Radio (1 Viewer)

[Gary->dee]

Ok to be honest I had been thinking about starting this thread for a while because this movie has become the joke of my office. It looks like a very corny movie. It might be the greatest movie since... Forest Gump for all I know but I'll probably never know because I'm not planning on seeing it. The only way I'll see this movie is if I go with a group of people and we're all holding hands. And I have sweaty hands so be warned.

"We're not teaching Radio. Radio's teaching us!"

 

[MartinTeller]

My girlfriend and I make fun of this movie on a daily basis. Like I Am Sam, it appears to want to champion the, um, mentally deficient, while at the same time making them objects of ridicule. ("What pants I put on?")

They should have just named the movie Oscar Bait. Cuba Gooding Jr has made some lousy choices in his career, but I expect a little better from Ed Harris.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Geez, at least see the film before passing judgement on it.

 

[Gary->dee]

Robert we're just discussing this movie and in doing so our opinions of what we know of the movie are being expressed.

I think I'm going to write a script combining the slasher/revenge genre of Kill Bill and the sympathetic mentally challenged hero genre of Radio and Forrest Gump. I'll call it Radio Kill or Kill Radio, not sure which one yet, but it'll be about a mentally challenged samurai swordsman played by Jim Belushi that kills all the wrong people in his quest for revenge.

 

[MartinTeller]

Geez, at least see the film before passing judgement on it.

I'm passing judgement based on the trailer, consisting of scenes from the movie, presented in what one would naturally assume to be a reasonable representation of what the movie is like. I haven't said anything that couldn't be applied to the trailer. If their trailer is for some reason not a good representation of the movie, then that would be the fault of their marketing department.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Well, I didn't think much of the Kill Bill trailer, but after seeing that film twice, the trailer didn't do it justice in my opinion. I recognized a long time ago that trailers are not always the best indicator as to the quality of a film.





Crawdaddy

 

[Jason Seaver]

Well, I didn't think much of the Kill Bill trailer

This boggles my mind every time I hear it. It's one of the best trailers I can remember, stylish, not giving everything away but giving you an impression of the movie.

The trailer for Radio, on the other hand, seems determined to assure you that every cliché possible will be hit - and loud.

 

[Al Stuart]

I think I'm going to write a script combining the slasher/revenge genre of Kill Bill and the sympathetic mentally challenged hero genre of Radio and Forrest Gump. I'll call it Radio Kill or Kill Radio, not sure which one yet, but it'll be about a mentally challenged samurai swordsman played by Jim Belushi that kills all the wrong people in his quest for revenge.

Considering some of Tarantino's previous acting choices, how about, Destiny Killed the Radio Star.

Regarding casting, if you throw David Spade in there, as Belushi's sidekick, and cut back to him three or four times a scene so he can smirk, I think I smell a box office winner.

 

[Rob P S]

I hate to sound like an old man, but I'll never know why people will anxiously run off to see whatever sadistic, violent, vulgar movie comes out, and sneer at any movie that looks like it might be uplifting. Even though I love Pulp Fiction, I have no desire to see Kill Bill and couldn't care less if QT ever makes another movie. However, when the Hoosiers/Rudy guys make another movie, I'll be first in line. As far as Radio goes, hopefully it won't be another I Am Sam, but with Ed Harris and Alfre Woodard in the cast, it shouldn't be a total loss.

 

[Jason Seaver]

I hate to sound like an old man, but I'll never know why people will anxiously run off to see whatever sadistic, violent, vulgar movie comes out, and sneer at any movie that looks like it might be uplifting.

Well, Kill Bill is an extremely stylish, spiffy-looking violent movie. Even in the trailer, you can see that it's the work of a fine craftsman, a guy who knows how to use color and space and motion as opposed to just expecting you to think it's cool because folks get sliced up. Radio, on the other hand, doesn't look like it has that level of art or craft to it. It just looks paint-by-numbers.

I love PG-rated movies, really - I'll praise a good movie that doesn't feel the need to get ugly to entertain to the hills. But too often both "uplifting" and "action-packed" can mean "lacking creativity".

 

[Craig S]

I hate to sound like an old man, but I'll never know why people will anxiously run off to see whatever sadistic, violent, vulgar movie comes out, and sneer at any movie that looks like it might be uplifting.

I love wholesome, uplifting movies as long as they're done well (see Rocket Boys, Remember The Titans, The Rookie, etc). However, the trailer for Radio is especially cringe-inducing. Gooding's retarded-schtick is embarrassing to watch, even for just those two minutes.

Jason's post is spot on. As Roger Ebert says, it's not what the movie's about, it's how it's about it.

Also not boding well is the following early review posted at AICN. OK, given the source take it with as large a grain of salt as you deem necessary, but it IS pretty funny:

This guy would rather papercut his own gums than see RADIO again!

 

[Ricardo C]

Just watched the trailer. "Oscar Bait" is right, although "Manipulative, Condescending Piece of Dreck" might be even more accurate, but of course I doubt I'll ever find out, since the trailer's enough to keep me away from this one.

 

[Nick Graham]

Having worked with the developmentally disabled in the past, I can say this looks like another Hollywood Retard Movie.

In saying that, I mean the character will not act like any actual, flesh and blood developmentally disabled person in existence. Just like Sam before him, Radio will be some kind of exaggerated caricature, that, while fun to ridicule, will be in no way a representation of reality.

Has Cuba Gooding Jr. ever been asked in an interview on TV or in print why he continues his quest to commit career suicide?

 

[MartinTeller]

Some of my favorite movies are uplifting. Few of them sadistic, violent, or vulgar. I loved Seabiscuit.

From what I can glean from the trailer (and in my experience, a movie is often worse than its trailer, but rarely better), the message of Radio seems to be "Everybody should have a pet retard!"

 

[Chuck Mayer]

This trailer makes my wife sad. She's a sensitive lass. It doesn't get any better when I laugh at her and tell her she's sad about Cuba playing Buck the Wonder-Slave.

Because that's what the trailer indicates. No judgement on the film...just the marketing.

Spot the reference
Chuck

 

[Edwin Pereyra]

Speaking about wives, this is very high on my wife's list to see even though I'm dubious about the film myself. I'll pass judgment after seeing it.

~Edwin

 

[Dennis Pagoulatos]

I haven't laughed that much at a trailer since...well, "I Am Sam" I'll probably end up getting dragged to see this as well, so it sounds like I'm in the same boat as a lot of you!

-Dennis

 

[teapot2001]

I think the sneak preview is tonight.

~T

 

[ThomasC]

There are 4 reviews up at Rotten Tomatoes, and the general consensus is that the movie goes overboard sometimes with the drama and James Horner's overblown score, but the fine acting saves the movie.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/Radi...48/reviews.php

 

[Ricardo C]

It doesn't get any better when I laugh at her and tell her she's sad about Cuba playing Buck the Wonder-Slave.

Well, I'm off to watch "Bowfinger" again