City of Ghosts
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Movie Reviews of City of Ghosts
Movie Review: mixed feelings
Summary: 3 Stars
ive read somewhere that the main character from the movie Kids was casted in this movie, he's not...in fact there are very few characters. it is an independant movie, so it's not high budget or big names, but it's not low budget either. it really does most of its filming in cambodia, the footage of nyc and bangkok are very brief. it "falls short" in some aspects and "shines" in moments. it's not a who, what, when, where, why that peices together at the end, i wouldn't call it a love story, but maybe it is intended to be? it doesn't waiste time(on)going from one place to the next. because he hasnt written anything else i don't have anything to compare it with. as an actor,it's not his best role but isn't his worst. i think he should direct more, some of the script comes alive in an imaginitive way. i went into this knowing basically nothing, so i don't want to give much away. but being that it's said he goes from nyc to bangkok, sort of fleeing...there's not a lot of action, violence, sex, or much else. it's laid back, low-keyed, simple, obscure, and almost wholesome. i kind of liked that. but it's contradictary at times and your sort of left guessing. being he's acted for gus van sant, i think he's picked up some of his attributes. i recommend "kids" "my own private idaho" "physco" and "drugstore cowboy" if you decide you like this movie.Movie Review: mixed feelings
Summary: 3 Stars
ive read somewhere that the main character from the movie Kids was casted in this movie, he's not...in fact there are very few characters. it is an independant movie, so it's not high budget or big names, but it's not low budget either. it really does most of its filming in cambodia, the footage of nyc and bangkok are very brief. it "falls short" in some aspects and "shines" in moments. it's not a who, what, when, where, why that peices together at the end, i wouldn't call it a love story, but maybe it is intended to be? it doesn't waiste time(on)going from one place to the next. because he hasnt written anything else i don't have anything to compare it with. as an actor,it's not his best role but isn't his worst. i think he should direct more, some of the script comes alive in an imaginitive way. i went into this knowing basically nothing, so i don't want to give much away. but being that it's said he goes from nyc to bangkok, sort of fleeing...there's not a lot of action, violence, sex, or much else. it's laid back, low-keyed, simple, obscure, and almost wholesome. i kind of liked that. but it's contradictary at times and your sort of left guessing. being he's acted for gus van sant, i think he's picked up some of his attributes. i recommend "kids" "my own private idaho" "physco" and "drugstore cowboy" if you decide you like this movie.Movie Review: Too Long, Needs Cutting
Summary: 3 Stars
Cambodia and Thailand, the old colonial streets still give a foreigner a dread. As one of the characters in this monsoon thriller said, "the whole country could use a coat of paint." Matt Dillon is the insurance executive caught up in a scandal that he needs to rectify, maybe, if he can locate the company chief executive, the mysterious and shifty Marvin. On the way to rain forests, Dillon meets up with pretty Natacha McEthone, a member of group of antiquity restorers. Then the usual seedy characters show up at the rancid hotel. James Caan as Marvin and Gerard Deprardieu as the indo-chin innkeeper fill out the cast. Then Dillon's passport is stolen and on and on for two hours we take a tour of the countryside, the natives, and the brothels.
Dillon directed and co-wrote the script and I think that is a problem. City of Ghosts is too long and the Dillon-McElhone romance is forced. I mean if you're afraid for your life, are you going to take the time to ask a girl out on a date? Hmmm, maybe not, so Dillon loved his directorial takes so much, he could not cut them, and some studio guy insisted on a love interest. In addition, it's weird, but Dillon as an adventurer, Bogart type in Cambodia: he still delivers some lines as though he were in a Silverfish rumble.
Movie Review: A road to nowhere
Summary: 3 Stars
Moody, atmospheric, but ultimately a very empty movie. Dillon stumbles over himself in his directorial debut. There are some fine moments, and the movie develops a good pace, but Dillon didn't seem to have any idea where to take this movie. The viewer is left to stumble along with him in his attempt to navigate the troubled waters of Cambodia. What I liked most about the movie was the mood it created, a nihilistic view of Cambodia in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. Although essentially a contemporary tale, the action could have occurred anytime in the last 25 years. The streets, cities, hotels all have a run-down look. The characters move around in it as the would an Antonioni movie, but Dillon isn't quite up to the challenge despite assembling a fine cast. In the end, you don't feel rewarded for your effort, as the themes break down in a very weak climax.
Movie Review: Matt Dillon in over his head
Summary: 3 Stars
Matt Dillon wrote, directed and acted in this sort of pulp fiction tale about a con artist feeling guilty about bilking victims of a Hurricane Katrina-like mess. The cutting is a little too quick and the muddled plot is hard to follow for most of the movie. The soundtrack gets annoying with its endless southeast Asian whining sounds. James Caan is interesting, as usual. Maybe if Dillon had not tried to do too much, this film would have come out better. As it stands, it's worth a watch, I guess. But you won't remember it a day or two later. Also, the title makes no sense. I still don't see how it applies to the movie.