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Reviews
The January Man (1989)
WOEFULLY BAD
I was shocked how bad this movie was with the cast it has. I kept watching just to see the actors, but the script was terrible. Who green-lighted this? How much money did it lose? How can a serial murderer mystery be a comedy? Really a strange endeavor.
Spy in the Wild (2017)
BBC ENGLISH
I absolutely love Spy in the Wild, but on the wild dog episode, I was surprised the announcer said "the spy puppy decides to LAY low." Do they also make this mistake in Britain? Was the announcer reading a script or did he just do it himself? It is "lie" low.
Beyond the Sea (2004)
Excellent Suspension of Belief
At first I was scared to see a movie about Bobby Darin because I never liked his persona and my father is the one that liked him for "Mack the Knife."But I so love Kevin Spacey, I actually went to see it in the theater. Tonight I've seen it for the third time. It is Kevin Spacey that has made me open my mind toward Bobby Darin. He took a huge risk making this movie. What it has done for me, however, is to push Kevin Spacey into the stratosphere. He is the greatest actor, at times convincing me I was actually watching Bobby Darin. Some of the stills make him look exactly like Bobby Darin. His voice, to me, is better than Bobby Darin. I really can't believe this actor can sing like this. It's almost an embarrassment of riches. He's an A list actor, beautiful to look at, not a short person (kidding), and he can sing??!! I just hope he continues to make movies until he's 80. I'll pay theater prices to see him forever.
Hotel Rwanda (2004)
Incredible movie
I can't believe this movie got made. It is so searing in its portrayal of man's inhumanity to man including ours. I felt so guilty that I had had no idea of the true horror of this civil war. It actually reinforces the accusation that the Western world never cares much what happens in Africa. Our media barely covers the wars, famines, droughts until millions of people are dead and then it seems like it is too late for the U.S. politicians to do anything. Great, great movie. Don Cheadle is a master actor. I wish I would see him in more films. Another thought I had about this movie is how it reminded me of the holocaust. America sat by and allowed 6 million Jews, Catholics and gypsies to die before intervening and it had nothing to do with the annihilation of the these people that got us finally into WWII. My own country embarrasses me. When will we ever use our great power to help others rather than accumulate as many material things that we can before we die? Why are we leading news broadcasts with someone like Paris Hilton instead of Nelson Mandela or the Dalai Lama?
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Best Comedy in Some time
This movie actually had me howling, as I've never done before. Well, perhaps when I first saw The Producers. Alan Arkin is a comedic genius. All I have to do is look at him and I start laughing. I don't know why they don't make more movies like this. The comedy as a genre is in serious trouble in my humble opinion. This one gave me hope. Even though quite a bit of it was predictable, I still enjoyed it tremendously. All the actors did a wonderful job, but Alan Arkin is the greatest movie comedian of all time. I hope he continues to work into his dotage. Or mine, whichever comes first. I also was very impressed by Abigail Breslin's performance. Often children are the weakest link in a picture, but this kid is a natural.
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Politically Correct
The movie is politically correct and Heath Ledger's performance is wonderful, but most critics neglect to mention that the film is incredibly BORING! After the cowboys become involved, which includes the sexually explicit love scenes, the movie is practically over. It seemed like it was four hours long, not merely two. Some pretty scenery, some great photography capturing the cold loneliness of rural Wyoming, but a dreary death march to the ending. My friend and I looked at each other and thought we'd seen the emperor's new clothes. All those wonderful reviews saying what a great movie this is. My humble opinion is: great premise, boring movie.
Love in the Afternoon (1957)
Boring Afternoon
The only reason I could watch this movie was the incredible cinematography by William C. Mellor. The black and white photography is so beautiful, the lighting so dramatic that I couldn't take my eyes off it until the bitter end. To suspend disbelief to this extent was as bad as "As Good As it Gets" was, with a nearly dead, nasty old man and a woman 20-30 years younger than he who, inexplicably, is madly in love with him. Somehow I can't not think of the flabby skin, the sagging jowls and the bad behavior, to top it off, as rather unattractive. I guess we are to suppose money makes a man sexy. To me, that means the woman is a prostitute. Ah, Hollyweird. Audry Hepburn was exquisitely photographed and looked like a work of art in this film.
Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser (1988)
THE BEST MOVIE OF THE JAZZ GENIUS
Thelonious Monk is the most important musician ever produced by this country. He is the greatest composer and the most influential musician of the jazz era. This movie is so incredible because I had not been lucky enough to have seen him before he died, and when I saw the movie I was moved to tears. No one in the movie actually admits he was schizophrenic, but it seems pretty obvious and to me, makes him even more of a genius--that he could write and perform despite his disability. It shows the deep devotion of his wife Nellie, and others who helped him, and finally, how he sank into his illness before he died. Thank you so much, Charlotte Zwerin, for making this paean to Monk. When people are still listening to him hundreds of years from now, they can see him in your wonderful movie.
Mystic River (2003)
OVERRATED
I think this movie goes beyond "uneven." More like over the top. Sean Penn's performance reminded me of Al Pacino's more embarrassing moments, with self-parody being the keyword. Many of the suppositions were bizarre, with the wife of the abused character's disloyalty among the more unbelievable. The only reason I wasn't totally outraged that I paid $10 to see the movie was Tim Robbins' great understated performance. It was a joy to watch and I wish everyone else had taken note and been more reserved, including Clint Eastwood. The violence went on too long in several scenes, with the death of Dave being the most unbearable for length. This could have been a great movie with a better direction.
A Mighty Wind (2003)
SHALLOW CHARACTERIZATION
I was not a fan of Best In Show, and again am a little disappointed in the shallow characterization. If one cared more about the characters, the movie would be even funnier, but they are so stupid and shallow, that I could not really laugh as hard as I have at other comedies. It's kind of like a freak show, and after about fifteen minutes, I get bored. I can't even remember any of the characters a week later.
The Boys from Brazil (1978)
How could these great actors even be seen in a film this bad?
The film is heavy-handed, badly photographed and embarrassing, simplifying Nazis and Jews and becomes almost a comedy. Gregory Peck is badly miscast. I kept watching it, though, to see just how much more horrible it could become as it droned on and on to its predictable ending. Yuck!
Clay Pigeons (1998)
Vince Vaughn is the bomb!
Vince Vaughn reminds me of a young Brando. He has that sizzling star quality--I can just imagine him yelling, "Stella!"
You've Got Mail (1998)
Too bad.
I think this movie could have been much better, had they not used a tired, old plot of the man taking over the woman's business, then charming her into a love affair. I think it's insulting to women today to think she would just cave in and fall in love after he destroyed her life.
Plus I didn't think it was very funny about cheating on your mate on the computer. Are we so hardened these days that betrayal is cute?
Another thing is the age of the protagonists. Meg Ryan is very attractive, but she is hardly an ingenue. Hanks' face is actually puffy, either from overweight or age. I think the plot would have worked better with younger actors. And the betrayals wouldn't have seemed so awkward if the actors were younger.
The other thing that bothered me about the movie was the sad fact that we are so lonely we would actually have a love affair on a computer. I didn't even like the premise of the movie. Oh, well..."Sleepless" was great.
Beloved (1998)
Much better than I thought it would be considering reviews
I would have given it a 10, but thought it lacked sublety in certain parts. It repeated the message several times about the milk being stolen from Setha, for instance, when the visuals were powerful enough.
Then it lingered too long on some of the horrors, such as the killing of Beloved. And the old white man's tears...what was that about?
But except for some small editing problems, I thought it was an incredibly powerful film about racism and I can see how middle America might not want to go and see it. I thought it was as good as Schindler's List, which the public also didn't go to see.
I'm so impressed by Oprah's performance. She is a genius.