Articles Log

By Rick Morales / Published on May 3th, 2008 / Entertainment

The world is your oyster darling and there are a lot of great stories in that little oyster. Stories of betrayal and faith and vengeance, but who would have thought there would be a story as far-fetchedly out of this oyster as Machiavelli Hangman (http://www.hangmanmovie.com)? Does this plot fit in any of the conventional films that we have previously grown to watch and know and love? In film school, they taught us that there were 20 main plots because those are the stories that can tell the human condition. These range from the heroic adventure to the underdog story to the sacrifice and countless others. Machiavelli Hangman seems to take all those sub-categories and create one that stands on its own. It's a combination of the underdog story with the sacrifice and the heroic adventure.

The filmmakers of this film have truly created something so unique that it represents a new breed of filmmaking altogether. When I was watching the film, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. Whether it was a comedy like the one I had recently seen with Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers), or if it was an inspirational historical drama like Cinderella Story or an action adventure bonanza like Spielberg's latest War of the Worlds.

Being a film critic, I have to criticize, but it makes my job so difficult when there's barely anything to criticize. After the first 10 minutes, I simply just sat back... I'm sorry, let me rephrase, I was uncontrollably pushed back to settle into my comfortable seat and enjoy the fluidity of the story. It flowed like a stream, so seamlessly that I completely forgot that I have been a critique for the last two years and I went back to my childhood when I used to watch films with an innocent nonanalytical mind.

The actors were all splendid as they delivered one-liners like "I was born out of a coconut" or consistent references to "rubbing one out." The dialogue was a familiar reminder of Quentin Tarantino's free flowing rhetorical conversations but in this movie, every single detail is there for a reason.

In conclusion, I must tell you that no matter how cynical and cautious you are about movies these days, this film will find a way to creep into your brain and stay there until you can't think of anything else. It has beats and it absolutely had me in a tight grip by the 10th beat which happens within the first twenty-five minutes. Machiavelli Hangman is a trap and you will walk in and get caught and love every second of it.




About the author:


Rick Morales is a humorist and a film
reviewer for various online publications.
Machiavelli Hangman
http://www.hangmanmovie.com