MovieChat Forums > The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996) Discussion > OK, after 20 years and all the hype and ...

OK, after 20 years and all the hype and infamy...

posted 8 years ago by movienut710
9 replies | jump to latest

I finally, finally watched this (Having seen the Making of Documentary first) and my firm opinion is that it is GOOD! It is a GOOD Movie, with good acting from everyone, good pacing, lots of Surprises, good scares.

The controversy of it's making that I learned about from the documentary made me think it was going to be terrible and that Brando and Kilmer would be awful, that Frankenheimer's direction would be Boring and slow because he was old and way past his prime. Basically I was expecting a mess.

What a pleasant pleasant surprise to actually see it. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to be objective, especially with regard to Kilmer's performance, but he was very good as the Jerk Ass Montgomery. Brando was fine, the effects were fine, and Frankenheimer's direction was sharp and reminiscent of his 70's classic "Prophecy".

There was not much filler or irrelevant screen time, just about no major flaws at all as far as I'm concerned. Although I do feel rather badly for the original director who was (probably unjustly) fired, Frankenheimer taking over on short notice did a fine, fine job and if I didn't know about the problems during production i would never have guessed it was so troubled.

I know others on this board have expressed similar thoughts, but I had to add my voice to the chorus because it IS better than it's reputation by far and I hope more people give it a try. Thanks for reading and please comment if you agree or disagree

[–] mr-murph 8 years ago

I liked it too. It really isn't a bad movie, even if the experience of making it was horrible.

[–] FirstBlood1982 8 years ago

I love this film, I think it's one of the best films of the 90's and one of the most criminally underrated movies ever.

One of the best cinematic uses of the 'playing god' theme with great acting, beautiful music, stellar prosthetic effects, excellent cinematography...

It's a unique, bizarre masterpiece.

Regardless of what level of insanity went on on set, what ended up onscreen was awesome.

+++by His wounds we are healed. - Isaiah 53:5+++

[–] ffishpaw 7 years ago

I agree. I enjoyed this movie thoroughly. I have read the book and have seen the previous iterations of the movie and I still think this one is pretty good.

[–] ffishpaw 7 years ago

That should have been iteration

[–] verycoolnin 7 years ago

It wasn't a bad movie but definitely weird.

[–] SayMyNameBitches 7 years ago

I just watched it again. Been 18 years or so since the last time i saw it and its still just has dumb has it was back then. although i did find it oddly amusing this time.

[–] SteveRes (474) 6 years ago

I re-watched it recently for the first time in 20 years. The first time I saw it I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing, it was like someone had spiked my Coffee with acid. This time around I enjoyed it a lot more because I didn't have any expectations going into the movie. That's the thing with this film, back when it was released it was totally hyped and was regarded as one of that years big blockbuster movies. Brando in the cast, Kilmer fresh from Batman & Heat, the expectations were huge. I get the feeling if it had slipped under the radar somewhat back then it wouldn't have picked up quite the reputation it has now. It's not a great movie, but it's enjoyable and doesn't deserve the flack it gets. Brando is just mesmerising in it, but Kilmer is obviously regretting his decision to appear and just phones in his performance.

[–] Otter (24464) 6 years ago

No, it's one of the worst movies ever made, incoherent and nonsensical and ugly, and somehow repulsive. It's like everyone on screen is utterly miserable, and that doesn't make for a suspense or atmosphere, the air of misery actually reminds the viewer that these are actors and not the characters they're playing.
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And yeah, the atmosphere of "I hate my life" makes it easy to believe some of the bizarre stories that have circulated about the making of this movie. If a movie and its cast were actually "cursed", wouldn't that be how it looked on screen?