From rec.arts.sf.reviews Fri Jul 12 11:59:28 2002 From: Bob Bloom Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.reviews,rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Reign of Fire (2002) Approved: ramr@rottentomatoes.com Followup-To: rec.arts.movies.current-films Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2002 03:45:35 -0000 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: X-RAMR-ID: 32284 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737184 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 872 X-RT-AuthorID: 1363 X-RT-RatingText: 1.5/4 Summary: r.a.m.r. #32284 X-Questions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Submissions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Complaints-To: newsabuse@supernews.com Lines: 85 Path: news.island.liu.se!news.Update.UU.SE!puffinus.its.uu.se!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!news.net.uni-c.dk!logbridge.uoregon.edu!newsfeed.berkeley.edu!news-hog.berkeley.edu!ucberkeley!newshub.sdsu.edu!west.cox.net!cox.net!sn-xit-02!sn-xit-06!sn-post-01!supernews.com!news.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.island.liu.se rec.arts.movies.reviews:4097 rec.arts.sf.reviews:325 REIGN OF FIRE (2002) 1 1/2 stars out of 4. Starring Christian Bale, Matthew McConaughey, Izabella Scorupco, Gerard Butler, Scott James Moutter and David Kennedy. Screenplay by Gregg Chabot & Kevin Peterka and Matt Greenberg. Story by Chabot and Peterka. Directed by Rob Bowman. Rated PG-13. Know what killed the dinosaurs? Sure, you do. A giant meteor supposedly struck the planet about 65 million years ago, and the debris blocked out the sun ... Whoa! Not so fast. Don’t believe everything you read in textbooks. Here’s what really happened. Flying, fire-breathing dragons. They scourged the planet, laying waste to everything that lived then went into hibernation until the planet replenished itself. Or so we are told in Reign of Fire, a cartoonish, futuristic, apocalyptic tale that’s part-Dragonslayer, part-Road Warrior. Definitely in the guilty pleasure B-movie category, Reign of Fire is so incredibly inane that it is laughingly enjoyable. It is cinema-lite, stupid, sloppy and simple. The year is 2020. Twenty years earlier an excavation under London unearthed and awoke the big, bull hibernating fire-snorter, and before you can say, Puff the Magic Dragon, the world is overrun by these flying beasties. A montage comprised of old newsreel footage and mock-up news magazines articles describe the next 20 years in which most the planet is laid to waste trying to fight the flying marauders, who burn and eat anything in their path. Mankind is reduced to a handful of isolated communities, we are told, who barely subside. One such lair in rural England is led by Quinn (Christian Bale), the original survivor of the first dragon attack. It was his mom who uncovered the creature and was one its first victims. But enter the cavalry, in the form of a U.S. Army Reserve contingent led by the super gung-ho Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey) who calls himself the “Dragonslayer” because he knows how to down the giants. Quinn and Van Zan forge a reluctant alliance to rid the planet of the flying serpents and reclaim the Earth for mankind. Of course the script, by Gregg Chabot, Kevin Peterka and Matt Greenberg, based on a story by Chabot and Peterka, gives them a hand by conveniently setting up a situation in which only one male dragon rules over a horde of lesser females. He flies over and fertilizes their eggs. Thus, if he dies, the species dies. Never explained, of course, is how all the hatched eggs carry only females, nor how they spread globally from one male who rules from the ruins of London. No matter, this movie relies on its visual thrills to carry you along. Logic went the way of the dodo. Bale and McConaughey spend most of their time shouting at either each other or their subordinates. McConaughey trying to look tough, has shaved his head, has an unkempt beard and continually chews on a cigar stub in the corner of his mouth. His attempts at being a macho John Wayne type are ludicrous. He’s all ham and gestures, but Reign of Fire does not present any acting challenges, so why waste the effort. The dragon effects are what propels Reign of Fire and they are decent, nothing spectacular. Reign of Fire is merely screen filler, an old-time Saturday matinee diversion that fails to ignite its scripted possibilities. Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, IN. He can be reached by e-mail at bloomjc@yahoo.com or at bobbloom@iquest.net. Other reviews by Bloom can be found at www.jconline.com by clicking on golafayette. Bloom's reviews also appear on the Web at the Internet Movie Database: http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom ========== X-RAMR-ID: 32284 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737184 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 872 X-RT-AuthorID: 1363 X-RT-RatingText: 1.5/4 From rec.arts.sf.reviews Fri Jul 12 12:00:35 2002 From: Sean O'Connell Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.reviews,rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Reign of Fire (2002) Approved: ramr@rottentomatoes.com Followup-To: rec.arts.movies.current-films Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2002 03:56:09 -0000 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: X-RAMR-ID: 32287 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737186 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 178 X-RT-AuthorID: 1255 X-RT-RatingText: 2.5/5 Summary: r.a.m.r. #32287 X-Questions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Submissions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Complaints-To: newsabuse@supernews.com Lines: 126 Path: news.island.liu.se!news.Update.UU.SE!puffinus.its.uu.se!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!erinews.ericsson.se!erix.ericsson.se!luth.se!newspump.monmouth.com!newspeer.monmouth.com!news.maxwell.syr.edu!news-out.nuthinbutnews.com!propagator-sterling!news-in.nuthinbutnews.com!feed.textport.net!sn-xit-02!sn-xit-01!sn-post-01!supernews.com!news.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.island.liu.se rec.arts.movies.reviews:4100 rec.arts.sf.reviews:326 REIGN OF FIRE A film review by Sean O’Connell Copyright 2002 filmcritic.com Pity the dragon. When not building lame adventures around the mythical beasts (Dungeons & Dragons), filmmakers have saddled the poor creatures with the smooth baritone stylings of Sean Connery (Dragonheart). Reign of Fire, director Rob Bowman’s grim vision of a ravaged future, doesn’t completely reverse the negative trend, but it does borrow enough recognizable elements of contradictory genres to fashion a passable monster mash. In the not-too-distant future, London drillers uncover a dragon’s lair far below the surface, awakening a horde of slumbering beasts and triggering a mass invasion. The creatures pillage our planet, destroying every major city from Paris to New York. We’re not shown the attacks, but rather a montage of headlines from newspapers. By the year 2020, very little of what we consider the Earth remains. Quinn (Christian Bale), who leads a community in hiding outside the boundaries of London, has convinced his followers they can outlast the dragons, since fighting them has so far proved futile. Television producer Mark Burnett might call it Survivor to the Nth degree, but it’s a grisly existence, with the fear of attack ever present. Alternate options arise in the form of a band of American marauders, who arrive at Quinn’s castle seeking refuge. Their leader, Van Zant (Matthew McConaughey), subscribes to a suicidal theory that dragons can be hunted instead of avoided. He sports a tooth the size of his thumb from a dragon he felled in Kansas, proving the beasts can be bested. Van Zant’s armed for a war, but Quinn is less than enthused to use his clan for dragon feed. McConaughey appears to have the most fun with his part. Chomping an extinguished cigar and bulging his eyeballs out beyond his bald cranium, he stares right through the fire-breathers, focusing instead on the greener pastures they’re keeping him from. If there were a serious market for post-apocalyptic dragonslaying pictures, McConaughey could carve himself a new career path. Bale, on the other hand, barely registers. Hidden behind a tuft of hair and a five-month-old scruff of beard, his face lacks fire and passion. McConaughey’s eyes dance wildly, while Bale’s choose to sit this one out. Perhaps he sensed how artificially macho the screenplay had become. The dialogue couldn’t be worse, requiring characters to spout, “We can do this easy, or we can do this real easy.” Reign is about as manly as films get nowadays without taking place in prison. When Quinn and Van Zant fail to compromise on the direction of the community, they brawl. It solves little, but ratchets up the already high testosterone level. Van Zant’s plan for capturing dragons provides the film with its coolest sequence. Skydivers dubbed “archangels” plummet from a helicopter and battle the fire-breathers in mid-air. The creative idea juices the proceedings and rivals any other generic attack scenes in the film. Still, Reign remains a dragon movie where the dragons fail to impress. Bowman initially hides his creations, obscuring them by clouds or plumes of smoke. But the effect never generates the desired suspense a la Jaws, instead feeling like a budget-preserving device. It’s not until the sole male dragon begins wreaking havoc that this adventure heats up. This creature shows its scaly face about an hour into the film, and you won’t miss too much if you choose to wander in at this point. Set designer Simon Wakefield deserves credit for his desolate landscapes, even if the bulk of them have been set on fire. The rolling green fields of Ireland stand in as the scorched earth outside London for most of the exteriors. One colleague asked why the fields were so fresh if the dragons were supposed to have scorched everything. I couldn’t answer him, as I was too busy trying to noodle through why dragons hunted people at all, since we’re told they feed on ash. Unanswered questions like these prevent me from quite recommending Reign of Fire. It’s a lot of smoke, but too few mirrors. RATING: **1/2 [* = lowest rating / ***** = highest rating] MPAA Rating: PG-13 Director: Rob Bowman Producer: Richard Zanuck, Lili Fini Zanuck, Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber, Jonathan Glickman Writer: Gregg Chabot, Kevin Peterka, Matt Greenberg Starring: Christian Bale, Matthew McConaughey, Izabella Scorupco, Gerard Butler, Alexander Siddig http://bventertainment.go.com/movies/reignoffire/index.html ========== X-RAMR-ID: 32287 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737186 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 178 X-RT-AuthorID: 1255 X-RT-RatingText: 2.5/5 From rec.arts.sf.reviews Fri Jul 12 12:01:20 2002 From: JoBlo Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.reviews,rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Reign of Fire (2002) Approved: ramr@rottentomatoes.com Followup-To: rec.arts.movies.current-films Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2002 19:04:07 -0000 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: X-RAMR-ID: 32297 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737199 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 573 X-RT-AuthorID: 1021 X-RT-RatingText: 6/10 Summary: r.a.m.r. #32297 X-Questions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Submissions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Complaints-To: newsabuse@supernews.com Lines: 103 Path: news.island.liu.se!news.Update.UU.SE!puffinus.its.uu.se!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!erinews.ericsson.se!erix.ericsson.se!luth.se!logbridge.uoregon.edu!news.maxwell.syr.edu!sn-xit-03!sn-xit-06!sn-post-02!sn-post-01!supernews.com!news.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.island.liu.se rec.arts.movies.reviews:4110 rec.arts.sf.reviews:328 REIGN OF FIRE RATING: 6/10 http://www.joblo.com/reignoffire.htm For more reviews and movie screensavers, visit http://www.joblo.com/ PLOT: The year is 2020 and dragons have taken over the world. They have all but conquered our major cities and continue to proliferate and barbeque humans daily. But when an American group of so-called "dragon slayers" approach another cluster of surviving English folk, it's time to get busy, draw up a plan and fight back against the fire-breathing monsters. Matthew McConaughey ensues... CRITIQUE: Dark, smoky, lots of fire, lots of heavy breathing...and that was the scene before we even left my pad! Once at the theater, we got much of the same, as well as a whole bunch of pissed off dragons, attempting to rid the entire world of any leftover humans. Is it a good movie? It's decent. It didn't blow my ass off the seat at any point, but it certainly provided for a number of visceral action sequences with man fighting beast, and an original enough premise (dragons ruling the world?) to make up for some of its drier patches. Although I will admit that after the film's initial wake-up call, I was starting to feel a certain lull coming on, like the movie was preparing to fall into an action scene / really long sequence of surviving Brits talking it out / action scene / another really long sequence of Brits talking it out routine. But then...he arrived! That's right, the man with the plan, the man with the bulging biceps, the man who possessed more intensity in his little pinky than most action heroes do in their entire bodies, the man some of us like to call: Matthew McConaughey. The movie was all his after that. Every move that he made, every over-the-top roar that came out of his mouth, every cigar that he chomped on and spit to the floor...the man was the human beast, ready to kick ass, take names...and then kick some more ass. I freely nominate this character as one of the coolest dudes of the year so far (cheap plug: remember to vote for the Golden Schmoes at the end of the year, folks), and hope that others like me will also appreciate McConaughey's seriously disturbed but charismatic performance as well. So yes, once he pissed his way onto the scene, things got a little more interesting, but overall, the film didn't really live up to its potential. I seemed a little too claustrophobic at times, like the entire picture took place on three sets. I also didn't understand the British accents all that well, didn't really get into any of the characters other than the two lead men and really wanted other people for whom I could give half a shit. Christian Bale also delivered a strong performance here, but was there anyone else of substance in the entire movie? 'Fraid not. And as cool and exciting as the action sequences were (the arc angels' fall from the sky was the fuckin' bomb!!), I couldn't help but feel like there was something missing. I was personally looking really forward to seeing this all-out battle in the end as well, but it never really materialized. In fact, once things got to the finale, they just seemed to speed up and finish rather abruptly. Having said that, the movie on the whole is still pretty fun to watch, the special effects are solid throughout, the scene in which McConaughey tells off the Brits is a gem (look at those eyes, baby) and the film also contains a handful of funny moments and dialogue ("We can do this the easy way or we can do this the really easy way"). As for the dragons...well, they were impressive but they never truly took over the picture. It almost seemed like a setup to a sequel or like they just ran out of money to include more monsters, so they gave McConaughey a mickey and told him to go hogwild (and he takes full advantage of his carte-blanche, let me tell you-great career move). I think this is a flick that you are either gonna love or hate. It's to note that I'm one of the assholes who thought BATTLEFIELD EARTH was "fun cheese" so watch your step after reading my words. One thing I will definitely remember from this film is the hysterically exuberant scene featuring the bald, gruffy McConaughey jumping off the top of a huge chimney with an axe over his head and nothing but a big-ass dragon flying right towards him. That shot will forever be imbedded in my mind. Hi-la-rious. In a nutshell, the film delivers some pretty cool special effects, a couple of solid action pieces and two engaging lead actors, but doesn't give us enough dragons (this is a "dragon movie", man...show me more dragons, dammit!), doesn't really get very deep into the story and doesn't have enough interesting characters to make it all that worthwhile. A reserved recommendation, although I did think twice about giving the film an extra point for McConaughey's pecs alone. Where's JoBlo coming from? Armageddon (8/10) - Attack of the Clones (8/10) - Battlefield Earth (7/10) - Dungeons and Dragons (7/10) - The Fellowship of the Ring (7/10) - Godzilla (4/10) - Godzilla 2000 (7/10) - Mad Max (8/10) - Pitch Black (7/10) - X-Files (7/10) Review Date: July 10, 2002 Director: Rob Bowman Writers: Gregg Chabot, Kevin Peterka, Matt Greenberg Producers: Richard Zanuck, Lili Zanuck, Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber Actors: Christian Bale as Quinn Abercromby Matthew McConaughey as Van Zan Isabella Scorupco as Alex Genre: Action Year of Release: 2002 ------------------------------------ JoBlo's Movie Emporium http://www.joblo.com/ ------------------------------------ (c) 2002 Berge Garabedian ========== X-RAMR-ID: 32297 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737199 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 573 X-RT-AuthorID: 1021 X-RT-RatingText: 6/10 From rec.arts.sf.reviews Fri Jul 12 12:01:49 2002 From: Jon Popick Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.reviews,rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Reign of Fire (2002) Approved: ramr@rottentomatoes.com Followup-To: rec.arts.movies.current-films Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2002 19:06:16 -0000 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: X-RAMR-ID: 32298 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737202 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 595 X-RT-AuthorID: 1146 X-RT-RatingText: 6/10 Summary: r.a.m.r. #32298 X-Questions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Submissions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Complaints-To: newsabuse@supernews.com Lines: 65 Path: news.island.liu.se!news.Update.UU.SE!puffinus.its.uu.se!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!erinews.ericsson.se!uab.ericsson.se!erix.ericsson.se!luth.se!lnewspeer01.lnd.ops.eu.uu.net!emea.uu.net!uucp.muenster.de!news-koe1.dfn.de!news-stu1.dfn.de!news.belwue.de!news.uni-stuttgart.de!feed.textport.net!sn-xit-02!sn-xit-01!sn-post-01!supernews.com!news.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.island.liu.se rec.arts.movies.reviews:4112 rec.arts.sf.reviews:329 Planet Sick-Boy: http://www.sick-boy.com "We Put the SIN in Cinema" © Copyright 2002 Planet Sick-Boy. All Rights Reserved. After a summer full of heady films that made us think (thank you, Jason Bourne, Michael Sullivan and John Anderton), we finally get the first real popcorn movie of the season in Reign of Fire, a moderately entertaining if not downright odd blend of Mad Max, Dragonslayer and Excalibur. It's good enough to make viewers a lot less leery of the whole Post-Apocalyptic Future genre after The Postman, but in the grand scheme of things, there isn't much here that will have you talking on the way out of the theatre. Fire opens in present-day London, where the young son of a railway tunnel construction manager finds a hare-brained, fahr-breathin' eedjit (read: dragon) deep below the surface of the city. The story slowly flashes forward to 2020, during which we're treated to a very spiffy voice-over explaining that the dormant dragons returned to Earth's surface and pretty much took shit over. They destroyed everything with their fire breath (because they eat the ash), and drove the few remaining humans into hiding. One of the last enclaves of life is in Northumberland, England, which is where we meet protagonist Quinn Abercromby (Christian Bale, Captain Corelli's Mandolin), who just happens to be the kid from the prologue. Quinn is in charge of a group containing a handful of adults and a lot of children who appear to be the same age (repopulating the Earth sounds so sexy!), and his biggest problem is riding a horse out to the few crops of food they're able to grow under the constant threat of dragon attack. At least that's his biggest problem until the Americans show up. Those irritating Yanks arrive with tanks, helicopters, a superior attitude and a leader named Denton Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey, 13 Conversations About One Thing), who has not only killed a dragon or two, but has a zany plan for ridding the planet of the suckers (and it has nothing to do with dragons being so stupid, like our friend Sam assumed). What ensues is not only a battle against the dragons, but a power struggle between Quinn and Denton that threatens the entire operation. Then there's the Big Battle Scene at the end, and everyone goes home happy...or wondering where the Americans found the fuel to operate their macho machinery. As fun as it is to mock, there are plenty of things to admire about Fire, starting with the dusty, bluish photography from Adrian Biddle (The Mummy Returns), the terrific voice-over at the beginning (and accompanying newspapers recounting the destruction of various cities), and, to a much lesser extent, the Willard-Kilgore relationship between Quinn and Denton. There are a couple of somewhat memorable scenes, including a very funny spoof of the finale of The Empire Strikes Back, and another where the Americans make Band of Brothers' Easy Company look like a bunch of pansies. Bale has never done anything for me acting-wise, but McConaughey is fun to watch, especially since his recent graduation from the Steve Forbes School of Acting, because the bastard didn't blink once during the entire film. Still, one can't help wondering how cool Vin Diesel would have been in that role (and how fucked up is that?). 1:46 - PG-13 for intense action violence ========== X-RAMR-ID: 32298 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737202 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 595 X-RT-AuthorID: 1146 X-RT-RatingText: 6/10 From rec.arts.sf.reviews Sat Jul 13 12:29:51 2002 From: Steve Rhodes Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.reviews,rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Reign of Fire (2002) Approved: ramr@rottentomatoes.com Followup-To: rec.arts.movies.current-films Date: Sat, 13 Jul 2002 01:40:43 -0000 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: X-RAMR-ID: 32306 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737491 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 703 X-RT-AuthorID: 1271 X-RT-RatingText: 3/4 Summary: r.a.m.r. #32306 X-Questions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Submissions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Complaints-To: newsabuse@supernews.com Lines: 90 Path: news.island.liu.se!news.Update.UU.SE!puffinus.its.uu.se!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!erinews.ericsson.se!erix.ericsson.se!luth.se!logbridge.uoregon.edu!tethys.csu.net!nntp!sn-xit-05!sn-xit-06!sn-post-01!supernews.com!news.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.island.liu.se rec.arts.movies.reviews:4119 rec.arts.sf.reviews:331 REIGN OF FIRE A film review by Steve Rhodes Copyright 2002 Steve Rhodes RATING (0 TO ****): *** REIGN OF FIRE rocks! Think of it as FIREWORLD with Christian Bale replacing Kevin Costner and Matthew McConaughey taking on Dennis Hopper's part. As the American leader of a ragtag army contingent, Denton Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey) has come to England in the year 2020 on a mission to save the world, or at least what's left of it. Van Zan's a cocky guy who chomps on his burnt out stogie when he isn't spouting inspirational lines like, "I lead; you follow." You may wonder, "What does the world need saving from?" Dragons. X-FILES's director, Rob Bowman, performs a miracle, with the help of some awesome special effects, and makes a ridiculous plot reasonably plausible and always fascinating. Just don't think too hard as there are logical problems around every bend, like how do Van Zan and his troops get their vast fuel requirements in a world in ruins? The story begins in the present day when a long dormant dragon is let loose during an excavation in London. In the years that follow, the beasts spread and multiply until they've laid waste to the earth and most of the humans on it. But, as the narrator intones, "Only one species is getting out of this alive," and a few humans are naive enough to bet on the home team. One of the most effective moments in the movie occurs when we see old magazines that covered the planet's Armageddon. "Is this the end?" one cover asks poignantly. Don't be surprised if your mind drifts to 9-11 as you look at the covers. The few people left huddle together in small groups with the sole goal of hiding from the beasts. One such group in England is led by Quinn Abercromby (Christian Bale). A brave but cautious leader, he doesn't trust Van Zan. As he puts it, "Only thing worse than a dragon is an American." Van Zan and Alex (Izabella Scorupco), his helicopter pilot, are part of a small group that wants to take the fight to the dragons. When you see how powerful, fast, and deadly these fire-breathing monsters are, you'll understand why Van Zan's idea appears to be terminally stupid. (Don't even think about bringing kids who are frightened easily to REIGN OF FIRE, which pushes the intensity limits of its PG-13 rating. These dragons could give a child -- or an adult -- some major nightmares.) The fighting sequences are excellent but never allowed to go on too long. The casting is a bit strange but works well. If you were a casting director, I'm sure your first choice for Van Zan would be Vin Diesel (THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS), but McConaughey brings a level of intelligence that adds a special something to a pretty bizarre character. You will probably be asking yourself, "How does Van Zan plan on accomplishing what entire armies using nuclear weapons were unable to do?" Good question. The movie's explanation for his scheme has a certain plausibility to it so long as you don't think too hard. Leave your analytical self at the office, grab a bag of popcorn, and be prepared to just have some fun. REIGN OF FIRE provides good old-fashion, mindless entertainment. REIGN OF FIRE runs a fast 1:41. It is rated PG-13 for "intense action violence" and would be acceptable for kids around 11 and up. My son Jeffrey, age 13, gave it ***. He liked the special effects, the acting and the plot. Usually one to be critical of logical problems, he was able to ignore them this time and just go with the story. The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, July 12, 2002. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC and the Century theaters. Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com Email: Steve.Rhodes@InternetReviews.com *********************************************************************** Want free reviews and weekly movie and video recommendations via Email? Just send me a letter with the word "subscribe" in the subject line. ========== X-RAMR-ID: 32306 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737491 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 703 X-RT-AuthorID: 1271 X-RT-RatingText: 3/4 From rec.arts.sf.reviews Sat Jul 13 12:30:27 2002 From: Laura Clifford Newsgroups: rec.arts.movies.reviews,rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Reign of Fire (2002) Approved: ramr@rottentomatoes.com Followup-To: rec.arts.movies.current-films Date: Sat, 13 Jul 2002 01:46:13 -0000 Organization: Posted via Supernews, http://www.supernews.com Message-ID: X-RAMR-ID: 32309 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737588 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 386 X-RT-AuthorID: 1487 X-RT-RatingText: B- Summary: r.a.m.r. #32309 X-Questions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Submissions-to: ramr@rottentomatoes.com X-Complaints-To: newsabuse@supernews.com Lines: 83 Path: news.island.liu.se!news.Update.UU.SE!puffinus.its.uu.se!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!news.net.uni-c.dk!logbridge.uoregon.edu!tethys.csu.net!nntp!sn-xit-05!sn-xit-06!sn-post-01!supernews.com!news.supernews.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.island.liu.se rec.arts.movies.reviews:4122 rec.arts.sf.reviews:332 REIGN OF FIRE ------------- In present day London, a young boy visits his mother at a construction site and awakens a beast only accredited to myth and legend. Twenty years later, that boy, Quinn (Christian Bale, "American Psycho"), is helping a community survive the scorched earth within the ruins of a castle when an American dragonslayer arrives to unseat what has become a "Reign of Fire." Story-by guys Gregg Chabot and Kevin Peterka, who wrote the screenplay with Matt Greenberg, cooked up this premise during a backpacking trip throughout Britain. For the most part, this is popcorn movie fun with equal doses of action, cheese, ham and cheek (as well as a serious debt to "The Road Warrior"), but it feels like unrealized potential, as if the filmmakers only went halfway and filled in the gaps with cliche. Quinn the kid (Ben Thornton) has a tweaking sense of humor. Quinn the adult, while mostly serious, will perform the Darth Vadar/Luke Skywalker 'I am your father' scene with his best mate Creedy (Gerard Butler, "Harrison's Flowers") for the kids and claim authorship. While he banters with Creedy ('If anything happens, you know what do to.' 'No I don't!'), mostly Quinn is in the solemn business of protecting his community from the overhead peril and their own rash judgement. When danger looms (a tower lookout with a predatory bird signals), Quinn herds the children (each and every one a wide eyed English poppet) into the castle chapel and demands they recite their 'prayer,' which is really a dragon 'duck and cover' recitation. Besides Creedy, Quinn is assisted by young Jared (Scott James Moutter), a surrogate son and symbol of his lost childhood. When a stream of tanks arrive bearing American military dragonslayers seeking overnight shelter, Quinn is suspicious and the writers have fun with stereotypes as a soldier tosses one kid an apple (all chocolate presumably having been melted by dragon breath). Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey, a convergence of Mad Max and Toecutter) forces an uneasy alliance with Quinn until he proves himself with a spectacular (and confusing) display of hi-tech dragon hunting. Van Zan is idolized by his men, which includes helicopter Alex (Izabella Scorpuco, "Goldeneye," only occasionally successful hiding her accent), a potential love interest for Quinn. She rides over the horizon to lure a dragon, then parachuting 'angels' (life expectancy is 16 seconds once they leave the copter) act as bait, firing nets and bringing the animal towards Van Zan for the kill. McConaughey is linked to the beast by his grunts and 'hrrrs' which the sound mix. Just before we learn that they must obliterate the lone male dragon (which killed Quinn's mum (Alice Krige) twenty years earlier) in order to save mankind, Van Zan is seen astride his tank, its cannon phallically pointing towards London. (And while it's refreshingly different to go after daddy for a change, won't the thousands of pregnant females still pose a threat for years to come?) McConaughey is burdened with the worst of the dialogue, particularly a wet blanket speech given to Quinn's community when they're partying away to Hendrix's "Fire" after his dragon kill. Cinematographer Adrian Biddle ("Thelma and Louise") alternates his palette between steely blue grays and blood orange fire glow. Visual Effects Supervisor Richard R. Hoover hits (Bale is seamlessly integrated up close and personal with the big, bad beastie, 'Angels' catapult through misty clouds as dragon bait) and misses (McConaughey's harpoon platform stands before obvious bluescreen, dragons flying in the distance frequently scream CGI). The filmmakers can't get away from the 'fire shooting upwards through conical tower' cliche which was recently overdone in "The Hollow Man." Director Rob Bowman ("The X-Files") more than likely has a summer hit on his hands, but with more effort and polish, "Reign of Fire" might have been something more lasting. B- For more Reeling reviews visit www.reelingreviews.com laura@reelingreviews.com robin@reelingreviews.com ========== X-RAMR-ID: 32309 X-Language: en X-RT-ReviewID: 737588 X-RT-TitleID: 1114678 X-RT-SourceID: 386 X-RT-AuthorID: 1487 X-RT-RatingText: B-