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Romper Stomper (Special Edition)

Romper Stomper (Special Edition)

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Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Disappointed
Review: It's sad that movie-goers' standards seem to have sunk to an all-time low. I know it's the fault of the dreck that Hollywood pumps out daily, but reviewers should remember that when they hype a decent film to death their readers will usually just be disappointed.

This movie had a lot going for it--a great lead performance, an unusual subject, and a dazzlingly immediate style. After the first twenty minutes you expect wonders. Then the "plot" goes to sleep with this romantic-triangle-on-the-run nonsense. The cliche's and one-dimensional characters (including an infuriating group of "Jappy snapper" stereotypes near the end) pile up until you realize you're really only watching it for the fight scenes. It's like a Schwartzenegger action flick with alternative trappings and "social relevance" as shallow as Russell Crowe's scalp-shadow.

Even the film's spiky realism is belied by the self-conscious "decadence" of the early, gay-junky scene (a real howler), and by the artsy blue color filters. Yes, they ARE color filters, NOT a film-imperfection; I know because I attended a special screening in DC where the director showed his personal print and fielded questions.

My advice is: see the movie, enjoy the conflict and energy, think about the sympathy it shows for damaged misfits usually demonized by the press. Just don't expect anything complex or breathtaking, or you'll be as disappointed as I was.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Electrifying!
Review: An excellent movie about a bunch of skinheads & their lives before and after meeting a mysterious girl in a bar and being carried out to a love triangle.. The best skinhead move i've ever seen, best New Zelland film i've ever seen and also the best Russel Crowe move i've ever seen; and i don't think i need to say more..

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Russell Dose It Again!
Review: This film is so intense I found myself shaking at times! Russell Crowe is truly one the most talented actors of our time. He will be a reciepient of an Academy Award many times in the future. As Hando the skin head Crowe drenches the screen with hate, sex and violence so convincingly, I think the screen will melt. Not to mention he looks so very sexy in his whites briefs in one scene, displaying his very masculine body in a rare shot. His supporting cast are equally intense in their roles. I love the turn of events midway through the story. This fim is not for the faint of heart. But if your a Russell Crowe, this is definetly for you. And you will get to see Russell is almost all of his glory!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A MUST HAVE
Review: A MUST HAVE for Russell Crowe fans. Wonderfully acted and intense movie. Russell is evil in this flick--much to my liking-- and has enormous presence as Hando. Buy this and it will never leave your vcr. You'll even rewind a few scenes many times--wink--you'll know it when you see it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A realistic and brutal modern tragedy
Review: This film has a documentary-like feel about it, almost as if hidden cameras are monitoring all of the sordid actions of Hando's merry band of immigrant thrashing thugs through the streets of Melbourne. There is little plot and the moral of the story is never blatantly plugged anywhere in the film. As for my own interpretation of the movie, it presents a story about how one man's frustrations and rage can ruin the lives of those around him, many of whom admire and love him in their own sad ways; Davey and Gabe flock to Hando's band for the acceptence and affection that the rest of the world has denied them, while Hando himself relishes his leadership role because it's really all that he has to live for. Of course, the young skinheads are embittered and calloused...they are unwilling or unable to secure employment or lead normal lives, so they naturally turn to bashing Vietnamese immigrants whom they blame for the deterioration of their society and the stark conditions of their own wasted lives. There is no happy ending: right when Davey and Gabe begin to rediscover their humanity (they fall in love) and attempt to break away from Hando's malevolent influence, the leader of the ruined skinhead band attempts to murder Gabe and is himself killed by Davey...and then the movie ends, with the two remaining members of the group facing almost certain prison sentences for their dirty deeds (which include a couple of murders by the film's end). This is not light entertainment...make sure you are already in a rotten mood before you watch Romper Stomper. Although very dark and depressing, RS is well worth a viewing for Russell Crowe fans: the contrast of his benevolent and noble Maximus character in Gladiator to his performance as the murderous Hando is a very powerful testimony to his talent as an actor.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: the real facts
Review: just an interesting fact.....daniel pollock,who plays davey in the film committed suicide one month before the film's release in australia. other than that.....a perfect glimpse into the animal within russ crowe.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Chilling and Creepy
Review: The start of Romper Stomper impacts like a smartly landed fist, using the unbridled fury of its protagonists to propell this story of disenfranchised adolescents lost in a squalid urban wasteland, as abandoned as the empty factories in which they squat. They affect skinhead trappings and bemoan the decline of White Power; the film opens with a horrific gang war scene, as Hando (Crowe) takes his cronies to stomp a group of young Vietnamese in a subway station. The shots just make me wince at how rotten and vile the skinheads act. To the skinheads their violence is its own reward, getting it as gratifying as giving it. With the introduction of a 'poor little rich' girl into the group, and especially her impact on the relationship between Hando and his best pal Davey, occupies much of the later storyline. This film will either make you want to take a judo class and become a masked avenger against nasty skinheads, curl up and cry, or it may just make you shiver at how gross and vile people can become. This is an interesting film simply for how thought provoking it is.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: not too bad
Review: First of all, I'd just like to say that it angers me that skinheads are constantly portrayed as racists in movies. Being an anti-racist skinhead, and knowing that the vast majority of skinheads aren't racist, this fact upsets me. That being said, I still thought this was a good movie. I hadn't seen any Russell Crowe films before, and I was very impressed with his performance in this one. The movie has very little plot though, it mostly just shows a few days in the life of a gang of boneheads, and the violence and hatred that is their existence. Believe me, it's not an easy movie to watch, but if you want something different, and in the vein of A Clockwork Orange, you may want to check this out.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This is the best Movie!
Review: The fight scenes remind me of saving private ryan .The camera jumps all over the place and the essence of the whole movie makes you feel sorry for the bunch of neo nazi skinheads.A masterpiece.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Interesting movie with bad sight and sound
Review: Russell Crowe is the man. In the entire two to three paragraphs he gets to speak in the film, he completely controls the movie. But a few things hamper this intersting dwelve into the world of skinheads and monsters. What is it? Oh, a PLOT.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love the acting by Crowe, but the plot is overdone and empty. This 88-minute flash of a film leaves a few distorted images of violence and a few worthwhile scenes of structure. One interesting surprise about Gabrielle (which I'll leave to you to find out) is about all the intrigue this film has. The characters are flat. Crowe commands and leads this film. The other co-star, his best friend Davey (sorry, don't know the actors name) has about as much emotion as a cardboard box, and is as empty as one, too. The girl in the film, Gabrielle, is played a bit better, but Crowe nor any other forgotten performances can make this more than a 'What went wrong?' kind of film. I expected more than a fight-and-chase film. I expected something worthwhile. Things like character development, dialogue, or even mystery alude this mess. You're able to see what is going to happen minutes (and sometimes an hour) before it does. Alas, I was disappointed.

The transfer from film-to-television is horrible. I'm not sure if it was 35mm, but it looks it. To boot it's pan-and-scan (which I, as a film purist DESPISE, God bless DVD) with lackluster sound, making you rewind and replay the scratchy dialogue to understand what was said. The score is a joke, a few fast-paced notes over the running and the laughable somber ending music.

Crowe gets a chance to shine in his ten-or-so minutes of real acting, and the rest is, as Austrailians say, rubbish.


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