In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
One example is below.
Q: plot : two teen couples go to a church party , drink and then drive .
they get into an accident .
one of the guys dies , but his girlfriend continues to see him in her life , and has nightmares .
what 's the deal ?
watch the movie and " sorta " find out . . .
critique : a mind - fuck movie for the teen generation that touches on a very cool idea , but presents it in a very bad package .
which is what makes this review an even harder one to write , since i generally applaud films which attempt to break the mold , mess with your head and such ( lost highway & memento ) , but there are good and bad ways of making all types of films , and these folks just did n't snag this one correctly
.
they seem to have taken this pretty neat concept , but executed it terribly .
so what are the problems with the movie ?
well , its main problem is that it 's simply too jumbled
.
it starts off " normal " but then downshifts into this " fantasy " world in which you , as an audience member ,
have no idea what 's going on
.
there are dreams , there are characters coming back from the dead , there are others who look like the dead , there are strange apparitions , there are disappearances , there are a looooot of chase scenes , there are tons of weird things that happen , and most of it is simply not explained .
now i personally do n't mind trying to unravel a film every now and then , but when all it does is give me the same clue over and over again , i get kind of fed up after a while , which is this film 's biggest problem .
it 's obviously got this big secret to hide , but it seems to want to hide it completely until its final five minutes .
and do they make things entertaining , thrilling or even engaging , in the meantime ?
not really .
the sad part is that the arrow and i both dig on flicks like this , so we actually figured most of it out by the half - way point , so all of the strangeness after that did start to make a little bit of sense , but it still did n't the make the film all that more entertaining .
i guess the bottom line with movies like this is that you should always make sure that the audience is " into it " even before they are given the secret password to enter your world of understanding .
i mean , showing melissa sagemiller running away from visions for about 20 minutes throughout the movie is just plain lazy ! !
okay , we get it .
. .
there are people chasing her and we do n't know who they are .
do we really need to see it over and over again ?
how about giving us different scenes offering further insight into all of the strangeness going down in the movie ?
apparently , the studio took this film away from its director and chopped it up themselves , and it shows .
there might 've been a pretty decent teen mind - fuck movie in here somewhere , but i guess " the suits " decided that turning it into a music video with little edge , would make more sense .
the actors are pretty good for the most part , although wes bentley just seemed to be playing the exact same character that he did in american beauty , only in a new neighborhood .
but my biggest kudos go out to sagemiller , who holds her own throughout the entire film , and actually has you feeling her character 's unraveling .
overall , the film does n't stick
because it does n't entertain , it 's confusing , it rarely excites and
it feels pretty redundant for most of its runtime , despite a pretty cool ending and explanation to all of the craziness that came before it .
oh ,
and by the way , this is not a horror or teen slasher flick . . .
it 's just packaged to look that way because someone is apparently assuming that the genre is still hot with the kids .
it also wrapped production two years ago and has been sitting on the shelves ever since .
whatever . .
. skip it !
where 's joblo coming from ?
a nightmare of elm street 3 ( 7/10 ) - blair witch 2 ( 7/10 ) - the crow ( 9/10 ) - the crow : salvation ( 4/10 )
- lost highway ( 10/10 ) - memento ( 10/10 ) - the others ( 9/10 ) - stir of echoes ( 8/10 )
A: N
Rationale: The phrases used in the review convey a negative sentiment (e.g. "presents it in a very bad package").
Q: an astonishingly difficult movie to watch , the last temptation of christ may be scorsese 's most important film , and yet his most impossibly abstract as well .
scorsese presents the life of jesus christ
, through nikos kazantzakis ' novel , which details the life of christ from approximately 20 until the day of crucifixtion .
jesus of nazareth ( dafoe ) is a carpenter , who opens the film making crosses , so that he can escape the fate he is subjected to , his destiny on earth .
yet , he soon learns his evil ways for aiding in the deaths of others , and subjects himself to a desert in exile , in hopes that he can reach god .
before leaving , he asks for forgiveness from mary magdelene ( barbara hershey ) , a prostitute who is also a childhood friend of jesus .
after going to the desert , christ learns his true purpose in life , and what he must do .
aided by judas ( keitel ) , he sets off on teaching the world his message .
along the way , he meets john the baptist , the rest of the prophets , and tries to teach the world his message .
christ is also confronted by internal demons and self - doubt , as he tries to find his true purpose throughout the entire film .
during the story , judas is the closese ally of jesus : his betrayal , argues the film , was not out of hate , but out of love , in order to allow christ to die .
he is eventually captured , and crucified as per the bibile .
however , as he is about to die on the cross , he is saved by a girl , who brings him to his marriage with mary magdelene .
the girl is a guardian angel who is from god , and who has saved him from his death .
jesus goes on to live a life as a man , as a carpenter , and does not die on the cross .
on his deathbed , in the final moments of his life , he is visited by the prophets , and by judas , who denounces his master for " not keeping his end of the bargain .
"
judas reveals the angel to truly be the devil , and the life jesus had lived to be the ultimate selfish act .
jesus escapes from his deathbed , and asks his father for forgiveness , for succumbing to his last temptation .
visually and aurally , the film is absolutely breathtaking .
no other director has even come close to realizing jerusalem during the time of christ 's life to the screen .
peter gabriel contributes a score than is simply astonishing , with pulsing rhythms that capture the viewer .
the performances are simply exquisite , with dafoe leading the way with a mesmerizing turn as jesus .
keitel , although his accent is a problem , is passionately brilliant , fighting through language to bring the character to life .
the visuals are also amazing .
scorsese frames his movie in a harsh tone , leaving the impression that jesus truly is a man who is having human frailties .
the film , though , has many trouble spots .
paul schrader 's script is one .
schrader uses modern - day new york english to tell the story , along with new york words , new york mannerisms , and new york slang speech .
the film also does not focus on the godly aspects of christ .
there is no underlying message behind the man 's words .
the film fails to capture the glory and splendor of christ .
had it faithfully explored that aspect , than the dichotomy of jesus ' soul , his frailties and doubt mixed with his unmistakable glory , would have been simply spectacular .
the message of christ is confused between love and violence , and the film merely tells us jesus is great , instead of showing us his greatness .
the film is also overlong .
it just drags in the middle , with nothing truly happening .
christ is a confused figure , in the sense that the audience does n't know who he really is .
schrader forgets to give jesus a message , to show that he truly is the messiah , to give him the divinity .
without that , he is a rambling prophet , who the audience themselves do not believe .
there are several moments of accidental hilarity , and most of them occur when jesus is attempting to preach .
there are moments of brief awe and power , followed by moments of confused hilarity .
that said , the controversial temptation sequence is something to behold .
it is a step in an unexpected direction , one that leaves the audience puzzled , until the arrival of the disciples .
it is a simply breathtaking scene , with jesus about to die as a mortal .
it is truly one of scorsese 's finest moments .
it is unfortunate that scorsese could n't make a film about christ as powerful as that one scene .
A:
P