Thursday, January 27, 2005

Remake of ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13

I wasn't going to see this, but suddenly I need to -- mostly due to Jonathan Rosenbaum's review in the Chicago Reader, tho' it'll also be interesting to see how the "good guys under siege" structure of the film resonates against the current political situation in the United States. I only dimly recall Carpenter's original, but I liked it at the time. I'll have to see it alone, unfortunately -- it'll only be fun to watch if I'm free to think about it structurally as it plays out; other viewers sitting beside me would interfere. Or... well, maybe not Dan. Hm. Have to call him and suggest it.

Addendum, a week later: finally saw this with my parents. Bleh. Once again, Mr. Rosenbaum has gone out of way (think Small Soldiers, here) to sing the praises and political nuances of a rather trite formula action film. Sure, the film has an antiauthoritarian streak, but it's hardly novel, and it won't offer you much comfort while you watch Ethan Hawke gnaw the set and the clunky cliches of the screenplay batter you about the ears. It ain't even worth writing about (Ebert here -- a nice bit of writing). Note for Dan: White Noise was a better choice.

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