Post by StevePulaski on Aug 5, 2011 15:12:37 GMT -5
Rating: ★★
The problem with watching The Wizard now is the fact that it is so dated, and is no longer relevant to anybody, other than people amused by the classics, such as myself. Today's kids aren't going to want to watch this film simply because "it's old." Even I, a retro-Nintendo fan, was bored throughout most of this film.
Reason being why this film was so big at the time was because kids everywhere were in love with the Nintendo Entertainment System, and wanted to see and play anything to do with it. Plus, not only was it a movie with some games referenced in it, it also had the sneak peek of Super Mario Bros. 3. I can't imagine the looks on a child's face as they saw some early footage of one of the greatest games in video game history. It's things like that juice-up the nostalgia meter, but don't do much to juice-up the likability of the film.
The story is about two boys, Corey (Savage) and his brother Jimmy (Edwards), who run away from their parents after a family fights consume the house. Jimmy suffers from a serious mental condition, and remains silent for most of the film. Corey realizes that Jimmy is "a wizard" at video games. He seems pretty calm about his skills as well, and they soon meet up with Haley (Lewis), another runaway who tells them about "Video Armageddon," a big video game event that showcasing player's skill. Suddenly, they are en route to it.
The Wizard's main problem is it is overly written and completely unrealistic, but I think that is what most kids will like about it. Home Alone was very over-the-top, but kids like it because the unlikely happened. Same thing happens with The Wizard. Though too many times these kids are put into serious danger, that no kid would escape. I find it incredibly hard to believe young kids aren't victim to trouble or abduction when they wander the streets aimlessly as runaways escaping kidnappers like they do it all the time.
Every kid who saw this film came for the video game footage. Not the actual storyline. There are parts in the film where games are shown, saying they are on level three or something, when really, it's plain obvious to the character when they are on level. Any kid who was a huge fan of these games was most likely yelling in the theater "hey, he's not on level three," and frankly, if I was eight in 1989 I probably would've too.
The film focuses too much on a senseless, congested storyline when it could be focusing on trying to construct more video game footage for the kids. If you told a child, around eight or nine years old, that this film as going to show five seconds of Super Mario Bros., they wouldn't bite. If you market the film like it centers around that game, then kids would bite. Nintendo could've banked from this a lot more had they simply gave kids what they wanted. It disappoints all around.
Watching the end scene in 2011 doesn't really mean much now, because Super Mario Bros. 3 can now be bought for a few dollars off of Amazon, or at any retro-game used store. All I could think was how many kids screamed at the screen when they saw this come up so abruptly. That's all The Wizard is good for now. Memories, imagining, and nostalgia. Those three things only make for a paper-thin film.
Starring: Fred Savage, Luke Edwards, Jenny Lewis, and Christian Slater. Directed by: Todd Holland.
The problem with watching The Wizard now is the fact that it is so dated, and is no longer relevant to anybody, other than people amused by the classics, such as myself. Today's kids aren't going to want to watch this film simply because "it's old." Even I, a retro-Nintendo fan, was bored throughout most of this film.
Reason being why this film was so big at the time was because kids everywhere were in love with the Nintendo Entertainment System, and wanted to see and play anything to do with it. Plus, not only was it a movie with some games referenced in it, it also had the sneak peek of Super Mario Bros. 3. I can't imagine the looks on a child's face as they saw some early footage of one of the greatest games in video game history. It's things like that juice-up the nostalgia meter, but don't do much to juice-up the likability of the film.
The story is about two boys, Corey (Savage) and his brother Jimmy (Edwards), who run away from their parents after a family fights consume the house. Jimmy suffers from a serious mental condition, and remains silent for most of the film. Corey realizes that Jimmy is "a wizard" at video games. He seems pretty calm about his skills as well, and they soon meet up with Haley (Lewis), another runaway who tells them about "Video Armageddon," a big video game event that showcasing player's skill. Suddenly, they are en route to it.
The Wizard's main problem is it is overly written and completely unrealistic, but I think that is what most kids will like about it. Home Alone was very over-the-top, but kids like it because the unlikely happened. Same thing happens with The Wizard. Though too many times these kids are put into serious danger, that no kid would escape. I find it incredibly hard to believe young kids aren't victim to trouble or abduction when they wander the streets aimlessly as runaways escaping kidnappers like they do it all the time.
Every kid who saw this film came for the video game footage. Not the actual storyline. There are parts in the film where games are shown, saying they are on level three or something, when really, it's plain obvious to the character when they are on level. Any kid who was a huge fan of these games was most likely yelling in the theater "hey, he's not on level three," and frankly, if I was eight in 1989 I probably would've too.
The film focuses too much on a senseless, congested storyline when it could be focusing on trying to construct more video game footage for the kids. If you told a child, around eight or nine years old, that this film as going to show five seconds of Super Mario Bros., they wouldn't bite. If you market the film like it centers around that game, then kids would bite. Nintendo could've banked from this a lot more had they simply gave kids what they wanted. It disappoints all around.
Watching the end scene in 2011 doesn't really mean much now, because Super Mario Bros. 3 can now be bought for a few dollars off of Amazon, or at any retro-game used store. All I could think was how many kids screamed at the screen when they saw this come up so abruptly. That's all The Wizard is good for now. Memories, imagining, and nostalgia. Those three things only make for a paper-thin film.
Starring: Fred Savage, Luke Edwards, Jenny Lewis, and Christian Slater. Directed by: Todd Holland.