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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on October 30th, 2005
The Girl in the Café is an interesting idea for a movie. It’s a blend of romantic comedy with a political agenda. The film doesn’t really work, but it’s nice to see something different. The romantic pair is played by Bill Nighy and Kelly MacDonald. Both are fine actors, and they have an awkward, engaging chemistry. Nighy plays a lonely civil servant and MacDonald plays a damn sexy woman. They “meet cute” in, you guessed it, a café, and they end up going to the G8 summit in Iceland (go figure). The scri…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on October 24th, 2005
The Battle of Britain was a famous turning point in the World War Two theatre. The movie, Battle of Britain, was brought to your home theatre a few years ago. This single disc edition, with very few features, seemingly cried out for more. Now we have it in Battle of Britain: Collectors Edition, 2 discs of military goodness.
The film itself has spectacle. The planes used for this film helped create an air force equal to a medium sized country. No CGI here. The director is Guy Hamilton (b…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on October 24th, 2005
I was dreading watching this DVD. Hmmm…indy film, Sundance film, a woman “coming out” to her family film. This had all the hallmarks of arty and annoying. Thankfully, Saving Face is not like that at all. Michelle Krusiac plays “Wil”, a surgeon, who falls hard for Vivian (Lynn Chen), a ballet dancer. Complications arise because Vivian is the daughter of Wil’s boss. Yes, there are some screwball comedy elements. But it’s all tastefully done. Joan Chen (what has she done since Twin Peaks) does a n…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on October 3rd, 2005
Winter Solstice is one of those quiet, somber independent films. While not as flashy as The Upside of Anger (and that’s not a flashy film), Josh Sternfeld’s feature is a meditative look at a broken family trying to rebuild its life. Don’t expect any major plot twists or a flashy directing style. Solstice takes its time and builds towards something called hope.
A family tragedy as taken its toll on a Jersey family. Anthony LaPaglia plays Jim Winters, a landscape gardener. H…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on September 16th, 2005
Fever Pitch is an American-ized version of the Nick Hornby novel and subsequent British Film. American-ized usually means “watered down”, and there’s no doubt a lot of the bite from the original source material is missing. But I am a big fan of the movies High Fidelity and About a Boy. Instead of soccer, the protagonist’s obsession, in this Fever Pitch is baseball (in particular the Red Sox). This obsession gets in the way of having healthy relationships. I think the change of…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on September 7th, 2005
What’s the dealio with The Deal? Well… Christian Slater’s in it. Selma Blair’s in it. What’s it about? The Deal is a thriller set in the world of insider trading and the oil market. Sounds like a bore? Well, the film is fairly knowledgable about its information. The screenplay has a lot of “insider” gobbledegook. The characters talk the talk, but can they walk the walk?
The Deal, on a thriller level, gets lost in its own plot. Tom Hanson (Christian Slater) slogs through a maz…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on September 3rd, 2005
With Six You Get Eggroll is special for one reason. Other than the politically incorrect title, the movie features the last film appearance by Doris Day. Too bad she couldn’t go out with a bang. I will admit: I like Doris Day. The Man Who Knew Too Much is a great film. And all that “Pillow Talk” stuff. C’mon, it’s fun. But let’s get to the Eggroll, shall we?
With Six… starts off as a fairly realistic romance/comedy. Day plays Abby McClure, the owner of a construction company (…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on July 15th, 2005
“Here’s the story…of a lovely lady…”. We all know the beginning of this familiar ditty. It’s the Brady Bunch. And they’re back in The Brady Bunch – The Complete Second Season. All 24 episodes are classic Brady Bunch fare. Oh to live in a world of ice cream contests, science projects, and slumber parties; and the worst thing you could do was “smoke” *sigh*. Alice, the housekeeper, is along for this harmless ride. The astroturf front yard is still there. The Brady Bunch is a trip back to the “garden”…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on July 13th, 2005
The Carol Burnett Show – Let’s Bump Up the Lights! is the DVD re-issue of an original CBC broadcast. The content is in the form of one of Carol’s famous Q & A sessions that started every show. Carol answers questions, she does her Tarzan yell. Burnett does there here too. But she asks other cast regulars (Tim Conway, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, and Lyle Waggoner) to join in. Clips from the show are interspersed to back up the answers to the questions.
The 42 minute disc is too short to make a…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on July 10th, 2005
Prisoner of Paradise is the haunting story of German film and theatre actor, Kurt Gerron. This Oscar nominated documentary follows his rise and fall. Gerron was one of Germany’s most popular stage and screen actors before World War II. He was the original singer, in fact, of “Mack the Knife” in Brecht’s “Three Penny Opera”. Gerron’s popularity, however, took a different turn with the rise of Hitler’s Germany. Gerron was Jewish and, eventually, was forced to flee. But later he was captured and then hired…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on July 7th, 2005
Here’s a blast from the 80’s past, remember the Garbage Pail Kids? Remember those cards and stickers? Those gross out cartoon characters? Well…a parental protest put them out of circulation. But here’s the movie, called…well…The Garbage Pail Kids Movie. The barebones plot involves a human kid, played by Mackenzie Astin, who works in an antique shop owned by Cap’n Mancini (Anthony Newley). Stay away from the garbage pail, but no. The garbage can spills and enter…the Garbage Pail Kids. These kids…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 27th, 2005
Staying Together is one of those small town family stories. Growing up is hard, especially when you own a chicken restaurant. Dad, unfortunately, gives in to “big business”, and sells his restaurant to a chain franchise. This sale puts the family into turmoil and makes the family members reevaluate their relationships with each other. The brothers of the McDermott family are featured most prominently. The three brothers, in typical movie fashion, are distinctly different. Dermot Mulroney plays Kit, the ro…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 25th, 2005
The First Amendment Project is a collection of 3 short documentary films which deal with the theme of “freedom of speech”. The first film, and the best one, is “Fox vs. Franken”. Comedy writer, left wing activist, and Stuart Smalley himself (you know…“You’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and doggone it, people like you”), Al Franken, is the target of a lawsuit filed by Fox News. The documentary follows the lawsuit, and it reveals two important things: Franken is still a funny guy and Fox is an idiotic …
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 24th, 2005
What happens after a physics student works on the Manhattan Project? Well, at least for this person, he becomes the most influential recording engineer in music history. This man is Tom Dowd. In Mark Moorman’s fascinating documentary, Tom Dowd and the Language of Music, we are taken through the development of modern music through one of its most famous guides. The film is a mixture of interviews with Tom Dowd, as he also takes us to various biographical and musical locales in New York cities, and testament…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 20th, 2005
Lost Lake is an incomprehensible mess. Think David Lynch with less sense. If that makes any. The story takes place at an isolated ski lodge. Cue the entrance of exotic hottie Kat Walker (played by Angel Boris). The movie is hard to describe. Let’s just say…the ski lodge has some really weird guests. And pee can make frozen privates thaw from metal. Didn’t you know that? An avalanche also comes into play. Kat starts having “visions”. I dunno. The plot is convoluted and makes Mulholland D…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 18th, 2005
Until the Night is a “fly under the radar” movie. You haven’t heard of it, but then you watch it. And you’re quite taken with it. Until the Night is in the tradition of those relationship/talkie movies (indy god Cassavetes comes to mind). Night also has shades of Sex, Lies, and Videotape. Characters talk to a camcorder, and there are some Soderbergh moments of time fracture.
The plot (to call it one) revolves around a pair of relationships. Elizabeth (played wonderfully by …
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 16th, 2005
I remember my Junior High teacher reading us excerpts from the novel I Am David in English class. Raising social consciousness was not something we into at that age. Looking back, I can see what my teacher was trying to do. The novel, and this movie adaptation, follows the story of 12 year old David, who escapes a Communist gulag in order to deliver a letter to Copenhagen. David is equipped with nothing but a compass, a bar of soap, and a loaf of bread. His quest across the continent is a journey of enlig…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 15th, 2005
In the unnecessary sequel department comes Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous. Why make this movie? Because Sandra Bullock needs a hit? It doesn’t come here. Bullock, once again (and hopefully for the last time), plays Gracie Hart. Her involvement in a well known beauty pageant has made it impossible for Gracie to maintain a low FBI profile. So she has become the PR person for the bureau. But Gracie is “called back” into the line of duty (against the FBI’s wishes) when two of her friends (played by …
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 13th, 2005
This Showtime version of John Knowles’ A Separate Peace will bring joy to high school teachers everywhere. Finally, there is a quality movie version to show in English class. Peace is usually mandatory reading in high school (I know I read it), and follows the story of Gene and Finny. Their prep school relationship is ambiguous, and character motivations are a little more complex in the novel (dare I say…a little more provocative?). But, at its core, the novel and this adaptation is a coming of ag…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 9th, 2005
Lindsay Lohan plays sassy Nancy Drew wanna be Lexy Gold. When one of her teachers goes missing (played by Ian Gomez), Lexy enlists her “hip” friends to help her crack the case. Another vehicle for Lohan. It’s a little boring, and the mystery plays out on the level of a Saved By the Bell episode. The point of the movie is to point out they sassiness of Lohan. She’s sooo hip. Like…totally.
Audio
The mix is in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround. Not much originality in the mix. Some …
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 9th, 2005
Swimming Upstream is one of those “small” sports underdog films. It’s a true story about Aussie Tony Fingleton, a swimmer who vies to be National champion. Is he racing against all odds? Well…the odds are in the form of family. Geoffrey Rush plays Fingleton’s father, an abusive alcholic. So…not only is Fingleton trying to achieve athletic glory, but also trying to win the heart of his father. This is a paint by numbers sports story. The performances are the saving grace, however. Rush, Jesse Spencer …
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 6th, 2005
The Parent Trap is a remake of the Hayley Mills classic. It stars none other than Lindsday Lohan. She’s actually pretty good here. In a pre-sex appeal role, Lohan plays two twins who have never met, but then do. They concoct a plan to switch identies on their respective divorced parents. Lohan pulls off both twin personalities quite well. The movie also stars the always reliable Dennis Quaid and the extremely talented Natasha Richardson. It might be fun for kids, and Lohan fans, but this is NOT a case of…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on June 2nd, 2005
Man on Fire is a stylish thriller with excellent performances at the heart. Denzel Washington plays Creasey, an ex CIA/assassin who is too tired of the killing. Now out of the game, Creasey sticks to drinking in Mexico City. Enter Rayburn, an old buddy (played by the wonderful Christopher Walken). He has a potential job for the down and out Creasey. A string of abductions and kidnappings in the city (Mexico City is the real life kidnap capital of the world) forces a young industrialist (Marc Anthony)and h…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on May 31st, 2005
We now have the full I, Robot experience with this new “All Access Collector’s Edition”. We have more a lot more supplements but, unfortunately, the movie is not improved. It’s still a fun couple of hours though. I, Robot follows the story of Will Smith (and his character name, if that matters, is Detective Spooner) as he tries to solve the murder of a robotics scientist (James Cromwell). Smith must overcome his prejudice against robots, as he tries to solve the case.
There are a lot of “c…
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Disc Reviews by Michael Bell on May 27th, 2005
Fascination is a potboiler without a pot. It loosely follows the plot of Hamlet. Adam Garcia plays Scott Doherty, a spoiled young artiste who sulks more than Anakin Skywalker. Scott’s father dies (played by James Naughton) under mysterious circumstances, and his wife (played by the “still a hotty” Jacqueline Bisset”) returns from a cruise with a new beau (Stuart Wilson). Scott smells something fishy, and with the help of a new stepsister/lover (Alice Evans), he tries to get to the bottom of this crime. So…
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