[Michael Martin]

I happened to stay home sick from work yesterday morning and popped in 1998's "Mask of Zorro." This is a film that for me just gets better every time I watch it!

I love how the movie knows exactly what kind of story it is, and doesn't try to be something different. It's a great case of HOW the story is told, not WHAT happens. I mean, you pretty much know what's going to happen, at least the big plot.

But all of the elements - the acting, the writing, the production, the music - all were top-notch. And while there was a lot of humor in the movie, I never feel like they are mocking the characters or the idea of Zorro.

Just a few of the highlights for me:

• The swordfights - ALL are incredible, and even better, all make sense within the story. They don't feel like they were stuck in as an afterthought or as padding. My favorite: when Zorro goes to steal the map from Don Rafael.
• The scene between Diego (Anthony Hopkins) and Elena (Catherine Zeta-Jones) in the stable. Terrific acting for both of them.
• Banderas PERFECTLY cast as the young Zorro - a great combination of passion, humor and physical presence
• Production design and storytelling made the story feel "big" and expansive
• CATHERINE ZETA-JONES!!!!

Hopefully there are a few HTFers out there who feel the same as I do....

[Paul Case]

Michael, I couldn't agree more. It's just one of those pitch perfect adventure films. Like you said, it knows exactly what it wants to be and it achieves its goals on every level. I never get tired of watching it. I remember when it first came out I skipped seeing it because the trailers made it look cheesy. When it hit video, I rented it and immediately started kicking myself for missing it on the big screen. I'm still kicking myself to this day.

Anyway, it's just a fun movie. It's nice to see somebody starting up an appreciation thread for it.

[Holadem]

Strangely enough, I was quite bored and somewhat turned off by the cheese when I saw it in the theater, as I was expecting a more serious, more dramatic movie for some reason. Additionally, it was my second movie of the day, it was late, and I was tired. However, I thougth it looked and sounded absolutely gorgeous. So naturally, several months later, it was the first disc (rented from BB) I popped into my brand new DVD player. The picture on my 20" was better than anything I had imagined. The sound through my mini system was absolutely fabulous. Many upgrades later, the movie still techinically rocks, but it has also dramatically grown on me. It's now one of my favorite escapist pieces.

I played the teaser (In a world where justice is outlawed, the just must be outlawed or somesuch ) on my computer almost as much as I played the LOTR internet trailer back then. That will be my one reason for getting the special edition of the DVD one day.

And really, who could forget the movie that introduced us to the beautiful Zeta-Jones?

--
Holadem

[Bryan Tuck]

In my opinion, this is one of the best summer popcorn movies of the last decade (can't believe it's already been 5 years since it came out).

Michael, you are exactly right in that it's HOW the story is told, how the plot unfolds. Even though it's escapism, it treats its plot and characters (not to mention the audience) with dignity and respect. And it's just a genuinely exciting movie, not only because of the expertly choreographed action sequences, but because we are interested in the characters as well.

As a side note, it's a great widescreen/P&S example to show someone. I showed a friend of mine the sword fight sequence Michael was talking about in both formats, and during the P&S, she said, "You can't even see the other guy!"

At any rate, I love this movie. Now I want to go watch it again.

[Chris Farmer]

Great movie, one of my favorites. It's not high art or anything like that, it's just a good fun movie. It knows exactly what it is, and never tries to hard to be something more "important." It's perfectly content to be a well-thought out very enjoyable Zorro movie. Rather it's just a top-notch, extremely enjoyable action/semi-comic booky movie. It's having fun but never lets things get too far away from itself and out of control. You know what's gonna happen in every scene, but you can't stop watching because you really do like the characters, and it's all done with such great visual flair that you just want to see how the next obvious plot point is accomplished. The movie is just plain fun, and that counts for a lot.

[John_Berger]

Fantastic movie. Nothing else to be said.

Hell, there are even some lines in the ending theme that are quite deep.

[Andy Sheets]

Quote:

And really, who could forget the movie that introduced us to the beautiful Zeta-Jones?

You never saw The Phantom?

I tend to agree that Zorro gets more enjoyable when viewed a second time. The first time I saw it, I was enjoying Anthony Hopkins so much in the part in the beginning that I resented it when Banderas came along and they started training him as the replacement. I'm just not a big fan of "the great hero's gotten too old so he has to train a young asshole to replace him" stories; rather, I enjoy seeing heroes get over the hill so they have to not only save the day but deal with arthritis while doing so

However, when I saw it second time, that didn't bother me so much as Banderas does do a good job of playing the younger guy. It's a fun movie.

[Neil Joseph]

Great movie that was very enjoyable and loved the musical score.

[Charles J P]

This is one of my favorite (under-rated) movies. I'm not even sure what it is that I like. I think its the flavor. I love the music, the scenery, the sword fights. etc. Great flick!

[Joshua_Y]

This is indeed just one of the most flat out fun movies in the past 10 years...perfect casting...great fights...lotta fun! Bout time someone made an appreciation thread about it...

[Tim Glover]

Agree. A fun movie with great characters, good acting, nice score etc...even though it was a nice box-office hit, I too think it's underrated. And yes, Zeta-Jones

"Yes, father, he was very, very vigorous"...Oh Behaaaave!