|
| • Advanced Search • Help |
The Gingerbread Man | Year: 1998 Classification: Drama Directed: - Robert Altman Actors/Actresses: - Kenneth Branagh - Tom Berenger - Robert Duvall - Embeth Davidtz - Robert Jr Downey - Daryl Hannah - Jesse James - Famke Janssen - Kennet Brannagh Mixed feelings about this one I just got done watching this movie, and I'm a bit torn on which side of the discussion I'm going to come down on. I was curious to see how Branagh (whom I usually love) was going to do a Southern accent. I think he struggled on this. He did an OK accent, but being a Northerner, I'm going to have to defer on others on how good his accent was. At least he didn't have a broad drawl. The plot was pretty suspenseful. One did feel a definite sense of foreboding when Branagh's children were involved. Unlike other reviewers, I thought the subplot about the storm added an interesting twist. Two other great actors, Robert Duvall and Robert Downey, Jr. were good in the film, although neither had a lot of screen time. I must confess that it was pretty easy to figure out what was going to happen, so the ending wasn't a giant surprise. Films these days all seem to offer a twist at the end, so I think we are all trying to out-guess the filmmakers. It was pretty easy this time. Moderately recommended. The film's actors bail out what really should have been a better film. Pick a rainy day to watch it (it really does rain all the time). Not worth buying, not worth even renting I rented this movie, because it featured a few actors I truly like and respect, such as Branagh and Downey Jr. However, I felt this was a real waste of time. The movie is set in Savannah, GA and it rains all through the film, which I felt was totally unnecessary. The setting had nothing to do with the plot, so I felt the whole southern accent thing was unnecessary distraction. The plot starts out boring. You feel that something is up, and you can easily guess what is going to happen next, because frankly there is no other alternative. If you have absolutely nothing else to do, and you catch this on TV, just take a look at it, and you'll see what I mean... Also, I agree with the reviewers who said that noone acts like this in real life. At many points, the actions of the characters just anger the viewer, because they are unrealistic, or simply stupid. Not Quite Good The Gingerbread Man should be a better noir than it is. A primary flaw is its inability to get us behind its protagonist in any way- Rick MacGruder (Kenneth Branagh) is pompous, vain, and tempestuous. As an attorney, he is the polar opposite of Gregory Peck's Atticus Finch, willing to sink to any level in order to win a case. When MacGruder helps a young woman deal with her mentally unstable father, we know he is doing so out of a desire to get in her pants rather than any sort of altruism. It is simply hard to care for him as his situation deteriorates- indeed, one almost gets the feeling that karma is simply at work. Another issue is the plot. While twists and turns are fine, this film saves all of them for the final thirty minutes, and they feel a little overwhelming. While you are trying to figure out how one twist happened, the next one barrels onto the screen. Stylistically, the film has some interesting and cool moments. The slick opening shot, accompanied by the discordant score, takes us over the Georgia coastal plain and eventually tracks MacGruder's car over the Talmadge Bridge and into Savannah. It hardly matters that traveling from Jacksonville to Savannah (as we are told) doesn't take you over said bridge. The setting is an important part of the story, and Savannah is a location that never fails to lend its uniqueness to a film. On the whole, The Gingerbread Man has some genuinely suspenseful moments (Duvall is particularly menacing) but it is otherwise disengaging. I was waiting for it to end. Buy The Gingerbread Man at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on The Gingerbread Man Search with the Priority Search Engine on The Gingerbread Man This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
|
