manic966 Reviews

Rhinestone (1984)

some people have no sense of humor

[9/10 · 1 April 2005]

This is, hands down, one of the funniest movies ever made. Weather we laugh because of the jokes written in or because of how awful some of the movie is, it doesn't matter. Laughter is a good thing, and this movie generates plenty of it. I especially like the bits with the always entertaining Tim Thomerson, Jack Deth of the Trancers series. His turn as Barnett Kale is fantastic. Also showing a nice sense of comedic timing is the inimitable Richard Farnsworth as Noah, the father of Dolly Parton's character.

It is bad, it is cheesy, and it is side-splittingly funny.

And if you cannot appreciate my fashion sense, I resignate.

The Way of the Gun (2000)

Way of the Fan

[10/10 · 30 January 2001]

There's no doubting the amazing inventiveness of McQuarrie. He is willing to put himself on the line with this movie, which will be glossed over by countless reviewers and even "movie buffs" as something derivative or even a played out crime movie. There will be the mindless comparisons to Tarantino, Peckinpah, maybe even a Tony Scott here and there, but I'd like to think that if you really watched the movie, you can evaluate it in it's own right, as it's own creative statement and work of art. Now I'm a fan, my take on the film is that it's brilliant. MY pick for the best movie of 2000. It's expressly because it's a basic crime movie that I feel this way. There are over a hundred movies in this genre released every year. Most debut on video or late night cable and are never heard from again. Some manage to get A-list stars and Joel Silver or Jerry Bruckheimer to produce them and wind up with $20 million dollar openings. And some, like this one, feature movie actors, acting out brilliant scenes and dialogue, in front of a great director (as I'm sure he will prove to be). And the fact that he made this type of movie, but in a fresh, creative, even intelligent way, is what makes him so good. In a few years people are gonna go see Alexander the Great or whatever else McQuarrie does and then hear about this and go back to their video store and rent this puppy and it will probably have the same resurgence Reservoir Dogs did after Pulp Fiction came out. It's a shame just because a movie isn't as slick and Hollywood as Con-Air or Lethal Weapon it's either a straight to cable offering, or, if it's good, a Tarantino rip-off. I think we need a few more categories. Sorry about the manifesto, but I'm a bit riled at how poorly this movie was received. Either I'm seeing something in it that isn't there, or a whole lot of people are really missing something. The writer-director phenomenon is just getting bigger and bigger all the time, which I think is a good thing. Especially if it breeds more like Christopher McQuarrie. All I can say is, watch this movie like you'd watch something important, pay attention and soak in all that it has to offer. I doubt you'd be disappointed.