Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 3rd, 2005
Synopsis
The son of Seth Brundle, the unfortunate man-fly, is born with his mixture of human and fly DNA. He turns out to be uncannily brilliant, but also reaches adulthood (played by Eric Stoltz) in only five years. He grows up in the Bartok Industries facility, and is asked to carry on his father’s work. Inevitably, the fly genes make themselves felt, and he begins to transform, and love interest Daphne Zuniga wants to save him.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 20th, 2005
Synopsis
In the rural south of the 1930s, a black man is charged with the rape and beating of a white woman. Defending him is Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck), and the events surrounding the case are seen through the eyes of Finch’s two children. The film is thus just as much about children’s fears (embodied by Boo Rradley [Robert Duvall], the boogeyman next door) and perceptions of the world as it is about race and unequal justice.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on September 19th, 2005
Synopsis
Robert Redford is a small-time con man who swindles a runner working for big-time gangster Robert Shaw. When Redford’s partner is killed in retribution, Redford swears revenge, and hooks up with Paul Newman, a veteran at the con game who has fallen on hard times. They put together a veritable army of operators, determined to bring Shaw to his knees in the ultimate con.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on September 17th, 2005
Synopsis
Seth Brundle (David Goldblum) is on the cusp of perfecting an functioning teleporter, a device that will transform the world. Eager to share his creation with someone, he strikes up an acquaintance with science journalist Geena Davis. She is initially skeptical, but is soon converted, and as the work progresses, the two fall in love. Then, in a fit of misplaced jealousy (he believes that Davis is seeing ex-boyfriend John Goetz), Goldblum teleports while drunk, not knowing a fly is also in th... machine with him. Their DNA is fused, and the man slowly starts transforming into a fly, his relationship and his identity crumbling along with his flesh.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 22nd, 2005
Synopsis
Many people have provided screwed up metaphors as to just how important Led Zeppelin has been to music in the last 35 years. So of course, I’ve gotta throw one in. Imagine today’s rock musicians as workers in a factory, all punching in and out for work at a time clock each day. Led Zeppelin is the clock. There really was nothing before it that could compare to it, and while there have been some imitators, real or implied (Whitesnake and Kingdom Come being two names from the 80’s hair band metal day...), not many things have matched the impact of the vocals by Robert Plant, Jimmy Page’s blistering, blues-rooted guitar solos, and the rhythm section of John Paul Jones and John Bonham. They were among the first to put radio-unfriendly songs on their albums, with many songs running past the 3 or 4 minute radio single time, some songs going 6, 7 or 8 minutes. And their live performances were legendary. Their performances symbolized the 70’s with sprawling, maybe even pretentious, versions of songs like "Dazed and Confused" or "Whole Lotta Love." Live versions of these songs stretched into the 20 to 30 minute duration. During these times, Page would break out a violin bow to play his guitar with, Jones would play mysterious organ pieces, and Bonham’s work epitomized the drum solo, with a mix of power and touch, sometimes using his sticks, sometimes using the same power when hitting the drums with his hands. The group managed a period of fanatical success from 1969 to 1980, culminating in the unfortunate death of Bonham.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 29th, 2005
Synopsis
When it comes to 80’s films, you can talk about Spielberg, Lucas, or whomever, but those in the know will always put John Hughes at, or near, the top of influences of that era. Take a look at the 7 year run that he had in the 80’s when it came to writing movies in that era. From 1983 to 1990, the list brings up a flood of kitsch and nostalgia for any movie going kid during that time – Mr. Mom, Vacation, The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Pretty In Pink, Ferri... Bueller’s Day Off, Some Kind of Wonderful, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Uncle Buck and Home Alone. Aside from getting a good dose of Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald and John Candy, one, some or all of those films have a soft spot in anyone’s heart if they’re under 30. So much was experienced from his films, hell, the guy served as a surrogate parent to a lot of people! For good or bad, he had an influence on a lot of lives, and if you take a look at the high school comedies that come out now, there’s no comparison. They just don’t have the same kind of originality. Hughes may not have done the high school comedy first, but very few have come close to achieving the combination of unique characters, quotable lines, touching emotional moments and hilarious scenes that have resulted in the Hughes films of the 1980’s. Universal put out an inexpensive boxed set of 3 of his films; The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and the "other" movie in the set, Weird Science, which I’m reviewing for your dining and dancing pleasure.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 24th, 2005
Synopsis
After the suicide of his wife, psychologist De Niro takes his traumatized daughter Dakota Fanning off to a house in the woods to recover. Fanning begins to exhibit strange, hostile behaviour associated with her imaginary friend, Charlie. Then, as the violence escalates, De Niro realizes that Charlie might well be real after all.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 16th, 2005
Synopsis
Years after the events of Bride of Chucky, evil dolls Chucky (voice of Brad Dourif) and Tiffany (Jennifer Tilly) are dormant and being used to make a Chucky movie, starring in-decline sexpot Jennifer Tilly. (I know: very postmodern already, and we’ve only just begun.) Their offspring (voice of Billy Boyd), of indeterminate gender and gentle spirit, escapes its evil ventriloquist captor, travels to Hollywood and revives the demonic duo, unaware of their psychotic natures. Chucky wants ... boy, and names the child Glen. Tiffany wants a girl, and picks the name Glenda. Chucky wants Glen to take up the knife, while Tiffany tries to quit killing (but keeps having slips). Meanwhile, they plan to impregnate Tilly so that Glen/Glenda can become a real child, while the parents plan to transfer their souls into the bodies of Redman and Tilly. Lurking in the background is, appropriately, John Waters as a paparazzo.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on June 2nd, 2005
Man on Fire is a stylish thriller with excellent performances at the heart. Denzel Washington plays Creasey, an ex CIA/assassin who is too tired of the killing. Now out of the game, Creasey sticks to drinking in Mexico City. Enter Rayburn, an old buddy (played by the wonderful Christopher Walken). He has a potential job for the down and out Creasey. A string of abductions and kidnappings in the city (Mexico City is the real life kidnap capital of the world) forces a young industrialist (Marc Anthony)and h...s wife (Radha Mitchell)to hire Creasy as a bodyguard for their 10 year old daughter Pita (played by Dakota Fanning). Well...let's just say...the bodyguarding doesn't go too well. And Creasey needs to find Pita before it's too late.
Man on Fire is directed by Tony Scott. Scott is a stylist, and the movie definitely has stylistic excess. But this is the man who invented stylistic excess with Top Gun. But Scott is more successful when he has great actors to inhabit his stylish canvas, True Romance and Crimson Tide are great examples. Scott has become more "modern" with his use of jump cuts and freaky camera angles. It's a dizzying experience, but thankfully this over the top effort is fleshed out by the excellent performances of Denzel and Dakota Fanning (she will be a star one day). The movie is way too long (2 and a half hours for a genre thriller??). But the peformances and the script (by Mystic River's Brian Helgeland) hold Scott's over direction in check.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 31st, 2005
We now have the full I, Robot experience with this new “All Access Collector’s Edition”. We have more a lot more supplements but, unfortunately, the movie is not improved. It’s still a fun couple of hours though. I, Robot follows the story of Will Smith (and his character name, if that matters, is Detective Spooner) as he tries to solve the murder of a robotics scientist (James Cromwell). Smith must overcome his prejudice against robots, as he tries to solve the case.
There are a lot of “c...ol” scenes, and I really enjoyed the universe created by Alex Proyas. One of Proyas’ previous films, Dark City, is a startling work of imagination. The special effects are very modern, but the story is as creaky as an old rocking chair. We’ve seen all this before: the chases, the one note characterizations, the one-liners, the Will Smith-ism. This is ain’t Bad Boys. The movie is caught between an intelligent futuristic tale and a Will Smith vehicle. The two cancel each other out. What’s left is a watered down film that’s only “suggested” by Isaac Asimov’s original work. Fans didn’t seem to mind though. The excellent box office summer receipts proved that Will Smith is still a force to be reckoned with. I enjoyed I, Robot, but I took it for what it was…and not as it should be.
