Reviews

This movie contains all the ingredients that make up a perfect film by Claude Chabrol: murder and intrigue unfolding behind the facades of the bourgeoisie. Too bad, it was directed by Michael Verhoeven.

The story lacks irony and tempo. It drags on with only a few compelling scenes. What could have been a German variation on Chabrol's malicious little dramas, turns out to be a hollow nut.

The inept golfer played by Friedrich von Thun stands emblematically for the entire project: Verhoeven sees the target, but fails miserably in delivering the desired result.

Plus: Mario Adorf gives his usual stiff performance. He must be suffering from a severe paralysis of his facial muscles. Qualtinger and Flickenschildt's charisma is not enough to save this disaster movie.

The best film I ever came across is Fellini's 8 1/2... It's witty, melancholy and simply true.

The only choice for the disillusioned modern man to escape the dreadful emptiness he calls "life" is between suicide and despite.

Guido Anselmi chooses to treat his contemporaries with mild sarcasm that is rooted in deep resentment instead of fleeing this earth by hanging himself like Fassbinder's "Herr R.", who overcomes his miseries by slaying his wife and kid before dangling from the office's bathroom window frame.

By doing so, Anselmi becomes a modern Everyman who should pose a role model for everyone of us. Instead of giving in to the worries that plague us constantly, we must emancipate ourselves from engaging emotionally with our fellow people - a valuable lesson to be taught by this film! Woody Allen manages to add even more spice to this story by inserting his unique point of view. Where Fellini is witty, Woody is downright funny; where Fellini is melancholy, Woody is equally so; where Fellini is true, Woody strays a bit for the sake of malicious humor --- but nonetheless: Allen accomplished an incredible feat - he copied one of his heroes and emulated him in a certain way.

When the audience poses questions at the cast of the film in the film, Eric Roberts is asked whether a particular scene is supposed to be a homage to "House of Wax" he honestly replies: "No, we just stole the idea".

Woody stole Fellini's idea and elaborated on it in a truly American, New Yorkish, Jewish, Woody Allenish way. The result is cinema at its best: entertaining, thoughtful and uplifting (if you are depressed as any intelligent human being should be).

Watch it, be amazed, drop off and learn: Misanthropy REALLY IS a manual for living stoically: Never mind the buggers who are trying to hassle you, focus on yourself and YOU'LL BE FINE!!! Thanks Federico! Thanks Woody! A perfect 10 --- !!!!

Spike Lee is a brilliant director. He is a virtuoso, weaving cultural references into his efforts that are as compelling as challenging to figure out. But (and that's a BIG BUTT!!!) what message is he trying to get across? Lee constantly contradicts himself, leaves a fuzzy image of what is really going on in his movies. I found it hard to gobble down the contradictory plot of "Do the Right Thing" (even though Da Mayor aroused my deepest sympathy...) but "Bamboozled" leaves you utterly puzzled and bewildered.

Is Lee ridiculing Al Sharpton and O.J.'s lawyer Cochran or is he hailing them as heroes of the black race? Does he condone Bill "Bojangles" Robinson's complicity into the white entertainment industry or not??? Is the historical Manray's style of comedy acceptable or not?????? Spike Lee leaves all these questions unanswered. He gives conflicting answers in his film.

On top of this dithering his effort is overly anti-semitic.

See it and you'll be mesmerized by the artistic versatility of Spike of Lee but you'll be utterly disappointed by his lame judgments.

The gospel according to Lee reads like this: The nigger's plight is due to the white man's innate racism and the evil ways of the hook-nosed tribe and the abominable( my more graphic description has fallen prey to the IMDb guidelines...) Italian (Rudy Giuliani is singled out).

My judgment is that Spike Lee is obsessed by an overwhelming urge to self-deprecate the black race, alleging that the majority stance toward black culture has not changed a bit since the 1860's.

Praise you, Spike Lee for compiling a witty film on race relations in the late 1990's. Shame on you, Spike Lee for inciting racial hatred with this bungled attempt to convince your black audience that they are still being exploited by a plotting WASPish mainstream establishment.

I view this film with mixed emotions: I love it for its intellectual qualities, its play on references, its adeptness in imagery. On the other hand I despise it for its cheap demagoguery, its contradictions, its shallowness in some scenes.

7 / 10