Andrew-162 Reviews

Monty Python's and Now for Something Completely Different (1971)

Hysterical, classic

[9/10 · 12 June 2001]

This movie practically rivals Holy Grail for funniest movie of all time. Besides the dirty fork sketch and Gilliam's not-always-great animation, every part of the movie is a true masterpiece. A great introduction to Python.

Magnolia (1999)

Unquestionably moving and brilliant, even if...

[26 January 2001]

OK, before I start listing all the good things about the movie Magnolia, and believe me, there are many, I will list the things that are potentially bad about the movie, and get them out of the way. It's often self-indulgent and self-important. It contains one too many confessions of spousal cheating. It can be argued that the movie gets downright cheesy at some times--like when they all start singing the soundtrack song "Wise Up" by Aimee Mann, and maybe there are some aspects of the plot (the prophetic kid rapper, just what DOES William H. Macy do for a living?) go unexplained or unjustified, and you either will love or hate the finale. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, I'd like to say that Magnolia is one of the most moving movies of all time. There is a quiet yearning always apparent in the movie--some people say it is a movie about misery, but I don't believe it's quite that--I think it's a movie about wasted lives, the lives of people who just need to get over their sense of regret before they can make something of their lives. More than one character says in the movie "we may be through with the past, but the past isn't through with us," and for almost every character in the movie it is a definitive quote. Here is the plotline in as few words and most connections as possible. Earl (Jason Robards) is a dying TV producer, cared for by a male nurse (Phillip Seymour Hoffman). Earl left his wife years ago when she developed cancer for the younger Linda (Julianne Moore), leaving his son Frank (Tom Cruise) to look after his mother, and Frank became an on-TV sex guru, preaching his "seduce and destroy" method to millions of followers. Produced by Earl is the TV show "What Do Kids Know," a show whose returning champion is the young boy Stanley (Jeremy Blackman), a boy who is sick of being looked upon as a freak and sick of his father (Michael Bowen) and the pressure he puts upon him. Donnie Smith (William H. Macy) was the champ on the show about 30 years ago, but is now a grown-up failure who resorts to robbing his own store when things get rough. The host of the show is Jimmy Gator (Phillip Baker Hall), who is also dying and wants his beloved wife Rose (Melinda Dillon) and abused, drug-addicted daughter Cluadia (Melora Walters) to forgive him before he dies. Neither of them seem to, especially Claudia, who seems to now be leading a sleazy lifestyle of drugs and sex until she is visited by good-hearted, religious policeman Jim (John C. Reily), who instantly falls for her, and just could be the source of her redemption. If it sounds like a lot to take in, remember the movie's 3-hour running length. For a movie that is 3 hours long, though, it flies instantly by. Several people on this site were complaining of it being sooo lonnnngggg, but I was constantly glancing at my watch, and hoping that I still had a good amount of time before the movie was over--much like the 1993 ensemble piece "Short Cuts," I didn't want it to end, I wanted to learn more about these characters, I wanted them to find happiness. Quite needless to say, the performances across the board are quite excellent. Though Jason Robards and Phillip Baker Hall might not get much of a chance to act through their confessional time, they get the job done. Julianne Moore and Melinda Dillon are pretty good as their wives. But the performances only get better from there. As the two quiz champions, Jeremy Blackman is truly wonderful and William H. Macy is at his nervous best. But then we get to the three performances that make this one of the best ensemble casts since "Pulp Fiction". Melora Waters's absolutely heartbreaking performance as the doomed Claudia is one the viewer is not likely to forget. Tom Cruise does maybe his best dramatic work so far here--when he is on stage, he's on fire, and could easily be a preacher preaching his religion, and to some extent, he is, but his too best moments come when he tells the reporter that's interviewing him "I'm quietly judging you," and when he half laughs/breaks down at his dying father's bedside, truly a matured performance that the star of "Cocktail" could not have given. But the performance to watch here is John C. Reily's, as the centerpiece of the movie, the voice of reason, the voice of goodness among the disappointment, the do-gooder cop who just wants to help people. Maybe less showy than Cruise's role, but just as emotionally powerful. He pulls it off with such a sense of reality that we pray for his safety and pray for his happiness. It is brilliantly directed by P.T. Anderson. Often compared to one of Altman's multi-charactered mosaics, Anderson's technique could not really be much more different. Altman's direction always gave his character pieces a sort of distanced, alienated feel, but Anderson's here is very intimate. Characters are given slow close-ups, or are slowly followed as they move, or sometimes when you see two characters talking, you will only actually see one of the characters and try to guess what they are thinking. The story is well written and the stories all well connected, and the ending...well, as I said, you either love it or hate it. I loved it. If you asked me to explain the meaning of it, whether it was a biblical metaphor, or a chance for self-reflection for the characters, or what, I could not tell you. But it hit an appropriate emotional nerve for the time, and in the cold world of 90's movies, why not? Maybe it was a plot device, but if so, a very, very powerful one. And the music, let's not forget Aimee Mann (who'da thunk it? The lead singer of the 80's onehitwonder band 'Til Tuesday comes back out to write the most appropriate soundtrack to a movie since The Graduate?) and her hauntingly correct songs. "Save Me" is one of the true highlights of the movie--an aching, desperate cry for what everyone in the movie seems to be searching for.

See Magnolia. If you were more bored than I was, I'm sorry. You're missing an experience unlike really any other.

The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

I don't understand why...

[7/10 · 5 October 2000]

In 1994 The Hudsucker Proxy was released to indifferent reviews and failed box-office. It failed to get a single oscar nomination. After watching it several years ago, and again tonight, I can only come up with one question: Why? Everything in this movie clicks like the huge clock that towers over NYC from the Hudsucker building. Tim Robbins has rarely been better and provides a worthy successor to the clueless but ultimately endearing Capra heroes of the 30's, like Gary Cooper and Jimmy Stewart. Jennifer Jason Leigh, who has been so good in many movies, provides a winning cross between the professionalism of Rosalind Russel's character in His Girl Friday and the archetypal Katherine Hepburn character (she even gets the voice right!). Paul Newman makes an ideal villain, and Charles Durning has a memorable cameo. The cast is not even the best part. The movie is visually stunning (where were the cinematography and art direction oscars on this one?) and adds all the more to the storyline. The direction flawlessly invokes the madcap comedies of the 30's with a plot that is heavily influenced by Sturges and Capra but has some now-typical Coen twists in it as well. However, the best part is the screenplay. A true american original, it exceeds especially with the hula-hoop plotline. This movie flopped in' 94, but hey--so did Vertigo in '58 and The Magnificent Ambersons in '42. Some genius takes time to be appreciated--lets hope time appreciates this true Coen masterpiece. Makes a good double bill with the similarly screwball but more over-the-top Raising Arizona

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

2nd most poetic and artistic

[10/10 · 14 July 2000]

Aside from Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo", A Clockwork Orange is probably the most poetic and artistic movie ever made. From it's haunting and downright frightening first shot of Alex's face (with his perfectly constructed wardrobe and one fake eyelash, an idea nothing short of genius), to the dialogue (consisting mainly of Nasdat, a language similar to english though certain terms are used in replacement of our terms. Example: Good=Horrorshow, In-Out, In-Out=Sex), to the ultra-modern houses that Alex and his droogs raid, to the ironic and disturbing idea of having Alex sing "Singing In The Rain" while shamelessly raping a middle-aged woman, to the fish eye lens shots Kubrick uses to capture imagery, to the contraption that forces Alex to watch the ludivico video, and finally to the overall question of the entire movie: What is it better for a man to be--naturally evil or mechanically enforced good? Alex has a chance to experience them both.

Now to the plot: Alex (Malcolm McDowell)is a disturbed youth who spends his days faking sick from school so he and his droogs (friends) can drink milk-plus at a bar or go out for "a little of the ultra-violence" It is kind of like a gang of theirs, which Alex leads, consisting of 4 members. They wear the same costumes, fight other gangs, beat up homeless drunks, rape innocent women and sometimes kill them, and try to run cars off the road. Alex is obsessed with Beethoven, who he refers to as "Ludwig Van". He associates Beethoven with sexual violence. After he angers his droogs and puts down a potential mutiny through (what else?) violence, they decide to double cross him by knocking him out after he kills a woman, leaving him for the police. He hates it in prison, but he manages to humour the religious head there by pretending to be interested in the bible (all he really cares about in the bible are the sexual and violent parts, which he imagines himself in). Through gaining the religious head's favor, he is allowed to get off early for his crimes, on one condition--he undergoes the "Ludovico Treatment": a treatment supposed to cure the need for violence. The treatment consists of holding Alex in a chair, putting him in a straitjacket, forcing his eyelids to stay open by putting hooks under his eyes, keeping his head stationary, and thereby forcing him to watch the video that they display: A video of sexual violence with a soundtrack of bastardized Beethoven music. Alex is absolutely shellshocked at the sights and sounds of this video. After he watches it, you see him on a stage crouching down. A topless woman walks onto the stage. He reaches for her breasts. Before his hands can get there, he crumples over and starts gagging. Whenever Alex now thinks a violent thought, he becomes unbearably sick. Then he goes back into the everyday world, where the tables are turned on him in almost every way.... Malcolm McDowell's performance perhaps ranks among the 10 best ever given. His brave portrayal of an absolutely monstrous teen is so frighteningly believable that the mere sight of him is scary. The music is appropriately moody, as it is in all Kubrick movies. The art direction is flawless, as is the cinematography. This is the most Kubrickesque of all his films, and probably his best overall. The surreal atmosphere is disturbingly relevant, though perhaps not at first glance. This movie deserved oscars for best picture, best actor, best director, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, best art direction, best costume design, and best sound. IT GOT NONE OF THEM!!! It was nominated for best picture, best director, best adapted screenplay, and best editing. What did it lose to in all 4 categories? THE FRENCH CONNECTION!!! The two movies are completely incomparable--The French Connection seems so shallow compared to A Clockwork Orange. It's losing to The French Connection ranks among the top 5 mishaps of the oscars: the other 4 being Citizen Kane losing to How Green Was My Valley, an unnominated Vertigo losing to GIGI?!?!, Goodfellas losing to Dances With Wolves, and Pulp Fiction losing to Forrest Gump (Honorable mention goes to an unnominated Usual Suspects losing to the poorly acted Braveheart). In retrospect, one wonders how any of them could've happened, but they did. Somehow. See A Clockwork Orange. And if you're one who says it is nothing but "sexual, ugly rubbish," you probably (not definitely) should be forced to be placed in a contraption not unlike the one Alex was forced into, and be forced to watch the movie over and over until you realize the true wonder of cinema that it is.

Keeping the Faith (2000)

Not clever and intellegent at all

[4/10 · 7 July 2000]

I went to see Keeping The Faith expecting that it would be not so good. I was, sadly enough, right. TV's Dharma is a so-so actress who I don't think would really have so captivated the attention of Stiller and Norton, especially not to the degree that they'd give up their faith to have her. Ben Stiller gives a downright lousy performance as an unfunny, supposedly "hip" rabbi who the film tries to show the "light side of religion" through. It is plain ridiculous, and the film seems to think that it's ok to make so much Jewish humor just as long as it's at the expense of it's own characters. The humor is all cliches, as is the screenplay. I'll admit it's an original idea, but it's completely implausible. No one would go to a Synagouge that had a gospel choir sing "Ein Keloheinu", and they certainly wouldn't like the rabbi. Norton is the one saving grace in the film, but unlike in American History X, the strength of his performance is not nearly enough to carry the movie. If you are contemplating seeing a touching, funny, contemporary movie about relationships, see When Harry Met Sally or Annie Hall. Don't see this unless you laugh at anything merely because it is classified as comedy.

Psycho (1960)

Hitch's 2nd Best, But That Is Saying A Whole Lot

[10/10 · 30 June 2000]

Hitchcock's 1960 film Psycho is probably the best horror movie ever made, and though slightly inferior to his Vertigo, it remains a true showcase of the master's talent. Though I was not around the 1st time the movie came out, I was lucky enough to recently catch a screening of it, with a guest appearance by Janet Leigh. I had already seen the movie twice, and anticipated everything that was about to happen, but it didn't really matter. It still scared me so much, I was petrified to think how terrified I would be if I saw it in the theaters in 1960, not knowing what was about to happen. We all know the plot--Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) embezzles 40,000 dollars from her company and is on the run. She stops at the Bates Motel where she meets Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), a friendly young man who is restrained from being close to anyone but his possessive mother. They talk, and she gets in the shower. Before she is done her shower, she is stabbed to death by Norman's mother. But who really stabbed her? And is she really dead? Marion's sister Lila (Vera Miles) and Marion's boyfriend (Jon Gavin) hire detective Arbogast (Martin Balsam) to investigate. Then he is similarly stabbed to death before he can question Norman's mother.... Psycho is simply amazing, one of the true artistic pieces of the cinema. Joseph Stefano's disturbing, sick screenplay will not soon be forgotten, though the plot is not the main part of the movie. The cinematography is some of the best ever put on the screen, from the several pans from the Bates Motel to Norman's house to the opening shot across the city. It is dark--undeniably bleak and dark, as is the mood of the movie. The art direction is necessarily scary--Norman's house is perfectly secluded from the rest of the world, and looks very spooky, as does the motel. As Balsam notes, the hotel seems to be "hiding from the world." The acting varies--Balsam is quite good as the always suspicious detective, Leigh is ideally cast as the every day woman who sees a chance to get away from life and takes it, and Perkins is nothing less than fantastic as Norman Bates, a roll that would define his career, and one he will always be associated with. However, Miles and Gavin are wooden anti-characters with no personality whatsoever showing. But that really doesn't matter. Hitchcock liked the idea from the start--getting a big star and killing her off in the first reel. It certainly shocked audiences, who before came into movies whenever they wanted, sometimes even 30 minutes to an hour into the movie. They were not allowed to do that with Psycho. "The film you should see from the beginning--or not at all" the taglines stated. Psycho is a perfect example of audience manipulation--everyone assumes that the story is about Leigh, and when she gets bumped off, Hitchcock takes the audience down a completely different road. The shower scene is one of the most memorable and suprprising scenes in film history. The scenes in which Leigh is driving are suspenseful, even though there's nothing really happening. And when Perkins is trying to dispose of Leigh's car by pushing it into the swamp, the way the car stops sinking for a second--everyone suddenly wonders what he will do now--but then it sinks away again. Surprisingly enough, the audience wants the car to go down--we want Perkins to get rid of the evidence. And untrue to Horror formula, the climax of Psycho takes place not in a rainy dark night--but in the bright, sunny daylight. These are all examples of audience manipulation--which no one does better than Alfred Hitchcock. But yet--Hitchcock's direction, I think, is not the best part of the movie--or at least it is tied for first. The best? BERNARD HERRMANN. If you do not know that name yet, write it down. BERNARD HERRMANN. He has done the score to the Hitchcock movies Marnie, The Birds, The Wrong Man, North By Northwest, Vertigo (ohh, the Vertigo score), and Psycho. He also did the score to Scorcese's Taxi Driver, and Orson Welles' Citizen Kane. He won an oscar for his score for The Devil And Daniel Webster. His score for Psycho is certainly his most well known--especially the shower scene part. Though not his best (Vertigo is his best) the score is the part of Psycho that stays with you after the film is done, days after. That keeps haunting you, that keeps scaring you. Psycho would be three or four times less scary without the shrieking violins of Herrmann's score. Herrmann also pulled an exercise in audience manipulation--for the score, frightening as it is, consisted of only 4 violins. The music truly sets the mood for the movie. Creating the madness and worry in Marion's mind while she is driving, creating the true horror of the murders, and creating the calm but suspenseful serenity of some of the dialogues, where there is no music at all, and the film is eerily silent. You know the shrieking violins are soon. Bernard Herrmann's scores are not often enough credited as a huge, HUGE part Hitchcock's success with his pictures. So write that name down if you don't know it already: BERNARD HERRMANN. And see Psycho. If you've already seen it, see it again to catch the little things you missed before. I guarantee you there are some.

The Sixth Sense (1999)

As Creative As Horrors Come

[9/10 · 29 May 2000]

This movie was genuinely scary, unnerving, and disturbing. Yet the scariness of the movie certainly does not come out of mindless gore or unrealistic monsters. It comes out of sheer, basic, suspense, the likes of which I may have never seen since Psycho, more than Silence of the Lambs and Seven.

Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) is a nice man,a devoted husband and psychiatrist. So good is he at his work, he receives a plaque from the mayor commending him. However, his joy that night is brief, as his celebration with his wife is cut short by an unexpected blast from the past--a patient of Malcolm's that he couldn't help (Donnie Wahlberg in a short but memorable cameo). He tells Malcolm that he didn't help him, and he has still been miserable for the last 10 years because no one could pinpoint why he was so upset. He then pulls out a gun, shoots Malcolm in the gut, then blows his own brains out. Flash forward to 2 months later: Malcolm is standing near the house of young Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) and his mother (Toni Colette). Cole has become a patient of his, and after reviewing Cole's case, Malcolm realizes that he and the man who shot him have a lot in common, and Malcolm sort of sees this as his shot at redemption for failing his other patient. The two meet and strike an instant rapport. But Cole is depressed, and always seems to look sad. His single mother is constantly stressed, trying to juggle two jobs and be a mother and father to Cole. She can not reach Cole herself, cannot understand why he is always so frightened. Eventually after Malcolm earns the trust of Cole, Cole tells him his secret: "I See Dead People." Cole explains to Malcolm that he constantly sees dead people walking around, not knowing that they are dead, and not seeing each other. Only Cole can see these people. At first Malcolm tries not to believe Cole, but after listening to a tape of one of his sessions with the man who shot him, he realizes Cole is telling the truth. The two have their individual problems, though. Malcolm and his wife haven't talked in months, they are now completely estranged from one another, and she seems to have found a new beau. Cole's mother wonders why her grandmothers pendant keeps getting moved, and gets furious when Cole denies taking it. The story goes on like this, telling about how Malcolm and Cole try to help each other This intelligent film is about 3 completely heart-wrenching relationships. Malcolm's relationship with his wife, Cole's relationship with his mother, and Malcolm and Cole's relationship with each other. All three are introduced to the story at the beginning, and at the end, all three are neatly and beautifully concluded. Possibly the most moving scene of the movie is when Cole comes home from school. He asks his mom how her difficult day was. She says: "Well, I won the lottery this morning, I quit all my jobs, I picnicked in the park, and then swam in the fountain all afternoon." She then asks Cole how his day went at his school (where everyone views him as a freak and an outcast). He answers: "Well, I was picked first for dodgeball, I hit a game-winning grand slam, and everyone carried me off on their shoulders." It shows how the only escape from their two difficult, miserable lives, is each other. The two most memorable things about this movie are Haley Joel Osment, who is nothing short of a revelation as Cole and who unjustly lost the academy award for Best Supporting Actor to the simple acting of Michael Caine for The Cider House Rules, and the ending, which clearly borrows a little something from The Usual Suspects. The rest of the cast is uniformly good, especially Toni Colette as Cole's mother. Bruce Willis does an admirable job as Malcolm, a very different character than he has played in his traditional movies. The writing and direction is some of the best you will ever see. M. Night Shyamalan has loaded the Sixth Sense with symbolism, foreshadowing, and clues to the big finish. He had the bad luck as coming out the same year as American Beauty, which was only a little better written , but much better directed. The Sixth Sense was nominated for 6 oscars: Best Picture, Supporting Actor Haley Joel Osment, Supporting Actress Toni Colette, Director Shyamalan, Writer Shyamalan, and Editing. It lost them all, unfortunately.

Gladiator (2000)

Epic that pays homage.

[7/10 · 7 May 2000]

The movie "Gladiator" filled pretty much up to my expectations. It had wonderful photography and visual effects, probably one of the most enjoyable movies to look at of the 90's. The action sequences are tense, suspenseful, gut-wrenching, slick, and above all, violent. Russel Crowe's talents, unfortunately, are somewhat wasted in this part, since primarily his part is just to fight and be brave. He does do this little well, though.

The plot of this movie is reminiscent of countless other epics. Emperor has doubts about who to give his throne to, and his unexpected decision stirs up jealousy in those not chosen (Ran). So unchosen decides to run off the one chosen and tries to kill him, though the chosen somehow survives, while the unchosen believes he is dead (though not an epic in practical sense, The Lion King, and possibly others). The chosen finds his wife and son dead and vows vengeance against the now king (Braveheart). He is instead, though, sold into slavery and enrolled in a gladiator school (Spartacus). There, he is put on display in a colosseum to compete with others for the audience's amusement (Ben-Hur). He rallies up support, but after being betrayed by his own people, he is caught by the king (Braveheart again). Then, there is an ending which I'm not quite sure what movie it is from. I must not have seen it yet. Alright, so maybe the movie is going to win any acting or writing oscars. It probably doesn't deserve them anyway. However, the scenes in the colloseum are so beautifully and skillfully crafted, that the academy still should grant "Gladiator" oscars for Best Director Ridley Scott, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, Best Editing, Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing, Best Visual Effects, and maybe, just maybe, best picture. We will see.

American History X (1998)

Norton makes it happen

[8/10 · 7 May 2000]

American History X only got one oscar nomination: Best Actor, Edward Norton. He lost to the tour de force performance of Roberto Benigni in "Life Is Beautiful". Whether Norton deserved it over Benigni (I hope that is the right spelling) is a question worth debating, both were career-making performances. I think that Norton probably deserved it a little more for 2 reasons: 1. He plays COMPLETELY against type. You can not believe that this is the same relatively tame Edward Norton who won so many people over in such movies as Rounders and the People Vs. Larry Flynt. Rarely are there such acting transformations. 2. Norton carried the movie. The direction was somewhat sloppy, the script had a couple holes here and there, and besides Furlong's convincing peformance as an impressionable youth, the acting is only so-so. But Norton was solid, convincingly ranting and raving and recruiting. The slow transformation of Furlong's character into a neo-nazi under Norton's influence and then the transformation back to tolerance truly exemplifies how the Nazi movement could have spread through Germany over 60 years ago. The movie is definitely worth a watch. Some heads may be turned by it, even.

Spartacus (1960)

I can't think of a thing that I would change.

[9/10 · 9 April 2000]

Every once in a while, I will watch a movie that just totally blows me out of the water. Spartacus was one of those movies. Everything about it seems perfect to me. I was not bothered by the length, as the story required a lengthy movie. After director Anthony Mann was fired, Stanley Kubrick was brought in to work as director. If he had been the original choice for director, perhaps we would see a Spartacus with the flashy long camera shots and the deep, haunting scores, and the abstract art we have become used to from Kubrick's 2001, A Clockwork Orange, and even Full Metal Jacket. Kubrick's style is much more restrained in Spartacus. The only time when Kubrick really shines through is the battle scene, where the troops of Casuss' army asssemble to make symmetric shapes. But since Spartacus is not really the kind of movie that requires that kind of work, since a ray of hope shines over the entire thing. In the hands of a lesser director (notably Cecil B. DeMille, king of the mindless epics) it might have turned into just that, a mindless epic. But Kubrick saved that from happpening. Critics of the romance between Spartacus and Varinia may be right when they say that there is no passion there. I disagree with this, though. Besides, the love scenes gave an excuse to hear the traditional score. The score (basically consisting of 3 notes being played in the same pattern but in different keys and by different instruments) is perhaps the most touching thing about the movie, and its simplicity drives what is going on on screen home. The movie's screenplay and story takes the best elements from such movies as Braveheart, Ben-Hur, and even the Ten Commandments and gives it to much better actors. Though the story may have many factual errors, it gives the actors a chance to shine in their work. The acting is top quality. Almost every legend of the silver screen had his role that made him one, the role that when one thinks of the actor, they must think of the role also. Marlon Brando had his Vito Corleone, Clark Gable had his Rhett Butler, Orson Welles had his Charles Foster Kane, even Anthony Quinn had his Zorba the Greek. Well, Kirk Douglas has his Spartacus. Although his character required little acting, and he was not oscar-worthy in it, he gave Spartacus an identity. Other acting standouts are oscar-winner Peter Ustinov as Spartacus's former owner, Laurence Olivier as the evil dictator Cassus, and though most people would disagree with me, Tony Curtis as Antoninus.

This is a 5-star movie, see it soon.

Fatal Attraction (1987)

Not great...but good.

[13 February 2000]

Fatal Attraction, an oscar-nominated work by director Adrian Lynne, is good. Not excellent, but good.

The film is about a lawyer named Dan (Michael Douglas, playing one of his businessman rich roles again) who is happily married to a beautiful woman (Anne Archer) and has a wonderful daughter. He is at a business dinner when he meets Alex (Glenn Close), a wild, somewhat sexy single woman who intrigues him. However, he is with his wife, and nothing comes of their meeting.

Out of coincidence, he meets Alex again on a business trip away from his wife. The two flirt for a good while, and there is definitely an attraction. Over the course of the weekend, they have several passionate love-making sessions, and they like each other a great deal. However, Alex does not seem to accept the concept of Dan's happy marraige, and is very upset when he finally has to go back to his wife.

Over the next couple weeks, Alex calls Dan several times, and he gets more and more frustrated with her. Eventually, Alex calls to meet with Dan, and she tells him that she is pregnant with his baby, and feels he should take some responsibility. Dan asks her to get an abortion, but she won't get one. His constant refusal to be a part of Alex's life drives her over the edge, and the thriller part of the movie begins....

Glenn Close and Anne Archer were both nominated for oscars, but were beaten by the two stars of "Moonstruck", Cher and Olympia Dukakis. Michael Douglas was not nominated for an oscar, but I think he would have been, and maybe have won for it too, had he not appeared in "Wall Street" the same year (which he actually did win an oscar for). But the best part of the movie is probably Adrian Lyne's tense direction.

Is this movie a "4 star-er"? No. Is it a "must-see"? No. But if you like sexy thrillers, check it out sometime.

The Usual Suspects (1995)

"I can't feel my legs....Keyzer"

[10/10 · 4 February 2000]

This movie is one of the 10 best ever made. I don't mean entertaining, I don't mean shock, I don't mean thrilling, I mean BEST. I have seen many classic thrillers, but none of them are as beautifully crafted as the Usual Suspects. Without a doubt the best movie of the 90's. The movie starts with a bang--in this first scene, which takes place "last night", on a gasoline soaked, dead body-ridden boat which looks like it could go up in flames at any minute. Keaton is lying on the ground smoking a cigarette. A mysterious stranger approaches him:

Keyzer: "How ya doing, Keaton?" Keaton: "I can't feel my legs....Keyzer" Keyzer: "You ready?" Keaton: "What time is it?" Keyzer: "It's 12:30"

You hear 2 shots, and the match is lit that sets the boat ablaze. As the mysterious stranger gets off the boat, it blows up.

And so the tale begins. A tale of five known criminals; Hockney, McManus, Fenster, Keaton, and Kint, who get set up by the police and end up plotting a scheme together. A tale of a cop, agent Kujan, who is Keaton's arch nemesis, and wants to make sure Keaton is dead. A tale of a petty thug cripple, Kint, who gets pulled in over his head and tells the entire story of what happened after the setup to Kujan. And finally, a tale of the mysterious drug lord Keyzer Soze who no one really knows about, but who seems to be pulling strings for the 5 criminals, for a purpose no one quite knows why.

The problem with the public opinion of this movie is that people focus too, too much on the ending, it's faults, it's qualities, etc. The ending, which I will not spoil for you, is great, and puts the finishing touches on one hell of a thriller. But the ending is not what makes the movie great, aside from the way it is handled. What makes the movie great are: 1. The performances by Pollack, Palmentieri, Postlethwaite, Baldwin, Del Toro, Byrne, and above all Spacey 2. The incredible twists and turns through the plot 3. The scenes masterfully crafted by rookie director Bryan Singer (which shows us some of the best movie direction since the Kubrick era, especially with the line-up scene) 4. The incredible score, which makes the intensity of the movie rise with every scene. 5. The way the last scene is handled--which is probably one of the 5 best scenes in movie history

This movie is the best of the 90's--and probably one of the 10 best ever. See it.

Casino (1995)

Great, except....

[9/10 · 4 February 2000]

This movie could seriously have been a classic. There are so, so many things right about the movie. The performances of the three main characters--DeNiro, Stone, and Pesci, are standard excellence. The script makes the movie quite enjoyable to watch. The sleazy vision of Las Vegas(visually as well as mentally) is well made. Scorceses direction is practically flawless, and the first hour of background on the Casino is some of the best footage of the 90's. This movie would have made my top 50 of all time except for one little problem....It is a pure carbon-copy of Goodfellas. The two main characters (Pesci, DeNiro) are the same, the general plotline (Naive rookie to the playing field sees the glamour at first in the business but soon realizes that the violence and politics might end in his own demise) is the same, the director and his style of direction is the same, the movie is shaped in the same way, etc.

If you're looking for a better movie, see Goodfellas. If you're looking for a more entertaining movie, see either of them.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

I wouldn't change a thing

[10/10 · 4 February 2000]

This movie is the pinacle of comedy. There is no comedy that is better quality or funnier than this one. In a decade where comedy is at it's alltime lowest (with Deuce Bigalo, Male Gigolo and She's All That being high rankers) it's refreshing to still be able to refer back to such a glorious comedy.

The ideas of this movie are hilarious, namely these 6:

1. The idea of having the knights pretend to be riding horses, and having servants clank coconuts in the background to make it sound like horse hooves. 2. The trojan horse 3. The "She's A Witch, Burn Her!" theory 4. Having a God that is irritable and whiny 5. The idea of a man-eating rabbit and a religious hand grenade to expose of it (in biblical fashion, of course) 6. The idea to cut off the big battle scene at the end by a bunch of policemen.

The film is a spoof, obviously, but should not be treated on the same level of "Robin Hood: Men In Tights". It is the wittiest, funniest, and zaniest commedy of all time, and it's screenplay is probably one of the three best original screenplays ever (Up there with Pulp Fiction and the Usual Suspects). The acting is great, and works so well with the movie. There are many memorable scenes worth quoting again, and again, and again. See this movie several hundred times.

Gattaca (1997)

The most underrated movie of the 90's

[8/10 · 1 February 2000]

This movie is incredible--yet the only ones who seemed to like it when it came out are the type whose favorite movie is "True Lies". It became critically ignored, which I can not understand at all. The themes of this movie-of superiority/inferiority, of identity, of destiny, they're all there. For those of you that haven't seen this movie, it is about a eutopian society where the highest ranks work at a space program named Gattaca. Vincent (Ethan Hawke) has wanted to work there since he was a child, but since his parents did not "pre-order" him, he was born inferior (a 99 % chance of heart failure by the age of 30, physical and mental problems, etc. ) to his "ordered" brother Antoine. Vincent has always seen something in a rival in his brother, because his brother is their dad's favorite, and he seems to have everything going for him. Vincent's job is as a janitor at Gattaca, with the hope that he will get in some day, but all the have to do is get a fingerprint of Vincent's, or a blood sample, or anything, and they know all about him, his profile, his life expectancy, etc. No one will hire Vincent because he is so liable to damage. One day, though, he hires someone to turn his identity into Eugene's, (Jude Law) an olympic-swimming, high potential winner who has everything you would need to get anywhere-except he comes back from a trip a paralyzed cripple from the waist down. So Vincent makes a deal with Eugene-Vincent gets Eugene's identity if Vincent pays the rent and gives him a companion. Everything works to plan, and Vincent borrows Eugene's fingerprints, blood samples, haircut, even urine samples. He even meets Irene (Uma Thurman) a sexy female worker at Gattaca who takes a shine to Vincent (who she thinks is Eugene). Until one day......

Gattaca is a great visual movie (it was nominated for the best art direction oscar but lost to Titanic), rides strong on very good performances by Ethan Hawke and Jude Law, and is definitely worth seeing.

Vertigo (1958)

Haunting

[10/10 · 1 February 2000]

There is so much to this movie that an amateur watcher like myself can not come close to doing it justice, but I'll try. This movie is one of the 10 best of all time, and without a doubt Hitchcock's best. Here are the top things about it. 1. The Themes: The theme of Madeliene (The gorgeous Kim Novak in an absolutely haunting performance)getting her mind inhabited from a lost woman of a past, the theme of Scottie (Jimmie Stewart in an equally impressive performance) falling hopelessly in love with this shadow of a woman he knows so little about and becomes obsessed with rescuing her, and finally, the theme of Judy, who to Scottie is a portrait of Madeleine, a voice calling to him from beyond the grave, but possibly most importantly, the theme of Scottie's vertigo, which prevents him from "Saving" his love that final run up the church tower 2. The Beauty: The movie was nominated for a Best Art Direction Oscar. I have no idea what it lost to, but I'm sure Vertigo was more worthy of it. Hitchcock's "San Francisco" is as haunting as the rest of the movie, from it's ironically beautiful graveyards to the shape of the church from which Madeleine takes the deadly plunge. It is one of the most beautiful movies I have ever seen 3. THE SCORE: This is the most important of all of them. The one reason that movies like Psycho and North By Northwest are better in my opinion than movies like Rear Window and Rebecca is the fact that Psycho and North By Northwest had shrieking Bernard Hermann scores, the most memorable of all movie scores (Taxi Driver was also a highlight for him). But VERTIGO is the best of all of them. Vertigo's score almost makes us feel like we are Scottie, so confused, so sad, and yet so scared. It is the most memorable of all movie scores, even more the so then the more famous Psycho score.

See this movie---it is one of the most wonderful experiences you can enjoy.

Ordinary People (1980)

Could be best of 80's

[10/10 · 30 November 1999]

Ordinary People vs. Raging Bull. It's hard to decide which should've won the best picture oscar, because they both worked on different levels. Raging Bull was excellent, framed by the DeNiro-Pesci-Scorcese team that made Goodfellas and Casino hits. However, though it was powerfull, the emotion that was put into Ordinary People and the emotion that it gives off is stunning. Calvin and Beth (Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore) live in a quiet town, have high social position, and are well off. The perfect life,right? Not even close. The two of them and their son Conrad (Timothy Hutton) have been at their emotional breaking point ever since first born Buck drowned at Conrad's fingertips during a boating accident. Conrad has just attempted suicide and is always on the edge. Beth is completely unreachable and just wants to go on as though it didn't happen. Calvin is just the block between the two of them, preventing them from further emotional breakdown and trying to get the family together before they shred each other to pieces. The performances are all around excellent. Sutherland gives an emotionally trying performance as the string that pulls the family together, Moore gives a completely turned around performance as the cold and evil Beth, and Hutton is oscar-worthy as Conrad (he justly won an oscar for it) Go out and see this movie, you won't be dissapointed.

Se7en (1995)

Wonderful movie, just one notch short of a classic.

[7/10 · 16 November 1999]

Se7en is a very excellent movie. The cinematography is outstanding, and combined with the production design it creates an extremely dark and bleak village (I don't believe they identified it). The screenplay is intelligently written, the direction is well done also. Though Brad Pitt, who to this date I have seen him act well only once (12 Monkeys), is not very convincing as detective David Mills, it doesn't really matter. Morgan Freeman is incredible as always, playing his calm, cool and wise character he has mastered in every way. Kevin Spacey is breathtaking in his small but pivotal role. He does his best supporting work ever here, he was only better in The Usual Suspects, and possibly L.A. Confidential.

The film starts out on a crime scene, where we are introduced to detective Mills (Pitt) and Somerset (Freeman). They talk, and we learn that Mills is new in the force, and that Somerset is a veteran that is retiring within the week. They don't get along well, and when they find a mysterious murder (an overweight man was forced to eat spaghetti until he burst, and the word gluttony is found written in grease on the wall) Somerset suggests he be moved to a different case as well as Mills. This is denied, of course. The 2 find a couple other murders with words written bizzarely on the walls or the floor, and they deduce that the murders are linked to a serial killer who kills according to the seven deadly sins. Though I saw the censored version on ABC and probably didn't get the full effect of the movie, I still think I have a pretty good idea of the movie's quality. It's brilliant. So then why is this movie only a 3 out of 4? There are missing links to the story, and sometimes there is too much relying on suspension of belief. However, you must see this movie, if not just for the last 20 minutes where we finally meet John Doe, the man behind the killings who to the amazement of Mills and Somerset hands himself in and volunteers to give a full signed confession to all of the crimes. The catch? To take Mills and Somerset, alone, to the scenes of the last 2 "killings".......

The Breakfast Club (1985)

Teen film making at it's best.

[7/10 · 28 October 1999]

This movie has tons of flaws. Hughes' characters are stereotyped a little, the ending is pretty bad, the rock video in the middle of the movie is a bit random, and it seems like this was a screw you from John Hughes to parents everywhere. But when you get past all that, this movie is a moving, funny, innovative and influentail teen drama.

The movie takes place on a Saturday where 5 teens-"A brain (Anthony Michael Hall), a basketcase(Ally Sheedy), a princess (Molly Ringwald), an athlete (Emilio Estevez), and a criminal (Judd Nelson)" are serving a detention. They are not allowed to talk to one another, and are forced to write an essay on why they're here and who they think they are. Nelson and the principal of the school hate each other, and throughout the film they are given good interaction. Eventually, Nelson makes the door slam shut, and he forces the 5 of them to talk. They eat their lunches, and you can see the style of the 5 of them. Then they begin to discuss why they are all here.

By the end of this movie, you will have been erased of the idea that any teen, whatsoever, has a perfect life. A must-see for teens and struggling parents. (9 out of 10).

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Wonderful Black "Comedy"

[10/10 · 28 October 1999]

Dr. Strangelove is a classic war comedy. However, it really isn't that funny. Though Peter Sellers gives a versatile performance as the President, Dr. Strangelove himself, and a bunch of other people with hilarious deliviring, as always, this film does not have any moments that will really make you laugh out loud. However, it is a very good war movie, which makes you think with its grim satire. This could have been made into a somewhat unoriginal war protest movie drama, but Kubrick and friends have put a spin on it--making it seem so unbelievably absurd, that it takes a global-thermonuclear holocaust and makes it seem light, which takes on an absurdity of it's own. And the final scene, where there is classical music amongst the destruction, is a last touch of political message. See it for yourself, but don't go into it as a comedy--you might be a little dissapointed.

****1/2 out of 5.

The Usual Suspects (1995)

Pure thrilling bliss.

[10/10 · 24 September 1999]

Don't expect to go to sleep after seeing "The Usual Suspects". Not because it's scary-it isn't, just a little creepy. It's because the ending will keep you up all night wondering what really happened and trying to interpret the movie for what you think it meant. Anyway, on with the plot

The story starts out with an encounter on a boat (Which happened the night before when the movie takes place), between Dean Keaton (Gabriel Byrne in a wonderful performance) and a mysterious stranger. The encounter goes like this.

Stranger: "How you doing, Keaton?" Keaton: "I can't feel my legs...Keyser" Keaton: "What time is it?" Stranger: "It's 12:30" The stranger then pulls out a gun and you hear two shots.

Flash back to 6 weeks ago when Keaton, McManus (Stephen Baldwin), Fenster (Benecio Del Toro), Hal Hockley (Kevin Pollack), and Roger "Verbal" Kint (Kevin Spacey) are all pulled in to be questioned for the hijacking of a truck full of armed weapons. Since they all have had a history of hijacking, detective Kujan (Chazz Palmentieri) questions them for the crime. When the 5 are held together in an isolated room, McManus proposes to them a huge hijacking gig that requires 5 guys. Eventually, they all agree. Then flash back forward to present day, when there are only 2 survivors in a huge boat explosion. One is Verbal, and the other is a hungarian in a coma. Verbal is granted immunity for his testimony, but Kujan still wants to have a little chat with him. He eventually gets his way, and Kujan forces Verbal to tell him the story of what really happened. Since Keaton has been Kujan's nemesis for years, his main motive in grilling Verbal is to make sure Keaton is really dead. As Verbal tells his story, a gigantic story of crime, betrayal, and blackmail unfolds, and the name Keyzer Sozé comes into play when the other survivor wakes from his coma and starts shouting Sozé's name. While detective Jack Bear questions the survivor, Verbal tells Kujan the story of Sozé, who Spacey says is a ruthless criminal who can not be caught ("Keaton always said that he didn't believe in god, but he was afraid of him. Well, I believe in God and the only thing that scares me is Keyzer Sozé.")

This ensemble movie could not possibly be better acted, scripted, or directed. Though the ending leaves some flaws in the story, it is extremely satisfying. This film was nominated for 2 oscars-Best Supporting Actor Kevin Spacey, and Best Original Screenplay--and won them both, deservedly. A great movie, one of Spacey's best performances. definitely a must-see

A Bronx Tale (1993)

Good acting, good sketch, could have been done a little better

[6/10 · 17 September 1999]

"A Bronx Tale" is a truly good movie. Though C (the characters name in the movie is called C) could be played better, Robert DeNiro and Chazz Palmentieri were great as always.

The movie starts with Calegro Anello (or C, as he likes to be called) as a young boy (Francis Capra), growing up in Bronx in the midst of the mafia. His father Lorenzo (Robert De Niro) tries his best to give C what he wants, but he has never really been able to since he has an honest living as a bus driver. C has always looked up to local organized crime head Sonny (Chazz Palmentieri) more than anyone else, and tries to imitate him, but Sonny has not even met C yet. Then one fateful day, in a fight over what appears to be merely a parking space, Sonny decides to help out his friend (Joe Pesci in an amusing cameo) and shoots his assailant. C saw the whole thing, and the cops know C saw the whole thing. So they give C the opportunity to point out the gunman. C is put up in front of a lineup of "the usual suspects" but does not point the finger at any of them. Sonny is touched by this, and takes a minute to talk to C. He then offers Lorenzo the opportunity to deliver deals for Sonny in exchange for about 3 times the salary of what he makes now. He refuses, bent on making his living decently. Sonny begins to let C around at his bar, making him the boy people call on when they want a beer or something. A relationship grows between the 2, but when Lorenzo finds out about the bar, and the money C is making at the bar, he refuses the money and makes C give it back. Later, you see C as a 17 year old (Lillo Brancato). Then even more tension begins as C struggles definitely to find his place in the Bronx. He's not sure if he wants to hang out with his bunch of racist friends, or work at the bar with the Sonny and the gang. Then he meets Jane (Taral Hicks) and things really get interesting. This is because Jane is black, and C is falling for her anyway....... > This movie is great, but a poor performance from Lillo Brancato and a little too much ground covered in the movie prevents it from being a classic. However, this movie is definitely worth watching for its perspective on racism, first love, and organized crime. Chazz Palminteri is positively oscarworthy and De Niro gives one of his best performances of the 90's.

City of Angels (1998)

Unbelievably underrated

[7/10 · 15 September 1999]

I just watched this movie again for about the 3rd time. People say the movie is depressing, unoriginal, and boring. I'll bend on the depressing part, but the other 2 are completely un-true.

Nicholas Cage and Meg Ryan give pretty good performances, nothing oscar-worthy, but it's not the acting that makes this movie great. It's beautiful. Pure heaven to the eyes and ears. While you see the wonderful scenes, and backgrounds, with wonderful color and beautiful art direction, and hear the perefectly performed and selected score in the background (with contributions from U2, Sarah McLachlan, and the surprise hit "Iris" from the Goo Goo Dolls) it doesn't really matter what kind of acting is happening. The screenplay is pretty good, but somewhat lacking, which is why I give it an 8.25 on a scale from 1-10. Its a love story, yes, and can get cheesy at points, but none the less, it's still worth seeing once or twice.

The Crow (1994)

Perfect Halloween Movie.

[8/10 · 15 September 1999]

For the horror-movie weakling, this is as dark and gloomy as it gets. Is this a bad thing? ABSOLUTELY NOT!! This movie is fantastic. The photography is incredible, the set design is as fitting as humanly possible, and Brandon Lee makes a surprisingly good undead.

Here's the plot line. Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) and his girlfriend/fiancee, Shelley (Sophia Shinas) are the ideal couple with a romance that conquers all-including death. However, the local crime gang interrupts that on halloween (eve or night, I can't remember) and rapes his fiancee. When Eric comes in in the middle of this, he tries to stop them. This gets him thrown out the window and his girlfriend killed. Young, tough, and street-wise Sarah (Rochelle Davis) always looked up to Eric and Shelley, and always imagined them as the caring parents she never had. She can see right through local cop Albrecht (Ernie Hudson) when he says they're going to be OK.

However, 1 year later on Halloween (eve or night) the darkest city I've ever seen in a movie and the local crime gang are in for a surprise. For, Eric Draven, surprise surprise, is back from the grave. Led by a mysterious crow (who the audience can obviously tell holds Eric's soul), Eric finds clothes and makeup to disguise his true identity. He then goes to find revenge on those who took the 2 most precious things to him-his wife and his life. He kills them one by one, now invincible because he is already dead.

Each time he leaves some kind of mark in the shape of a crow (A blood painting, and a trail of lit gasoline, etc.) Albrecht vaguely remembers Eric from last Halloween (Eve or night) and meets Eric after his 2nd murder. He and Eric have the hilarious confrontation: "You move and you're dead!!!" "And I say I'm dead...and I move". Whenever anyone meets Eric, he mysteriously dissapears, until Sarah recognizes him from a quote of his and confronts him. After he kills the men he thinks are responsible for last Halloween (eve or night), he meets the real man behind the plan--Top Dollar (Michael Wilcott), who is the leader of the crime gang. Then things start to get interesting. I won't give away the ending.

Brandon Lee puts on a great performance, and sadly, his last, as irony entered the situation and when he was supposed to be shot with a blank he was actually shot for real. This is probably the darkest movie I've ever seen that still managed to be a romance. A Must-see (4½ out of 5, 1/2 point off for a little predictability).