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Awix (3310 KP) rated The Current War (2017) in Movies

Jul 30, 2019 (Updated Jul 30, 2019)

The Current War (2017)

2017 | Biography, Drama, History

7.2

(12 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

Striking historical drama; unfortunate enough to get caught on the fringes of the Harvey Weinstein scandal, which is why it has sat on the shelf for a couple of years since it was finished. Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse engage in a battle of wills to bring electric light to America, but will victory go to the more principled man, or the more ruthless? And who is who?

Lots of good material here for a really interesting film about, essentially, the birth of the modern world; perhaps too much. The film's problem is really that it tries to cover everything - not just the rivalry between the two men, but also incidents from Edison's private life, the development of the electric chair, and the career of the much-mythologised but enigmatic inventor Nikola Tesla. As a result everything gets covered in a somewhat cursory manner and it often feels somewhat rushed. Still, it's a handsome looking film, the performances are excellent, and the direction is sometimes as inventive as the characters. Not entirely successful by any means, but a very distinguished failure.

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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Stir of Echoes (1999) in Movies

Apr 20, 2020

Stir of Echoes (1999)

1999 | Horror, Mystery

7.4

(16 Ratings)

Movie Rating Watch

Good, if not a tad predictable

Considering this film came out in 1999, I'm rather surprised I've never seen it. Watching it back now, I'm afraid to say my enjoyment of it may have been spoilt by not watching it when it was originally released.

For the most part this is a fairly enjoyable supernatural thriller. It's entertaining and there are a couple of decent scares, and the premise is straightforward. The problem however is that I've seen similar stories to this many times before, whether it be on tv (e.g. Supernatural), or films (e.g. What Lies Beneath) etc. I cant say more without spoiling the story, but I'm sure many people watching this would recognise a similar story. It's a shame as this film probably came out before most of the ones I've seen before, but as I watched this 20 years late it just seems like nothing new.

I'm probably being rather unfair with this film, but I cant pretend it doesnt remind me of many others!