RAW DEAL (1986) - May 27, 2004 (Second viewing)
One of Arnie's lesser known films. And in fact, it was probably one of his weaker movies, but still pretty good. It was really violent, which helped. Arnie plays a disgraced ex-FBI agent who infiltrates the mob to get his old job back. Arnie was good, of course, but the script doesn't really give him the opportunity to do anything really cool or deliver any good one-liners. Not to say that Arnie wasn't cool; he's always cool. The movie just doesn't use him to his fullest potential. Though the Commando-esque ending, in which he takes on at least thirty guys, was pretty sweet. ***
Short reviews of all the movies I see, rated out of four. Reviews containing spoilers are marked with an (S).
Thursday, May 27, 2004
Sunday, May 23, 2004
Shrek 2
SHREK 2 (2004) - May 23, 2004
A worthy follow-up. Features quite a few laughs, many coming from Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots, who steals every scene he's in. At times it goes overboard rehashing jokes and characters from the first one, which makes it feel more like a remake than a sequel, but that's a relatively minor complaint as it was still very enjoyable. As far as computer animated cartoons go it wasn't exactly on the same level as Pixar, but then again not much is. ***
A worthy follow-up. Features quite a few laughs, many coming from Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots, who steals every scene he's in. At times it goes overboard rehashing jokes and characters from the first one, which makes it feel more like a remake than a sequel, but that's a relatively minor complaint as it was still very enjoyable. As far as computer animated cartoons go it wasn't exactly on the same level as Pixar, but then again not much is. ***
Friday, May 21, 2004
Key Largo
KEY LARGO (1948) - May 21, 2004
Another really good movie directed by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart, though not as good as the Treasure of the Sierra Madre. About a bunch of people who get stuck in a hotel during a hurricane, including a group of criminals led by Edward G. Robinson. Humphrey Bogart gives another excellent performance. In fact the performances were good all around. Lionel Barrymore was good in a non-evil role, which was a little jarring after having only seen him in It's a Wonderful Life. The movie was quite talky (it was based on a play), but the dialogue never seems overly theatrical, as is sometimes the case with older films. ***1/2
Another really good movie directed by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart, though not as good as the Treasure of the Sierra Madre. About a bunch of people who get stuck in a hotel during a hurricane, including a group of criminals led by Edward G. Robinson. Humphrey Bogart gives another excellent performance. In fact the performances were good all around. Lionel Barrymore was good in a non-evil role, which was a little jarring after having only seen him in It's a Wonderful Life. The movie was quite talky (it was based on a play), but the dialogue never seems overly theatrical, as is sometimes the case with older films. ***1/2
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Evil Alien Conquerors
EVIL ALIEN CONQUERORS (2002) - May 19, 2004
A lame comedy. A few sporadic chuckles, but that's about it. Diedrich Bader and Chris Parnell are decent as a couple of incompetent aliens whose job is to kill everyone on Earth. But they hardly do anything, and hijinks level was disappointingly low (probably due to the obviously miniscule budget). This might have worked as a six minute sketch on SNL, but as a one and a half hour movie it fails miserably. Plus it features some of the most blatant product placement I've ever seen. But then I guess the money had to come from somewhere. **
A lame comedy. A few sporadic chuckles, but that's about it. Diedrich Bader and Chris Parnell are decent as a couple of incompetent aliens whose job is to kill everyone on Earth. But they hardly do anything, and hijinks level was disappointingly low (probably due to the obviously miniscule budget). This might have worked as a six minute sketch on SNL, but as a one and a half hour movie it fails miserably. Plus it features some of the most blatant product placement I've ever seen. But then I guess the money had to come from somewhere. **
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
World Traveler
WORLD TRAVELER (2001) - May 18, 2004
A well acted character study about a man who leaves his wife and child and hits the road in order to find himself. Mostly about his interactions with the various people he meets along the way. Billy Crudup is excellent in the main role, as are all the people he runs across, including Julianne Moore and the black guy from Sliders. Slow in parts, but never boring. ***
A well acted character study about a man who leaves his wife and child and hits the road in order to find himself. Mostly about his interactions with the various people he meets along the way. Billy Crudup is excellent in the main role, as are all the people he runs across, including Julianne Moore and the black guy from Sliders. Slow in parts, but never boring. ***
Monday, May 17, 2004
L.I.E.
L.I.E. (2001) - May 17, 2004
Brian Cox is excellent in this otherwise forgettable film. The first half, which focuses almost entirely on the disturbingly homoerotic relationship between the main character and his friend, is useless and goes nowhere. In fact the stuff with Brian Cox is probably just as useless, but remains entertaining just because of his performance. Brian Cox is still likeable even as a gross pedophile, which leads me to believe that he is incapable of giving an unlikable performance. This movie certainly solidifies his status as one of my favourite actors. Not much else to say, really. Brian Cox = thumbs up. Everything else in this movie = meh. **1/2
Brian Cox is excellent in this otherwise forgettable film. The first half, which focuses almost entirely on the disturbingly homoerotic relationship between the main character and his friend, is useless and goes nowhere. In fact the stuff with Brian Cox is probably just as useless, but remains entertaining just because of his performance. Brian Cox is still likeable even as a gross pedophile, which leads me to believe that he is incapable of giving an unlikable performance. This movie certainly solidifies his status as one of my favourite actors. Not much else to say, really. Brian Cox = thumbs up. Everything else in this movie = meh. **1/2
Saturday, May 15, 2004
Eraser
ERASER (1996) - May 15, 2004 (Third viewing? Perhaps fourth)
Arnie's last really violent movie, and probably his last "classic" action movie. Features all the shooting and one-liners that most of his recent movies have been missing ("You're luggage!"). It's not as good as some of his classics, like Total Recall or Commando, but it's still pretty good. James Caan is excellent, as always, as the villain. But it just makes me wonder: why politics, Arnie? Why? ***
Arnie's last really violent movie, and probably his last "classic" action movie. Features all the shooting and one-liners that most of his recent movies have been missing ("You're luggage!"). It's not as good as some of his classics, like Total Recall or Commando, but it's still pretty good. James Caan is excellent, as always, as the villain. But it just makes me wonder: why politics, Arnie? Why? ***
Napoleon Dynamite
NAPOLEON DYNAMITE (2004) - May 15, 2004
A quirky film about a awkward teenager, Napoleon Dynamite, and his various misadventures in a quirky small town. Features some funny moments, and for the first forty minutes or so it's pretty entertaining. But after a while the quirkiness and the lack of plot just start to wear on you, and it was really starting to drag towards the end. The style of the film reminded me somewhat of Wes Anderson, particularly Rushmore (both feature a young social outcast in the main role). But Jared Hess is certainly no Wes Anderson, and Napoleon Dynamite (the character) is no Max Fischer (he was just too bizarre to ever become someone we really care about). **1/2
A quirky film about a awkward teenager, Napoleon Dynamite, and his various misadventures in a quirky small town. Features some funny moments, and for the first forty minutes or so it's pretty entertaining. But after a while the quirkiness and the lack of plot just start to wear on you, and it was really starting to drag towards the end. The style of the film reminded me somewhat of Wes Anderson, particularly Rushmore (both feature a young social outcast in the main role). But Jared Hess is certainly no Wes Anderson, and Napoleon Dynamite (the character) is no Max Fischer (he was just too bizarre to ever become someone we really care about). **1/2
Friday, May 14, 2004
The Castle of Cagliostro
THE CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO (1979) - May 14, 2004
An atypical early film by Miyazaki. It's atypical in that it doesn't contain any fantasy elements, and is set in the present day. About a charming thief, Lupin, who decides to save a young woman from the clutches of an evil count. Very entertaining throughout; it contains a lot of action but is never overwhelmed by it. A fun adventure. It leaves itself wide open for a sequel, and I certainly wouldn't mind watching the continued adventures of Lupin. I should look into that. ***
An atypical early film by Miyazaki. It's atypical in that it doesn't contain any fantasy elements, and is set in the present day. About a charming thief, Lupin, who decides to save a young woman from the clutches of an evil count. Very entertaining throughout; it contains a lot of action but is never overwhelmed by it. A fun adventure. It leaves itself wide open for a sequel, and I certainly wouldn't mind watching the continued adventures of Lupin. I should look into that. ***
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Troy
TROY (2004) - May 12, 2004
A well-made historical epic about the end of the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. Featured some good fight scenes and some excellent performances. The fight between Brad Pitt and Eric Bana was one of the better fight scenes I've seen in a while. I especially liked that, since the movie spends an equal amount of time with both sides, the outcome of that fight isn't predictable (unless of course you know your history, which I sort of did, but I forgot it all -- in fact I had forgotten it to the point where I didn't even know which side was going to win until the Trojan Horse popped up). Eric Bana was really good as the Trojans' strongest warrior, and Peter O'Toole was excellent as his father, the king. And Brian Cox was excellent as usual as the leader of the Greeks. The battle scenes could have been better, as they were a bit incoherent (the old quick-cut/shakey-cam battle-scene standby. Why?). As far as historical epics go it wasn't nearly as good as Gladiator, but then again not much is. Wolfgang Peterson is certainly no Ridley Scott. Oh well, the whole movie was worth it if only for the scene where Brendan Gleeson waves his sword menacingly at Orlando Bloom. ***1/2
A well-made historical epic about the end of the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. Featured some good fight scenes and some excellent performances. The fight between Brad Pitt and Eric Bana was one of the better fight scenes I've seen in a while. I especially liked that, since the movie spends an equal amount of time with both sides, the outcome of that fight isn't predictable (unless of course you know your history, which I sort of did, but I forgot it all -- in fact I had forgotten it to the point where I didn't even know which side was going to win until the Trojan Horse popped up). Eric Bana was really good as the Trojans' strongest warrior, and Peter O'Toole was excellent as his father, the king. And Brian Cox was excellent as usual as the leader of the Greeks. The battle scenes could have been better, as they were a bit incoherent (the old quick-cut/shakey-cam battle-scene standby. Why?). As far as historical epics go it wasn't nearly as good as Gladiator, but then again not much is. Wolfgang Peterson is certainly no Ridley Scott. Oh well, the whole movie was worth it if only for the scene where Brendan Gleeson waves his sword menacingly at Orlando Bloom. ***1/2
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
Harvey
HARVEY (1950) - May 11, 2004
Jimmy Stewart is good (as usual) in this cute little movie about a man whose best friend is a six foot tall white rabbit who may or may not be real. Entertaining throughout, if a little on the long side. It probably didn't help that I kept thinking about the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, especially towards the beginning of the movie. Man, that was a good movie. Anyway, Harvey was good, if only for Jimmy Stewart. ***
Jimmy Stewart is good (as usual) in this cute little movie about a man whose best friend is a six foot tall white rabbit who may or may not be real. Entertaining throughout, if a little on the long side. It probably didn't help that I kept thinking about the Treasure of the Sierra Madre, especially towards the beginning of the movie. Man, that was a good movie. Anyway, Harvey was good, if only for Jimmy Stewart. ***
Monday, May 10, 2004
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (1948) - May 10, 2004
Humphrey Bogart is excellent as a penniless drifter with questionable morals (when we first see him he's begging for money and throwing a glass of water into a child's face) in this excellent film by John Huston. When watching a movie that's supposedly a classic, it's usually hard to walk away without at least a little disappointment (ie. Casablanca -- a good movie, but not the best of all time). Not the case here. Tim Holt and Walter Huston were equally good as the two men Bogart goes prospecting with. Everything seems to start well for the three men, who enter into their enterprise with the best intentions. The aging prospector (Huston) warns them how gold can corrupt a man, but they aren't concerned. However, over the course of the film, Bogart slowly goes insane with paranoia, sure that the two men are trying to steal his share of the gold. The movie is over two hours but remains extremely entertaining throughout. Also features excellent direction by John Huston, whose framing and use of deep-focus photography is somewhat reminiscent of Orson Welles. ****
Humphrey Bogart is excellent as a penniless drifter with questionable morals (when we first see him he's begging for money and throwing a glass of water into a child's face) in this excellent film by John Huston. When watching a movie that's supposedly a classic, it's usually hard to walk away without at least a little disappointment (ie. Casablanca -- a good movie, but not the best of all time). Not the case here. Tim Holt and Walter Huston were equally good as the two men Bogart goes prospecting with. Everything seems to start well for the three men, who enter into their enterprise with the best intentions. The aging prospector (Huston) warns them how gold can corrupt a man, but they aren't concerned. However, over the course of the film, Bogart slowly goes insane with paranoia, sure that the two men are trying to steal his share of the gold. The movie is over two hours but remains extremely entertaining throughout. Also features excellent direction by John Huston, whose framing and use of deep-focus photography is somewhat reminiscent of Orson Welles. ****
Sunday, May 09, 2004
Millennium Actress
MILLENNIUM ACTRESS (2001) - May 9, 2004
An interesting movie by Satoshi Kon, who also directed Tokyo Godfathers. About a young actress who has a brief encounter with a revolutionary painter, and spends the rest of her life trying to find him. Told in an interesting style, with bits of her life being told in flashback, using parts from her movies. Definitely original (at least it was unlike anything I've seen before). While not as good as Tokyo Godfathers, this was definitely a good movie. I'd definitely like to watch it again, as this seems like the type of movie which would benefit from repeat viewings. ***
An interesting movie by Satoshi Kon, who also directed Tokyo Godfathers. About a young actress who has a brief encounter with a revolutionary painter, and spends the rest of her life trying to find him. Told in an interesting style, with bits of her life being told in flashback, using parts from her movies. Definitely original (at least it was unlike anything I've seen before). While not as good as Tokyo Godfathers, this was definitely a good movie. I'd definitely like to watch it again, as this seems like the type of movie which would benefit from repeat viewings. ***
Friday, May 07, 2004
Envy
ENVY (2004) - May 7, 2004 (S)
A mediocre movie from Barry Levinson (what a surprise). Jack Black, Ben Stiller and Christopher Walken are all wasted in this stupid movie which just doesn't work (with a few exceptions). One of the main problems is that none of the characters act like actual people. This unrealistic tone is heightened by Levinson's bad direction, which makes the whole thing look as wonky as the people act. It could almost be called a dark comedy, but it doesn't really have the guts to do anything dark (the ending is ultra-happy). Jack Black, while not really Jack Blacky enough, manages to create the only character worth caring about in this stupid movie. There are a few good moments here and there, but they are certainly outweighed by the bad. **
A mediocre movie from Barry Levinson (what a surprise). Jack Black, Ben Stiller and Christopher Walken are all wasted in this stupid movie which just doesn't work (with a few exceptions). One of the main problems is that none of the characters act like actual people. This unrealistic tone is heightened by Levinson's bad direction, which makes the whole thing look as wonky as the people act. It could almost be called a dark comedy, but it doesn't really have the guts to do anything dark (the ending is ultra-happy). Jack Black, while not really Jack Blacky enough, manages to create the only character worth caring about in this stupid movie. There are a few good moments here and there, but they are certainly outweighed by the bad. **
Wednesday, May 05, 2004
Van Helsing
VAN HELSING (2004) - May 5, 2004
An overlong, over-the-top bore. The first ten minutes or so, a black and white homage to Universal's classic monster movies, was the sole highlight of this crap-fest. Even the usually excellent Hugh Jackman isn't that great in this crappy crap-pile. The movie consists of one over-the-top, unexciting action sequence after another. In fact, the action scenes are so close together, I doubt that there's much more than three or four minutes of downtime between them. I would say that 90 percent of this movie's bloated run-time is dedicated to action. Towards the end it becomes tedious to sit through. It doesn't help that the people playing Dracula and his three flying girlfriends are ludicrously over-the-top to the point of annoyance. This is the first big action movie of the summer, and I'm sure it will also be the worst (one can only hope, at least). *
An overlong, over-the-top bore. The first ten minutes or so, a black and white homage to Universal's classic monster movies, was the sole highlight of this crap-fest. Even the usually excellent Hugh Jackman isn't that great in this crappy crap-pile. The movie consists of one over-the-top, unexciting action sequence after another. In fact, the action scenes are so close together, I doubt that there's much more than three or four minutes of downtime between them. I would say that 90 percent of this movie's bloated run-time is dedicated to action. Towards the end it becomes tedious to sit through. It doesn't help that the people playing Dracula and his three flying girlfriends are ludicrously over-the-top to the point of annoyance. This is the first big action movie of the summer, and I'm sure it will also be the worst (one can only hope, at least). *
Monday, May 03, 2004
Le Mans
LE MANS (1971) - May 3, 2004
A bad movie. An ordeal. Why Steve McQueen would be in this, I have no idea. I guess it was an easy paycheck. I doubt that he had more than ten minutes of screentime, and no more than a dozen lines of dialogue. The one good part - and there was only one - was a brief scene in which Steve McQueen explains to his ex-girlfriend (or ex-wife) why racing is worth the risk. But that scene was no longer than a couple of minutes and the movie was almost two hours. I'm really not sure who this movie is supposed to appeal to. Fans of the actual race? But it doesn't really show any behind-the-scenes action someone like that might find interesting. The majority of the movie is simply the race itself, presented in a dull TV-style and without an announcer, making the whole thing pointless and confusing. The first fourty minutes of the movie are dialogue-free, filled with random shots of nameless people setting up the race. The race starts, but since there are no real characters, even if I could tell what was going on I wouldn't have cared. There's probably a total of five minutes of dialogue in the whole movie. If that. Here's what I don't get: a movie like this is allowed to be made, and probably had a reasonably big budget, and yet Orson Welles was forced to toil in obscurity for most of his career, scraping money together by appearing in commercials for frozen peas. What's up with that? 1/2*
A bad movie. An ordeal. Why Steve McQueen would be in this, I have no idea. I guess it was an easy paycheck. I doubt that he had more than ten minutes of screentime, and no more than a dozen lines of dialogue. The one good part - and there was only one - was a brief scene in which Steve McQueen explains to his ex-girlfriend (or ex-wife) why racing is worth the risk. But that scene was no longer than a couple of minutes and the movie was almost two hours. I'm really not sure who this movie is supposed to appeal to. Fans of the actual race? But it doesn't really show any behind-the-scenes action someone like that might find interesting. The majority of the movie is simply the race itself, presented in a dull TV-style and without an announcer, making the whole thing pointless and confusing. The first fourty minutes of the movie are dialogue-free, filled with random shots of nameless people setting up the race. The race starts, but since there are no real characters, even if I could tell what was going on I wouldn't have cared. There's probably a total of five minutes of dialogue in the whole movie. If that. Here's what I don't get: a movie like this is allowed to be made, and probably had a reasonably big budget, and yet Orson Welles was forced to toil in obscurity for most of his career, scraping money together by appearing in commercials for frozen peas. What's up with that? 1/2*
Saturday, May 01, 2004
Tokyo Godfathers
TOKYO GODFATHERS (2003) - May 1, 2004
An excellent Japanese animated film about a group of three homeless people - a broken family man, an aging cross-dresser, and a teenage runaway - who find a baby abandoned in the trash and decide to find its mother. Touching at times, and also surprisingly funny. Though it's essentially plotless (it almost falls into the "lots of stuff happening in a short amount of time" category), it is really entertaining throughout and the three main characters become people we really care about. They continue to make progress in their adventure by a series of increasingly unbelievable, almost magical coincidences and turns of fate. The whole movie is realistic but has an unreal vibe to it. But definitely in a good way. It's lighthearted and fun, and is able to seamlessly move from comedy to drama. All the while a higher power almost seems at work in the background (one of the characters frequently notes that God is helping the baby), helping the characters get where they need to go. ****
An excellent Japanese animated film about a group of three homeless people - a broken family man, an aging cross-dresser, and a teenage runaway - who find a baby abandoned in the trash and decide to find its mother. Touching at times, and also surprisingly funny. Though it's essentially plotless (it almost falls into the "lots of stuff happening in a short amount of time" category), it is really entertaining throughout and the three main characters become people we really care about. They continue to make progress in their adventure by a series of increasingly unbelievable, almost magical coincidences and turns of fate. The whole movie is realistic but has an unreal vibe to it. But definitely in a good way. It's lighthearted and fun, and is able to seamlessly move from comedy to drama. All the while a higher power almost seems at work in the background (one of the characters frequently notes that God is helping the baby), helping the characters get where they need to go. ****
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