Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on September 3rd, 2002
Synopsis
It is World War II, and Wendy's daughter Jane, living in a constantly bombed London, has given up on childhood dreams. Her disillusion ends when she is kidnapped by Captain Hook and brought to Never Land. The animation is in no way up to Disney's current theatrical standard, but is leaps and bounds beyond other direct-to-video fare. The problem is, this WAS released theatrically. Anyway, the London sequences are nicely atmospheric, but things go rather flat and ordinary once we reach Never L...nd.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 2nd, 2002
In the Bedroom carries with it some very powerful acting performances. The story is good, but not as great as it was hyped up to be around the Academy Awards. If you like a very powerful drama, you will enjoy this film.
“Frank Folwer is a young man home from college. He develops a special relationship with an older woman and their love blossoms in their small New England town. Natalie is the older woman (Tomei) and has two children from her marriage to an abusive husband. When this abusive ex...continues to meddle in this budding relationship, Frank’s parents (Spacek and Wilkinson) warn him to stay away. Following his heart, Frank stands by his woman, only to be shot and killed during a confrontation with her ex. Caught up in legalities, Frank’s father takes the law into his own hands and brings justice for his grieving wife.†– Buena Vista
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 31st, 2002
Synopsis
If you've seen the movie, you know the premise: Earth's military has found an alien artifact that permits instantaneous travel over vast light years. At the other end of one of the portals, however, is the Goa'uld, a hostile alien race. The special effects are impressive by TV standards, and the characterizations are pretty standard fare.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 31st, 2002
Pam Grier, in a superb performance that sadly did not revitalize her career to the same degree as happened with co-star Robert Forster (and with John Travolta in Pulp Fiction), plays a flight attendant who is being used as a pawn by both bad guy Samuel L. Jackson and FBI guy Michael Keaton. Grier, with the help of bail bondsman Forster, sets up an elaborate counterattack. While Jackie Brown lacks the propulsive intensity of Reservoir Dogs, and Tarantino's reliance on 70s-dominated soundtracks is getting annoying, the...writing is still very strong, Tarantino gets ace performances out of his cast, and the climax is a rather striking piece of bravura filmmaking.
Audio
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 29th, 2002
Recipe for Hell's Gate:
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 28th, 2002
Film
Bruce Willis, Samual L. Jackson, Ving Rhames, John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth... and the list goes on. Never has one singular film launched the careers of so many actors as Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction. This film brought John Travolta back from actor's purgatory, and gave almost every other actor a jump-start to their careers. This film is genius - from the plot, the style, and the acting. Tarantino is very unique, and he out-did himself with this film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 27th, 2002
If you are a fan of the teen slasher movies, popular since John Carpenter’s Halloween began, then the Scream series is a virtual hoot. The first film made fun of the so-called “rules” of the horror film. The second film, of course, covered the obligatory sequel. Scream 3 delves into the horror trilogy. The same cast of characters, led by real-life spouses Courtney Cox and David Arquette, appears in the same goofy roles. Scream is one of the better attempts at satire to appear in cinemas over the last few years. Compared to attempts like “Scary Movie”, Scream 3 is almost pretty darn good.
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 22nd, 2002
Sleepy Hollow is certainly not your father’s version of the Washington Irving tale. Sleepy Hollow is enshrouded in patented Tim Burton darkness and rich gothic atmosphere. Johnny Depp continues to amaze... although his performances never appear extraordinary, they are nonetheless almost always wonderful immersions in character. Christina Ricci proves that her inspired deadpan performance in the Addams Family films was no fluke. I think you will find this to be one of the finest contemporary horror films to come along in years.
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 16th, 2002
Anyone who watched all the tobacco CEO’s testify before a congressional committee might have thought they were watching a Hollywood comedy. They all stood there with straight faces and denied their products were addictive. It felt a little bit like watching Ted Bundy saying, “What girls are you talking about?” The Insider is actually a brave film. Hollywood has for years depended upon tobacco for revenue. Product placement was, until recently, a tree of money for many productions. Russell Crowe shows a preview of the talent that would blossom fully in Gladiator. Pacino, as always, approaches his role of 60 Minutes producer with blinding passion. Surprisingly, Christopher Plummer nails Mike Wallace without really bearing much of a physical resemblance.
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 13th, 2002
Synopsis
Meredith Monroe is the rich girl who's been breezing through life. Mia Kirshner is the poor girl for whom life is a struggle. Thrown together for a sociology project, they find that each has something the other needs, and dangerous wheels are set in motion. All of this is recounted in flashback, as Sheriff Taye Diggs (looking a bit young for the role) investigates the cause of Kirshner's near-fatal drug overdose.
