mrhysterium Reviews

Thoughtcrimes (2003 TV Movie)

Fantastic !

[8/10 · 8 July 2004]

I rented this expecting it to be so bad (as most direct-to-video thrillers are) and I was pleasantly surprised.

It was fantastic.

One of the best movies I've rented this year. Well acted & directed and the filming was awesome. I've never seen Navi Rawat in anything else and I was very impressed with her controlled performance of Freya. Amazing performer. Joe Flanigan, Peter Horton and Jocelyn Seagrave, (whom I remembered from TV's Pacific Palisades), round out the top cast. The music was appropriate and complimented the action well.

The writing was a bit episodic and I felt like it was sometimes more a TV series than a film. I wish it was a TV series cuz I'd love to see Freya's next adventures.

Highly Recommended

-Brando-

Wild Things 2 (2004 Video)

A decent sequel. Stupid - but funny!

[7/10 · 26 February 2004]

I was rather excited about the upcoming release of WILD THINGS 2. It featured Susan Ward whose career I followed from Sunset Beach and it basically just sounded like a wild romp, similar to the original.

Basically it is! The plot is very similar and the characters are imitations of the original ones - but I recommend this film for a great night out. It's glossy, it's sexy, it's great! There isn't too many surprises, but who cares.

The two leading ladies were great to watch and most of the performances were quite good for a direct-to-video film. The girls (together with Isaiah Washington) have bright futures in film - if only they can get out of this DTV mould they're making. Joe Michael Burke, on the other hand, who plays a coroner is terribly bad, stumbling upon his lines like a recital. And that Katie Stuart girl who played Brittney's friend? (Loud fart noise!)

Yes, you can see the plot twists coming a mile off AND the film does rip off several scenes (with minor tweaking) from the original (swamp scenes, double crossing, the courtroom, end credits, menage a trois, the assembly hall, etc...), but give it a go! It's nice, trashy entertainment that's shot extremely well and directed with a fair amount of stab by Jack Perez

Don't rent it with any high expectations. It is the bastard half-sister of the original, so just have fun, laugh along.

Man Down (2001)

What a stupid idea

[1/10 · 1 April 2002]

Why is this listed in IMDB? 'Man Down' is a pathetic short film the remaining seven housemates in reality TV series, "Big Brother", were forced to make. Basically it stinks.

Johnnie takes the director's chair and does a crap job. Why do people find this trash funny? Blair and Ben are the token male cast members, both with the personality and energy of five-month old roadkill. Who would have thought Blair would later find an acting career on aussie soap, "Neighbours". Grrghh. It won't last. Probably because Blair can't act.

The girls do an equally pathetic job. Anita inspired a thousand headaches with her irritating voice whilst at least Sara-Marie generated a few laughs.

Give a group of eight-year olds a video camera and ask them to make a film. The result will be a product much better than MAN DOWN.

1/10 1 point goes to the slasher genre they chose to use. It was nice to see BIG BROTHER housemates getting killed off I guess.

Cleo Bachelor of the Year (2000 TV Special)

Garbage

[1/10 · 28 March 2002]

A waste of celluloid, CLEO BACHELOR OF THE YEAR gave viewers a chance to catch a few washed-up famous faces and celebrity-wannabes (as well as a few unfamiliar blokes) being photographed *almost* in the buff.

Jackie O and her army of judges sit around pouting and talking trash for an hour. I can't believe they get paid for this.

1/10

Velvet Goldmine (1998)

Not my cup of tea

[1/10 · 28 March 2002]

I didn't enjoy this film. I can understand why it received it's fair share of acclaim, but personally I found it disturbing. Toni Collette delivers a nice performance, as usual, but McGregor, Bale and Rhys-Meyers seemed as though they wished they were elsewhere.

It's likely that many will find "Velvet Goldmine" a good film. I really hated it.

1/10