Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 8th, 2005
Synopsis
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Paul Giamatti, in typically depressed form, is an aspiring writer (his unpublished manuscript looks twice the size of War and Peace) and wine connoisseur who heads out with best friend Thomas Haden Church for a road trip through wine country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 7th, 2005
Five discs, ten episodes, one amazing show.
For those that are unaware, MI-5 (or Spooks, as it is called in the UK) is a popular spy series set in London. While some similarities will inevitably be drawn to ABC‘s Alias, MI-5 is an excellent show in its own right. I highly recommend that those that are new to the series start with Season One of the show and work their way up. Starting in the middle of a series cliffhanger is never a good idea, as I learned all-too-late. Of course,...the fact that I wondered in to the show in the middle of the action, with no background knowledge of the series, and was immediately hooked might also say something about the addictive nature of this show. Neverthless, the best place to begin is at the beginning.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 7th, 2005
Synopsis
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 6th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 5th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 1st, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 27th, 2005
The movie’s tagline is “Ordinary Life is Pretty Complex Stuff.” And the movie itself, with Paul Giamatti (Sideways) as Harvey Pekar, a file clerk at a Cleveland Veterans’ Hospital, is very good. Harvey creates a comic book based on his life, and he and his book hit a stride of popularity, which includes several appearances on Late Night with David Letterman. Things manage to take a downturn when he is diagnosed with testicular cancer. So he and his wife Joyce (Hope Davis, About Schmidt) decide to...write his plight into the comic as well. Harvey manages to beat the cancer into remission, and the movie ends with a party celebrating Harvey’s retirement from the hospital, surrounded by family and friends.
That’s it. That’s the movie. But there are so many creative accents added to the film that it really turns conventional filmmaking on its head. When Joyce decides to go to Ohio and meet Harvey, she gets to the train station, and in her anticipation, we see what she’s been seeing; his comic book interpretations. She (and we) experience 3 different illustrated interpretations of Harvey before she meets him in person. And his first words to her are some of the most memorable ones you’ll hear, they make a girl swoon! Or maybe not. The movie incorporates comic book storyboards into the film frame, reminiscent of what was done in Hulk, but in a much more obvious and, consequently, greater effect. The real Harvey provides narration through the movie. Harvey also provides detail and explains some of the scenes. Footage of Harvey’s appearances on the Letterman show is edited into the film, and we see it in between Giamatti both before and after his first appearance.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 26th, 2005
Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2 is one of the worst movies ever made. At least...that's what I keep reading. Reviews have torched this movie, and I must concur. This movie is bad. And I don't think the first one was much of a hit either. So why make this dreck?
The plot of the movie revolves around our little genius heroes saving the world from an evil TV mogul played by Jon Voight (need a paycheck?). This baddie wants to submit subliminal messges through kiddie TV and control children (and baby ta...k) all over the world. There's a lot of kung fu between kids vs. adults, and Scott Baio shows up to proclaim to the world that HE IS NOT Chachi. The director Bob Clark has seen better days. Porky's is a masterpiece compared to this pablum.
