Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 7th, 2005
Cinderella Man tells the heartwarming true story of heavyweight fighter James J. Braddock, a man thought to be washed-up, who rises from the ranks of the forgotten to rebuild the life and potential he lost somewhere along the way. It's also one of Ron Howard's finest films, and with a body of work which includes Backdraft, A Beautiful Mind, Apollo 13, Far and Away, and Ransom, this is a fine accomplishment. Unfortunately, this film's success never rose to the level anyone ant...cipated, and there's nothing worse than when a well-crafted piece such as this falls victim to bad press -- especially when said bad press has almost nothing to do with the film. Firstly, Cinderella Man suffered from the now famous idiotic outburst of its star Russell Crowe. Secondly, there was the debacle over Howard's portrayal of Max Baer, and how that portrayal affected and offended Baer's still-living son (the former Jethro Bodine of TV's Beverly Hillbillies, and successful film producer). Finally -- and perhaps most important of all -- was the lackluster marketing campaign, which made the film look so dull even I was ready to wait for the video. These three factors added together to cause the film an almost embarrassing performance for all there was to recommend it (two Oscar winners in the starring roles, an Oscar winner behind the camera, another Oscar contender in a supporting role -- Paul Giamatti -- and perhaps one of the most inspirational tales in American history).
At one time, James Braddock was a contender. He had the world on a string, a woman who loved him, and several adoring children. But somewhere along the way -- an injury here, a few decision losses there -- his career and his world took a nosedive. After injuring his hand and coasting through a boring fight, he loses his boxing license, and consequently, his meal ticket. At one point, the sky was the limit. But now, left to a dark and desperate world, he struggles to keep the heat on during a brutally encroaching New York winter. He's forced to send his children away just to save their lives from the harsh weather. And at his lowest point, he succumbs to the very thing he stands against -- welfare. After finding himself all but forced to sign up for social assistance, he becomes determined to turn it all around. All he needs is the opportunity, which comes in a supposedly one-time shot against a top heavyweight contender. No one expects Braddock to win, but when he does, it sets in motion a chain of events, which position him into a very real chance for a shot at the deadly world heavyweight champion Max Baer, who was responsible for the deaths of more than one man in his storied career. Whether Braddock becomes one of those victims, I will leave for the uninitiated to discover. But the enjoyment of Cinderella Man depends not on winning or losing, but on the inspiration of Braddock's overwhelming comeback. He rose from the proverbial canvas at the same time as a nation did, and it's not entirely implausible that he lended a hand -- however small -- in getting this country back on its feet.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 7th, 2005
Synopsis
Three of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s fantastic tales were made into an opera by Jacques Offenbach, and that opera was in turn transformed into this 1951 film by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Robert Rounseville takes the lead as a fictional version of Hoffmann himself. While pining after a ballerina, whose love is being stolen from him by an evil aristocrat, he spins three tales of unrequited and doomed love, where in he falls in love first with an automaton, then a soul-stealing (literally) c...urtesan, and then with a consumptive singer. Light as the music often is, and explosively colourful as the fantastic sets are, there is still a lot of darkness in the film, as befits the subject matter (the automaton story, for instance, is based on “The Sandman,” possibly Hoffmann’s creepiest tale). An entirely sung film won’t find favour with every audience, but this is a very effective transposition to cinema (it isn’t stagy at all), and is a visually unique work of art.
Posted in: News and Opinions by Archive Authors on December 6th, 2005
New Line Home Entertainment will release the David Cronenberg film A History of Violence (starring Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris & William Hurt) on February 28th. This disc will be presented in a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, along with both English Dolby Digital 5.1 & DTS audio tracks. Extras will include an audio commentary (by director David Cronenberg), a deleted scene (with optional director's commentary), an "Acts of Violence" documentary, three featurettes ("Violence's History: Un...ted States Version vs. International Version," "Unmaking of Scene 44" & "Too Commercial for Cannes"), & the theatrical trailer.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
Titus De Voogdt, Delfine Bafort, and Johan Heldenbergh head a mostly forgettable cast, which tends to fall so far into the background, you'll often forget more than just three actors are in Steve + Sky... and for what it's worth, I believe this stems more from the supporting cast's lack of charisma than it does from any real star power the three headliners bring to the table. The film is more of an inciting situation which throws Steve and Sky together, followed by randomly pointless character bits, which stil... could have worked had either star been in the least bit interesting. De Voogdt does the best he can with the main role, but unfortunately, his Steve acts with little-to-no rhyme or reason, and ends up condemning the film's status as a mindless romp through the lives of two deadbeat characters.
I don't have to like characters to enjoy a film, but I must feel drawn in to their plight, if for nothing more than to see them get their just desserts. With Steve + Sky, the film plods along in an effort to achieve "character piece" status, but all that's really accomplished is they simply "do stuff" for an overly long 100 minutes, when writer-director Felix Van Groeningen finally -- and mercifully -- calls an end to the proceedings. At the end of this ride, I honestly wondered what point the film had just made that hadn't already been made far better by many a crappy film. Hopefully, Van Groeningen's next effort will focus more on storytelling aspects in addition to his characters, and less on the aimless A.D.D. brain droppings that too often pass for good cinema, both here and abroad.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
Synopsis
Robert Redford narrates, but his on-screen avatar is Craig Sheffer. He and Brad Pitt are the sons of Presbyterian minister Tom Skerritt. The sons react to their stern father’s teachings in different ways. Sheffer is the good boy who becomes the scholar, while Pitt is the hell-raising journalist with the bad gambling debts. But both brothers do inherit their father’s love of fly fishing, and that is the act that bonds the three men together.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
Synopsis
This series has a clever conceit, being a sequel to the 1953 version of H.G. Wells’ novel. In the present, a terrorist group breaks into the base where the Martian corpses and war machines are being held. Turns out the Martians aren’t dead after all, and they revive to re-embark on their quest to conquer the Earth. In a budget-conscious move, part of this plan of attack consists in possessing the minds of humans, thus hugely diminishing the effects budget. So new viewers shouldn’t expect any...hing like the recent theatrical film, or even too much like the 1953 film, either. There is plenty of action, and a number of other clever ideas in the episodes (stars of the original film showing up, plays on the Orson Welles radio program), but plenty of limitations, too.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
While VeggieTales: Lord of the Beans is not my thing, I can certainly see how it would connect with very small children. Parents may also throw Phil Vischer and company some appreciation for the positive messages his bunch tries to present in each VeggieTales special, but something about Vischer and crew's latest doesn't feel right. For one, it's a parody -- and a rather faithful one -- to LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring. While it's fine to parody, I think VeggieTales misses the point with their chosen subject matter. True, Lord of the Rings is a very popular series, but to think the age group this is aimed at is familiar enough with the material to appreciate the parallels is ridiculous.
I'm not saying kids in general are unfamiliar with LOTR, or that they haven't seen it. I'm saying pre-schoolers, who will certainly get the most out of Lord of the Beans are most likely clueless to the material from which this special strives to mine most of its humor. You could say the creators made it a parody for the adults' sake -- and I will admit that was probably most of their intention. But again, Lord of the Beans fails because the humor never rises above a three-year old's mentality. And let's face it, at that age, all you'll probably find funny about VeggieTales is the first appearance of a talking cucumber melon with large eyes.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
Missouri Breaks starring Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson is an overlooked, under-appreciated western, which succeeds where most films fail -- as first a character study, and last an action piece. Set in Montana, Missouri Breaks tells the story of a fun-loving outlaw (Nicholson) and his comrades (including a much younger Randy Quaid and good old Harry Dean Stanton), who set out on a crime spree as a means of payback against an evil land baron responsible for the death of one of their friends.
eadly revenge is not their first intention, but the stakes are raised when the land baron hires "regulator" Lee Clayton (another reveling work in villainy by Marlon Brando) to teach the boys a lesson. Though Brando does have a tendency to steal every scene he's in, I found it a huge joy watching Nicholson remind me he is capable of more than just O.C.D. eccentricity. His role in the film fits with the snugness and perfection of a glove, to the point that I wish his resume included more westerns than it does.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
Happy Endings is one of those films that makes you rethink being a DVD reviewer. I sat through this excursion into pretentious observations about the way the world is, and the way "average people" are, and thought, "Yeah, sure, this is a slice-of-life. I bet." Oh, I don't mean to say the characters' lives are way too screwed up to be believable. Lord knows, under every ordinary average guy... or gal... there lurks a whole slew of skeletons banging their bony fists against the inside of the closet door. But the extent to which these screwed-up folks bang into one another like aimless bumper cars at a county fair makes one say, "Enough already."
Lisa Kudrow heads a weak cast, despite name recognition and the merits I'm sure each of the performers possess. With other capable stars such as Laura Dern, Maggie Gyllenhall, Tom Arnold, and Jason Ritter attached, one would think acting is the least of the film's worries. The problem with that? Everyone gets so caught up in the hipness of it all they come across with obnoxious self-indulgence smeared over their faces like the feces permanently plastered to the walls of my old college dorm's public restroom. And it's as if writer-director Don Roos wants to remove it from that wall, but he feels too intimidated to cross the ex-Phoebe Buffay and Mr. Roseanne Barr.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 5th, 2005
Yes, I dreaded this one like the plague. Call it a pure hatred for reality television. But honestly, after starting these episodes, I found myself lending a begrudging respect to it all. If you're unfamiliar with this enormously popular program, here's a brief education. Home interior designers Ty Pennington, Michael Moloney, Constance Ramos, Paul DiMeo, Tracy Hutson, Preston Sharp, and a slew of others, who have made appearances here and there, get together and help some needy family realize their dream home in just seven days. As if the simple act of building a house in seven days isn't enough to get you watching, they usually pick some family that's been pushed to the limits of what ordinary people can take.
This season of thirteen episodes features quite a few heart-warmers spread across its two discs. The most memorable for me was "The Cadigan-Scott Family," which involved a family of eight children, who had lost their parents tragically. The mother died of complications from heart problems; the father followed shortly thereafter with a heart attack. The family would have been dispersed to foster care if not for the selfless act of the two oldest siblings. Jennifer, 23, and Janice, 21, became legal guardians for the other six children, so the family could stay together. Not even an iron-clad heart could fail to soften at the sight of over 3,000 Livermore, California, residents lining the streets at the show's end for the big unveiling. I'll briefly declare a peace treaty between myself and reality-TV to give this show its due. It certainly knows how to hit all the right buttons.
