MovieChat Forums > Kekexili (2004) Discussion > This movie is boring **SPOILER**

This movie is boring SPOILER

posted 16 years ago by imdb-ary
13 replies | jump to latest

I saw this movie on DVD after reading a positive review of this on Rotten Tomato, and I have to say this movie is pretty overrated.

I understand this is suppose to be a drama film? So where's the dramatic music? Where's intense dialogue? Where's the character building? The actors... they hardly talk at all!

I know next to nothing about the members of the mountain patrol other than the one liner about how one of them used to be a soldier, one used to be a sheep herder and one used to be a professional rabbit hunter etc. Oh yeah and one of them actually has a girlfriend.... weee! So the end result is whenever one of them dies (and they seem to die on a regular basis) I just don't care.

The final confrontation between the captain and the poacher leader was pretty disapointing too. What was he thinking still chasing after them after he lost all his men and his cars!? Did he really think he could convince them to give themselves up?? The actual scene was pretty dumb too. It goes something like this:

Captain: I am Ritai!
Poacher Boss: I am the poacher boss!
Captain: Surrender!
Poacher Boss: no thnx
*** random dude shoots the captain ***
Poacher Boss: Oops

THE END

I mean WTF?? That could of been done soooo much better, and he should of gone down fighting at least!

Anyways that's what I thought of the film.

[–] smokingsbad 16 years ago

I'll agree with you on the ending but so many of you opinions are just whack. Just because a movie is of a certain genre doesn't mean it has to have most of the characteristics of that genre. This movie had positives that you aren't ealy seeing. The movie had amazing cinematography, its shots were well done. I thought scenes of the antelope pelts and the quicksand scene was very nicely filmed. The characters don't always have to build in dramas. In this movie, characters are revealed little by little. I dont get why you need dramatic music in a drama. No Country For Old Men got best picture without 15 minutes of music.

I can understand why you don't like it. I personally found it overrated too but the reasons you gave are a little weird.

[–] varun-muni 16 years ago

Yeah, I agree imdb-ary, this movie sucked big time. Lets just wait for the next Incredible hulk, we would get all the music n stuff...

[–] Josh-is-not-you 16 years ago

I was looking forward to seeing everything you mentioned when I put it in too, but what I saw was far better than I had hoped. The ending was one of the best I've ever seen, up there with Citizen Kane, Pulp Fiction, and Fight Club. Mountain Patrol is a truly astounding film, you just have a short attention span.

And this is coming from a dude with ADD.

[–] Kinematico 16 years ago

Boring my ass! Kekexili puts to shame 90% of the Hollywood westerns. This movie catch your attention from the opening shot and never let it go until the closing credits appears.

This is a film about people who does their job beyond the line of duty, in extreme conditions, against all odds, expecting nothing in return.
Kekexili belongs to a very select list of the best "Men vs Nature" (versus some human beings as well) films that I've ever seen. It's right there with films like The Wages of Fear, Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Fitzcarraldo, Viento Negro, Dersu Uzala, etc.

9/10.

BTW "Dramatic Music" is a cheap resource used mostly by Hollywood in order to tell the audience what to feel and when to feel it. This movie doesn't need that foolish gimmick.
seems that you are really spoiled by the mindless blockbusters, therefore when you see an honest, not embellished, straight to the point film, you can't help but to say that it's "boring"! pfft!

[–] imdb-ary 16 years ago

Don't get me wrong, I don't think music is compulsory to every film; I've seen some horror films from Japan that builds the atmosphere very well w/o the music.

I don't see using music as "telling the audience what to feel", its more like enhancing the drama already been played out on screen. Good music makes bad film look good and a good film look awesome.

I also find it amusing that some of u posters have tried to sterotype me as some sort of short-attention spanned Hollywood blockbuster lover lol. When I'm anything but. I've seen tons of great foreign films over the years, but this just isnt one of them.

Comparing this film to Fight Club or Citizen Kane is abit rich, considering 15 minutes of either of those films has more dialogue than this whole movie!!!!

And finally you guys still haven't address the issue of the silly plotline which was the main point of my first post: if Ritai had the brains to recruit and lead a civilian militia to fight poachers, why would he continue to chase them after he lost all of his men, cars and equipment???

That's totally unrealistic and smells more like crappy hollywood writing to me.

[–] fergg520 16 years ago

Alright - Silly plotline? I am not sure exactly what you are trying to convey with silly plotline (if you just mean Ritai continually going after them or just the whole story. I'm sure everyone here realizes the underline issue with this movie. How tibetan people most likely feel that they are the antelopes and the chinese government is kinda ruining their mountains annd way of life.

The reason why Ritai was so damn persistent to catch them was because it was the first time in I think three years he had a chance. To Ritai ( a man that believes in reincarnation) the antelope probably may have been his own ancestors....thats why they were always called tibetan antelope- they didnt care about other antelope. Also since he believes in reincarnation he most likely did not care if he died on his mission. Ritai knew his recruits understood his passion for stopping the poachers so he did not feel bad leaving them behind- he was on a holy mission (one might say).

I believe the end was great. When I first saw it I was like........wtf! waste of time! After reviewing the end I realize the Ritai accomplished what he needed to - he stood up against the poachers... he didn't win but he showed Tibetan people can not be bought off and pushed around....eventually they will take a stand. (This of course relates to the chinese government forcing things on tibetan people)

Obviously everyone is entitled to their own view of the movie but i think this is a movie that you have to invest more analytical thinking into if you want to be satisifed.

[–] imdb-ary 16 years ago

(Btw I don't think the chinese government are forcing things on the tibetan people, if you read the history of Tibet and what it was like when the Lamas were in charge, you'll agree that people in Tibet are much better off now.

But anyway this is beside the point b/c I don't think this movie was political in any way at all. So I'll get back to the movie....)

What I mean by silly plotline is the fact Ritai chose to pursuit the poachers even though he lost all his equipment and most of his men. If he isn't stupid he would of realised that even if he caught the poachers he'd had no chance of stopping them and so should of turned back and fight another day. But instead he chose to continue on like some rambo Hollywood hero and got himself and all of his men killed. And the writers expected us to swallow that crap? Oh please...

I would also like to note that nowhere in the movie were any of the men exhibiting any sign they were religious (we don't even know Ritai was Buddist!) and certainly not willing to die on some futile trek. His men expected Ritai to lead them to victory. Victory meant arresting or stopping all the poachers responsible for killing the antelopes. But instead of that, he failed them all and he failed them in such an amazingly stupid way. THAT is what I mean by silly plotline.

This business about "showed Tibetan people can not be bought off and pushed around by the chinese gov....etc" is nonsense. Ritai didn't achieve anything in the movie, other than getting his men killed.

In real life, if you read the movie's main page, it actually says the antelope poaching stopped because a Beijing journalist did a story on it. The problem got widespread public attention then the government stepped in, formed a task group and got rid of the poachers. The mountain patrol itself didn't go on some failed suicide mission, it got disbanded voluntarily after the poacher problem had been solved.

I think THAT would of made a better movie instead of this melodramatic suicide quest movie.

[–] Gambitt 15 years ago

I definitely agree with the OP!

First of all, they should have cast Tom Cruise or Vin Diesel as Ritai. And the final scene should have had way intense dialogue like:

Ritai: I am Ritai!
Poacher Big Boss: Well, know this, Ritai. I killed your antelope! And... I AM YOUR BROTHER!
Ritai: Nooo!
Poacher: If you won't join me, then you ... must ... DIE! Hieyeahhh!
Ritai: (turns to the camera) NOW it's personal...

Then at this point, Ritai would spin around, break the guards necks with his ankles, and whip out two pistols (slow motion here definitely). By then, all the poachers are down except for the captain but it's SO intense b/c Ritai has run out of ammo (figures!).

They both whip out katana and square off. Then, more INTENSE dialogue:

Poacher: How do you like my jacket, brother? (lifts open his ANTELOPE PELT jacket; on the inside is a swastika)
Ritai: I'm going to give you a home where MY antelope roam!

(Ritai dives forward with backflip, slashing Poacher boss with Katana)

Poacher: (while exploding): NOOOOOOOOOOO!
Ritai: Yes! Consider yourself MOUNTAIN PATROLLED!
*roll credits*

And they definitely should've used the music from Crimson Tide, because man, you can never go wrong with that stuff.

If they had done all that, THEN we would have had a dramatic movie. Don't argue with me, because I know drama.

[–] zuzuji 15 years ago

Wow! That will be the perfect match to the OP's taste. An exploding ending.

[–] Shinsei-NEN 14 years ago

You obviously like more content to enjoy something, fireworks, colorful lights, explosions, etc.
when you stepped back about the lack of dramatic music
you supported your concept: "where's intense dialogue?"

Someone could feel the drama in this movie,
someone who hasn't a preconception about drama and could feel life.

You don't need long explanations and big stories to feel what they represent
and what they left behind to make this work.

Did you know why Ri Tai continued with his mission after all?
It has a simple explanation but you didn't get it, it was said in 1 dialogue
he said he's been chasing him for years, and now, finally, he got the chance to catch him.
Oh, and you can't remember his man was returning with supplies but he was swallowed by a quicksand.
All of that, it's drama, but without Mozart, Shakespeare and Terminator you can't get it.

[–] imdb-ary 13 years ago

It has a simple explanation but you didn't get it, it was said in 1 dialogue he said he's been chasing him for years, and now, finally, he got the chance to catch him.

Is there a point in catching them if all you're going to do is get shot after you catch them? How the heck does that help anyone? It sounds like the cliche melodramatic tripe to me; to chase after a noble quest, after all hope is lose, but alas it was not to be, the hero is slain, cuz he's such a romantic dope.

[–] blue__yoshi 13 years ago

You should watch plays or read books. You'll get much more of what you want out of those media.

[–] imdb-ary 13 years ago

Indeed I do enjoy books! People don't read enough these days... those dang yun'ons!

Anyway the only issue I had with this film was how nonsensical the plot/production values were in relation of its rating.

For those of you who also enjoy foreign films. But want to find some that are underrated but much higher quality than this one, I'd recommend the following titles:

Guisi 2006
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
The Myth 2005