Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 22nd, 2005
There are just some trilogy’s that should not be made – and the Wild Things trilogy is one of them. This is not really a trilogy per se, since each of the films carries with it the same story, with the same twists. If you have seen the first, you have basically seen each of the sequels… except the sequels are both much worse. Take out the big name actors and make a direct-to-DVD release… and you have Wild Things: Diamonds In The Rough.
I am sure you all know the story by now, but here is a brief syn...psis… “Things get steamy in Blue Bay, Florida, when Marie, a 17-year-old beauty, gets caught in a tangle of deceit and double-crossing after meeting the promiscuous Elena, the new girl at school. Will they get away with the perfect crime or is someone else behind this scheme?” – Sony Pictures
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 14th, 2005
Star Trek: First Contact is light-years ahead of any other Next Generation film. There is virtually every characteristic that makes good Star Trek present here. James Cromwell as Cochrane provides the best comedy relief on Star Trek since the tribbles. The Borg infiltration reminds us of the first Alien film with its shadows and cramped airshaft scenes. The action is ramped up several notches from previous films. The basic crew seems to have found its feature legs and is more comfortable as a unit.
Purists will find some fault with the continuity errors the film brings to the Trek Universe, but after four years of Enterprise, these errors are quite minor. Jonathan Frakes is not, in my opinion, one of the brightest actors in Trek’s world, but here he does show he has the chops to be a first class director. Like Nimoy before him, it took one of the show’s main actors to breathe emotion into the franchise. The atmosphere in the cinematography is the best of any Trek before or since. This is probably technically the finest Trek film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 5th, 2005
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 30th, 2005
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 19th, 2005
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 8th, 2005
Paul Giamatti, in typically depressed form, is an aspiring writer (his unpublished manuscript looks twice the size of War and Peace) and wine connoisseur who heads out with best friend Thomas Haden Church for a road trip through wine country before the latter’s wedding.Church is far more interesting in getting laid than in tasting wine, however, while Giamatti is still agonizing over his failed marriage (not to mention his perception of a failed life). He allows himself to be dragged by Church into all sorts of misadventures, but one particular entanglement,with Virginia Madsen, might perhaps turn out to be something special.
You know the screenwriter is male when the idea of Virginia Madsen putting the moves on Paul Giamatti isn’t supposed to raise an eyebrow. But let that be. As a portrait of two men unwilling to grow up, this is marvellous stuff. No small part of the film’s accomplishment is that it takes two patently unlovable characters and makes us care very deeply for them. With its gentle pace and expertly realized characters, this has the feel of an early 70s road movie. Amazing that it was made at all in this day and age.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 6th, 2005
I’m still trying to figure out why no one wanted anything to do with this project. Among some of the names I read that were attached to this in some fashion or another were Sean Penn, Mike Myers, Johnny Depp and Nicole Kidman. After what seemed like an eternity, George Clooney (Ocean’s Eleven) decided to tackle the film as a first time director. The project seemed to roll from there, casting Sam Rockwell (Heist) as the lead, along with marquee names Drew Barrymore (Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle... and Julia Roberts (Erin Brockovich) in supporting roles. Rockwell plays Gong Show host and television producer Chuck Barris, in writer Charlie Kaufman’s (Being John Malkovich) adaptation of the book of the same name. The story poses the question; What if the man who created The Newlywed Game was actually a CIA hitman?
The story focuses on Barris’ life, but first starts with him, naked in a hotel room in the early 1980’s. By this time, he’s a shadow of what he used to be, and he believes that writing his memoirs will be a cathartic process. He recounts his stories as a youngster obsessed by success, and the women that come with it. He remains a dreamer while working on the set of American Bandstand in the early 60’s, and meets Penny (Barrymore). Chuck and Penny have a friendship that grows more intimate with time. And despite Chuck’s ups and downs in his life, Penny is usually there to pick him up.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 3rd, 2005
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 20th, 2005
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 20th, 2005
In the world of television spinoffs it is rare that the newer material will live up to that which spawned it. All In The Family holds the record for number of spinoffs and coincidentally produced the most memorable. Frasier was an instant hit after Cheers. But how many of you remember After-MASH or Beverly Hills Buntz?
Angel, to anyone living under a rock, dates back to the pilot episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. I recently took another look at that maiden appearance. Who says vampires don’t age? This i... going to be heresy for some of you, but Angel is a far superior show. The darker tones and the good sense to stay away from the Scooby Doo Club antics made it a show to be taken more seriously. That was until Season 5.
