Reviews
Last Night (1998)
Not with a bang but a whimper
Those Hollywood blockbusters can make the asteroid the main character if they want. Someone of McKellar's calibre knows that it's the people that create the interest, and the people that the audience will remember.
By far the best of '98, anywhere.
The Replacement Killers (1998)
Chow Yun-Fat the man.
I don't see many action films. I don't like most action films. Bullet sprays do not turn my crank. But this was a good movie in a genre where those are exceedingly rare.
The inscrutable majesty of Chow Yun-Fat is the best part of the movie. The near-slapstick action only accentuates the rather frightening stoniness of the killer as he walks through the door, into the club, et cetera, et cetera, and--oh yes--fires his weapon now and again.
Bang bang bang. Bang-up job. Extremely well-filmed and nicely put together. Not a must-see, but a worth-seeing. Wish I'd caught it in the theatre...
Mother Night (1996)
Three good reasons to see Mother Night
1. It prompts thinking about the nature of the individual in the society s/he inhabits. If an individual sacrifices something for the good of the society, what is s/he owed? What is the nature of a truly good act? Name three other movies, off the top of your head, that show the slightest glimmer of realising that such questions exist. Go on. Try. See?
2. It includes Alan Arkin and John Goodman, besides the top-billed Nick Nolte. Arkin and Goodman are highly underrated as dramatic actors (perhaps because they are usually miscast), and all three perform not only competently but memorably. The suspension of disbelief is not threatened for a moment--and how often can you say _that_ of a two hundred million-dollar H'wood blockbuster? (Answer: not often. Unless you have ripe cheese for brains. No offence.)
3. Far from being implausible or impossible, it provides a nice complement for The Usual Suspects and The Spanish Prisoner. Another look at the reality that is created for us, or that we create ourselves.
Swimming with Sharks (1994)
Warning: back of box may be lying
First and foremost, this is _not_ a comedy. Black comedy, perhaps. But a hilarious romp through the misfortunes of a young, idealistic up-and-comer it most certainly AIN'T, and you can take that to the bank and hold the Sweet 'n' Low.
This is not to say that this is a bad movie--it is a GREAT movie. Spacey _is_ excellent (as is Frank Whaley, why does no one mention him though?), the film is intelligent and well-made. Perhaps the only meta-Hollywood film this decade that will rival _The Player_.
But forget the box. This is not about the boss from hell. If there is any point to this movie (and there is), it has to do with the way we create people within ourselves, and how we deal with people once we _really_ know them. But don't let that spoil the entertainment value of Buddy Guy's chuckle-inducing tantrums. Hee hee! I giggle at the mere thought of another real-world entrant losing his or her soul.
The Music of Chance (1993)
Tragically overlooked movie
The Music of Chance is one of those movies in the "eclectic" section at your local video store, one that you pick up on that Thursday when your girlfriend is off on a trip and no one will go to the pub with you. One you wouldn't actually go out and rent to watch with others, lest they find out how pathetic your life is.
But once you get one of these movies home, you find it's absolutely gripping. Sure, it's actually a picture-novel--not purely a visual experience, obviously based on something. But you watch it. Then you watch it again, and listen more carefully. Then you return it, so that you can tell your friends that they really ought to see this movie, it's got that guy, you know, the fat guy, and this other guy, and it's about poker, and your friends ignore you, and think to themselves, "hope his girlfriend gets back soon--he's a wreck these days." But really, they should see the movie. But they don't. And the crushing loneliness and isolation of modern life weighs down on you all the more heavily.
*That* is what this movie is like.