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mithluin
Reviews
The Boondock Saints (1999)
And Shepherds We Shall Be...
As is obvious from the reviews here, this movie is polarizing - you'll either love it or hate it. I certainly recommend giving it a try, and seeing for yourself what camp you fall into. At worst, you waste an hour and a half. You can even watch it for free on YouTube, so you don't have to waste your money. My main warning is that the R rating is certainly earned, by both language and violence.
Some of the pluses?
The characters. The relationship of the brothers - they are rowdy and boyish and great partners. While they can be serious, they can be lighthearted a moment later. And very fun accents to listen to! Willem Dafoe's character - completely over the top, but great to watch. I like him better here than I do as the Green Goblin. Others find Rocco very amusing, though I'm not personally such a fan. Doc, the older bartender with Teretz, is more amusing to me.
The fantasy. Wouldn't it be nice if someone could just take care of all the scumbags out there? The vigilante theme hits a chord. While I don't know of anyone who would take this seriously (ie, go out and start shooting people), there's enough to it to find appealing in the context of the movie.
The storytelling. I really enjoy the out-of-sequence scenes as a way to keep the parallel stories of the law enforcement and the brothers interwoven. Smecker becomes more and more involved over the course of the film, and this device makes that happen.
The soundtrack. Some great music!
The drawbacks?
Don't expect well-sketched villains. These are caricatures of the mob. I liked Papa Joe most of the time, but still.
Language. I'm sorry, but when you have to use the F-word 250 times, that's overdone. There were times it was amusing or relevant, but not in every f'in line. See? Completely unnecessary. It loses its effect when you don't save it for its intensity.
Morality. The attempt to justify the film's actions are not terribly...convincing. At least Smecker was supposed to be drunk/hungover while delivering those lines! The brothers convince their best friend to switch from 'you're crazy!' to 'you should recruit!' in a matter of minutes, suggesting that everyone's convictions are rather shallow. After all, they're not exactly saints themselves...just not mobsters. I think a lot of people are uneasy that the movie doesn't try harder to condemn vigilantism. This is *not* The Oxbow Incident!
I love the movie, at the end of the day. I'm a 30 year old woman who doesn't curse or have tattoos. Just sayin'. I can see some flaws, sure, but it's hard not to root for Connor and Murphy MacManus!
Virus (1996)
Your eyes will bleed.
I concur; this is without a doubt one of the worst movies ever made. Do not watch it. It seemed *much* longer that it was, was quite tedious and overall just a horrible movie. Gaping plot holes, bad acting, you name it. It made me seriously lose confidence in the judgment of the people who picked it out to watch. I don't know if it was a budget issue or a script issue or what, but the final product is *terrible*.
I would give you a summary of the plot, but I don't think this movie is worth it. The plot is not coherent enough to deserve a summary. The premise is that a deadly virus is on the loose and is going to kill a bunch of people if the heroes fail to save the day. But really, the only people who are going to bleed from the eyes are the ones who watch this movie.
If the plot interests you at all, watch "Outbreak" instead.