Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 2nd, 2003
Synopsis
While pursuing the elusive Code Killer, Terry McCaleb (Clint Eastwood) suffers a heartattack. Two-and-a-half years later, recovering well from a heart transplant, McCaleb is visitedby the sister of the woman whose heart he now has. She would like him to investigate the sister’smurder. Some of the plot twists you can see coming, and the story takes a major credibilityhit three quarters of the way through, when Eastwood gets involved with a woman young enoughto be his grandda...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 30th, 2002
Synopsis
The son of DIA hotshot Ray Park is kidnapped by Lucy Liu. Antonio Banderas is forced backinto action with the promise of finding information about the wife he thought was dead. Hisassignment: track down Liu in order to get to bad guy Park, who is fooling around with ananotech assassin machine (which looks like a frog with a hypodermic). Now, none of this makesa whole lot of sense. The film’s real purpose is to stage huge gunfights and Really BigExplosions. Sometimes, that’s...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 30th, 2002
Synopsis
Joan, who will inherit the throne of Castille, is sent to Flanders to marry the Archduke Philip.She falls madly and passionately in love with her husband. He is not faithful, however, and hersanity teeters because of this. Ambitious politicians jockey for power in the background, and seethe Queen’s possible madness as their ticket to ride. The film looks great, and the performancesare excellent. We aren’t shown much of the relationship before it begins to fall apart, however,...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 21st, 2002
Al Pacino started his career with The Godfather, but Serpico went a long way to introducing filmgoers to the raw talent he still possesses. Based on the true story of an officer’s lone fight against corruption in the New York City PD, Serpico is gritty and almost documentary-like in style. Sydney Lumet’s stylized direction would create a template that countless future cop films continue to emulate. A credit to Lumet’s ability to spot talent rests in the fact that this was considered largely a cast of unknowns.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 17th, 2002
Synopsis
Dougray Scott plays Tom Jericho, brilliant but psychologically fragile code-breaker. He wasinstrumental in cracking the German Enigma code, and is needed again, since the code haschanged. He is still trying to put himself back together after a wrenching relationship with theglamorous Saffron Burrows, who has disappeared. As he works on Enigma, Scott also getsinvolved with Kate Winslet. The two of them try to solve the mystery of Burrows’ disappearance.The intelligent script...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 26th, 2002
This movie stunned me in its completely unexpected excellence. Its unrecognized title, cast of minors, typical B-movie premise, and sponsorship by the government of Luxembourg all suggested a weak slasher film to follow. Like Ginger Snaps before it, however, Dog Soldiers is a new brand of monster movie that blends subtle talent with creative plots, superb directorship, spectacular camera work, and over the top action to take viewers completely by surprise.
Before I continue, here’s the synopsis:...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 22nd, 2002
Written by Dan Bradley
Ever since Dragonslayer lit up the screen, I've been waiting for a comparable dragon movie to come along. There have been a few between then and now, most recently the lighthearted Dragonheart, but none have come close to capturing the style and mood of Dragonslayer. Finally a dark depiction of the mythical beasts has returned to ravage audiences and scorch anything in sight, although it could have been a lot better.
The premise of Reign of Fire comes across like a classic bad B movie. Dragons are awakened...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 21st, 2002
The Greeks are well known for their complex and compelling mythology. Writers like Homer have for millennia defined the literary world of mythology. I challenge anyone to debate that J.R.R. Tolkien has filled that role for the 20th century and beyond. The foreword to The Fellowship of the Ring begins by saying: “The tale grew in the telling until it became a history…” I entered the theatre for a midnight showing of this ambitious film with very high expectations. Truth be told, it was not possible that those expectations could be met.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on November 14th, 2002
Artisan has come through with a well-executed 10 Year Anniversary Edition of Glengarry GlenRoss. Well-executed, yes. Exceptional, no. The highlights of this set are definitely the DTS audio track and the new Widescreen transfer. Both are so exceptional as to make this set a “must purchase” for any fans of this movie or its cast. Beyond these two features, there is nothing particularly compelling about this set, however. Special features contain no standouts, and the second disc is largely the filler of a widescreen t...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on November 11th, 2002
Synopsis
In the full widescreen segments of the film, a portion of an American satellite lands inAustralia and is swallowed by a crocodile. Competing agencies send their agents to recover thedevice. In the segments where the screen shrinks to something resembling the TV screen (thoughstill wider than 1.33:1), Steve and Terri Irwin chase after animals, and Steve speaks continuallyto the camera. The collision course of the title is not just the intersecting courses of the Irwinsand th...
