Hildago....smildago.......
Mar 21, 2004 22:07:28 GMT -5
Post by UberCranky on Mar 21, 2004 22:07:28 GMT -5
It's sort of Raiders of the Lost Bark meets Little Big Scorn.
As entertainment goes, it's worth the money but not many applause. I would give it a one and half thumbs up.
Here is a write up that I agree with:
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March 09, 2004
WORLD's Hidalgo review
"Hidalgo" can be forgiven for some of its clichés. It is, after all, an adventure tale reminiscent of Hollywood’s golden age of movie serials—not a genre that relied heavily on subtle character development. No, it’s not the stock bad guys or predictable plot twists that are particularly grating—it’s the modern twist on the cliché, heavy-handed political correctness, that really sinks this film.
"Hidalgo" (rated PG-13 for adventure violence and some mild innuendo) recounts the tale of Frank T. Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen), legendary endurance rider and advocate for the wild Mustang. His reputation is put to the test during a 3,000 mile race across the Arabian desert—“The Ocean of Fire.” Hopkins, the first non-Arab rider to compete in the race, faces not only heat and water deprivation, but attempts to forcibly knock him out of the race at every turn.
Recent scholarly research has undermined the historic Hopkins’ claims. That’s fine—there are plenty of great tales based more on legend than reality. But here the filmmakers remake Hopkins into an idealized modern man, Hollywood style. The film opens with Hopkins as a disillusioned drunk performing in Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show. Hopkins witnessed the massacre of wise, peaceful American Indians by dumb, brutal white men at Wounded Knee, and now works for more dumb, brutal white men who further exploit Indians. Those who saw The Last Samurai last year will feel a strong sense of déjà vu. Hidalgo unsubtly returns to its anti-Western theme throughout the film, as Hopkins chooses to reject his white identity in favor of his own Native American heritage. There are some conniving Arabs, but the driving force behind the evil perpetrated in the film is clearly identified as…that’s right, a Christian.
There are some fun action sequences (some of which are too violent for younger kids) and decent special effects in "Hidalgo." But the flimsy (and poorly paced) story can’t even come close to shouldering the weight of its own pretensions.
by Andrew Coffin
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www.worldmagblog.com/archives/001710.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As entertainment goes, it's worth the money but not many applause. I would give it a one and half thumbs up.
Here is a write up that I agree with:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
March 09, 2004
WORLD's Hidalgo review
"Hidalgo" can be forgiven for some of its clichés. It is, after all, an adventure tale reminiscent of Hollywood’s golden age of movie serials—not a genre that relied heavily on subtle character development. No, it’s not the stock bad guys or predictable plot twists that are particularly grating—it’s the modern twist on the cliché, heavy-handed political correctness, that really sinks this film.
"Hidalgo" (rated PG-13 for adventure violence and some mild innuendo) recounts the tale of Frank T. Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen), legendary endurance rider and advocate for the wild Mustang. His reputation is put to the test during a 3,000 mile race across the Arabian desert—“The Ocean of Fire.” Hopkins, the first non-Arab rider to compete in the race, faces not only heat and water deprivation, but attempts to forcibly knock him out of the race at every turn.
Recent scholarly research has undermined the historic Hopkins’ claims. That’s fine—there are plenty of great tales based more on legend than reality. But here the filmmakers remake Hopkins into an idealized modern man, Hollywood style. The film opens with Hopkins as a disillusioned drunk performing in Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show. Hopkins witnessed the massacre of wise, peaceful American Indians by dumb, brutal white men at Wounded Knee, and now works for more dumb, brutal white men who further exploit Indians. Those who saw The Last Samurai last year will feel a strong sense of déjà vu. Hidalgo unsubtly returns to its anti-Western theme throughout the film, as Hopkins chooses to reject his white identity in favor of his own Native American heritage. There are some conniving Arabs, but the driving force behind the evil perpetrated in the film is clearly identified as…that’s right, a Christian.
There are some fun action sequences (some of which are too violent for younger kids) and decent special effects in "Hidalgo." But the flimsy (and poorly paced) story can’t even come close to shouldering the weight of its own pretensions.
by Andrew Coffin
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
www.worldmagblog.com/archives/001710.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~