Jack and the Giants

More bearable than expected. Most of it is an actually fine and atmospheric fairy tale that’s not afraid of killing characters rather brutally (i.e. it’s not as awfully childish as the trailer had made me fear). That said, it’s still a shame to see an A-list director making this fantasy schlock. (07.06.2013)

It’s not good when in the afternoon you go to the cinema for a similar digital fairytale Maleficent and in the evening, you watch a year older but digitally not any worse movie Jack the Giant Slayer. However, it is apparent that Jack is a little sloppy. Not digitally, it probably isn’t even possible, but rather in the story itself. The most distinct one is Ewan McGregor, who is a supporting character and that is suspicious. While the two hours watching it were nicely spent, unlike Maleficent, I probably won’t watch this fairytale again. (10.06.2014)

Wannabe Stardust. A wacky fantasy fairytale with no lightness or humor, not to speak of the chemistry between the central duo. And although it’s pretty hard for the above reasons, in the end it’s more or less watchable. The crowning stupidity of this is, however, that although the movie ends after running for an hour and a half, instead of the final credits a forcibly grafted on half-hour of fight mayhem takes off and it’s... massively unbearable (and I found Jack similarly unbearable too). (11.06.2013)

Sure, modern technology can work wonders, and thanks to it, film special effects have reached an incredibly high level. This fairy tale has a solid budget and therefore is capable of offering a spectacular spectacle. Moreover - and I find this appealing - it is not affected by that overly sweet Disney style. It can be dark and at times it even crosses the line into the horror genre. On the other hand, if you compare Jack the Giant Slayer to the successful film Stardust, you quickly notice Jack's weaknesses. It lacks lightness, functional humor, and the charisma of the characters. What troubles Jack the most is the lack of chemistry between the main protagonists and, above all, the painful casting mistake in the role of Jack. Overall impression: 55%. (30.09.2015)

An unfairly underestimated movie, or rather kids fairytale. The special effects are not so great, but that just makes the story more interesting. One-liners come one after another (there could be more of them) and McGregor makes the most of his role. A superb ending with a cute coronation finale. (01.09.2014)

Ein fantastisches Märchen – fantastisch ist das Genre sowie die Ausführung. Bryan Singer hat sich mit der Darstellung der Riesen viel Mühe gegeben. Er hat sie so aufgenommen, damit es für den jüngeren Teil des Publikums spannend und für die älteren Zuschauer*innen unterhaltsam ist. Beides ist ihm dank der sympathischen Schauspieler (Stanley Tucci ist herrlich heimtückisch, Nicholas Hoult kann man auch verkraften), eines ausgewogenen Drehbuchs (welches zum Glück weiß, was Abstand bedeutet, und nicht so verbissen düster wie z. B. bei Snow White and the Huntsman ist), einer vernünftigen Länge und dank toller Tricks gelungen. Der Epilog muss jeden davon überzeugen, dass Jack And The Giants vor allem deshalb entstanden ist, weil es den Autoren Spaß gemacht hat und weil es auch dem Publikum Spaß machen soll. (25.08.2014)

The reason for the high rating is really simple: I got about ten times more fun than I had dared to expect. Singer is a director with capital D, and this easygoing fantasy adventure flourishes under his hands as admirably as his comic book flicks (X-Men) or dark crime flicks (The Usual Suspects), and I had as much fun watching it as I've had with Hollywood fantasy in a long time. A very, very good and imaginative script, a straightforward narrative, an enchanting, almost fairy-tale atmosphere and a generally likeable cast (perhaps only Hoult is a bit too "plankish"), all in perfect balance and of course complemented by great visual effects, which are the main thing here:-) A perfect diversion for adults and (except for a few moments) for their older kids. 85% (26.06.2013)

For almost 200 million to make a yawn like that is also an art in its own right. It is practically free of Singer’s dominance, because the film is subject to the total dictatorship of the green screen, which makes the whole thing look like The Prince and the Evening Star: Robert Zemeckis Cut. The enormity of the budget makes it clear how the production underestimated the energy drink consumption of the special effects studio staff (16 of them worked on this – effects studios, not staff), whereas the likes of Neill Blomkamp might have been able to take over the galaxy with similar resources. For real. And then the sporadic quality of the special effects was interesting, as I've seen rendered videos for PC games that looked considerably better. Peter Jackson had hundreds of people create masks, animatronic puppets, and location models, which were then post-produced by other people again; Brian Singer stood in front of a hundred and fifty chubby graphic designers, saying "I want those giants to conquer that city and the humans will win in the end. Wake me up when you get it," and went to check his account balance. And that's why this world is so fucked up. (3 stars because the giants conquer the city and the people win in the end) (03.07.2013)

Average. Everything is so incredibly average, including the special effects, sometimes making you feel like you've ended up in a Pixar movie from ten years ago when their tricks didn't work. However, I have to give it less than average because the audience deserves something better, especially when the film is being advertised as expensive. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2013/07/jack-obri-2013-50.html (22.07.2013)