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Average User Score: 8 (24 sources)

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V_Translanka

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A really fun movie. I really liked the characters, though it's hard not to think of Luke & Owen as anything but brothers sometimes. Some great lines as well. "That grand piano must've cost at least a hundred grand." Very fun, funny,...
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A really fun movie. I really liked the characters, though it's hard not to think of Luke & Owen as anything but brothers sometimes. Some great lines as well. "That grand piano must've cost at least a hundred grand." Very fun, funny, silly adventure of a movie about friends & growing up and all that good nonsense.

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Posted nov 13, 2008 11:04 am pt

alichino

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Quirky. Original. Odd. Peculiar. Novel.
On its own, simple adjectives such as those probably would not bolster a movies appeal, but this film has just enough crazy depth behind it that the viewer gets to dig a little under the...
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Quirky. Original. Odd. Peculiar. Novel.
On its own, simple adjectives such as those probably would not bolster a movies appeal, but this film has just enough crazy depth behind it that the viewer gets to dig a little under the surface.
The story is pretty straight forward, and fairly accurate in the filmspot summary, although the second job (the first job is just Anthony and Dignan...and funny) Dignan has them pull is not for Mr. Henry, it's to get Mr. Henry's attention so that the three of them can get in the gang. It is the third job that Mr. Henry suggests they do).
The questions that arise from this movie are pretty straight forward too. The real depth of the film is revealed while Anthony is still in the Hospital when the Doctor reminds him that it is not his responsibility to solve everyone's problems. And boy does he struggle with this one; Until Inez. Of course he helps her too at first. That's where the writing shines in this movie: The physical manifestations of the characters flaws are revealed to us and through his own issues he is allowed to discover them and do the best he can to grow past them.
The acting is very good, but, usually in low budget art films it is, because a lot more time is given to character development and the small size of the crew allows for a closer knit bond between the cast members. They understand each other.
The Direction is pretty plain, but it does not need to be Ran or Forrest Gump. It's suppose to be simple and straight forward, and Wes if you're reading this, It has a sort of "Straight Story" feel to it.
If you like unusual films with not quite sane characters then you'll probably like Bottle Rocket.

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Posted apr 5, 2007 11:30 pm pt

konichiwa21

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+ extremly hillarious parts
+ good story

- visuals aren't that great (suprisingly)

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Posted feb 11, 2007 11:05 am pt

digi_matrix

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Unmissable. Wholeheartedly recommendable as a great afternoon movie. The ending robbery scene is one of the funniest pieces of comedic genius I've seen in a while.

To be one of the first movies from Wes Anderson, it's a very offbeat...
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Unmissable. Wholeheartedly recommendable as a great afternoon movie. The ending robbery scene is one of the funniest pieces of comedic genius I've seen in a while.

To be one of the first movies from Wes Anderson, it's a very offbeat comedy that shines the more you get into it. Luke Wilson and Owen Wilson are a natural fit as Dignette and Anthony, who don't appear to be brothers (unlike in real life) but more as friends. Their banal attempts at making a living from thieving results in very funny moments. Owen plans way too much, a brilliant scene is where he concocts a 75 year plan for the both of them! He plans too much, but things never go as planned, or not how he envisions them. Anthony seems like a very nice guy, who doesn't really want to rob all the time, and has a moral dilemma. The movie almost becomes like a road trip movie in the middle.
At first, I wasn't liking the movie. It was different from Rushmore and Anderson's other movies, so off the bat I wasn't comfortable with the characters. However, the further I went into the film, the more I grew to it and then started loving the movie. The writing is great, with some funny lines and just plain quirkiness. Camerawork is beautiful and creative. It's a completely different film compared to Wes Anderson's other movies, but still has some great actors and comedic situations. One great scene is when Anthony is trying to talk to Inez through Rocky as a translator. It's a sweet relationship, but you know the language barrier may come in the way, yet Anthony never looks that phased until he reveals to Grace (his very young sister) that he regrets not having learned Spanish. The fireworks scenes are funny too (not in a "ha ha" way. You just know everyone was having a great time doing this movie. With such varied and memorable movies as Royal Tenenbaums, Rushmore, Life Aquatic, Wes Anderson has done very well for himself as a bright new talent who has his own original way of making movies. Quirky is the perfect word to describe his movies, although they can be very emotionally seriousat times, which gives more depth than just saying his forte is "quirky comedy" or "deadpan humor". The music selection on this film is the best out of the rest he's done, almost wants me to buy the soundtrack.

All in all, an amazing movie. I'll leave you with this:
Amount you get when stealing a store near the pump = a few $100 bucks.
The price of love for Inez = $500.
Seeing Dennis Hopper with a pony-tail = Priceless.

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Posted feb 8, 2007 1:54 pm pt

• [+] Entertainment Weekly
  
  83
  The title refers to cheap fireworks that fizz before they flame out quietly, and that's what three Southwestern slackers do in this amiable heist movie-cum-road flick.

  by Steve Daly | Read Full Review »
• [+] Dallas Observer
  
  80
  Its tone has elements of Jim Jarmusch and the Coen brothers but without Jarmusch's self-conscious artiness or the Coens' hip snottiness.

  by Andy Klein | Read Full Review »
• [+] Variety
  
  80
  Full of surprising warmth and charm, unexpected plot turns and droll characters that bounce off each other in refreshing ways.

  by David Rooney | Read Full Review »
• [+] USA Today
  
  75
  Rocket flies with comic-kaze crooks. [21 February 1996, p. D6]

  by Mike Clark | Read Full Review »
• [+] Chicago Reader
  
  70
  Fresh, character driven, often funny, and unfashionably upbeat (as well as offbeat).

  by Jonathan Rosenbaum | Read Full Review »
• [+] The New Yorker
  
  70
  Meanders pleasantly, like a road movie, with a seventies-style, anything-goes offhandedness that whisks the audience through the rough spots.

  by Bruce Diones | Read Full Review »
• [+] Washington Post
  
  70
  A hilarious, inventive and goofy breath of fresh air.

  by Desson Thomson | Read Full Review »
• [+] ReelViews
  
  63
  sStarts and finishes strong, but, somewhere in the middle, it loses its focus and its way.

  by James Berardinelli | Read Full Review »
• [+] The New York Times
  
  60
  A mildly facetious tone limits Anderson's film to the lightweight, but the collective enthusiasm behind this debut effort still comes through. What's best about Bottle Rocket is not the laid-back pranks that inflate its story to feature length but the offbeat elan with which that story is told.

  by Elvis Mitchell | Read Full Review »
• [+] Washington Post
  
  60
  Gets by on quirky charm and slacker chic-but just barely.

  by Rita Kempley | Read Full Review »
• [+] TV Guide
  
  60
  This lightweight road picture about a group of inept thieves has an uneven beginning but ends up charming and satisfying.

  by Staff (Not credited) | Read Full Review »
• [+] Austin Chronicle
  
  50
  Bottle Rocket's minimalist pop has a refreshing flavor but insufficient bubbles for a long, cool drink. Maybe someone ought to think about culling this thing down into a sustainable short film.

  by Marjorie Baumgarten | Read Full Review »
• [+] Chicago Sun-Times
  
  50
  Entertaining if you understand exactly what it is: if you see it as a film made by friends out of the materials presented by their lives and with the freedom to not push too hard.

  by Roger Ebert | Read Full Review »
• [+] San Francisco Chronicle
  
  25
  The film itself is wretched. A grueling, numbing black hole.

  by Mick LaSalle | Read Full Review »
• [+] San Francisco Examiner
  
  12
  Several times during this film, you wish you were a bottle rocket so you could explode out of your seat and leave this tedious mess behind.

  by Barry Walters | Read Full Review »