Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 15th, 2004
“I’ll Be There” is different from most romantic comedies in that the main relationship is between a father and his daughter….wait a minute, that didn’t come out quite right.
The story revolves around Paul Kerr, an aging rock star who ends up in a hospital following a drunken ride on a motorcycle inside his own mansion. There is a concern that he may have thoughts of taking his own life. And then to top it off Paul learns about a daughter that he sired during a relationship that he had with a groupie 16 ye...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 14th, 2004
If Sofia Coppola hasn’t redeemed herself from the whole The Godfather, Part III debacle by now, then it simply can’t be done. Lost in Translation is a beautiful film, the likes of which are rarely seen on this side of the Atlantic. (Of course, to be fair, the film was filmed entirely on location in Tokyo.)
Shot on a shoestring budget, Coppola has definitely made a mountain out of a molehill with this film, taking her small story of two ships that cross in the night, and making that night as br...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 13th, 2004
The show that just won’t die returns for it’s sixth season on DVD… and proves why it still belongs in every sitcom fan’s home collection.
Let’s be honest, if you’ve never seen this show before, you are not going to start with Season Six. People who are interested in Season Six are here because they are already loyal followers of the show. I obviously don’t have to sell seasoned fans on the outstanding quality of this sitcom, or on how great the comedy is. You’re a fan. You already know.
So the rea...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 13th, 2004
Synopsis
Welcome to Peyton Place, a charming New England town, and as picture-perfect a postcardof the 1950s as you could hope to fine. Except for all the rape, incest, and murder, that is. LanaTurner is the repressed mother trying to protect her daughter from the real world. Lee Philips isthe dashing new principle who courts Turner. Arthur Kennedy is the drunken janitor withunhealthy designs on his step-daughter. Russ Tamblyn is the quiet boy with the domineeringmother, and he year...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 13th, 2004
Synopsis
Many years ago, a murder was committed in a fashionable home on a fashionable square inLondon. The murderer was looking for priceless jewels. Years later, a young woman and herdashing new husband move into the house. Bit by bit, the woman appears to be losing her mind.She forgets where she puts things, and moves paintings around without remembering she hasdone so. Or so it appears. In fact, she is being driven out of her mind by her husband. Could hebe the murderer? And wha...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 12th, 2004
Synopsis
Osvaldo Benavides and Rodrigo Cachero are two very different cousins. One is clean-cut, theother is a stoner. They hate each other’s guts, much to the despair of their grandfrather (XavierMasse). But the old man is wily, even in death, and thanks to his will, the two cousins musttravel together to Acapulco to scatter Masse’s ashes in the sea. This is yet another instance ofhow lively and vibrant contemporary cinema is. Neatly observed characterizations all round.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 10th, 2004
Synopsis
If George Orwell and Franz Kafka had collaborated on a murder mystery, what you’d getis The Rook. A theocratic dictatorship is coming apart at the seams as an uprising gathersevery more force. In this trouble time, a detective working for the religious authorities comesto a small town to investigate a murder. Nothing is what it seems, and he is confronted with onemysterious character after another, one mysterious event after another. Like the regime, hegradually begi...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 10th, 2004
Synopsis
When the kind but dull Rhys Ifans proposes to girlfriend Shirley Henderson on a Sally Jesse-style TV show, she turns him down. He is hurt, but still hopeful. Unfortunately, this show wasseen by Henderson’s first boyfriend: small-time crook Robert Carlyle. A flame reignites inCarlyle’s heart, and he comes to town with all the outlaw swagger and mystique that Ifans can’thope to beat. But he will certainly try...
A very likeable, if slight, film. The cast appear to be ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 10th, 2004
Synopsis
Laura San Giacomo’s husband is a serial adulterer, and has just taken off for three weekswith his blonde assistant. Gradually, San Giacomo falls for a handsome stranger (Paul Rhys) shehas started to see regularly in a park. The story of their affair is recounted to a journalist workingon a piece about marriage in the 90s, and so we see it all unfold in a series of flashbacks. Theperformances are good, especially San Giacomo’s, who is appealingly naturalistic. Even thesmalle...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 9th, 2004
Synopsis
In 1787, the HMS Bounty sets sail for Tahiti. The journey is long and dangerous, but thecommander, Captain Bligh (Charles Laughton) is an extremely skilled seaman. He is also abrutal, corrupt sadist. Resentment builds amongst the crew, until finally mutiny erupts, led byfirst officer Fletcher Christian (Clark Gable).
Never mind that most of the leads are Americans playing Brits. This is one of the great seaadventures. Its release on DVD is most welcome, what with th...
