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1. 
   Electrified_Voltage from Guelph, Ontario, Canada
   

   Feb 17, 2010

   A memorable thriller, but also a slightly disappointing one

   This romantic thriller was made over a decade ago, years before I was
   old enough to watch R-rated movies, and by the time I rented it just
   yesterday, I still didn't know much about it. However, I did know that
   the co-stars were Mel Gibson and Julia Roberts, two Hollywood movie
   stars I had been familiar with for a long time. I also knew that it was
   directed by Richard Donner, who directed the "Lethal Weapon"
   quadrilogy, which Gibson also co-starred in. I had seen all four of
   those films, and thought that overall, it was a good franchise. So, I
   rented "Conspiracy Theory" because I knew it was another film directed
   by Donner and starring Gibson and it also looked like a promising
   thriller. Still, I wanted to like it more than I did.

   Jerry Fletcher is a New York taxi driver and dedicated conspiracy
   theorist. He can think of conspiracy theories for anything, and
   constantly talks to his passengers about them. He even writes his
   theories in his own newsletter, which is sent to only five different
   people in the mail. The taxi driver has a crush on Alice Sutton, and
   woman who works for the Justice Department and whose father was
   murdered, but she doesn't know about Fletcher's feelings towards her.
   One day, after he is kicked out of Alice's office, he is soon captured
   by a group of CIA agents and finds himself in a mysterious place where
   he is tortured by a CIA doctor named Dr. Jonas! This sends Jerry into a
   fit of insanity, and after he bites the doctor's nose, severely
   injuring him, he manages to escape from the building. It turns out that
   at least one of the New York taxi driver's many conspiracy theories
   appears to be true, but he can't tell which one it is!

   The beginning shows the main character ranting to various passengers in
   his cab about his conspiracy theories, and this is a fairly shaky
   beginning. Soon after that, there's a flashy sequence showing Jerry's
   frightening memories, and I found this part to be a little rushed and
   unfocused. A lot of the film can probably be described that way. That
   part is followed by a cheesy and overlong scene with the taxi driver
   watching his love interest through her window, singing on her
   treadmill. Despite all this, it still looks like it's going to be at
   least a fairly decent thriller around the beginning and it is at times,
   but it's not consistent enough. The early torture scene didn't do much
   for me, and it even features frightening memories of Jerry's flashing
   before his eyes again, with the same problems as the first time this
   happens. Another thing that doesn't help is that Jerry's constant
   conspiracy theories can get tiring. Fortunately, there are definitely
   some good thrills and action, and Mel Gibson puts on an impressive
   performance as Jerry Fletcher, though his character here is no match
   for the likable Martin Riggs in the "Lethal Weapon" series. Julia
   Roberts as Alice Sutton and Patrick Stewart (another actor I've been
   familiar with for a long time) as Dr. Jonas are also memorable cast
   highlights.

   At 135 minutes, this 1997 thriller is a fairly long movie, and later in
   the film, it didn't seem as flawed to me as it did for a long time
   before then. It might improve after a while, and Gibson's character
   might eventually get easier to sympathize with. I may have been worn
   out during the second half or so, and get the feeling I could have
   gotten just a BIT more out of the film (at least closer to the end) if
   I'd had a bit more energy. For that reason, I feel I could almost give
   it a 7/10 instead of a 6. On the other hand, I don't think having a
   high energy level would have hidden this movie's severe flaws from me,
   flaws which make "Conspiracy Theory" somewhat disappointing. Even if it
   does improve along the way, I would say it definitely takes quite a
   while to do so. This movie is by no means horrible, and could be
   entertaining if you like a good romantic thriller and are old enough to
   see the violence here, but it still didn't meet my expectations.

   (reply)
2. 
   movie-viking from United States
   

   Oct 10, 2008

   Good (tho violent) action/romance/ teen to adult movie!

   *** This review may contain spoilers ***

   This is almost better on the second viewing because you can see the
   hints of future plot twists. (Start with the helicopter early on…the
   street repair work…most of the later twists are hinted at but you
   must look close.) Mel Gibson is the streetwise (tho brain fried) cabbie
   who has a kinda Man of Le Mancha love from afar for Assistant DA Julia
   Roberts. Gibson spouts off all sorts of conspiracy theories in a quick
   montage to various cab passengers….as he drives thru NYC and wonders
   what the "spooks" (CIA or the like) are up to.

   Gibson's character also creates and distributes a tiny "Conspiracy
   Theory" newsletter. When four of his FIVE conspiracy magazine
   subscribers are murdered – Julia Roberts take him seriously. The
   harmless goofy guy who once saved her life – and who follows her around
   like a harmless stray dog – is actually on to something. So she starts
   investigating and yes – the real conspiracy theory villains go after
   her too! Great villain – some good plot twists – MUSIC tells you what's
   going on in his head! Tho the "government as the villain" is a tired,
   overdone pre 9/11 theme, it's still interesting here. I would give it a
   higher rating except for the repeat of this worn out theme.

   It's way too violent for small children. Sound and strobe light effects
   add to the violence effect.

   Note: It's also interesting to see a man willing to die for a woman,
   versus merely get her to sleep with him…Chivalry – even NCY cabby
   style – is not dead.

   (reply)
3. 
   ShempMyMcMalley from United States
   

   Jul 04, 2008

   And the Oscar goes to…

   *** This review may contain spoilers ***

   Spoiler Warning: Wow! The same guy that wrote the screenplay for
   'Mystic River', 'L.A. Confidential,' and 'Payback' wrote this too? The
   fact that this trite, obnoxious, ludicrous movie ever got made is a
   conspiracy theory in and of itself. Earthquakes? There might be an
   easier way to kill the president. The stultifying ending was obviously
   tacked on by a studio executive to appease the masses, and the love
   story is completely inane. Oh yeah, it is tooooo long at 135 minutes.
   That is the problem with the studio Hollywood system, sometimes, or a
   lot of times, they like to tinker and add implausibilities; Brian
   Hegeland's script had to better than this, didn't it?

   (reply)

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