Detailed Instructions: In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
See one example below:
Problem: plot : two teen couples go to a church party , drink and then drive .
they get into an accident .
one of the guys dies , but his girlfriend continues to see him in her life , and has nightmares .
what 's the deal ?
watch the movie and " sorta " find out . . .
critique : a mind - fuck movie for the teen generation that touches on a very cool idea , but presents it in a very bad package .
which is what makes this review an even harder one to write , since i generally applaud films which attempt to break the mold , mess with your head and such ( lost highway & memento ) , but there are good and bad ways of making all types of films , and these folks just did n't snag this one correctly
.
they seem to have taken this pretty neat concept , but executed it terribly .
so what are the problems with the movie ?
well , its main problem is that it 's simply too jumbled
.
it starts off " normal " but then downshifts into this " fantasy " world in which you , as an audience member ,
have no idea what 's going on
.
there are dreams , there are characters coming back from the dead , there are others who look like the dead , there are strange apparitions , there are disappearances , there are a looooot of chase scenes , there are tons of weird things that happen , and most of it is simply not explained .
now i personally do n't mind trying to unravel a film every now and then , but when all it does is give me the same clue over and over again , i get kind of fed up after a while , which is this film 's biggest problem .
it 's obviously got this big secret to hide , but it seems to want to hide it completely until its final five minutes .
and do they make things entertaining , thrilling or even engaging , in the meantime ?
not really .
the sad part is that the arrow and i both dig on flicks like this , so we actually figured most of it out by the half - way point , so all of the strangeness after that did start to make a little bit of sense , but it still did n't the make the film all that more entertaining .
i guess the bottom line with movies like this is that you should always make sure that the audience is " into it " even before they are given the secret password to enter your world of understanding .
i mean , showing melissa sagemiller running away from visions for about 20 minutes throughout the movie is just plain lazy ! !
okay , we get it .
. .
there are people chasing her and we do n't know who they are .
do we really need to see it over and over again ?
how about giving us different scenes offering further insight into all of the strangeness going down in the movie ?
apparently , the studio took this film away from its director and chopped it up themselves , and it shows .
there might 've been a pretty decent teen mind - fuck movie in here somewhere , but i guess " the suits " decided that turning it into a music video with little edge , would make more sense .
the actors are pretty good for the most part , although wes bentley just seemed to be playing the exact same character that he did in american beauty , only in a new neighborhood .
but my biggest kudos go out to sagemiller , who holds her own throughout the entire film , and actually has you feeling her character 's unraveling .
overall , the film does n't stick
because it does n't entertain , it 's confusing , it rarely excites and
it feels pretty redundant for most of its runtime , despite a pretty cool ending and explanation to all of the craziness that came before it .
oh ,
and by the way , this is not a horror or teen slasher flick . . .
it 's just packaged to look that way because someone is apparently assuming that the genre is still hot with the kids .
it also wrapped production two years ago and has been sitting on the shelves ever since .
whatever . .
. skip it !
where 's joblo coming from ?
a nightmare of elm street 3 ( 7/10 ) - blair witch 2 ( 7/10 ) - the crow ( 9/10 ) - the crow : salvation ( 4/10 )
- lost highway ( 10/10 ) - memento ( 10/10 ) - the others ( 9/10 ) - stir of echoes ( 8/10 )
Solution: N
Explanation: The phrases used in the review convey a negative sentiment (e.g. "presents it in a very bad package").

Problem: it is simply amazing
how " the green mile " developed in its three hour running time .
based on the stephen king series of the same title , the film starts out painfully slow , with underdeveloped characters and idiotic dialogue .
however , as the plot begins to progress , the film turns into pure perfection with outstanding performances and wonderful direction .
frank darabont , who masterfully followed a prisoner 's story in " the shawshank redemption " , this time follows the perspective of a prison guard , paul edgecomb ( tom hanks ) .
through edgecomb 's experiences on a cell block known as the green mile where death row prisoners wait and repent , the audience sees good and evil on both sides of the law .
from an evil prison guard to an evil prisoner , " the green mile " is successful in creating sympathy for kind - hearted hard working guards and hard thinking prisoners .
the plot follows edgecomb and four other guards as they meet a variety of prisoners and after having strong relationships with each eventually are forced to execute them .
the performances by veterans and new comers to back up these original characters are superb .
the ensemble acting in the film is perfect .
hanks , david morse and barry pepper as guards are wonderful and are fitting for their roles
.
they are the characters we most relate to because of their calm less extreme roles .
they are given the positions to make rational decisions at difficult times and they are the ones who fulfill the demands of the audience .
the more unique characters perfectly create friction on the green mile and make the story interesting and exciting .
some particularly note worthy roles of the unique characters include doug hutchinson , sam rockwell , and michael duncan .
hutchinson , playing percy wetmore , a cowardly guard who hides his true feelings by tormenting others gives the greatest performance of the movie .
every time he appears on the screen , the attitude of others is very uncomfortable and the creepy expressions he is able to create are effectively terrifying .
it would come as no surprise if hutchinson was nominated for an academy award as best supporting actor , not only because he did a wonderful job as wetmore , but also because he stole every scene he was in away from veteran oscar winner
tom hanks .
rockwell , an independent film veteran , plays his role as wild bill wharton to perfection .
as a prisoner who taunts and harasses the guards at all hours , he really gets under your skin and irritates you for having to watch him torture others .
this irritation he creates makes his performance so believable .
the last noteworthy performance belongs to duncan , as the enormous convicted killer john coffey who happens to hold the power of curing the ill .
duncan does a wonderful job playing a frightened child - like behemoth , very similar to lennie small in of mice and men .
his desire for love and the extinction of hate evokes the most compassion because it is very obvious that he is suffering for no just cause .
his pain creates pain for the viewer .
however , it takes over an hour for duncan to be introduced completely in the film .
the film opens with a ridiculous present day setting which contains a scene that jabs at " the jerry springer show .
"
the scene , containing one old man complaining about how all guests on the show are inbred and rednecks .
not only is this observation entirely pointless and out of place , but it is also hackneyed beyond all belief .
as the film flashes back to 1935 , graham greene is quickly executed without any introduction .
his death seems very rushed and without any knowledge of who he is , the scene is neither sad nor convincing .
greene is not even given a final word , like some of the other characters , and we do n't even see him walk the infamous green mile .
however , as the film begins to specifically introduce more characters , such as coffey and eduard delacroix ( michael jeter ) as well as the five prison guards , the film becomes more interesting .
the speed in " the green mile " is perfect .
if time was a matter of concern and the film was edited to the two hour mark , it would have been unsatisfactory because we would not be able to know the characters as they are or as they treat others .
the three hour running is perfect for plot development
and by the end of the film , a great amount of love or hate is attached to each character .
"
the green mile " is so good following the rough beginning , that when the pivotal moment at the very end finally comes , it is almost impossible not to feel some sort of sadness for every person in this scene .
fighting back tears was a difficult task that i barely succeeded in doing . if you survive the first third of " the green mile " sit back and enjoy the remainder for some priceless entertainment .
Solution:
P