The Skulls (2000)

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Excellent but underrated film

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Another film that just makes you more afraid and non trusting of secret societies, makes you wonder if they will ever make a movie that praises these groups. Well, we have The Skulls which I watched today and I have to say that I wasn't so sure to trust this movie. We've seen the whole "don't trust anybody" plot a million times before. Joshua Jackson was so popular with his Dawson's Creek era and I wondered why they would put him in a lead role, pretty much for the money. But I gave the movie a fair chance and wasn't too disappointed. It's very predictable and has some flaws to it, but overall it does provide entertainment. The story has been done to death, but beggars can't be choosers in this Hollywood.Luke McNamara is a college student with aspirations to eventually become a lawyer. He attends Yale along with his girlfriend Chloe and his best friend Will. Luke's friendships hit the rocks when he is invited to join a secret society known as "The Skulls." As a member of the Skulls, Luke is partnered with Caleb, and the two quickly strike up a friendship. Eventually Will, who has been conducting research on the Skulls for some time, discovers their secret ritual room. Will gets caught in the ritual room by Caleb and in the ensuing struggle he falls and is knocked unconscious. Caleb is ordered to leave the room by his father, after which one of Litten's cronies breaks Will's neck. The skulls manage to move the body and make it look like Will committed suicide in his dorm room. But Luke knows there's more to the story than it looks.The acting is alright; for the most part Jackson does a decent job in the leading role. But they could have had someone who was a bit stronger considering that every line that Jackson said in the end was made for the trailer pretty much. Paul Walker, again, more used because he was just the hottie of the time, he was OK. No major stand out performances, Craig T. Nelson is the most cartoon villain I've seen in a while. The only thing that was missing was the lightening in the background as he's laughing manically at the Skulls meetings . But the film works on the story pretty well, it keeps the tension, even though there are unbelievable moments. I seriously love how this secret group is possibly going to be apart of the CIA or FBI one day, part of the government top secret, yet doesn't realize that when they murder someone, they should check the room for security cameras. But the scares are captured with Joshua not being able to go to anyone to find help for his room mate's murder. It's hard to say if I would recommend this film, it's just alright and average. I think there are some good moments and bad one's, it's certainly flawed and made for the teens, but I think the adults could find something good from the story. It just needed a little more work. 5/10

Well, first off I don't understand the real purpose of this secret society. I understood, they are secret, they have some authorities in the group, but what is the main point of having a secret society?The story's development isn't bad, the story is quite engaging, but we never really know any of the characters. Caleb Mandrake, is he a bad boy or a good guy? And Will, the guy who 'accidentaly' died? Why did he want to tell everyone about The Skulls, maybe for money? Comparing "The Skulls" with the other teen films of 99~01, I believe this is a weak movie. Nothing much really happens and all the happenings are a little pointless to me. Also, it's not very plausible that Caleb would shoot in his own dad instead of shooting in a "friend". Not to say how bad Paul Walker used to act in this period. It's a miracle he went from this to "Fast & Furious" franchise.It deserves six stars because it's quite original and entertaining, but it's no big film in any aspect.

I never expected this movie to be well-written or have good acting. I knew I was going to be watching something poorly done. It looked like trash, but maybe it would at least be fun. It isn't.Joshua Jackson is invited to join the secret society, The Skulls, based on a real network that supposedly includes many powerful, influential people. The kids who enter into this world as college students will have many doors opened up for them as they enter the workforce and maneuver through life's challenges. Except that Joshua Jackson's character, Lucas, starts to feel morally conflicted about some of the things that happen.I think I was hoping to see the decadent or possible sleazy side of having these advantages. I would have enjoyed a movie in which a decent kid gets overwhelmed with having easy access to money and power, and watch it all spin out of control. Except that this movie keeps everything very tidy and PG. The main plot point is set up when Lucas' best friends infiltrates the secret society to do an expose, and ends up dying accidentally. The cover-up does not sit well with Lucas, and the movie turns into a routine thriller as he tries to make things right with the full power of the corrupt Skull network rising against him. I say that the movie is "routine" because it does things that we have seen in so many other movies in the same genre.So it ended up being pretty boring, never really getting crazy or trashy enough to be memorable. I thought it was a waste of time, even for a teen-themed action thriller. I wouldn't even recommend it for an evening when you had nothing better to do, because there are plenty of movies that are fun and easy to watch. You don't have to subject to yourself to something that offers no pleasure just because you have time to waste.

Are there things "wrong" with this movie? Yes. Are they are bad as some of the reviewers I've read? Asbolutely not.The first problem with the movie is it assumes it's audience is too intelligent. Most movies these days leave NOTHING to the imagination or the interpretation. They spell it out perfectly for you so no part of you goes "first he was sitting, then the camera panned to the main character, and when it goes back he was STANDING!" And a scene like makes it's way into web pages as "errors". Because there's *no way* that someone can stand up while they're "off screen" and the camera is on someone else.That's what The Skulls does to you. It makes you think of what's happening off screen. At least 50% of the movie isn't occurring on screen, and that's quite honestly, way too much for the average viewer to comprehend.Things like "pre-acceptance into the law school of your choice". I've seen that "problem" pointed out in many reviewers. What they fail to grasp is idiot skulls trying to rule the world doesn't help the cause. While sure, they could likely produce false papers for a law degree, the point is to ACTUALLY make the men go through school, ACTUALLY become smart. So they can ACTUALLY lead in the future. The point of the movie was this secret society opens doors. It doesn't spoon feed the men.I've heard comments about the "duel being out in the open". It was, on a private island. I've read complaints about how it's a "known" "secret society". And that's apparently too complex a concept to grasp for some. There's A LOT of "known" "secrets". Area 51 for instance in Nevada. It's widely known, yet no one can tell you what ACTUALLY happens there. Sure, 1000 theories... but no truly KNOWN truths. The secret societies in this college are the same. They listed 3 of them. The Snake and Key was one I think, the Wolf and Scroll was another I believe, and yes, The Skulls.I personally liked the movie. It was at least suspenseful. Did it have it's odd plot hole? Sure. But as long as you're brain's fast enough to fill in the blanks that are happening off screen, then it's much more in-depth then a lot of the reviewers I've read give it credit for.