Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 9th, 2006
Michael Ontkean and Kate Jackson play a married couple dealing with the ramifications of the husband's newly discovered homosexual behavior. Right off, I'll say these two seem too happy from the beginning to make the sudden turn believable. Also, the ending [SPOILER ALERT, kind of] is too predictable and cliche to be the least little bit effective. The "I'm okay/You're okay" resolution, where everyone moves on and everyone's okay with who they are, and the world is once more a wonderful place, is pure Grade-A drivel ...hat simply got by with it at the time because it was one of the first movies to deal so openly with such a controversial topic.
With that said, the film's flaws really have nothing to do with its handling of the subject matter. Instead, it goes down - in flames - at the hands of two actors, who haven't learned a thing since they nabbed their first roles. Kate Jackson's wife is supposed to be a career woman, but she never stops whining and self-indulging into her own feelings long enough to step off your nerves and convince you she's any more than a cry-baby trophy wife. Harry Hamlin secured his rightful place in Lifetime movie hell with performances such as this one, where he's so convinced he's charming that all he really accomplishes is making the viewer want to punch him right in the mouth. As two-thirds of the triangle (Ontkean is actually quite good as the husband), the film was dead in the water, and nothing Arthur Hiller's direction could do was able to save it.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 9th, 2006
Synopsis
As one of the discs in this set is exactly the same as the previous release, my review is the same too:
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on March 6th, 2006
Synopsis
The Bennet family is not rich, and when Mr. Bennet (Donald Sutherland) dies, the estate will pass out of the family’s hands and into those of a rather pompous little twit of a parson. There are five daughters, and their future can only be achieved through marriage. Elizabeth Bennet (Keira Knightley) is the second daughter (improbably described as plain). Her path repeated crosses that of Mr. Darcy (Matthew Macfadyen), an aloof, brooding gentleman who apparently has little use for her or her ...amily. She doesn’t like him much, either. They are both, of course, in for a surprise.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on March 2nd, 2006
Originally released in 1997, The Next Step is one of those coming of age dance films that became so popular in the late 90's. Usually, that alone would be enough to put me off the film, but as I am a reviewer, I was forced to dig deeper. Unfortunately for me, there really isn't anywhere deeper to go. The genre pretty much dictates the plot.
For those who dare to actually be concerned with said plot, I really can't say it any better than it is already stated on the back of the box. Specifically, this ...ilm “tells of how a womanizing, arrogant dancer gets his just desserts and learns the hard way to treat his partners with more respect.” Seriously, how many hundreds of films have been made with this premise? Better films. Films helmed by talented directors. Honestly, I think I would rather sit through an entire season of Fame than to have to watch this horrible thing again. At least Fame has some of those “so bad it's good” moments. This thing is just uncomfortably embarrassing.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 25th, 2006
Synopsis
I think that by revisiting Unbreakable, and looking at it outside of M. Night Shyamalan’s other films (The Sixth Sense and Signs), there’s actually a pretty good movie going on there. I mean, a movie that grossed $95 million domestically can’t be considered a failure, right? It did, however, do amazing overall numbers, the international totals brought the film up to a near $250 million gross. However, I guess when you put them up against Signs ($227 million domestic, $40... million worldwide) and The Sixth Sense ($293 million domestic, $672 fricken’ million worldwide), maybe it can be considered disappointing, but the film itself is pretty good.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 24th, 2006
This is not one of Jack Nicoholson’s better known roles, but it deserves more attention than it has gotten. Nicholson can always be counted on to deliver a strong performance. It is that skill that turns an average idea into something much more.
Alex Gates (Nicholson) is not a nice man. And let’s face it. Nicholson excels at complicated characters, often with few redeeming qualities. Gates appears to have everything he could want. He’s an apparently successful wine merchant. He has a wife and stepson... Yet Gates is the kind of a man who is never happy. He needs the mistress on the side and the extra thrills that taking risks provides. He decides to steal a wealthy client’s multi-million dollar necklace. Of course, instead of making his life better, events conspire to start making his life miserable. Bad things happen to bad people. That’s a common enough theme in the films of Bob Rafelson. Blood and Wine is no exception, and soon Gates has a hearty helping of good times gone bad. It should be noted that there really aren’t any good guys in this film at all. Rafelson doesn’t want you to sympathize with anyone. He instead uses incredible acting to compel you to follow his characters. Michael Caine treats us to another stellar performance as Victor, Gates’ ruthless partner in the heist. Jennifer Lopez in one of her first roles is a bit underused as Gates’ mistress.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 23rd, 2006
Synopsis
What distinguishes Nicolas Cage from other more mainstream actors is that his choices of independent films, providing him the opportunity to take on a wide variety of roles that broaden his range, while periodically taking on the occasional Jerry Bruckheimer production to maintain his box office gravitas and make some money to allow him to work the indie films. It’s a circuitous route that helps to benefit the viewer. Sometimes those lower-level films are hits, while others miss.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 23rd, 2006
The 1970’s was the decade of the muscle car. Films like Smokey and the Bandit and Cannonball Run raced into theatres, riding on the thrills of speed. If you were a young man, then you were right there ridin’ shotgun. Kicking butt and takin’ names. The Last American Hero makes the unfortunate attempt to combine this “need for speed” with a typical “against all odds” story. The result is a dead end street.
Junior Jackson (Bridges) is the son of a bootlegger with a real talent for running roadblocks. Wh...n his booze-making father finally takes a fall with the law, Junior turns his talents to the racing circuit. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Faced with corrupt promoters and unsportsmanlike fellow drivers, Junior must climb a mountain of adversity and finally win the big one. While the cast features some fine performances, the film just never delivers on all cylinders.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 23rd, 2006
The film’s prologue informs us that the sport of sculling captured the nation’s attention long before baseball or football came along. We’re told that this activity created a national obsession with much the same pitfalls of modern sports. Somehow I can’t imagine, in this age of sports bars and ESPN, that rowing would demand the attention this boast assumes. I don’t remember my grandfather or great grandfather for that matter reminiscing about some great rowing move he witnessed with his dad as a child. The film al...o reports that the events are based on the true story of rowing legend Ned Hanlon. If any of this is true, it appears the more things change the more they truly do remain the same. The same slimy agents and event fixing have been represented as well as the heroes who came from nothing.
The film is an obscure 1986 effort, notable only as an early role for Nicolas Cage. He wears the part well. In fact, the film features a rather fine cast that includes Christopher Plummer and David Naughton in fitting roles. The real problem is, there isn’t all that much to work with here. None of the parts allows the fine acting to be showcased. The film uses too much time with rowing scenes that offer no variety from one to another. There’s a reason rowing doesn’t command huge network contracts or even much cable coverage. It might be very exciting to participate in these events, but there is nothing at all engaging as an observer. The plot is familiar: Unlikely hero battles incredible odds and triumphs in the big event. Still there is no eye of the tiger here. More like eye of the tiger beetle. An inspiring story with no inspiration.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 20th, 2006
Each year there are quality films that slip through the cracks for one reason or another. Lord of War is one of those movies. At first look, I would blame this film’s lack of financial success on the marketing department. It was hard to get a feel for the film through the trailers and commercials.
What was it about? A gun salesman? With Nicolas Cage and a bunch of spent bullet casings at the front and center of the ad campaigns, one might think that this was another Jerry Bruckheimer action-fest muc... like past Cage vehicles The Rock or Con-Air. But Lord of War could not be more different than those films. OK, so maybe it’s not the marketing department’s fault after all. Lord of War is a tough movie to pin down. And in today’s age of fast food cinema, it’s no surprise that Lord of War was pushed to the back of theaters upon its release.
