Rating: 
Summary: The plot thickens.
Review: I really enjoyed this movie because of the plot twists throughout.Ben Affleck is great as the innocent bystander.My heart goes out to the casino boss who "don`t wanna go back to Vegas"!Again it is a great movie with a fast paced script...come December i will be looking over my shoulder at the street Santa Clauses......HO HO HO
Rating:
Summary: I Wouldn't Call This an Action Picture, But It's Still Good
Review: A few of the reviews of "Reindeer Games", mostly negative ones, refer to it mistakenly as an action picture. I don't agree with that characterization. This is more like a good crime drama, with a little bit of action here and there.Ben Affleck portrays a prisoner who along with his cellmate is ready to leave prison. When the cellmate unexpectedly dies, Affleck takes his place and meets a woman (Charlize Theron) with whom the cellmate had a "pen pal" relationship. He is soon unwillingly recruited by her brother (Gary Sinise) to assist in a casino robbery. The plot was interesting and has more than a few unexpected and somewhat implausible plot twists, but it nevertheless entertains. Director John Frankenheimer's stock in trade is taut political dramas such as "Seven Days in May" and "The Manchurian Candidate", which typically don't feature much gunplay or violence, and the violence in this film is certainly restrained compared to what one would normally expect to see in a motion picture of this nature. This may be what some viewers found so disappointing. The acting was good all around. Sinise, in particular, shines as a malevolent truck driver with just a hint of Charlie Manson. Performances like this leave little doubt as to why he's one of the best supporting actors in motion pictures. Dennis Farina, also a favorite of mine, is very good as a disenfranchised casino manager. I recommend "Reindeer Games", but not as a "shoot-em-up" good-guy bad-guy movie like "Die Hard".
Rating: 
Summary: Bad for Hollywood, Which Means Really, Really Bad
Review: The problem with this movie is that its creators decided that, rather than play it straight, they were going to make it hip, like the loathsome Pulp Fiction, or the puerile Fargo. The result is that every single thing in it--the plot, the characters, the scene, everything--either rings false or is completely out of touch with reality as we know it. Indeed, it is an insulting movie in that it treats its viewers as if they were morons, or ignorant children. Let's start with the prison scene. I don't believe anyone among us is under the impression that prison food is particularly wonderful, but a cockroach in each and every serving of jello? I don't think so. And, after the riot begins, the doors to the cafeteria open, and voila! We see probably fifty officers, dressed in riot gear with shields and helmets and sticks, ready to come in, thirty seconds after all of this starts. C'mon! Have they been waiting out there? For a riot to start? We come to learn that the Ben Affleck character has been in there for five years. A full grown man, five years in a maximum security prison. You would think that this might have an effect on him. Some effect. Any. But what does he tell his friend he wants to do when he gets out? He wants a cup of hot chocolate. Yes, a wittle cup of hot chocwate. Ohhh, the poor little cute Ben! Maybe he wants his teddy bear too! So he gets out, and he sees the girl that his friend, now dead, was supposed to meet. What does he do? What would you do? Well, the obvious thing, the normal thing, like introducing yourself and giving her the bad news, doesn't occur to him. So he pretends to be the guy. Of course, the girl falls for it, despite the fact that Affleck is just this side of illiterate, and they immediately fall in love with each other. We are meant to know this, you know, because Hollywood's idea of showing people in love is that as soon as they get any kind of privacy whatsoever--like in an elevator, or the back seat of a car, or in this case a hotel room--they attack each other and rip each other's clothes off and roll around the floor like a couple of demented wrestling midgets. But oooooooh, the girl has a brother, who thinking Ben is the dead guy, wants to use him in a scheme to rob a casino. See, the dead guy purportedly had a knowledge of the layout of the place. Well, we know Ben is not the dead guy, and Ben tells them he's not the dead guy about twenty times, but when they threaten to kill him he changes his mind and tells them that he is the dead guy after all. Somehow, all the bad guys believe him, even though every single sentient human being in the theatre can see through this clumsy lie a mile away. In the end it turns out their clever plan--which is to go into the place guns blazing--doesn't require any knowledge of the layout at all, but I guess we're not supposed to notice this. This movie allegedly takes place in Michigan. Hollywood's idea of Michigan--as well as Minnesota and North Dakota judging from other recent films--is that it is a desolate, snowy wasteland, about three degrees south of the Arctic circle, and populated by beer-drinking, gun-toting, truck-driving ignorant yokels, who carry NRA cards and find enjoyment in ice-fishing. It makes you wonder whether these Hollywood meatheads have even ever been to Michigan. I know this is hard to believe, but Michigan has universities, and cities, and streets, and cars, and phones and even liberals! God, get a clue! The acting wasn't so bad, given the ludicrous script that these people were given to work with, but special note must be paid to Ben Affleck, whose acting was beyond awful. He is threatened with death about five times, he has guns held, nay, jammed into various parts of his body, he is shot at, beaten, trapped in a frozen lake under the ice, and finally, in an incredible scene, he learns that not only doesn't his girlfriend love him, she is cheating on him with the gang leader, and they are plotting to murder him! What is his reaction to all of this? Each and every time? He stares dolefully into space, with a hurt deer look in his eyes. Aww, poor, poor Ben! Those mean nasty people! His emotional range is non-existent, and his intellectual range apparently hasn't reached the level beyond teenager. I am not kidding. There should be a law against this guy playing any role in which the character is over 14. He may be the worst actor in Hollywood. No, I take that back. There are dozens who are just as bad, but believe me, he is crawling around the bottom of the barrel with the worst of them. And the denouement? Well, it almost seems redundant to discuss. It should be no surprise that every single cliché of the last ten years is here: the gun blasting, the bullet ridden bodies, the explosions, the surprise ending followed by the second and third surprise endings, the hero overcoming overwhelming odds, the hero muttering an Arnold Schwarzenneger-type jocko phrase, and the villians dying horrific deaths. Just as we've come to expect. But the ending--Mr. Affleck putting his ill gotten money in various mailboxes around town while wearing a Santa suit and while sappy Christmas music plays in the background--was superlatively doltish, and resulted in loud, bellowing, hyena guffaws from every corner of the theatre. Well, mine anyway.
Rating:
Summary: An silly action film with some good surprises.
Review: Director John Frankenheimer(Ronin, More funny than scary:The Island of Dr. Moreau) did a entertaining film worth watching. Ben Affleck seems to have a good time in the movie. Ben Sinise is good(He gives more joy than he did in Snake Eyes) as the villian and Charlize Theron is also in a surprisingly fun role for her. The film is written by Ehren Kruger(Arlington Road) has more plot twist and Surprises than Scream 3, he also did wrote for Dimension Films. The film was a box office disappointment, because of a bad relase date, they should have relased in December,1999 instend. DVD Quality is Excellent, a flawless anamorphic Widescreen trasfer(2.35:1)is also alivable in pan & scan version. Great Dolby Digital 5.1 Sound. Also a running commentary track by the film director. A must for DVD Fans. Grade:B+. Super 35.
Rating:
Summary: Fun And Games
Review: Ben Affleck is a really likeable star. He's goofy, good-looking, and gritty all at once. REINDEER GAMES is by no means a sophisticated thriller, but it is a fun one. Ben (our hero) starts out in prison for stealing cars. He indirectly falls in love with his prison-mate's letter-writing girlfriend. At first I thought this movie was going to be a love story. The first 20 minutes is about how Ben and Charlize Theron's character meet and fall in love. It's cute. Then the action kicks in. The movie is slick and fast paced. We meet Gary Sinise's sinister character. He's sexy and slimy all at once (with some major bags under his eyes! Affleck is forced to lie about his identity. This plot development is fun, but the believability of it gets pushed when Theron's character doesn't seem to have any sort of emotional reaction to who Affleck REALLY is. But why quibble? REINDEER GAMES is a blast. Although it telegraphs its ending in the first scene (I hate that!) it's still fun getting to the end. There are surprises and explosions. And the scenery is very cool (is it Michigan? ). I wasn't blown away by the extra's on this disc, however I won't complain because DVD extra's beat VHS any day! Enjoy this film. I did.
Rating: 
Summary: A nice time waster in the vein of Armageddon
Review: Sorry for being a sexist pig, but anything that has Charlize Theron topless gets at least a C- rating in my book, but the movie holds up pretty good as well. Rudy Duncan (Affleck) is in jail. His roomie is Nick Cassidy who is head over heels with his penpal girlfriend Ashley, whom he has never met. Nick tells Rudy everything and they are good buddies. However, he is killed a few days before Rudy and he are set to be released. Now Rudy, with the knowledge of Nick's past can go home and be with his family for Christmas, or he can be a creep and hook up with Ashley, fooling her, tricking her and conning her. If you have seen Charlize in other movies, you know that Rudy makes the right move (even if he KNEW the outcome of the next 48 hours, he made the right move). So with Ashley as his new girlfriend, everything seems right...Right? Nope, enter Ashley's crazy brother Gabriel (Gary Sinese was a little miscast for this role but takes it on well). Unfortunately Ashley told him that the jailbird once worked for a reservation Casino and now Gabe wants to rob it and he needs Rudy as his inside man. Problem is, it was Nick who worked there and Rudy only has the information. If our protagonist enters the casino, no one will know who he is, and that means he's a dead man. That is about 2/3 of the plot, but there are twists and turns that will seem logical, but are far fetched in real life. It is like the movie "THE GAME" where Michael Douglas is put in this situation which the writer and director tries to explain with reason, but are unbelievable because no one can control that situation to 100% authority. But if you can suspend your disbelief, this is a better than average action movie. Frankenheimer, veteran action movie director with titles like "The Manchurian Candidate", "The French Connection 2" and "Ronin" does a good job keeping the action heavy, yet the tone light. Even the ending (which was disappointing) had the right amount of action and believability that one could believe the explanation which that unfolds that explains the whole point of the movie. Affleck does his usual sarcastic, stoic type that seems to appeal to many people and Charlize Theron pulls a nice turn and the good/bad girl. However, don't expect any Oscar nominations. While good, they are far better actors that what the script allows for and seem to be coasting through the film. The only disappointment was Sinise. If you are looking for a good action movie to watch with the gang and don't want a message, lots of meaningful dialogue or Oscar calibre acting....Reindeer Games is good because it will fill your daily quota of sex, gunfire, car explosions and bad jokes...Rating: C+
Rating: 
Summary: Where's the action?
Review: That's what we were asking while watching this mess of a movie. It seems that this movie wastes more time in stupid dialog than in the action piece. Now I know most action movies have stupid dialog, but they make up for it in excitement, Reindeer games had no excitement at all. Save yourself a couple of hours and skip this movie.
Rating:
Summary: santa's a couple of reindeer short for a sleigh ride...
Review: ...went to see it at the movies in stadium seating, very psyched for what i was about to encounter, then "thud". it just didn't move me. it has all the potential of being a great flick but something was missing. i can't place my finger on it, but it was missing something. it's well worth the rental fee but please rewind and return on time. it's a grade "A" watch. i repeat."A" watch, meaning one viewing then you can say you saw it and move on to bigger and better movies. maybe one cold sunday night past 10 p.m. after knowing where your children are and "Reindeer games" happens to come on one of those cable t.v. channels that your legally being ripped-off by, i'll lay in my bed with the lights down low and give it another watch....it's my prerogative. peace and God bless p.s. sorry for the lower cases.
Rating: 
Summary: No Foolin' Around With Reindeer Games...
Review: The plot, twist, and acting exceeded my expectations! What I thought was going to be another brainless, dark-comedy, action flick was really one helluva rough and thrilling sleigh ride! Despite some predictable scenes (everyone's gotta know what the liquor in the toygun was going to be used for and what was going to happen after the opening of the "Pow-Wow" safe) and a few good twists that may be hard to grasp right away, it's all for a worthy entertaining cause.Even viewers who are not too familiar with the previous works by Afleck, Theron, or Sinise, this film will surely change any misconceptions about their sometimes underrated acting abilities; Still cannot figure out how Theron and Afleck can turn on the waterworks--is it method acting or real emotions--incredibly believable. Gary Sinise can play either good or bad flawlessly; If he's a good character,he's intense.If he's a bad one, he's super-intense ! Also, appearnaces by Isaac Hayes and Clarence Williams III are an added bonus! Was wonderin' what Mr. Hayes was up to these days. The only minor drawback is that it's the kind of movie where the twists in the story will be fresh in your mind for the next three days and then afterwards you'll want to analyze the whole thing and remember it afterwards...
Rating:
Summary: Not the best movie I've seen but doable
Review: Reindeer Games has a great cast-Affleck, Theron, Sinise, Farina and Williams III. It has a nifty plot-Rudy (Affleck) assumes the identity of his fallen cellmate Nick and, upon release from prison, hooks up with Ashley, Nick's penpal. So why was I distinctly underwhelmed? Maybe it was Affleck's performance. I love Ben but I think he was miscaast. I didn't for once believe that he was a car thief. Sinise delivers his umpteenth performance as a baddie (been there, done that). The plot is generic until the end, which is the only reason for the 3 stars I rated it.
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