New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Sneakers

post #1 of 37
9/8/09 at 10:46am
Thread Starter 
I say Sneakers is the best hacker movie yet made. None of those characters are cool. They all make mistakes, and none are made out to be the greatest or best human/hero in the world. It is a solid little tech/computer movie.

Also, I find it endlessly entertaining. Not sure why, but if it is on late at night, I can easily jump into it anywhere and have fun watching it.
Reply
post #2 of 37
9/8/09 at 12:02pm
Other than Kingsley's atrocious (and unnecessary) American accent, I love this movie. It's great fun.
Reply
post #3 of 37
9/8/09 at 12:11pm
I've always had a soft spot for this movie. I also think the cast is great and it's got nice laid back vibe that's different from most espionage type flicks.

I don't think this film ever got the attention it deserved.
Reply
post #4 of 37
9/8/09 at 12:21pm
Great, great film. Phil Alden Robinson does not direct enough, but this is easily his best (also very good: his episode of Band of Brothers). Fantastic cast, neat concept carried off with wit, tension and intelligence. But most of all, its just a really entertaining film, as Casey said.
Reply
post #5 of 37
9/8/09 at 12:25pm
That's it basically. It's really fun. There's no single element that I'd call particularly inspired or outstanding but everything gels together really nice and I almost never change the channel if I happen to see it playing.
Reply
post #6 of 37
9/8/09 at 4:03pm
Love this movie. In the end it may be more average than great, but it's a fun ride with a great cast. Dan Aykroyd is actually funny in this movie, and it was made post 1984, so there's that.
Reply
post #7 of 37
9/8/09 at 4:18pm
It's a decent movie elevated by having some fun and engaging character work from everyone involved. It also helps that it has one of those perfect endings that all scripts dream about.

River Phoenix asking for that girl's number at the end is just an awesome moment.
Reply
post #8 of 37
9/8/09 at 4:21pm
Thread Starter 
It may be an average film, but it is perfect entertainment.

I love the characters and their relationships. Yeah lot of fun with this one. Wish more tech films would take or steal from it as far as characters.
Reply
post #9 of 37
9/8/09 at 4:29pm
It's not average at all, it's just not transcendent. It's well above average on every level, but it's not going to change anyone's life. Because it's not really trying to, it's just trying to entertain. And it is very entertaining.
Reply
post #10 of 37
9/8/09 at 4:42pm
People calling it average is a disservice to a) how great the cast is, and b) how smart and well-structured the script is. It's a follow the bread crumbs plot for the first hour, and does such a good job concealing it the audience doesn't realize it until 45 minutes in. And even when it shifts gears from a light caper comedy to a full blown tech thriller is never misses a beat.

I also would like to nominate Sidney Poitier's "Motherfuckers mess with me I'll SPLIT THEIR HEADS!" as the best moment in the history of ever.
Reply
post #11 of 37
9/8/09 at 9:57pm
Really love this movie. A blind Strathairn driving the van via remote direction is utter gold.
Reply
post #12 of 37
9/8/09 at 10:04pm
I last saw it when it premiered... I remember back then, the second half of the movie felt somehow disappointing, and the villain was a bit too cartoonish for my teenage tastes.
Will see it again, just to see if I changed my mind.

I suppose it will be refreshing after seeing almost two decades worth of similar movies,
but with indestructible leather-clad android-oids instead of realistic human characters in Sneakers.
Reply
post #13 of 37
9/8/09 at 10:24pm
I look at the movie as Roy Hobbs, Mr. Tibbs, Edward R. Murrow, Ray Stantz, Laura Roslin and River Phoenix taking on Ghandi with his henchman Danny Concannon. It's a great film, but this makes it a very different great film.
Reply
post #14 of 37
9/8/09 at 10:32pm
I remember loving the shit out of this movie when I checked out the VHS from the library when I was 12 or 13. I've been seeing it advertise being on demand this month, maybe I should revisit it.
Reply
post #15 of 37
9/8/09 at 10:46pm
love the soundtrack. i still get goosebumps when i hear that piano cue.
Reply
post #16 of 37
9/8/09 at 10:59pm
Thread Starter 
I keep thinking about it, and its just a perfect little movie. And I love how many times the heroes get something wrong or don't figure things out all the way. No one is perfect in the film.
Reply
post #17 of 37
9/8/09 at 11:07pm
Always was impressed by the way Whistler narrowed down Kingsley's base. Nice deductive thinking there.

"Organised Crime?"

"Don't fool yourself. It's not that organised."
Reply
post #18 of 37
9/8/09 at 11:24pm
Always loved the ending. McDonnell's "oh, no I'm fine" and River Phoenix asking for the number seal the deal.
Reply
post #19 of 37
9/8/09 at 11:27pm
Also Mother asking for a Wannebego.

"This isn't a Car Dealership, Pal."
Reply
post #20 of 37
9/8/09 at 11:33pm
Yeah, I take back the way I described it as "average". What I think I meant was that it is a really good movie, sometimes great.

Sorry Greg.
Reply
post #21 of 37
9/8/09 at 11:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by felix natalya View Post
Also Mother asking for a Wannebego.

"This isn't a Car Dealership, Pal."
With the burgandy interior.
Reply
post #22 of 37
9/9/09 at 7:57am
This film was the last known evidence of the 'Redford' charm, he's just great here, so laid back and confident, his scenes with Kingsley are fantastic, his guilt combined with a bittersweet feeling towards Kingsley is really quite amazing.

The supporting cast are where the film really shines, Poitier and Aykroyd arguing about conspiracy theories, the nicely sarcastic David Strathairn, the lovely Mary McDonnell (she got me through puberty thanks to this film) and River Phoenix.

I used to watch this film so much growing up, it really is a marvel of craftsmanship in both writing and directing.
Reply
post #23 of 37
9/9/09 at 9:42am
"Give him head?"

"Be a beacon?!"
Reply
post #24 of 37
9/9/09 at 10:00am
"my VOICE is my PASSPORT! Verify me?"

Love, love, love this movie, and these characters, and I would read the shit out of a comic book series detailing the further adventures of this crew.
Reply
post #25 of 37
9/10/09 at 9:47am
Posit:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Judas Booth View Post
It's a decent movie elevated by having some fun and engaging character work from everyone involved. It also helps that it has one of those perfect endings that all scripts dream about.
Consequence:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg Clark View Post
People calling it average is a disservice to a) how great the cast is, and b) how smart and well-structured the script is. It's a follow the bread crumbs plot for the first hour, and does such a good job concealing it the audience doesn't realize it until 45 minutes in. And even when it shifts gears from a light caper comedy to a full blown tech thriller is never misses a beat.
Result:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Casey Moore View Post
I keep thinking about it, and its just a perfect little movie.
Indeed it is. Sneakers is probably one of the best movies (and scripts) I own, based on pure rewatchability and how it all hits my right notes. From the whole cast, the story, the direction to, yes, James Horner's magnificent score, everything works like clockwork. Not only it's the best Mission: Impossible movie never made, but Kingsley's never had a better villain role than this, so tragically pathetic and yet so menacing.

If I ever got sent to a remote island with only a few movies to watch, this would certainly be in the bag. Fuck it, I tend to watch it once a year and tonight seems the perfect time to do it again.
Reply
post #26 of 37
9/10/09 at 9:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by PsycheOut00 View Post
but Kingsley's never had a better villain role than this
Um, someone wants a word...

Reply
post #27 of 37
9/10/09 at 10:16pm
Love, love, love, love, love, love. Love.

For what it sets out to do it's absolutely flawless.

I often think of this movie whenever I stumble on one of the OCEAN'S movies as they try to labor their way to stylish cool. SNEAKERS runs the same race without breaking a sweat. I know that's the illusion of good casting, a well-structured screenplay, good direction, great actors having fun, etc, but I think there's something to be said for the fact that on the surface, the OCEAN'S movies have pretty much those same elements, and yet here we are.

Agreed that Robinson doesn't direct enough, but I also want to throw in that Lasker and Parkes don't write enough. Their previous screenplay was what saved WARGAMES, and I'm not sure they've written anything since. Imagine them working regularly as a Rossio/Elliott or Koppleman/Levien kind of team, doing those kinds of movies. But better, of course.
Reply
post #28 of 37
9/11/09 at 11:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Rain Dog View Post
Um, someone wants a word...
OK. fair enough, but I find Cosmo somewhat more layered. His reencounter scene with Marty/ Redford has him running the full gamut of emotions from sadness to rage to... love?, while his turn in Sexy Beast was more about him completely unhinged.

Plus, I especially love that "Hurts? Try prison" callback of his.
Reply
post #29 of 37
9/11/09 at 12:01pm
Watched it again last night. Funny, given the amount of time that has passed since this was made and particularly the technological leaps made since then, it didn't feel all that dated. I think some of the "gag"s fall a bit flat, just because of how comedy evolves, but the basic premise of the box and the shady organisations willing to kill for it wouldn't be out of place in a Bourne movie.

Most importantly, the set-pieces still work a treat - the "Can you guarantee my safety?" scene, Carl and Bish roaming around in the air ducts, Whistler's van escapades. The two people I watched it with last night had never seen it before and that bit on the phone with the makeshift lie detector really ratchets up the tension quickly, so much so that my flatmate yelled out "Hang up the fucking phone!" in the final seconds. Lovely stuff. And both commented on how effective the score is throughout, which was nice.

So yeah, a damn good film even today and the only one of a handful of 90s techno-thrillers that don't seem ridiculous today (The Net, Hackers etc.)
Reply
post #30 of 37
2/12/10 at 5:32pm
This has always been one of my favorite movies ever made. If I ever had to make an all-time Top 10, it'd easily make it. I agree with everyone about the cast, script, tension, tech-stuff, etc. One thing that always stands out to me is the music. Now, it's not an incredible score, but the piano goes from very minimalist to discordant and it's used perfectly. The Scrabble/black box scene is fucking perfect. It feels so tense and secretive and dangerous. Once it crescendo's and Redford turns it off and there's that quiet piano section and shots of Akroyd, Phoenix, and Strathairn's faces... just perfect tension and suspense.

I'm a sucker for gadgets and heists and tech-stuff, and this movie appeals so deeply to that taste. The sequence where they break into Cosmo's building/office is also perfect. Everything leading up to the break-in and during is so interesting and tense.

I think I need to watch this movie again right now.
Reply
post #31 of 37
2/12/10 at 7:53pm
I just realized that there are characters named Whistler and Mother in this movie. What an odd shout out.
Reply
post #32 of 37
2/12/10 at 9:16pm
First saw this at my Grandmas house when I was little. Still amazed at how great it is. Love the opening bank robbery when Redford gets his suitcase and walks right up the stairs and hands it to the executives. Great stuff
Reply
post #33 of 37
2/12/10 at 11:18pm
Might have to dust that HD-DVD off. Always really liked this a lot.
Reply
post #34 of 37
2/14/10 at 9:19am
The Sixth Sense, Back To The Future, The Terminator, Seven, Sneakers...all flawless scripts with equal talent bringing it life.

Love this fucking movie.
Reply
post #35 of 37
2/15/10 at 11:43pm
Sounds like this is one to check out. All I remember is being perplexed by the cover at Blockbuster, wondering what it was actually about.

I'm really into anything relating to intelligence/espionage. Even if the movie is heavily flawed, I enjoy seeing any different approach to that subject matter.
Reply
post #36 of 37
2/16/10 at 12:20am
The first half is really good, but the second half just falls apart for me.
Reply
post #37 of 37
2/22/10 at 10:07am
Watched this again this weekend. I agree with what's been said, and as much as I love the score, you can tell where Horner recycled it for SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER and A BEAUTIFUL MIND. But those are my three favorite scores of his, so I don't care all that much.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Films in Release or On Video