Laugh Out Loud Bad
Added 1/31/2010
I haven't seen this in a while, but I remember it being jaw-droppingly bad. Bill Paxton's horrible performance, as well as the silly dialogue and plot made it laugh-out-loud funny. I really should see it again just to remember how bad it really is. I can't believe there are people that think it's a good movie, as a quick check found that the majority of critics admired it on its release. That's wacky.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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One of the BEST thrillers....PERIOD. (NO SPOILERS)
Added 12/21/2009
Frailty. Frailty. Frailty. What do I say about this lovely gem of a film? It is the directorial debut of Bill Paxton. Yes, he is the same Bill Paxton of films like Wierd Science, Apollo 13, Twister, Tombstone, and Titanic, among many others. And is it an amazing film to say the least.
This has to be one of the best, if not the best, directorial debut's in recent memory. It stars the up and coming star at the time Matthew McConaughey, Powers Boothe, Bill Paxton as Dad, Jeremie Sumpter as Young Adam, and the most amazing performance by a newcomer I have ever seen Matt O'Leary as Young Fenton.
The story is told through McConaughey's eyes in flashback format and the whole movie takes place during a long car ride. (One of the best scenes ever filmed of a car that NEVER MOVED on set. Amazing.)
It is a story about the "God's Hand" killer. Fenton, played by McConaughey, walks in one stormy night to FBI headquarters and tells Boothe (the lead FBI agent assigned to the God's Hand case) that he knows who the killer is. It is his brother Adam. Then the story begins and it completely sucks you in. It has a really eerie Gothic feel to it. The way that Paxton weaves the story is amazing. You would think this film was directed by a seasoned veteran. Also, One of the best things about this film is that most of the violence of the film happens off camera. It isn't a movie that needs to be gory. It is scary in the subject matter. It doesn't need gore to get under your skin. And believe me, it will get under there.
I will give none of the essential plot away because it is TOO good to spoil. I will say this though. If you haven't seen this film, you are missing a wonderful hidden gem. Buy it or rent it immediately! You will not soon forget FRAILTY.
Film: 5 stars
Blu Ray: 5 stars The film looks and sounds awesome. The extras are great!
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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As Disturbing as the Bible
Added 12/12/2009
A film (on Blu-ray release) about religious fanaticism as only a Texan could write it. Screen writer Brent Hanley starts with the premise of, "What if the God of the Old Testament was actively involved in events of the modern world?" The answer is events not much different than what you see on the nightly news--religious fanatics killing people ("demons" for some, "infidels" for others) in the name of God. Hanley states that he is amazed by the different interpretations people give for this film. That is what brings this film to a higher level than what he originally intended, a Stephen King story line with a "Twilight Zone" ending. Comparing this film to "Psycho" or "The Sixth Sense" is not really accurate either because it carries the weight of our religious heritage. Violence for the sake of scary thrills is one thing, but when that violence is combined with overt religious themes, that is something else. The reason is obvious to anyone who has read the Old Testament--it is violent and too often psychotic. You can blame evil on the devil (as this script does), but who created the devil? Hanley misses the point of why people blame God for the evil in this film, saying they misinterpreted it (in the writer's commentary). He would have looked so much smarter if he said the film was really a satire on Western religion. As it is, we do have some great comic moments: God's "magical weapons" being those of a common serial killer--work gloves, a lead pipe, and an ax sent directly from heaven.
One is reminded of the Texas mom who murdered her children saying that she was told to do so by God. Where would we be if every mother did the same when they felt their children were demons? (Of course, Leviticus recommends stoning to death children who disobey their parents). By the way, didn't President Bush say God told him to send troops into Iraq because there were "weapons of mass destruction?" These must have been magical too because they completely disappeared when we got there. Must be a Texas thing.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Some people take this movie to seriously.
Added 11/6/2009
WOW... I am shocked by some of the negative reviews I have read on this movie. Some people take it way to seriously. Bill Paxton wasn't out to make a movie that encourages murder or says that atheist are evil demons that christians should kill. You people are stupid and lame.
The movie is meant to psych you out and give you a bit of a twist at the end. It acts as if it is telling the story from the older brother's point of view, and makes you think that this boy is growing up in a crazy home with a crazy father, and the result of it is that his younger brother has become a serial killer. The movie has some twist that make it more interesting.
Im sorry some of you people are too lame to see the greatness of the movie.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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WHY WAS POWERS BOOTHE A BAD GUY??
Added 10/29/2009
FIRST OF ALL THE MOVIE WAS GREAT, BUT THE LAST TEN OR SO MINUTES SUCKED...HOW IS IT THAT A COP THAT HAS A PICTURE OF HIS MOTHER
ON HIS DESK MEAN HE KILLED HER??, I DON'T KNOW WHY THEY HAD TO DO THAT, THAT KILL THE MOVIE.
WOULD IT HAVE BEEN BETTER IF THE COP (GOOD GUY AND NOT A MOTHER KILLER) FOUND OUT WHO THIS JERK WAS AND KICK HIS FAIRY [...]??, OR PUT A BULLET IN HIS HEAD AND BE DONE WITH IT??. SORRY...DOE'S THAT SOUND LIKE SOMETHING DOLPH LUNDGREN OR CLINT EASTWOOD WOULD DO??
WHO CARES...GOD WOULDN'T WORK LIKE THAT ANYWAY.
0 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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Laugh Out Loud Bad
Added 1/31/2010
I haven't seen this in a while, but I remember it being jaw-droppingly bad. Bill Paxton's horrible performance, as well as the silly dialogue and plot made it laugh-out-loud funny. I really should see it again just to remember how bad it really is. I can't believe there are people that think it's a good movie, as a quick check found that the majority of critics admired it on its release. That's wacky.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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One of the BEST thrillers....PERIOD. (NO SPOILERS)
Added 12/21/2009
Frailty. Frailty. Frailty. What do I say about this lovely gem of a film? It is the directorial debut of Bill Paxton. Yes, he is the same Bill Paxton of films like Wierd Science, Apollo 13, Twister, Tombstone, and Titanic, among many others. And is it an amazing film to say the least.
This has to be one of the best, if not the best, directorial debut's in recent memory. It stars the up and coming star at the time Matthew McConaughey, Powers Boothe, Bill Paxton as Dad, Jeremie Sumpter as Young Adam, and the most amazing performance by a newcomer I have ever seen Matt O'Leary as Young Fenton.
The story is told through McConaughey's eyes in flashback format and the whole movie takes place during a long car ride. (One of the best scenes ever filmed of a car that NEVER MOVED on set. Amazing.)
It is a story about the "God's Hand" killer. Fenton, played by McConaughey, walks in one stormy night to FBI headquarters and tells Boothe (the lead FBI agent assigned to the God's Hand case) that he knows who the killer is. It is his brother Adam. Then the story begins and it completely sucks you in. It has a really eerie Gothic feel to it. The way that Paxton weaves the story is amazing. You would think this film was directed by a seasoned veteran. Also, One of the best things about this film is that most of the violence of the film happens off camera. It isn't a movie that needs to be gory. It is scary in the subject matter. It doesn't need gore to get under your skin. And believe me, it will get under there.
I will give none of the essential plot away because it is TOO good to spoil. I will say this though. If you haven't seen this film, you are missing a wonderful hidden gem. Buy it or rent it immediately! You will not soon forget FRAILTY.
Film: 5 stars
Blu Ray: 5 stars The film looks and sounds awesome. The extras are great!
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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As Disturbing as the Bible
Added 12/12/2009
A film (on Blu-ray release) about religious fanaticism as only a Texan could write it. Screen writer Brent Hanley starts with the premise of, "What if the God of the Old Testament was actively involved in events of the modern world?" The answer is events not much different than what you see on the nightly news--religious fanatics killing people ("demons" for some, "infidels" for others) in the name of God. Hanley states that he is amazed by the different interpretations people give for this film. That is what brings this film to a higher level than what he originally intended, a Stephen King story line with a "Twilight Zone" ending. Comparing this film to "Psycho" or "The Sixth Sense" is not really accurate either because it carries the weight of our religious heritage. Violence for the sake of scary thrills is one thing, but when that violence is combined with overt religious themes, that is something else. The reason is obvious to anyone who has read the Old Testament--it is violent and too often psychotic. You can blame evil on the devil (as this script does), but who created the devil? Hanley misses the point of why people blame God for the evil in this film, saying they misinterpreted it (in the writer's commentary). He would have looked so much smarter if he said the film was really a satire on Western religion. As it is, we do have some great comic moments: God's "magical weapons" being those of a common serial killer--work gloves, a lead pipe, and an ax sent directly from heaven.
One is reminded of the Texas mom who murdered her children saying that she was told to do so by God. Where would we be if every mother did the same when they felt their children were demons? (Of course, Leviticus recommends stoning to death children who disobey their parents). By the way, didn't President Bush say God told him to send troops into Iraq because there were "weapons of mass destruction?" These must have been magical too because they completely disappeared when we got there. Must be a Texas thing.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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