Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 24th, 2003
Synopsis
Ever had an imaginary friend as a kid? Then this movie is for you. Elizabeth (Phoebe Cates) has just split with her husband and returns home to find the imaginary friend that she lost twenty-one years before. Drop Dead Fred (Rick Mayall) is ready for mischief and mayhem after being cooped up. After Fred sinks her best friend’s boat (played by Carrie Fischer) Elizabeth decides it is time to get rid of Fred once and for all. Instead she finds herself and gets her life back.
Vide...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 22nd, 2003
Don’t be fooled into thinking that Y Tu Mama Tambien is just another trite love triangle movie, one that would have some catchy Sum 41 or Weezer song in all the promos. This movie is about far more than that. It’s about the nature of friendship, the consequence of action, teenage machismo, self-realization and learning what it means to enjoy life. This isn’t the Mexican version of Road Trip, either. They don’t get into wacky hijinks or the comedy of the absurd. Almost everything about Y Tu Mama T...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on August 21st, 2003
Decades before The Blair Witch Project drew attention to the small independent filmmaker, George Romero and a small band of Pittsburgh natives took the horror genre by surprise with the stunning and atmospheric Night of the Living Dead. Day of the Dead was the third and (so far) final entry into the Romero zombie trilogy. Romero admits that this is the least acclaimed film in the series while professing that it is his own favorite. There is absolutely no question that makeup magician Tom Savini did some of his greatest work in this film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 18th, 2003
Angel: Season Two (a spinoff from the wildly popular Buffy the Vampire Slayer) follows the continuing adventures of Angel (David Boreanz), the vampire who searches for redemption while battling otherworldly demons and spirits on behalf of man. Angel and his team of modern day Ghostbusters find ways to track down trouble before it gets out of control, giving each episode an action-packed and imaginative flair, with numerous long-term story arcs running throughout the season. The overall theme of the en...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 12th, 2003
Synopsis
Eighteen duets, many never seen since their original broadcast. Here is Sinatra along withsuch luminaries as Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Louis Armstrong, Ethel Merman, Bing Crosby,Dean Martin, Elvis Presley, and so on, and so on. In between each song are laudatory commentsby Sinatra’s children Nancy, Tina and Frank Jr.
Audio
The sound is mono, which is to be expected: these are recordings from the late 50's-early60's. Don’t expect miracles here -- t...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 12th, 2003
Synopsis
Barbra Streisand is a perfume tycoon who, due to the dishonesty of an employee, suddenlyfinds herself broke. Her only remaining asset is a contract with a washed-up boxer (RyanO’Neal). Streisand decides to turn her fortunes around by managing O’Neal. The pair take aninstant dislike to each other, and squabble all their way into romance. The Main Eventmimics the rapid-fire delivery of the classic screwball comedies, but the effect is not so muchfunny as shrill and tir...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 12th, 2003
Synopsis
Set during that vison from Hieronymous Bosch known as spring break in Fort Lauderdale,this is a return to the Annette Funicello-Frankie Avalon beach movies of the 60's, right down tothe PG rating. People stopped making those movies for good reasons, but that didn’t stop theproducers of this effort. Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini, playing characters with their ownfirst names (groan) meet, fall in love, but have their romance undermined by Clarkson’s blondbitch of a...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 12th, 2003
Synopsis
Michael Kremko plays Adam, dashing young priest. Nadia Mansouri is a young woman whohas a crush on him. Her name is Eve. Get it? If you don’t, Jake Simons as a gay dancechoreographer helpfully points out the symbolism for us. Sure enough, Adam is tempted from thestraight and true path and begins a torrid affair with Eve. The jealous Simons starts underminingthe two characters. The dialogue is banal, even as it has pretensions to deal with Really BigIssues of faith and free ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on August 12th, 2003
Synopsis
Claudia Draper (Barbra Streisand) has been charged with first-degree manslaughter. Hermother and stepfather try to have her declared incompetent to stand trial, so she will go to apsychiatric hospital rather than jail. Claudia refuses to be railroaded, punching out her lawyer incourt. Public defender Richard Dreyfuss winds up saddled with her case, and decides to fight forStreisand’s right to have her day in court. The role of Claudia is big, scenery-chewing exercisefor Str...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on August 11th, 2003
Popular culture aficionados and entertainment critics alike have been saying for quite some time now that the last ten or twelve years of television has seen some of the worst shows in the medium’s history. The nineties were filled with more flashes in the pan than an Iron Chef marathon, and even the longer running shows seem to be forgettable tripe the further away they get in our collective rear view mirrors. It’s mindboggling to think a show like Mad About You ran the better part of the decade, isn...
