I think they could occasionally be hard on each other, but they did love each other. They were open with each other, and I think ultimately respectful to each other.
I’ll never forget seeing Generations in the theater and turning to see my Mom tear up during the big emotional scene toward the end of the movie. I think it’s the seventh-best movie in the series, between TMP and the ‘09 reboot, and a decent first movie for the TNG crew. As for The Professional, it’s Luc Besson’s second-best movie after The Fifth Element and I haven’t seen the other movies.
Huge swing and a miss on "The Professional". I wouldn't argue with Oldman's performance being over the top, but it is in a pitch perfect, scary as hell kind of a way. It's like Al Pacino's "over the top" performance in Scarface. An over the top performance can be cartoony and/or laughable but in the hands of a brilliant actor (Oldman and Pacino), it can be realistic, chilling and mesmerizing. Maybe 'operatic' might be a better term for their performances. Oldman's 'Stansfield' and Pacino's 'Tony Montana' are two of my favorite bad guys of all time. In fact, Stansfield might be my favorite.
"Operatic" is exactly the perfect word, and captures the tone of The Professional so well. The film has the larger-than-life brushstrokes of an over-costumed, over-acted Puccini opera, and that's exactly what makes it a terrific production-not a romance in the "love story" sense, but a romance in the old sense of a high-adventure tale that doesn't truck much with novelistic realism. the closest thing we have to the medieval romance today is the superhero film; I'm willing to bet that's why this movie plays a lot better with people who love superheroes and comic books. Even if Leon isn't a superhero, his story is in that mode of storytelling. I can easily imagine Leon as a Frank Miller graphic novel, and would've loved to see that. The problem with being "experts" who have seen 10,000 movies is that Siskel & Ebert walk in with genre expectations-they can't not-and while they like movies that surprise them in that genre, they're not very good at adapting as an audience to enjoy a film that's not at least the same kind of movie they expected to see. It's the same reason they (and many people) didn't like the underrated "The Cable Guy" when it came out. They walked in expecting Ace Ventura-style Jim Carrey farce, and were disappointed when they got something totally different. I think they expected a different kind of picture here-a gritty family crime drama in the style of "21 grams" maybe-and didn't like what they got when that was the flavour they were expecting.
@@LukeMaynard Gene liked The Cable Guy though. The Professional looks like an interesting movie to me but with all the vapid thrillers they had to sit through, I really can't fault them for thumbing it down.
I miss the good ole days, they are serious role models to how I look at films nowadays, but with the old school spirit of film criticism. They missed the mark completely on The Professional. Besson's stylish take is appropriate for an action film like this that felt like was a ode to the late Tony Scott and you can't go wrong with Gary Oldman as the villain. Owns the screen everytime he enters.
@@johndeaux3703 Never found Natalie all that attractive. Certainly not a prepubescent one. Even as adult she never really developed in ways I like. I like the movie because of the character of Leon, not Natalie. What I am impressed with, is her acting ability at such an age. Most child actors are horrible.
@@Nathan-gd7xq Give me a break. No movie is liked or disliked by everyone. I liked the Professional as a kid but when I saw it again as an adult it was just a run of the mill action flick to me. S&E made some legit points about it.
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
The Professional is a classic it still holds up they missed the mark on this movie, later they were suprised it was such a hit at the box office around the world.
Their review here of To Live made me want to see it, and it's free here on TH-cam in beautiful HD... not like the horrific VHS shown in this show. It was a great movie.
They're both off about Generations. The ideas of mortality and living your life to the fullest resonate even today. Plus it's TNG on the big screen with an epic story! 😊
One of the few times I agreed with Siskel. Generations has aged well and is very entertaining even though the nexus is a weird concept. The movie is worth a watch just to see Data grapple with his emotion chip.
I think Generations is a flawed masterpiece. The flaws - by which I mainly mean the stupid fistfight ending - likely come from stipulations of the marketers and financial backers. Malcolm MacDowell is far from a central-casting evil scientist, but is instead a complex and intelligent individual who makes sparks fly in his scenes with Stewart. (Plus the music in this film is nothing short of glorious!) If I play Siskel and try to script-doctor the film, I think Shatner and Stewart should have met in the nexus... But rather than leaving to die pointlessly on a cliff, their meeting should have been Stewart's Miyagi moment. Shatner could transmit to Stewart enough of his own bullheaded lust for life to motivate Stewart to move beyond despair and try once more to save his world. And Shatner could recognize that his time is over and stay behind to claim his reward, having successfully passed the torch. And if Stewart really needed help overcoming McDowell, then it should have come from his own crew. With that said, this film looked great, sounded great, and contained some poignant reflexions on the (in)significance of our brief time in the vast universe. It was foolishly marred by some formulaic Hollywood orthodoxy at the end.
I don't agree with Eberts critique of the final shootout in "The Professional." Of course the hero can predict that the cops are coming in through the front door, they are outside the door threatening to break it down.... Instead of taking cover he hides on the ceiling, easily dispatches the cops that enter the apartment, and then swings down and shoots a few more still outside. There's nothing wrong or lazy about how that scene is written and executed.
+Harkness78 Yep...could not agree more...I have enjoyed Ebert's books but the more of these old videos I am finding I am losing respect for his opinion.
Plus it's intentionally absurd.. Oh and is it really that weird that a man with almost no possessions and no attachments would love his plant? Like forreal it not even THAT weird. I think it's suppose to show he's not heartless that he has a deep desire to care for something.
Not IMO, the ending shootout was funny to watch, but it belonged in a Judge Dredd movie, not this one. It ruined the film for me. It would have been so much better if they'd played it a bit more grounded, if Leon was basically Anton Chigurh in terms of skill and methods, instead of suddenly being Deadpool.
I have to admit, Generations was the first Star Trek thing I ever saw. I was at an advantage because the names of certain characters reached me through osmosis but I have to say it was easy to follow. My biggest problem with it was this question: Wouldn't it have been easier for the villain to steal a spaceship and fly into the Nexus than for him to alter its course?
I just rewatched it earlier today. The possibility of Soran just flying into the Nexus was discussed between Picard and Data, specifying that previous attempts to fly into it left the ships destroyed or severely damaged.
I propose this review of Star Trek Generations as an example of how to bridge a franchise moving from one generation to another. I believe Generations maintains the values and feeling of the original movies in the franchise, while at the same time moving onto a new crew with new stories. Something that The Last Jedi has failed to do, in my opinion. Now, it is true that Star Trek The Next Generation had a tv show to help introduce itself to audiences, prior to any movies -- so this helped it immensely in gaining a foundation with it's audience of fans. ... Hmm, in retrospect, I wish Star Wars had a similar type of vehicle to introduce a new generation of Star Wars characters, in weekly-show type format. -- Star Trek: Generations (1994), movie review: This review comes long after my original viewing of the movie, Star Trek Generations. And it's true that I wasn't that impressed with this movie at my first viewing. I have now probably seen this movie about 5 times, over the years. The first 15 minutes are such good film making. Capturing the feeling of Kirk and his crew, but in this case as special guests on a maiden voyage of a new Enterprise with a new crew. The character relationships, the jokes, the details in the set design and the dialogue are so wonderful. The dialogue is fun and honest in the context of the situation. Due diligence is given to the ages of the characters in the room. Then, an emergency arises in the story, which gives the story-telling a chance to showcase human decision making, in scenes that push the characters involved, and end up displaying some of the most admirable and difficult choices that have to be made. We see the characters have pride in themselves and each other. We are treated to genuine-feeling interactions, realism in personal behavior, respect for rank, empathy, sympathy and many well thought out (or well edited) choices by the director, screenwriter and editor. After that opening scene, we are treated to a view into the Next Generation cast and crew. Nicely executed writing, and character chemistry, brings some lightness to the movie immediately. And we are then treated to great acting moments by Picard, Malcolm McDowell's character: Soran, and several others. I love Guinan! Whoopi has such a nice role in this story. The characters in Picard's universe act and behave exactly as they have in the tv show, so the confluence is great. Although I don't know why there is not some approval process for Data to start using the emotion-chip (could be super dangerous if things go wrong, right?) -- but as an actual social-experiment I think it's great to watch data start to understand how to deal with emotions, even when it's not easy. Plus, Data making jokes is priceless!! :-) Big smile. Data: "[Drinking] Yes, that's it -- I HATE this!" , Guinan: "Another?" , Data: "Yes!" I can't stress enough that when Kirk and his crew are shown it feels like the old Star Trek, and when Picard and his crew are on screen it feels like we are watching the Next Generations tv show. These two generations have been put together nicely, and it works so well together in the film. It's too bad that DeForest Kelley was not able to join for this cameo, it would be the last chance he would have (since he died 4 years later, in 1999). But this is not really a criticism of the movie, just would be nice to see Dr. McCoy again. :-) Spock is also not present, but since Nimoy manages to appear many Star Trek related opportunities, we get to see him often after this movie. Yay! I give this movie a healthy 4 out of 5 stars. Notable kudos: +1 for the psychological experiment of Data's emotion-chip, being included. And an additional +1 for the "life forms" jingle. Hahahahahahaha. Awesome! The Generations movie doesn't try to overthrow the whole Star Trek universe. Instead it weaves it's threads into a new story, maintaining a genuine feel, and coming out as a great mix between new and old, which is challenging to do! And it feels like a Star Trek movie and Star Trek The Next Generations tv show, together. So well done! Now, when comparing how Star Trek bridges the gap, between the new and old generations, to how Star Wars does it: firstly, I feel that the reboots/remakes of Star Trek and Star Wars, by JJ Abrahms, are largely bad. I really dislike ALL of the Star Trek reboots, with possible exception of the first one. I like, however, the new actors imitating the past 'Trek' characters, and I do find that to be charming, and I think the actors do a nice job. Khan is great for the actor Benedict, for example. But, the movies themselves are over the top; and way to drastic in plot decisions, for my taste. As for Last Jedi and Force Awakens ... they seem to trounce on top of what has been laid down, especially Last Jedi. This blatant effort to subvert audience expectations does more to ruin the future of Star Wars, than to be a part of the same universe. It's just confusing and disappointing Force Awakens also does some of this, with Rey's characters having way too much force ability right out of the gate, for example.
i agree with everything you said; especially being a huge Star Trek fan of the original series and tng exclusively. some of the writing and interpretation that is coming out in recent days is very off, though critics don't seem to agree with my feelings here.
It's funny. When this movie came out, I had a lot of criticism for it in my mind, I remember. But after seeing the recent movie reboots and remakes, and just how exaggerated sci-fi has become, in general, when re-watching this movie -- I loved it! Partly because I already love the fun, positive, innovative, exploratory nature of Start Trek The Next Generation; and this cast and crew can be seen here and it feels just like tv show! And partly because I admired how hard the writers, director and editors tried to bridge the original cast with the next generation. I also genuinely loved the characters and their relationships with one another; and I mean both generations of crew. Data is LOVELY! So much fun. And Kirk and crew in the beginning, is great!
Funny seeing how hard they went on the Professional when you see an interview with Portman from that time saying how much she loves watching Siskel and Ebert and is nervous to hear their review.
I love how Siskel says for every single Star Trek movie review that it's clear that all of these people like each other, when that actually wasn't the case at all behind the scenes
The Miracle on 34th Street review is one of my favorites because of getting a snapshot into S&E's personal relationship. Ebert talking getting married in the same church used for the ending. Gene talking about one of his daughters being a flower girl in that wedding.The woman Ebert married, Chaz, would end up playing a powerful role in Roger's life, especially when it was sadly his turn to face his mortality.
Generations could've been a real epic Trek movie featuring both casts both Enterprises something like Yesterdays Enterprise meets Endgame...instead it was little more than a slightly bigger budget 2 part episode :(
Siskel's review of Star Trek makes me wonder if he would've been a bigger fan of the MCU than Roger (he gave none of the MCU films that came out before he died a rating higher than 3 stars except Iron Man).
Leon : The Professional is an Action Movie Masterpiece! I have no idea how they didn't like this film so so much and literally didn't say anything good about it, mind blown. But to each is own I guess.
Wow, they really missed on the Professional. This the only movie from this week that ppl still remember and enjoy. Natalie Portman’s talent became unmistakable in this pic.
I remember as a kid always looking forward to their reviews of films I wanted to see. Thankfully they recommended 6th Sense. I would not have seen it had they panned it
I dont think Leon was whimsical by accident, it was on purpose, and works really well with the two protagonists being children (albeit one of them only mentally). Crazy that it went over both siskel and eberts heads
There were plenty of times where either Siskel or Ebert was wrong about a film but their review of _The Professional_ was definitely one of those times where they _both_ were off base (in this case, _way_ off base) and quite frankly, it was one of the most egregious examples. And yes, I’ll agree the Gary Oldman was over-the-top but that was precisely the right pitch for his character in that movie. I wonder what they would’ve thought if they’d seen the extended European version of the film.
@Eighty Seven The American cut is called "The Professional", European/director's cut is "Leon". The American cut has many scenes slashed from it, including all the scenes where Mathilda accompanies Leon when he carries out his hits (the whole bell ringing, and gum trick montage), the scene where Leon and Mathilda kill the drug killer and burn his lab is gone, most of the scenes of Mathilda professing her love for Leon (like the restaurant scene where Mathilda asks Leon to kiss her, and when she asks Leon to sleep in the same bed with her), also the scene where Leon tells Mathilda the story about his girlfriend in France is gone. "The Professional" pretty much removes all the substance from the story. It's basically just a stylized action film with little substance and story.
@@rustincohle2135I got to see the Leon cut years later and gotta say I disagree. Just because a creepy French director thinks it's ok to sleep with / have relationships with underaged females doesn't mean it belongs in a movie. The Professional cut streamlines the film into a tighter package. The stuff about her becoming a killer is not missed as well.
19:53 - 'Star Trek: Generations': UP (S) DOWN (E), 'The Swan Princess': DOWN (S) UP (E), 'Miracle on 34th Street': TWO THUMBS UP, 'The Professional': TWO THUMBS DOWN, 'To Live': TWO THUMBS UP
I think we gotta remember that these two critics are not use to seeing movies like "The Professional" which is why they hate it so much. It is a classic movie to a different generation and surely not the generation that Siskel and Ebert come from.
I dont care what anyone says. I love Star Trek Generations. I'm actually with Gene on this one. And Im sorry guys. Leon is a great movie. Stumbles badly?? Are you nuts? Hes been stumbling with every movie since Fifth Element. But Leon is one of his best. Gary Oldman is once again a great movie villain. YIKES.
I like The Professional and I like Leon The Professional even better but I can totally understand where Roger and Gene were coming from. The movie was indeed over the top and full of cliches.
God this brings back memories, every once in a while I like to watch these out of nostalgia... While I am a trekker, and I loved generations, I understand ebert's critique of the movie, half of the appreciation of the films and the story is an understanding and loyalty of the franchise and you can't just go in there cold turkey. You need to do your homework, and to the general public that's not gonna work so it will seem flimsy. Since Ebert is critiquing for the general public, it does make sense for him to not like it as much. With 34th street, as with remakes, the critics made their judgment partially based on comparisons to the original, which makes sense given their professional backgrounds, but in a way that takes away from the experience. I never saw the original, and I dont know if a lot of people did or anything, so that became the original to me, and Mara Wilson was extraordinary, Richard Attenborough was delightful as Santa, and it was a decent modern take of an old story. If someone sees it as a fresh idea/story without knowing of the original, it was even more of an enjoyable experience. (Of course this is all just one's own opinion, though it's good they chose to like it in the end.)
I watched Generations on VHS as a 9 year old, at that time I believe I had only watched one full episode of the original series, and had a passing familiarity with DS9 and TNG and I still enjoyed it, though you know what kids are like with films. If anything I'm glad I saw it when I was young; if I were to watch it now the sheer confusion of all the Nexus stuff might spoil it for me
Leon: the professional is an incredible movie not a masterpiece but close very strong movie that holds up today. There felllas get movies so wrong. Also french action movies are stylised like Taxi, La Haine, district 13, dobermann etc and thats not a bad thing at all, strong movies and masterpieces dont have to be as realistic as possible... This is cinema, where anything is possible, anyway i love leon: the professional - great movie, well directed, very strong memorable characters and actors, also dealing with tabboo, challenging subjects in an interesting, and well handled way. Luc Besson's best work in my opinion
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day. "The Professional" took years to earn its praise. And, no, it IS a masterpiece.
@@Nominay Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day. "The Professional" was the kind of film that took time to receive praise.
I haven’t seen Leon since the 90’s. I didn’t think it was as awesome as some people on here, but I definitely liked it. I’ll be looking for another chance to see it now that I’m older, and with their terrible review in mind.
I'm glad Siskel enjoyed Generations. That gets a bad rap. I can't believe Ebert didn't like the Santa Clause either. Siskel liked that one too. Siskel 2 Ebert 0.
Generations sucked. Data was annoying, the plot was recycled from an average TNG episode, Picard was uncharacteristically ineffective as a leader and his teaming with Kirk was nothing special.
Even though I haven't seen To Live I'm sure with their view of cinema from counties with political conflicts I'd be intrigued what they're views of Parasite would have been.
I really have a soft spot for these guys, but WOW. They LIKED "Star Trek: Generations" but they DISLIKED "The Professional"??? Whaat? Whaaaaaaaat??? Still, I like these guys. Gene cracks me up with his constant moralizing about the values being "taught" by film. It's kinda cute, though.
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
................................................................................................................................................I...... liked it.
"A mess" is the perfect description for The Professional. The only memorable parts are with Gary Oldman who i disagree with S&E about, he's a cartoon villain and in that sense pulls it off.
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
He didn’t have to jump up into it... the nexus wave was huge and everything on the surface in its path was absorbed. Every time I rewatch these two I’m reminded just how sensitive they can be... Elbert is actually concerned with the 250 million make believe life forms. It’s people like them who freak out over violent video games and movies and decry their hostile influence on the minds of today’s youth... despite little to no actual evidence showing a direct and significant causal relationship between the two.
And once again, history proves these two wrong. Out of all the movies reviewed here, The Professional is probably the most watched and still relevant today. Just goes to show that you can't always trust someone else's opinion. Remember, Siskel gave thumbs down to Apocalypse Now, Scarface, Carlito's Way, Fright Night, and The Big Lebowski. Ebert gave thumbs down to The Thing, Reservoir Dogs, A Few Good Men, and Full Metal Jacket. And both of them hated Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke, a comedy which is still as hilarious today as it was 40 years ago.
Who says it's relevant.. seriously, it's not that good a movie People glom on a movie that has popular reaction but story wise, it's not much of anything Explain to me why it's so good
The reason it went straight to video was they didn't release them theatrically. There were other films that were a little better to do that with. That doesn't make Jafar shit.
I was a bit annoyed by the near-superhuman abilities of Leon as well, but I overall really enjoyed the movie. As regards the Natalie Portman character, I think the French are more comfortable discussing the budding sexuality of very young people. There was a movement to annul statutory rape laws, and a lot of people seemed to think ~13-year-olds having sex with adults was no big deal. Attitudes have changed somewhat on this in recent years though.
"Roger, so is a still shot of you taking a shower." LOL!
lmao!
I had to stop the video I was laughing so hard. It just came out of nowhere. Only good friends can rip into each other like that.
John Field Show same!
I freaking died! 😂
I knew Roger was going to eat that up... and jump all over it.
I'm from Chicago and miss these guys. Highly intelligent individuals.
Yes, they were great rivals working for viral newspapers but had a lot of respect for eachother.
These two had great chemistry.
I think they could occasionally be hard on each other, but they did love each other. They were open with each other, and I think ultimately respectful to each other.
Some of their classic competitive back and forth is in this exact episode.
Definitely they had that.
No matter how many times I watch The Professional the ending gets me every time.
Siskel says Gary Oldman's performance was over the top. That makes me want to see it.
EVVV REEEE WWWAAAAAAAANNNNNNNN!!!!!!!
His best performance IMO
I’ll never forget seeing Generations in the theater and turning to see my Mom tear up during the big emotional scene toward the end of the movie. I think it’s the seventh-best movie in the series, between TMP and the ‘09 reboot, and a decent first movie for the TNG crew.
As for The Professional, it’s Luc Besson’s second-best movie after The Fifth Element and I haven’t seen the other movies.
Huge swing and a miss on "The Professional". I wouldn't argue with Oldman's performance being over the top, but it is in a pitch perfect, scary as hell kind of a way. It's like Al Pacino's "over the top" performance in Scarface. An over the top performance can be cartoony and/or laughable but in the hands of a brilliant actor (Oldman and Pacino), it can be realistic, chilling and mesmerizing. Maybe 'operatic' might be a better term for their performances. Oldman's 'Stansfield' and Pacino's 'Tony Montana' are two of my favorite bad guys of all time. In fact, Stansfield might be my favorite.
they think because they're boring and monotone that the rest of humanity is. Some people are that over the top in real life
Walter Nave yes Gene was way off.
"Operatic" is exactly the perfect word, and captures the tone of The Professional so well. The film has the larger-than-life brushstrokes of an over-costumed, over-acted Puccini opera, and that's exactly what makes it a terrific production-not a romance in the "love story" sense, but a romance in the old sense of a high-adventure tale that doesn't truck much with novelistic realism. the closest thing we have to the medieval romance today is the superhero film; I'm willing to bet that's why this movie plays a lot better with people who love superheroes and comic books. Even if Leon isn't a superhero, his story is in that mode of storytelling. I can easily imagine Leon as a Frank Miller graphic novel, and would've loved to see that.
The problem with being "experts" who have seen 10,000 movies is that Siskel & Ebert walk in with genre expectations-they can't not-and while they like movies that surprise them in that genre, they're not very good at adapting as an audience to enjoy a film that's not at least the same kind of movie they expected to see. It's the same reason they (and many people) didn't like the underrated "The Cable Guy" when it came out. They walked in expecting Ace Ventura-style Jim Carrey farce, and were disappointed when they got something totally different. I think they expected a different kind of picture here-a gritty family crime drama in the style of "21 grams" maybe-and didn't like what they got when that was the flavour they were expecting.
Gary Oldman's villain wouldn't have been too OTT for a crime boss, but as a corrupt detective it's just too farfetched, IMO.
@@LukeMaynard Gene liked The Cable Guy though. The Professional looks like an interesting movie to me but with all the vapid thrillers they had to sit through, I really can't fault them for thumbing it down.
the part about Roger's wedding is so sweet
I don't even remember this swan princess picture. Came out in '94, but looks like it could have been 30 years earlier.
Siskel nailed it
The Professional might be the most off these two ever were with the public consensus.
@@242sighting who cares the movie is still bomb
I didn't care for it. Luc Besson's really hit or miss with me.
==
@@242sighting did he kiss her? no ? Did he have sex with her ? No shut up
The professional cinematic magic
I miss the good ole days, they are serious role models to how I look at films nowadays, but with the old school spirit of film criticism. They missed the mark completely on The Professional. Besson's stylish take is appropriate for an action film like this that felt like was a ode to the late Tony Scott and you can't go wrong with Gary Oldman as the villain. Owns the screen everytime he enters.
I love the professional
Kyle Barber Everyone loves The Professional. EEVVVEERRYYONNEE!!!
You love to rub one out to a 12 year old Natalie Portman. That's the only reason you guys love the garbage film that is 'The Professional'.
@@johndeaux3703 Never found Natalie all that attractive. Certainly not a prepubescent one. Even as adult she never really developed in ways I like. I like the movie because of the character of Leon, not Natalie. What I am impressed with, is her acting ability at such an age. Most child actors are horrible.
I love the Professional
@@Nathan-gd7xq Give me a break. No movie is liked or disliked by everyone. I liked the Professional as a kid but when I saw it again as an adult it was just a run of the mill action flick to me. S&E made some legit points about it.
As everyone else in this comment section has pointed out, The Professional is a classic. The guys really missed on this one.
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
I wonder how much better it would have been received under its original title, "Leon: The Pedophile."
Horrible movie for anyone with a brain connected to a heart.
It's totally unbelievable.
The Professional isn’t that great of a movie
The Professional is a classic it still holds up they missed the mark on this movie, later they were suprised it was such a hit at the box office around the world.
I love Siskel and Ebert but I rarely agree with them on movies lol.
Cobra Commander< I couldn't have said it better.
Their review here of To Live made me want to see it, and it's free here on TH-cam in beautiful HD... not like the horrific VHS shown in this show. It was a great movie.
Generations was a good star trek movie.
The Professional was a a masterpiece.
I really didn't like it, and I usually like crime/action films.
They're both off about Generations. The ideas of mortality and living your life to the fullest resonate even today. Plus it's TNG on the big screen with an epic story! 😊
Mr. Plinkett doesn't agree.
@@yousircantknow8987 I don't care what he thinks. 😉
One of the few times I agreed with Siskel. Generations has aged well and is very entertaining even though the nexus is a weird concept. The movie is worth a watch just to see Data grapple with his emotion chip.
I think Generations is a flawed masterpiece. The flaws - by which I mainly mean the stupid fistfight ending - likely come from stipulations of the marketers and financial backers. Malcolm MacDowell is far from a central-casting evil scientist, but is instead a complex and intelligent individual who makes sparks fly in his scenes with Stewart. (Plus the music in this film is nothing short of glorious!)
If I play Siskel and try to script-doctor the film, I think Shatner and Stewart should have met in the nexus... But rather than leaving to die pointlessly on a cliff, their meeting should have been Stewart's Miyagi moment. Shatner could transmit to Stewart enough of his own bullheaded lust for life to motivate Stewart to move beyond despair and try once more to save his world. And Shatner could recognize that his time is over and stay behind to claim his reward, having successfully passed the torch. And if Stewart really needed help overcoming McDowell, then it should have come from his own crew.
With that said, this film looked great, sounded great, and contained some poignant reflexions on the (in)significance of our brief time in the vast universe. It was foolishly marred by some formulaic Hollywood orthodoxy at the end.
i loved this star trek movie!!
I give The Professional 2 thumbs up 👍🏾 👍🏾
I don't agree with Eberts critique of the final shootout in "The Professional." Of course the hero can predict that the cops are coming in through the front door, they are outside the door threatening to break it down.... Instead of taking cover he hides on the ceiling, easily dispatches the cops that enter the apartment, and then swings down and shoots a few more still outside. There's nothing wrong or lazy about how that scene is written and executed.
+Harkness78 Yep...could not agree more...I have enjoyed Ebert's books but the more of these old videos I am finding I am losing respect for his opinion.
+Harkness78 i agree and he was a 'professional" cause he knew what people would do.
Plus it's intentionally absurd.. Oh and is it really that weird that a man with almost no possessions and no attachments would love his plant? Like forreal it not even THAT weird. I think it's suppose to show he's not heartless that he has a deep desire to care for something.
Not IMO, the ending shootout was funny to watch, but it belonged in a Judge Dredd movie, not this one. It ruined the film for me. It would have been so much better if they'd played it a bit more grounded, if Leon was basically Anton Chigurh in terms of skill and methods, instead of suddenly being Deadpool.
I have to admit, Generations was the first Star Trek thing I ever saw. I was at an advantage because the names of certain characters reached me through osmosis but I have to say it was easy to follow. My biggest problem with it was this question: Wouldn't it have been easier for the villain to steal a spaceship and fly into the Nexus than for him to alter its course?
I just rewatched it earlier today. The possibility of Soran just flying into the Nexus was discussed between Picard and Data, specifying that previous attempts to fly into it left the ships destroyed or severely damaged.
I'm completely completely shocked they didn't like the Professional. One of my all time favorite movies.
Ikr.
Starting at 7:37 what the actual F. I've enjoyed countless reviews and shows of Siskel and Ebert, but that exchange had me bewildered.
Siskel was just trying to be funny in saying that a still picture of Ebert in the shower was more entertaining than Thumbelina.
An honest assessment is a breath of fresh air these days.
0:27 newspapers now that takes me back
I propose this review of Star Trek Generations as an example of how to bridge a franchise moving from one generation to another. I believe Generations maintains the values and feeling of the original movies in the franchise, while at the same time moving onto a new crew with new stories. Something that The Last Jedi has failed to do, in my opinion. Now, it is true that Star Trek The Next Generation had a tv show to help introduce itself to audiences, prior to any movies -- so this helped it immensely in gaining a foundation with it's audience of fans. ... Hmm, in retrospect, I wish Star Wars had a similar type of vehicle to introduce a new generation of Star Wars characters, in weekly-show type format.
--
Star Trek: Generations (1994), movie review:
This review comes long after my original viewing of the movie, Star Trek Generations. And it's true that I wasn't that impressed with this movie at my first viewing. I have now probably seen this movie about 5 times, over the years.
The first 15 minutes are such good film making. Capturing the feeling of Kirk and his crew, but in this case as special guests on a maiden voyage of a new Enterprise with a new crew. The character relationships, the jokes, the details in the set design and the dialogue are so wonderful. The dialogue is fun and honest in the context of the situation. Due diligence is given to the ages of the characters in the room. Then, an emergency arises in the story, which gives the story-telling a chance to showcase human decision making, in scenes that push the characters involved, and end up displaying some of the most admirable and difficult choices that have to be made. We see the characters have pride in themselves and each other. We are treated to genuine-feeling interactions, realism in personal behavior, respect for rank, empathy, sympathy and many well thought out (or well edited) choices by the director, screenwriter and editor.
After that opening scene, we are treated to a view into the Next Generation cast and crew. Nicely executed writing, and character chemistry, brings some lightness to the movie immediately. And we are then treated to great acting moments by Picard, Malcolm McDowell's character: Soran, and several others. I love Guinan! Whoopi has such a nice role in this story. The characters in Picard's universe act and behave exactly as they have in the tv show, so the confluence is great. Although I don't know why there is not some approval process for Data to start using the emotion-chip (could be super dangerous if things go wrong, right?) -- but as an actual social-experiment I think it's great to watch data start to understand how to deal with emotions, even when it's not easy. Plus, Data making jokes is priceless!! :-) Big smile.
Data: "[Drinking] Yes, that's it -- I HATE this!" , Guinan: "Another?" , Data: "Yes!"
I can't stress enough that when Kirk and his crew are shown it feels like the old Star Trek, and when Picard and his crew are on screen it feels like we are watching the Next Generations tv show. These two generations have been put together nicely, and it works so well together in the film.
It's too bad that DeForest Kelley was not able to join for this cameo, it would be the last chance he would have (since he died 4 years later, in 1999). But this is not really a criticism of the movie, just would be nice to see Dr. McCoy again. :-) Spock is also not present, but since Nimoy manages to appear many Star Trek related opportunities, we get to see him often after this movie. Yay!
I give this movie a healthy 4 out of 5 stars.
Notable kudos:
+1 for the psychological experiment of Data's emotion-chip, being included.
And an additional +1 for the "life forms" jingle. Hahahahahahaha. Awesome!
The Generations movie doesn't try to overthrow the whole Star Trek universe. Instead it weaves it's threads into a new story, maintaining a genuine feel, and coming out as a great mix between new and old, which is challenging to do! And it feels like a Star Trek movie and Star Trek The Next Generations tv show, together. So well done!
Now, when comparing how Star Trek bridges the gap, between the new and old generations, to how Star Wars does it: firstly, I feel that the reboots/remakes of Star Trek and Star Wars, by JJ Abrahms, are largely bad. I really dislike ALL of the Star Trek reboots, with possible exception of the first one. I like, however, the new actors imitating the past 'Trek' characters, and I do find that to be charming, and I think the actors do a nice job. Khan is great for the actor Benedict, for example. But, the movies themselves are over the top; and way to drastic in plot decisions, for my taste. As for Last Jedi and Force Awakens ... they seem to trounce on top of what has been laid down, especially Last Jedi. This blatant effort to subvert audience expectations does more to ruin the future of Star Wars, than to be a part of the same universe. It's just confusing and disappointing Force Awakens also does some of this, with Rey's characters having way too much force ability right out of the gate, for example.
i agree with everything you said; especially being a huge Star Trek fan of the original series and tng exclusively. some of the writing and interpretation that is coming out in recent days is very off, though critics don't seem to agree with my feelings here.
Am putting To Live on my list to see. Their talking up of it just shows the important role that good critics play.
It's funny. When this movie came out, I had a lot of criticism for it in my mind, I remember. But after seeing the recent movie reboots and remakes, and just how exaggerated sci-fi has become, in general, when re-watching this movie -- I loved it! Partly because I already love the fun, positive, innovative, exploratory nature of Start Trek The Next Generation; and this cast and crew can be seen here and it feels just like tv show! And partly because I admired how hard the writers, director and editors tried to bridge the original cast with the next generation. I also genuinely loved the characters and their relationships with one another; and I mean both generations of crew. Data is LOVELY! So much fun. And Kirk and crew in the beginning, is great!
Miracle on 34th. Nothing groundbreaking, but a solid family movie, and a thumbs up from me.
Love siskel and every but Leon is a masterpiece and old mans performance is the best
How is that movie a masterpiece
It's all style over no substance
Binge watching the entirity of star trek at the moment not an easy task cause there is so much of it.
Funny seeing how hard they went on the Professional when you see an interview with Portman from that time saying how much she loves watching Siskel and Ebert and is nervous to hear their review.
I love how Siskel says for every single Star Trek movie review that it's clear that all of these people like each other, when that actually wasn't the case at all behind the scenes
Modern movie makers need to listen to these guys reviews closely. I think the decline in films lately, is because they're not around any more. :-(
Juliana Brown Totally agree
Boy did they blow it on the Professional. That was an amazing movie!
The Miracle on 34th Street review is one of my favorites because of getting a snapshot into S&E's personal relationship. Ebert talking getting married in the same church used for the ending. Gene talking about one of his daughters being a flower girl in that wedding.The woman Ebert married, Chaz, would end up playing a powerful role in Roger's life, especially when it was sadly his turn to face his mortality.
I swear Siskel had the fucking best fat jokes ever lol
Generations could've been a real epic Trek movie featuring both casts both Enterprises something like Yesterdays Enterprise meets Endgame...instead it was little more than a slightly bigger budget 2 part episode :(
taking into account the previews for next time too, it was a pretty rough holiday season in 1994
Siskel's review of Star Trek makes me wonder if he would've been a bigger fan of the MCU than Roger (he gave none of the MCU films that came out before he died a rating higher than 3 stars except Iron Man).
7:31 WRECKED! 😂😂😂
Love these boys but Professional is amazing! I am no Besson fan but I adore that film.
An old fashioned fist fight is the essence of Captain Kirk. It wasn’t a great death but I loved the fist fight.
Leon : The Professional is an Action Movie Masterpiece! I have no idea how they didn't like this film so so much and literally didn't say anything good about it, mind blown. But to each is own I guess.
Wow, they really missed on the Professional. This the only movie from this week that ppl still remember and enjoy. Natalie Portman’s talent became unmistakable in this pic.
ST: Generations was underrated. Nice plot about time and aging despite Shatner looking so porky.
What a crappy way to end for Kirk..falling off a ladder...
I wish he was given something to do besides punching an old guy. The movie sucks.
@@ricardocantoral7672 It's an awesome movie.
"stylish tripe" lol for some people thats a delicious dish
I remember as a kid always looking forward to their reviews of films I wanted to see. Thankfully they recommended 6th Sense. I would not have seen it had they panned it
professional is natalie portman 1st movie she was good
Woah harsh words about The Professional! That movie is a classic.
I dont think Leon was whimsical by accident, it was on purpose, and works really well with the two protagonists being children (albeit one of them only mentally). Crazy that it went over both siskel and eberts heads
Respectfully disagree with the review of the professional. Thought it was a great movie.
It WAS/IS. These guys aren't looking at the movie in the 'right' way.
@@arthurbishop3173 And now they're both dead so it doesn't matter what they thought of it. There are still people alive who like it... like us.
11:26 Gene Siskel's daughter was a flower girl at Roger Ebert's wedding. These men were friends.
Love you war guild!
sad no one is talking about "To Live" which is by far the best movie reviewed on this episode. One of the best films ever made imo.
Captain on the bridge becomes bridge on the Captain.
The professional is good.
I don't how I idolize these guys when I was young
There were plenty of times where either Siskel or Ebert was wrong about a film but their review of _The Professional_ was definitely one of those times where they _both_ were off base (in this case, _way_ off base) and quite frankly, it was one of the most egregious examples. And yes, I’ll agree the Gary Oldman was over-the-top but that was precisely the right pitch for his character in that movie. I wonder what they would’ve thought if they’d seen the extended European version of the film.
The Leon cut of The Professional is so much better than the theatrical cut that they might as well be different movies.
@Eighty Seven The American cut is called "The Professional", European/director's cut is "Leon". The American cut has many scenes slashed from it, including all the scenes where Mathilda accompanies Leon when he carries out his hits (the whole bell ringing, and gum trick montage), the scene where Leon and Mathilda kill the drug killer and burn his lab is gone, most of the scenes of Mathilda professing her love for Leon (like the restaurant scene where Mathilda asks Leon to kiss her, and when she asks Leon to sleep in the same bed with her), also the scene where Leon tells Mathilda the story about his girlfriend in France is gone. "The Professional" pretty much removes all the substance from the story. It's basically just a stylized action film with little substance and story.
@@rustincohle2135I got to see the Leon cut years later and gotta say I disagree. Just because a creepy French director thinks it's ok to sleep with / have relationships with underaged females doesn't mean it belongs in a movie.
The Professional cut streamlines the film into a tighter package. The stuff about her becoming a killer is not missed as well.
19:53 - 'Star Trek: Generations': UP (S) DOWN (E), 'The Swan Princess': DOWN (S) UP (E), 'Miracle on 34th Street': TWO THUMBS UP, 'The Professional': TWO THUMBS DOWN, 'To Live': TWO THUMBS UP
Wow the professional is awesome film.
I think we gotta remember that these two critics are not use to seeing movies like "The Professional" which is why they hate it so much. It is a classic movie to a different generation and surely not the generation that Siskel and Ebert come from.
Am I the only one who loved Generations?
Roger - "you have to assume you know the cops plans and where the cops will enter the room." You mean through the door?
I dont care what anyone says. I love Star Trek Generations. I'm actually with Gene on this one.
And Im sorry guys. Leon is a great movie. Stumbles badly?? Are you nuts? Hes been stumbling with every movie since Fifth Element. But Leon is one of his best. Gary Oldman is once again a great movie villain. YIKES.
THIS!
Hahaha "Pseudo-scientific gobbledygook" he said lol that's awesome. 🤣👍
Trekno-babble is what you call it.
I like The Professional and I like Leon The Professional even better but I can totally understand where Roger and Gene were coming from. The movie was indeed over the top and full of cliches.
7:28 This has gonna Crack Me UP LOL! XD
LOL on 7:52, That about Direct to Video (DTV).
Star Trek: The Nexus Generation
God this brings back memories, every once in a while I like to watch these out of nostalgia...
While I am a trekker, and I loved generations, I understand ebert's critique of the movie, half of the appreciation of the films and the story is an understanding and loyalty of the franchise and you can't just go in there cold turkey. You need to do your homework, and to the general public that's not gonna work so it will seem flimsy. Since Ebert is critiquing for the general public, it does make sense for him to not like it as much.
With 34th street, as with remakes, the critics made their judgment partially based on comparisons to the original, which makes sense given their professional backgrounds, but in a way that takes away from the experience. I never saw the original, and I dont know if a lot of people did or anything, so that became the original to me, and Mara Wilson was extraordinary, Richard Attenborough was delightful as Santa, and it was a decent modern take of an old story. If someone sees it as a fresh idea/story without knowing of the original, it was even more of an enjoyable experience. (Of course this is all just one's own opinion, though it's good they chose to like it in the end.)
So do I. If you want literally hours of S&E, go to siskelandebert.org. One of the best sites ever.
I watched Generations on VHS as a 9 year old, at that time I believe I had only watched one full episode of the original series, and had a passing familiarity with DS9 and TNG and I still enjoyed it, though you know what kids are like with films. If anything I'm glad I saw it when I was young; if I were to watch it now the sheer confusion of all the Nexus stuff might spoil it for me
Thank-you. Sounds perfect to me!
The Professional is a classic here in Japan...
Leon: the professional is an incredible movie not a masterpiece but close very strong movie that holds up today. There felllas get movies so wrong. Also french action movies are stylised like Taxi, La Haine, district 13, dobermann etc and thats not a bad thing at all, strong movies and masterpieces dont have to be as realistic as possible... This is cinema, where anything is possible, anyway i love leon: the professional - great movie, well directed, very strong memorable characters and actors, also dealing with tabboo, challenging subjects in an interesting, and well handled way. Luc Besson's best work in my opinion
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
"The Professional" took years to earn its praise.
And, no, it IS a masterpiece.
Wow, I loved The Professional. Something must be wrong with me?
Nominay
Have you seen it since the 90’s? I liked it too, but I don’t know if I’d like it now, in my 40’s, like I did in my 20’s.
@@joemamma137 Yes, I've seen it recently. It has aged well in my opinion.
@@joemamma137 "The Professional" has aged very well.
@@Nominay Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
"The Professional" was the kind of film that took time to receive praise.
Gene is imagining Roger taking a shower? That was a bizarre joke out of nowhere.
I haven’t seen Leon since the 90’s. I didn’t think it was as awesome as some people on here, but I definitely liked it. I’ll be looking for another chance to see it now that I’m older, and with their terrible review in mind.
Watch the European/director's cut, much better than the US theatrical release.
Siskel: "It's about family". LMAO. Only modern fans of Star Wars will get the foreshadowing irony of that observation about Star Trek.
I'm glad Siskel enjoyed Generations. That gets a bad rap. I can't believe Ebert didn't like the Santa Clause either. Siskel liked that one too. Siskel 2 Ebert 0.
+Cliff Slatterly Its a great Star Trek fan, not the best but over all its just fun. Sometimes a movie can be just a movie.
@@ThatJunkman I'll watch anything with the Next Generation cast in it.
Generations sucked. Data was annoying, the plot was recycled from an average TNG episode, Picard was uncharacteristically ineffective as a leader and his teaming with Kirk was nothing special.
I love how they just go through everything and fuck the spoiler alert. 😂😂😂
I always liked that the professional I see it as an intentional ott film that doesn’t make sense in every sense
The Professional is a classic.
I think the star trek next generation was better as a television show then in movie form.
WOW, all these years i thought i was the only person on Earth that did not like The Professional.
You're not alone
Even though I haven't seen To Live I'm sure with their view of cinema from counties with political conflicts I'd be intrigued what they're views of Parasite would have been.
I really have a soft spot for these guys, but WOW. They LIKED "Star Trek: Generations" but they DISLIKED "The Professional"??? Whaat? Whaaaaaaaat??? Still, I like these guys. Gene cracks me up with his constant moralizing about the values being "taught" by film. It's kinda cute, though.
Jim "Whaaaaaaat? Whaaaaaaat *crash* *slam* *Oww mom what did I do? I didn't do nothing Ahhhhhhhhh"
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
................................................................................................................................................I...... liked it.
"A mess" is the perfect description for The Professional. The only memorable parts are with Gary Oldman who i disagree with S&E about, he's a cartoon villain and in that sense pulls it off.
The Professional was incredible! Breakout performance by Portman. Oldman was Gold man! Did S&E have a bad day b4 they saw it? Huge whiff!
Virtually all American critics roasted "The Professional" in 1994, it wasn't just these guys-- although we only had the American cut then. One wonders how critics would have reacted to the European cut back in the day.
All they said about Portman was her “would-be sexy portrayal.” 😬
He didn’t have to jump up into it... the nexus wave was huge and everything on the surface in its path was absorbed. Every time I rewatch these two I’m reminded just how sensitive they can be... Elbert is actually concerned with the 250 million make believe life forms. It’s people like them who freak out over violent video games and movies and decry their hostile influence on the minds of today’s youth... despite little to no actual evidence showing a direct and significant causal relationship between the two.
And once again, history proves these two wrong. Out of all the movies reviewed here, The Professional is probably the most watched and still relevant today. Just goes to show that you can't always trust someone else's opinion. Remember, Siskel gave thumbs down to Apocalypse Now, Scarface, Carlito's Way, Fright Night, and The Big Lebowski. Ebert gave thumbs down to The Thing, Reservoir Dogs, A Few Good Men, and Full Metal Jacket. And both of them hated Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke, a comedy which is still as hilarious today as it was 40 years ago.
Who says it's relevant.. seriously, it's not that good a movie
People glom on a movie that has popular reaction but story wise, it's not much of anything
Explain to me why it's so good
I never saw The Professional or Swan Princess. I liked Miracle on 34th Street. Hated Generations. There was no reason to kill Kirk
Watch "The Professional", the director's cut. Amazing film.
They were spot on about Generations but it was weird how they were so far off on The Professional.
We all know what you did here, you suckered us into watching Siskel and Ebert just so we'd want to buy Jelly Belly's.
ugh they enjoyed return of Jafar?
+Dear1Stupit1Dog Yeah, they did like it. What's wrong with that?
sha11235 its shit
+Dear1Stupid1Dog Maybe because Robin Williams wasn't involved? It did go straight to video, remember?
sha11235 The absence of Williams and being straight to video has little to do with why this movie is shit
The reason it went straight to video was they didn't release them theatrically. There were other films that were a little better to do that with. That doesn't make Jafar shit.
If you are not a fan of science fiction or any particular genre of movies why the hell would anyone trust what you have to say?
Ebert trashing the "family nostalgia" in Star Trek describes every reboot and sequel today
I was a bit annoyed by the near-superhuman abilities of Leon as well, but I overall really enjoyed the movie. As regards the Natalie Portman character, I think the French are more comfortable discussing the budding sexuality of very young people. There was a movement to annul statutory rape laws, and a lot of people seemed to think ~13-year-olds having sex with adults was no big deal. Attitudes have changed somewhat on this in recent years though.