Search
JT (287 KP) rated Chloe (2010) in Movies
Mar 10, 2020
As sexual thrillers go this is hardly up there with the best of them, in fact it boarder lines on B-movie soft porn. Director Atom Egoyan is no stranger to this type of erotic genre having previously helmed such films as Exotica and Where The Truth Lies. But this latest turn lacked something in the plot and it just seemed to fall at the last hurdle.
With three exceptional acting talents, more so from Seyfried whose role in this as the sexy femme fatal is a far cry from Mamma Mia. For Moore it was a role that may have caused much whispering in Hollywood if anything for the lesbian clinch mid way through.
From the outset it looks as if we are going to be in for a great little thriller. Moore’s Catherine is desperate to find out if her husband (Neeson) is as honest as he says he is. But she is apparently drawn into Chloe’s sexual tales and meets up with her on countless occasions to have the events graphically recited back to her like some x-rated book club.
This is where the film seems to lack the tension that we might have been hoping for, with the exception of maybe a little flurry at the end. It never really digs its nails underneath the skin and claws at us, we hope that it will arrive at some point but alas it never does. The ending is disappointing.
However, Seyfried’s sheer beauty is not for question, she is curvaceous and captivating and her scenes with Moore are extremely sensuous, one in particular will make you sit bolt up right in your seat.
At the end of it all you’ll walk away flustered, but it certainly won’t be from the gripping suspense.
With three exceptional acting talents, more so from Seyfried whose role in this as the sexy femme fatal is a far cry from Mamma Mia. For Moore it was a role that may have caused much whispering in Hollywood if anything for the lesbian clinch mid way through.
From the outset it looks as if we are going to be in for a great little thriller. Moore’s Catherine is desperate to find out if her husband (Neeson) is as honest as he says he is. But she is apparently drawn into Chloe’s sexual tales and meets up with her on countless occasions to have the events graphically recited back to her like some x-rated book club.
This is where the film seems to lack the tension that we might have been hoping for, with the exception of maybe a little flurry at the end. It never really digs its nails underneath the skin and claws at us, we hope that it will arrive at some point but alas it never does. The ending is disappointing.
However, Seyfried’s sheer beauty is not for question, she is curvaceous and captivating and her scenes with Moore are extremely sensuous, one in particular will make you sit bolt up right in your seat.
At the end of it all you’ll walk away flustered, but it certainly won’t be from the gripping suspense.
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated Chloe (2010) in Movies
Dec 3, 2019
Decent Beginning Then All Downhill
A woman struggling in her marriage hires a call girl to come on to her husband to see if he will cheat. If Chloe sounds like a recipe for disaster in real life, just wait until I dive into the movie! It’s not a complete failure, but it fails enough for me to highly recommend avoiding it.
Acting: 9
Beginning: 7
All the players are introduced in the first ten minutes doing their respective jobs. You can tell the movie will be shrouded in a bit of mystery. I didn’t hate the way it started, but I was looking for a bit more originality.
Characters: 10
Chloe (Amanda Seyfried) is an intriguing character in and of herself. I was drawn to her and I couldn’t figure out why. Is she crazy? Misunderstood? Is she making everything up? What the hell is with this woman? The other characters are merely a moth to her flame. It’s not to say I didn’t like them, but they would fall flat without Chloe at the helm.
Cinematography/Visuals: 9
As you’re watching this movie, you definitely get the erotic thriller feel which I think is exactly what director Atom Egoyan is going for. There are certain scenes that seem to jump off the screen with sensuality and intrigue. It keeps your eyes rooted to the screen while little details are shot to keep you guessing.
Conflict: 7
Entertainment Value: 7
Memorability: 6
Pace: 6
Plot: 3
Remember my description in the opening paragraph? Yeah, it somehow manages to get even dumber than that. It’s a shame because I think the movie definitely could have been redeemed with a slightly better storyline.
Resolution: 5
Overall: 69
Going back over my notes for Chloe, I notice I have a lot of whats, whys, and hows. That’s usually not a good sign. Few loops were closed here which is a burden for a viewer already sitting through a wandering story. Close, but no cigar.
Acting: 9
Beginning: 7
All the players are introduced in the first ten minutes doing their respective jobs. You can tell the movie will be shrouded in a bit of mystery. I didn’t hate the way it started, but I was looking for a bit more originality.
Characters: 10
Chloe (Amanda Seyfried) is an intriguing character in and of herself. I was drawn to her and I couldn’t figure out why. Is she crazy? Misunderstood? Is she making everything up? What the hell is with this woman? The other characters are merely a moth to her flame. It’s not to say I didn’t like them, but they would fall flat without Chloe at the helm.
Cinematography/Visuals: 9
As you’re watching this movie, you definitely get the erotic thriller feel which I think is exactly what director Atom Egoyan is going for. There are certain scenes that seem to jump off the screen with sensuality and intrigue. It keeps your eyes rooted to the screen while little details are shot to keep you guessing.
Conflict: 7
Entertainment Value: 7
Memorability: 6
Pace: 6
Plot: 3
Remember my description in the opening paragraph? Yeah, it somehow manages to get even dumber than that. It’s a shame because I think the movie definitely could have been redeemed with a slightly better storyline.
Resolution: 5
Overall: 69
Going back over my notes for Chloe, I notice I have a lot of whats, whys, and hows. That’s usually not a good sign. Few loops were closed here which is a burden for a viewer already sitting through a wandering story. Close, but no cigar.
Chris Sawin (602 KP) rated Videodrome (1983) in Movies
Jun 22, 2019
Max Renn is the president of Civic TV channel 83, a channel known for showcasing the most erotic and violent programming that anyone has ever come across. As you can imagine, the channel has a specific audience and Max takes it upon himself to find the next big thing for the network. Everything he comes across is too tame until Max gets ahold of Harlan. Harlan is an employee who specializes in pirate video broadcasts. It's through Harlan that Max is first exposed to Videodrome, an hour program that centralizes on torture and murder. Max becomes obsessed with Videodrome and realizes it may be the next step for channel 83. He does everything within his power to find out more about Videodrome ranging from where it's originally broadcast to tracking down the original supplier and even watching countless hours of bootleg videotapes. In addition to his obsession, Max begins hallucinating. Through his investigations, he finds out Videodrome transmissions cause tumors in the brain of whoever is able to actually watch it and therefore alter reality through hallucination. As Max begins to lose touch with reality, the people behind Videodrome have bigger plans for Max. Much bigger.
Videodrome is an interesting sci-fi horror film. It's the type of film that gets better with each viewing. It's also got some pretty amazing make-up effects by the incredible Rick Baker (An American Werewolf in London, The Frighteners). So while the film does show its age at times (mainly during the segment where Max is having his hallucination recorded by Spectacular Optacle owner, Barry Convex), the majority of the special effects hold up incredibly well after 26 years. It also boasts one of the most original and intriguing death scenes (Barry Convex's) of any horror film.
The David Cronenberg helmed psycological thriller is more than just great special effects. In all honesty, it's spectacularly odd. The hallucinations alone will leave some viewers scratching their heads, but there is a clever and intelligent story beneath all the weirdness. The story focuses on TV, which is a source of entertainment that everyone relies on and it takes aim at sex and violence. The two themes people are attracted to the most, but the consequences the film comes up with for watching a program that uses these themes to the extreme is truly one of its defining moments. So while whipping a TV set may seem like an illogical idea to most, Videodrome's superb writing makes it seem almost logical. The fact that the film concentrates on something like television that everyone can relate to while creating an intelligent reasoning for it makes the entire experience more believable.
Videodrome is a cult classic for a good reason. While it may seem odd at first, it's actually an intelligent and well-made sci-fi horror film. That old layer of skin may look and feel like a film that is too weird for most audiences that's outdated and doesn't make any sense, but beneath that old flesh is the new flesh. In this case, the new flesh is actually a superb film with a quick witted script, a terrific story, special effects that hold up to this day, and just a worthwhile experience overall. It's a cult classic that's worthy of being added to any horror or sci-fi fan's collection. Long live the new flesh.
Videodrome is an interesting sci-fi horror film. It's the type of film that gets better with each viewing. It's also got some pretty amazing make-up effects by the incredible Rick Baker (An American Werewolf in London, The Frighteners). So while the film does show its age at times (mainly during the segment where Max is having his hallucination recorded by Spectacular Optacle owner, Barry Convex), the majority of the special effects hold up incredibly well after 26 years. It also boasts one of the most original and intriguing death scenes (Barry Convex's) of any horror film.
The David Cronenberg helmed psycological thriller is more than just great special effects. In all honesty, it's spectacularly odd. The hallucinations alone will leave some viewers scratching their heads, but there is a clever and intelligent story beneath all the weirdness. The story focuses on TV, which is a source of entertainment that everyone relies on and it takes aim at sex and violence. The two themes people are attracted to the most, but the consequences the film comes up with for watching a program that uses these themes to the extreme is truly one of its defining moments. So while whipping a TV set may seem like an illogical idea to most, Videodrome's superb writing makes it seem almost logical. The fact that the film concentrates on something like television that everyone can relate to while creating an intelligent reasoning for it makes the entire experience more believable.
Videodrome is a cult classic for a good reason. While it may seem odd at first, it's actually an intelligent and well-made sci-fi horror film. That old layer of skin may look and feel like a film that is too weird for most audiences that's outdated and doesn't make any sense, but beneath that old flesh is the new flesh. In this case, the new flesh is actually a superb film with a quick witted script, a terrific story, special effects that hold up to this day, and just a worthwhile experience overall. It's a cult classic that's worthy of being added to any horror or sci-fi fan's collection. Long live the new flesh.