Jay Harris

(2013-06-20 00:15:10)

Plight of gifted Chinese student, not fully explored.

This is a confusing muddled drama of the sad plight of a brilliantChinese student at an American university.This is the first effort of both the director; Shi=Zheng Che & writerBilly Shebar.If more experienced hands did this movie it very likely would have beenhandled better.The student(going for his PHD) is played by LUI YE-- from mainlandChina, His performance is first rate,He is a major actor in China & itseasy to see why.Aiden Quinn is his mentor & professor & does his usual fineperformance. Meryl Streep as a small ,but pivotal role and to me sheseems not up to her usual par.The movie was filmed in Utah, & played in some festivals in 2007,released to very few theatres in 2008 & the box-office was pitiful.This is one of those films where they expect the audience to know whatthe story is supposed to be about. I was confused & think all will beas well...Ratings **1/2 (out of 4) 70 points (out of 100) IMDb 6 (out of 10)

bradley_p_wood

(2013-06-19 16:23:40)

Life is short; if you watch this movie you'll never get that time back

Every now and then a movie comes along that is so bad somebody needs topay. I was motivated to at least create an account here and warnothers.This is a very dramatic movie. I'm very tolerant of dramatic, slowmoving films. I often like them when few others do. But this stinker isthe epitome of a slow moving, do nothing, say nothing movie. Tocomplete the stink bomb, the ending is void of any redeeming valuewhatever.To reiterate - I'm very tolerant of off beat movies that most peopledon't like. There's nothing in this movie to like. No pithy lines, nostimulating interaction between characters; just non-thought provokingdepression.I've seen plenty of movies that are just plain awful, but they'reusually just silly or weird without merit. This one is in a class ofit's own; it's disturbingly bad. Someone's gotta pay.

(2013-06-14 14:10:43)

disappointing

Pretty good 1st half, which portrays the life of a grad student (those lucky enough to have superarrogant R.D.s) But, the ending is not believable, completely out of character for the protagonist. Also, Meryl Streep is a marginal character--it's false advertising to put her on the cover.

(2013-06-14 00:57:43)

Made for TV

This review is from: Dark Matter (Amazon Instant Video) I liked the premise and learned after watching that it was based on a true story. However, the plot seemed thin and a lot of questions, pointless plot fillers and storyline non-sequitars muddied the story. Very one-diminsional characters flat development.

napierslogs

(2013-06-09 11:07:44)

Subtlety to Perfection

"Dark Matter" is a fantastic movie. For those frustrated with academicpolitics or anybody who enjoys a simple movie told well, shot well andacted brilliantly, should see Dark Matter.The writer/director got it right. (Not necessarily details surroundingprevious incidents that this may be based on), but the overall attitudeof the students, and professors at the university are portrayedperfectly.The story follows a brilliant Chinese student at an American Universitytrying to get his Ph.D. under a successful and respected professor(played by Aidan Quinn). They showed us everything we needed to knowabout the main character, including contrasts to his fellow Chinesestudents with very effective, subtle scenes.For the subtlety, effectiveness, simplicity, and brilliance ofeverything in this movie, "Dark Matter" is one of the best recent filmsmade.

(2013-06-08 23:29:40)

Worth your time to watch

There are a couple of reason to give this film a look. 1. It is well acted by the entire cast. 2. The story line is intriguing. 3. The story line is (sadly) believable. 4. The music throughout is hauntingly beautiful. In fact, I have searched ( so far in vain) for the movie soundtrack. A recurring use of symbolism throughout the film, I felt added a lushness and depth to the drama as both a foreshadowing tool as well as an exclamation point to a scene just played. A better reviewer than I has suggested it be viewed more than once in order to feel deeper levels of this film, I heartily agree.

MBunge

(2013-06-04 18:13:02)

Streep is surprisingly NOT the best thing here

Dark Matter is a neat little film about the promise and peril of beinga Chinese graduate student at an American university. It gives you apeek inside the subculture of young Asians imported into the country invirtual indentured servitude to the careers and egos of middle-agedacademics.Liu Xing (Liu Ye) is a brilliant math student who's come to the U.S. tostudy with renowned cosmology professor Jake Reiser (Aidan Quinn). Heimmediately put Xing to work and is impressed with the results, as longas they conform to Reiser's existing theories on the structure of theuniverse. Xing winds up living with two other Chinese graduatestudents, Little Square (Li Bo) and Old Wu (He Yu), and becomes friendswith Joanna Silver (Meryl Streep), a rich man's wife who's fascinatedwith China and has become a patron of the constant stream of Chinesegraduate students flowing into Professor Reiser's lab. Xing evendevelops a crush on a pretty townie (Taylor Schilling) who runs thelocal tea shop. He writes letters back to China telling his parents ofhow wonderful things are for him in America.But then things stop being so wonderful. Xing's academic career isstalled when his theories on so-called "dark matter" conflict withProfessor Reiser's ideas and a much more Americanized student with theAmericanized name of Laurence Feng replaces him on the fast track for aPhD. His townie girl crush tells Xing she just wants to be friends andhe eventually ends up selling cosmetics door-to-door. But Xing'sletters home remain and bright and cheerful as ever, covering up ablack depression that explodes in a moment of violent insanity.Sadly reminiscent of a tragedy at the University of Iowa nearly 20years ago, Dark Matter gently engages you in considering a cultural andeconomic phenomenon that's been around for so long, it's become aclichГѓВ©. Asian graduate students in the sciences are so numerous,they've become a punch line on shows like Futurama. This film helps youto think of them as real people, the kind of people who want to makemoney, become Americans, go home or even win a Nobel Prize. It helpsyou to imagine what it's like to be stranded in a strange land,surrounded by your countrymen but still very much alone.The acting is also pretty good, though it's odd to see a Meryl Streepmovie where she doesn't give the best performance. She's fine, butJoanna Silver's a fairly minor character who contributes more to theatmosphere of the film than she does to the plot. No, the standoutactor here is definitely Aidan Quinn. Reiser is the linchpin on whichLiu Zing's life turns and Quinn does an excellent job at showing howvanity and envy can dominate the minds of even the smartest men. Liu Yeand Lloyd Suh also draw such a wonderful contrast between thefrustrated integrity of Liu Xing that eventually turns in on itself andthe vacuous ambition of Laurence Feng that leads to reward, as it sooften does in this unfortunate world.There are a lot of little things to enjoy in Dark Matter. From Reiser'sfeisty secretary Hildy (Blair Brown) to Xing's interactions with hisroommates to Bill Irwin playing Hal Silver, the rich man who tries totolerate his wife's involvement with the Chinese students. The onlyquibble I could have with it is that the movie does move very quicklyfrom the beginning to the end of Xing's emotional implosion and itfeels like there's about 10 or so minutes of the film that have beenleft out. A lot of the dialog is also in Chinese with subtitles, so youdo have to accept that.All in all, though, I quite liked Dark Matter. It's a good little moviethat deserves a gander.

(2013-06-04 04:09:48)

Very dark indeed

This review is from: Dark Matter (DVD) I was very disappointed in this film. Meryl Streep is one of the finest actresses of our time and this is the second film she has starred in that I have found very unsatisfactory. Although claiming to be based on a true story, it completely alters the actual events---Hollywood doesn't let truth deter "artistic license" if it will sell more tickets or the producers wish to present a specific viewpoint. The film did demonstrate the severe clash between American and Chinese cultures in regard to saving face and the effects of not achieving the academic success and recognition a brilliant foreign student believed was his due. The student wanted to make his parents proud and fabricates tales of success in his letters to his parents who have sacrificed to enable him to study in the U.S. One reviewer wrote that the young doctoral student had no way out and this lead to his final actions; he may have believed that was the case but an individual always has other options. It is a depressing and slow-moving film and definitely has an anti-academia bias to the story. If I had it to do over I would not have bought this movie or even watched it.

laura_macleod

(2013-05-31 16:02:07)

A wonderful insight

This is a marvellous film for many reasons and thank you to MerylStreep and Aiden Quinn for acting in it because they have taken a braveand generous step. Their presence gives the film gravitas and an extrarespect because they are so well known and will attract a biggeraudience for a film that really needs to be seen by as many people aspossible. We see so little of Asian actors and Asian directors and itis high time we appreciate their immense talents more in the west. DarkMatter is a film which expertly conveys the cultural differencesbetween China and the West, most especially in terms of teacher/pupilrelationships and also matters of pride and delicate 'keeping face'.The immense expectation that is on the shoulders of these Asianstudents is also highlighted in the film in regards to theirresponsibilities and parental duty. This together with a beautifulstory about a very sensitive and talented student and how he misreadsthe communications given to him by his teachers and how it propels himdownwards into depression and tragedy. I believe this film istremendously helpful to everyone and can only help to enlighten andshow the difficulties faced by students from other lands and othercultures coming to the west to study and live and improve themselves.They are often met with misunderstanding and Dark Matter can only be acontribution to highlight potential problems and make understandingdeepen.

(2013-05-31 12:00:33)

What a terrible ending!

Admittedly the Chinese student coming to America to pursue his dream of obtaining his Ph.D. as well as the Nobel Prize for his "major breakthrough" with regard to dark matter saw his dreams shattered when his dissertation topic was rejected. However, without giving away the details of the story's ending, let's just say that the actions taken by the student at the conclusion of the film seemed totally at odds with what we had seen of his character throughout the film and totally out of proportion as a reaction to the severe disappointment that he had experienced. If the writer or director intended to put forth some sort of warning to the academic establishment as to what can happen when a promising student's ideas are disregarded, the attempt failed due to being too heavy-handed. Any sympathy that might be felt by the viewer for the student's plight quickly vanishes as a result of his unjustified actions at the end of the film. I am not saying that it was necessary for the film to have a happy ending, just that a different one could have been chosen.

Kat

(2013-05-27 01:59:03)

Quite interesting

Directed by a Chinese opera director, this film has the tragic quality of a good opera (with a great score). The acting is excellent, the story sad to be sure. The violence (which is limited) is in context and does not sensationalize or otherwise celebrate what happened.

(2013-05-26 16:56:43)

An unfair attack on the unprepared

Let's make this perfectly clear: This movie is a tragedy. There is little to no indication of that fact on the box. You might pop it in, expecting an ending that would satisfy all the frustration you experience which builds throughout. No such luck! You start off happy, become increasingly frustrated, and end absolutely horrified. There should be a warning!I admit, I am the type that usually likes movies with happy endings. Even then, if I know a movie is going to be tragic, I can at least make a decision whether or not I would like to watch it, and when. I was left feeling angry and empty.Does the movie make a good point? Yes. But, you can get at the same point by simply reading the news! Do you learn how dog-eat-dog academia is? Yes - but was this a hidden fact? Do you learn that there are cultural differences that can lead to frustration? No news there.This movie attempts to offer an explanation as to why the impending tragedy occurs.I am angry up to the teeth. So why did I give it a four star review? My review is based on typical movie stuff. It was well acted. It was well written. It was well directed. Be forwarned. It is well... depressing!

jamesstreet

(2013-05-25 18:18:11)

not bad, try again please

I watched this with several friends and it was interesting to see whowas surprised by the ending and who wasn't. Let there be no doubt,there is a great subject for a plot here. Forget that its based on atrue story because its not - that's just marketing and fodder forpointless forum discussions.What really hurt this movie were the pointless special effects andoverly exaggerated sentimental shots, mostly featuring Meryl Streep,interspersed throughout the movie - typically after a scene where theprotagonist experiences success or failure. There are only a handful ofthese shots and they only last seconds – but they are schmaltzy in anotherwise very believable movie. If you're watching even somewhatclosely, they give away the movie very quickly.I'll bet Shi-Zheng Chen goes on eventually to make a truly great movie.This one is about half way there.

Sir Kai

(2013-05-25 00:06:18)

Dark Subject

I wish I knew about the true back story BEFORE viewing this film. The preview (on another dvd) led one to believe it was an uplifting story of intercultural romance and scientific discovery.Instead it is really about disillusionment, disappointment, despair, how unfair acadamia can be, and other DARK SUBJECTS.It ends tragically, and it was a big disappointment for a Sunday night family gathering.

(2013-05-22 13:08:01)

Clashes: Cultural, Linguistic, Scientific, Emotional

DARK MATTER is a film that will polarize audiences: for those who seek understanding of the clashes between science and 'religion' and the matrix from which tragedy grows the film will appeal, and for the audiences who demand tidy stories with happy resolutions the film will not please. Apparently 'based on true events', this story has many layers that invite discussion and reveals some facts about the American Academia that many would rather not know.Liu Xing (Ye Liu) comes from a poor family in Beijing, but rises to hopeful heights due to his exceptional scientific intelligence and is invited to a prestigious university to study with Cosmology professor Jacob Reiser (Aidan Quinn), the author of the Reiser String Theory - the entire universe is tied into a compact single ball of cosmic wax. Liu Xing encounters initial success not only academically but also as a fresh young student, barely able to speak English, who is taken under the wing of the kind matron of Chinese culture, Johanna Silver (Meryl Streep). Liu Xing develops his own theory that the universe is united by massive amounts of unseen Dark Matter. When the student's theory conflicts with Reiser's theory, the negative results begin to affect each of the characters: Liu Xing sees his dream of earning a PhD in Cosmology and winning the Nobel Prize for his theory destroyed by the powers of academia and as he watches his fellow Chinese students succeed, he is plagued with low self esteem as he attempts to support his family in Beijing with money earned selling cosmetics door to door. The downfall of a simple genius destroyed by the inner workings of academia leads to unimaginable tragedy.Billy Shebar's screenplay tinkers with the story's credibility with a heavy dose of sentimentality at times, but director Shi-Zheng Chen keeps the story moving by allowing the audience to witness frequent glimpses of Liu Xing's humble Beijing home life. The star of the film is the very talented Ye Liu, but Streep and Quinn carry their rather minor roles with great dignity and understatement. This is a moving story, too frequently repeated in our campuses to overlook. There is much more to this film than first viewings reveal. Grady Harp, April 09

(2013-05-21 18:35:23)

In the Dark

DARK MATTER (2007) was quite a shock to me, not the least of which was comprised of how bad the film was as a truth-based tale. As pure cinema, it was also rather dull, silly and lackluster. The true event on which it's based, consisting of plasma physicist Dr. Gang Lu and his crimes at University of Iowa in Iowa City in 1991, speaks eloquently not only to the suspicion/racism shown toward the Chinese in America, but most loudly to the problem of graduate students and their dissertations. However relevant, all this had nothing to do with the true story. This weirdly paced, phantasmagoric rendition of the true story stars the beautiful and charismatic Liu Ye (CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER) as Liu Qing, a highly strung theoretical physics student attending some mythical college. His 'doctorate' professor, a true bastard named Jacob Reiser (a very sinister Aidan Quinn), hates the Chinese. When he accepts Liu as his student, one can see the look of a wolf in his eyes. He's going to destroy this particular student because the student is light years ahead of them all. As a run-up to the film, "The New York Times" ran the true story of this unfortunately unhinged student in its SCIENCE section: "A Tale of Power and Intrigue in the Lab, Based on Real Life" (27 March 2007). It speaks of the pressures of the Chinese college students, especially in the face of the "one-child policy", which places the entire burden for the family on the one child. What I saw here first and foremost was Einstein's life all over again - something similar was done to him as a college student. Though he did not kill anyone, he certainly lost his mind and it took him a year to recuperate. He wanted nothing to do with science during that year, from age 19 to 20. Einstein, had he been weaker, could easily have done what Dr. Gang Lu did. The evil Prof. Reiser (Quinn) is nothing like the professor who mentored Gang Lu in real life - but he reminded me of several teachers who had it in for Einstein, and were responsible for his ejection from school. Anyone who fails to see the horrid rat race science has become should see this film. Admittedly, with unnecessary and weird diversions from Meryl Streep (rich, Chinese-loving matron of the arts) and Eric Avari (I LOVE him - he plays the querulous old has-been professor and I see no point in his character), it's a lot to navigate. Gang Lu was one of a series of students invited to Iowa (ca. the 1980s) to study plasma physics, the first wave of Chinese students invited after China began to open itself. Many of these first students either failed miserably or "simply disappeared", according to "The New York Times". I ran into such people during my stay at college - they were trying to change America over to communism. I recall telling them they were very wrong if they thought they could do that! Oddly enough, Dr. Gang Lu, who had been awarded his doctorate in plasma physics in May of 1991, was enraged that another's thesis and not his had been chosen for a $2,500 prize. Dr. Lu apparently saw that other post-graduate doctor as "his perceived rival". Clearly mentally imbalanced, Dr. Lu shot all his victims in what amounts to a childish rage. What I saw in DARK MATTER was something unfortunate, if I may quote a reviewer from another film: this movie manages to be simple and complex simultaneously. It is also erroneous in its storytelling. We cannot understand Liu Qing without the small details I have revealed here. In the real event, few can say what drove Gang Lu to his terrifying and mad deed.Dr. Gang Lu killed five and paralyzed one before killing himself. He left five letters, one in Chinese and four in English, which have never been made public and it seems they never will be. All I know is I shiver when I recall that case, because it happened not far from my home. The man was a psychotic brute, who thought nothing of gunning down those who opposed him. Legend has it that when the news first broke, all his Chinese colleagues, when they heard the gunman was Chinese, said it was Gang Lu. With the way schools, science and racism remain today, it could happen again and again. See this film and take from it as much as you can. Personally, I am deeply disappointed in this art-house pretense instead of a true, dramatic 'retelling' of the tragic story of 28-year-old Dr. Gang Lu. One thing I must protest (sadly, of course) is the film had to try to protect the survivors of the real-life tragedy. If only the producers had obtained some sort of permission to render a realistic telling of that story... but they chose to do this instead. In a way it is a betrayal, because we know of no such crimes in America as this movie shows - in a way it is dishonest suggesting it is even based on a true story. Let this film, then, stand as well as it can as an object-lesson. I doubt it will do any good.

(2013-05-17 19:11:46)

The title predicts...

The overall film could have been a nice, tight little drama with a message except for the ending and without the gratuitous "arty" efforts throughout. Rather than adding anything, they interrupted the mood and the plot progression, IMHO. Otherwise, I thought it rated a 3 but I still wonder why I had never heard of it when it was first released nor at any time since. As far as Meryl playing a cultural air-head, she shouldn't have...the character wasn't terribly believable or sympathetic. Conversely, the mean-spirited Quinn nailed his role. Unfortunately, in this current era, the ending was all too plausible and was truly a "Dark Matter".

cinebard

(2013-05-17 11:01:36)

who was GUNG LU

BONDPONT sounds like he was Reiser's friend in real life in that hejust claims the real person deserved to be aced out of a PhD but justsays it. makes no cases, cites no evidence. Self promotion is no crime.BONdPONT did not demonstrate how GUNG LU was second best to what wasportrayed in the film as a party line dude who did what Rieser and hisown wife said to do.while no one should have been shot, the film clearly showed that someone did severe and unjustifiable damages to a budding theoretician.Killing His chances of developoing histheories because hewas notteamplayer buying reiser's soon to be discarded models.BONDPONTpontificates, never convinces.

eugenetard

(2013-05-16 22:46:39)

Intense. Heart-Breaking. Funny. Tragic. Beautiful. - THUMBS WAY UP

I just saw a screening of this tonight, and it ROCKED.This flick was Hard-Core. Kind of a matter-of-fact, naturallyprogressing story of a nice brilliant kid who comes from China to aU.S. college to stake his claim to scientific fortune and glory, butinstead finds only a politicized academic world he can not penetrate.A pretty extreme character to start with, but also extremely likable,he turns into a poster- boy for a certain type of desperation with nooutlet. You can kind of see it all coming from a mile away, but theoutcome still packs a crazy kick in the gut. Maybe even all the more sofor its nauseous inevitability.The movie really puts you in the head-space of a person who most of usinsular Americans don't consider too often: the Grad student from aforeign country (like China) who's here against all odds to pursue aprestigious P.H.D., and who's under enormous academic, financial, andfamilial pressures we can hardly match.And the way that it's all conveyed to us is beautifully done.There's a Whole Lotta Feeling in the colors and shapes and sounds andmusic that are poured over us, like a bath. The subtle but far-reachingcolor-palette and the composition of the shots are great. Bright colorsfor the campus (and the "wild west"). Washed-Out Browns and Grays forhis parents back in China. Drab Greens and Grays and Blues and Yellowsfor the students' dormitory apartment. There's a lot of interesting useof space. Both claustrophobic and wide-open, imposing and freeing. Thefragmented frame. The sometimes crazy angles. The use of extremeclose-ups. The placement of the main guy within much larger spaces inwide shots that emphasize his relative insignificance. He knows he'sonto a big break-through about the nature of the universe, but to ushe's just another hamster on the wheel.And it was really sweet the way the whole thing was segmented andlabeled with the elements over iconic shots like "fire", "water","wood", "metal", and what-not. It was in keeping with the themes theyhad going of natural forces, and the strange physics of humanrelationships and kiss-ass politics, and what was really there or not,what was the dark matter in play against this guy? forces that hecouldn't see operating, on the D.L. wavelengths that he didn't have thescience for himself? There's a lot going' on for this guy.The acting is great all around. Really Cake-Taking in places. Meryl Streep is under-stated as a supporting player who has some greatmoments with the main guy, especially in a quiet scene at her placetoward the end that's an All-Timer.Aidan Quinn is great as a professor and potential mentor, and potentialplayer-hater. He embodies qualities both admirable and unforgivablewith equal directness and verve. By the end there are indeed shadingsof light and darkness to that ever-present twinkle in his eye. A tragicfigure himself, he seems like somebody who there's probably a lot oflike out there.And the main guy, the Chinese student, forgive me for not knowing thename please, but this guy is Incredible in this role. I mean he'sAwesome. Really Amazing.I mean, he's so endearing at the beginning. I just wanted things somuch to go well for him when he was starting out. He can barely speakEnglish, but the guy communicates so much. And then, as he has more andmore trouble navigating the mutual back-scratch society of the U.S.P.H.D. chase, the uncomfortable moments just start snow-balling. Andwhoever this kid is, he really REALLY takes it there. He's so reachingand vulnerable it's menacing. A real cringer.It's a tall statement, I know, but his portrayal has amazing echoes, inquality and nature, of De Niro's Travis Bickle in "Taxi Driver". In theway that they're both so searching and sincere and even sweet, and yetthwarted at every turn in their quest for belonging and identity andsuccess. Mind you, this kid's got a whole helluva lot more going' onthan Travis did, but that adds to the magnitude of his personaltragedy. He's a Genius, with so much amazing potential, but just asmuch a social cripple and outcast, and even more doomed. It'sHeart-Breaking.Maybe it ain't for everybody.This is one of those movies that some people might dismiss as"independant" or "artsy- fartsy" or what-have-you, but which is aDamn-Well-Made story, and an uncomfortably familiar one. A sad scarydetour off the road to the "American Dream" that we're seeing all toooften in the news lately. Whatever the reaction to it is when it hitstheaters, It's a movie that'll be looked back on as a searching andserious (and vital) work of art. As something informed by the times andasking some overdue questions. Among them:What happens? Why's it happen? And how can we keep it from happeningagain?

A J

(2013-05-16 05:02:17)

Exactly what happened in my real life

I am a Chinese Ph.D. student in U.S., and this story is exactly whathappened to my roommate. He is from the same department of mine. I donot know anybody else in my department as talented as him. He wrote hisdissertation on a very difficult topic, and showed that the theory of avery established professor in his area was wrong. Because of that, hisadviser refused to review his dissertation. Who would endanger hiscareer by agreeing that some big guy, and all his followers, werewrong? He has been staying in his Ph.D study for a long time, longenough for me to obtain more than three of my Ph.D. degrees.His friends and I have asked him many times to change his topic, or atleast not to mention anything about that big guy's theory. However, healways said, "it is obviously wrong, how can I say something which isnot true?" I know he is a person who will never compromise. His adviserno longer funds him, and has been promoted to a position high enoughthat you do not need to care about a student. Now he has to work onsomething unrelated to his research in order to make a living.I have seen many bad things in academia. People do pursue truth here,but not 100% truth. You cannot survive if you never tell lies, just asin anywhere else. If you look at the history, even those greatscientists have done terrible things to defend their fame and power.Now I have graduated and no longer live with my roommate. I do not knowhow his life will be like in the future. I do not think he will shootanybody because he is such a kind person. But he has no girlfriend, nodegree, no permanent job, and would never lower himself to lie. Thisworld is too corrupt for him. I just want to say I admire you myroommate, you are the real Ph.D.