Disc Reviews

I kind of felt like I was brought in at the middle of the story. The story is intriguing nevertheless. I’m a sucker for a good fashion heist movie or con movie. In some respects, Righteous Thieves is both. However, I would have appreciated greater context before being dropped in the middle of things. As the film opens up, we are brought into a flashback featuring a younger version of our main character, Annabel, as she attempts to steal a valuable painting. She is discovered by the painting’s owner, who instead of turning her in, takes her in. Based on this introduction, I was expecting the owner, Josef, to be a prominent member of the film. I suppose in spirit he is, but this is the only interaction we get with him, which to my mind was not enough to make the needed lasting impression. In my opinion, we could have benefited from more inclusion of this character, even if it was simply in flashback form. It would have gone miles towards connecting more with the Annabel character played by Lisa Vidal. Vidal isn’t the only familiar face, as the film also features Twilight’s Cam Gigandet, as well as Station 19’s Jaina Lee Ortiz and Carlos Miranda.

Delving back into the story, when we next see the Annabel character, she is older and meeting before a secret organization of which she is apparently the head. Once again, this felt like being brought in at the middle of the story. Prior to this there was no mention of this organization. I would have settled for a simple voiceover explaining the origin of this group and their goals. These details are forthcoming, but I think they would’ve been better served being mentioned up front. In a nutshell, the mission of this organization, dubbed the Syndicate, is to recover priceless artworks stolen by the Nazis during World War II. The organization is made up of Jewish survivors of the war. Annabel, who is not Jewish, leads a team willing to recover these artworks by any means necessary, i.e. stealing them back, usually from the hands of the Nazis’ descendants. When Annabel is brought before the counsel, it is after her latest job went sideways and she made the rash decision to destroy a priceless artwork rather than leave it in the hands of Nazis.

What began in 1968 allowed individuals with intellectual disabilities to have the chance to play athletics and be a part of the greatest sporting event on earth, the Olympics. One of the most popular and favorite sports in the Special Olympics is basketball. These extraordinary players learn a lot about sportsmanship and friendship, and also have lots of fun. When Marcus (Woody Harrelson) is kicked out of professional basketball for pushing head coach Phil Perretti (Ernie Hudson) and gets arrested for DUI, he is assigned by the judge to coach a Special Olympics team called the Friends. This group of special needs players who play basketball at the local church are unorganized and not ready to compete against the rest of the teams. When Marcus finally arrives to meet the Friends, a bunch of fun-loving characters like Johnny (Kevin Lannucci), Darius (Joshua Felder), Cody (Ashton Gunning), Cosentino (Madison Tevlin), Craig (Matthew Von Der Ahe), Blair (Tom Sinclair), Benny (James Day Keith), Arthur (Alex Hintz), Marlon (Casey Metcalfe), and Showtime (Bradley Edens), he realizes these guys need a lot of help and instruction to finally win a game. With help from program director, Julio (Cheech Marin), assistant coach and friend Sonny (Matt Cook), and new-found friend Alex (Kaitlin Olson), he finds that these new-found team members will win his heart.

Director Bobby Farrelly puts together a hilariously entertaining story that has these joyful, affectionate characters go from rags to riches. Farrelly ties in a great storyline with the challenges these citizens with special needs endure everyday. He places everyone in a great setting that makes the events believable and develops a heartwarming celebration for these loveable and upbeat citizens. The performances and great personalities of the cast were outstanding and brought this narrative to life. This fun-loving film brings fun and entertaining characters to life along with a tale that includes an event that challenges our new heroes. Showing what trials and tribulations they all endure will bring you on a rollercoaster ride of pure fun.

When you come across a movie that is co-written by Alec Coppel, it is hard to not have a certain expectation from the film. Sure, he may have numerous writing credits, but the one that I feel most film enthusiasts will point out is Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo. While many hail Vertigo as Hitchcock’s masterpiece, it is widely considered one of the best films of all time. I somewhat disagree with this ranking; personally I’m more fond of Rear Window and Strangers on a Train, but I do respect the story of Vertigo, and of course its place in film history. At first glance Moment to Moment has all the earmarks of a Hitchcockian thriller, but what makes this film stand out is that it is foremost a romance that happens to have a thriller element, and it is because of that that director Mervyn LeRoy thrives with this film that is equally charming and thrilling to the very end.

The only major fault I find with this film is in the opening sequence.  It is a beautiful crane shot that pushes into the window to reveal a man dead on the kitchen floor, and then the scene continues with the frantic Kay Stanton (Jean Seberg) emerging from her house calling out for help from her neighbor Daphne (Honor Blackman). While it sets a nice tone, I feel the film reveals too much too soon, even if we don’t know who the dead man is. This feels a bit jarring, because the next 45 minutes or so plays out as an illicit romance. The romance is between Kay and Mark (Sean Garrison), a Naval officer who is in port and intends to spend his weekend experiencing art and working on his painting, but instead he comes across Kay and is instantly smitten.  As for Kay, she is the lonely housewife with her husband constantly out of town and giving lectures, and their housemaid is on vacation. It’s Kay’s neighbor Daphne who gives Kay the nudge to show Mark around the French Riviera and is somewhat her “bad angel” on her shoulder to have a little fun while the husband is away.

“In the 1940’s, a new genre – film noir – emerged from the world of hard-boiled pulp magazines, paperback thrillers, and sensational crime movies. These films, tough and unsentimental, depicted a black and white universe at once brutal, erotic, and morally ambiguous.”

Film Noir officially started in the 40’s, but the movement was well underway by the early 30’s. You can trace its roots to the Great Depression and the arrival of the dime pulp magazines. These were highly stylized, mostly mystery stories that provided cheap escapism for the masses who were not having a good time of it. Writers like Raymond Chandler crafted the mold that was easily transferred to the silver screen. These were low-budget films that were intended to be second billing with the more mainstream releases. They were shot quickly. Many have a very flat look, created intentionally. The lighting was often minimal, crafting odd shadows and unusual textures. The dialog wasn’t intended to be natural or realistic. These characters usually spoke in clichés and had names like Mac, Griff, or Dollface. There was often a shade of gray to these characters. Good and evil were not always so clear-cut. Gangsters became common themes of the genre. And while the dialog might have been cheesy, the cinematography was often gritty and almost ultra-realistic. At times the films played out like documentaries, often including narration. The narrator would always be a voice of authority; often film-reel stars were used. The films were heavily influenced by German Expressionism, perfected by the likes of Fritz Lang in the silent era and carried over to more modern themes. The films always contained a steady supply of stock characters and actors. It was smoky rooms and neon lights. It was a reflection on the times. It was Film Noir.

"I wonder if you ever stop on the way home and watch the children playing. In the street, or in the yard. And when the time comes and their mothers call them in, they're often reluctant. They … they get a little contrary. But that's as it should be. Far better than to be the child you occasionally see, he's sitting by himself in the corner not taking part, not happy, not unhappy. Merely waiting for his mother to call him in. I've become afraid that I might end up like that child. And I so very much do not wish to do so."

I love Bill Nighy. It doesn't matter if he's doing roles covered in makeup like Underworld and Pirates Of The Caribbean, or he's doing heartfelt characters like About Time. There is something quite authentic about any role he plays. He manages to suppress Bill Nighy and deliver a fully formed character. He's always compelling, and that hasn't changed with his latest film, Living. The film was adapted from a 1952 Japanese film Ikiru written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The English-language screenplay was adapted by Kazuo Ishiguro, who had long wanted to adapt the film for English audiences. The result is quite the character study.

Backtrack, AKA Catchfire, is one of those films where you look at the stacked cast and you’d think this would have to be a great film, or how have I not heard of this film? Dennis Hopper and Jodie Foster, just one year before starring in The Silence of the Lambs; just this pair alone makes this film worth checking out. What also makes this film a bit unique is that it directed by Dennis Hopper as well.  Easy Rider is pretty much a classic in its own right, and in 1988 he had also done this film Colors, which starred Sean Penn and Robert Duvall. It is a pretty solid film and worth checking out, but right now the focus is on Backtrack. Really, it is at its core a simple crime/mobster movie, but it is sort of a cautionary tale of what happens when you try to inject too much “art” into a film that really is just a basic (yet strange)  neo-noir story.

Anne Benton (Jodie Foster) is a fairly successful artist and has a relatively normal life, but that all changes when she gets a flat tire and as a results stumbles across a mob hit. She narrowly gets away, and when her boyfriend, played by Charlie Sheen, is killed by some mobsters, she goes to the police. Well, they are no big help; they want her to change her name and go into witness protection, which is something she’s not interested in. Fearing for her safety, she goes on the run and into hiding.