Review of Delgo (2008) by Jason M — 18 Dec 2008

[b][font=Arial][color=#000000]Delgo[/color][/font][/b].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman][u]Initial Reaction:[/u] Del go where?[/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Main Characters[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Delgo: He?s a farmer voiced by Freddie Prinze, Jr.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Kyla: She?s a princess voiced by Jennifer Love Hewitt.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Sedessa: She?s an empress voiced by Anne Bancroft.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Filo: He?s Delgo?s best friend voiced by Chris Kattan.[/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Plot Summary[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] This movie takes place in a fantasy world where two races live, one the Andos, a humanoid race that can use magic stones and the Nohrin a fairy like race (in other words, they?re humanoids with butterfly like wings and can fly.)[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] The Nohrin lose all their resources and ask the Andos for help. At first, the Andos are willing to share their land with the Nohrin.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] But the Nohrin start taking more and more land until the point where the Andos said ?Enough!? This starts a war and a major mistrust between the races.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Years after the war ends, Nohrin Empress Sedessa tries to claim the Nohrin throne by trying to kill the king, queen and baby, Kyla. She succeeds in killing the queen, but the king wakes up and stops her from killing him and Kyla.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Sedessa is banished to a desolate part of the world and her wings cut off so she can?t fly back. Ouch.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Years after that, two Andos farmers Delgo and Filo go out and have a race. There?s an accident, and Delgo is left hanging from the side of a cliff.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] It so happens that Nohrin princess Kyla (now mostly grown up) is flying by at the time, and she saves him from falling. But the joy doesn?t last ? other Nohrin warriors accuse Delgo and Filo of trying to kidnap the princess.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] But Kyla and Delgo hit it off big time, so they arrange a secret meeting to get to know each other better. After the meeting, Kyla is kidnapped by Sedessa?s helpers. The Nohrin king accuses Delgo and the Andos for the kidnapping.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] This starts the racial tensions all over again, and it?s not long before the two races are at each other?s throats. Sedessa just sits back and waits for her opportunity to take the throne.[/font][/color][/size].

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[font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]SCORING[/color][/size][/font].

[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Main Characters[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Delgo is your average down to earth hero who falls in love with the most beautiful lady in the world. Problem is, he?s stale like month old bread.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] I didn?t like Kyla, either. Not only is she a princess, she?s a Disney Princess. She?s young, beautiful, has a father but no mother, has great looking hair, argues with her father about tradition, and falls in love with the leading guy. Boring![/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Sedessa?s got a mean streak in her (which I like), but she?s not very well developed.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] But the worst of the bunch is Filo. He?s the sidekick who tries to put the humor in the film and fails in an astounding manner. SCORE: [b]4[/b][/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Supporting Cast[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] We?ve got your basic king, a leader of the Nohrin army and a very wise Andos who does nothing but spew out sage advice. There?s nothing about them I found interesting. SCORE: [b]4[/b][/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Plot[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] We know (via a narrator) that the Nohrin are just asking for war when they took all that land and resources from the Andos. I guess they expect the Andos to sit back and let them take everything. Turns out, they are wrong.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] So why are the Nohrin angry at the Andos for defending their turf and their food? This whole mistrust aspect doesn?t work at all; it?s just a convenient plot point to create conflict.[/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] Besides, the romance between Delgo and Kyla is bland. They meet, they fall in love and that?s it. There?s no real buildup or emotion on display here. SCORE: [b]2[/b][/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Originality[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] The races are original, and the world looks good, but not the storyline. The forbidden romance has been done better in other films, and the war story?s not much fresher. SCORE: [b]5[/b][/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Violence Factor[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] There are a few characters that die (along with many, many soldiers in the fighting); the violence is real. But it feels like some of the sacrifices are nothing more than contrived plot points put in to make us feel for the Nohrin. SCORE: [b]6[/b][/font][/color][/size].

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[u][font=Times New Roman][size=3][color=#000000]Other Moral Issues[/color][/size][/font][/u].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] This movie is supposed to be about building trust between two races, but in this case, the Nohrin are so far off base by trying to take over the Andos? lands that I find it hard to root for them at all. [/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman] There?s also some message about love, but it falls flat: Delgo and Kyla?s love isn?t put to a tough enough test. SCORE: [b]4[/b][/font][/color][/size].

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[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman][u]Final Score (out of 60): [b]25[/b][/u] [u]% Score: [b]41.67%[/b][/u][/font][/color][/size].

[size=3][color=#000000][font=Times New Roman]Delgo needs better characters and a more balanced conflict between the two races.[/font][/color][/size].