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grayman · 08-25-2003, 10:01 AM

I thought Basic was not well done at all, and I wish I hadn't watched it. I have a basic theory that says "If you can't get a basic idea of what a movie is about from the trailer (i.e., it is just slapped together action and publicity shots of the stars), then the movie is probably not worth watching." It is not right 100% of the time, but pretty damn close. Well, the trailer from Basic was exactly like that, but I couldn't help but be intrigued. Travolta, Sam Jackson, and Connie Neilsen? How bad could it be? I resisted and resisted, but then one of my friends rented it. Ouch, I'm just glad I didn't pay for it. Here is an itemized list for those who can't wait to flame me for this:

*SPOILERS*

1. Travolta and Jackson share the screen for about 60 seconds total. I feel that this movie was portrayed as a showdown between their two characters and that never happened.
2. If actors and actresses can't maintain an accent for an entire film, they shouldn't try. Both Travolta and Neilsen do this throughout and it is very distracting. Neilsen is very good at eliminating her natural accent, so why try to make her use another? Furthermore, it was irrelevant that either of them were from the South, so why even bother?
3. What the FUCK was going on with Giovanni Ribisi's voice? Talk about distracting.
4. In a movie that features flashbacks and multiple points of view of the same events, especially when some or all of them are fabrications, it is generally a good idea to actually show what really happened.
5. The manner in which the characters behaved was ridiculous and totally out of character. Ex: Nunez prancing about with her gun raised "We...just...want...to...look...at...your..pack!" I'm sure that the testing and training and psyche screenings would weed out someone who would act in such an absurd manner long before they made it into the final stages of Ranger training.
6. When you have a major plot twist (Pike/Dunbar switching the dogtags), it is a good idea to have a reason for the twist.
7. I'm sure that if there was a badass, elite, covert Ranger unit operating off of a U.S. army base in Panama, and they discovered that the base commander was smuggling drugs (highly likely all by itself), then they would definately 1)Tell him they knew. 2)Wait for him to order some of their fellow Rangers to kill them. 3)Concoct an elaborate plan that involved killing the traitors during a training mission in a hurricane rather than killing them while they slept, or turning them in.
8. I'm sure that badass, elite, covert military squads recruit directly from the new trainees, before they have proven themselves in combat or even finished their training.

I could go on, but I think I have explained myself well enough and this movie has already taken up way too much of my time.

08-25-2003, 10:01 AM	#4 (permalink)
grayman you can't see me Location: Illinois	edited to notify for spoilers I thought Basic was not well done at all, and I wish I hadn't watched it. I have a basic theory that says "If you can't get a basic idea of what a movie is about from the trailer (i.e., it is just slapped together action and publicity shots of the stars), then the movie is probably not worth watching." It is not right 100% of the time, but pretty damn close. Well, the trailer from Basic was exactly like that, but I couldn't help but be intrigued. Travolta, Sam Jackson, and Connie Neilsen? How bad could it be? I resisted and resisted, but then one of my friends rented it. Ouch, I'm just glad I didn't pay for it. Here is an itemized list for those who can't wait to flame me for this: SPOILERS 1. Travolta and Jackson share the screen for about 60 seconds total. I feel that this movie was portrayed as a showdown between their two characters and that never happened. 2. If actors and actresses can't maintain an accent for an entire film, they shouldn't try. Both Travolta and Neilsen do this throughout and it is very distracting. Neilsen is very good at eliminating her natural accent, so why try to make her use another? Furthermore, it was irrelevant that either of them were from the South, so why even bother? 3. What the FUCK was going on with Giovanni Ribisi's voice? Talk about distracting. 4. In a movie that features flashbacks and multiple points of view of the same events, especially when some or all of them are fabrications, it is generally a good idea to actually show what really happened. 5. The manner in which the characters behaved was ridiculous and totally out of character. Ex: Nunez prancing about with her gun raised "We...just...want...to...look...at...your..pack!" I'm sure that the testing and training and psyche screenings would weed out someone who would act in such an absurd manner long before they made it into the final stages of Ranger training. 6. When you have a major plot twist (Pike/Dunbar switching the dogtags), it is a good idea to have a reason for the twist. 7. I'm sure that if there was a badass, elite, covert Ranger unit operating off of a U.S. army base in Panama, and they discovered that the base commander was smuggling drugs (highly likely all by itself), then they would definately 1)Tell him they knew. 2)Wait for him to order some of their fellow Rangers to kill them. 3)Concoct an elaborate plan that involved killing the traitors during a training mission in a hurricane rather than killing them while they slept, or turning them in. 8. I'm sure that badass, elite, covert military squads recruit directly from the new trainees, before they have proven themselves in combat or even finished their training. I could go on, but I think I have explained myself well enough and this movie has already taken up way too much of my time. __________________ That's right - I'm a guy in a suit eating a Blizzard. F U. Last edited by grayman; 08-26-2003 at 10:29 AM..