Gulliver's Travels

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation | Release Date: December 25, 2010

4.5	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 116 Ratings

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nutterjrJan 6, 2011

Not even the 3D gimmicks could save this film from mediocracy. So much of the true story moral lessons are lost and if it was not for the excellent Chris O'Dowd (see also "The IT crowd") it might not have been worth seeing at all.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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grandpajoe6191Sep 15, 2011

"Gulliver's Travels" is not funny. The story is not funny, Jack Black delivers a decent performance, the depth of the movie is shallow....It is NOT funny.

3 of 4 users found this helpful31

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ShiiraDec 30, 2010

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Jack Black needs to graduate from the school of rock. He flunked "Margot at the Wedding" and barely passed "King Kong", but those are the sort of films he has to keep taking and master, varied roles in which the high-octane comic actor can't dial anything in, a challenge he first faced in the 2008 Noam Baumbach film, starring Nicole Kidman. Cast against type, Black was asked to portray a depressed best man of the groom without any trace of his patented wild man-lost boy schtick. He underplayed, and underwhelmed as a Bergman-esque ensemble player, exposing his lack of range as a dramatic actor. Fast-becoming the Robin Williams of his generation, "Gulliver's Travels" relegates the one-trick pony leading man to his tried-and-true antics, which seems to consist primarily of channeling his guitar heroes whenever he gets excitable, that is to say, nearly always. Without the presence of a strong personality behind the camera, Black's performances will inevitably go to eleven. His work here is no exception. Lucky for him, his schtick hasn't grown entirely tiresome yet, first seen eleven years ago in Stephen Frears' "High Fidelity", championing Katrina & the Waves over Belle & Sebastian, by dancing to "Walking on Sunshine" along the vinyl stacks. Point taken. You can't dance to "sad bastard music". The record clerk was the first in a long line of slackers that he would come to specialize in playing; his latest underachiever, Gulliver, a hapless mailboy at a seemingly thriving New York newspaper, is just the sort of undeterred sad sack Black can embody in his sleep, and without a good script, it's auto-pilot time, since he's essentially playing the same character as the faux schoolteacher in the Richard Linklater film from 2004. At least that slacker could play a musical instrument, the electric guitar, whereas Gulliver wields a pathetic toy one for the wildly popular video game. Out of love and desperation, Gulliver makes matters worse, when the newly demoted mail clerk(his trainee, played by T.J. Miller, becomes his boss) lies to the sexy travel editor about his writing ability and affinity for travel, since he wants Darcy(Amanda Peet)...badly. Because of their opposing stations at the paper, Gulliver doesn't dare act on his impulses, so he does something about this inequality. The fake musician becomes a fake journalist, as well, by fooling the seasoned old pro with plagiarized writing samples that he parlays into an assignment on the mysteries of the Bermuda Triangle. After his boat penetrates an inverted whirlpool, the mail clerk wakes up in Liliput, a place where he can start over, be a big shot, and does so accordingly, exerting his size and stature as a false idol over the Liliputian people, treating them like Star Wars action figures, like puppets. As the kingdom's ruler, dictator, really, Gulliver usurps the power from Liliput's king the very moment he pisses on the royal, which the film disguises purely as a rescue, a fire that the giant extinguishes with a torrent of urine. The king calls Gulliver "a savior", but weren't they managing just fine without him? This act of seeming benevolence looks more and more like the actions of a man who's marking his territory. In other words, the thirty-something American is planting his flag. The pee acts like a colonizing agent. Gulliver employs the Liliputians as slaves, working these "ridiculously good builders" to the bone, enabling him to enjoy the good life. Instead of Christianity, he promotes the idea of cinema as religion, forcing the tiny people to watch secular stories("Star Wars" and "Titanic") as if they were holy, in which the words of Lucas and Cameron become the priests who transcribed the word of God. Gulliver never stops to consider that the Liliputians have their own stories to tell. They're Americanized. "Gulliver's Travels", like a lot of Hollywood movies(especially the old ones), is gerrymandered in the colonizer's favor; it's a product of the manifest destiny tradition, so as a result, the film seems unaware that Edward, the supposed traitor of Liliput who switches allegiances in order to combat his fellow countrymen, may actually be the hero.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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RazvDec 30, 2010

I didn't expect a very good movie so i wasn't impressed, nor disappointed. Even though the plot is simple and naive, most of the jokes were funny. Plus, Jack Black was hilarious as always.

3 of 6 users found this helpful33

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nintendoid13Jan 8, 2011

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this movie. I went to it with my mom, grandma, and little 5-year-old brother. My brother really ate it up while I still think Jack Black needs acting lessons. I went to it with really, really (really) lowI have a lot of mixed feelings about this movie. I went to it with my mom, grandma, and little 5-year-old brother. My brother really ate it up while I still think Jack Black needs acting lessons. I went to it with really, really (really) low expectations so I was pleasantly surprised to see it wasn't that bad.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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xXAnthonyXxJan 15, 2011

Okay movie, not great. It has some funny spots but like some has said, I too wasn't impressed. Probably worth your time once but, it's replayability is very low.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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GVirus16Dec 25, 2010

First off, I don't know why the official review rating is off; if anything, it should be 57/100, but whatever. I think it deserves at least a 60; it's not hilarious, but it gets the job done, and is a holiday movie you will enjoy.

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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OscarPicks2010Jan 1, 2011

The story about a guy who unintentionally traveled into a world of little people called Liliput. Here, Gulliver (Jack Black) discovered that these people think differently about him than back at where he came from. Back in Mahanttan, GulliverThe story about a guy who unintentionally traveled into a world of little people called Liliput. Here, Gulliver (Jack Black) discovered that these people think differently about him than back at where he came from. Back in Mahanttan, Gulliver worked in a mailroom in a writing company and no one knows he exists, which is really typical for a movie like this. He had a long time crush on this girl who writes traveling articles. One day, he walked into her office ready to ask her out and predictably grabbed a packet for a traveling article which requires him to go to sea instead. While driving a boat to the destination, Gulliver fell asleep and went off course into a dangerous spin-off. Astonishingly, Gulliver came out alive but was tied up by the little humans by the time he came to. The little humans thought he was an enemy at first, but by the time the movie's middle appear, you'd already guessed the ending. Jack Black did exactly what he was supposed to do, entertain the audience no matter what it takes (even if showing half of his ass and pissing all over the place in a PG film). But the movie cannot depend on Jack Black to carry it, it needs a better story and a good, surprising ending. In my opinion, with all of Jack Black's childish humor and fine special effects, the film was able to get some laughs out of me. Jack Black has got a charm with him every time he gives a performance so that was enough for the film to pass the 50% mark. Even though the film somewhat entertained me, Gulliver's Travels did not do justice to its source materials (books) and was too predictable that even little kids can figure it out.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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Forrestgump1Dec 29, 2010

"Gulliver's Travels rely's way to much on its childlike humor and potty jokes to save itself , but really never succeeds , considering the source material. Jack Black never gets a grip on things. But still i laughed hear and there so a mild"Gulliver's Travels rely's way to much on its childlike humor and potty jokes to save itself , but really never succeeds , considering the source material. Jack Black never gets a grip on things. But still i laughed hear and there so a mild recommendation" .. C… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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Evyan2002Jan 24, 2016

This movie is very stupid but kind of like its so bad it's good. I don't recommend watching this 2010 mess of a movie. Jack Black is a good actor, but in this movie he is just plain dumb.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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Aloxb3Jul 27, 2017

Se você escolheu assistir um filme com o Jack Black, com certeza você não estava a procura de um filme cabeça e cheio reflexões. A viagem de Gulliver não é um filme focado no publico infantil, já que, o conflito amoroso nessa obra é deSe você escolheu assistir um filme com o Jack Black, com certeza você não estava a procura de um filme cabeça e cheio reflexões. A viagem de Gulliver não é um filme focado no publico infantil, já que, o conflito amoroso nessa obra é de caráter adulto e inclusive eu mesmo achei meio chato e monótono. Também não é um filme focado pro publico adulto, pois, os personagem são bem cartunescos, assim como os efeitos especiais que parecem ter sido idealizados dessa forma meio tosca. Como disse no inicio quem vai assistir um filme com o Jack Black tem que estar no "clima" ou então vai acabar se irritando com tanta babaquice. No entanto confesso que dei algumas risadas mas, o maior beneficio foi que, depois de assistir o filme fiquei bem curioso para conhecer a história dos livros que, sinceramente, já conhecia mas nunca me interessei. Sendo assim, resumo esse filme da seguinte forma: é um bom filme pra assistir com o seu filho adolescente.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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TomtagApr 14, 2019

There is Jack Black in here so of course it was funny, but it also was a big failure to make eudiences entertained and was completely a big joke

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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