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The Mothman Prophecies

The Mothman Prophecies

List Price: $14.94
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Who could fall asleep watching this?
Review: This movie will keep you on your toes no matter how sleepy you get. The plot is extremely impressive. A strange creature in a small town terrorizes people in ways they are embarresed or have a hard time making sense out of it such as hallucinating and hearing voices that tell them about bad things that will happen in the future. The acting excellent, especially Richard Gere. If you're looking for a scary movie then you won't regret buying this.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: MOTHMANIA Might Not Set In, But It's A Thriller Nonetheless
Review: With "based on a true story" as a slugging slogan, THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES flew onto big screens to an expectant audience packed with wide-eyed thrill-seekers. While the MOTHMAN may not have fluttered along as rapidly as many may have hoped, thrills, chills and trepidation certainly weren't swatted out of the tension-filled air. Rather, suspense was the stylish sensation of the evening.

The basic synopsis of the story revolves around a moth-like creature that started showing up in Point Pleasant, West Virginia making predictions about terrible things to come. When the dreary forecasts began coming true, the townsfolk started to get more than a little worried. A writer for the Washington Post wound up mysteriously in the not-so-sleepy settlement and started asking questions, like any good journalist should. Well, the answers he found fly his mind in the face of terror.

For many reasons, THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES more than adequately fulfilled its role as a thriller. It was scary, it made the spectators jump, and the story kept the audience guessing but wasn't more ludicrous than any mystery/horror flick should be. One spooky aspect involved THE MOTHMAN itself. Though you never really get a good shot of the star specter, drawings and rough sketches that depict THE MOTHMAN were anything but jolly. Meanwhile, the static/voice gibberish of the creature was something you would never want to hear on the end of the telephone line. The camera effects used to simulate what the ghoul is "seeing" are eerie and effective. Cheesiness was left on the fly swatter, and the clichéd concept of corny doesn't factor into this spookster. It was like a good episode of THE X-FILES.

While the account was "based on a true story," many elements were added and distorted to create something more Hollywood for the kids at home. Unlike typical thrillers, however, this story manages to somehow keep you wondering what will happen next or what the point of THE MOTHMAN's predictions is. Why does the phantom act as a harbinger of terror at all? This question stays on your mind throughout the flick and is answered and unanswered in very class fashion.

In THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES, Director Mark Pellington (ARLINGTON ROAD) exploited the same duo of Richard Gere and Laura Linney that Director Gregory Hoblit used in the legal/psychological thriller PRIMAL FEAR also co-starring Edward Norton. In MOTHMAN, Gere (PRIMAL FEAR; FINAL ANALYSIS; AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMEN) starred as the grieving widower and Washington Post Journalist John Klein. His search for answers and especially his evolving emotional and psychological state were the drive behind this movie. Laura Linney was crucial as the voice of reason and as the amorous distraction that kept the horror of THE MOTHMAN from dominating the picture. Gere and Linney made a fantastic combo by convincing the crowd that there is an honest bit of romance between them, an essential and rare factor in films these days.

For the most part, THE MOTHMAN completed the mission. It was scary and intriguing. However, there were a few unanswered questions that might make some kids a little skeptical. Also, the validity of this MOTHMAN and its premonitions was incredulous at times.

Overall, the film was a winner. The movie-lovers might not be returning to theaters time and time again for double-takes, but they'll probably rent it on DVD in a few months and recommend it to their friends. The fear factor necessary for any good suspense thriller is more than prevalent. And, THE MOTHMAN is just mysterious enough to make you want to get a 10-foot bug zapper for the back porch.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Should of stuck with the book.
Review: It would of been better if this film would of just stuck with the ideas and events that are mentioned in the book instead of trying to make it modern. Other than that, the movie was good. It is a great movie for all Sci Fi lovers.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: BORING
Review: I hated it.Richard Gere is passing his time on the phone and in his bedroom. The movie is full of noisy sound. You expect to see something surnatural and you see nothing.The scariest stuff you will see,is few red lights in the dark.By writting based on true events, I wonder if someone is thinking we are all a bunch of idiots or something.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Visually stunning. Amazing soundscape. Great film!!!
Review: I have to chime in and say to the whole world how overlooked and underrated THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES is. I won't go into the merits of the story according to what happened in Point Pleasant in the 1960s and the director's idea of setting the story today instead of the 1960s, and what the movie is versus the book it's based on.

What I'll say is what a TOTAL knockout THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES is, visually and aurally. I've watched this movie several times now and it gets better with each subsequent viewing. This film is totally brilliant. The cinematographer, editor and the sound effects folks have really created something amazing. I love watching THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES just for the overall look and sound, thanks mainly to the super sharp image on the DVD, which is breathtaking, and the incredible intricate soundscape heard throughout the movie. This is one of the best looking films I've ever seen. And the music score (by Tomandandy) and the sound effects are really effective.

Gere, Laura Linney and Will Patton all give credible and powerful performances. And Mark Pellington's direction is laser sharp, understated and smart. The overall creepy feeling this movie creates is golden, for those who prefer to be creeped out rather than hit on the head with sledgehammer-style scare tactics.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: 2 hour version of the X-Files
Review: I was interested in this movie because I'm a big fan of cryptozoology and unexplained creatures. I'd also heard the book which this film is based on was well-received so I thought I would check it out. The fact that it was basd on a true story made it even more exciting.

My excitement waned however after the first 30 minutes of sitting through this 2 hour version of an X-Files episode. Aside from a decent bridge collapse scene, I saw absolutely nothing that set it apart, and there was probably better acting on the X-Files. Gere didn't really lend anything to this movie (beside his name) that any other actor couldn't have done. And Debra Messing gave an unconvincing job as a feature actress. At the end of th film, I'm not even sure why she was in it, or what her character's role was.

The "Mothman" wasn't very scary or very interesting, and i couldn't tell if I was supposed to be more concerned over possible future prophecies or the lead character's mental state.

I was left watching a film that was so so, and with a lot of questions that the movie left unexplaind. Fortunately, I wasn't interested enough in the film to care.

A movie like this should leave you wanting more. I should have finished the film and rushed to the Internet to find out more about the real life sightings and what exactly happened. Not only did I not have this feeling at the end of the movie, but I am now even less interested in the real "Mothman" than before I saw it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Visions of Apocolypse and fear....
Review: This film has an aura of....evil about it. Not in your usual cliched way.
Which is why I like it.
The chills were not predictable, that is, rarely of the "BOO!" variety.
We witness horrific events, only to feel the safety of the fact that they are being told of them via flashback or recollection.
When the character finds himself alone with his terror, he *closes the drapes and shuts off the lights!*
There is a subtle romantic tension between the 2 main characters, but it is refreshingly left ambiguous for a change. Laura Linney is loving and lovely as a supportive companion to Gere.
You might call this an 'adult' horror film, an a way that SIXTH SENSE and SIGNS could never be-I thought both rather silly.
Add to this a really creepy soundscape and music score that portrays the dreamlike mystery, loss and grief of the main character, and you have and excellent flm. A near-classic.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Based On True Events
Review: First, I would like to say I was impressed that Richard Gere volunteered to do this film, as offbeat and cult as it must have sounded on paper.
I believe if you have some knowledge of the strange events known as The Mothman sightings, you may find this movie more entertaining. Particularly the events occurring in Point Pleasant. If you do not know the legend, you may be lost while viewing this film. Since I cannot possibly explain the entire "legend" in this review. I recommend doing an internet search for "The Mothman"... or... "Silver Bridge Disaster".
A quick summary as follows. In 1966, in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, a bridge spanning the Ohio River collapsed. Many people died when their cars plummeted into the Ohio River or the Ohio River banks. This is documented fact. The name of the bridge was Silver Bridge.
The events that happened PRIOR to the collapse of the bridge is where this event gets truly bizarre.
The story begins with journalist John Klein driving through the night to discover that he has blacked out and ended up hundreds of miles away from his intended destination. He ends up in Point Pleasant. The community of Point Pleasant is plagued with strange encounters from a giant winged humanoid, and the townspeople are have disturbing precognition of disasters. The people have nicknamed the creature THE MOTHMAN because of his wings and eyes.
Actual police reports were made concerning the strange sightings of The Mothman.
Most of the people who made the police reports met their doom on the Silver Bridge.
Was The Mothman some kind of messenger of death? Or was he trying to warn the people?
Draw your own conclusions.
There is a book titled "The Mothman Prophecies" which was written in the early seventies detailing the journalist's adventures in Point Pleasant. I recommend the book as well as an internet search to learn more about these bizarre events. There are also message boards on the internet where survivors of the bridge disaster and their relatives post messages to eachother. Happy Hunting!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I love it!!
Review: I have a comment to add to a_very_disturbing_horse's post. They mentioned the part and Richard Gere and Debra Messing in the closet at the house they were viewing, saying it had no part in the story. It does, if you notice, Debra Messing sees a moth flying overhead and it scares her.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Well-Directed, Poorly Crafted
Review: The case of the Mothman sightings in West Virginia have long been part of paranormal lore, especially due to John A. Keel's book on the events. "The Mothman Prophecies" alas, is a movie that wanders completely away from the original story and decides to update it in a puzzling, boring way. The original events, some consider them real others a hoax, took place in 1966, the movie updates the story to 2002 and adds it's own spin on things. This would be fine if the script had been crafted a little better, but instead it wanders around in circles. Plot points are never fully connected or even explained, and we never even get a good look at the Mothman which makes us wonder, why is it even called the MOTHMAN? The photography however, is really well-done and has a nice, mysterious look, like in the early X-Files episodes, but while the material is well-directed, it seems like a puzzle without solutions. At least the original book has it's own explanations, and no matter how out of this world they might seem, they are still explanations. In the film for example, Richard Gere's wife dies as a result from a car crash they were involved in soon after spotting the Mothman, and she begins to draw visions of the creature on paper, ok, interesting. But later in the film no connection is established between her death and the Mothman, in fact, nothing connects in this movie. What exactly are the Mothman Prophecies? The movie has been compared to The X-Files, but The X-Files has always had a continuing thread through-out it's plots and ideas, Mulder is always trying to prove that aliens exist and the government is trying to cover it up, but in "The Mothman Prophecies" all we get is a heartbroken widower who gets weird phone calls from a husky voice. Is it from the after-life? Is it an alien? For the rental or ticket price, we'd like to know. Read the book, skip the film.


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