The Blues Brothers

Data
Title: The Blues Brothers
Year: 1980
Length: 133 minutes
Director: John Landis
Writers: Dan Aykroyd & John Landis
Starring: John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd
Music: various artists (and non-original music), Ira Newborn (supervisor)

My reaction
Synopsis: ex-con musicians try to save an orphanage
How I saw it: on video many times (have on DVD), most recently yesterday
Concept: Bad.
Story: Indifferent. The plot is stupid, but the way it unfolds is brilliant.
Characters: Great.
Dialog: Great. Some of the funniest dialog ever.
Pacing: Great.
Cinematography: Great.
Special effects/design: Good.
Acting: Indifferent.
Music: Great. James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, Cab Calloway... and Belushi and Aykroyd still seem like good singers in that company.
Subjective Rating: 9/10 (One of my favorites). I love the way this movie builds. It opens in silence, with several minutes of dirty shots of Joliet prison, starting at night with the light of dawn gradually glowing through the smog. It ends with the complete opposite tone: one of the most absurd, over-the-top, cartoonish car chases ever filmed. And in between, it builds, gradually enough that it feels as if big-budget silliness is just the natural outcome of that indie-film opening.
Objective Rating: 3.2/4 3.3/4 (Very good).