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Reviews
Kruimeltje (1999)
Go and see "Kruimeltje"
A lovely story about a boy, given away as a baby to a nasty woman, in search for his parents.
Filmed in the tradition of musicals like David Copperfield and Oliver Twist, without the songs and with the sense of reality that's typical for most Dutch movies. I quite liked it and the children too, apparently: a cinema full of little ones, silent as mice.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Adorable!!!
I must have seen it three times now, if not more.... I JUST LOVE IT!!! I'm not going to elaborate on the gaps in the story line, I can fill them in myself. Or the significance of the symbolics, I couldn't care less. And I'm not about to question E.T.'s intelligence.... I just sit myself down and enjoy the heroic deeds of a few children, the funny (drunk) E.T. with his beautiful big blue eyes and the magic atmosphere altogether. I cry my heart out when it starts to go wrong (even after the third time)... I'm thrilled when E.T. is on his way home, knowing that he'll always be Elliot's guardian angel.
Just the Ticket (1998)
more like a tragic comedy
Totally prepared for a-rainy-afternoon-fun-with-movie, got something else. A bunch of sorry people of which you know little more afterwards, an unlikely couple (Garcia and McDowall) and an unavoidably slick villain. The end is unpredictable but corny at the same time. In conclusion: the makers should better have made a clear choice either way, comedy or drama. Now it is neither.
The Thin Red Line (1998)
This is what war is when you're fighting in it!
I sat down for on a rainy Sunday afternoon for some easy-to-follow-hero-stuff. Apparently I hadn't paid attention while making a choice at the videostore and got caught by something completely different. This movie shows how I always thought war would be like when you're actually fighting in it. It shows the constant fear whether you'll live through the next moment. The disorientation of being in an hostile environment. The atypical behavior (or is it precisely typical) you develop in that environment. The doubt of what you are doing is right of wrong. Being almost delivered up to the mercy of higher ranking officers with ambitions, who will gladly give up your life to reach their goal. All this is brought to you by the random thoughts of the individual soldier. The casting adds to the feeling of alienation: big names that are almost anonymous in the crowd of "war-meat" and live and die just as the rest. In essence it's about the risk of loosing you're humanity. And what's the purpose of it all? As Sean Penn states at one point: "It's all about property", which - to my opinion - is basically true.
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
A lovely lightfooted story
A lovely humorous interpretation of how "Romeo and Juliette" could have been created, the torment of an inspired poet and how to survive as such in that particular era. I liked the pun on well known phrases. Just imagine that Juliette would have been called Ethel! My husband kept wondering how they got the beautiful, long, blond hairdo of Viola under the short, brown wig of Thomas Kent.
A Civil Action (1998)
Boring!!
Another court-of-law movie but a very boring one.... It drags along with semi-psychological sequences, that amount to nothing. The characters are very superficial and the story line is blurry in an attempt to bring suspense into it. I've seen better from either Robert Duval and John Travolta.
Deep Red (1994)
Fun on an otherwise boring evening
Home alone and a die hard Scifi-fan. Vaguely triggered by the name of Biehn in the TV-guide. Apart from the apparent alien 'reds'(a bacteria-sort-of-thing that extends life-expectancy), it feels more like looking at a Micky Spilane-like detective. A p.i. who tries to save a little girl from a mad professor and saves his tormented soul in the process.
But it was good fun watching it.
Paulie (1998)
I like talking animals... and Cheech Marin
I know, I know: it's childish. But I just love this type of movie. A bird that suffered a lot of "mishaps" and still hasn't lost his faith in humanity and his sense of humor. What's special about this film is the fact that the main character is Paulie -the parrot- and he's not used as a boost to some hotshot human actor. Furthermore I like the storyline: Paulie tells his lifestory to a cleaner at the point he hit rock bottom. (By the way: Jay Mohr's voice almost sounds like Joe Pesci's!). And Cheech Marin of course, the man IS humor to me. Ever since I saw "Up in Smoke" I have appreciated his naive way of performing, making a simple situation a hilarious one.. can't help myself.
Very Bad Things (1998)
literally overkill
Triggered by the names of Christian Slater en Cameron Diaz: they usually stand for unconventional choices of scripts. Well unconventional it is... but totally over the top! Incredible plot, neurotic acting, irritating characters, totally missed the humor. In short: annoying, a would-be new violence!
Boerenpsalm (1989)
Amusing tale
The movie tells the life-story of Wortel (carrot or root), a young flemish farmer at the beginning of this century. Birth and death, love and lust, hardship and simple happiness, they are all ingredients. Brought to the viewer in a slightly detached yet humorous way. I quite liked it.
Ladyhawke (1985)
I grew up with this guy!!
The only movie-star I ever fell in love with: Rutger Hauer. Well, I was in my teens then of course... But Floris was my absolute favorite! I still love fantasy, even though my friends pity on me. Lady Hawk is all a girl could want, romance, sorcery, adventure.. and a hero, who leaves no stone unturned to rescue his beloved (and himself in this case). Michelle Pfeiffer to console my husband in the terror of having to watch these movies with me. For those who are interested: watch "Turks Fruit", a Paul Verhoeven movie, starring Rutger.. more contemporary but great also!
Les parapluies de Cherbourg (1964)
Sound of my youth
I must have been twelve when I saw this movie for the first time (1970). My mother, two younger sisters and I used to watch every romantic movie we could lay our hands on. The melody of the song "Les parapluies de Cherbourg" has stayed with me ever since. Every now and again I would hum it, never meeting anyone who recognized it. Seeing it again after such a long time was a new experience. Never expected it to be a cult-movie. Even my husband (he likes a movie when they're weird) liked it! Admitted, it's a strange movie, but I'll always feel that thoroughly romantic sensation when I think of it, as if I were twelve again!
Runaway (1984)
Absolutely outdated!
When I say Runaway the first time I the fun action thriller. Admitted it was about 1984, but I thought it to be nice to see Runaway for a second time. Mistake, there's nothing left of the story, that had to be pulled through by special effects, which are totally outdated. I should have kept the memory.
Amateur (1994)
The only thing that keeps you watching is amazement
This is the worst movie I can remember having watched! A sort of "new violence but not really" type of movie. Bad acting, stupid plot, going nowhere, ending nowhere. The only thing I liked was the Edward-character.
Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles (1994)
Romantic vampires
Although I thoroughly dislike horror, I'm always drawn to the supernatural. Especially when they look like the threesome Cruise/Pitt/Banderas. The way the movie was made you almost expect to encounter a vampire on your next walk through the park, but in this case please let it be Louis (Pitt). The vampire as a predator but before all as the victim, given shape in a sensual setting. I liked it!
Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
Sorrow
Despite my dislike of horror: one can't ignore a movie with Gary Oldman. This film however has little to do with horror. Of course it has all the characteristics of it: violence, blood, gloom, anxious suspense etcetera. But what especially got to me was the grief, the irreversibility of choices made and the inevitability of the outcome.
Doctor Dolittle (1998)
LOL for the first time in a long time
I laughed out loud for the first time in a long time. Especially the animal-lines were big fun. I liked the many references to other movies too. Eddy Murphy however needs a great deal of assistance in making a success of his movies lately. I'm still drawn to films featuring Eddie, but you can't be sure of a hit anymore.
The Negotiator (1998)
Predictable and long-winded
The events of a good cop trying to prove his innocence are totally predictable and long-winded. In the end the good guys (Jackson and Spacey) obviously "win", but it doesn't get very clear what the whole fuzz was really about. The bad guys suddenly appear to be some "stormtroopers" who come out of nowhere and the genius behind it all is an old man, who potters around in the movie, having nothing useful to do.
The Truman Show (1998)
High expectation
Although having had higher expectation as a result of the media-exposure it's a good movie. Except for The Mask the first movie in which I can appreciate Jim Carrey. Ed Harris shines as the dictatorial director(with a paternal twist in the end?). The special effects where very appealing and added strongly to the humorous scenes.