Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 2nd, 2003
Synopsis
Danny Glover takes over from Arnold Schwarzenegger as the chosen opponent of theextraterrestrial big game hunter. In a Los Angeles driven mad by heat and violence, Glover is thehard-bitten cop fighting for some for of order. The Predator arrives and starts offing drug gangsand cops, all of which leads to the eventual final battle. We’ve been here before, obviously, butthe sense of heat is almost palpable, the action is non-stop, and the ending is very cool. Look fora famili...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 2nd, 2003
Synopsis
Goldie Hawn plays Suzette, aging groupie. Fired from her bartending job, she decamps fromLA for Phoenix, there to track down old pal Vinnie (Susan Sarandon), who has, of course,morphed from party girl to Mrs. Establishment. Along the way, Hawn picks up neurotic writerGeoffrey Rush. (A screwed up writer who is sexually devoured by a hot babe? Could this be thecreation of a male writer?) Hawn proceeds to cure everybody of uptightness. Gosh, aren’t theBoomers fascinating? They...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 28th, 2003
Well, the era of mass market “indie” films is upon us. In spite of its manufactured artfulness, "One Hour Photo" does have appeal: Robin Williams portrays a stereotypical damaged post-modernist psychopath with a flourish of reality that does him credit as an actor, and writer/director Mark Romanek is a fresh face on the Hollywood scene. Supporting cast Paul Kim and David Moreland step out of Wal-Mart and onto the screen – spectacular characterizations. Connie Neilsen and Michael Vartan, however, give at best stilted ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on January 18th, 2003
Why X-Men 1.5? This 2-Disc special edition re-release is set to coincide with the theatrical release of X2, the X-Men sequel. The 1.5 release is set up to be sort of a Director’s Cut of the original X-Men film. This new version has allowed for the film to be viewed with a number of deleted scenes to be branched into the film (not seamlessly... you have to hit enter on your remote to view the scenes). I am sure you know the premise, but here is a recap:
"Marvel's classic comic book comes to li...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 5th, 2003
Synopsis
A genetically modified super-python, dropped on Russia by the Americans at some pointfor some reason or other, is captured. But the plane carrying the snake is shot down by Chechens.The cargo is recaptured and taken to a base. A husband-and-wife team of cargo haulers areengaged for no truly logical reason by a CIA team to go the base, where the snake is to be stolenand taken back to the States. Unfortunately, the snake is already loose. “Loose” is also a goodword for the pl...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 5th, 2003
Synopsis
A corrosive satire of stardom in general, and the theatre world in particular, All About Evestars Bette Davis as an insecure theatre diva, and Anne Baxter as Eve, the young woman whobefriends Davis but is a the conniving, fawning sociopath who will stop at nothing for her ownstab at stardom. George Sanders (stealing every scene he’s in as a sublimely cynical critic) is onelof the only people who can see through Eve. Baxter overdoes the fawning, so it becomes difficultto bel...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 3rd, 2003
Synopsis
The setting is turn-of-the-century Wales, and a way of life is coming to an end as economiccrises hit. The film chronicles the saga of the Morgan family, headed by stern but lovingpatriarch Donald Crisp, and we get all this through the eyes of young Roddy McDowall. Analternative title might be “Cavalcade of Misery” and the answer to the film’s question might be“not very,” given the endless tragedies that afflict our loving family. The film hasn’t weatheredthe passing years ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 31st, 2002
Synopsis
Gregory Peck is a freelance writer recently arrived in New York. Hired to write a series onanti-Semitism, he hits on the idea of passing himself off as Jewish. The angle works only toowell, and he experiences prejudice first-hand, in ways that threaten to completely derail his life.The performances are universally excellent, and the actors are really put to the test when theyhave to mouth the painfully moralizing speeches at the end of the film. Until the disappointingconcl...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 12th, 2002
Synopsis
Adam Garcia plays an ad exec with a conscious, he wants he create something that will change the world. He recruits a rag tag group of geniuses and misfits to build the world’s first portable $99 computer. After losing their jobs and funding from the research facility where they work they set out on their own to finish what they started. Their creativity is rekindled by Andy Caspar’s (Garcia) neighbor (Rosario Dawson) and side tracked by the back stabbing genius at the research facility where ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on December 6th, 2002
Synopsis
