HTF EARLY REVIEW: "Driven" - The next demo disc! (1 Viewer)

[DanR]

Obi,
To answer your question, "Yes". I own MANY "fun" movies, but there's nothing fun about this movie.
Do people really need to buy Driven to get a visceral experience in their home theaters? Absolutely not. There are plenty of demo-grade soundtracks out there on movies that are at least watchable.
I'm sure Warner Bros. has created a technically superior disc, and I appreciate their efforts on this DVD, but again I have to strongly caution people about buying this movie. It is easily the worst movie I've seen in years.
Then again, people say the same stuff about The Phantom Menace. Defenders of that movie offer the same statement you did, "Don't you people know how to have fun?". Different strokes for different folks, though there is certainly no need to question the judgement/opinions of people if they don't agree with what you consider to be "entertainment" (for you).
Regards,
Dan
[Edited last by DanR on August 30, 2001 at 05:21 PM]

 

[Brett Cameron]

Hopefully Universal does this good of a job on Fast And The Furious, that sounds like an Oscar winner next to what you guys are saying about Driven. I am able to enjoy movies just for their entertainment value and not the script or acting(thats why I have movies on dvd such as Days Of Thunder,Top Gun,Armageddon etc.)But is this one that bad? Is it as bad as Stallone's Get Carter?

 

[DanR]

Brett,
Yes, Driven makes The Fast and The Furious look like award winning material. It's funny, but TF&TF is so superior to Driven in almost every way.
That said, I would bet my money that the Warner presentation of Driven is superior to what Universal will produce for TF&TF.
Regards,
Dan

 

[Matt_Stevens]

My girlfriend is a big race fan and when she saw the trailer for this film, she went postal. Just by the trailer she could tell the film threw reality out the window. The CGI race crap I saw looked beyond fake. Almost like a cartoon. I will rent the DVD using my monthly free rental, but only for the Chicago car chase.
Excuse me while I go watch RONIN.
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www.deceptions.net/superman

 

[chris rick]

Robert,
I used to be into buying those "demo" discs..but if I did that everytime a shitty movie comes out with a demo audio track or a demo transfer, I, as well as most of us here, would be broke...there are too many good or great films out or coming out on dvd to warrant purchases such as this...I too enjoy fun, visceral films, but at some point we have to stop buying this garbage just because it is demo stuff...I personally feel that North by Northwest is demo stuff...but then again that film is just a tad better than Driven...the more we buy this trashy "demo" stuff...the more fuel it gives hollywood to continue making absolute garbage like Bubble Boy to name a recent example....

 

[Derek Baker]

I buy DVD's for TWO REASONS :
1 - If the MOVIE is good
2 - If the PRESENTATION (Transfer/Soundtrack/Extras) are good
It's as simple as that!!! If a disc is released that has BOTH of these attributes - Great!
Yes, this movie is not Acadamy Award material BUT it is entertaining...and if it's going to give my HT a good workout..even better.
WHATEVER FLOATS YOUR BOAT - I SAY !

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Do any of you know the definition of the word "fun"? Is it possible for any of you to associate the words "movies" and "fun" in any context? Does the term "entertainment" mean anything to you?

It's BECAUSE I understand those words that I agree with the criticism leveled at Driven. This movie was a total dud. Renny Harlin has to be one of the most ham-handed directors in the business. He consistently ruins movies that have potential; he drains any life and excitement out of them and makes all of them bland and generic exercises in banality.
Driven may be the worst of the bunch. None of his prior flicks bothered with interesting - or even two-dimensional - characters, clever plotting, or interesting dialogue, but at least they'd provide a few good action scenes. Driven fails to do even that. The racing sequences all blended together, and the self-conscious visual style got annoying quickly.
There's no "fun" or "entertainment" to be found in Driven. It's a vision of pointless CGI gimmickry accompanied by generic racing scenes. I love exciting action films, even if they're dumber than dirt. Driven isn't just stupid, but it's also inane, dull and bland. The DVD's nice, but the movie is absolutely atrocious...
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Colin Jacobson
DVD Movie Guide
www.dvdmg.com

 

[Ronald Epstein]

What a kick to read some of these responses.
Okay, let me talk about a few things here....
First, I am not a racing fan. Know nothing
about it. So, perhaps, that explains why I
found the racing sequences to be quite exciting.
For a racing fanatic, who knows what this stuff
should look like, I am sure that the opinion will
greatly vary.
Next....
I made it clear that the storyline was negligable.
Come on -- this movie ranks right up there with
every other popcorn flick (aka ARMAGEDDON) that
relies on effects and not story.
However....
I think Obi's Reviews will prove me right (he
is reviewing this disc soon) when I tell you
that this is the BEST DEMO QUALITY DVD I
have put in my player thus far.
The disc transfer is exceptional, and that is
topped out by a sound mix that is just incredible.
So take my review and appreciate it for the
kidos on its technical merits.
This isn't Shakespear!
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Ronald Epstein (pronounced like the English "Ronald Epstein")
Circa 2000
Home Theater Forum Administrator
All forum questions & to get on our private forum mailing list (new members)... Email: [email protected]
Problems with the webpage or site? Contact WEBMASTER
Email Packy [email protected]

 

[Jeff Ashforth]

IMHO, I can't think of anything more silly than spending good money for a shite film just because the sound and picture quality are excellent. Most of my friends think I'm insane, and a total nerd for being so into Home Theater. I have no illusions about this hobby being mainstream. So why would I spend my money to show off my system to people who couldn't care less about HT?
I guess I don't get that many opportunities to "Demo" my system, and even when I do have people over, I'd feel like a dork showing off something that they had no interest in. Kinda like going over a friend's house and having him show me his HUGE comic book collection(which, BTW, interests me as much as watching paint dry). Upon viewing this room full of paper and ink I'm forced to say " Wow, very nice"... **Yawn**.
I'd just as soon spend money on the movies I want to watch over and over. There are plenty of those in my collection with great picture and sound in the unlikely event someone visiting my home is interested in a "DEMO".
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"I don't know, I'm just making this up as I go."
My Spare time larcenists
The worst HT in America.

 

[Frank L]

Colin Jacobson blurted out the following...

There's no "fun" or "entertainment" to be found in Driven. It's a vision of pointless CGI gimmickry accompanied by generic racing scenes. I love exciting action films, even if they're dumber than dirt. Driven isn't just stupid, but it's also inane, dull and bland. The DVD's nice, but the movie is absolutely atrocious...

Says you
Plenty of people enjoyed the flick and found it to be fun and entertaining, so there's no point in preaching like your Moses
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Frank

DVD Collection | Website

 

[David-alexander]

Ron
??? there are tons of great flicks which happen to also be demo material. Here, they even could not do the CGI properly. And there are many flicks who are not good but at least manage to be REAL great demo material.
I really don't get it but this is just me and free country.
And I repeat, if I had no expectations for DRIVEN, I would not be posting on this thread. It maybe sort of biases my opinion...... or not

 

[Tony Carter]

When I saw the previews for this movie something told me I didn't want to pay good $$$ to go see it.
But now all this discussion makes me feel like I *have* to go rent it just to see what everyone is talking about. It takes a pretty bad movie to make me feel that I wasted 4 bucks on a movie for my family to watch.

 

[Patrick Wilmes]

Thanks for the tip Ron but I think I'll pass on this one.I have enough demo material that's a little more watchable.Glad you liked it though.

 

[Matthew_S]

quote: Do any of you know the definition of the word "fun"? Is it possible for any of you to associate the words "movies" and "fun" in any context? Does the term "entertainment" mean anything to you?[/quote]
I'll have to agree Colin Jacobsen. It's great to have fun at the movies. Hell, Raiders of the Lost Ark is the best example of a FUN, ENTERTAINING movie to me. I just don't like it when people like Stallone keep making UTTER CRAP and passing it on to us as entertainment! Is it FUN and ENTERTAINING to be pandered to as a grade-A moron? Not to me.
quote: ...this is the BEST DEMO QUALITY DVD I
have put in my player thus far.[/quote]
I truly don't understand paying for bad movie whether it's "demo quality" or not. No Retreat, No Surrender or Ratboy may be demo quality but i sure as hell won't be getting them.
Now everyone look away while Warner slips Ron a nice check under the table
[Edited last by Matthew_S on August 31, 2001 at 11:23 AM]
[Edited last by Matthew_S on August 31, 2001 at 11:25 AM]

 

[Robert George]

I suppose the one important point that seems to be lost on some of you is, your opinion is not the last word on what others may or may not find entertaining. You all keep hammering on your opinion that this movie has no entertainment value.
Are you so thick that you can't accept the simple fact that there are others that don't agree with you?

 

[David-alexander]

Matthew: ouch!

 

[RobertR]

The DirectTV HD demo channel showed the trailer for this film quite a few times. I always thought the (non CGI) scenes looked superb from a purely technical standpoint.. On the other hand, I strongly suspected minor details such as the story and script were junk. Sounds like both of my evaluations were correct.

 

[Jerry Gracia]

Now everyone look away while Warner slips Ron a nice check under the table

Smiley or no...that is kinda un-called for.
Some of us love all aspects of this hobby, including fantastic DEMO discs...I know that's hard for some of you to fathom.
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LuvLBX

 

[Colin Jacobson]

Darned duplicate post!
[Edited last by Colin Jacobson on August 31, 2001 at 01:14 PM]

 

[Colin Jacobson]

I suppose the one important point that seems to be lost on some of you is, your opinion is not the last word on what others may or may not find entertaining. You all keep hammering on your opinion that this movie has no entertainment value.
Are you so thick that you can't accept the simple fact that there are others that don't agree with you?

While I can't speak for others, I responded to your post because you seemed to berate anyone who didn't like the movie. My impression was that you felt folks who found the film poor simply couldn't have fun and go with the experience. I disagreed and stated why I disagreed.
I dislike threads in which someone asks about the quality of a DVD - not the movie - and others chime in with negative opinions. As such, I normally wouldn't become involved with this sort of discussion, but I REALLY didn't care for the manner in which it was intimated that anyone who didn't like Driven lacked a sense of fun or excitement.
I felt the movie was a total dud, but I'm happy that others liked it - I never begrudge anyone the enjoyment of something I don't like. However, I also think it's very judgmental to slam people because they don't care for something you like, and that's what I felt happened here...
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Colin Jacobson
DVD Movie Guide
www.dvdmg.com