Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 20th, 2003
Writer Norman Mailer and director Lawrence Schiller can’t get enough of the nation’s most intriguing criminals. Best known for the critically acclaimed Executioner’s Song, the duo are at it again with this CBS mini-series spruced up to an R rating for DVD.
To anyone who has seen the 60 Minutes piece or kept up with the story in their local paper, the story is familiar enough. Robert Hanssen spied for the Soviet Union for 22 years while a top level FBI agent. William Hurt delivers a rather deadpan performance as Hanssen, a man rife with contradictions. An obsessively devout Catholic who secretly shares pictures and videos of his naked wife with his best friend, Hanssen has little moral trouble with providing information that costs other men their lives. Better performances are turned in by Ron Silver and Mar Louise Parker who plays Hanssen’s wife. Wayne Knight sheds his “knucklehead” persona for a solid performance as an FBI colleague of Hanssen’s. You’ll find this cut of the film contains some nudity not shown on the CBS broadcast version.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 15th, 2003
Forget Lethal Weapon and Beverly Hills Cop; Midnight Run has got to be one of the funniest cop-buddy films of the genre. True, Midnight Run did not break any records at the box office and was actually panned by a few well-known critics of the time, but the comic action just never lets up. Robert DeNiro and Charles Grodin share a rare chemistry. The overkill plot developments just wouldn’t work with any other combination. In all fairness, I wasn’t too thrilled about this one when it first hit the theatres. My wife suggested it and I agreed more out of guilt for all the genre films I’ve inflicted on her. I walked out still laughing.
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 14th, 2003
One of Ray Harryhausen’s earliest stop motion projects was a military training film on how to build a bridge. In It Came from Beneath the Sea he got to destroy a famous one and create yet another vivid memory for his legion of fans. It Came from Beneath the Sea was the second film I had the pleasure to discuss with Ray Harryhausen (stop motion pioneer) at the 2003 Wonderfest in Louisville. Again I was joined by Einsiders writer Rusty White. You can find the actual interview at: http://einsiders.com/features/interviews/harryhausen.php.
Certainly this could not be considered one of Harryhausen’s most imaginative films. Still, the stop motion effects were incredible for their day. If the film suffers at all it is from enormous budget constraints, particularly when it came to the creature itself. Ray told me me, “It was a sextapus. If we had cut the budget any more it would have been a tripod!”
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 12th, 2003
20 Million Miles To Earth has always been one of my favorite films. It was from this classic monster fest that I developed my long standing respect for stop motion pioneer Ray Harryhausen. In 1998, I got to meet Ray for the first time as his assistant for a horror convention (unfortunately run by a megalomaniac). It was there that I developed enough of a relationship with him and his lovely wife Diane that I was able to interview him at the 2003 Wonderfest in Louisville. Ray’s time was extremely limited, so I ...as joined in my interview by Einsiders’ Rusty White. You can find the actual interview at: http://einsiders.com/features/interviews/harryhausen.php.
20 Million Miles to Earth was originally written by Harryhausen to take place in Chicago, but as Ray tells me: “I originated the story. Then, I wanted a trip to Italy, so I changed the location when I submitted it to Columbia. I had always wanted to go to Europe and I didn’t have the money. So, I changed the location to Sicily because I wanted to go to Rome.” The more exotic location gave Ray more than his chance to visit Italy. It supplied the film with one of those memorable climaxes as the creature climbs the walls of the Coliseum. The creature itself also went through several changes. Ray explains, “First he was a Cyclops, then he was a two-horned, with two eyes. Oh, he was very stout originally. Then I decided that he would be better off thin. So I made him more humanoid.”
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 1st, 2003
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 1st, 2003
As Al Pacino constantly reminds us in The Recruit, nothing is ever as it seems. This film, while not a great effort, is vintage Pacino. Strong performances are also to be found from Colin Farrell and Bridget Moynahan, but as usual it is Pacino who steals the show. The Recruit is actually two different films in one. The first half is an intruding look at CIA training at the fabled “farm”. Once the training ends, an effective spy/counterspy plot takes over that won’t lose momentum. You’ll find enough surprises to keep even the most irritating “I knew it” viewers quiet for much of the film.
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 31st, 2003
If ever there was a film that was badly misunderstood it is Star Trek: Nemesis. The most common complaint I’ve heard is it was too much like an episode. Excuse me, but isn’t it supposed to be? Nemesis has everything a good Star Trek film should have. The character chemistry, space battles, a morality tale, and terrific f/x. If the film suffers at all it is from poor editing, as the collection of deleted scenes clearly shows (more on that in the special features section). As many politicians are fond of saying, “mistakes were made,” but this is a far better film than the critics or fans have given it credit for being. It deserves a second look and this 2 disc release is the perfect opportunity to revisit Star Trek: Nemesis.
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 30th, 2003
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 30th, 2003
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