Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 13th, 2006
When Ridley Scott’s latest epic Kingdom of Heaven was released for common viewing in May 2005 at 145 minutes, critics either really liked the film, or where really dissatisfied with the film. Audiences, it seemed, tended to agree with the latter critics as the film only grossed $47 Million Dollars, which was a dissapointment considering the film had a budget well over $100 Million. Rumors started to fly, as with any big epic, that Scott was forced to slash the film’s running time to not only make audiences ha...py, but more importantly make 20th Century Fox happy. Well, the rumors have been confirmed as we are now being treated to Kingdom of Heaven in Ridley Scott’s complete vision featuring a running time of 191 minutes. Similar to Scott’s other recently released Director’s Cut of his other epic film Gladiator much is added to the film’s story and characters. But just what was added and could this version make a non-believer of the film’s Theatrical 145 minute cut enjoy this new vision? Read on to find out.
Before diving into what was exactly added (if you want to jump just to that section, go down a few paragraphs), I’m going to dive into the actual film a bit. Balian (played by Orlando Bloom) is a village blacksmith in France. He discovers that he is the illegitimate son of Sir Godfrey (played by the always amazing Liam Neeson). Godfrey, you see, is a knight returning from the Middle East. Godfrey, as we learn, feels that Jerusalem is not necessarily a holy war, but a war filled with opportunity for young men. It holds numerous amounts of potential for those who are willing to reach out and grab it.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 12th, 2006
Diane Keaton and Tom Everett Scott star in Surrender, Dorothy, a predictable, over-the-top melodrama plagued with unsympathetic characters, clichés, and unbelievable plot developments. The plot centers on Keaton as she copes with a car accident, which claims the life of her daughter. There is a lot of venom and hostility inside her, as the rest of the world takes a back seat to her own grief. As someone, who has lost a loved one prematurely, I take offense to the behavior of this central character. She’s a sel...ish, loathsome wretch, who feels like she can walk all over her daughter’s friends, simply because she’s the grieving parent. It’s an aggravating picture of grief, and it dims the possibilities of ever feeling for your protagonist. They should have toned her down several notches, because, by the time she does start to behave like a human being, you’re already sick of her. Also, the daughter’s tragic death is made a lot less tragic, when viewers actually get to know the kind of person she was. Her greatest offense is to engage in adulterous sex with her best friend’s husband, who gets her pregnant. Then, in a glowing act of heroism, she aborts the child out of convenience as if she’s having a wart removed. This portrayal does a real disservice to the women out there, who have made this decision out of duress, and then carry it with them all the days of their life. It does a disservice to the women, who wanted to have children, but couldn’t, because doing so would endanger their lives. Within the context of the film, it’s a selfish, loathsome act, from a selfish, loathsome daughter, who was raised by her selfish, loathsome mother.
Needless to say, I hated this film, but not because it was poorly made – or even poorly acted. Keaton is competent enough. Tom Everett Scott, as the token gay best friend – and he really is a token character, in this case – does the best he can with the material and, in fact, elicits more sympathy from viewers than any other character in the film, combined. No, my disdain hinges entirely on the lack of respectability of the characters. Each one – with the exception of Scott and the wife of the adulterous husband – tramples all over the others’ feelings, and uses them to get what they want, until a nice, neat little ending, where we are supposed to believe all is right with the world. It just wasn’t a great idea making a film, which tries to sympathize with the unsympathetic – a film where the only likeable characters are the ones, who take the proverbial back seat. If this is Keaton’s idea of a “good role for female actors of a certain age,” I’d hate to see her idea of a bad one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 11th, 2006
From reading the back of the box, one would think that this film was one of the true Disney animated classics. Phrases like “digitally remastered for the first time on DVD†and “the original Disney classic†would certainly lead one to believe such a thing. The fact of the matter is, however, that this “classic Disney film†was just originally released in 1997. Sure, it's remastered, but we're talking about remastering a print that is less than a decade old. Improvements were undoubtedly made, but this re...ease is not the towering accomplishment that one might be led to believe.
The plot revolves around Pooh and the gang setting out on a cross-country trip to find Christopher Robin, who has mysteriously gone missing. As the gang travels on their search, they find opportunities to conquer their fears and accomplish great things. The viewers, however, know that Christopher was just at school the whole time.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 11th, 2006
Synopsis
Felicity Huffman plays Bree, formerly Stanley, who, after years of therapy, surgery and hormone replacement, is one week away from undergoing the operation that will finally and definitively make her a woman. Out of the blue, a phone call comes revealing that Stanley fathered a son seventeen years ago. Bree’s therapist won’t let the surgery go ahead until Bree comes to terms with her past and her responsibilities. She travels to New York City to bail out Toby (Kevin Zegers), a street hustler... but keeps the true nature of their relationship a secret as they begin a cross-country journey back to LA.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 11th, 2006
Whisper of the Heart follows Shizuku, a young girl on the cusp of womanhood as she learns to realize her talents and follow her dreams. She harbors deep admiration for Seiji, a mysterious young man, who shares a strange kinship with her that soon blossoms into love. From the start, Shizuku isn’t sure who she is. She indulges in songwriting and reading. It’s the latter hobby that first links her to Seiji. She starts to notice his name in the histories for every library book she checks out. It seems he’s always ...ne step ahead of her, and this observation soon turns to fascination. Once she meets Seiji, her fascination becomes something more. Through their ensuing relationship, Shizuku takes her interests and turns them into dreams. She learns those that never try are the only true failures, and she decides to become what she loves, rather than one, who takes part in hobbies of no consequence.
While Whisper of the Heart is an animated film, it has a head on its shoulders that far surpasses most mainstream films today. It’s likely the narrative will draw in adults more than the little ones – despite the G rating – but there is still something here for children… just not all children. It’s safe to say kids will have to be more advanced to enjoy and understand the depth and layers of this film. Shorter on fantasy than Spirited Away, Whisper carries with it a lot more intelligence than that earlier feature from the same creators. This film, instead of being strictly for kids, is instead for those on the verge of determining their interests and realizing those attributes and preferences can be cultivated into a way of life. Those are the children this film really speaks to. And if you’re an adult like me – the kind that didn’t know what he wanted to do with his life, even as he stood up to accept his college diploma – then Whisper of the Heart will speak to you, too.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 10th, 2006
If Only is a romantic drama, which too often goes for the cheapest emotional reaction out of its viewers, without incorporating logic or common sense into such decisions. Jennifer Love-Hewitt and Paul Nicholls star as a couple of young lovers, who represent the prototypical female and male, with very little surprises in their characterizations. In the beginning, we see Nicholls is a bit invested in his work, and, while adoring his singer-songwriter girlfriend, he instinctively keeps her and the rest of the wor...d at arm’s length. This distancing is due to a somber childhood, which involved a relationship with his alcoholic father that was filled with both admiration and disappointment. His father was his hero, but is now the case study Nicholls’ character uses for how NOT to live his life… due to the alcohol, of course. But as a result, Nicholls’ character tends to run from love, when it’s staring him in the face (and I mean that both figuratively and literally). Then, something huge happens that forces him to approach life from another perspective… his girlfriend dies in a car accident. The accident makes him realize just how much she meant to him… but it all comes too late.
Or does it?
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 9th, 2006
Harrison Ford stars as Jack Stanfield, an online security chief for a mid-sized baking chain. One day, he is introduced to a new possible candidate in Bill Cox (Paul Bettany). We learn this turns out to be a setup. Cox and his men are holding Stanfield's wife (Virginia Madsen) and their two children hostage. In return, Cox demands that Stanfield hack into his bank's computers to transfer a fortune into Cox's offshore accounts.
Firewall, in whole, contains a smart plot, one that makes you think. The ...asic plot, however, is nothing new. The plot has been updated with newer technology, such as an iPod containing everything Stanfield needs to get into his bank. It seems a bit odd that a small little device like an iPod could hold this much data. The bigger question is if a film like this needs events that are plausible in order to make a shred of sense. Fortunately though, mostly due to how entertaining Ford is to watch, the film holds its own and doesn't necessarily conclude in an odd manner.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 8th, 2006
First off, let me say what a great idea it was to remake this film. The original has enjoyed elevated status far too long based only on an intense 23-minute opening sequence. And as good as that opening piece of suspense is, the same exact premise punctuates Bob Clark’s earlier 1974 masterpiece Black Christmas – so even what When a Stranger Calls does well owes a debt of gratitude to an overall better film. Still, I’ll give the Devil his due – knock-off or not, that sequence stands as an effective, inte...se short film, which carries the baggage of an additional three-quarters worth of movie, poorly executed with a wandering eye from character-to-character that spoils the memories of what was done right in the first place. With that said, let me now state what a missed opportunity this remake is. It fails to an equal extent, but does so in different ways. Director Simon West decides to set his redo in one night using a plot twist, whose shock value has had nearly thirty years to dissipate. Most know simply by watching the previews on TV what the big reveal is going to be, and that advanced knowledge causes the audience to sit through half the film twiddling thumbs. The suspense scenes at the end are well-shot, but largely uninspired… there is simply nothing visceral about this polished piece of lightweight teeny-bopper horror, and the premise itself is spread too thin across the 87-minute running time.
Now I’m going to do something unprecedented. I am going to beg Sony Pictures to remake this film again, and I am even going to give them a way they can do it, make big bucks, and a suspenseful classic (which both incarnations should have been to begin with) at the same time… and I’m going to go on record out of my love for the idea with no vain hopes they’ll see fit to compensate me for the time and trouble. This is a freebie, Sony… take note! The next time you remake this film, use the structure of the original. Act one – the “Oh no, the babysitter’s screwed” moment (also, kill the children). Act two – five-to-ten years later: only this time, instead of having the film float from character-to-character like it has ADD, stick with the girl. Set up her life elsewhere. Have her be someone the killer selected for a reason. Have her as the object of his obsession. This way, it makes sense when he comes after her upon escaping years later. Her living in another location would also provide a plausible explanation for her not knowing this guy is on the loose. Then, make the rest of the act about the killer slowly working his way back into her life, and perhaps even whittling away on the people close to her. Act three – he comes after her. This is where the heroine can really be seen for her strength. Give her something to lose (as the first one did) – perhaps even children, so the killer can break out his famous line one last time. Put her through hell and high water to reach the inevitable happy ending, continue to keep the killer a mystery (NOT like the original interpretation), go for the throat with an R-rating, and release to box office records. I say all this to prove a point: there’s a good film – no, a great film – hiding in the original idea for this story. But while both versions currently out there have strong points, neither puts in the hard work to cultivate the material into something truly special. If you’re in the mood for something similar (that has more punch to it), stick with Black Christmas and the far superior sequel to the original When a Stranger Calls Back.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 5th, 2006
Synopsis
Game tester Allen Covert is evicted from his apartment, and winds up rooming with his grandmother (Doris Roberts) and her two friends, the stone-on-meds Shirley Knight and the sexually predatory Shirley Jones. He attempts to keep this rather humiliating set-up secret from co-workers and sexy new boss/potential love interest Linda Cardinelli.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 3rd, 2006
Synopsis
FBI agent Martin Lawrence has given up the dangers of field work because of his family responsibilities. Now he’s a safety mascot. But when his first partner is killed, Lawrence surreptitiously dons his Big Momma persona gain, posing as a nanny in the family of the chief suspect, a man who is developing software that could compromise national security.
