Year One - Uninformed Review/No Spoilers

[ebonypearl]

Itzl Waiting on Desk June 16
Originally uploaded by nodigio

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1905453,00.html

I have not yet seen Year One, but I have seen previews of it. I’m not particularly enamored of movies that make stupid fun of religions and/or history (witty fun, smart fun, even cerebral fun is acceptable, but just stupid – no), but I think this has the potential to become two things – a cult movie and a re-enactment base.

Cult movie – well, there’s a lot there that qualifies: it’s bad with redeeming moments, the acting is hammy and cheesy and the lines are sadly memorable. It captures the imagination because the movie itself almost gets there but isn’t quite daring enough. People will want to take it that extra leap forward that the movie was fearful of. And that is where its cult greatness will lie.

Re-enactment – I think the insurance commercial with the cavemen helped set the stage for a nice fantasy caveman re-enactment group, and this movie, with its nifty fantasy caveman-esque props that owe virtually nothing to history, the oddly compelling costuming, and the nebulous ties to history make it a marvelous playground for fantasy re-enactors who don’t really care so much about real history as they do about having fun.

I’m not sure I want to see it in the theater even at the matinee price of $3.00, but I’ll probably buy it as a DVD when it reaches the $5.00 bin, or maybe even the $9.00 bin because I adore the look of the movie, mostly the props and the costuming, and I want to have it as a reference for future “caveman” themed parties and camping trips.