(2012-04-20 00:51:12)

Like Handing Dung to Picasso

Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?) Disclaimer: I received this DVD for free through the Amazon Vine program. I review everything I receive through Vine as if I actually paid for it.This film is a bit odd to say the least. The story goes that Jack Mabry (DeNiro) is a parole officer who is pretty much just a shell of a man, living life from day to day and just going through the motions, with nothing tying it all together for him. For proof that he is disconnected from life one need only look at what he did with his daughter to keep his marriage intact. Still not sure how a woman wouldn't just grab the kid and leave one day while this guy is at work, but this is the movies and logic and common sense doesn't always make good film. And unfortunately neither does what they did with this movie.So Jack is near retirement and asks to keep his current inmates and make final decisions on those only. In comes Stone (Norton). Stone is a bit of an odd duck. He didn't assist in the murder of his grandparents, but he did set the house on fire which is why he's in jail. While serving his time, Stone has an epiphany and begins to feel the power of God flowing through him. Jack, being nothing more than a lifeless shell and believing in nothing, can't comprehend this new found love of God and instead chalks it up to a ploy to get out of jail. In order to get out of jail, Stone convinces his wife (Lucetta (Jovovich)) to seduce Jack which doesn't work... at first.The majority of the movie takes place in Jack's office and is almost completely dialog driven. I won't spoil the film for anyone actually wanting to watch it, but it's pretty obvious what Stone's fate will be but who remains "sane" in the end might surprise you. Or not, with how telegraphed and predictable it all really is.In regards to the film itself, it's boring. It's slow. It's overly long. It's a bit pretentious and preachy. I really do not like this movie at all.So how then, does it get 2 stars? The actors. DeNiro, Norton and Jovovich are, in a word, phenomenal and the only thing that could raise this from 1 star. Their characters are believable, well acted and well done. They hit every note perfectly. Despite having some amazing actors (and actress), the film disappoints in every other aspect. The script they were given is like handing dung to Picasso and expecting something great. You know that what he'll give you will be the best, most unique thing he can manage, but in the end it is still limited by the medium. I understand the concept of an art film is to make one think. Sure, one could pull all sorts of things from this film if they were so inclined. The problem is that most people won't be able to get past the horrid script and staid presentation. As one other reviewer here said, it's almost about as interesting as watching a stone. Now for the technical aspects of the DVD itself.Video:Very nicely encoded. No compression issues. No blocking. No blooming. No weird video anomalies at all. I suppose this is to be expected with 15 years of DVD (really, it's been around that long) experience under content providers' belts, this is as it should be.There is a lot of fine detail to be seen and on a good upscaling DVD player on an HDTV most people will likely not miss HD too much. It's nowhere near as sharp as HD, but for a DVD the amount of detail is nothing short of great.Audio:Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. Honestly though, considering the film is dialog driven, what's the point of 5.1 encoding other than a bullet point on the back of the box? There are no real surround effects and in all you could watch through your TV speakers and not miss anything. Music is pretty much nonexistent. The audio is well encoded and there are no issues. Again, 15 years of experience with a format helps.Extras:A single real extra is included on the disc. It's a rather paltry, disappointing 7 minute making of. Other than this extra, unless you count previews for other movies worth including in a discussion about extras, there isn't much here. And the making of really doesn't illuminate much about the film itself.Packaging:It comes with a nice cardboard slipcover. Why? I don't know. It's a copy of the cover and the back cover, so why did they decide to waste money on the slipcover? Maybe somewhere they were told by adding a slipcover they'd sell more copies? I don't know. The DVD case is pretty much standard, forgettable fare.In the end this is a very good DVD release of a horrid, boring and preachy film.With the actors involved you would most likely expect something much, much better than this. Norton as Stone is superb and almost unforgettable. Everything else, is quite forgettable.I was wondering why I was offered this DVD for free through Amazon. Surely, I thought, with the actors involved it had to have done well theatrically. It had a $22 million budget (not bad for an art film) and only pulled in $1.8 million domestically. Worldwide receipts show it pulled in a total of about $8.5 million. Perhaps they were thinking that if enough people on Amazon Vine enjoy the movie and rate it highly, DVD sales will soar. Based on my experience, this tactic should hopefully fail.Yes, I got it for free. Free, however, doesn't mean something is GOOD. And this film is not good at all.

(2012-04-19 09:15:17)

robert de niro!!

Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?) A CONVICTED ARSONIST LOOKS TO MANIPULATE A PAROLE OFFICER INTO A PLAN TO SECURE HIS PAROLE BY PLACING HIS BEAUTIFUL WIFE IN THE LAWMAN'S PATH.i liked this movie. good movie

Carlos Campos

(2012-04-11 04:15:16)

It's a movie for a "thinking mind"

First of all the trailer is indeed misleading, it isn't a thriller or afast-paced movie but it is a very good movie. In my opinion this is a movie for a "thinking mind", it may looksuperficial but if you look to it closely and try to read between thelines there's a lot more to it.Great acting job of Robert DeNiro and Edward Norton in a very envolvingstory. I almost gave up of the movie after I saw the 5,7 here in thevoting poll but I decided to give it a try and I'm very glad I did, Ibelieve it grows on you after you see it. It is a very "real" moviewith very "real" issues and subjects.If you like to see movies just to see action and rushing camera anglesgo somewhere else, but if you like to go beyond of what's in thesurface make yourself a favor and watch it.

Edmund

(2012-04-10 16:37:22)

Disappointed

Last movie with Edward Norton & Robert De Niro in 2001 called the score was outstanding acting by Edward Norton,I was looking forward for another exciting action repeat of the two.but boy was I disappointed. boring movie,with a boring story.don't see this movie,wait until It's on TV.don't even waste you're money on DVD either.Edmund.

JoAnn

(2012-04-04 12:43:14)

Love Ed Norton's acting ability!!

People do not realize that this man's acting capabilities are amazing, these kind of actors come to Hollywood once in a blue moon!!If you noticed, he even changed every octave of his voice for this roll, you just have to get him.When he acts, you beleive who he is in that roll, when he looks into the camera, you know he is that character.I loved his acting in this movie.This unfortunately is what really happens to people in prison, so perhaps, many people did not like the subject matter, which is understandable. My rating for him would be A++++ I left the movie theater very touched by him, my friend and I said, we thought Norton should win an oscar!!It may have been a bit confusing for some people!At the end, at first, I thought, when he was released from prison that he was still with his wife, but it made you think, he may have just used her to get his prison release OK'd by DeNiro.Let's see if Hollywood has any brains this year.Norton - the best!!!!!!!

economically_deficient

(2012-04-03 21:06:58)

An interesting film, grows on you

Going to the theater, my expectations of "Stone" were rather typical ofany thriller produced nowadays. Reading the (somewhat misleading)synopsis and looking through the cast, I couldn't set my hopes up toanything far beyond "ordinary thriller with a decent cast that probablywon't outdo a potentially blunt story".Keep in mind: this is NOT a thriller, at least in the conventionalsense of the word. It's a heavy drama with extremely minimal undertonesof suspense.The basis of the story is quite simple (read the synopsis), but themajority of the film's focus is in its character study. This is wherethe actors seriously shine. That seems to be the issue with most of thenegative responses the film received. Yes, it is slow paced. Yes,there's a lot of religious jargon thrown around. Yes, it is quite theanti-climactic film. But isn't that the point? De Niro, who I haven'tseen in anything memorable after Jackie Brown (okay, I'll exclude TheGood Shepherd), is marvelous as the underplayed Jack Mabrey. The subtlenuances he gives to a character so burned out of work, marriage-sidenote: Frances Conroy was amazing-, and life in general (the speechhe gives at his brother's funeral in the beginning comes to mind) arenothing short of astonishing. I can't stress on how great theperformance was, De Niro has definitely gone back on track.Edward Norton is equally terrific. I could go on and on about hisperfect use of mannerisms, facial gestures, and especially the accentto formulate an interesting character. What I found interesting, andfortunately detracted any notions of the film being one-sided religiouscrap, was the contrast between Jack and Stone's religiousbeliefs/endeavors; Mabrey, for instance, sitting in the porch with hisdisturbingly delusional wife, discussing religion and the existence ofGod, while shunning its very purpose during situations of danger andconflict (the seduction, and another scene towards the end which Iwon't spoil). Stone, on the other hand, a misguided delinquent withstrange views of death, forms an epiphany on the purpose of hisexistence at a more realistic - another good word is unconstitutional -level during his stay in prison, confusing the hell out of everyone dueto his inability of expressing it on a more intellectual basis. Thisprobably makes one very lucky case of ignorance being bliss.The biggest surprise, however, was Milla Jovovich. I honestly did notsee that coming from her at all. Her previous attempt in handling aserious role in ".45" only came off as an attempt, with clunkyoveracting that I guess can be forgiven due to the frigging horriblewriting and direction of that film. But she does extremely well here asStone's wife, the sexy seductress with a personally agonizing struggleof commitment. With her loyalty to Stone becoming blurred through thesexual encounters with other men and her general flirtatious attitude,it was mesmerizing to see Jovovich pull it off so well. She was simplydynamic in this film.As the credits started rolling, I could hear many people in the theaterranting about how their time has been wasted. Lots of "what the hell?"came up, too. I'll admit that it came off as a surprise to how it justabruptly ended, but I eventually managed to appreciate the artisticintegrity of the film. One reviewer here commented: "Stone is wellacted. So what? Do you go to the movies to see good acting classexercises?" I can't put myself to agree with this, the film's got farmore that just "acting class exercises". It is a sharply written, welldirected film that I plan on watching again.It sure got me thinking, and that seems to be what many others don'texpect anymore.

(2012-03-26 03:21:32)

Don't waste your money

This review is from: Stone [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) Boy oh boy did De Niro ever goof taking this job. This film was unbearable to watch. About the only folks who will enjoy this are bible thumpers. ( no disrespect ) The idea was good, but so much more could have been done to make it a watchable film. It was a huge disappointment. If you suffer from insomnia, then this will put you to sleep for sure. Don't waste your money is my advice to you.

phuq

(2012-03-26 00:41:18)

SO Disappointed

This movie starts with a scene where Deniro's daughter is trying to leave husband and he threatens her by taking her child to window and threatens to throw her out the top second floor window. She promises not to leave him and he comes in. For a moment you thought the bee is going to sting him and he is going to accidentally drop the kid. This scene ends and we do NOT return to this, No ending, no closure to this part, to the point you wonder why was it even in the movie at all?The movie goes on to have some nice sex scenes with Jojovich and others.Stone going on about some form of religion I have never heard of.Stone finally gets out by parole and burns Deniro's house down for *****ing his wife.Deniro threatens to kill him with a gun later but does not and lets him go.Then End. No closure. I half expected Norton to use the information gathered by Wife Jojovich to go up north to threaten grand daughter and familyBut as I said, no closure, this movie was terribly written and I expected because of the actors this would be great.I was really fooled on this one.Screenplay FailWriter FailDirector FailI do not blame the actors as they are all three iconical normally.

Gray

(2012-03-19 21:53:25)

Waste of 20 millions and and hour and a half.

The religious theme of the movie is interesting, however, the plot that developed around it was not worth the waste of time or money (read a book). Edward Norton played good and so did De Niro, but the characters portrayed did not do justice to their talent.

bfd21552

(2012-03-19 05:21:23)

Are there answers to the big question?

"Stone" is, as one other reviewer notes, like "Monsters' Ball," but itis so in that the film presents life situations but offers no finalanswers to the title character's (and our) question: "Maybe there's aplan {for our lives} but what it it?" Each of us has to find (or, perhaps, not find) the answer to the"meaning of life" for ourselves.For those who have not yet contemplated this question, or--more to thepoint--for those who believe they have found the answer, then this filmis, indeed, a waste of time.For other viewers "Stone" hits home--and we leave the theateridentifying, if not with the characters, then, at least, with theirperplexity and desires for either closure or redemption.

(2012-03-18 07:21:48)

Misunderstood (a look at the film itself)

'Stone' was not received well critically. It was marketed as a prison drama in which Norton and De Niro tensely face off. It isn't. Once you get over that fact and accept the movie on its own terms, your mind and heart can be opened by its powerful reflections. I believe great cinema works best as a mirror. This describes 'Stone'; not all viewers will see the same story. Some will interpret Norton as a lying sociopath, while I saw him as a man who maintains the upperhand through real--though accidental--spiritual enlightenment. Actually, guilt and enlightenment are the two main undercurrents in the characters' stories. Norton seeks his enlightenment through a religion that helps him to shut his fast mouth and listen; De Niro seeks escape from his "honest and upright" lifestyle through sexual enlightenment. De Niro's life dissolves while Norton's evolves, and the process is nothing short of compelling. You may not expect the end result. Some interesting sidebars: The religion Norton seeks out is referred to as "Zuckangor: The Religion of the Light and Sound of God," startlingly similar to Eckankar (which I was recently and coincidentally introduced to in a local bookstore). The soundtrack reflects this religion, so listen close for slowly building tones that indicate important moments in character development. Also on this note, watch Norton's hair. The acting is incredible (I was surprised by Jovovich, too!), the cinematography is thought-provoking, and the story is beautiful. I agree with the reviewer that thinks this movie will age well.

amanda_chapin

(2012-03-17 19:19:05)

This Film Rocked Me Good

I have never before read or written a movie review but DAMN was thismovie something. It's not just solid actors or a solid script - thisfilm fed my mind. I want to read all the positive reviews beforeposting but I gotta get something out now..."Stone" is about a man who spends his life enslaving people...castingjudgment...taking aim. He drinks and reads the bible to fill a gap hecan not comprehend. The priest gives him clique advice from a mug andquotes it as scripture. He only starts to feel vibrations when hefinally gets f-cked. He wakes up just enough to ironically say, "youruined my life." In actuality all his apparent "misfortunes" serve asthe only sign that he will ever receive redemption.Then there is the awakened character who hears the buzz of the bee andrealizes the charade - who refuses to put stock in an ego. He doesn'tkill his grandparents, he burns their bodies as a cremation rite ofpassage. The deer on a prison wall is the same as a deer in the wild ifyou are present (or not present) with either image.And the reversal of apparent fortunes - as Bob Dylan writes, "I canhear the night watchman click his flashlight, ask himself if it's himor them that's insane." The man with the power, the gun, the ego is thesaddest, weakest man. The man behind bars, quite clearly the mostspiritually advanced. At least advanced enough to know that his wife isan alien.And perhaps this should be taken more literally: alien. Jovovich comesoff initially as a sweet teacher, perhaps a little promiscuous. We likeher when she comes into jail with no underwear. But then we see thatshe feeds off linear conquests - the look on her face when she sees howlittle her husband cares for his upcoming freedom? She gets no creditand it throws her off. She thinks, "I did good, I did good." She issoulless in her sex, soulless in her motives, soulless in hersimplicity - she laughs at the prospect of something like god. Sherecites hollow mantras to young students.Madylyn I don't really get. One reviewer mentioned that she's wastingher incarnation and blames her husband for this. But perhaps shesymbolizes the enslavement women have when they give birth. She givesup her life to save her daughter and at the end that daughter isputting on sunblock to the granddaughter - a symbolic gesture of lifepreservation. Most women are cursed (blessed?) with the ability tocreate monsters or saints...it's the flip of a coin and yet most womenare ingrained with something which says "give this human birth a chanceto create light." Would not burning all our bodies actually free usfrom the ego, the attachment to worldly illusions? What's the freakingpoint, after all? And so the fly...What a concrete image - a body pressed beneath a window slammed by awoman attempting to preserve a body. "We start out as a stone and thenwe're plants and then we're (ahem) bees." We see the concrete images ofdeath: the flag strewn casket, the bee, the light lacking in Madylyn'seyes. Our perception of "the end" "the start" and time ticking...allsolid illusions.I could go on...the film rocked me.

(2012-03-08 21:42:15)

hmmm, I like it

Robert De Niro plays the role of a parole officer, and his job is to determine whether this one prisoner (Ed Norton's character) should be released from prison or not based on a few lengthy discussions the two of them have in a small and dingy office room concerning Ed's troubled actions in the past.It turns out that the prisoners extremely attractive wife (Milla Jovovich's character) eventually has her own sleazy ways of getting her husband out of prison, but I won't spoil how it happens (despite several reviews already doing it here on amazon- be careful when reading other reviews, because others have spoiled the storyline quite a bit).Yes, some of the segments bordered on weird or incoherent, but I seriously do not believe Stone is nearly as confusing as many say it is. This is because much of the storyline is totally up to interpretation. The opening scene for example, has a few different ways to interpret, and how it may or may not connect to the rest of the storyline. Actually, this particular scene had me fooled into thinking Robert De Niro was a psychopath and would eventually explode... and because of something that happens later on, hey, maybe he *was* crazy, I don't know. I don't wanna name the exact segment later in the movie that I'm referring to.I really think people who are trashing Stone are placing too much emphasis on plot coherence, or a simple explanation at the very end to tie all the events together. Which is totally fine of course, but I happened to admire the different ways to analyze it. Also, I definitely did NOT think this was a boring film, unlike many people. Apparently a good number of people who watched it spent the majority of their time looking at the clock and waiting for it to end. I, on the other hand, was on the edge of my seat (well... I was actually standing on the cold kitchen floor, hehe) totally glued to my television set. There were literally several different ways this storyline could have gone, and I applaud the writers for making it a neverending guessing game. Great, *severely* underappreciated suspense.

wootg001

(2012-03-08 06:23:35)

wow just wow.. crap?

wow really probably the worst films ever. i love watching films.i thinki enjoyed pushing the eject button more than i did in the whole timewatching it. first 10 minutes i thought what the hell is this. then ithought well some movies just start crap and end good. i thought i mustget better throughout the whole way , i was stupid enough to not readthe review before doing so, was decision ever..this was just boring.notconfusing just boring the whole way through.just no point making thefilm. i have watched some rubbish films however this must to be theworst. when the creater thought of this he must of been on his deathbed

(2012-03-06 10:07:44)

Good acting, but overall the film was disappointing

Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?) I love dark psychological thrillers. Unfortunately this film did not live up to my expectations. Robert De Niro is perhaps the least transparent character in the film, and as he enters a downward spiral at the end of his career, one of his cases comes up for parole and is refreshingly honest about his intentions and internal battles. As De Niro deconstructs, it seems to propel Norton to a higher and calmer place. At the center of the relationship between Norton and De Niro is Milla Jovovich. a temptress, devoted wife, schoolteacher, and something else entirely at other times. She provides an interesting backdrop to the relationship between De Niro and Norton. Unfortunately, the film seemed more "made for television" than something worth shelling out money for. There is a very violent scene that takes place in the prison that seemed to go way too long, and De Niro, being seduced by Jovovich, seems to not enjoy his affair in the least even though he seems unable to successfully end it. Jovovich on the other hand seems to thrive on this affair and perhaps others. Fans of Edward Norton would be the only audience I would recommend this film to. His character progression was interesting and satisfying, especially in the last quarter of the film.

(2012-03-05 18:11:37)

what a bad movie

if you gave this movie more than 2 stars you have no clue to what a good movie is. what a total wast of time. not worth the power to run the t.v.

(2012-03-01 20:08:45)

pretty interesting

This review is from: Stone (DVD) This movie waz pretty cool,it kept me interested throughout the whole movie.It waz definitly worth wat I paid for it.

(2012-03-01 05:55:53)

less than dull

I was looking forward to seeing Norton and Deniro team up again (the score). Unfortunatly this movie fell way short, thank god for katz and free downloads.

(2012-02-21 17:30:44)

Hits the Right Note

When this hit the cinemas it got rather lukewarm reviews. I like Ed Norton so I thought I'd give it a shot. He has a knack for picking good projects so I figured "how bad could it be?" Well, it seems I liked it more than most of the critics. I'll be brief on the description. Norton is in prison for arson and accessory to murder. He's nearing the end of his rope so he convinces his wife (Milla Jovovich) to seduce his parole review officer (DeNiro) so he'll have an edge on getting out. He also taps into a seeming pop-style, self help philosophy to stack the deck in his favor. Things don't go exactly as planned.This is a performance movie and the performances are great. Norton is outstanding. Watching his transformation throughout the film, alone, is worth the price of admission. The corn-rows, the slight rasp in the voice, the way he handles the lingo are done to a "T." DeNiro, whom I've grown tired of over the years, turns in a performance I thought he'd grown incapable of. He's married but he's unto himself. He has little use for his wife but won't let her go. He has a daughter but seems to not have any real contact with her. He's on the verge of retirement and he's going through the motions. His roller coaster ride is something to behold. Milla Jovovich is a big surprise. I like her well enough but she outdoes herself here. Like the other two characters, she starts out to do one thing but that thing takes on a life of it's own and catches her off guard.I like this movie. I like the way the story unfolds. All the production values are top shelf and allow the viewer to enter the film. All these people are looking for themselves and sometimes what they find is good. Sometimes..........

merylmatt

(2012-02-21 14:02:05)

Character Movie, surprise ending

I can certainly see where some people would be disappointed in thismovie. *** possible spoiler** the movie does not have a tight, wrappedup ending. It's loose, sloppy, ambiguous, open ended. To me, that isrefreshing, because that is far more realistic - but this is supposedto be art, yes? So it should have a meaning - or must it? Is it betterleft open to the viewer, or must the movie's meaning be crystalclear?Is it sufficient enough to make you wonder? The movie was at itsmost intense when Ed Norton and Mila's characters were trying to conBob DeNiro. My wife asked - can't Bobby see that his actions cannot endwell? Watching Mila's seduction of Bobby - the coy, teasing way. Theuse of her body to gain power and manipulate a man. Of course Bobbyknows what s going on in his mind, but his heart, his life has been soempty to that point, he'd rather be taken for a ride until it allcrashes down.Ed Norton character changes - from a con trying to find leverage onBobby to actually believing what he is learning about religion, beliefand life. Ironically, he is the one who grows and learns the most. Themovie has its flaws, but I enjoyed watching the slow boat go down theriver and over the falls.