul guilfoyle ) , brings them through some of the creepier parts of the former asylum .
but , a job is a job
and , if they finish in a week , as promised , there is a $ 10000 bonus in store .
as they get down to their work , things , normal and not so normal , begin to happen .
gordon hears a disembodied voice beckoning him .
phil ( david caruso ) is conflicted working with a guy , hank ( josh lucas ) , who is seeing his old girlfriend .
mike ( co - screenwriter steven gevedon ) has discovered a cache of audiotapes and transcripts from old psychiatric sessions ( hence , the title ) with inmate mary hobbs , a multi - personality patient with a dark secret .
gordo 's nephew , jeff ( brendan sexton iii ) , suffers from night phobia and is afraid to venture into the dark bowels of the hospital .
as the agreed upon week draws to an end , hank mysteriously disappears from the workplace after a nocturnal confrontation with someone ( something ? ) in the hospital .
tensions mount and distrust build among the rest as they watch their chance for the bonus start to slip away .
but , there is more , much more , at stake as the hospital and its history of insanity weigh on them all .
i do n't want to give away too much of the story of " session 9 , " so i 'll stop there .
what we have here is a spooky horror flick that uses none of the jump - out - at - you - from - the - dark cheap shots that have become part and parcel with horror films since the advent of " halloween " and " friday the thirteenth .
"
there is no cat leaping out of the dark or the shock of suddenly seeing oneself in a strategically placed mirror .
with the exception of one shadowy and chilling image at one point spooky interlude in the film , there is little that you can get your arms around as far as what , specifically , is " frightening .
"
as i watched " session 9 " i became aware of the subtle things that built up during the story that make it a true horror movie .
the striking high - definition video camera work by uta briesewitz ( who worked with the director , brad anderson , on his " next stop wonderland " ) helps to build up tension with close - ups , fluid camera movement and odd angles in a way that would make alfred hitchcock proud .
music , too , is used to intense effect , joining with the camera to make simple scenes frightening , even horrifying .
couple these tech feats with an intelligent story that uses elements of " the shining , " " the blair witch project " and , even " the texas chainsaw massacre " and you get
a decent , intriguing horror flick .
additionally , the brilliant decision to shoot at danvers state hospital gives the film another starring character , the institution itself , which lends even more chills to the equation .
acting is another factor that raises " session 9 " above the usual dreck presented in recent horror hits like " scream , " " i know what you did last summer " and their sequels .
those films took good - looking , though generic , young actors and actresses and put them to use to build up a body count , substituting mayhem for real horror .
anderson opted , instead , to use mature , experienced actors like peter mullan and david caruso to fill his characters ' shoes and the difference in casting quality is notable .
mullan , in particular , puts an arc on his character , gordon , as the troubled guy who slowly and inexorably falls under the pressures of family , job and , finally , danvers state hospital .
the rest of the small cast fit the bill as people , not just fodder for the mayhem .
david caruso , as gordo 's senior man and near equal in the business , shows just how good an actor he is .
he made the jump from tv 's " nypd blue " to film far too soon and his decisions in the roles he took ( i 'll never forget the horrendous " jade " ) were less than star making .
he rolls his sleeves up and does the job well here .
gevedon , lucas and sexton are more than fodder , too .
the only problem with " session 9 " lay in the uninspired ending .
it takes on a fairly conventional finale that covers old ground and is a bit of a disappointment after the terrific ( and inspired ) build up .
the pleasure is getting there
and i wish that anderson and gevedon had kept up the steam they had so ably built during the bulk of the film " session 9 " is an unusual feat .
it is scary , does n't use cheap tricks and raises goose bumps with its intelligently rendered , subtle horror .
because of the local interest of danvers , it should do well with the northeast crowd .
i hope it gets the national distribution it deserves .
i give it a b+ .
answer:
P