Rollerball

Rating:
Summary: There goes KABOON! Pointless Action Flick
Review: You may not know this fact, but Jean Reno is enormously popular in Japan, and he is often called in with internatioal cast to Hollywood studios who know that. Just look how he goes in Hollywood films: "Mission Impossible," US version "Godzilla" and "Ronin" (which is a Japanese word for "wandering samurai." But except the last pretty decent actioner, he was totally wasted. And now he is again in this film.

So, Jean Reno plays the a bit megaromaniac owner and manager of sports (or entertainment, if you like) called "Rollerball." Just like a mixture of rollerskating and ice hockey game, the game excite the people all over the world -- or, so he wants it to. Enters Chris Klein, who soon becomes a new hero of the circuit, but realizes that some plot is going on when one of his teammates got heavily injured by receiving a big iron ball in the face (ouch)!!

Well, that is the sketch of the story, and that's it. Nothing to add beside those badly edited "game scenes" which include players hitting each other rollerskating, and motercycles with howling engines stumbling on the rink (and one of the riders is beautiful Rebecca Romijn-Stamos from "X-Men" but you cannot recognixe her ... again.) To be honest, I could not grasp the scantiset idea of what is going on. The rules? Sorry, there was an introductory announcement, but I didn't care as the film gets more incredible.

The original "Rollerball" a cult film by Norman Jewison, let us see its intention of drawing the picture of the near future, and its actions are still fresh and exciting. But this remake, most unaccountably, throws the tone of the original's futuristic society to the backyard, and just stays content with showing violent stunts. So, the film remains pointless, I thought, because, as I said, it was no drama; no story even, and no character. The most potential part of the film -- its violent games -- looks even banal after seeing some matches of sports, say, like pro wrestling. (Just see the Rock punching and bleeding, and you know what I mean.) After all, what the film presents as its attraction is, in fact, inferior to what we can see on some much more exciting cable TVs.

To be fair, there are some good action scenes, like opening skateboarding race or bike chasing in the midnight. But that's exactly the point for they have virtually nothing to with the game of the title. Chris Klein is good, and Jean Reno's character might have been more interesting if given more satrical touch. As it is, his charsmatic performance becomes rather silly in our eyes (and speaking of charisma, we have seen more charismatic general manager in America ... Yes, it's you, Vince), and sorry, but "Rollerball" proves again that our favorite Jean Reno still has to wait some time to find a good vehicle for him in Hollywood.

Rating:
Summary: Great Movie
Review: I saw this movie before I saw the original and all I have to say is the remake is better that the old. It was a fast action movie that had it all, some comedy and AWESOME action sequences. This movie will be in my DVD collection.

Rating:
Summary: Varies
Review: Rollerball is not a great movie. Its is survived by continuous action/violence, not by the plot. How this film achieved a PG-13 rating exceeds me. It has strong violence, language, brief drug content, and sexuality. Therefor, not youth friendly. I too was disappointed with the film after watching action-packed previews. The film contained a dull storyline and bad acting. It was either destroyed in editing room or rushed for a quick release. However, the street luge scene in the beginning is one of the best sequences ive seen in awhile. Rent it before buying, it is not for everybody.

Rating:
Summary: wasnt the original boring/bad enough???????
Review: i admit,chris klein is a good actor IN COMEDIES!!!!!!!!i cant picture him being all rough and macho.and then hes paired with LL COOL J.a comedic actor unconvincingly portraying a macho sports guy and a rapper.HORRIBLE COMBINATION.ofcourse,those responsible for this mess will try and shove its ''edgy'' and ''hip'' soundtrack in our faces.this soundtrack will be a feeble attempt to get back some money it wont get at box offices.this is a sure bomb and i suggest you wait a week after its release and rent it.

Rating:
Summary: Way better than the original!
Review: Don't believe all the negative press and reviews this film is getting. Better special effects, better editing, better acting, better characterization, and a way better story line make this film an achievement which doesn't deserve to share it's name with the boring seventies film of the same title. This movie is a non-stop thrill-ride from beginning to end and while it dazzles and amazes you with its special effects and exciting action sequences, it also manages to subtly teach the viewer about violence in our society and how the media perpetuates it. LL Cool J delivers his best film performace since New Jack City and the rest of the cast is solid too. Go to the theater, rent it, buy, do whatever you have to do - "JUST SEE IT!".

Rating:
Summary: Worst Movie Ever
Review: Rollerball looked like a good movie from the prievews but when I went and payed [money] to see it i thought it was the worst movie Ever. seriously the editing skips like a scratched cd. Plus half of the movie is filmed in night vision and everyone is green and everything else is black! Besides the bad editing the plot never develops throughout the whole movie you never understand what is going on. The fact that the movie was playing on the very last screen in the theatre should have been a clue right from the begining. on scale of 1 to 5 i give this a -5. I have never seen a worse movie.

Rating:
Summary: This film has been (horribly) edited for content
Review: I do not think I have ever seen a film in the theaters in which the editing was so poorly done, it looks like the film was edited for content. To be fair, Rollerball was originally an R movie, but to appeal to the teenage market, it was pared down to a PG-13. Normally, the best way to do this is to reshoot some of the footage or simply cut it. Instead, Rollerball takes the path of late night television. Swear words are (for the most part) poorly dubbed, and the nudity has been hazed out. Thus, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos spends an entire scene with a haze hovering around her chest. Things like this are unacceptable from a movie. Also, actors will switch the direction they are looking in a split-second, leaving me to wonder if the film lost the footage of the person turning his or her head.

As for the plot, it is delightfully underexplained. Some of the players wear numbers tattooed under their eyes, but that significance is never explained. At one point, two players make a daring escape, but we never really know how. It just cuts to them on the road. Which brings me to one of the worst choices I have ever seen made: filming an entire night scene in night vision. It's as if the director didn't want to pay to light the area, so it was simply filmed in night vision, giving everything a greenish tint, and giving most of the audience the giggles at just how bad this movie is. The final straw came when two people drive through a wire fence. It snaps with a delightful "Twang!" straight out of Looney Tunes.

Even the actual footage of the Rollerball games cannot save this film. Most of the time, it is difficult to make out what is going on because the cuts are made too quickly. The music is fine if you like deafening rock where you can't tell what the heck the singers are screaming.

In the end, the rare moments of enjoyment and good acting are too few and far between to even begin to save this poorly-edited, poorly-written, poor excuse for an action film. At least I have earned the right to say, "Yeah, but at least it wasn't as bad as Rollerball."

Rating:
Summary: Had pretty good potential.. BUT.....
Review: From seeing the trailers for the new Rollerball. It looked like it had good potential, really action packed and had pretty good actors it seemed. But when I saw it, it did nothing for me (except for the fact that Chris Klein is a little hottie). They didnt really tell you any of the rules for playing the game. And in a few parts the camera moves and jumps so much the it started giving me a headache. Also towards the end when everyone is killing eachother the action was so fake. Deffinitly not what I thought it was going to be. The only reason I gave it 2 stars was because Chris Klein is very very easy on the eyes.

Rating:
Summary: Good photography, Bad acting
Review: When I saw the trailer for this remake I was excited because Rollerball is one of my all time favorites movies. The original was dark and had a lot to do with the sport of Rollerball. However, I have to admit that after seeing the new one I was disappointed. The movie looks great, but whoever thought of Chris Kline to be an action star was I suspect high on something. He gives a very dulled interpretation and pretty much the movie goes down from there. Even Reno is bad on this one. The movie has a PG-13 rating and that should've been a sign. Rollerball as a concept is everything but PG-13. I think this movie was trashed at the editing room and can only hope for it to be out as a director's cut to see if my point is true. Rebecca J Stamos is as usual worth the ticket, other than that, stick to the James Caan version.

Rating:
Summary: Rollerball was the worst movie that I have ever seen
Review: Rollerball is the wort movie to ever be remade. I paid good money to see it. If you have seen the previews, you have seen the movie. Half way through the movie it looks like they ran out of money,went and got nightvision camras and shot the film like the Blair Witch,...very bad...I had to rate it 1 star but it dosent really deserve any.