A Mighty Wind
|
****
|
Not as funny as Best in Show, but still very
good. Christopher Guest has carved out a unique niche - the
documentary style parody. The story line here is a reunion of folk
groups popular in the 60's. The movie is at its best when the
characters stick to what the real life people they are portraying would
do and say. When they go over the top, the comedy loses some of
its bite. (2003)
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About a Boy
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***½
|
Entertaining star turn for Hugh Grant. Lots
of good laughs and a new child star who won't make you retch. Toni
Collette does the best she can with a character difficult to play with a
straight face. (2002)
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About Schmidt
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****
|
A tour de force for Jack Nicholson. He
portrays a mid-westerner who seems to have it all as he heads into
retirement. But when his world is upset, he takes off in his RV to
seek redemption. Kathy Bates as a gracelessly aging flower child
is something to see (literally). (2002)
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The Accidental Tourist
|
**½
|
I enjoyed Anne Tyler's novel better than its screen
adaptation. William Hurt plays a travel writer who has to choose
between his ex-wife, Kathleen Turner, who wants a reconciliation, and his
dog's trainer, played by Geena Davis, who wants a father for her
son. It would have been a no-brainer for me - Kathleen Turner - but
Hurt's character is pretty indecisive. (1988)
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The Agronomist
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****½
|
Powerful documentary about Jean Dominique, a Haitian
agronomist who purchased a radio station and became a national hero by
exposing a series of corrupt governments. Exiled twice to the
U.S., he returned in 2000 only to be gunned down in front of the station
by an unidentified assassin. Unforgettable. (2003)
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Amelie
|
*½
|
The reviewer in the Houston Chronicle gave Amelie
an A+ rating. Consequently, I give the reviewer a D- rating. This
import from France is long, boring,cutesy, and pretentious.
There are some mildly funny bits, but on the whole, pardon my French,
the picture is "merde de cheval". (2001)
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American Splendor
|
***½
|
The story of Harvey Pekar and Joyce Brabner, two
of the oddest misfits ever seen on the screen. The real Harvey and
Joyce make frequent cameo appearances throughout, giving the whole film
a surrealistic feel. This one raises the bar on nerdism in film.
(2003)
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An Inconvenient Truth
|
****
|
Like him or not, you have to respect Al Gore for
devoting his life to what he believes is service to mankind instead of
joining the corporate board / honorarium circuit. He has devoted
his energies to alerting an indifferent world to the dangers of
global warming. He might just succeed. This documentary is
in essence a slide show explaining in lay terms the causes and effects
of putting increasing quantities of carbon dioxide into the
atmosphere. It could have boring but it isn't. The movie
informs, bur also entertains. Gore has given this presentation
over a hundred times but hasn't lost his enthusiasm for it. The
data he presents are impressive, and Gore is a surprisingly effective
presenter. However he takes some gratuitous potshots at the
current administration and the oil companies which some may find
amusing, but unfortunately detract from his primary message. Too
bad. (2006)
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The Aristocrats
|
*
|
Here's the premise: Invite 100 comedians to
tell their version of the same dirty joke. The joke goes something
like this - A guy goes to a talent agent and says he has a great
act. He then describes in great detail the most outrageous sexual
and scatological acts imaginable involving the guy's family. When the
agent asks the guy what he calls his act, he says The Aristocrats.
Ostensibly professional comedians find this joke hilarious. I didn't
even find it mildly amusing.
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Aviator
|
****
|
Leonardo Di Caprio does an excellent job in this
story about the life of Howard Hughes. Unfortunately, as the movie
progresses, Hughes ages, but Leonardo doesn't. He looks 30 at the
beginning of the film which was Hughes' age in the mid 1930's, but as
the film moves down the track 20 years or so, Leonardo still looks
30. The supporting cast is solid. Alan Alda does a fine job
as an aging Senator from Maine. The real strength of the movie is
its balanced and accurate portrayal of one of America's great
innovators. (2004)
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Bad Education
|
***
|
Almodovar's latest effort is a tale about a gay
love/lust triangle between a priest, and two of his 10 year old students,
that continues, on and off, into adulthood. Gael Garcia Bernal stars
in this film that will not be shown at the Vatican film festival. (2004)
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Basquiat
|
***½
|
An off-beat biopic about Jean-Michel Basquiat, who
took the art world by storm in the eighties before dying of a drug
overdose at the age of 28. Another phenomenal performance by Jeffrey
Wright who has yet to get the recognition he deserves. The
supporting cast is first class, and include David Bowie as Andy Warhol,
Basquiat's friend and mentor. (1996)
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Before Sunset
|
****½
|
This is an intelligent film about a man and woman
who meet in Paris after a a brief encounter nine years
earlier. At first they talk in abstractions, but as the movie
unfolds they probe what has happened since their last one night
stand. There is a feeling throughout that these aren't actors, but
real people letting you in on their most intimate moments. The
movie is actually a sequel to one called Before Sunrise, which is the
story of their first encounter. Blockbuster, here we come. (2004)
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Being Julia
|
***
|
This is an adoption of a Somerset Maughm story
about an aging actress who falls for a much younger man. Annette
Bening copped an Oscar nomination for her work in this beautifully
filmed picture. She does a better job with the British accent here
then she did in Richard III. Veteran actor Michael Gambon is a
delight as Bening's mentor. (2004)
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Bend it like Beckham
|
***½
|
Monsoon Wedding meets Personal Best. Very
enjoyable, albeit predictable coming-of-age generation-conflict
movie. (2002)
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Benny and Joon
|
***
|
This is a truly odd movie. Benny (Aidan
Quinn) is an auto mechanic who works to support himself and his sister
Joon (Mary Stuart Masterson), an artist who is mentally unstable.
Things get complicated when Benny is forced to assume care for Sam (Johnny
Depp), the off-center nephew of one of Benny's poker partners. Sam,
a latter day Buster Keaton, and Joon fall for each other. Benny's
mishandling of this situation turns out badly, but all is well at the
end. Good performances especially by Depp make the movie enjoyable
even though the plot line is a little thin. (1993)
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The Big Lebowski
|
****
|
Like The Rocky Horror Picture Shoe, Lebowski has
become a cult classic still playing midnights at the art house
theaters. Jeff Bridges shines as Lebowsi, a lazy doper stuck in
the 60's, but John Goodman steals the show as a foul-mouthed
orthodox Jew who is on the Lebowski's bowling team. The Coen
brothers strike again. (1998)
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The Birds
|
***
|
Having just returned from Bodega Bay we thought it
was time to revisit this Alfred Hitchcock classic. Although the
movie is dated it is still watchable. Hitchcock was a real pioneer
in special effects. Some of the effects in The Birds may seem a
little crude by today's standards, but most still look very good and they
make the movie. The dialogue and the acting are.... well the
special effects are very good. (1963)
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Black Dahlia
|
*½
|
Hilary Swank is OK but just abut everyone else in
this putative film noir is either miscast, misdirected or just plain
bad. My ** category (coming soon to HBO) had this kind of film in
mind. I really liked Scarlett Johasson in Lost in Translation, but this one
isn't going to look good on her resume. James Elroy is a pretty
interesting writer but something got lost in the translation from book to
screen in this one. (2006)
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Blue Diner
|
***½
|
You may have to go to a film festival to see this
one. It's a low-budget film about Latinos living in Boston.
Good performances all around, and a story that keeps your
interest. Could be on HBO or PBS next year, so look for it if
you're off the festival circuit. (2001)
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Bon Voyage
|
**½
|
The scene is France in 1942 as the Germans are
sweeping across the country. Isabel Adjani is a movie star who
uses her looks to get what she needs from a number of men including
Gerard Depardieu, a prominent cabinet minister. Moderately funny,
but something may have been lost in the subtitling. (2003)
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Born Into Brothels
|
****
|
A young photojournalist named Zana Briski moves
into Calcutta's red light district to study the lives of the women who ply
their trade there. She is soon captivated by the sex workers'
children, who are surprisingly bright and upbeat. The children, aged
10 to 12 are given cameras and photography lessons. Within a short
time, they are turning out many noteworthy pictures. Briski,
fighting the Indian bureaucracy all the way, get some of the kids placed
in top private schools, where they have a chance to escape the cycle of
poverty and degradation into which they were born. A recent article
in the N.Y. Times reports that several of the children are still doing
well. This is an uplifting documentary. (2004)
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Bourne Supremacy
|
*½
|
We sat through the first 45 minutes and then gave
up. This is so implausible that it is almost funny. Maybe it
got better as the show went on, but I doubt it. (2004)
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Bringing Down the House
|
***
|
Not a great movie, but plenty of laughs when
Steve Martin and Eugene Levy are on screen. (2003)
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Broken Flowers
|
****
|
Make no mistake, this is an odd movie. The
premise is that Don Johnston (Bill Murray) receives an anonymous note
from one of his old girlfriends telling him that he is the father of a
nineteen year old son. His best friend and next-door neighbor
Winston, played to perfection by the fabulous Jeffrey Wright is an
amateur sleuth. He is fascinated by the note and arranges a road
trip for Johnston to try to track down the mother. He finds four of the
women, all of whom are baffled by his re-entry into their lives after a
twenty year absence. All are good, but Sharon Stone is the
best. There are long stretches of Bill Murray staring blankly off
in space, giving the film a decidedly slow pace. Awkward
conversations exacerbate the deadly pace. If you are into
character development, you will like this one. If action is your
thing, give it a miss. (2005)
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Bus 174
|
***
|
In this documentary, carried live on TV in
Brazil, a young man holds several women hostage on a bus on a busy
street in Rio de Janeiro. The police manage to do everything
wrong. This film definitely does not have a Hollywood ending.
(2002)
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Calendar Girls
|
***
|
This could be called The Not Quite Full
Monty. A dozen Yorkshire ladies of a certain age decide they would
pose discretely nude for the annual Women's Institute calendar in order
to increase sales. They succeed beyond their wildest dreams.
Entertaining film, but the second half gets bogged down by trying to be
serious. Based on a true story. (2003)
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Capote
|
*****
|
An absolutely sensational movie featuring a
near-certain Oscar-winning performance by Philip Seymour Hoffman in the
title role. As in Jamie Foxx's portrayal of Ray Charles, it
appears that the title character has inhabited the body of the
actor. Catherine Keener and Clifton Collins are first rate in
supporting roles, but this is Hoffman's show. The story is about
the writing of In Cold Blood, Capote's "non-fiction
novel" about the brutal murder of a Kansas family by two
drifters. In doing his research, Capote develops a complex
relationship with Perry Smith, one of the killers. Smith, highly
intelligent and articulate, believes that Capote is his only hope to
avoid the noose, but begins to wonder if Capote's apparent interest in
him is disingenuous. The story line is simple, but the execution
is a work of art. (2005)
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Carandiru
|
****
|
Brilliant film-making by the director of Kiss of
the Spider Woman, Hector Babenco. Carandiru is the notorious
prison in São Paulo where 7,000 men were incarcerated in a facility
designed for 4,000. This is a true story as seen through the eyes
of the prison doctor. Although fairly lengthy, there is not a dull
moment from beginning to end. When a fight breaks out, riot police
are summoned with tragic results. (2003)
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Catch Me If You Can
|
*****
|
Highly intelligent, very entertaining
picture. Superb acting top to bottom. Leo DiCaprio is
surprisingly good as a con artist, and Tom Hanks does not disappoint as
the FBI man on his trail. His New England accent is a
classic. Christopher Walken is outstanding as Leo's father. (2002)
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Capturing the Friedmans
|
****
|
Talk about your dysfunctional families!
Arnold Friedman with his wife Elaine and four sons appear to be
reasonably normal, but beneath the surface something very weird is going
on. When the movie ends, you're not sure who is lying. Most
likely no one is telling the whole truth. Amazingly, the family
filmed everything as their lives disintegrated. Strong stuff.
(2003)
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Casino Royale
|
***½
|
The latest incarnation of James Bond is a
complete change of direction for the character. Daniel Craig is
not the smooth operator that we've become used to seeing. At one
point he even says he doesn't care if his martini is shaken or
stirred. Craig has a hard edge, and never looks comfortable in a
tuxedo. The plot is somewhat obscure but never mind - there is
lots of action and beautiful scenery from all over the globe.
Bond's women are, as always, gorgeous and dangerous. (2006)
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Cat's Meow
|
***
|
Easy to find flaws but worthwhile seeing
anyway. Kirsten Dunst is quite good as Marion Davies and Edward
Hermann is believable as William Randolph Hearst. Based on a
controversial real event. (2001)
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Charlie Wilson's War
|
***½
|
If I were a movie star I would never agree to be in
a movie with Philip Seymour Hoffman. He has stolen every film I've
seen him in including this one. Here he plays a CIA agent who
battles with equal vigor against communists and Agency bureaucrats.
His portrayal is remarkable. Tom Hanks in the role is a Texas congressman
whose character flaws make Bill Clinton look like Mother Theresa. He
is convinced by a wealthy benefactor in Houston
to take up the cause of the Afghans who are fighting the invading
Russians. Hanks is great from this point on, but he not quite
convincing as a rogue in the first half. Jack Nicholson would have
been more convincing as Wilson's playboy side, but picturing him as a
congressman would would have been too much of a stretch. (2007).
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Chicago
|
****
|
Even if you're like me and don't usually enjoy
musicals, you'll like Chicago. Renee Zellweger is the star, but
Catherine Zeta-Jones, Queen Latifah and Richard Gere are also in top
form singing and dancing. The film editing is outstanding - should
win an Oscar. (2002)
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Cinderella Man
|
***½
|
A human Seabiscuit. Russell Crowe as James
J. Braddock affects a truly remarkable New Jersey accent, while Renee
Zelweger struggles with hers. Paul Giamatti shines as Bradock's
manager, a role which should bring him a Best Supporting Actor
nomination at the Oscars. Basically this is a good story well
told. (2005)
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City by the Sea
|
****
|
This won't do much for tourism in Long
Beach. Robert De Niro takes a break for being a hood to portray a
cop, albeit one with "issues". When he finds out that
his estranged son is the prime suspect in a murder he's investigating,
it kind of ruins his day. (2002)
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City of God
|
****
|
Life in Rio's favelas (slums) is not pretty as
this fact-based Brazilian film shows. Not easy to watch, but there
is a ray of hope as the narrator finds a way out of the cycle of poverty
and violence. (2002)
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The Clearing
|
**
|
Robert Redford plays a retired car rental magnate
who is kidnapped in his driveway by a disgruntled former employee, Willem
Defoe (he gets these rolls when Christopher Walken is busy). Helen Mirren plays Redford's long-suffering wife. She
is ready to kill him when
he doesn't show up at home for a dinner party. When the guests leave
she starts to get suspicious and
calls in the FBI. The movie then moves on two parallel paths - one
is Redford and Defoe trudging through a forest and the other Mirren and
her family following instructions from from the FBI whose agents are
living in their house. Day turns to night turns to day in the house,
but Redford and Defoe keep marching in daylight. Maybe they're hiking the Appalachian
Trail. Or maybe M. Night Shyamalan wrote the script. (2004)
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Closer
|
**
|
If you want to see Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Clive Owen
and Natalie Portman talk dirty this movie is for you. There is no
other reason to watch it. Hard to believe that Owen and Portman
garnered Oscar nominations for their roles in this contrived love
quadrangle. (2004)
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The Closet
|
***
|
M. Pignon is a boring accountant who works in a condom
factory. To save his job, he starts a rumor that he is a closet
gay. This subtitled French farce is very funny. (2001)
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Coffee and Cigarettes
|
**
|
For Jim Jarmusch fans only. The film is
comprised of eleven vignettes, related only by the fact that each features
two or three actors sitting at a small table drinking coffee and smoking
cigarettes. Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, and Alfred Molina, among
others play themselves. The humor is subtle and absurdist to say the
least. Filmed in black and white. (2003)
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Collateral
|
**½
|
Pretty far-fetched action flick. A great
star turn by Jamie Foxx, but it leads me to wonder how the Academy
decided that he was in a supporting role. He is on screen more
than Tom Cruise. (2004)
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Constant Gardener
|
***½
|
The crumbling of the Berlin Wall has been good
for most people, but not for John Le Carré. His novels have not
been the same since all the spies came in from the cold. This is
actually a very good adaptation of his novel, although as often happens
the scope of the source material is so broad that many characters are
undeveloped making their screen appearances so brief that
confusion reigns. The basic idea here is that the big
pharmaceutical companies are paying off governments and police in order
to profiteer at the expense of poor Africans. There is probably a
kernel of truth in this, but I doubt if in real life the bad guys are
quite this bad or the good guys are so good. This movie will not
encourage many people to visit Africa. (2005)
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Control Room
|
****
|
Life inside Arab TV network Al Jazeera is
chronicled in this documentary. Dramatic footage of the early days
of the Iraq war is very graphic. They make no bones about trying
to show events from an Arab point of view, but it appears that they have
gained prominence throughout the Middle East through accurate reporting
rather than propaganda. In the film, a young media relations
officer explaining the U.S. position to an Al Jazeera manager is shown
in a positive and sympathetic light. (2004)
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The Cooler
|
***½
|
William H. Macy stars as a loser who spreads bad
luck to everyone with whom he comes in contact. Alec Baldwin is
the manager of a Las Vegas casino who hires Macy to cool down any
gambler who gets on a hot streak. When Macy gets involved with a
cocktail waitress his luck changes. Not a good thing with his job
description. Very good acting, especially form Baldwin whose
authority is challenged by a young corporate VP who recently got an MBA.
(2003)
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Crash
|
**½
|
With all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, this
film informs us that racism exists in America. There are blacks
prejudiced against whites, whites against Arabs, blacks against
Orientals, Orientals against Hispanics, whites against blacks, and Arabs
against Hispanics. Curiously, there are three Hispanic characters
who, despite having abuse heaped upon them, take it all in stride, are
perfect in every way, and have nothing bad to say about
anybody. I suppose this movie is an allegory because the makers
could not possibly believe that the audience would accept at face value
all of the coincidences that occur in the span of one day. If you
like being preached to, go to your favorite house of worship and donate
the money you would have paid for tickets. If you go anyway, look
for an actor sleepwalking through his leading role. That would be
Don Cheadle. (2005)
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Crumb
|
*****
|
Missed this the first time around, but it is available at
Blockbuster. One of the great documentaries of all time.
Gives new meaning to the phrase "dysfunctional family".
(1994)
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Cry of the Snow Lion
|
**
|
What starts out as a documentary on human rights
abuses in Tibet by the Chinese ends up as an anti-business,
anti-globalization diatribe. Too bad. Had the producers
tried to be a bit more balanced in their reporting the impact would have
been stronger. (2003)
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Curse of the Were-Rabbit
|
**½
|
Wallace and Gromit are English stop-action
Plasiticine animation characters. Wallace is a bumbling inventor and
Gromit his mute but clever dog. Wallace constantly suffers from
self-inflicted wounds and Gromit consistently bails him out. Most of
the critics loved this movie but I found it to be a bit boring. (2005)
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Darwin's Nightmare
|
***½
|
This documentary has been nominated for an academy award, but
starving African kids are not as cute as penguins so it probably
won't win. About thirty years ago someone had the bright idea of
introducing giant Nile Perch to Lake Victoria. The good news is
that the species flourished and an export fishing industry developed
providing jobs for many people in Tanzania. The bad news is that
voracious perch have wiped out every other species of fish in the
lake. Now they are eating their own young because there is no
other food available. A little too Michael Moore-ish for my taste,
but a real winner for fans of depression and guilt. (2005)
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Dead Man
|
*½
|
Even Jim Jarmusch fans should be annoyed this
one. Johnny Depp stars as an accountant from Cleveland who
heads west on a train pulled by a steam engine. As the film begins,
there are alternating shots of passengers and the wheels of the steam
engine. Fade in passengers, fade out. Fade in train, fade
out. Fade in passengers, etc., etc., etc. After about a half
hour of this, Depp arrives in a town called Machine where a promised job
has been given to someone else. Depressed, he sits outside a saloon
where he encounters a young woman who had been thrown in the mud by her
boyfriend. She invites him to bed, but the boyfriend walks in and
shoots Depp and the woman. Depp kills the man who turns out to be
the son of Robert Mitchum who owns the business which had ostensibly hired
Depp to work in his factory. Mitchum hires three killers to get Depp.
The movie goes downhill from there with much gratuitous killing and an
Indian who thinks Depp is a reincarnation of 18th century English poet
William Blake. By far the most annoying aspect of this film is the
background music, essentially a short, out of tune guitar riff by Neil
Young which is repeated over and over and over.............. (1995)
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Death at a Funeral
|
**
|
When I heard that this movie is a funny
British comedy I was expecting
something in the Monty Python tradition. Wrong. It is British
humor in the Benny Hill tradition, subtle as a brick. Michael
Macfadyen, seen here as Mr. Darcy in the most recent Pride and Prejudice
remake, does his best but doesn't have much to work with. The script
and many of the supporting actors are pretty weak. At the funeral of
a reasonably well-to-do Englishman, a midget that none of the other guest
had seen before, pulls aside one of the deceased's sons and informs him
that he was his father's secret lover. He has pictures to prove it
and threatens to make them public unless he receives hush money.
Dealing with this crisis is the main event but there various other unfunny
sideshows such as a crotchety old uncle having bowel issues and a shy
boyfriend of the deceased's niece making a fool of himself after inadvertently
ingesting a hallucinatory drug. The funny bits are few and far
between and are mostly included in the trailer. (2007)
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The Deep End
|
***½
|
Our heroine tries to dispose of a body in the
shallow end of Lake Tahoe. The water is too clear for that plan to
work. Tilda Swinton is outstanding as an overprotective
mother. This tight little thriller will make you squirm.
(2001)
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De-Lovely
|
***½
|
Very similar to All That Jazz, with Cole Porter
in the spotlight instead of Bob Fosse. Some of director Irwin
WInkler's ideas work better than others, but his use of current music
icons like Diana Krall, Alanis Morrisette, Natalie Cole, Sheryl Crow,
and Elvis Costello doing Porter songs while dressed in period costumes
is brilliant. (2004)
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The Devil Wears Prada
|
***
|
Warning - Chick Flick Ahead. Not as bad as
I expected, but not as good as it could have been with a little effort
in the last 15 minutes. Meryl Streep does her thing and Stanley
Tucci is as always - understated and excellent. The rest of the
cast is forgettable. Lots of beautiful women in various states of
dress and undress make this watchable for men, and women will love the
clothes. (2006)
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Die Another Day
|
***
|
Check credibility at the door, but the latest
James Bond is very entertaining. The tongue-in-cheek humor and
amazing special effects make this worthwhile. It also removes any
doubt you may have had that North Korea is part of the Axis of Evil.
(2002)
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Dreamgirls
|
****
|
Dreamgirls joins Evita and Chicago as Broadway
hits that succeed in the movies. This is a thinly-veiled history
of Dina Ross and the Supremes rising from obscurity in Detroit during
the 1960's to international fame and fortune. There are fine
performances from Beyonce Knowles, Jamie Fox and Eddie Murphy, but
American Idol reject Jennifer Hudson steals the show as an original
singing group member who gets shoved aside by the ruthless manager
because she is overweight. In the theater where I saw the show the
audience broke into applause when Hudson finished singing her big
number. (2006)
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Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
|
****
|
One of the best chronicles of the Enron debacle has
been turned into a fascinating documentary. If managerial
incompetence were a crime, Ken Lay would get a life
sentence. (2005)
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Evan Almighty
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**½
|
Steve Carell plays Evan, a Buffalo, N.Y.
newscaster who gets elected to Congress having promised to change the
world. He moves with his family to a D.C. suburb where he is
visited by God, in the person of Morgan Freeman who instructs him to
build an ark. To get him started God delivers some wood and a copy
of Ark-Building for Dummies. What follows is predictable but kind
of fun if you aren't in the mood for great film-making. Wanda
Sykes as the deadpan personal assistant to the Congressman has the best
lines and delivers them well. Too bad she didn't have a bigger
role. When all is said and done God explains to Evan that he can change
the world by performing Acts of Random Kindness (ARK). Subtlety is
not this movie's long suit. Don't leave when "The End"
flashes on the screen, because the outtakes which are shown as the
credits roll are very funny. (2007)
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Everything is Illuminated
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****
|
Elijah Wood as Jonathon Safran Foer, a collector of
family artifacts. From her death bed, his grandmother gives Jonathon
on old photograph of his grandfather with a young woman whom he surmises
helped him escape the Nazis in the Ukraine. Jonathan sets off
to Odessa where he meets a family whose travel agency specializes in
helping American Jews find evidence of their forbears. Beautifully
filmed, well-acted with an intelligent script, this adaptation of Foer's
novel is worth watching at least once. It's a little confusing on
first viewing, but everything will be illuminated the second time
through. (2005)
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Far From Heaven
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***½
|
Interesting story about hypocrisy and prejudice
in the North during the 50's. Dennis Quaid shines in a difficult
role, and Julianne Moore is solid as always. The couple's children
are another matter. (2002)
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Feast of Love
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***
|
Morgan Freeman drops in from Evan Almighty to
co-star with Greg Kinnear also reprising his character in Little Miss
Sunshine. Here Freeman plays Harry, a college professor on sabbatical
who spends all his spare time drinking coffee and dispensing wisdom in a
funky coffee shop owned by Kinnear's Bradley. The movie's theme is
love and its complications, mostly centered on Bradley who seems to invite
people to dump on him. He is blissfully unaware of the bad things
swirling around him. The only thing he seems to have in common with
his wife is that they both like having sex with women. This is not a
great movie but the acting is strong and the story is entertaining.
There are also beautiful views of Portland, Oregon and Radha Mitchell.
(2007)
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Femme Fatale
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***
|
This should do for Rebecca Romijn-Stamos what
Basic Instinct did for Sharon Stone. (note - I was wrong). The movie is a stylish film
noire about a jewelry heist and its aftermath. The story is a
little muddled, but the "scenery" is outstanding. (2002)
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Finding Nemo
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****
|
Essentially a kids' movie, but you won't mind
taking them. The animation is spectacular, and the voices have
real personality. This one will be around for years. (2003)
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Finding Neverland
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****
|
Good performances all around bring this one to
life, even though the pace is a tad slow. Johnny Depp should get
an Oscar nomination as James Barrie, the creator of Peter Pan.
Kate Winslett and Julie Christie are also very good. (2004)
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Fog of War
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****
|
Robert McNamara reflects on his tenure as
Secretary of Defense in this well-made documentary. There are some
very interesting tape recordings of his conversations with Presidents
Kennedy and Johnson. The original score by Philip Glass is
annoying. (2003)
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For Your Consideration
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***
|
Christopher Guest reassembles repertory troupe for
this send-up of Hollywood. Eugene Levy is an agent for Harry
Shearer, a has-been actor who is starring in a really bad movie called
Home for Purim. Enter Ricky Gervais as a "suit" who in the
name of toning down the Jewishness of the story changes the title to Home
for Thanksgiving. Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey, Bob Balaban, and
Fred Willard are excellent as always. Not quite as funny as Best in
Show, but funny nonetheless. (2006)
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The Forty Year Old Virgin
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****
|
This reminds me a little of Sideways, which is a
good thing. It may even be a little funnier. Some of the scenes
are juvenile and over the top, however it is easy to forgive this one's
flaws because on the whole it is falling out of your chair
funny. The premise is that a likeable but nerdy guy who
works in an electronics store has never had any experience with
women. His co-workers make it a project to rectify this
situation. Steve Carell and Kathleen Keener are very good, but the
actors who play his co-workers steal the show. I could see this
again. (2005)
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Frida
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****
|
More like a visit to an art museum than a movie,
this is beautifully filmed. The stilted dialogue is a negative,
but the cameos by some major stars are a big plus. Seeing Ashley
Judd dancing the tango with Salma Hayek is, well... you have to see it.
(2002)
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Friday Night Lights
|
****
|
Outstanding sports movie, although some of the
high school students looked like they were closing in on 30. The
portrait of life in a small Texas town is not pretty, reminiscent of The
Last Picture Show. Billy Bob Thornton should garner an Oscar
nomination for his portrayal of a high school football coach under
pressure. (2004)
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Garden State
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**
|
Some people liked this movie. I
didn't. Maybe I'm just not into post-teen angst. Natalie
Portman is good, but that's about it. Peter Sarsgaard is too old
for his character and the woman who plays his mother is only 11 years
older than he is. Give it a miss. (2004)
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Ghosts of Flatbush
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***½
|
This HBO Sports production is about the Brookly
Dodgers, but you don't have to be a baseball fan to enjoy it. It was
clear in the mid fifties that the Dodgers needed a new stadium.
Ebbets Field was falling apart and only had room for 700 cars. The
centerpiece of the story is the battle between Walter O'Malley, the owner
of the Dodgers and Robert Moses, a powerful New York politician who
blocked efforts to build a new stadium in Brooklyn. The result was
the moving of the Dodgers and the Giants to California. Fifty years
on the people in Brooklyn haven't forgiven O'Malley. (2007)
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Ghost World
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***½
|
An off-beat coming-of-age story from the director of Crumb.
All of the acting is first rate, but Illeana Douglas as a touch-feely
art instructor and Steve Buscemi as a nerd record collector are
outstanding. (2000)
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Goodbye, Lenin
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***
|
Over-long, but interesting tale about the fall of
the Berlin Wall. A party
stalwart falls into a coma and awakens eight months later.
To avoid giving her a shock, her family arranges a hoax to hide
the facts of the reunification of Germany from her.
Interesting view of post-Wall Germany. (2003)
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Good Girl
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***
|
Jennifer Aniston plays a good girl who feels
trapped between a dead end job and a pothead husband. Once she
strays off the straight and narrow, she finds it difficult to sort
things out. Not a classic but quite entertaining. (2002)
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The Good Thief
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*½
|
Nick Nolte mumbles his way through this boring
travesty. It's hard to tell the good guys from the bad guys
because they all look alike. One of the more ludicrous good/bad
guys is a body-builder who has a sex change operation. Unfortunately
his/her fear of spiders was not affected by surgery. Ocean's
Eleven has the same plot but is much more entertaining. (2002)
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Good Night and Good Luck
|
****
|
This story of Edward R. Murrow's
battle with Senator Joseph McCarthy is filmed in black and white which
gives the impression of actually being shot in the fifties. It
also allows actual news footage to be seamlessly integrated making the
real Senator McCarthy part of the cast. David Strathairn is very
good as Murrow and Frank Langella is excellent as CBS president William
Paley. A sub-plot involving two CBS staffers who break the company
rule against being married to each other seems like nothing more than
pure filler. This movie is good, but not as good as the hype would
have you believe. (2005)
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The Good Shepherd
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***½
|
The last two spy books I've read contained the
identical admonition - Don't trust anyone. Good advice. In
this good, but somewhat confusing story about the creation of the
CIA, Matt Dillon stars as Edward Wilson, a bright Yale student who
is recruited to join the OSS during WW II. During his career he
discovers that not even the members of his own family can be trusted
with the secrets he is entrusted to keep. The central plot theme
is search for the mole who tipped off the Russians about the invasion at
the Bay of Pigs. Part of the confusion is that the story is told
in a series of flashbacks spanning twenty years, but none of the
characters look any different as they age. There are too many top
actors in minor roles to mention, but Michael Gambon as a Yale poetry professor
quite taken with Wilson shines above the rest. The movie is a bit
long, but worth watching until the end. (2006)
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Gosford Park
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***
|
Ham-handed directing keep this movie from being
really first-rate. It doesn't take 10 zooms to poison labels on
bottles to foreshadow to the audience that someone is going to swallow
something bad for him. There is also a police inspector role which
is embarrassingly bad. Helen Mirren shines as always. (2001)
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Hairspray
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***½
|
Who would ever believe that a John Waters film
would be the basis for a successful Broadway musical. Even though
this 1989 film features Waters regulars Divine and Mink Stole, it is
pretty mainstream. The story revolves around an overweight high
schooler,
beautifully realized by Ricki Lake, and her rise in the 60's Baltimore
teen scene through her appearance on a Dick Clark clone TV dance show. Somehow
Waters convinced Sonny Bono, Jerry Stiller, and Debbie Harry to take
supporting roles. They all shine. (1988)
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Hair Spray
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****
|
I'm not a big fan of musicals but I just suspended
reality for a couple of hours and enjoyed this one. It's a hoot
watching a beefed-up John Travolta in drag recreating the role of Edna
Turnblad first played by Divine in the John Water's 1988 classic
original. Waters incidentally makes an uncredited cameo as a flasher
in the first five minutes of the show. The rest of the cast is spot
on with the possible exception of Michelle Pfeiffer who is a bit over the
top and way too thin. Christopher Walken never ceases to amaze.
(2007)
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Happily Ever After
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***
|
This French import is about marriage and
infidelity. Vince (Yves Attal) and Gabrielle (Charlotte Gainsbourg)
are an apparently happily married couple living in Paris. He is a
luxury car salesman and she is a realtor. They have a nice son,
appear to be well off, and in love with each other. However, Vince
is carrying on an affair with a masseuse. Gabrielle suspects this
is happening but doesn't confront him. Vince has no idea why he is
doing this, but carries on anyway. This movie has some flaws, but
is worth seeing. Cameos by Johnny Depp and Anouk Aimee are
highlights. (2004)
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Heist
|
***
|
Gene Hackman and Danny DeVito always keep you
entertained. Plot outline is same as Sexy Beast , but movie
is more enjoyable because it doesn't have loud music and arty
camera work. (2001)
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The Hoax
|
**½
|
With the dearth of good movies around it's too
bad this one isn't better. The story is about Clifford Irving's
"authorized" autobiography of Howard Hughes. Richard
Gere portrays Irving as philandering, unscrupulous con man with no
apparent redeeming qualities. He is obsessed with power, money and
recognition, all of which he hopes to obtain with a plagiarized version
of Philip Roth's Portnoy's Complaint called Rudnick's
Problem. When Irving is caught out by a book company editor, he
comes up with Plan B, the Hughes autobiography. Two of my favorite
actors, Alfred Molina and Hope Davis are badly miscast as Irving's
reluctant co-conspirator and his contact at McGraw-Hill,
respectively. The portrayal of the executives at McGraw-Hill and
Time-Life is a Hollywood cliché. If businessmen were as stupid
and venal in real life as they are in the movies, all corporations would
be bankrupt. There is a sub-plot in the film implying that Howard
Hughes wanted Richard Nixon to be impeached and somehow used Irving to
this end. Huh? (2007)
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Hotel Rwanda
|
****
|
This is a tough movie to watch. Almost a
million people died in Rwanda in the early nineties as the Hutu's
performed an ethnic cleansing while the world stood by an did
nothing. The movie is the true story of a Hutu manager who
sheltered more than a thousand genocide targets in his four-star Belgian
hotel and helped them escape. Don Cheadle is very good as the
hotel man, but Sophie Okonedo as his wife is even better. (2004)
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The Hours
|
***
|
Wonderful acting, but this is a morbid
tearjerker. Suicide, AIDS, divorce, breakups, cancer, mental
illness, and incest are just a few of the downer themes of this
movie. Save your money - if you want to get depressed, just watch
the stock market reports on CNBC. (2002)
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Il Postino
|
**½
|
The story revolves around the relationship between
a postman from a fishing village on the Amalfi Coast, and an exiled
Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda. The postman believes that the poet can
help him woo a young woman from the village to whom he has become
attracted. There is some indication that this is a true story as
Neruda did spend some time exiled to the Italy, but no one seems to know
for sure. A lot of people loved this movie, but I found it a bit too
slow-paced. Part of the problem may be that transferring the film to
DVD was not a success. The picture is dark and fuzzy. (1994)
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The Illusionist
|
***½
|
Edward Norton, whose accent sounds
like a half-hearted attempt to mimic Bela Lugosi, stars as Eisenheim, a
Vienna-based 19th century magician secretly in love with Sophie
(Jennifer Biel), a childhood sweetheart. Sophie is on the verge of
marrying the crown prince of Austria. The prince,
over-played by Rufus Sewell, is an evil guy who sports what appears to
be a cheap paste-on moustache. Jealous and suspicious of Eisenheim,
he tasks Police Inspector Uhl (Paul Giammati) to shut the magician
down. As the film begins he is doing just that. The story is
then told as a flashback, bringing us back to Eisenheim's introduction
to magic as a teenager. Despite its flaws, this is a fine
movie with interesting cinematography and music, an excellent
performance by Giammatti, and lots of good magic tricks. (2006)
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Importance of Being Earnest
|
**
|
Good cast, good story, but doesn't quite get off
the ground. Rupert Everett does his best, but the problem may be
that this works better on a stage than on film. (2002)
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In America
|
****
|
Based on filmmaker Jim Sheridan's life, this is
the story of an Irish would-be actor who sneaks into the US with his
wife and two young girls. The two girls, sisters in real life,
steal the show. The acting and writing is good, but the editing is
a little choppy. (2002)
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In Good Company
|
**
|
If businesses were run the way they are portrayed
in Hollywood, our national GNP would be zero. No cliché is too
inane to be left out of this one. Dennis Quaid does his best, and
Scarlett Johansson is terrific as always, but this story is just too
weak and predictable. (2004)
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The Great Train Robbery
|
***
|
A good caper movie with Sean Connery and Donald
Sutherland who appear to be having fun. Michael Crichton adapted the
screenplay from his novel of the same name. The biggest problem with
this film is that there is a discontinuity near the end when a banker
calls for Connery to be arrested before he discovers that the train had
been robbed. Oh well, the film is a little overlong so I guess they
had to cut something. (1979)
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The Interpreter
|
**
|
This film has moments of mediocrity, but for the
most part it is just plain bad. Sean Penn and Nicole Kidman are
wasted in this movie which bounces from absurdity to implausibility,
touching all the cliché bases along the way. I remember seeing the trailer
for this one in the movies. It was pretty good. If you
are thinking about renting this or watching it HBO I suggest you download
the trailer from the internet and save yourself a couple of hours. (2005)
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In The Bedroom
|
*****
|
Riveting. A story with depth, hauntingly
real characters, and Oscar-worthy performances from Marisa Tomei, Sissy
Spacek, and especially Tom Wilkinson. Not to be missed.
(2001)
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The Incredibles
|
***
|
Technically dazzling, with some entertaining bits
for adults as well as kids, but overall a little long and
repetitive. A fight on a tropical island is a good spoof of the
James Bond movies, including the background music. Holly Hunter, who
supplies the voice for Elastigirl, stands out. (2004)
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Juno
|
****½
|
Juno is a 16 year-old high school student in
Minnesota who finds herself pregnant. Sounds like a premise for a
teen-age angst movie, but this is far from it. Juno knows that she
is not ready to be a mom, so when a visit to an abortion clinic leaves
goes badly, she and her best girlfriend decide to find a perfect couple to
adopt the baby. At first it appears that they have succeeded, but
things are not as rosy as they seem. Ellen Page is outstanding as
Juno, and Allison Janney shines as an understanding stepmother. This
movie succeeds on many levels, but the most interesting is how we see the
main characters develop depth that is not apparent as they are introduced.
(2007)
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Kandahar
|
***
|
Visually stunning, this picture is on Time
magazine's list of the 100 best films of all time. Made in Iran, it
tells the story of an Canadian-Afghan woman journalist trying to get to Kandahar to
rescue her sister who has written to say that she plans to commit suicide
during an upcoming eclipse. The movie is about her journey from Iran
across the Afghan desert and the horrors of the Taliban regime.
During the trip she encounters a doctor who examines her through a hole in
a screen. In real life, the actor who plays the doctor is wanted for
murder in Virginia for allegedly killing an Iranian diplomat. (2001)
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King Arthur
|
**
|
This is a pretty funny movie. The only problem is that it is supposed to be serious.
If you believe that eight men with swords can hold off an army of
10,000 men, this may be the movie for you.
There is a thin plot that serves to justify a string of battle
scene special effects. Clive
Owen, said to be in line to be the next James Bond, plays Arthur.
This effort may set him back. (2004)
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The King of Masks
|
****
|
An aging street performer is looking
for someone to whom he can pass on the tradition of making masks.
He makes a living by putting on shows in which he changes masks at
speeds too fast for the eye to see. He thinks his prayers have
been answered when he adopts an 8 year old boy, but his troubles are
only beginning. The picture gets off to a bit of a slow start, but
if you can make it past the first ten minutes you will be highly
rewarded. The story is interesting, the costumes are beautiful,
and the acting is superb. In Chinese with English sub-titles. (1996)
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Kinsey
|
***
|
Liam Neeson and Laura Linney shine in this biopic
about Dr. Alfred Kinsey, the sex researcher whose book sparked the sexual
revolution of the twentieth century. Watching Linney's performance
as Kinsey's long-suffering wife is a treat - she clearly deserved her
Oscar nomination. Some viewers will be put off by the language and
explicit depictions of human activity, but this is a case where it is not
gratuitous. Without it, it would be difficult to appreciate the
controversy and outrage that followed Kinsey following the publication of
his book. (2004)
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Ladies In Lavender
|
***
|
A romp for Judi Dench and Maggie Smith as two
spinster sisters living together in the family house in Cornwell which
overlooks the sea.
As the movie begins a young man is found barely alive washed up on the beach. The sisters, but principally
Ursula (Dench) find themselves attracted to the young man even though they
are 50+ years his senior. (2004)
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The Ladykillers
|
*½
|
The subtlety one expects from the Coen brothers is
totally absent in this casino heist caper. Tom Hanks stars as a
Colonel Sanders look-alike who assembles a team of oddballs to tunnel
underground to the casino's vault. The characters are weak, the
story and premise are dumb, and the foul language is excessive. The
only saving grace is that there is a lot of really good gospel
music. Never mind that it has nothing to do with the story. (2004)
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The Last King of Scotland
|
****
|
Forest Whitaker gives the performance of a
lifetime as Idi Amin, the brutal dictator of Uganda in the early years
of his presidency. The story revolves around a young Scottish
doctor who ventures to central Africa in search of adventure. He
finds more than he bargains for when he agrees to be Amin's personal
physician. In the beginning Amin is charming, but as the story
grinds on, it becomes clear to the doctor that he is assisting a
madman. The doctor is a fiction, but unfortunately Amin was real
and was the cause of 300,00 deaths during his regime. Warning -
the last half hour of this film is hard to watch as Amin's atrocities
are shown in graphic detail. (2006)
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L'Auberge Espagnole
|
***
|
A French grad student enrolls in an international
study program in Barcelona. He and six other students share an
apartment in a somewhat seedy part of town. Each student is from a
different country, so finding a common language is a problem.
English, Spanish, and French are spoken, with a dash of Catalan thrown
in by their professor for good measure. The movie's plots and
sub-plots are entertaining, and the film is an excellent travelogue of
Barcelona. Some MTV-like camera trickery is distracting, but
overall, this is a good-spirited and fun picture. (2002)
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Legends of the Fall
|
**
|
The most cliché-ridden Western since Dances With
Wolves. At least Kevin Costner was nowhere to be seen. Anthony
Hopkins stars as a retired army officer who did not approve of the way Indians
were n
has the hots for the third brother, Brad Pitt. Pitt disappears in
the middle of the movie to become a sailor of fortune, a strange calling
for a boy from Montana. He eventually returns with long blond hair
which he displays proudly for the rest of the movie. (1994)
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Letters From Iwo Jima
|
****½
|
This is the story of the decisive World War II battle
for the strategic island viewed from the Japanese perspective.
More than 20,000 Japanese soldiers were on the island when the American
assault began, but only 1,000 survived. We become familiar with
several of the Japanese officers and enlisted men through flashbacks and
letters to their wives. As in every large group of soldiers there
are good guys and bad guys, but with one major difference - the Japanese
soldiers almost universally have a fatalistic view of dying with honor
for the emperor. An American telling of the story would no doubt
end with the flag being raised on Mount Suribachi, but the Japanese
version has a more sober finale. This is movie-making at its
best. Any awards this film garners will be well deserved. (2006)
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Live Flesh
|
***½
|
Pedro Almodovar made five films between Women on
the Verge and All About My Mother, all of which had limited distribution
in the U.S. This one, based on a novel by Ruth Rendell, was the
last. The story revolves around a young man imprisoned for shooting
a policeman, and his unusual plan for revenge after his release. As
in all of Almodovar's work, the actors and actresses are attractive, the
photography is interesting, and there are plenty of plot turns.
(1997)
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Little Miss Sunshine
|
****
|
Toni Collette is the the mother in a
dysfunctional family that includes a cliché-spewing would-be management
guru as her husband, a foul-mouthed father-in-law, a suicidal brother, a
teen-aged son who has taken a vow of silence and an eight year old
daughter who longs to compete in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant.
The characters are fine, the script is funny, and the plot moves right
along. Collette, an Australian, has mastered an authentic American
accent. If you're in a funk and want to get out, see this
movie. (2006)
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The Lives of Others
|
****½
|
The tension between security and freedom is one of
the great issues of the day in America. This German import arrives
just in time to show what happens when the pendulum swings too far in the
direction of security. As the movie begins we meet Herr
Weisler, a mid-level operative in STASI, the East German secret
police. The year appropriately is 1984, and STASI is Big
Brother. Weisler is conducting a class on interrogation to a
roomful of recruits. He is cold and tough, and a true believer
in the system. He is considered a rising star in STASI so he gets
picked to spy on a playwright whose girlfriend has become an object of
desire of a senior party official. As Germany rolls toward
re-unification Weisler begins to question his organizations
objectives. Excellent writing and acting propel the movie to an
exciting climax. Not to be missed. (2007)
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Longford
|
****
|
Child murderers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley were
reviled in England as monsters after their convictions in 1966. An
idealistic politician, Laborite Lord Frank Longford, and advocate of
prison reform took up Myra's cause and tried for thirty years to get her
paroled. This quixotic pursuit costs Langford his cabinet post and
made him extremely unpopular. Jim Broadbent as Langford and Samantha
Morton as the complex Myra make this HBO film a must-see. (2007)
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Lord of the Rings
|
**
|
This one deserves an A rating - Adult not admitted
unless accompanied by child under 10. This over-hyped, overrated
extravaganza is really a waste of time and money. Over-acting
abounds. And the music! - Zamphir meets Carl Orff. (2002)
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Lost in Translation
|
****½
|
A stylish small movie that really works.
Bill Murray is better than you would have thought possible. His
character, Bob, says something under his breath to Scarlett Johansson's
Charlotte near the end of the picture. Listen carefully, then send
me an email and tell me what he said. (2003)
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Madagascar
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**½
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The latest animation effort from
Dreamworks doesn't measure up to Shrek or Finding Nemo. A big
problem is that the two lead character voices are provided by Ben
Stiller and Chris Rock. Only Whoopie Goldberg rivals these two as
Hollywood's most unfunny comedian. Where is Eddie Murphy when we
really need him. The premise of the movie is that some animals
from a zoo in New York wind up in Madagascar. They feel out of place
in the wild. The pace is pretty sloggy until the animals encounter
a tribe of lemurs, the leader of which sounds a lot like Robin
Williams. The animation is impressive. (2005)
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Magdalene Sisters
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****
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Based on a 1999 documentary, this is the story of
young Irish girls forced into virtual slavery in hell-on-earth laundries
run by the Catholic church. Incredibly, this practice was not
abandoned until 1996. Conditions in the movie are brutal, but
women who have survived the laundries say reality was much worse.
(2002)
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Mahaleu
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**
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In the 60's and 70's the French were tossed out
of Madagascar. Symbolic leaders of the quiet revolt were
student-musicians who formed a group named Malaheu. Thirty years
on the group periodically reunites to give concerts, even though the
members have had successful careers as doctors, politicians, etc.
This documentary follows the group members in their everyday lives, and
builds up to a major concert in the capital. An interesting slice
of life in Madagascar, but about 45 minutes too long. (2006)
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The Man Who Wasn't There
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****
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Billy Bob Thornton is outstanding as a second
chair barber who decides to spice up his life by getting into dry
cleaning. If you liked Fargo you'll enjoy this one. Follows
the Coen brothers theme of men marrying for money. (2001)
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March of the Penguins
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****
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This is an outstanding documentary
about the life cycle of the emperor penguin. I used to feel sorry
for penguins in a zoo but no more. Their life in the Antarctic is
terrible. As the movie progressed from summer to winter, I kept
thinking about the camera men. Those guys must have frozen their
butts off. (2005)
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Maria Full of Grace
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****
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A young Columbian woman loses her job and signs
up to be a drug mule, carrying swallowed drugs into the U.S. This
is a tough movie to watch. The film maker says that wide
distribution in Columbia is convincing young women there that being a
drug mule is not a good idea. Great performances by all the
actors. (2004)
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Master and Commander
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****
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A tour de force for Russell Crowe. This
film has a lot of action, but the battle scenes are very
confusing. I guess that's what they mean by the fog of war.
(2003)
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Mask of Zorro
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***
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Having recently returned from Zorro's home town
in El Fuerte, Mexico, we looked forward to seeing a historical treatment
of his life. This film isn't it. Enough action to keep
things interesting, but their are some major credibility gaps.
(1998)
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Matchstick Men
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***½
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Despite some major league overacting by Nicolas
Cage, this one is entertaining. It would be easy to criticize this
picture, for example there are some serious continuity problems, but the
bottom line is that it keeps your interest from beginning to end, and
the supporting cast is excellent. (2003)
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The Matador
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***
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Here's a novel idea for a movie - a naive
businessman gets involved with someone involved with violent
crime. Okay, it's been done before (The In-Laws, The Man. etc.,
etc.) but this is worth seeing because Pierce Brosnan puts on a show as
an aging hit man past his prime trying to complete one more
assignment. The story is predictable, but there are enough good
laughs to keep it interesting. Greg Kinnear is OK as the
businessman and Hope Davis as his wife is her usually wonderful quirky
self. (2006)
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Meet the Parents
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*½
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The reviews called it a paint-by-numbers comedy which is
a pretty good description. Once the premise is set, you can pretty well
predict what is going to happen. That would be OK if the bits were really
funny, and if the protagonists were likable young adults battling against an irascible,
irrational father. Meet the Parents comes up short on both.
The In-Laws is the model for the genre, in which Peter
Falk is perfect as the father of the bride. Robert De Niro almost
pulls it off, but there are some inconsistencies in his character which are
difficult to swallow. The real problem is Ben Stiller's character.
He is a klutz that would drive a rational prospective father-in-law to extreme
measures. He lies, cheats, is lazy, smokes, is awkward in social
situations, has nothing interesting to say. He is abusive to flight attendants
and fellow passengers, the guy you've seen trying to stuff an over-sized
carry-on into your overhead bin. The movie doesn't offer a single clue as
to why a bright, attractive young women would want to tell this nerd what time
it is, let alone think of marrying him.
Wait, there is one clue. The girl's mother, played
by Blythe Danner, a seemingly intelligent, attractive woman is married to De
Niro, also a jerk. Maybe it runs in the family. (2000)
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Melinda and Melinda
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*½
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Woody Allen has lost his way.
The premise here is that two playwrights hear a story over dinner and
disagree about whether the story is the raw material for a comedy or a
tragedy. They each write a play and the two plays are performed simultaneously. Unfortunately, the tragedy is
almost funnier
than the comedy. The acting is not good. It almost looks like the actors are
reading the script for the first time while the filming is in
progress. (2005)
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The Middle of the World
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***
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We saw this Brazilian movie at a
Latin America film festival. It's the story of a man who travels
from the northeast of Brazil to Rio de Janeiro with his wife and five
children on bicycles. He is an unemployed truck driver looking for
a job. The trip is more than 2,000 miles and takes six
months. The acting is good, but the picture is kind of a
downer. Once in a while they encounter kindness from strangers,
but for the most part their lives are pretty miserable. The Sound
of Music it is not. (2003)
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Million Dollar Baby
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***
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Good but not great. Hillary
Swank and Morgan Freeman deserved their Oscars and Clint Eastwood is OK,
but the rest of the cast is pretty hopeless. A lot of the dialogue
is pretty stilted, and the plot turns are predictable. (2004)
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Monsoon Wedding
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*****
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Mira Nair's story of an arranged marriage in
modern-day India is film-making at its best. This movie has it all - a
great script, first-rate acting, and beautiful cinematography. All
of the characters are multi-dimensional and believable. Don't miss
it. (2001)
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Mostly Martha
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***
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The life of Martha, star chef at a restaurant in
Germany, is turned upside down as the result of an auto accident.
Like Babette's Feast and The Big Night, this one is really about the
food. See it if you like to eat or cook. (in German, with
subtitles). (2001)
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Motorcycle Diaries
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****
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At the age of 23, Ernesto "Che" Guevara
sets out with a friend to experience South America. Gael Garcia
Bernal is a little too sensitive as Che, but Rodrigo de la Cerna as his friend
Alberto is excellent and steals the show. Some may object to the
leftward tilt of this movie, but something had to motivate Guevara is
this direction as he grew up in a respectable Buenos Aires family.
His experiences on this trip no doubt were very influential.
(2004)
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Mrs. Harris
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**
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Annette Bening stars in the title role of this so-so HBO
docu-drama
about the society private school headmistress who shot her famous
boyfriend Dr. Herman Tarnower, author of the Scarsdale Diet
best-seller. According to Harris, Tarnower tried to prevent her
from an attempted suicide and was accidentally killed in a scuffle for her
gun. The prosecutors and the jury didn't buy her story. I
have no problem with dramatizations of historical events, but this genre
which features simulated after-the-fact interviews in the style of the
History Channel seem to me to have an inherent phoniness. (2006)
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Mrs. Henderson Presents
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***½
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It's fun to watch Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins
infuse their characters with life. She is a wealthy widow who buys
a decaying theater on a lark and he is the manager she hires to run
it. The premise is that while stage nudity is taboo in mid 20th
century England, she is able to convince the authorities that
looking at naked women in immobile tableaux is akin to viewing nudes in |