Boz
Published writer
Posts: 1,451
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Post by Boz on Jan 22, 2007 2:18:27 GMT
Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995/Fleder)Originally Written 6/8/06A slick crime film in the vein of Pulp Fiction, with somewhat flawed but forgivable direction by rookie feature film director Gary Fleder. The pacing of the story and the character development worked fine, and even had some really inspired moments at times, but there were consistent problems with the cinematography and lighting. Everything was always a bit too colorful and fake looking, it tends to remind the viewers of theater lighting, like for a play almost. Andy Garcia is excellent here, every film I see him in makes me want to see more of his work. He executes both the dramatic and comedic sides of his character masterfully, and holds a really formidable presence throughout. Although the film is very clearly influenced by Pulp Fiction in its efforts to be “cool”, it doesn’t go overboard, and the added touches of old-style gangsters and the mafia and here and there give it a sense of tradition, as opposed to going for the out and out, new, hip, cool type approach. The story works especially well, starting off kind of slow and predictable but ultimately forming into a nice composition which leads to an interesting ending. Overall, good early work from Garcia, a surprisingly good film for a rookie screenwriter and director, with a strong supporting cast and an interesting story.
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