madandbad
make that 7.5... frustrating that half points aren't allowed!!! CONTROL was on the budget section in my rental store. I didn't expect much! I was very pleasantly surprised.Sure, I have seen better thrillers... ... but I have seen much worse! Ray Liotta gives his best performance to date, IMHO, and Willem Dafoe is also excellent and believable as his character.I am not going to talk much about the film, save to say... WATCH IT... and make your own mind up! Me? I thought the ending was absolutely fine, and fitting for what preceded! I also have my wife's permission to say so... and she is never wrong!!!
K_Todorov
"Control" had a good premise and idea. With Ray Liota playing a character sentenced to death but who is given a chance for freedom if he participates in an experiment to suppress his violent urges. What could have been an interesting character study about redemption ultimately became a sub-par often melodramatic movie that failed to deliver even the slightest bit of inside on the subject.Liota stars as Lee Ray Oliver a murderer sentenced to death but given a second chance if he participates in a chemical behavioral modification program run by Dr. Michael Copeland (played by William Defoe). The movie's first problem becomes quite apparent after a short while, Liota's character isn't portrayed as a truly evil person, yes he is shown killing people but only members of the mafia, in fact his only civilian victim doesn't even die. Which from the viewer's perspective partly ruins the motivation for the treatment Lee Ray is undertaking.The movie's plot feels confusing not because its hard to understand but because it doesn't know what direction to take. There are actually several sub-plots in it all of which after the final scene feel unfinished, and while some could have played a role in showing Liota's character new found compassion, rather ineffectively if I might add, there is the one dealing with Defoe's character that doesn't have any sort of impact on the central plot. The movie's direction does nothing to cloud the badly written plot, with a heavy dose of mediocrity it feels like you're watching a made for TV production.The only reason this is worth watching is the acting. With some decent to good performances by Liota, Defoe and Rodriguez (who plays Lee Ray's girlfriend in one of the sub-plots). Regrettably the supporting cast fails to keep on their level, making a lot of the supporting characters annoying or just simply badly acted.In the end "Control" fails to impress or use it's interesting ala "Clockwork Orange" premise. Giving us a final product whose melodramatic ending doesn't succeed in achieving any sort of emotional response from the viewer.
PortugalOle7
One wonders why the likes of Ray Liotta, Willem Dafoe, and Stephen Rea would sign on to do a film like this. I seriously hope they actually read the horrible story before agreeing to it.A complete garbage story about a convict saved from execution by being a guinea pig for a doctor. The deal includes trying out a medication that will erase the harmful tendencies of the convicts past, trying to make him a better person for society.I gave it a chance but after about 30 minutes, I realized this story was formed around a single idea and the rest was just filled in along the way. That characters are underdeveloped and you never really get a liking for any of them. Then before you know it, its over, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.The film feels like a movie of the week based on a cheap page turning novel you pick up before you get on an airplane.Unfortunately Liotta and Dafoe don't help. They over-act, probably to compensate for the poor plot.Skip this one if you can. Waste of time.
clarencewhirley
I am an IMDb regular but have only just joined now. I joined because after having seen this movie I was anxious to see just how much other people hated it too, alas, they seem to like it. The film is awful. It has the premise for a good movie otherwise I wouldn't have got it out from the store. The plot and characters hold water, there are more holes than a siv, and the film has a lot less use. I tried to like it, and the actors aren't bad at all, it even has Michelle Rodriguez, which could make any film watchable - on looks alone. But the film is terrible, please don't get it out, I won't go into any plot points as I have a gripe with far too many of them - I'll sum it up by telling you that it's the kind of film where things are literally spelt out to you, nothing is left to interpretation. Maybe if it was you may have managed to miss some of the awfulness of this movie. Be warned.
AD
