Reviews

I am watching this movie right now. Underrated is not the word. It blows away many movies. I just saw a couple movies rated "eight", and this movie was far better. The plot is very convincing, the acting by Uma Thurman, Andy Garcia, and Lance Hendriksen are excellent. The supporting cast is excellent. There is violence and action, but it is highly believable. I am so tired of over-the-top action and violence. Many a good movie is spoiled by heroes, they can get buried alive, hung by a rope, his hand smashed by a huge monkey wrench , stabbed in the kidneys, and shot in the head, and still they come back teach scores of heavily armed bad guys a lesson. (This is a actual plot of a 8 rated movie) . The music is good, the mystery believable and deepening. Just great. You will not were regret the time you spent watching this movie. One of the best I have seen in a long time. I liked the ending a lot. It is very hard to guess how it ends, to solve the mystery before it's over. I didn't see it coming. This movie is something that could conceivably happen in real life, rather than your cyborg werewolf vs. ninja vampire affair geared toward sixth-graders. It seems like many of these get high ratings these days. The wilder it gets, the more people like them.

This film is excellent. Many people might not be familiar with the author, Donald Goines, who wrote many books on ghetto life. The acting was excellent, and I especially liked the way the filming was done, using stills, slow motion and lots of effects. The story could very well be real, as I live in the inner city and such action goes on all the time. The characters are realistic and riveting. I debated on whether to give the movie a 9, and can't believe that it seemed so lost on other people. Perhaps they live sheltered lives. I hope that other Donald Goines novels get made into movies. His books are short, like Louis L'Amour novels, but are full of the same gritty and realistic drama. I like movies that are realistic, not fantasies where pure good meets pure evil. The way the film was done, the style of the movie reminds me of Miami Vice in it's uniqueness. The story moves quickly, and does not bog down.

In this day and age of "Werewolf vs. Vampire"..and "first he beats up the CIA, then he beats up the FBI, then he beats up the drug dealers, then he beats up the head crook".. this movie is truly outstanding. I don't see how anyone can give it less than a 8. I thought it was just perfect. I watch a LOT of movies, often switching between them and saving them for later, but this one, this one I had to finish. The whole cast is excellent, I don't know where to start. Viggo Mortenson was a excellent choice to play Alatriste, I can't imagine anyone else playing the part. You hardly know what is going to happen, as you follow the characters up and down fortunes, and how it is going to end, but that is what is great about the plot. The costumes and devices used in this movie seem to be painstakingly accurate in detail. The costumes are truly outstanding, appropriate, and sexy. The sexiness of the Spanish is really evident in the clothing of the characters. The era, about 1630 when the movie begins, is when firearms first came out. The swordplay is realistic and believable, no 20 minute sequences where they are fighting while falling off a cliff! The romance in the movie is believable, moving, and rocky. The supporting cast have excellent roles and the plot is believable, and interwoven. Unax Ugalde as Inigo, great. Ariadna Gil as Alatriste's love- great, and there are many more excellent performances. The entire movie was in Spanish..I had to watch with subtitles, but it was almost better this way. Viggo Mortenson plays roughly the same type of swashbuckler as in the "Lord of the Rings" but this is by far the better movie. The characters are all human and multi dimensional. This is not a "pure good vs. pure evil" movie. Since it is subtitled, I don't know how it will fare here in the USA. Myself I loved the dialog, even though I don't speak Spanish, and was reading the subtitles, the romance and action carried me away. This movie thrilled me as much as "The Vikings" did, when I saw it as a child, and it is that caliber of a film, if not better. I hate spoilers, and invite you to notice I gave nothing of the plot and action away, I wouldn't dare spoil it for you! Bravo to people who brought this film to life! If you liked "The Pride and the Passion" , "The Vikings", "Braveheart", or other historical movies, you'll love this one.

I loved this movie, one of James Woods' best. I certainly agree with the other reviewer about Kay Lenz, the woman is ravishing. It has a gritty, sleazy feel to it that reminds me of "To Live and Die In L.A.".. .. it's realistic, in other words. Kay Lenz was striking in this movie, I thought she was about the sexiest woman alive for years after watching this. The guy that played WASCO was really good too, and lots of underground prison slang in the movie..it's got that real feel to it... It reminds me of the movie "Colors".. or "Miami Vice" .. and mirrors the drug scene in California, indeed, in America. It's a gray movie.. without any real heroes. Reminds me of real life!