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The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Widescreen Edition)

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Widescreen Edition)

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $15.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Tons of fun
Review: OK, so you could pick apart the scientific anachronisms all day. All right, so the plot had some holes in it. But my parents and I enjoyed the heck out of this film, and that's what counts. It was fun figuring out some of the more obscure literary references (Mom had the bad guy pegged from the ring).

No, it's not going to be a direct copy of the comic books. But then, do we really need to see Allen Quartermain smoking opium, or watch the Invisible Man rape schoolgirls? I think not. Give me fun any day.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The League of Extraordinarny Gentlemen
Review: The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is one of my favorite fantasy/action/adventure movies ever. I liked Captain Nemo's awsome submarine, the Nautilus. Dr.Jeykell and Mr Hyde were pretty good, Dorian Gray's character was errie and spooky looking as portrayed in the book: Picture of Dorian Gray, Agent Sawyer a.k.a. Tom Sawyer was good in his character and Allan Quartermain from King Solomon's Mines was cool too. The League members must fight and bring down a evil genius known as the Fantom, who's real identity is a surprise worth waiting for. ...
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a great movie to watch. Give LXG a try. It liked it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: "You call it trouble ,I call it sport!"
Review: I'm not a fan of these "new films" I found this quite entertaining
I guess because it didn't take itself seriously and I didn't either
while it will ever be debated "Nay" or "Yay" over dialogue and over
storyline it can't be denied that the production values were fairly
high for movie of this magnitude.

The story takes place in London before the predawn of World war 1
tanks & other new weapons are causing episodes of destruction while
each country blame on each other Alan Quartermain is called in from
out of Africa to lead a group of british urban legends including an
invisible man, Jonathan Harker's wife, Captian Nemo, Dorian Gray Dr.Jeckyll and "tag along" American Agent Tom Sawyer.

Liberties? Ofcourse the director and producers took them as did
the comicbook from which they came,Still things such as Nemomoble
and New Nautilus are just a few of the sights reinvented for this
screen version none however was more of a howler than Mr.Hyde,his

transformation alone did it for me.We're not talking "Masterpiece
theatre" here folks strictly hightech bubblegum, lowbrow fun.

The disc is what you come to expect on sight and sound very good
and a making of featurette supplies all you needed to know about
the terrific craftmanship behind the spx of this movie. So check
your Victorian lobe at the door and enjoy this "popcorn eater"

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Uninspired Crap
Review: Alan Moore is a genius, but this film doesn't capture that - instead it captures all the childish flaws of the comics story-process and magnifies them until they're unforgiveable.

First, the enchanting feminine allure of Peta Wilson is thown away when she rips into a guy's neck and gets splashed with his severed artery. So there's no sexual tension at all - she's just a monster in the shape of a woman.

There's something about using the buildings of Venice as dominoes.. Something unbelievable.. Or is it just ridiculous?

Then there's Connery, who is not a deep enough thinker to make gold out of this wooden, paint-by-numbers script. He was phoning it in. I don't blame him - what else could he do?

This was to be a summer-weekend blockbuster but it sank without a trace last August - and deservedly so. The plot is a pile of rickety Rube-Roldberg tricks and there's just nothing here to sustain interest - it's dead on arrival. Stay Away.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: The Avengers crossed with Mystery Men
Review: To be honest LXG is probably the underdog because X-Men seems to have this summer blockbuster category filled and even though LXG tries very hard to be a contender it can go nowhere near really hitting on what X-Men has achieved and certainly Spider-man has nothing to worry about. So where does it rank? Well if you did not like The Hulk then you will find LXG a much more suitable superhero mash.

LXG has a few problems. Sean Connery is not exactly flaring across the screen and even though all the other superheroes are given enough screen time it is surprisingly a fairly wooden affair with not much fleshed out in the way of their backgrounds even though quite a bit is hinted at. So really our dependence in engaging these characters is with their action quality. We would expect LXG to have lots in that department, but sadly what action there is just turns out to be a "been there before and bought the T-shirt" except for one good action sequence in Venice which is quite frankly a little bit hard to follow or understand and never really amounts to much. So the action is a way below par, especially if you have seen the likes of Blade from the same director - Stephen Norrington.

Where LXG really stands out is in the design and the concept realized onto the screen looks simply amazing. It is like Batman crossed with Wild Wild West. In fact Wild Wild West is exactly the same kind of summer bummer unblockbuster as this one. LXG looks incredible and certainly moves along at a good pace but ultimately it just as forgettable with nothing to really make you want to catch a sequel.

When all is said and done LXG is far from the worst DVD you can pick up for some pop-corn fodder entertainment but at the same time is pretty much an under-nourishing experience with some good scenes but not a great movie. The plot is a little banal and certainly the twists that come about are not really anything suspenseful. I somewhat enjoyed it enough to say that it was worth watching if there is nothing better on the shelf but I would not exactly be running to the cinema to see the sequel by any means.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: The Moose Hole - 'League' Not Quite 'Extraordinary'
Review: Theatrical adaptations of famous comic books are becoming the new trend these days in Hollywood. The major studios are digging out every comic book superhero imaginable even the lesser known ones and so far the films have been successful. So it isn't surprising that 20th Century is stepping up to the plate for the third time this year. Daredevil was a moderate success garnering $100 million against a $75 million budget and X2: X-Men United kicked off the summer season with a bang gathering $210 million against a $100 million budget. Fox is hoping that The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen will be just as successful but it will be a hard sell. The League is a much lesser known comic book mini-series then big profiles superheroes like Spider-Man or X-Men, so there won't be as big of a fan base to rely on. Another problem for the film is the down trend the comic book adaptations are looking to take. Though The Hulk set a new opening weekend for the month of June, the film dropped seventy percent from its opening weekend and was poorly received by both critics and the public. Rumors of fights breaking out between Sean Connery and director Stephen Norrington helped generate bad buzz for the film. The lackluster trailer and television ads have not been helping stop the bad press going against the film. But can The League fight against the odds and rule the box office or will the gentlemen be less then extraordinary?

The story centers on the formation of a team of extraordinary individuals that must fight an evil man who has plans for the world. During the year 1899, an evil individual by the name of The Fanthom has gone around the world capturing scientists and causes major catastrophes in order to have the European countries blame each other. This, he hopes, will cause the countries to create a world war and with his advanced military weapons, the European countries will have to buy from him creating a huge profit for himself. The British Empire, determined to avert a world war, calls upon a man named "M" to assemble The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Allan Quartermain, the hero of such tales as King Solomon's Mines, is chosen to lead the team. Other members of the team include Rodney Skinner (The Invisible Man), Mina Harker (Vampire), Captain Nemo, Dr. Jekyll, and Dorian Grey, each of which holds a special ability unique to the team. Joining along for the ride is Agent Sawyer (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer) from the United States. Each individual seems to have a hidden secret and don't get along with each other but they must put their scrabbles aside in order to save the world from the brink of war. The story for The League starts off well enough but slows down in the middle before picking up once again in the end. The dialogue is pretty serious for the most par but most of it seems too comical at times, which hurts the overall effect. Backgrounds on several characters are missing which would have been helpful to connect better with certain individuals but with most being famous literary characters, the film makers probably figure the audience knows who they are already.

The cast that makes of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a mixed bag at best. Sean Connery, who takes the role of Allan Quartermain, is great as usually as he seems to really to get into the role. Despite rumors of fights between Norrington and himself, Connery does a fabulous job with the character showing that Quartermain is beginning to show his age but desire to go out fighting. Connery can still kick butt like his young co-stars as his fight scenes show. Tony Curran, who plays the role of The Invisible Man, does as best of a job as he can but this character has its share of problems. The Invisible Man seems to be nothing more then a comedic special effects diversion and seems to just plain disappear for a good portion of the movie with little explanation or care. Jason Flemying does his best with the role of Dr. Jekyll, which is pretty good for the most part, but his character is also a special effect diversion when he becomes Mr. Hyde. Shane West is great as Agent Sawyer, though the film could have done a better job explaining how this care free boy from Mississippi came to be in the secret service but that is a minor squabble. Peta Wilson, from La Femme Nikita fame, does a pretty good job as Mina Harker but there really isn't much presented to the character. What is the deal with her and Dorian Grey? That is never really explained and causes confusion for the audience. Speaking of Dorian, Stuart Townsend is moderate as the character though most of the problems with him involve the background of the character rather then the acting.

Overall, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a good film but is really more for fans of the comic book mini-series or those who seriously know their literary figures. Too much background information on many of the characters is missing for most of the main stream to truly understand on where these characters are coming from what and what is going on based on their actions. The specials effects for the films, which seem to be focused on in several scenes in the film, are moderate at best. If you want superior special effects then go see Pirates of the Caribbean or even The Hulk, though with The Hulk you have to endure a very slow story. In that case, just stick with Pirates. The CGI work, especially with the Nautilus is some of the worst that has been seen this summer. The timing for the film seems perfect though the story itself slows down in the middle. The action sequences keeps the audience entertained and that should be sufficient enough for at least one showing. If you really want a film that can be seen numerous times then pick Pirates over The League. But if you just want to see something different for one night then stick with The League. It may not be fantastic but it is worth the price of admission. For a matinee at least.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Dont waste your time.
Review: I couldnt even finish the movie so instead I watched Jay and Silent Bob. The plot was boring from the beginning and after that it all fell apart. Take the 18 bucks and buy X-Men 2.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Sad, just sad
Review: This movie was one of the worst I have seen in along time. The story line was absolutely terrible. This movie made no sense what so ever. It was a pathetic attempt to match up to the rest of the super hero movies out there and felled miserably.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: "Empires crumble. There are no exceptions."
Review: Stephen Norrington's "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" does away, to its detriment, with most of the story elements of Alan Moore's original source material. Most of the nuances and character moments that made Moore's work so enjoyable have been completely excised. What's left is a shell of a film that fails to entertain.

A government official from England is sent to Kenya to find legendary adventurer Allan Quatermain (Sean Connery). Quatermain is asked to join an odd team of unique individuals whose mission it will be to stop a madman intent on plunging the world into war. The other members of the team include: Captain Nemo (Naseeruddin Shah), Mina Harker (Peta Wilson), Rodney Skinner the Invisible Man (Tony Curran), Dorian Gray (Stuart Townsend), Tom Sawyer (Shane West), and Dr. Henry Jekyll (Jason Flemyng). Together they travel the globe intent on neutralizing their adversary before global chaos ensues.

There were two major missteps taken with "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" when it was translated to the big-screen. First, the decision to replace Mina Harker as the team leader with Alan Quatermain destroys the amusing irony of having the lone woman in the group being deemed the most worthy person to lead the extraordinary "gentlemen." Second, the decision to add Tom Sawyer to the team's roster undermines the distinctive English-feel of the original work. The film is also awkwardly edited together to the point where one can't help but wonder if crucial transition scenes were left on the cutting room floor. It's too bad this film was not better-realized for there was the potential for a franchise if the material was handled with more care. Check out the original graphic novel for a taste of what-could-have-been.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Characters not given a chance to shine in "LXG"
Review: OK, if you really pushed me, I'd give this film a 3 and 1/2 stars, but since Amazon won't go for that, 3 it is. This is one of those films that comes "oh so close" to being solid but falls short because it's not character-driven enough. With such a solid cast, it's a shame that the various members of the "league" didn't get enough of a chance to develop. I suppose the viewer is supposed to be well-versed enough in 19th and 20th Century literature to know all about these characters, but that's too much of a stretch for me. Sean Connery is great as Alan Quartermain, but the others characters (The Invisible Man, Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde, Dorian Gray, Captain Nemo, etc.) get little more than glorified cameos.

The movie is definitely "heavy" in computer generated effects. Very realistic and convincing, but maybe a little too much over the top. The decibel level from all of the gunfire, explosions, etc. will certainly give one's surround sound system a workout! But don't get me wrong, the graphics ARE great, especially the depiction of Nemo's sub, The Nautilus!

The plot is rather tepid and the average viewer will probably come away scratching his or her head somewhat about certain parts of it, but keep in mind that in is "comic book material" in general. Suspension of disbelief will be needed to enjoy the film!!

The movie is stylishly filmed and has some great scenery and locations. It moves along at a rapid pace and there is very little down time in the film. I'm choosing not to go into the plot in this review because too many earlier reviewers have done so. The reader of this review can find out that information very quickly if so desired. What I will say is that "LXG" is a fairly enjoyable 110 minutes. If the viewer is a Sean Connery fan then by all means, rent or buy this DVD. Viewers who enjoyed Spider Man, Daredevil, and the X-Men series will probably go for this type of action as well.

RECOMMENDED FOR COMIC BOOK AND SEAN CONNERY FANS


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