MovieChat Forums > Revolver (2005) Discussion > Honestly... one of the best movies ever.

Honestly... one of the best movies ever.

posted 15 years ago by parmetd
54 replies | jump to latest

I am huge movie critic... and I don't like most of the movies I see. They have terrible, over used plots. Bad acting that is supposed to be overlooked because of overused special effects. They have so many goofs, holes and other crap that makes the movie just sucky.... but this... this film is easily one of the best movies I've ever seen. Yes it is pretty easy to guess the ending but it still wasn't ruined by that fact. It is a work of art. It is rewatchable.

[–] wandawrong-1 13 years ago

This movie is silly unintelligible tripe. Almost every reviewer for every publication in the world saw this film for what it was and panned it. It even received a spectacular 3.4 out of 10 in Rotten Tomatoes.

You are forewarned in the first minute that the film is going to be trite when it opens with not one moronic quote but a series of them. 110 minutes later Richie admits that not only was he unsure of his point, he is sure we still don't know it. So he wraps up the film with a deluge simplistic and out of context psychological snippets including a clip by king of new age crap Deepak Dhopra.

Honestly.... one of the most pretentious movies ever.

[–] zachanscom 13 years ago

you're an idiot. being a critic doesn't grant you special knowledge or wisdom. most people who aren't dumb asses are very critical of the kind of crap being shoveled down our throats by hollywood.

[–] skyadept 13 years ago

There's a difference between film reviewers and film critics.

Film reviews tend to be from people who just watch films for what they are or are aspiring film critics that most likely will never make it.
They provide the 'average' and 'general' opinions of films that a lot of people will agree with as they are from average people.

Film critics are generally intellectuals who have seen many, many films and have a wide understanding of the art of film. They can provide intellectual insights on a film's messages/meanings which the general public most likely wouldn't have thought of as they don't share the perception of a film critic. When you read a film critic's review of a film you learn of what the film achieves and you can watch it again understanding the film on a more intellectual level.

About Revolver, it seems a lot of film critics review this as pretentious and worthless. From their perspective they see a film which tries to seem intelligent, meaningful and worthwhile by forcing an extremely ambiguous plot upon its audience with vague symbols and answers so the audience can piece it together in any way they like and feel as if they've solved a very clever puzzle.
And the people that feel like they have solved it will praise the film and indirectly, and unintentionally, brag about how artistic and intelligent they are for understanding it.

Real art is not forced upon its audience but is there to be perceived if its audience is capable of recognising it.

A lot of art unintentionally happens which makes it ever so more interesting because it has come from an artist's subconscious.
Whereas films like Revolver are trying to be art and will try as hard as they can to look like it.

Snatch. is more artistic than Revolver.

[–] jamese1045-12 13 years ago

This is not an overused plot or treatment--with some exceptions. It is also not one of the "best" movies I have seen. It is a courageous effort to bring a montage of psychology, theosophy together in a crime drama.

I do not feel the need to understand everything in a film: if it can, by casting, story, photography, pacing, and choreography capture and hold my ineterst....against my UNwillingness to suspend DISbelief, as this picture did, I'm there, and glad to be.
Bravo for a quality attempt to bring some thoughtful entertainment.
Notes are to tones as numerals are to numbers.

[–] Oni-Wulf 13 years ago

Having just seen it on netflix I thought it was a good movie, but not a great movie. It just didn't feel like a Guy Ritchie film, it lacked a certain finesse and style that's Guy Ritchie's. It was more Luc Besson (which was one of the writers) style, the world was very fictionalised which I didn't like. In Guy Ritchie's past work you know it's a British gangster flick taking place in London or around London. Revolver is very international and all over the place. You have Asians, Americans, Brits driving American cars from the 70s and 80s with no clear view of where or when this takes place. The setting in Lock Stock, Snatch, Sherlock Holmes the world and setting is as much a part of the world as the actors, not here. I didn't like that, made it feel sloppy.

As for the whole ego thing, I found that to be interesting and different. There was a certain intelligence in that, made you think, what was real what wasn't and battling your Id. You are your own worst enemy and he basically played himself and got rid of his ego.

Lastly Guy Ritchie flat out said that Kabbalah had a big part in this movie, albeit making things interesting that crap needs to be left out and clearly Madonna had some input in that and that's just unnecessary in film.

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] kevinc-gralewski 12 years ago

Absolutely. I became self aware in several scenes that I was watching with my mouth agape, because I was so into it. This movie completely had me, start to finish. Fantastically done. You could debate with people about if the message is cogent or if the film is pretentious or whatever, but their is no way to dispute the beauty of this movie.

[–] EddieAdamsFromTorrance 13 years ago

No this isn't even in the top 900 movies of all time.

[–] 13 years ago

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[–] wordsmith-177-773673 12 years ago

finally someone with a lil sense, this was a stand out. A high wire act in cinema, far from the safe formula driven, dime a dozen artless crimes that make a ton of money by rehashing old flicks over and over again. A topic not many dare engage never mind challenge, a thorough and honest critique of conscious and subconscious stigmas which have long arrested mankind's development and nearly reversed evolution at large. The twists and turns through the stylishly directed and deftly produced ride arrives at its final destination with no subtle allusions and hazy riddles. The core expression/message is hard to miss or misunderstand, alas the bite size bit of wisdom is just what the doctor ordered for the social pathology of the day. The simple truth in the universe within, the many voices that provide a system of checks and balances in an individual. Without this misunderstood and often dismissed feature of the mortal machine; psychology/theology/philosophy lack functionality, certainly not science by any stretch of imagination. the choice of society's grizzly underbelly, hustlers, mob, thugs, greed, and all the inhumane policies of the streets as tapestry makes this venture head and shoulder above the rest, for me goes right up there with Bladerunner, Instinct, The wall, equilibrium, V and ...

Kudos to Ur taste ;)

AK

[–] johnslegers 12 years ago

Magnolia, Mr Nobody, Cashback, Land of the Blind, Eden Log, Watchmen, Requiem For A Dream and Black Snake Moan are some of the movies that made the greatest impression on me until quite recently.

Revolver blew them all away. Revolver is beyond without comparison the deepest movie I've ever seen. It is all about exploring what Freud called the "id" aka the reptilian brain aka instinct. It explores the nature of fear, pain, rage, compassion and trust and teaches us how important it is to allow the right aspects of your "id" to dominate your self to find inner balance and happiness.

Unfortunately Ritchie goes way over most people's heads with that message, which is why it doesn't get nearly the attention it deserves. I know it's a cliché and I'm going to get butchered for this, but those who call this movie a pretentious mess are either not intelligent enough to get it or not mature enough to understand the depth and beauty of it.

Technically, this movie was perfect as well. The pacing perfectly accompanied the message of the movie as it gradually unfolded. Repeating themes help the viewer organise his thoughts as the message gets clearer and our understanding of the meaning of these themes becomes richer and more powerful.

While not as rich as Mr Nobody or Cashback from a purely audiovisual perspective, the audiovisual appeal was nevertheless very strong and formed a perfect whole with the message and pacing.

Casting and acting were no less excellent. Each character perfectly filled the role they played. No one felt out of place and Statham was a much better actor than I ever thought he could be.

This is a movie you should see at least twice, though. Once you really "get" the story, a second viewing makes it a whole new experience. But that's only if you get it. Most people just don't get it and won't ever get it...