andiam123 Reviews

Before Sunset (2004)

A Classic

[10/10 · 10 August 2004]

I've seen this film just once, but it's already one of my favorite films of all time. I was totally involved from the very beginning. I felt like a kid watching a Western; I wanted to yell at the screen, "Don't let her get away again." The dialogue is perfect and appears almost improvised. These are real people.

I have a fantasy--though I know it will never happen--that this film will get Oscar nominations for best film and best actors, male and female.

If you've ever wondered about the one who got away, you're bound to love this film.

Lost in Translation (2003)

A minority opinion

[3/10 · 20 November 2003]

I'm sorry, but I can't join the groundswell of praise for this film. I couldn't wait for it to be over. It was supposed to be a tender love story, but I never saw any real chemistry between the two lead characters. What this pretty young woman sees in this washed-up actor is beyond me. The dialogue never really establishes any chemistry between the two lead characters. As for the actors, I give it a split decision. Bill Murray gives a one-note performance as a bored middle-aged man. He reminds me of his character in the first half of "Groundhog Day," without the growth we see later in the film. I had the feeling he was as bored as the character he portrays. Scarlet Johanssen, on the other hand, rises above her mediocre material. She gets visibly more attractive as the film progresses. I wonder why the director--a woman--seemed so obsessed with Charlotte's body. She spends a lot of time in her underwear. The opening scene--a prolonged view of her backside covered by nearly transparent panties--seems there for titillation only. (For that matter, why do the two of them meet in a strip joint? Just to show off some Japanese woman's physique?) Also, the film is condescending toward the Japanese. Do we want to tell the Japanese that this is how we view them? Granted, some of the satire is directed at the Americans. When the hospital clerk assumes that they speak Japanese, this seems to be a satiric comment on the way Americans assume that everyone speaks English if we speak slowly and loudly enough. But it seems we are intended to sympathize with the "poor" Americans instead of laughing at their ineptness at confronting a foreign culture.

A Mighty Wind (2003)

A great nostalgia trip

[10/10 · 13 May 2003]

Why did I give this film a "10"? Well, to begin with, the computer wouldn't let me give it a "12." It's been ages since a film gave me such a feeling of complete joy. To think of an equivalent, I'd have to go back to its real-life counterpart and possible inspiration, "Wasn't That a Time?" For those of us old enough to live through the folk era, this film was a reminder of all that was good about the music of the time. I immediately bought the CD and have been wearing out the repeat button on my player listening to my favorites over and over. Since there are no leading actors, this film might not do well at Oscar time, but the award programs that have an ensemble-acting category might give this gifted cast the attention they deserve. At least three of the songs deserve best-song nominations--and I say that with confidence in May. It may not be as funny as "Best in Show," but it has more heart. Before it was over I was wiping a few tears from my eyes.

Smoke Signals (1998)

Overlooked masterpiece

[9/10 · 13 February 2003]

This film did not get the attention it deserved. When I first heard about a film made by Native Americans, I was afraid it would be an exercise in political correctness. But the ethnicity of the characters took a back seat to the universal themes of friendship and learning to come to terms with one's past. This is one of the greatest "buddy movies" ever made. A couple of years after I saw it I drove through the American Southwest for the first time, and images of the film kept coming into my head. This is a film which really stays with you.

Running on Empty (1988)

Under-rated actress

[8/10 · 13 February 2003]

Christine Lahti may be one of Hollywood's most under-rated actresses. Between this film and "Housekeeping," she has certainly made her mark.

Having "come of age" in the 1960's and having been on the relatively radical U of Colorado campus during much of the Vietnam War (we were called "Berkley East"), I could identify with the characters, who were trying to make a difference in the world even while they ran from the authorities. The ending (which I won't reveal here) was beautiful and summed up the theme of the film.

Same Time, Next Year (1978)

Guilty pleasure

[10/10 · 3 January 2003]

Considering what many critics have said about this film, I guess my loving it counts as what some call a "guilty pleasure." What I especially like is the sense of history this film conveys, especially for those of us who lived through the turbulent 1960's. (SPOILER; SPOILER).

Alda's acting in the scene where George tells Doris of his son's death is devastating. (One small goof; the title says 1966, but it should have been 1965, the year after the election).

One aspect of the show which not many have commented on is the fidelity to the play. Most directors would have tried to cover more than six meetings, since film can do that better than a stage play, but they kept the original concept. One more thing: I couldn't get Hammlisch's song out of my head for weeks after seeing the film.

Paint Your Wagon (1969)

Truly awful

[3 January 2003]

This film is near the top of my list of worst films of all time. Granted, other films may be worse in many ways, but I have a special dislike for films that start with good source material and destroy it. "Paint Your Wagon" was a classic show. To make the film, Hollywood rewrote the story and removed many of the best songs. The songs that were added in their place were totally forgettable. As one of the other reviewers in this space has noted, the song "I Still See Eliza" is wrenched out of context. In the original, it was sung by an old man remembering his dead wife; in the film, it is sung by a young man about a woman he has made up, and the words don't even make sense for a young man. As for the story, was Hollywood willing to portray a bigamous relationship but not daring enough to depict a romance between an Anglo and a Mexican? The only good scene was the staging of "They Call the Wind Maria" in a rainstorm. The sad thing is that many people will see this film and not realize what a great musical the Broadway version is.

Miracle on 34th Street (1994)

Don't tamper with perfection

[1/10 · 28 December 2002]

If there ever was a film that did not need a remake, the original "Miracle on 34th Street" was such a film. The original featured a virtually perfect screenplay in which everything works out right against all odds. Above all, it softened the sentimentality with some genuine satire (corporate heads who are so afraid of losing sales that they have to admit that Santa Claus exists)and, above all, with a delightful sense of ambiguity as it leaves open the possibility that Chris really is Santa Claus. The remake just pours on the sentimentality and (spoiler) even changes the ending.

Field of Dreams (1989)

A speech worthy of Shakespeare

[10/10 · 28 December 2002]

In addition to seconding the positive comments of many others on this page, I would like to comment on one aspect of the film that did not receive enough attention: Terrance Mann's (James Earl Jones) speech in the final scene. With the repeated refrain "People will come," this speech alone constitutes one of the great moments in film history. It is comparable to the greatest speeches in the dramas of Shakespeare, Shaw, and the other greats of the theater. I can think of only two comparable moments in film history: John Quincy Adams' defense of the liberated slaves in "Amistad" and, of course, Rick's "If that plane leaves the ground" speech at the conclusion of "Casablanca."

Even though we have a major-league baseball team just across the state line, some local investors are bringing minor-league baseball back to our area, and I'm looking forward to baseball being fun again.