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THE SIN EATER with Heath Ledger from Director Brian Helgeland Test Screens!
Hey folks, Harry here... We have a single review of last night's test screening of THE SIN EATER by Brian Helgeland. First off, this review has MASSIVE SPOILERS, and should only be read by those of you that have no interest in seeing Helgeland's Junior Directing effort. Now this review is extremely negative, but when you have a film that is heavily based upon bizarre religious revelations... You'll have some very negative reviews, mainly by folks that could give to rat's anuses about such things. Not saying that that is this reviewer's world view, but this is just one review, by one person that we don't know based upon a very very early cut of the film. For those that don't mind MAJOR SPOILERS, continue, for the rest of us... let's press on shall we?
Hey guys,
Just went to a test screening of THE SIN EATER, the new Brian Helgeland film starring Heath Ledger. I had some good expectations for the film, being that I liked LA Confidential (I wasn't so keen on Payback but I was willing to overlook it). My expectations were dashed within the first ten minutes of the film.[Spoiler warning]
The plot of The Sin Eater was a muddled one but here's the rundown: The film starts with the 'mysterious' death of an ex-priest, Dominic, in Rome. Cut to New York City where Heath Ledger is a Roman Catholic Priest named Alex. Another priest (played by Robocop himself, Peter Weller) informs him of Dominic's death, which prompts Alex to head to Rome to investigate. Before he leaves though, Alex is joined by escaped mental patient, Maura (Shannyn Sossamon). Stay with me here people--
After a montage sequence involving all of one shot, Alex and Maura are in Rome. They meet up with another priest played by Mark Addy (who by the way looks like he's indulged in a few too many Eucharist lately) and try to figure out who could have killed Dominic. Alex begins to suspect a character called the Sin Eater (who sucks sins out of a dying person) and this is where the film starts getting ridiculous and boring instead of just being boring.
Now we're taken to the mysterious, electronic music bumpin, secret underworld of renegade priests. Some really confusing crap happens involving a masked high priest, a nail drivin' apparition, Heath in peril in an underground river, and more sacrilegious acting by Peter Weller. Mark Addy is incapacitated and put in the hospital while our man of the four haired beard, Heath pursues the mysterious Sin Eater.
Enter the Sin Eater, or should I say some chump who looks like a model from the latest Gap catalogue. The only sinister thing this Sin Eater does is provoke some of the worst expository dialogue this side of a film school production. You see, the Sin Eater listens to the confessions of people that have been excommunicated from the church, there by allowing them to be absolved of their sins and sent to Heaven.
Anyway, after a night on the hoppin' town/state we call the Vatican, the Sin Eater tells Heath that he is sick of all this Sin Eating and would like to hand over the reigns to our boy Heath. He also talks Heath into throwing away all of his lifelong training and teachings and go boink the nutty Maura. Heath does his priestly duty to please that mental house booty (in a very PG-13 way, if you know what I mean) and decides not to be the Sin Eater. Sin Eater doesn't like this and kills Maura thereby forcing Heath to perform the Sin Eater ritual on her and become the titular character. Basically Heath the Sin Eater goes out and kills the original Sin Eater and then guess what? Peter Weller is the evil high priest with Papal aspirations. And faster than you can say 'excommunication,' Robocop gets killed too, but at this point in the movie, who cares? I didn't, the people at the screening didn't, and hopefully, you dear reader shouldn't as well. Final word: not even the Sin Eater could absolve this film.
"Saffron and Iggy."
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FIRST!!!
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payback and knight's tale each had BAD BUZZ before hand and both movies were a blast.
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I think I'll wait for a second opinion before I make a decision...although this review IS pretty damning.
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Is this about that old Spider-Man villain? sk
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This reviewer told the entire story of the film and then stated "it sucked". That was the review. The film MIGHT indeed be a bad one, but this review is ABYSMALLY HORRIBLE and I wouldn't trust someone who can't write anything more coherent and analytical.
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Jul 16, 2002 10:14:03 AM CDT
Hmmm...I probably should pay attention to those spoiler warnings
by weedymcsmokey
This guy is the reverse of a plant. He works for a rival studio. His mission - destroy Mark Addy; just ruin the poor bastard's career. Ledger and that saucy-mon chick are mere smoke screens. "Take that Mark Addy! First I got you in that Flintstones prequel (not that help was needed), then you managed to elude me in that Knights Tale thingy - But I have returned!! You'll do the dew - AHEM -rue the day - you saw the likes of the SaffronandIggy Movement to Eradicate Addys Revolution (S.M.E.A.R.)!!!! 'Till we meet again.........
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Jul 16, 2002 10:16:01 AM CDT
I was exaggarating a bit in my last post, so here is the more de
by virkku
Here it is: * * * The plot of The Sin Eater was a muddled one. This is where the film starts getting ridiculous and boring instead of just being boring. Some really confusing crap happens. Sacrilegious acting by Peter Weller. The only sinister thing this Sin Eater does is provoke some of the worst expository dialogue this side of a film school production. At this point in the movie, who cares? I didn't, the people at the screening didn't, and hopefully, you dear reader shouldn't as well. Final word: not even the Sin Eater could absolve this film. * * * That was the review. The rest of it was only spoilers where the guy tells the ENTIRE story of the film.
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...Sin Eaters got their name because loved ones left food around the body of a deceased person as far back as 1000 A.D. The food was to absorb the dead person's sins and the priest would eat it. Hence the name, "Sin Eater." But, of course, the "Powers-That-Be" say we must have a dazzling special effects scene where the dead pesron's sins are absorbed from the air into the Sin Eater's body.
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I don't think he saw the film, he could have gotten that much information off of upcomingmovies.com -
That was phenomenal spoiling. Well played mate. No wonder Vincent Cassel left.
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...unless there is Shannyn Sossamon nudity!!!
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"Mysterious, electronic music bumpin, secret underworld of renegade priests" Isn't that the plot for "Priest 2: Back To The Batty?" ;-p In all seriousness, I've learned not to let other people's reviews swing my judgement a lot of times before, I'll wager this might be "so bad it's good". I DO wish I'd listened to Pearl Harbour reviews before seeing it though...then again I thought everyone who slagged off ther SFX in Spider-Man were talking out of their arses. Oh, what a world! P$
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I recall something along these lines on Sci-Fi channel's Exposure, a short film about a sin-eater who never wants to have kids because the kids are required to eat all the sins he's consumed; then hooks up with this twisted chick who gets off on eating sins.
I don't remember more than that, but it sounds like the short film (which I remember as more than a little wickedly funny) trumps the Hollywood production here... -
And it's really tragic because she didn't do anything wrong. But her lack of NAME prevented larger audiences from buying into the movie, and directors that go with her as a leading lady are begging to make the same mistake.
Why this movie is like a 'Knight's Tale' reunion is beyond me, but you never know what people will buy.
Hot or not, SS cannot 'make' a role... and this movie will tank. Too bad, Ledger and Addy deserve better. JMHO -
A Knight's Tale is brainless mainstream trash. To place the blame on one actress is ridiculous. The film should never have existed in the first place.
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Exactly how would that work? Sounds like a cinematic oxymoron to me...
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Jul 16, 2002 4:48:19 PM CDT
LawnWrangler: Actually, we see montage sequences comprised of on
by fatpaul
Usually it's just called a shot, but if somebody wants to call it a single-shot montage, I guess that's their business.
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I figure all of them Hollywood folk be lying about it. I read all about it at Big-headed Pygmies http://www.geocities.com/bigheadedpygmies
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It sounded pretty sweet the way Helgeland originally filmed it. It had Angie Dickinson and everything!
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Jul 16, 2002 11:23:49 PM CDT
So when do Spider-Man and Daredevil show up to kick The Sin Eate
by mcvamp
Oh. Never mind. Although that would probably be a decent movie.
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I've never seen that flick but it sounds like that scene fits the criterea...
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Payback rules. Any movie with James Coburn in it automatically kicks ass. As for film described above. Ehhh. Not that interested. Sounds pretty hokey. Maybe it's too far away from release.
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fuck you. love shannyn.
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