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Reviews
Captain Cosmic and 2T2 (1977)
It was actually a great show...
From what I still remember this was a great show. Not only did I get to discover Ultraman and Goldar, Bob..er..Captain Cosmic always had information for movies, sneak previews, tickets, and interviews too. He'd met with George Lucas when Star Wars came out (before it became Episode 4) and was told about the duel with Obi Wan around lava and getting burnt up and scarred as a result. And ol'Captain Cosmic told us. So I already knew how it all happened since the late-70s. And yeah, I'd like to see tapes of it too. Somewhere, I may still have audio tapes of some of the shows I made with my Panasonic tape recorder I had as a kid.
The Thin Red Line (1998)
Different; See it once, see it twice...
I have seen this film a few more times and remarkably, it just gets better and better each time. I'll concur that it's arty, but so what? When I first saw TRL in the theatre, I was disappointed. I expected another Saving Private Ryan and didn't get it, for which I am now grateful. It's my opinion that TRL and SPR are masterpieces in their own rights and to compare them against each other is counterproductive and does little or nothing to encourage others in viewing them.
It doesn't have 'slam-bang' action from scene-to-scene, moment-to-moment; Neither did the actual battle campaign. If you need to see endless on-screen 'combat', you may want to pass on this one. If you want a film that says a lot with outstanding acting and insight into the minds of its characters, this is a very good start. Women might enjoy this film more than the others, not just because of the actors but by the philosophical merit of the script.
It's not really like "Saving Private Ryan" at all. It's more akin to "84 Charlie MoPic" than "Apocalypse Now". This is a different style of film than SPR, etc. Different director, different storyline, different setting (U.S. ARMY at Guadalcanal in '42, NOT Marines!). They were all outstanding filmatic interpretations of men engaged in the vicious, murderous business of War. As were other films such as "A Midnight Clear", "Catch-22" and "M*A*S*H*"(the 1970 film). Check 'em out.
The Thin Red Line (1998)
Different; See it once, see it twice...
I have seen this film a few more times and remarkably, it just gets better and better each time. I'll concur that it's arty, but so what? When I first saw TRL in the theatre, I was disappointed. I expected another Saving Private Ryan and didn't get it, for which I am now grateful. It's my opinion that TRL and SPR are masterpieces in their own rights and to compare them against each other is counterproductive and does little or nothing to encourage others in viewing them.
It doesn't have 'slam-bang' action from scene-to-scene, moment-to-moment; Neither did the actual battle campaign. If you need to see endless on-screen 'combat', you may want to pass on this one. If you want a film that says a lot with outstanding acting and insight into the minds of its characters, this is a very good start. Women might enjoy this film more than the others, not just because of the actors but by the philosophical merit of the script.
It's not really like "Saving Private Ryan" at all. It's more akin to "84 Charlie MoPic" than "Apocalypse Now". This is a different style of film than SPR, etc. Different director, different storyline, different setting (U.S. ARMY at Guadalcanal in '42, NOT Marines!). They were all outstanding filmatic interpretations of men engaged in the vicious, murderous business of War. As were other films such as "A Midnight Clear", "Catch-22" and "M*A*S*H*"(the 1970 film). Check 'em out.
Analyze This (1999)
Very Laughable.
I wasn't expecting a deep comedy and didn't need to find it which admittedly worked out fine. There's nothing cerebral about the mob. But I still found the film to be downright hilarious! With the possible exception of the last 10 mins. or so which were just ok. However, Jelly was a big scene stealer throughout.
And as for the the cussing: What-the-*@#%! did you expect?!? It's a Mafia themed *#$%!& movie. If you've seen the Scorcese and Tarantino films of this genre, the language is more than expectable. It seemed appropriate enough most the time from this perspective. If copious use of "f***" and its derivatives tend to annoy you, then you may want to avoid this film.
Try this: Give the movie a fair shot and see if the movie is funny for YOUR own reasons and not someone else's. You don't need to be a fan of any of the actors to see the humour in this satirical comedy: it's a joke. It's not meant to be profound. At least it's not slapstick.
Empire of the Sun (1987)
Remarkable, no...Amazing.
For some reason about a month ago, I felt like renting Empire Of the Sun again after not seeing much of it in about 9 or 10 years. The first time I saw it, I was living in Hong Kong so the China angle didn't mean much to me. And perhaps I was too young (18/19) or impatient to fully grasp the depth of the performances and story. Well, this past couple times it was a different matter entirely. I found the film to be outstanding, even beautiful at times.
Christian Bale gave perhaps one of the most incredible performances I've seen for any actor, not just one of his age in the film. You'll be amazed. And the scenes of Shanghai were awesome. From my own experience in Hong Kong, I had no trouble believing that was really Shanghai.
Anyone reading this who has not seen the film yet, see it. Take what everyone else here has said as more than just hype. You'll be glad you took the time to watch the film through. And you'll have the same question that everyone else has about this film - Why wasn't Christian Bale given the Academy Award for this? "Difficult boy..."