I Review Something

6:00 pm
The Troll Hunter
at Tower Theatre in Salt Lake
My Score – 87

Great opening half hour. When the titular character goes from Quint to bored bureaucrat, I join him in boredom. The effects were great and the film ends up being interesting, if not enthralling, but that opening first half hour makes a promise that the rest of the movie never quite ends up fulfilling.

9:00 pm
I Saw the Devil
at Tower Theatre in Salt Lake
My Score – 70

Cheap in both the scares and explicit gore, predictable in plot and theme. I had high hopes for this one and they weren’t met at all. I know how this movie is supposed to work: I watch the antagonist commit horrific acts of violence which incense me to the point where I’ll grant the protagonist grand leeway to do what he will to stop the man. And, in doing so, I become the devil along with the protagonist, and thus we all learn a lesson about the corrupting nature of revenge.

Only problem is this: the opening horrors are so wince-inducing that I mentally take it out on the filmmaker rather than the bad guy, and thus spoil the party. Bottom line is you cannot punch me in the nose, offer me a thematic rose, and then hope that the rest of the date is going to go well. I ain’t that easy.

Movies seen thus far: 2
Today’s Favorite: The Troll Hunter
Festival Favorite: The Troll Hunter