vizfam Reviews

Change in the Air (2018)

Left me wanting more

[6/10 · 7 March 2020]

I decided to watch this film on Netflix only because it had Rachel Bronhahan in it, who I love. I knew nothing about the plot prior to viewing. At the end I was left wanting more. It has all the ingredients: love, compassion; community, spirituality, humanness, but they never come together to create a satisfying narrative. It is a difficult movie to figure out, maybe that is what the writer intended. Who knows. The movie to me is like a downhill racer who has the best skis, the best boots, the best poles, the best goggles and the best intentions, but still can only come in 6th.

The Girl on the Train (2016)

Nobody in this movie is likable, except the baby.

[7/10 · 1 November 2018]

A psychologically divorced alcoholic women rides the train every day without a destination in mind. She notices a couple living in a house by the RR tracks. The couple seem very much in love and she imagines being loved like that women There are a number of flash backs but they are not too confusing. The first 20 minutes makes little sense. Stick with it and the plot will unfold. Very good thriller..

Mona Lisa Smile (2003)

Fun and entertaining as well as inspirational.

[9/10 · 11 June 2012]

A look back at a slice of American culture during the early fifties, just prior to the era of Rock n Roll. A forward thinking art professor( Julia Roberts) secures a teaching position at a very conservative all girls college in New England. She hopes to bring change to the way women see their roles in society. She only lasts a year in that job, but in that year she has affected her students, in ways that are life altering, and at the same time they have done the same for her. Beautifully photographed, wonderfully written and acted,and all within a period setting that brings back fond memories for me. I've seen it at least five times. Sit back and enjoy.

Change of Habit (1969)

Worth a Look

[6/10 · 17 March 2012]

Elvis last movie, and one that reflects his maturity, since it was released in 1969, when he was thirty four years of age.His first movie was in 1956, when he was 19. The vast difference is evident. The part he plays is an odd but welcome role for him. He gets to do some serious acting for a change. He is not a bad actor in this movie. The social and racial times are reflected through out the movie. The use of the 'N" word is rather shocking, especially when uttered by a small child. The ignorance about the causes and treatment of children with autism, at that time is apparent in the way it is dealt with. Racial stereotypes are pepper through out this production. Still it is worth a look.

The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd (1987–1991)

Great series

[8/10 · 26 August 2006]

Nothing crude about this show, nice stories and nice characters. Blair Brown was the most beautiful woman on TV at that time. This was a simpler time for sitcoms. I suspect that the generation today would find them provincial and quaint. Not enough sexual content for the young taste buds. I have some of these shows on VHS and occasionally I will put them on and get lost in Molly's smile. I just wish that this series would become available on DVD. I understand that the show is being aired on one of the cable stations "Goodtime" or something like that, anyway I don't get it, so hopefully it will be broadcast again on Lifetime.

Every Girl Should Be Married (1948)

Every feminist should watch this

[9/10 · 6 August 2006]

That was just my little dig at the PC crowd. This movie may be an anachronism for today's society, but it is a fun watch, and a highly entertaining movie. It stars Cary Grant and Betsey Drake. Betsy plays a goofy girl with a good heart, who pursues the seemingly unattainable Grant, who she fell for after they met at a magazine rack in a local store. She is smitten and pursues him like a woman obsessed. Grant is a pediatrician, who has no interest in her whatsoever. She creates what seem like chance meetings, much to the chagrin of Grant. He is wise to her antics and just finds them amusing, knowing full well that this relationship will never get off the ground . I as a viewer thought to myself that there is no way this good looking successful man is going to fall for this goofy and strange person. If that happened today he would probably get a restraining order out against her. The two of them have this wonderful interplay that is very amusing. He does a brief imitation of her to someone, and it is dead on. I always wondered if he improvised that scene. I won't tell you the ending, since you may not have seen it, but it is a surprise. Betsy Drake and Cary Grant were married soon after doing this movie together. I believe the marriage lasted 10 years. Give it a shot. They certainly don't make them like this anymore

Strangers When We Meet (1960)

Hot cars, Hot plot ,and Hot Kim Novak

[8/10 · 3 August 2006]

I saw this movie when it first came out in 1960. I loved it then, and I still find it appealing 4 decades later. I was a teenager in the 50's and Kim Novak was the epitome of beauty and sexuality for that era, and she is at her peak in this role. There is so much to say about this movie; Kirt Douglas strong masculine performance, with Novak complimenting him with her subdued, almost melancholy performance. The storyline is simple, Kirt and Kim are both married, but not to each other. Kim is love starved, her husband he a cold individual, who is more interest in open the mail, than opening her blouse, he spurns her attempts at romance at every turn. I can't imagine that happening with a woman like her. I don't know if the director was aware of it at the time, but her husband today would be view as a repressed homosexual,but in the 50's any hint of that was taboo. Kirt has a nice enough wife and 2 children and seems to be somewhat content, but apparently under the surface smothers a restlessness, that I don't think he was even aware of existed. When he sees Kim at a school bus stop where they both drop off their child, he is smitten. He pursues her, she resists in the beginning, but when her husband continues to ignore her, she gives in. The results are a passionate affair resulting in 2 destroyed marriages and the separation from each other. There are a few subplots that keep the story moving but it is Kim and Kirt who set the screen on fire

The War of the Worlds (1953)

1 of the 5 best sifi's of all time

[10/10 · 1 August 2006]

I saw this movie when it first came out in 1953. I was an impressionable 12 years old at the time, and it scared the crap out of me.It was a time to be scared, with the fears of all out atomic war with the Russians, and television public service announcements informing us, not to be near a window, or stay out of the rain if an Atom bomb landed near your home or school. This movie, some say was a metaphor for those times. Sifi movies at that time most always portrayed the aliens as hostile and only interest in destroying or taking over the earth. Today of course the aliens are kinder and gentler. This movie is a gem from beginning to end, from the creepy intro, to the church scene near the end, and certainly the final scene. I remember thinking at the time that maybe that could happen to the Aliens if they in fact did invade. It was a very comforting thought to a 12 year old

The Long, Hot Summer (1958)

Great 50's classic.

[10/10 · 1 August 2006]

I want Varners and more Varners. This is just one quote from one of the best written movies I have ever seen. The dialog is superb, in a class with such greats as "His gal Friday and 'All about Eve". Paul Neuman and Joanne Woodward are magical together. I don't think I have every seen a couple with such chemistry on the screen together. The supporting cast is also wonderful. Lee Remick is in the flower of her youth and beauty. Orson Well is crude and delicious, you may have to put on the dialog mode when he speaks. Tony Franciosa is pathetic in crying out for his fathers love. Some of the structure is a little dated and hollywoodish, but it is the script deliver by Neuman and Woodward that carries the show. It should be required viewing for all wantabe writers, or maybe not. The movie might just discourage them from pursuing that kind of a career.

The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005)

Foul and vulgar

[1/10 · 1 August 2006]

It is amazing to me what passes for entertainment today. maybe I am a dinosaur from the fifties, and I am out of touch with todays movie going generation, and apparently that is the case with regards to this movie, since so many people loved it. I found it foul and vulgar. I haven't said that about many movies in my life but this one fits the bill. The humor is sophomoric and crude. I am not a politically correct person, and even I found the gay jokes, not only not funny but downright offensive ( I'm not gay). The main character in the movie is not even a likable person, just pathetic. When the movie was finally over i heard a number of people comment on how disappointed they were in what they had just pay good money to see.

Heat (1995)

One of the great movie of the 90's

[10/10 · 1 August 2006]

There are too many superlatives regarding this movie to be listed.I have viewed it about 5 times and still it entertaining. It is a very violent movie, so if you are squeamish about such things take a pass. Heat has a varied assortment of complex characters. The story line is basically about the world of violent criminals and the man who brings them together for the purpose of engaging in high profile crimes that have huge financial rewards. Denero plays the genius who leads them and Pacino the cop who wants to bring him down. The acting is first rate. Watch the interplay between DeNero and Pacino in the restaurant scene in which each is telling the other about their lives and goals. It is like watching two heavy weight champions fighting it out. I'll call it was a draw. Also look out for Dr. Bob, played by Jerimy Privin of "Entourage" fame. He has more hair now than he did then. Go figure. Rent or buy it, then sit back and watch a masterpiece. I think it is DeNero's best performance and one of the best ensemble casts you will ever see in a movie

The Enchanted Cottage (1945)

Is beauty important for love ?

[9/10 · 22 July 2006]

I saw this movie many years ago and thought it was one of the most romantic movies of all time. It is rarely shown on TV anymore, but I was lucky enough to catch it on TCM recently, and in revisiting it, I found a disturbing element in the plot, that I didn't notice the first time I watched it. The story is basically about a homely young woman who is a maid in a honeymoon cottage on the coast of England somewhere. A Young couple rent the cottage for their upcoming wedding, the man is handsome and dashing, the woman beautiful, and sophisticated. World war I breaks out, and he joins the air force, putting their marriage on the back burner, he is shot down and returns home scared and disfigured in both body and mind. He secludes himself in the cottage and when his future wife sees him, she calls off the wedding. The maid falls in love with this man and they marry, but the husband cannot get past her homeliness, and she is devastated. A sudden transformation takes place, they now see each other as beautiful, and are as happy as two love birds and they really believe that they have physically changed. When they find out it is only in their minds, it disappoints them, but since they see each other that way it dosen't matter. The question is Why did they have to see each other as beautiful, before they could find happiness? and is the movie very unromantic and false?, watch it and decide for yourself

The Thirteenth Floor (1999)

A retro Gem

[8/10 · 22 July 2006]

I am a child of the 50's, and spent my preteen years feasting on all the classic sifi gems, such as " The day the earth stood still", "Forbidden Planet' etc. The 13th floor reminds me of those movies. This movie has been compared to the matrix, and that is unfair, Special effects are fine, but when they become the focal point of the movie, I think film suffers because of it. I liked the 13th floor because it didn't get caught up in all that technology and reallied on a great script, and a wonderful ensemble cast. I would highly recommend this movie to all, especially if you prefer the old "War of the Worlds" over the new one.

The Rocking Horse Winner (1949)

A 50's gem

[8/10 · 22 July 2006]

I saw this movie when it first came out in the early 50's, when I was about the same age as the little boy who is portrayed in the story, and I must say it has stuck in my mind ever since. It is the story of a boy who discovers that he can predict the outcome of horse races by rocking on his own wooden horse, while his Father reads off the names of the horses. The family has fallen on hard times and this would be a way for them to get out of the financial hole that they find themselves in. It is like a twilight zone episode, before the show was created. I haven't seen it since it first came out, mostly because I'm afraid that maybe time and maturity will have made it seem quaint and silly today. I would recommend this movie for children 8-12, but maybe this was a movie made for a simpler time, and less sophisticated movie audience, but, give it a try I think that adults will like it also, especially if you are a fan of movies from the 50's