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The Skulls (Collector's Edition)

The Skulls (Collector's Edition)

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Mediocre cinematically but entertaining anyway...
Review: The Skulls finds us at Yale University, which you'll have to assume on your own like I did since they never actually say Yale. We meet Luke, who is a self-confessed former menace to society, working the cafeteria line and studying hard to make something of himself and hopefully go on to Harvard Law School. The only thing standing in the way of that goal for this young man is the fact that Harvard Law is a teensy weensy bit expensive.

Luke, along with best friend Will (Hill Harper) and girlfriend Chloe (Leslie Bibb) speculate on his chances to be chosen to join the Skulls, a secret society on campus which is rumored to pay for such things as law school bills.

It is the secrecy of the society that becomes a rift between Luke and his pals. His buddy Will speculates, "It's secret and it's elite - it can't be good." Insert ominous music here. By the stroke of midnight on that same eve, Luke finds himself in the midst of the Skulls initiation ceremony.

The rules that govern the Skulls are grounded in loyalty to the other members, a willingness to do anything to protect the other members, and keeping the integrity of the Skulls by not divulging any of the proceedings to those on the outside.

How can an organization that spawned no less than three U.S. Presidents be bad? Besides, you get a kickin' new watch to cover up the Skull logo they brand into your wrist, you've got money in your bank account, they set you up with a fancy car AND even if you have a girlfriend, they've got a couple more for you. Luke McNamara is thinking all this is too good to be true....and he's right, it is. It is only at the time of a murder cover-up that Luke begins to realize how corrupt the Skulls are and how high their influence and power runs.

Luke is warned by Skulls soulmate Caleb Mandrake (Paul Walker) to back off and not try to dig too deep. Caleb's got a leg-up considering his dad, Judge Litton Mandrake (Craig T. Nelson) is the Chairman of the Skulls organization, not to mention, has designs on the Supreme Court.

As you might have guessed, The Skulls follows a pretty basic formula with the suspense, the wondering who is good and who is bad. Is an elaborate murder plot just another method to fight for control of the society? Who's the pawn and who is the player?

The Skulls seems like a watered down version of The Firm. Call it the New Coke of conspiracy movies. Almost, but not quite right. Where The Firm made it very clear where the lines were drawn and the penalties for disloyalty were clear, with The Skulls, there doesn't appear to be anything at stake for the society. They talk about being a member and understanding the virtues of the organization and that the laws of the Skulls are above all other laws, but it still rings hollow. The Firm infiltrated the lives of its characters, and so does The Skulls, but it never explains why. The conflict is room temperature at best.

I think they were hoping for a Firm-esque thing here, one got that feeling from the previews. I was discussing the possible plot with a friend before having seen it and he was speculating on a sequence that might go something like, "Gee, thanks for the Porsche....what's this? I have to drink blood? Ewwww." Well, he was pretty close.

BUT. You had to know there was a "but" in here somewhere. So help me, I was entertained. There are days when, forgive me, I don't want to think too hard. It's sort of comforting, sometimes, to know that a movie is going to have the appropriately shaky camera shots during the tense scenes, and the music will swell ominously at just the precise moment.

You know yourself, and you know the movies you like. Then there are times, hopefully, when you allow yourself to sit there and be entertained, pure and simple, without apologies. On a different day, in another frame of mind, The Skulls might have really really irritated me. So, I gave some, but not all of my critical self the day off in a manner of speaking.

The acting is OK, it compliments the New Coke attitude of the script. Joshua Jackson is likable, and Paul Walker is moderately interesting as the spoiled heir-to-the-throne Caleb. You get to see Craig T. Nelson as a mean, creepy guy instead of the bumbling confused Coach character you see now on reruns. The most interesting performance is that of William Petersen who plays a U.S. Senator that is in the Skulls organization.

The camera work is predictable but still fun. The soundtrack is pretty cool, which is sometimes the only reason movies like this aren't immediately forgotten. However, there is nothing riveting or conflicting enough to keep you glued to your seat.

You know what you like. Sometimes you're in the mood for something different. Sometimes you're in the mood for something ridiculous in the hopes of being entertained.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Gets you thinking
Review: May not make the awards, but defintely gets you thinking about organizations and why you join and why they agree to accept you. Thought provoking.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good and Bad Bonesmen
Review: First off, I would like to say I did enjoy this movie as entertainment but it is not truthful, as in not truthful about the real Skull and Bones society. The first problem with this movie is that there is nothing saying whom those guys were at the beginning watching Luke row in the race. I found out doing research those are actually former seniors, who as Bonesmen must look for the next Bonesmen on their senior year (year 3) to initiate into the secret society. But as I found out right from their was a plot error, the real Bones members seniors are supposed to interview the candidate and not just pick him for no reason which would make no sense and than if you were lucky to get tapped in the beginning of April on tap night usually by strange phone calls and than once tapped is you are given a wax with a key and is given a time to meet (usually on Thursday or Sunday) and they are told to not bring any clothing or metals, as they than are supposed to take part in being naked in coffins and masturbate to be loyal to the society and if you don't take part than you they will threaten to tell your secrets, later you are than supposed to talk about your sex history, and basically on usual nights the Bonesman would take a debate out of a human skull and discuss it.

One final notice - Well, two really: them going to put a snake on the other society's roof is stupid; in the real Skull and Bones they would have you go grave robbing like George Bush did when he was a member and still is. They would basically go to a grave and take a human skull and use carbonic acid to burn off the leftover flesh and also clean the skull and than give it to the society, and one last thing, In the movie there are only eight members, in real life there is supposed to be 15! , why am I mentioning the above in this review? Well because this is what should have been in the film to make it more truthful and interesting and more depth, and my final notice the ending is just so fake, if this was the real skull and bones than Luke (Joshua Jackson) would be dead for what he had did in this film but I won't give away the ending, rent this or buy it and see what you like about it and thanks for reading my review. In final, this movie's first half was a great way to introduce secret societies to everyone but very disappointing towards the second half since it didn't go all the way. Great and bad Bonesmen. -Number One Critic.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good Movie!
Review: The Skulls has just enough twist and turns to make it a fairly interesting thriller. The basic story is about a struggling college student (Joshua Jackson) and what happens when he is invited into a secret society called The Skulls. The character development is somewhat weak but Joshua Jackson, Paul Walker, Leslie Bibb and Craig T. Nelson pull off their respective roles and make this an enjoyable film. Give this one a chance, it is worth it!!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: 'Skulls' hits a nail, dead in the head.
Review: I have gone to a museum and seen more life in a skull, than in the film The Skulls, a cheesy teen thriller about a college student who reluctanley gets into a secret society, named for the title, The Skulls and then procedes to find flaws in it, only then wanting to get out, and discovering the only way out, is to die. The only thing thats worth watching in this bore fest is Lesley Bibb, who we dont even get to see as much as we'd like. There is no suspence in this suspence, and no depth with the charactors, other than that they would pretty much do anything to get into a "secret society." The directings not all that bad, but it doesnt help, the actings not either, like i said with the exception of Bibb, and the writings not even all that swell. The Skulls did resemble a teenage version of The Firm, which was a way better film all together, but what can you expect from the whole set of the WB. Just kidding.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Simply excellent!
Review: A thought provoking and suspensful film. Joshua Jackson delivers an outstanding performance, and the score is top notch. Definitely worth watching a few times.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Thin plot, awesome eye candy
Review: Ok, ok... this is not the kind of movie that you watch for the plot or the character development. This is the kind that you enjoy (and enjoy immensely) for the shots of gorgeous men with awesome bodies. Joshua Jackson and company are simply beautiful! If only for that reason, this is a must-see. (Make sure your DVD player has excellet freeze-frame!)

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Spectacularly stupid
Review: Stupendously dumb film may very well be so bad it's good. Dippy peudo-morality tale of college prepster who gets invited into the least secretive secret society ever -- allegedly based on the Skull & Bones society, but that's like saying "JFK" was based in historical fact, too. Loaded with gleefully dumb moments: how clandestine an org is it if they have a helicopter landing pad with their insignia on it? Best with beer and a better movie to remove the taste of this one.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Cute Guys But That's It
Review: I think that Joshua Jackson is hot (and Paul Walker is pretty cute, too), but this was one of the worst movies that I have ever seen. When I went to see it, I thought that I might like it because the story about a powerful, but dangerous, fraternity/secret society sounded interesting. However,they failed to make a good movie out of a good idea. It had a poor, predictable ending. The last shot with the sunset was so incredibly cheesy as were a lot of other elements in the movie. Luke is so poor (he has no father and his mother died when he was one...that's a little extreme...why don't they just say that he was born in a box on the street?), but he's going to an ivy-league school on a full scholarship because he's great at rowing, and now he can't pay for graduate school...boo hoo...get a loan! Things like this as well as the OVERDONE, CHEESY CINEMATOGRAPHY made this movie really irritating to watch. However, if you love to stare at Joshua Jackson (and not care what the movie is about), I suggest that you see it because he is actually in more than two or three scenes. I give the movie 2 stars for two cute guys...but that's it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This is the BEST movie!
Review: This is one of the best movies that i have ever seen, it was not just a look at the guy movie, it was interesting and had a very entertaining plot. I know that i would have enjoyed it even if the two ulgyist guys where the stars. It was extreamly good and i recomend it for all ages.


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