Wonderful character development!

Such a frustrating disappointment

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Shadowboxer is certainly a movie that left me scratching my head, and not in a good way either. The performances aren't the problem, it's the surrealism of the script. I really had a lot of problems getting into this one, and just a lot of weird stuff, in fact too weird happened for my liking. The sex scenes between Cuba and Helen Mirren are not only disgusting to witness, but didn't plant many pleasant visuals in my head either. Mirren and Gooding are above this kind of stuff, but some how they are both game for this movie. There isn't much action to go around, and I honestly felt the story to be rather dull in my opinion. I really don't get why Cuba is floundering in obscurity with these DTV efforts. He's done some decent ones, but his talent level is so above this. The title certainly doesn't live it up to it, because aside from Cuba's playful boxing in the shadows, boxing has nothing to do with this movie.Performances. Cuba Gooding Jr is effective that's for sure. His intensity and quite demeanor served him well, but I wish he was in a better movie. Helen Mirren is classy and excellent in her role here. She could have easily phoned it in, but didn't do that. Her chemistry with Cuba was great. Stephhen Dorff is a good baddie, but his role is sadly underdeveloped. Vanessa Ferlito is OK, but her accent does the talking, aside from a few decent scenes. Joseph Gordon-Levitt isn't yet famous like he is now, and didn't really have a whole lot to do here. Mo'Nique is OK, nothing more.Bottom line. If you can figure out this movie, be my guest and check it out. It wasn't for me though, and it's not something I care to revisit again.4 1/2 10

I've never seen "Snow Dogs", thank God for small favors. I was actually walking into this one with Cuba Gooding Jr.s' recent DTV flops ("Hardwired", "Lies & Illusions") in mind, and I was curious to see what he was like in his hayday.Cuba and Helen Mirren are two assassins/lovers, who have been assigned to terminate the wife (Vanessa Ferlito) of a big-time gang boss (Stephen Dorff) after she may have slept with another man. Things change, however, when Mirren finds that the wife is pregnant, and she refuses to take the life of the baby as well. All three leave that night to make new lives for themelves, always on the run from the Dorff's role as the gang boss.Sounds like a simple plot, but Lee Daniels really went all out. "Shadowboxer" is kind of like a strobe light in that you know you should look away as to not damage your eyes, but it's captivating and reels you in to the point where you cannot tear your eyes away.Cuba Gooding Jr. apparently has less then 40 lines in the film, but he's got a presence on screen, which I suppose I can measure to Javier Bardem's role in "No Country for Old Men". Both are strong, imposing, and almost dead silent men who offer a strange mix of sensuality and power. Cuba's chemistry with Helen Mirren, who plays not only his step-mother but his lover, is both believable and fascinating. You don't see many younger African American men with older White women, which was a strong contrast throughout the film.The same is with J.G. Levitt's character of Dr. Don, whose girlfriend is played by Monique. Levitt and Monique show us their amazing acting skill as they makes that otherwise strange relationship believable.Finally Stephen Dorff plays the badguy, and what a badguy he was. His arrogant, ruthless on-screen persona is intimidating and frightening. He swears, kills, yet you can't help but like him, even as he tries to kill his own wife. Ferlito was very good as well. Her relationship with the duo that almost killed her is another strong contrast.In a phrase, "I loved it". The cinematography was beautiful and kept me tied in. The music was captivating. I'll be sure to watch this one again, and soon. I hope you will also.

...to find something to like about this movie. However, I came away from it realizing that it was just time that I would never get back. I can think of nothing good about this film.Is Cuba good in this film? Maybe - as far as the role can go.Is Helen any good in this film? She was just that - Helen Mirren - nothing special. Extremely low key.How about Steven Dorff? Oh great! Another psychotic! And one that we get to see bang some cheapo slut. That's worth the admission (rolls eyes).Levitt & Mo'nique? The only couple odder than Mirren & Gooding. I could almost believe Mirren & Gooding.This film debases everybody in it. It debases us for even watching it. The nudity basically sums up to seeing a WHOLE lot more of Gooding than anybody needed, Dorff proving that he can have sex & immediately kill somebody (why need clothes for that?) & just the thought of Levitt & Mo'nique (Arrgh!).Was the sex/murder scene in the garden supposed to be some kind of mood homage to Excalibur (which Helen was in)? I can hear the conversation now: "So, Cuba. We're going to have you having sex with this women 30 years older than you in a field. And then, while you're still in, you'll put a gun to her head & pull the trigger! And then, you bury her in the middle of the night, all the time naked as a jay bird.And then we have the stereotyping of Macy Gray's role. Where was Jessie Jackson for that one?All this doesn't even touch the warping of the young boy. By the end of the movie, he's seen his perceived father cleaning his weapon (in itself, not a bad thing), we are led to believe that he has some understanding of Mikey's "profession" and, finally, he gets to kill his real father. That look in his face at the end warns of a future serial killer well in the making.Please, save yourself. Leave this "film" alone. Let it die. It won't be a dignified death but, at least it will die.

This is a movie you love or hate. I loved it. First, the "preposterous plot." Helen Mirren is a gorgeous woman. I had no problem believing Cuba's character would desire her in addition to be utterly loyal to her and dependent on her). I liked that the story's time-line was longer than just about any kind of crime thriller you'd see these days.This is definitely not a popcorn movie, and you will find yourself shocked at the violence and then moved by the touching scenes. Nothing is exploitive or gratuitous in this film. The grisly violence, intense sexuality and touching interdependence of the characters serve to underscore just how absurdly varying a life (or lives) can be.I think sometimes moviegoers expect too much from film. Not every movie is A Streetcar Named Desire. There were important, fundamental themes in this movie - love, lust, loyalty, guilt, shame... all brilliantly conveyed by the actors. If you have a problem with imperfect plots, rent a documentary.