Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 13th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 13th, 2005
While House of Flying Daggers may be easy to pigeonhole as a movie similar to Zhang Yimou's own Hero or even Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the only thing you could say about all three is that they have an impressive level of stuntwork that also, features the acting skills of Zhang Ziyi. But where Lee's work is more story based around three characters' feelings for one another, and Hero had some great stuntwork set against some breathtaking cinematography, House of Flying Dag...ers seems to trump them all.
Set in 9th century China, Mei (Ziyi) is a blind dancer in a brothel, who a policeman named Leo suspects can help find a rebel group called the House of Flying Daggers, who possess exceptional skills with small knives. Leo enlists the help of Jin to help free Mei from prison (after she attempted to kill Leo at the brothel) to help lure the government to the rebels. Along the way, he falls in love with Mei, and he does not want her to fulfill his mission, and will protect her at any cost. If you think any of these details divulge spoilers in any way, then you may not have seen the movie yet, as there are many twists and turns that keep you off-balance in the film, while enjoying the excellent fight sequences.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on April 10th, 2005
The who’s who of Hollywood have assembled once again in this sequel to the highly successful film Ocean’s Eleven. This time around the cast are equally great and extremely entertaining to watch, but the film seems to lack the same strong storyline that it predecessor carried with it.
This time around, the story takes place a few years after the Bellagio heist. A leading European thief known as The Nightfox, consumed with being the best thief in the world, derives a plan to take out Ocean and his te...m. He informs Terry Benedict, the owner of the Bellagio, that Ocean and his men are the people who robbed him year back. Benedict gives all 11 2-weeks to come up with the cash they stole from him… or they are all dead. As can be expected, after numerous misses and comedic capers, the team one’s up The Nightfox, and clears their dept to Benedict.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 10th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 9th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 9th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on April 6th, 2005
What kid growing up in the 60’s and 70’s wasn’t totally and completely captivated by the moon landings? We were equally on the edge of our seats when, for a brief moment in time, it appeared we were going to lose our first men in space. Seldom can a film be successful when the audience has most of the story’s details burned into the core of their memory. After all, we know how this one comes out. Still, the film manages to create the intense tension and anticipation as if we were experiencing it all for the first time. The cast is quite crucial for such a monstrous task. Tom Hanks has arguably never been better. The understated style of Gary Sinise is exactly what the film requires when the suspense mounts. It’s particularly gratifying to have Ed Harris along for the ride, quite possibly an homage to his unforgettable John Glenn in The Right Stuff. Ron Howard should be congratulated on producing a piece of cinematic magic that will likely stand the test of time.
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 6th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 5th, 2005
Synopsis
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on April 4th, 2005
Synopsis
The Amityville Horror (1979) remains one of the most successful haunted house movies ever. Based on a supposedly true story (emphasis on “supposedly”), the film sees George and Kathy Lutz (James Brolin and Margot Kidder) buy their dream home, only to be driven out by supernatural events (little girl makes friends with demonic piggie, blood runs from the walls, and so on). In scenes that have so little to do with the rest of the action they might almost belong to a separate movie, Rod ...teiger overacts to a degree excessive even by his own none-too-restrained standards as the priest who is targeted by the evil in the house. Too tame to be truly frightening, the film succeeds thanks partly to its “true story” aura, but most especially because of the design of the house, whose eye-like windows made it the most recognizable of all cinematic haunted houses.
