Crumb

Crumb is an entry within the sub genre of the genre of documentaries which is the fringe biography. This one being about fittingly fringe underground comic book artist R. Crumb. As with any proper fringe biography it exposes its subject strange world and often makes it ground by merely giving the man a voice piece past his work. The film succeeds in terms of that type of fascination no matter how bizarre certain elements of Crumb's frame of mind will be. What it also succeeds with though is expanding this exposure a bit in terms of the specific world around Crumb including his family, specifically his brother who is his own tapestry of something else. It's a film that creates a real investigation within the unique sort of madness associated with a most specific fringe, however in a way that never feels too cloying or exploitative.
5/5

Braveheart

Braveheart has granted itself a certain division over time, common to most best picture winners, though I've often noticed that it is basically a given with so many of the general public that it is a great film, while the tendency among so many cinematic snobs is to heavily deride the film. This comes in a few qualities. The most recent derision comes in the form of judgment against Mel Gibson as a man. Although one is free to judge the man as much as they wish in general, one of the main common criticisms in regards to this film is a little unfounded that this was a vanity project, since Gibson actually only starred in the film in order to be able direct it. Another major criticism outside of the man though comes in its historical accuracy, which seems a strange thing especially given the film states it's story does not match historical fact from the beginning. The film is far more of a historical legend about William Wallace, rather than William Wallace the man. This then comes down to are such films allowed to exist that wish to tell a grander vision than the historical record, yet that is entirely the point and wholly apparent within the film's overarching style. The film is an epic poem about freedom, in a rather general sense, than the true story of the Scottish war for independence, not unlike a film like Spartacus. The film denotes this approach from the beginning and in doing so creates a grand epic. It is technically an outstanding from the outset with its unforgettable score, and cinematography. The battle sequences are a step above most that come before offering a strong visceral intensity in every skirmish. It is not a mere technical exercise though as the emotions are as sweeping as its vistas. The film is a great success not by being a historical document by being a legend.
5/5

Judge Dredd

Judge Dredd is a most peculiar failure of the 90's, the same when almost every comic book adaptation failed miserably. Judge Dredd took the odd approach of taking a character, who never removes his helmet, and having him be played by movie star Sylvester Stallone who reveals his face rather quickly. The film is a rather strange combination as it does attempt to establish a world more than you'd expect given some of the other elements. The film though seemingly spent the majority of their budget in the opening scene where we get rather Blade Runneresque cityscape, which was a common occurrence in the 90's, one I can suppose commend for effort, but not inspiration. The film after this point gets into its two halves neither which work. One half you have Sylvester Stallone's scenes which are one action cliche after another, but unfortunately not all that entertaining. It also does not help that he is paired with the obligatory comedic sidekick, played to imperfection by Rob Schneider. The other half focuses on the villain, played by an extremely hammy Armand Assante, and not really in a good way. That half though creates far too convoluted of a plot with consistent, incredibly boring exposition to set up clones which add very little when the two paths meet, given that they meet in a standard 90's action conclusion. I don't think it is as terrible, as many make it out to be, but it's not good either. Also extra credit to Max von Sydow, who apparently never phones it in.
1.5/5