MovieChat Forums > Reign Over Me (2007) Discussion > Overrated

Overrated

posted 12 years ago by MarlboroMoro
5 replies | jump to latest

This is not a terrible movie, but it doesn't deserve the praise or score its got on here. The 9/11 plug comes off lame, but is probably why the movie gets so much praise. The movie has its moments, its an interesting role for Sandler, but at the serious moments his emotions seem quite forced, false even. Still good scenes though, most of the characters are quite familiar from big budget movies, the usual mix of ridiculously irritating to token hot chicks. The movie is pretty predictable too. Like I said, overratedand wouldn't get half the praise without the 9/11 references. The dialogue isn't brilliant either, just ok and the sad music just gets annoying. Just an ok movie, nothing special.

[–] jharmon64 12 years ago

I totally agree that the link to 9/11 was unnecessary, but I loved the film.

Sandler was terrific.

I wished they'd just had his family die another way.

[–] footreads 11 years ago

Families die in a lot of ways including on 9/11. I thought the movie was very good. I thought Adam was great in it.

I don't think the movie or Adams performance was over rated. I never thought he had that performance in him.

Maybe I feel this way because my wife worked at the WTC on that day. Everyone handles grief differently. People who can't understand grief probably have not had it hit them in their lives yet. Give it time boys it will hit your lives sooner or later.

[–] Farshnoshket 11 years ago

I thought the film was quite handling some very difficult subject matter. Adam Sandler did a fine job with this dramatic role.

The rating is an average of the people who decided to rate it, so it is what it is and if you feel it should be less than rate it something less. That's the way it works for all films.

but of course the tell tale sign that something is amiss with the OP is his reference to 'hot chicks', as if films should be rated by how many hot chicks are in a film. Lol

never forget.

[–] MarlboroMoro 11 years ago

Well, I should probably clarify by saying that I don't think it was a terrible movie (as I said originally, simply overrated). Upon a second viewing, I think I appreciated Sandler's performance a lot more because rather than taking issue with individual scenes or the 9/11 plot line, the feeling or vibe of the movie and the complexity of the characters became more tangible. My reference to 'hot chicks' was just pointing out in a sort of colloquial way that no matter how beautiful and interesting and hard hitting a story is on its own, it always seems that they have to include beautiful and perfect looking people as a selling point or as a point of interest. I know I'm probably just over complicating and taking issue with something which is sort of a given with any big budget film.

Having said all of that, it is certainly a moving film, and actually as someone else stated an unexpected and different role for Sandler. I've just recently watched One Hour Photo with Robin Williams as well, and it's always surprising when a comic comes out with a performance which relies entirely on their ability to portray stillness and sadness and so on, and does it brilliantly.

[–] dtizzlefosho 11 years ago

I think it was absolutely necessary to use 9/11 as the vehicle for Charlie's state of being. The city of New York is a huge character in this film. It is much more than just a setting. By using 9/11 as the source of Charlie's turmoil, it have us a glance of how that national tragedy affected individuals. We all felt the communal impact of the attacks, but few really have insight into how they affected. And continue to affect those whose lives were directly changed by them.

So I got this feeling of "oh. Holy hell. This is just one story in a city full of thousands of stories about that day. And probably each was as heartbreaking and traumatic as this one". So to answer your question, I don't think this film would be what it is without the 9/11 story.