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Reviews
Monster (2003)
Anti Death Penalty movie
Charlize Theron did an excellent job in the movie Monster and in my opinion deserves to be awarded the best actress award. My problem with the movie is that the majority of the focus of the movie was portraying her as the victim in a love relationship with another female. Sprinkled in the film was Charlize's character killing men as a prostitute for a few dollars. This was a movie based on a true story where Charlize's character was executed in Florida for all of her murders. In my opinion, whomever directed and produced this movie was trying to show the human side of murder and that she did not deserve the death penalty. I realize that this was NOT a documentary, but it could have enhanced the real trial proceedings instead of covering it up with soft music.
Lost in Translation (2003)
Nice Tokyo setting
I have trouble understanding why this movie rates so high by both the members on this board and the critics who nominated it for Best Picture. What I liked about the movie was the view of modern Tokyo. The nice hotel, the nightclubs, the skyscrapers and the freeways. I did learn that in Japan, they also drive on the left side of the road. It does make me want to visit Tokyo on a tour someday. That is what I enjoyed about the movie.
The Thin Red Line (1998)
Not a good war movie
I guess after seeing Saving Private Ryan, I thought that The Thin Red Line would be almost as good, considering its length. With a cast that includes George Clooney, Nick Nolte, John Cusack and John Travolta, one would expect more. I think I understand that the point of the movie is having the characters display their inner struggle with war and in one good case, authority. Not that there is anything wrong with that; its just that I didn't expect all three hours to be devoted to that theme.
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Very little is mentioned on the location of the film with the exception of the map of Guadacanal. It seems that this theme would have been much better done in a Vietnam type of setting. The scene where a body is split into two by a possible land mine is isolated from the rest of the movie.
In summary, it seems like a waste of time with the great cast of characters and the length of the film.
The Postman Always Rings Twice (1981)
A bad ending for this remake.
************Possible Spoilers Here*********
I just finished watching both versions of The Postman Always Rings Twice. My main complaint against the remake is that the ending is not sufficient. In my opinion, if someone did not see the first version of the movie, one might be left with a few questions. First, leading up to the incident in the shower, the dialogue is a little lackluster as to what is going on. Second, there is no mention of the phrase, "The Postman Always Rings Twice." The original version had a much better ending leaving the impression that in crime, you can not have it both ways.
The performances in the remake were very good as were the sex scenes. The violence was better shown of course in the 1981 version. It is still worth watching both versions of the movie. See the old version first, then the second one and compare the story lines.
Shine (1996)
Shine has a few clouds
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Shine was a good film but in my opinion, has a few holes that the viewer must assume to fill in the gaps. A film should try and title it's location, especially if it is out of the U.S. I'm assuming that Shine took place in Australia by the credits. Also, when a film goes back to someone's past, like in David's case, they should tell the audience how many years ago it was. The major hole in Shine is what exactly was David's disease? One place I read said it was a nervous breakdown brought on by David's father and teachers. It seemed to me that it was a form of Parkinson's disease that gradually progressed over 15 years or so.
The best part about Shine was the relationship between David and his strict father. David's father seemed worried more about losing his only son than what David could actually accomplish with his gift. It's too bad that the film didn't focus a little more attention on David's "condition" and what the root cause of it was.
All the King's Men (1949)
A good case study of a man and the system
All the kings men was a good case study in how politics often works in today's world, rightly or wrongly. Willie Stark was your average rural Joe in a southern state who didn't like the way that politicians lied to the people. Willie thought that there must be a way to hold political office without all the lies and scandals that go with it. Willie Stark ending up becoming what he had originally campaigned against.
This 1949 film shows how little has changed in politics over the last 50 years. It does a good job with the character changes in Willie Stark over time and with the people around him. A pretty good film to see.
Annie Hall (1977)
Good use of political incorrectness
Annie Hall is a must see movie for anyone who likes one liners and politically incorrect humor. Woody Allen does an excellent job in this film without coming across in a hateful manner. We need more of these types of films. It seems that many of us get too sensitive over generalities not directly aimed at one individual. We all need to lighten up a bit on this type of humor. It's good medicine.
Solaris (2002)
A lack of emotion in this film
I have not seen 2001: A Space Odyssey yet, which is what Solaris is sometimes compared to. I did not like the mixing of psychology, science fiction, and surrealism all in one short film. This is because it becomes to easy to read all kinds of possibilities into the film. In addition, the characters all had a monotone to most of their dialogue which can make one become quickly bored without any heated emotion.
The Hours (2002)
An overdose on depression
I thought the concept of three intertwined stories was great. The acting was good in all three stories as well. The only problem I have with this film, and it's a big problem, is that it makes you want to run for the Prozac. There was way too much depression in this film. I kept thinking that things would soon turn around for somebody in the film, but instead it got worse for everyone. A better film that uses intertwined stories was American Beauty. I give Hours a rating of 6/10.
Star Trek: The Experience - The Klingon Encounter (1998)
Nice, but not worth the price of admission
I saw the Experience shortly after it first opened. I thought that the museum was nice and the ride with the film was nice. The ride was lame in my opinion; and I'm not big on carnival type rides. I also thought that the price was a little steep for the ride and show. Nevertheless it was a good attempt to recreate the image of being on one of the Starships.
GoldenEye (1995)
There's a new M in town
After a six year absence, Pierce Brosnan picks up the role of James Bond in 1995's Goldeneye. Judy Dench also becomes the new M. The series is updated as noticed by talk about sexual harassment. Also, the cold war is over and M lets James Bond know that by calling him a relic of the cold war and a dinosaur. She's also quick to criticize his cavalier attitude towards life. Over the next few Bond films, M warms up a lot more to Bond.
Goldeneye had a good cast of characters playing the bad guys. Sean Bean did an excellent job playing a former British agent joining a crime syndicate. The female character of Onatopp was both good and original. She likes to squeeze her victims to death in a body scissors. Each character's personality in Goldeneye was well scripted. Goldeneye is actually one of my favorite all time Bond films because of the cast of characters.
Licence to Kill (1989)
A different approach having your license revoked
Timothy Dalton actually did a good job portraying James Bond. License to Kill was a very unique movie. First, it had a movie rating of PG-13 which was higher than any other Bond film up to that point. Second, Bond had his license revoked because he was pursuing a personal agenda against the orders from M. This is the only film in the series where something like that has happened. Timothy Dalton has a more serious edge to his character of James Bond than the others. For License to Kill, this fit perfectly. For those who are only moderate James Bond film watchers and state that all the movies seem like carbon copies of each other, you may want to watch License to Kill for something different.
Octopussy (1983)
One of the best cold war films ever.
Octopussy is one of the best cold war films ever. It really goes into depth with its main plot. Rogue communists are trying to take things into their own hands being dissatisfied with the way the Kremlin is handling arms control talks. The plot is to have a nuclear bomb explode in West Berlin from an unknown source. The hope is that the Americans and the Germans will call it a nuclear accident and that the already high calls for nuclear disarmament in Western Europe will lead to the dismantling of all nuclear weapons. This would give the Soviet advantage in conventional forces an opportunity to invade Western Europe.
After you grasp all that you can just sit back and enjoy the film. Maud Adams does a great job claiming to know nothing about what her associates are up to while maintaining a profitable smuggling business. I think that Roger Moore did a great job in this film. The humor was actually good and not corny. The East German circus twins definitely portrayed that tough communist loyalty well in this film.
Octopussy is a film worth repeated viewing for both the action and the plot scheme.
You Only Live Twice (1967)
This organization does not tolerate failure.
You Only Live Twice is one of my favorite Bond films. I like the character of Blofeld in general and Donald Pleasance does an excellent job with the role. Some of his lines that I get a kick out of include, "This organization does not tolerate failure.",Kill Bond now!","It won't be the nicotine that kills you Mr. Bond.","Extortion is my business.",and,"This is the price for failure Mr. Bond." You may notice a pattern throughout the Bond films with Bolfeld. He has a certain amount of respect for James Bond and is quick to kill his own associates when they screw up. Blofeld always enjoys sharing his schemes with Bond which is why he always ends up giving Bond enough time to foil his plots. That is part of the personality of Blofeld. He wants to have Bond see him triumph as sort of a self satisfying ego booster.
You Only Live Twice was a well done plot line for 1967. Sean Connery did a great job in a more reactive role for all the situations he fell into. He displayed quick reactions with some humour that was not too corny. It's easy to tell he was not as comfortable in Japan as he is in other locations. One example of this is after Tanaka had him slide into his office. Tanaka asked Bond if his mother advised him not to get into a car with a strange girl. Then Tanaka went on to tell Bond that he would get into anything with any girl. Osato and #11 were quite a pair that fit well for this type of movie. When Osato and #11 started blaming each other in front of Blofeld for failing to kill James Bond, Blofeld sent #11 into a tank of giant man-eating piranahs.
I do enjoy the creative ways of killing people by the villains in the Bond films. It seems that the newer Bond films have strayed just a little bit from that using more conventional means for killing people.
Thunderball (1965)
Much better than the remake Never Say Never Again
I just wanted to comment on how I thought Thunderball was much better organized than the remake, Never Say Never Again. How the atomic weapons were stolen was one of the best parts of Thunderball. It just seemed that there was more intensity in Thunderball. Part of this may have been due to an attempt to make a competing Bond film after legal battles with the original Bond producing company. The underwater battles were actually well done in Thunderball. Usually I don't care too much for underwater footage but this film made it clear as to what was happening.
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
A most excellent history lesson dudes.
This movie gets high marks for originality and creativity. It was also the movie that put Keanu Reeves on the map. (no pun intended.) 13 years later, phrases made famous in this film are still being used today. The title is often quoted substituting current names. NO WAY, be excellent to each other, all we are is dust in the wind, and party on dudes, are some of the catchy sayings from that film. Bill and Ted must time travel to the past and learn about history so they can pass their final exam. In the process, they bring back the actual characters from the past to present day California. Characters such as Socrates, Napoleon, and Abraham Lincoln are suddenly walking around shopping malls and bowling alleys. What makes this funny is that Bill and Ted are a couple of goof balls when it comes to school. Ted, (Keanu Reeves), cannot even pronounce the names of these characters correctly.
The film is extremely funny and both Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter are actually believable doing their goof ball routine. I only wish the film could have devoted a little more time to the historical characters wandering around in present day California. The film portrays that laid back suburban airhead stereotype pretty well when the historical characters introduce themselves to the locals. At one point, Bill's mom, when introduced to the likes of Socrates and Abraham Lincoln, says `nice to meet you;' as if they were just other ordinary people. The bottom line, if you like history, you will love this movie. In general, I do not care for comedy films where the plot is ridiculous, but credit goes to both the actors and the writers in this film to make someone like myself enjoy it.
Great Performances: Suddenly, Last Summer (1993)
A good southern dramatic performance by Rob Lowe
I saw this movie on PBS several years ago by accident because I saw that Rob Lowe was in it. A good theatrical southern drama that takes place in the 30's I think. I would like to see it again as I think I might appreciate it more. Rob Lowe enters a family's lion's den as Dr. Sugar hoping to obtain funding for his project. He plays a southern doctor during the 30's very well, accent and all..Dr. Sugar does this delicate balancing act while the rest of the family members are being melodramatic in the old southern aristocracy way. He ends up hypnotizing Miss Foxhill and starts falling in love with her.
I'm surprised this movie has not been on television more. It does bring out a different acting style to what we are used to seeing Rob Lowe do. If you get a chance to rent it, it is worth seeing just for the classical southern dramatics.
The Devil's Advocate (1997)
Vanity, my favorite sin
The Devil's advocate is one of those movies you watch the first time just to see the climax, then with repeated viewing you pick up on the message of humanity and sin. Al Pacino plays the role of Satan in a very powerful and believable manner. The exchange between Keanu Reeves and Al Pacino towards the end of the film may upset a few people's religious beliefs. Al Pacino as Satan really makes you think and nod your head in agreement. Warning....Al Pacino is so convincing he may make some people start questioning their own beliefs. Keanu Reeves is at his best when confronting Satan as if he is playing poker with him. In the end he succumbs to vanity as all humans do from time to time. I think that Keanu portrayed the stages of Kevin Lomax well. He goes from a small town southern lawyer who never questions why he never loses a case, to a big city attorney who hears revelations from his mother about his father and sees his wife commit suicide. In the end, Kevin Lomax uses one of Satan's lines, "free will", against him. This is an excellent film worth seeing again and again.
Sweet November (2001)
Both Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron give good performances in Sweet November
I thought Sweet November was an above average romance movie. A few qualifiers are in order here. First, I never saw the original, second, I normally do not care for romantic movies, and third, I am a big fan of Keanu Reeves. The reviews are quick to call Nelson Moss a self absorbed work-aholic. The movie does bring out a little of Nelson's past explaining how he feared he would end up like his father and the rest of the neighbors on his block. Combine that with the high pressure in today's society to get ahead, and you can understand why Nelson is obsessed with work. Sara is very original and entertaining and makes you wonder if she's all there or what is she up to. After almost 90 minutes into the film, you will see why Sara is the way she is and maybe enjoy the movie. Keanu does a good performance with Nelson, creating a believable image of a single focused Ad Executive. One can see many women saying "typical male," and many men thinking of Nelson as a typical best buddy. As is true with many things in life, Nelson goes from one extreme to the other. In the end, Sara becomes his single focus in life. Trying to find the middle road is a central theme in many of Keanu's movie roles. I liked the acting in this film. It wasn't too dramatic nor was it bland. It was right down the middle.
The Watcher (2000)
The interaction between Keanu Reeves, James Spader and Marisa Tomei make this film
The relationship between the characters in the Watcher sets it apart from other serial killer movies. In fact, I would have liked another 15 minutes in the movie to bring out those relationships even more. I would have liked a little more elaboration on what happened in the past between James Spader and Keanu Reeves. Also, I wish the movie had shown part of the session between the Psychologist, played by Marisa Tomei, and the serial killer, played by Keanu Reeves. Marisa Tomei's facial reaction to Keanu Reeves' comment prior to the session was perfect. "Do clients come to see you because you are good or because you are very pretty." (Line by Reeves to Tomei - maybe not verbatum)
Keanu Reeves plays David Griffin very well. This is another example showing how Keanu Reeves can take any character and make it both believable and likeable to some extent. Both Reeves and Spader display the need for each other by the end of the film. Yes, I did detect at least a professional need by Spader for Reeves in the Watcher. So did Marisa Tomei I think. This movie had both a good balance of a crime drama, with the police and car chase scenes, and strong character development. My only complaint is like others have said on this board, I felt it was rushed.
Much Ado About Nothing (1993)
What bridge did you fall off of?
I guess I am not into Shakespere much. I had trouble deciphering half of what everyone was saying. That's too bad because the setting and the scenery looked great; very bright, colorful and full of sunshine. I think had the dialogue been all modern English, I would have enjoyed it much more. This is the type of movie that entertains a certain niche of viewers. I think it was well done for what the film was trying to do. It's all a matter of taste.
A Few Good Men (1992)
With humor and explosiveness, Tom Cruise delivers
I rated this movie a 10 on this site because I enjoyed every moment from start to finish. It's rare that I want to see a movie over and over again just to anticipate the dialogue. There was not a wasted moment in the entire film. The best scene unmatched in my opinion from any other movie is the exchange at the end between Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson. Tom Cruise feels the challenges of not living up to his late father's expectations in this film and goes for broke to prove to himself and everyone else that he is up to the job. He has an explosiveness that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Demi Moore does an excellent job pushing Tom Cruise to reach his full potential in this film. The film also does a good job showing the consequences of blindly following any order no matter what the illegalities may be. Thinking of the consequences of one's actions is a broad theme throughtout this film. I also thought that the humor and one liners fit in perfectly and added a sense of reality and balance to this movie. It doesn't get any better than this.
Feeling Minnesota (1996)
Keanu and the rest of the cast create "Fargo" atmosphere
I really liked this movie. It reminded me of the movie "Fargo." There were enough twists and turns mixed in with the goofball depiction of the characters to keep me interested. I thought the acting was good enough to make the characters surreal rather than stupid. This is a movie worth watching repeatedly. As usual, Keanu Reeves does a great job with his character from beginning to end in a spontaneous fashion as the situation is very fluid.
Chain Reaction (1996)
Huge potential which I thought could have been better
I thought that the story line centering around the USA being addicted to oil imports was very good and a subject that we all ignore when the price of gas is reasonable. Using alternative energy sources as a theme should be no less than a blockbuster. This is why I only rated this movie a 6. I thought the potential was much greater here. In addition, this movie did not allow Keanu Reeves to bring out a very strong character in my opinion as compared to many of his other movies.
Speed (1994)
Keanu is up to speed in this film
After just watching this movie again for the first time in awhile, I can tell you what separates this movie from many others of the same type. The growing relationship between Keanu and Sandra in this movie is top notch. They balance each others' personalities perfectly. Also, Dennis H. reminded me of Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs. Keanu Reeves makes Jack Logan fight to stay focused and think quickly to keep up with the challenge. I would like to see Keanu do more movies in which he acts in the law enforcement capacity.