Johnny's Dark Secret
Added 1/14/2010
Okay, so I have four cable channels that I subscribe to: HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, and Encore. Every month you'll get a few good movies and lots of crappy ones. Of course the few good ones play over, and over, and over. I got locked into a contract for two years with these channels and that contract expires next month and I'll be canceling them all. Absolutely worthless for the most part. Any good movies they get you've (speaking figuratively) already seen, and the bad ones, well, who wants to see them anyway. But rarely, every now and then a little gem you've never heard of or never seen comes on and makes the monthly fee somewhat worth it. I thought Nick of Time might be that movie, but sadly it was not.
I like Johnny Depp, I generally like Christopher Walken, and I usually like Charles Dutton, but none of those actors could save this stinker. What I found shocking was how poorly acted it was, especially Depps performance. It was completely flat, his lines were hokey and delivered unconvincingly, his actions were moronic and unbelievable (his daughter should have been killed just because of what an idiot his character was) and he seemed bored/distracted. It was a very amateur performance and it was really hard to believe it was Johnny on the screen. You watch this movie and then you watch something like Blow, Donnie Brasco, or Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and you can't believe you're seeing the same guy. Actually the entire cast was flat and uninterested, almost as though they all realized what a crappy movie it was half way through the shoot and stopped caring about their performances.
I'm bored even thinking about it enough to write this review, so I'm done. I'm sure Depp wishes this movie could be erased from his movie resume, but instead it will have to remain his little dark secret. I say "secret," because I don't think more than a handful of people have seen it; best to keep it that way.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
|
good transaction
Added 11/17/2009
I recieved my dvd in perfect condition even though it was used and actually better than 2 new ones I purchased directly from amazon.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
best watching the first time
Added 9/7/2009
It was an okay watch for the first time; afterwards, it will lose a bit of effect. It was still interesting and fast-moving.
I especially didn't like the governor's character. She didn't seem that bright. Depp's character told her that he was going to have to kill her to save his daughter if she made a final speech. He said her husband wanted her dead, advised her to get out of that speech, and that she wouldn't be able to. She tried to cancel...but her
husband convinced her to change her mind.
Then, the husband said he sent her assistant on an "errand"...but Depp had told her that the assistant was dead. I figure that was more than enough to definitely not do the speech. When the guns are going off, she just stands around forever.
Ultimately, it was Mr. Walken's portrayal of the blackmailer that carried this film. He was evil and had some funny moments at the same time. I chuckled when Depp said something like "You're insane." and Walken pauses a moment and goes "What's your point?"; or when Depp's leaving a bathroom and is told to wash his hands.
His character wasn't perfect, of course. I would have especially been more suspicious when Depp goes to the shoe shine man a second time; also, when I saw the man laugh a bit/nod after I said something to him...after being told that he was deaf.
The "real-time" idea was cool, but I wish it was more...real. When the clock changed in the film to 12:17 and my digital clock nearby said the same thing, I expected it to be accurate with the passage of time. Yet time passed too quickly in the flick.
I noted that the region 2 DVD says the time is 90 minutes; but the other says that it's 88 minutes. What happened to the two minutes?
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
A bomb with eye candy
Added 7/9/2009
* You would think with stars like Christopher Walken and Johnny Depp that the movie might be fairly good, but not only was it the hokiest conspiracy theory to end all conspiracy theory movies, but it took low blows as to pull on tear jerker heartstrings by putting a cute little girl in mortal peril. The only minor redeeming quality to this movie is Depp's hotness, but then again that can only distract you for so long.
0 out of 2 people found this helpful.
|
Very Suspenseful For One Look
Added 3/29/2009
This is one of the most suspenseful movies you'll ever see, but mainly good for only one viewing. After you've seen it, the impact is greatly lost for further viewings.
It got panned by many critics for having too far-fetched a storyline, and I agree. However, if you can put your brain on "hold" for 90 minutes, you'll enjoy the movie. The only annoying part for me was the typical Liberal bias in here where the Liberal politician is the target of a Conservative fanatic. They never show you the other way around.
As interesting as the characters Johnny Depp usually plays, the two villains in here were more fun to watch than him. Christopher Walken and Roma Maffia were riveting as the killers. Depp actually played a normal person, which is not normal for him.
****possible spoilers**** The suspense was excellent in this real-time story. That was the best part of the movie. The worst may have been the so-overplayed cliché of the killers hesitating before shooting and then, because of that, being shot themselves. That is so tiresome. Or sometimes the crooks talk instead of shoot, and then are shot. Doesn't that drive you nuts?
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Johnny's Dark Secret
Added 1/14/2010
Okay, so I have four cable channels that I subscribe to: HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, and Encore. Every month you'll get a few good movies and lots of crappy ones. Of course the few good ones play over, and over, and over. I got locked into a contract for two years with these channels and that contract expires next month and I'll be canceling them all. Absolutely worthless for the most part. Any good movies they get you've (speaking figuratively) already seen, and the bad ones, well, who wants to see them anyway. But rarely, every now and then a little gem you've never heard of or never seen comes on and makes the monthly fee somewhat worth it. I thought Nick of Time might be that movie, but sadly it was not.
I like Johnny Depp, I generally like Christopher Walken, and I usually like Charles Dutton, but none of those actors could save this stinker. What I found shocking was how poorly acted it was, especially Depps performance. It was completely flat, his lines were hokey and delivered unconvincingly, his actions were moronic and unbelievable (his daughter should have been killed just because of what an idiot his character was) and he seemed bored/distracted. It was a very amateur performance and it was really hard to believe it was Johnny on the screen. You watch this movie and then you watch something like Blow, Donnie Brasco, or Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and you can't believe you're seeing the same guy. Actually the entire cast was flat and uninterested, almost as though they all realized what a crappy movie it was half way through the shoot and stopped caring about their performances.
I'm bored even thinking about it enough to write this review, so I'm done. I'm sure Depp wishes this movie could be erased from his movie resume, but instead it will have to remain his little dark secret. I say "secret," because I don't think more than a handful of people have seen it; best to keep it that way.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
|
good transaction
Added 11/17/2009
I recieved my dvd in perfect condition even though it was used and actually better than 2 new ones I purchased directly from amazon.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
best watching the first time
Added 9/7/2009
It was an okay watch for the first time; afterwards, it will lose a bit of effect. It was still interesting and fast-moving.
I especially didn't like the governor's character. She didn't seem that bright. Depp's character told her that he was going to have to kill her to save his daughter if she made a final speech. He said her husband wanted her dead, advised her to get out of that speech, and that she wouldn't be able to. She tried to cancel...but her
husband convinced her to change her mind.
Then, the husband said he sent her assistant on an "errand"...but Depp had told her that the assistant was dead. I figure that was more than enough to definitely not do the speech. When the guns are going off, she just stands around forever.
Ultimately, it was Mr. Walken's portrayal of the blackmailer that carried this film. He was evil and had some funny moments at the same time. I chuckled when Depp said something like "You're insane." and Walken pauses a moment and goes "What's your point?"; or when Depp's leaving a bathroom and is told to wash his hands.
His character wasn't perfect, of course. I would have especially been more suspicious when Depp goes to the shoe shine man a second time; also, when I saw the man laugh a bit/nod after I said something to him...after being told that he was deaf.
The "real-time" idea was cool, but I wish it was more...real. When the clock changed in the film to 12:17 and my digital clock nearby said the same thing, I expected it to be accurate with the passage of time. Yet time passed too quickly in the flick.
I noted that the region 2 DVD says the time is 90 minutes; but the other says that it's 88 minutes. What happened to the two minutes?
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
