Spartan (2004)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Film C

  
  not a very good movie at all. Its confusing and then when you understand the story you realise that the storyline is weak and boring and very flawed. Its a weak plot and William H Macy does not have a big enough part!

• Brian D

  
  Solid action adventure with val kilmer.This being hes last big screen film before driving into direct to video trash!!This is gripping to the end with excellant performance thru out. Worth checking out.

• Jens S

  
  The beginning is nothing but confusion. Sure, the agent Val Kilmer is playing is introduced while training recruits and then gets thrown into his most dangerous case. From here on the audience is introduced to a lot of nameless characters doing a lot of random things until things… More
  The beginning is nothing but confusion. Sure, the agent Val Kilmer is playing is introduced while training recruits and then gets thrown into his most dangerous case. From here on the audience is introduced to a lot of nameless characters doing a lot of random things until things finally get a little clearer and we learn that the agent has to find the president's hijacked daughter. From here on the plot takes quite a few turns and it's impossible to say where the movie is going next, which adds to the confusion but also keeps it at a very entertaining level. Val Kilmer is a convincing loner, William H. Macy is hopelessly underused and all minor characters don't live long enough to be even mourned. In the end that makes for a decent action thriller, which could have been even better with a straighter outline and a little more care for the side characters. But still, fans of the genre should be satisfied.

• Dan S

  
  Way to convulted, and Kilmer's transformation into a Chuck Norris one man wrecking crew isn't entirely believable. I liked Kilmer's character at first, but his biting and sarcastic tone didn't fly when things got pretty tense. A stronger dose of supporting actors… More
  Way to convulted, and Kilmer's transformation into a Chuck Norris one man wrecking crew isn't entirely believable. I liked Kilmer's character at first, but his biting and sarcastic tone didn't fly when things got pretty tense. A stronger dose of supporting actors (namely Ed O'Neill) would've made this a little more balanced, but in the end, its pretty unbalanced and the ending was unfitting.

• Aaron N

  
  Scott: In the city there is always a reflection, in the woods always a sound. Curtis: What about the desert? Scott: You don't wanna go to the desert. A thriller involving a special agent assigned to find the kidnapped daughter of the president, written and directed by snappy,… More
  Scott: In the city there is always a reflection, in the woods always a sound. Curtis: What about the desert? Scott: You don't wanna go to the desert. A thriller involving a special agent assigned to find the kidnapped daughter of the president, written and directed by snappy, to-the-point dialog driven playwright David Mamet. This means that there is a lot of real dialog spoken without a minute to lose as well as lots of twists and turns. The way people talk is the way they are supposed, without giving exact meanings to certain phrases directly to audiences, its also very vulgar at times for no real reason except to give it a more macho feel. This can confuse some or make others more engaged. The movie centers around Val Kilmer's character, Agent Scott, and he does a good job as a special agent of some sort, who works for the government and takes this matter into his hands. Derek Luke also joins him, helping him out along the way. Scott: You need to set your motherfucker to "receive". Rounding out the cast, you have Ed O'Neill and William H. Macy to keep things interesting, as well as other recognizable faces from other Mamet flicks. Scott: Honey, you got all the slack in the world until I leave this room. Then I'm gonna zero you out. The movie is full of twist and turns, a couple cool action scenes and gun play. Mamet specializes in stories focusing on variations of con games, so this is basically like a political thriller version of that, and it's very entertaining. Scott: The smell of American cigarettes flows through the air out here. That's why you never go to the desert.

• Luke B

  
  Like any Mamet film it's wonderfully scripted and paced. Unfortunately it isn't anything new. Kilmer is great but he keeps managing to obtain sidekicks that last a little while, serve some purpose and then get killed. It's a little formula that becomes little comedic in… More
  Like any Mamet film it's wonderfully scripted and paced. Unfortunately it isn't anything new. Kilmer is great but he keeps managing to obtain sidekicks that last a little while, serve some purpose and then get killed. It's a little formula that becomes little comedic in an otherwise serious film. The DVD box also ruined the twist, but it wasn't much of a twist in the first place.

• Al S

  
  A supreme, very fast-paced and intellingent razor-sharp thriller. It packs on smarts and suspense perfectly. Val Kilmer is magnificent, crafting one of his best perfromances, playing a character who is dedicated to what he does and does not ask questions. Director/Writer. David Mamet… More
  A supreme, very fast-paced and intellingent razor-sharp thriller. It packs on smarts and suspense perfectly. Val Kilmer is magnificent, crafting one of his best perfromances, playing a character who is dedicated to what he does and does not ask questions. Director/Writer. David Mamet knows how to craft a story and it's characters well. A wickedly entertaining film with great twist, great characters and action. I's terifficly written and superbly directed.

• Ken S

  
  I've always been a huge fan of both Kilmer & Mamet's work and they are both in top form here. A delightfully complex film that never quite pans out the way you think it will. Worth it just for the line. "Set your mother fucker to receive!"

• Mike N

  
  I don't often share info about myself in this journal, but I go through my phases. You are privileged, readers, for you are experiencing one of them! My holiday weekend was kooky, but mostly good. But, kooky all the same. Here are some highlights:… More
  I don't often share info about myself in this journal, but I go through my phases. You are privileged, readers, for you are experiencing one of them! My holiday weekend was kooky, but mostly good. But, kooky all the same. Here are some highlights: **Thanksgiving happened twice. Once at each parent's house. My stomach felt stretched on a mangle rack, and still hasn't forgiven me. My taste buds were lulled to sleep after that final glass of wine. **Went to a comedy show on Friday. 90 minutes of straight, hearty laughter. Comedians are therapists. So good, man. I was laughing so hard, the rest of the world was convulsing with me. Some people turn their laughter into a full-bodied performance, too! I thought a few would combust on the spot, letting out the shrill cry of their demise (just to scratch the surface of how annoying some laughs can be). Still, one might think that the laughing all throughout the room would suck the air up completely. I was too busy laughing to think, only focusing on swallowing my next breath and how I could cycle it through my system to keep the laughs a-flowin' comfortably ('cause sometimes I laughed so hard I stopped, as if I ran out). Unbelievable. I must try this again. **The Mom figure scored two DVD's for a buck each (neither of which I've seen, but will see soon): 'The Royal Wedding' (1951) and 'The Last Man On Earth' (1964). :up: **Saw the Spongebob film with my two most favorite moviegoing companions: my little bro & little sis (they tend to agree with all my opinions ;)). The movie was pretty much an episode stretched thrice as long as usual, hampered by some tiresome "requisite" story devices, and blown to silly proportions by returning to its usual self. The movie was upped a notch with its ending (which I may sometimes deem as "brilliant," depending on my mood). :fresh: **I am a sports fan. More specifically, I am a football fan. Even more specifically, I am a fan of my alma mater's football team. U of Colorado thumped Nebraska this past weekend to enter the Big 12 Title game next week against dreaded Oklahoma (ahyuck!). Yep, you guys don't care, but I do. :p **'Zoolander' moment of the week: My friends can often be unoriginal and want to hang at clubs and crap. So, since I never see these guys, I buckled down and went to a club. And I found myself being cajoled into a dance-off. A [i]dance-off! [/i](This was probably the next most hilarious event of the weekend behind the comedy show. And maybe that one guy who slipped on the ice in front of the department store). I didn't even care to be doing it, but I was somehow pitted against the guy who does "the loose robot" (shrug). But yeah, he would dance some move, and then point to me, like we were in the "Beat It" video. Oy. Hey, what else could I do? I danced, dammit. And I beat the sucker (only indicated when he came up to me and told me "You done good." OMG! The Loose Robot told me I "done good"!!!). My dream of defeating the mighty Loose Robot at the club is now fulfilled. You may kiss my dance sneakers. **Last week, at a Mexican restaurant where 15 of my co-workers & I were lunching, a manager staged a 'fake birthday' gag on me. Sometime in the middle of my third quesadilla, strange people wearing employee outfits were singing and smothering my head with hat (sneaky devils! I think I was chewing too loud to hear them coming). So, I wore the sombrero for the remainder of the day at work. And, as a result, I vowed to wear hats every Friday at work. All of this is a preface to me bringing with me a legion of my bestest hats with me back to Cali, including my fez, my panama hat, my plaid fedora, and my 3 foot long santa hat. Hat revolution commence! **Had Thai. Fantastic. **Had pie. Fantastic. **Snowed 8 inches. Fantastic. **Slept in. Fantastic. **Beard approved by the Mom figure. Fantastic. [img]http://www.virtual-impact.ca/images/dance-snoopy2.gif[/img] [size=1]"Do the 'Loose Robot', Snoopy!"[/size] Some other strange, unpleasant, and somewhat bizarre things also happened. Those I keep for myself. *swallows key* Everybody else enjoy your weekend?

• Naughtia N

  
  It has been a very long time since I last watched a Val Kilmer movie, I really love his movies. This movie has Val Kilmer in the main part as this special investigator. The President's daughter has mysteriously dissappeared and the investigator has to find out where she is… More
  It has been a very long time since I last watched a Val Kilmer movie, I really love his movies. This movie has Val Kilmer in the main part as this special investigator. The President's daughter has mysteriously dissappeared and the investigator has to find out where she is located and how to get her back. As he dives in to the case he discovers that there's more to the story. This movie was very thrilling and it had some nice twists. Val Kilmer was great as always.

• Alec B

  
  The characters could have used better definition, and the final moments become overly preachy about the current state of political affair but for much of it (particularly the middle section) its a rather engaging thriller that is very entertaining.

• Mike T

  
  This is a film whose intelligent ideas are somewhat of a rarity, but whose execution is lacking flair. A thriller as dense and intricate as this one requires sronger narrative and more distinct style. Nevertheless, it's an enjoyable little spy flick.

• William G

  
  Underappreciated hit-the-ground-running thriller from Mamet. Kilmer shines.

• Brian R

  
  The investigation into a kidnapping of the daughter of a high-ranking US government official. As Mamet's film gradually grows he is able to flourish awesome characters, an intriguing plot that I seemed to actually care about, great camera movement, and oh can't forget the… More
  The investigation into a kidnapping of the daughter of a high-ranking US government official. As Mamet's film gradually grows he is able to flourish awesome characters, an intriguing plot that I seemed to actually care about, great camera movement, and oh can't forget the Mamet twists and turns of wicked suspense. A real serious movie for real serious film audiences.

• matt s

  
  This movie makes you realize how shitty of an actor Val Kilmer is.

• George K

  
  Val Kilmer's acting took a nosedive in this film. Derek Luke was alright. The movie is about secret service agents trying to rescue a kidnapped American girl. If you are extremely bored...watch this movie.

• Sarah P

  
  I enjoyed watching Val Kilmer be such a weird badass. I also liked the plot line a lot. There's no doubt in my mind some politicians would actually do this to their daughters!

• Lovable M

  
  Probably the best Val Kilmer movie I've seen aside from "Felon".

• Anthony V

  
  A suspenseful, well crafted thrill ride.

• MJS M

  
  One of the most criminally overlooked films in recent memory. The film was released unceremoniously in 2004 with little or no advertising and I was one of maybe three people who saw it during that initial release. The film is written and directed by David Mamet and I?d probably go so… More
  One of the most criminally overlooked films in recent memory. The film was released unceremoniously in 2004 with little or no advertising and I was one of maybe three people who saw it during that initial release. The film is written and directed by David Mamet and I?d probably go so far as to say it?s his best work as a director. The story is incredibly lean with some of the smartest exposition around, they should use the movie to teach a class in how to trust your audience rather than bogging them down in detailed explanations. Mamet deliberately takes what sounds like an incredibly clichéd plot and shows that a talented artist can do wonders with any subject. The David Mamet dialogue is in full swing here, but never draws attention to itself to a distracting degree. The film?s has an almost perfect structure that comes together really well at the end without ever becoming predictable. Everyone should watch this movie, it deserves so much better than it got.

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