Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 14th, 2003
Synopsis
An ensemble piece, along the lines of something John Sayles or Robert Altman might do,only on a minuscule budget and played strictly for laughs. A massively dysfunctional Southernfamily meet for the funeral of Grandma Peggy, and all sorts of animosities and such are workedout. The film is based on a play, and boy can you tell -- static as hell, boring to watch. There aresome moments of genuine emotion with the gay characters, but for the most part this is just apainful slog...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 16th, 2003
Synopsis
It is 1821. Napoleon is in exile on St. Helena, but not for long. His exact double is found,and the two men switch identities. Napoleon, now disguised as Eugene Lenormand, makeshis way back to France. The idea is that, once the real emperor is in Paris, the double will exposehimself, and the people will rally around the returned ruler. But Eugene decides he likes beingemperor. Napoleon is now stuck in the role of a poor man. Naturally, this being a romanticcomedy, there are...
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
Mira Sorvino, hard up for a job, lands one at Santolino’s restaurant. Learning the ropes isdifficult enough (even with the help of vets Mariah Carey and Melora Walters), but the restaurantis a mob hangout, and Sorvino finds herself caught in a web of danger (don’t you hate when thathappens?). I’ll say this: it’s better than Glitter.
Audio
A mere 2.0 mix, but it is a solid one. Particularly good are the restaurant scenes, where youfeel properly surro...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 28th, 2002
Synopsis
David Krumholtz plays Benny Silman, and his performance is a rather startling bit ofmimicry (check out what the real Silman looks and sounds like in the extras). Our hero movesfrom New York (amusingly set up as if it were a small, provincial town) to Arizona StateUniversity, home of sun, fun, girls and gambling. The sexual politics are as bad as you’d expect,but the direct-to-camera addresses by Krumholtz are entertaining, and the story itself is notwithout interest.
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Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 13th, 2002
Synopsis
Jimmy is an aspiring concert pianist. He also has a few sexual knots that need untangling.And he’s a brutal debt collector for his bottom-of-the-ladder loanshark father. The movie tracesthe couple of days during which his life disintegrates. This is not for everyone. The pace isdeliberate, with looooong stretches of nothing much happening, punctuated by explosions ofsurprisingly brutal violence. The whole is also shaded by a pretty pronounced misogyny. But thefilm sticks wi...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 11th, 2002
Written by Dan Bradley
The right to bear arms has been a heated debated for many years now. Entertainment industries, Hollywood included, have often been singled out as culprits for violence at the hands of these legally-owned weapons. Liberty Stands Still serves as a direct commentary from Hollywood towards the effects of this law, and the influence gun manufacturers and politicians have on the distribution of firearms. Although not released theatrically in the United States, Liberty Stands Still comes home to DVD in a confusing but intri...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 5th, 2002
Synopsis
Set in Mexico, Beat shows us the final days of the relationship between Burroughs and hiswife Joan Vollmer. While Burroughs vacations in Guatemala with his latest boy toy, Vollmergallivants about with two other members of the beats, notably a rather innocent Ginsberg.Somehow this is all going to lead to the fatal William Tell trick with the gun. Keifer Sutherlandturns in a startling bit as Burroughs, perfectly mimicking his speech patterns. But the film itself islittle more...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on July 15th, 2002
Synopsis
Herbert's novel is very complex, and one attempts a synopsis at one's own risk (this is part of the problem with Lynch's film). At its most basic, it is about power struggles in a galactic empire, power struggles centred on the planet Arrakis, or Dune, home of the spice, the most vital element in the empire. Paul Atreides, newly arrived on Arrakis, turns out to be the long-prophesied messiah. This is an incredibly ambitious project for a telefilm, and though some of the budgetary limitations...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 6th, 2002
Film
Walking With Dinosaurs plays out like a National Geographic special, tracking dinosaurs and their kin in the field. Wonderful CGI recreations of some of the more obscure beasts set this special apart from all other dinodocumentaries.
Synopsis
The vast worlds of prehistoric times are brought to life in a series of documentaries starting with the beginning of life in the seas and ending with the death of the final land giants. There are 6 segments: "New Blood", "Time Of ...
