*batteries not included|Matthew Robbins|Family|PG |5.7|USA|1987|106 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Gerald R. Molen Ronald L. Schwary Steven Spielberg|Mick Garris Brad Bird Matthew Robbins Brent Maddock S.S. Wilson|John McPherson ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Five ordinary people needed a miracle. Then one night, Faye Riley left the window open.|A group of tenants in an apartment block are being forced to move out so that it can be demolished. The tenants are reluctant to move, so the developers hire a local gang to 'persuade' them to leave. Fortunately, visiting alien mechanical life-forms come to town. When they befriend the tenants, the aliens use their extraterrestrial abilities to defeat the developers. |Hume Cronyn (Frank Riley, Owner Riley's Cafe) @ Jessica Tandy (Faye Riley) @ Frank McRae (Harry Noble) @ Elizabeth Peña (Marisa Esteval) @ Michael Carmine (Carlos) @ Dennis Boutsikaris (Mason Baylor) @ Tom Aldredge (Sid Hogenson) @ Jane Hoffman (Muriel Hogenson) @ John DiSanti (Gus) @ John Pankow (Kovacs) @ MacIntyre Dixon (DeWitt) @ Michael Greene (Lacey, Real Estate Developer) @ Doris Belack (Mrs. Thompson) @ Wendy Schaal (Pamela) @ José Santana (Goon #1) @ James LeGros (Goon #2) @ Ronald L. Schwary (Louie (as Ronald Schwary)) @ Susan Shoffner (Receptionist) @ Shelly Kurtz (Policeman at Hospital) @ Joe Hamer (Policeman at Building) @ H. Clay Dear (Policeman #2 at Building) @ Howard Renensland (Reporter #1) @ Judy Grafe (Reporter #2) @ Alice Beardsley (Nurse) @ Dick Martinsen (Fireman) @ Charles Raymond (Hector, Father of Marisa's child) @ Riki Colon (Band Member #1) @ Jon Imparato (Band Member #2) @ David Vasquez (Band Member #3) @ John Arceri (ChauffeurProduced by||"Batteries not included". [CONTAINS SPOILERS] Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy from Cocoon, play Frank and Faye Riley, tenants of a Brooklyn apartment building cited for demolition, like every other building on their street. Not only that, but the building is hounded by a group of thugs working for Mr. Lacey, the big boss man behind the operation. The thugs are headed by Carlos. Faye Riley sadly has Alzheimer's Disease. She keeps forgetting her son Bobby is dead. She keeps mistaking Carlos for Bobby. Other tenants include Mason, Marissa, and Harry the superintendant. They're having a tough time too. Frank asks one night for somebody to help them. Ask and you shall receive, for that same night, flying through their window were two miniature space ships. Obviously from another planet. They're fixers. They fix broken items around the house, not to mention the downstairs cafe that Carlos trashed. The tenants are in awe of these little guys.One of the spaceships is female and she soon get's pregnant. And before long, they have little spaceships. Machines that reproduce themselves. Mason was so excited. But sadly, the third baby spaceship was born without life, or as Harry put it, "batteries not included".Harry took the little guy to his workshop and brought him to life. The ships also helped Frank and Faye in the cafe. Life was finally okay, until Carlos shows up one night and destroys the adult male ship. The kids escape, while an employee of Lacey's attempts to burn down the building. He succeeds. This is going to take teamwork. (Plus, the ship that was destroyed is back together). They call in a hundred more little ships from their planet to help. The building is rebuilt and better than ever. I like this movie. It was a good idea. Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn are very good together. Sadly, Tandy is no longer with us. Neither is Michael Carmine (Carlos) he died two years later at the age of 30! I recommend this movie! See it when possible! -- |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ One Hundred and One Dalmatians|Clyde Geronimi Hamilton Luske Wolfgang Reitherma|Family|G |7.1|USA|1961| 79 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Dodie Smith Bill Peet|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |It's 'arf comedy...'arf mystery...and it's howlarious!|Pongo and Perdita have a litter of 15 puppies. Cruella De Vil takes a fancy to the pups, and wants to get hold of them, as well as more pups, to make herself a loveley dalmation skin coat... Cruella gets some thugs to kidnap the pups and hold them at her mansion. Will Pongo and Perdita find them in time ? |Rod Taylor (Pongo (voice)) @ Betty Lou Gerson (Cruella De Vil/Miss Birdwell (voice)) @ Cate Bauer (Perdita (voice)) @ Lisa Daniels (Perdita (voice)) @ Ben Wright (Roger (voice)) @ Frederick Worlock (Horace/Inspector Craven (voice)) @ Lisa Davis (Anita (voice)) @ Martha Wentworth (Nanny/Queenie/Lucy (voice)) @ J. Pat O'Malley (Colonel/Jasper (voice)) @ Tudor Owen (Towser (voice)) @ Tom Conway (Quizmaster/Collie (voice)) @ George Pelling (Danny (voice)) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Captain (voice)) @ David Frankham (Sgt. Tibs (voice)) @ Ramsay Hill (Television Announcer/Labrador (voice)) @ Queenie Leonard (Princess (voice)) @ Marjorie Bennett (Duchess (voice)) @ Barbara Beaird (Rolly (voice)) @ Mickey Maga (Patch (voice)) @ Sandra Abbott (Penny (voice)) @ Mimi Gibson (Lucky (voice)) @ Barbara Luddy (Rover (voice)) @ Paul Frees (Dirty Dawson (voice)) @ Lucille Bliss (TV Commercial Singer (voice)) @ Bob Stevens ( (voice)) @ Max Smith ( (voice)) @ Sylvia Marriott ( (voice)) @ Dal McKennon ( (voice)) @ Rickie Sorensen (Spotty (voice)) @ Basil Ruysdael ( (voice)) @ Don Barclay ( (voice)) @ Jeanne Bruns ( (voice)) @ Bill Lee ( (voice)) @ Helene Stanley ( (voice)) @ Paul Wexler ( (voice)) @ Mary Wickes ( (voice) Produced by||Vintage Disney If there's any classic Disney movie that's less likely to be forgotten because of the modern Disney movies, this would be one of them. Part of the reason may be the live action version and its upcoming sequel. Skip those remakes and watch the real deal. The other part of the reason is because this movie is just so charming. Cruella De Vil is one of the more memorable Disney villains ever made. Romance abounds in this movie, and don't forget those adorable puppies. This may not have the animation or the big fancy songs of the moderns, but all that fanciness usually distracts from the story. Classic Disney always rocks, and this is no exception. |Region 1 |Limited Issue |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Twelve Monkeys|Terry Gilliam|Drama|Rated R for violence and language. |7.9|USA|1995| 129 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert Cavallo Mark Egerton Robert Kosberg Gary Levinsohn Lloyd Phillips Charles Roven Kelley Smith-Wait|Chris Marker David Webb Peoples Janet Peoples|Roger Pratt ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The future is history.|An unknown and lethal virus has wiped out five billion people in 1996. Only 1% of the population has survived by the year 2035, and is forced to live underground. A convict (James Cole) reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to 1996 to gather information about the origin of the epidemic (who he's told was spread by a mysterious "Army of the Twelve Monkeys") and locate the virus before it mutates so that scientists can study it. Unfortunately Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990, six years earlier than expected, and is arrested and locked up in a mental institution, where he meets Dr. Kathryn Railly, a psychiatrist, and Jeffrey Goines, the insane son of a famous scientist and virus expert. When mental patient Cole is sent back in time to find information on a deadly virus that will destroy 5,000,000,000 members of the human race in 1996-1997, he mistakenly arrives in 1990. After explaining his plea to Dr. Kathryn Railly, he is placed in a mental institution. In 1996, he kidnaps Railly, using her to find the 12 Monkeys, a group of revolutionists that are planning to release the virus into select cities. But, he is wanted by the authorities for murder and kidnapping, plus he refuses to return to the future; he is in love with Railly. Terry Gilliam's nightmarish low-tech/high-tech future vision takes place in 1997, after a deadly virus has killed 99% of the human population--forcing the survivors to flee beneath our planet's surface. This leaves the (other) animals topside, to rule the Earth once again. The scientists select James Cole, an imprisoned sociopath, to return to the past and gather information useful in the defense against this contagion. Once back in time, he is to investigate the mysterious 'Army of the Twelve Monkeys' and report his findings. Scientific, social, and political themes like time travel (and its inherent paradoxes and nested loops), mental illness, the nature of reality, animal rights, and the Armageddon-potential of unchecked technological advances are artfully and cleverly explored. |Bruce Willis (James Cole) @ Madeleine Stowe (Dr. Kathryn Railly) @ Brad Pitt (Jeffrey Goines) @ Christopher Plummer (Dr. Leland Goines) @ Jon Seda (Jose) @ Joseph Melito (Young Cole) @ David Morse (Dr. Peters) @ Michael Chance (Scarface) @ Vernon Campbell (Tiny) @ H. Michael Walls (Botanist) @ Bob Adrian (Geologist) @ Simon Jones (Zoologist) @ Carol Florence (Astrophysicist) @ Bill Raymond (Microbiologist) @ Ernest Abuba (Engineer) @ Irma St. Paule (Poet) @ Joey Perillo (Detective Franki) @ Bruce Kirkpatrick (Policeman #1) @ Wilfred Williams (Policeman #2) @ Rozwill Young (Billings) @ Nell Johnson (Ward Nurse) @ Frederick Strother (L.J. Washington) @ Carolyn Walker (Terrified Traveler) @ Rick Warner (Dr. Casey) @ Frank Gorshin (Dr. Owen Fletcher) @ Anthony 'Chip' Brienza (Dr. Goodin) @ Joilet Harris (Harassed Mother) @ Drucie McDaniel (Waltzing Woman Patient) @ John Blaisse (Old Man Patient) @ Louis Lippa (Patient at Gate) @ Stan Kang (X-Ray Doctor) @ Pat Dias (WWI Captain) @ Aaron Michael Lacey (WWI Sergeant) @ Charles Techman (Professor) @ Jann Ellis (Marilou) @ Johnnie Hobbs Jr. (Officer #1) @ Janet Zappala (Anchorwoman/Herself) @ Thomas Roy (Evangelist) @ Harry O'Toole (Louie) @ Yuri Korchenko (Thug) @ Chuck Jeffreys (Thug) @ Lisa Gay Hamilton (Teddy) @ Felix Pire (Fale) @ Matt Ross (Bee (as Matthew Ross)) @ Barry Price (Agent) @ John Panzarella (Agent) @ Larry Daly (Agent) @ Arthur Fennell (Anchorman/Himself) @ Karl Warren (Pompous Man) @ Christopher Meloni (Lt. Jim Halperin) @ Paul Meshejian (Detective Dalva) @ Robert O'Neill (Wayne) @ Kevin Thigpen (Kweskin) @ Lee Golden (Charlie the Hotel Clerk) @ Joseph McKenna (Wallace) @ Jeff Tanner (Plain Clothes Cop) @ Faith Potts (Store Clerk) @ Michael Ryan Segal (Weller) @ Annie Golden (Woman Cabbie) @ Lisa Talerico (Ticket Agent) @ Stephen Bridgewater (Airport Detective) @ Franklin Huffman (Plump Businessman) @ Jodi Dawson (Gift Store Clerk (as Joann S. Dawson)) @ Jack Dougherty (Airport Security) @ Lenny Daniels (Airport Security) @ Herbert C. Hauls Jr. (Airport Security) @ Charley Scalies (Impatient Traveler rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Dan Bevilacqua ( (uncredited)) @ Phillip V. Caruso (French War Photographer (uncredited)) @ Laura Glas (Terrified Traveler #2 (uncredited)) @ Roger Pratt (Man Tying Shoe in Hotel (uncredited)) @ Allelon Ruggiero (Inpatient (uncredited)) @ Richard Stanley (Man in Transit Lounge (uncredited) Produced by||Terry Gilliam: Visionary - 12 Monkeys: Vision I had the privilege of seeing this film at a preview screening years ago, and outside the theater I was confronted by a camera crew from a local TV station looking for comments on the film. At the time, the only words that escaped my mouth were "Awesome. Just awesome." I like to think I can articulate myself a little better than that, but at the time I was somewhat incapable of doing so. The story is intriguing and thought provoking, and the acting is first rate from all the principals. This film was the first one that Terry Gilliam directed that he didn't have a hand in the writing credit for. Back with Universal after his long, arduous battle with them over "Brazil", Terry had achieved what he wanted most; the "final cut". Terry is a master craftsman, and each shot is like a beautifully conceived painting that has been constructed carefully with determination and conviction. It is only justice that such an individual should be unfettered in his attempts to convey a concept. Unfortunately, limitations still exist in such arrangements. The Universal Collector's Edition DVD of this film is simply amazing, although most of the bonus features aren't listed on the box. It contains among other things, a director/producer audio commentary and an informative and extremely interesting 90 minute documentary on the making of the film called "The Hamster Factor and Other Tales of 12 Monkeys". It tells of some of the creative pitfalls in filmmaking, including a test of mettle when preview screenings tested poorly, striking the team with feelings of self-doubt and despair. Fortunately, for all of us, they decided to change very little about the film and released it to an enormous success. |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Thirteen Conversations About One Thing|Jill Sprecher|Drama|Rated R for language and brief drug use. R|7.2|USA|2001|104 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/18/2004|Beni Tadd Atoori Sabrina Atoori Colin Bates James C.E. Burke Heidi Crane Andrew Fierberg Laurie Hansen Amy Hobby Doug Mankoff Stacy Plavoukos Gina Resnick Andrew Spaulding Sandy Stern Michael Stipe Peter Wetherell|Karen Sprecher Jill Sprecher|Dick Pope ||Mikado [it] ||A man approaching middle age decides to change his life. A rising young attorney's plans are thrown into disarray as the result of a single act. A woman faces her husband's infidelity. An envious businessman seeks revenge on a cheerful coworker. And an optimistic young cleaning woman awaits a miracle. These ordinary people all find themselves asking the fundamental question philosophers have pondered throughout history: What is happiness, and how does one achieve it? |Matthew McConaughey (Troy) @ David Connelly (Owen (as David Connolly)) @ Joseph Siravo (Bureau Chief) @ A.D. Miles (Co-Worker) @ Sig Libowitz (Assistant Attorney) @ James Yaegashi (Legal Assistant) @ Dion Graham (Defense Attorney) @ Fernando López (Defendant (as Fernando Lopez)) @ Brian Smiar (Judge) @ Paul Austin (Bartender) @ Allie Woods Jr. (Cab Driver (as Allie Woods)) @ John Turturro (Walker) @ Amy Irving (Patricia) @ Barbara Sukowa (Helen) @ Rob McElhenney (Chris Hammond, Aspiring Medical Student) @ Avery Glymph (Intelligent Student) @ Elizabeth Reaser (Young Woman in Class) @ Deirdre Lovejoy (Student Teacher) @ Barbara Andres (Neighbor) @ William Severs (Doctor) @ Joel Garland (Mover) @ Clea DuVall (Beatrice 'Bea') @ Tia Texada (Dorrie) @ Peggy Gormley (Bea's Mother) @ Malcolm Gets (The Architect) @ Miles Thompson (Neighborhood Boy) @ Robert Carricart (Pastor) @ Joe Chappel (Choir Member) @ Phyllis Curran (Choir Member) @ Richard Erickson (Choir Member (Cantor) (as Richard Erickson, Cantor)) @ Julia Erickson (Choir Member) @ Kent K.B. Hanson (Choir Member) @ William Lutz (Choir Member) @ Jos Milton (Choir Member) @ Beth Shane (Choir Member) @ Tobin Schmuck (Choir Member) @ Dorothy Scholz (Choir Member) @ Emma-Jane Stokely (Choir Member) @ Yoshisuke Yamada (Choir Member) @ Alan Arkin (Gene) @ Frankie Faison (Richard 'Dick' Lacey) @ William Wise (Wade Bowman) @ Shawn Elliott (Mickey Wheeler (as Shawn Elliot)) @ Alex Burns (Ronald James 'Ronnie' English) @ James Murtaugh (Lew Kincannon) @ Richard Council (Del Strickland (as Richard E. Council)) @ Walt MacPherson (Donald) @ Leo V. Finnie III (Pete) @ Daryl Edwards (Glenn) @ Charlie Schroeder (Young Finance Manager) @ Robert Colston (Sales Manager) @ Gammy Singer (Gene's Secretary) @ Melissa Maxwell (Del's Receptionist) @ Eliza Pryor Nagel (Ronnie's Roommate) @ Jeff Robins (Freeloader) @ Victor Truro (Gus, Coffee Shop Counterman) @ Paul Klementowicz (Public Defender) @ Phyllis Bash (Judge) @ Peter McCabe (Court Clerk) @ Christian Pabon (Teenager on SubwayProduced by||Life (and fate)is a four letter word THIRTEEN CONVERSATIONS ABOUT ONE THING (2002) **1/2 Matthew McConaughey, Alan Arkin, John Turturro, Clea DuVall, Amy Irving, Barbara Sukowa, Tia Texada, Frankie Faison.Four storylines set in NYC intertwined in a non-linear fashion incorporating accidents, fate, depression, anger, disillusionment, adultery and ultimately acceptance in this drama about the human condition nicely played by its talented ensemble (particularly enjoyable is the grumpy for a reason insurance investigator Arkin, who makes any movie a film) makes up for its novella like approach by filmmaker Jill Sprecher who co-scripted with her sister Karen that echoes Alan Rudolph and Raymond Carver. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ 20000 Leagues Under the Sea|Richard Fleischer|Family|G|7.1|USA|1954| 127 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Jules Verne Earl Felton|Franz Planer ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Walt Disney's Mighty, Magnificent, Memorable 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea!|The oceans during the late 1860-92s are no longer safe; many ships have been lost. Sailors have returned to port with stories of a vicious narwhal (a giant whale with a long horn) which sinks their ships. A naturalist, Professor (Pierre) Aronnax, his assistant, Conseil, and a professional whaler, Ned Land, join an US expedition which attempts to unravel the mystery. |Kirk Douglas (Ned Land) @ James Mason (Capt. Nemo) @ Paul Lukas (Prof. Pierre Arronax) @ Peter Lorre (Conseil) @ Robert J. Wilke (First Mate of the Nautilus) @ Ted de Corsia (Capt. Farragut) @ Carleton Young (John Howard) @ J.M. Kerrigan (Billy) @ Percy Helton (Coach Driver) @ Ted Cooper (Mate on 'Lincoln' rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Fred Graham (Casey Moore, second speaker (uncredited)) @ Harry Harvey (Ticket Agent (uncredited)) @ Eddie Marr (Shipping Agent (uncredited)) @ T. Monaghan (Crewman (uncredited)) @ Gloria Pall (Blonde Girlfriend (uncredited)) @ Jack Pennick (Carson (uncredited)) @ S. Tarnell (Crewman (uncredited)) @ Herb Vigran (Reporter for the Globe (uncredited) Produced by)||See the special edition of this Disney classic on DVD. The Disney studio's first American-made live-action spectacle remains one of its best,thanks to James Mason's portrayal of Jules Verne's anti-hero submarine commander,Captain Nemo,as a misguided Victorian-era terrorist. Mason brings such feline assurance to the part that he makes Kirk Douglas' hound-dog overacting as captive harpoonist Ned Land a forgivable counterpart. Disney milked every promotional angle for the film's debut which was the studio's first feature to filmed in widescreen Cimemascope and breathtaking Technicolor. It went on to become of the top ten highest-grossing pictures of that year,going up against contenders like "On The Waterfront",not to mention a horror-film as well intitled "The Creature From The Black Lagoon". It also went on to win several Oscars for special effects and for its cimematopgraphy. It was included in the Best Actor category with a nomination for James Mason's brilliant performance as Nemo. The film is a classic and it stands behind several other Disney films which include "Old Yeller","The Parent Trap",and also "Mary Poppins". The DVD version is out on this which includes several batches of goodies including the excerpts from the classic Disneyland TV show cannily plugging the picture,and also includes the theatrical trailer,and interviews with actors Kirk Douglas,James Mason,director Richard Fleischer with footage of scenes where the film was being shot at on locations in Florida and in the Bahamas. The movie itself is a breathtaking achievement and it includes the scene where the submarine the Nautilus rams a ship into the abyss,and the scene where the crew tangles with a bloodthirsty squid,and an encounter with a giant octopus under the depths. See It On DVD in the widescreen format! Rating: 5 stars. |Region All | |2.55 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ 200 Cigarettes|Risa Bramon Garcia|Comedy|Rated R for strong language and sexual content. |5.4|USA|1999| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Betsy Beers Steven L. Bernstein David Gale Alan Greenspan Andre Lamal Mike Newell Cecilia Kate Roque Tom Rosenberg Sigurjon Sighvatsson Ted Tannebaum Van Toffler Richard S. Wright|Shana Larsen |Frank Prinzi ||Alta Films S.A. [es] |It's 11:59 on New Year's Eve. Do you know where your date is? |New Year's Eve, 1981, the Lower East Side. Monica's having a party, but as late as 9, no one's there. She stews (and drinks). Folks are on their way, all looking for love, sex, or both. En route, paths cross, gambits misfire: a performance artist, her boyfriend until today and his long-time pal Lucy, two Long Island high-school girls, two punk rockers, a bartender, a Scottish painter who's lousy in bed, a pretty face named Jack who runs when women say they love him, his cute but clumsy date Cindy, two trendy vamps, a loquacious cabby, the man-crazed Hillary, and Elvis Costello. Nearly everybody smokes, and nearly everybody scores. And all get who and what they deserve. Set during one long evening on New Year's Eve set in 1981 in New York's Lower East Village, which follows a dozen 20-something people going (but not really trying) to a New Year's Eve loft party while dealing with their life problems. They include Kevin (Paul Rudd) who doesn't look forward to the new year since his girlfriend Ellie (Janeane Garofalo) dumped him. So, his more outgoing friend Lucy (Courtney Love) persuades Kevin to have some excitement of their own. Monica (Martha Plimpton), the neurotic party hostess, worries about anyone showing up while dealing with her hip friend Hillary (Jannifer Albano) and her Irish, artist ex-boyfriend Eric (Brian McCardie). Across town, Stephie (Gaby Hoffmann) and Val (Christina Ricci) are two wise-cracking, Long Island teens who wander around SoHo after getting lost while looking for the party and end up in a punk rock club where they are befriended by two punks named Tom (Cassey Affleck) and Dave (Guillermo Diaz). Meanwhile, Cindy (Kate Hudson) is a naive and dim-witted klutz who goes out on a date with Jack (Jay Mohr) whom she had a one night stand the previous night, while he turns out to be a commitment shy lothario who hides from his many girlfrends they frequently run into. And two of Eric's former girlfriends, Kaitlyn (Angela Featherstone) and Bridget (Nicole Parker), hunt for dates for the evening and flirt with a local bartender (Ben Affleck) and a disco cab driver (Dave Chappelle) that pops up from time to time. |Ben Affleck (Bartender) @ Casey Affleck (Tom) @ David Chappelle (Disco Cabbie (as Dave Chappelle)) @ Guillermo Díaz (Dave) @ Angela Featherstone (Caitlyn) @ Janeane Garofalo (Ellie (as Janeanne Garofalo)) @ Gaby Hoffmann (Stephie) @ Kate Hudson (Cindy) @ Catherine Kellner (Hillary) @ Courtney Love (Lucy) @ Brian McCardie (Eric) @ Jay Mohr (Jack) @ Nicole Ari Parker (Bridget (as Nicole Parker)) @ Martha Plimpton (Monica) @ Christina Ricci (Val) @ Paul Rudd (Kevin) @ Jennifer Albano (Cheryl) @ Jenni Blong (Cheryl's Friend (as Jenny Blong)) @ Morgan Brown (French Rocker) @ Caleb Carr (Cynical Bar Patron) @ Elvis Costello (Himself) @ Patrick Frederic (Tiki Sobbing Man) @ David Johansen (Tiki Bartender) @ Kiran Merchant (Resturant Owner) @ James F. Murphy (Drag Queen (as James Murphy)) @ Patricia Wible (Ace Bar Patron rest of cast listed alphabetically Jamie Bonelli .... Punk Dancer) @ Michael J. Meyers (Drunk Yuppie) @ Brian Berrebbi (Punk at Bar (uncredited)) @ Alexis Flesig (Bar Band (uncredited)) @ Eli Janney (Bar Band (uncredited)) @ Scott McCloud (Bar Band (uncredited)) @ Nick Stellate (Drunk Biker (uncredited)) @ Johnny Temple (Bar Band (uncredited) Produced by||Clever and funny This satire is a series of fast-paced vignettes showing the wanderings of people looking for love or running from love or afraid of sex or starved for sex or... The film has a bright cast playing eccentric characters who deliver loopy dialogue at machine-gun pace as they search for the big party on New Year's Eve. What we have here is the wild and aimless times of the folks who are now in their 40s or just about to cross that threshold, wondering why they are the way they are. The film explains why -- and is a lot of fun. |Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color (Anamorphic) |5.1 ||||||@@ 2001: A Space Odyssey|Stanley Kubrick|Sci-Fi|G |8.3|UK|1968| 139 min/ USA:156 min (premiere cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stanley Kubrick Victor Lyndon|Arthur C. Clarke Stanley Kubrick Arthur C. Clarke|Geoffrey Unsworth ||Criterion Collection [us] |An epic drama of adventure and exploration|This movie is concerned with intelligence as the division between animal and human, then asks a question; what is the next division? Technology is treated as irrelevant to the quest - literally serving as mere vehicles for the human crew, and as a shell for the immature HAL entity. Story told as a montage of impressions, music and impressive and careful attention to subliminal detail. A very influential film and still a class act, even after 25 years. The monoliths have been watching us. They gave us the "evolutionary kick in the pants" we needed to survive at the Dawn of Time. In 1999, we discovered a second monolith on the moon. Now, in the year 2001, the S.S. Discovery and its crew, Captains Dave Bowman and Frank Poole, and their onboard computer, HAL-9000, must discover what alien force is watching us... Moon explorers encounter a monolith that points them to a destination near Jupiter. In flashback, we see another size of the monolith playing a key role in human evolution, i.e., we learn how to kill. An expedition is launched to investigate the Jupiter possibility. Two young astronauts and a bunch in suspended animation spend months in space, passing their time partly in communicating with the human-like brain of their ship's computer, HAL. HAL malfunctions and causes the death of all the suspended animation passengers as well as one of the "awake" astronauts; the other one barely survives and figures out how to disable HAL. He arrives alone at the Jupiter destination and undergoes a series of cinematographically confusing experiences that amount to his final appearance on the screen as a giant fetus. |Keir Dullea (Dave Bowman) @ Gary Lockwood (Dr. Frank Poole) @ William Sylvester (Dr. Haywood R. Floyd) @ Daniel Richter (Moonwatcher) @ Leonard Rossiter (Dr. Andrei Smyslov) @ Margaret Tyzack (Elena) @ Robert Beatty (Dr. Halvorsen) @ Sean Sullivan (Dr. Michaels) @ Douglas Rain (HAL 9000 (voice)) @ Frank Miller (Mission controller (voice)) @ Bill Weston (Astronaut) @ Ed Bishop (Aries 1B Lunar shuttle captain (as Edward Bishop)) @ Glenn Beck (Astronaut) @ Alan Gifford (Poole's father) @ Ann Gillis (Poole's mother) @ Edwina Carroll (Stewardess) @ Penny Brahms (Stewardess) @ Heather Downham (Stewardess) @ John Ashley (Ape) @ Jimmy Bell (Ape) @ David Charkham (Ape) @ Simon Davis (Ape) @ Jonathan Daw (Ape) @ Péter Delmár (Ape) @ Terry Duggan (Ape) @ David Fleetwood (Ape) @ Danny Grover (Ape) @ Brian Hawley (Ape) @ David Hines (Ape) @ Tony Jackson (Ape) @ Mike Lovell (Ape) @ Scott MacKee (Ape) @ Laurence Marchant (Ape) @ Darryl Paes (Ape) @ Joe Refalo (Ape) @ Andy Wallace (Ape) @ Bob Wilyman (Ape) @ Richard Wood (Ape that gets killed rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Martin Amor (Interviewer (uncredited)) @ Sheraton Blount ( (uncredited)) @ Ann Bormann ( (uncredited)) @ John Clifford (TMA-1 site technician #2 (uncredited)) @ Julie Croft ( (uncredited)) @ Penny Francis ( (uncredited)) @ Jane Hayward ( (uncredited)) @ John Jordan ( (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Kendall (BBC-12 announcer (uncredited)) @ Vivian Kubrick (Squirt (Floyd's daughter) (uncredited)) @ Marcella Markham ( (uncredited)) @ Krystyna Marr (Russian scientist (uncredited)) @ Kim Neil ( (uncredited)) @ Jane Pearl ( (uncredited)) @ Penny Pearl ( (uncredited)) @ Kevin Scott (Miller (uncredited)) @ John Swindells (TMA-1 site technician #1 (uncredited)) @ Burnell Tucker (TMA-1 site photographer (uncredited) Produced by||Weird...Beautiful...2001: A Space Odyssey is a cinema landmark! On a rating scale of 0 to 100; I rate 2001: A Space Odyssey a score of 97. The…greatest…science…fiction…film…ever…made? Could be. 2001: A Space Odyssey is a film that explores the planets and does it beautifully, and is a grand scale epic that will be forever remembered by moviegoer's and critics alike. It's simply a little mastermind of an adventure sci-fi flick that gets more intriguing with every movement of the characters. The monoliths have been watching us. They gave us the "evolutionary kick in the pants" we needed to survive at the Dawn of Time. In 1999, we discovered a second monolith on the moon. Now, in the year 2001, the SS Discovery and its crew, Captains Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea) and Frank Poole (Gary Lockwood), and their onboard computer, HAL-9000 (voiced by Douglas Rain), must discover what alien force is watching us... 2001: A Space Odyssey is an ultimately confusing film the first time you watch it, but after you see it a couple more times (you will see it more than twice, guaranteed!) you'll start to hook on to the odd but endlessly amazing story-line. The special effects are truly extraordinary for Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film, and Kubrick himself does a brilliant job of trying to show the world his vision of the future in science with his stunningly put-together script, that's always open to frightening and new ideas. There are many more reasons to see this great film, like to watch Keir Dullea's ignored but excellently controlled performance, forDouglas Rain's voice portrayal of HAL-9000's evil, which is bound to send a chill down your spine, and last but definitely not least, Kubrick's unexplainably great effort in directing such a memorable piece of film. Impossible to miss, impossible to forget. See it immediately. |Region 1 | |2.20 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ 2001: A Space Travesty|Allan A. Goldstein|Comedy|Rated R for crude sexual humor. R|2.5|Canada|2000|99 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/14/2004|Luc Campeau Gary DePew Martin Heldmann Werner Koenig Jeffrey Konvitz Leslie Nielsen Hannah Richardson Danny Rossner Chuck Smiley|Francesco Lucente Alan Shearman|Sylvain Brault ||Artédis [fr] |The Most Outer Spaced-Out Comedy Ever!|Leslie Nielsen once again plays a bumbling detective in the vein of the 'Naked Gun' movies, but this time as Marshall Richard 'Dick' Dix. When odd reports are received through official channels stating that the President of the United States is being held captive on a secret international moon base called Vegan and that he has been replaced on Earth by a clone, the US Marshall Service immediately sends their 'best' man, Dix, on the mission. Dix travels to Vegan to rescue the president, but is quickly duped and ends up returning to Earth where he installs the clone-president and removes the real one. The bumbling Dix must then find a way to restore the real president before aliens take over the Earth, and restore in himself a belief in truth, justice and the American way. |Leslie Nielsen (Richard 'Dick' Dix) @ Ophélie Winter (Cassandra Menage) @ Ezio Greggio (Captain Valentino Di Pasquale) @ Peter Egan (Dr. Griffin Pratt) @ Alexandra Kamp-Groeneveld (Dr. Uschi Künstler (as Alexandra Kamp)) @ Damien Masson (Mr. President) @ Pierre (Lt. Bradford Shitzu) @ David Fox (Secretary Osgood) @ Sam Stone (Police Chief Halverson) @ Verona Feldbusch (Yetta Pussel) @ Michel Perron (Famous Tenor #1) @ Paul Rainville (Famous Tenor #2) @ Yvan Ducharme (Famous Tenor #3) @ Marc Hervieux (Famous Tenor Voice #1 (voice)) @ Perry Canestrari (Famous Tenor Voice #2 (voice)) @ Carlos Ruiz (Famous Tenor Voice #3 (voice)) @ Tommy Schnurmacher (Conductor) @ Alan Shearman (Security Gendarme) @ Teresa Barnwell (Mrs. President) @ David Francis (Commander Wickernuts) @ Una Kay (Oona Hottenlocker-Wickernuts) @ Michele Scarabelli (Opera House Security Guard) @ Mark Stevens (Teenage Hostage) @ Ellen David (Spaceport Customs Officer) @ Armand Laroche (Backstage Gendarme) @ Ima Sudonim (Ben Hur (gag credit)) @ Pierre Lenoir (Inspector Wazoo) @ Richard Jutras (Wardrobe Dresser) @ David Millbern (Pin Head Alien #1) @ Matthew Smiley (Pin Head Alien #2 (as Matt Smiley)) @ Charles Dennis (Flashback Doctor (as Charles Denis)) @ Natalie Gray (Flashback Mother) @ Betsy Soo (Opera reporter) @ Ghandi (Himself) @ Robert Suetsugo (Sumo Wrestler #1) @ Reid Asato (Sumo Wrestler #2) @ Luc Campeau (Theater Manager) @ Stephanie Dumolin-Shaw (Shuttle Flight Attendant) @ Annabelle Torsein (Female Prompter) @ Charles Papasoff (Sax Musician) @ Jean-Marc Bisson (Alien Emcee) @ Alain Bérard (Converted Alien) @ Caroline Andre (Violinist) @ Toni Sherwood (Vegan Night Club Singer) @ Mikael Gravel (Vegan Night Club Singer) @ Marianne Therien (Vegan Night Club Dancer (as Marianne Thérien)) @ Daniel Alvarez (Vegan Night Club Dancer) @ Rachel A. Jeperson (Vegan Night Club Dancer) @ Christian Vezina (Vegan Night Club Dancer) @ Marion Hinz (Vegan Night Club Dancer) @ Noam Alon (Vegan Night Club Dancer) @ Martin Samuel (Vegan Night Club Dancer) @ Jean-Luc Côté (Not In This Movie (gag credit) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jeffrey Weissman .... Groucho Marx) @ Cindy Davis (Spaceport Passenger (uncredited)) @ Kareem El-Onsi (Bartender (uncredited)) @ Dany Frappier ( (uncredited)) @ Jason Millman (Spaceport Passenger (uncredited)) @ Stéphane Normandin (A drunk (uncredited)) @ Mike Tsar (Bloated Alien (uncredited)Produced by||Eye-crossingly bad The comedy in this movie is beyond bad.There's really not a proper description.They have seriously reached a new level of low, so embarrassing that you thank God that you're watching it alone so you won't feel embarrassed sitting next to someone.It is liked they wrote and shot this movie with their feet. ||||||||||@@ 8 femmes|François Ozon|Musical|Rated R for some sexual content. |7.2|France|2002| 111 min |French||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stéphane Célérier Olivier Delbosc Marc Missonnier|Marina de Van François Ozon Robert Thomas|Jeanne Lapoirie ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||One morning the industrialist Marcel is found stabbed in his room. Eight women are his potential murderers: His wife Gaby, his daugthers Suzon and Catherine, his mother-in-law Mamy, his sister-in-law Augustine, his sister Pierette, the cook Chanel and the maid Louise. The house is isolated in a snowstorm, the phone is dead and one of them has to be the culprit. Mutual suspisions reveal the various secrets in their lives. |Danielle Darrieux (Mamy) @ Catherine Deneuve (Gaby) @ Isabelle Huppert (Augustine) @ Emmanuelle Béart (Louise) @ Fanny Ardant (Pierrette) @ Virginie Ledoyen (Suzon) @ Ludivine Sagnier (Catherine) @ Firmine Richard (Madame Chanel) @ Dominique Lamure (Marcel, the husband Produced by||I almost didn't know what to make of it... How to describe 8 Women (French title, 8 Femmes)?Well, I guess I could call it a French clue with song interludes, I suppose.It's a film that has a quirky, spikey attitude through and through, but I didn't know if I really liked it when it was over.It was almost too giddy for my taste, and when those chirpy songs started, I heard other audience members chuckle uncomfortably, and then silence up till something else came forward. Ladies would probably enjoy this type of picture, of course French people and other Europeans would; I'm just not sure if I'll want to see it again.Maybe... B- |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Absolutely Fabulous: Complete Collection |||NR ||||700 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/12/2004||||||| "Utterly original, utterly hilarious…one of theibest television comedies ever made."-New York Post ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC] ||||||@@ Abyss, The|James Cameron|Action|PG-13 |7.4|USA|1989| 146 min/ USA:171 min (special edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gale Anne Hurd Van Ling|James Cameron |Mikael Salomon ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |There's everything you've ever known about adventure, and then there's The Abyss.|An American nuclear submarine is attacked (during the cold war) and crashes underwater. The navy asks the workers of a nearby underwater oil rig who are joined by a number of navy SEALS to locate and investigate the cause of the crash. As the crew embark on their mission, they encounter a number of difficulties and discover that they may not be alone. There is something else down there. When an American nuclear submarine crashes, the United States Government believe the Russians to be responsible. They enlist the help of a team of underwater drilling platform workers who are to help the deployed Navy SEALS locate the crash site. As they get closer to their destination, the friction between the two teams increases. When some workers report seeing UFO's underwater, the SEALS grow increasingly suspicious and suspect a Russian mini-sub. After a series of near-fatal disasters, the workers find that they are the only people who are capable of stopping World War III. But they are not the only inhabitants of the deep, and strange things are happening back at the surface... When the crew of an underwater oil rig are enlisted to assist in the rescue of an American nuclear submarine at the height of the Cold War, they discover a strange and mysterious force living in the deep and their rescue mission becomes an adventure into the wondrous and the unknown. During the height of the Cold War the USS Montana, a US nuclear ballistic submarine, sinks into an ocean abyss due to unknown circumstances. The US Navy scramble to the scene to rescue survivors and recover the nuclear missles on board before nearby Russian forces do. Their best hope are a team of divers attached to a submersible drilling platform not far from the crash site. During the operation freak weather conditions damage the platform and sever its communication with the surface. As World War III looms above and tensions rise between the divers and a deployed SEAL team the rescuers discover that there is something else besides the submarine in the Abyss. |Ed Harris (Virgil 'Bud' Brigman) @ Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (Lindsey Brigman) @ Michael Biehn (Lt. Hiram Coffey) @ Leo Burmester (Catfish De Vries) @ Todd Graff (Alan 'Hippy' Carnes) @ John Bedford Lloyd (Jammer Willis) @ J.C. Quinn (Arliss 'Sonny' Dawson) @ Kimberly Scott (Lisa 'One Night' Standing) @ Captain Kidd Brewer Jr. (Lew Finler (as Capt. Kidd Brewer Jr.)) @ George Robert Klek (Wilhite) @ Christopher Murphy (Schoenick, SEAL Team Member) @ Adam Nelson (Ensign Monk, SEAL Team Member) @ Dick Warlock (Dwight Perry (as Richard Warlock)) @ Jimmie Ray Weeks (Leland McBride) @ J. Kenneth Campbell (DeMarco) @ Ken Jenkins (Gerard Kirkhill, Benthick Petroleum Co. Representative) @ Chris Elliott (Bendix) @ Peter Ratray (USS Montana Captain) @ Michael Beach (Barnes) @ Brad Sullivan (USS Montana Executive Officer) @ Frank Lloyd (USS Montana Navigator) @ Phillip Darlington (USS Montana Crewman) @ Joseph C. Nemec III (USS Montana Crewman (as Joseph Nemec III)) @ Joe Farago (Anchorman) @ William Wisher Jr. (Bill Tyler, Reporter (as William Wisher)) @ Marcus K. Mukai (Anchorman #2 (as Marcus Mukai)) @ Wendy Gordon (Anchorwoman) @ Paula Cross (Young Woman) @ Thomas F. Duffy (Construction Worker (as Thomas Duffy)) @ Chris Anastasio (Truck Driver) @ Emily Yancy (Woman Reporter) @ Michael Chapman (Dr. Berg) @ Tom Isbell (Wave Reporter rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mike Cameron (Sailor with the fire extinguisher (uncredited) Produced by||A wet and wild mess. "The Abyss" is one of those trite big budget Hollywood ripoffs with big bucks spent on a lot of production effort, a couple of big name actors, and lots and lots of hype. The film delivers one situation after another manufactured in a sort of make-it-up-as-you-go way with the obvious purpose of creating action and suspense. The sci-fi aspect of the film is silly, the action part pales next to any water park, and the human story is nonexistent. Full of plot holes and obvious nonsequiturs, "The Abyss" sinks in a fathomless mess. |Region 1 |Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Ace Ventura: Pet Detective|Tom Shadyac|Comedy|PG-13 |6.2|USA|1994|86 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/3/2004|Gary Barber Peter Bogart Bob Israel James G. Robinson|Jack Bernstein Jack Bernstein Tom Shadyac Jim Carrey|Julio Macat ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |He's the best there is! (Actually, he's the only one there is.)|To be a Pet Detective, you have to understand both the criminals and animals. Ace Ventura goes even further... He behaves like a criminal animal. When a football team's mascot (a dolphin) is stolen just before the Superbowl, Ace Ventura is put on the case. Now, who would want to steal a dolphin, and why? He's the best there is. In fact, he's the only one there is! He's Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Jim Carrey is on the case to find the Miami Dolphins' missing mascot and quarterback Dan Marino. He goes eyeball to eyeball with a man-eating shark, stakes out the Miami Dolphins and woos and wows the ladies. Whether he's undercover, under fire or underwater, he always gets his man . . . or beast! |Jim Carrey (Ace Ventura) @ Courteney Cox (Melissa Robinson) @ Sean Young (Lt. Lois Einhorn) @ Tone Loc (Emilio) @ Dan Marino (Himself) @ Noble Willingham (Riddle) @ Troy Evans (Roger Podacter) @ Reiner Schöne (Woodstock (as Raynor Scheine)) @ Udo Kier (Ron Camp) @ Frank Adonis (Vinnie) @ Tiny Ron (Roc) @ David Margulies (Doctor) @ John Capodice (Aguado) @ Judy Clayton (Martha Mertz) @ Bill Zuckert (Mr. Finkle) @ Alice Drummond (Mrs. Finkle) @ Rebecca Ferratti (Sexy Woman) @ Mark Margolis (Mr. Shickadance) @ Antoni Corone (Reporter #1) @ Margo Peace (Reporter #2) @ Randall 'Tex' Cobb (Dog owner) @ Henry Landivar (Burnout) @ Florence Mistrot (Neighbor) @ Robert Ferrell (Carlson) @ Will Knickerbocker (Manager) @ Gary Munch (Director) @ Terry Miller (Assistant Director) @ John Archie (Reporter #3) @ Cristina Karman (Reporter #4) @ Tom Wahl (Reporter #5) @ Herbert Goldstein (Crazy Guy) @ Chaz Mena (Another Cop) @ Manuel L. García (Dolphin Trainer) @ Don Shula (Himself) @ Scott Mitchell (Miami Dolphin) @ Peter Stoyanovich (Himself) @ Dwight Stephenson (Himself) @ Jeff Uhlenhake (Gay player) @ Jeff Dellenbach (Himself) @ Marco Coleman (Himself) @ Kim Bokamper (Himself) @ Jeff Cross (Himself) @ Chris Barnes (Cannibal Corpse - Vocalist) @ Alex Webster (Cannibal Corpse - Bassist) @ Paul Mazurkiewicz Jr. (Cannibal Corpse - Drummer) @ Jack Owen (Cannibal Corpse - Guitarist) @ Robert Barrett (Cannibal Corpse - Guitarist rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bubba Baker (Toothless Giant (uncredited)) @ Vince Cecere (Stadium Vendor (uncredited)) @ Laird Stuart (Superbowl Referee (uncredited)Produced by||Jim Carrey's Big Break. Jim Carrey put himself on the cinematic map with this stupid little film that is strangely appealing in its own odd way. Carrey stars as the titled character, a Miami cop whose biggest case has just come up: finding the Miami Dolphins' real-life dolphin before the Super Bowl starts. Cameos abound by former coach Don Shula and former quarterback Dan Marino, among others, make for some interesting viewing, but overall the movie is little more than a showcase for Carrey to display is sometimes funny, but sometimes irritating comedic talents. 2.5 out of 5 stars. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls|Steve Oedekerk|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for crude humor. PG-13|4.8|USA|1995|90 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/3/2004|Gary Barber Andrew G. La Marca James G. Robinson|Jack Bernstein Steve Oedekerk|Donald E. Thorin ||Warner Bros. [us] |New Animals. New Adventures. Same Hair|Ace Ventura, emerging from self-imposed exile in a remote Himalayan hideaway, travels to Africa with explorer Fulton Greenwall to find a sacred bat which is told will avert a war between with Wachootoo and Wachati tribes. Of course, when Ace gets involved, all hell breaks loose... |Jim Carrey (Ace Ventura) @ Ian McNeice (Fulton Greenwall) @ Simon Callow (Vincent Cadby) @ Maynard Eziashi (Ouda) @ Bob Gunton (Burton Quinn) @ Sophie Okonedo (The Wachati Princess) @ Tommy Davidson (The Tiny Warrior) @ Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Hitu (as Adewale)) @ Danny D. Daniels (Wachootoo Witch Doctor) @ Sam Motoana Phillips (Wachootoo Chief) @ Damon Standifer (Wachati Chief) @ Andrew Steel (Mick Katie) @ Bruce Spence (Gahjii) @ Tom Grunke (Derrick McCane (as Thomas Grunke)) @ Arsenio 'Sonny' Trinidad (Ashram Monk) @ Kristin Norton (Pompous woman) @ Michael Reid MacKay (Skinny Husband) @ Kayla Allen (Airplane Stewardess) @ Ken Kirzinger (Helicopter Pilot) @ Dev Kennedy (Dad Tourist) @ Patti Tippo (Mom Tourist) @ Sabrinah Christie (Girl Tourist) @ Warren Sroka (Boy TouristProduced by||Like many sequels, fails to live up to the original Jim Carrey tries hard to bring When Nature Calls to the level of Pet Detective, but even he could not help it. He might of gone a little over board in the jokes here, but I still laughed. It had that same whacky humor, like the previous film only not as good this time. The plot is basic like the first one. I don't know about anyone else, but I did not find Ace Ventura annoying at all. Quite the opposite, very amusing and entertaining. Why not take a look at this film?. You might not be disappointed. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Addams Family Values|Barry Sonnenfeld|Comedy|PG-13 |6.0|USA|1993| 94 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Nicksay Susan Ringo Scott Rudin|Charles Addams Paul Rudnick|Donald Peterman ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The Family Just Got A Little Stranger.|Uncle fester finds true love (or is it ?) in Debbie - the Addams' new babysitter, hired to care for the Addams' latest addition - Pubert. Debbie has her eye on Fester's money, but first she has to separate him from the rest of the family (Wednesday and Pugsley are sent to a summer camp). On any day of the week, you could expect a newborn baby to be nurtured and loved by his older sister. Except, of course, if it's Wednesday. Pubert is the latest addition to the Addams family and, to prevent sibling rivalry escalating to fratricide, Wednesday and Pugsley are shipped off to summer camp and a nanny is hired. Debby Jellinsky is great with wrinkling baldies, which makes her the perfect nanny for Pubert and the unlikely wife of Uncle Fester. The question is..."Is she grave-digging or gold-digging?" |Anjelica Huston (Morticia Addams) @ Raul Julia (Gomez Addams) @ Christopher Lloyd (Uncle Fester Addams) @ Joan Cusack (Debbie Jellinsky) @ Christina Ricci (Wednesday Addams) @ Carol Kane (Grandma) @ Jimmy Workman (Pugsley Addams) @ Kaitlyn Hooper (Pubert Addams) @ Kristen Hooper (Pubert Addams) @ Carel Struycken (Lurch) @ David Krumholtz (Joel Glicker) @ Christopher Hart (Thing) @ Dana Ivey (Margaret Addams) @ Peter MacNicol (Gary Granger) @ Christine Baranski (Becky Martin-Granger) @ Mercedes McNab (Amanda Buckman) @ Sam McMurray (Don Buckman) @ Harriet Sansom Harris (Ellen Buckman) @ Julie Halston (Mrs. Glicker) @ Barry Sonnenfeld (Mr. Glicker) @ Nathan Lane (Desk Sergeant) @ John Franklin (Cousin Itt) @ Charles Busch (Cousin Aphasia) @ Laura Esterman (Cousin Ophelia) @ Maureen Sue Levin (Flora Amor) @ Darlene Levin (Fauna Amor) @ Carol Hankins (Dementia) @ Steven M. Martin (Donald) @ Douglas Brian Martin (Dexter) @ Ryan Holihan (Lumpy Addams) @ Lois De Banzie (Delivery Nurse) @ Vickilyn Reynolds (Forceps Nurse) @ Cynthia Nixon (Heather) @ Eyde Byrde (Mrs. Montgomery) @ David Hyde Pierce (Delivery Room Doctor) @ Andreana Weiner (Obnoxious Girl) @ Peter Graves (Host) @ Rick Scarry (Lawyer) @ Monet Mazur (Flirting Woman) @ Francis Coady (Flirting Man) @ Ian Abercrombie (Driver) @ Chris Ellis (Moving Man) @ Camille Saviola (Concetta) @ Zack Phifer (Passport Clerk) @ Tony Shalhoub (Jorge) @ Jeffrey Van Hoose (Irwin) @ Micah Winkelspecht (Mordecai) @ Matthew Beebe (Wheelchair Camper) @ Kristy Shirvani (Consuela) @ Jamie Gordon (Escher) @ Micah Hata (Yang) @ Joey Wilcots (Jamal) @ Jason Fife (Camper #1) @ Karl David-Djerf (Camper #2) @ Haley Peel (Young Debbie rest of cast listed alphabetically Cheryl Chase .... Pubert (voice)) @ Nichole McAuley (Snobby Mom (uncredited) Produced by||Better than the first! When I rented ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES I didn't think that it was going to be nearly as good as th first ADDAMS FAMILY movie, but it was surprisingly a lot better than the first one was. It had lots of dark and morbid humor which I love, and it had an excellent cast. I can't wait to buy the DVD. |Region 1 | |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Addams Family, The|Barry Sonnenfeld|Comedy|PG-13 |6.4|USA|1991| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bonnie Arnold Jack Cummins Graham Place Paul Rosenberg Scott Rudin|Charles Addams Caroline Thompson Larry Wilson|Owen Roizman Gale Tattersall||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |It's not the same old Thing.|The Addams step out of Charles Addams' cartoons. They live with all of the trappings of the macabre (including a detached hand for a servant) and are quite wealthy. Added to this mix is a crooked accountant and his loan shark and a plot to slip in the shark's son into the family as their long lost Uncle Fester. Can the false Fester find his way into the vault before he is discovered? For 25 years uncle Fester has been missing. An evil doctor finds out and introduces a fake Fester in an attempt to get the Adams Family's money. The youngest daughter has some doubts as to the sincerity of the new uncle Fester. The fake uncle adapts very well to the strange family. Can the doctor carry out her evil plans and take over the Adams Family's fortune? |Anjelica Huston (Morticia Addams) @ Raul Julia (Gomez Addams) @ Christopher Lloyd (Uncle Fester/Gordon Craven) @ Elizabeth Wilson (Abigail Craven/Dr. Greta Pinder-Schloss) @ Christina Ricci (Wednesday Addams) @ Judith Malina (Grandma) @ Dan Hedaya (Tully Alford, Addams' Attorney) @ Carel Struycken (Lurch) @ Paul Benedict (Judge Womack) @ Christopher Hart (Thing) @ Dana Ivey (Margaret Alford/Margaret Addams) @ Jimmy Workman (Pugsley Addams) @ John Franklin (Cousin Itt) @ Tony Azito (Digit Addams) @ Douglas Brian Martin (Dexter Addams) @ Steven M. Martin (Donald Addams) @ Allegra Kent (Cousin Ophelia Addams) @ Richard Korthaze (Slosh Addams) @ Ryan Holihan (Lumpy Addams) @ Maureen Sue Levin (Flora Amor) @ Darlene Levin (Fauna Amor) @ Kate McGregor-Stewart (Employment Agent) @ Lela Ivey (Susan Firkins, Wednesday's Teacher) @ Whitby Hertford (Little Tully) @ Patty Maloney (Lois Addams) @ Victoria Hall (Swedish Blonde) @ Jimmy Ross (Pre-Teen Gomez) @ Ryan Anderson (Pre-Teen Fester) @ Daniel Pikus (Teenage Gomez) @ Michael Hittesdorf (Teenage Fester) @ Lauren Walker (Teenage Flora) @ Valeri Walker (Teenage Fauna) @ Mercedes McNab (Girl Scout) @ Joe Zimmerman (Long Arm Addams) @ Steve Welles (Fingers Addams) @ Eugene M. Jackson (One-Armed Bass Player) @ Richard Tanner (Snake Charmer) @ Marc Shaiman (Conductor) @ Jonathan Wee (Juggler) @ Owen Morse (Juggler) @ Sally Jessy Raphael (Herself rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Benny Wills (Elf (uncredited) Produced by||Better than the Series... Gomez, Morticia and their brood attempt to keep the family fortune away from some really odd characters while trying to figure out if Uncle Fester is indeed himself. Julia and Huston are magic as Gomez and Morticia. Ricci is also quite devilish as Wednesday. Lloyd is hammy as Fester, but it's a good role for him. Followed by a sequel. |Region 1 | |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Adventures of Baron Munchausen, The|Terry Gilliam|Adventure|PG |6.7|UK|1988| 125 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ray Cooper Jake Eberts Stratton Leopold Thomas Schühly David Tomblin|Gottfried August Buerger Terry Gilliam Charles McKeown Rudolph Erich Raspe|Giuseppe Rotunno ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Remarkable.Unbelievable.Impossible.And true.|The fantastic tale of a 17th century aristocrat, his talented henchmen and a little girl in their efforts to save a town from defeat by the Turks. Being swallowed by a giant sea-monster, a trip to the moon, a dance with Venus and an escape from the Grim Reaper are only some of the improbable adventures. Baron Munchausen is a character of European myth that might be considered the predecessor of American tales of Pecos Bill or Paul Bunyan. The Baron's stories are taken to be outrageous and fanciful lies. This is the origin of the name of the psychiatric diagnosis of "Munchausen's Syndrome", a particularly bizzare form of hypochondria. |John Neville (Baron Munchausen) @ Eric Idle (Desmond/Berthold) @ Sarah Polley (Sally Salt) @ Oliver Reed (Vulcan) @ Charles McKeown (Rupert/Adolphus) @ Winston Dennis (Bill/Albrecht) @ Jack Purvis (Jeremy/Gustavus) @ Valentina Cortese (Queen Ariadne/Violet) @ Jonathan Pryce (The Right Ordinary Horatio Jackson) @ Bill Paterson (Henry Salt) @ Peter Jeffrey (Sultan) @ Uma Thurman (Venus/Rose) @ Alison Steadman (Daisy) @ Ray Cooper (Functionary) @ Don Henderson (Commander) @ Robin Williams (King of the Moon (as Ray D. Tutto)) @ Sting (Heroic Officer) @ Andrew MacLachlan (Colonel) @ Mohamed Badrsalem (Executioner) @ Kiran Shah (Executioner's Assistant) @ Franco Adducci (Treasurer) @ José Lifante (Dr. Death (as Jose Lifante)) @ Ettore Martini (First General) @ Antonio Pistillo (Second General) @ Michael Polley (Gunner) @ Tony Smart (Gunner rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Terry Gilliam (Irritating Singer (uncredited) Produced by||Too Good To Be True? This is one of Terry Gilliam's best works.The legend of the famous Baron is a natural to be filmed by this director.It's visually stimulating, and also a thrill for the imagination.be sure to read the original story of Baron Munchausen if you can! |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Artificial Intelligence: AI|Steven Spielberg|Drama|Rated PG-13 for some sexual content and violent images. |6.9|USA|2001| 146 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bonnie Curtis Jan Harlan Kathleen Kennedy Walter F. Parkes Steven Spielberg|Ian Watson Brian Aldiss Steven Spielberg|Janusz Kaminski ||Warner Bros. [us] |David is 11 years old. He weighs 60 pounds. He is 4 feet, 6 inches tall. He has brown hair. His love is real. But he is not.|In the not-so-far future the polar ice caps have melted and the resulting raise of the ocean waters has drowned all the coastal cities of the world. Withdrawn to the interior of the continents, the human race keeps advancing, reaching to the point of creating realistic robots (called mechas) to serve him. One of the mecha-producing companies builds David, an artificial kid which is the first to have real feelings, especially a never-ending love for his "mother", Monica. Monica is the woman who adopted him as a substitute for her real son, who remains in cryo-stasis, stricken by an incurable disease. David is living happily with Monica and her husband, but when their real son returns home after a cure is discovered, his life changes dramatically. A futuristic adaptation of the tale of Pinocchio, with David being the "fake" boy who desperately wants to become "real". In this futuristic fairy tale, "David", a highly-advanced robotic boy, hopes to become a real boy so that he can win back the affection of the human mother who abandoned him. Like Pinocchio, he goes on a long journey hoping to find his "Blue Fairy," who can make his dreams come true. |Haley Joel Osment (David Swinton) @ Jude Law (Gigolo Joe, Lover Mecha) @ Frances O'Connor (Monica Swinton) @ Brendan Gleeson (Lord Johnson-Johnson, Flesh Fair Owner) @ Sam Robards (Henry Swinton, Monica's Husband) @ William Hurt (Professor Allen Hobby, the Visionary) @ Jake Thomas (Martin Swinton, Monica's Son) @ Ken Leung (Syatyoo-Sama) @ Michael Mantell (Dr. Frazier at Cryogenic Institute) @ Michael Berresse (Stage Manager) @ Kathryn Morris (Teenage Honey) @ Adrian Grenier (Teen in Van) @ Clark Gregg (Supernerd) @ Kevin Sussman (Supernerd) @ Tom Gallop (Supernerd) @ Eugene Osment (Supernerd) @ April Grace (Female Colleague) @ Matt Winston (Executive) @ Sabrina Grdevich (Shelia Mecha (Demo)) @ Theo Greenly (Todd, at the Birthday Party) @ Jeremy James Kissner (Kid at the Birthday Party) @ Dillon McEwin (Kid at the Birthday Party) @ Andy Morrow (Kid at the Birthday Party) @ Curt Youngberg (Kid at the Birthday Party) @ Ashley Scott (Gigolo Jane) @ John Prosky (Mr. Williamson the Bellman) @ Enrico Colantoni (The Murderer) @ Paula Malcomson (Patricia in Mirrored Room (as Paula Malcolmson)) @ Haley King (Amanda (Girl with Teddy) at Flesh Fair) @ Daveigh Chase (Child Singer) @ Brian Turk (Backstage Bull) @ Justina Machado (Assistant) @ Tim Rigby (Yeoman) @ Lily Knight (Voice in the Crowd) @ Vito Carenzo (Big Man) @ Rena Owen (Ticket Taker) @ Alan Scott (Worker (as J. Alan Scott)) @ Adam Alexi-Malle (Crowd Member) @ Laurence Mason (Amanda's Dad, Tech Director) @ Brent Sexton (Russell) @ Ken Palmer (Percussionist) @ Jason Sutter (Percussionist) @ Michael Shamus Wiles (Cop) @ Kelly McCool (Kate the Holographic Girl) @ Clara Bellar (FemMecha Nanny) @ Keith Campbell (Roadworker) @ Tim Rhoze (Laboratory Technician (as Tim Edward Rhoze)) @ Jim Jansen (Chef) @ Eliza Coleman (General Circuita) @ R. David Smith (Welder) @ Wayne Wilderson (Comedian) @ Bobby Harwell (TV Face) @ Billy Scudder (Mechanic) @ Jack Angel (Teddy, Martin's Toy Bear (voice)) @ Robin Williams (Dr. Know (voice)) @ Ben Kingsley (Narrator/Advanced Mecha Specialist (voice)) @ Meryl Streep (Blue Fairy (voice)) @ Chris Rock (Comedic Mecha (voice)) @ Erik Bauersfeld (Gardener (voice)) @ Miguel Pérez (Robot Repairman called for David (as Miguel Perez)) @ Matt Malloy (Robot Repairman called for David) @ Mark Allan Staubach (Teen in Van picking up David & Joe (as Mark Staubach)) @ Michael Fishman (Teen in Van picking up David & Joe) @ Jeanine Salla (Sentient Machine Therapist) @ Laia Salla (Mr. Chan's Assistant) @ Diane Fletcher (Sentient Machine Security) @ Kate Nei (Toe Bell Ringing) @ Claude Gilbert (Cybertronics - Room 93056) @ Red King (Covert Information Retrieval) @ Al Jourgensen (Flesh Fair Band Member) @ Paul Barker (Flesh Fair Band Member) @ Max Brody (Flesh Fair Band Member) @ Duane Buford (Flesh Fair Band Member) @ Adam Grossman (Flesh Fair Band Member) @ Ty Coon (Flesh Fair Band Member rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kelly Felix (Butler Mecha (uncredited)) @ John Harmon (Medic Mecha (uncredited)) @ Claudia Katz (Mecha Robot (uncredited)) @ Katie Lohmann (Pleasure Mecha (uncredited)) @ Paul Isaac Martin (Crash Test Dummy (uncredited)) @ Chris Palermo (Red Biker Hound (uncredited) Produced by||Next time just write a book "A.I" is set in the plausibly distant future, one we seem to be headed for. If you go see this for nothing else, check out the world Spielberg creates and how he makes you believe it. The visual effects are the best I've seen. This is likewise the most accurate rendering of the future I've seen. It isn't based on flights of fancy, but is honest about the direction the human race (well, at least here in the U.S.) is heading in.What's one of the first functions these robots that can think for themselves, created by humans to fulfill human needs, would be used for? Of course. There can be no denying that the Gigolo Joes and their female counterparts would be the first ones off the assembly line. In this story, many kinds of robots have been created and discarded for a newer model, just like today's computers. These robots serve humans, but are also self-reliant. These robots have will. They want to survive. This creates a paranoia about them, which leads to the dreaded Flesh Fair. Old junked robots are captured and destroyed in all kinds of creative ways before a cheering crowd--the future equivalent of BattleBots, WWF or Monster Trucks. The Fair and the scavenger robots it victimizes is but one of many great ideas "A.I." offers. When the Flesh Fair crowd finds out scientists have created a child, no one can believe it. Why make a child robot? What purpose could it possibly have? Before too long someone in the crowd figures it out: somewhere out there, there's a mama who lost her child or a man and woman unable to concieve. David is programmed to love his mother forever if he is read seven certainwords in a certain order. Once his love is turned ‘on', love in this case being a program that begins running, it cannot be turned off. This is very profound and meaningful, so I appreciate that the film doesn't konk you over the head with this: once you love someone--really love someone, not like puppy love, twitterpation, infatuation, even the love behind most marriages--but REALLY love, like the way a mother loves her child, it cannot be turned off. We often love people who don't love us back because that's just the way it is. We even love people who are mean to us. That's why it's love. It's not a decision, but a condition. Love can make you crazy, drive you to make weird choices--like abandoning your robot son in the woods to fend for himself because he's a danger to your real son. Yes, Monica does the compassionate thing, the right thing, and that's why it's so sad. Now David is lost and alone, without the one person that matters to him, also knowing that person can't love him because he's not a ‘real boy.' David believes he can become real with the help of the Blue Fairy from ‘Pinnochio,' which he doesn't understand is just a fairy tale. Aiding him on his quest: the aforementioned Gigolo Joe, who'd just like to turn that ‘blue' into something else. Hey, it's what he does (thank goodness Spielberg refrains from showing Joe teaching David how to dance and walk the way he does--not that there weren't a couple of threatening moments). I want to talk about the ending but I don't want to say ‘spoilers!' because then people won't read on. So I'll be as vague as possible and just say (gasp!), it worked for me. Many have said that one ending was enough. True, the Manhattan/Coney Island scene would've been a great ending for any film: a satisfying, open-ended, fitting (but very sad) close to the story. This was the only point where I wondered why it kept going. But as I watched on, it started to make sense. The film becomes very somber and visual (the Kubrick portion of the story if you will) or what others would call ‘slow.' Well, I'm a patient moviegoer so I'll sit through almost anything. This ending, however out of place it may feel, does tie up the story nicely. There are some parallels with the beginning and I like stories that end that way. Whether the film is better with or without this last half-hour I couldn't say. Maybe I'll go see it again and run away right when that moment comes. As for whether it's good or bad, which I haven't really expressed one way or the other--well, I have concerns. There's a whole lot of story here and it feels like too much even for a 2 and-a-half hour film. The first half is very good, but feels like merely the set-up for a bigger, bolder story to come. This bigger story never quite materializes. That there appears to be a lot more story available to tell makes me think this would have made a much better novel. Of course, they'd just try making it into a movie anyway. Grade: C |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Aimée & Jaguar|Max Färberböck|Romance||7.2|Germany|1999| 125 min |German||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Hanno Huth Feliks Pastusiak Günter Rohrbach Lew Rywin Stefaan Schieder Gerhard von Halem|Max Färberböck Erica Fischer Rona Munro|Tony Imi ||Mongrel Media [ca] |Eine Liebe größer als der Tod |Berlin 1943/44 ("The Battle of Berlin"). Felice, an intelligent and courageous Jewish woman who lives under a false name, belongs to an underground organization. Lilly, a devoted mother of four, though an occasional unfaithful wife, is desperate for love. An unusual and passionate love between them blossoms despite the danger of persecution and nightly bombing raids. The Gestapo is on Felice's trail. Her friends flee, she decides to sit out the war with Lilly. One hot day in August 1944, the Gestapo is waiting in Lilly's flat... |Maria Schrader (Felice Schragenheim (Jaguar)) @ Juliane Köhler (Lilly Wust (Aimée)) @ Johanna Wokalek (Ilse) @ Heike Makatsch (Klärchen) @ Elisabeth Degen (Lotte) @ Detlev Buck (Günther Wust) @ Inge Keller (Lilly Wust (1997)) @ Kyra Mladeck (Ilse (1997)) @ Sarah Camp (Frau Kappler) @ Klaus Manchen (Herr Kappler) @ Margit Bendokat (Frau Jäger) @ Jochen Stern (Werner Lause) @ Peter Weck (Chefredakteur Keller) @ Lia Dultzkaya (Hulda) @ Dani Levy (Fritz Borchert) @ Hans-Christoph Blumenberg (Fotograf Schmidt (as H.C. Blumenberg)) @ Rüdiger Hacker (Ernst Biermösel) @ Rosel Zech (Blonde Frau) @ Ulrich Matthes (Eckert (SS)) @ Dorkas Kiefer (Tanja) @ Désirée Nick (Erika (Die Freundinnen/The Girlfriends)) @ Patrizia Moresco (Maria (Die Freundinnen/The Girlfriends)) @ Karen Friesicke (Marlene (Die Freundinnen/The Girlfriends)) @ Felix Bold (Bernd (Die Kinder Wust/Children Wust)) @ Jake Steinfeld (Eberhard (Die Kinder Wust/Children Wust)) @ Yannick Richter (Reinhard (Die Kinder Wust/Children Wust)) @ Henrik Meng (Albrecht (Die Kinder Wust/Children Wust)) @ Bastian Trost (Leutnant) @ Klaus Koennecke (Herr Ude) @ Barbara Focke (Frau Ude) @ Gabriele Schulze (Mieterin/Tenant) @ Falk Baumhauer (deren Sohn/her Son) @ Ludwig Boettger (Makler/Broker) @ Wolfgang Woytt (Alter Mann/Old Man) @ Werner Rehm (Dirigent/Conductor) @ Marc Bischoff (Chauffeur Sepp) @ Karoline Siewinska (Mädchen mit Mütze/Girl with Cap) @ Jerzy Milton (Azron) @ Marta Lachova (Ruth) @ Rebekka Flemming (Frau Blockwart) @ Peer Jäger (Herr Pohl) @ Anette Felber (Frau Pohl) @ Helmut Ehmig (Ober/Waiter) @ Klaus Schindler (Beamter 1/Civil Servant #1) @ Christophe Jacobi (Beamter 2/Civil Servant #2 (as Christoph Jacobi)) @ Margritta Heyn (Frau mit Brille/Woman with Glasses) @ Klaus Hoser (Konzertbesucher/Man at Concert) @ Heinz Trixner (Kleinert) @ Dorothea Moritz (Rotkreuzschwester/Red Cross Nurse) @ Carl Heinz Choynski (Brummer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Christiane Passoth ( (uncredited) Produced by||Extremely well made and acted Fascinating (And true!) story of two women that fall in love during WWII Berlin and how they try to maintain their love during that chaotic period. The fact that its a lesbian love story adds spice and intrigue to the story but the fact is that it could be any love story set here and most of the tribulations would be the same. Thats the moral here, the fact that they are lesbians doesn't matter! The sets and costumes are fantastic to look at and it really looks like the real thing. Wonderful and gutsy acting! It doesn't get much better. I wish this beautiful and deep film could have had a wider distribution. It deserved at least that. All in all its unforgettable. ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Air Force One|Wolfgang Petersen|Action|Rated R for violence. |6.3|USA|1997| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Marc Abraham Armyan Bernstein Thomas A. Bliss Gail Katz Peter Kohn David V. Lester Mary Montiforte Wolfgang Petersen Jonathan Shestack|Andrew W. Marlowe |Michael Ballhaus ||Buena Vista Home Video (BVHV) [us] |Impenetrable. Invincible. In Trouble.|The President of the United States is on a journey home after making a speech in Moscow. But on the journey, Russian hi-jakers take over the plane, disguising themselves as newspaper reporters. They want the President to ring Moscow and release General Redek. But they think that the President has escaped in the pod. But the president is really still on board air force One attempting to regain control of the plane and to rescue his wife and daughter. The President of the USA goes to Moscow and gives a stirring speech outlining the USA's new "Zero-tolerance" policy with respect to terrorism. On the flight home, terrorists take over Air Force One (the President's official plane) and take the passengers (including his wife and daughter) hostage. The terrorists plan to execute one hostage every half-hour unless/until their demands are met. However, the President is a former Medal of Honor winner, so the terrorists may be in for a surprise... Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman star in this thriller about a steadfast U.S. President who has just told the world he will not negotiate with terrorists. Now, Russian neo-nationalists have hijacked Air Force One and the President is faced with a nearly impossible decison: give in to terrorist demands or sacrifice not only the country's dignity, but the lives of his wife and daughter. |Harrison Ford (President James Marshall) @ Gary Oldman (Ivan Korshunov) @ Glenn Close (Vice President Kathryn Bennett) @ Wendy Crewson (Grace Marshall) @ Liesel Matthews (Alice Marshall) @ Paul Guilfoyle (Chief of Staff Lloyd 'Shep' Shepherd) @ Xander Berkeley (Secret Service Agent Gibbs) @ William H. Macy (Maj. Caldwell) @ Dean Stockwell (Defense Secretary Walter Dean) @ Tom Everett (National Security Advisor Jack Doherty) @ Jürgen Prochnow (Gen. Ivan Radek) @ Donna Bullock (Deputy Press Secretary Melanie Mitchel) @ Michael Ray Miller (Col. Axelrod) @ Carl Weintraub (Lt. Col. Ingraham) @ Elester Latham (Air Force One navigator) @ Elya Baskin (Andrei Kolchak) @ Levani Outchaneichvili (Sergei Lenski (as Levani)) @ David Vadim (Igor Nevsky) @ Andrew Divoff (Boris Bazylev) @ Ilia Volokh (Vladimir Krasin) @ Chris Howell (Maj. Perkins) @ Spencer Garrett (White House Aide Thomas Lee) @ Bill Smitrovich (Gen. Northwood) @ Philip Baker Hall (U.S. Atty. Gen. Andrew Ward) @ Albert Owens ('Football' colonel) @ Willard E. Pugh (White House communications officer (as Willard Pugh)) @ Michael Monks (Assistant Press Secretary) @ Alan Woolf (Russian President Petrov) @ Messiri Freeman (Future Postmaster General) @ Thomas Crawford (Mike (steward)) @ Fenton Lawless (Joey (steward)) @ Dan Shor (Notre Dame aide) @ David Gianopoulos (Agent Johnson) @ Glenn Morshower (Agent Walters) @ Richard Doyle (Col. Bob Jackson (Air Force One backup pilot)) @ Don McManus (Col. Carlton (as Don R. McManus)) @ Duke Miglin (F-15 'Halo 2' fighter pilot) @ Pavel Lychnikoff (Prison guard (as Pavel D. Lychnikoff)) @ Oleg Taktarov (Prison guard) @ Mario Roberts (Special Service agent) @ Keith Woulard (Special Service agent) @ J. Mark Donaldson (Special Service agent) @ Bruce E. Holman (Special Service agent (as Bruce Holman)) @ Brian Libby (Phillips (Air Force One chief mechanic)) @ Diana Bellamy (White House Switchboard Operator) @ Thom Barry (Ramstein S.O.F. watch officer) @ Harry Hutchinson (Ramstein Airbase controller) @ E.E. Bell (Reporter) @ Mark Thompson (Reporter) @ Marciarose Shestack (Reporter) @ Ren Hanami (Reporter) @ Suzanne Michaels (CNN anchorwoman) @ Boris Lee Krutonog (MiG leader (as Boris Krutonog)) @ Alex Veadov (MiG pilot) @ Allan Kolman (Kazakh soldier) @ Daniel W. Barringer (USAF jumpmaster (as Dan Barringer)) @ Mark Knutson (Russian jumpmaster) @ Jim Harley (Willis) @ Aleks Shaklin (Government official) @ Igor N. Lobotsky (Russian official) @ Koko Kiledjian (Russian speaker) @ Gordon Michaels (USAF radio specialist) @ Robert Peters (USAF radio specialist) @ Kristian Sorensen (USAF radio specialist) @ Stuart Nixon (USAF security agent) @ Marty Rosen (CIA Director) @ Lee Faranda (Russian villain) @ Mike Hambrick (CNN reporter) @ Catherine T. Yang (Asian TV reporter) @ David MacIsaac (MC-130 pilot (callsign Liberty 2-4)) @ J. Scott Shonka (Pararescue jumper) @ Paul Sklar (Pararescue jumper) @ David Permenter (Winch recovery master) @ David O'Donnell (Young airman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Timothy Carhart (Secret Service agent at checkpoint (uncredited)) @ J.A. Preston (White House general (uncredited)) @ Werner Sonne (German journalist (uncredited) Produced by||Great adventure Air Force One is one great ride.What makes it work so well is the conviction that Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman bring to their roles.You can see in each actor's eyes that they stand behind what they believe in.Gary Oldman makes a perfect villian and a very complex one at that.He is not just an average, run of the mill madman.He has a family, he is someone's son and those facts make him that much more real.Harrison Ford is great as the president.He's strong, quick witted, and will do anything he can to save his family and staff from the hijackers.A good ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat for two hours, just as long as you don't ask any questions. |Region 1 | |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Airplane II: The Sequel|Ken Finkleman|Comedy|PG |5.7|USA|1982|85 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/9/2004|Mel Dellar Howard W. Koch|Ken Finkleman |Joseph F. Biroc ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |For the ride of your life... All you need for Christmas are your two front seats!|The hero of an unlikely airplane disaster must overcome his own inadequacies, improbable accidents and his former girlfriend in order to save a space shuttle from destruction in this spoof sequel of the disaster parody Airplane! Years have passed since Ted Striker heroically saved many lives by avoiding a plane crash. Working as a test pilot for a new Lunar Shuttle, he gets innocently sent into a mental ward after a crash of the badly constructed, computer-navigated spaceship. When he hears that the exactly same type of shuttle is scheduled for a moon flight soon, he breaks out to hinder the launch. Aboard, Ted finds his ex-ex Elaine Dickinson working as stewardess again and her fiancé Simon, a member of the committee that wants the Mayflower I to be launched. In flight, the ship's computer ROK 9000 takes control, killing the crew. Ted and Elaine manage to switch it off, and now it is up to Ted again to save the passengers' lives - if there only wouldn't be these flashbacks to the war and these people who know Ted and have no faith in his abilities at all. |Robert Hays (Ted Striker) @ Julie Hagerty (Elaine Dickinson) @ Lloyd Bridges (Steven McCroskey) @ Chad Everett (Simon Kurtz) @ Peter Graves (Capt. Clarence Oveur) @ Chuck Connors (The Sarge) @ William Shatner (Cdr. Buck Murdock) @ Raymond Burr (Judge D.C. Simonton) @ John Vernon (Dr. Stone) @ Stephen Stucker (Controller Jacobs/Courtroom Clerk) @ Kent McCord (Navigator Dave Unger) @ James A. Watson Jr. (First Officer Dunn) @ John Dehner (The Commissioner) @ Rip Torn (Bud Kruger/President Reagan) @ Sonny Bono (Joe Seluchi) @ Lee Purcell (Mrs. Seluchi) @ Al White (Witness) @ Craig Berenson (Shaving Man) @ Laurene Landon (Testa, Shuttle Stewardess) @ Wendy Phillips (Mary, Shuttle Stewardess) @ Jack Jones (Lounge Singer) @ Art Fleming (Jeopardy Host) @ Frank Ashmore (Controller #3) @ Richard Jaeckel (Controller #2 (as Richard H. Jaeckel)) @ Lee Bryant (Mrs. Hammen) @ John Larch (Prosecuting Attorney) @ John Hancock (Controller #1) @ Oliver Robins (Jimmy Wilson) @ Louis Giambalvo (Witness) @ Sam Anderson (Man in White) @ Leon Askin (Moscow Anchorman) @ B.J. Barie (Video Kid) @ Hilary Beane (Next Woman in Line) @ Sandahl Bergman (Officer #1) @ Burke Byrnes (Businessman #2) @ Ed Call (Information Agent) @ Michael Currie (Businessman #1) @ Patty Dworkin (Young Woman) @ Gary Faga (Guide) @ Mary Farrell (Alice Wilson) @ Madeleine Fisher (Shuttle Agent) @ Bruce French (Officer #2) @ Richard Gilliland (Lt. Pervis) @ Hugh Gillin (Texan) @ Elisa Goodman (I Love Sanity Nurse) @ Laurie Hagen (Tad Woman) @ Maurice Hill (Stock #2) @ Steven Hirsch (Rorshack) @ Howard Honig (Dave Walters) @ Dennis Howard (John Wilson) @ Marcy Lafferty (First Woman in Line) @ Stanley Lawrence (Next Man) @ David Leisure (Religious Zealot #1) @ Floyd Levine (Police Lt. Hallick) @ Steve Levitt (Creature #1) @ Gail Matthius (Educational Network Woman) @ Pat McNamara (Businessman #2) @ Mary Mercier (Edith Walters) @ Marcus K. Mukai (Tokyo Anchorman (as Marcus Mukai)) @ Ann Nelson (Airsick Woman) @ Steve Nevil (Creature #2) @ James Noble (Father O'Flanagan) @ Kenneth O'Brien (Porter (as Kenneth G. O'Brien)) @ Rick Overton (Clerk) @ Lee Patterson (Phoenix Six Captain) @ David Paymer (Court Photographer) @ Pamela Guest (Woman with Baby (as Pamela Ann Rack)) @ Barbie Reade (Interpreter) @ Mary-Robin Redd (Intellectual-Looking Woman) @ June Sanders (Cashier) @ Pat Sajak (Buffalo Anchorman) @ Louise Sorel (Nurse) @ Clint Smith (Scalper) @ William Vaughan (Worker) @ Sandy Ward (Defense Attorney) @ Ricky Powell (First Young Man) @ Sean Peters (Second Young Man) @ Hervé Villechaize (Little Breather) @ Allison Hanes (Third Stewardess) @ Ronald E. House (Smoking Man (as Ronald House)) @ Martin Garner (Old Man #2) @ Jack Bernardi (Old Man #1) @ Jim Staahl (International Inquirer Reporter) @ William Porter (Rag Reporter) @ John Paragon ('Economy' Flight Attendant) @ Alison Price (Stewardess rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Earl Boen (Doctor (uncredited)) @ Joyce DeWitt (Juror (uncredited)) @ Monique Gabrielle (Schoolgirl (uncredited)) @ Tom McGreevey (Karl Malden (uncredited)) @ Kitten Natividad (Woman in 'Moral Majority' Shirt (uncredited)) @ Leslie Nielsen (Dr. Rumack (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Lou B. Washington (Shuttle Ground Controller (uncredited)) @ George Wendt (Ticket Agent (uncredited)Produced by||Oveur was over Unger, and I was under Dunn. Another hilarious spoof of disaster films, this one takes most of the cast of the original "Airplane!" and puts them in the future where space shuttle travel is the hot new thing. Robert Hayes and Julie Hagerty reprise their roles as Ted Stryker and Elaine Dickinson, two bumbling and likeable characters who fall in love (like so many times before...) during the inevitable breakdown of... well... EVERYTHING on the Mayflower 1's maiden voyage to the moon. Some of the jokes are tired retreads of the earlier film's efforts, but most are rapid fire gags that hit the mark every time. I'm still surprised that NBC didn't develop a sitcom based on Stephen Stucker's character of Johnny... "Tell me everything that's happened so far, Johnny." "Well, first the Earth cooled, then the dinosaurs came, but they got too big and fat, so they died and turned to oil. And then the Arabs started buying Mercedes Benzes. And then Prince Charles started wearing all of Lady Di's clothes, I couldn't believe it..." || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Airplane!|Jim Abrahams David Zucker Jerry Zucke|Comedy|PG |7.7|USA|1980| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jim Abrahams Jon Davison Howard W. Koch Hunt Lowry David Zucker Jerry Zucker|Arthur Hailey Arthur Hailey Hall Bartlett John C. Champion Jim Abrahams David Zucker Jerry Zucker|Joseph F. Biroc ||CIC Vídeo [br] |What's slower than a speeding bullet, and able to hit tall buildings at a single bound?|This is a spoof of the airport disaster movies. When the crew of an airplane are struck by some form of virus, the fate of the passengers depends on an ex-war pilot who is the only one able to land the plane safely! The passengers represent a selection of interesting wacky characters who seem to take every word for its literal meaning. Ex-Navy pilot Ted Striker has been nervous about flying ever since THAT incident during the war. He's on a flight which would cause anyone concern: he seems to be the only sane person aboard. Of course, everything that could possibly go wrong on this flight will go wrong... what do you expect with a co-pilot who doesn't realize he's a basketball star, and an air traffic controller with a substance abuse problem? Ted Striker just got dumped by his long-time girlfriend Elaine Dickinson, who works as a stewardess at Trans American Airlines. In his wish to get her back, he follows her aboard the plane, although he has had a deep aversion against anything winged since he lost several men in the war. During flight, he tries to contact her again and again, but as the crew and many passengers get seriously ill due to a bad fish meal, he has no chance to get to her. In fact, Ted Striker seems to be the only healthy person aboard that has piloting experience. Now, it is up to him to get the bird down in Chicago safely, before the poisoning starts causing casualties. But Ted Striker's aversion really is a serious psychosis, which breaks open and needs to be cured - right now. |Robert Hays (Ted Striker) @ Julie Hagerty (Elaine Dickinson) @ Lloyd Bridges (Steven McCrosky) @ Leslie Nielsen (Dr. Rumack) @ Robert Stack (Capt. Rex Kramer) @ Peter Graves (Capt. Clarence Oveur) @ Lorna Patterson (Randy) @ Stephen Stucker (Johnny Hinshaw) @ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Roger Murdock) @ Otto (Himself, The Inflatable Autopilot) @ Jim Abrahams (Religious Zealot #6) @ Frank Ashmore (Victor Basta) @ Jonathan Banks (Gunderson) @ Craig Berenson (Paul Carey) @ Barbara Billingsley (Jive Lady) @ Lee Bryant (Mrs. Hammen) @ Joyce Bulifant (Mrs. Davis) @ Mae E. Campbell (Security Lady) @ Ted Chapman (Airport Steward) @ Jesse Emmett (Man from India) @ Norman Alexander Gibbs (First Jive Dude) @ Amy Gibson (Soldier's Girl) @ Marcy Goldman (Mrs. Geline) @ Bob Gorman (Striped Controller) @ Rossie Harris (Joey Hammen) @ Maurice Hill (Reporter #3) @ David Hollander (Young Boy with Coffee) @ James Hong (Japanese General) @ Howard Honig (Jack) @ Gregory Itzin (Religious Zealot #1) @ Howard Jarvis (Man in Taxi) @ Michael Laurence (Newscaster) @ David Leisure (First Krishna) @ Zachary Lewis (Religious Zealot #3) @ Barbara Mallory (Religious Zealot #2) @ Maureen McGovern (Sister Angelina) @ Nora Meerbaum (Cocaine Lady) @ Mary Mercier (Shirley) @ Ethel Merman (Lt. Hurwitz) @ Len Mooy (Reporter #1) @ Ann Nelson (Hanging Lady (as Ann M. Nelson)) @ Laura Nix (Mrs. Hurwitz) @ John O'Leary (Reporter #2) @ Cyril O'Reilly (Bill the Soldier) @ Bill Porter (Hospital Contortionist) @ Nicholas Pryor (Jim Hammen) @ Conrad E. Palmisano (Religious Zealot #4 (as Conrad Palmisano)) @ Mallory Sandler (L.A. Ticket Agent) @ Michelle Stacy (Young Girl with Coffee) @ Robert Starr (Religious Zealot #5) @ Barbara Stuart (Mrs. Kramer) @ Lee Terri (Mrs. Linda Oveur) @ Kenneth Tobey (Air Controller Neubauer) @ William Tregoe (Jack Kirkpatrick) @ Hatsuo Uda (Japanese Newscaster) @ Herb Voland (Air Controller Macias) @ Jimmie Walker (Windshield Wiper Man) @ Jill Whelan (Lisa Davis) @ Al White (Second Jive Dude) @ John David Wilder (Second Krishna (as John-David Wilder)) @ Windy (Horse) @ Jason Wingreen (Dr. Brody, Mayo Clinic) @ Louise Yaffe (Mrs. Jaffe) @ Charlotte Zucker (Make-Up Lady) @ David Zucker (Ground Crewman #1) @ Jerry Zucker (Ground Crewman #2 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Larry Blake (Upside-down Man (uncredited)) @ Susan Breslau (Ticket Agent (uncredited)) @ Leslie Hoffman (Passenger in terminal (uncredited)) @ Kitten Natividad (Woman in Tight Shirt (uncredited)) @ Dr. Robert Nevin (Other Doctor/Plane Passenger (uncredited) Produced by||All hail ZAZ! AIRPLANE! (1980) **** Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack, Leslie Nielsen, Peter Graves, Kareem Abdul Jabbar.Hilarious joke a minute parody that's right on target on the "Airport" films and disaster flicks of the Seventies that re-launched the careers of square-jawed, tight-lipped thespians Nielsen, Bridges and Stack.Look for David Leisure ("Joe Isuzu") as a hare krishna.First big film of the comic trio David Zucker, Jim Abrahams & Jerry Zucker; aka ZAZ. |Region 1 | |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Aladdin|Ron Clements John Muske|Animation|G |7.5|USA|1992|90 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Ron Clements Donald W. Ernst John Musker Amy Pell||||Abril Vídeo [br] |Imagine if you had three wishes, three hopes, three dreams and they all could come true.|Aladdin is a street-urchin who lives in a large and busy town long ago with his faithful monkey friend Abu. When Princess Jasmine gets tired of being forced to remain in the palace that overlooks the city, she sneaks out to the marketplace, where she accidentally meets Aladdin. Under the orders of the evil Jafar (the sultan's advisor), Aladdin is thrown in jail and becomes caught up in Jafar's plot to rule the land with the aid of a mysterious lamp. Legend has it that only a person who is a "diamond in the rough" can retrieve the lamp from the Cave of Wonders. Aladdin might fight that description, but that's not enough to marry the princess, who must (by law) marry a prince. |Scott Weinger (Aladdin 'Al'/Prince Ali Ababwa (voice)) @ Robin Williams (The Blue Genie of the Lamp/Merchant (voice)) @ Linda Larkin (Princess Jasmine (voice)) @ Jonathan Freeman (Grand Vizier Jafar (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Abu the Monkey (voice)) @ Gilbert Gottfried (Iago the Parrot (voice)) @ Douglas Seale (Sultan of Agrabah (voice)) @ Bruce Adler (Narrator (voice)) @ Brad Kane (Aladdin 'Al'/Prince Ali Ababwa (singing voice)) @ Lea Salonga (Princess Jasmine (singing voice)) @ Charles Adler (Additional Voices (voice) (as Charlie Adler)) @ Jack Angel (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Corey Burton (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Philip L. Clarke (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Razoul the Chief Guard (voice)) @ Jennifer Darling (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Debi Derryberry (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bruce Gooch (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jerry Houser (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Vera Lockwood (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Sherry Lynn (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mickie McGowan (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patrick Pinney (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Russi Taylor (Rajah the Tiger (voice) (uncredited)) @ Chris Wahl (Guard (voice) (uncredited)) @ Philip Young (Guard (voice) (uncredited)) @ Kathy Zielinski (Begger the Prisoner/Snake Jafar (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||One of my favorite films, and I'm not any sort of Disney enthusiast Aladdin the street urchin (voiced by Scott Weinger) finds a magical lamp that unleashes the power of the blue Genie (voiced by Robin Williams) who grants him three wishes. Unfortunately the evil Jafar plans on using the genie to his own will and wreaks havoc on Aladdin's newly-found life (he wishes to become a sultan in the hopes of earning the love of his life, Princess Jasmine). This is simply a wonderful story with bold animation and a truly terrific vocal performance by Robin Williams. It's the movie's adult humor -- such as the Ah-nuld and Woody Allen impersonations done by Williams -- that make it equally enjoyable for all ages. When this was released in 1992 I was fascinated and used to watch it all the time; now, as an adult, I still enjoy the film for many different reasons, while still managing to appreciate the utter joy of the story. Yes, it's a bit politically correct with Princess Jasmine's strong will against her father and the representation of certain "careful stereotypes" (Disney is careful not to come across as racist and in the process cast Americans to do the voices!) but I like it this way. Without Williams the film would be a total bore, to be honest. With him, it's one of the greatest films ever made, which is something I thought I'd never write. 5/5 |||1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Alf: Season One|||NR NR||||616 mins|||||||||||False||||||||11/13/2004||||||| Four Disc Set ALF, theiimpetuous alien who plummeted from outer space into theiTanner family garage backiin '86 isinow crash-landing oniDVD!Earth has just not been theisame without this cosmic superstar andihis wise-cracking antics! Four Disc Set ALF, theiimpetuous alien who plummeted from outer space into theiTanner family garage backiin '86 isinow crash-landing oniDVD!Earth has just not been theisame without this cosmic superstar andihis wise-cracking antics! ||||Region 1 Region 1| |Standard 1.33:1 Color Standard 1.33:1 Color|ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC] ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC]||||||@@ Alice in Wonderland|Clyde Geronimi Wilfred Jackson Hamilton Lusk|Drama|G|7.1|USA|1951| 75 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Lewis Carroll Winston Hibler Ted Sears Bill Peet Erdman Penner Joe Rinaldi Milt Banta William Cottrell Dick Kelsey Joe Grant Dick Huemer Del Connell Tom Oreb John Walbridge Aldous Huxley|||Gativideo [ar] |Tis brillig!|Disney version of Lewis Carroll's Children's story. Alice becomes bored and her mind starts to wander. She sees a white rabbit who appears to be in a hurry. She chases it into its burrow and then a most bizarre series of adventures begins. On a golden afternoon, young Alice follows a White Rabbit, who disappears down a nearby rabbit hole. Quickly following him, she tumbles into the burrow - and enters the merry, topsy-turvy world of Wonderland! Memorable songs and whimsical escapades highlight Alice's journey, which culminates in a madcap encounter with the Queen of Hearts - and her army of playing cards! |Kathryn Beaumont (Alice (voice)) @ Ed Wynn (Mad Hatter (voice)) @ Richard Haydn (Caterpillar (voice)) @ Sterling Holloway (Cheshire Cat (voice)) @ Jerry Colonna (March Hare (voice)) @ Verna Felton (Queen of Hearts (voice)) @ J. Pat O'Malley (Tweedle Dee/Tweedle Dum/The Walrus/The Carpenter (voice)) @ Bill Thompson (White Rabbit/Dodo (voice)) @ Heather Angel (Alice's sister (voice)) @ Joseph Kearns (Doorknob (voice)) @ Larry Grey (Bill (voice)) @ Queenie Leonard (Bird in the Tree (voice)) @ Dink Trout (King of Hearts (voice)) @ Doris Lloyd (The Rose (voice)) @ James MacDonald (Dormouse (voice)) @ Bill Lee (Card Painter (voice) (as The Mellomen)) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Card Painter (voice) (as The Mellomen)) @ Max Smith (Card Painter (voice) (as The Mellomen)) @ Bob Hamlin (Card Painter (voice) (as The Mellomen)) @ Don Barclay (Card (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Stan Freberg ( (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||"I'm Late, I'm Late for a Very Important Date. No Time to Say Hello, Goodbye. I'm Late, I'm Late, I'm Late!" [CONTAINS SPOILERS] One morning, a young girl named Alice laid back in the park as her teacher read from a book. Now I think this woman was her tutor but she's credited as Alice's sister. Go figure. Anyway, Alice wasn't at all interested in the book and drempt of a world of her own. Then suddenly she saw a white rabbit run by. He seemed to be in an awful hurry. Alice followed him and fell down a deep, dark hole. She saw some pretty strange stuff on the way down. When she landed, she saw the rabbit go through a door. She tried to follow but the only door out was locked. It even said so. Besides, the door was way too small for Alice to fit through. Luckily there was a shrink drink that miniaturized Alice. Unfortunately, she left the key up on the table. She eventually got through the door, escaped a crazy caucus race and ventured into the woods where she met Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum who told her the tale of the Walrus and the Carpenter: One day, in the land of shoes and ships and sealing wax, cabbages and kings, the Walrus and the Carpenter walked along the beach and Walrus coaxed some young oysters to come with him. Carpenter built them a restaurant and while he baked a loaf of bread, the Walrus ate the oysters. Furious, Carpenter grabbed his hammer and chased Walrus away. Continuing on, Alice, still shrunk, chatted with some flowers and met a smoking caterpillar. She even attended the most bizarre tea party ever. She met the Cheshire Cat then went to go see the Queen of Hearts. Some of her faithful subjects were painting roses red due to they planted white ones by mistake. When the queen found out, she orders them to be beheaded. She then challenges Alice to a croquet game. Queen is a sore loser. Alice becomes enlarged from a piece of mushroom from earlier and she tells off the queen. Trouble arises when she shrinks back to normal and is then chased out of Wonderland by everybody and everything, eventually waking up in the park just in time for tea. A pretty good Disney movie. Ed Wynn from Mary Poppins is The Mad Hatter. Veteran Disney player Sterling Holloway is the Cheshire Cat. Kathryn Beaumont is Alice. She would later go on to do Wendy in Peter Pan. Bill Thompson is the white rabbit and Dodo and Richard Haydn is the caterpillar. Jim Macdonald who voices Mickey Mouse from 1947 to 1983 is the poetry reciting mouse at the tea party. So in conclusion, if you're looking for something to watch perhaps on your unbirthday or just any golden afternoon, then the time has come to check out Alice in Wonderland. That's some very good advice! - |Region All | |1.37 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Alien|Ridley Scott|Sci-Fi|Rated R for sci-fi violence/gore and language. (director's cut) R|8.3|UK|1979|117 min/ USA:116 min (director's cut)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Gordon Carroll David Giler Walter Hill Ivor Powell Ronald Shusett|Dan O'Bannon Ronald Shusett Dan O'Bannon|Derek Vanlint ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |In space no one can hear you scream.|When commercial towing vehicle Nostromo, heading back to Earth, intercepts an SoS signal from a nearby planet, the crew are under obligation to investigate. After a bad landing on the planet, some crew members leave the ship to explore the area. At the same time as they discover a hive colony of some unknown creature, the ship's computer deciphers the message to be a warning, not a call for help. When one of the eggs is disturbed, the crew do not know the danger they are in until it is too late. The crew of the deep space mining ship Nostromo are awaken from hypersleep to investigate a strange signal from a nearby planet. While investigating the signal, they discover it was intended as a warning, and not an SOS. What follows are some grisly and inventive special effects based on the work of H.R.Giger On what should have been a trip back to Earth, the Nostromo, a mining freighter, is automatically re-routed to a desolate planet after receiving an SOS coming from it. After the crew is awakened, they investigate the source of the SOS, and discover a derelict alien ship on the planet. One of the crew members is put into a coma by an alien creature while investigating the ship. But the alien parasite dies and the crew think all is well. But the small ordeal was only a prelude for greater things to come... |Tom Skerritt (Dallas) @ Sigourney Weaver (Ripley) @ Veronica Cartwright (Lambert) @ Harry Dean Stanton (Brett) @ John Hurt (Kane) @ Ian Holm (Ash) @ Yaphet Kotto (Parker) @ Bolaji Badejo (Alien) @ Helen Horton (Mother (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eddie Powell (Alien (uncredited)Produced by||A horror classic that has stood the test of time! Still by far the best movie in the series. 'Alien' while technically science fiction is also one of the greatest horror/suspense movies ever made. Ridley Scott is now one of the most well known and successful directors in Hollywood, but I don't think anything he's made in the last ten years is a patch on this perfect film, which is a near masterpiece in my opinion. In fact, on reflection there are only three Scott movies I genuinely like, those being his first three. The last of these 'Blade Runner' was released twenty years ago now, so to me Scott is long past his use by date. Whatever, 'Alien' itself is a brilliant piece of work, and is almost flawless. Scott's direction is superb and everything else about it is outstanding - a strong script from Dan O'Bannon et al, an evocative score from Jerry Goldsmith, brilliant design and special effects, including the amazing contributions from H.R.Giger, all add up to an amazing movie experience. I also really liked how the cast were character actors and not "stars" so there was plenty of suspense generated as to who will live and who will die. This is something very few subsequent movies have done, 'Pitch Black' being one of the exceptions. Sigourney Weaver may be an icon as Ripley now, but when the movie was first released she was virtually unknown, having had a small cameo in Woody Allen's 'Annie Hall' and not much else. The rest of the cast are equally as good. I especially enjoyed Yaphet Kotto ('Blue Collar') and the legendary Harry Dean Stanton ('Wise Blood') as the wise cracking "below deck" crew. Many people seem to prefer James Cameron's sequel 'Aliens' over this, but as I much prefer horror and suspense movies to action ones I think this is definitely the better movie, and still the strongest and most effective in the series. 'Alien' is a horror classic and an absolutely unforgettable movie that I can't recommend highly enough. If you haven't seen it before watch it immediately! ||20th Anniversary Edition |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Alien³|David Fincher|Action|Rated R for monster violence, and for language. R|6.0|USA|1992|114 min/ 145 min (2003 Special 'Assembly Cut' Edition)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Gordon Carroll David Giler Walter Hill Ezra Swerdlow Sigourney Weaver|Dan O'Bannon Ronald Shusett Vincent Ward David Giler Walter Hill Larry Ferguson|Alex Thomson ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The bitch is back|After escaping from the alien planet, the ship carrying Ellen Ripley crashes onto a remote and inhabited ore refinery. While living in the ore refinery until she is rescued by her employers, Ripley discovers the horrifying reason for her crash: An alien stowaway. As the alien matures and begins to kill off the inhabitants, Ripley is unaware that her true enemy is more than just the killer alien. Despite the efforts of Ripley and the space marines in the film Aliens, an embryonic alien infiltrates the starship. It accidentally triggers the ship's emergency systems, dropping the escape capsule to the surface of a nearby planet. Ripley finds herself in a prison colony peopled by a religious cult composed of former murderers and rapists. Meanwhile, the alien has managed to grow into a new and deadly form, and is picking off the weaponless prisoners. Ripley soon discovers, much to her horror, that the real danger is much more personal... The movie starts right at the end of the second film where Ellen Ripley and survivors start to travel back home. But unfortunately they crash land on some prison planet and Ripley discovers that her companions are already dead because of the Alien. Now the nightmare starts again as the Alien is beginning to kill some of the inhabitants of the prison. After escaping with Newt and Hicks from the alien planet, Ripley crash lands on Fiorina 161, a prison planet and host to a correctional facility. Unfortunately, although Newt and Hicks do not survive the crash, a more unwelcome visitor does. The prison does not allow weapons of any kind, and with aid being a long time away, the prisoners must simply survive in any way they can. When help does arrive, the true intentions of the Company become clear. |Sigourney Weaver (Ellen Ripley) @ Charles Dutton (Dillon (as Charles S. Dutton)) @ Charles Dance (Clemens) @ Paul McGann (Golic) @ Brian Glover (Andrews) @ Ralph Brown (Aaron) @ Daniel Webb (Morse (as Danny Webb)) @ Christopher John Fields (Rains) @ Holt McCallany (Junior) @ Lance Henriksen (Bishop II) @ Christopher Fairbank (Murphy) @ Carl Chase (Frank) @ Leon Herbert (Boggs) @ Vincenzo Nicoli (Jude) @ Pete Postlethwaite (David) @ Paul Brennen (Troy) @ Clive Mantle (William) @ Peter Guinness (Gregor) @ Dhobi Oparei (Arthur) @ Philip Davis (Kevin) @ Niall Buggy (Eric) @ Hi Ching (Company Man) @ Danielle Edmond (Newt rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tom Woodruff Jr. (Lead Alien (uncredited)Produced by||Another bloodbath in outer space The world's baddest chick takes on the beast that refuses to die one more time. The usual 'monster lunches on man who is trapped' bit with Weaver, as always, trying to outfox the creature. Odd camera work and lots of activity made for an exciting finale. Not bad, but been there. || |2.20 : 1 (70 mm prints) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Alien: Resurrection|Jean-Pierre Jeunet|Sci-Fi|Rated R for strong sci-fi violence and gore, some grotesque images, and for language. R|6.0|USA|1997|109 min/ 116 min (2003 Special Edition)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Bill Badalato Gordon Carroll David Giler Walter Hill Amy Jupiter Lisa Knaggs Edouard Valton Sigourney Weaver|Dan O'Bannon Ronald Shusett Joss Whedon|Darius Khondji ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Witness the resurrection.|200 years after the conclusion of Alien 3, the company is able to resurrect Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) through the process of cloning and the scientists successfully take the Queen Alien out of her. But, Ripley's DNA gets mixed up with the Queen's and she begins to develop certain alien characteristics. The scientists begin breeding the aliens, but they later escape. Soon the Xeno-morphs are running amok on the ship, which is on course to earth. The Queen then gives birth to a deadly new breed of alien, which could spell disaster for the entire human race. It's up to Ripley and a band of space pirates to stop the ship before it reaches earth. After killing herself to prevent the government from taking the monstrous Alien to Earth, Ellen Ripley awakens 200 years later to find she has been cloned in order to withdraw the Alien living inside her. As the world around her begins to fall apart and the terror begins again, Ripley realises that the scientists who cloned her may not have fully removed the Alien from her, at the same time that she is, once again, perhaps the only one who can stop the horrific infestation from reaching Earth... It is 200 years since Ellen Ripley died on Fiorina 161. Ripley's former employers, The Weyland-Yutani Company has dissolved and now the United Systems Military has assumed the task of breeding and harnessing the deadly aliens. With blood samples taken from her previous life, scientists clone a new Ripley in order to extract the queen alien inside of her. The new Ripley, known as number 8, acquires physical and emotional traits from both humanity and the aliens, making her question where her allegiances lie. Shortly after, the aliens break free and commence killing those onboard. Ripley, along with a crew of smugglers that unknowingly helped in delivering hosts to breed the alien species, must now escape the perilous ship. Along the way, Ripley encounters a shocking revelation that truly sets herself against both humanity and the alien species. She must now decide what she truly is, in order to save humanity once more. Two hundred years after Ellen Ripley died trying to eliminate the Alien species, they brought her back from blood samples taken earlier. It took several tries, and un-fortunate failures to get it right, but they weren't interested in Ellen Ripley- they wanted the alien inside her; and they got it, but they got more than they bargained for. When the aliens grew smart, they broke out of their enclosures. When the crew tried to run, they killed them. And when the Queen's secret was revealed, it exposed a bizare DNA mix-up that left both Ripley and the queen's genetics intertwined; giving light to a new alien that could spell certain doom for Earth. Ellen Ripley sacrificed her life to destroy the Company's desires to use the alien as a weapon. 200 years and seven horrible experiments later, she is resurrected on the USM Auriga using blood samples from Fury 161, for the purpose of extracting the alien queen inside her. After a band of smugglers, hired by the government, bring the crew of a hijacked transport to the Auriga, all hell breaks loose when the aliens bred from the hijacked crew escape. When the Auriga is set to automatically pilot back to Earth, its up to Ripley and the smugglers to stop the Auriga and escape with their lives. |Sigourney Weaver (Lt. Ellen Ripley Clone #8) @ Winona Ryder (Annalee Call) @ Dominique Pinon (Vriess) @ Ron Perlman (Johner) @ Gary Dourdan (Christie) @ Michael Wincott (Elgyn) @ Kim Flowers (Hillard) @ Dan Hedaya (General Perez) @ J.E. Freeman (Dr. Wren) @ Brad Dourif (Dr. Gediman) @ Raymond Cruz (Distephano) @ Leland Orser (Purvis) @ Carolyn Campbell (Anesthesiologist) @ Marlene Bush (Scientist) @ David St. James (Surgeon) @ Rodney Mitchell (Soldier with Glove) @ Robert Faltisco (Soldier Shot Through Helmet) @ David Rowe (Frozen Soldier) @ Garrett House (Soldier) @ Rod Damer (Soldier) @ Mark Mansfield (Soldier) @ Daniel Raymont (Soldier) @ Chip Nuzzo (Soldier) @ Steven Gilborn (Voice of 'Father' (voice)) @ Robert Bastens (Sleeper) @ Rico Bueno (Sleeper) @ Alex Lorre (Sleeper) @ Ronald Ramessar (Sleeper (as Ron Ramessar)) @ Nicole Fellows (Young Ripley) @ Tom Woodruff Jr. (Lead Alien) @ Joan LaBarbara (Newborn Vocal #1 (voice)) @ Archie Hahn (Newborn Vocal #2 (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Regan DuCasse (Surgeon (uncredited)) @ Brad Martin (Soldier shot by Johner (uncredited)) @ David Britten Prior (Alien (uncredited)) @ Eddie Yansick (Soldier who stuns Ripley (uncredited)Produced by||"Pulp Fiction" references abound *SPOILER ALERT* *SPOILER ALERT* First, let me say that I didn't like this movie. It took away a lot of the fun of the previous movies. Ripley was very dour and not up to her usual Alien killing self. All in all, it just wasn't good. But one thing that struck me was the heaping of "Pulp Fiction" references. For instance, Michael Wincott is talking to Dan Hedaya about whether or not his crew can stay there. Hedaya replies, "Mi casa, su casa." Eric Stoltz says the same thing to Travolta when Travolta asks if he can hang around. The very next scene has Wincott giving his girlfriend a foot massage and she is screaming in ecstasy. Travolta and Samuel Jackson spend a good ten minutes talking about foot massages and how much they mean in "Pulp Fiction". In another scene, a bunch of the space crew are sitting around drinking with Winona Ryder sitting in the middle. She goes for her drink wearing...boxing gloves! Bruce Willis was a boxer in "Pulp Fiction". Why in the heck would Winona be wearing boxing gloves anyway? Clearly the director loved "Pulp Fiction" and wanted the Aliens to know it. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Aliens|James Cameron|Sci-Fi|R |8.2|USA|1986| 137 min/ USA:154 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gordon Carroll David Giler Walter Hill Gale Anne Hurd|David Giler Walter Hill James Cameron James Cameron|Adrian Biddle ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |This time it's war|The only survivor of the Nostromo, Ripley is discovered in deep sleep half a century later by a salvage ship. When she is taken back to Earth, she learns that a human colony was founded on the same planet where the aliens were first found. After contact with the colony is lost, she finds herself sent back to the planet along with a team of warriors bent on destroying the alien menace forever, and saving any survivors -- if any remain. The sequel to Alien is a non-stop, high-tech, war movie, with Space Marines. Ripley is found in deep space by a salvage ship, 57 years after narrowly escaping with her life - and her cat - at the end of Alien. She then discovers The Company have colonised the planet where the alien was first encountered. When contact with the colony is lost, The Company send a team of Space Marines, with Ripley as an "advisor", to find out what has happened. 57 years after her ordeal with an extraterrestrial creature, Ellen Ripley is rescued by a deep salvage team during her hypersleep. When she discovers that transmissions from a colony that has since settled on the alien planet suddenly stop, Ripley is offered a chance to team up with a group of marines to descend on the planet and investigate the alien presence. Determined to end the memories of the alien creature, Ripley agrees to the offer and is once again thrown back into her living nightmare. |Sigourney Weaver (Ellen Ripley) @ Carrie Henn (Rebecca 'Newt' Jorden) @ Michael Biehn (Corporal Dwayne Hicks) @ Lance Henriksen (Bishop) @ Paul Reiser (Carter Burke) @ Bill Paxton (Private Hudson) @ William Hope (Lieutenant Gorman) @ Jenette Goldstein (Private Vasquez) @ Al Matthews (Sergeant Apone) @ Mark Rolston (Private Drake) @ Ricco Ross (Private Frost) @ Colette Hiller (Corporal Ferro) @ Daniel Kash (Private Spunkmeyer) @ Cynthia Dale Scott (Corporal Dietrich (as Cynthia Scott)) @ Tip Tipping (Private Crowe) @ Trevor Steedman (Private Wierzbowski) @ Paul Maxwell (Van Leuwen) @ Valerie Colgan (ECA Rep) @ Alan Polonsky (Insurance Man) @ Alibe Parsons (Med Tech) @ Blain Fairman (Doctor) @ Barbara Coles (Cocooned Woman) @ Carl Toop (Alien Warrior) @ John Lees (Power Loader Operator) @ Holly De Jong (Ann Jorden) @ Jay Benedict (Russ Jorden) @ Christopher Henn (Timmy Jorden) @ Mac McDonald (Colony Officer Al Simpson) @ William Armstrong (Lydecker (as Bill Armstrong) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Elizabeth Inglis (Amanda Ripley (uncredited) Produced by||One of the best films of the 80's! James Francis Cameron's Aliens is his best film to date (besides a couple of Terminating exceptions).It combines an original (though duplicated 6 years later) story with wam bam action that takes time to start, but once it does, it doesn't stop.Cameron is a great director of action films, and this proves it. The tale is about Ripley- Sigourney Weaver (sole survivor of the ship that was attacked by an Alien) who after 57 years of laying dormant (she went into cryno-sleep) must go with a group of soldiers to investigate strange doings on the same planet with the gestating Alien.But this time, there are many to go around, and once it starts, it just doesn't stop (including a startling ending).Better than the first, this film co-written and directed by Jim Cameron is a great example of the sci-fi thriller and will hopefully stay around for a long time. "Get away from her you bitch!"Damn right.A++ |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ All About Eve|Joseph L. Mankiewicz|Drama||8.5|USA|1950| 138 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/17/2004|Darryl F. Zanuck |Joseph L. Mankiewicz Mary Orr|Milton R. Krasner ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |It's all about women---and their men! |Aspiring actress Eve Harrington maneuvers her way into the lives of Broadway star Margo Channing, playwright Lloyd Richards and director Bill Sampson. This classic story of ambition and betrayal has become part of American folklore. Bette Davis claims to have based her character on the persona of film actress Talullah Bankhead. Davis' line "Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night" is legendary, but, in fact, all of the film's dialog sparkles with equal brilliance. Stage star Margo Channing is friend to playwright Lloyd Richards and his wife Karen, in love with director Bill Samson, and the idol of Eve Harrington who becomes her secretary-aide. Eve begins to dominate: she sends Bill Margo's birthday wishes and arranges a party for him, at which point Margo explodes. Eve becomes Margo's understudy and, when Margo misses a performance, critic Addison DeWitt gives her rave reviews while making acerbic remarks about aging actresses like Margo. At Margo and Bill's engagement party Eve tries to force Karen to get her the lead in Lloyd's new play. Margo tells Lloyd she is going to retire. Eve gets the part but Addison reveals to her he knows the lies and schemes she used to get where she is. Broadway legend Margo Channing, aging but not gracefully, has everything: a successful career, close friends, a man who loves her. She also has a 'fan' named Eve Harrington, who manages to worm her way into Margo's life, in order to "study her like a blueprint". Eve's sweet facade is soon seen through by a number of people, most quickly by theater critic Addison deWitt, who decides to become her mentor. Eve achieves her goal of Broadway stardom, leaving a trail of unhappiness, but ultimately contentment, behind her. |Bette Davis (Margo Channing) @ Anne Baxter (Eve Harrington) @ George Sanders (Addison DeWitt) @ Celeste Holm (Karen Richards) @ Gary Merrill (Bill Sampson) @ Hugh Marlowe (Lloyd Richards) @ Gregory Ratoff (Max Fabian) @ Barbara Bates (Phoebe) @ Marilyn Monroe (Miss Caswell) @ Thelma Ritter (Birdie Coonan) @ Walter Hampden (Master of Ceremonies) @ Randy Stuart (Girl) @ Craig Hill (Leading man) @ Leland Harris (Doorman) @ Barbara White (Autograph seeker) @ Ed Fisher (Stage manager) @ William Pullen (Clerk) @ Claude Stroud (Pianist at Margo's cocktail party) @ Eugene Borden (Frenchman at Margo's cocktail party) @ Helen Mowery (Reporter) @ Steven Geray (Captain of Waiters (as Steve Geray) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bess Flowers (Well-wisher (uncredited)) @ Stanley Orr (Bit part (uncredited)) @ Marion Pierce ( (uncredited)) @ Robert Whitney (Actor in Hearts of Oak (uncredited) Produced by)||Brittle, well-acted, but overrated Much-celebrated drama has Bette Davis in now-famous role as Margo Channing, Broadway actress with a heart-of-gold who takes in devoted fan Anne Baxter, unaware the neophyte has designs on her life. Boozy and bitchy, written with a cleverly poisonous pen, but not especially interesting once all the pieces have fallen into place(with at least an hour to go on the clock). The characters do a lot of emoting and sounding-off, but we don't learn much about what's going on under the surface. Won multiple Oscars, but it left me rather cold. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Along Came a Spider|Lee Tamahori|Thriller|Rated R for violence and language. |6.2|USA|2001| 104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Brown Morgan Freeman Marty Hornstein Joe Wizan|James Patterson Marc Moss|Matthew F. Leonetti ||Eagle Pictures S.p.a. [it] |The game is far from over. |A girl is kidnapped from a school by one of the teachers. She turns out to be the daughter of a senator, and the kidnapper soon makes a call to a police officer whose partner died eight months ago, involving him in the kidnapping. One of the secret service people that failed to protect the girl at the school decides to help him. But not everything is what is seems, and many surprising twists follows as the two attempt to catch the spider. The daughter of a senator has been kidnapped. The kidnapper then calls police detective and forensic psychologist, Alex Cross. Cross then goes and tries to help them find the girl. He is aided by the secret service agent who was assigned to protect the girl. But there's a lot more going on. |Morgan Freeman (Alex Cross) @ Monica Potter (Jezzie Flannigan) @ Michael Wincott (Gary Soneji) @ Dylan Baker (Ollie McArthur) @ Mika Boorem (Megan Rose) @ Anton Yelchin (Dimitri Starodubov) @ Kimberly Hawthorne (Agent Hickley) @ Jay O. Sanders (Kyle Craig) @ Billy Burke (Ben Devine) @ Michael Moriarty (Senator Hank Rose) @ Penelope Ann Miller (Elizabeth Rose) @ Anna Maria Horsford (Vickie) @ Scott Heindl (Floyd the Fisherman) @ Christopher Shyer (Jim) @ Jill Teed (Tracie) @ Ian Marsh (Sam) @ Raoul Ganeev (Bodyguard) @ Samantha Ferris (Mrs. Hume) @ Ocean Hellman (Amy Masterson) @ Tom McBeath (Country Chief Cabell) @ Tamara Taggart (Reporter) @ Suzette Meyers (Reporter) @ Brian Arnold (Reporter) @ Chris Robson (Reporter) @ Jonathan Walker (Reporter) @ Debra Donohue (Reporter) @ Mila Dobrozdravich (Hannah) @ Aaron Joseph (Kennedy) @ Ravil Issyanov (Lermontov (as Ravil Isyanov)) @ Ronin Wong (Medical Examiner) @ Campbell Lane (Mathias) @ Charles Andre (Diplomatic Patrol Officer) @ Claire Riley (News Anchor) @ Paul Carson (News Anchor) @ Donna Lysell (News Anchor) @ Kevin Hayes (News Co-Anchor) @ Steve Makaj (News Co-Anchor) @ Nathaniel DeVeaux (Coast Guard Captain (as Nathaniel Deveaux)) @ Nguyen Hall (Watergate Employee) @ Charles Andison (McArthur Entourage) @ Tarie Tennessey (McArthur Entourage) @ Darryl Scheelar (McArthur Entourage) @ Craig March (McArthur Entourage) @ Darryl Dillard (D.C. Policeman) @ Carter Jahncke (Man Who Can't Answer Phone) @ Jim Hild (Potentially Evil Guy on Train rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Charles A. Lindbergh (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited) Produced by||OK crime thriller Morgan Freeman, with Monica Potter tagging along, goes after the kidnapper of a senator's daughter.The picture has a quick, violent, slam-bang opening then quiets down.The plot is very familiar and the script has some dull moments.Also, at the end, the film throws all plausibility out the window and throws in some totally unbelievable twists and turns.Thinking about them after the movie, I realized that they made absolutely no sense and couldn't have even happened!Two performances save the movie--Morgan Freeman, good as always and Michael Wincott who's very good as the kidnapper.He gives the character a lot of depth and is riveting whenever he's on screen.Monica Potter, however, is terrible.It's not entirely her fault...her part is very poorly written and things happen to her character at the end that come out of nowhere.So, all in all, just an OK movie. There are worse movies of its type, but there are better ones also. || |2.35 : 1 |5.0 ||||||@@ Amadeus|Milos Forman|Drama|Rated R for brief nudity. (director's cut) |8.3|USA|1984| 160 min/ 180 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Hausman Bertil Ohlsson Saul Zaentz|Peter Shaffer Peter Shaffer|Miroslav Ondrícek ||AMLF [fr] |The Man... The Music... The Madness... The Murder... The Motion Picture...|Antonio Salieri believes that Mozart's music is divine. He wishes he was himself as good a musician as Mozart so that he can praise the Lord through composing. But he can't understand why God favored Mozart, such a vulgar creature, to be his instrument. Salieri's envy has made him an enemy of God whose greatness was evident in Mozart. He is set to take revenge. |F. Murray Abraham (Antonio Salieri) @ Tom Hulce (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart) @ Elizabeth Berridge (Constanze Mozart) @ Simon Callow (Emanuel Schikaneder/Papageno) @ Roy Dotrice (Leopold Mozart) @ Christine Ebersole (Katerina Cavalieri/Costanza) @ Jeffrey Jones (Emperor Joseph II) @ Charles Kay (Count Orsini-Rosenberg) @ Kenneth McMillan (Michael Schlumberg (2002 Director's Cut)) @ Kenny Baker (Parody Commendatore) @ Lisabeth Bartlett (Papagena) @ Barbara Bryne (Frau Weber) @ Martin Cavina (Young Salieri (as Martin Cavani)) @ Roderick Cook (Count Von Strack) @ Milan Demjanenko (Karl Mozart) @ Peter DiGesu (Francesco Salieri) @ Richard Frank (Father Vogler) @ Patrick Hines (Kappelmeister Bonno) @ Nicholas Kepros (Archbishop Colloredo) @ Philip Lenkowsky (Salieri's Servant) @ Herman Meckler (Priest) @ Jonathan Moore (Baron Van Swieten) @ Cynthia Nixon (Lorl) @ Brian Pettifer (Hospital Attendant) @ Vincent Schiavelli (Salieri's valet) @ Douglas Seale (Count Arco) @ Miroslav Sekera (Young Mozart) @ John Strauss (Conductor) @ Karl-Heinz Teuber (Wig Salesman) @ Cassie Stuart (Gertrude Schlumberg (2002 Director's Cut) (as Cassie Stewart)) @ Rita Zohar (Frau Schlumberg (2002 Director's Cut) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jan Blazek .... Commendatore) @ Hana Brejchová (Extra) @ Milada Cechalova (Queen of the Night) @ Magda Celakovska (Cherubino) @ Miriam Chytilová (Extra) @ Helena Cihelnikova (Countess Almaviva) @ Slavena Drasilova (Barbarina) @ Karel Effa (Extra) @ Karel Fiala (Don Giovanni) @ Radka Fiedlerová (Extra (as Radka Fiedlerova)) @ Rene Gabzdyl (Extra) @ Miro Grisa (Figaro) @ Karel Gult (Count Almaviva) @ Karel Hábl (Extra (as Karel Habl)) @ Atka Janouskova (Extra) @ Marta Jarolimkova (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Zdenek Jelen (Leporello) @ Zuzana Kadlecova (Susanna) @ Leos Kratochvil (Basilio) @ Gabriela Krckova (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Ladislav Kretschmer (Antonio) @ Vladimir Krousky (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Jirí Krytinár (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Radka Kucharova (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Jan Kuzelka (Extra) @ Jirí Lír (Extra) @ Lenka Loubalová (Extra) @ Dagmar Maskova (Extra) @ Ladislav Mikes (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Janoslav Mikulin (Dr. Bartolo) @ Jitka Molavcová (Extra (as Jitka Molavcova)) @ Jana Musilova (Extra) @ Vojtech Nalezenec (Extra) @ Pavel Nový (Extra (as Pavel Novy)) @ Jiri Opsatko (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Jan Pohan (Extra) @ Tereza Pokorná (Extra (as Tereza Pokorna)) @ Ivan Pokorny (Extra) @ Milan Riehs (Extra) @ Iva Sebkova (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Eva Senkova (Marcellina) @ Zdenek Sklenar (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Renata Vackova (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Jiri Vancura (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Dana Vávrová (Extra (as Dana Vavrova)) @ Petra Vogelova (Czechoslovakian actor) @ Gino Zeman (Don Curzio) @ Josef Zeman (Extra) @ Sara Clifford ( (uncredited)) @ Richard Colton ( (uncredited)) @ Mary Kellogg ( (uncredited)) @ Zdenek Mahler (Cardinal (uncredited)) @ Vladimír Svitácek (Pope Kliment (uncredited)) @ Marek Zapletal (Karl Philipp Prince zu Schwarzenberg (uncredited) Produced by||Overrated tripe God, why do so many people like this movie?I mean, I thought it was cool when I was a little kid and I saw it, but other than some cool performances from Hulce and Abraham, what has this movie got to offer?Excerpts from Mozart's most popular stuff you could buy for $2 on any discount classics CD?It's got director Forman's usual overuse of head shots and quick reaction shots, his usual reliance on audience reactions to carry the supposed impact of a star's performance (as seen also in his lackluster 90s bioflick, Man on the Moon), plus you've got a whopping case of historical falsification.The whole thing about Salieri murdering Mozart is ridiculous historical fable that's been passed around by people for years, and has less validity than your average second gunner JFK story.But viewers of this movie will, unfortunately, probably walk away from it thinking that Salieri was a bad, bad man indeed.This is unfair to his life and his music, but the producers of this hero-worshipping (though also hero-deflating, in the modern ambigously "realist" style) flick couldn't care less.I guess they just didn't see any other possibility for drama in the tale of the spoiled, brilliant musician and instead of concentrating on his professional laxitude and his obsession with sex (which did get an airing), they came up with the whole Salieri murder thing.Bad idea, bad movie. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain, Le|Jean-Pierre Jeunet|Comedy|Rated R for sexual content. |8.7|France|2001| 122 min/ France:129 min/ Germany:117 min |French||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jean-Marc Deschamps Arne Meerkamp van Embden Claudie Ossard Claudie Ossard|Guillaume Laurant Jean-Pierre Jeunet Guillaume Laurant Guillaume Laurant|Bruno Delbonnel ||Albatros Film [jp] |She'll change your life.|Amelie is looking for love, and perhaps for the meaning of life in general. We see her grow up in an original if slightly dysfunctional family. Now a waitress in central Paris, she interacts curiously with her neighbors and customers, as well as a mysterious Photomaton-image collector and one of his even more mysterious photo subjects. Little by little, Amelie realizes that the way to happiness (and yet more subtle humor) requires here to take her own initiative and reach out to others. Amelie tries to enrich the lives of those around her by weaving her special brand of mischievious magic. She befriends a neighbor who's a shut-in, plays pranks on another neighbor, steals a garden gnome and returns objects she collects to their rightful owners. She romantically daydreams in the cafe she works at and marvels at life's ironies. One day she finds a small box containing a child's momentos and decides to set about finding its rightful owner...will romance blossom for Amelie? |Audrey Tautou (Amélie Poulain) @ Mathieu Kassovitz (Nino Quincampoix) @ Rufus (Raphaël Poulain, Amélie's Father) @ Lorella Cravotta (Amandine Poulain) @ Serge Merlin (Raymond Dufayel aka Glass Man) @ Jamel Debbouze (Lucien) @ Clotilde Mollet (Gina, Two Windmills waitress) @ Claire Maurier (Suzanne, Owner Two Windmills bar) @ Isabelle Nanty (Georgette, Two Windmills Cigarette counter girl) @ Dominique Pinon (Joseph) @ Artus de Penguern (Hipolito, The Writer) @ Yolande Moreau (Madeleine Wallace, concierge) @ Urbain Cancelier (Collignon, The Grocer) @ Maurice Bénichou (Bretodeau, The Box Man) @ Michel Robin (Mr. Collignon) @ Andrée Damant (Mrs. Collignon) @ Claude Perron (Eva, The Strip Teaser) @ Armelle (Philomène) @ Ticky Holgado (Man in photo (who describes Amelie to Nino)) @ Kevin Fernandes (Bretodeau as a Child) @ Flora Guiet (Amélie (6 Years Old)) @ Amaury Babault (Nino (As a Child)) @ André Dussollier (Narrator/Récitant (voice)) @ Eugène Berthier (Eugene Koler) @ Marion Pressburger (Credits Helper) @ Charles-Roger Bour (The Urinal Man) @ Luc Palun (Amandine's Grocer) @ Fabienne Chaudat (Woman in Coma) @ Dominique Bettenfeld (The Screaming Neighbor) @ Jacques Viala (The Customer Who Humiliates His Friend) @ Fabien Béhar (The Humiliated Customer) @ Jonathan Joss (The Humiliated Customer's Son) @ Jean-Pierre Becker (The Bum) @ Jean Darie (The Blind Man) @ Thierry Gibault (The Endive Client) @ François Bercovici (His Buddy) @ Franck Monier (Dominique Bredoteau Kid) @ Guillaume Viry (The Vagrant) @ Valérie Zarrouk (Dominique Bredoteau Woman) @ Marie-Laure Descoureaux (The Dead Man's Concierge) @ Sophie Tellier (Aunt Josette) @ Gérald Weingand (The Teacher) @ François Viaur (The Bar Owner) @ Paule Daré (His Employee) @ Marc Amyot (The Stranger) @ Myriam Labbé (The Tobacco Buyer) @ Jean Rupert (Nasal operation man) @ Frankie Pain (The Newsstand Woman (as Franckie Pain)) @ Julianna Kovacs (Grocer's Client) @ Philippe Paimblanc (Train Ticket Taker) @ Mady Malroux (One of the Twins) @ Monette Malroux (One of the Twins) @ Robert Gendreu (Cafe Patron) @ Valériane de Villeneuve (The Laughing Woman) @ Isis Peyrade (Samantha) @ Raymonde Heudeline (Phantom Train Customer) @ Christiane Bopp (Woman by the Merry-Go-Round) @ Thierry Arfeuillères (Statue Man) @ Jerry Lucas (The Sacré-Coeur Boy) @ Patrick Paroux (The Street Prompter) @ François Aubineau (The Concierge's Postman) @ Philippe Beautier (Poulain's Postman) @ Karine Asure (Pretty Girl at Appointment) @ Régis Iacono (Félix L'Herbier) @ Franck-Olivier Bonnet (Palace Video (voice)) @ Alain Floret (The Concierge's Husband (voice)) @ Jean-Pol Brissart (The Postman (voice)) @ Frédéric Mitterrand (Himself (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jacques Thébault .... Voice-Over (voice)) @ Rudy Galindo (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Sam 'Peg Leg' Jackson (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jean-Michel Larqué (Himself/TV commentator (voice) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Thierry Roland (Himself/TV commentator (voice) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Sister Rosetta Tharpe (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited) Produced by||"THERE IS NO HELL, THERE'S ONLY FRANCE." Frank Zappa had it just about right with that above quote, and if you're not laughing you've obviously never been to the REAL France (and stepped in some of the ever-present dog-doo on the sidewalks over there, or dealt with some of the'rude, snobbish & bizarrely hostile behavior' that seems as natural as breathing air to more than a few people over there), or had blinders on when you did go there, inspired by the FANTASY Paris of charming little virtuoso films like "Amelie." Now, in all fairness to the film, it does contain some very intense and hilarious satire in its first half (though of the much-too-exaggerated 'over-the-top' semi-fantasy kind) & is obviously the work of a CINEMATIC virtuoso (which does not imply Jeunet is an ARTISTIC virtuoso also, it only means the guy is a complete master of the TECHNICAL possibilities of the medium), but the splitting of the film between satire & irreverence on the one hand & the most cliched of schmaltzified romances on the other, seriously hurts the film's effectiveness as a possibly DEEPLY SIGNIFICANT piece of ART-ifact. It starts off majestically & ends up as CHARMING-SATIRE-MINUS-FLUFF, unlike "THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE" by the Coen Brothers, which starts off majestically dark & ends an awe-inspiring confirmation of the maxim behind every great 'realist' film: Pascal's famous "Man's greatness is so obvious it can even be deduced from his wretchedness." Now, I mention the Coens' film because it is the only film I've seen this year with CINEMATOGRAPHY (courtesy of Mr. Roger Deakins) matching or maybe even surpassing the INSANELY MAGNIFICENT level of the one in display in shot after shot in "Amelie" by BRUNO DELBONNEL. I was truly knocked out of my seat by the unerring beauty of the angles used & the antique-look-contrasting-with-modern colors within the shots. I also mention the Coens, because Jeunet is making films now that are sort of "Raising-Arizonaish" in their comic-book-imposed-on-reality extravagant, comic style, but will hopefully achieve the maturity of the Coens, in his deeper outlook to turn out something like "The Man Who Wasn't There." Getting down to more specifics, "Amelie" reminded me of Louis Malle's classic 1960 film "Zazie Dans Le Metro," which also is split down the middle, magnificent for the first half, BORING & cliched in the second. However, Catherine Demongeot (who, bizarrely enough, Nabokov once said would've been the PERFECT LOLITA had he been allowed to pick one young enough to add the proper amount of repulsion to Kubrick's film) in "Zazie" is a 10 year old girl, & much less interesting to red-blooded heterosexual hairy-chested men (such as yours truly) than the supercute, 'BIG SHOED' (above as we;; as below), starlet of Jeunet's film: Audrey Tautou. On one level, the film is a love affair between Jeunet's camera & Tautou, in the time honored tradtion of Sternberg/Dietrich, Powell/Kerr, Hitchcock/Hedren, Godard/Karina, De Palma/Nancy Allen, etc., the angles he uses, the way he frames her, the endless close-ups, all of these things are the work of an artist in love with his subject (whether there's a 'love relatonship' in 'real life' is beside the point), and all the audience is thankful for it. On another level (again reminding me of "Zazie"), the film takes you on quite a TURBOCHARGED, non-cliched 'tour' of picturesque areas of Paris, & is maybe the best advertising the old 'city of Romance' has had for years. It takes the eyes & sensibilities of masters like Jeunet & Delbonnel to get these shots with just the proper amount of irreverence incoroporated (by what they choose to show and omit), & then ruin them by overplaying sappy annoying accordion music for way too long towards the latter, weaker third of the flick. All in all, 3 out of 5 stars or a 7 on a scale of 10, which means DEFINITELY RECOMMENDED, but like another technically dazzling, relatively popular French film before it Patrice Leconte's "The Girl on the Bridge," a little too short on substance and TRUE ROMANCE (as opposed to the cliched, NON-EXISTENT kind displayed in the film; check out Renoir's "Picnic on the Grass" or Jacques Becker's "Antoine et Antoinette" if you want to see a similarly whimsical, semi-fantasy film nevertheless displaying the EXISTENT KIND OF 'ROMANCE' IN INNER SENSIBILITY if not in actual, same-story realistic possibility) to give the 'HELL OF FRANCE' its proper artistic due, and in consequence become as great as let's say Truffaut's "Shoot the Piano Player." And did I mention that a sizeable portion of the film is, among other things, a dead-on satire of Hitchcock's overrated classic "Rear Window"? || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ American Beauty|Sam Mendes|Drama|Rated R for strong sexuality, language, violence and drug content. |8.5|USA|1999| 122 min/ Netherlands:121 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Alan Ball Bruce Cohen Dan Jinks Stan Wlodkowski|Alan Ball |Conrad L. Hall ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |... look closer |Lester and Carolyn Burnham are on the outside, a perfect husband and wife, in a perfect house, in a perfect neighborhood. But inside, Lester is slipping deeper and deeper into a hopeless depression. He finally snaps when he becomes infatuated with one of his daughters friends. Meanwhile, his daughter Jane is developing a happy friendship with a shy boy-next-door named Ricky who lives with a homophobic father. Lester Burnham is a loser suburbanite rebelling against his dead-end job, bitch-on-wheels wife, unloving daughter, and imminent middle-age. His subsequent actions unfold into a darkly comic drama laced with a stellar supporting cast and enough roses to fill a nursery. Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) is suffering a mid-life crisis that affects the lives of his family which is made up of his super bitch of a wife Carolyn and rebelling daughter Jane who hates him. Carolyn is a real estate agent a little too wrapped up in her job who takes on an affair with business rival Buddy Kane. Meanwhile Jane seems to fall in love with Ricky Fitts, the strange boy next door who is a drug dealer/documentarian who lives under a roof governed by a very strict marine father and a speechless mother. Lester's mid-life crisis causes him to drastically change his life around when he quits his job and works at a fast food restaurant. He starts working out to gain the attention of Angela, a friend of Jane's who brags about her sexual exploits every weekend. Lives change and not for the best. Lester Burnham is in a mid-life crisis, caused by his stressed wife Carolyn and rebelling teenage daughter Jane. When Lester and Carolyn go watch Jane cheerleading, they meet Angela Hayes, and Lester, caught in sudden lust for Angela, decides to change his life. Angela and Jane's friendship is not all it seems, too, because Angela only brags about how many times she's done it with guys and stuff. That doesn't help an already insecure Jane very much but she finds solace in the arms of the next-door-neighbors' son, Ricky Fitts. Ricky, himself from a broken home as well, and Jane find they have a lot in common and eventually turn out to be soulmates. |Kevin Spacey (Lester Burnham) @ Annette Bening (Carolyn Burnham) @ Thora Birch (Jane Burnham) @ Wes Bentley (Ricky Fitts) @ Mena Suvari (Angela Hayes) @ Peter Gallagher (Buddy Kane) @ Allison Janney (Barbara Fitts) @ Chris Cooper (Col. Frank Fitts, USMC) @ Scott Bakula (Jim Olmeyer) @ Sam Robards (Jim Berkley) @ Barry Del Sherman (Brad Dupree) @ Ara Celi (Sale House Woman #1) @ John Cho (Sale House Man #1) @ Fort Atkinson (Sale House Man #2) @ Sue Casey (Sale House Woman #2) @ Kent Faulcon (Sale House Man #3) @ Brenda Wehle (Sale House Woman #4) @ Lisa Cloud (Sale House Woman #5) @ Alison Faulk (Spartanette #1) @ Krista Goodsitt (Spartanette #2) @ Lily Houtkin (Spartanette #3) @ Carolina Lancaster (Spartanette #4) @ Romana Leah (Spartanette #5) @ Chekeshka Van Putten (Spartanette #6 (as Chekesa Van Putten)) @ Emily Zachary (Spartanette #7) @ Nancy Anderson (Spartanette #8) @ Reshma Gajjar (Spartanette #9) @ Stephanie Rizzo (Spartanette #10) @ Heather Joy Sher (Playground Girl #1) @ Chelsea Hertford (Playground Girl #2) @ Amber Smith (Christy Kane) @ Joel McCrary (Catering Boss) @ Marissa Jaret Winokur (Mr. Smiley's Counter Girl) @ Dennis Anderson (Mr. Smiley's Manager) @ Matthew Kimbrough (Firing Range Attendant) @ Erin Cathryn Strubbe (Young Jane Burnham rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Elaine Corral Kendall (Newscaster (uncredited) Produced by||Don't look too close. If you go and see American Beauty, please ignore the hype and try to forget anything that anybody has ever told you about it, including the (subsequent) contents of this review. If you watch the film with a relaxed and open mind, I believe that you are guaranteed to enjoy it. Reading many of these reviews, I realise that many reviewers seem to complain that some of the themes that this film deals with are presented in a clichéd, "Hollywood", or deliberately "anti-Hollywood" fashion. I have just seen the film for the second time at the cinema tonight, having waited almost two months to see it again. My intention was to try to analyse the technical composition of the film, and view it with a neutral, uncompassionate eye. However, just as on the first viewing, the film utterly engrossed me in its story, leaving me no opportunity to specifically think about the direction, or camerawork, or any other such technicality. For me, this is incredibly impressive, and is the mark of a great film. However, the emotion that I have felt on leaving the cinema on both viewings, now, is very hard to describe. It is not true to say that the film demolishes any stereotypes or avoids any clichés, and at no point did it seem to be trying to be pompously attempting to "break the mould" (with the possible exception of certain plastic bags). However, the sheer execution of the film, especially in the fantastic acting, direction, and overall "feel" of the film is incredibly cohesive - bringing the production together into something that is utterly complete in its own right. American Beauty appears as if it has been made with absolutely no concern to producing a film which is in any way extreme. It does not stand up to sophisticated attacks on its clichés, stereotypes, or plot-devices - and nor is it intended to. Overall, everything comes together in an admirably unpretentious way to form a film which is phenomenally engrossing and enjoyable in that it sets out to tell a simple drama, without any particular subtexts or pretences, and does so breathtakingly well. Please go and see this film; the chances are high that absolutely anybody in a relatively open, relaxed mood will be able to be swept away by its holistic beauty. If anything, I personally attribute the phenomenal soundtrack to giving the film some of its magic, although this is obviously only part of the whole story. I feel that there is a universal emotion conveyed by this film which should be open to everybody, but many people seem to have not been receptive to it - preferring to deconstruct it and individually criticise its components. I don't understand how people can miss the point of this film - that there IS NO POINT to get excited about; American Beauty revolves about letting yourself be open to the powerful, yet unassuming drama that it is. Looking Closer, at least without appreciating the film as a whole, can only lead you further from understanding why a lot of people think that it deserves the Best Picture Oscar that it has attained. It is a simple, yet wondrous drama. 10 out of 10. || |2.35 : 1 |DTS 5.1 ||||||@@ American History X|Tony Kaye|Drama|Rated R for graphic brutal violence including rape, pervasive language, strong sexuality and nudity. |8.3|USA|1998| 119 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bill Carraro Michael De Luca Jon Hess David McKenna John Morrissey Kearie Peak Steve Tisch Lawrence Turman Brian Witten|David McKenna |Tony Kaye ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Some Legacies Must End.|Venice Beach, California. Derek and Danny Vinyard, brothers, got into the wrong hands. A very right-winged man managed to twist their thoughts and did the same thing to them that Hitler did to the masses. They and their fellows are feeling as a part of a community that is exploited by people who do not have the right to do so: Illegal immigrants, the Black, the Yellow and all the others who use their minority position to extract rights over the Whites from it - or so they are convinced. So, hatred against the "others" grows, and when it comes to a case of self-defense, Derek kills in rage, in hate, in thirst for blood. In jail, his eyes are opened and he can see the mistakes in the definition which made him a Nazi out of belief. In a slow development, Derek turns to be a completely different man. When released, his prime target is to get his younger brother Danny out of the fangs of the blindfolded. Derek Vinyard (Edward Norton) returns from prison to find his younger brother, Danny (Edward Furlong), caught in the same web of racism and hatred that landed him there. After Derek and Danny's father is killed in the line of duty by a minority, Derek's view of mankind is altered. While in prison, Derek discovers that there is good and bad in every race. The task before him now is to convince Danny of his newfound enlightenment. |Edward Norton (Derek) @ Edward Furlong (Danny) @ Beverly D'Angelo (Doris) @ Jennifer Lien (Davina) @ Ethan Suplee (Seth) @ Fairuza Balk (Stacey) @ Avery Brooks (Sweeney) @ Elliott Gould (Murray) @ Stacy Keach (Cameron) @ William Russ (Dennis) @ Guy Torry (Lamont) @ Joseph Cortese (Rasmussen (as Joe Cortese)) @ Jason Bose Smith (Little Henry (as Jason Bose-Smith)) @ Antonio David Lyons (Lawrence) @ Alex Sol (Mitch McCormick) @ Keram Malicki-Sánchez (Chris (as Keram Malicki-Sanchez)) @ Giuseppe Andrews (Jason) @ Michelle Christine White (Lizzy) @ Jonathan Fowler Jr. (Jerome) @ Christopher Masterson (Daryl Dawson (as Chris Masterson)) @ Nicholas R. Oleson (Huge Aryan) @ Jordan Marder (Curtis) @ Paul Le Mat (McMahon) @ Thomas L. Bellissimo (Cop #2 (as Tommy L. Bellissimo)) @ Cherish Lee (Kammi) @ Sam Vlahos (Dr. Aguilar) @ Tara Blanchard (Ally) @ Anne Lambton (Cassandra) @ Steve Wolford (Reporter) @ Richard Noyce (Desk Sergeant) @ Danso Gordon (Buddy #1) @ Jim Norton (Randy) @ David Basulto (Guard) @ Alexis Rose Coen (Young Ally) @ Kiante Elam (Lawrence's Partner (as Kiant Elam)) @ Paul Hopkins (Student) @ Keith Odett (Random Skinhead) @ Paul E. Short (Stocky Buddy (as Paul Short)) @ Nigel Miguel (Basketball Player rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jennifer Campbell (Blond Woman in Restaurant (scenes deleted) (uncredited)) @ Sydney 'Big Dawg' Colston (Prison Gang Leader (uncredited)) @ Randy J. Goodwin (Guy in Restaurant (scenes deleted) (uncredited)) @ Maximillian Kesmodel (Young Danny Vinyard (uncredited)) @ Allie Moss (Skinhead Girlfriend (uncredited)) @ Denney Pierce (Arresting Officer (uncredited)) @ Sam Sarpong (Jail Inmate (uncredited)) @ Mark Swanson (Skinhead in Store (uncredited)) @ Selwyn Ward (High School Student Leaving Bathroom (uncredited) Produced by||Excellent but curiously unmoving A white supremacist Derek (Edward Norton) is sent to jail for brutally killing two black men who try to steal his car.Through some harrowing experiences in jail he realizes his way of thinking and living was wrong. He gets out and tries to prevent his young brother Danny (Edward Furlong) from becoming the same as him...but is it too late? First off I'm giving the film an 8.I thought is was excellent but it does have problems--it's overlong (I was bored more than once); there's way too many slow-motion sequences; there's disjointed editing; a finale I saw coming from a mile away and an annoying tendency to cut from b&w to color constantly.Those issues aside the film is great. The script and imagery is strong and graphic (as it should be) and there's some great acting here.Norton is just superb (he was Oscar-nominated); Furlong is subdued but good as Danny--a lot of his emotions come through in his eyes; Beverly D'Angelo was just great as their mother and Fairuza Balk is frightening as Norton's girlfriend.The only bad acting was by Avery Brooks--but he's not really a main character so it doesn't really hurt the film. Some of the sequences in here were very difficult to watch (the attack on the store, the prison sequences and the finale) but they're meant to be that way.This movie hits you over the head with its message but it does work. It just didn't affect me that strongly.As I said, I saw the ending coming from a mile away so it didn't shock me at all.Still, it is a powerful film.Well worth catching. Also there was a huge amount of controversy when this was released.It seems the director (Tony Kaye) accused New Line Studios of letting Edward Norton into the editing room and cut the film himself (this is no shock--Norton is known as a control freak).He requested his name be removed from the credits and replaced with Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck.He didn't win his request.If Norton did indeed edit this film--he shouldn't quit his acting job.The editing here is herky-jerky and the film could easily lose those slomo sequences. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ American Pie|Paul Weitz Chris Weit|Comedy|Rated R for strong sexuality, crude sexual dialogue, language and drinking, all involving teens. |6.8|USA|1999| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Chris Bender Louis G. Friedman Chris Moore Craig Perry James B. Rogers Chris Weitz Warren Zide Adam Herz|Adam Herz |Richard Crudo ||Celsius |There's something about your first piece.|At a high-school party, four friends (Jim, Kevin, Finch, and Oz) find that losing their collective virginity isn't as easy as they had thought. But they still believe that they need to do so before college. To motivate themselves, they enter a pact to try to be the first to "score." And of course, the senior prom is their last best chance. As the fateful date draws near, the boys wonder who among them will get lucky. More importantly, do they really want to do it at all? Siamo in un liceo del Michigan. Quattro studenti all'ultimo anno stringono un patto: fare sesso prima del diploma. La festa di fine anno scolastico si avvicina e non sanno come risolvere la faccenda. Jim ha un padre troppo premuroso ; Kevin è fidanzato, ma non riesce a convincere la ragazza a farlo ; Oz, l'atleta, è impacciato ; Finch paga una compagna di scuola perché esalti le sue doti virili. Alla fine tutti riusciranno nel loro intento, non senza qualche difficoltà. Jim (Jason Biggs) es virgen y está preocupado por su situación. Luego que sus padres lo descubren tratando de ver un canal pornográfico, el jovencito se une a un grupo de amigos y, juntos, prometen tener su primera experiencia antes de la noche de graduación. |Jason Biggs (Jim Levinstein) @ Chris Klein (Chris 'Oz' Ostreicher) @ Thomas Ian Nicholas (Kevin Myers) @ Alyson Hannigan (Michelle Flaherty) @ Shannon Elizabeth (Nadia) @ Tara Reid (Victoria 'Vicky' Lathum) @ Eddie Kaye Thomas (Paul Finch) @ Seann William Scott (Steve Stifler (as Sean W. Scott)) @ Eugene Levy (Jim's Dad) @ Natasha Lyonne (Jessica) @ Mena Suvari (Heather) @ Jennifer Coolidge (Stifler's Mom) @ Chris Owen (Chuck Sherman) @ Molly Cheek (Mrs. Levinstein (Jim's Mom)) @ Lawrence Pressman (Coach Marshall) @ Clyde Kusatsu (English Teacher) @ Christina Milian (Band Member) @ Woody Schultz (Party Guy) @ Casey Erklin (Drinking Buddy) @ Annika Hays (Party Girl) @ Eden Riegel (Sarah (the Sophomore Chick)) @ Justin Isfeld (Justin, 'MILF' Guy #1) @ John Cho (John, 'MILF' Guy #2) @ Veronica Lauren (Vocal Jazz Girl) @ Monica McSwain (Vocal Jazz Girl) @ Fletcher Sheridan (Vocal Jazz Group) @ Robyn Roth (Vocal Jazz Group) @ Jamar Cargo (Vocal Jazz Group) @ Akuyoe Graham (Vocal Jazz Teacher) @ Katie Lansdale (Enthralled Girl) @ Jay Rossi (Sushi Customer) @ Linda Gehringer (Vicky's Mom) @ Ashton Dane (Vicky's Dad) @ Sasha Barrese (Courtney (the Random Cute Girl)) @ Eric Lively (Albert, Vocal Jazz Group Member) @ Eli Marienthal (Stifler's Brother) @ Travis Cody Aimer (Computer Nerd) @ Mark Hoppus (Garage Band Member) @ Thomas DeLonge (Garage Band Member) @ Travis Barker (Garage Band Member) @ Daniel Spink (Guy with Monkey) @ James DeBello (Enthusiastic Guy) @ Amber Phillips (Computer Girl) @ Clementine Ford (Computer Girl) @ Hilary Salvatore (Girl Holding Out) @ Jasmine Stocken (Bathroom Girl) @ Jillian Bach (Bathroom Girl) @ David Kuhn (Prom Band Singer) @ Dan Coronel (Lacrosse Referee) @ Pete Pallad (Lacrosse Referee) @ J.D. Doyle (Lacrosee Referee) @ Lito Coronel (Lacrosse Referee) @ Markus Botnick (Assistant Lacrosse Coach) @ Robby Murakami (Lacrosse Player) @ Addison Krantz (Lacrosse Player) @ Alex Nies (Lacrosse Player) @ Roger Sewell (Lacrosse Player) @ Donald J. Collins (Lacrosse Player) @ Ryan Bates (Lacrosse Player) @ Joe Park (Lacrosse Player) @ Walter Toole (Lacrosse Player) @ Travis Petraglia (Lacrosse Player) @ Richard Schoenberg (Lacrosse Player) @ Amon Button (Lacrosse Player) @ Steven Hopkins (Lacrosse Player) @ Peter McPartlin (Lacrosse Player) @ Sean Elder (Lacrosse Player) @ Sean Whitacre (Lacrosse Player) @ Jon Mark Fabiano (Lacrosse Player) @ Ian Televik (Lacrosse Player) @ Joshua Mele (Lacrosse Player) @ Gian Caputo (Lacrosse Player) @ Garret Kellenberger (Lacrosse Player) @ Timothy Sovay (Lacrosse Player) @ Steven McAfoose (Lacrosse Player) @ Kevin Tidgewell (Lacrosse Player) @ Jesse Patterson (Lacrosse Player) @ Jeff Schwartz (Lacrosse Player) @ Chris Loudos (Lacrosse Player) @ Lyle Tomlinson (Lacrosse Player) @ Sami Atayan (Lacrosse Player) @ Kurt Zimmerman (Lacrosse Player) @ Tom Christian (Lacrosse Player) @ Dustan Beitey (Lacrosse Player) @ Chris McGnie (Lacrosse Player) @ Tri C. Nuguyen (Lacrosse Player) @ Kirk Lametie (Lacrosse Player) @ Todd Samuel Parker (Lacrosse Player) @ Jimmy Palmer (Stifler's Lacrosse Double rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Alexandra Adi (Central Michigan University Girl (uncredited)) @ Casey Affleck (Tom Myers (uncredited)) @ Ingrid K. Behrens (Female Voice in Porn Film (uncredited) (voice)) @ Jami Philbrick (Guy with Headphones on in Lunch Line (uncredited)) @ Marilyn Staley (T.V. Hostess (uncredited)) @ Tara Subkoff (College Girl (uncredited)) @ Chris Weitz (Male Voice in Porn Film (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||a well seasoned confection American Pie has all the ingredients of a good movie.First, the plot deals with young people in search of their first sexual experience.What could be more basic to the human condition?Second, although obviously fiction, the film has a feeling of reality capturing the awkwardness and anxiety of young people at this point in their lives.Third, it is well written and not always predictable as each young man employs his own strategy, and of course, in the real world things do not always go as planned.Fourth, the cast consists of very talented young actors playing characters which may remind the audience of people they may have known.Fifth, the film has its poignant moments. The final ingredient is this movie is hilarious.The film has one liners, sight gags, and situations that very funny.The audience, which ranged from teenagers to middle age, laughed almost constantly and out loud.CAUTION: This film is rated "R" for sexual situations and the use of alcohol by young people.If you are easily offended or sexual humor makes you uncomfortable, stay away.However, if you are not in the aforementioned, you may enjoy it.Three stars!!! ||Collector's Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ American Pie 2|James B. Rogers|Comedy|Rated R for strong sexual content, crude humor, language and drinking. R|6.3|USA|2001||English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/22/2004|Jane Bartelme Chris Bender Stefan Frank Adam Herz Chris Moore Craig Perry Chris Weitz Paul Weitz Warren Zide|Adam Herz David H. Steinberg Adam Herz Adam Herz|Mark Irwin ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |This Summer It's All About Sticking Together.|After their first year at college, the guys reunite for another summer of fun. Jim continues his quest for sexual independence by seeking the help of his old prom date, Michele, after an unexpected call from Nadia who plans to visit Jim. Meanwhile, Kev and Vicky find themselves in an awkward situation after having broken up for a year. Oz must deal with a long distance relationship when Heather heads off to France to study abroad. Old feuds die hard as the ever-so-horny Stifler harbors his hatred toward Finch, who is practicing the Japanese art of Tantra. |Jason Biggs (Jim Levinstein) @ Shannon Elizabeth (Nadia) @ Alyson Hannigan (Michelle Flaherty) @ Chris Klein (Chris 'Oz' Ostreicher) @ Thomas Ian Nicholas (Kevin Myers) @ Natasha Lyonne (Jessica) @ Tara Reid (Vicky Lathum) @ Seann William Scott (Steve Stifler) @ Mena Suvari (Heather) @ Eddie Kaye Thomas (Paul Finch) @ Chris Owen (Chuck Sherman) @ Eugene Levy (Jim's Dad) @ Molly Cheek (Mrs. Levinstein) @ Denise Faye (Danielle) @ Lisa Arturo (Amber) @ John Cho (John) @ Justin Isfeld (Justin) @ Eli Marienthal (Stifler's Brother) @ Casey Affleck (Tom Myers) @ George Wyner (Camp Director) @ Steven Shenbaum (Counselor) @ Matthew Peters (Trumpet Kid) @ Joelle Carter (Natalie) @ Matthew Frauman (R.A.) @ Larry Drake (Natalie's Dad) @ Lee Garlington (Natalie's Mom) @ Tsianina Joelson (Amy) @ Bree Turner (Amy's Friend) @ Lacey Beeman (Amy's Friend) @ Lisa Gould (Woman in Bed) @ Brian Lester (Grand Harbor Sheriff) @ Nigel Gibbs (Cop) @ Ernie Lively (Sergeant) @ Kevin Cooney (Doctor) @ Marilyn Brett (Bus Driver Lady) @ Morgan Nagler (Michelle's Friend) @ Jack Wallace (Enthusiastic Guy) @ Jesse Heiman (Petey) @ Joanna Garcia (Christy) @ Sarah Laine (Girl at Party) @ Nora Zehetner (Girl at Party) @ David Smigelski (High School Guy) @ Luke Edwards (High School Guy) @ Adam Brody (High School Guy) @ Amanda Armato (Cowboy Hat Girl) @ Nancy Stone (Mom) @ Kevin Kilner (Dad) @ Cole Petersen (Kid) @ Paityn James (Female EMT) @ Brian Turk (Trucker) @ Mike Erwin (Cashier) @ Robert Peters (Grill Guy) @ Amara Balthrop-Lewis (Deputy) @ Jay Rossi (Deputy) @ Joseph D. Reitman (Male EMT) @ Adam Herz (Younger Business Suit) @ James B. Rogers (Older Business Suit (as J.B. Rogers)) @ Brett Shuttleworth (Abercrombie & Fitch Guy) @ Amanda Wilmshurst (Finch Girl) @ Devon Jackson (Finch Girl) @ Daniel Spink (Boy with Monkey) @ Tamia Richmond (Party Girl) @ Rachel Blasko (Amy's Friend) @ Laurie Reeves (College Party Girl (as Laurie Ellan Reeves)) @ Derrick Harper (Counselor) @ Kelley Schneider (Female Deputy rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Christina Cindrich (Jello-Shot Girl (uncredited)) @ Don 'Tex' Clark (Police Officer (uncredited)) @ Jennifer Coolidge (Stifler's Mom (uncredited)) @ Phil Hawn (College Professor (uncredited)) @ Brad Martin (Deputy with Megaphone (uncredited)) @ Tara Rice ( (uncredited)) @ Marco Sanchez (Marco (uncredited)) @ Jason Tatum (Boy at Party (uncredited)) @ Clyde Tull (Tourist (uncredited)) @ Steven Paul Zsenyuk (New York Cabbie (uncredited)Produced by||one pie too much Unfortunately, "American Pie 2" ranks in the circle of the pointless sequels that merely aim at exploiting the success of the first movies. I didn't watch the first "American Pie" (1999) film but I know the story: 4 students who are eager to lose their virginity before leaving high school. I've heard that they succeed in it. And then? Was it really useful to shot one sequel to a movie which topic didn't precisely require one? Well what I can say about this movie is that it contains a mediocre directing but also and nearly as usual in American teen-movies a humor that lacks sharpness. There are sinister gags that don't encourage laughter too. Must you add that the movie exudes a deep boredom and consequently leaves indifferent? To finish, I've got only three adjectives to qualify "American Pie 2": boring, uninspired and quite unfunny. I'd better not watch "American Pie: the wedding" (2003). || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ American Psycho|Mary Harron|Horror|Rated R for strong violence, sexuality, drug use and language. |6.7|USA|2000| 101 min/ USA:102 min (unrated version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/17/2004|Ernie Barbarash Alessandro Camon Joseph Drake Christian Halsey Solomon Chris Hanley Victoria Hirst Gretchen McGowan Michael Paseornek Edward R. Pressman Jeff Sackman Clifford Streit Rob Weiss|Bret Easton Ellis Mary Harron Guinevere Turner|Andrzej Sekula ||Amuse Pictures Inc. [jp] |Killer looks.|Patrick Bateman is a homicidal maniac working on the New York stock exchange. His reasons for killing are debatable, such as extreme envy of fellow co-workers, material obsession, pure hatred or simply no other reason than complete insanity. His lunacy escalates throughout the film, killing at least 20 people in the process, including models, homeless people, co-workers, friends, and anyone else who stands in his way, be it rage, jealousy, or something else. The only person who he seems to sympathise with is his secretary, Jean, who eventually he can't help but have a desire to murder her. Many times, Patrick can't tell whether these events are real, or simply part of a psychotic delusion brought on by his problems. Patrick Bateman, a young, well to do man working on wall street at his father's company kills for no reason at all. As his life progresses his hatred for the world becomes more and more intense. Based on the book by Bret Easton Ellis. Patrick Bateman, lives Wall Street by day and his nights are spent in ways impossible to fathom. Christian Bale plays this soul-less, modern monster whose zealous materialism and piercing envy fuels his homicidal activities. Patrick Bateman is handsome, well educated and intelligent. He is twenty-six and living his own American dream. He works by day on Wall Street, earning a fortune to complement the one he was born with. At night he descends into madness, as he experiments with fear and violence. |Christian Bale (Patrick Bateman) @ Justin Theroux (Timothy Bryce) @ Josh Lucas (Craig McDermott) @ Bill Sage (David Van Patten) @ Chloë Sevigny (Jean) @ Reese Witherspoon (Evelyn Williams) @ Samantha Mathis (Courtney Rawlinson) @ Matt Ross (Luis Carruthers) @ Jared Leto (Paul Allen) @ Willem Dafoe (Donald Kimball) @ Cara Seymour (Christie) @ Guinevere Turner (Elizabeth) @ Stephen Bogaert (Harold Carnes) @ Monika Meier (Daisy) @ Reg E. Cathey (Homeless Man) @ Blair Williams (Waiter #1) @ Marie Dame (Victoria) @ Kelley Harron (Bargirl) @ Patricia Gage (Mrs. Wolfe) @ Krista Sutton (Sabrina) @ Landy Cannon (Man at Pierce & Pierce) @ Park Bench (Stash) @ Catherine Black (Vanden) @ Margaret Ma (Dry Cleaner Woman) @ Tufford Kennedy (Hamilton) @ Mark Pawson (Humphrey Rhineback) @ Jessica Lau (Facialist) @ Lilette Wiens (Maitre Dí) @ Glen Marc Silot (Waiter) @ Charlotte Hunter (Libby) @ Kiki Buttignol (Caron) @ Joyce R. Korbin (Woman at ATM (as Joyce Korbin)) @ Reuben Thompson (Waiter #2) @ Bryan Renfro (Night Watchman) @ Ross Gibby (Man Outside Store) @ Christina McKay (Young Woman) @ Alan McCullough (Man in Stall (as Allan McCullough)) @ Anthony Lemke (Marcus Halberstram) @ Connie Chen (Gwendolyn Ichiban rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ronald Reagan (Himself (speech on Iran-Contra scandal) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Somaya Reece (Bar Girl (uncredited) Produced by)||* * out of 4. In the 1980's, a Wall Street yuppie (Bale) goes on a murder spree simply because he has nothing better to do, but a police detictive (William Dafoe) is hot on his heels. Handsome looking film with an award worthy performance by Bale and some funny moments, but eventually wears thin and drags on and on while featuring some extremely unpleasent scenes and an unmemorable ending. Unrated; Strong Sexual Content, Graphic Violence, Nudity, Drug Use, Profanity, and Strong Adult Themes. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ American Tail, An|Don Bluth|Family|G |6.5|USA|1986|80 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Kate Barker Don Bluth Judy Freudberg Tony Geiss Gary Goldman Kathleen Kennedy David Kirschner Frank Marshall John Pomeroy Steven Spielberg|Judy Freudberg Tony Geiss Gary Goldman David Kirschner|||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Meet Fievel. In his search to find his family, he discovered America.|Fievel is a young Russian mouse separated from his parents on the way to America, a land they think is without cats. When he arrives alone in the New World, he keeps up hope, searching for his family, making new friends, and running and dodging the cats he thought he'd be rid off. |Phillip Glasser (Fievel Mousekewitz (voice)) @ Dom DeLuise (Tiger (voice)) @ Nehemiah Persoff (Papa Mousekewitz (voice)) @ Erica Yohn (Mama Mousekewitz (voice)) @ Amy Green (Tanya Mousekewitz (voice)) @ John Finnegan (Warren T. Rat (voice)) @ Pat Musick (Tony Toponi (voice)) @ Cathianne Blore (Bridget (voice)) @ Neil Ross (Honest John (voice)) @ Madeline Kahn (Gussie Mausheimer (voice)) @ Will Ryan (Digit (voice)) @ Christopher Plummer (Henri (voice)) @ Hal Smith (Moe (voice)Produced by||For Adults... "An American Tale" (or is it "Tail"?) is the story of a mouse, Fievel, who travels to America with his family (who are leaving their home to escape the oppression of "the cats"), losing his family on the way and searching for them during the film, all along the way acquiring friends and enemies. This tale is really a spoof on Italians and Irish and Russians and Jewish (and all emigrants) emigrating into America during the early 1900's. Part of what is so great about this movie is because it is not extremely goofy or cartoony--it's realistic and has a grimy feel to it, just like "The Godfather Part II" when Don Corleone is shown as a young, innocent child coming to America for the first time. It portrays the early 20th century extremely well thanks to Don Bluth animation. Just like "All Dogs Go to Heaven," this film has dark, moody backgrounds, both grimy and unmoving. As the camera moves, the backgrounds don't. It gives the feeling of a very dark era in our history, and Fievel, a little mouse, is going through it all. It's hard to explain the feeling you get watching the film, but you don't really feel like you're watching a cartoon, much less a childrens' film. It's really fun to watch, and I think adults will get just as much a kick out of it as children, if not more. Cartoons have acquired cheap looks over the years--just look at the animation in "Pinnochio" compared to Disney's animation today--but Don Bluth has/had managed to keep the classic feel of the cartoons of the older days, and that is, perhaps, one of the best traits of this tale. And by the way, the title is "An American Tail." 3.5/5 stars - John Ulmer || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Amistad|Steven Spielberg|Drama|Rated R for some scenes of strong brutal violence and some related nudity. |7.0|USA|1997| 152 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Debbie Allen Robert Cooper Bonnie Curtis Paul Deason Laurie MacDonald Walter F. Parkes Tim Shriver Steven Spielberg Colin Wilson|David Franzoni |Janusz Kaminski ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Freedom is not given. It is our right at birth. But there are some moments when it must be taken. |AMISTAD is about a 1839 mutiny onboard a slave ship that is traveling towards the Northeast Coast of America. Much of the story involves a court-room drama about the slave who led the revolt. |Morgan Freeman (Joadson) @ Nigel Hawthorne (Martin Van Buren) @ Anthony Hopkins (John Quincy Adams) @ Djimon Hounsou (Cinque) @ Matthew McConaughey (Baldwin) @ David Paymer (Secretary Forsyth) @ Pete Postlethwaite (Holabird) @ Stellan Skarsgård (Tappan) @ Razaaq Adoti (Yamba) @ Abu Bakaar Fofanah (Fala) @ Anna Paquin (Queen Isabel) @ Tomas Milian (Calderon) @ Chiwetel Ejiofor (Ens. Covey) @ Derrick N. Ashong (Buakei) @ Geno Silva (Ruiz) @ John Ortiz (Montes) @ Ralph Brown (Lt. Gedney) @ Darren E. Burrows (Lt. Meade (as Darren Burrows)) @ Allan Rich (Judge Juttson) @ Paul Guilfoyle (Attorney) @ Peter Firth (Capt. Fitzgerald) @ Xander Berkeley (Hammond) @ Jeremy Northam (Judge Coglin) @ Arliss Howard (John C. Calhoun) @ Willie Amakye (Folowa) @ Luc Assogba (Gbatui) @ Mariah Campbell (Masery) @ Habib Conteh (Bai) @ Stephen Conteh (Morlai) @ Monguehy Fanzy (Fabanna) @ Jimmy Fotso (Kwong) @ Adekunle Ilori (Kahei) @ Sheriff Kargbo (Almamy) @ Saye Lah (Kessebe) @ Sylvestre Massaquoi (Santigiie) @ Samson Odede (Kpona) @ Chike Okpala (Sorie) @ Willie Onafesso (Jina) @ Samuel Pieh (Suuleh) @ Lansana Sawi (Morlu) @ Abu Sidique (Tsukama) @ El Hadj Malik Sow (Golabu) @ Lamine Thiam (Mahmud) @ Austin Pendleton (Prof. Gibbs) @ Daniel von Bargen (Warden Pendleton) @ Rusty Schwimmer (Mrs. Pendleton) @ Pedro Armendáriz Jr. (Gen. Espatero (as Pedro Armendariz)) @ Frank T. Wells (Crier) @ Michael Massee (Prison guard) @ Roy Cooper (Pickney) @ Jake Weber (Mr. Wright) @ Victor Rivers (Capt. Ferrar) @ Joseph Kosseh (Birmaja) @ Steve Passewe (Cinque's in-law) @ Sherly Acosta Williams (Cinque's wife) @ Matt Sarles (Young aide) @ George Gerdes (Marshal) @ Gerald R. Molen (Magistrate (as Jerry Molen)) @ Kevin J. O'Connor (Missionary) @ Robert Walsh (Guardsman) @ Sean McGuirk (Courier) @ Tony Owen (Farmer) @ William Young (Businessman) @ Michael Riley (British officer) @ León Singer (Don Pablo (as Leon Singer)) @ Castulo Guerra (Spanish priest) @ Harry Groener (Tecora captain) @ Hawthorne James (Creole cook) @ Ingrid Walters (Woman overboard with baby) @ Harry A. Blackmun (Associate Justice Joseph Story) @ Curtis Shields (Bassie) @ Carlos Spivey (Chike) @ Charles Udoma (Kessebe) @ Andrew L. Josiah (Tamba) @ Tony Onafesso (Baa) @ Peter Mansaray (Kapr) @ Clarence Mobley (Kenei) @ Brian Macon (Yauai) @ Edward Appiah (Followolo) @ Denver Dowridge (Kpau) @ Paul Mwakutuya (Sessi) @ Rory Burton (Vakina) @ Samuel Orekhio (Fawni) @ Omo Lara Tosin (Kula) @ Ransford Thomas (Alkali) @ Juliette Darko (Teme) @ Issac Mayanja (Sanpha) @ Charlean Isata Bangalie (Margru) @ Roosevelt Flenoury (Njaooni) @ M.S. Kaleiwo (Kaleiwo) @ Tesfay Yohannes (Amistad African extra) @ George Kamara (Amistad African extra) @ Abdul-Fatai Balogun (Amistad African extra) @ Yaya Sissoko (Amistad African extra) @ Marlon Francis (Amistad African extra) @ Amadou Traore (Amistad African extra) @ Bundu Kamara (Amistad African extra) @ James Moses (Amistad African extra) @ Daniel Reid (Amistad African extra) @ Seydou Coulibaly (Amistad African extra) @ Lawal Tajudeen (Amistad African extra) @ Lester Mombelly (Amistad African extra) @ Ibrahim Sesay (Amistad African extra) @ Jeremy Shelton (Amistad African extra) @ Andrew Shoemo (Amistad African extra) @ Prince Coke (Amistad African extra) @ Ahmed Bangura (Amistad African extra) @ Bernard Singleton (Amistad African extra) @ Desere Mondon (Amistad African extra) @ Baboucar Jobe (Amistad African extra rest of cast listed alphabetically Vincent Lynne-O'Brien .... Plantation owner (scenes deleted)) @ Eric Bruno Borgman (First jury juror (uncredited)) @ Alex Daunis (Clerk of Supreme Court (uncredited)) @ Nino Del Padre (Court witness (uncredited)) @ Lawrence Gaughan (Spaniard (uncredited)) @ Paul Macomber (Confederate soldier (uncredited)) @ Luis Muñoz (Spanish slave guard (uncredited)) @ Ungenita Prevost (Tecora slave (uncredited)) @ Daniel Sutton (Union soldier (uncredited)) @ John H. Tobin (Supreme Court reporter (uncredited) Produced by||Wonderful Historic Drama Lacks Punch What a great story, and its true!Newly captured slaves violently commandeer their slave ship and force the surviving crew to return them to Africa, but are tricked into landing in New England instead.It's 1839 and the US is slowly sliding into Civil War.The trial of the slave mutineers galvinizes the politicians, Abolitionists, and of course the lawyers. Spielberg collects a great cast of actors, most notably Anthony Hopkins as an aging John Quincy Adams, and Mathew McConaughy as the African's lawyer. The painstaking attention to historical detail transports the viewer back to this time, when America had one last chance to escape the nightmare of the Civil War, and was blowing it. Then why does the movie lack punch, and why was I so aware of the long length of the movie?I can't really say actually.The mutiny scene that opens the movie jolts and pulls you head first into the story.But then the movie hits the breaks, and slows through recreations of the three trials to which the Africans were subjected.The plodding pace loosens the films grip established so well in the beginning, and in only a few scenes, one of them being Hopkins summation to the Supreme Court at the end of the film, does it regain its dramatic punch. Still a very good movie, but one expects more from Mr. Spielberg. || |1.85 : 1 |DTS 5.1 ||||||@@ Amityville Horror, The|Stuart Rosenberg|Horror||5.3|USA|1979| 117 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Samuel Z. Arkoff Elliot Geisinger Ronald Saland|Jay Anson Sandor Stern|Fred J. Koenekamp ||Ambassador Film Distributors [ca] |"For God's Sake, Get Out!"|Based on a true story that was claimed by writer Jay Anson, The Amityville Horror is about a large house on the coast of Long Island where newly weds George and Kathy Lutz and their three children move into the house that they hope will be their dream house but it ends up in terror. Not aware that a murder took place in the house several years back, George and Kathy turn to their family priest Father Delaney who believes the house is haunted and performs an exorcism on the house. But the evil spirit in the house causes him to become blind and makes him very ill. George and Kathy with the help of another priest Father Bolen and a police detective they face the fears of the house, but not knowing the spirit is planning to possess George and then the children... George and Kathy Lutz, a newly married couple with three children, movie into their beautiful new house in Amityville, New York, only to discover the house already has demonic inhabitants. |James Brolin (George Lutz) @ Margot Kidder (Kathy Lutz) @ Rod Steiger (Father Delaney) @ Don Stroud (Father Bolen) @ Murray Hamilton (Father Ryan) @ John Larch (Father Nuncio) @ Natasha Ryan (Amy) @ K.C. Martel (Greg) @ Meeno Peluce (Matt) @ Michael Sacks (Jeff) @ Helen Shaver (Carolyn) @ Amy Wright (Jackie) @ Val Avery (Sgt. Gionfriddo) @ Irene Dailey (Aunt Helena) @ Marc Vahanian (Jimmy) @ Elsa Raven (Mrs. Townsend) @ Ellen Saland (Bride) @ Eddie Barth (Agucci) @ Hank Garrett (Bartender) @ James Tolkan (Coroner) @ Carmine Foresta (Cop at the House) @ Peter Maloney (Newspaper Clerk) @ Charlie Welch (Carpenter) @ J.R. Miller (Boy) @ Patty Burtt (Girl) @ Michael Hawkins (New York State Trooper) @ Richard Hughes (2nd New York State Trooper) @ Jim Dukas (Neighbor) @ Baxter Harris (Cop #2 at the House) @ Michael Stearns (Policeman) @ Jack Krupnick (Dead Father Produced by||Horrible. Below-average horror film that drags at a snail's pace and has no pay-off by its finale. Newlyweds James Brolin and Margot Kidder move with their children to the titled house and strange things start happening. A haunted house film for the 1970s that bores more than it scares. Rod Steiger is wasted as the priest who is fighting the evil spirits. Followed by an almost innumerable amount of sequels that fit in well with this cinematic dud. 2 stars out of 5. || ||2.0 Mono ||||||@@ And Now for Something Completely Different|Ian MacNaughton|Comedy|PG |7.3|UK|1971|85 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/24/2004|Patricia Casey Victor Lownes David Gil|Graham Chapman John Cleese Terry Gilliam Eric Idle Terry Jones Michael Palin|David Muir ||Columbia Pictures [us] ||A collection of re-filmed sketches from the first and second series of the cult TV comedy show "Monty Python's Flying Circus". Includes such classics as "Nudge, Nudge", "Hell's Grannies", "Killer Cars", "Dead Parrot", "Lumberjack Song", "Blackmail" and "Upper Class Twit of the Year". |Graham Chapman (Brother/British pedestrian/Mr. Harrison (Apricot)/Sergeant-Major/'Hell's Grannies' policeman/Jimmy Blankensop/Sir Edward Ross/Restaurant patron #1/Letter Writer/Oliver St. John Mollusk) @ John Cleese (Announcer/Hungarian Man/Self-Defence Teacher/Sir George Head/Policeman/Interviewer/Mr. Praline/Second General/Christopher Columbus/Mungo the Cook/Bank Robber/Accountant #2 (falling past the window)/Vocational Guidance Counselor/Vivian Smith Smythe Smith) @ Eric Idle (Prosecutor/Marriage Counselor/Arthur Nudge/Self-defence student #4 (interested in pointed sticks)/'Hell's Grannies' analyst/Arthur Wilson/Arthur Wilson Two/Nightclub Emcee/Linkman/First General/Restaurant Manager/Lingerie Shop Owner/Accountant #1 (falling past the window)/Fairy Godmother/Rita Fairbanks/Simon Zinc Trumpet Harris) @ Terry Jones (Stage Manager/Tobacconist/2nd Hungarian Man/Squire/Self-defence student #3/Tenant #1 (voice)/Flasher/Mouse Organist Ken Ewing/Fat Soldier/Waiter/Nude Organist/Brian/Nigel Incubator Jones) @ Michael Palin (Man with tape recorder/Phrasebook Author/Arthur Pewtey/Self-defence student #2/Tenant #2/Lost His Wallet/Shrill Petrol Announcer (voice)/Milkman/Ernest Scribbler/Bevis (pet shop employee/lumberjack)/Headwaiter Gilberto/Herbert Anchovy/Gervais Brookhamster) @ Terry Gilliam (Self-defence nun/Uncle Sam/Caterpillar man/Sign holder) @ Carol Cleveland (Dierdre Pewtey/Storyteller/Milkman Collector/Restaurant Patron #2/Elsbeth) @ Connie Booth (Best Girl rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Neville Chamberlain (Himself (with Munich Accord) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Winston Churchill (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (speech to RAD, from T.d.W.) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ King George VI (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Richard Nixon (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Queen Elizabeth (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)Produced by||Inspired Lunacy Of the Highest (or is it Lowest) Order! AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.*** John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin.Raucous collection of skits and absurd humor by the master clowns of mocking mirth, Monty Python, from their iconoclastic television series that includes many hysterically funny moments especially The Twit of the Year bit.Inspired lunacy. || |1.37 : 1 |||||||@@ And the Band Played On|Roger Spottiswoode|Drama|R |7.6|USA|1993|141 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/3/2004|Marcia Basichis Omneya 'Nini' Mazen Karen J. McCabe Sarah Pillsbury Midge Sanford Arnold Schulman Albert M. Shapiro Aaron Spelling Edward Teets E. Duke Vincent|Randy Shilts Arnold Schulman|Paul Elliott ||Cipa [fr] |A threat no one dared face. A word no one wanted to speak. A fight for many, fought by few.|Story of the discovery of the AIDS virus. From the early days in 1978 when numerous San Francisco gays began dying from unknown causes, to the identification of the HIV virus. |Matthew Modine (Dr. Don Francis) @ Alan Alda (Dr. Robert Gallo) @ Patrick Bauchau (Dr. Luc Montagnier) @ Nathalie Baye (Dr. Françoise Barre) @ Christian Clemenson (Dr. Dale Lawrence) @ David Clennon (Mr. Johnstone) @ Phil Collins (Eddie Papasano) @ Bud Cort (Antique shop owner) @ Alex Courtney (Dr. Mika Popovic) @ David Dukes (Dr. Mervyn Silverman) @ Richard Gere (The Choreographer) @ David Marshall Grant (Dennis Seeley) @ Ronald Guttman (Dr. Jean-Claude Chermann) @ Glenne Headly (Dr. Mary Guinan) @ Anjelica Huston (Dr. Betsy Reisz) @ Ken Jenkins (Dr. Dennis Donohue) @ Richard Jenkins (Dr. Marc Conant) @ Tchéky Karyo (Dr. Willy Rozenbaum) @ Swoosie Kurtz (Mrs. Johnstone) @ Jack Laufer (Brian McDonough) @ Donal Logue (Bobbi Campbell) @ Steve Martin (The Brother) @ Richard Masur (William W. Darrow, PhD) @ Dakin Matthews (Congressman Phil Burton) @ Ian McKellen (Bill Kraus) @ Peter McRobbie (Dr. Max Essex) @ Lawrence Monoson (Chip) @ Jeffrey Nordling (Gaetan Dugas) @ Saul Rubinek (Dr. Jim Curran) @ Charles Martin Smith (Dr. Harold Jaffe) @ Stephen Spinella (Brandy Alexander) @ Lily Tomlin (Dr. Selma Dritz) @ B.D. Wong (Kico Govantes) @ Walter Addison (Blood Bank executive) @ Jill Andre (Red Cross spokesperson) @ Alan Barry (Hemophiliac patient) @ Neal Ben-Ari (Dr. Tom Spira) @ David Bottrell (Man #3) @ Rico Bueno (Bellevue Hospital Patient) @ Bill Carmichael (Delivery Man) @ Christopher Carroll (Dr. Aaron Kellner) @ Reg E. Cathey (Staff Doctor #2) @ John Del Regno (Man in Grand Central) @ John Durbin (6th Man) @ Mogens Eckert (Chief Executive (Copenhagen)) @ Carey Eidel (Tennis Player) @ Robert Briscoe Evans (2nd Reporter) @ Richard Fancy (Dr. Michael Gottlieb) @ Keythe Farley (Lab Technician) @ Christopher John Fields (Lawyer) @ Dave Florek (Doughnut Shop Counterman) @ Niki Gilbert (Sudanese Girl) @ Yasmine Golchan (Dr. Françoise Brun-Vezinet) @ Patrick Gorman (Charles Dauget) @ James Greene (Dr. Alvin Freedman-Kien) @ Jeff Hayenga (Dr. Bruce Voeller) @ Daniel Henning (Blaine) @ Ike Ikediashi (Sudanese Boy) @ Laura Innes (Hemophiliac Representative) @ Laura James (Margaret Heckler) @ Michael Kearns (Cleve) @ Erasor Kemie (Sudanese Student) @ Jack Kenny (San Francisco Activist) @ Thomas Kopache (Blood Bank Executive) @ Clyde Kusatsu (Blood Bank Executive) @ Frank Li'Bay (Desk Clerk) @ Rob LaBelle (Gay Rights Activist) @ Neal Lerner (1st Man) @ René Le Vant (Blood Bank Executive) @ Geoff Lower (Dr. David Simpson) @ Anthony Lucero (Mailroom Man) @ James Mastrantonio (8th Man) @ Jon Shear (Greg) @ Rosemary Murphy (Blood Bank Executive) @ Susanne Olsen (Intern (Copenhagen)) @ Angela Paton (Woman in Denver) @ Sierra Pecheur (Female Reporter) @ Miguel Pérez (Reporter) @ Martin Raymond (4th Man) @ Jeremy Regan (Ticket Seller) @ Robert Martin Robinson (Chief Administrator (French)) @ Valeri Ross (Jim's Secretary) @ Hildur Ruriks (Female Danish 2nd Executive) @ Tom Schanley (Waiter) @ Sean Whitesell (Country Club Attendant) @ Michael Winters (Middle-aged Man) @ William Wintersole (Dr. Paul Florino) @ Lenny Wolpe (Dr. Joseph Bove rest of cast listed alphabetically Peter Allen .... Himself (archive footage)) @ Edafe Blackmon (Sudanese Driver (as Edafe Okorume)) @ Arthur Ashe (Himself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Tina Chow (Herself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Brad Davis (Billy Hayes (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Denholm Elliott (Undetermined film role (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Rock Hudson (Himself (epilogue sequence) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Magic Johnson (Himself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Giorgio Kokosin (Hospital patient (uncredited)) @ Liberace (Himself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Geoffrey Lower (Dr. David Simpson (uncredited)) @ Richard Marcus (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Freddie Mercury (Himself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Anthony Perkins (Himself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Princess Diana (Herself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Michael Szymanski (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Elizabeth Taylor (Herself (epilogue sequence) (archive footage) (uncredited)Produced by||Simply Beautiful... A doctor attempts to discover more information about a deadly epidemic, but the government, press and even those in the medical field thwart his plans, causing the disease to spread. Modine is miscast as the doctor, while Ian McKellan gives a brilliant performance as one of the many inflicted with this deadly disease. There are fine cameos from Richard Gere, Steve Martin, Phil Collins and Alan Alda. Based on Randy Shlit's book about the history of AIDS. ||Movies |1.33 : 1 (negative ratio) |Movies ||||||@@ Angela's Ashes|Alan Parker|Drama|R |6.9|USA|1999|145 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/3/2004|David Brown James Flynn Kit Golden Doochy Moult Morgan O'Sullivan Alan Parker Scott Rudin Adam Schroeder Eric Steel David Wimbury|Frank McCourt Laura Jones Alan Parker|Chris Connier Michael Seresin||Asmik Ace Entertainment [jp] ||Based on the best selling autobiography by Irish expat Frank McCourt, Angela's Ashes follows the experiences of young Frankie and his family as they try against all odds to escape the poverty endemic in the slums of pre-war Limerick. The film opens with the family in Brooklyn, but following the death of one of Frankie's siblings, they return home, only to find the situation there even worse. Prejudice against Frankie's Northern Irish father makes his search for employment in the Republic difficult despite his having fought for the IRA, and when he does find money, he spends the money on drink. |Emily Watson (Angela McCourt) @ Robert Carlyle (Malachy (Dad)) @ Joe Breen (Young Frank) @ Ciaran Owens (Middle Frank) @ Michael Legge (Older Frank) @ Ronnie Masterson (Grandma Sheehan) @ Pauline McLynn (Aunt Aggie) @ Liam Carney (Uncle Pa Keating) @ Eanna MacLiam (Uncle Pat) @ Andrew Bennett (Narrator (voice)) @ Shane Murray-Corcoran (Young Malachy) @ Devon Murray (Middle Malachy) @ Peter Halpin (Older Malachy) @ Aaron Geraghty (New Born Michael) @ Sean Carney Daly (Baby Michael) @ Oisin Carney Daly (Baby Michael) @ Shane Smith (Middle Michael) @ Tim O'Brien (Older Michael) @ Blaithnaid Howe (Newborn Alphie) @ Klara O'Leary (Baby Alphie) @ Caroline O'Sullivan (Baby Alphie) @ Ryan Fielding (Older Alphie) @ Daire Lynam (Margaret Mary) @ Ben O'Gorman (Eugene) @ Sam O'Gorman (Oliver) @ Frank Laverty (Young Paddy Clohessy) @ James Mahon (Middle Paddy Clohessy) @ Laurence Kinlan (Older Paddy Clohessy) @ Lucas Neville (Willie Harold) @ Walter Mansfield (Fintan Slattery) @ Des McAleer (Mr. Benson) @ Sean Kearns (Dotty O'Neill) @ Les Doherty (Mr. O'Dea) @ Brendan Cauldwell (Mr. O'Halloran) @ Shay Gorman (Mr. Hannon) @ Johnny Murphy (Seamus) @ Jon Kenny (Lavatory Man) @ Susan Fitzgerald (Sister Rita) @ Brendan McNamara (Toby Mackey) @ Maria McDermottroe (Bridey Hannon) @ Oliver Maguire (Confession Priest) @ Daithi O'Suilleabhain (Young Priest) @ Eileen Pollock (Mrs. Finucane) @ Alvaro Lucchesi (Laman Griffin) @ Mark O'Regan (Dr. Troy) @ Moira Deady (Mrs. Purcell) @ Kerry Condon (Theresa) @ Gerard McSorley (Father Gregory) @ Garrett Keogh (Mr. Hegarty) @ Eamonn Owens (Quasimodo) @ John Anthony Murphy (Redemptionist Priest) @ Phelim Drew (Rent Man) @ Brendan O'Carroll (Funeral Carriage Driver) @ Maggie McCarthy (Miss Barry) @ Bairbre Ni Chaoimh (Mrs. O'Connell) @ Nuala Kelly (Dance Teacher) @ Brian Clifford (Telegram Boy) @ Edward Murphy (Young Mikey Molloy) @ Kieran Maher (Older Mikey Molloy) @ James McClatchie (Bishop) @ Patrick Bracken (Younger Question Quigley) @ Terry O'Donovan (Older Question Quigley) @ Danny O'Carroll (Clarke) @ David Ahern (Cyril Benson) @ Marcia DeBonis (Mrs. Leibowitz) @ Helen Norton (Delia) @ Eileen Colgan (Philomena) @ Alan Parker (Dr. Campbell) @ Stephen Marcus (English Agent) @ Pauline Shanahan (Eye Nurse) @ Gerry Walsh (Farmer) @ Brendan Morrissey (Brother Murray) @ Darragh Neill (Heffernan) @ Sarah Pilkington (Minnie MacAdorey) @ Donncha Crowley (Sacristan) @ Veronica O'Reilly (Mrs. Carmody) @ Anne O'Neill (Mrs. Dooley (as Ann O'Neill)) @ Phil Kelly (Father Gory) @ Jaz Pollock (Roden Lane Neighbour) @ Paddy Scully (St. Vincent Man #1) @ J.J. Murphy (St. Vincent Man #2) @ Frankie McCafferty (St. Vincent Man #3) @ Jack Lynch (St. Vincent Man #4) @ Patrick David Nolan (Travel Agent) @ Gerard Lee (Carmody Priest) @ Martin Benson (Christian Brother) @ Birdy Sweeney (Old Priest) @ Owen O'Gorman (Sleeping Sailor) @ Pat McGrath (Butcher) @ Ray McBride (Mill Foreman) @ John Sheedy (Coal Yard Foreman) @ Sam Ryan (Shaved Head Boy #1) @ Donnacha Gleeson (Shaved Head Boy #2) @ Jim McIntyre (Gravedigger #1) @ Richard Walker (Gravedigger #2) @ Mary Ann Spencer (Parent #1) @ Kathleen Lambe (Parent #2) @ Jer O'Leary (Parent #3Produced by||An Irish Cinema Paradiso In the same way that we loved the boy in 'Cinema Paradiso' rather than the grown up version, we also loved the boy in 'Angela's Ashes' rather than when he grew up. It was real, earthy, engaging, well acted, but did not present a likeable Robert Carlysle. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ "Angels in America"|Mike Nichols|Drama|NR |8.3|USA|2003|352 min (premiere version)|English||||||||||False||||||||11/8/2004|Cary Brokaw Celia D. Costas Michael Haley Paul A. Levin Mike Nichols Marco Valerio Pugini|Tony Kushner Tony Kushner|Stephen Goldblatt ||Home Box Office (HBO) [us] ||God has abandoned Heaven. It's 1985: the Reagans are in the White House and Death swings the scythe of AIDS. In Manhattan, Prior Walton tells Lou, his lover of four years, he's ill; Lou bolts. As disease and loneliness ravage Prior, guilt invades Lou. Joe Pitt, an attorney who is Mormon and Republican, is pushed by right-wing fixer Roy Cohn toward a job at the Justice Department. Both Pitt and Cohn are in the closet: Pitt out of shame and religious turmoil, Cohn to preserve his power and access. Pitt's wife Harper is strung out on Valium, aching to escape a sexless marriage. An angel invites Prior to be a prophet in death. Pitt's mother and Belize, a close friend, help Prior choose. |Al Pacino (Roy Cohn) @ Meryl Streep (The Rabbi/Hannah Pitt/Ethel Rosenberg/The Angel Australia) @ Emma Thompson (The Angel of America/Nurse Emily/Homeless Woman) @ Justin Kirk (Prior Walter/The Man in the Park) @ Ben Shenkman (Louis Ironson/The Angel Europa) @ Mary-Louise Parker (Harper Pitt) @ Jeffrey Wright (Belize/Mr. Lies/The Angel Antarctica) @ Patrick Wilson (Joe Pitt) @ James Cromwell (Henry) @ Michael Gambon (Prior Walter Ancestor #1) @ Simon Callow (Prior Walter Ancestor #2) @ Brian Markinson (Martin Heller) @ Robin Weigert (Mormon Mother) @ Kevin 'Flotilla DeBarge' Joseph (Singer in Church (as Flotilla De Barge)) @ Florence Kastriner (Louis's Mother) @ Howard Pinhasik (Louis's Father) @ David Zayas (Super) @ Sterling Brown (Orderly) @ Shawn Bartels (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Lisa LeGuillou (Nurse) @ Serafina Martino (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Melissa Wilder (Louis's Sister) @ Elizabeth Clancy (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Steven Edward Moore (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Brian Dougherty (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Christopher Schuman (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Mary Esbjornson (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Reldalee Wagner (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Barbara Fusco (Mennonite Choir Member) @ Matthew Yohn (Mennonite Choir Member rest of cast listed alphabetically Fatima Da Silva .... Cousin Doris (as Fatima DaSilva)) @ Jeff Aaron (Park Patron (uncredited)) @ Ames Adamson (The Angel Asiatica (uncredited)) @ James Babbin (Plaza Hotel Waiter (uncredited)) @ Francesca Barone (Clerical angel (uncredited)) @ Brayden Cahill (The Angel Africanii (uncredited)) @ Tony Kushner (Rabbi on Bench #1 (uncredited)) @ Pete Macnamara (Oak Room Patron (uncredited)) @ Doug Olear (Cousin (uncredited)) @ Ted Rusoff (Rabbi Angel (uncredited)) @ Maurice Sendak (Rabbi on Bench #2 (uncredited)) @ Akram Tillawi (Rabbi Angel (uncredited)) @ Paul Burton Wilson (Bar Patron (uncredited) Produced by||I had high hopes, with such an excellent cast, only to be mostly disappointed. I knew really nothing about 'Angels in America' when I got the DVD set from my local public library, but it sounded interesting. Plus, a super cast. Sadly, I feel that the 6 hours was mostly a waste of my time. There were no liner notes, and I had to watch quite a bit just to realize that its main subject is homosexuality and HIV. Meryl Streep is simply great. Al Pacino is his old grumpy, loud self that I tire of quickly. I still don't know if the surreal scenes were simply dream sequences, or were the filmmakers trying to make a commentary on modern day saints. Very slow moving, and slow to develop, this would most likely be enjoyed by the same audience that like to curl up for hours at a time reading a good novel. I am not one of those. |||1.78 : 1 |||||||@@ Angels in the Outfield|William Dear|Family||5.3|USA|1994| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Roger Birnbaum Richard H. Prince Joe Roth Holly Goldberg Sloan Irby Smith Gary Stutman|Dorothy Kingsley George Wells Richard Conlin Dorothy Kingsley George Wells Holly Goldberg Sloan|Matthew F. Leonetti ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |It Could Happen.|Roger who has lost his mother is living separated from his father. As he and his friend J.P. are one of the biggest fans of the Los Angeles baseball team he has got only two dreams: Living together with a real family and let LA win the championship. As he is praying for these two things to happen some angels show up in order to help him - but he is the only one to see them and believe in them. Fortunately the coach of the baseball team sees his abilities and so LA has a run to the finals... The California Angels are currently the worst team in their division. It seems that the players have a little trouble with their teamwork. Manager George Knox would like nothing better than to dump all of them, which the owner says is impossible. Roger is a boy whose mother died and is currently living in a foster home. His father feels that it would probably be in Roger's best interest if he becomes a ward of the state. But Roger would rather that he and his father get back together, and when he asks his father if that is possible; his father's reply is "when the Angels win the pennant". Roger then prays and asks if they could help the team. When Roger goes to a game, he sees some Angels come down from the sky and they help the players make some astounding catches and hits. When Roger tells Mr. Knox about it, Mr. Knox decides to keep him at every game, and it seems that Mr. Knox's faith is put to the test cause it seems that the angel are going to help if uses his worst players, but it seems to be working. Roger Bomman is an orphan along with his best friend J.P., but when Roger's dad comes to visit him at the orphanage a little bit of hope grows back into Roger's heart about him going to live with his dad. But his hopes suddenly die down when his dad says that they can be a family again when Roger's favorite baseball team, the California Angels, win the pennant, but the team is in last place in their division. So Roger prays to heaven and ask if the angels up there can help the Angels (baseball team) win the pennant so Roger can have the family that he always wanted, and because of his prayer, he just might. |Danny Glover (George Knox) @ Brenda Fricker (Maggie Nelson) @ Tony Danza (Mel Clark) @ Christopher Lloyd (Al the Boss Angel) @ Ben Johnson (Hank Murphy) @ Jay O. Sanders (Ranch Wilder) @ Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Roger Bomman) @ Milton Davis Jr. (J.P.) @ Taylor Negron (David Montagne) @ Tony Longo (Triscuitt Messmer) @ Neal McDonough (Whitt Bass) @ Stoney Jackson (Ray Mitchell) @ Adrien Brody (Danny Hemmerling) @ Tim Conlon (Wally) @ Matthew McConaughey (Ben Williams) @ Israel Juarbe (Jose Martinez) @ Albert Alexander Garcia (Pablo Garcia) @ Dermot Mulroney (Mr. Bomman (Roger's Dad)) @ Robert Clohessy (Frank Gates) @ Connie Craig (Carolyn) @ Jonathan Proby (Miguel Scott) @ Michael Halton (Hairy Man) @ Mark Conlon (Photographer) @ Danny Walcoff (Marvin (Little Boy in Sandlot Game)) @ James C. King (Home Plate Umpire) @ Tony Reitano (Singing Umpire) @ Diane Amos (Woman Next to J.P.) @ Christopher Leon DiBiase (Teenager) @ Robert Stuart Reed (Guard) @ Ruth Beckford (Family Court Judge) @ Victoria Skerritt (Social Worker) @ Devon Dear (National Anthem Singer) @ O.B. Babbs (Mapel (Angels Player)) @ Mitchell Page (Abascal (Angels Player)) @ Mark Cole (Norton (Angels Player)) @ Chuck Dorsett (Usher) @ Carney Lansford (Kesey) @ Pamela West (Girl Angel) @ Oliver Dear (Rookie Angel) @ Lionel Douglass (Brother Angel) @ Bundy Chanock (Umpire) @ John Howard Swain (First Base Umpire) @ Marc Magdaleno (Home Plate Umpire #2) @ Steven Meredith (Toronto Player) @ William Dear (Toronto Manager rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ David Courtney (Anaheim Stadium P.A. Announcer (uncredited)) @ David Maier (Batboy (uncredited)) @ Theodore S. Maier (Baseball Player (uncredited)) @ Johnny Martin (Toronto Bluejay Player (uncredited)) @ Tim Meredith (Toronto Blue Jay Player (uncredited)) @ Tracy Richer ( (uncredited)) @ Seth Smith (Bubble Boy (uncredited)) @ Lew Temple (Baseball Player (uncredited) Produced by||Danny Glover's Angels get some help from above A Disney remake of a 1951 film with Paul Douglas, This updated version has Danny Glover as the feisty manager whose team gets some help from above.. A good family film that both the kids and the grown ups will like..on a scale of one to ten.. a 6 || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Anna and the King|Andy Tennant|Romance|Rated PG-13 for some intense violent sequences. |6.6|USA|1999| 148 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Eric Angelson Lawrence Bender G. Mac Brown Terence Chang Ed Elbert Jon J. Jashni Julie Kirkham Wink Mordaunt Nicole Pennington|Anna Leonowens Steve Meerson Peter Krikes|Caleb Deschanel ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] ||This is the story of Anna Leonowens, the English schoolteacher who came to Siam in the 1860s to teach the children of King Mongkut. She becomes involved in his affairs, from the tragic plight of a young concubine to trying to forge an alliance with Britain to a war with Burma that is orchestrated by Britain. In the meantime, a subtle romance develops between them. |Jodie Foster (Anna Leonowens) @ Yun-Fat Chow (King Mongkut) @ Ling Bai (Tuptim (as Bai Ling)) @ Tom Felton (Louis Leonowens) @ Syed Alwi (The Kralahome, Prime Minister) @ Randall Duk Kim (General Alak) @ Kay Siu Lim (Prince Chowfa, King Mongkut's Brother) @ Melissa Campbell (Princess Fa-Ying) @ Keith Chin (Prince Chulalongkorn) @ Mano Maniam (Moonshee, Leonowens' Indian Servant) @ Shanthini Venugopal (Beebe, Leonowens' Indian Servant) @ Deanna Yusoff (Lady Thiang, Head Wife) @ Geoffrey Palmer (Lord John Bradley) @ Anne Firbank (Lady Bradley) @ Bill Stewart (Mycroft Kincaid, East India Trading Co.) @ Sean Ghazi (Khun Phra Balat) @ K.K. Moggie (Phim) @ Dharma Harun Al-Rashid (Noi) @ Harith Iskander (Nikorn) @ Yusof B. Mohd Kassim (Pitak) @ Afdlin Shauki (Interpreter) @ Swee-Lin (Lady Jao Jom Manda Ung) @ Ramli Hassan (King Chulalongkorn (voice)) @ Robert Hands (Captain Blake) @ Yu Beng Lim (Scarfaced leader) @ Kenneth Tsang (Justice Phya Phrom) @ Kee Thuan Chye (Second Judge) @ Teoh Kah Yong (Third Judge (as Patrick Teoh)) @ Aimi Aziz (Lady of Court No.1) @ Ellie Suriaty Omar (Lady of Court No.2) @ Tina Lee Siew Ting (Lady of Court No.3) @ Ruby Wong (Lady of Court No.4 (as Cheuk Ling Wong)) @ Zaridah Abdul Malik (Lady of Court No.5) @ Fariza Azlina (La-Ore) @ Ahmad Mazlan (Scout No.1) @ Mohd Razib Saliman (Scout No.2) @ Zaibo (Siamese trader) @ Pak Ling (Shipping dock woman) @ Mahmud Ali Basah (Mercenary) @ Zulhaila Siregar (Distraught villager rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jean-Luc Russier (French Ambassador (uncredited) Produced by||Stunning I saw a trailer for this film a few months before the Australian opening. Originally it was the lush cinematography that caught my eye. I assumed it would be a re-make either of the original 1946 movie or the better known Rodgers and Hammerstein musical of 1956. In actual fact, the movie is neither a re-make of these previous FOX efforts, but rather an adaption of Anna Leonowens' own memoirs of the time she spent in Siam. Jodie Foster gave a fascinating, beautiful performance as Anna. I found her portrayal of the character interesting, as it was far different from Deborah Kerr's interpretation. Yul Brynner left his mark on the King in both stage and film versions of "The King and I". However, Chow Yun Fat in a different role is excellent. I feel they are both up with a chance for an oscar nomination. The film is a fine example of movie making. In addition to the supporting cast, the costumes and art decoration were of an excellent standard. Although the film was shot in Malaysia and not Thailand, I only suspected the film was not shot there because of all versions of the story being banned there. Despite the fact I have been to some of the Malaysian locations, I hardly noticed it. Skeptical in my viewing of this movie because of my fondness for "The King and I", "Anna and the King" has forever shattered my illusions of the story. No longer can I picture the children swaying to the strains of "Getting to Know You". However, I was greatly surprised by this movie. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Rating: 10/10 || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Antz|Eric Darnell Tim Johnso|Adventure|Rated PG for mild language and menacing action. |7.1|USA|1998| 87 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Penney Finkelman Cox Brad Lewis Sandra Rabins Carl Rosendahl Aron Warner Patty Wooton|Todd Alcott Chris Weitz Paul Weitz Chris Miller|||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Every ant has his day.|Z the worker-ant (voice of Woody Allen) strives to reconcile his own individuality with the communal work-ethic of the ant colony. Falling in love with the ant-Princess Bala (voice of Sharon Stone), Z strives to make social inroads, and then ultimately must save the ant colony from the treacherous schemings of the evil General Mandible (voice of Gene Hackman) that threaten to wipe out the entire worker population. Themes of individuality run rampant. In an anthill with millions of inhabitants, Z 4195 is a worker ant. Feeling insignificant in a conformity system, he accidentally meets beautiful Princess Bala, who has a similar problem on the other end of the social scale. In order to meet her again, Z switches sides with his soldier friend Weaver - only to become a hero in the course of events. By this he unwillingly crosses the sinister plans of ambitious General Mandible (Bala's fiancé, by the way), who wants to divide the ant society into a superior, strong race (soldiers) and an inferior, to-be-eliminated race (the workers). But Z and Bala, both unaware of the dangerous situation, try to leave the oppressive system by heading for Insectopia, a place where food paves the streets. Z-4195, a worker ant, tries to break from his totalitarian hive society and get the attention of Princess Bala. He trades positions with his friend Weaver, a soldier ant, to see the princess during a parade. Unfortunately war breaks out during the parade, Z becomes a hero during the battles, and begins to spread the idea of individualism throughout the hive. Z is a worker ant that doesn't fit in. He longs for a life that strays from his monotonous routine. One night in a bar he dances with a female that turns out to be the princess. In order to see her again, he switches places with one of his friends that is a soldier. Little does Z know that he will be sent into battle and start the adventure of his life. Z struggles to get the princess, defeat the evil general, and find his own identity. Z is just another ant in a colony of millions, striving for individuality. He falls in love with Princess Bala, and convinces his Warrior ant friend Weaver to switch places with him for a day, so that he can see Princess Bala once again. The outcome of this throws Z into a bigger adventure than he ever dreamed possible... |Woody Allen (Z (voice)) @ Dan Aykroyd (Chip (voice)) @ Anne Bancroft (Queen (voice)) @ Jane Curtin (Muffy (voice)) @ Danny Glover (Barbatus (voice)) @ Gene Hackman (General Mandible (voice)) @ Jennifer Lopez (Azteca (voice)) @ John Mahoney (Grebs/Drunk Scout/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Paul Mazursky (Psychologist (voice)) @ Grant Shaud (Foreman (voice)) @ Sylvester Stallone (Weaver (voice)) @ Sharon Stone (Princess Bala (voice)) @ Christopher Walken (Colonel Cutter (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Additional Voices (voice)) @ April Winchell (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jerry Sroka (Bartender/Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||Almost as good as 'A Bug's Life' 'Antz' is a great animation movie. Probably it is more for adults than for children, according to some of the jokes. The story is nice and simple but it also has a meaning. Of course we see ants in the movie, but in a way we can reflect some parts on our own lives. The movie has a lot of very funny moments. The opening words by the hero Z (voice by Woody Allen) are great. I also liked his little one-liners. After dancing in a bar with a female ant he discovers she is actually Princess Bala (Sharon Stone). He falls in love and the only way to see her again is to trade places with his friend Weaver (Sylvester Stallone). Z is a worker, Weaver a soldier. Workers are considered the weaker ants. Because of an evil plan by a general named Mandible (Gene Hackman), Z and the other soldiers are send into battle with termites. They win the battle but Z is the only ant that returns. He is war hero but soon it is known he is a worker. Kind of by accident he kidnaps Princess Bala. In the mean while Mandible needs Princess Bala for his evil plan to kill the Queen (voice by Anne Bancroft) and all the weaker ants to start a new colony. You probably can guess the story from here on so I will not say anymore. The movie has beautiful animations, so many funny moments and the perfect voices for the perfect characters. Especially Woody Allen, Sharon Stone and Sylvester Stallone do a great job. Other famous voices you will recognize are from Danny Glover, Dan Aykroyd, Jennifer Lopez and Christopher Walken. After (or before) 'A Bug's Life' another ant-movie you will definitely enjoy. ||Signature Selection |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Apollo 13|Ron Howard|Drama|Rated PG for language and emotional intensity. |7.5|USA|1995| 140 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Bostick Brian Grazer Todd Hallowell Aldric La'Auli Porter Louisa Velis|Jim Lovell Jeffrey Kluger William Broyles Jr. Al Reinert|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Houston, we have a problem. |Based on the true story of the ill-fated 13th Apollo mission bound for the moon. Astronauts Lovell, Haise and Swigert were scheduled to fly Apollo 14, but are moved up to 13. It's 1970, and America have already achieved their lunar landing goal, so there's little interest in this "routine" flight.. until that is, things go very wrong, and prospects of a safe return fade. It had been less than a year since man first walked on the Moon, but as far as the American public was concerned, Apollo 13 was just another "routine" space flight--until these words pierced the immense void of space: "Houston, we have a problem." Stranded 205,000 miles from Earth in a crippled spacecraft, astronauts Jim Lovell (Hanks), Fred Haise (Paxton) and Jack Swigert (Bacon) fight a desperate battle to survive. Meanwhile, at Mission Control, astronaut Ken Mattingly (Sinise), flight director Gene Kranz (Harris) and a heroic ground crew race against time--and the odds--to bring them home. |Tom Hanks (Jim Lovell) @ Bill Paxton (Fred Haise) @ Kevin Bacon (Jack Swigert) @ Gary Sinise (Ken Mattingly) @ Ed Harris (Gene Kranz) @ Kathleen Quinlan (Marilyn Lovell) @ Mary Kate Schellhardt (Barbara Lovell) @ Emily Ann Lloyd (Susan Lovell) @ Miko Hughes (Jeffrey Lovell) @ Max Elliott Slade (Jay Lovell) @ Jean Speegle Howard (Blanch Lovell) @ Tracy Reiner (Mary Haise) @ David Andrews (Pete Conrad) @ Michele Little (Jane Conrad (as Michelle Little)) @ Chris Ellis (Deke Slayton) @ Joe Spano (NASA Director) @ Xander Berkeley (Henry Hurt) @ Marc McClure (Glynn Lunney) @ Ben Marley (John Young) @ Clint Howard (Sy Liebergot, EECOM White) @ Loren Dean (John Aaron, EECOM Arthur) @ Tom Wood (EECOM Gold) @ Googy Gress (RETRO White) @ Patrick Mickler (RETRO Gold) @ Ray McKinnon (Jerry Bostick, FIDO White) @ Max Grodénchik (FIDO Gold) @ Christian Clemenson (Dr. Chuck) @ Brett Cullen (CAPCOM 1) @ Ned Vaughn (CAPCOM 2) @ Andy Milder (GUIDO White) @ Geoffrey Blake (GUIDO Gold) @ Wayne Duvall (LEM Controller White) @ Jim Meskimen (TELMU White) @ Joseph Culp (TELMU Gold) @ John Short (INCO White) @ Ben Bode (INCO Gold (as Ben Bodé)) @ Todd Louiso (FAO White) @ Gabriel Jarret (GNC White) @ Christopher John Fields (Booster White) @ Kenneth White (Grumman Representative) @ James Ritz (Ted (as Jim Ritz)) @ Andrew Lipschultz (Launch Director) @ Mark Wheeler (Neil Armstrong) @ Larry Williams (Buzz Aldrin) @ Endre Hules (Gunther Wendt) @ Karen Martin (Tracey) @ Maureen Hanley (Woman) @ Meadow Williams (Kim) @ Walter von Huene (Technician) @ Brian Markinson (Pad Rat) @ Steve Rankin (Pad Rat) @ Austin O'Brien (Whiz Kid) @ Louisa Marie (Whiz Kid's Mom) @ Thom Barry (Orderly) @ Arthur Senzy (SIM Tech) @ Carl Gabriel Yorke (SIM Tech) @ Ryan Holihan (SIM Tech) @ Rance Howard (Reverend) @ Jane Jenkins (Neighbor (as J.J. Chaback)) @ Todd Hallowell (Noisy Civilian) @ Matthew Michael Goodall (Stephen Haise) @ Taylor Goodall (Fred Haise, Jr.) @ Misty Dickinson (Margaret Haise) @ Roger Corman (Congressman) @ Lee Anne Matusek (Loud Reporter) @ Mark D. Newman (Loud Reporter) @ Mark McKeel (Suit Room Assistant) @ Patty Raya (Patty) @ Jack Conley (Science Reporter) @ Jeffrey Kluger (Science Reporter (as Jeffrey S. Kluger)) @ Bruce Wright (Anchor) @ Ivan Allen (Anchor) @ Jon Bruno (Anchor) @ Reed Rudy (Roger Chaffee) @ Steve Bernie (Virgil Grissom) @ Steve Ruge (Edward White (as Steven Ruge)) @ Herb Jefferson Jr. (Reporter (as Herbert Jefferson Jr.)) @ John Dullaghan (Reporter) @ John Wheeler (Reporter) @ Paul Mantee (Reporter) @ Julie Donatt (Reporter) @ Thomas Crawford (Reporter) @ Frank Cavestani (Reporter) @ John M. Mathews (Reporter rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Walter Altman (Mission Controller (uncredited)) @ Neil Armstrong (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jules Bergman (Himself, ABC News (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ John Bishop (Protester (uncredited)) @ Michael S. Connolly (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Walter Cronkite (Himself (voice) (uncredited)) @ Kathy Garver (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Bryce Howard ( (uncredited)) @ Cheryl Howard (Onlooker at Launch Site (uncredited)) @ Jim Lovell (Iwo-Jima Captain (uncredited)) @ Marilyn Lovell (Onlooker at Launch Site (uncredited)) @ Pope Paul VI (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jennifer Simon (Neighborhood Girl (uncredited) Produced by||The greatest movie.A touching yet thrilling action-packed story of hope and beating the odds. This movie is my all-time favorite.It has every element that makes a movie a classic.It is suspenseful, thrilling, and touching.It has drama, comedy, suspense, and even a little romance.I read the book "The Lost Moon" written by Jim Lovell and was the basis of the movie.The writers, producers, director, and actors did a marvelous job of portraying the events of the perilous flight of Apollo 13.The actors (Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Ed Harris, Kathleen Quinland, and Gary Sinise) did a wonderful job as their character.I absolutely love movies where everyone comes together to fight and work toward a certain, unified goal, and I cannot think of a better example of this than what is shown in Apollo 13. ||Collector's Edition |1.66 : 1 (IMAX DMR version) |5.1 ||||||@@ Apt Pupil|Bryan Singer|Drama|Rated R for scenes of strong violence, language and brief sexuality. |6.4|USA|1998| 111 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tom DeSanto Jane Hamsher Tim Harbert Don Murphy John Ottman Jay Shapiro Bryan Singer|Stephen King Brandon Boyce|Newton Thomas Sigel ||Columbia TriStar Films [fr] |If you don't believe in the existence of evil you have a lot to learn. |Neighborhood boy Todd Bowden (Renfro) discovers that an old man living on his block named Arthur Denker (Mackellan) is nazi war criminal. Bowden confronts Denker and offers him a deal: Bowden will not go to the authorities if Denker tells him stories of the concentration camps in WWII. Denker agrees and Bowden starts visiting him regularly. The more stories Bowden hears, the more it affects his personality. A local high school boy, Todd Bowden, discovers Nazi war criminal Kurt Dussander living in his neighborhood under the assumed name Arthur Denker. Rather than turn Dussander over to the authorities, Todd makes a strange deal where Dussander will tell him "what it felt like" during the Jewish Holocaust of World War II in exchange for Todd's silence. Todd becomes an "apt pupil" of the horror stories Dussander tells and the two enter into a bizarre relationship of mixed hate and friendship culminating when Todd helps Dussander cover up a vicious murder. Todd, an up and coming top graduate, discovers an old Nazi War Criminal living in his town. His morbid curiosity entices him to blackmail the Nazi to tell him more about the war. A strange cat and mouse friendship develops, with disturbing results. |Ian McKellen (Kurt Dussander) @ Brad Renfro (Todd Bowden) @ Bruce Davison (Richard Bowden) @ Elias Koteas (Archie) @ David Schwimmer (Edward French) @ Joshua Jackson (Joey) @ Mickey Cottrell (Sociology teacher) @ Michael Reid MacKay (Nightmare victim) @ Ann Dowd (Monica Bowden) @ James Karen (Victor Bowden) @ Marjorie Lovett (Agnes Bowden) @ David Cooley (Gym teacher) @ Blake Anthony Tibbetts (Teammate) @ Heather McComb (Becky Trask) @ Katherine Malone (Student) @ Grace Sinden (Secretary) @ Anthony Moore (Umpire) @ Kevin Spirtas (Paramedic) @ Michael Byrne (Ben Kramer) @ Danna Dennis (Nurse) @ Jan Triska (Isaac Weiskopf) @ Joe Morton (Dan Richler) @ Michael Artura (Det. Getty) @ Donna Marie Brown (Mother) @ Mark Flythe (Darren) @ Warren Wilson (Newscaster) @ Jill Harris (Reporter) @ Norbert D. Singer (Hospital administator #1) @ Mildred Singer (Hospital administrator #2) @ Mary Ottman (Doctor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joseph Ashton Montgomery (Student (uncredited) Produced by||Good cast -- silly story I was intrigued by the idea of the story based on what I knew about it before seeing the film. But despite an excellent cast, the film is just silly. The whole story turns on unbelievable plot devices that involve the true identity of McKellen's character. These devices are so unconvincing that the film would be laughable if it weren't for the serious topic and the strong cast. But, given that this is yet another film of King's contrived writings, the difficulties with the plot are no surprise. McKellen gives his trademark sly performance. Renfro is very good in being able to hold his own in scenes with the likes of McKellen, and thus the young actor proves that he is not just another pretty face. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Arachnophobia|Frank Marshall|Comedy||6.1|USA|1990| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|William S. Beasley Robert W. Cort Ted Field Don Jakoby Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg Richard Vane|Don Jakoby Al Williams Don Jakoby Wesley Strick|Mikael Salomon ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Eight legs, two fangs and an attitude.|A black widow spider from the jungles of South America is accidently transported on a crate with a dead body to America where it mates with a local spider. Soon after, the residents of a small California town disappear as the result of a spider bite and a deadly spider offspring. It's up to a couple of doctors with the help of an insect exterminator to annihilate these eight legged freaks before they take over the entire town. A strange spider from the depths of a jungle is accidentally transported back to the good old US of A. Through numerous coincidences and accidents, it finds a home in the Doctor's new home (well in the barn). After mating with a local spider, thousands of little spiders run riot in the small town. This wouldn't be too much of a problem, except that these "aren't ordinary spiders"; they're killers. The local pest exterminator has a go, but.. So it's down to the Doc' to save the town. Two interesting things happen, the body of a photographer is sent home with a deadly south American spider hiding in the coffin and a doctor who has a deadly fear of spiders moves into the same small town. The spider begins to breed and the whole community is in danger unless the doctor can find out that the rash of deaths is caused by the young spiders and can convince the authorities in a sleepy little town to act before his own house and family are overrun. |Jeff Daniels (Ross Jennings) @ Harley Jane Kozak (Molly Jennings) @ John Goodman (Delbert McClintock) @ Julian Sands (Doctor James Atherton) @ Stuart Pankin (Sheriff Parsons) @ Brian McNamara (Chris Collins) @ Mark L. Taylor (Jerry Manley) @ Henry Jones (Doctor Sam Metcalf) @ Peter Jason (Henry Beechwood) @ James Handy (Milton Briggs) @ Roy Brocksmith (Irv Kendall) @ Kathy Kinney (Blaire Kendall) @ Mary Carver (Margaret Hollins) @ Garette Ratliff Henson (Tommy Jennings) @ Marlene Katz (Shelley Jennings) @ Jane Marla Robbins (Edna Beechwood) @ Theo Schwartz (Bunny Beechwood) @ Cori Wellins (Becky Beechwood) @ Chance Boyer (Bobby Beechwood) @ Brandy (Brandy Beechwood) @ Frances Bay (Evelyn Metcalf) @ Lois De Banzie (Henrietta Manley) @ Warren Rice (Dick Manley) @ Robert Frank Telfer (Mayor Bob) @ Michael Steve Jones (Irv's Assistant) @ Fiona Walsh (Little Girl) @ Terese Del Piero (Mom) @ Nathaniel Spitzley (Todd Miller) @ Jay Scorpio (Mover) @ Mai-Lis Kuniholm (Girlfriend) @ Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc (Reserve pilot rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Juan Fernández (Miguel Higueras (uncredited) Produced by||Creepy Crawlie good fun! ARACHNOPHOBIA (1990) **1/2 Jeff Daniels, Harley Jane Kozak, John Goodman, Julian Sands, Stuart Pankin, Brian McNamara."Thrill-omedy" perfectly describes this horror-comedy about a young doctor and his family newly arriving to a new town to practice medicine only to find his phobia nightmares come to life: deadly venomous spiders wiping out the populace. Some chills and laughs with the concluding moments of Daniels combating "Big Bob" a giant tarantula in his cellar. Neat-o! (Point of interest: first film released by Hollywood Pictures) || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Arlington Road|Mark Pellington|Thriller|Rated R for violence and some language. |7.1|USA|1999| 117 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ellen Dux Tom Gorai Jean Higgins Judd Malkin James McQuaide Tom Rosenberg Ed Ross Marc Samuelson Peter Samuelson Sigurjon Sighvatsson Ted Tannebaum Richard S. Wright|Ehren Kruger |Bobby Bukowski ||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |Fear Thy Neighbor|Widowed when his FBI agent wife is killed in an FBI anti-terrorist operation gone wrong, a college professor (Bridges) becomes increasingly obsessed with the culture and sub-society of these dangerous groups. The arrival of new neighbors (Robbins, Cusack), gives him new spirit, as they are gregarious and friendly, with two children (Gamble, Green) that his son (Clark) can be friends with. He is even beginning to see another woman (Davis). However, he begins to suspect something is odd about the neighbors, something about the way they don't want him to see certain parts of the house, or a set of blueprints they have there. Are his neighbors terrorists... or is the stress of losing his wife merely driving him past the point of paranoia? Michael Faraday is a recently widowed college history professor living alone with his ten-year-old son Grant in the suburbs of Washington, DC. The death of Michael's wife Leah, an FBI agent killed in the line of duty, continues to haunt both father and son. Michael and Grant are soon befriended by the Langs, a vivacious, All-American family new to the neighborhood. The parents, Oliver and Cheryl Lang, go out of their way to draw Michael into their lives. Soon, Grant and young Brody Lang become inseparable friends. The Faradays' long period of mourning seems finally to be over. As the two families become closer, Michael begins to have misgivings about the gregarious Oliver. After catching Oliver in a few insignificant lies, the more Michael learns about Oliver, the more his uneasiness grows. With Grant spending more and more time at the Langs, Michael decides to check into the background of his neighbors. What he discovers deepens the mystery, arousing suspicions that shake Michael to the core of his existence. The Langs are definitely not who they claim to be; but who are they? Why have they come to Washington, DC? When Michael Faraday, single father, accidentally stumbles across a little lie from his new neigbour, he gets suspicious. As a university professor who gives classes on terrorism history and whose wife got killed in the line of FBI-duty, his fatherly protection instincts arise much faster than in normal people. Grant, his son, became the best friend of Brady Lang. Only that Brady's father did not always carry the name Lang. Digging deeper and deeper, Michael Faraday excavates a very interesting and frightening history. But what we didn't think of: From whose point of view is that history frightening? |Jeff Bridges (Michael Faraday) @ Tim Robbins (Oliver Lang/William Fenimore) @ Joan Cusack (Cheryl Lang) @ Hope Davis (Brooke Wolfe) @ Robert Gossett (FBI Agent Whit Carver) @ Mason Gamble (Brady Lang) @ Spencer Treat Clark (Grant Faraday) @ Stanley Anderson (Dr. Archer Scobee) @ Viviane Vives (Nurse) @ Lee Stringer (Orderly) @ Darryl Cox (Troopmaster (Conspirator)) @ Loyd Catlett (Delivery Man (Conspirator)) @ Sid Hillman (Phone Technician (Conspirator)) @ Auden Thornton (Hannah Lang) @ Mary Ashleigh Green (Daphne Lang) @ Jenni Tooley (Ponytail Girl (Conspirator) (as Jennie Tooley)) @ Grant Garrison (Student Kemp) @ Naya Castinado (Student O'Neill) @ Laura Poe (Leah Faraday) @ Christopher Dahlberg (FBI Agent Buckley (as Chris Dahlberg)) @ Gabriel Folse (FBI Agent Merks) @ Hunter Burkes (Hutch Parsons) @ Diane Peterson (Ma Parsons) @ Josh Ridgway (18-Year-Old Parsons) @ Hans Stroble (16-Year-Old Parsons) @ Michelle Du Bois (Parsons Girl) @ Steve Ottesen (TV Reporter #2) @ Harris Mackenzie (TV Reporter #3) @ John Hussey (Accident Detective) @ Charles Sanders (Camp Occoquan Official) @ Todd Terry (2nd Camp Occoquan Official) @ Gina Santori (Party Girl/Student) @ Denver Williams (FBI Guard #1) @ Willie Dirden (FBI Guard #2) @ Paul Pender (FBI Van Agent #1) @ Charlie Webb (FBI Van Agent #2) @ Billy D. Washington (FBI Van Agent #3) @ Cindy Hom (TV Reporter #4) @ Dave Allen Clark (TV Reporter #5) @ Ken Manelis (Reporter Charles Bell) @ Deborah Swanson (Bomb Site Reporter) @ Homer Jon Young (Student rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tiffany Grant (Graduate Student (uncredited)) @ Johnathan Gwyn (Student (uncredited)) @ Lin Oeding (College Student (uncredited) Produced by||A hard core, High Octane thriller with a terrible, disturbing ending. ***1/2 out of **** ARLINGTON ROAD (1999) ***1/2 Starring: Jeff Bridges, Tim Robbins, Joan Cusack, Hope Davis, Mason Gamble, and Robert Gossett Director: Mark Pellington117 minutesRated R (for intense violent content and some language) By Blake French: "Arlington Road" is this year's "Breakdown." It's filled to the rim with hard core, high octane tension and suspense-so much that it is almost hard to catch your breath throughout the movie's running period.Fueled with first rate performances and a script that is understandable and clear, this may be one of the best thrillers. The movie starts off with a boy, named Brady Lang, who stumbles down Arlington Rd. with blood dripping from his body. Jeff Bridges, who plays Michael Faraday, a single professor who teachers a course on terrorism at a local university, observes this terrified and injured child from inside his car as he drives by. After realizing the nature of his wounds, he dashes out of his car to help. Michael rushes Brady to the nearest hospital, in result he saves his life and meets some people whom he will soon wish he would have never laid eyes on. Wow. What an exhilarating opening scene. While it may be a little over the top, it does provide the setup needed for such the brutal, bloodthirsty film this really is. It is not a film for younger viewers, and I would check into it some more if you're faint of heart or squeamish in any way. This movie takes itself seriously for every second of the way, unlike many other "scary" movies out there today. Brady Lang belongs to a new family down the block from the Faraday's, consisting of Oliver, the friendly dad, Cheryl, almost eccentric wife, and their children, who are very bizarre acting. Quiet and suspicious, almost as if they are holding something back.When Michael and his girlfriend, Brooke, meet the Lang's, they introduce them to his son, ask them over for dinner sometime, and look around their new house. Oliver is an architect currently working on a shopping mall somewhere out of town. But wait! When Michael was over there last he saw the blueprint to his "so called" mall, and knows that this is no mall he his constructing. This makes Michael very wearily of his neighbors, especially when he beholds Oliver's mail and discovers that there may have been a name change sometime ago in Lang's past. He brings these things to the attention to Brooke, only to have her call him paranoid and that his occupation is getting to his head. That is also what his old buddy, FBI Agent Whit Carver, says to him when Michael asks him to do a background check on Oliver. Things really heat up when Michael discovers the truth behind his friendly neighbor's secret identity. Movie posters and newspaper ads suggest it. Previews and reviews reveal it, and by the time the film takes an unexpected turn in the third act, the only one suspecting Oliver Lang to be just an ordinary person is Michael. "Arlington Road" is smart enough to develop Jeff Bridge's character with feelings, flashbacks and an emotional past, rather than showing us the details of his past marriage. It is also smart enough not to develop a romantic subplot between Michael and Brooke, beyond the suggestions and interest in each other. It stays on track every inch of the way; all the scenes further the plot a little bit at a time. Leading us with a perfectly structured, flawlessly planned out thriller. The performance by Jeff Bridges is so great and certainly Oscar worthy we actually buy into the paranoia plot and end up caring about him so much this movie's ending actually hurts to watch. It ruins the entire production. The last twenty minutes of this movie arrant just unbelievable, but the closing scene features a sense of injustice, unfairness, and is unsettling beyond comprehension. All of this and I still have not revealed the actually end to you, and will not. But I hated it, and think the majority of an audience will join me in saying as the closing credits arouse on screen their jaw dropped off their face and hit the floor. However, I do think the film is unconventional because of the thematic structure it used for its closing and subject madder. If it would have concluded in a predictable, usual fashioned people would complain about that too. It proves how much we care about the characters. And at the same time allows us to realize that this film deserved better, somewhere down the road, it deserved to be much better. |Region 1 |Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Armageddon|Michael Bay|Action|Rated PG-13 for sci-fi disaster action, sensuality and brief language. |5.7|USA|1998| 144 min/ USA:153 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kenny Bates Michael Bay Jerry Bruckheimer Jonathan Hensleigh Gale Anne Hurd Chad Oman Pat Sandston Jim Van Wyck Barry H. Waldman|Robert Roy Pool Jonathan Hensleigh Tony Gilroy Shane Salerno Jonathan Hensleigh Jeffrey Abrams|John Schwartzman ||Buena Vista International (Germany) GmbH [de] |It's Closer Than You Think.|Due to a shuttle's unfortunate demise in outer space, NASA becomes aware of a doomsday asteroid that is on a collision course with Earth. It seems that the only way to knock it off course is to drill into its surface and detonate a nuclear weapon. But as NASA's under-funded yet resourceful team train the world's best drillers for the job, the social order of the world begins to break down as the information reaches the public and hysteria results. As high-ranking officials play politics with the effort, the drilling team all faces deep personal issues which may jeopardize humanity's last chance... A giant, global-killing asteriod, like the one that killed off the dinosaurs 65 million years ago is 18 days away from hitting the Earth. NASA's been caught with their pants down and needs a new plan to stop the rock. They enlist the help of Harry Stamper, an expert deep core driller, to train their astronauts and help them drill into the asteroid and plant a nuclear bomb. But Harry figures the astronauts can't be trained in time and opts to go with his own oil drilling crew. A huge Comet is headed for earth. As it does not consist of one big piece, but of a cloud of rather small pieces plus a main rock the size of Texas, little impacts are recorded long before the big one is scheduled for collision with earth. Harry S. Stamper and his drill team are selected to land on the main comet as they are the only ones who can work the special drill Harry developed. Their mission is to drill 800 ft. into the comet to place a nuclear explosive device. The explosion of the bomb will break the comet in two, and the two pieces will pass earth on both sides. This task has to be accomplished before a certain "dead" line, or the comet parts will not fly by, but hit earth. After New York City is damaged by hundreds of small meteorites, NASA discovers an asteroid the size of Texas is on a collision course with Earth. They recruit the best deep core driller in the world, Harry Stamper, to train astronauts who will go to the asteroid, drill into the center and detonate a nuclear warhead. Harry says he can't train men how to drill in ten days, so he brings in his own team of roughnecks to learn to become astronauts and get the job done. One of his team is the fiancé of his own daughter. |Bruce Willis (Harry S. Stamper) @ Billy Bob Thornton (Dan Truman, NASA Administrator) @ Ben Affleck (A.J. Frost) @ Liv Tyler (Grace Stamper) @ Will Patton (Charles 'Chick' Chapple) @ Steve Buscemi (Rockhound) @ William Fichtner (Colonel William Sharp, Shuttle Freedom Pilot) @ Owen Wilson (Oscar Choi, Geologist) @ Michael Clarke Duncan (Jayotis 'Bear' Kurleenbear) @ Peter Stormare (Lev Andropov, Russian Cosmonaut) @ Ken Hudson Campbell (Max Lennert (as Ken Campbell)) @ Jessica Steen (Jennifer Watts, Shuttle Freedom Co-Pilot) @ Keith David (Lt. General Kimsey) @ Chris Ellis (Walter Clark) @ Jason Isaacs (Dr. Ronald Quincy, Research) @ Grayson McCouch (Gruber, Munitions Specialist) @ Clark Heathcliffe Brolly (Freddy Noonan) @ Marshall R. Teague (Colonel Davis, USAF (as Marshall Teague)) @ Anthony Guidera (Tucker, Shuttle Independence Co-Pilot) @ Greg Collins (Lt. Halsey, Munitions Specialist) @ J. Patrick McCormack (General Boffer) @ Ian Quinn (Astronaut Pete Shelby) @ Christopher J. Worret (Operator #1) @ Adam Smith (Operator #2 (as Adam C. Smith)) @ John Mahon (Karl) @ Grace Zabriskie (Dottie) @ K.C. Leomiti (Samoan) @ Eddie Griffin (Little Guy) @ Deborah Nishimura (Client #1) @ Albert Wong (Client #2) @ Jim Ishida (Client #3) @ Stanley Anderson (The President) @ James Harper (Admiral Kelso) @ Ellen Cleghorne (Helga, the Nurse) @ Udo Kier (Psychologist) @ John Aylward (Dr. Banks) @ Mark Curry (Stu, the Cabbie) @ Seiko Matsuda (Asian Tourist) @ Harry Humphries (Chuck, Jr.) @ Dyllan Christopher (Tommy) @ Judith Hoag (Denise) @ Sage Allen (Mrs. Lennert, Max' Mother) @ Steven Ford (Nuke Tech) @ Christian Clemenson (Droning Guy) @ Andy Ryan (Greenpeace Guy) @ Duke Valenti (Roughneck #1) @ Michael Taliferro (Roughneck #2 (as Michael 'Bear' Taliferro)) @ Billy Devlin (Roughneck #3) @ Kathleen Matthews (Newscaster #2) @ J.C. Hayward (Newscaster #3) @ Andrew Glassman (Newscaster #4) @ Shawnee Smith (Redhead) @ Dwight Hicks (FBI Agent #1) @ Odile Corso (Geo Tech #1 (as Odile Broulard)) @ Vic Manni (Loanshark) @ Jim Maniaci (Biker Customer) @ Layla Roberts (Molly Mounds) @ Joe Allen (Kennedy Launch) @ Bodhi Elfman (Math Guy) @ Alexander Johnson (Newscaster) @ Kathy Neff (Reporter #1) @ Victor Vinson (Sector Director) @ Joseph Patrick Kelly (Marine #1) @ Peter White (Secretary of Defense) @ Rudy Mettia (G-Man) @ Frank Van Keeken (NASA Planner #1) @ Fred Weller (NASA Tech (as Frederick Weller)) @ Jeff Austin (NASA Tech) @ Googy Gress (NASA Tech) @ Matt Malloy (NASA Tech) @ H. Richard Greene (NASA Tech) @ Brian Brophy (NASA Tech) @ Peter Murnik (NASA Tech) @ Brian Hayes Currie (NASA Tech) @ Andrew Heckler (NASA Tech) @ Andy Milder (NASA Tech) @ Michael Kaplan (NASA Tech) @ Patrick Richwood (Dr. Nerd) @ Brian Mulligan (Dr. Nerd) @ John H. Johnson (Pad Director) @ Charles Stewart (Vacuum Chamber Tech) @ Scarlet Forge (Young Grace) @ Michael Tuck (American Newscaster) @ Patrick Lander (British Newscaster) @ Anne Vareze (French Newscaster) @ Fritz Mashimo (Japanese Newscaser) @ Dina Morrone (Italian Newscaster) @ Ruben O'Lague (Spanish Newscaster) @ Wolfgang Muser (German Newscaster) @ Jim Fitzpatrick (NORAD Tech (as James Fitzpatrick)) @ Charlton Heston (Narrator (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Shannon Lucid .... Extra in Underwater Simulation Scene) @ Michael Bay (NASA Scientist (uncredited)) @ Mark Boone Junior (New York Guy (uncredited)) @ Judith Drake (Grap's Nurse (uncredited)) @ John Frazier (Priest (uncredited)) @ Andy Gill (Shuttle Commander in Opening Sequence (uncredited)) @ Kevin McGuire (NASA Worker (uncredited)) @ Gary A. Rogers (CBS Reporter (uncredited)) @ Frank Silva (Man (uncredited)) @ Erik Per Sullivan (Kid with Rocket Ship (uncredited)) @ Lawrence Tierney (Hollis Vernon Grap Stamper (uncredited)) @ Greg Warmoth (KSC News Reporter (uncredited)) @ Gedde Watanabe (Asian Tourist (uncredited)) @ Karol Wojtyla (Himself (Pope John Paul, II) (news footage) (uncredited) (archive footage) Produced by||Big dumb fun - but far too OTT and far too long When several eastern seaboard cities are struck by small meteorites causing significant damage and loss of life the Government look further into space to find a bigger meteorite the size of Texas heading for Earth.The meteorite will destroy the earth, wiping out all life.Oil rig owner Harry Stamper and his crew are employed by NASA to join the elite programme put together to destroy the meteorite.The plan is to drill 800ft into the rock, plant a nuclear device causing the meteorite to split in two, with both pieces missing the Earth.The team face a huge amount of challenges on the way to their goal. In the summer of two "danger from space" meteor movies (Deep Impact being the other), this was the less thoughtful but the more enjoyable.This is very much an action movie, from the first time we see Stamper chasing an employee round an oil rig with a shotgun, we know that we're not in for a thoughtful, reflective film.Instead this is all about spectacle - New York is destroyed - in fact everything is destroyed!The training section of the film is funny but again it is all OTT.The rest of the film is all about action without reason.For example the team stops at a USSR space station to refuel and blow it up accidentally - that's the way it works, everything they touch explodes. This gets a little tiring after a while and I got to the point where I was almost numb to the action onscreen.The only breaks from the explosions are scenes of soppy sentiment that don't really work.In all it never really gets anywhere near a clever film however it's still quite enjoyable in a summer blockbuster kind of way. The cast is superb!They all play it with their tongue in cheek so they all seem to be having fun.Willis is good, but his character is stupid and poorly developed.Thornton, Patton, Buscemi, Wilson, Duncan and Stormare all add class and are good despite the material.However Affleck and Tyler are both poor, he must be the heroic romantic man and he clearly can't do it (not his fault, his character is far too serious for this) while Tyler is forced to do all the emotional wailing and crying (again not suited to the dumb action stuff).I could easily have done without both of them to make a better film. Overall, this isn't Shakespeare - it's a dumb action film.It's constant explosions and stupid action scenes get a bit tiring but it's all packaged together in such a slick way that it's difficult not to enjoy it. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Arsenic and Old Lace|Frank Capra|Comedy||8.2|USA|1944| 118 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Frank Capra Jack L. Warner|Joseph Kesselring Julius J. Epstein Philip G. Epstein|Sol Polito ||Criterion Collection [us] ||Mortimer Bruster is a newspaperman and author known for his diatribes against marriage. We watch him being married at city hall in the opening scene. Now all that is required is a quick trip home to tell Mortimer's two maiden aunts. While trying to break the news, he finds out his aunts' hobby; killing lonely old men and burying them in the cellar. It gets worse. The year is 1941. The location is a small house next to a cemetery in Brooklyn. In this house live two kind, thoughtful, sweet old ladies, Martha and Abby Brewster who have developed a very bad habit. It appears that they murder lonely old men who have some sort of religious affiliation and they consider doing it a charity. They then leave it to their bugle blowing nephew Teddy (who thinks he's Teddy Roosevelt) to take them to the Panama Canal (the cellar) and bury them. In this instance, the "poor fellow" suffers from yellow fever found in the window seat. It is another of their nephews Mortimer Brewster, a dramatic critic, who returns home only to find the man in the seat by mistake. Another nephew, Jonathon, returns to the home after years of fleeing the authorities due to his "unofficial practice" of killing people and using their faces to change his. However the results cause him to look like Boris Karloff (this angers him upon the mention of his similarity to the actor) due to the poor craftsmanship of his German accented, alcoholic sidekick Dr. Einstein. As the story continues, we see each character trying to find resolve in their suddenly been flipped upside-down lives. Mortimer tries to keep his aunts safe and prevent them from continuing their nasty habit while trying to stay sane with the woman he loves (Elaine Harper), the aunts try to continue their "charities", and Jonathon tries to make a wealthy practice that is stationed inside the home. |Cary Grant (Mortimer Brewster) @ Josephine Hull (Aunt Abby Brewster) @ Jean Adair (Aunt Martha Brewster) @ Raymond Massey (Jonathan Brewster) @ Peter Lorre (Dr. Einstein) @ Priscilla Lane (Elaine Harper/Elaine Brewster) @ John Alexander (Theodore 'Teddy Roosevelt' Brewster) @ Jack Carson (Officer Patrick 'Pat' O'Hara) @ John Ridgely (Officer Saunders) @ Edward McNamara (Police Sgt. Brophy) @ James Gleason (Lt. Rooney) @ Grant Mitchell (Reverend Harper) @ Edward Everett Horton (Mr. Witherspoon) @ Vaughan Glaser (Judge Cullman) @ Chester Clute (Dr. Gilchrist) @ Edward McWade (Mr. Gibbs (Prospective #13)) @ Charles Lane (Reporter at Marriage License Office) @ Garry Owen (Taxi Cab Driver rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Spencer Charters (Marriage License Clerk (uncredited)) @ Sol Gorss (New York Pitcher (uncredited)) @ Hank Mann (Photographer at Marriage License Office (uncredited)) @ Spec O'Donnell (Young Man in Line (uncredited)) @ Lee Phelps (Umpire (uncredited)) @ Leo White (Man in Phone Booth (uncredited) Produced by||Cary Grant and Raymond Massey After appearing in Cecil B. DeMille's 'Reap the Wild Wind', Raymond Massey went on to appear alongside Cary Grant in 'Arsenic and Old Lace' with Peter Lorre. A familiar and funny film which combines two Hitchcock actors (Lorre and Grant) together, as well as the Canadian Oxford graduate, Raymond Massey. In it, Grant displays his acrobatic skills, and it is more of a screwball comedy or farce than it is a romantic-comedy. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ As Good As It Gets|James L. Brooks|Comedy|Rated PG-13 on appeal for strong language, thematic elements, nudity and a beating. |7.7|USA|1997| 139 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|James L. Brooks Bridget Johnson Maria Kavanaugh Laurence Mark Richard Marks Aldric La'Auli Porter Richard Sakai John D. Schofield Owen Wilson Kristi Zea Laura Ziskin|Mark Andrus Mark Andrus James L. Brooks|John Bailey ||Columbia Home Video [br] |Brace yourself for Melvin.|New York City. Melvin Udall, a cranky, bigoted, obsessive-compulsive writer, finds his life turned upside down when neighboring gay artist Simon is hospitalized and his dog is entrusted to Melvin. In addition, Carol, the only waitress who will tolerate him, must leave work to care for her sick son, making it impossible for Melvin to eat breakfast. The trials and tribulations of a compulsive writer, Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson). After his homosexual neighbor (Greg Kinnear) is brutally beaten, he is entrusted to the care of the neighbor's dog, with a difficult relationship with a waitress (Helen Hunt) to add on top of that. What develops is a weekend trip/triangle between these three individuals, and together they learn the true meaning of "the sunny side of life". |Jack Nicholson (Melvin Udall) @ Helen Hunt (Carol Connelly) @ Greg Kinnear (Simon Bishop) @ Cuba Gooding Jr. (Frank Sachs) @ Skeet Ulrich (Vincent Lopiano) @ Shirley Knight (Beverly Connelly) @ Yeardley Smith (Jackie Simpson) @ Lupe Ontiveros (Nora Manning) @ Jill the Dog (Verdell (as Jill)) @ Bibi Osterwald (Neighbor Woman) @ Ross Bleckner (Carl) @ Bernadette Balagtas (Caterer) @ Jaffe Cohen (Partygoer) @ Laurie Kilpatrick (Partygoer) @ Alice Vaughn (Partygoer) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Handyman) @ Kristi Zea (Mother at Table) @ Annie Maginnis Tippe (Daughter at Table) @ Patricia Childress (Cafe 24 Waitress) @ Rebekah Johnson (Cafe 24 Waitress) @ Missi Pyle (Cafe 24 Waitress) @ Leslie Stefanson (Cafe 24 Waitress) @ Tara Subkoff (Cafe 24 Waitress) @ Shane Black (Cafe 24 Manager) @ Peter Jacobson (Man at Table) @ Lisa Edelstein (Woman at Table) @ Stan Bly (Cafe 24 Customer) @ Randall Batinkoff (Carol's Date) @ Jesse James (Spencer Connelly) @ Jamie Kennedy (Street Hustler) @ Justin Herwick (Street Hustler) @ Maya Rudolph (Policewoman) @ John F. O'Donohue (Detective Ray) @ David A. Kipper (Hospital Doctor) @ Mary Elizabeth Still (Nurse Receptionist) @ Chloe Brooks (Child at Cafe 24) @ Cooper Brooks (Child at Cafe 24) @ Sharon L. Alexander (Female Passerby) @ Holly Denys (Female Passerby) @ Lawrence Kasdan (Dr. Green) @ Alison Rose (Psychiatric Patient) @ Kathryn Morris (Psychiatric Patient) @ Wood Harris (Cafe 24 Busboy) @ Linda Gehringer (Publisher) @ Julie Benz (Receptionist) @ Harold Ramis (Dr. Bettes) @ Antonia Jones (Nurse) @ Kaitlin Hopkins (Woman in Lobby) @ Jimmy Workman (Sean from the Bakery) @ Danielle Spencer (Veterinarian) @ Todd Solondz (Man on Bus) @ Tom McGowan (Maitre D') @ Danielle Brisebois (Singer) @ Matt Malloy (Men's Store Salesman) @ Paul Greenberg (Bar Waiter) @ Kirk Ringberg (Food Waiter) @ Dave Hawthorne (Bartender rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Alex Biando (Flower Store Customer (uncredited)) @ Maurice LaMarche (Fred Bishop, Simon's Dad (voice on phone) (uncredited) (voice)) @ Frank Slaten (Miffed Partygoer (uncredited) Produced by||Comedy-of-ills isn't aging well... This looked really fresh in 1997, but story of cantankerous, people-phobic writer who manages to charm a waitress and his gay next-door neighbor isn't the touching look at "ordinary lives" that it once was. Such hatred and hostility in the world have now made Jack Nicholson's leading characterization unforgivable(he calls the gay man's friends "fudgepackers" and insults the waitress with a nasty jibe at a her sick child). Helen Hunt gives more here than she ever did on her sitcom "Mad About You", but her Oscar-win for Best Actress came for one astounding scene(the insult at the restaurant); the rest of her time on screen is spent exercising acting tics(she's all faraway smiles and pensive, pungent remarks). Greg Kinnear is the neighbor and it's a shallow, insulting role, as is the one for Cuba Gooding, Jr. as Kinnear's business partner. The film is long and windy(it's full of hot air), and the second-act transformation of some of the characters is done without much thought or insight but a lot of Hollywoodized superficiality. ** from **** || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ At First Sight|Irwin Winkler|Drama|PG-13 |5.7|USA|1999|126 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Rob Cowan Roger Paradiso Irwin Winkler|Oliver Sacks Steve Levitt|Ivan Muñiz John Seale||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Only Love Can Bring You To Your Senses.| Only Love Can Bring You To Your Senses. Witness theiextraordinary transformation of seeing theiworldifor theifirst time andifalliin love with life all over again. Based onia true story, At First Sight isian exhilarating adventure anditheivisual experience ofia lifetime! This poignant, uplifting drama explores theiremarkable journey ofia man whose world was darkened byiblindness but enlightened byitheimiracle of science anditheiwonder of love. |Val Kilmer (Virgil 'Virg' Adamson) @ Lee Rosen (Lee) @ Raisa Ivanic (Raisa) @ Mira Sorvino (Amy Benic) @ Kelly McGillis (Jennie Adamson) @ Daniel Franco (Running Man) @ Steven Weber (Duncan Allanbrook) @ Bruce Davison (Dr. Charles Aaron) @ Nathan Lane (Phil Webster) @ Ken Howard (Virgil's Father) @ Laura Kirk (Betsy Ernst) @ Margo Winkler (Nancy Bender) @ Diana Krall (Singer) @ Brett Robbins (Ethan) @ Willie C. Carpenter (Jack Falk (as Willie Carpenter)) @ Charles Winkler (Health Instructor) @ Drena De Niro (Caroline) @ Kelly Chapman (Susan (as Kelly Chapman Mayer)) @ Jack Dodick (Dr. Goldman) @ Nina Griscom (Christie Evans) @ Mortimer B. Zuckerman (Homeless Man) @ Gene Kirkwood (Marshall) @ Richard Euell (Carl Kipling) @ Carl J. Matusovich (Tommy) @ John Guidera (Virgil's Co-Worker) @ Jack Cooper (Overweight Man) @ Jennifer Wachtell (Eva) @ Marty Davey (School Mother) @ Ben Wolfe (Bass Player) @ Casey W. Harris (Casey) @ Ricky Trammell (Info D.J.) @ J.P. Patterson (Waiter) @ Bonnie Deutsch (Worker) @ Sheryl Allington Carter (Reporter) @ Oliver Sacks (Reporter) @ Angela Wang (Reporter) @ Claude Ravier (Reporter) @ Tony Devon (The Hockey Fan rest of cast listed alphabetically Natalie Marie Hughes .... Aerobics Instructor) @ Rob Harris (Casey's Dad (uncredited) Produced by)||You're god damn right you're blind...I'm right here to help you and you can't even see Val Kilmer is electrifying as Virgil in this heartwarming romance flick. The supporting cast is stunning. The costumes are sophisticated. One of the good farces in the genre, At First Sight will challenge the viewer to see with the heart and without the eyes. 7 out of 10. |Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color Standard 1.33:1 Color|ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC] ||||||@@ Atlantis: The Lost Empire|Gary Trousdale Kirk Wis|Animation|Rated PG for action violence. |6.4|USA|2001| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Don Hahn Kendra Halland|Tab Murphy Tab Murphy Platon David Reynolds Gary Trousdale Joss Whedon Kirk Wise Bryce Zabel Jackie Zabel|||Buena Vista Home Entertainment [es] |Atlantis is waiting...|1914: Milo Thatch, grandson of the great Thaddeus Thatch works in the boiler room of a museum. He knows that Atlantis was real, and he can get there if he has the mysterious Shephards journal, which can guide him to Atlantis. But he needs someone to fund a voyage. His employer thinks he's dotty, and refuses to fund any crazy idea. He returns home to his apartment and finds a woman there. She takes him to Preston B. Whitmore, an old friend of his Grandfathers. He gives him the shepherds journal, a submarine and a 5 star crew. They travel through the Atlantic ocean, face a large lobster called the Leviathan, and finally get to Atlantis. But does the Atlantis crew have a lust for discovery, or something else? |Michael J. Fox (Milo James Thatch (voice)) @ Corey Burton (Gaetan 'The Mole' Moliere (voice)) @ Claudia Christian (Helga Katrina Sinclair (voice)) @ James Garner (Commander Lyle Tiberius Rourke (voice)) @ John Mahoney (Preston B. Whitmore (voice)) @ Phil Morris (Dr. Joshua Strongbear Sweet (voice)) @ Leonard Nimoy (King Kashekim Nedakh (voice)) @ Don Novello (Vincenzo 'Vinny' Santorini (voice)) @ Jacqueline Obradors (Audrey Rocio Ramirez (voice)) @ Florence Stanley (Wilhelmina Bertha Packard (voice)) @ David Ogden Stiers (Fenton Q. Harcourt (voice)) @ Natalie Strom (Young Kida (voice)) @ Cree Summer (Princess 'Kida' Kidagakash (voice)) @ Jim Varney (Jebidiah Allardyce 'Cookie' Farnsworth (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patrick Pinney (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Steve Barr (Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||One of the better animated films ever made Atlantis is an experiment for Disney, but it is one of they're most successful ones.By excluding often dumb songs (though some of them in the past weren't horrible like in The Lion King and the Jungle Book) and even dumber animal sidekicks, Disney for one of they're few times taken an interesting type of story and given it good dialogue that will appeal to adults more than kids.And while I know kids are the prime target here, I reccomend the animation for them, which takes it's cues this time heavily from the pulp comic book tradition (which is a good thing) and the anime style of quickness and seriousness in characters (which is even better). Michael J. Fox stars (in possibly his last role due to his claim that he will not act due to Perkinsens) as a "jibberish" decipherer who can decipher most lost languages, and believes in the fantasy of Atlantis, and soon a billionaire gives him a chance, and a crew, to find Atlantis.What follows is a energetic and flowing adventure of the journey, discovery, and fight of Antlantis, filled with spectacular animation (the crystal rise up scene and finale Atlantis scene are awesome animation feats) and characters that older kids and adults can like as much as, or even more than kids.And once again for you parents reading this, if your worries your kids won't like this, just remember what chum is coming up in a few weeks: Cats and Dogs.See this movie is only to avoid that.Varney's last voice-over and movie role (unless Daddy and Them gets released).A || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery|Jay Roach|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for nudity, sex-related dialogue and humor. |7.0|USA|1997| 94 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Eric McLeod Demi Moore Mike Myers Claire Rudnick Polstein Jennifer Todd Suzanne Todd|Mike Myers |Peter Deming ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |If he were any cooler, he'd still be frozen, baby!|British secret agent Austin Powers was placed into cryostasis at the end of the 60s, in case a spy of his talent was ever needed again. A spoof spy movie ensues when he's thawed out in the 90s... In 1969, after burning most of his henchmen, Dr. Evil sets a trap for Austin Powers, but freezes himself so Austin won't catch him. Austin then volunteers to be frozen in case Dr. Evil shows up again. 30 years later, Dr. Evil wakes up in Nevada and steals a nuclear weapon and holds the world hostage for 1 million dollars. Sorry, 100 billion dollars. Austin is woken up to stop Dr. Evil but gets Vanessa Kensington, his ex-partner's daughter and goes to Vegas to look for Evil, but finds out there is no longer any free love in the 90's, or Swinging. |Mike Myers (Austin Powers/Dr. Evil) @ Elizabeth Hurley (Vanessa Kensington) @ Michael York (Basil Exposition) @ Mimi Rogers (Mrs. Kensington) @ Robert Wagner (Number Two) @ Seth Green (Scott Evil) @ Fabiana Udenio (Alotta Fagina) @ Mindy Sterling (Frau Farbissina) @ Paul Dillon (Patty O'Brien) @ Charles Napier (Commander Gilmour) @ Will Ferrell (Mustafa) @ Joann Richter ('60s Model) @ Anastasia Sakelaris ('60s Model (as Anastasia Nicole Sakelaris)) @ Afifi Alaouie ('60s Model) @ Monet Mazur (Mod girl) @ Mark Bringleson (Andy Warhol (as Mark Bringelson)) @ Clint Howard (Johnson Ritter) @ Elya Baskin (Gen . Borschevsky) @ Carlton Lee Russell (Gary Coleman) @ Daniel Weaver (Vanilla Ice) @ Neil Mullarkey (Quartermaster clerk) @ Lea Sullivan (Go-Go dancer) @ Chekeshka Van Putten (Go-Go dancer) @ Heather Marie Marsden (Go-Go dancer (as Heather Marie Wayne)) @ Sarah Smith (Go-Go dancer) @ Laura Payne-Gabriel (Go-Go dancer) @ Joe Son (Random Task) @ Tyde Kierny (Las Vegas Tourist) @ Larry Thomas (Casino Dealer) @ Cheryl Bartel (Fembot) @ Cindy Margolis (Fembot) @ Donna W. Scott (Fembot) @ Barbara Ann Moore (Fembot) @ Cynthia Lamontagne (Fembot) @ Brian George (UN Secretary) @ Kaye Wade (Mrs. Exposition) @ Steve Monroe (Son) @ Vince Melocchi (Dad) @ Patrick Bristow (Bolton (Virtucon tour guide)) @ Jim McMullan (American UN representative) @ Robin Gammell (British UN representative) @ Ted Kairys (Eastern European technician) @ Burt Bacharach (Himself rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Douglas Aarniokoski (Voice on Dr. Evil's Telephone (voice) (uncredited)) @ Lana Antonova (Go-Go Dancer (uncredited)) @ Tom Arnold (Cowboy (uncredited)) @ Kira Burt (Valet Attendant (uncredited)) @ Bruno Campolo (Underground worker (uncredited)) @ Lois Chiles (Steamrolled Henchman's Wife (uncredited)) @ Elwood Edwards (You've Got Mail Voice (uncredited) (voice)) @ Carrie Fisher (Therapist (uncredited)) @ Brazil Joseph Grisaffi III (Gunman (uncredited)) @ Susanna Hoffs (Ming Tea (uncredited)) @ Stuart D. Johnson (Ming Tea (uncredited)) @ Mike Judge (Beavis/Butt-head (uncredited) (voice)) @ Hannah Kozak (Rita (uncredited)) @ Rob Lowe (Decapitated Henchman's Friend (uncredited)) @ Michael James McDonald (Henchman Flatted by Steamroller (uncredited)) @ John Michael (U.N. Delegate (uncredited)) @ Cheri Oteri (Flight Attendant (uncredited)) @ Gwenda Perez (Gambler (uncredited)) @ Ben Scott (Jurgen (uncredited)) @ John-Clay Scott (Don Luigi (uncredited)) @ Christian Slater (Easily Fooled Security Guard (uncredited)) @ Matthew Sweet (Ming Tea (uncredited)) @ Patricia Tallman (Electric Psychedlic Pussycat Swingers Club Waitress (uncredited)) @ Sterling Wolfe (Frozen Celebrity (uncredited) Produced by||The Finest Spoof... In this hilarious spoof of 60's spy flicks, a swinging secret agent is thawed out of his cryogenic state in order to combat his old nemesis. The laughs never stop as Myers entertains in two pivotal roles. Hurley is sexy as Austin's partner and love interest. Robert Wagner finds ways to make fun of his "It Takes a Thief" character and is very entertaining in the process. A quickly paced film that generates constant laughs with each viewing. A sequel is soon to be released...Yeah, baby! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me|Jay Roach|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for sexual innuendo and crude humor. PG-13|6.5|USA|1999|95 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/13/2004|Emma Chasin Michael De Luca Donna Langley John S. Lyons Eric McLeod Demi Moore Mike Myers Erwin Stoff Jennifer Todd Suzanne Todd|Mike Myers Mike Myers Michael McCullers|Ueli Steiger ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |First, he fought for the Crown.Now he's fighting for the Family Jewels.|Dr. Evil uses a device he calls a "Time Machine" to travel back to 1969 and remove Austin Powers' mojo. The sexually wounded swinger must travel back in time and, with the help of agent Felicity Shagwell, recover his vitality. Meanwhile, Dr. Evil's personal life runs amok as he discovers love, continues to shun his son and develops a close relationship with himself. Well, actually, a clone 1/8 his size whom he dubs "Mini-Me". The always time-baffled Dr. Evil begins his plan to put a gigantic cannon on the moon, thus turning it into a device called either "The Death Star" or "Alan Parson's Project," depending on which name is available. Dr. Evil returns from space just as British spy Austin Powers learns on his honeymoon that his wife is a fembot in Evil's control. Back on the singles scene, Powers discovers he's impotent because Evil has used a time machine to return to the late 60s and steal his libido. British intelligence also has a time portal, so Powers goes back to 1969 to recapture his mojo and, teaming with agent Felicity Shagwell, to stop another Evil plot to take over the world, this time with a "laser" beamed from the moon. Subplots involve Evil's son Scott's discovery of who his mother is, Evil's affection for a clone one-eighth his size, and the machinations of an obese Scot named Fat Bastard. |Mike Myers (Austin Powers/Dr. Evil/Fat Bastard) @ Heather Graham (Felicity Shagwell) @ Michael York (Basil Exposition) @ Robert Wagner (Number Two) @ Rob Lowe (Young Number Two) @ Seth Green (Scott Evil) @ Mindy Sterling (Frau Farbissina) @ Verne Troyer (Mini-Me) @ Elizabeth Hurley (Vanessa Kensington) @ Gia Carides (Robin Spitz Swallows) @ Oliver Muirhead (British Colonel) @ George Cheung (Chinese Teacher (as George Kee Cheung)) @ Jeffrey Meng (Wang) @ Muse Watson (The Klansman) @ Scott Cooper (Bobby) @ Douglas Fisher (Man (Pecker)) @ Kevin Cooney (NORAD Colonel) @ Clint Howard (Johnson Ritter) @ Brian Hooks (Pilot) @ David Koechner (Co-Pilot) @ Frank Clem (Guitarist with Willie Nelson) @ Herb Mitchell (Sergeant) @ Steve Eastin (Umpire) @ Jane Carr (Woman (Pecker)) @ Kevin Durand (Bazooka Marksman Joe) @ Melissa Justin (Chick #1 at Party) @ Nicholas Walker (Captain of the Guard) @ Stephen Hibbert (Inept Magma Chamber Guard) @ David Coy (Carnaby Street Band Member) @ David Crigger (Carnaby Street Band Member) @ Tom Ehlen (Carnaby Street Band Member) @ Dennis Wilson (Carnaby Street Band Member) @ Eric Winzenried (Private Army Soldier) @ Tim Bagley (Friendly Dad) @ Colton James (Friendly Son) @ Michael G. Hagerty (Peanut Vendor) @ Jack Kehler (Circus Barker) @ Kirk Ward (Soldier) @ Jeff Garlin (Cyclops) @ Rachel Wilson (Autograph Seeker) @ Jennifer Coolidge (Woman at Football Game) @ John Mahon (NATO Colonel) @ Michael James McDonald (NATO Soldier (as Michael McDonald)) @ Jeanette Miller (Teacher) @ Mary Jo Smith (Unibrau) @ Carrie Ann Inaba (Felicity Dancer #1) @ Jennifer L. Hamilton (Felicity Dancer #2 (as Jennifer Hamilton)) @ Ayesha Orange (Felicity Dancer #3) @ Natalie Willes (Felicity Dancer #4) @ John R. Corella (Party Dancer #1 (as John Corella)) @ Alison Faulk (Party Dancer #2) @ Michelle Elkin (Party Dancer #3) @ Shealan Spencer (Party Dancer #4) @ Tovaris Wilson (Party Dancer #5) @ Bree Turner (Dancer #1) @ Marisa Gilliam (Dancer #2) @ Mark Meismer (Dancer #3) @ Sal Vassallo (Dancer #4) @ Jason Yribar (Dancer #5) @ Chekeshka Van Putten (Go-Go Dancer #1) @ Tara Mouri (Go-Go Dancer #2) @ Gigi Yazicioglu (Go-Go Dancer #3) @ Sarah Smith (Scene Break Dancer) @ Faune A. Chambers (Scene Break Dancer) @ Gabriel Paige (Scene Break Dancer (as Gabriel Page)) @ Jim Boensch (Queen's Guard) @ Ron Ulstad (Chief of Staff) @ Timothy Watters (Bill Clinton's Look-Alike) @ Todd M. Schultz (Jerry Springer's Bodyguard #1) @ Steve Wilkos (Jerry Springer's Bodyguard #2) @ Burt Bacharach (Himself) @ Elvis Costello (Himself) @ Will Ferrell (Mustafa) @ Woody Harrelson (Himself) @ Kristen Johnston (Ivana Humpalot (as Kristen Johnson)) @ Charles Napier (General Hawk) @ Willie Nelson (Himself) @ Tim Robbins (The President) @ Rebecca Romijn-Stamos (Herself) @ Jerry Springer (Himself) @ Fred Willard (Mission Commander rest of cast listed alphabetically Jean-Christophe Gabler .... (scenes deleted)) @ J.P. Manoux (French Bellhop (scenes deleted)) @ Jessica Anne Bogart (Party Girl in Pink (uncredited)) @ Phil Cancelleri (One-Eyed Monster (uncredited)) @ Phil Hawn (M.O.D. Crime Scene Investigator (uncredited)) @ Tony Jay (Narrator (voice) (uncredited)) @ Lana Kinnear (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Harish Mandyam (Scientist (uncredited)) @ Stephen A. Marinaccio II (Party Dancer (uncredited)) @ Allie Moss (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Bill O'Donnell (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Mitch Rouse (Himself (uncredited)Produced by||No redeeming social values, just good, dirty fun! This Austin Powers movie, unlike the first one, is not to be taken seriously at all!:-)It is full of silly circumstances and dumb humor.Just what all of us need occasionally.I gave it a solid "8" rating - "4" for the acting and story line, and "12" of "10" for witty silliness, for my average of "8". Heather Graham is wonderful.I would watch her in a soap commercial! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Babe|Chris Noonan|Family||7.4|Australia|1995| 89 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Catherine Barber Philip Hearnshaw Bill Miller George Miller Doug Mitchell Daphne Paris|Dick King-Smith George Miller Chris Noonan|Andrew Lesnie ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A little pig goes a long way. |Farmer Hoggett wins a runt piglet at a local fair and young Babe, as the piglet decides to call himself, befriends and learns about all the other creatures on the farm. He becomes special friends with one of the sheepdogs, Fly. With Fly's help, and Farmer Hoggett's intuition, Babe embarks on a career in sheepherding with some surprising and spectacular results. Babe is a little pig who doesn't quite know his place in the world. With a bunch of odd friends, like Ferdianad the duck who thinks he is a rooster and Fly the dog he calls mom, Babe realizes that he has the makings to become the greatest sheep pig of all time, and Farmer Hogget Knows it. Babe with the help of the sheep dogs and the sheep babe learns that a pig can be anything that he wants to be. |Christine Cavanaugh (Babe the Gallant Pig (voice)) @ Miriam Margolyes (Fly the Female Sheepdog (voice)) @ Danny Mann (Ferdinand the Duck (voice)) @ Hugo Weaving (Rex the Male Sheepdog (voice)) @ Miriam Flynn (Maa the Very Old Ewe (voice)) @ Russi Taylor (Dutchess the Cat (voice) (as Russie Taylor)) @ Evelyn Krape (Old Ewe (voice)) @ Michael Edward-Stevens (Horse (voice)) @ Charles Bartlett (Cow (voice)) @ Paul Livingston (Rooster in Stall (voice)) @ Roscoe Lee Browne (Narrator (voice)) @ James Cromwell (Farmer Arthur Hoggett) @ Magda Szubanski (Esme Hoggett (the farmer's wife)) @ Zoe Burton (Daughter) @ Paul Goddard (Son-in-law) @ Wade Hayward (Grandson) @ Brittany Byrnes (Granddaughter) @ Mary Acres (Valda) @ Janet Foye (Country woman) @ Pamela Hawken (Country woman) @ Karen Gough (Country woman) @ David Webb (The Vet) @ Marshall Napier (Chairman of Judges) @ Hec Macmillan (Lion's Club man) @ Ken Gregory (Lion's Club man) @ Nicholas Lidstone (Sheep rustler) @ Trevor Read (Electrical linesman) @ Nicholas Blake (Electrical linesman) @ Matthew Long (Sheepdog trial officer) @ John Doyle (TV commentator) @ Mike Harris (TV commentator) @ David Greenaway (Performance Puppeteer) @ Allan Trautman (Performance Puppeteer) @ Ian Tregonning (Performance Puppeteer) @ David Collins (Performance Puppeteer) @ Terry Ryan (Performance Puppeteer) @ Ross Bagley (Puppy (voice)) @ Gemini Barnett (Puppy (voice)) @ Rachel Davey (Puppy (voice)) @ Debi Derryberry (Puppy (voice)) @ Jazzmine Dillingham (Puppy (voice)) @ Courtland Mead (Puppy (voice)) @ Kevin Woods (Puppy (voice)) @ Jane Alden (Sheep (voice)) @ Kimberly Bailey (Sheep (voice)) @ Patrika Darbo (Sheep (voice)) @ Michelle Davison (Sheep (voice)) @ Julie Forsyth (Sheep (voice)) @ Maeve Germaine (Sheep (voice)) @ Rosanna Huffman (Sheep (voice)) @ Carlyle King (Sheep (voice)) @ Tina Lifford (Sheep (voice)) @ Gennie Nevinson (Sheep (voice)) @ Mary Linda Phillips (Sheep (voice) (as Linda Phillips)) @ Paige Pollack (Sheep (voice)) @ Kerry Walker (Sheep (voice)) @ Barbara Harris (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jacqueline Brennan (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Doug Burch (Additional Voices (voice)) @ John Erwin (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Doris Grau (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Tony Hughes (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Linda Janssen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Daamen J. Krall (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Charlie MacLean (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Justin Monjo (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Antonia Murphy (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Helen O'Connor (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Neil Ross (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Scott Vernon (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Karl Lewis Miller (Man Buying 3 Puppies (uncredited) Produced by||Disarmingly charming and wonderful Babe is separated from his family and becomes friends with some of the animals on his new farm.He learns that each animal has a role to play and that both he and Ferdinand the duck are fated to be lunch!Both take new roles to escape their fate and Babe tries to become a sheepdog.As Farmer Hoggett begins to notice the unusual way Babe can work with the sheep he begins to groom him for that role – much to the worry of his wife and the other farm animals. Written by the guy who wrote the Mad Max films – that's what kills me.I know it's adapted but how can the Mad Max writer manage to deliver such a sweet film that is unassuming and comic and heart warming.The plot is great as it is adapted from `The Sheeppig' but Miller's script adds so many comic touches that it's funny throughout.The characters are all well written so that we care about them and get easily drawn in. It's directed well and again feels fresh and different – whether it's the chapter set up or the use of the narrator or the way that the singing mice make the links it all works well.Because it is gentle and unassuming I found myself involved in it so easily and the themes of finding your own path and friendship are not rammed down your throat but just sit there if you want to get them.I've seen this several times and the silent, wonderful climax to the sheepdog trials makes me choke everytime (even if it is predictable). All the voices are good and the use of animals is faultless.The use of animatronics is a little ropey at times but the sense of goodwill the film gave me extended to overlooking these minor complaints.James Cromwell is just superb as the human face in this drama – everytime I see him now I can only hear him say `that'll do pig'.Babe is a great hero and you feel for him from the start to the end – when he gives a little satisfied sigh it's difficult not to feel warm inside. Overall this is one of the best children's films I've seen – it's light and unassuming and not a classic but it is comic, gentle and ultimately heart warming – what more do you want? || |1.85 : 1 |DTS 5.1 ||||||@@ Back to the Future|Robert Zemeckis|Adventure||8.0|USA|1985| 111 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Neil Canton Bob Gale Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg|Robert Zemeckis Bob Gale|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |17 year old Marty McFly got home early last night. 30 years early.|Marty McFly is your average, slacker teenager, who is friendly with a wacky inventor named Doc Brown. When Doc creates a time machine out of a DeLorean car, Marty is accidentally transported into the year 1955. There, he stumbles upon a younger version of his parents, disrupts the meeting, and must get the two together so that they would get married and have him! Marty McFly helps out his friend Doc Brown, and ends up being taken back in time by Doc's time-machine. Marty, a boy of the 80's, has to come to grips with being in the 50's and get his parents to fall in love to set straight the damage his presence has done to the events of the past. Marty McFly is an aspiring musician, but he is not sure of what the future holds for him; first his band was rejected as the performing band for the school dance, and historically, no McFly has succeeded in anything. The only bright spots in his existence are his girlfriend and Emmett Brown, the town crackpot scientist, who is Marty's good friend. Marty was helping brown with his latest invention a time machine, which is fitted into a Delorean. The time machine needs a tremendous amount of power to work, which he gets from plutonium. Now Brown got the plutonium from some Libyans who want him to build a bomb; they find Brown and shoot him, Marty gets into the Delorean and drives off and when he reaches the speed that activates the time machine, he finds himself in 1955, cause that was the date that Brown entered, which was when he first conceived the time machine. Now having already used up all the power of the plutonium, Marty must find a way to get it working, so he can go back to his own time. Marty looks for Brown but before he does, he runs into his father as a teenager, and accidentally interferes with his father's first meeting of Lorraine, his future mother. Marty then goes to see Brown and convinces him that he is from the future and to help him. But when he learns of the amount of power that is needed to power the machine, he tells Marty that it's hopeless cause the only other thing that can generate that much power is a bolt of lightning and it's impossible to determine when and where they will strike, but Marty has with him an old newspaper cliping that states that the town clock tower will be struck by lightning, so they plan to draw the energy from the lightning so they can power the machine. But before they do, Marty must act as cupid for his parents cause it seems that because they never met they won't fall in love and get married and Marty will not exist. The future for teenager Marty McFly is not shaping up well. His family is dysfunctional, his schoolteacher, Mr Strickland, is out to get him, his music is just too loud and the rest of the world doesn't care. Only with his girlfriend, Jennifer Parker and local eccentric scientist, Dr Emmet Brown does he find the encouragement and excitement that he needs. Then, one of Doc Brown's experiments goes slightly wrong and Marty gets caught up in a race to set it and his future right again. "When this baby hits 88 miles per hour you're gonna see some serious shit." Michael J. Fox stars as Marty McFly, a typical American teenager of the Eighties accidently sent back to 1955 in a plutonium-powered DeLorean "time machine" invented by slightly mad scientist Christopher Lloyd. During his often hysterical, always amazing trip back in time, Marty must make certain his teenage parents-to-be, Crispin Glover and Lea Thompson, meet and fall in love -- so he can get back to the future. |Michael J. Fox (Marty McFly) @ Christopher Lloyd (Dr. Emmett Brown) @ Lea Thompson (Lorraine Baines McFly) @ Crispin Glover (George McFly) @ Thomas F. Wilson (Biff Tannen) @ Claudia Wells (Jennifer Parker) @ Marc McClure (Dave McFly) @ Wendie Jo Sperber (Linda McFly) @ George DiCenzo (Sam Baines) @ Frances Lee McCain (Stella Baines) @ James Tolkan (Mr. Strickland) @ J.J. Cohen (Skinhead (as Jeffrey Jay Cohen)) @ Casey Siemaszko (3-D) @ Billy Zane (Match) @ Harry Waters Jr. (Marvin Berry) @ Donald Fullilove (Goldie Wilson) @ Lisa Freeman (Babs) @ Cristen Kauffman (Betty) @ Elsa Raven (Clocktower Woman) @ Will Hare (Old Man Peabody) @ Ivy Bethune (Ma Peabody) @ Jason Marin (Sherman Peabody) @ Katherine Britton (Daughter Peabody) @ Jason Hervey (Milton Baines) @ Maia Brewton (Sally Baines) @ Courtney Gains (Mark Dixon) @ Richard L. Duran (Libyan Terrorist) @ Jeff O'Haco (Libyan Van Driver) @ Johnny Green (Scooter Kid #1) @ Jamie Abbott (Scooter Kid #2) @ Norman Alden (Lou Curruthers) @ Reed Morgan (Hill Valley Cop (as Read Morgan)) @ Sachi Parker (Bystander #1) @ Robert Krantz (Bystander #2) @ Gary Riley (Guy #1) @ Karen Petrasek (Girl #1) @ George 'Buck' Flower (Red the Bum (as Buck Flower)) @ Tommy Thomas (Starlighter) @ Granville 'Danny' Young (Starlighter) @ David Harold Brown (Starlighter) @ Lloyd L. Tolbert (Starlighter) @ Paul Hanson (Pinhead Guitarist) @ Lee Brownfield (Pinhead) @ Robert DeLapp (Pinhead rest of cast listed alphabetically Christopher Cundey .... Lorraine's Classmate (scenes deleted)) @ Charles L. Campbell (1955 Radio Announcer (uncredited)) @ Deborah Harmon (TV Newscaster (uncredited)) @ Huey Lewis (High-School Band Audition Judge (uncredited)) @ Tom Tangen (Student (uncredited) Produced by||You gotta come back with me... Back To The Future (1985) is my all time favourite movie. It's a thoroughly feel good film, accessible to all ages and enjoyable from the 1st to the 45th time of watching and never fails to bring a smile.Humour for all ages and a kick-ass car to boot, what more could a young kid want? Or those young at heart? From Marty's "Johnny B Goode" to Doc's classic "Run For It Marty!" You'll find that even though you know what's coming next, you'll still laugh. It is the ultimate feel good movie, the weed overcomes the bully, the dreamers wishes come true and all because a nosey old bird thrusts for a nickel "Save The Clock Tower!" It's popularity spawned 2 sequels and although it got decreasingly good in terms of quality as a film, Back To The Future remains the best film in my repetoire and a safe bet when you need to feel good. It gets a solid 9 out of 10, comedy, fantasy, the gorgeous Lea Thompson, the insane but comic Doc and the typical teenager Marty make this film a must for all young at heart. ||Widescreen Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Back to the Future Part II|Robert Zemeckis|Adventure||6.9|USA|1989| 108 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Neil Canton Bob Gale Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg Steve Starkey|Robert Zemeckis Bob Gale Robert Zemeckis Bob Gale Bob Gale|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Getting back was only the beginning.|The second part of the trilogy begins as Doc, Marty and Jennifer take the time-traveling DeLorean into the year 2015 to straighten out the future of the McFly family. But Biff Tannen steals the time machine and gives his younger self a book containing 50 years of sports statistics, which the young Biff uses to amass an enormous gambling fortune and transform idyllic Hill Valley into a living hell. To restore the present, Doc and Marty must return to the events of their previous adventure in 1955 and retrieve the book. This movie picks up where the last one left off; with Doc Brown and Marty going into the future to help Marty's future offspring. After doing that they returned to their own time, only to discover that things have changed. They discovered that while in the future, Marty's nemesis, Biff Tannen got the sports book that Marty bought so that he could know the results of sports events and make a killing, but Doc Brown nixed his plans, but Tannen who overheard their conversation, got the book and the time machine and went back into the past and gave the book to himself, who has not only amassed a fortune but also extremely powerful. So Doc and Marty have to go back to when Biff got the book and get it away from him. And it seems that it was in 1955 on the night of the dance that Biff got the book. So not only must they get the book but they must also avoid the other versions of themselves. Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd reprise their roles as Marty McFly and Doc Brown. An exhilarating visit by Marty and the Doc to the year 2015 seemingly resolves a few problems with the future McFly family. But when the two return home, they soon discover someone has tampered with time to produce a nightmarish Hill Valley, 1985. Their only hope is to once again get back to 1955 and save the future. |Michael J. Fox (Marty McFly/Marty McFly Jr./Marlene McFly/Middle-Aged Marty McFly) @ Christopher Lloyd (Dr. Emmett Brown) @ Lea Thompson (Lorraine Baines/McFly/Tannen) @ Thomas F. Wilson (Biff Tannen/Griff Tannen) @ Elisabeth Shue (Jennifer Parker/McFly) @ James Tolkan (Mr. Strickland) @ Jeffrey Weissman (George McFly) @ Casey Siemaszko (3-D) @ Billy Zane (Match) @ J.J. Cohen (Skinhead) @ Charles Fleischer (Terry) @ E. Casanova Evans ('Michael Jackson' Video Waiter) @ Jay Koch ('Ronald Reagan' Video Waiter) @ Charles Gherardi ('Ayatollah Khomeini' Video Waiter) @ Ricky Dean Logan (Data) @ Darlene Vogel (Spike) @ Jason Scott Lee (Whitey) @ Elijah Wood (Video Game Boy #1) @ John Thornton (Video Game Boy #2) @ Theo Schwartz (Hoverboard Girl #1) @ Lindsey Barry (Hoverboard Girl #2) @ Judy Ovitz (Antique Store Saleswoman) @ Stephanie Williams (Officer Foley (as Stephanie E. Williams)) @ Marty Levy (Cab Driver) @ Flea (Douglas J Needles) @ Jim Ishida (Iko 'Jitz' Fujitsu (as James Ishida)) @ Nikki Birdsong (Loretta) @ Al White (Dad) @ Junior Fann (Mom) @ Shaun Hunter (Harold) @ George 'Buck' Flower (Red the Bum (as Buck Flower)) @ Neil Ross (Biff Tannen Museum Narrator (voice)) @ Tamara Carrera (Jacuzzi Girl #1) @ Tracy Dali (Jacuzzi Girl #2 (as Tracy D'Aldia)) @ Jennifer Brown (Basketball Kid #1) @ Irina Cashen (Basketball Kid #2) @ Angela Greenblatt (Basketball Kid #3) @ Cameron Moore (Basketball Kid #4) @ Justin Mosley Spink (Basketball Kid #5) @ Lisa Freeman (Babs) @ John Erwin (Radio Sportscaster (voice)) @ Harry Waters Jr. (Marvin Berry) @ David Harold Brown (Starlighter) @ Tommy Thomas (Starlighter) @ Lloyd L. Tolbert (Starlighter) @ Granville 'Danny' Young (Starlighter) @ Wesley Mann (CPR Kid ('Wallet Guy')) @ Joe Flaherty (Western Union Man) @ Crispin Glover (George McFly (archive footage) rest of cast listed alphabetically Freddie .... Einstein) @ Marc McClure (Dave McFly (scenes deleted)) @ Sean Michael Fish (King Neptune (uncredited)) @ Donald Fullilove (Goldie Wilson III (uncredited)) @ Annette May ( (uncredited)) @ Mary Ellen Trainor (Officer Reese (uncredited) Produced by||In the middle I think that this film belongs in the middle of the trilogy not only in chronological order, but in good order as well.This film is better than part 3 because it has some funny gags in deja vu fashion, and not as good as part 1 because of a few flaws.Story continues exactly from part 1 and has Marty and Doc going 30 years into the future to find that there is a new generation of McFly's but it gets complicated after that (and even more than the first).Plenty of laughs, but consistency is somewhat missing (in part 1, Claudia Wells played Jennifer and in this part, Elizabeth Shue plays her and messes up the flow).Stil a visual delight, especially in the dance sequence and chase on air boards.A ||Widescreen Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Back to the Future Part III|Robert Zemeckis|Comedy||6.6|USA|1990| 118 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Neil Canton Bob Gale Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg Steve Starkey|Robert Zemeckis Bob Gale Robert Zemeckis Bob Gale Bob Gale|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |They've saved the best trip for last... But this time they may have gone too far. |The conclusion of the trilogy sends Marty McFly on a rescue mission to the year 1885, where he must save Doc Brown from death at the hands of yet another member of the Tannen clan. However, there are a number of complications preventing a quick return to the future: a lack of gasoline for the time-traveling DeLorean, a band of gunslinging outlaws and a schoolmarm with affections for the smitten Doc. The movie continues where the last one with Marty stuck in 1955. But Doc Brown sent him a letter from 1855 through Western Union, that told him that after the Delorean was struck by lightning he was sent to 1855 and was unable to repair it, but has managed to bury it somewhere, where Marty can get to it in 1955 and hopefully the younger version of himself can repair it so he can drive it back to 1985 and then destroy it. But after finding it, Marty discovers that shortly after sending the letter Doc would be shot by an outlaw, Mad Dog Tannen. Marty then goes back to 1885 to save him and meets his ancestors. After finding the Doc, they were about to leave when Marty told the Doc that upon arriving the Delorean's gas tank was punctured, so they don't have any gasoline to run the car, which means they have to find some way to get the car to 88 mph. They decide to try pushing it with a locomotive. And things are fine except for the fact that Tannen, who had it in for Doc, now has it for Marty and has challenged him to gunfight on the day that they are going to leave, and Doc is smitten with Clara Clayton, the new school teacher. Stranded in 1955 after a freak burst of lightning, Marty must travel to 1885 to rescue Doc Brown from a premature end. Surviving an Indian attack and unfriendly townsfolk, Marty finds Doc Brown the blacksmith. But with the Doc under the spell of the charming Clara Clayton, it's up to Marty to get them out of the wild west and back to the future. |Michael J. Fox (Marty McFly/Seamus McFly) @ Christopher Lloyd (Dr. Emmett Brown) @ Mary Steenburgen (Clara Clayton) @ Thomas F. Wilson (Buford 'Mad Dog' Tannen/Biff Tannen) @ Lea Thompson (Maggie McFly/Lorraine McFly) @ Elisabeth Shue (Jennifer Parker) @ James Tolkan (Chief Marshal James Strickland) @ Matt Clark (Chester the Bartender) @ Dub Taylor (Saloon old-timer #1) @ Harry Carey Jr. (Saloon old-timer #2) @ Pat Buttram (Saloon old-timer #3) @ Christopher Wynne (Buford's Gang Member #1/Needles' Gang Member #1) @ Sean Gregory Sullivan (Buford's gang member #2) @ Mike Watson (Buford's gang member #3) @ Marc McClure (Dave McFly) @ Wendie Jo Sperber (Linda McFly) @ Jeffrey Weissman (George McFly) @ Flea (Douglas J. Needles) @ Todd Cameron Brown (Jules Brown) @ Dannel Evans (Verne Brown) @ Hugh Gillin (Mayor Hubert) @ Burton Gilliam (Colt gun salesman) @ Richard A. Dysart (Barbed-wire salesman (as Richard Dysart)) @ Bill McKinney (Engineer) @ Donovan Scott (Strickland's deputy) @ J.J. Cohen (Needles' gang member #2) @ Ricky Dean Logan (Needles' gang member #3) @ Marvin J. McIntyre (Hill Valley Undertaker) @ Kaleb Henley (Marshal Strickland's son) @ Leslie A. Prickett (Celebration man) @ Dean Cundey (Photographer) @ Jo B. Cummings (Pie lady) @ James A. Rammel (Festival dance caller) @ Brad McPeters (Eyepatch) @ Phinnaes D. (Toothless) @ Rod Kuehne (Ticket agent) @ Leno Fletcher (Conductor) @ Larry Ingold (Train fireman) @ Joey Newington (Joey (Palace Saloon employee)) @ Glenn Fox (Boy holding Marty's gun) @ Tim Konrad (Barbed-wire salesman's companion) @ Michael Klastorin (Townsman #1) @ Michael John Mills (Townsman #2) @ Kenny Myers (Townsman #3) @ Steve McArthur (Festival man #1) @ John Ickes (Festival man #2) @ Michael Higgins (Marty Dance Double (as Michael W. Higgins) rest of cast listed alphabetically Foster .... Copernicus) @ Freddie (Einstein) @ Frank Beard (Band member #1 at party (uncredited)) @ Billy Gibbons (Band member #2 at party (uncredited)) @ Dusty Hill (Band member #3 at party (uncredited)) @ Marion Tumen (Prostitute at Palace Saloon (uncredited) Produced by||A time traveling dolorian that runs on gas! I'm sorry to say this is the third best of the trilogy, which means it is at the bottom.So I recommend to see either one of the first two if you want. But, that doesn't mean this film is a waste of time compared to other films.For instance, this is a way to keep from watching CNN.But seriously, this isn't all that bad, because for fans of westerns who want a chuckle, this is for you.Or if you want to see Christopher Lloyd drunk. Sometimes funny, sometimes cute, usually overdone.B+ ||Widescreen Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Backdraft|Ron Howard|Action||6.6|USA|1991| 132 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Raffaella De Laurentiis Larry DeWaay Pen Densham Brian Grazer Todd Hallowell Richard Barton Lewis John Watson|Gregory Widen |Mikael Salomon ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |One breath of oxygen and it explodes in a deadly rage.|A rookie firefighter tries to earn the respect of his older brother and other firefighters while taking part in an investigation of a string of arson/murders. This detailed look into the duties and private lives of firemen naturally features widespread pyrotechnics and special effects. As a child Brian McCafferty watched his firefighter father die. Years later he joins his brother, Steven in the force by becoming a rookie firefighter. There is a history of conflict between the two brothers that is heated up by working together. With this background, a series of suspicious fires are set, each made to kill a specific person. After becoming frightened at a fire, Brian pulls strings to get into an investigative office and finds that he is now not putting out the arsonist's fires, but trying to track him down. |Kurt Russell (Lieutenant Stephen 'Bull' McCaffrey & Dennis McCaffrey) @ William Baldwin (Brian McCaffrey) @ Robert De Niro (Lieutenant Donald 'Shadow' Rimgale) @ Donald Sutherland (Ronald Bartel) @ Jennifer Jason Leigh (Jennifer Vaitkus) @ Scott Glenn (Firefighter John 'Axe' Adcox) @ Rebecca De Mornay (Helen McCaffrey) @ Jason Gedrick (Tim Krizminski) @ J.T. Walsh (Alderman Marty Swayzak) @ Anthony Mockus Sr. (Chief John Fitzgerald (as Tony Mockus Sr.)) @ Cedric Young (Grindle) @ Juan Ramírez (Ray Santos) @ Kevin Casey (Nightingale) @ Jack McGee (Schmidt) @ Mark Wheeler (Pengelly) @ Richard Lexsee (Washington) @ Beep Iams (Sean McCaffrey) @ Ryan Todd (Brian (Age 7)) @ Robert Swan (Willy (Bartender)) @ Clint Howard (Ricco (Pathologist)) @ Ron West (Alan Seagrave (Backdraft Victim)) @ Kevin Crowley (Candidate) @ Carlos Sanz (Candidate) @ Harry Hutchinson (Candidate) @ David A.C. Saunders (Candidate) @ Jane Jenkins (Woman Psychiatrist) @ Tim Grimm (Man at Parole Board) @ David Crosby (70's Hippie) @ Mike Mangano (Firetruck Driver) @ Rick Reardon (Paramedic) @ Leslie A. Ford (Paramedic) @ W. Earl Brown (Paramedic) @ Robert F. Byrnes (Paramedic (as Robert F. Byrnes Jr.)) @ Kathryn Jaeck (Mannequin Fire Reporter) @ David Westgor (Mannequin Fire Reporter) @ James Ritz (Mannequin Fire Reporter) @ Joe Guastaferro (Donald Cosgrove, Backdraft Victim) @ Don Herion (Repairman) @ Tony Mockus Jr. (Jackson) @ Gregory Widen (Engine Lieutenant) @ Andrew Lipschultz (Man on Party Boat) @ Walter Williams (Security Guard) @ Bob Krzeminski (Captain) @ F. Pat Burns (Battalion Chief at Tenement Fire) @ Wanda Christine (Mother at Tenement Fire (as WandaChristine)) @ Anthony C. Ellis Jr. (Gasping Child at Tenement Fire) @ Peter C. Hobert Jr. (Probie) @ Zita Visockis (Grandma Vaitkus) @ Razz Jenkins (Photographer at Boat Party) @ Irma P. Hall (Nurse) @ Nydia Rodriguez Terracina (Nurse) @ Hollis Resnik (Sally) @ Don Rimgale (Party Crony) @ Dennis Liddiard (Party Brawler) @ David Lückenbach (Security Officer) @ Neil J. Francis Jr. (Cop #1) @ Andre Melchor (Cop #2) @ Karel King (Swayzak Aide #1) @ Scott Baity (Swayzak Aide #2) @ Gretchen Erickson (Bar Patron) @ Joan Esposito (Television Reporter) @ Bob Rice (Detective) @ Marcella DeTineo (Nurse) @ Jane MacIver (Retirement Party Schmoozer) @ Burton Stencel (Retirement Party Schmoozer) @ Robert Martell (Retirement Party Roaster) @ Tony G. Chrisos (Politico) @ Cay DeVos (Politico) @ Gregory Lundsgaard (High Rise Fireman) @ Charles Burns Jr. (Battalion Chief at Mannequin Fire) @ Louise Woolf (Falling Chair Lady) @ Ian A. Nevers (Nervous Probie) @ Kelsey E. McMahon (Child Rescued at 70's Fire) @ Fidel Moreno (70's Onlooker) @ Zan Heber (Reporter) @ Ilene Kwitny (Reporter) @ Jane Alderman (Reporter) @ Kevin Petersen (Doctor) @ Thomas A. Senderak (Fireman) @ Michael Allen Mark (Fireman rest of cast listed alphabetically John Duda .... Stephen (age 12)) @ Jackie Moran (Musician (uncredited)) @ Amy C. Morton (The Widow (uncredited)) @ Larry Nazimek (Police Officer (uncredited)) @ David Saunders (Candidate (uncredited) Produced by)||6.6 is about right This film is not great, but not bad.Better than a C+ I like the actors in this film.Very Ron Howardish, he make good films.The story is ok, but would I buy the video.No not a chance.My rating is 6/10 || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bad Santa|Terry Zwigoff|Comedy|Rated R for pervasive language, strong sexual content and some violence. (also director's cut) R|7.2|USA|2003|91 min/ USA:98 min (unrated version)|English||||||||||False||||||||10/24/2004|Sarah Aubrey John Cameron Ethan Coen Joel Coen David Crockett Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Brad Weston|Glenn Ficarra John Requa|Jamie Anderson ||Buena Vista Home Video (BVHV) [us] |He doesn't care if you're naughty or nice.|"Bad Santa" is the story of two conmen who go on a road trip to malls dressed as Santa and his elf. Rather than spreading good cheer, the duo's motive is to rob each establishment, a strategy that becomes complicated when they encounter an 8-year-old who teaches them the true meaning of Christmas. It is the height of the festive holiday season and merry shoppers have begun their yearly pilgrimages to their local malls. Among the drove is a pair of con men, on a decadent road trip as Santa and his elf. Rather than spreading good cheer, the duo's motive is to rob each establishment, a strategy that becomes complicated when they encounter a precocious 8-year old that teaches them the true meaning of Christmas. Santa and his little helper are confidence men casing a mall all holiday season and robbing it blind Christmas Eve. The elf "shops" the stores while Santa cracks the mall safe. Following them through one last season of perverse holiday cheer you hear the 'f' word more frequently than in Scarface. We meet a woman bartender who has always had a thing for Santas, and a little boy who evokes genuine emotional change in Santa. When Santa gets a conscience it ends up saving him in the end. |Billy Bob Thornton (Willie) @ Tony Cox (Marcus) @ Brett Kelly (The Kid) @ Lauren Graham (Sue) @ Lauren Tom (Lois) @ Bernie Mac (Gin) @ John Ritter (Bob Chipeska) @ Ajay Naidu (Hindustani Troublemaker) @ Lorna Scott (Milwaukee Mother) @ Harrison Bieker (Milwaukee Boy) @ Alex Borstein (Milwaukee Mom with Photo) @ Dylan Charles (Milwaukee Bratty Boy) @ Billy Gardell (Milwaukee Security Guard) @ Lisa Ross (Milwaukee Bartender) @ Bryan Callen (Miami Bartender (as Brian Callen)) @ Tom McGowan (Harrison) @ Grace Calderon (Woman in Tight Pants) @ Christine Pichardo (Photo Elf) @ Max Van Ville (Skateboard Bully) @ Bucky Dominick (Deer Hunter 3 Boy) @ Georgia Eskew (Barbie Girl) @ Hayden Bromberg (Fraggle-Stick Boy) @ Briana Norton (Pinball Girl) @ Octavia Spencer (Opal (as Octavia L. Spencer)) @ Ryan Pinkston (Shoplifter) @ Hallie Singleton (Woman in Food Court) @ Matt Walsh (Herb) @ Natsuko Ohama (Pedicurist) @ Dave Adams (Prison Guard) @ Ethan Phillips (Roger Merman) @ Joey Saravia (Pokemon Child) @ Cody Strauch (Watching Boy) @ Curtis Taylor (Phoenix Security Guard) @ John Bunnell (Police Chief (as Sheriff John Bunnell)) @ Chloe Colville (Crying Girl) @ Joe Bucaro III (Sergeant (as Joey Bucaro)) @ Alexandra Korhan (Girl on Santa's Lap rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Dylan Cash (Kid on Bike (uncredited)) @ Cloris Leachman (Grandma (uncredited)Produced by||The Movie Santa Claus Doesn't Want You to See! [CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!] Meet Willie. A disgruntled, alcoholic con man. He and his diminutive partner, Marcus, have a part time gig playing Santa Claus and his elf at the mall. And, one night, when everybody goes home and the security system is set, Marcus sneaks in and deactivates the system then while Willie cracks the safe and steals all the cash, Marcus steals the baubles from the shelves. Marcus' girlfriend, Lois, waits outside with the van and then they take off. Willie decided he'd like to use his share of the money to open a bar on Miami Beach. That idea soon failed and then around December, Willie got a call from Marcus so it was back to the Santa gig at a mall in Phoenix. The mall manager, Bob Chipeska, became nervous about his new Santa. Especially when "Santa" used the f-word right in front of him. Chipeska tells the store detective, Gin, about it and he agreed to keep a tight watch on him. Willie played his usual surly Santa who couldn't give a horse's patoot what the kids wanted for Christmas. Some kid even threw up on him. One kid who sat on his lap was a rotund, mentally challenged boy named Thurman Merman. One night while Willie's motel room was raided by Gin, he decided to crash at Thurman's place. The house was huge! It was only Thurman and his grandmother living there. His mother had passed away and his dad was in prison. Thurman talked endlessly to Willie and offered to make him a sandwich. Willie even robbed the safe and "borrowed" Thurman's dad's BMW. Willie meets a beautiful girl at a bar named Sue and the two immediately get it on. Chipeska even caught Willie "fornicating" in the large women's dressing rooms. He threatened to fire Willie and Marcus, but Willie convinced him that since Marcus was African American and a midget, Chipeska would look like a racist, so the cons kept their jobs. Willie continued to be a surly Santa to kids, ignore Thurman and drink like a fish and smoke like a chimney. And poor Thurman got picked on on a daily basis. Thurman was fond of a Christmas tear-away calendar. Each day, you tore off a page and it told another part of the Christmas Story and a candy was at the bottom. After a date with Sue, Willie tore apart the calendar and ate every last candy. In an act of regret, he replaced them with candy corns and aspirins; Gin discovered Willie and Marcus' past history and wanted in on their scams. He demanded 50% and was denied. Willie and Marcus get into a huge fight and the next day, Willie, drunk, beat up the Styrofoam animals at the Santa set-up. Thurman is beat up by the kids again. So Willie beats them up and teaches Thurman self defense with Marcus, and the result was all three of them being kicked in the groin. Deep down inside, Willie began to feel for Thurman, although he wouldn't show it on the surface. Late one night, Marcus lures Gin into a trap and kills him. Then one night, Willie, Marcus and Lois decide to rob the mall so after it closes for the night, Marcus shuts off the security system and they make their moves. Willie has a difficult time cracking the uncrackable safe. Then he tries to steal a purple elephant as a present for Thurman when suddenly Marcus pulls a gun on him. Just as he's about to shoot, some undercover detectives pop up. Willie runs. The cops chase and gun down Willie just before he can deliver Thurman his present. Well, in the end, Willie didn't die, fortunately. Marcus and Lois went to prison and Willie didn't have to because his name was cleared. And until his father returned home from prison, Thurman was appointed a guardian: Sue. And soon Willie would be out of the hospital, but he did send Thurman a bike for Christmas and Thurman, he finally stood up to those awful bullies. What can I say? Except this movie was really funny! Billy Bob Thornton was very funny! He was a riot! Tony Cox was very good too, so were Bernie Mac, John Ritter, Brett Kelly and Lauren Graham. I'm sorry to say that this is John Ritter's final film. We lost him in September 2003. He was a good actor and will be sadly missed. Thornton and Ritter also starred in 1996's Sling Blade, one of the BEST movies ever made! Billy Bob Thornton is such a good actor. But as you may of heard, this movie is not for kids!! There's non-stop cursing and some very off-color humor! But for all us big people, this is a good movie to watch at Christmastime. Another good Christmas movie this year, which IS for the family, is Elf with Will Ferrell. I recommend that one too. So anyway, in conclusion, if you like Billy Bob Thornton, I recommend Bad Santa and Sling Blade. You'll love them both! This movie also had alot of heart. Even though Willie was gruff on the outside, he had feelings for people inside. So see it today! I recommend Bad Santa! A barrel of laughs! - || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Banger Sisters, The|Bob Dolman|Comedy|Rated R for language, sexual content and some drug use. |5.7|USA|2002| USA:98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David L. Bushell Elizabeth Cantillon Mark Johnson|Bob Dolman |Karl Walter Lindenlaub ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Some friendships last forever... like it or not. |When fiftysomething Suzette loses her job as a bartender she decides to make a road trip to visit her old friend Vinnie who she hasn't seen since their days as groupies back in the day. On the way she meets Harry, a nervous writer who says he is going home to confront his father, then shows her his gun. Once they reach their destination Suzette finds that Vinnie is now Lavinia, a conservative housewife who is reluctant to reexperience the flower power of her youth, and Harry finds confrontation with himself rather than with his father. |Goldie Hawn (Suzette) @ Susan Sarandon (Lavinia Kingsley) @ Geoffrey Rush (Harry Plummer) @ Erika Christensen (Hannah Kingsley) @ Robin Thomas (Raymond Kingsley) @ Eva Amurri (Ginger Kingsley) @ Matthew Carey (Jules) @ Andre Ware (Jake) @ Adam Tomei (Club Owner) @ Sal Lopez (Pump Attendant) @ Kohl Sudduth (Hotel Clerk) @ Tinsley Grimes (Prom Girl) @ Larry Krask (Man in Bar) @ Marlayna Garrett (Young Groupie) @ Josh Todd (L.A. Buckcherry Band Member) @ Yugomir Lonich (L.A. Buckcherry Band Member) @ Keith Nelson (L.A. Buckcherry Band Member) @ Devon Glenn (L.A. Buckcherry Band Member) @ Jonathan 'JB' Brighman (L.A. Buckcherry Band Member (as Jonathan Brightman) Produced by||High Expectations Lead To A Major Disappointment I usually enjoy Goldie Hawn's work. Although I personally wouldn't consider her a mega-star, she's usually funny and provides a pleasant diversion. And I assumed that, teamed with Susan Sarandon (who I do consider a serious actress) I thought this would be a very good movie. Instead, I found it to be thoroughly unpleasant, filled with unlikeable characters and at best a few chuckles to help the viewer struggle through. The basic story is that Suzette and Vinnie (Hawn and Sarandon) were close friends back in their younger days; groupies, in fact, who had bedded a series of well known rock stars (thus the name "banger sisters.") Suzette has never changed much, while Vinnie (now Lavinia) has married rich and become quite conservative, with a couple of unfortunately snotty brats as kids. For no real reason that I could discern, Geoffrey Rush is included as Harry, who becomes a sort-of relationship for Suzette. What turned me off the most I guess was the moral perspective of the story. Geoffrey was very conservative. Unmarried, the man hadn't had sex in ten years! Suzette, of course, has to fix that. No sex outside marriage? Horrible! And, of course, being conservative he's also insane. Lavinia, of course, having given up her wild ways for a more conservative life also has to be fixed by Suzette. How dare she be upset when she discovers her teenage daughter having sex in the pool at home with her boyfriend. Suzette was the fixer, the normal one. The point was typical liberal Hollywood (and I don't usually rail against this, but it was just too obvious and blatant here): if you're not having sex with everything that moves there's something wrong with you, and if you for some reason choose to lead a more straight-laced conservative lifestyle you'll be skewered with a dysfunctional family and all other sorts of nastiness and you just won't be "yourself." Please. This was dreadful stuff. 2/10 || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Batman|Tim Burton|Action|PG-13 |7.3|USA|1989|126 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Peter Guber Barbara Kalish Chris Kenny Benjamin Melniker Jon Peters Michael E. Uslan|Bob Kane Sam Hamm Sam Hamm Warren Skaaren|Roger Pratt ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||Gotham City: dark, dangerous, 'protected' only by a mostly corrupt police department. Despite the best efforts of D.A. Harvey Dent and police commissioner Jim Gordon, the city becomes increasingly unsafe...until a Dark Knight arises. We all know criminals are a superstitious, cowardly lot...so his disguise must be able to strike terror into their hearts. He becomes a bat. Enter Vicky Vale, a prize-winning photo journalist who wants to uncover the secret of the mysterious "bat-man". And enter Jack Napier, one-time enforcer for Boss Grissom, horribly disfigured after a firefight in a chemical factory...who, devoid of the last vestiges of sanity, seizes control of Gotham's underworld as the psychotic, unpredictable Clown Prince of Crime...the Joker. Gotham's only hope, it seems, lies in this dark, brooding vigilante. And just how does billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne fit into all of this? After a young boy witnesses his parents' murder on the streets of Gotham City, he grows up to become the Batman - a mysterious figure in the eyes of Gotham's citizens - who takes crime-fighting into his own hands. He first emerges out of the shadows when the Joker appears - a horribly disfigured individual who is out for revenge on his former employer and generally likes to have a good time - but the identity of the `bat' is unknown. Perhaps millionaire Bruce Wayne and photographer Vicki Vale have a good chance of finding out? |Michael Keaton (Batman/Bruce Wayne) @ Jack Nicholson (The Joker/Jack Napier) @ Kim Basinger (Vicki Vale) @ Robert Wuhl (Alexander Knox) @ Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon) @ Billy Dee Williams (D.A. Harvey Dent) @ Michael Gough (Alfred Pennyworth) @ Jack Palance (Boss Carl Grissom) @ Jerry Hall (Alicia Hunt) @ Tracey Walter (Bob the Goon) @ Lee Wallace (Mayor William Borg) @ William Hootkins (Lt. Max Eckhardt) @ Richard Strange (Goon) @ Carl Chase (Goon) @ Mac McDonald (Goon) @ George Lane Cooper (Lawrence the Goon) @ Terence Plummer (Goon) @ Philip Tan (Goon) @ John Sterland (Grissom's Accountant) @ Edwin Craig (Antoine Rotelli) @ Vincent Wong (Crimelord 1) @ Joel Cutrara (Crimelord 2) @ John Dair (Ricorso) @ Christopher Fairbank (Nic, 2nd Mugger) @ George Roth (Eddie, 1st Mugger) @ Kate Harper (Anchorwoman) @ Bruce McGuire (Peter McElroy, Anchorman) @ Richard Durden (TV Director) @ Kit Hollerbach (Becky, Action News Reporter) @ Lachelle Carl (Renèe, TV Technician) @ Del Baker (Napier Hood) @ Jazzer Jeyes (Napier Hood) @ Wayne Michaels (Napier Hood) @ Valentino Musetti (Napier Hood) @ Rocky Taylor (Napier Hood) @ Keith Edwards (Reporter) @ Leon Herbert (Reporter At City Hall) @ Steve Plytas (Plastic Surgeon) @ Anthony Wellington (Robert, Patrolman At Party) @ Amir M. Korangy (Wine Steward (as Amir Korangy)) @ Hugo Blick (Young Jack Napier (as Hugo E. Blick)) @ Charles Roskilly (Young Bruce Wayne) @ Philip O'Brien (Maitre d' at Museum) @ Michael Balfour (Scientist At Axis Chemicals) @ Liza Ross (Tourist Mom) @ Garrick Hagon (Tourist Dad, Harold) @ Adrian Meyers (Tourist Son, Jimmy) @ David Baxt (Dr. Thomas Wayne) @ Sharon Holm (Mrs. Martha Wayne) @ Clyde Gatell (Other Mugger) @ Jon Soresi (Medic) @ Sam Douglas (Gangster Lawyer) @ Elliott Stein (Man in Crowd) @ Denis Lill (Bob the Globe Cartoonist) @ Paul Birchard (Another Reporter) @ Paul Michael (Young Cop At Axis Chemicals) @ Carl Newman (Movement Double rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Pat Gorman (Cop At Axis Chemicals (uncredited)Produced by||The best of the modern "Batman" movies, Keaton and Nicholson shine. I bought the "Batman(1989)" DVD this week, the price has fallen to below $10USA in our favorite discount stores, and this budget DVD has a Dolby 5.1 sound track.This is far and away the winner among the current series of Batman movies that began with this one. The IMDb votes reflect this -- "Batman(89)" at 7.2, "Batman Returns(92)" at 6.3, "Batman Forever(95)" with Val Kilmer at 5.3, and "Batman and Robin(97) with George Clooney at 3.5.In fact, many reviewers consider this last Batman movie one of the worst films of all time!! The story in Batman is simple. The Joker (Jack Nicholson, in one of his better roles) is just a bad guy. He almost dies in a vat of acid but a plastic surgeon fixes him up. He is set upon wreaking havoc in Gotham City. Eventually Batman/Bruce Wayne figures out the Joker (Jack Napier) had killed his parents on the street years earlier, and this ignites his vengeance. The side story is the developing love affair between Vicky (Kim Basinger) and Wayne. This film is classic "comic book turned to film" without looking too much like a comic book. Except for certain scenes in a British mansion and an abandoned chemical plant, the bulk of the movie was filmed on a very large set in London. Gotham is given a very sinister-looking atmosphere which comes off perfectly for this story. The 5.1 surround track is nice, but no where near the quality of more recent movies filmed specifically for surround sound. The extras are spartan, but overall at this price a DVD to own for anyone who is a fan of the old Batman comics. A very good DVD of a very good film. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Batman & Robin|Joel Schumacher|Action|Rated PG-13 for strong stylized action and some innuendos. PG-13|3.6|USA|1997|125 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Mitchell E. Dauterive William M. Elvin Peter MacGregor-Scott Benjamin Melniker Michael E. Uslan|Bob Kane Akiva Goldsman|Stephen Goldblatt ||Warner Bros. Española S.A. [es] |Strength. Courage. Honor. And loyalty. On June 20, it ALL comes together...|Mr. Freeze plans on taking Gotham City hostage by freezing the town into a permanent winter. In the meantime, a new seductive villainous, Poison Ivy, has appeared to cause a rift in the partnership of Batman & Robin. While all this is happening, faithful butler Alfred is dying. Mr. Freeze holds the key to save his life. Enter Batgirl to help save the day. In Wayne Manor, Batman, Robin, and Batgirl must find a cure for Alfred's mysterious disease while saving Gotham City from Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze who join forces in an attempt to freeze the world leaving it to the plants. Batman & Robin return to battle three villains: Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, and Bane. They are joined by Alfred's niece, Batgirl. Now they must join together and save the city. Chills and thrills: Will Mr. Freeze put Gotham City on ice? George Clooney is Batman in an adventure that pits the Dark Knight against his deadliest threat yet: cold-hearted Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and venomous Poison Ivy (Uma Thruman). Batman has more than Gotham City to protect: the youthful eagerness of crimefighting comrades Robin (Chris O'Donnell) and Batgirl (Alicia Silverstone) puts them frequently in harm's way. |Arnold Schwarzenegger (Mr. Freeze (Dr. Victor Fries)) @ George Clooney (Batman (Bruce Wayne)) @ Chris O'Donnell (Robin (Dick Grayson)) @ Uma Thurman (Poison Ivy (Dr. Pamela Isley)) @ Alicia Silverstone (Batgirl (Barbara Wilson)) @ Michael Gough (Alfred Pennyworth) @ Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon) @ John Glover (Dr. Jason Woodrue) @ Elle Macpherson (Julie Madison) @ Vivica A. Fox (Ms. B. Haven) @ Vendela Kirsebom (Nora Fries (as Vendela K. Thommessen)) @ Elizabeth Sanders (Gossip Gerty) @ Jeep Swenson (Bane) @ John Fink (Aztec Museum Guard) @ Michael Reid MacKay (Antonio Diego) @ Eric Lloyd (Young Bruce Wayne) @ Jon Simmons (Young Alfred) @ Christian Boeving (1st Snowy Cones Thug) @ Stogie Kenyatta (2nd Snowy Cones Thug) @ Andy LaCombe (3rd Snowy Cones Thug) @ Joe Sabatino (Frosty) @ Michael Paul Chan (Observatory Scientist) @ Kimberly Scott (Observatory Associate) @ Jay Luchs (Observatory Reporter) @ Roger Nehls (Observatory Reporter) @ Anthony E. Cantrell (Observatory Press) @ Alex Daniels (Observatory Guard) @ Peter Navy Tuiasosopo (Observatory Guard) @ Harry Van Gorkum (MC) @ Sandra Taylor (Debutante) @ Elizabeth Guber (Debutante) @ Jack Betts (Party Guest) @ Marc Glimcher (Party Guest) @ Mark Leahy (Party Guest (as Mark P. Leahy)) @ Jim McMullan (Party Guest) @ Patrick Leahy (Himself (as Senator Patrick Leahy)) @ Jesse Ventura (Arkham Asylum Guard) @ Ralf Moeller (Arkham Asylum Guard) @ Doug Hutchison (Golum) @ Tobias Jelinek (Motorcycle Gang Member) @ Greg Lauren (Motorcycle Gang Member) @ Dean Cochran (Motorcycle Gang Member) @ Coolio (Banker) @ Nicky Katt (Spike) @ Lucas Berman (Tough Boy Biker) @ Uzi Gal (1st Cop) @ Howard Velasco (2nd Cop) @ Bruce Roberts (Handsome Cop) @ John Ingle (Doctor) @ Azikiwee Anderson (Ice Thug) @ Michael Bernardo (Ice Thug) @ Steve Blalock (Ice Thug) @ Steve Boyles (Ice Thug) @ David Cardoza (Ice Thug (as Dave Cardoza)) @ Christopher Caso (Ice Thug) @ Mark Chadwick (Ice Thug) @ Danny Costa (Ice Thug) @ Simon Kim (Ice Thug) @ Todd Grossman (Ice Thug) @ James Hardy (Ice Thug) @ Steven Ito (Ice Thug) @ Dennis Keiffer (Ice Thug) @ Stephan Desjardins (Ice Thug) @ James Kim (Ice Thug) @ Dennis Lefevre (Ice Thug) @ Jean-Luc Martin (Ice Thug (as Jean Luc Martin)) @ Cory M. Miller (Ice Thug) @ Chris C. Mitchell (Ice Thug (as Chris Mitchell)) @ Christopher Nelson (Ice Thug) @ Jim Palmer (Ice Thug) @ Jeff Podgurski (Ice Thug) @ Robert Powell (Ice Thug) @ Chris Sayour (Ice Thug) @ Don Sinnar (Ice Thug) @ Paul Sklar (Ice Thug) @ Takis Triggelis (Ice Thug rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Casper Brindle (Freeze henchman (uncredited)) @ Eva Ford (Observatory Reporter (uncredited)) @ Khristian Lupo (Ice Thug (uncredited)Produced by||A chilling chapter of the Dynamic Duo The fourth chapter in the Batman series is full of great special effects, some fine performances, but also stretches out a character that for me has lost it's appeal in some way. Eight years before this film, the original Batman was brought to our attention, which I believe it did capture. But the films to follow don't live up to it‘s predecessor, unfortunately. Chills and thrills: Will Gotham City be put on ice? The Dark Knight battles his greatest threat yet: Cold-Hearted Mr Freeze and the venomous Poison Ivy. Batman has more than Gotham City to protect: the youthful eagerness of crimefighting comrades Robin and Batgirl puts them frequently in harm's way. Can the heroic trio save Gotham? Or will Mother Nature have her way and evil freeze the world? In Batman and Robin, I still feel that the bad guys capture the audience's attention. No character is more dominant in any of the films like the chilling Mr Freeze, played by Hollywood superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger. But to be fair, his character requires it, just like the Joker and Riddler did in previous films. Arnie was well casted as Mr Freeze. Even better was the way that his character was brought to the big screen. I must admit it would have been difficult to wear the freeze suit. Schwarzenegger acted the role of Mr Freeze just nicely and I don't think that anyone else could have done this role any better. His evil partner in Batman 4 was Poison Ivy and her sidekick ‘Baine'. Playing the deadly Ivy, was Uma Thurman. She was gorgeous in this role. Though I do feel that some of her lines in this film were clichéd. Poison Ivy as a character was exceptionally portrayed by Thurman. I loved the way her character used her feminine wiles to trap innocent men and poison them. Plus her hideout was cleverly constructed. The good guys in Batman and Robin include a couple of new faces. Batman/Bruce Wayne this time around was former ER star George Clooney. As good as George was as the Dark Knight, I feel that he didn't suit the role of Batman. Batman is supposed to be a little scary towards his enemies, yet Clooney at no stage was scary to me. He needs credit though as he had injured an ankle in a basketball match during filming of this movie and you wouldn't even have known that he had. Good again as Robin was Chris O'Donnell, but the only part of his role which did floor it a bit, was how Batman didn't trust him. The movie could have been a lot better if this conflict between the good guys didn't happen. I must admit the storyline in this Batman was ok. The introduction of Batgirl/Barbara Wilson (played by the gorgeous Alicia Silverstone) was well done. I especially like how Barbara was a little wild and took a risk or two (eg. like her motorbike racing). Even the way she became Batgirl was quite good. Again the right choice of actor was made for this character. The one saving grace for all the Batman movies would have to be that Alfred was played by Michael Gough in all four films. As good as he was in the first three films, his role was fantastic in Batman and Robin. Portraying a sick and dying man, yet still willing to serve his master to the very letter, was true testimony to Gough. Credit must also go to the writers of Batman and Robin as the story was quite compelling, especially in the roles of Mr Freeze and Alfred. Director Joel Schumacher again directs Batman, withoutproducer Tim Burton at his side, and here in lies a problem with this film. Again the set doesn't have the true Gotham City feel to it, with it being too light. The Mr Freeze character did effect the way that Gotham had to look. Same has to be said with the character of Poison Ivy as her character required plenty of light also. The Batcave is something which has also lost its creepiness as each movie was made. Yet, the special effects in Batman and Robin are of the finest quality. The way Mr Freeze hurts people, the scene with the Dynamic Duo skysurfing and how Gotham is frozen was spectacular to watch.The vehicles in this Batman were good. The new Batmobile, Batcraft and Batbike were all impressive, as was the vehicle which Mr Freeze drove around. The Batman story this time around is only good as it razzles and dazzles the audience. But no movie can survive on Special effects alone and this movie requires the special effects to do so. I must also push that Michael Keaton made the right choice to leave the Batman movies when he did. The men to play Batman after him haven't been anywhere near as good, as have the movies. If you are die-hard Batman fan watch this film, because I say you will enjoy it! Rating: 3.5 Stars or 7/10 || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Batman Forever|Joel Schumacher|Action|Rated PG-13 for strong stylized action. PG-13|5.4|USA|1995|122 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/13/2004|Tim Burton Mitchell E. Dauterive Peter MacGregor-Scott Benjamin Melniker Michael E. Uslan|Bob Kane Lee Batchler Janet Scott Batchler Lee Batchler Janet Scott Batchler Akiva Goldsman|Stephen Goldblatt ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Courage now, truth always....|The Dark Knight of Gotham City confronts a dastardly duo: Two-Face and the Riddler. Formerly District Attorney Harvey Dent, Two-Face incorrectly believes Batman caused the courtroom accident which left him disfigured on one side; he has unleashed a reign of terror on the good people of Gotham. Edward Nygma, computer-genius and former employee of millionaire Bruce Wayne, is out to get the philanthropist; as The Riddler he perfects a device for draining information from all the brains in Gotham, including Bruce Wayne's knowledge of his other identity. Batman/Wayne is/are the love focus of Dr. Chase Meridan. Former circus acrobat Dick Grayson, his family killed by Two-Face, becomes Wayne's ward and Batman's new partner Robin the Boy Wonder. Batman's third film follows the practice of the second by giving him two villains to face, Two-Face and the Riddler. Two-Face blames Batman for his disfigurement and simply wishes him dead. The Riddler is a disgruntled inventor who worked for Wayne Enterprises and is terribly jealous of Wayne's success and sophistication and uses his riddles to show his superiority over Wayne and Batman. Added to this mix are a sexy abnormal psychologist who is not only studying the criminals, but has a thing for Batman as well and Dick Grayson, (Robin) is introduced. Gotham is still a dark and foreboding place in which Batman begins to come to grips with his own psychology as he relives the deaths of his parents in his dreams. The caped crusader returns to fight Two-Face and The Riddler, whilst pursuing the lovely Chase Meridian. Trusty superhero sidekick Robin makes his first appearance in this movie series. Two-Face just wants Batman dead and The Riddler is happy to help him. DA Harvey Dent is hideously scarred down one side, by an acid attack. The result is 2 personalities and 2 faces. Ideal qualifications for a politician you might think, but Two-face's only policy is vengeance on Batman. He teams up with Edward Nygma, a technical wizard who invents a brain-sucking TV and adopts the alto-ego of The Riddler. MEANWHILE...in the circus, Dick Grayson witnesses his acrobat family plummet earthwards and get a taste for sawdust. Two-face is to blame but Dick trades his anger for a rubber suit and becomes Robin. Two bad guys, two good guys and 8 personas. Riddle me this, riddle me that, you'll find adventure on the wings of a bat! Val Kilmer (Batman), Tommy Lee Jone (Two-Face), Jim Carrey (the Riddler), Nicole Kidman (Dr. Chase Meridian) and Chris O'Donnell (Robin) star in the third film in Warner Bros.' Batman series that thunders along on Batmobile, Batwing, Batboat, Batsub and bold heroics. |Val Kilmer (Batman (Bruce Wayne)) @ Tommy Lee Jones (Two-Face/Harvey Dent) @ Jim Carrey (The Riddler/Edward Nygma) @ Nicole Kidman (Dr. Chase Meridian) @ Chris O'Donnell (Robin (Dick Grayson)) @ Michael Gough (Alfred Pennyworth) @ Pat Hingle (Commissioner James Gordon) @ Drew Barrymore (Sugar) @ Debi Mazar (Spice) @ Elizabeth Sanders (Gossip Gerty) @ Rene Auberjonois (Dr. Burton) @ Joe Grifasi (Bank Guard) @ Philip Moon (Newscaster) @ Jessica Tuck (Female Newscaster) @ Dennis Paladino (Crime Boss Moroni) @ Kimberly Scott (Margaret) @ Michael Paul Chan (Executive) @ Jon Favreau (Assistant) @ Greg Lauren (Aide) @ Ramsey Ellis (Young Bruce Wayne) @ Michael Scranton (Thomas Wayne) @ Eileen Seeley (Martha Wayne) @ David U. Hodges (Jack Napier) @ Jack Betts (Fisherman) @ Tim Jackson (Municipal Police Guard) @ Daniel Reichert (The Ringmaster) @ Glory Fioramonti (Mom Grayson) @ Larry A. Lee (Dad Grayson) @ Bruce Roberts (Handsome Reporter) @ George Wallace (The Mayor) @ Bob Zmuda (Electronic Store Owner) @ Rebecca Budig (Teenage Girl) @ Don 'The Dragon' Wilson (Gang Leader) @ Sydney D. Minckler (Teen Gang Member) @ Maxine Jones (Girl on Corner #1) @ Terry Ellis (Girl on Corner #2) @ Cindy Herron (Girl on Corner #3) @ Dawn Robinson (Girl on Corner #4) @ Gary Kasper (Pilot) @ Amanda Trees (Paparazzi Reporter) @ Andrea Fletcher (Reporter) @ Ria Coyne (Socialite) @ Jed Curtis (Chubby Businessman) @ William Mesnik (Bald Guy) @ Marga Gómez (Journalist (as Marga Gomez)) @ Kelly Vaughn (Showgirl) @ John Fink (Deputy) @ Noby Arden (Trapeze Act) @ Marlene Bologna (Trapeze Act) @ Danny Castle (Trapeze Act) @ Troy S. Wolfe (Trapeze Act) @ Christopher Caso (Harvey's Thug) @ Gary Clayton (Harvey's Thug) @ Oscar Dillon (Harvey's Thug) @ Keith Graham (Harvey's Thug) @ Kevin Grevioux (Harvey's Thug) @ Mark Hicks (Harvey's Thug (as Mark A. Hicks)) @ Corey Jacoby (Harvey's Thug) @ Randy Lamb (Harvey's Thug) @ Maurice Lamont (Harvey's Thug) @ Sidney S. Liufau (Harvey's Thug) @ Brad Martin (Harvey's Thug) @ Deron McBee (Harvey's Thug) @ Mario Mugavero (Harvey's Thug) @ Joey Nelson (Harvey's Thug) @ Jim Palmer (Harvey's Thug) @ Robert Powell (Harvey's Thug (as Robert Pavell)) @ Pee Wee Piemonte (Harvey's Thug (as Peewee Piemonte)) @ Peter Radon (Harvey's Thug) @ François Rodrigue (Harvey's Thug) @ Joe Sabatino (Harvey's Thug) @ Michael Sabatino (Harvey's Thug (as Mike Sabatino)) @ Ofer Samra (Harvey's Thug) @ Matt Sigloch (Harvey's Thug) @ Mike Smith (Harvey's Thug rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ed Begley Jr. (Fred Stickley (uncredited)) @ Katrina Fisher (Wig Lady (uncredited)Produced by||Schumacher kills off the Batman franchise Bruce Wayne and his young ward Dick Grayson tackle crime as Batman and Robin.When villains Two-Face and the Riddler team up to take over Gotham City by beating Batman, the dynamic duo find themselves in a battle for the city. This third of the series rings the alarm bells early when the credits tell us that Burton is out and thoughtless crowd pleaser Schumacher is in!If that's not bad enough Keaton is replaced by Val Kilmer.The story to this makes the first two films look like Shakespeare.Here the script is pointless and any character development is thrown out the window.The story is little more than an excuse for two things, 1 - big action scenes and 2 - big hammy performances from whoever is playing the villains this time.As such it doesn't do anything new.The main loss is the loss of darkness - Schumacher maximises the audience by making it kiddie friendly and losing any edge the original had. The action scenes are all OTT and mere spectacle, but they lack tension and excitement and it's really hard to care.Outside of the spectacle we are left with the performances.Carrey is good if you like his brand of mugging, but he does get tiresome in his cartoon character role.Jones is wasted as Two-Face and is forced to sit in the shadow of Carrey's ham.Kilmer is a non-entity, Batman comes second to the villains and the attempts to give him a character are ham-fisted and clumsy.Kidman is a stupid love interest and there is no chemistry between her and Kilmer.O'Donnell is OK but did we need a Robin? Overall this is a step away from the comic book and a leap towards the camp 1960's Batman.Schumacher takes what should be a dark, almost disturbing story of a man who is not too far removed from the super-villains he must catch and turns it into a childish ill-formed Happy Meal.Terrible. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Beautiful Mind, A|Ron Howard|Drama|Rated PG-13 for intense thematic material, sexual content and a scene of violence. PG-13|7.8|USA|2001|135 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/7/2004|Brian Grazer Todd Hallowell Ron Howard Karen Kehela Kathleen McGill Maureen Peyrot Aldric La'Auli Porter Louisa Velis|Sylvia Nasar Akiva Goldsman|Roger Deakins ||DreamWorks Distribution LLC [us] |He Saw The World In A Way No One Could Have Imagined.|A biopic of the meteoric rise of John Forbes Nash Jr., a math prodigy able to solve problems that baffled the greatest of minds. And how he overcame years of suffering through schizophrenia to win the Nobel Prize. From the heights of notoriety to the depths of depravity, John Forbes Nash, Jr. experienced it all. A mathematical genius, he made an astonishing discovery early in his career and stood on the brink of international acclaim. But the handsome and arrogant Nash soon found himself on a painful and harrowing journey of self-discovery. After many years of struggle, he eventually triumphed over his tragedy, and finally - late in life - received the Nobel Prize. |Russell Crowe (John Nash) @ Ed Harris (William Parcher) @ Jennifer Connelly (Alicia Larde Nash) @ Christopher Plummer (Dr. Rosen) @ Paul Bettany (Charles Herman) @ Adam Goldberg (Sol) @ Josh Lucas (Martin Hansen) @ Anthony Rapp (Bender) @ Jason Gray-Stanford (Ainsley) @ Judd Hirsch (Prof. Helinger) @ Austin Pendleton (Thomas King) @ Vivien Cardone (Marcee Herman) @ Jill M. Simon (Bar Co-Ed) @ Victor Steinbach (Prof. Horner) @ Tanya Clarke (Becky) @ Thomas F. Walsh (Captain) @ Jesse Doran (General) @ Kent Cassella (Analyst) @ Patrick Blindauer (MIT Student) @ John Blaylock (Photographer) @ Roy Thinnes (Governor) @ Anthony Easton (Young Man) @ Cheryl Howard (Harvard Administrator) @ Rance Howard (White-Haired Patient) @ Jane Jenkins (Code-Red Nurse (as JJ Chaback)) @ Darius Stone (Adjunct) @ Josh Pais (Princeton Professor) @ Alex Toma (Toby Keller) @ Valentina Cardinalli (Joyce) @ Teagle F. Bougere (Young Professor) @ David B. Allen (John Nash, Jr. (Teenager)) @ Michael Esper (John Nash, Jr. (Young Man)) @ Catharina Eva Burkley (Girl at Bar) @ Amy Walz (Blond in Bar) @ Tracey Toomey (Brunette) @ Jennifer Weedon (Brunette) @ Yvonne Thomas (Brunette) @ Holly Pitrago (Brunette) @ Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld (Pen Ceremony Professor (as Isadore Rosenfeld)) @ Tommy Allen (Pen Ceremony Professor (as Thomas C. Allen)) @ Dave Bayer (Pen Ceremony Professor) @ Brian Keith Lewis (Pen Ceremony Professor) @ Tom McNutt (Pen Ceremony Professor) @ Will Dunham (Pen Ceremony Professor) @ Glenn H. Roberts (Pen Ceremony Professor (as Glenn Roberts)) @ Ed Jupp Jr. (Pen Ceremony Professor (as Ed Jupp)) @ Christopher Stockton (Princeton Student) @ Gregory Dress (Princeton Student) @ Carla Occhiogrosso (Princeton Student) @ Matt Samson (Princeton Student) @ Lyena Nomura (Princeton Student) @ Kathleen Fellegara (Insulin Treatment Nurse) @ Betsy Klompus (Insulin Treatment Nurse) @ Stelio Savante (Technician) @ Logan McCall (Technician) @ Bob Broder (Technician rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Reggie Austin (Max - Pen Ceremony Professor (uncredited)) @ Lloyd Baskin (Professor (uncredited)) @ Cade Bittner (Harvard Student (uncredited)) @ James Thomas Bligh (Nobel Prize Attendee (uncredited)) @ Dan Chen (Nobel Prize Ceremony Guest (uncredited)) @ Scott Fernstrom (Trent Humphres (uncredited)) @ Gregory Gordon (Student (uncredited)) @ Jason Horton (Princeton Student (uncredited)) @ Ron Howard (Man at Gouverners Ball (uncredited)) @ Reed Penney (MIT Student (uncredited)) @ Michael C. Pierce (Radio Operator (uncredited)) @ Mills Pierre (Princeton Student (uncredited)) @ Susan Quigley (Nobel Prize Attendee (uncredited)) @ Glenn Roberts (Professor #4 (uncredited)) @ Russ Russo (Paul (uncredited)) @ Ned Stuart (Professor (uncredited)) @ Dave Sweeney (Campus Cop (uncredited)) @ Alex Tanaka (Student admirer (uncredited)) @ John H. Tobin (Shadow Figure (uncredited)) @ Erik Van Wyck (Princeton Student (uncredited)Produced by||Kitsch By Design For the first time, it appears possible that Ron Howard has been misunderstood as a director. A Beautiful Mind is kitsch through and through, and irremediably so (consider John Nash bicycling balmily in the quad as Howard cuts to an overhead view and dissolves to a congruent infinity symbol), but this is a conscious choice, I believe. Kitsch is, after all, the lingua franca of Postmodernism. Political campaigns run on it, architecture is fueled by it, television swears by it, much of the synthetic fabric that is life as we know it is nothing but kitsch. A conscious choice to accept the terms of an utterly meretricious style (consider any shot in this film at all) in complete self-surrender. It's not a pose, no-one is kitschier than Howard, though he has many peers. But look what he has gained. Apollo 13 accurately reflects the kitschiness of our NASA (which launches every flight with a slogan and has Laurie Anderson as artist-in-residence) by way of distorting in a mirror the old NASA. Furthermore, by Emerson's law (see his ode, "Though loath to grieve"), this total effacement lets life itself speak for him, as one astronaut (Gary Sinise) has the presence of mind to save the day, in a void of sorts. That's just how A Beautiful Mind works. Paranoid delusions such as these are something of a commonplace, and the chimerical family haunting the fictional Nash as well. And then, when the mad professor is informed in 1994 that his contributions to game theory have influenced the global economy and even "FCC auctions," the satirical import is lacerating, but the cocoon of kitsch is so distancing (to borrow Brecht's terminology) that no harm can be done. As a matter of fact, the cocoon is so vast that perhaps it might be said to include even the truth about John Nash, and a very poetic reality, why not? Technically, Howard's approach is akin to the 1950's "story of" biography, with the usual period dressing. The actual tenor, however, is pointedly up-to-date, as can be seen most painfully in Jennifer Connelly's performance, which is a satire of the Susan Anspach-Tom Cruise style of openmouthed aggressivity. Under the circumstances, Russell Crowe's part is very simple, and he profits from this to inject a point of charm into what is a neat little fable told to meet the understanding of those in most need of it, by one who can truly say, like the bicycle thief at the end of De Sica's film, he is a man among men. ||Fullscreen |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Beauty and the Beast|Gary Trousdale Kirk Wis|Animation||7.8|USA|1991| 84 min/ USA:90 min (special edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Howard Ashman Don Hahn Sarah McArthur|Roger Allers Kelly Asbury Brenda Chapman Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont Tom Ellery Kevin Harkey Robert Lence Burny Mattinson Brian Pimental Joe Ranft Chris Sanders Bruce Woodside Linda Woolverton|||Buena Vista Home Vídeo [br] |The most beautiful love story ever told.|Belle is a girl who is dissatisfied with life in a small provincial French town, constantly trying to fend off the misplaced "affections" of conceited Gaston. The Beast is a prince who was placed under a spell because he could not love. A wrong turn taken by Maurice, Belle's father, causes the two to meet. |Paige O'Hara (Belle (voice)) @ Robby Benson (Beast (voice)) @ Richard White (Gaston (voice)) @ Jerry Orbach (Lumiere (voice)) @ David Ogden Stiers (Cogsworth/Narrator (voice)) @ Angela Lansbury (Mrs. Potts (voice)) @ Bradley Pierce (Chip (voice)) @ Rex Everhart (Maurice (voice)) @ Jesse Corti (Lefou (voice)) @ Hal Smith (Philippe (voice)) @ Jo Anne Worley (Wardrobe (voice)) @ Mary Kay Bergman (Bimbette (voice)) @ Brian Cummings (Stove (voice)) @ Alvin Epstein (Bookseller (voice)) @ Tony Jay (Monsieur D'Arque (voice)) @ Alec Murphy (Baker (voice)) @ Kimmy Robertson (Featherduster (voice)) @ Kath Soucie (Bimbette (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Footstool (dog) (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Bruce Adler .... Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jack Angel (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Scott Barnes (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Vanna Bonta (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Maureen Brennan (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Liz Callaway (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Philip L. Clarke (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Margery Daley (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jennifer Darling (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Albert de Ruiter (Additional Voices (voice)) @ George Dvorsky (Villager/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bill Farmer (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bruce Fifer (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Johnson Flucker (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Larry Hansen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Randy Hansen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mary Ann Hart (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Alexandra Korey (Additional Voices (voice) (as Alex Korey)) @ Phyllis Kubey (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Herndon Lackey (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Sherry Lynn (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mickie McGowan (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Larry Moss (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Susan Napoli (Additional Voices (voice) (as Stephani Ryan)) @ Panchali Null (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Wilbur Pauley (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jennifer Perito (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Caroline Peyton (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patrick Pinney (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Cynthia Richards-Hewes (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Gordon Stanley (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Stephen Sturk (Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||A Traditional Tale Told With Disney Magic and Charm... A Review on the Film Beauty and the Beast by John Ulmer Disney's 1991 hit `Beauty and the Beast' owes its success mainly to great animation, excellent characters, a classic story, and a heartwarming overall effect. Belle (voiced by Paige O' Hara) is a dreamer. She loves to read and daydream of far off places… But one day, when her inventor-father Maurice stumbles upon a run-down castle, he is imprisoned by a monstrous beast (Robby Benson), which is really a prince trapped in horrific body. When Belle realizes her father has been imprisoned, she goes to the castle to offer herself in place of her father, and soon Belle starts to fall in love with the beast, despite his physical appearance, and a traditional beauty and beast love story unfolds… With an all-star cast featuring Richard White, Jerry Orbach, David Ogden Stiers and Angela Lansbury, as well as spectacular music, Beauty and the Beast is sure to delight future generations for ages… 4.5/5 stars – John Ulmer ||Special Limited Edition |1.50 : 1 (approx.) (IMAX version) |5.1 ||||||@@ Bedknobs and Broomsticks|Robert Stevenson|Adventure||6.4|USA|1971| 117 min/ USA:139 min (restored version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bill Walsh |Mary Norton Don DaGradi Bill Walsh|Frank V. Phillips ||Abril Vídeo [br] |You'll beWITCHED! You'll beDAZZLED! You'll be swept into a world of enchantment BEYOND ANYTHING BEFORE! |During WWII in England, Charlie, Carrie, and Paul Rawlins are sent to live with Eglantine Price, an apprentice witch. Charlie blackmails Miss Price that if he is to keep her practices a secret, she must give him something, so she takes a bedknob from her late father's bed and places the "famous magic traveling spell" on it, and only Paul can activate it. Their first journey is to a street in London where they meet Emelius Browne, headmaster of Miss Price's witchcraft training correspondence school. Miss Price tells him of a plan to find the magic words for a spell known as Substitutiary Locomotion, which brings inanimate objects to life. This spell will be her work for the war effort. In August of 1940 in the English village of Pepperinge Eye, three cockney orphans are sent to live with Eglantine Price (Angela Lansbury), who is studying to become an apprentice witch. When she receives a letter from the Correspondence College of Witchcraft in London, she and the children fly on a bed (by way of a magic bedknob) to London to meet the headmaster of the defunct school, Emelius Brown (David Tomlinson). At a townhouse where Mr. Brown is staying, Miss Price finds half of a book called THE SPELLS OF ASTOROTH. For the other half, they deal with a shady character known as the Bookman (Sam Jaffe). |Angela Lansbury (Eglantine Price) @ David Tomlinson (Mr. Emelius Browne) @ Roddy McDowall (Mr. Jelk) @ Sam Jaffe (Bookman) @ John Ericson (Colonel Heller) @ Bruce Forsyth (Swinburne) @ Tessie O'Shea (Mrs. Hobday) @ Arthur Gould-Porter (Captain Ainsley Greer) @ Ben Wrigley (Street sweeper) @ Reginald Owen (General Sir Brian Teagler) @ Cyril Delevanti (Old Farmer) @ Rick Traeger (German Sergeant) @ Manfred Lating (German Sergeant) @ John Orchard (Vendor) @ Ian Weighill (Charlie Rawlins) @ Roy Snart (Paul Rawlins) @ Cindy O'Callaghan (Carrie Rawlins) @ Hank Worden (Old Home Guardsman) @ Lennie Weinrib (Secretary Bird/Lion (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Bob Holt .... Mr. Codfish (voice)) @ Dal McKennon (Bear (voice)) @ Conrad Bachmann (German Soldier (uncredited)) @ Eric Brotherson ( (uncredited)) @ James Brugman (Royal Tank Regiment soldier playing tenor saxophone (uncredited)) @ Patrick Dennis-Leigh (Old Home Guardsman (uncredited)) @ Anthony Eustrel (Vendor (uncredited)) @ Morgan Farley (Old Piano Player (uncredited)) @ Ina Gould (Shopkeeper (uncredited)) @ Delos Jewkes (Old Home Guardsman (uncredited)) @ Sid Kane (Vendor (uncredited)) @ Milt Larsen (Spectator at Mr. Emelius Browne´s failed magic performance. (uncredited)) @ Arthur Malet (Mr. Widdenfield, the museum guard (restored version) (uncredited)) @ George Mann (Old Home Guardsman (uncredited)) @ Barbara Morrison ( (uncredited)) @ Richard Peel (Vendor (uncredited)) @ Jack Raine (Old Home Guardsman (uncredited)) @ Maxine Semon (Portobello Dancer (uncredited)) @ Arthur Space (Old Home Guardsman (uncredited) Produced by||Charming! While it will always be compared to Mary Poppins and has some flaws, who cares?! Not me or my own children, I'll tell you. I grew up with this movie (I saw it at the age of 3 when it was brand new), and now that I'm grown up I share it with them whenever I can. The one major flaw with this film is that it sometimes suffers from slight editing judgement. While I wouldn't want to see it shorter personally, it *is* true that the "Portabello Road" sequence goes on far too long, so much so that the kids grew antsy and were about to walk out on the film before that section finally finished. The performance in that sequence is wonderful, but the whole portion pales in comparison to the rest of the film because everything else is so terrific that it makes this part seem more tiring than it really is (maybe if they had managed to somehow place it later in the story, say, after the "Island" sequence the movie as a whole wouldn't seem to be so slow in getting off the ground. But let's not go into negatives. It's still a wonderful film, and it sure beats the heck out of most of the children's fare being served up by let's-market-test-everything-to-be-sure-it's-popular Hollywood these days! You just can't go wrong with such a classic. And one more thing... will somebody PLEASE re-release the soundtrack to it?? ||30th Anniversary Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Beethoven|Brian Levant|Family||5.1|USA|1992| 87 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael C. Gross Sheldon Kahn Joe Medjuck Ivan Reitman Gordon A. Webb|John Hughes Amy Holden Jones|Victor J. Kemper ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |He'll grow on you.|The Newton family live in their comfortable home, but there seems to something missing. This "hole" is filled by a small puppy, who walks into their home and their lives. Beethoven, as he is named, grows into a giant of a dog... a St Bernard. Doctor Varnick, the local vet has a secret and horrible sideline, which requires lots of dogs for experiments. Beethoven is on the bad doctor's list. Barely escaping from nefarious dognappers, an adorable puppy named Beethoven adopts the unsuspecting Newton family -- and promptly grows up into 185 pounds of romping, drolling, disaster-prone St. Bernard! Unfortunately, even after proving his canine credentials to mom and the kids, the heroic hound gets nowhere with uptight dad, George (Charles Grodin). But when a beastly veterinarian (Dean Jones) makes Beethoven the target of an unspeakable animal experiment, George becomes the only hope for saving the Newton's furriest family member. |Charles Grodin (George Newton) @ Bonnie Hunt (Alice Newton) @ Dean Jones (Herman Varnick, D.V.M.) @ Nicholle Tom (Ryce Newton) @ Christopher Castile (Ted Newton) @ Sarah Rose Karr (Emily Newton) @ Oliver Platt (Harvey) @ Stanley Tucci (Vernon) @ David Duchovny (Brad) @ Patricia Heaton (Brie) @ Robi Davidson (Mark) @ Laurel Cronin (Devonia Pest) @ O-Lan Jones (Biker Woman) @ Nancy Fish (Miss Grundel) @ Craig Pinkard (Homeless Man) @ Sherri Paysinger (Ruth Walters (the Reporter)) @ Patrick LaBrecque (Bully #1) @ Jacob Kenner (Bully #2) @ Matthew Brooks (Bully #3) @ Chris Little (Newsreader) @ Lisa Gerber (Donna Dittsworth) @ Cory Danziger (Mark's Friend) @ Colleen O'Hara (Young Woman) @ Stephanie Massman (Young Woman) @ Nicolas Mize (Young Man) @ Maxine Elliott Hicks (Old Woman (as Maxine Elliott)) @ Cirroc Lofton (Skateboarder #1) @ Chad Morton (Skateboarder #2) @ Melora Walters (Pet Shop Owner) @ Holly Wortell (Nurse #2) @ Lorraine Marga (Mother at Pet Store) @ Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Student) @ Andres McKenzie (Student #2 Produced by||a nice family/dog flick I really liked this film when I was a kid, I am a Chuck Grodin fan he is a pretty good actor in his own right. I also love Bonnie Hunt she is enjoyable and a nice pick as the mother character. The only beef I have with Beethoven is the many ridiculous sequels, I believe two is enough atleast for this film. I thought Patricia Heaton, everyone loves raymond fame really played her role great. Dr. Varnick was a psycho with thick glasses by the way good job by that guy! I recommend this to kids and dog lovers it is kinda getting old, but still an enjoyable film even today. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Beetlejuice|Tim Burton|Comedy||7.0|USA|1988| 92 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Bender Richard Hashimoto June Petersen Larry Wilson Eric Angelson|Tim Burton Michael McDowell Warren Skaaren Larry Wilson|Thomas E. Ackerman ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |In This House... If You've Seen One Ghost... You Haven't Seen Them All.|After Barbara and Adam Maitland were killed in a car crash, they find themselves trapped as ghosts in their beautiful New England farmhouse. Their peace is disrupted when a yuppie family, the Deetzs, buy their house. The Maitlands are too nice and harmless as ghosts and all their efforts to scare the Deetzs away were unsuccessful. They eventually turn to another ghost 'Beetlejuice' for help.. |Alec Baldwin (Adam Maitland) @ Geena Davis (Barbara Maitland) @ Michael Keaton (Betelgeuse (Beetlejuice)) @ Jeffrey Jones (Charles Deitz) @ Winona Ryder (Lydia Deitz) @ Catherine O'Hara (Delia Deitz) @ Glenn Shadix (Otho) @ Sylvia Sidney (Juno) @ Robert Goulet (Maxie Dean) @ Dick Cavett (Bernard) @ Annie McEnroe (Jane Butterfield) @ Carmen Filpi (Messenger) @ Tony Cox (Preacher) @ Maurice Page (Ernie) @ Hugo Stanger (Old Bill) @ Rachel Mittelman (Little Jane) @ J. Jay Saunders (Moving Man #1) @ Mark Ettlinger (Moving Man #2) @ Patrice Martinez (Receptionist) @ Cynthia Daly (3-Fingered Typist) @ Douglas Turner (Char Man) @ Simmy Bow (Janitor) @ Susan Kellerman (Grace Altieri (as Susan Kellermann)) @ Adelle Lutz (Beryl) @ Gary Jochimsen (Dumb Football Player) @ Bob Pettersen (Dumb Football Player #2) @ Duane Davis (Very Dumb Football Player) @ Maree Cheatham (Sarah Dean (as Marie Cheatham)) @ Jack Angel (Preacher (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Charles Schneider (The Hanging Man (uncredited) Produced by||Has a crazy rhythm all it's own It may take you two or three viewings to warm up to "Beetlejuice". It has a kooky, cock-eyed sensibility and a rhythm that is by turns easy, lazy and frenetic. A charming couple in New England die and come back to their beloved home as ghosts, determined to rid the place of the horrendous new tenants. Possibly the most benign and engaging performance ever by Alec Baldwin, and Geena Davis, Winona Ryder and Sylvia Sidney are also appealing. The new couple from New York who take over the house are Jeffrey Jones and Catherine O'Hara, and their characters aren't as well written or thought-out as the others. Some of their comic lines are like badly-pitched baseballs--they take a few seconds to reach you. And of course, there's Michael Keaton, wildly comic as Betelgeuse. I heard a lot of comments back in 1988 that Keaton just wasn't around enough to make the picture worthwhile, but that's if you only watch the film for fast quips and sight-gags. Keaton is truly wonderful, but he's also bombastic, and I felt there was just enough of him to satisfy--it's really not his story anyway, it's Baldwin and Davis' story, and Betelgeuse is used as a horny, vulgar, sadistic punchline. Director Tim Burton is very careful not to overload the movie with raunch; he is surprisingly careful in setting up this story, and he works a little magic within a dubious scenario: a comic fantasy about dead folks which ultimately celebrates life. ***1/2 from **** || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Being John Malkovich|Spike Jonze|Comedy||7.9|USA|1999| 112 min/ Canada:113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steve Golin Charlie Kaufman Michael Kuhn Vincent Landay Sandy Stern Michael Stipe|Charlie Kaufman |Lance Acord ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Ever wanted to be someone else? Now you can.|A puppeteer (John Cusack) discovers a door in his office that allows him to enter the mind and life of John Malkovich (John Malkovich) for 15 minutes. The puppeteer then tries to turn the portal into a small business. Craig, a puppeteer, takes a filing job in a low-ceilinged office in Manhattan. Although married to the slightly askew Lotte, he hits on a colleague, the sexually frank Maxine. She's bored but snaps awake when he finds a portal leading inside John Malkovich: for 15 minutes you see, hear, and feel whatever JM is doing, then you fall out by the New Jersey Turnpike. Maxine makes it commercial, selling trips for $200; also, she's more interested in Lotte than in Craig, but only when Lotte is inside JM. JM finds out what's going on and tries to stop it, but Craig sees the portal as his road to Maxine and to success as a puppeteer. Meanwhile, Lotte discovers others interested in the portal. A puppeteer discovers a hidden doorway in his office, which turns out to be a portal into John Malkovitch (the famous actor)'s mind. Upon entering the portal, one gets to be inside Malkovitch's mind for 15 odd minutes. As with any great discovery of this century, the ultimate question immediately arises : 'How can we make money out of this?' He and his co-worker promptly set out to exploit this discovery. It doesn't take long for things to go haywire |John Cusack (Craig Schwartz) @ Cameron Diaz (Lotte Schwartz) @ Ned Bellamy (Derek Mantini) @ Eric Weinstein (Father at Puppet Show) @ Madison Lanc (Daughter at Puppet Show) @ Octavia Spencer (Woman in Elevator (as Octavia L. Spencer)) @ Mary Kay Place (Floris) @ Orson Bean (Dr. Lester) @ Catherine Keener (Maxine) @ K.K. Dodds (Wendy) @ Reginald C. Hayes (Don (as Reggie Hayes)) @ Byrne Piven (Captain Mertin) @ Judith Wetzell (Tiny Woman) @ John Malkovich (John Horatio Malkovich) @ Kevin Carroll (Cab Driver) @ Willie Garson (Guy in Restaurant) @ W. Earl Brown (First J.M. Inc. Customer) @ Charlie Sheen (Charlie) @ Gerald Emerick (Sad Man in Line) @ Bill M. Ryusaki (Mr. Hiroshi) @ Carlos Jacott (Larry the Agent) @ James Murray (Student Puppeteer) @ Richard Fancy (Johnson Heyward) @ Patti Tippo (Malkovich's Mother) @ Daniel Hansen (Boy Malkovich) @ Gregory Sporleder (Drunk at Bar) @ Mariah O'Brien (Girl Creeped Out by Malkovich) @ Kelly Teacher (Emily) @ Jacqueline Benoît (Lester's Friend (as Jacqueline Benoit)) @ William Buck (Lester's Friend (as William N. Buck)) @ Christine D. Coleman (Lester's Friend) @ Jeanne Diehl (Lester's Friend) @ Audrey Gelfund (Lester's Friend (as Audrey Gelfand)) @ Yetta Ginsburg (Lester's Friend) @ Sylvester Jenkins (Lester's Friend) @ Roy C. Johnson (Lester's Friend) @ Eddie J. Low (Lester's Friend) @ Ralph W. Spaulding (Lester's Friend) @ David Wyler (Lester's Friend) @ Flori Wyler (Lester's Friend) @ Kevin Lee (Ballet Dancer) @ Marlowe Bassett (Ballet dancer) @ Jennifer Canzoneri (Ballet Dancer) @ Kristie Cordle (Ballet Dancer) @ Denise Dabrowski (Ballet Dancer) @ Kristin D'Andrea (Ballet Dancer) @ Charlene Grimsley (Ballet Dancer) @ Christine Krejer (Ballet Dancer) @ Erica Long (Ballet Dancer) @ Yvonne Montelius (Ballet Dancer) @ Jessica Neuberger (Ballet Dancer) @ Sara Rifkin (Ballet Dancer) @ Elizabeth Rivera (Ballet Dancer) @ Chelsa Sjostrom (Ballet Dancer) @ Pamela Hayden (Featured Character Voice (voice)) @ Jayne Hess (Featured Character Voice (voice)) @ Michelle Madden (Featured Character Voice (voice)) @ Greg O'Neill (Featured Character Voice (voice)) @ Neil Ross (Featured Character Voice (voice)) @ Bill Wittman (Featured Character Voice (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Lance Bangs (Locker Room Bully (uncredited)) @ Kacee DeMasi (Cab driver (uncredited)) @ Andy Dick (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ David Fincher (Christopher Bing (uncredited)) @ Jester Hairston (Lester's Friend (uncredited)) @ Isaac Hanson (Himself (Awards Ceremony) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jordan Taylor Hanson (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Zac Hanson (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Dustin Hoffman (Willy Loman (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Victor Isaac (Student (uncredited)) @ Spike Jonze (Derek Mantini's Assistant for Emily Dickinson Puppet (uncredited)) @ Sean Penn (Himself (uncredited)) @ Brad Pitt (Himself (uncredited)) @ Winona Ryder (Herself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Gary Sinise (Stage Role (uncredited) (archive footage) Produced by||I want to be John Malkovich. This film was absolutely incredible. Attempting to explain the plot in any way that would do it justice would be an excercise in futility, but let it be said that I see many, many movies, and in my lifetime, I have never seen a movie such as Being John Malkovitch. The acting is completely brilliant .. Cameron Diaz is nearly unrecognizable, both in behavior and appearance, as is John Cusack. John Malkovich was presented with an interesting opportunity in playing himself, and he seems to have seized the opportunity with relish.He is most definitely not being himself in front of the camera, but instead creates this wonderful character of John Malkovich the vessel. I've admired Spike Jonez's work for a good long time, and I'm pleased to say that in his first full length feature as a director, he succeeds with flying colors in creating an original, beautiful, humorous, and good natured picture. See Being John Malkovich, because come Oscar time, you're going to want to know why its winning! || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Ben-Hur|William Wyler|Action|G |8.1|USA|1959|212 min/ Sweden:219 min (1970) / Sweden:224 min (1962) / UK:222 min (1993 re-release)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/1/2004|Sam Zimbalist |Lew Wallace Karl Tunberg Maxwell Anderson Christopher Fry Gore Vidal|Robert Surtees ||Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) [us] |The World's Most Honored Motion Picture|Judah Ben-Hur lives as a rich Jewish prince and merchant in Jerusalem at the beginning of the 1st century. Together with the new governor his old friend Messala arrives as commanding officer of the Roman legions. At first they are happy to meet after a long time but their different politic views separate them. During the welcome parade a brick falls down from Judah's house and barely misses the governor. Although Messala knows that they are not guilty he sends Judah to the galleys and throws his mother and sister into prison. But Judah swears to come back and take revenge. |Charlton Heston (Judah Ben-Hur) @ Jack Hawkins (Quintus Arrius) @ Haya Harareet (Esther) @ Stephen Boyd (Messala) @ Hugh Griffith (Sheik Ilderim) @ Martha Scott (Miriam) @ Cathy O'Donnell (Tirzah) @ Sam Jaffe (Simonides) @ Finlay Currie (Balthasar/Narrator in pre-credits sequence) @ Frank Thring (Pontius Pilate) @ Terence Longdon (Drusus) @ George Relph (Tiberius Caesar) @ André Morell (Sextus rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Edward J. Auregul (Athenian (uncredited)) @ Ady Berber (Malluch (uncredited)) @ Marina Berti (Flavia (uncredited)) @ Hugh Billingsley (Mario (uncredited)) @ Jerry Brown (The Corinthian (uncredited)) @ Robert Brown (Chief of Rowers (uncredited)) @ Lando Buzzanca (Jew Slave in the Desert (uncredited)) @ Joe Canutt (Sportsman (uncredited)) @ Otello Capanna (The Byzantine (uncredited)) @ Emile Carrer (Rower No. 28 (uncredited)) @ Richard Coleman (Metellus (uncredited)) @ Michael Cosmo (Raimondo (uncredited)) @ Alfredo Danesi (Armenian (uncredited)) @ David Davies (Quaestor (uncredited)) @ Victor De La Fosse (Galley Officer (uncredited)) @ Mino Doro (Gratus (uncredited)) @ Michael Dugan (Seaman (uncredited)) @ Dino Fazio (Marcello (uncredited)) @ Enzo Fiermonte (Galley Officer (uncredited)) @ Giuliano Gemma (Roman in the Baths (uncredited)) @ John Glenn (Rower No. 42 (uncredited)) @ José Greci (Mary (uncredited)) @ Richard Hale (Gaspar (uncredited)) @ Claude Heater (Jesus (uncredited)) @ John Horsley (Spintho (uncredited)) @ Bill Kuehl (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Duncan Lamont (Marius (uncredited)) @ Howard Lang (Hortator (uncredited)) @ Stevenson Lang (Blind Man (uncredited)) @ John Le Mesurier (Doctor (uncredited)) @ Tutte Lemkow (Leper (uncredited)) @ Cliff Lyons (Lublon (uncredited)) @ Luigi Marra (Syrian (uncredited)) @ Ferdy Mayne (Captain of Rescue Ship (uncredited)) @ Tiberio Mitri (Roman at Bath (uncredited)) @ Aldo Mozele (Barca (uncredited)) @ Thomas O'Leary (Starter at Race (uncredited)) @ Remington Olmstead (Decurian (uncredited)) @ Laurence Payne (Joseph (uncredited)) @ Aldo Pial (Cavalry Officer (uncredited)) @ Aldo Pini ( (uncredited)) @ Diego Pozzetto (Villager (uncredited)) @ Edwin Richfield (Supplier to leper colony (uncredited)) @ Hector Ross (Officer (uncredited)) @ Maxwell Shaw (Rower No. 43 (uncredited)) @ Noel Sheldon (Centurion (uncredited)) @ Aldo Silvani (Man in Nazareth (uncredited)) @ Reginald Lal Singh (Melchior (uncredited)) @ Pietro Tordi (Pilate's Servant (uncredited)) @ Ralph Truman (Aide to Tiberius (uncredited)) @ Raimondo Van Riel (Old Man (uncredited)) @ Stella Vitelleschi (Amrah (uncredited)) @ Dervis Ward (Jailer (uncredited)) @ Joe Yrigoyen (Egyptian (uncredited)Produced by||A classic One of the best epics, this is a story of the friendship between two young boys. Eventually they grow up to be enemies and end up hating each other, one being Jewish and the other one Roman. One could easily assume "Ben-Hur" is a story from The Holy Bible, and although this is not the case it was the intention when writing it. It certainly is one of the greatest stories ever told. This is the third adaptation of the classic tale, and it's the only one really remembered today. Many elements were inspired and copied from the first two, filmed in 1907 and 1925, but with a vast improvement: special-effects. The set wasn't as dangerous in 1959 because of the technical revolution that had taken place since the last time around. "Ben-Hur" is full of drama, action and romance. There's also a tension between the two leads that could be interpreted as a love-affair gone horribly wrong, but this was toned down by the studio as homosexuality was a big taboo at the time. Charlton Heston and Stephen Boyd are great, with a wonderful supporting cast to back them up, making this a classic. 8/10 || |2.20 : 1 (70 mm non-anamorphic prints) |5.1 ||||||@@ Best in Show|Christopher Guest|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for language and sex-related material. |7.5|USA|2000| 90 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gordon Mark Karen Murphy|Christopher Guest Eugene Levy|Roberto Schaefer ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Some pets deserve a little more respect than others. |The owners (and handlers) of five show dogs head for the Mayflower Kennel Club Dog Show. A film crew interviews them as they prepare for the trip, arrive at Philly's Taft Hotel, and compete. From Florida come the Flecks: she keeps running into old lovers. A wordless ancient in a wheelchair and his buxom trophy wife who may have a thing for the dog's handler own the two-time defending best in show, a poodle. From the piney woods of N.C. comes a fella who wants to be a ventriloquist. High-strung DINKs feud loudly in front of their Weimaraner. Two outré gay men from Tribeca round out the profiled owners. The dog show brings out the essence of the humans. Who will be best in show? |Jay Brazeau (Dr. Chuck Nelken) @ Parker Posey (Meg Swan) @ Michael Hitchcock (Hamilton Swan) @ Catherine O'Hara (Cookie Guggelman Fleck) @ Eugene Levy (Gerald 'Gerry' Fleck) @ Carrie Aizley (Fern City Show Spectator) @ Lewis Arquette (Fern City Show Spectator) @ Dany Canino (Fern City Show Judge) @ Bob Balaban (Dr. Theodore W. Millbank III) @ Will Sasso (Fishin' Hole Guy) @ Stephen E. Miller (Fishin' Hole Guy) @ Christopher Guest (Harlan Pepper) @ Michael McKean (Stefan Vanderhoof) @ John Michael Higgins (Scott Donlan) @ Colin Cunningham (New York Butcher) @ Jehshua Barnes (Scott's Wild Date) @ Patrick Cranshaw (Leslie Ward Cabot) @ Jennifer Coolidge (Sherri Ann Ward Cabot) @ Don Lake (Graham Chissolm) @ Scott Williamson (Winky's Party Guest) @ Deborah Theaker (Winky's Party Guest) @ Rachael Harris (Winky's Party Guest) @ Jane Lynch (Christy Cummings) @ Fulvio Cecere (Airport Passerby) @ Linda Kash (Fay Berman) @ Larry Miller (Max Berman) @ Ed Begley Jr. (Mark Schaefer, Hotel Manager) @ Malcolm Stewart (Malcolm) @ Cody Greg (Zach Berman) @ Teryl Rothery (Philly AM Host) @ Tony Alcantar (Philly AM Chef) @ Camille Sullivan (Philly AM Assistant) @ Dave Cameron (Philly AM Host) @ Lynda Boyd (Cabot Party Guest) @ Madeleine Kipling (Cabot Party Guest) @ Merrilyn Gann (Cabot Party Guest) @ Andrew Johnston (Cabot Party Guest) @ Jay-Lyn Green (Leslie's Nurse) @ Fred Willard (Buck Laughlin) @ Jim Piddock (Trevor Beckwith, the Commentator) @ Earlene Luke (Mayflower Hound Judge Eadie Franklin) @ Carmen Aguirre (Taft Hotel Maid) @ Harold Pybus (Mayflower Toy Judge) @ Hiro Kanagawa (Pet Shop Owner) @ Cleo A. Laxton (Mayflower Terrier Judge Ruth Collyer) @ Corrine Koslo (Mayflower Sporting Judge Peter Dunlap) @ Andrew Wheeler (Mayflower Ring Steward) @ Don Emslie (Mayflower Non-Sporting Judge) @ Don S. Davis (Mayflower Best in Show Judge Everett Bainbridge) @ Steve Porter (Bulge) @ Melanie Angel ('American Bitch' Photo Editor) @ Doane Gregory (Terry the Photographer) @ Can. Ch. Arokat's Echobar Take Me Dancing ('Beatrice', the Weimaraner Dog) @ Can. Ch. Urchin's Bryllo ('Winky', the Norwich Terrier Dog) @ Ch. Quiet Creek's Stand By Me ('Hubert', the Bloodhound) @ Can. Ch. Raptures Classic (Miss Agnes, the Shih Tzu) @ Can. Ch. Symarun's Red Hot Kisses (Tyrone, the Shih Tzu) @ Brocade Exclamation Ca. Ch. Exxel Dezi Duz It With Pizaz (Rhapsody in White, the Standard Poodle rest of cast listed alphabetically Fred Keating .... Jack (scenes deleted)) @ Peter Kelamis (Bartender (scenes deleted)) @ Patrick Stark (Transvestite (scenes deleted)) @ Ian Alexander Martin (V.I.P. (uncredited)) @ Steven Pollard (Recording Engineer (uncredited) Produced by||What's so funny??? Just like "Waiting for Guffman" here comes another lamebrained comedy that got big hype, but I'm still not laughing.It's not that I don't get the jokes, I get the jokes!There's no subtle humor!It's just not funny.I chuckled a few times, but this is one of those films that I have to watch with someone else (who liked the film) to actually see what was so hilarious! I have nothing against improvisation.As I mentioned before, I'm a huge fan of "Whose Line is it Anyway."But maybe improv just doesn't have a good place in film.I wasn't a fan of "This is Spinal Tap" either, another improvised piece featuring Michael McKean and Christopher Guest.I've seen films that contained a lot of improvisation, and it worked, but the script still set a fair deal of boundaries.And thinking back to some of the movies I found the funniest (films by Woody Allen and Albert Brooks) sharp writing can work wonders. Each of the characters had certain quirks.Few worked, most didn't.I liked Eugene Levy, and I thought the bit about the two left feet was pretty funny.Parker Posey and Michael Hitchcock as the dueling couple were over-the-top, though I thought their little spoof of the maximization of Starbucks all around the world was quite catchy and funny.Michael McKean and John Michael Higgins as the gay couple were just plain annoying.I guess Christopher Guest felt the mere idea that they were gay was funny enough, and there's a bit about lesbianism involving Jennifer Coolidge and her lover that was put in strictly for gimmicks.But Fred Willard, like always, cracked me up a few times as the commentator at the dog show. Christopher Guest as a hick who can name every nut imaginable (OK, was that supposed to be funny?) was just plain stupid with a hammy performance in which you can tell he's trying to go for a laugh--or have people laugh AT him.And I think that's a problem with most of the other actors in this movie. "Best in Show" is original and different.I can't say any other film covered the dog show circuit.But that's all it is.I can't see a damn reason why people are voting this as one of the funniest films of the year and stuff!I know we're not confronted with the best comedies recently, but come on! My score:4 (out of 10) || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bicentennial Man|Chris Columbus|Sci-Fi|Rated PG for language and some sexual content. |6.1|USA|1999| 132 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Barnathan Chris Columbus Paula DuPré Pesman Gail Katz Dan Kolsrud Laurence Mark Neal Miller Wolfgang Petersen Mark Radcliffe|Isaac Asimov Isaac Asimov Robert Silverberg Nicholas Kazan|Phil Meheux ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |One robot's 200 year journey to become an ordinary man. |This film follows the 'life' and times of the lead character, an android (Robin Williams) who is purchased as a household robot programmed to perform menial tasks. Within a few days the Martin family realizes that they don't have an ordinary droid as Andrew begins to experience emotions and creative thought. In a story that spans two centuries, Andrew learns the intricacies of humanity while trying to stop those who created him from destroying him. |Robin Williams (Andrew Martin) @ Embeth Davidtz (Little Miss Amanda Martin/Portia Charney) @ Sam Neill ('Sir' Richard Martin) @ Oliver Platt (Rupert Burns) @ Kiersten Warren (Galatea) @ Wendy Crewson ('Ma´am' Martin) @ Hallie Kate Eisenberg (7 Year Old 'Little Miss' Amanda Martin) @ Lindze Letherman (9 Year Old 'Miss' Grace Martin) @ Angela Landis ('Miss' Grace Martin) @ John Michael Higgins (Bill Feingold, Martin's Lawyer) @ Bradley Whitford (Lloyd Charney) @ Igor Hiller (10 Year Old Lloyd Charney) @ Joe Bellan (Robot Delivery Man) @ Brett Wagner (Robot Delivery Man) @ Stephen Root (Dennis Mansky, Head of NorthAm Robotics) @ Scott Waugh (Motorcycle Punk) @ Quinn Smith (Frank Charney) @ Kristy Connelly (Monica) @ Jay Johnston (Charles) @ George Wallace (Male President (as George D. Wallace)) @ Lynne Thigpen (President Marjorie Bota) @ Ples Griffin (Zimbabwe Representative) @ Marcia Pizzo (Lloyd's Wife) @ Paula DuPré Pesman (Feingold's Assistant) @ Clarke Devereux (Priest) @ Bruce Kenneth Wagner (Engagement Party Guest) @ Paula West (Singer) @ Kevin 'Tiny' Ancell (Restoration Worker #1) @ Richard Cross (Restoration Worker #2) @ Adam Bryant (Humanoid Head) @ Eric Fiedler (Puppeteer) @ Billy Bryan (Puppeteer) @ Christopher Nelson (Puppeteer) @ Jim Kundig (Puppeteer) @ Terry Sandin (Puppeteer) @ Mike Elizalde (Puppeteer) @ Mark Garbarino (Puppeteer) @ Christian Ristow (Puppeteer) @ Leonard MacDonald (Puppeteer (as Lennie MacDonald)) @ Dan Rebett (Puppeteer) @ Bernhard Eicholz (Puppeteer) @ Evan Brainard (Puppeteer) @ Benny Buettner (Puppeteer) @ Kamela Portugues (Puppeteer) @ Michael Steffe (Puppeteer (as Michael F. Steffe)) @ Mark Walas (Puppeteer (as Mark J. Walas) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Andy Arness (Wedding Guest (uncredited)) @ Merridee Book (World Congresswoman (uncredited)) @ Kenny Byerly (Wedding Guest (uncredited)) @ Kimberly Delmer (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Victor J.W. Pekarcik III (Global Senator (uncredited)) @ Charles Ritter (Party Guest (uncredited)) @ Scott Trimble (Wedding Guest (uncredited) Produced by||Fine performances and a shapely message are the things that make this misadvertised production work. *** our of **** BICENTENNIAL MAN (1999) *** Starring: Robin Williams, Sam Neill, Wendy Crewson, Embeth Davidtz, and Oliver Platt Directed by Chris Columbus.Running Time: 133 minutes.Rated PG (for mild language and some sex-related material) By Blake French: Chris Columbus is very good at directing tearjerkers. He has a history of constructing such movies as "Stepmom" and "Mrs. Doubtfire." "Bicentennial Man" is being misadvertised as a humble family comedy. Although it starts out unsatisfying, the film gradually becomes more and more penetrating as we discover the film is really about inner emotions,the changing of times, how people change over time, and the meaning of life from an original point of view. "Bicentennial Man" is a sweet, touching production with lots of heart and a shapely message. At first "Bicentennial Man" looksto be about a futuristic family who buys an android robot that is supposed to do housework and serve them. The family of four includes two children, one named Little Miss, and the parents who are called by the name of Sir and Ma'am. They adopt Andrew expecting him to be similar to all the other androids in the area. Nearly every household has one. However, Sir soon notices certain features about Andrew that make him unique, different from any other android he has ever seen. Andrew occupies creativity and emotional personality, elements that these robots are presumed not to contain. The film doesn't contain a good an introduction to the family who adopts Andrew, which is mainly the reason why I was never entirely concerned for the characters. But the reasoning behind the lack of focus on the family is due to the fact that "Bicentennial Man" isn't about the family who buys Andrew, but a narrative of Andrew himself. A running flaw in the film is our foundering curiosity that only grows more ponderous as the script progresses. The audience desires more information about why Andrew is so different from the other robots. There are obvious reasons, sure, but what I wanted was an explanation of why he is special. A lust for information that is never appropriately granted. The film skips ahead a generation or so. Sir and Ma'am age and Little Miss grows to be a full grown woman. Many things change for Andrew. He begins to wonder what lies beyond the likes of his household. He longs for emotional reactions to take place on his face and the concept of freedom. Sir has taught Andrew about death, sex, love, humor, and time. He gradually wants more and more independence. This is where Andrew starts becoming interested in turning from a mechanical being to a biological being. The age advancing make-up is believable and awe-inducing. I could hardly trust my eyes that Sam Neill wasn't an old man in the movie. However, although I can see that the filmmakers had no other reliable option, I disliked the jumps in time the it takes. The time gaps force us out of massive plot pieces, some of which are important to the character development. There are some really funny moments in "Bicentennial Man." Most of them appear when the picture becomes a bit emotionally heavy, in order to relieve such tension in the audience. This is a wise choice in the writer's part; the viewers who do mistake this movie as a family comedy will gain some satisfaction from these insulated humorous moments. I wanted more information on how the robot Andrew gradually becomes ''human.'' I felt cheated out of a lot of decent, noteworthy material here. I felt this way because the scenes where we do have the privilege to see Andrew reinvented are wonderfully inventive and interesting. The film should have leaned towards that material a little more. The movie features super charged performances by the entire cast. Robin Williams offers an emotionally accurate acting job that brings the confusion and imagination of the android Andrew to life. The supporting cast is also filled with fine performances with Sam Neill, Wendy Crewson, Embeth Davidtz, and Oliver Platt. Even though I can admit that "Bicentennial Man" contains several flawed motives, I still was a little surprised that the film opened to many negative reviews. This isn't a bad movie, just a differently anticipated one. The movie sets up its effective conclusion from the very beginning; it is the only logical climax for such a story. Although it leaves viewers with a sense of well-being, I thought it posed too many spiritual and biological questions. Overall, however, the movie is a well-depicted idea that deserves more appreciation from audiences than its receiving. Brought to you by Touchstone Pictures and Columbia Pictures. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Big|Penny Marshall|Comedy||7.2|USA|1988| 104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|James L. Brooks Robert Greenhut Gary Ross Anne Spielberg|Gary Ross Anne Spielberg|Barry Sonnenfeld ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Have you ever had a really big secret?|A young boy makes a wish at a fairground machine to be big. He wakes up the following morning to find that his wish has been granted and his body has grown older over night. But he is still the same 12 year old kid on the inside. Now he must learn how to cope with the unfamiliar world of grown ups including getting a job, and having his first romantic encounter with a woman. What will he find out about this strange world? |Tom Hanks (Josh Baskin) @ Elizabeth Perkins (Susan) @ Robert Loggia (MacMillan) @ John Heard (Paul) @ Jared Rushton (Billy) @ David Moscow (Young Josh Baskin) @ Jon Lovitz (Scotty Brennen) @ Mercedes Ruehl (Mrs. Baskin) @ Josh Clark (Mr. Baskin) @ Kimberlee M. Davis (Cynthia Benson) @ Oliver Block (Freddie Benson) @ Erika Katz (Cynthia's Friend) @ Allan Wasserman (Gym Teacher) @ Mark Ballou (Derek) @ Gary Howard Klar (Ticket Taker (as Gary Klar)) @ Alec von Sommer (First Brother) @ Chris Dowden (Second Brother) @ Rockets Redglare (Motel Clerk) @ Jaime Tirelli (Spanish Voice) @ Paul Herman (Schizo) @ Nancy Giles (Administrative Woman) @ Jordan Thaler (Administrative Clerk) @ Dana Kaminski (Personnel Receptionist) @ Harvey Miller (Personnel Director) @ Tracy Reiner (Test Market Researcher) @ James Eckhouse (Supervisor) @ Linda Gillen (Woman in Red Dress) @ Mildred R. Vandever (Receptionist) @ Bert Goldstein (First Executive) @ Kevin Meaney (Executive #2) @ Peter McRobbie (Executive #3) @ Paul J.Q. Lee (Executive #4) @ Debra Jo Rupp (Miss Patterson) @ Keith Reddin (Payroll Clerk (as Keith W. Reddin)) @ Lela Ivey (Bank Teller) @ Dolores Messina (Real Estate Agent) @ Gordon Press (Moving Man) @ George J. Manos (Limousine Driver) @ Vinny Capone (Photon Laser Gunfighter) @ Susan Wilder (Karen) @ John Rothman (Phil) @ Judd Trichter (Adam) @ Pasquale Pugliese (Tenor/Dough Man) @ Tom Coviello (Singing Waiter) @ Richard Devia (Singing Waiter) @ Teddy Holiavko (Singing Waiter) @ Augusto Mariani (Singing Waiter) @ Alfredo Monti (Singing Waiter) @ Sergio Mosetti (Singing Waiter) @ Armando Penso (Singing Waiter) @ Edward Schick (Piano Player) @ F. Benjamin Stimler (Boy in Leaves) @ Jonathan Isaac Landau (Boy in Leaves) @ Samantha Larkin (Girl Friend of Cynthia) @ Bruce Jarchow (Photographer) @ Vaughn Sandman (Boy on Baseball Field rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kevin Fennessy (Handball Spectator (uncredited)) @ Matt Mindell (Friend (uncredited) Produced by||The Yearnings of Childhood... Certain films spark imagination and warmth; they make you feel good. They are witty, intelligent and have very original and intriguing ideas ("Groundhog Day," "Memento," "It's a Wonderful Life"). Then there are some that have good premises but become tiresome after a while ("Brewster's Millions," "The Man with Two Brains," and "Delirious" to some extent). "Big" fits in the category "Good Idea, Good Premise, Good Actors, Intelligent Script, and Boring After an Hour." Our story begins with a short teen named Josh, who dreams of girls, girls, sports, being older (so he can impress girls), and girls. So one day, at a carnival, after being shrugged off by (guess who?) a girl, a miserable and sad Josh makes a wish at a fortune telling machine, which slides out a card after your wish that says if it's been granted or not (if I remember correctly). So Josh goes home, mopes about, goes to sleep, and when he wakes up he is a thirty-something-year-old Tom Hanks (wonderful if in his part, even if he acts like a toddler more than a teenager). After his mother thinks Big Josh is a crazy loon, she chases him out of the house with a knife. (Later she thinks Josh has been kidnapped/killed after he disappears from home.) So Josh, with the help of his friend, retreats into New York City, where he lives in a seedy apartment (great scene involving that), and, being a child, is scared witless. After a few days (or one day?) Josh, again with the help of his friend, gets a job at a toy company, only because the employer likes his goofiness so much. (Josh shows up in a cheap, disgusting suit and says he went to college at his Middle School.) Of course, being a child, Josh soon beats bad-man John Heard in toy ideas (he comes up with wacky inventions, because he is a kid and he knows what kids really like, and he unintentionally criticizes Heard's toys). He comes up with all kinds of ideas for toys not out of greed, but because he innocently wants to create good toys for kids. Tom Hanks plays his character well, if a bit too childish. Let's face it: Thirteen-year-old boys are old enough to know that when women say they want to "sleep over" they don't mean they want to have a sleep over party. But aside from the fact that he doesn't act like a thirteen-year-old, Hanks hits the nail on the head and gives a tremendously innocent and sweet performance. It's just too bad that the main character had to be thirteen (or fourteen), because Hanks doesn't act thirteen (or fourteen). It's still a great performance, though. Nowadays this film would probably tag a PG-13 rating, because not only does a teenager (much less an adult) use the F-word (which was startling to hear in a Tom Hanks PG-rated movie), but there are also sexual situations involving teenagers. At one point Hanks sleeps with a business associate in her thirties (Elizabeth Perkins). Of course, this means that since Hanks' character is really a teenager, it means the teenager had sex with her--which implies some controversial subjects. In fact (spoiler ahead), when Josh (Hanks) tells the woman he is a teenager, she doesn't seem to show any surprise that she has slept with a thirteen-year-old, though it is implied they have slept together many, many times during the course of the film. (They even live together at one point.) She just seems to be surprised overall, not at anything (ahem) in particular. Sometimes "Big" seems like it was written by teenagers thinking of cool things they would do if they happened to become adults one day. I guess this works to the film's advantage in a way, because if it was written by real adults (who have forgotten childhood yearning), the film would end up with Josh doing too many adult things and not enough childish things. But right there I contradict myself, because I have found that at one point in the film when, in a matter of seconds, Josh puts behind his childhood and seems to grow up very suddenly--something I think was done a bit too quick--the film seems to lose its charm. If Josh is a child at heart, how could he suddenly, in a matter of minutes, gain the knowledge of a college-graduate in business economics, if he didn't even finish middle school? I think that bit is done to be symbolic--that all of us have seemed to lose our innocence at a certain age, out of expectations of doing so, or because of a ruthless world that beats down upon our childish souls--but it doesn't all fit together too well. The film is funny, but like many films with great premises, they outstay their welcome, ultimately ending in a funny, if not memorable film. I really expected a lot from "Big" because of the big deal everyone made about it, but I would say that after a while the gags become too worn out. There's only so many things you can have a teenager do in a grown man's body, and, unfortunately, "Big," ranking in at about 90 minutes, only uses half of what it could have. It seems to search for gags in the latter half, but can't find them when they're right in front of them. Perhaps some of this is because Hanks acted too immature in his role (even though he gave a tremendous performance), or perhaps it is because the writers gave up on the film too quickly. Whatever the reason, "Big" doesn't fulfill all it could have, and ultimately ends up just funny, and nothing entirely memorable. 3/5 stars - John Ulmer || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Big Trouble in Little China|John Carpenter|Action||6.6|USA|1986| 99 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Keith Barish Larry J. Franco Jim Lau James Lew Paul Monash|Gary Goldman David Z. Weinstein W.D. Richter|Dean Cundey ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Some people pick the darnedest places to start a fight!|When trucker Jack Burton agreed to take his friend Wang Chi to pick up his fiancee at the airport, he never expected to get involved in a supernatural battle between good and evil. Wang's fiancee has emerald green eyes, which make her a perfect target for an immortal sorcerer named Lo Pan and his three invincible cronies. Lo Pan must marry a girl with green eyes so he can regain his physical form. Now, Jack must save Wang's fiancee from Lo Pan and his henchmen, and win back his stolen truck. But how can he defeat an enemy who has no body? Wang chi's girlfriend has been kidnapped because she has emerald green eyes and has been selected to be Lo Pan's (an immortal creature) wife. By marrying her, Lo Pan can now become mortal again. So it's up to Jack Burten, Egg Shen, Wong and his friends to save her before it's too late. Jack Burton, trucker and king of the road meets his friend Wang as Wang's fiance is kidnapped as a potential bride for a cursed Chinese magician. They also steal Jack's Truck. Martial arts, gunfire, and magic ensue as Jack and Wang try and rescue her. |Kurt Russell (Jack Burton) @ Kim Cattrall (Gracie Law) @ Dennis Dun (Wang Chi) @ James Hong (David Lo Pan) @ Victor Wong (Egg Shen) @ Kate Burton (Margo) @ Donald Li (Eddie Lee) @ Carter Wong (Thunder) @ Peter Kwong (Rain) @ James Pax (Lightning) @ Suzee Pai (Miao Yin) @ Chao Li Chi (Uncle Chu) @ Jeff Imada (Needles) @ Rummel Mor (Joe Lucky) @ Craig Ng (One Ear) @ June Kyoto Lu (White Tiger (as June Kim)) @ Noel Toy (Mrs. O'Toole) @ Jade Go (Chinese girl in White Tiger) @ Jerry Hardin (Pinstripe lawyer) @ James Lew (Chang Sing #1) @ Jim Lau (Chang Sing #2) @ Kenny Endoso (Chang Sing #3) @ Stuart Quan (Chang Sing #4) @ Gary Toy (Chang Sing #5) @ George Cheung (Chang Sing #6) @ Noble Craig (Sewer monster) @ Danny Kwan (Chinese guard) @ Min Luong (Tara) @ Paul J.Q. Lee (Chinese gambler (as Paul Lee)) @ Al Leong (Wing Kong hatchet man) @ Gerald Okamura (Wing Kong hatchet man) @ Willie Wong (Wing Kong hatchet man) @ Eric Lee (Wing Kong hatchet man) @ Yukio G. Collins (Wing Kong hatchet man) @ Bill M. Ryusaki (Wing Kong hatchet man) @ Brian Imada (Wing Kong Hatchet Man) @ Nathan Jung (Wing Kong Hatchet Man) @ Dan Inosanto (Wing Kong Hatchet Man) @ Vernon Rieta (Wing Kong Hatchet Man) @ Daniel Wong (Wing Kong Security Guard) @ Daniel Lee (Wing Kong Security Guard) @ Lia Chang (Female Wing Kong Guard) @ Diana Tanaka (Female Wing Kong Guard) @ Donna L. Noguschi (Female Wing Kong Guard) @ Shinko Isobe (Female Wing Kong Guard rest of cast listed alphabetically William B. Snider .... Customs Agent (scenes deleted)) @ John Carpenter (Worker in Chinatown (uncredited)) @ Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa ( (uncredited) Produced by||Silly but quite good fun to watch Jack Burton is a trucker who agrees to pick his friend's fiancée.However Chi's fiancée has green eyes making her a target for immortal sorcerer Lo Pan.Jack loses both his truck and the girl to Lo Pan's warriors and must do battle with the spirits to get them back. John Carpenter seems to be cursed to do bad movies recently.However this was made back when his name before the title meant something and this manages to be good simply because it's quite fun to watch with your tongue in your cheek.The plot is silly, the action daft and the characters exaggerated, but yet this is all done with some charm and actually makes this a better film. The weaknesses are that it's silly of course and some may find it to be just brainless fodder – which it probably is in fairness.A bigger failing is that the martial arts action just isn't very good.Compare it to movies made in HK about the same time and you'll see what I mean.Why Carpenter didn't make it better is beyond me.However if you buy into the sense of fun then these are minor. Russell is good with his Clint Eastwood impression actually being good for a laugh and Cattrall seems to be enjoying herself too.Many of the Oriental characters are caricatures but lets not forget this is juts an action comedy and not an art movie! Overall it's silly with average action scenes.However for some reason it manages to be better than it's parts and is actually quite good fun to watch. || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 4.1 ||||||@@ Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure|Stephen Herek|Adventure||6.6|USA|1989| 90 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Scott Kroopf Michael S. Murphey Joel Soisson|Chris Matheson Ed Solomon|Tim Suhrstedt ||Capital Filmes [br] |History is about to be rewritten by two guys who can't spell...|Ted "Theodore" Logan and Bill S. Preston esquire won't graduate if they don't do well in their history presentation. This would be both bogus and uncool ! A dude called Rufus comes from the future in a telephone box to help them, as their lives are apparently rather important to the future of mankind ! They travel through time doing some interesting research for their history presentation, and generally being excellent to each other ! When best friends Bill S. Preston and Ted "Theodore" Logan are in danger of being seperated and having their band, Wyld Stalyns broken up because they're failing history, a time traveler from the future gives them a telephone booth so they can travel through time and ace their history report. With only a few days before their high-school graduation, Bill S. Preston, esquire and Ted 'Theodore' Logan are doomed to flunk out of school. The history teacher, Mr. Ryan, decides to give Bill and Ted a chance. If they can ace an oral exam on the topic of how a famous historical personality might react to modern times, they will be allowed to pass. If not, Ted's father will place Ted in military school, thereby disbanding the Wild Stallyns, the heavy metal band that was formed by Bill and Ted. Bill and Ted get help from an unexpected source: Rufus, an Emissary from the Future. It seems that in Rufus' time, Bill and Ted's music is the basis of all existence, and if the Wild Stallyns are disbanded, Rufus's world will no longer exist. Bill and Ted are whisked off in a time machine to retrieve a few historical characters for their oral exam so they can pass, but Bill and Ted soon discover that finding the historical characters and getting them to the high school won't be easy. |Keanu Reeves (Ted Logan) @ Alex Winter (Bill S. Preston, Esq.) @ George Carlin (Rufus) @ Terry Camilleri (Napoleon) @ Dan Shor (Billy the Kid) @ Tony Steedman (Socrates) @ Rod Loomis (Dr. Sigmund Freud) @ Al Leong (Genghis Khan) @ Jane Wiedlin (Joan of Arc) @ Robert V. Barron (Abraham Lincoln) @ Clifford David (Ludwig van Beethoven) @ Hal Landon Jr. (Captain Logan) @ Bernie Casey (Mr. Ryan) @ Amy Stock-Poynton (Missy Preston) @ J. Patrick McNamara (Mr. Preston) @ Frazier Bain (Deacon Logan) @ Diane Franklin (Princess Joanna) @ Kimberley Kates (Princess Elizabeth (as Kimberley LaBelle)) @ William Robbins (Ox Robbins (as Will Robbins)) @ Steve Shepherd (Randolf Shepherd) @ Anne Machette (Buffy) @ Traci Dawn Davis (Jody Davis) @ Duncan McLeod (Old West Bartender) @ John Clure (Tattooed Cowboy) @ Jim Cody Williams (Bearded Cowboy) @ Dusty O'Dee (Old West Ugly Dude) @ Heather Pittman (Kerry) @ Ruth Pittman (Daphne) @ Richard Alexander (Bowling Alley Manager (as Dick Alexander)) @ James Bowbitch (John the Serf) @ John Karlsen (Evil Duke) @ Jeanne Hermine Herek (Mother at Waterslides) @ Jonathan Bond (Waterslide Attendant) @ Jeff S. Goodrich (Music Store Salesman) @ Lisa Rubin (Girl at Mall) @ Marjean Holden (Student Speaker) @ Claudia Templeton (Aerobic Saleswoman) @ Carol Gossler (Aerobic Instructor) @ J. Donovan Nelson (Mall Photographer) @ Marcia Darroch (Store Clerk) @ Steven Rotblatt (Police Psychiatrist) @ Ed Solomon (Stupid Waiter) @ Chris Matheson (Ugly Waiter) @ Mark Ogden (Neanderthal #1) @ Tom Dugan (Neanderthal #2) @ Ron Althoff (Security Guard (as Ron R. Althoff) rest of cast listed alphabetically Clarence Clemons .... The Three Most Important People in the World) @ Martha Davis (The Three Most Important People in the World) @ Fee Waybill (The Three Most Important People in the World) @ Phillip V. Caruso (Dance Photographer (uncredited)) @ Tricia Porter (Bowling Score Keeper (uncredited) Produced by||"Gentlemen, we're history." There has been something about reviewing movies that I have seen a million times over that unnerves me. When I check my email and add a bit of reviews here and there, how does one say if a movie is good or bad if you have seen it a dozen times over in the course of your life with different perspectives after every view? BILL & TED'S is one of those movies. The acting is sad, yet the characters are charming. The movie feels cardboard yet the pace and plot are perfectly fine. All I can say is that if you are a fan of the late 80s and indulged yourself in saying words such as 'bodacious babe' and 'party on dude' than this movie completely suits you fine. Two high school 'dudes,' Bill and Ted get in a rut for if they get anything less than a A+ in history, the latter of them will get set off to a military camp in Alaska. This is bad news for the future, for their Wild Stallyns band had made the future a better place. Bill & Ted are charming dudes who, like the bestest of buds, stick up for one another and that is where the movie shines above others. The character growth between our two 'dudes' and the historical figures they abduct make this movie interesting enough to watch on its own. I was impressed by the sets, as well as the special effects for its time as well, how the phone booth looks like it is grabbed before entering the circuits of time. BILL & TED gets a thumbs up because the movie works with its characters to make you laugh and care about them. Look no more than Genghis Khan dodging the cops. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Billy Elliot|Stephen Daldry|Drama|Rated PG-13 for some thematic material. (edited version) |7.7|UK|2000| 110 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Charles Brand Greg Brenman Jonathan Finn Tori Parry Tessa Ross David M. Thompson Natascha Wharton|Lee Hall |Brian Tufano ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Inside every one of us is a special talent waiting to come out. The trick is finding it. |Set against the background of the 1984 Miner's Strike, Billy Elliot is an 11 year old boy who stumbles out of the boxing ring and onto the ballet floor. He faces many trials and triumphs as he strives to conquer his family's set ways, inner conflict, and standing on his toes! 1984: In a northern England mining town, miners are on strike and the atmosphere is tense. Eleven-year old Billy Elliot, whose father and brother are participating in the strike, whose mother has died quite some time ago and whose grandmother is not completely aware of what's going on, doesn't like the brutal boxing lessons at school. Instead, he falls for the girls' ballet lessons. When his folks find out about this unusual love of his, Billy is in trouble. Being supported by the ballet teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson, he keeps on training secretly while the work situation as well as the problems at home get worse. Finally, Mrs. Wilkinson manages to get Billy an audition for the Royal Ballet School, but now he also has to open his heart to his family. Against the background of an increasingly bitter miners' strike that his elder brother and father are involved in, young Billy Elliot finds he prefers joining in the girls' ballet class at the local hall to the boxing he's there for. The ballet mistress soon realises he has real potential, but no-one, least of all his family, is likely to go along with a lad doing dancing. |Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot) @ Jean Heywood (Grandma) @ Jamie Draven (Tony Elliot) @ Gary Lewis (Dad (Jackie Elliot)) @ Stuart Wells (Michael Caffrey) @ Mike Elliot (George Watson) @ Billy Fane (Mr. Braithwaite) @ Nicola Blackwell (Debbie Wilkinson) @ Julie Walters (Mrs. Wilkinson) @ Carol McGuigan (Librarian) @ Joe Renton (Gary Poulson) @ Colin MacLachlan (Mr. Tom Wilkinson (as Colin Maclachlan)) @ Janine Birkett (Billy's Mum) @ Trevor Fox (PC Jeff Peverly) @ Charlie Hardwick (Sheila Briggs) @ Denny Ferguson (Miner) @ Dennis Lingard (NCB Official) @ Matthew Thomas (Simon) @ Stephen Mangan (Dr. Crane, Ballet Doctor (as Steve Mangan)) @ Paul Ridley (Tutor in Medical) @ Patrick Malahide (Principal) @ Barbara Leigh-Hunt (Vice-Principal) @ Imogen Claire (Tutor 1) @ Diana Kent (Tutor 2) @ Neil North (Tutor 3) @ Lee Williams (Tutor 4) @ Petra Siniawski (Teacher) @ Merelina Kendall (Secretary) @ Zoe Bell (Sandra) @ Tracey Wilkinson (Geography Teacher) @ Merryn Owen (Michael (Aged 25)) @ Adam Cooper (Billy (Aged 25) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Darren J. Fawthrop (Dancer i 'Swan Lake' (uncredited)) @ Adam Galbraith (Dancer in 'Swan Lake' (uncredited)) @ Lee Smikle (Dancer in 'Swan Lake' (uncredited) Produced by||Wonderful! I had seen the commercials and they emphasize the dancing aspect of the story which is great but there is so much more to this movie. It deals with death and it touches on Mens feelings of loss and what a Man is and even deals a bit with homosexuality. Theres not many times where I sit though the end credits anymore but I was mesmorized. I laughed in this movie and I cried too. The dance scenes were terrific too. The boy who played Billy should get an award hands down for this movie. I watched the emotion on his face and it was amazing. This is the best breakout performance by a young boy since haley Joel Osmant in Sixth Sense. I have to say I just loved Julie Walters too. Where has she been since Educating Rita. Inspite of the swear words this is a movie that families should see. Its hard to believe this gets an R rating and movies like Scary Movie get...only R ratings.I dont get it. Strange that two of my favorite recent movies are from the British...This and Croupier. Word to Hollywood, make more movies like this or at lease import more like this. Dont miss this one! || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bio-Dome|Jason Bloom|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for crude language, sex-related material and some drug content. PG-13|3.6|USA|1996|88 min/ Germany:91 min|English||DVD||||||||False|||||||||Jason Blumenthal Elaine Dysinger Dan Etheridge Bradley Jenkel Jon Katzman Kip Koenig Brad Krevoy Adam Leff Scott Marcano Jeff McCarthy Wayne Nelson Page Mitchell Peck Michael Rotenberg Steven Stabler|Adam Leff Mitchell Peck Jason Blumenthal Kip Koenig Scott Marcano|Phedon Papamichael ||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] |Bud and Doyle are here to save the world. But who's gonna save the world from Bud and Doyle?|Bud and Doyle's girlfriends just dumped them. Now the two friends get trapped in the "Bio-Dome" trying to show their girlfriends that they to are environmentally correct. Will they even get out of the big bubble? Bud and Doyle are two losers who are doing nothing with their lives. Both of their girlfriends are actively involved in saving the environment, but the two friends could care less about saving the Earth. One day, when a group of scientists begin a mission to live inside a "Bio-Dome" for a year without outside contact, Bud and Doyle mistakingly become part of the project themselves. The two must then learn how to protect the Earth and help the scientists complete their mission. |William Atherton (Dr. Noah Faulkner) @ Denise Y. Dowse (Olivia Biggs) @ Dara Tomanovich (Mimi Simkins) @ Kevin West (T.C. Romulus) @ Kylie Minogue (Dr. Petra Von Kant) @ Pauly Shore (Bud Macintosh) @ Stephen Baldwin (Doyle Johnson) @ Joey Lauren Adams (Monique (as Joey Adams)) @ Teresa Hill (Jen) @ Patricia Hearst (Doyle's Mother) @ Robbie Thibaut Jr. (Young Doyle) @ Adam Weisman (Young Bud) @ Henry Gibson (William Leaky) @ Brian Hayes Currie (Guard) @ Courtney Mizel (Screamer) @ Butch McCain (Reporter Joachim West) @ Taylor Negron (Russell) @ Roger Clinton (Prof. Bloom) @ Rose McGowan (Denise) @ Channon Roe (Roach) @ Trevor St. John (Parker) @ Jeremy Jordan (Trent) @ Jack Black (Tenacious D) @ Kyle Gass (Tenacious D) @ Mark Burton (Guy) @ Loomis (Drummer) @ Joe Sib (Singer) @ Soda Pop (Guitarist) @ Burdie Cutlas (Bassist) @ Rene L. Moreno (Partier) @ Molly Bryant (Bio-Dome Technician) @ Ben L. McCain (Anchor Aries West) @ Katherine Kousi (Vigilante) @ Elizabeth Guber (Vigilante) @ Chloé Hult (Vigilante) @ Tucker Smallwood (Cmdr. Gates, SWAT Team) @ Phil LaMarr (Assistant) @ Paul Eiding (Assistant) @ Andy Lucchesi (SWAT officer) @ Rodger Bumpass (Narrator) @ Philip Proctor (Axl) @ Cecile Krevoy (Woman in Bandstand) @ Jordan Mayerson (Kid Tourist) @ Jason Davis (Kid Tourist rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Alex Donnelley (Woman in Crowd (uncredited)Produced by||TOTALLY UNFUNNY Okay, so I'm asking for it by voluntarily watching a Pauly Shore movie, I know. But could I have guessed just how awful it would be?! I really watched this for the supporting cast - Rose McGowan, Henry Gibson, Kylie, Patty Hearst, Kevin Smith fave Joey Lauren Adams and Tenacious D(!) How rocking is that? Unfortunately that wasn't enough to salvage this mess. This is the second time I've made the mistake of sitting through Pauly garbage for his costars. The other time was Jury Duty - Charles Napier, Tia Carrere, Richard Edson and Stanley Tucci together! Jury Duty was bad enough, but Bio-Dome is even worse. Shore makes Adam Sandler look like a comic genius, and Stephen Baldwin manages to destroy all the good will he achieved from The Usual Suspects in about, oh, ten minutes. Possibly the most unfunny alleged comedy ever. || || ||||||@@ Birdcage, The|Mike Nichols|Comedy|Rated R for language. |6.5|USA|1996| 117 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Marcello Danon Michele Imperato Neil A. Machlis Mike Nichols|Jean Poiret Francis Veber Edouard Molinaro Marcello Danon Jean Poiret Elaine May|Emmanuel Lubezki ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Come as you are.|Armand Goldman owns a popular drag nightclub in South Miami Beach. His long-time lover Albert stars there as Starina. "Their" son Val (actually Armand's by his one heterosexual fling, twenty years before) comes home to announce his engagement to Barbara Keely, daughter of Kevin Keely, US Senator, and vice president of the Committee for Moral Order. The Senator and family descend upon South Beach to meet Val and his father and "mother..." and what ensues is comic chaos. The Birdcage - a drag club on the South Beach. Albert, Starina, the star of the show - one half of a couple with Armand. Val is Armand's son from a long-ago heterosexual experiment, and has been raised in the Armand and Albert apartment. His intended is Barbara, daughter of the very right wing U.S. senator John Keeley, co-founder of the Coalition for Moral Order. She is bringing her family to visit Val and meet his family (her parents think that Armand is a Greek diplomat). Results - mixup, pretense, and farce. Lies and deception -- it's all in the family when Robin Williams must convince his future in-laws that he's as uptight as they are. Costarring Gene Hackman, Nathan Lane, Dianne Wiest, Christine Baranski and Calista Flockhart. Armand (Williams) and Albert (Lane) have built the perfect life for themselves tending to their gaudy Miami nightclub. But their pastel tranquility is shaken when Armand's son announces that he's getting married to the daughter of ultra-conservative Senator Keeley (Hackman) . . . and they're all getting together for dinner! Can Armand and Albert transfer transform themselves into Mr. -- and Mrs. -- Family Values in time? It'll take the performance of their lives, but they'll do anything -- and everything -- to pull the chiffon over Keeley's eyes! |Robin Williams (Armand Goldman) @ Gene Hackman (Sen. Kevin Keeley) @ Nathan Lane (Albert Goldman/Starina/Mrs. 'Mother' Coleman) @ Dianne Wiest (Louise Keeley) @ Dan Futterman (Val Goldman) @ Calista Flockhart (Barbara 'Barbie' Keeley) @ Hank Azaria (Agador 'Spartacus') @ Christine Baranski (Katherine Archer) @ Tom McGowan (Harry Radman, National Enquirer) @ Grant Heslov (National Enquirer photographer) @ Kirby Mitchell (Keeley's chauffeur) @ James Lally (Cyril (stage manager)) @ Luca Tommassini (Celsius (22 and Hung)) @ Luis Camacho (Goldman Girl) @ Andre Fuentes (Goldman Girl) @ Anthony Richard Gonzalez (Goldman Girl) @ Dante Henderson (Goldman Girl (as Dante Lamar Henderson)) @ Scott Kaske (Goldman Girl) @ Kevin Alexander Stea (Goldman Girl) @ Tim Kelleher (Waiter in club) @ Ann Cusack (TV Woman in Van) @ Stanley DeSantis (TV Man in Van) @ J. Roy Helland (Club Hostess) @ Anthony Giaimo (Mr. Lopez, Fishmonger) @ Lee Delano (Mr. Boyington, Bakery Man) @ David Sage (Sen. Eli Jackson) @ Michael Kinsley (TV Host) @ Tony Snow (TV Host) @ Dorothy Constantine (Bridget (Keeley's maid)) @ Trina McGee (Chocolate (as Trina McGee-Davis)) @ Barry Nolan (TV Reporter) @ Amy Powell (TV Reporter) @ Ron Pitts (TV Reporter) @ James Hill (TV Reporter) @ Mary Major (TV Reporter) @ Steven Porfido (State Trooper) @ John D. Pontrelli (Rodrigo, Cafe Waiter) @ Herschel Sparber (Big Guy in Park) @ Francesca Cruz (Imelda, Archer Bodyworks Secretary) @ Brian Reddy (TV Editor) @ Jim Jansen (TV Editor) @ Al Rodrigo (Latino Man in Club) @ Marjorie Lovett (Matron) @ Sylvia Short (Matron) @ James H. Morrison (Pastor) @ Robert K. Baruch (Rabbi) @ Mike Starr (Harry (scenes deleted) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jordan Ancel (Wedding Guest (uncredited)) @ Scott Burkholder (Executive Producer (uncredited)) @ Jay Leno (Himself (uncredited)) @ Kevin Loreque (Drag Queen (uncredited)) @ James Gordon MacDonald (Crewman (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Stephens (Chuck (uncredited)) @ Joel Tuber (Editor (uncredited)) @ Rayder Woods (Drag Queen (uncredited) Produced by||Not a good, honest laugh until at least an hour into the proceedings American remake of 1978's "La Cage aux Folles"(a French-Italian comedy which itself spawned 2 sequels and gave way to a Broadway musical)seems awfully hoary and obvious by now. Robin Williams is not convincing as a gay owner of a drag club who has to pretend to be straight to please his son's fiancee's conservative folks, thereby leaving his drag queen lover out of the party. In this role, Nathan Lane gets easy laughs(and his over-the-top ridiculousness does enliven the picture)but he makes the character a cartoon, not a person. In fact, I found very few people here that I cared about. Hank Azaria is the stand-out as a flaming houseboy. Otherwise, "The Birdcage" is best described as 'limp'. *1/2 from **** || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Birds, The|Alfred Hitchcock|Drama|PG-13 |7.8|USA|1963|119 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/1/2004|Alfred Hitchcock |Daphne Du Maurier Evan Hunter|Robert Burks ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Suspense and shock beyond anything you have seen or imagined!|Spoilt socialite and notorious practical joker Melanie Daniels is shopping in a San Francisco pet store when she meets Mitch Brenner. Mitch is looking to buy a pair of love birds for his young sister's birthday; he recognises Melanie but pretends to mistake her for an assistant. She decides to get her own back by buying the birds and driving up to the quiet coastal town of Bodega Bay, where Mitch spends his weekends with his sister and mother. Shortly after she arrives, Melanie is attacked by a gull, but this is just the start of a series of attacks by an increasing number of birds. |Tippi Hedren (Melanie Daniels (as 'Tippi' Hedren)) @ Rod Taylor (Mitch Brenner) @ Jessica Tandy (Lydia Brenner) @ Suzanne Pleshette (Annie Hayworth) @ Veronica Cartwright (Cathy Brenner) @ Ethel Griffies (Mrs. Bundy) @ Charles McGraw (Sebastian Sholes) @ Ruth McDevitt (Mrs. MacGruder) @ Lonny Chapman (Deke Carter) @ Joe Mantell (Traveling salesman) @ Doodles Weaver (Fisherman) @ Malcolm Atterbury (Deputy Al Malone) @ John McGovern (Postal clerk) @ Karl Swenson (Doomsayer in diner) @ Richard Deacon (Mitch's city neighbor) @ Elizabeth Wilson (Helen Carter) @ Bill Quinn (Man in diner (as William Quinn)) @ Doreen Lang (Mother in diner rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Morgan Brittany (Schoolgirl (uncredited)) @ Darlene Conley (Schoolgirl (uncredited)) @ Alfred Hitchcock (Man walking dogs out of pet shop (uncredited)) @ Mike Monteleone (Gas station attendant (uncredited)Produced by||Fascinating; Freudian analysis of The Birds One would think, not having seen this film, that it is just a normal horror film where a mass of animals attacks people who run from them and scream. Well, this film is different, in that it was directed by the single greatest director of all times, Alfred Hitchcock. The Birds was made during his peak. It follows on the heels of such films as Rear Window, Vertigo, North by Northwest and Psycho. It is as well directed as those films. In fact, it is even more daring than those. Several classical Hollywood elements are missing from this film. For one thing, and perhaps the most effective choice made by Hitchcock for this film, there is no musical score. Even in his best films, Psycho and Vertigo, for instance, the films are swept along by the score. They are great scores, by maybe the best score composer who ever worked in the movies, Bernard Herrmann, but to see a Hitchcock film without a score is just fantastic. Even the best musical scores are meant to manipulate your emotions, so here we get a chance to see just how effective a film can be without one. Also, the end of this film is perhaps the most unconventional you're ever going to see (although Vertigo also has a very unconventional ending). It is possibly the most startling image I've ever seen. Even if it just had Hitchcock's amazing direction going for it, The Birds also benefits from an absolutely masterful script. It is never as if the story is just that birds attack people. It is much, much more complex than that. And herein lies my Freudian Analysis. Of course, coming right after Psycho, Hitch was probably jumping to keep the whole Oedipus theme alive here. Annie, the school teacher, expresses this literally. But I would like to interpret the birds as more of a symbol than actual matter. Think back to the film Forbidden Planet. Remember the Monster of the Id, the invisible and immaterial beast who destroyed every person who attempted to take Dr. Morbius and his daughter off the planet, basically whoever threatened to steal his daughter from him? I think the birds in The Birds serve the same function for Lydia. When Melanie Daniels, a supposed sexual predator, enters the small, peaceful town of Bodega Bay, she does so to prey on Mitch Brenner. We find out, just as much by her actions as by Annie's speech, that Lydia is very jealous of her son's women. Melanie is also introducing her carnality onto the town as a whole. She brings the love birds for Cathy. Mitch had at first asked that the love birds not be too willing to display their love, and the first thing that Cathy asks is, "How can I tell which one is male and which one is female?" Notice also that the mother in the restaurant attacks her for being responsible. This ought to seem ridiculous, but it seems perfectly logical in the text of this film. The woman says, "I think you're responsible. Who are you? WHAT are you?" At the end of the film, Lydia does seem to accept Melanie. The birds are still there, but they do not harm them as they leave. Too often this film gets shoved into the horror genre and left there. I believe it was Hitchcock's most successful film, and for some reason, I think that more people could identify it and identify it as a Hitchcock film than any of his other films except for maybe Psycho. The Birds, and Psycho, too, which is also often classified as a horror film (which it is not in any way) are far too complex to be labeled with such a small label. They are both masterpieces. Psycho has always been regarded as one. The Birds is sometimes, but not as often. It is certainly one of Hitchcock's best. This man was a god. The Birds is a godly film. 10/10 ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Birdy|Alan Parker|Drama||7.2|USA|1984| 120 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ned Kopp David Manson Alan Marshall|Jack Behr Sandy Kroopf William Wharton|Michael Seresin ||Columbia TriStar [br] ||Two friends arrive back from Vietnam, scarred in different ways. One has physical injuries, the other has mental problems that make him yearn to be a bird, a subject he has always been fascinated with. Two young men are seriously affected by the Vietnam war. One of them has always been obsessed with birds - but now believes he really is a bird, and has been sent to a mental hospital. Can his friend help him pull through ? |Matthew Modine (Birdy/Narrator) @ Nicolas Cage (Sergeant Al Columbato) @ John Harkins (Doctor Major Weiss) @ Sandy Baron (Mr. Columbato) @ Karen Young (Hannah Rourke, Nurse at Military Hospital) @ Bruno Kirby (Renaldi, Hospital Orderly) @ Nancy Fish (Mrs. Prevost) @ George Buck (Walt, Birdy's Father/School Janitor) @ Dolores Sage (Birdy's mother) @ Robert L. Ryan (Joe Sagessa, Dogcatcher) @ James Santini (Mario Columbato) @ Maud Winchester (Doris Robinson) @ Marshall Bell (Ronsky, Dr. Weiss' Secretary) @ Elizabeth Whitcraft (Rosanne) @ Sandra Beall (Shirley, Boardwalk Pickup) @ Victoria Nekko (Claire) @ Crystal Field (Mrs. Columbato) @ John Brumfield (Mr. Kohler) @ Joe Lerer (Military Doctor) @ Alice Truscott (Mother on Train) @ Ed Taylor (Zimmy The Human Fish) @ Irving Selbst (Fairground Announcer) @ Steve Lippe (Mr. Russo, Junkyard Proprietor) @ William Clark (Policeman on Beach) @ James Pruett (Emergency Doctor) @ Priscilla Alden (Waiting Room Lady) @ Howard Kinsley (Mr. Tate) @ Robert Diamond (Maloney) @ Bud Seese (Drunk in Jail) @ Ray Pili (High School Band) @ Lawrence J. McKenna (High School Band) @ David Kuhn (High School Band) @ Kevin P. Kuhn (High School Band) @ Ronald Distefano (High School Band) @ Larry Hochman (High School Band) @ Guy Jones (Hospital Orderly) @ Erskine Morgan (Hospital Orderly) @ Ramona Bajema (Girl on Train) @ Maurice Frizzeli Jr. (Nuts and Bolts Patient) @ Donald Sims (Nuts and Bolts Patient) @ Richard Mason (Injured Soldier) @ Charles A. Tamburro (Helicopter Pilot) @ Richard Holley (Helicopter Pilot) @ Harry Hauss (Helicopter Pilot) @ Mark Simpson (Helicopter Soldier) @ Clark Taylor (Helicopter Soldier) @ Michael Shaner (Veteran) @ Tim Davis (Veteran rest of cast listed alphabetically Dennis Erectus .... Veteran (as Dennis Netto) Produced by||Friendship is not for the birds Modine and Cage really capture the effect that life's stresses, like war, can have on a person. Columbato is able to help his friend come back from the dark place that war has sent him. This is an early glimpse at what a good actors both men evolved into.And the end is wonderful! || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Black Hawk Down|Ridley Scott|Action|Rated R for intense, realistic, graphic war violence, and for language. R|7.6|USA|2001|144 min/ Germany:142 min|English||DVD||||||||False|||||||||Jerry Bruckheimer Harry Humphries Branko Lustig Terry Needham Chad Oman Pat Sandston Ridley Scott Mike Stenson Simon West|Mark Bowden Ken Nolan|Slawomir Idziak ||Cascade Film [ru] |Leave No Man Behind|Action/war drama based on the best-selling book detailing a near-disastrous mission in Somalia on October 3, 1993 where nearly 100 U.S. Army Rangers, commanded by Capt. Mike Steele, were dropped by helicopter deep into the capital city of Mogadishu to capture two top lieutenants of a Somali warlord which lead to a large and drawn-out firefight between the Rangers and hundreds of Somali gunmen which led to the destruction of two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters in Mogadishu, and the heroic efforts by various Rangers to get to them, centering on Sgt. Eversmann commanding one Ranger unit, named Chalk Four, pinned down by the street fighting, to Warrant Officer Durant who was only survivor of the second black hawk crash site and whom was captured, to Lt. Col. McKnight who leads a rescue convoy for the Rangers only to get lost within the hostile city, to Lt. Perino leading Rangers to the first black hawk crash site, to Staff Sgt. Yurek who leads his decimated Ranger group Chalk Two through gunfire to safety, to many others involved who where either killed or survived. |Josh Hartnett (SSgt. Matt Eversmann) @ Ewan McGregor (Spec. John Grimes) @ Jason Isaacs (Capt. Mike Steele) @ Tom Sizemore (Lt. Col. Danny McKnight) @ William Fichtner (SFC. Jeff Sanderson) @ Eric Bana (SFC 'Hoot' Gibson) @ Sam Shepard (Maj. Gen William F. Garrison) @ Ewen Bremner (Spec. Shawn Nelson) @ Tom Hardy (Spec. Lance Twombly (as Thomas Hardy)) @ Ron Eldard (C.W.O. Mike Durant) @ Charlie Hofheimer (Cpl. Jamie Smith) @ Hugh Dancy (SFC. Kurt Schmid) @ Tom Guiry (SSgt. Ed Yurek (as Thomas Guiry)) @ Brian Van Holt (SSgt. Jeff Struecker) @ Steven Ford (Lt. Col. Joe Cribbs) @ Gregory Sporleder (Sgt. Scott Galentine) @ Zeljko Ivanek (Lt. Col. Gary Harrell) @ Matthew Marsden (Spec. Dale Sizemore) @ Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (MSgt. Gary Gordon) @ Orlando Bloom (Pfc. Todd Blackburn) @ Johnny Strong (SFC. Randy Shughart) @ Kim Coates (MSgt. Tim 'Griz' Martin) @ Glenn Morshower (Lt. Col. Tom Matthews) @ Enrique Murciano (Sgt. Lorenzo Ruiz) @ Jeremy Piven (C.W.O. Cliff 'Elvis' Wolcott) @ Gabriel Casseus (Spec. Mike Kurth) @ Danny Hoch (Sgt. Dominick Pilla) @ Tac Fitzgerald (Spec. John 'Brad' Thomas) @ Richard Tyson (SSgt. Daniel Busch) @ Michael Roof (Pvt. John Maddox) @ Kent Linville (Pfc. Clay Othic) @ Ian Virgo (Pvt. John Waddell) @ Carmine Giovinazzo (Sgt. Mike Goodale) @ Chris Beetem (Sgt. James 'Casey' Joyce) @ Ty Burrell (Tim 'Wilkie' Wilkinson) @ George Harris (Osman Atto) @ Razaaq Adoti (Yousuf Dahir Mo'alim) @ Treva Etienne (Abdullahi 'Firimbi' Hassan) @ Ioan Gruffudd (2Lt. John Beales) @ Jason Hildebrandt (C.W.O. Dan Jollata) @ Brendan Sexton III (Pfc. Richard 'Alphabet' Kowalewski) @ Boyd Kestner (C.W.O. Mike Goffena) @ Abdibashir Mohamed Hersi (Abdi, Somali Spy) @ Pavel Voukan (C.W.O. Donovan 'Bull' Briley (as Pavel Vokoun)) @ Dan Woods (TSgt. Scott Fales) @ Kofi Amankwah (Somali Kid) @ Joshua Quarcoo (Somali Kid) @ Johann Myers (Somali Father) @ Lee Geohagen (Somali Son with Gun rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Giannina Facio (Stephanie Shughart (uncredited)) @ Corey Johnson (U.S. Medic (uncredited)Produced by||Blood, sweat, bullets and RPG's: the protagonists of Black Hawk Down Black Hawk Down makes it intentions very clear when Eric Bana's character says `when that first bullet goes flying past your head, politics go right out the window'. It is not a study of the situation that lead to the Mogadishu incident portrayed in the film. It's not an in-depth analysis of human action in the midst of horrible conditions. What it is, in fact, is a frontline film, concerned with giving its audience a experience as close to real war as a film could ever hope to come. The last film to really try this was Saving Private Ryan, during its ragingly intense battle sequences. Well, Black Hawk Down pretty much stretches that into a full-length feature. The first 30-so minutes may be all exposition (starting off pretty badly, telling the whole back-story to the conflict in title cards), but after that it's all-out action. The question it raises is the following: is Black Hawk Down what we'd expect from Jerry Bruckheimer, just another action flick, or did Scott do something more with it. The answer may not be the first OR the second, but rather a little bit of both. Black Hawk Down is not a polished actioner like Pearl Harbor. It doesn't feature too much (read: any) vomit-inducing American flagwaving. It is often spectacularly brutal although we're largely spared the pornographic violence of Ryan's harsher scenes. What Scott focuses on indeed is using all cinematic techniques in his reach to create a movie experience which is as intense and energetic as possible. It has the dynamics, the trickery and even the spectacle of a traditional action flick, but it doesn't have any real form of making us feel secure and happy about it. Black Hawk Down is so unforgiving in its pacing and in its bluntness in presenting a modern day armed conflict, there'll never be any doubt in your head, that war is a horrible, horrible thing. But, wait, the Bruckheimer has not left the building. Black Hawk Down is good, but it's not great. I am willing to accept the absence of political debate over the situation, the absence of any critical inquiry into the U.S. policy and strategy deployed. After all, this isn't about such abstractions, it's about the man dodging the bullets. The way the Somalis are treated here is less easily accepted, though. They are mostly seen as an overwhelming, never-ending wave of hostiles, more reminiscent of James Cameron's Aliens than any human group of adversaries seen on film. Two scenes do present the Somalis as fathers or men trapped in their situations respectively, but it's not quite enough. Therefore, there's something to be said for the film mourning the 19 American fatalities more than the 1000+ Somali ones (considering the film's American perspective, one could argue this makes SOME sense). What I really can't accept though, and I'm looking at the film from a storytelling instead of a political standpoint from now on, is the characterisation. There's an argument to be made for this film not needing any really well-developed characters. They could have been archetypes for sure, but I would have liked to have seen them a little bit more defined. Basically I gathered Ewan McGregor's characters likes coffee and Eric Bana's character was really tough and that's it. It's a film that aimes to make you 'participate' in the experience it's offering and as such doesn't require a fully developed set of characters that explicitly experience everything for you, but a little bit more would have been nice. Now, the fact you're frequently watching generic figures dodging another hail of bullets somewhat distances you from the experience. This is the script's (and film's) main failure and not necessarily the cast's, who all do a pretty reasonable job with the limited material. The mid-war scenes are well-performed and it's only when the actors are asked to deliver some speeches on why they would do these things, that they are unable to compensate for the screenwriter's inability in answering this question in any manner beyond Hollywood sugartopping or Pentagon propaganda (which, by the way, was very supportive in the process of making this film). It's a shame then, the film has to end on such a false note, with josh Hartnett talking into camera about how 'sometimes people just turn out to be [heroes]'. All in all, this is not a smart film. It doesn't have the level of sophistication Three Kings brought to its Gulf War-subject matter. In fact it's little more than the cinematic retelling of the events. What could've been provocative piece about the Somalia situation or U.S. political influence throughout the world is Bruckheimerized into a film which is about nothing more than not getting blown up and not making sure your fellow man doesn't get blown up either. While that's not anywhere near revolutionary, it's a testament to Ridley Scott's great directing that it's nonetheless shocking enough to be a worthwhile addition to the war moviegenre. Rating: 6 || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bone Collector, The|Phillip Noyce|Mystery|Rated R for strong violent content including grisly images, and for language. |6.2|USA|1999| 118 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Martin Bregman Michael Scott Bregman Bo Dietl Dan Jinks Michael Klawitter Louis A. Stroller|Jeffery Deaver Jeremy Iacone|Dean Semler ||Columbia TriStar Film GmbH [de] |Two cops on the trail of a brutal killer. They must see as one, they must act as one, they must think as one, before the next victim falls. |Quadripeligic ex-cop Lincoln Rhyme was looking forward to his assisted suicide when he got the news: some sicko was abducting people in a taxi and leaving them to die in particularly sadistic ways. With time counting down between each abduction and possible death, Rhyme recruits rather-unwilling Amelia Donaghy, haunted by her cop father's suicide and thinking she's next, into working the crime scenes to track down the killer. After an accident in a tunnel, a forensics expert (Denzel Washington) is left as a quadriplegic who is able only to move his head and one finger. Setting his finger to a computer, he is able to manipulate his environment with the help of a loving nurse (Queen Latifah). Even so, fearing seizures that could leave him a vegetable, he plans his "transition" with the help of a hesitational doctor friend. That all changes when he is confronted with clues from a serial killer that obviously are pointed to forensics investigation. The case clearly re-invokes his interest in life. A sharp, young cop's quick thinking saves the first crime scene. Recognizing her talent for forensics, he brings her (Angelina Jolie) unwillingly into forensics detection. Through radio contact, she becomes his eyes and legs on the scene. Michael Rooker also appears as the police captain, who has bungled earlier killings by the serial killer and is more interested in the press than in good police work. Ed O'Neill and Luis Guzman are support staff who aid Washington and run interference with Rooker. |Denzel Washington (Lincoln Rhyme) @ Angelina Jolie (Amelia Donaghy) @ Queen Latifah (Thelma) @ Michael Rooker (Captain Howard Cheney) @ Mike McGlone (Detective Kenny Solomon) @ Luis Guzmán (Eddie Ortiz) @ Leland Orser (Richard Thompson/Marcus Andrews) @ John Benjamin Hickey (Dr. Barry Lehman) @ Bobby Cannavale (Steve) @ Ed O'Neill (Detective Paulie Sellitto) @ Richard Zeman (Lieutenant Carl Hanson) @ Olivia Birkelund (Lindsay Rubin) @ Gary Swanson (Alan Rubin) @ James Bulleit (Train Engineer (as Jim Bulleit)) @ Frank Fontaine (Grandfather) @ Zena Grey (Granddaughter) @ Daniel Brochu (NYU Student) @ Desmond Campbell (Taxi Inspector) @ Christian Veliz (Chris) @ Mercedes Gómez (Ortiz's Mother) @ Mary C. Hammett (Girlfriend in Nightclub) @ Amanda Gay (Girl in Nightclub) @ Steve Adams (Gas Worker) @ Larry Day (Con-Ed #2) @ Burke Lawrence (Police Instructor) @ Terry Simpson (Policeman in Apartment) @ Eric Davis (Policeman in Apartment) @ Arthur Holden (Bookstore Clerk) @ Yahsmin Daviault (Rhyme's Sister) @ Keenan Macwilliam (Rhyme's Niece) @ David Warshofsky (Amelia's Partner) @ Mateo Gómez (Hot Dog Vendor) @ Ted Whittall (Ortiz's Assistant) @ Peter Michael Dillon (Homicide Detective) @ Jonathan Stark (Male Detective) @ Fulvio Cecere (Forensics Expert) @ Hal Sherman (Fingerprint Cop) @ Russell Yuen (Forensics Worker) @ Andy Bradshaw (Uniform Cop) @ Jean-Marc Bisson (Rescue Worker) @ Christopher Bregman (Rescue Worker) @ Sonya Biddle (Nurse rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Phillip Noyce (Customer in Antique Bookshop (uncredited)) @ Andrew Semple (Perp (uncredited)) @ Sylvia Stewart (Female Cop (uncredited) Produced by||The Bone Collector! The Bone Collector is a very good movie!I don't want to say to much but the actors were very good.Denzel Washington was goo as always.Angelina Jolie put on a great performance.Michael Rooker was good.Queen Latifah,Luis Guzmán,and Ed O'Neill was in surprising roles.I like how they showed close ups of the actors and views of the city.Great music by Craig Armstrong!If you want a thrilling mystery with some horror then check out the Bone Collector! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bonnie and Clyde|Arthur Penn|Crime||7.9|USA|1967| 111 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Warren Beatty |David Newman Robert Benton Robert Towne|Burnett Guffey ||Varus Video [ru] |They're young... they're in love... and they kill people.|Clyde Barrow, recently out of prison, has turned to bank robbery. He meets Bonnie Parker and together the two form the nucleus of a gang of bank robbers who terrorize the southwest in the 1920s. Based on the true story of a pair of notorious bank robbers, the film personalizes them while still showing the violence that went along with them. A bored small-town girl and a small-time bank robber leave in their wake a string of violent robberies and newspaper headlines that catch the imagination of the Depression-struck Mid-West in this take on the legendary crime spree of these archetypal lovers on the run. Adrift in the Depression-era Southwest, Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker embark on a life of crime. They mean no harm. They crave adventure -- and each other. Soon we start to love them too. But nothing in film history has prepared us for the cascading violence to follow. Bonnie and Clyde turns brutal. We learn they can be hurt -- and dread they can be killed. |Warren Beatty (Clyde Barrow) @ Faye Dunaway (Bonnie Parker) @ Michael J. Pollard (C.W. Moss) @ Gene Hackman (Buck Barrow) @ Estelle Parsons (Blanche) @ Denver Pyle (Frank Hamer) @ Dub Taylor (Ivan Moss) @ Evans Evans (Velma Davis) @ Gene Wilder (Eugene Grizzard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Martha Adcock (Bank customer (uncredited)) @ Harry Appling (Bonnie's uncle (uncredited)) @ Mabel Cavitt (Bonnie's mother (uncredited)) @ Patrick Cranshaw (Bank teller (uncredited)) @ Frances Fisher (Bonnie's aunt (uncredited)) @ Sadie French (Bank customer (uncredited)) @ Garry Goodgion (Billy (uncredited)) @ Clyde Howdy (Deputy (uncredited)) @ Russ Marker (Bank guard (uncredited)) @ Ken Mayer (Sheriff Smoot (uncredited)) @ Ann Palmer (Bonnie's sister (uncredited)) @ James Stiver (Grocery store owner (uncredited)) @ Ada Waugh (Bonnie's aunt (uncredited) Produced by||When the legend is more beautiful than History.... ...let's film the legend.That's the story of "Citizen Kane" and countless other heroes alive or half-dead,buried in the ground or imaginary.After all,Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were two shabby seedy little gangsters,their photographs show that thy were not a beautiful couple,nothing to do with handsome Warren Beatty and gorgeous Faye Dunuway.Yes ,Bonnie did write poems ,that had some kind of tragic grandeur. And ,however,Arthur Penn,the "miracle worker" succeeds!Bonnie and Clyde become rebels against the etablishment,they plunder the banks but they leave their money to the poor.They live dangerously,because they've gotta get out of their lousy place with no future awaiting on them.They know ,to quote Hank Williams,that they'll never get out of this world alive(!),we feel it through Bonnie's poems and the character of her mother,an old lady full of dignity who plays the part of theAntique Chorus.THe members of the gang are very interesting: Moss is the caricature of Clyde,and Blanche that of Bonnie.There was another movie before which focused on Bonnie(the Bonnie Parker story),but the forerunner of Penn's movie is arguably "Gun Crazy". || |1.85 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Born on the Fourth of July|Oliver Stone|Drama|R |7.0|USA|1989|145 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/16/2004|A. Kitman Ho Lope V. Juban Jr. Joseph P. Reidy Oliver Stone Clayton Townsend|Ron Kovic Oliver Stone Ron Kovic|Robert Richardson ||CIC Vídeo [br] |A story of innocence lost and courage found.|The biography of Ron Kovic. Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, he becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country he fought for. |Tom Cruise (Ron Kovic) @ Bryan Larkin (Young Ron) @ Raymond J. Barry (Mr. Kovic) @ Caroline Kava (Mrs. Kovic) @ Josh Evans (Tommy Kovic) @ Seth Allen (Young Tommy) @ Jamie Talisman (Jimmy Kovic) @ Sean Stone (Young Jimmy) @ Anne Bobby (Suzanne Kovic) @ Jenna von Oÿ (Young Suzanne) @ Samantha Larkin (Patty Kovic) @ Erika Geminder (Young Patty) @ Amanda Davis (Baby Patty) @ Kevin Harvey Morse (Jackie Kovic) @ Kyra Sedgwick (Donna (Ron's girlfriend)) @ Jessica Prunell (Young Donna) @ Frank Whaley (Timmy) @ Jason Klein (Young Timmy) @ Jerry Levine (Steve Boyer) @ Lane R. Davis (Young Steve) @ Richard Panebianco (Joey Walsh) @ Johnny Pinto (Young Joey) @ Rob Camilletti (Tommy Finnelli) @ J.R. Nutt (Young Tommy) @ Stephen Baldwin (Billy Vorsovich) @ Philip Amelio (Young Billy) @ Michael McTighe (Danny Fantozzi) @ Cody Beard (Young Danny) @ Ryan Beadle (Ballplayer) @ Harold Woloschin (Umpire) @ Richard Grusin (Coach) @ Tom Berenger (Recruiting Gunnery Sgt. Hayes) @ Richard Haus (Recruiting Sgt. Bowers) @ Mel Allen (Himself) @ Ed Lauter (Legion commander) @ Liz Moore (Fat lady at parade) @ Sean McGraw (Young Donna's father) @ Oliver Stone (News reporter) @ Dale Dye (Infantry colonel) @ Norma Moore (Massapequa mom) @ Stacey Moseley (Young Donna's friend) @ Mike Miller (Neighbor) @ Ellen Pasternack (Neighbor) @ Joy Zapata (Neighbor) @ Bob Tillotson (Truck driver) @ John Getz (Marine major - Vietnam) @ David Warshofsky (Lieutenant - Vietnam) @ Jason Gedrick (Martinez - Vietnam) @ Michael Compotaro (Wilson (marine shot by Kovic)) @ Paul Abbott (Platoon - Vietnam) @ Bill Allen (Platoon - Vietnam) @ William Baldwin (Platoon - Vietnam) @ Claude Brooks (Platoon - Vietnam) @ Michael Smith Guess (Platoon - Vietnam) @ James LeGros (Platoon - Vietnam) @ William Mapother (Platoon - Vietnam (as William R. Mapother)) @ Christopher W. Mills (Platoon - Vietnam) @ Byron Minns (Platoon - Vietnam) @ Ben Wright (Platoon - Vietnam) @ Markus Flanagan (Doctor - Vietnam) @ R.D. Call (Chaplain - Vietnam) @ John Falch (Corpsman - Vietnam) @ Dan Furnad (Corpsman - Vietnam) @ Fred Geise (Corpsman - Vietnam) @ Greg Hackbarth (Corpsman - Vietnam) @ Don Wilson (Corpsman - Vietnam) @ Corkey Ford (Marvin (VA hospital)) @ Rocky Carroll (Willie (VA hospital)) @ Sami Chester (Aide #2 (VA hospital)) @ Chris Pedersen (Aide #3 (VA hospital)) @ Chris Walker (Aide #4 (VA hospital)) @ Willie Minor (Eddie (VA hospital)) @ David Herman (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Bruce MacVittie (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Damien Leake (Patient (VA hospital)) @ David Neidorf (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Paul Sanchez (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Richard Lubin (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Norm Wilson (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Peter Benson (Patient) @ Sergio Scognamiglio (Patient (VA hospital)) @ Billie Neal (Nurse Washington (VA hospital)) @ Richard Poe (Frankie (VA hospital)) @ Bob Gunton (Doctor #1 (VA hospital)) @ Vivica A. Fox (Hooker (VA hospital)) @ Mark Moses (Optimistic doctor (VA hospital)) @ Abbie Hoffman (Strike organizer (Syracuse, NY)) @ Jake Weber (Donna's boyfriend (Syracuse, NY)) @ Reg E. Cathey (Speaker (Syracuse, NY)) @ Edie Brickell (Folk singer (Syracuse, NY)) @ Keri Roebuck (Woman (Syracuse, NY)) @ Geoff Garza (Young radical (Syracuse, NY)) @ Joseph P. Reidy (Student organizer (Syracuse, NY)) @ Mike Starr (Man #1 in Arthur's Bar) @ Beau Starr (Man #2 in Arthur's Bar) @ Rick Masters (Man #3 in Arthur's Bar) @ John Del Regno (Friend #1 in Arthur's Bar) @ Gale Mayron (Friend #2 in Arthur's Bar) @ Lisa Barnes (Friend) @ Melinda Renna (Barmaid (Arthur's Bar) (as Melinda Ramos Renna)) @ Willem Dafoe (Charlie (Villa Dulce)) @ Tom Sizemore (Vet (Villa Dulce)) @ Andrew Lauer (Vet (Villa Dulce)) @ Michael Wincott (Vet (Villa Dulce)) @ Ivan Kane (Vet (Villa Dulce)) @ Ed Jupp Jr. (Vet (Villa Dulce)) @ Michael Sulsona (Vet (Villa Dulce)) @ Cordelia González (Maria Elena (hooker, Villa Dulce)) @ Karen Newman (Hooker (Villa Dulce)) @ Begonia Plaza (Charlie's hooker (Villa Dulce)) @ Edith Diaz (Madame (Villa Dulce)) @ Anthony Pena (Bartender (Villa Dulce)) @ Eduardo Ricaro (Cab driver (Villa Dulce)) @ Tony Frank (Mr. Wilson (Georgia)) @ Jayne Haynes (Mrs. Wilson (Georgia)) @ Lili Taylor (Jamie Wilson (Georgia)) @ Elbert Lewis (Cab driver (Georgia)) @ Peter Crombie (Undercover vet (Miami convention)) @ Kevin G. McGuire (Paraplegic #1 (Miami convention)) @ Ken Osborne (Paraplegic #2 (Miami convention)) @ Alan Toy (Paraplegic #3 (Miami convention)) @ Chuck Pfeiffer (Secret Service agent (Miami convention)) @ Frank Girardeau (Agent #1 (Miami convention)) @ William Wallace (Agent #2 (Miami convention)) @ Chip Moody (TV anchor (Miami convention)) @ Eagle Eye Cherry (Vet #1 (Miami convention)) @ Brian Tarantina (Vet #2 (Miami convention)) @ Frank Cavestani (Vet #3 (Miami convention)) @ Jimmy L. Parker (Vet #4 (Miami convention)) @ William Hubbard Knight (Chief Cop - Miami Convention) @ David Carriere (Hippie - Miami convention) @ John William Galt (Fat Republican - Miami Convention) @ Jack McGee (Democratic Delegate - Democratic Convention) @ Kristel Otney (Woman #1 - Democratic Convention) @ Pamela S. Neill (Woman #2 - Democratic Convention) @ Jodi Long (Reporter #1 - Democratic Conventon) @ Michelle Hurst (Reporter #2 - Democratic Convention) @ John C. McGinley (Official #1 - Democratic Convention (as John McGinley)) @ Wayne Knight (Official #2 - Democratic Convention) @ Elizabeth Hoffman (Passerby #1 - Democratic Convention) @ Lucinda Jenney (Passerby #2 - Democratic Convention) @ Lorraine Morin-Torre (Passerby #3 - Democratic Convention) @ Annie McEnroe (Passerby #4 - Democratic Convention) @ Daniel Baldwin (Vet #1 - Democratic Convention) @ Réal Andrews (Vet #2 - Democratic Convention rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Chris Adamec (Orderly (uncredited)) @ Ran Barker (Bobby (the mechanic_ (uncredited)) @ Holly Marie Combs (Jenny (uncredited)) @ Allan Hale (Miami Convention Member (uncredited)) @ Ron Kovic (Veteran at parade (uncredited)) @ Ice Mrozek (Ron Kovic's friend - Syracuse NY (uncredited)) @ Bud Sabatino (Dad at parade (uncredited)) @ Steve Thomas (Attendee at Kovic's Gazebo Speech (uncredited)) @ Mark Edward Walters (Parade attendee (uncredited)Produced by||Stone and Cruise at Their Best Born on the Fourth of July chronicles the deep schisms that divided America during the late 60s and early 70s. The mechanism for conveying the story is the autobiography of Ron Kovic, high school athlete, combat Marine, and anti-war activist.His story is a tortuous one, from naive All American high school kid, to gung-ho Marine in the battlefields of Vietnam where he is severely wounded and crippled.It continues through the nightmare of filthy stateside veteran's hospitals and back into a much-changed America.An America being rent apart by the politics of Vietnam which Ron does not understand and from which he feels alienated. Cruise's portrayal of Kovic is some of his best work.He goes from fresh-faced high school kid, to the tormented battle-weary veteran.Cruise makes this heavy, dramatic metamorphosis believable; it's a great performance. This is a powerful movie, and one I highly recommend. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Bowling for Columbine|Michael Moore|Comedy|Rated R for some violent images and language. |8.6|Canada|2002| 120 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Charles Bishop Jim Czarnecki Michael Donovan Kurt Engfehr Kathleen Glynn Tia Lessin Michael Moore Wolfram Tichy Rehya Young|Michael Moore |Brian Danitz Michael McDonough||A-Film Distribution [nl] |Are we a nation of gun nuts or are we just nuts?|The United States of America is notorious for its astronomical number of people killed by firearms for a developed nation without a civil war. With his signature sense of angry humour, activist filmmaker Michael Moore sets out to explore the roots of this bloodshed. In doing so, he learns that the conventional answers of easy availability of guns, violent national history, violent entertainment and even poverty are inadequate to explain this violence when other cultures share those same factors without the equivalent carnage. In order to arrive at a possible explanation, Michael Moore takes on a deeper examination of America's culture of fear, bigotry and violence in a nation with widespread gun ownership. Furthermore, he seeks to investigate and confront the powerful elite political and corporate interests fanning this culture for their own unscrupulous gain. |Michael Moore (Himself rest of cast listed alphabetically Denise Ames .... Sexy Girl with Gun) @ Arthur A. Busch (Himself (as Art Busch)) @ George W. Bush (Himself (archive footage)) @ Dick Cheney (Himself (archive footage)) @ Dick Clark (Himself) @ Bill Clinton (Himself (archive footage)) @ Barry Glassner (Himself (as Prof. Barry Glassner, USC)) @ Charlton Heston (Himself) @ Marilyn Manson (Himself) @ Chris Rock (Himself (archive footage)) @ Matt Stone (Himself) @ Salvador Allende (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Michael Caldwell (Himself (uncredited)) @ Seth Collins (Himself (uncredited)) @ Jeff Doucett (Himself (Man shot at airport) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ R. Budd Dwyer (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Eric Harris (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jimmie Hughes (Herself (uncredited)) @ Dick Hurlin (Himself (uncredited)) @ Brandon T. Jackson (Himself (uncredited)) @ Daniel V. Jones (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Dylan Klebold (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Joseph Lieberman (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Tom Mauser (Himself (uncredited)) @ Harold Moss (Characters in 'A Brief History of the United States of America' (uncredited) (voice)) @ James Nichols (Himself (uncredited)) @ Manuel Noriega (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Trey Parker (Himself/Stan Marsh (voice) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Robert J. Pickell (Himself (uncredited)) @ Gary Plauche (Himself (Gunman at airport) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith [from "Matrix"] (uncredited) (archive footage) Produced by||MAKES THE SEVEN/TEN SPLIT IN ITS MESSAGE BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE (2002) **** Documentaryfilmmaker/satirist extraordinaire Michael Moore gives it his all in the search for the answer to why America's predilection for guns and violence goes hand in hand with corporate greed, political myopia and social dysfunction to the hilt with brilliant use of archival footage, a history of shame via a viciously smart cartoon, confrontational Mike Wallace-type journalism with NRA misfits and miscreants and the penultimate meeting with spokesperson Charlton Heston that gives new meaning to uncomfortable awkwardness.Moore's dogged determination to shame those who offer no insight to his quest only underscores just how wrong things have been in this country for some time and no matter what your political slant may be it's impossible to say that this is not an important film to see for yourself in what it means to be an agent provocateur.Hilarious and heartbreaking. One of the year's best (and important) films. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Boys Don't Cry|Kimberly Peirce|Drama|Rated R for violence including an intense brutal rape scene, sexuality, language and drug use. R|7.6|USA|1999|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/7/2004|Jill Footlick John Hart Caroline Kaplan Pamela Koffler Eva Kolodner Jon Marcus Jonathan Sehring Jeff Sharp Bradford Simpson John Sloss Morton Swinsky Christine Vachon|Kimberly Peirce Andy Bienen|Jim Denault ||Fox Searchlight Pictures [us] |A true story about finding the courage to be yourself.|Based on actual events. Brandon Teena is the popular new guy in a tiny Nebraska town. He hangs out with the guys, drinking, cussing, and bumper surfing, and he charms the young women, who've never met a more sensitive and considerate young man. Life is good for Brandon, now that he's one of the guys and dating hometown beauty Lana. However, he's forgotten to mention one important detail. It's not that he's wanted in another town for GTA and other assorted crimes, but that Brandon Teena is actually a woman named Teena Brandon. When Brandon's best friends make this discovery, his life eventually is ripped apart by betrayal, humiliation, rape, and murder. |Hilary Swank (Teena Brandon/Brandon Teena) @ Chloë Sevigny (Lana Tisdel) @ Peter Sarsgaard (John Lotter) @ Brendan Sexton III (Tom Nissen) @ Alicia Goranson (Candace) @ Alison Folland (Kate) @ Jeanetta Arnette (Lana's Mom (as Jeannetta Arnette)) @ Rob Campbell (Brian) @ Matt McGrath (Lonny) @ Cheyenne Rushing (Nicole) @ Robert Prentiss (Trucker) @ Josh Ridgway (Kwik Stop Cashier) @ Craig Erickson (Trucker in Kwik Stop) @ Stephanie Sechrist (April Lotter, John's Daughter) @ Jerry Haynes (Judge) @ Lou Perry (Sheriff (as Lou Perryman)) @ Lisa Renee Wilson (Pam (as Lisa Wilson)) @ Jackson Kane (Sam Phillips) @ Joseph Gibson (Tom) @ Michael Tripp (Nerdy Teen) @ Shana McClendon (Girl in car) @ Libby Villari (Nurse) @ Paige Carl Griggs (Dave, Deputy) @ Gail Cronauer (Clerk rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Chad Briley (Extra (uncredited)) @ Ryan Thomas Brockington (Kiss (uncredited)) @ Christophe Dahlkvist (Truck Driver (uncredited)) @ Gabriel Horn (Lester-restraining order guy (uncredited)) @ Natalie Zea ( (uncredited)Produced by||Disturbing and powerful film This is a poignant and powerful film.It is the true story of Teena Brandon, a young woman who is in the throes of a sexual identity crisis. She cuts her hair and dresses like a man to see if she can pass for one. What starts out as an experiment turns into a full fledged alter ego as she is accepted as a man by a group she meets in a bar.The story follows the group's escapades, including Brandon's love affair with Lana, who falls in love with Brandon, thinking she's a man.It culminates with the discovery that Brandon is actually a woman with a dramatic confrontation in the finale. This is film noir at it's finest.A lot of people think that this is a story about courage and lesbianism but it is really about neither.It is about the search for identity; not just sexual identity but the search for a deeper self .All the characters in this film were lost and confused, but Brandon was the only one who realized it of herself.The rest were basically playing out their despondent lives trying not to think of who or what they were.Here was a person they loved and accepted, but who turned out to be the most heinous of deviants as defined by their own prejudices and fears. This is why they were so fundamentally shaken upon the revelation of Brandon's true identity.It left them to confront their own flimsy identities.They were left with no respite from the emotional vortex. Brandon presented a terrifying threat to the way they viewed themselves. They were compelled to change who they were or hate someone they had grown to love. This film was also about obsession.Brandon takes extraordinary risks to live the male role, not out of courage, but out of an obsession to know and understand it, and to see if she can find comfort and a sense of belonging. Likewise, writer/director Kimberly Peirce had been obsessed with this story and researched it for five years before finally making the film.Obsession generally leads to one of two places: greatness or death.For Peirce, at least for the moment, it has lead to greatness in the production of this film. Strictly from a technical directorial standpoint there was nothing special here.The lighting was amateurish, the shots were mostly mundane. The sets and locations were realistically trashy, but it is a lot easier to create realistic trash than realistic elegance.Peirce also bogs the film down occasionally with excessive character development.However, Peirce captures in the story and the filming, the essence of rural lower class crudenes, bigotry and hatred and fear.It is the raw emotion that reaches out and grabs us.Her lens brought into sharp focus the base reality of inescapable despair and deluded hope.Reality often has fangs, and Peirce was undaunted in showing them and then ripping us to shreds. As to Hilary Swank, I can only add one more rose to the bouquet of praise that has been heaped on her.If there was any courage in this story, it was the courage of Swank to take such a complex and disturbing role.The subtlety of her performance was astounding.She needed not just to be a woman playing a man.She needed to be a woman playing a woman playing a man, trying to look convincing yet insecure and unsure of how she was being perceived by the other characters.When in character, her many skillful lapses into moments of femininity, only to snap back into masculinity were masterfully done.For Swank, this was a meteoric rise from obscurity.It remains to be seen if it was just the perfect alignment of actor and role, or something more.I hope for the latter and look forward to seeing her next project. Greatly obscured by Swankmania, was the performance by Chloe Sevigny as Lana, Brandon's love interest.She gave an outstanding performance in another extraordinarily difficult role.Her conflict over the implications of her sexual and emotional feelings for Brandon were sensitively and delicately portrayed.She played the part with a tentative eagerness, just as one would expect of someone whose sexual identity had been thrown into upheaval.It was also no easy career choice to be cast in a role with so many explicit sexual scenes with another woman. This film was stark reality with no holds barred.The filmmaking was technically unsophisticated (and I'm usually a real stickler about that), but I rated it a 9/10 on pure emotional power.This film is not for you if you are offended by lesbianism, graphic violence or profanity.But if you are not intimidated by the naked reality of the darker side of life, this is a film you must experience. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Braveheart|Mel Gibson|Drama|Rated R for brutal medieval warfare. |8.3|USA|1995| 177 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bruce Davey Mel Gibson Alan Ladd Jr. Dean Lopata Stephen McEveety Elisabeth Robinson|Randall Wallace |John Toll ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |What kind of man would defy a king?|William Wallace is a Scottish rebel who leads an uprising against the cruel English ruler Edward the Longshanks, who wishes to inherit the crown of Scotland for himself. When he was a young boy, William Wallace's father and brother, along with many others, lost their lives trying to free Scotland. Once he loses another of his loved ones, William Wallace begins his long quest to make Scotland free once and for all, along with the assistance of Robert the Bruce. Braveheart is the partly historical, partly mythological, story of William Wallace, a Scottish common man who fights for his country's freedom from English rule around the end of the 13th century In 13th Century Scotland, William Wallace leads his people in a rebellion against the tyranny of the English King, who has given English nobility the 'Prima Nocta'.. a right to take all new brides for the first night. The Scots are none too pleased with the brutal English invaders, but they lack leadership to fight back. Wallace creates a legend of himself, with his courageous defence of his people and attacks on the English. |Mel Gibson (William Wallace) @ James Robinson (Young William Wallace) @ Sean Lawlor (Malcolm Wallace) @ Sandy Nelson (John Wallace) @ James Cosmo (Campbell) @ Sean McGinley (MacClannough) @ Alan Tall (Elder Stewart) @ Andrew Weir (Young Hamish Campbell) @ Gerda Stevenson (Mother MacClannough) @ Ralph Riach (Priest #1) @ Mhairi Calvey (Young Murron MacClannough) @ Brian Cox (Argyle Wallace) @ Patrick McGoohan (Longshanks - King Edward I) @ Peter Hanly (Edward, Prince of Wales) @ Sophie Marceau (Princess Isabelle) @ Stephen Billington (Phillip) @ Barry McGovern (King's advisor) @ Angus MacFadyen (Robert the Bruce) @ John Kavanagh (Craig) @ Alun Armstrong (Mornay) @ Catherine McCormack (Murron MacClannough) @ Brendan Gleeson (Hamish Campbell) @ Tommy Flanagan (Morrison) @ Julie Austin (Mrs. Morrison) @ Alex Norton (Bride's father) @ Joanne Bett (Toothless girl) @ Rupert Vansittart (Lord Bottoms) @ Michael Byrne (Smythe) @ Robert Paterson (Priest #2) @ Malcolm Tierney (Magistrate) @ William Scott-Masson (Corporal (as William Masson)) @ Dean Lopata (Madbaker/Flagman) @ Tam White (MacGregor) @ Donal Gibson (Stewart) @ Jeanne Marine (Nicolette, Princess Isabelle's handmaiden) @ Martin Dunne (Lord Dolecroft) @ Fred Chiverton (Leper's caretaker) @ Ian Bannen (The Leper (Robert Bruce, Sr.)) @ Jimmy Chisholm (Faudron) @ David O'Hara (Stephen, Irish Fighter) @ John Murtagh (Lochlan) @ David McKay (Young soldier) @ Peter Mullan (Veteran) @ Martin Murphy (Lord Talmadge) @ Gerard McSorley (Cheltham) @ Bernard Horsfall (Balliol) @ Richard Leaf (Governor of York) @ Daniel Coli (York captain) @ Niall O'Brien (English general) @ Liam Carney (Sean) @ Bill Murdoch (Villager) @ Phil Kelly (Farmer) @ Martin Dempsey (Drinker #1) @ Jimmy Keogh (Drinker #2) @ Joe Savino (Chief assassin) @ David Gant (Royal Magistrate) @ Mal Whyte (Jailor) @ Paul Tucker (English commander rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jer O'Leary (English General (uncredited)) @ Ryan Wallace (English lord (uncredited) Produced by||An Amazing Accomplishment, Easily the Best of 1995 I can remember when everyone was shocked when "Braveheart" won the Best Picture Oscar of 1995.However, "Braveheart" was easily the best film in an above-average year for movies.Mel Gibson's style of directing is the heart in "Braveheart".It is a cinematic event.In 2 hours and 59 minutes Gibson tells the story of William Wallace, a Scottish rebel in the late 13th Century, who led a rebellion against the English and freed a nation from an evil tyranny.We get a glimpse of Wallace as a young boy to his awful death at the hands of the English.The greatest argument about this film is whether this film is history or Hollywood.Well it's more Hollywood than history, but that has nothing to do with the greatness of the film.Gibson reminded us of all the great epics of the late-1950s and early-1960s with this masterpiece.His ability as a director was solidified and "Braveheart" is a film that will likely never lose its glitter.5 stars out of 5. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Breakdown|Jonathan Mostow|Action|Rated R for strong violence/terror and language. R|6.7|USA|1997|95 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Harry Colomby Dino De Laurentiis Jonathan Fernandez Artist W. Robinson Martha Schumacher Jeffrey Sudzin|Jonathan Mostow Jonathan Mostow Sam Montgomery|Douglas Milsome ||América Vídeo [br] |A cross-country trip. An unexpected breakdown. The trap has been set.|Jeff and Amy Taylor are moving to California and must drive across the country. When they find themselves stranded in the middle of a desert with hardly anyone or anything around, their trip comes to a sudden halt. Amy had taken a ride with a friendly trucker to a small diner to call for help, but after a long time, Jeff becomes worried. He finds that no one in the diner has seen or heard from his wife. When he finds the trucker who gave Amy the ride, the trucker swears he has never seen her. Now Jeff must attempt to find his wife, who has been kidnapped and is being held for ransom. But who can he trust? A man and his wife are driving cross-country from Mass. to San Diego when their new car mysteriously breaks down. A truck driver stops and assists them by taking his wife to the nearest diner to phone for help but in reality is kidnaping her causing her husband to track his wife and the kidnaper down himself. After their new Jeep conks out on a desolate stretch of Arizona highway, a well-heeled Massachusetts couple accepts the help of a kindly, honest-seeming trucker, who drives the wife to a diner while the husband stays behind to "protect" the vehicle. After saying goodbye, the husband gets two surprises: the Jeep starts, and his wife never actually arrived at the diner, and the trucker doesn't recollect having picked her up at all... |Kurt Russell (Jeff Taylor) @ J.T. Walsh (Red Barr/'Warren', gang truck driver) @ Kathleen Quinlan (Amy Taylor) @ M.C. Gainey (Earl, gang member) @ Jack Noseworthy (Billy, gang member) @ Rex Linn (Sheriff Boyd) @ Ritch Brinkley (Al, gang member) @ Moira Harris (Arleen Barr, Red's wife) @ Kim Robillard (Deputy Len Carver) @ Thomas Kopache (Calhoun) @ Jack McGee (Bartender at Belle's Diner) @ Vincent Berry (Deke Barr, Red's son) @ Helen Duffy (Flo) @ Ancel Cook (Barfly at Belle's Diner) @ Gene Hartline (Tow Truck Driver) @ Steve Waddington (Cowboy In Bank) @ Rick Sanders (Truck Stop TruckerProduced by||Great suspense thriller. I saw the preview for this one and had to see it to see if Russell was able to get his wife back.This movie is a great edge of seat movie and has some twists and turns along the way.The plot has Russell and his wife stranded in the middle of nowhere when their car breaks down.A trucker comes along and offers to give them a lift.Russell sends his wife, but insists he stay with the car.After awhile, he fixes the car and drives into town and goes to the place his wife is supposed to be, but she isn't there.Later, he gets the police to stop the trucker, but there is no sign of his wife and the trucker insists he has never seen Russell before.Russell has a lot of obstacles to go through to find his wife, but there is a nice payoff at the end. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Breakfast at Tiffany's|Blake Edwards|Romance||7.7|USA|1961| 115 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Martin Jurow Richard Shepherd|Truman Capote George Axelrod|Franz Planer ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |Audrey Hepburn plays that daring, darling Holly Golightly to a new high in entertainment delight!|Based on Truman Capote's novel, this is the story of a young, jet- setting woman in New York City who meets a young man when he moves into her apartment building. He is being kept by a wealthy, older woman, but wants to be a writer. She is working as a high-priced escort and searching for a rich, older man to marry. The opening scene has her window-shopping at Tiffany's at six in the morning, after being up all night on a date. |Audrey Hepburn (Holly Golightly) @ George Peppard (Paul 'Fred' Varjak) @ Patricia Neal (2-E) @ Buddy Ebsen (Doc Golightly) @ Martin Balsam (O. J. Berman) @ José Luis de Villalonga (José da Silva Pereira (as Vilallonga)) @ John McGiver (Tiffany's salesman) @ Alan Reed (Sally Tomato) @ Dorothy Whitney (Mag Wildwood) @ Beverly Powers (Dancer at nightclub (as Miss Beverly Hills)) @ Stanley Adams (Rusty Trawler) @ Claude Stroud (Sid Arbuck) @ Elvia Allman (Librarian) @ Orangey (Cat (as "Cat")) @ Mickey Rooney (Mr. Yunioshi rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Dick Crockett (Taxi driver (uncredited)) @ Tommy Farrell (Man at party (uncredited)) @ George Fields (Harmonica player (uncredited)) @ Joe Gray (Party guest (uncredited)) @ Kip King (Delivery boy (uncredited)) @ Gil Lamb (Gil (party guest with Harriet) (uncredited)) @ Hanna Landy (Woman at party (uncredited)) @ James Lanphier (The Cousin (uncredited)) @ Fay McKenzie (Woman at party (uncredited)) @ Miriam Nelson (Harriet (party guest in gold dress) (uncredited)) @ Robert Patten (Mr. O'Shaughnessy (uncredited)) @ Michael Quinn (Man with eyepatch (uncredited)) @ William Benegal Rau (Hindu at party (uncredited)) @ Annabella Soong (Chinese girl at party (uncredited)) @ Helen Spring (Woman at party (uncredited)) @ Joan Staley (Girl in low-cut dress (uncredited)) @ Wilson Wood (Party guest with cat on shoulder (uncredited) Produced by||A richly textured romantic comedy This wonderful romantic comedy featuring Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard and adapted from a novella by Truman Capote is as complex as it is touching. As we meet Holly Golightly (Hepburn), she appears to be a quirky girl of modest means who yearns to lives the jet set lifestyle.She window shops at Tiffany's and throws wild parties in her apartment.Her chief source of income comes from weekly visits to a Mafia don in prison, relaying `weather reports' to his lawyer on the outside.She seems to be the picture of superficiality, described by O.J. Berman (Martin Balsam) as a `real phony', a person who is not what she appears to be, but is convinced she is. Paul Varjak is an apathetic writer with one book and no ideas.He moves in upstairs from Holly and they immediately strike up a fire escape friendship. His only source of income comes from being a gigolo to his wealthy interior decorator (Patricia Neal) who pays him handsomely for his services every chance she gets.Paul and Holly seem to be two of a kind, abject losers pretending to be what they are not. However, as the story unfolds, the layers are peeled away and the motivation for Holly's go-lightly personality is revealed in her difficult past.She is far more complex and deep than we first believe, using her lifestyle as a defense mechanism, a way of running from herself.The friendship and love that grow between Paul and Holly make better people of each and ultimately help them to transcend their personal flaws, but not without great difficulties. For director Blake Edwards, who became most renowned for a spate of Pink Panther movies, this film was probably among his finest moments.These were complicated characters and he revealed them slowly with nuance.They were also developing as people and his treatment of this effect was both subtle and powerful. The film is not without controversy.Truman Capote was adamant about having Marilyn Monroe in the lead, but the studio went with Audrey Hepburn, who was far less popular but who was probably better for the complexities of the character.They had selected a very young John Frankenheimer as director, who at that point had only TV credits on his resume.Hepburn refused to work with him and he was dumped in favor of Edwards.Capote wanted the film to remain true to the book's dark and depressing ending, but the studio chose to play to the masses and end it on an upbeat.Personally, I'm glad they did. The film has been roundly criticized in the present day for the character portrayed by Mickey Rooney.Rooney played a caricature of a bumbling Japanese neighbor that was extremely unflattering to Asians although admittedly it was hilarious.This is considered a shocking portrayal in today's politically correct society, but it stirred little furor at the time, when everyone was far more insensitive and far less oversensitive. When the film was released, the biggest criticism was that Edwards overused the character to the point of making him nauseating, which was an obvious error in judgment.If Rooney only had one or two scenes rather than roughly a dozen, it probably wouldn't have become such a lightening rod. Hepburn and Peppard were both terrific in the leads.Hepburn, who was nominated for best actress for the role, gave Holly a lovable quirkiness that belied her deeper troubles.When it was time to broaden the character, Hepburn gave her a fullness and depth that I feel Marilyn Monroe never could have accomplished.Peppard was more than just a dashing and handsome foil for Hepburn.He played Paul with sensitivity and refinement and had incredible chemistry with Hepburn, making the romance very natural and believable. One of the best things about the film was the soundtrack, which brought the film its only two Oscars from five nominations.Henry Mancini's musical score was marvelous and film's theme song, `Moon River' written by Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer is an enduring classic. This richly textured film has both depth and range.It has just the right balance of lightness and heaviness, with well-explored characters that change before our eyes.I rated it a 10/10.It is an intelligent and affecting film that is worth seeing. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bridge on the River Kwai, The|David Lean|Adventure|PG |8.4|UK|1957|161 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Sam Spiegel |Pierre Boulle Michael Wilson Carl Foreman|Jack Hildyard ||Columbia Pictures [us] |It spans a whole new world of entertainment!|British WW2 prisoners of war are given the task, by their Japanese captors, of building a railway bridge in a harsh Asian jungle. Led by Col Nicholson, a stereotypical British officer, the prisoners score a moral victory over the Japanese by not only building the bridge, but running the whole show. Unknown to Nicholson, an allied demolition team are planning a spectacular opening for the bridge. |William Holden (Cmdr./Maj. Shears) @ Jack Hawkins (Maj. Warden) @ Alec Guinness (Colonel Nicholson) @ Sessue Hayakawa (Col. Saito) @ James Donald (Maj. Clipton) @ Geoffrey Horne (Lt. Joyce) @ André Morell (Col. Green (as Andre Morell)) @ Peter Williams (Maj. Reeves) @ John Boxer (Capt. Hughes) @ Percy Herbert (Grogan) @ Harold Goodwin (Baker, Sick List Volunteer) @ Ann Sears (Nurse at Ceylon hospital) @ Heihachiro Okawa (Capt. Kanematsu (as Henry Okawa)) @ Keiichiro Katsumoto (Lt. Miura) @ M.R.B. Chakrabandhu (Yai) @ Vilaiwan Seeboonreaung (Siamese girl) @ Ngamta Suphaphongs (Siamese girl) @ Javanart Punynchoti (Siamese girl) @ Kannikar Dowklee (Siamese girlProduced by||Nothing less than a masterpiece... About as Oscar-worthy as any film made in the '50s is David Lean's gripping BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI. Based loosely on a real-life incident, it tells the story of an imprisoned British officer (Alec Guinness) who loses sight of his mission when forced to build a bridge for the Japanese that will enable the enemy to carry supplies by train through the jungle during World War II. Guinness plays the crisp British officer to perfection, brilliant in all of his scenes but especially in his confrontations with Sessue Hayakawa. William Holden has a pivotal role as one of the prisoners who escapes and enjoys his freedom for awhile before being asked to return with a small squadron to destroy the bridge. Jack Hawkins and Geoffrey Horne have colorful roles too and all are superb under David Lean's direction. The jungle settings filmed in Ceylon add the necessary realism to the project and there is never a suspension of interest although the story runs well over two-and-a-half hours. The film builds to a tense and magnificent climax with an ending that seems to be deliberately ambiguous and thought provoking. Well worth watching, especially if shown in the restored letterbox version now being shown on TCM. Some of the best lines go to William Holden and he makes the most of a complex role--a mixture of cynicism and heroism in a character that ranks with his best anti-hero roles in films of the '50s. He brings as much conviction to his role as Alec Guinness does and deserved a Best Actor nomination that he did not get. ||Limited Edition |1.37 : 1 (cropped, for theatres not yet equipped for CinemaScope) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Bridge to Terabithia|Eric Till|Fantasy||5.6|Canada|1985| USA:58 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Edward K. Dodds |Katherine Paterson Nancy Sackett|Philip Linzey ||The Disney Channel [us] ||Jess Aarons and new girl Leslie Burke create a world of their own and call it Teribithia and pretend to be the king and queen. They return to their magical kingdom every day after school and one day, while Jess is not there, Leslie tries to cross the bridge to Terebithia but she falls in and drowns. When Jess finds out he is sad. The Burkes move away but he believes that she has taught him something. |Annette O'Toole (Miss Edmunds) @ Julian Coutts (Jesse Oliver Aarons, Jr.) @ Julie Beaulieu (Leslie Burke) @ Gloria Carlin (Mrs. Aarons) @ Tom Heaton (Jesse Oliver Aarons, Sr. (Mr. Aarons)) @ Peter Dvorsky (Mr. Burke) @ Darlene Bradley (Mrs. Burke) @ Sharon Holownia (Brenda Aarons) @ Jennifer Matichuk (Maybelle Aarons) @ Tyler Popp (Gary Fulcher) @ Bridget Ryan (Janice Avery) @ Asaph Fipke (Earle Watson) @ Paul McGaffey (Mr. Turner) @ Cathy Wenschlag (Puppy Girl) @ Anthony Mandler (Puppy Boy) @ Josephine Stebbings (Girl #1) @ Jennifer Rozenhart (Girl #2) @ Michael Bittner (Boy #1) @ Kresse Wesling (Little Girl Produced by||Fantastic! I love this movie so much!!! I read the wonderful book back in 5th grade, and then we got to watch the movie and I just fell in love with it!!! Its such a good script with wonderful acting!!! This is a fantastic film to be enjoyed by the whole family!!! ||Movies ||Movies ||||||@@ Pacte des loups, Le|Christophe Gans|Action|Rated R for strong violence and gore, and sexuality/nudity. R|7.0|France|2001|142 min/ Argentina:140 min/ Canada:152 min (director's cut)|French||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/2/2004|Richard Grandpierre Samuel Hadida|Stéphane Cabel Christophe Gans|Dan Laustsen ||01 Distribuzione [it] ||In 1765 something was stalking the mountains of south-western France. A 'beast' that pounced on humans and animals with terrible ferocity. Indeed they beast became so notorious that the King of France dispatched envoys to find out what was happening and to kill the creature. By the end, the Beast of Gevaudan had killed over 100 people, to this day, no one is entirely sure what it was, wolf? hyena? or something supernatural? Whatever it was, shepherds had the same life-expectancy as the red-suited guys in 'Star Trek'. The Beast is a popular myth in France, albeit one rooted firmly in reality; somewhat surprisingly it is little known to the outside world, and perhaps incredibly it has never been made into a movie. Until now... Based on the true story of the Beast of the Gevaudan that terrorised France in the mid-XVIIIth century, the movie aims to tell first and explain afterwards. In the first part, a special envoy of the King of France, altogether biologist, explorer and philosopher, arrives in the Gevaudan region, in the mountainous central part of France. The Beast has been attacking women and children for months and nobody has quite been able to harm it or even take a good look at it. In the second part, our hero Chevalier de Fronsac will not only have to fight the Beast, but also ignorance, bigotry and conspiracy and will rely on two women, one an aristocrat, the other a prostitute, as well as the enigmatic Mani, an Iroquois he met in New-France (Canada). |Samuel Le Bihan (Grégoire de Fronsac) @ Vincent Cassel (Jean-François de Morangias) @ Émilie Dequenne (Marianne de Morangias) @ Monica Bellucci (Sylvia) @ Jérémie Rénier (Thomas d'Apcher) @ Mark Dacascos (Mani) @ Jean Yanne (Le Comte de Morangias) @ Jean-François Stévenin (Henri Sardis) @ Jacques Perrin (Thomas d'Apcher (old)) @ Edith Scob (Geneviève de Morangias) @ Johan Leysen (Beauterne) @ Bernard Farcy (Laffont) @ Hans Meyer (Marquis d'Apcher) @ Virginie Darmon (La Bavarde) @ Philippe Nahon (Jean Chastel) @ Eric Prat (Capitaine Duhamel) @ Jean-Loup Wolff (Duc de Moncan) @ Bernard Fresson (Mercier) @ Christian Marc (Old Thomas' servany) @ Karin Kriström (Bergère du Rocher) @ Vincent Cespedes (Soldier) @ Jean-Paul Farré (Père Georges) @ Pierre Lavit (Jacques) @ Michel Puterflam (Bishop de Mende) @ Nicolas Vaude (Maxime Des Forêts) @ Max Delor (Old nobleman) @ Christian Adam (Old nobleman) @ Jean-Pierre Jackson (Nobleman at dinner) @ Nicky Naude (La Fêlure) @ Daniel Herroin (Blondin) @ Gaëlle Cohen (La Loutre) @ Virginie Arnaud (La Pintade) @ Charles Maquignon (Valet Bordel) @ Frankie Pain (La Tessier (as Franckie Pain)) @ Isabelle Le Nouvel (Brunette prostitute) @ Albane Fioretti (Prostitute at Teissier) @ Clarice Plasteig dit Caffou (Prostitute at Teissier) @ Delphine Hivernet (Valentine) @ Juliette Lamboley (Cécile) @ Gaspard Ulliel (Louis) @ Pierre Castagne (Cecile's father) @ Stéphane Pioffet (Peasant) @ Eric Laffitte (Villager) @ Eric Delcourt (Aide-camp Beauterne) @ André Penvern (Buffon) @ Christelle Droy (Bergère des dollines) @ Andres Fuentes (Peasant who gives directions) @ Nadine Marcovici (Jeanne Roulier) @ Jean-Claude Braquet (Pierre) @ David Bogino (Knife thrower) @ Emanuel Booz (Officer Butcher) @ François Hadji-Lazaro (Machemort) @ Pascal Laugier (Machemort's assistant rest of cast listed alphabetically Erwan Baynaud) @ Michel Lataste (producer||Odd French horror film In 18th century France, Gregoire de Fronsac (Samuel Le Bihan) and his Indian companion Mani (Mark Dacascos) try to capture a beast which is killing people in a remote village.That's the main plot, but there are many others thrown in.Among the elements put in--a love story; politics (LOTS of it); racism; incest; rape; murder; gratuitous female nudity and kick-boxiing!A few of the fight scenes would not be out of place in a Jackie Chan movie. **SPOILERS AHEAD** Basically, this film is all over the map...way too much.The film tries to cover too much material (and characters), it runs over 2 1/2 hours and there are HUGE plot holes (the explanation of the beast makes no sense and one character is killed and then brought back to life, yet we're never told how or why!). On the plus side it is well done and Dacascos' Mani is a very interesting, complex character (as Dacascos is a good actor, is very handsome and has a great body).Le Bihan is OK as Fronsac.Also Monica Bellucci is on hand looking great, giving a wonderful performance and really boosting the movie. So, it's too long, too serious, too plot-heavy but somewhat worth seeing for the fight scenes, the beast (which is incredible), Dacascos and Bellucci. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Bruce Almighty|Tom Shadyac|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for language, sexual content and some crude humor. PG-13|6.5|USA|2003|101 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/22/2004|Gary Barber Roger Birnbaum Michael Bostick James D. Brubaker Jim Carrey Linda Fields Steve Koren Mark O'Keefe Steve Oedekerk Tom Shadyac Jonathan Watson Janet L. Wattles|Steve Koren Mark O'Keefe Steve Koren Mark O'Keefe Steve Oedekerk|Dean Semler ||Spyglass Entertainment [us] |He's got the power.|Bruce Nolan (Carrey), a television reporter in Buffalo, N.Y.,is discontented with almost everything in life despite his popularity and the love of his girlfriend, Grace (Aniston) . At the end of the worst day of his life, Bruce angrily ridicules and rages against God and God responds. God appears in human form (Freeman) and, endowing Bruce with divine powers, challenges Bruce to take on the big job to see if he can do it any better. Bruce Nolan is a television reporter, who is currently assigned what he considers to be undignified assignments, that has him being the butt of a joke. When he is told that he is being considered for the position of anchorman, he goes out to do a live feed but when it is announced that Evan Baxter was going to be the new anchorman, and he freaks out. He gets fired, beaten up, and so on. In the end he blames God. God then decides to give Bruce his powers. Bruce then wreaks havoc and is enjoying it. He sabotages Evan and gets the job of anchorman. But when he realizes that he has to deal with what has got to be God's most arduous task, listening and answering prayers. When he tries to grant everybody what they want, turmoil ensues. And while Bruce is getting everything he wants, he has been ignoring his girlfriend, Grace and loses her. And it seems that the only thing that he can't do, is alter a person's free will, so if he wants her back, he has to do it the hard way. A newscaster for the Channel 7 Eyewitness News complains about how God has only made his life a total waste. Well, Bruce Nolan, played by Jim Carrey, gets that chance after he freaks out on live TV, is fired and is offered a new job by an unknown place. He meets God and is given all the powers of God. At first he loves it. He can do anything but when he discovers others in Buffalo who are praying, he learns that maybe this job of being God isn't really that easy. Bruce is a down on his luck TV news reporter. In a fit of desperation he challenges God and vents that if only he had God's power, he could solve all his problems. God responds to his challenge and allows Bruce to take on his powers to prove himself. Bruce soon learns that being God is very challenging. |Jim Carrey (Bruce Nolan) @ Morgan Freeman (God) @ Jennifer Aniston (Grace Connelly) @ Philip Baker Hall (Jack Baylor) @ Catherine Bell (Susan Ortega) @ Lisa Ann Walter (Debbie) @ Steven Carell (Evan Baxter) @ Nora Dunn (Ally Loman) @ Eddie Jemison (Bobby) @ Paul Satterfield (Dallas Coleman) @ Mark Kiely (Fred Donohue) @ Sally Kirkland (Anita Mann) @ Tony Bennett (Himself) @ Timothy Di Pri (Bruce's Cameraman (as Timothy DiPri)) @ Brian Tahash (Bruce's Soundman) @ Lou Felder (Pete Fineman) @ Lillian Adams (Mama Kowolski) @ Christopher Darga (Vol Kowolski) @ Jack Jozefson (Homeless Man) @ Mark Adair-Rios (Hood) @ Enrique Almeida (Hood) @ Noel Gugliemi (Hood) @ Rolando Molina (Hood) @ Emilio Rivera (Hood) @ Albert P. Santos (Hood) @ Madeline Lovejoy (Zoe) @ Jovan Allie (Martin) @ Koby Allie (Martin) @ Dan Desmond (Bill, Ferry Owner) @ Selma Stern (Irene Dansfield) @ Alfred Dennis (Old Man) @ Rina Fernandez (Pretty Woman) @ Robert Curtis-Brown (Phil Sidleman) @ Michael Brownlee (Newscaster) @ Ted Garcia (Newscaster) @ Maria Quiban (Newscaster) @ Shaun Robinson (Newscaster) @ Saida Pagan (Newscaster (as Saida Rodriguez-Pagan)) @ Ken Rudulph (Newscaster) @ Gina St. John (Newscaster) @ Michael Villani (Newscaster) @ Christina Grandy (Office Staffer) @ Jamison Yang (Office Staffer) @ Bette Rae (Hazel) @ Andrew Romero Hateley (Teenager (as Andrew Hateley)) @ Nick Huff (Teenager) @ Greg Collins (Coach Tucker) @ Dougald Park (Stalled Car Guy) @ Susan Ware (Party Woman) @ John Rosenfeld (Business Man) @ Mary Pat Gleason (Heavyish Woman) @ Carey Scott (Partying Sports Guy) @ David A. Clemons (Rioter) @ Bradley Stryker (College Rioter) @ Laura Carson (Nurse) @ Zachary Aaron Krebs (Paramedic) @ Ben Livingston (Paramedic) @ Nelson Mashita (Doctor) @ Glen Yrigoyen (Trainer) @ Dohn Norwood (Police Training Center Officer) @ Michael Olifiers (Police Training Center Officer) @ David Carrera (Phil's Cameraman) @ Howard S. Lefstein (Phil's Soundman) @ Miah Won (Connie, Masseuse) @ Darcy Fowers (Attractive Woman at Restaurant) @ Laura-Shay Griffin (Attractive Woman at Restaurant) @ Darius Rose (Tyler) @ Micayla Bowden (Day Care Kid) @ Samantha Boyarsky (Day Care Kid) @ Dylan Ferguson (Day Care Kid) @ Cubbie Kile (Day Care Kid) @ Emily Needham (Day Care Kid) @ Alex Villiers (Day Care Kid) @ Monique Daniels (Day Care Teacher (as Moe Daniels)) @ Ara Celi (Woman at Party) @ Jessica Leigh Mattson (Woman at Party) @ Allison McCurdy (Woman at Party) @ Patti O'Donnell (Woman at Party) @ Janelle Perzina (Woman at Party) @ Annie Wersching (Woman at Party) @ Ashley Yegan (Woman at Party) @ Micah Williams (Boy on Bike) @ William Thomas Jr. (Technical Director) @ Tom Beyer (Stage Manager) @ Max Grodénchik (Control Room Operator) @ Michael Bofshever (Control Room Operator) @ Colby French (Control Room Operator) @ Manny Suárez (Control Room Operator) @ Shashawnee Hall (Camera operator) @ Don Dowe (Camera operator) @ Vanna Salviati (Bobby's Aunt) @ P.J. Byrne (Panicked Newsroom Staffer) @ Carrie Quinn Dolin (Teleprompter Operator) @ Scott DeFoe (K-9 Tech rest of cast listed alphabetically Michael Guarnera .... Riot Leader) @ Allen Lulu (Office Staffer) @ Lisa Cassidy (Supermarket Clerk (DVD deleted scenes) (uncredited)) @ Dimas Diaz (Valet #1 (uncredited)) @ Adrian Neil (James (uncredited)Produced by||Jim Carrey plays God... 'Bruce Almighty' is Jim Carrey the way you want to see him. Like in 'Liar Liar' he can pull all his nice little tricks and in the end the movie has a big heart. Morgan Freeman is God and they way he is shown is great. Very religious people might not like this movie, but if they see it they must understand the movie means well and in the end only shows the good parts of having a God. In a way it is encouraging. Jennifer Aniston is Carrey's love interest and she is pretty good as well. Since 'The Good Girl' she is not really Rachel from 'Friends' anymore and for the movies that is a very good thing (I do like her very much in Friends). A lot of laughs, a little too much sentimental things in the end, but a story full with a good heart make this a very enjoyable movie. Also look for the little things from previous Carrey-movies including God's "Alrighty then". ||Full Screen |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Army of Darkness|Sam Raimi|Adventure|Rated R for violence and horror. |7.3|USA|1993| 81 min/ USA:96 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bruce Campbell Dino De Laurentiis Robert G. Tapert|Sam Raimi Ivan Raimi|Bill Pope ||Anchor Bay Entertainment [us] |Trapped in time. Surrounded by evil. Low on gas|This is the sequel to "Evil Dead 2." Ash finds himself stranded in the 13th Century with his car, his shotgun, and his chainsaw. Soon he is discovered and thought to be a spy for a rival kingdom and is taken prisoner. After proving his merit in The Pit, he decides to help the kingdom retrieve the Necronomicon (which will also help him return to his own time), which they need to battle the supernatural forces at play in the land. Ash accidentally releases the Army of Darkness when retrieving the book, and a fight to the finish ensues. In this sequel to the Evil Dead films, a discount-store employee ("Name's Ash. Housewares.") is time-warped to a medieval castle beset by monstrous forces. Initially mistaken for an enemy, he is soon revealed as the prophecised savior who can quest for the Necronomicon, a book which can dispel the evil. Unfortunately, he screws up the magic words while collecting the tome, and releases an army of skeletons, led by his own Deadite counterpart. What follows is a thrilling, yet tongue-in-cheek battle between Ash's 20th Century tactics and the minions of darkness. In the third film of "The Evil Dead" series, our gun-totting, chainsaw-handed hero, Ash (Bruce Campbell), has been transported to England in the 13th century where he has been prophesized as the one who will find the Necronomicon, the Book of the Dead, and deliver the people from the terrors of the Deadites, who quest for the book, too. But he is mistaken as a spy from a rival kingdom and forced to fight two Deadites before the people find out what he is here for. He also falls for a woman named Sheila (Embeth Davidtz) before he searches for the book. But after finding it, he says the wrong words that will allow the wisemen to use the book to send him back and stop the Deadites and accidentally awakens the Army of the Dead, led by his clone, Evil Ash. Now, Ash must use his 20th century wits and skills to beat Evil Ash and his army of skeletons. |Bruce Campbell (Ashley J. 'Ash' Williams/Evil Ash/Mini-Ash) @ Embeth Davidtz (Sheila) @ Marcus Gilbert (Lord Arthur) @ Ian Abercrombie (Wiseman (Wiseman John in the script)) @ Richard Grove (Duke Henry the Red) @ Timothy Patrick Quill (Blacksmith) @ Michael Earl Reid (Gold Tooth) @ Bridget Fonda (Linda) @ Patricia Tallman (Possessed Witch) @ Ted Raimi (Cowardly Warrior/Second Supportive Villager/S-Mart Clerk) @ Deke Anderson (Mini-Ash #2) @ Bruce Thomas (Mini-Ash #3) @ Sara Shearer (Old Woman) @ Shiva Gordon (Pit Deadite #1) @ Billy Bryan (Pit Deadite #2) @ Nadine Grycan (Winged Deadite) @ Bill Moseley (Deadite Captain) @ Micheal Kenney (Henry's Man) @ Andy Bale (Lieutenant #1) @ Robert Brent Lappin (Lieutenant #2) @ Rad Milo (Tower Guard) @ Brad Bradbury (Chief Archer) @ Sol Abrams (Fake Shemp) @ Lorraine Axeman (Fake Shemp) @ Josh Becker (Fake Shemp) @ Sheri Burke (Fake Shemp) @ Don Campbell (Fake Shemp) @ Charlie Campbell (Fake Shemp) @ Harley Cokeliss (Fake Shemp) @ Ken Jepson (Fake Shemp) @ William Lustig (Fake Shemp) @ David O'Malley (Fake Shemp) @ David Pollison (Fake Shemp) @ Ivan Raimi (Fake Shemp) @ Bernard Rose (Fake Shemp) @ Bill Vincent (Fake Shemp) @ Chris Webster (Fake Shemp) @ Ron Zwang (Fake Shemp rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Angela Featherstone (Girl in S-Mart (uncredited)) @ Kevin O'Hara (Deadite (uncredited)) @ Sam Raimi (Knight in Sweatshirt and Sneakers/'I'm Afraid' Knight in Chain-Mail Hood (uncredited) Produced by||Didn`t Peter Jackson Remake This ? Hmmm , a strange film as sequels go since EVIL DEAD 2 was more or less identical to its predecessor while this second sequel is an entire universe away from the original with only the comic book black humour giving a hint that it`s from the same franchise . Unfortunately because it`s set in a pseudo dark ages period it`s impossible not to be reminded of a certain film that was released last Christmas , you know the one where a group of humans are beseiged by dark forces . I said unfortunately because ARMY OF DARKNESS can`t help draw attention to itself for having a pathetically small budget , , the castle is obviously a matte painting in the long shots , many of the exteriors are obviously studio bound while many of the locations seem to have been shot in the Arizona desert . It`s also difficult not to notice how bad the cast are , Bruce Campbell is absolutely painful to watch while the rest of the cast fail to rise above substandard . It`s saying something about a film when the best performances are by skeletons , they really do give a meaty performance ( HA HA HA !) So I wasn`t too taken with ARMY OF DARKNESS , the fact that I`d seen THE TWO TOWERS a few months previously didn`t help , but it`s really good seeing director Sam Raimi improving beyond all recognition since ARMY OF DARKNESS was made in 1993 and have no doubt he`ll be remembered alongside Peter Jackson as one of the 21st Century`s great film directors || |1.85 : 1 |MPEG-1 2.0 ||||||@@ Bugsy|||R |||1991|136 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| Warren Beatty andiAnnette Bening stariin theiincredible true story of Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel, theiplayboy gangster who betrayed theiMobifor love. A cold-blooded killer who dreamed of Hollywood stardom,ia crazed"patriot" who plotted against Mussolini, anditheibrillian visionary who carved Las Vegas out of theidry Nevada desert, Bugsy had it all. Until he fellifor theione woman who wanted more. ||||Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Cage aux folles, La|Edouard Molinaro|Comedy||7.2|France|1978| 100 min/ USA:96 min |French||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Marcello Danon |Marcello Danon Edouard Molinaro Jean Poiret Francis Veber|Armando Nannuzzi ||Criterion Collection [us] ||Two gay men living in St. Tropez have their lives turned upside down when the son of one of the men announces he is getting married. They try conceal their lifestyle and their ownership of the transvestite club downstairs when the fiancée and her parents come for dinner. |Ugo Tognazzi (Renato Baldi) @ Michel Serrault (Albin Mougeotte/'Zaza Napoli') @ Claire Maurier (Simone) @ Rémi Laurent (Laurent Baldi) @ Carmen Scarpitta (Louise Charrier) @ Benny Luke (Jacob) @ Luisa Maneri (Andrea Charrier) @ Michel Galabru (Simon Charrier) @ Venantino Venantini (Le chauffeur de Charrier) @ Carlo Reali (producer||La Cage Aux Folles Hilariously funny film version of the Pirot french stage farce with Tognazzi and Serrrault masterfully portraying a gay couple who tries to act straight for the sake of Tognazzi's son, who is marrying the daughter of a major French official of the Pillars of Morality. Wonderful timing and colorful performances make this lively romp worth watching. ||Movies ||Movies ||||||@@ Care Bears Movie, The|Arna Selznick|Family||4.7|Canada|1985| USA:77 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Bohach Jack Chijnacki Lou Gioia Michael Hirsh Harvey Levin Patrick Loubert Carole MacGillvray Paul Pressler Clive A. Smith Robert Unkel|Peter Sauder |David Altman Jim Christianson Barbara Sachs||A.B. Vídeo [br] |What happens when the world stops caring? |The Care Bears live in a country high in the clouds, where they have a lot of fun together. But they also do care for the human children on Earth, who they watch through huge telescopes from the sky, and come to help whenever there is need. Nikolas, a magician's apprentice, is in danger of getting under the influence of a bad spirit, which resides in an ancient spell book. The siblings Kim and Jason don't trust anyone anymore after being disappointed once too often. The Care Bears take them into their wonderland where they experience exciting and dangerous adventures together and quickly become good friends. |Georgia Engel (Love-a-Lot-Bear (voice)) @ Jackie Burroughs (The Spirit (voice)) @ Mickey Rooney (Mr. Cherrywood (voice)) @ Sunny Besen Thrasher (Jason (voice)) @ Eva Almos (Swift Heart Rabbit (voice)) @ Patricia Black (Share Bear (voice)) @ Melleny Brown (Birthday Bear (voice)) @ Bob Dermer (Grumpy Bear (voice) (as Bobby Dermer)) @ Jayne Eastwood ( (voice)) @ Anni Evans ( (voice)) @ Gloria Figura ( (voice)) @ Cree Summer (Kim (voice)) @ Brian George ( (voice)) @ Janet-Laine Green (Wish Bear (voice)) @ Luba Goy (Lotsa Heart Elephant/Gentle Heart Lamb (voice)) @ Terri Hawkes (Baby Hugs/Shrieky (voice)) @ Dan Hennessey (Brave Heart Lion/Good Luck Bear (voice)) @ Jim Henshaw (Bright Heart Raccoon (voice)) @ Hadley Kay (Nicholas (voice)) @ Marla Lukofsky (Playful Heart Monkey (voice)) @ Pauline Rennie (Cozy Heart Penguin/Treat Heart Pig (voice)) @ Billie Mae Richards (Tender Heart Bear (voice)) @ Brent Titcomb ( (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Susan Roman .... Champ (voice) Produced by||A true children's film. I saw this as a kid.This is a Care Bears movie.There are no Power Rangers battling space monsters.There are no grade schoolers fighting ninjas.There are no Pokemon around to traumatize the children for life. This is what a child's movie is all about:moral issues.Teaching our children to grow and learn. I don't recommendthis movie for preteens and up, but trust me, younger children should see these kind of movies BEFORE you go exposing them to the moronic Teletubbies.In this film, the Care Bears are sent to help two orphan children on the lam.In the meantime, Tenderheart gets caught up in a plot to eliminate all caring in the world when a young carnival magician's apprentice discovers a talking book of the occult.Now the Care Bears must stop this plan before it comes to fruition.The story is filled with happy songs and meaningful life lessons; the kinds of lessons that children should best learn directly from their parents--but from what I've seeing lately, most haven't.. It's not about spoiled kids rebelling against authority (i.e. Rugrats, Recess, Pepper Ann), it's about teaching kids; remember that.I'm sure as heck going to make sure my children see this film when they come around. It's a true children's film.Don't blow it off because "it'll make your kids go fruity."It won't.Trust me. || ||2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Carrie|Brian De Palma|Drama||7.2|USA|1976| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Brian De Palma Paul Monash Louis A. Stroller|Lawrence D. Cohen Stephen King|Mario Tosi ||Carlotta Films [fr] |If You've Got A Taste For Terror... Take Carrie To The Prom.|Carrie White is a shy young girl who doesn't make friends easily. After her class mates taunt her about her horrified reaction to her totally unexpected first period one of them takes pity on her and gets Tommy Ross, her boyfriend and class hunk to invite Carrie to the senior prom. Meanwhile another girl who has been banned from the prom for her continued aggressive behaviour is not as forgiving and plans a trick to embarrass Carrie in front of the whole school. What she doesn't realise is that Carrie is ... gifted, and you really don't want to get her angry. Based on a Stephen King novel, Carrie is the story of Carrie White. She is a girl brought up, almost in isolation, by her psychotically religious mother Margaret. After an embarrassing incident in the showers causes her fellow pupils to tease Carrie ruthlessly, her teacher Miss Desjardin disciplines them severely. Determined to have revenge, the other students hatch a plot against Carrie, which turns horribly wrong when Carrie's strange mental powers are unleashed during the school prom. Carrie White (Sissy Spacek) is the outsider of her class. She's a mousy girl, all of her classmates hate her, and her mother (Piper Laurie) is a religous fanatic who walks around in a black cape. After she unexpectedly has her first period, she is teased by the girls more ruthlessly than before. The gym teacher (Betty Buckley) punishes the girls that were involved and one of them, Sue Snell (Amy Irving), feels sorry for what she did and asks her boyfriend (William Katt) to take Carrie to the prom instead of her. But another girl that has been banned from the prom, Chris Hargenson (Nancy Allen), isn't so forgiving and hatches an evil plan with her boyfriend (John Travolta) that involves Carrie and a bucket full of pig's blood. But what none of the students realize is that Carrie has the power of telekenisis, the power to move things with your mind, and that when you make her mad, she transforms from an innocent girl to a rage-filled monster. And this is gonna be a prom no one will ever forget. A Horror Film In 1976 with Sissy Spacek As Carrie White. The movie's about a girl Carrie White who goes to school and she has no friends at all. All The Girls Pick on her. One day, when carrie got her period, all the girls in ther locker room threw towels at her (including Chris Hargenson and Sue Senell). When Miss Collins see that the girls pick on Carrie, The girls get punished (except Carrie White). Then Tommy Ross Asks Carrie to the prom and carrie's abusive mom (Piper Laurie) always sends Carrie to her closet to her closet to pray. Then Chris and her boyfriend Billy Nolan (John Travolta) set a plan to throw pig blood at carrie at the prom. When Carrie gets poured with pig blood, everyone laughs at her (even Miss Collins). She has power to move things. She burns up everyone at the prom and the prom will be a night no one will ever forget. |Sissy Spacek (Carrie White) @ Piper Laurie (Margaret White) @ Amy Irving (Sue Snell) @ William Katt (Tommy Ross) @ Betty Buckley (Miss Collins) @ Nancy Allen (Chris Hargensen) @ John Travolta (Billy Nolan) @ P.J. Soles (Norma Watson) @ Priscilla Pointer (Mrs. Snell) @ Sydney Lassick (Mr. Fromm) @ Stefan Gierasch (Mr. Morton) @ Michael Talbott (Freddy) @ Doug Cox (The Beak) @ Harry Gold (George) @ Noelle North (Freida) @ Cindy Daly (Cora) @ Deirdre Berthrong (Rhonda) @ Anson Downes (Ernest) @ Rory Stevens (Kenny) @ Edie McClurg (Helen) @ Cameron De Palma (Boy on Bicycle Produced by||Not a scary movie, just a major let down. ** (out of four) CARRIE / (1976) ** (out of four) In "Carrie," the acclaimed vision of Stephen King's novel, we meet a character who doesn't have good days, joyful moments, or times that she can laugh with friends. The title character is played by Sissy Spacek, who, under the circumstances, does very good things with her character. Carrie's mother has raised her under a constricting environment of fanatical religion and strict discipline. As both the novel and the movie open, we meet Carrie White, a high school senior who has a very complex body; she is telepathic-contains the ability to move objects with her mind-and she has never had a period. Now, I know I am becoming graphic in my explanation, but this is an important aspect of the story. The audience assumes from the implications and plot points that Carrie has had a rather cloudy history as a person and student. Her neighbors look away as she passes, her fellow students pitch tampons at her when she experiences her first vaginal bleeding in the school showers. These are the only things that develop Carrie White as a character-the rest is up to you to assume. In a movie where the main character kills countless presumably innocent individuals due to unkempt rage and years of building aggression, we better be able to understand her, butthe movie does not provide us with the right material. The problem with "Carrie" is not so much a problem with the movie itself, but a problem with the novel by Stephen King, and the adapted script by Lawrence D. Cohen. I read the novel before I saw the movie. I obtained a videocassette copy for critical screening to compare the two arts. I hated the book. Stephen King confused his simple, one-line story with frequent scientific rationalizations of the occurrences within the actual novel. It is like he didn't trust the reader with his idea, and felt the need to provide us with factual evidence that the story could actually happen. This distorts the narrative, and provides the reader with nothing but more questions. I like the movie better than the book because it is more visual. Although King wrote some vivid, picturesque scenes in his vastly popular work, "Carrie" makes for a much clearer screen presence because it is not so jumbled with awkward ideas and interceptive explanations. However, I still dislike the movie. Screenwriter Lawrence D. Cohen does not alter King's depiction of the characters-one of the biggest problems with both the movie and the book. The character's in "Carrie" both in the movie and in the book, are all one-dimensional and stereotypical. The mother is a religious fanatic obsessed with finding forgiveness in everything her daughter does; the kind hearted counselor befriends Carrie, boosting her confidence to where she actually has the courage to accept a young man's invitation to the upcoming prom; the spiteful schoolgirls, obsessed with self-image and popularity, vow for revenge against Carrie, when Carrie herself was simply a victim of cruelty; need I go on? The character's are all seen in one light, and one light alone. The kind counselor never does anything mean. Carrie's mother sees everything as a sin against the Lord. Even Carrie herself is over the top in shame, hopelessness, and confusion. I never cared about any of the characters, therefore, instead of being terrified and involved when the film's disappointing but violent climax transpires, I was left analyzing my thoughts of why I didn't care in the least about what happens. "Carrie" isn't a terrible movie. I liked the scenes at the prom and beyond; it has a good sense of style and momentum. It proves that Lawrence D. Cohen has a mind of his own, instead of using identical material to the novel. But it is overrated, tiresome, and often boring. This is not a scary movie-just a violent, abhorrent one. It contains all the necessary ingredients to make for a tantalizing, suspenseful motion-picture-but it never delivers. There are avid horror principles here, but "Carrie" doesn't seem to understand what to do with them. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Cartoons That Time Forgot: The Ub Iwerks Collection||Animation|NR |7.6||1994||||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/5/2004|||||Image Entertainment Inc. [us] |||||Hours of fun for classic cartoon aficionados Personally, the only cartoons on this collection I liked were the black & white ones, especially everything with Flip the Frog.There's something about the primitiveness of the animation and the bizarre things that happen in these old cartoons that just fascinates me, somewhat like the Fleischer cartoons with Betty Boop.There is some racy material in here as Flip peeks through a keyhole to look at a nude woman just out of the shower and an angel on a cloud giving an airplane the middle finger!There's a section called THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT with weird & scary cartoons sure to give impressionable youngsters nightmares for weeks. ||||||||||@@ Casablanca|Michael Curtiz|Drama|PG |8.8|USA|1942|102 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/21/2004|Hal B. Wallis Jack L. Warner|Murray Burnett Joan Alison Julius J. Epstein Philip G. Epstein Howard Koch Casey Robinson|Arthur Edeson ||Loew's Inc. [us] |They had a date with fate in Casablanca!|In World War II Casablanca, Rick Blaine, exiled American and former freedom fighter, runs the most popular nightspot in town. The cynical lone wolf Blaine comes into the possession of two valuable letters of transit. When Nazi Major Strasser arrives in Casablanca, the sycophantic police Captain Renault does what he can to please him, including detaining Czech underground leader Victor Laszlo. Much to Rick's surprise, Lazslo arrives with Ilsa, Rick's one time love. Rick is very bitter towards Ilsa, who ran out on him in Paris, but when he learns she had good reason to, they plan to run off together again using the letters of transit. Well, that was their original plan.... Rick Blaine, who owns a nightclub in Casablanca, discovers his old flame Ilsa is in town with her husband, Victor Laszlo. Laszlo is a résistance leader, and with Germans on his tail, Ilsa knows Rick can help them get out of the country - but will he ? During World War II, Europeans who were fleeing from the Germans, sought refuge in America. But to get there they would first have to go Casablanca and once they get there, they have to obtain exit visas which are not very easy to come by. Now the hottest spot in all of Casablanca is Rick's Cafe which is operated by Rick Blaine, an American expatriate, who for some reason can't return there, and he is also extremely cynical. Now it seems that two German couriers were killed and the documents they were carrying were taken. Now one of Rick's regulars, Ugarte entrusts to him some letters of transit, which he intends to sell but before he does he is arrested for killing the couriers. Captain Renault, the Chief of Police, who is neutral in his political views, informs Rick that Victor Laszlo, the European Resistance leader, is in Casablanca and will do anything to get an exit visa but Renault has been "told" by Major Strasser of the SS, to keep Laszlo in Casablanca. Laszlo goes to Rick's to meet Ugarte, because he was the one Ugarte was going to sell the letters to. But since Ugarte was arrested he has to find another way. Accompanying him is Ilsa Lund, who knew Rick when he was in Paris, and when they meet some of Rick's old wounds reopen. It is obvious that Rick's stone heart was because of her leaving him. And when they learn that Rick has the letters, he refuses to give them to him, because "he doesn't stick his neck out for anyone". |Humphrey Bogart (Rick Blaine) @ Ingrid Bergman (Ilsa Lund Laszlo) @ Paul Henreid (Victor Laszlo) @ Claude Rains (Capt. Louis Renault) @ Conrad Veidt (Maj. Heinrich Strasser) @ Sydney Greenstreet (Signor Ferrari) @ Peter Lorre (Guillermo Ugarte) @ S.Z. Sakall (Carl (as S.K. Sakall)) @ Madeleine LeBeau (Yvonne) @ Dooley Wilson (Sam) @ Joy Page (Annina Brandel) @ John Qualen (Berger) @ Leonid Kinskey (Sascha) @ Curt Bois (Pickpocket rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Louis V. Arco (Refugee at Rick's (uncredited)) @ Leon Belasco (Dealer (uncredited)) @ Trude Berliner (Baccarat player (uncredited)) @ Oliver Blake (Waiter at the Blue Parrot (uncredited)) @ Monte Blue (American (uncredited)) @ Gino Corrado (Waiter (uncredited)) @ Franco Corsaro (Conspirator (uncredited)) @ Marcel Dalio (Emil (the croupier at Rick's) (uncredited)) @ Helmut Dantine (Jan Brandel (uncredited)) @ George Dee (Casselle (uncredited)) @ Jean Del Val (Conspirator (uncredited)) @ William Edmunds (Second Contact Man at Rick's (uncredited)) @ Martin Garralaga (Headwaiter at Rick's Cafe (uncredited)) @ Gregory Gaye (German Banker Refused by Rick (uncredited)) @ Ilka Grüning (Mrs. Leuchtag (Carl's immigrating friend) (uncredited)) @ Creighton Hale (Gambler Inquiring About Casino's Honesty (uncredited)) @ Olaf Hytten (Prosperous Man (uncredited)) @ Charles La Torre (Officer Tonnelli (uncredited)) @ George J. Lewis (Haggling Arab Monkey Seller (uncredited)) @ Lou Marcelle (Narrator (voice) (uncredited)) @ Michael Mark (Vendor (uncredited)) @ George Meeker (Rick's Friend Seen After Ugarte's Arrest (uncredited)) @ Louis Mercier (Smuggler (uncredited)) @ Torben Meyer (Dutch Banker at Cafe Table (uncredited)) @ Alberto Morin (French Officer Insulting Yvonne (uncredited)) @ Leo Mostovoy (Fydor (uncredited)) @ Corinna Mura (Singer with Guitar (uncredited)) @ Lotte Palfi Andor (Woman Selling Her Diamonds (uncredited)) @ Paul Porcasi (Native Introducing Ferrari (uncredited)) @ Frank Puglia (Arab Vendor (uncredited)) @ Georges Renavent (Conspirator (uncredited)) @ Dewey Robinson ( (uncredited)) @ Henry Rowland (German Officer (uncredited)) @ Richard Ryen (Col. Heinze (uncredited)) @ Dan Seymour (Abdul (uncredited)) @ Gerald Oliver Smith (Pickpocketed Englishman (uncredited)) @ Geoffrey Steele (Customer (uncredited)) @ Ludwig Stössel (Mr. Leuchtag (Carl's immigrating friend) (uncredited)) @ Norma Varden (Wife of Pickpocketed Englishman (uncredited)) @ Hans Heinrich von Twardowski (German Officer with Yvonne (uncredited)) @ Leo White (Emile (uncredited)) @ Wolfgang Zilzer (Man with Expired Papers (uncredited)Produced by||Simply, one of the classic movies and still superb after all these years. So much has been said and written about "Casablanca" that it would be folly for me to try to add anything substantial, so I won't even try. I had the opportunity to see the DVD version again this week, a loan from my well-stocked county library system. The story, the acting, the cinematography, the editing, the soundtrack. Truly amazing for a 60-year-old, and counting, movie. Every time I see "Casablanca", I appreciate it even more. || |1.37 : 1 |||||||@@ Casper|Brad Silberling|Family|Rated PG for mild language and thematic elements. |5.6|USA|1995| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Paul Deason Jeff Franklin Gerald R. Molen Jeffrey A. Montgomery Steven Spielberg Steve Waterman Colin Wilson|Sherri Stoner Deanna Oliver|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Get An Afterlife|Furious that her late father only willed her his gloomy-looking mansion rather than his millions, Carrigan Crittenden (Moriarty) is ready to burn the place to the ground when she discovers a map to a treasure hidden in the house. But when she enters the rickety mansion to seek her claim, she is frightened away by a wicked wave of ghosts. Determined to get her hands on this hidden fortune, she hires afterlife therapist Dr. James Harvey (Pullman) to exorcise the ghosts from the mansion. Harvey and his daugh- ter Kat (Ricci) move in, and soon Kat meets Casper, the ghost of a young boy who's "the friendliest ghost you know." But not so friendly are Casper's uncles--Stretch, Fatso and Stinkie--who are determined to drive all "fleshies" away. Ultimately, it is up to Harvey and Kat to help the ghosts cross over to the other side. |Bill Pullman (Dr. James Harvey) @ Christina Ricci (Kathleen 'Kat' Harvey) @ Cathy Moriarty (Carrigan Crittenden) @ Eric Idle (Paul 'Dibbs' Plutzker) @ Ben Stein (Mr. Rugg) @ Don Novello (Father Guido Sarducci) @ Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers) @ Terry Murphy (Herself ('Hard Copy')) @ Chauncey Leopardi (Nicky) @ Spencer Vrooman (Andreas) @ Malachi Pearson (Casper (McFadden) (voice)) @ Ernestine Mercer (Harvey Patient Being Interviewed) @ Doug Bruckner (Reporter (voice)) @ Joe Nipote (Stretch (voice)) @ Joe Alaskey (Stinkie (voice)) @ Brad Garrett (Fatso (voice)) @ Rodney Dangerfield (Himself) @ John Kassir (The Crypt Keeper (voice)) @ Garette Ratliff Henson (Vic DePhillippi) @ Jessica Wesson (Amber Whitmire) @ Wesley Thompson (Mr. Curtis) @ Michael Dubrow (Student #1) @ J.J. Anderson (Student #2) @ Jess Harnell (Arnold (voice)) @ Michael McCarty (Drunk in Bar) @ Micah Winkelspecht (Student) @ Mike Simmrin (Phantom) @ Amy Brenneman (Amelia Harvey) @ Devon Sawa (Casper on Screen rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Dan Aykroyd (Dr. Raymond Stantz (uncredited)) @ Clint Eastwood (Himself (uncredited)) @ Mel Gibson (Himself (uncredited) Produced by||For adults too! Being 'middle-aged', I suppose I was not the target audience for this movie, but I love it very much anyway.Kiddies aside, this movie is hysterical, well-acted, and touching too. The effects are great and, to be honest, I can't find a lot to critcize here, which for me is all I can ask of a movie. ||Widescreen Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Cast Away|Robert Zemeckis|Adventure|Rated PG-13 for intense action sequences and some disturbing images |7.3|USA|2000| 143 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steven J. Boyd Joan Bradshaw Tom Hanks Cherylanne Martin Jack Rapke Steve Starkey Robert Zemeckis|William Broyles Jr. |Don Burgess ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |At the edge of the world, his journey begins. |After FedEx systems engineer Chuck Noland is ripped out of his hasty life by the clock in a plane crash, he finds himself alone on the shores of a tropical island. First, frustration gets to him and then he realizes how little his chances are to ever get back to civilisation. Four years later, Chuck has learned very well how to survive on his own: mending his dental health, catching fish with a spear, predicting the weather with a selfmade calendar. A photograph of his girlfriend Kelly has kept his hopes alive all these years. Finally, Chuck takes the opportunity to take off for home: He sets off on a wooden raft with a sail that has washed ashore. Chuck, a top international manager for FedEx, and Kelly, a Ph.D. student, are in love and heading towards marriage. Then Chuck's plane to Malaysia ditches at sea during a terrible storm. He's the only survivor, and he washes up on a tiny island with nothing but some flotsam and jetsam from the aircraft's cargo. Can he survive in this tropical wasteland? Will he ever return to woman he loves? Hanks stars as Chuck Noland, a FedEx systems engineer whose personal and professional life are ruled by the clock. His fast-paced career takes him, often at a moment's notice, to far-flung locales - and away from his girlfriend Kelly, played by Helen Hunt. Chuck's manic existence abruptly ends when, after a plane crash, he becomes isolated on a remote island - cast away into the most desolate environment imaginable. Stripped of the conveniences of everyday life, he first must meet the basic needs of survival, including water, food and shelter. Chuck, the consummate problem solver, eventually figures out how to sustain himself physically. But then what? Chuck begins his true personal journey. After four years, fate gives Chuck a chance to fight his way back to civilization, only to find an unexpected emotional challenge greater than all the earlier physical ones. His ability to persevere and to hope are a product of his life-changing experience. Chuck Noland, frenetico funzionario del Federal Express (lo spedizioniere più importante degli USA) si trova, la vigilia di Natale, a bordo di un'aereo della ditta per delle consegne oltre oceano. Improvvisamente un vuoto d'aria e l'aereo precipita. E' l'unico superstite e dovrà imparare a convivere con la solitudine e con la mancanza delle 'comodità' cittadine. L'angoscia dura quattro anni. Costruisce una zattera di firtuna e, dopo un lungo girovare per l'oceano, viene raccolto da un cargo merci. Torna alla sua vita, ma non tutto è rimasto come prima: tutti lo credevano morto, anche la sua fidanzata, che si è sposata. Quale futuro? Forse un lungo viaggio verso un'isola-che-non-c'è? Hanks plays a workaholic who gets stranded alone on a desert island after his plane crashes. Away from his loved one (play by Hunt), and his haywire lifestyle, he now has to learn to survive surrounded by the wild, and a few washed up FedEx packages. |Paul Sanchez (Ramon, Peterson's FedEx Driver) @ Lari White (Bettina Peterson) @ Leonid Citer (Fyodor) @ David Allen Brooks (Dick Peterson) @ Velena Papovic (Russian Woman with Peterson) @ Valentina Ananyina (Russian Babushka) @ Semion Suradikov (Nicolai) @ Tom Hanks (Chuck Noland) @ Peter von Berg (Yuri) @ Dmitri S. Boudrine (Lev) @ François Duhamel (French FedEx Loader) @ Michael Forest (Pilot Jack) @ Viveka Davis (Pilot Gwen) @ Nick Searcy (Stan) @ Jennifer Choe (Memphis State Student) @ Helen Hunt (Kelly Frears) @ Nan Martin (Kelly's Mother) @ Anne Bellamy (Anne Larson) @ Dennis Letts (Dennis Larson) @ Wendy Worthington (Wendy Larson) @ Skye McKenzie (Skye Larson) @ Valerie Wildman (Virginia Larson) @ John Duerler (John Larson) @ Steve Monroe (Steve Larson) @ Ashley Trefger (Lindsey Larson) @ Lindsey Trefger (Lindsey Larson) @ Alyssa Gainer (Katie Larson) @ Kaitlyn Gainer (Katie Larson) @ Lauren Gainer (Katie Larson) @ Al Pugliese (Gregory Larson (as Albert Pugliese)) @ Gregory Pugliese (Gregory Larson) @ Brandon Reinhardt (Matt Larson) @ Matthew Reinhardt (Matt Larson) @ Lisa Long (Lisa Madden) @ Lauren Birkell (Lauren Madden) @ Elden Henson (Elden Madden) @ Timothy Stack (Morgan Madden) @ Alice Vaughn (Alice Stockton) @ Chase MacKenzie Bebak (Chase Stockton (as Chase Bebak)) @ Gage Bebak (Gage Stockton) @ Amanda Cagney (Amanda Stockton) @ Andrea Cagney (Amanda Stockton) @ Fred Semmer (Fred Stockton) @ Peter Semmer (Fred Stockton) @ Joe Conley (Joe Wally) @ Aaron Rapke (Ralph Wally) @ Vince Martin (Albert Miller, FedEx 88 Pilot (as Vin Martin)) @ Garret Davis (Blaine, FedEx 88 Pilot) @ Jay Acovone (Peter, FedEx 88 Pilot) @ Christopher Kriesa (Kevin, FedEx 88 Pilot) @ Chris Noth (Jerry Lovett) @ Fred Smith (FedEx C.E.O.) @ Michelle Robinson (FedEx Anchor #1) @ Tommy Cresswell (FedEx Anchor #2) @ Jenifer Lewis (Becca Twig) @ Geoffrey Blake (Maynard Graham) @ Rich Sickler (FedEx Manager) @ Derick Alexander (Taxi Driver rest of cast listed alphabetically Wilson the Volleyball .... Himself) @ David K. Hansen (Fedex Staffer (uncredited) Produced by||Great human drama! Tom Hanks plays a FedEx executive that survives a plane crash in the ocean and drifts upon an uninhabited island. He is finally given up for dead as he spends more than four years on the island. There are somemoments of humor mixed with the sullen sadness of solitude. The human spirit is fortified by positive attitude and determination. Hanks, being the skilled actor he is, makes you feel his pain and sense of fulfillment. Mother nature fills the bill as special effects. This is a wonderful movie to watch. Another masterpiece for director Robert Zemeckis. Also starring are Helen Hunt, Lari White, Nick Searcy and Christopher Noth. || |2.35 : 1 |DTS 6.1 ES ||||||@@ Catch Me If You Can|Steven Spielberg|Crime|Rated PG-13 for some sexual content and brief language. |7.7|USA|2002| 141 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Barry Kemp Daniel Lupi Laurie MacDonald Sergio Mimica-Gezzan Devorah Moos-Hankin Walter F. Parkes Anthony Romano Michel Shane Steven Spielberg|Frank Abagnale Jr. Stan Redding Jeff Nathanson|Janusz Kaminski ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The true story of a real fake.|An FBI agent tracks down and catches a young con artist who successfully impersonated an airline pilot, doctor, assistant attorney general and history professor, cashing more than $2.5 million in fraudulent checks in 26 countries. New Rochelle, the 1960s. High schooler Frank Abagnale Jr. idolizes his father, who's in trouble with the IRS. When his parents separate, he runs away to Manhattan with $25 in his checking account, and he vows to regain dad's losses and get his parents back together. Just a few years later, the FBI tracks him down in France; he's extradited, tried, and jailed for passing more than $2,000,000 in bad checks. Along the way, he's posed as a Pan Am pilot, a pediatrician, and an attorney. And, from nearly the beginning of this life of crime, he's been pursued by a dour FBI agent, Carl Hanratty. What starts as cat and mouse becomes something akin to father and son. In the early 1960s, Frank Abagnale Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio) moves with his storeowner father Frank Sr. (Christopher Walken) and mother Paula (Nathalie Baye) to the big city. Frank Jr. is having trouble at his new school, so he poses as the substitute French teacher to get by. When he is discovered, his father is secretly humored by it. A few weeks later, Frank Jr. finds out his mother and father are splitting up. When asked to choose between them, he runs away, not returning. He slowly learns how to fake a check in order to survive. As he gets better at it, he pretends to be an airline pilot, a lawyer and a doctor, all the while telling his father he's doing well as a legitimate pilot. Once the CIA starts trailing him - lead by bumbling agent Hanratty (Tom Hanks) - Frank Jr. leads his own life and the lives around him crashing into a dramatic oblivion. |Leonardo DiCaprio (Frank Abagnale Jr.) @ Tom Hanks (Carl Hanratty) @ Christopher Walken (Frank Abagnale, Sr.) @ Martin Sheen (Roger Strong) @ Nathalie Baye (Paula Abagnale) @ Amy Adams (Brenda Strong) @ James Brolin (Jack Barnes) @ Brian Howe (Earl Amdursky) @ Frank John Hughes (Tom Fox) @ Steve Eastin (Paul Morgan) @ Chris Ellis (Special Agent Witkins) @ John Finn (Assistant Director Marsh) @ Jennifer Garner (Cheryl Ann) @ Nancy Lenehan (Carol Strong) @ Ellen Pompeo (Marci) @ Elizabeth Banks (Lucy) @ Guy Thauvette (Warden Garren) @ Candy Azzara (Darcy (as Candice Azzara)) @ Matthew Kimbrough (Loan Officer) @ Joshua Boyd (Football Player) @ Kaitlin Doubleday (Joanna) @ Kelly McNair (Girl #1) @ Jonathan Dankner (Student #1) @ Maggie Mellin (Teacher) @ Thomas Kopache (Principal Evans) @ Margaret Travolta (Ms. Davenport) @ Jimmie F. Skaggs (Bartender) @ Alex Hyde-White (Mr. Kesner) @ Lilyan Chauvin (Mrs. Lavalier) @ Eugene Fleming (Ticket Clerk) @ Robert Ruth (Hotel Manager) @ Jennifer Manley (Ashley) @ James Morrison (Pilot) @ Robert Symonds (Mr. Rosen) @ Jennifer Kan (Female Bank Teller) @ Robert Curtis-Brown (Front Desk Clerk (as Robert Curtis Brown)) @ Kelly Hutchinson (Young Female Teller) @ Steve Witting (Manager) @ Wendy Worthington (Receptionist) @ Jane Bodle (TWA Ticket Agent) @ J. Patrick McCormack (Auctioneer) @ Brian Goodman (Motel Owner) @ Ray Proscia (Salesman) @ Sarah Lancaster (Riverbend Woman) @ Jill Matson (Riverbend Woman) @ Mike Baldridge (Terry) @ Joel Ewing (Party Guy) @ Ritchie Montgomery (Young Doctor) @ Jim Antonio (Victor Griffith) @ Angela Sorensen (Party Girl) @ Jonathan Brent (Dr. Ashland) @ Benita Krista Nall (Emergency Nurse) @ Shane Edelman (Dr. Harris) @ Andrew Meeks (Young Patient) @ Morgan Rusler (FBI Agent) @ Jane Edith Wilson (Bar Examiner) @ Dave Hager (Judge) @ Kyle Davis (Kid) @ Patrick Thomas O'Brien (Mr. Hendricks (as Patrick T. O'Brien)) @ Jaime Ray Newman (Monica) @ Deborah Kellner (Debra Jo) @ Mercedes Cornett (Heather) @ Amy Acker (Miggy) @ Robert Peters (FBI Agent) @ James DuMont (FBI Agent (as James Dumont)) @ Thomas Crawford (FBI Agent) @ Sarah Rush (Secretary) @ Malachi Throne (Abe Penner) @ Alfred Dennis (Ira Penner) @ Max Kerstein (Penner Brother (as Max J. Kerstein)) @ Donna Kimball (TWA Stewardess) @ Jan Munroe (Captain Oliver) @ Stephen Dunham (Pilot) @ Brandon Keener (Pilot) @ Jasmine Jessica Anthony (Little Girl) @ Anthony Powers (NY Savings Bank Manager) @ Lauren Cohn (Female Teller) @ Jeremy Howard (Teen Waiter) @ Jack Knight (Man #3) @ Jamie Anderson (Ilene) @ Kam Heskin (Candy) @ Ana Maria Quintana (Hotel Maid) @ Gerald R. Molen (FBI Agent (as Gerald Molen)) @ Celine du Tertre (Little Girl on Street (as Celine Du Tertre)) @ Stan Bly (Blind Man) @ Jamie Moss (Young Man) @ Jessica Collins (Peggy) @ Frank Abagnale Jr. (French Policeman (as Frank W. Abagnale)) @ Roger Léger (Prison Guard) @ Jean-François Blanchard (French Police Captain) @ Mathieu Gaudreault (French Policeman) @ Guy-Daniel Tremblay (French Policeman (as Guy Daniel Tremblay)) @ Alexander Bisping (French Policeman) @ Patrice Dussault (French Policeman) @ Paul Todd (Maitre D') @ Jake Wagner (Kid) @ Ashley Cohen (Party Twin) @ Kelly Cohen (Party Twin) @ Ellis Hall (Piano Player/Singer) @ Steven Meizler (Piano Player) @ Fred Datig (Co-Pilot) @ Joe Garagiola (Himself) @ Kitty Carlisle (Herself (as Kitty Carlisle Hart)) @ Dominic Bond (Choir) @ Jean-François Brousseau (Choir) @ Francis Campeau (Choir) @ Raphaël Cardin (Choir) @ Marc-Antoine Côté (Choir) @ Antoine Drolet-Dumoulin (Choir) @ Léon Dussault-Gagné (Choir) @ Simon Houle-Gauthier (Choir) @ Vincent Généreux (Choir) @ Sébastien Jean (Choir) @ Pascal Larouche (Choir) @ William Lauzon (Choir) @ Florent Legault (Choir) @ Jason McNally (Choir) @ Julien Normandeau (Choir) @ David Parent-Laliberté (Choir) @ Alexandre Pépin (Choir (as Alexandre Pepin)) @ Nicolas Radeschi (Choir) @ Jonathan René (Choir) @ Samuel St. Amour (Choir (as Samuel St-Amour) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ian Aronson (Bellboy (uncredited)) @ Honor Blackman (Pussy Galore (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Barry Blueian (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Phil Bowers (Head Waiter (uncredited)) @ Christina Cindrich (Girl in Photograph (uncredited)) @ Jillian Clare (Little Girl (uncredited) (voice)) @ Carrie 'CeCe' Cline (Missy (uncredited)) @ Tiffany Glass (Miss Mason (uncredited)) @ Melissa Gribbon (Stewardess (uncredited)) @ Jesse Heiman ( (uncredited)) @ Alyss Henderson (Nurse Carlin (uncredited)) @ Elina Jaiden (Student (uncredited)) @ Cyrus King (FBI Agent #3 (uncredited)) @ Pablo Lewin (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Michael Lightsey (Student (uncredited)) @ Cari Lucas (Student Stewardess (uncredited)) @ Karrie MacLaine (Pan Am Stewardess (uncredited)) @ Veronique Ory (Girl (uncredited)) @ Nick Pellegrino (Used Car Lot Owner (uncredited)) @ Marylee Picciano (Bikini Girl (uncredited)) @ Jeffrey Pritz (Co-Pilot (uncredited)) @ Nathan Roberson (Riverbend croquet flirt (uncredited)) @ Andy Signore (Pedestrian (uncredited)) @ Max Spielberg (Kid in Plane (uncredited)) @ Jeffrey Squire (Johnny (uncredited)) @ Clyde Tull (Hotel Guest (uncredited)) @ Camille Wainwright (Mary (uncredited)) @ Jamie Wax (Bellhop (uncredited)) @ Sean Welch (Pilot #5 (uncredited)) @ Nick Zano (James (uncredited) Produced by||Slick and enjoyable story telling When his parents file for divorce and he has to chose between them for custody, Frank Abagnale Jnr runs away from home.He begins to con his way around - getting better and better at it with each ruse.Posing as a pilot, a lawyer and a doctor he earns his money from cashing forged cheques.As the numbers go up, FBI agent Carl Hanratty starts tracking him in a game of cat and mouse. Based on a true story, although it doesn't rely on `and it really happened' to be a good film - although that this guy could even do half of this stuff is impressive, this film is a slick bit of entertainment even if it left me feeling a little bit like it was too much presentation.The plot starts at the end and jumps back to see the whys and the hows of the tale.It is told with a slick energy that keeps the story moving and never really lingers on any scene longer than it has to.It is for this reason that the two hours goes by relatively quickly. The presentation is good.Williams' score is not as memorable as his usual work but it is what the film needs it to be - unobtrusive and slick.Just like the opening credits, this film is very much a chase movie with a nice sense of period.The only downside of this slickness is that it feels like eating a sweet - it is very nice while it lasts but it doesn't fill you up. I enjoyed the film but it did leave me wondering what else there was; even if I did still have a sugary taste in my mouth.But to be fair - this is a minor compliant as the film didn't set out to be some massive thought provoking film; it was a chase movie and it was a very stylish and enjoyable one at that. The cast is good even if they aren't all used well.If anyone can tell me why Jennifer Garner even bothered to show up I'll be happy to listen. DiCaprio is very good. I'm not a massive fan of his but he was engaging here and looked about the right age to play the part - sort of between man and boy.Hanks does good work in support. Because his character is quite drab it is easy to forget him but I really enjoyed him and thought he brought more to the film than DiCaprio.Walken is good in support and Sheen adds another famous name to the end credits but it is very much a two hander with Hanks and DiCaprio more than able. Overall this film is a slick, stylish chase movie which should be enjoyed as such and is slightly more enjoyable for being a true story.If anything it is a little too slick for it's own good, but that is a petty complaint to make against a film that kept me pleasingly entertained for the past two hours! ||Widescreen |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Cell, The|Tarsem Singh|Sci-Fi|Rated R for bizarre violence and sexual images, nudity and language. R|6.1|USA|2000|107 min/ Germany:109 min (director's cut)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/28/2004|Julio Caro Donna Langley Carolyn Manetti Eric McLeod Mark Protosevich Stephen J. Ross Nico Soultanakis|Mark Protosevich |Paul Laufer ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |This Summer... Enter The Mind Of A Killer|Catharine Deane is a psychotherapist who is part of a revolutionary new treatment which allows her mind to literally enter the mind of her patients. Her experience in this method takes an unexpected turn when an FBI agent comes to ask for a desperate favour. They had just tracked down a notorious serial killer, Carl Stargher, whose MO is to abduct women one at a time and place them in a secret area where they are kept for about 40 hours until they are slowly drowned. Unfortunately, the killer has fallen into an irreversible coma which means he cannot confess where he has taken his latest victim before she dies. Now, Catherine Deane must race against time to explore the twisted mind of the killer to get the information she needs, but Stargher's damaged personality poses dangers that threaten to overwhelm her. |Jennifer Lopez (Catherine Deane) @ Colton James (Edward Baines) @ Dylan Baker (Henry West) @ Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Dr. Miriam Kent) @ Gerry Becker (Dr. Barry Cooperman) @ Musetta Vander (Ella Baines) @ Patrick Bauchau (Lucien Baines) @ Vincent D'Onofrio (Carl Rudolph Stargher) @ Catherine Sutherland (Anne Marie Vicksey) @ Vince Vaughn (FBI Agent Peter Novak) @ James Gammon (FBI Agent Teddy Lee) @ Jake Weber (FBI Special Agent Gordon Ramsey) @ Dean Norris (FBI Agent Cole) @ Tara Subkoff (Julia Hickson) @ Lauri Johnson (Mrs. Hickson) @ John Cothran Jr. (FBI Agent Stockwell) @ Jack Conley (FBI Agent Brock) @ Kamar De Los Reyes (Officer Alexander) @ Christopher Janney (SWAT Team Member) @ Nicholas Cascone (FBI Technician) @ Joe La Piana (FBI K-9 Agent) @ Pruitt Taylor Vince (Dr. Reid) @ Jake Thomas (Young Carl Stargher) @ Kim Chizevsky-Nicholls (Stargher's Victim) @ Jennifer Day (Stargher's Victim (as Jennifer Dawn Day)) @ Alanna Vicente (Stargher's Victim) @ Aja Echols (Stargher's Victim) @ Vanessa Branch (Stargher's Victim) @ Elena Maddalo (Stargher's Victim) @ Gareth Williams (Stargher's Father) @ Glenda Chism (Woman in Tub) @ Monica Creel (Mother (as Monica Lacy)) @ Joy Creel (Mother (as Joy Creel Liefeld)) @ Leanna Creel (Mother) @ Alan D. Purwin (Helicopter Pilot (as Alan Purwin)) @ Tim (Valentine rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Calvi Pabon (Dream Girl (uncredited)) @ Peter Sarsgaard (Julia Hickson's Fiancee (uncredited)Produced by||You ain't seen nothing yet... I've said before that some films are like `nothing you have ever seen before'. Well, The Cell takes that saying and burns it down, blows it up and drowns it. This movie is something you could and can be only imagined. And if you then told someone about it they'd have you locked up for a very long time. It could be categorized as a Sci-fi thriller and then as a serial killer film. Like Seven and Silence of the Lambs this is not the ordinary serial killer film. It stands on it's own as a new kind of thriller. Jennifer Lopez stars as Catherine Deane, the best psychotherapist in the business. She works for a company who has developed the latest technology in therapy. She has the ability to go inside the mind of anyone and find out the reasoning to his or her distress. Enter Peter Novak (Vince Vaughn), a FBI agent tracking down a very sick serial killer Carl Stargher (Vincent D'Onofrio), who drowns his victims then dresses them up like dolls. On a FBI raid of his home Stargher goes into a coma and the whereabouts of his next victim are unknown. So Deane takes the job of going into his mind to find out where the victim is being held. And that's when this film gets intense, seriously intense. The director Tarsem Singh, known for the award winning R.E.M. video `Losing my Religion', blows away everything you could have imagined. The dream sequences are beautifully shot with many camera tricks, creepy color distribution, graphic images, and a tense score. They are extremely trippy and surreal. They actually have a dream feel because anything goes and there are no rules. Lopez performance is as good as she looks. She nails the psychotherapist dead on and does a great job in showing the different aspects of her character. Vince is Vince, very cool, very low key, and very real. D'Onofrio will scare you. His Carl Stargher would make even Hannibal Lecter scream for mommy. This guy is more disturbed than ever imagined. He has to be seen to believe it. Tarsem, with this film, has become one of my favorite directors and I will go see any film with his name on it. The Cell can only be described as a Sci-fi serial killer thriller that's visually disturbing, creepy, and one of the wildest films ever. It runs along the line with Seven for a good serial killer film and Event Horizon for a graphically sick and twisted film. This is best summer movie and the best film I've seen all year. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Central do Brasil|Walter Salles|Drama||7.8|Brazil|1998| 113 min/ Canada:115 min/ Finland:110 min/ Netherlands:108 min |Portuguese||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lillian Birnbaum Martine de Clermont-Tonnerre Afonso Coaracy Arthur Cohn Paulo Carlos De Brito Thomas Garvin Donald Ranvaud Elisa Tolomelli|Marcos Bernstein João Emanuel Carneiro Walter Salles|Walter Carvalho ||Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) [cz] |He was looking for the father he never knew. She was looking for a second chance.|Dora, a dour old woman, works at a Rio de Janeiro central station, writing letters for customers and mailing them. She hates customers and calls them 'trash'. Josue is a 9-year-old boy who never met his father. His mother is sending letters to his father through Dora. When she dies in a car accident, Dora takes Josue and takes a trip with him to find his father. An emotive journey of a former school teacher, who write letters for illiterate people at Rio de Janeiro's central station, Central do Brasil; and a young boy, whose mother has just died in a car accident, to Brazil's remote Northeast, in search for the father he never knew. |Fernanda Montenegro (Dora) @ Marília Pêra (Irene) @ Vinícius de Oliveira (Josué) @ Soia Lira (Ana) @ Othon Bastos (Cesar) @ Otávio Augusto (Pedrão) @ Stela Freitas (Yolanda) @ Matheus Nachtergaele (Isaías) @ Caio Junqueira (Moisés) @ Socorro Nobre (Dora's Client) @ Manoel Gomes (Dora's Client) @ Roberto Andrade (Dora's Client) @ Sheyla Kenia (Dora's Client) @ Malcon Soares (Dora's Client) @ Maria Fernandes (Dora's Client) @ Maria Marlene (Dora's Client) @ Christano Camargo (Dora's Client) @ Jorseba-Sebastiano Oliveira (Dora's Client rest of cast listed alphabetically Andréa Albuquerque .... Dora's Client) @ Sidney Antunes (Jessé's Wife) @ Patrícia Brás (Dora's Client) @ João Braz (Dora's Client) @ Felícia de Castro (Bené) @ Marcos de Lima (Bené's Son) @ Preto de Linha (Dora's Client) @ Berto Filho (Jessé's Son) @ Nanego Lira (João) @ Maria Menezes (Violeta) @ Zezão Pereira (Dora's Client) @ José Ramos (Jessé) @ Inaldo Santana (Dora's Client) @ Cícero Santos (Dora's Client) @ Dona Severina (Dora's Client) @ Ingrid Trigueiro (Dora's Client Produced by||Well done I missed this in theaters, so was glad to finally catch up to this on video, and I wasn't disappointed.For the most part, CENTRAL STATION is an engaging film, and while it is a tad predictable(we know Dora and the little boy are going to become friends before the movie is over), director Walter Salles allows us to go into the personal journeys of each character, more than a U.S. film usually does, which makes it deeper.Both lead actors are also terrific, which helps.I haven't seen too many films from South America(off the top of my head, I can only think of PIXOTE, DONA FLOR AND HER TWO HUSBANDS, and THE OFFICIAL STORY), but based on those, I definitely hope to see some more. ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Changing Lanes|Roger Michell|Drama|Rated R for language. |6.7|USA|2002| 99 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Scott Aversano Ronald M. Bozman Scott Rudin Adam Schroeder|Chap Taylor Chap Taylor Michael Tolkin|Salvatore Totino ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |One Wrong Turn Deserves Another |An attorney (Ben Affleck) in a rush to make a court appointment to file legal papers involving a multi-million dollar trust accidentally collides with an alcoholic insurance salesman (Samuel Jackson), who also is a rush for a court appointment involving the custody of his children. The attorney leaves the scene of the accident and strands the salesman, causing him to miss his custody hearing. During the process of the post-crash discussion, the attorney accidentally drops the papers he needs to present in court. The judge gives him until the end of the day to present the papers and thus begins a cat and mouse game between the proponents. A few questionable actions later on both parties' part, they finally start questioning their actions and their lives. In the end, both come to new understanding of what is important and appear to be set in new ethical and moral directions. Contains mild violence and profanity. |Ben Affleck (Gavin Banek) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Doyle Gipson) @ Kim Staunton (Valerie Gipson) @ Toni Collette (Michelle) @ Sydney Pollack (Stephen Delano) @ Tina Sloan (Mrs. Delano) @ Richard Jenkins (Walter Arnell) @ Akil Walker (Stephen Gipson) @ Cole Hawkins (Danny Gipson) @ Ileen Getz (Ellen) @ Jennifer Dundas (Mina Dunne (as Jennifer Dundas Lowe)) @ Matt Malloy (Ron Cabot) @ Amanda Peet (Cynthia Banek) @ Myra Lucretia Taylor (Judge Frances Abarbanel) @ Bruce Altman (Joe Kaufman) @ Joe Grifasi (Judge Cosell) @ Lisa LeGuillou (Gina Gugliotta (as Lisa Leguillou)) @ Angela Goethals (Sarah Windsor) @ Kevin Sussman (Tyler Cohen) @ Susan Varon (Sheryl Buckburg) @ Noel Wilson (Bartender at Arlo's) @ Angel Caban (Security Guard at School) @ Jim Lovelett (Security Guard at School (as James Lovelett)) @ Julia Gibson (Receptionist at AD&S) @ William Hurt (Sponsor) @ Michael Patrick McGrath (Seavers) @ John Benjamin Hickey (Carlyle) @ Dylan Baker (Finch) @ Ray Bokhour (Willard) @ Suzanne Hevner (Delano's Secretary) @ Caleb Archer (Kid on a Bike) @ Jordan Gelber (Priest) @ Olga Merediz (Mrs. Miller) @ Jayne Houdyshell (Miss Tetley) @ Shabazz Richardson (Cop at Precinct) @ Raymond Anthony Thomas (Cop at Precinct (as Ray Anthony Thomas)) @ Michael Pitt (Music Teacher/Conductor) @ Genevieve Elam (Waitress) @ Juan Lara (Orchestra Child) @ Anastasia Rojas (Orchestra Child) @ Nicole Wright (Orchestra Child) @ Clive Oliver Greenberg (Orchestra Child) @ Gilbert S. Williams (Mike (as Gil Williams)) @ Sophia Guaspari (Orchestra Member) @ Ruben Jared Seraballs (Orchestra Member (as Ruben J. Seraballs)) @ Father Bonneau (Himself) @ Jewel Brimage (Teacher) @ Katarina Kianna (Teacher) @ Vanessa Quel (Kate) @ Howard I. Laniado (Barry) @ Tony Machine (Office Worker) @ Carolyn Feldschuh (Office Worker) @ Maria Alaina Mason (Office Worker) @ Harvey Waldman (Author in Newsroom Interview) @ Pamela Hart (Newscaster) @ Neal Jones (Newsroom Writer) @ Susan Blackwell (Newsroom Producer) @ Alyson Renaldo (Newsroom Executive Producer) @ James Soviero (Newsroom Associate Producer) @ Mary Kelly (Newsroom Script Supervisor) @ Anthony DiGiacomo (Newsroom Associate Director) @ Richard Velasco (Newsroom Director) @ Leonard L. Thomas (Newsroom Reporter (as Leonard Thomas)) @ Richard Kelly (AA Group Leader) @ Selena Blake (Insurance Broker) @ Harriet Rosenthal (Family Court Member) @ John Kohl (Family Court Member) @ Lisa Vogel (Family Court Member) @ Bob Heffernan (Simon Dunne rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Salvatore Cavaliere (Court Officer (uncredited)) @ Ralph Howard (Radio news anchor, 1010 WINS (uncredited) (voice)) @ Sean T. Krishnan (Sikh (uncredited)) @ Deenah Patterson (Cop At Precinct #3 (uncredited)) @ Anthony Pierantozzi (Singing Church Member (uncredited)) @ David C. Roehm Sr. (Defendant - custody (uncredited)) @ Sam Rovin (Paralegal (uncredited)) @ John H. Tobin (AA attendee (uncredited) Produced by)||Changing Lanes: A turn for Hollywood? (8 stars) When `Changing Lanes' first opens, the viewer is presented with a montage of jagged credits, trendy jerking photography cruising NYC streets, and electronic beats that are so cool they could be used for cryogenic freezing. It quickly seems apparent that this film is simply a star-vehicle for Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson; it seems apparent that this is a cold and impersonal genre-exercise for a successful comedy director, Roger Michell (`Notting Hill'), to branch out; it seems to be all these things until the end of this sequence when the camera glances out the window of a school bus out onto the New York City skyline, and there we see it: the World Trade Center. Unlike Sam Raimi's upcoming `Spider-Man', delayed after September 11th so that the WTC could be digitally removed, this is a film unafraid to date itself, and unafraid to look at human truth. Affleck plays the role of the oddly named Gavin Banek (did they take the name ‘Ben Affleck', throw it in a blender, and add some new letters for good measure?), a high-power lawyer on the verge of becoming one of the partners at his law firm, alongside his father-in-law. Jackson is Doyle Gibson, a reforming alcoholic father of two clawing his way out of his hole and trying to save his marriage. On a critical day in both their lives, Doyle going to court to try winning joint-custody, and Gavin on his way to seal his career-making case, the two get into a minor accident on the FDR turnpike, causing Doyle to miss his hearing and Gavin to accidentally give Doyle a signed document that is critical to his case… and it all unravels from there. The two tumble in a daylong haze of malice and self-destruction, sabotaging each other's lives. Whenever either decides to throw in the towel and do the ‘right' thing, it is too late and the other has already escalated it to the next level. His life quickly falling down around him, Gavin begins to examine it for the first time, taking a deep look into his wife, his law firm, his boss/father-in-law, and himself… ultimately questioning his motivation for trying to retrieve the document in the first place. This is where the film really shines: many movies ask the question ‘what makes a man?' but `Changing Lanes' does it with honestly and authenticity. The screenplay, by Chap Taylor, asks if it is success, or if its providing for one's wife and kids, or if its true goodness, avoiding superficiality and delving into the motivations for each. In one telling monologue, Gavin's father-in-law, played with perfect tone by Sydney Pollack, says, `At the end of the day, I do more good than harm. What other standard have I got?' Unfortunately, the movie does not really ask the question of what makes a woman, even though both wives show real strength. The movie does not even seem to suggest that Gavin and Doyle's struggles could even be applied to women (obviously they could, had the movie explored that). Jackson, always an excellent actor, is great as Gibson even if he has performed better before. Surprisingly, in this film Affleck's acting actually seems to surpass Jackson's in this amazing performance that is probably the best we have seen from Affleck so far. All of the characters in the film, including minor-roles and extras, all exhibit a very human feel, and seeing real-feeling people on the screen has always been something rare and not to be taken for granted. The viewer comes to care about everyone in the picture: Gavin, Doyle, their wives, the guy at the bank, even the stranger at the bar. New York City itself is alive in this movie: it breathes, coughs, and gasps with Salvatore Totino's shaky, unsaturated, claustrophobic photography. Totino really looks at people and the city in the face, and does not try to make them prettier or uglier than they are. David Arnold's original electronic score is a refreshing change from the very poor attempts at orchestral music that most movies are now filled with. Arnold's score very effectively sets the mood and reinforces the tempo of the movie. `Changing Lanes' is a success for Roger Michell that shows us that a movie can have major stars, be entertaining, glossy, substantial, and pensive all-at-once. `Changing Lanes' is rated R for a fender-bender, destruction of office equipment, unseen infidelity, a shot of the World Trade Center, and honest depiction of the human condition. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Charlie's Angels|McG|Action|Rated PG-13 for action violence, innuendo and some sensuality/nudity. |5.9|USA|2000| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Drew Barrymore Joseph M. Caracciolo Amanda Goldberg Leonard Goldberg Nancy Juvonen Aaron Spelling Betty Thomas Jenno Topping|Ivan Goff Ben Roberts Ryan Rowe Ed Solomon John August|Russell Carpenter Michael St. Hilaire||Columbia Pictures [us] |Get Some Action|Based on the popular 70's TV show, three cute chicks work for the mysterious "Charlie". They are the female 'James Bonds'' of our time. They get to blow stuff up, kick the cr*p out of people, and wear really tight clothing, all whilst trying to retrieve stolen software and balance in high heels. Charlie's private investigation company is addressed by programmer Eric Knox, owner of Knox Technologies, whose revolutionary voice-recognition software has been stolen. Charlie's Angels Natalie, Dylan and Alex are sent to place a bug in the system of bitter rival Roger Corwin, who is under strong suspicion. But after the deed is done, the Angels and their boss Bosley face the fact of a destroyed home base as well as Charlie's life in immediate danger. But how do you protect someone you never met? |Cameron Diaz (Natalie Cook) @ Drew Barrymore (Dylan Sanders) @ Lucy Liu (Alex Munday) @ Bill Murray (John Bosley) @ Sam Rockwell (Eric Knox) @ Kelly Lynch (Vivian Wood) @ Tim Curry (Roger Corwin) @ Crispin Glover (Thin Man) @ Luke Wilson (Pete Komisky) @ John Forsythe (Charles Townsend (voice)) @ Matt LeBlanc (Jason Gibbons) @ Tom Green (Chad) @ LL Cool J (Mr. Jones) @ Sean Whalen (Pasqual) @ Tim Dunaway (Flight Attendant) @ Alex Trebek (Himself) @ Raliegh Wilson (Reform Officer) @ Mark Ryan (Fencing Opponent) @ Bobby Ore (Driving Instructor) @ Guy Oseary (D.J.) @ Joe Duer (UPS Deliveryman) @ Matthew Frauman (Red Star Systems Techie) @ Reginald C. Hayes (Red Star Systems Techie (as Reggie Hayes)) @ Melissa McCarthy (Dois) @ Robert J. Stephenson (Red Star Systems Director (as Bob Stephenson)) @ Ned Bellamy (Red Star Systems Director) @ Raymond Patterson (Director's Buddy) @ Björn Flor (Red Star Systems Security Guard) @ Gaven E. Lucas (Boy) @ Michael Barryte (Boy) @ Andrew Wilson (Corwin's Driver) @ Brandon Williams (Assistant Director (as Branden Williams)) @ Micchno Nismiuraha (Stuntman) @ Frank Marocco (Accordionist) @ Darrell Pfingsten (Partygoer) @ Jim Calloway (Bouncer (as Jimmy Calloway)) @ Kevin Grevioux (Bouncer) @ Michael Papajohn (Bathroom Thug) @ Jim Palmer (Shooter) @ Shawn Woods (Shooter) @ Kenny Endoso (Getaway Driver) @ Tom Garner (Getaway Driver) @ Isaac C. Singleton Jr. (Kidnapper) @ Paul Eliopoulos (Knox Thug) @ Tim Gilbert (Knox Thug) @ Al Goto (Knox Thug) @ Steven Ito (Knox Thug) @ Felipe Savahge (Knox Thug) @ Mike Smith (Knox Thug) @ Jerry Trimble (Knox Thug rest of cast listed alphabetically Jennifer Cole .... Corwin's Assistant) @ Jessica Gaona (Girl on Playground (scenes deleted)) @ Sylvie Hoffer (Female Rock Climber (uncredited)) @ Elke Jeinsen ( (uncredited)) @ Tuesday Matthews (Guest at Party (uncredited)) @ Karen McDougal (Roger Corwin's Girl at Party (uncredited)) @ Darren Michaels (Astronaut #2 (uncredited)) @ David M. Nesting (Red Star Systems Techie (uncredited)) @ Paul Oliver (Soul Train Dancer (uncredited)) @ Mysti Rivenski (Guest at Party (uncredited)) @ Kevin Alexander Stea (Featured Dancer (uncredited)) @ Sean Wolf (Man Firing Machine Gun (uncredited)) @ Cheung-Yan Yuen (Chinese Man on Plane (uncredited) Produced by||Sexist, stupid and boring Wow!What a load of c**p!I didn't think it was possible, but this movie is even worse than the TV show!The plot is beyond stupid--to be totally honest I can't really remember it.Anyways, it's just an excuse to have Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu and Cameron Diaz get into VERY tight outfits and prance around.I'm really surprised this film got a PG--there's so much flesh shown on these girls!It goes VERY close to an R more than once. Also the jokes are very stupid--one of them has Liu being a lousy cook!I thought that stereotype disappeared in the '50s!As for the acting--Lynch is very good in her role; Bill Murray looks miserable; Barrymore looks confused; Liu can't act; Matt LeBlanc (as Liu's boyfriend) is basically playing Joey from "Friends" and Tom Green is REALLY annoying as Barrymore's boyfriend.Only Cameron Diaz gives out a good performance--she's so lively and fun.Also Luke Wilson is very good as her boyfriend.Those two have great chemistry together.So, I gave the film a 4 only for Diaz, Wilson and some good fight scenes.Otherwise, this is a mess. ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Children of the Corn|Fritz Kiersch|Horror|R |4.8|USA|1984|93 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Donald P. Borchers Earl A. Glick Terence Kirby Mark Lipson|George Goldsmith Stephen King|Raoul Lomas ||Anchor Bay Entertainment [us] |An adult nightmare.|A boy preacher named Isaac goes to a town in Nebraska called Gatlin and gets all the children to murder every adult in town. A young couple have a murder to report and they go to the nearest town (Gatlin) to seek help but the town seems deserted. They are soon trapped in Gatlin with little chance of getting out alive. A young couple wander into a mid-western town where all the adults are apparently dead and the children participate in a cult that worships a malevolent force in the corn fields. Based on a Stephen King novella. |Peter Horton (Burton Stanton) @ Linda Hamilton (Vicky) @ R.G. Armstrong (Diehl) @ John Franklin (Isaac Chroner) @ Courtney Gains (Malachai) @ Robby Kiger (Job) @ Anne Marie McEvoy (Sarah) @ Julie Maddalena (Rachel) @ Jonas Marlowe (Joseph) @ John Philbin (Richard 'Amos' Deigan) @ Dan Snook (Boy) @ David Cowen (Dad) @ Suzy Southam (Mom) @ Eric Freeman (Israel) @ D.G. Johnson (Mr. Hansen) @ Patrick Boylan (Hansen's customer) @ Elmer Soderstrom (Hansen's customer) @ Teresa Toigo (Hansen's customer) @ Mitch Carter (Radio preacherProduced by||Classic Classic Of course, horror movies are usually not scary. I have an extremely high tolerance for 'scary' movies, and I am usually not scared quite so easily. The most recent film to make me shiver with fear was WHAT LIES BENEATH and I saw that quite some time ago. CHILDREN OF THE CORN, did not really scare me, however, it did have a very good shock factor. It made me jump once or twice and I was generally enthralled with the story. Having not read the Stephen King short story (I can't find a copy of the book) I found this film to be wholly original and terrifying in the film's idea. I just watched this movie for the first time last night, which is really something because I have already seen most of the classic horror films that people say are really good. CHILDREN OF THE CORN is probably one of the last really *good* horror films of the early 1980s that I have just seen. I thought the film's ideas were creepy and the execution is done wonderfully. You will never eat corn the same way again. CHILDREN OF THE CORN gets 4/5. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Child's Play||Horror|R |5.8|USA|1988|87 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/7/2004|Elliot Geisinger David Kirschner Laura Moskowitz Barrie M. Osborne|Don Mancini Don Mancini John Lafia Tom Holland|Bill Butler ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |You'll wish it was only make-believe.|When serial killer Charles Lee Ray is mortally wounded in a police shoot-out, he uses a voodoo spell to transfer his soul into Chucky, a "Good Guys" doll. Andy receives the doll as a birthday gift, and Chucky soon resumes his killing spree. However, Charles doesn't want to be trapped in the body of a doll forever. His only escape would be to transfer into the first human he revealed his true identity to... which places Andy in mortal danger. |Catherine Hicks (Karen Barclay) @ Chris Sarandon (Mike Norris) @ Alex Vincent (Andy Barclay) @ Brad Dourif (Charles Lee Ray/Chucky's Voice) @ Dinah Manoff (Maggie Peterson) @ Tommy Swerdlow (Jack Santos) @ Jack Colvin (Dr. Ardmore) @ Neil Giuntoli (Eddie Caputo) @ Juan Ramírez (Peddler) @ Alan Wilder (Mr. Criswell) @ Richard Baird (News reporter at toy store) @ Raymond Oliver (Dr. Death) @ Aaron Osborne (Orderly) @ Tyler Hard (Mona) @ Ted Liss (George) @ Roslyn Alexander (Lucy) @ Robert Kane (TV newscaster) @ Leila Lee Olsen (TV newscaster (as Leila Hee Olsen)) @ Ed Gale (Chucky) @ Lena Sack (Bellevue patient) @ Tommy Gerard (Bellevue patient) @ Michael Chavez (Bellevue patient) @ Jamie Gray (Bellevue patient) @ Erin Munz (Bellevue patient) @ Jana Twomey (Bellevue patient) @ Suaundra Black (Bellevue patient rest of cast listed alphabetically Michael Patrick Carter .... Kid in animated commercial (voice)) @ John Franklin (Walkabout Chucky (voice)) @ Edan Gross (Friendly Chuck's voice/Kid in animated commercialProduced by||Original and scary. I've seen this brilliant horror movie over twenty times so far and it is still great."Child's Play" is wonderfully original-a great concept(the soul of a serial killer in the puppet)and villain(Chucky!)are perhaps the keys to it all.Plenty of shocks and scares,pretty good acting and lots of violence.The direction and editing are so tight and carefully done.Now I can see why this movie was such a huge success in 1988.Managing to be both frightening and classy,this is a nerve-wracking experience.I actually found "Child's Play" to be a very scary film.I did not find it too gory,but what gore there is it was done to heighten intensity levels to the extreme.All in all,I wholeheartedly recommend it to any open-minded viewer,who likes to watch horror movies.The hammer in the head sequence still gives me shivers. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Child's Play 2|John Lafia|Horror|R |4.5|USA|1990|84 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/7/2004|Robert Latham Brown David Kirschner|Don Mancini Don Mancini|Stefan Czapsky |||Look out Jack! Chucky's back!|Andy Barclay has been placed in a foster home after the tragic events of the first film, since his mother was committed. In an attempt to save their reputation, the manufacturers of Chucky reconstruct the killer doll, to prove to the public that nothing was wrong with it in the first place. In doing so, they also bring the soul of serial killer Charles Lee Ray back to life. As Chucky tries to locate Andy, the body count rises. Will Andy be able to escape, or will Chucky succeed in possessing his body? Chucky's back! The notorious killer doll with the satanic smile comes back to life in this new chapter depicting the terrifying struggle between young Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) and the demonic doll attempting to possess his soul. Despite being roasted to a crisp in his last escapade, Chucky rises from the ashes after being reconstructed by a toy factory to dispel the negative publicity surrounding the doll. Back in one piece, Chucky tracks his prey to a foster home where the chase begins again in this sequel to the enormously popular original. |Alex Vincent (Andy Barclay) @ Jenny Agutter (Joanne Simpson) @ Gerrit Graham (Phil Simpson) @ Christine Elise (Kyle) @ Brad Dourif (Chucky (voice)) @ Grace Zabriskie (Grace Poole) @ Peter Haskell (Sullivan) @ Beth Grant (Miss Kettlewell) @ Greg Germann (Mattson) @ Raymond Singer (Social worker) @ Charles Meshack (Van driver) @ Stuart Mabray (Homicide investigator) @ Matt Roe (Policeman in car) @ Herbie Braha (Liquor store clerk) @ Edan Gross (Voice of Tommy Doll) @ Adam Ryen (Rick Spires) @ Adam Wylie (Sammy) @ Bill Stevenson (Adam) @ Don Pugsley (Technician) @ Vince Melocchi (Technician rest of cast listed alphabetically Ed Gale .... Chucky) @ Brigitte Roth (Orphan #1) @ Van Snowden (Chucky puppeteerProduced by||obviously they just wanted to make money Lazy, often boring sequel has the killer doll returning to stalk young Vincent from the original; once again he's trying to transfer his soul causing violence and havoc to ensue. Not really any intriguing moments in this film, but fans of the genre may want to stick around for the finale. ** || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Christmas Story, A|Bob Clark|Comedy||8.1|USA|1983| 94 min/ USA:93 min (20th Anniversary) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bob Clark René Dupont Gary Goch|Jean Shepherd Jean Shepherd Leigh Brown Bob Clark|Reginald H. Morris ||Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) [us] |A Tribute to the Original, Traditional, One-Hundred-Percent, Red-Blooded, Two-Fisted, All-American Christmas...|Ralphie, a young boy growing up in the '40's, dreams of owning a Red Rider BB gun. He sets out to convince the world this is the perfect gift. But along the way, he runs into opposition from his parents, his teacher, and even good 'ol Santa Claus himself. It's Christmas time and there's only one thing on Ralphie Parker's Christmas list this year: a Red Ryder Carbine Action, 200 Shot, Range Model Air Rifle, but many obstacles stand in the way of his dream because every adult that he confronts keeps telling him he'll shoot his eye out. Meanwhile The Old Man just got a Major Award, a leg lamp, and Mom is making sure The Old Man doesn't come near her turkey, Ralphie's friend get's his tongue stuck to a flag pole, and Ralphie utters the f-word infront of his father. "The F-dash-dash-dash-word." Christmas is drawing nearer and Ralphie visits Santa at the department store in hopes of asking him for his dream gift. Will he receive it? Let's hope so. In 1940's Indiana, Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) dreams of the ideal Christmas gift, a genuine Red Ryder 200-Shot Carbine Action Air Rifle. But when gruff dad (Darren McGavin) and doting mom (Melinda Dillon) quote the usual saying, "You'll shoot your eye out!" You'll see the snowsuit paralysis to the triple-dog-dare of the tongue-on-a-frozen-flagpole gambit. Ralphie has hilarious qualities like taking down the local bully (Zack Ward) ! You'll enjoy this holiday comedy! |Melinda Dillon (Mrs. Parker (Mother)) @ Darren McGavin (Mr. Parker (The Old Man)) @ Peter Billingsley (Ralph 'Ralphie' Parker) @ Ian Petrella (Randy Parker) @ Scott Schwartz (Flick) @ R.D. Robb (Schwartz) @ Tedde Moore (Miss Shields) @ Yano Anaya (Grover Dill) @ Zack Ward (Scut Farkus) @ Jeff Gillen (Santa Claus) @ Colin Fox (Ming the Merciless) @ Paul Hubbard (Flash Gordon) @ Leslie Carlson (Tree Man (as Les Carlson)) @ Jim Hunter (Freight Man) @ Patty Johnson (Head Elf) @ Drew Hocevar (Male Elf) @ David Svoboda (Goggles) @ Dwayne McLean (Black Bart) @ Helen E. Kaider (Wicked Witch) @ John Wong (Chop Suey Palace Owner) @ Johan Sebastian Wong (Waiter #1) @ Fred Lee (Waiter #2) @ Dan Ma (Waiter #3) @ Rocco Bellusci (Street Kid) @ Tommy Wallace (Boy in School) @ Jean Shepherd (Narrator, Man in Line for Santa, Voice of Santa (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jordan-Patrick Marcantonio (Boy Visiting Santa (uncredited)) @ Christine Powrie (Screaming Girl On Slide After Ralphie (uncredited) Produced by||Not To Be Missed... The definitive Christmas film. Ralphie wants a Red Rider toy gun. Will Santa bring it for him? Will he shoot his eye out? Bob Clark makes it hard to believe he directed "Porky's" with this classic film also in his resume. Darren McGavin, Melinda Dillion and Peter Billingsly star. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |1.0 ||||||@@ Cider House Rules, The|Lasse Hallström|Drama|Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexuality, nudity, substance abuse and some violence. |7.5|USA|1999| 126 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Alan C. Blomquist Bobby Cohen Richard N. Gladstein Leslie Holleran Michele Platt Meryl Poster Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Lila Yacoub|John Irving John Irving|Oliver Stapleton ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |A story about how far we must travel to find the place where we belong. |Homer is an orphan in remote St. Cloud, Maine. Never adopted, he becomes the favorite of orphanage director Dr. Larch, who imparts his full medical knowledge on Homer, who becomes a skilled, albeit unlicensed, physician. But Homer yearns for a self-chosen life outside the orphanage. When Wally and pregnant Candy visit the orphanage Dr. Larch provides medically safe, albeit illegal, abortions Homer leaves with them to work on Wally's family apple farm. Wally goes off to war, leaving Homer and Candy alone together. What will Homer learn about life and love in the cider house? What of the destiny that Dr. Larch has planned for him? |Tobey Maguire (Homer Wells) @ Charlize Theron (Candy Kendall) @ Delroy Lindo (Arthur Rose) @ Paul Rudd (Lt. Wally Worthington) @ Michael Caine (Dr. Wilbur Larch) @ Jane Alexander (Nurse Edna) @ Kathy Baker (Nurse Angela) @ Erykah Badu (Rose Rose) @ Kieran Culkin (Buster) @ Kate Nelligan (Olive Worthington) @ Heavy D (Peaches) @ K. Todd Freeman (Muddy) @ Paz de la Huerta (Mary Agnes) @ J.K. Simmons (Ray Kendall) @ Evan Parke (Jack (as Evan Dexter Parke)) @ Jimmy Flynn (Vernon) @ Lonnie Farmer (Hero (as Lonnie R. Farmer)) @ Erik Per Sullivan (Fuzzy) @ Spencer Diamond (Curly) @ Sean Andrew (Copperfield) @ John Albano (Steerforth) @ Skye McCole Bartusiak (Hazel (as Sky McCole-Bartusiak)) @ Clare Daly (Clara) @ Colin Irving (Major Winslow) @ Annie Corley (Carla) @ Patrick Donnelly (Adopting father) @ Edie Schechter (Adopting Mother) @ Kasey Berry (12 year old girl) @ Mary Bogue (Big Dot) @ Victoria Stankiewicz (Debra) @ Christine Stevens (Florence) @ Earle C. Batchelder (Dr. Holtz) @ Norma Fine (Mrs. Goodhall) @ John Irving (St. Clouds Stationmaster rest of cast listed alphabetically James Stewart .... Himself (archive footage)) @ Eric Bruno Borgman (Flirting Soldier on Train (uncredited)) @ John H. Tobin (Man on Train (uncredited) Produced by||Memorable Film From Lasse Hallstrom The boundaries of our lives sometimes seem self-ordained, while at other times they seem predetermined by a higher power, and life itself often becomes a quest to ascertain which is which.And so it was with a young man who grew up an orphan in the State of Maine, in the years preceding World War II, in `The Cider House Rules,' directed by Lasse Hallstrom.Under the tutelage and watchful eye of Dr. Wilbur Larch (Michael Caine), the administrator of the orphanage in which Homer Wells (Tobey Maguire) had lived his whole life, Homer, by 1943, had become quite knowledgeable and adept in the field of medicine.What he lacked, however, was the formal education that would have enabled him to practice what he had learned, if indeed, he had so desired; which in fact he had not.The orphanage was a world unto itself, a loving haven for unwanted children, but a place apart; and a larger world loomed just beyond it's perimeter, a world Homer Wells wanted to see.And when circumstances present Homer with an opportunity to get away, he grabs it, and embarks upon his journey of discovery, much to the consternation of the good Dr. Larch, who fears that he has lost Homer-- whom he loves as a son-- to the world forever.And forever is a long, long time. Hallstrom presents the story with acuity and care, drawing upon the innate humanity of the characters--especially Dr. Larch and Homer-- to bring it all to life.While Dr. Larch epitomizes the benevolent nature of man, one who has known the world and has come into his own, has found the place from which he can do some good, Homer represents the longings of youth; no longer a boy, but a man who must discover on his own what Dr. Larch already knows. And, as it is in real life, it becomes a matter of experience; and though fate ultimately intervenes with a nudge in the right direction, it is Homer who decides the direction his own life will take-- it is he who finally realizes what is meant to be.And under Hallstrom's steady and skillful hand, the journey becomes, not only Homer's, but the viewer's as well, as he mines the emotional depths of the characters, making them people with whom the audience will be readily able to identify. Affecting an American accent for the first time in his career, Michael Caine gives a performance that deservedly earned him the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.He brings Dr. Larch so vividly to life, capturing the deep concern and humanity of the man, while conveying his sincerity and exposing his vulnerability; it's a complete and real portrayal, enriched with nuance and altogether memorable.As good as Caine is, however, the film clearly belongs to Maguire, who gives a masterfully understated performance as Homer.There is such expression in the pacific nature he lends to the character, along with a sense of mature acceptance that serve to accentuate his inner yearnings, that make Homer so believable, a person with whom it is easy to sympathize and relate.There is something of a wistful poet beneath his stoic, though gentle, outward appearance that makes him endearing.With a subtle ability, Maguire makes it clear that Homer is a person of intrinsic good, and it gives not only the character, but the performance, a ring of truth and integrity.It's exceptional work, and taken in conjunction with his turns in `The Ice Storm' and `Wonder Boys,' firmly establishes Maguire as one of the best young actors in the business today. The extraordinary supporting cast includes Delroy Lindo (Mr. Rose), Charlize Theron (Candy), Paul Rudd (Wally), Jane Alexander (Nurse Edna), Kathy Baker (Nurse Angela), Kieran Culkin (Buster), Kate Nelligan (Olive Worthington), K. Todd Freeman (Muddy), Erykah Badu (Rose Rose) and Erik Per Sullivan (Fuzzy).Highlighted by outstanding performances and the sensitive interpretation and delivery of the story by Hallstrom, `The Cider House Rules' is a touching excursion into the depths of human emotions, and a taste of what life is all about.More than just a film, it's an experience; one that will create a lasting impression on your soul, and one that absolutely must not be missed.I rate this one 10/10. ||Collector's Series |2.35 : 1 |5.0 ||||||@@ Nuovo cinema Paradiso|Giuseppe Tornatore|Drama|Rated R for some sexuality. (director's cut) |8.3|Italy|1989| 155 min/ Italy:123 min (International version) / Italy:170 min (director's cut) |Italian||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mino Barbera Franco Cristaldi Giovanna Romagnoli|Giuseppe Tornatore |Blasco Giurato ||Home Box Office (HBO) Home Video [us] |A celebration of youth, friendship, and the everlasting magic of the movies. |A famous film director returns home to a Sicilian village for the first time after almost 30 years. He reminisces about his childhood at the Cinema Paradiso where Alfredo, the projectionist, first brought about his love of films. He is also reminded of his lost teenage love, Elena, who he had to leave before he left for Rome. A man receives news from his aging mother in a little town that someone he once knew has passed away. A beautiful story unfolds about the man's childhood friendship with an old man who was the projectionist at the local theater. Their bond was one that contained many highlights and tragedies, and shaped the way for a young boy to grow and move out of his rundown village to pursue a dream. |Antonella Attili (Maria (Young)) @ Philippe Noiret (Alfredo) @ Enzo Cannavale (Spaccafico) @ Marco Leonardi (Salvatore (Adolescent)) @ Salvatore Cascio (Salvatore (Child)) @ Isa Danieli (Anna) @ Leo Gullotta (Usher) @ Jacques Perrin (Salvatore (Adult)) @ Pupella Maggio (Maria (Old)) @ Agnese Nano (Elena (Adolescent)) @ Leopoldo Trieste (Father Adelfio) @ Tano Cimarosa (Blacksmith) @ Nicola Di Pinto (Village Idiot) @ Roberta Lena (Lia) @ Nino Terzo (Peppino's Father) @ Brigitte Fossey (Elena (Adult) (director's cut only)) @ Nellina Lagana (producer||As good as it gets Heartbreaking, wonderful, beautiful and completely impervious to criticism. To watch this film and not be touched by it is the same as taking a swim and not get wet: impossible. A film for film-lovers, a film for anyone, a film for the really picky ones. It has meaning, depth, creed and sensibility. As good as they come, really. || |1.66 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Citizen Kane|Orson Welles|Drama||8.7|USA|1941| 119 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Orson Welles Richard Baer George Schaefer|Herman J. Mankiewicz Orson Welles John Houseman|Gregg Toland ||RKO Radio Pictures Inc. [us] |It's Terrific!|Multimillionaire newspaper tycoon Charles Foster Kane dies alone in his extravagant mansion, Xanadu, speaking a single word: "Rosebud". In an attempt to figure out the meaning of this word, a reporter tracks down the people who worked and lived with Kane; they tell their stories in a series of flashbacks that reveal much about Kane's life but not enough to unlock the riddle of his dying breath. Considered by many as the best film ever made, this is the story of Charles Foster Kane. The film opens with a long shot of Xanadu - the private estate of one of the world's richest men. In the middle of the estate is a castle. We see, inside the castle, a dying man examining a winter scene within a crystal ball. As he drops it, it smashes, and one word is heard - "Rosebud"... What follows are pieces of newsreel like footage detailing how Kane amassed his fortune, and turning around full circle at the end. |Joseph Cotten (Jedediah Leland/Newsreel Reporter) @ Dorothy Comingore (Susan Alexander Kane) @ Agnes Moorehead (Mrs. Mary Kane) @ Ruth Warrick (Emily Monroe Norton Kane) @ Ray Collins (Boss James 'Jim' W. Gettys) @ Erskine Sanford (Herbert Carter, Inquirer Editor-in-Chief/Newsreel Reporter) @ Everett Sloane (Mr. Bernstein, Kane's General Manager) @ William Alland (Jerry Thompson/'News on the March' Narrator) @ Paul Stewart (Raymond, Kane's Butler) @ George Coulouris (Walter Parks Thatcher) @ Fortunio Bonanova (Signor Matiste, Susan's Opera Coach) @ Gus Schilling (The Headwaiter) @ Philip Van Zandt (Mr. Rawlston) @ Georgia Backus (Miss Bertha Anderson) @ Harry Shannon (Kane's Father) @ Sonny Bupp (Charles Foster Kane III) @ Buddy Swan (Kane, age eight) @ Orson Welles (Charles Foster Kane rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Loretta Agar (Dancing Girl (uncredited)) @ Richard Baer (Hillman (uncredited)) @ Charles Bennett (Entertainer (uncredited)) @ Joan Blair (Georgia (uncredited)) @ Edmund Cobb (Inquirer Reporter (uncredited)) @ Eddie Coke (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Gino Corrado (Gino, waiter at Club El Rancho (uncredited)) @ Herbert Corthell (City Editor (uncredited)) @ Thomas A. Curran (Teddy Roosevelt (uncredited)) @ Louise Currie (Reporter at Xanadu (uncredited)) @ Jack Curtis (Boss printer (uncredited)) @ Tim Davis (Copy boy (uncredited)) @ John Dilson (Ward Heeler (uncredited)) @ Robert Dudley (Photographer (uncredited)) @ Al Eben (Solly (uncredited)) @ Edith Evanson (Leland's Nurse (uncredited)) @ Jean Forward (Opera Singer (uncredited)) @ Olin Francis (Expressman (uncredited)) @ Al Frazier (Gorilla man (uncredited)) @ Captain Garcia (General (uncredited)) @ Peter Gowland (Guest (uncredited)) @ Lew Harvey (Newspaper man (uncredited)) @ Edward L. Hemmer (Bit part (uncredited)) @ Mitchell Ingraham (Politician (uncredited)) @ Walter James (Ward Heeler (uncredited)) @ Arthur Kay (Orchestra Leader (uncredited)) @ Milton Kibbee (Reporter at Wedding (uncredited)) @ Alan Ladd (Reporter smoking pipe in screening room (uncredited)) @ Carmen Laroux (Bit part (uncredited)) @ Ellen Lowe (Miss Townsend, Inquirer Society Editor (uncredited)) @ Buck Mack (Man (uncredited)) @ James Mack (Prompter (uncredited)) @ Herman J. Mankiewicz (Newspaperman (uncredited)) @ Joe Manz (Jennings (uncredited)) @ Major McBride (Shadowgraph man (uncredited)) @ Charles Meakin (Civic leader (uncredited)) @ Irving Mitchell (Dr. Corey (uncredited)) @ Philip Morris (Politician (uncredited)) @ Jack Morton (Butler (uncredited)) @ Louis Natheaux (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Frances E. Neal (Ethel (uncredited)) @ George Noisom (Copy boy (uncredited)) @ Joseph North (Male secretary (uncredited)) @ William H. O'Brien (Male secretary (uncredited)) @ Arthur O'Connell (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Edward Peil Jr. (Civic leader (uncredited)) @ Thomas Pogue ( (uncredited)) @ Jack Raymond (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Guy Repp (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Benny Rubin (Smather (uncredited)) @ Shimen Ruskin (Hireling (uncredited)) @ Walter Sande (Reporter at Xanadu (uncredited)) @ Francis Sayles (Politician (uncredited)) @ George Sherwood (Hireling (uncredited)) @ Bruce Sidney (Newsman (uncredited)) @ Landers Stevens (Investigator (uncredited)) @ Karl Thomas (Jetsam (uncredited)) @ Gregg Toland (Interviewer in 1935 Newsreel (uncredited)) @ Kathryn Trosper (Reporter at Xanadu (uncredited)) @ Glen Turnbull (Flotsam (uncredited)) @ Gohr Van Vleck (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Harry J. Vejar (Portugese laborer (uncredited)) @ Patrick Whitney (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Tudor Williams (Chorus Master (uncredited)) @ Richard Wilson (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Arthur Yeoman (Speaker (uncredited) Produced by||Narrative and Eye Disconnect Spoilers Herein. This an extremely influential film, by one of the very few inventors of cinema. But I do not think it is Welles' best. (That's either `Othello' or `Lady from Shanghai' depending on your religion.) First of all, this is not the work of a genius, but the excellent product of three committed artisans: Welles, Tobin and Mankiewicz. Mankiewicz, with his brother, were the industry's working intellectuals. Here (aided by Houseman), he simply got a client intelligent enough to know what was up. Similarly with Tobin, who was the Sascha Vierny of his day. These two men pulled on Welles, but as we will see, in independent directions. The story, Hearst and all that, is irrelevant except for the notion that a writer in the right place can create reality if willing to pay the price. The acting is fine of course, uncharacteristically abstract -- but that's hardly innovative nor groundshaking. No, what makes this film important are two features, and the failed relationship between them. The first of these is the incredibly complex narrative structure. Things that are normally nested frames: a reminiscent flashback, a text annotated with pictures... are here multiply set up and in turn enfolded into the film proper. We see a newsreel, whose footage later appears in the `real' action; we have a recalled death vision of a childhood but that becomes untenably self-critical; we see her singing and again from her perspective. We have several on-screen narrators but each gets swallowed. There are so many narrative devices at work it keeps us spinning, sledding as each comes into play and is then reabsorbed. The puzzle is assembled several different ways. Nowhere else is such narrative cleverness been even attempted, not by Lynch, Bergman, Wenders, anyone. The other innovation is the breaking of convention with the eye of the camera. The camera takes positions -- physical and philosophical -- that were previously utterly unknown. Previously, the camera was audience supplemented by `context' shots: perspectives that a human observer might not see but that seemed natural. Now, the camera is something unto itself that we have to accommodate. The camera does things no human would or could. It sometimes (often!) sees two things simultaneously, something that never happens with the natural eye. It has a curiosity that we would not have directed. The eye defines the lighting, not the other way around -- here everything is colored not by what it is, but by how the film's eye changes it. Both of these experiments are masterful. They changed the world of films, and hence dreams, and hence all of abstract thinking forever. But the flaw, the lethal problem with this film is that the two experiments have independent lives. They are not coordinated beyond some fairly easy touchpoints and then only in the simplest of ways: an image that is being described by a speaker and the nature of the newsreel. It is as if there were TWO geniuses at work, each doing something important and neither communicating with the other. So when there is a shift or a trick in the narrative, the eye is ignorant of it. But hey, it was just the man's first film. He quickly fixed that in `Othello' and especially `Shanghai.' The merger of eye and narrative is the real revolution. `Kane' raised the question, which is why it is important. Tarkovsky, some Bergman, Malick, Greenaway have subsequently succeeded with this merger using different devices, but the master is Kurosawa. Welles made Kurosawa possible. It all starts here, but only as a promise. In real terms, the film is a failure. ||60th Anniversary Edition |1.37 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ City of Angels|Brad Silberling|Drama|Rated PG-13 for sexuality including language, and some nudity. |6.2|USA|1998| 114 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert Cavallo Alan Glazer Jeff Levine Arnon Milchan Charles Newirth Charles Roven Douglas Segal Kelley Smith-Wait Dawn Steel|Wim Wenders Peter Handke Richard Reitinger Dana Stevens|John Seale ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |She didn't believe in angels until she fell in love with one.|Inspired by the modern classic, Wings of Desire, City involves an angel (Cage) who is spotted by a doctor in an operating room. Franz plays Cage's buddy who somehow knows a lot about angels. Seth, an angel watching over Los Angeles, begins finding his job difficult as he falls in love with Maggie, a beautiful heart surgeon. She becomes interested in Seth, and soon his not-quite-mortal state seems a barrier rather than a gift. A choice must be made between celestial duty and earthly love. Angels are among us and when we feel an invisible presence, you better believe they are watching you. For a Los Angeles heart surgeon named Maggie, that is too much of a stretch. She believes that it is her job to save the lifes of her patients and when she meets Seth after visiting hours are over, he tells her it's simply just their time to go. She becomes intrigued by his presence and opinion. Seth is not just normal, he is an Angel. He meets Messinger while visiting patients. Messinger can see him because he was once a Angel but gave his power up to become human. This makes Seth want to become human so he can feel, smell, and love Maggie. A very interesting story about an angle (seth) who falls in love with a heart surgery doctor (Maggie) after he watch her trying to safe a patient. She accidentaly looks into his eyes (although she can't see him!) and leave a very deep feeling on Seth's heart. Seth let Maggie saw her, talk to her, and made her very interested to her. Seth is helped by an ex-angle who become a human and also one of Maggie's patient. |Nicolas Cage (Seth) @ Meg Ryan (Maggie Rice) @ Andre Braugher (Cassiel) @ Dennis Franz (Nathaniel Messinger) @ Colm Feore (Jordan) @ Robin Bartlett (Anne) @ Joanna Merlin (Teresa Messinger) @ Sarah Dampf (Susan) @ Rhonda Dotson (Susan's Mother) @ Nigel Gibbs (Doctor) @ John Putch (Man in Car) @ Lauri Johnson (Woman in Car) @ Christian Aubert (Foreign Visitor in Car) @ Jay Patterson (Air Traffic Controller) @ Shishir Kurup (Jimmy, Anesthesiologist) @ Brian Markinson (Tom, Surgical Fellow) @ Hector Velasquez (Scrub Nurse) @ Marlene Kanter (Circulating Nurse #1) @ Bernard White (Circulating Nurse #2) @ Dan Desmond (Mr. Balford) @ Deirdre O'Connell (Mrs. Balford) @ Kim Murphy Zandell (Balford's Daughter (as Kim Murphy)) @ Chad Lindberg (Balford's Son) @ Alexander Folk (Convenience Store Clerk) @ Rainbow Borden (Holdup Man) @ Harper Roisman (Old Man in Library) @ Sid Hillman (Librarian) @ Wanda-Lee Evans (Nurse in Messinger's Room) @ Wanda Christine (Station Nurse) @ E.J. Callahan (Waiter at Johnnie's) @ Tudi Roche (Messinger's Daughter) @ David Moreland (Frank, Messinger's Son-in-Law) @ Kristina Malota (Hannah, Messinger's Granddaughter) @ Stan Davis (Construction Foreman) @ Mik Scriba (Construction Worker) @ Nick Offerman (Construction Worker) @ Kieu Chinh (Asian Woman (as Kieu-Chinh)) @ Geoffrey Thorne (Big Orderly (as Geoffrey A. Thorne)) @ Peter Spellos (Mack Truck Driver) @ Jim Kline (Store Clerk) @ Cherene Snow (Sewing Woman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Antonio LaBell (Angel (uncredited)) @ Elisabeth Shue (Pregnant Woman (uncredited) Produced by||Heartbreaking, if you like it Some years ago I watched "Der Himmel über Berlin", which is the original= of City of Angel, written by Wim Wenders, and I really hated it. It was something so disgusting, I just couldn't stand it. The only reason I watched "City of Angels" was Meg Ryan, who is my favorite actress. And I was really surprised how much I liked the movie: Every single picture looked so beautiful and these angels really looked like really heavenly. Meg Ryan and Nicholas Cage did a terrific job and the movie itself occupied my thoughts for a long time. This is one of these really intense movies where you need to think about a lot. But still, even if it's much lighter than the German original, many people in the cinema didn't get the point, but most of those who did get the= point, really loved it. ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ City Slickers|Ron Underwood|Adventure||6.7|USA|1991| 112 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Billy Crystal Irby Smith|Lowell Ganz Babaloo Mandel|Dean Semler ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Yesterday They Were Businessmen. Today They're Cowboys. Tomorrow They'll Be Walking Funny. |Mitch is a middle aged big-city radio ads salesman. He and his friends Ed and Phil are having mid-life crisis. They decide the best birthday gift is to go on a two week holiday in the wild west driving cattle from New Mexico to Colorado. There they meet cowboy Curly who not only teaches them how to become real cowboys, but also one or two other things about life in the open air of the west. |Billy Crystal (Mitch Robbins) @ Daniel Stern (Phil Berquist) @ Bruno Kirby (Ed Furillo) @ Patricia Wettig (Barbara Robbins) @ Helen Slater (Bonnie Rayburn) @ Jack Palance (Curly Washburn) @ Noble Willingham (Clay Stone) @ Tracey Walter (Cookie) @ Josh Mostel (Barry Shalowitz) @ David Paymer (Ira Shalowitz) @ Bill Henderson (Dr. Ben Jessup) @ Jeffrey Tambor (Lou) @ Phill Lewis (Dr. Steven Jessup) @ Kyle Secor (Jeff) @ Dean Hallo (T.R.) @ Karla Tamburrelli (Arlene Berquist) @ Yeardley Smith (Nancy) @ Robert Costanzo (Sal) @ Walker Brandt (Kim Furillo) @ Molly McClure (Millie Stone) @ Jane Alden (Mrs. Green) @ Lindsay Crystal (Holly Robbins) @ Jake Gyllenhaal (Danny Robbins) @ Danielle Harris (Classroom student) @ Eddie Palmer (Classroom student) @ Howard Honig (Skycap) @ Fred Maio (Doctor) @ Jayne Meadows (Mitch's Mother) @ Alan Charof (Mitch's Father rest of cast listed alphabetically Frank Welker .... Special Vocal Effects (voice) Produced by||Kind of sneaks up on you. The first time I saw this film I thought it was a piece of wasted Hollywood fluff. Then I watched it again for some reason and liked it a little more. The third time I watched this film I became hooked. City Slickers is wonderful fun. Billy Crystal is perfect in the mid-life crisis role and Jack Palance has been waiting for this part his whole career. Ron Underwood did a great job with this one. It seemed cliched at first, then I realized it is a great original piece of comedy film-making. ||Contemporary Classics |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Clash of the Titans|Desmond Davis|Action||6.1|UK|1981| 118 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ray Harryhausen John Palmer Charles H. Schneer|Beverley Cross |Ted Moore ||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] |An Epic Entertainment Spectacular!|Perseus has to rescue Andromeda, before she has to marry a monster. Zeus has set up a few tests for Perseus on the way, like capturing Pegasus, defeating Medusa, and finding a way to kill the dreaded Kraken... The Greek myth of Perseus and Andromeda in a realistic presentation of ancient Greece, featuring an all-star cast of actors and many classic mythological creatures like the winged horse Pegasus and the deadly Medusa whose glance turns people to stone. By answering a seemingly impossible riddle, Perseus, the son of Zeus, wins the hand of the Princess Andromeda in marriage. Trouble appears in the shape of Calibos, the princess's former love, and his mother, the Goddess Thetis. In order that the dreaded Kraken not be released, Andromeda has to be sacrificed and Perseus searches for the Medusa; her head is the only thing that can stop the Kraken. |Harry Hamlin (Perseus) @ Judi Bowker (Princess Andromeda) @ Burgess Meredith (Ammon) @ Maggie Smith (Thetis) @ Ursula Andress (Aphrodite) @ Claire Bloom (Hera) @ Siân Phillips (Queen Cassiopeia) @ Flora Robson (Stygian Witch) @ Laurence Olivier (Zeus) @ Tim Pigott-Smith (Thallo) @ Neil McCarthy (Calibos) @ Susan Fleetwood (Athena) @ Anna Manahan (Stygian Witch) @ Freda Jackson (Stygian Witch) @ Jack Gwillim (Poseidon) @ Pat Roach (Hephaestus) @ Donald Houston (King Acrisius) @ Vida Taylor (Danae) @ Harry Jones (Huntsman Produced by||Greek Myths An all star cast used to adapt and combine the Greek myths into one story. Useful as entertainment for A Level Greek students, but not the sort of film that stands the test of time. The only decent scene in the film that makes some advances in filmmaking was the encounter between Perseus and Medusa. Without a shadow of a doubt, the score, directing, acting and Ray Harryhausen's animation brings together a moment of genius. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ Cleopatra|Joseph L. Mankiewicz Rouben Mamoulian Darryl F. Zanuc|Drama||6.5|USA|1963| 192 min/ Germany:233 min (TV version) / Sweden:232 min/ USA:243 min (roadshow version) / USA:320 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walter Wanger Peter Levathes|Sidney Buchman Carlo Mario Franzero Ben Hecht Ranald MacDougall Joseph L. Mankiewicz|Leon Shamroy ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The motion picture the world has been waiting for! |The film is the historical and poetical drama of Queen Cleopatra of Egypt who wants to stabilize her power by using the tensions in the Roman Empire. Due to her beauty Julius Caesar as well as Marc Antony, his oponent, fall in love with her but Cleopatra deceides for the wrong side and loses in the end all; and Egypt is being integrated into the Roman Empire. The story of Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt who wants to stabilize her power by using the tensions in the Roman Empire. Caesar visits Egypt, has an affair with her, and returns to Rome. She bears his child and visits Rome to claim her place at Caesar's side. He is murdered before this can happen. She returns to Egypt leaving Rome in turmoil. Mark Antony follows her to Egypt and they fall in love. However, Octavian defeats Anthony in battle. The story of Cleopatra, the famous queen of Egypt. Having been driven out of the palace by her jealous brother, she regains her title with the help of the visiting Roman emperor, Julius Caeser. Determined to unite Egypt and Rome in a great empire, she seduces him and bears his child. After he is murdered, she works her wiles on his general, Marc Antony. She succeeds very easily, and all is ready for that great empire when Caeser's successor, Octavian, wages war on the two of them. |Elizabeth Taylor (Cleopatra) @ Richard Burton (Marc Antony) @ Rex Harrison (Julius Caesar) @ Pamela Brown (High Priestess) @ George Cole (Flavius) @ Hume Cronyn (Sosigenes) @ Cesare Danova (Apollodorus) @ Kenneth Haigh (Brutus) @ Andrew Keir (Agrippa) @ Martin Landau (Rufio) @ Roddy McDowall (Caesar Augustus (Octavian)) @ Robert Stephens (Germanicus) @ Francesca Annis (Eiras) @ Grégoire Aslan (Pothinos) @ Martin Benson (Ramos) @ Herbert Berghof (Theodotos) @ John Cairney (Phoebus) @ Jacqui Chan (Lotos) @ Isabel Cooley (Charmian (as Isabelle Cooley)) @ John Doucette (Achillas) @ Andrew Faulds (Canidius) @ Michael Gwynn (Cimber) @ Michael Hordern (Cicero) @ John Hoyt (Cassius) @ Marne Maitland (Euphranor) @ Carroll O'Connor (Casca) @ Richard O'Sullivan (Ptolemy) @ Gwen Watford (Calpurnia) @ Douglas Wilmer (Decimus rest of cast listed alphabetically María Luz Galicia (as Mary Anderson)) @ John Alderton (1st Officer (uncredited)) @ Ronald Allen ( (uncredited)) @ John Alvar (Valvus (uncredited)) @ Audrey Anderson ( (uncredited)) @ María Badmajew ( (uncredited)) @ Michèle Bailly ( (uncredited)) @ Marina Berti (Queen at Tarsus (uncredited)) @ Salvatore Billa (Egyptian Slave/Centrurion (uncredited)) @ Bruna Caruso ( (uncredited)) @ Finlay Currie (Titus (uncredited)) @ Marie Devereux (Bacchanal reveler (uncredited)) @ Peter Forster (2nd Officer (uncredited)) @ John Frederick (Captain Palace Guard (uncredited)) @ John Gayford ( (uncredited)) @ Rupert John (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ John Karlsen (High Priest (uncredited)) @ Jeremy Kemp (Agitator (uncredited)) @ Maureen Lane ( (uncredited)) @ Margaret Lee ( (uncredited)) @ Desmond Llewelyn (Senator (uncredited)) @ Loris Loddi (Caesarion at Age 4 (uncredited)) @ Jean Marsh (Octavia (uncredited)) @ Gin Mart (Marcellus (uncredited)) @ Kathy Martin ( (uncredited)) @ Gesa Meiken ( (uncredited)) @ Furio Meniconi (Mithridates (uncredited)) @ Simon Mizrahi ( (uncredited)) @ Violeta Montenegro (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Boris Nacinovic (Gladiator (uncredited)) @ Laurence Naismith (Arachesilaus (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Nash (Caesarion at Age 12 (uncredited)) @ John Pepper (Caesarion (uncredited)) @ Paola Pitagora ( (uncredited)) @ Del Russel (Caesarion at Age 7 (uncredited)) @ Sandra Scarnati ( (uncredited)) @ Mike Steen (Undetermined Role (uncredited)) @ Jack Taylor (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Meri Welles (Cleopatra's Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ Ben Wright (Narrator (uncredited) Produced by||Is it ever going to end??? This one is only for patient viewers. It's visually dazzling, all right, with some truly breathtaking crowd scenes (although some of them do seem to exist only to call attention to the film's extravagant budget), but it's so unbelievably draggy that it seems to last four centuries instead of merely four hours! The good acting (Richard Burton has some strong monologues near the end) is about the only thing that may sustain you for the whole duration.(**) ||Five Star Collection |2.20 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Cliffhanger|Renny Harlin|Action|R |6.0|USA|1993|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|Jim Davidson Renny Harlin Gene Patrick Hines Mario Kassar Alan Marshall Tony Munafo David Rotman Lynwood Spinks James R. Zatolokin|John Long Michael France Michael France Sylvester Stallone|Norman Kent Alex Thomson||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |Hang on!|Whilst crossing a ledge, 4000 feet above the earth, Gabe's friend's equiptment fails to work and she slips out of his hand, falling to the ground. Almost a year later, Gabe is asked to go back to the same mountain range and rescue a group of 'stranded' people. The only catch is that these so called 'stranded' people are infact looking for three boxes filled with $100,000,000 and they need mountain ranger to lead them to them!! Gabe hasn't recovered from a terrible climbing accident, so when he's asked to search for a group, missing in the Rockies, he is initially reluctant. Adding to this the fact he has to work with an old friend, who now hates him; Gabe is not a happy man. Unknown to Gabe and his 'friend', the group they are out to rescue are armed and dangerous. The group need a local expert to locate and recover millions of $s of stolen money. |Sylvester Stallone (Gabe Walker) @ John Lithgow (Eric Qualen) @ Michael Rooker (Hal Tucker) @ Janine Turner (Jessie Deighan) @ Rex Linn (Richard Travers, Treasury Agent) @ Caroline Goodall (Kristel, Jetstar Pilot) @ Leon (Kynette) @ Craig Fairbrass (Delmar) @ Gregory Scott Cummins (Ryan) @ Denis Forest (Heldon) @ Michelle Joyner (Sarah) @ Max Perlich (Evan) @ Paul Winfield (Walter Wright, Treasury Agent) @ Ralph Waite (Frank) @ Trey Brownell (Brett) @ Zach Grenier (Davis) @ Vyto Ruginis (Matheson, FBI Agent) @ Don S. Davis (Stuart (as Don Davis)) @ Derek Hoxby (Agent Hayes (as Scott Hoxby)) @ John Finn (Agent Michaels) @ Bruce McGill (Treasury Agent) @ Rosemary Dunsmore (Treasury Secretary) @ Kim Robillard (Treasury Jet Pilot) @ Jeff McCarthy (Pilot) @ Mike Weis (Co-Pilot) @ Duncan Prentice (Treasury Helicopter Pilot) @ Kevin Donald (Ray) @ Jeff Blynn (MarvinProduced by||Fair Thriller This gets off to a great start with a tragic and strangely affecting incident , but then CLIFFHANGER decides to delete the human aspectsand carry on being a straight forward blockbuster thriller which is a pity. Once again the bad guys have mainly British accents , but in a fit of artistic radicalism we have an American actor playing the main Brit villain. Wow maybe this might catch on , but seeing as John Lithgow`s( And just about every other American who has tried ) attempt at an English accent is rather unconvincing maybe not . You can also tell it was an American who wrote the script because of the dialogue " Did I tell you I played soccer mate ? I was a really good soccer player me " Eh sorry but it`s called" Football " in Britain and the rest of the World. It`s only baseball nations that call it " Soccer " . That aside CLIFFHANGER is a fairly good film , crammed full of exciting setpieces and the director does a pretty good job , especially the scene where the bad guys open fire but no gunshots are heard over the soundtrack only music || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Clockwork Orange, A|Stanley Kubrick|Crime|R |8.3|UK|1971|137 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/24/2004|Stanley Kubrick Si Litvinoff Max L. Raab Bernard Williams|Anthony Burgess Stanley Kubrick|John Alcott ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Being the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are rape, ultra-violence and Beethoven.|In a futuristic Britain, a gang of teenagers go on the rampage every night, beating and raping helpless victims. After one of the boys quells an uprising in the gang, they knock him out and leave him for the police to find. He agrees to try "aversion therapy" to shorten his jail sentence. When he is eventually let out, he hates violence, but the rest of his gang members are still after him. Alex, a teenage hooligan in a near-future Britain, gets jailed by the police. There he volunteers as guinea pig for a new aversion therapy proposed by the government to make room in prisons for political prisoners. "Cured" of his hooliganism and released, he is rejected by his friends and relatives. Eventually nearly dying, he becomes a major embarrassment for the government, who arrange to cure him of his cure. A pivotal moment is when he and his gang break into an author's home: the book he is writing (called "A Clockwork Orange") is a plea against the use of aversion therapy, on the grounds that it turns people into Clockwork Oranges (Ourang is Malay for "Man"): they are not being good from choice (sentiments later echoed by the prison chaplain). The film reflects this: many bad scenes in a Clockwork Orange are accompanied by jolly music; if we are to experience them as we should, we have to do it consciously, by realising they are bad, and not because the director tells us so through the use of music and images. Alex, a violent juvenile in the near future, is caught after a number of brutal rapes and murders. While imprisoned, he submits to a controversial experiment to make criminals ill at the mildest suggestion of violence or conflict. Now Alex's victims want to welcome him back into society with the same enthusiasm Alex had always exhibited when performing his crimes. |Malcolm McDowell (Alexander de Large) @ Patrick Magee (Mr. Alexander) @ Michael Bates (Chief guard) @ Warren Clarke (Dim) @ John Clive (Stage actor) @ Adrienne Corri (Mrs. Alexander) @ Carl Duering (Dr. Brodsky) @ Paul Farrell (Tramp) @ Clive Francis (Lodger) @ Michael Gover (Prison governor) @ Miriam Karlin (Catlady (Mrs. Weathers)) @ James Marcus (Georgie) @ Aubrey Morris (Mr. P. R. Deltoid) @ Godfrey Quigley (Prison chaplain) @ Sheila Raynor (Mum) @ Madge Ryan (Dr. Branom) @ John Savident (Conspirator) @ Anthony Sharp (Minister) @ Philip Stone (Dad) @ Pauline Taylor (Psychiatrist) @ Margaret Tyzack (Conspirator) @ Steven Berkoff (Det. Const. Tom) @ Lindsay Campbell (Police inspector) @ Michael Tarn (Pete) @ David Prowse (Julian (Frank Alexander's bodyguard)) @ Barrie Cookson (Handmaiden in Bible fantasy)) @ Gaye Brown (Sophisto (in the Korova Milkbar)) @ Peter Burton (Detective sergeant) @ Vivienne Chandler (Handmaiden in Bible fantasy)) @ Richard Connaught (Billy Boy (gang leader)) @ Prudence Drage (Handmaiden in Bible fantasy) @ Carol Drinkwater (Nurse Feeley) @ Lee Fox (Desk sergeant) @ Cheryl Grunwald (Rape victim in film) @ Gillian Hills (Sonietta) @ Craig Hunter (Doctor) @ Shirley Jaffe (Victim of Billy Boy's gang) @ Virginia Wetherell (Stage actress) @ Neil Wilson (Prison check-in officer) @ Katya Wyeth (Girl in ascot fantasy rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Heinrich Himmler (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (at SA rally, from T.d.W.) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Viktor Lutze (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ George O'Gorman (Bootick clerk (uncredited)) @ Barbara Scott (Marty (uncredited)Produced by||Defenately the best film ever made Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange is a great film.It looks into the human ways like never before (or never again) in the style that only Kubrick could do.Even though it has been banned from the UK and Australia, it makes it that much more controversial.The writing, direction and acting is at it's highest peak form and just when you think it couldn't get better, it gets to be the best. Also, the breakthrough performance of Malcolm McDowell gets him at the top of the British actors list in my book (this performance most likely got him noticed in the film world).And all the elements surrounding him makes it perfect. Finally, the themes are terrific.The way the film shows how the government screws a regular fiend over is great.The film is great, and is defenately Kubrick's best to date.A++ ||Collectors Edition |1.33 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Close Encounters of the Third Kind|Steven Spielberg|Adventure||7.8|USA|1977| 132 min (special edition) / 135 min (70 mm version) / USA:137 min (Collector's Edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Clark L. Paylow Julia Phillips Michael Phillips|Hal Barwood Jerry Belson John Hill Matthew Robbins Steven Spielberg|William A. Fraker Douglas Slocombe Vilmos Zsigmond||Columbia Home Video [br] |We are not alone |Roy Neary sets out to investigate a power outage when his truck stalls and he is bathed in light from above. After this, strange visions and five musical notes keep running through his mind. Will he find the meaning of the visions, and who - or what - placed them in his mind ? Planes reported missing in 1945 suddenly appear in the Mojave desert. A commercial flight is buzzed by a 'bright' object that the pilot 'wouldn't know how to describe'. Roy Neary, while working one night, has a Close Encounter... The US Government determine where the visitors plan to land and create an elaborate cover-up to keep people away. However, a group of people, including Neary, share a vision which draws them to the place and a meeting with new, and old, friends. La tranquilla vita familiare di Roy Neary (R. Dreyfuss) viene sconvolta dopo un incredibile incontro con entità aliene. Contemporaneamente il figlio di Jillian Guiler (Melinda Dillon) viene rapito da luci provenienti dal cielo. Insieme, i due, spinti da visioni telepatiche e osteggiati dalle autorita' (ad eccezione del prof. Lacombe - F.Truffaut) scopriranno cosa si nasconde dietro una misteriosa fuga di gas nervino nel Wyoming.. |Richard Dreyfuss (Roy Neary) @ François Truffaut (Claude Lacombe) @ Teri Garr (Ronnie Neary) @ Melinda Dillon (Jillian Guiler) @ Bob Balaban (David Laughlin) @ J. Patrick McNamara (Project Leader) @ Warren J. Kemmerling (Wild Bill (as Warren Kemmerling)) @ Roberts Blossom (Farmer) @ Philip Dodds (Jean Claude) @ Cary Guffey (Barry Guiler) @ Shawn Bishop (Brad Neary) @ Adrienne Campbell (Sylvia Neary) @ Justin Dreyfuss (Toby Neary) @ Lance Henriksen (Robert) @ Merrill Connally (Team Leader) @ George DiCenzo (Major Benchley) @ Amy Douglass (Implantee) @ Alexander Lockwood (Implantee) @ Gene Dynarski (Ike) @ Mary Gafrey (Mrs. Harris) @ Norman Bartold (Ohio Tollbooth Attendant) @ Josef Sommer (Larry Butler) @ Rev. Michael J. Dyer (Himself) @ Roger Ernest (Highway Patrolman) @ Carl Weathers (MP) @ F.J. O'Neil (ARP Project Member) @ Phil Dodds (ARP Musician) @ Randy Hermann (Returnee #1 Flt. 19) @ Hal Barwood (Returnee #2 Flt. 19) @ Matthew Robbins (Returnee #3 Flt. 19) @ David Anderson (Air Traffic Controller) @ Richard L. Hawkins (Air Traffic Controller) @ Craig Shreeve (Air Traffic Controller) @ Bill Thurman (Air Traffic Controller) @ Roy E. Richards (Air East Pilot) @ Gene Rader (Hawker) @ Eumenio Blanco (Federale) @ Daniel Núñez (Federale (as Daniel Nunez)) @ Chuy Franco (Federale) @ Luis Contreras (Federale) @ James Keane (Radiotelescope Team) @ Dennis McMullen (Radiotelescope Team) @ Cy Young (Radiotelescope Team) @ Tom Howard (Radiotelescope Team) @ Richard Stuart (Truck Dispatcher) @ Bob Westmoreland (Load Dispatcher) @ Matt Emery (Support Leader) @ Galen Thompson (Special Forces Trooper) @ John Dennis Johnston (Special Forces Trooper) @ John Ewing (Dirty Tricks #1) @ Keith Atkinson (Dirty Tricks #2) @ Robert Broyles (Dirty Tricks #3) @ Kirk Raymond (Dirty Tricks #4 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Basil Hoffman (Longly (uncredited)) @ J. Allen Hynek (Himself, Smoking Pipe at Landing Site (uncredited)) @ Monty Jordan (Special Forces Commander/Helicopter Pilot (uncredited)) @ Howard K. Smith (Himself, TV News Anchor (uncredited) Produced by||Spielberg has a lot to answer for `Close Encounters' changed our ideas about extra-terrestrials.If you're wondering what event turned good, honest, flesh-and-blood aliens into vapid, doe-eyed angels, watch `Close Encounters' and find out.People believed in this movie.I mean, really BELIEVED.Since it was released, alien abduction stories and manufactured anecdotes about Roswell have multiplied in the press, and they always feature the SAME aliens: the floppy mystics on display here.Perhaps we can't blame Spielberg; but in his place, I'd be embarrassed. And in a way it IS his fault.Any sense of urgency this lethargic film manages to drum up comes about only because it seems to be saying, `This kind of thing might really be happening!'Thinking about the movie as a kind of documentary is only charitable, since it's so dull otherwise.For the awful truth is that Spielberg's aliens aren't just a blight on the popular press - they're BORING.They're also incomprehensible.They rush around doing alien things for three hours or so, kidnap a few people, land, play a Wagnerian motif at us several times, and then fly off.Does this interest you?Well, perhaps it would help if we see events from the perspective of a man who becomes (for some reason) obsessed by these aliens. With any luck some of his obsession will rub off onto the audience. Obviously it did rub off on some people.To be charitable to those people, perhaps they were naïvely expecting some kind of pay-off at the end. There is one good thing about this film, and it's the musical score, by John Williams.(And I'm not talking about the aforementioned five-note motif.) I gather he liked the movie, and it's just as well, because he poured a lot of real musical material into it.It's one of his best efforts.There's one defect even here, though: the jarring way he interpolates `When You Wish Upon a Star' towards the end.It's by this and a couple of other references that Spielberg tries to claim an affinity between his film and `Pinocchio' (1940).I'm surprised Disney didn't sue for defamation. ||The Collectors' Edition |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Placard, Le|Francis Veber|Comedy|Rated R for a scene of sexuality. |7.2|France|2001| 84 min |French||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Patrice Ledoux Alain Poiré|Francis Veber |Luciano Tovoli ||Alfa Films [ar] ||François Pignon, a very bland sort of man who works as an accountant in a rubber factory, is about to be fired. His new neighbour comes up with an idea to prevent such a thing to happen: he spreads the rumor that he's gay so that the factory management might be afraid they'll be sued for sexual discrimination. Of course, nothing happens as it should, but the changes in François Pignon's life -and other people's too- is drastic ! |Daniel Auteuil (François Pignon) @ Gérard Depardieu (Félix Santini) @ Thierry Lhermitte (Guillaume) @ Michèle Laroque (Mlle Bertrand) @ Michel Aumont (Belone, the neighbour) @ Jean Rochefort (Kopel, the director) @ Alexandra Vandernoot (Christine) @ Stanislas Crevillén (Franck) @ Edgar Givry (Mathieu) @ Thierry Ashanti (Victor) @ Armelle Deutsch (Ariane) @ Irina Ninova (Martine) @ Marianne Groves (Suzanne) @ Michèle Garcia (Madame Santini) @ Luq Hamet (Moreau) @ Philippe Brigaud (Lambert) @ Vincent Moscato (Ponce) @ Eric Vanzetta (Maitre D) @ Laurent Gamelon (Alba) @ Michel Caccia (Wine waiter) @ Philippe Vieux (Cop) @ Jean-Paul Zucca (Watchman) @ Joël Demarty (Photographer) @ Dominique Thomas (Mover) @ Akihiko Nishida (Japanese visitor 1) @ Hiro Uchiyama (Japanese visitor 2) @ Yongsou Cho (Japanese visitor 3) @ Onochi Seietsu (Japanese visitor 4 Produced by||Fun stuff When a condom company's accountant, played by the versatile Daniel Auteuil, attempts to keep his job by falsely advertising himself as gay, the ramifications of his "coming out" reach into all aspects of his professional and personal life with unexpected and amusing results. A fun little French romp, "The Closet" is more subtle than obvious, more charming than crass, and more cleverthan daring. An enjoyable watch for anyone who doesn't mind contending with subtitles now circulating on t.v. (B-) || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Clue|Jonathan Lynn|Comedy|PG |6.5|USA|1985|94 min/ Sweden:97 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/1/2004|Jeffrey Chernov George Folsey Jr. Peter Guber Debra Hill John Landis Jon Peters|John Landis Jonathan Lynn Jonathan Lynn Anthony E. Pratt|Victor J. Kemper ||CIC Vídeo [br] |It's Not Just A Game Anymore.|This ain't no game! The popular game comes to life in this mystery-comedy movie with an all-star cast headed by Eileen Brennan. Six people are invited to Hill House for dinner and for a little something else. Once they arrive, they meet Wadsworth the butler, soon their host, Mr. Boddy, arrives and they all get to know one another. Professor Plum works for the UN, Mr. Green is a government agent, Mrs. Peacock is a senator's wife, Mrs. White had two husbands who disappeared under "mysterious" circumstances, Colonel Mustard is a colonel, etc., Mr. Boddy gives everyone weapons like candlestick, rope, lead pipe, wrench, revolver, and knife. Mr. Boddy switches off the lights and when they come back on, someone has killed Mr. Boddy! They then go search the house to see if it was a mysterious seventh person who done it. As they do so, other people show up at the house and soon end up dead. Wadsworth the butler has a good idea who did it, so he recreates all the events of the evening to find out who. The results in three different endings. After receiving invitations, six guests arrive at a large house on a hill. Among them are the talkative Mrs. Peacock, the clumsy arrives, he gives lethal weapons to each of them, all of which get used by the end. The result is six murders and it is up to Wadsworth, the butler, to solve the mystery of which of the guests committed the murders. Here is the murderously funny movie based on the world-famous Clue board game. Was it Colonel Mustard in the study with a gun? Miss Scarlet in the billiard room with the rope? Or was it Wadsworth the butler? Meet all the notorious suspects and discover all their foul play. You'll love their dastardly doings as the bodies and the laughs pile up before your eyes. Features three surprise endings!! |Eileen Brennan (Mrs. Peacock) @ Tim Curry (Wadsworth) @ Madeline Kahn (Mrs. White) @ Christopher Lloyd (Prof. Plum) @ Michael McKean (Mr. Green) @ Martin Mull (Col. Mustard) @ Lesley Ann Warren (Miss Scarlet) @ Colleen Camp (Yvette) @ Lee Ving (Mr. Boddy) @ Bill Henderson (The Cop) @ Jane Wiedlin (The Singing Telegram Girl) @ Jeffrey Kramer (The Motorist) @ Kellye Nakahara (Mrs. Ho (the cook)) @ Will Nye (Cop #1) @ Rick Goldman (Cop #2) @ Don Camp (Cop #3 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Howard Hesseman (The Chief (uncredited)Produced by||Clue With a better known cast, this would have been a hit. With the cast it does have, it's considered a comedy classic. There are fun mixes of slapstick, sitcom and dry humor here to keep you entertained. The script, however is thin and cannot sustain anywhere past one hour. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Cold Creek Manor|Mike Figgis|Drama|Rated R for violence, language and some sexuality. R|4.6|USA|2003|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/7/2004|Mike Figgis Richard Jefferies Lata Ryan Annie Stewart|Richard Jefferies |Declan Quinn ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |The perfect house hides the perfect crime.||Dennis Quaid (Cooper Tilson) @ Sharon Stone (Leah Tilson) @ Stephen Dorff (Dale Massie) @ Juliette Lewis (Ruby) @ Kristen Stewart (Kristen Tilson) @ Ryan Wilson (Jesse Tilson) @ Dana Eskelson (Sheriff Ferguson) @ Christopher Plummer (Mr. Massie) @ Simon Reynolds (Ray Pinski) @ Kathleen Duborg (Ellen Pinski) @ Paula Brancati (Stephanie Pinski) @ Aidan Devine (Skip Linton) @ Wayne Robson (Stan Holland) @ Jordan Pettle (Declan) @ Ray Paisley (Dink) @ Shauna Black (Janice) @ Peter Outerbridge (Dave Miller) @ Karen Glave (Tina) @ Leslie Dilley (Antique Dealer) @ George Buza (Antique Dealer) @ Paulette Sinclair (Crossing Guard) @ Shawn Korson (Gang Member) @ Robert Maratta (Gang Member) @ Tommy Brewster (Gang Member) @ John Bayliss (Team Eliminator) @ Daniel Kash (Local) @ Timm Zemanek (Local) @ Stephanie Morgenstern (Local) @ Raoul Bhaneja (Local) @ Philip Williams (Local) @ J. Bogdan (Local) @ Stan Coles (Preacher) @ Jill Fleischman (Sheriff Office Clerk) @ Gary Johnston (Police Officer) @ Brian Kaulback (Police Officer (as Brian Kaulbeck)) @ John C. Warwick (Police OfficerProduced by||Bad SPOILER ALERT: COLD CREEK MANOR is a rural reworking of 1990's PACIFIC HEIGHTS, which was about a couple who run afoul of a nutcase when they move into their urban dreamhouse -- and PACIFIC HEIGHTS itself is nowhere to be found on my list of favorite films. Steve Dorf, one of my favorite young character actors, here fails to convince as a backwoods redneck intent on driving a newly arrived city family off of what was once his family's farm -- the family house now just a deserted wreck and the property harboring a terrible secret. Dennis Quaid is the flick's sole pleasure as the beleaguered but determined homesteader. Sharon Stone is underwhelming as his frightened mate, and she looks rather odd throughout, as if she had undergone facial surgery or suffered a car accident -- and no wonder. In the middle of watching this movie, I happened to briefly switch over to the E!Channel which at that very moment was running a bio of her that indicated COLD CREEK MANOR was her first movie after suffering a devastating stroke. The plot of COLD CREEK MANOR is preposterous, as this city couple with two kids decides to move not to the suburbs but hillbilly land. Here's how bad things start off: As they gas up at a countrified service station and ask about the place, the family gets the classic startled look and ominous mumbling from the station attendant -- played by the once-promising actress, Juliette Lewis, who appears to have come way down in the world since her CAPE FEAR days. The rest of the film only gets worse and quickly devolves into utter hogwash, as the family no sooner buys the house than they run across their antagonist -- a scurrilous-looking ex-con, amateurishly played by Dorf, who spends the next 90 minutes terrorizing them. COLD CREEK MANOR is totally devoid of any suspense or logic. And the resolution is a direct, almost-scene-for-scene (and embarassing) swipe of THE RING. || ||||||||@@ Cold Mountain|Anthony Minghella|Drama|R |7.3|USA|2003|152 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/11/2004|Steve E. Andrews Albert Berger Tim Bricknell William Horberg Bob Osher Sydney Pollack Iain Smith Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Ron Yerxa Paul Zaentz|Charles Frazier Anthony Minghella|John Seale ||Miramax Films [us] |Find Your Way Home|Jude Law plays a leading role as Inman, a wounded confederate soldier who is on a perilous journey home to his mountain community, hoping to reunite with his prewar sweetheart, Ada, played by Nicole Kidman. "Cold Mountain" tells the story of a wounded Confederate soldier named Inman (Jude Law) who struggles on a perilous journey to get back home to Cold Mountain, N.C. as well as to Ada (Nicole Kidman), the woman he left behind before going off to fight in the Civil War. Along the way, he meets a long line of interesting and colorful characters, while back at home, Ada is learning the ropes of managing her deceased father's farm with Ruby (Renee Zellweger), a scrappy drifter who assists and teaches Ada along the way. |Jude Law (Inman) @ Nicole Kidman (Ada Monroe) @ Renée Zellweger (Ruby Thewes) @ Eileen Atkins (Maddy) @ Brendan Gleeson (Stobrod Thewes) @ Philip Seymour Hoffman (Reverend Veasey) @ Natalie Portman (Sara) @ Giovanni Ribisi (Junior) @ Donald Sutherland (Reverend Monroe) @ Ray Winstone (Teague) @ Kathy Baker (Sally Swanger) @ James Gammon (Esco Swanger) @ Charlie Hunnam (Bosie) @ Jack White (Georgia) @ Ethan Suplee (Pangle) @ Jena Malone (Ferry Girl) @ Melora Walters (Lila) @ Lucas Black (Oakley) @ Taryn Manning (Shyla) @ Tom Aldredge (Blind Man) @ James Rebhorn (Doctor) @ Emily Deschanel (Mrs. Morgan) @ Robin Mullins (Mrs. Castlereagh) @ Ben Allison (Rourke) @ Trey Howell (Butcher) @ Alex Hassell (Orderly) @ Jay Tavare (Swimmer) @ William Boyer (Confederate Officer) @ Christopher Fennell (Acton Swanger) @ Erik Smith (Ellis Swanger) @ Cillian Murphy (Bardolph) @ Richard Brake (Nym) @ Sean Gleeson (Pistol) @ Rasool J'Han (Rebecca) @ Hank Stone (Brown) @ Mark Jeffrey Miller (Sheffield) @ Afemo Omilami (Joshua) @ Chet Dixon (Veasey Town Guard) @ Jamie Lee (Guard) @ Jen Apgar (Dolly) @ Katherine Durio (Mae) @ Martin Pemberton (Mo) @ Leonard Woodcock (Jo) @ William Roberts (Grayling) @ Dean Whitworth (Barber) @ Kristen Nicole La Prade (Grace Inman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Bridson (Yankee blacksmith (uncredited)) @ J. Damon Hendrix (Wounded Soldier In Camp (uncredited)Produced by||Guys, let her talk you into seeing Cold Mountain This is a movie for guys who like movies. Like "Cool Hand Luke", only with actual American girls included. A movie is such a huge collaboration between artists, far beyond my understanding; but Cold Mountain is a remarkable effort on the parts of some talented people. The production, the direction and the acting are greater than the sum of their parts. The camera work, the editing, the costumes and ESPECIALLY the sets get top marks. The script is good. The Actors are great, save a small caveat. Some (not all) of the bad guys (and there are lots of bad guys in this movie) play the heavy a little too heavy. Not over the top, but just a little too mean AND evil at the same time, you know? Part of that probably comes from the way the characters and their actions were written in the original novel, and some of it comes from the age old problem of basically decent human beings playing (and directing) the role of sick, demented, evil human beings, and not really having anything in their own life experiences to base something like that on. I am not referring to Ray Winstones performance as Teague, I thought he was great. Very believable that you can dislike someone without being able to put your finger on why at first. A real trick to play that character and have the audience feel the distrust without the words and/or actions to substantiate that emotion. There isn't a female actor in this movie that doesn't do an OUTSTANDING job. Nicole Kidman is stunning, she has never been more attractive than in Cold Mountain. Renee Zellweger is brilliant. Jude Law does a good job with a complex, difficult role. I understand that this movie rates highly with females, under 18. That's surprising, for a macho guy movie like Cold Mountain. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Color Purple, The|Steven Spielberg|Drama|PG-13 |7.6|USA|1985|154 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/24/2004|Peter Guber Carole Isenberg Quincy Jones Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Jon Peters Steven Spielberg|Alice Walker Menno Meyjes|Allen Daviau ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |It's about life.It's about love.It's about us.|This film follows the life of Celie, a young black girl growing up in the early 1900's. The first time we see Celie, she is 14 - and pregnant - by her father. We stay with her for the next 30 years of her tough life... |Danny Glover (Albert) @ Whoopi Goldberg (Celie) @ Margaret Avery (Shug Avery) @ Oprah Winfrey (Sofia) @ Willard E. Pugh (Harpo (as Willard Pugh)) @ Akosua Busia (Nettie) @ Desreta Jackson (Young Celie) @ Adolph Caesar (Old Mister) @ Rae Dawn Chong (Squeak) @ Dana Ivey (Miss Millie) @ Leonard Jackson (Pa) @ Bennet Guillory (Grady) @ John Patton Jr. (Preacher) @ Carl Anderson (Rev. Samuel) @ Susan Beaubian (Corrine) @ James Tillis (Buster) @ Phillip Strong (Mayor) @ Laurence Fishburne (Swain (as Larry Fishburne)) @ Peto Kinsaka (Adam) @ Lelo Masamba (Olivia) @ Margaret Freeman (Odessa) @ Howard Starr (Young Harpo) @ Daphaine Oliver (Young Olivia) @ Jadili Johnson (Young Adam) @ Lillian Njoki Distefano (Young Tashi) @ Donna Buie (Daisy) @ Leon Rippy (Store clerk) @ John R. Hart (Mailman) @ David Thomas (Road-gang leader) @ Carrie Murray (Loretta) @ Juliet Poe (Church sister) @ Katie Simon (Church sister) @ Ethel Taylor (Church sister) @ Marcus Covington (Boy) @ Marcus Liles (Boo) @ April Myres (Emma) @ Maurice Moore (Child #1) @ Lechanda Latharp (Child #2) @ Drew Bundini Brown (Jook Joint patron) @ Arnold F. Turner (Jook Joint patron (as Arnold Turner)) @ Jeris Poindexter (Jook Joint patron (as Jeris Lee Poindexter)) @ Hawthorne James (Jook Joint patron (as James Hawthorne)) @ Sonny Terry (Jook Joint musician (as Saunders Sonny Terry)) @ Greg Phillinganes (Jook Joint musician) @ Roy Gaines (Jook Joint musician) @ Paulinho Da Costa (African musician) @ Nana Yaw Asiedu (African musician) @ Clarence Avant (African musician) @ Bayo Martin (African musician) @ Ndugu Chancler (African musician) @ Jeffrey Kwashi (African musician) @ Pete Munzhi (African musician) @ Aniijia Rae Schockley (African musicianProduced by||Pure Joy... It's sad that people don't acknowledge this film more often as some of Spielberg's other works. This is one that is absorbing, enlightening and thought provoking. He gets the finest performance ever out of Goldberg and Glover, but it's Winfrey who steals the picture. She immerses herself into her role and never slows down for anything. Her timing is perfect. Her emotion is real. It's one of the many great treasures within the film. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Coming to America|John Landis|Comedy|R |6.6|USA|1988|116 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Leslie Belzberg George Folsey Jr. Mark Lipsky David Sosna Robert D. Wachs|Eddie Murphy David Sheffield Barry W. Blaustein|Sol Negrin Woody Omens||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |This summer, Prince Akeem discovers America.|It is the 21st birthday of Prince Akeem of Zamunda and he is to marry a woman he never saw before. Now the prince breaks with tradition and travels to America to look for the love of his life. |Eddie Murphy (Prince Akeem/Clarence/Randy Watson/Saul) @ Arsenio Hall (Semmi/Extremly Ugly Girl/Morris/Reverend Brown) @ James Earl Jones (King Jaffe Joffer) @ John Amos (Cleo McDowell) @ Madge Sinclair (Queen Aoleon) @ Shari Headley (Lisa McDowell) @ Paul Bates (Oha) @ Eriq La Salle (Darryl Jenks) @ Frankie Faison (Landlord) @ Vanessa Bell Calloway (Imani Izzi (as Vanessa Bell)) @ Louie Anderson (Maurice) @ Allison Dean (Patricia McDowell) @ Sheila Johnson (Lady-in-Waiting) @ Jake Steinfeld (Cab Driver) @ Calvin Lockhart (Colonel Izzi) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Hold-Up Man) @ Feather (Rose Bearer) @ Stephanie Simon (Rose Bearer) @ Garcelle Beauvais (Rose Bearer) @ Vondie Curtis-Hall (Basketball Game Vendor) @ Elaine Kagan (Telegraph Lady) @ Don Ameche (Mortimer Duke) @ Ralph Bellamy (Randolph Duke) @ Clint Smith (Sweets) @ Victoria Dillard (Bather/Dancer) @ Felicia Taylor (Bather) @ Midori (Bather (as Michele Watley)) @ Raymond D. Turner (T-Shirt Hawker) @ Billi Gordon (Large Woman) @ Cuba Gooding Jr. (Boy Getting Haircut) @ Uncle Ray Murphy (Stu) @ Ruben Santiago-Hudson (Street Hustler (as Ruben Hudson)) @ Paulette Banoza (Soul Glo Woman) @ Clyde Jones (Soul Glo Man (as Clyde R. Jones)) @ Patricia Matthews (Devil Woman) @ Mary Bond Davis (Big Stank Woman) @ Kara Young (Stuck-Up Girl) @ Karen Renee Owens (Ex-Siamese Twin/Dancer) @ Sharon Owens (Ex-Siamese Twin/Dancer (as Sharon Renee Owens)) @ Lisa Gumora (Kinky Girl) @ June Boykins (Strange Woman) @ Janette Colon (Fresh Peaches) @ Vanessa Colon (Sugar Cube) @ Monique Mannen (Boring Girl/Dancer) @ Mindora Mimms (Awareness Woman) @ Cynthia Finkley (Awareness Woman) @ David Sosna (Cartier Delivery Man) @ Arthur Adams (Mr. Jenks) @ Loni Kaye Harkless (Mrs. Jenks) @ Montrose Hagins (Grandma Jenks) @ Tonja Rivers (Party Guest) @ Michael Tadross (Taxi Driver) @ Steve White (Subway Guy) @ Helen Hanft (Subway Lady) @ Birdie M. Hale (Elderly Passenger) @ Jim Abrahams (Face on Cutting Room Floor rest of cast listed alphabetically Leah Aldridge .... Dancer) @ Aurorah Allain (Dancer) @ Paula Brown (Dancer) @ Dwayne Chattman (Dancer) @ Stephanie Clark (Dancer) @ Robin Dimension (Dancer) @ Carla Earle (Tough Girl (Death Row Inmate's Wife)) @ Shaun Earl (Dancer) @ Eric L. Ellis (Dancer) @ Sharon Ferrol (Dancer) @ Eric D. Henderson (Dancer) @ Gigi Hunter (Dancer) @ Debra Johnson (Dancer) @ Tanya Lynne Lee (Dancer) @ Jimmy Locust (Dancer) @ Donna M. Perkins (Dancer) @ Dionne Rockhold (Dancer) @ Gina Consuela Rose (Dancer) @ Randolph Scott (Dancer) @ Robbin Tasha-Ford (Dancer) @ Jerald Vincent (Dancer) @ Eyan Williams (Dancer) @ Roy Milton Davis (Homeless man around garbage can bonfire (uncredited)) @ Alison Gordy (Blond hooker/bag lady in fast food place (uncredited)) @ Scott Pastore (Spectator (uncredited)) @ Nick Savage (Toothbrusher (uncredited)Produced by||great acting, great writing, great entertainment Funny, good-natured comedy stars Murphy as an African prince who, along with servant Hall, travels to New York City to find his bride. Wonderful performances and terrific dialogue flow throughout, has just the right amount of vulgarity to be amusing without turning crude or mean-spirited. In typical Murphy fashion, he and co-star Hall appear as several other characters in the film. Look for Samuel L. Jackson in a hilarious, highly profane cameo. *** || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Aquaria: The Complete Aquarium Collection / DVD-Video|||NR ||||0 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/5/2004||||||| Featuring: The Natural Aquarium The Freshwater Aquarium The Exotic Aquarium The Coral Reef Aquarium The Classic Aquarium ||||Region All |> |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color (Anamorphic) Standard 1.33:1 Color|ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 ENGLISH: DTS 5.1||||||@@ Coneheads|Steve Barron|Comedy||4.9|USA|1993| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kevin Marcy Lorne Michaels Michael I. Rachmil Barnaby Thompson|Tom Davis Dan Aykroyd Bonnie Turner Terry Turner|Francis Kenny ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Young ones! Parental units! We summon you! |This is the story of the alien family made famous on 'Saturday Night Live'. Beldar and Prymaat are sent from the planet Remulak to pave the way for the invasion of Earth. After crash-landing, they are forced to abandon their mission and live as Earth people in suburban New Jersey. Despite their conical craniums, strange speech, and alien powers, no one thinks the Coneheads are more than a little odd except an overzealous Immigration official who suspects them of being (ahem) aliens. |Dan Aykroyd (Beldar Conehead/Donald R. DeCicco) @ Jane Curtin (Prymatt Conehead/Mary Margaret DeCicco) @ Michelle Burke (Connie Conehead) @ Michael McKean (Gorman Seedling, INS Deputy Comissioner) @ Phil Hartman (Marlax) @ Jason Alexander (Larry Farber) @ Lisa Jane Persky (Lisa Farber) @ Sinbad (Otto) @ Jan Hooks (Gladys Johnson, Driving Student) @ Chris Farley (Ronnie the Mechanic) @ Adam Sandler (Carmine) @ Kevin Nealon (Senator) @ David Spade (Eli Turnbull, INS Agent) @ Tim Meadows (Athletic Cone) @ Robert Knott (Air Traffic Controller) @ Jonathan Penner (Air Traffic Captain) @ Whip Hubley (F-16 Pilot) @ Howard Napper (Ang Pilot) @ Michael Richards (Motel Clerk) @ Eddie Griffin (Customer) @ Grant Martell (Hispanic Man #1) @ Rosa Maria Briz (Hispanic Woman (as Rosa Briz)) @ Art Bonilla (Hispanic Man #2) @ Cooper Layne (Engineer) @ Sarah Anne Levy (Hygenist) @ Drew Carey (Taxi Passenger) @ Shishir Kurup (Khoudri) @ Sydney Coberly (Nurse) @ Barry Kivel (Doctor) @ Terry Turner (Sketch Artist) @ McNally Sagal (Female Agent) @ Richard Comar (Agent) @ Danielle Aykroyd (3 Year Old Connie) @ Nicolette Harnish (10 Year Old Connie) @ Joey Lauren Adams (Christina) @ Parker Posey (Stephanie) @ Julia Sweeney (Principal) @ Ellen DeGeneres (Coach) @ Walter Robles (Fire Marshal) @ Todd Susman (Ron) @ James Keane (Harv) @ Sam Freed (Master of Ceremonies) @ Garrett Morris (Captain Orecruiser) @ Tom Davis (Supplicant) @ Dave Thomas (Highmaster) @ Peter Aykroyd (Highmaster Mentot) @ Laraine Newman (Laarta) @ Nils Allen Stewart (Guard) @ Mitchell Bobrow (Garthok Combatant) @ Laurence Bilzerian (Cone Battle Commander) @ Topper Lilien (Cone Pilot rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tom Arnold (Golfer (uncredited)) @ Jon Lovitz (Dr. Rudolph, Dentist (uncredited) Produced by||Simple movie, with simple laughs but hey, it works "Coneheads" is the perfect kind of movie to have on killing time late at night, or when you just want to veg and not think about anything. The humor in the movie is simple to understand and easy to laugh at. Adam Sandler's cameo in the movie was great. Sinbad has a cameo too that he turns into many laughs. This movie was fun to watch. Of course there are many jokes about how these people have cones for heads, but that is the title of the movie, so no complaints warranted there. Dan Aykroyd really loves his Beldar character, and it shows here as much as it does in the many Saturday Night Live skits about the Coneheads. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Congo|Frank Marshall|Action|Rated PG-13 for jungle adventure terror and action and brief strong language. |4.4|USA|1995| 109 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Backes Paul Deason Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Sam Mercer Frank Yablans|Michael Crichton John Patrick Shanley|Allen Daviau ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |Where you are the endangered species |Greed is bad, this simple morality tale cautions. A megalomaniacal C.E.O. sends his son into the dangerous African Congo on a quest for a source of diamonds large enough and pure enough to function as powerful laser communications transmitters (or is it laser weapons?). When contact is lost with his son and the team, his sometime daughter- in-law is sent after them. She is a former CIA operative and, accompanied by gee-whiz gadgetry and a few eccentric characters (including a mercenary, a researcher with a talking gorilla, and a a nutty Indiana-Jones-type looking for King Solomon's Mines), sets out to rescue her former fiance. What they all discover is that often what we most want turns out to be the source of our downfall. An expidition to the African Congo ends in disaster, and a new team is assembled to find out what went wrong. Based on the novel by Michael Crichton. |Laura Linney (Dr. Karen Ross) @ Dylan Walsh (Dr. Peter Elliot) @ Ernie Hudson (Captain Munro) @ Tim Curry (Herkermer Homolka) @ Grant Heslov (Richard, Elliot's Assistant) @ Joe Don Baker (R.B. Travis, TraviCom CEO) @ Lorene Noh (Amy) @ Mary Ellen Trainor (Moira, Audience at Elliot's Lecture) @ Misty Rosas (Amy) @ Stuart Pankin (Boyd, Audience at Elliot's Lecture) @ Carolyn Seymour (Eleanor Romy) @ Romy Rosemont (Assistant) @ James Karen (College President (Elliot's Boss)) @ Bill Pugin (William) @ Lawrence T. Wrentz (Prof. Arliss Wender, MIT) @ Robert Almodovar (Rudy, TraviCom Security) @ Kathleen Connors (Sally) @ Joel Weiss (Travicom Operator) @ John Hawkes (Bob Driscoll) @ Peter Jason (Mr. Janus) @ Jimmy Buffett (727 Pilot) @ James Paradise (Transport Worker #1) @ William John Murphy (Transport Worker #2) @ Thom Barry (Samahani) @ Ayo Adejugbe (African Airport Guard) @ Kahara Muhoro (Roadblock Soldier) @ Kevin Grevioux (Roadblock Officer) @ Darnell Suttles (Hospital Interrogator) @ Michael Chinyamurindi (Claude from Mombasa) @ Willie Amakye (Lead Porter) @ Malang (Porter) @ Jay Speed Forney (Porter) @ Shelton Mack (Porter) @ David Mungai (Porter) @ Anthony Mutune (Porter) @ Sylvester Mwangi (Porter) @ Les Robinson (Porter) @ Nelson Shalita (Porter) @ E.J. Callahan (DC-3 Pilot) @ Guy Toley (DC-3 Co-Pilot) @ Jackson Gitonga (Mizumu Tribesman) @ Andrew Kamuyu (Mizumu Tribesman) @ Fidel Bateke (Witch Doctor) @ Shayna Fox (Amy (voice)) @ Bruce Campbell (Charles Travis, R.B.'s Son) @ Taylor Nichols (Jeffrey Weems) @ Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Kahega, Kelly's Guide) @ David Anthony (Gorilla) @ Brian La Rosa (Gorilla) @ John Cameron (Gorilla) @ John Alexander Lowe (Gorilla) @ Jay Caputo (Gorilla) @ Garon Michael (Gorilla) @ Peter Elliott (Gorilla) @ David St. Pierre (Gorilla) @ Eldon Jackson (Gorilla) @ Philip Tan (Gorilla) @ Nicholas Kadi (Gorilla) @ Christopher 'Critter' Antonucci (Gorilla rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Delroy Lindo (Captain Wanta (uncredited)) @ Joe Pantoliano (Eddie Ventro (uncredited) Produced by||Bedtime for"Congo". Terrible little would-be action thriller that bores very quickly. Michael Crichton's over-rated novel comes to life, barely, in this unintentionally funny mess. Big-time businessman Joe Don Baker sends his son (Bruce Campbell) into the titled area to find diamonds that are literally all over the ground. However something happens to Campbell and a search party led by his on-again-off-again wife (Laura Linney) is sent in to try and find out what happened. Those in the search party include Dylan Walsh, Ernie Hudson, Tim Curry and a female ape who uses sign language and a computer-generated voice to talk (I am serious). A really stupid film that is never too interesting and is overall a sub-par production from top to bottom for the most part. 2 stars out of 5. ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Contact|Robert Zemeckis|Drama|Rated PG for some intense action, mild language and a scene of sensuality. |7.3|USA|1997| 153 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steven J. Boyd Joan Bradshaw Ann Druyan Lynda Obst Rick Porras Carl Sagan Steve Starkey Robert Zemeckis|Carl Sagan Carl Sagan Ann Druyan James V. Hart Michael Goldenberg|Don Burgess ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |From the Academy Award-winning director of "Forrest Gump" and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "Contact" take you on a journey to the heart of the universe|Contact, based on the novel of the same name by Carl Sagan, is the story of a free thinking radio astronomer (Jodie Foster) who discovers an intelligent signal broadcast from deep space. She and her fellow scientists are able to decipher the Message and discover detailed instructions for building a mysterious Machine. Will the Machine spell the end of our world, or the end of our superstitions? Will we take our place among the races of the Galaxy, or are we just an upstart species with a long way to go? When Dr. Eleanor Arroway receives a message from aliens, they tell humans to build a machine so they can communicate with the aliens. Now Dr. Arroway must decide whether she should stay safe or risk her life to contact the aliens. |Jodie Foster (Dr. Eleanor Ann 'Ellie' Arroway) @ Jena Malone (Young Ellie) @ Matthew McConaughey (Father Palmer Joss) @ David Morse (Ted Arroway/Alien) @ Geoffrey Blake (Fisher) @ William Fichtner (Kent Clark) @ Sami Chester (Vernon) @ Timothy McNeil (Davio) @ Laura Elena Surillo (Cantina Woman) @ Tom Skerritt (Dr. David Drumlin) @ Henry Strozier (Minister) @ Michael Chaban (Hadden Suit) @ Max Martini (Willie (as Maximilian Martini)) @ Larry King (Himself) @ Thomas Garner (Ian Broderick) @ Conroy Chino (KOB-TV Reporter) @ Dan Gifford (Jeremy Roth) @ James Woods (Michael Kitz, National Security Advisor) @ Vance Valencia (Senator Valencia) @ Angela Bassett (Rachel Constantine) @ Donna J. Kelley (Herself) @ Leon Harris (Himself) @ Claire Shipman (Herself) @ Behrooz Afrakhan (Middle Eastern Anchor) @ Saemi Nakamura (Japanese Anchor) @ Maria Celeste Arraras (Latina Anchor) @ Tabitha Soren (Herself) @ Geraldo Rivera (Himself) @ Ian Whitcomb (British Anchor) @ Jay Leno (Himself) @ Natalie Allen (Herself) @ Robert D. Novak (Himself) @ Geraldine A. Ferraro (Herself) @ Ann Druyan (Herself) @ Rob Lowe (Richard Rank) @ Jake Busey (Joseph) @ Kathleen Kennedy (Herself) @ Michael Albala (Decryption Hacker) @ Ned Netterville (Decryption Expert) @ Leo Lee (Majordomo) @ John Hurt (S.R. Hadden) @ William Jordan (Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff) @ David St. James (Member of Joint Chiefs of Staff) @ Jill Dougherty (Herself) @ Haynes Brooke (Drumlin Aide) @ John Holliman (Himself) @ Bobbie Battista (Herself) @ Dee Dee Myers (Herself) @ Bryant Gumbel (Himself) @ Linden Soles (Himself) @ Steven Ford (Major Russell) @ Alexander Zemeckis (Major Russell's Son (as Alex Zemeckis)) @ Janie Peterson (Major Russell's Daughter) @ Philippe Bergeron (French Committee Member (as Phillip Bergeron)) @ Jennifer Balgobin (Dr. Patel) @ Anthony Hamilton (British Committee Member (as Anthony Fife Hamilton)) @ Rebecca T. Beucler (NASA Public Relations) @ Marc Macaulay (NASA Technician) @ Pamela Wilsey (Voice of NASA) @ Tucker Smallwood (Mission Director) @ Jeff Johnson (Mechanical) @ Yuji Okumoto (Electrical) @ Gerry Griffin (Dynamics) @ Brian Alston (Communications) @ Rob Elk (Pad Leader) @ Mark Thomason (Security) @ José Rey (Controller #8) @ Todd Patrick Breaugh (New VLA Technician) @ Alex Veadov (Russian Cosmonaut) @ Alice Kushida (Scientist) @ Robin Gammell (Project Official) @ Richardson Morse (Mission Doctor) @ Seiji Okamura (Japanese Ensign) @ Bernard Shaw (Himself) @ Mak Takano (Japanese Tech #1) @ Tom Tanaka (Japanese Tech #2) @ Catherine Dao (Life Support) @ Kristoffer Ryan Winters (Dynamics #2) @ Valorie Armstrong (Woman Senator) @ Jim Hild (Reporter #5) @ Bill Thomas (Reporter #6) @ Diego Montoya (Schoolboy rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Adler (White House Official (uncredited)) @ Neil Armstrong (Himself/Voice Through Space (voice) (uncredited)) @ Mark Bailey (Four-Star General (uncredited)) @ Matt Bennett (Senate Observer (uncredited)) @ Christopher Boyer (Scientist (uncredited)) @ Aixa Clemente (President's secretary (uncredited)) @ Bill Clinton (Himself (uncredited)) @ Candice Cook (Supporter (uncredited)) @ Derrick Damions (Ailing Believer (uncredited)) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Martin Luther King (Himself/Voice Through Space (voice) (uncredited)) @ Robert Leighton (NASA Controller #2 (uncredited)) @ Sunshine Logroño (Puerto Rican Taxi Driver (uncredited)) @ Douglas MacArthur (Himself/Voice Through Space (voice) (uncredited)) @ Joseph McCarthy (Himself/Voice Through Space (uncredited) (voice)) @ Lo Ming (Pod Systems Control (uncredited)) @ Richard Nixon (Himself/Voice Through Space (voice) (uncredited)) @ Paul L. Nolan (Ellie's Attorney (uncredited)) @ Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Himself/Voice Through Space (voice) (uncredited)) @ Russell Sanderlin Sr. (Photographer (uncredited)) @ Frank Silva (Army Officer (uncredited)) @ Delaney Williams (Believer #1 (uncredited)) @ Walter Winchell (Himself/Voice Through Space (voice) (uncredited) Produced by||"For Carl" Reading other peoples' reviews, I see a split 50/50 argument where one side loves the movie and the other hates it. I am not one bit surprised, due to the importance of the film, and I feel this is proof that Contact is one of the most powerful movies of the decade. Like the reaction from the civilians to the machine, a movie with this much heavy firepower is likely to get both loathing and praise from its viewers. I for one praise the film, for its toughness and sensitivity, symbolism and passion, and the fact that it is a rare science fiction film, a gem which was released in a time where scientific intelligence in film has become a nothing short of a joke as the wonder of the universe has been ignored and the mystery of alien life have become a neverending trail of movie villains. The film of course centers around the science vs. religion theme, the oldest and most frightening of all school debates. Instead of taking the more independent path the book takes, the film takes the more sensitive on the science vs. religion argument throughout the film by telling us that science and religion points to the same direction (the "pursuit of truth") but are misunderstood when studying the nature of their WAY of finding the truth (science uses evidence and answers, religion uses love faith). At the end of it all, the film lets us know that if science and religion stops colliding with each other and starts to combine and compliment each other (listen to Ellie's final words in her testament) the human race might achieve things we can only dream about now. A perfectly refreshing film, with lots to say, great acting and directing, sound and special effects. Robbed by the Academy. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Conversation, The|Francis Ford Coppola|Crime|PG |8.1|USA|1974|113 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/16/2004|Francis Ford Coppola Fred Roos Mona Skager|Francis Ford Coppola |Bill Butler ||CIC Vídeo [br] ||Harry Caul is a nationally known expert on surveillance. The Director of a large company has hired him to record the conversations of two of the Director's employees. Some years previous, Harry's work directly led to the murder of three people, and now he has reason to fear that it will happen again. |Gene Hackman (Harry Caul) @ John Cazale (Stan) @ Allen Garfield (William P. 'Bernie' Moran) @ Frederic Forrest (Mark) @ Cindy Williams (Ann) @ Michael Higgins (Paul) @ Elizabeth MacRae (Meredith) @ Teri Garr (Amy Fredericks) @ Harrison Ford (Martin Stett) @ Mark Wheeler (Receptionist) @ Robert Shields (The Mime) @ Phoebe Alexander (Lurleen rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Gian-Carlo Coppola (Boy in Church (uncredited)) @ Robert Duvall (The Director (uncredited)) @ Richard Hackman (Confessional Priest/Security Guard (uncredited)) @ George Meyer (Salesman (uncredited)) @ Al Nalbandian (Salesman at Surveilance Convention (uncredited)Produced by||Coppola's 'other' nineteen-seventies classic; one of Hackman's most complex performances Francis Form Coppola's The Conversation was his only film from the seventies written and directed by him (and made through his Zoetrope studios), and it is no less than a major credit to his status as a creative, successfully experimental filmmaker of the new-wave of American directors of the 70's. The Conversation is a first-person story of a surveillance man named Harry Caul, played by Gene Hackman, who's well respected by his fellow snoop-peers, but isn't always that good at it.After getting audio on a conversation between a man and woman talking about a murder, or one that could happen, and trying to decipher some muddled words in it, he leaves his door open for the tapes to be stolen, and this sets him into a paranoid state fearing a deja-vu will occur for him (his work caused some deaths years before). What's so fascinating and telling about The Conversation is that its basic storyline and development is that of a thriller, yet the way Coppola uses Hackman's Harry brings to the story themes of guilt, privacy, fear, loneliness, and so forth that go to reel the viewer into the psychology of this character.The ones Harry is listening in on are important to the story, but not so much as Harry's placement on the outskirts of what else is going on in the story.A more conventional film would've gone with The Director character (in a cameo by Robert Duvall), or even with the people Harry Caul listens in on.Instead we get a viewpoint strictly from the sideline, which is often harrowing, especially from his perspective. Two aspects to The Conversation really struck me on my first viewing, outside of Bill Butler's keenly observatory camera-work and the acting from the main and supporting players: the sound in most scenes is rather extraordinary for the times.Whether we're hearing the conversation in its repetitious form(s), listening in on a silence about to break, or even in just a seemingly normal scene, when sounds, either diegetic or non-diegetic, come into play it's like Coppola, and his Academy Award nominated (should've won) sound men Walter Murch and Art Rochester, are stretching the boundaries for it, and were arguably expanding its usage before movie-goers ears. The other thing that struck me was how Coppola gets the viewer deeper into Harry's mood with surrealistic images that are all the more frightening since they seem totally real to Harry.The prime example of this would be the hotel room scene - because Harry is a sort of anti-hero, and we can still identify with him slightly on a moral level, the dream-like moments become potent, visionary. And then there's Hackman as Harry Caul- he plays him to the best of the great actor's ability, revealing levels of sorrow, bitterness, humility, and regret all with total conviction that another actor might've not grasped. By the end of the film, the viewer's been brought along on this journey via Harry, and though Coppola was the mastermind behind how it was crafted, it was Hackman to me who brought the whole experience to a sense of realism to a thriller that has illusions to spare.Whether or not the conversation hurt others or brought upon shame on The Director isn't the point, and that's how Coppola must've wanted it - he was inspired by Antonioni's Blowup, which used photographs as a man's obsession instead of sound - the point is Harry's journey through this assignment, and how it begins to whittle him down to a nub...One of the best films of 1974, The Conversation also won the prestigious Palme D'Or at Cannes that year. A+ || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Crocodile Dundee|Peter Faiman|Adventure||6.4|Australia|1986| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Cornell Jane Scott|John Cornell Paul Hogan Paul Hogan Ken Shadie|Russell Boyd ||Abril Vídeo [br] |He's survived the most hostile and primitive land known to man. Now all he's got to do is make it through a week in New York.|New York reporter Sue travels to Australia to meet and interview Michael J Crocodile Dundee, a man who runs a safari business and has just survived an attacked by a crocodile. After spending a few days touring the safari park, Sue invites Mick to come back with her to visit New York. How would the clash of cultures and different life style affect the Aussie bushman? How do things turn out when Sue falls for his charms? |Paul Hogan (Michael J. 'Crocodile' Dundee) @ Linda Kozlowski (Sue Charlton) @ John Meillon (Walter Reilly) @ David Gulpilil (Neville Bell) @ Ritchie Singer (Con) @ Maggie Blinco (Ida) @ Steve Rackman (Donk) @ Gerry Skilton (Nugget) @ Terry Gill (Duffy) @ Peter Turnbull (Trevor) @ Christine Totos (Rosita) @ Graham 'Grace' Walker (Angelo) @ David Bracks (Burt (Roo Shooter)) @ Brett Hogan (Peter (Roo Shooter)) @ Mark Blum (Richard Mason) @ Michael Lombard (Sam Charlton) @ Irving Metzman (Doorman) @ Reginald VelJohnson (Gus) @ Rik Colitti (Danny) @ John Snyder (Pimp) @ J.J. Cole (Buzzy) @ Gwyllum Evans (Wendell Wainwright) @ Clarie Hague (Dorothy Wainwright) @ Jan Saint (Wino) @ Peter Bucossi (Subway Creek) @ Sullivan Walker (Tall Man) @ Bobby Alto (Pug Nose) @ Anne Carlisle (Gwendoline) @ Anne Francine (Fran) @ Paige Matthews (Party Girl) @ Paul Greco (New Yorker) @ Caitlin Clarke (Simone) @ Nancy Mette (Karla) @ Barry Kivel (Coke Snorter) @ Tony Holmes (Teenage Mugger) @ Dan Lounsbery (Simpson) @ Dolores Messina (Receptionist rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Yvonne Erwin (Dancer at party (uncredited) Produced by||Two Fish Out Of Water Stories In One A wonderfully (although not outrageously) humourous story about a crocodile fighting Australian outbacker who ends up travelling to New York for a series of adventures and misadventures. Paul Hogan plays the title role of Michael J. "Mick" or "Crocodile" Dundee, and nails the role to perfection - as he should, given that he was also responsible for developing and writing the story. Linda Kozlowski plays Sue Charlton, the American newspaper writer assigned to write a feature story about this mysterious man from down under. The story begins in Australia, where Charlton is the one out of her element, dependent on Dundee to overcome the dangers often encountered. She also becomes his voice of conscience, however, pushing him to take action, for example, against kangaroo poachers. It's in Australia where we also see one of the more disappointing parts of the movie, however - disappointing because it was unnecessary. I'm referring to the shot of Kozlowski in what I thought was an unlikely choice of bathing suit to wear under her clothes in such conditions. I'm not against a shot of an attractive woman when it serves to move the story along. This one simply didn't do that. Anyone ever heard the word "exploitation?" Moving to New York City, we now see Dundee as the fish out of water, adjusting (somewhat better, I would say, than Sue did in the outback) to life in the big city. Dundee takes on pimps, prostitutes, transvestites and muggers- and always manages to come out on top. The American scenes, I thought, were by far the funnier. All in all, it's an enjoyable couple of hours to spend, although (ironically, since Hogan and Kozlowski later married in real life) the romance between Mick and Sue just didn't strike me as "real." A certain chemistry seemed to be lacking between them. Still, there are a lot of good laughs here. 7/10 || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ 'Crocodile' Dundee II|John Cornell|Action||4.9|Australia|1988| 110 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Cornell Paul Hogan Jane Scott Mark Turnbull|Brett Hogan Paul Hogan Paul Hogan|Russell Boyd ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The world's favourite adventurer is back for more! much more! |Mick and Sue continue where they left off in "'Crocodile' Dundee". New York gangsters are pursuing Sue, so for her safety, Mick takes her back to Oz. When the gangsters follow them, Mick demonstrates his outback skills once more. |Paul Hogan (Michael J. 'Crocodile' Dundee) @ Linda Kozlowski (Sue Charlton) @ John Meillon (Walter Reilly) @ Hechter Ubarry (Rico) @ Juan Fernández (Miguel (as Juan Fernandez)) @ Charles Dutton (Leroy) @ Kenneth Welsh (Brannigan) @ Dennis Boutsikaris (Bob Tanner) @ Ernie Dingo (Charlie rest of cast listed alphabetically Jace Alexander .... Rat) @ Tatyana Ali (Park Girl) @ Jose Andrews (Rico's Guard (as Jose R. Andrews III)) @ Luis Arriaga (Rico's Guard) @ Steven Arvanites (Phone Talker) @ Hisayo Asai (Japanese Tourist) @ Tom Batten (Policeboat Sergeant) @ Maggie Blinco (Ida) @ Betty Bobbit (Meg (Tourist) (as Betty Bobbitt)) @ Carlos Carrasco (Garcia) @ Angela Castle (Park Girl) @ Al Cerullo (Helicopter Pilot (as Al Cerullo Jr.)) @ Jim Cooper (Dorrigo Brother) @ Sam Cooper (Dorrigo Brother) @ Hannah Cox (Office Receptionist) @ Rhett Creighton (Park Boy) @ Dianne Crittenden (Woman in Store (as Dianne Derfner)) @ Anthony Crivello (Subway Hitman) @ Susie Essman (Tour Guide) @ Mark Folger (Mohawk Punk) @ Luis Guzmán (Jose (as Luis Guzman)) @ Jim Holt (Erskine) @ Gregory Jbara (Young Cop) @ Vincent Jerosa (Ledge Suicider) @ Bryan Krivak (Gang Member) @ Rita Lane (Phone Talker) @ Edwin Maldonado (Park Boy) @ Gus Mercurio (Frank) @ Colin Quinn (Onlooker at Mansion) @ Steve Rackman (Donk) @ John Ramsey (Barkeeper Al) @ Julio Rios (Sanchez (Rico's Driver)) @ Stacey Rockafellow (Phone Talker) @ Maria Antoinette Rogers (Cafe Patron) @ Stephen Root (DEA Agent (Toilet)) @ Anthony Ruiz (Apartment Hitman) @ Bill Sandy (Teddy) @ Mark Saunders (Diamond) @ Fernando Segura (Hotel Manager (Switchboard)) @ Roger Serbagi (Ralph the Postman) @ Homay Shams (Snake Charmer) @ Gerry Skilton (Nugget) @ Doug Skinner (Toilet Citizen) @ Marilyn Sokol (Doris) @ Jim Soriero (Gang Member) @ Ahvi Spindell (Cafe Patron) @ Alberto Vasquez (Rico's Guard (as Alberto Vazquez)) @ Alec Wilson (Denning) @ Ronald Yamamoto (Fuji (Kung Fu Tourist) (as Ron Yamamoto)) @ Doug Yasuda (Cato (Kung Fu Tourist) Produced by||A great sequel This film was a fantastic follow up to the original hit. Its not as good as the first by the way it can drag on a bit at times but its got new angles. This time involving gangsters and kidnap. Still a wonder film but won't be as classic as the original. ||Movies |2.35 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Wo hu cang long|Ang Lee|Adventure|Rated PG-13 for martial arts violence and some sexuality. |8.3|USA|2000| 120 min |Mandarin||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Po Chu Chui Ping Dong Li-Kong Hsu William Kong Ang Lee Philip Lee David Linde Er-Dong Liu James Schamus Wai Sum Shia Quangang Zheng|Du Lu Wang Hui-Ling Wang James Schamus Kuo Jung Tsai|Peter Pau ||Arthaus Filmverleih [de] ||The disappearance of a magical jade sword spurs a breathtaking quest for the missing treasure. Li (Chow Yun-Fat) is embittered by the loss of his jade sword, and his unrequited pursuit of Yu (Michelle Yeoh) is further complicated by the mysterious intrusion of an assassin. The identity of the assassin is gradually unveiled as another poignant tale of love begins to ravel with that of Li and Yu against the backdrop of Western China's magnificent landscape. Li Mu Bai, a great warrior decides to turn in his sword, the Green Destiny to a treasured friend. When the sword is then stolen, it is up to him to retrieve it. At the same time he is trying to avenge his father's death by the evil Jade Fox. He is joined in his quest by Shu Lien, the un-conceded love of his life. During all of this, they are introduced to Jiao Long Yu (Jen), the mysterious and beautiful daughter of a well known family. She is the mysterious link to all these tales. But through all the many subplots, this is in essence, a love story. Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon is a timeless story that takes place in QING China when miracles were credible and spirits and gods were present in man's world. It is not unbelievable that zen warriors float through the air, skim the water and battle in trees and on rooftops. Pain, revenge and duty are the stuff that bind us in this world and are the main plot line of the movie, but in the afterlife love and faith linger on. Li is a great warrior, famous throughout QING China for his adventurus life. He decides to give his powerful, ancient sword as a gift to an old friend of his, but soon the sword is stolen by a mysterious master of the martial arts. Now, it's up to Li to uncover the thief and return the sword to its rightful owner. |Yun-Fat Chow (Master Li Mu Bai (as Yun Fat Chow)) @ Michelle Yeoh (Yu Shu Lien) @ Ziyi Zhang (Jen Yu (Mandarin version)/Xiou Long (English dubbed version) (as Zhang Ziyi)) @ Chen Chang (Lo 'Dark Cloud' (Mandarin version)/Xiou Hu 'Dark Cloud' (English dubbed version)) @ Sihung Lung (Sir Te (Mandarin version)/Be-La-Ye (English dubbed version)) @ Pei-pei Cheng (Jade Fox (Mandarin version)/Be-Ah-Hui 'Jade Fox' (English dubbed version)) @ Fa Zeng Li (Gov. Yu) @ Xian Gao (Bo (Mandarin version)/Yo-Shi (English dubbed version)) @ Yan Hai (Madame Yu) @ De Ming Wang (Police Inspector Tsai) @ Li-Li Li (May, Tsai's Daughter (as Li Li)) @ Su Ying Huang (Auntie Wu) @ Jin Ting Zhang (De Lu) @ Rei Yang (Maid) @ Kai Li (Gou Jun Pei) @ Jian Hua Feng (Gou Jun Sinung) @ Zhen Xi Du (Shop Owner) @ Cheng Lin Xu (Captain) @ Feng Lin (Captain) @ Wen Sheng Wang (Gangster A) @ Dong Song (Gangster B) @ Zhong Xuan Ma (Mi Biao) @ Bao Cheng Li (Fung Machete Chang) @ Yong De Yang (Monk Jing) @ Shao Jun Zhang (Male Performer) @ Ning Ma (Female Performer) @ Jian Min Zhu (Waiter) @ Chang Cheng Don (Homeless Man) @ Yi Shih (Waitress) @ Bin Chen (Servant) @ Sao Chen Chang (Nightman Produced by||Simply gorgeous No other movie has driven me to tears, and made me leave the theater shaking and completely overwhelmed.That is, until I saw Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon today... You already know the plot, so I'll just tell you that to me, everything fit perfectly into place...everything from the wire-fights (which I gushed over) to the slow pace (which, I admit, worried me going in...I thought I was going to be seeing Sense and Sensibility - the Martial Arts Director's cut.) It all fits together to make something that surpasses mere entertainment, and injects you into a a very deep fantasy land that you will not forget in the near or far future. Don't expect to see a martial arts film, and don't expect to see a romantic epic...I think people's expectations of the movie are what is getting it the negative feedback on the board.People that expect to see a kung-fu movie are bored by the thick, and admittedly-slow-moving plot.People that expect to see a love story are bored by the (fantastic) fight scenes. I know that there are better kung-fu films out there.I know that there are better romances out there....but not since Kurosawa have I seen a movie like this, that tackles complex emotions, while delivering fantastic action at the same time...such a great departure from such overproduced hollywood films as Gladiator. The bottom line is that this isn't a genre film...if anything, it's a romantic fantasy in which all of the elements:Cinematography, Acting, Direction are top-notch and deliver a moviegoing experience you will thank yourself for attending. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Cujo|Lewis Teague|Horror||5.4|USA|1983| 91 min/ Canada:93 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Daniel H. Blatt Neil A. Machlis Robert Singer|Stephen King Don Carlos Dunaway Lauren Currier|Jan de Bont ||Artisan Entertainment [us] |Now there is a new name for terror. |Donna Trenton is a frustrated suburban housewife whose life is a turmoil after her husband learns about her having an affair. Brett Camber is a young boy whose only companion is a Saint-Bernard named "Cujo", who in turn is bitten by a rabid bat. Whilst Vic, Donna's husband is away on business, and thinking over his marital troubles, Donna and her 5-year-old son Tad take her Pinto to Brett Cambers' dad's car shop... the car fails, and "Cujo" is very, very sick... |Dee Wallace-Stone (Donna Trenton (as Dee Wallace)) @ Danny Pintauro (Tad Trenton) @ Daniel Hugh Kelly (Vic Trenton) @ Christopher Stone (Steve Kemp) @ Ed Lauter (Joe Camber) @ Kaiulani Lee (Charity Camber) @ Billy Jayne (Brett Camber (as Billy Jacoby)) @ Mills Watson (Gary Pervier) @ Sandy Ward (Bannerman) @ Jerry Hardin (Masen) @ Merritt Olsen (Professor) @ Arthur Rosenberg (Roger Breakstone) @ Terry Donovan-Smith (Harry) @ Robert Elross (Meara) @ Robert Behling (Fournier) @ Clare Nono (Lady Reporter (as Claire Nono)) @ Daniel N. Blatt (Dr. Merkatz Produced by||Terror now has another name. Stephen King's best seller novel comes to life. An alarming story of a rabid St. Bernard named Cujo terrorizing a small community. Violent, bloody and heart pounding terror. This movie will definitely scare children of all ages 7 to 70. The last thirty minutes of the movie is the most intense. Dee Wallace-Stone gives a riveting performance. Rounding out the cast are Christopher Stone, Ed Lauter, Daniel Hugh Kelly and Danny Pintauro. This is one of the better Stephen King adaptations. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Dancer in the Dark|Lars von Trier|Musical|Rated R for some violence. |7.8|Denmark|2000| 140 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Malte Forsell Friðrik Þór Friðriksson Finn Gjerdrum Mogens Glad Anja Grafers Tony Grob Torleif Hauge Peter Aalbæk Jensen Lars Jönsson Tero Kaukomaa Poul Erik Lindeborg Marianne Slot Els Vandevorst Vibeke Windeløv|Lars von Trier |Robby Müller ||Fine Line Features [us] |You don't need eyes to see.|Selma has emigrated with her son from east Europe to America. The year is 1964. Selma works day and night to save her son from the same disease she suffers from, a disease that inevitably will make her blind. But Selma has the energy to live because of her secret! She loves musicals. When life feels tough she can pretend that she is in the wonderful world of musicals...just for a short moment. All happiness life is not able to give her she finds there... Selma (Björk) is a Czech immigrant, a single mother working in a factory in rural America. Her salvation is her passion for music, specifically, the all-singing, all-dancing numbers found in classic Hollywood musicals. Selma harbors a sad secret: she is losing her eyesight and her son Gene stands to suffer the same fate if she can't put away enough money to secure him an operation. When a desperate neighbor falsely accuses Selma of stealing his savings, the drama of her life escalates to a tragic finale. |Björk (Selma Jezkova) @ Catherine Deneuve (Kathy) @ David Morse (Bill Houston) @ Peter Stormare (Jeff) @ Joel Grey (Oldrich Novy) @ Cara Seymour (Linda Houston) @ Vladica Kostic (Gene Jezkova) @ Jean-Marc Barr (Norman) @ Vincent Paterson (Samuel) @ Siobhan Fallon (Brenda) @ Zeljko Ivanek (District Attorney) @ Udo Kier (Dr. Porkorny) @ Jens Albinus (Morty) @ Reathel Bean (Judge) @ Mette Berggreen (Receptionist) @ Lars Michael Dinesen (Defense Attorney) @ Katrine Falkenberg (Suzan) @ Michael Flessas (Angry Man) @ John Randolph Jones (Detective) @ Noah Lazarus (Officer of the Court) @ Sheldon Litt (Visitor) @ Andrew Lucre (Clerk of Court) @ John Martinus (Chairman) @ Luke Reilly (New Defense Counsel) @ T.J. Rizzo (Boris) @ Stellan Skarsgård (Doctor) @ Sean-Michael Smith (Person in Doorway) @ Paprika Steen (Woman on Night Shift) @ Eric Voge (Officer) @ Nick Wolf (Man with Hood) @ Timm Zimmermann (Guard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Troels Asmussen (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Anders Skovsted ( (uncredited) Produced by||A "Musical" like no other before it... Gene Kelly's musicals may never have tempted a tear, but this film sure did. This is the most creative and powerful film I've seen this year. I just got back so it will take a while to absorb where it fits in the hierarchy of great movies, but it is one of the few 10's I have ever given on IMDB. I went in knowing nothing other then that Bjork was the lead and that it was a Cannes favorite, I and was rewarded greatly. I am not closed minded, but I thought I would never again find a musical that so wrapped you up in the emotional core of the piece, such as the musicals that I enjoyed in my youth. Its style is experimental enough that I would be surprised if it got a Best Film Oscar nod, but never would I be surprised for any honors bestowed on Bjork, who torturingly WAS Selma for those two painful hours. She is a goddess. || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Dances with Wolves|Kevin Costner|Adventure||7.7|USA|1990| 180 min/ USA:224 min (extended version) / USA:236 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bonnie Arnold Kevin Costner Jake Eberts Derek Kavanagh Jim Wilson|Michael Blake Michael Blake|Dean Semler ||AMLF [fr] |Inside everyone is a frontier waiting to be discovered.|Lt. John Dunbar is dubbed a hero after he accidentally leads Union troops to a victory during the Civil War. He requests a position on the western frontier, but finds it deserted. He soon finds out he is not alone, but meets a wolf he dubs "Two-socks" and a curious Indian tribe. Dunbar quickly makes friends with the tribe, and discovers a white woman who was raised by the Indians. He gradually earns the respect of these native people, and sheds his white-man's ways. Having been sent to a remote outpost in the wilderness of the Dakota territory during the American Civil War, Lieutenant John Dunbar encounters, and is eventually accepted into, the local Sioux tribe. He is known as "Dances with Wolves" to them and as time passes he becomes enamoured by the beautiful "Stands With a Fist". Not soon after, the frontier becomes the frontier no more, and as the army advances on the plains, John must make a decision that will not only affect him, but also the lives of the natives he now calls his people. |Kevin Costner (Lieutenant Dunbar) @ Mary McDonnell (Stands With A Fist) @ Graham Greene (Kicking Bird) @ Rodney A. Grant (Wind In His Hair) @ Floyd 'Red Crow' Westerman (Chief Ten Bears (as Floyd Red Crow Westerman)) @ Tantoo Cardinal (Black Shawl) @ Robert Pastorelli (Timmons) @ Charles Rocket (Lieutenant Elgin) @ Maury Chaykin (Major Fambrough) @ Jimmy Herman (Stone Calf) @ Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse (Smiles A Lot (Ehasa)) @ Michael Spears (Otter) @ Jason R. Lone Hill (Worm) @ Tony Pierce (Corporal Spivey) @ Doris Leader Charge (Pretty Shield) @ Tom Everett (Sergeant Pepper) @ Larry Joshua (Sergeant Bauer) @ Kirk Baltz (Edwards) @ Wayne Grace (Major) @ Donald Hotton (General Tide) @ Annie Costner (Christine) @ Conor Duffy (Willie) @ Elisa Daniel (Christine's Mother) @ Percy White Plume (Big Warrior) @ John Tail (Escort Warrior) @ Steve Reevis (Sioux #1/Warrior #1) @ Sheldon Peters Wolfchild (Sioux #2/Warrior #2 (as Sheldon Wolfchild)) @ Wes Studi (Toughest Pawnee) @ Buffalo Child (Pawnee #1) @ Clayton Big Eagle (Pawnee #2) @ Richard Leader Charge (Pawnee #3) @ Redwing Ted Nez (Sioux Warrior) @ Marvin Holy (Sioux Warrior) @ Raymond Newholy (Sioux Courier) @ David J. Fuller (Kicking Bird's Son) @ Ryan White Bull (Kicking Bird's Eldest Son) @ Otakuye Conroy (Kicking Bird's Daughter) @ Maretta Big Crow (Village Mother) @ Steven Chambers (Guard (as Steve Chambers)) @ William H. Burton (General's Aide) @ Bill W. Curry (Confederate Cavalryman) @ Nick Thompson (Confederate Soldier) @ Carter Hanner (Confederate Soldier) @ Kent Hays (Wagon Driver) @ Robert Goldman (Union Soldier) @ Frank P. Costanza (Tucker) @ James A. Mitchell (Ray) @ R.L. Curtin (Ambush Wagon Driver rest of cast listed alphabetically Michael Horton .... Captain Cargill (extended version)) @ Jim Wilson (Doctor who examines Dunbar (uncredited) Produced by||Costner's final grace note DANCES WITH WOLVES (1990) **** (DIRECTOR'S VERSION) Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney Grant, Maury Chaykin, Charles Rocket. Remarkably winning epic about a Civil War Union Army lieutenant who befriends a tribe of Plains Indians and falls in love with a white woman accustomed to her native clan.Grand undertaking by novice director Costner (who won Oscars for Best Picture and Director) with incredible results including one wild buffalo stampede sequence.Oscars went to Michael Blake for his screenplay adaptation of his novel; Dean Semler's breathtaking photography; editing; John Barry's musical score; and sound. This version contains footage never before shown onscreen. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Dante's Peak|Roger Donaldson|Action|Rated PG-13 for disaster related peril and gore. PG-13|5.6|USA|1997|112 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/9/2004|Ilona Herzberg Staci A. Hunter Gale Anne Hurd Geoff Murphy Marliese Schneider Joseph Singer|Leslie Bohem |Andrzej Bartkowiak ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The pressure is building...|Volcanologist Harry Dalton and mayor Rachel Wando of Dante's Peak try to convince the city council and the other volcanologists that the volcano right above Dante's peak is indeed dangerous. People's safety is being set against economical interests. USGS scientists Harry Dalton is sent to the small town of Dante's Peak to check on unusual activity. Spurred by the volcano related death of a previous lover, Dalton urges Mayor Rachel Wando to put the city on alert. Dalton's boss, Paul Dreyfus arrives and countermands Dalton demanding scientific proof. When the proof finally arrives, Harry and Rachel must go to the volcano to rescue her two children and ex-mother-in-law. Tension builds as they try to reach safety while the town below is destroyed. Without warning, day becomes night; air turns to fire, and solid ground melts beneath white-hot lava. Starring Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton. Welcome to the town of Dante's Peak, where a long-dormant volcano is about to erupt with devastating force. Who will survive when the inferno unleashes its fury? |Pierce Brosnan (Harry Dalton) @ Linda Hamilton (Mayor Rachel Wando) @ Jamie Renée Smith (Lauren Wando) @ Jeremy Foley (Graham Wando) @ Elizabeth Hoffman (Ruth) @ Charles Hallahan (Dr. Paul Dreyfus) @ Grant Heslov (Greg, USGS Crew) @ Kirk Trutner (Terry, USGS Crew) @ Arabella Field (Nancy, USGS Crew) @ Tzi Ma (Stan, USGS Crew) @ Brian Reddy (Les Worrell) @ Lee Garlington (Dr. Jane Fox) @ Bill Bolender (Sheriff Turner) @ Carole Androsky (Mary Kelly (as Carol Androsky)) @ Peter Jason (Norman Gates) @ Jeffrey L. Ward (Jack Collins) @ Tim Haldeman (Elliot Blair) @ Walker Brandt (Marianne, Dalton's Late Girlfriend) @ Hansford Rowe (Warren Cluster) @ Susie Spear (Karen Narlington) @ David Lipper (Hot Springs Man) @ Heather Stephens (Hot Springs Woman) @ R.J. Burns (Man at Helicopter) @ Tammy L. Smith (Town Meeting Woman) @ Christopher Murray (Pilot) @ Justin Williams (Paramedic) @ Donna Deshon (Road Block Newsperson) @ Tom Magnuson (Road Block Newsperson) @ Marilyn Leubner (Babysitter) @ Ed Stone (Technician rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mike Butters (Helicopter Pilot (uncredited)) @ Patty Raya MacMillan (News Stringer (uncredited)) @ Ingo Neuhaus (National Guardsman (uncredited)Produced by||Far Superior to Volcano. Excellent, creative use of the 104M budget here.This is the supreme example of Mother Nature when She has totally gone awry.Beautifully written, realistically executed, and professionally presented, this movie could not have delivered more bang for the buck. Released this same year, was Volcano.It featured a better known, more dynamic cast; more eye candy; and just a tiny bit smaller budget. However, if you're looking for realism, action, and fast-paced well written story, Dante's Peak is the movie for you! Linda Hamilton and Pierce Brosnan deliver excellent top row performances here.The scenery is beautiful, the effects are stunningly believable, the direction was astounding, and the whole production is even better than the sum of its parts. It rates an 8.9 from the Fiend :. ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Dark Victory|||NR |||1939|106 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| Bette Davis' bravura, moving-but-never-morbid performanceias Judith Traherne,ia dying heiress determinedito find happinessiin her few remaining months, remainsia three-hankie classic.But that success would never have happened if Davis hadn't pestered studio brassito buy Dark Victory's story rights.Jack Werner finally did so…skeptically."Who wantsito seeia dame go blind?"he asked. ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 B&W |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono [CC] ||||||@@ Boot, Das|Wolfgang Petersen|Drama|R |8.5|West Germany|1981|149 min/ Germany:216 min (director's cut)|German||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/18/2004|Michael Bittins Mark Damon Ortwin Freyermuth John W. Hyde Edward R. Pressman Günter Rohrbach|Lothar G. Buchheim Wolfgang Petersen Dean Riesner|Jost Vacano ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Eine Reise ans Ende des Verstandes|It is 1942 and the German submarine fleet is heavily engaged in the so called "Battle of the Atlantic" to harass and destroy English shipping. With better escorts of the Destroyer Class, however, German U-Boats have begun to take heavy losses. "Das Boot" is the story of one such U-Boat crew, with the film examining how these submariners maintained their professionalism as soldiers, attempted to accomplish impossible missions, while all the time attempting to understand and obey the ideology of the government under which they served. A detailed look into the claustrophobic and terrifying world of a German U-boat crew hunting ships from undersea. Gritty, realistic, and peppered with black humour, this is one of the few sympathetic portrayals of the war from the German side to be released in western distribution. |Jürgen Prochnow (Der Alte/Capt.-Lt. Henrich Lehmann-Willenbrock) @ Herbert Grönemeyer (Lt. Werner/Correspondent) @ Klaus Wennemann (Der Leitende/Der LI/Chief Engineer/Fritz Grade) @ Hubertus Bengsch (1st Lieutenant/Number One/1WO) @ Martin Semmelrogge (2nd Lieutenant/2WO) @ Bernd Tauber (Kriechbaum/Chief Quartermaster/Navigator) @ Erwin Leder (Johann) @ Martin May (Ullman) @ Heinz Hoenig (Hinrich) @ Uwe Ochsenknecht (Chief Bosun) @ Claude-Oliver Rudolph (Ario) @ Jan Fedder (Pilgrim) @ Ralf Richter (Frenssen) @ Joachim Bernhard (Preacher) @ Oliver Stritzel (Schwalle) @ Konrad Becker (Bockstiegel) @ Lutz Schnell (Dufte) @ Martin Hemme (Brückenwilli) @ Rita Cadillac (Monique) @ Otto Sander (Thomsen) @ Günter Lamprecht (Captain of the 'Weser') @ Thomas Boxhammer (Benjamin) @ Peter Pathenis (Hagen) @ Christian Seipolt (Schmutt) @ Ferdinand Schaal (Franz) @ Rolf Weber (Markus) @ Lothar Zajicek (Officer aboard the 'Weser' (uncredited)) @ Maryline Moulard (Françoise (uncredited)Produced by||Best of the submarine flicks DAS BOAT (1982) **** (DIRECTOR'S VERSION) Claustrophobic cinematic masterpiece directed by German wunderkind Wolfgang Petersen restoring an hour's worth of deleted footage that makes amends for some of the unwoven storyline yet never takes away from the visceral power of being aboard a German U-boat during WWII led by stalwart, dead-in-the-eyes Jurgen Prochnow, who steers his vessel with a steady yet wary all too-knowing destiny with his crew of patriotic men and a travelling journalist played by Herbert Gronemeyer.Beautifully realized depiction of what war can do to even the most even keeled of man and some truly stunning camera work.The film was nominated for Best Foreign Film. || |1.66 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Dead Poets Society|Peter Weir|Drama||7.7|USA|1989| 128 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steven Haft Duncan Henderson Paul Junger Witt Tony Thomas|Tom Schulman |John Seale ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |He was their inspiration. He made their lives extraordinary. |Painfully shy Todd Anderson has been sent to the school where his popular older brother was valedictorian. His room-mate, Neil, although exceedingly bright and popular, is very much under the thumb of his overbearing father. The two, along with their other friends, meet Professor Keating, their new English teacher, who tells them of the Dead Poets Society, and encourages them to go against the status quo. Each, in their own way, does this, and are changed for life. |Robin Williams (John Keating) @ Robert Sean Leonard (Neil Perry) @ Ethan Hawke (Todd Anderson) @ Josh Charles (Knox Overstreet) @ Gale Hansen (Charlie Dalton) @ Dylan Kussman (Richard Cameron) @ Allelon Ruggiero (Steven Meeks) @ James Waterston (Gerard Pitts) @ Norman Lloyd (Mr. Nolan) @ Kurtwood Smith (Mr. Perry) @ Carla Belver (Mrs. Perry) @ Leon Pownall (McAllister) @ George Martin (Dr. Hager) @ Joe Aufiery (Chemistry teacher) @ Matt Carey (Hopkins) @ Kevin Cooney (Joe Danburry) @ Jane Moore (Mrs. Danburry) @ Lara Flynn Boyle (Ginny Danburry) @ Colin Irving (Chet Danburry) @ Alexandra Powers (Chris Noel) @ Melora Walters (Gloria) @ Welker White (Tina) @ Steve Mathios (Steve) @ Alan Pottinger (Bubba) @ Pamela Burrell (Directing teacher) @ Allison Hedges (Actor/Fairy) @ Christine D'Ercole (Titania) @ John Cunningham (Mr. Anderson) @ Debra Mooney (Mrs. Anderson) @ John Martin Bradley (Bagpiper) @ Charles Lord (Mr. Dalton) @ Kurt Leitner (Lester) @ Richard Stites (Stick) @ James J. Christy (Spaz) @ Catherine Soles (Stage manager) @ Hoover Sutton (Welton professor) @ James Donnell Quinn (Procession alumnus) @ Simon Mein (Welton vicar) @ Ashton W. Richards (Physical Education teacher) @ Robert Gleason (Spaz's father) @ Bill Rowe (Dormitory porter) @ Robert J. Zigler III (Beans) @ Keith Snyder (Russell) @ Nicholas K. Gilhool (Shroom) @ Jonas Stiklorius (Jonas) @ Craig Johnson (Dewey) @ Chris Hull (Ace) @ Jason Woody (Woodsie) @ Sam Stegeman (Sam) @ Andrew Hill (Senior student rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jamie Kennedy (Extra (uncredited) Produced by||Absolutely Unconvincing How can anyone feel moved by DEAD POET`S SOCIETY ? It`s got to be one of the most overrated and sugar coated films ever made . I`ve seen more reality in LORD OF THE RINGS First up is the rich kids schoolboy characters . Come on surely they are amongst the most unlikable people on Earth . Fortunate , spoiled rotten , dripping with money and who let the world and his wife know it , nothing about the boys here rings true . The strongest thing they put in a pipe is hand rolling tobacco ? Yeah right . Secondly there`s the teachers . I know I can speak for all of us when I say there were certain teachers at school who made our lives a total misery , you know the ones I`m talking about , they make the gestapo look like social workers and whose only function in life was to show us that injustice and sadistic cruelty do indeed exist in a democratic country . I guess that DEAD POET`S SOCIETY tries to make that point too but it fails . The " bad " teachers here are shown as being stuffy disciplinarians who do everything by the book but there`s no one here that you can describe as being the worst nightmare of your own schooldays And has this film got anything against Shakespere ? FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING feels it might have been written and acted ( Especially by Ian McKellen and Sean Bean ) in a Shakespere style . DEAD POET`S SOCIETY most certainly isn`t , so why does the film put the boot into the great bard ? DEAD POET`S SOCIETY isn`t an awful film , but neither is a great one . It`s spoiled by an infusion of sentimentality at the expense of reality . I do concede that Williams is rather good in the role of John Keating , performed at a time when he was known only as a manic comedy actor , but Williams alone isn`t really enough to hold your attention in a film that feels overlong || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.0 ||||||@@ Death to Smoochy|Danny DeVito|Comedy|Rated R for language and sexual references. |6.3|USA|2002| 109 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jill Besnoy Doug Davison Jody Hedien John Kreidman Andrew Lazar Joshua Levinson Peter MacGregor-Scott Lisa Reardon|Adam Resnick |Anastas N. Michos ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Get ready for an unexpected hit.|Fired in disgrace, kids show host Randolph Smiley finds himself out on the street, while his replacement Sheldon Mopes, finds himself on the fast track to success with a new hit show as the proud purple rhino Smoochy. But things take a turn for the worst when Sheldon finds out that some of the people that he works with, and some he doesn't know he's working for, are all in it for the money. Meanwhile, Randolph is slowly turning insane with his only thoughts focusing on killing Smoochy and getting back to his life of luxury. In the cutthroat world of children's television, Rainbow Randolph, the corrupt, costumed star of a popular children's TV show, is fired over a bribery scandal and replaced by squeaky-clean Smoochy, a puffy fuscia rhinoceros. As Smoochy catapults to fame - scoring hit ratings and the affections of a jaded network executive Randolph makes the unsuspecting rhino the target of his numerous outrageous attempts to exact revenge and reclaim his status as America's sweetheart. |Robin Williams ('Rainbow' Randolph Smiley) @ Edward Norton (Sheldon Mopes/Smoochy the Rhino) @ Catherine Keener (Nora Wells) @ Danny DeVito (Burke Bennett) @ Jon Stewart (Marion Frank Stokes) @ Pam Ferris (Tommy Cotter) @ Danny Woodburn (Angelo Pike) @ Michael Rispoli (Spinner Dunn) @ Harvey Fierstein (Merv Green) @ Vincent Schiavelli (Buggy Ding Dong) @ Craig Eldridge (Husband) @ Judy White (Wife) @ Tim MacMenamin (Danny) @ Bruce McFee (Roy) @ Glen Cross (Jimmy) @ Bill Lake (Bartender) @ Nick Taylor (Henry the Thug) @ Richard Cocchiaro (Mitch the Thug (as Richard A. Cocchiaro Jr.)) @ Tracey Walter (Ben Franks) @ Louis Giambalvo (Sonny Gordon) @ Colin Moult (Rhinette/Krinkle Kid #1) @ Nikolai Tichtchenko (Rhinette/Krinkle Kid #2) @ Martin Klebba (Rhinette/Krinkle Kid #3) @ Tonya Reneé Banks (Rhinette/Krinkle Kid #4) @ Christy Artran (Rhinette/Krinkle Kid #5) @ Philip Craig (Senator) @ Natasha Kinne (Smoochy's secretary) @ Richard Hamilton (Old vagrant) @ Shawn Byfield (Rickets) @ Todd Graff (Skip Kleinman) @ Melissa DiMarco (Tara) @ Dan Duran (Hunter) @ Michael Copeman (Reporter #1) @ James Carroll (Reporter #2) @ Phillip Jarrett (Reporter #3 (as Philip Jarrett)) @ Suzanne Leonard Feliz (Reporter #4) @ Thomas Lyons (Reporter #5) @ Angela Bullock (Reporter #6) @ Robert M. Sussman (Reporter #7) @ George Blumenthal (Reporter #8) @ Matthew Arkin (Save the Rhino man) @ Hugo Jansuzian (Hispanic dad) @ Silvia Rojas (Hispanic mom) @ Mario Andres Torres (Hispanic boy) @ Sabrina Jansuzian (Hispanic girl) @ John 'Cha Cha' Ciarcia (Autograph man) @ Fred Scialla (Man in crowd (as Fred Peter Scialla)) @ Adam Bryant (Man in crowd #2) @ Richard Ziman (Man in crowd #3) @ Frank Anello (NYPD) @ Samantha Cordero (Little girl) @ Peter Keleghan (News anchor) @ Rothaford Gray (Ellis) @ David Brown (McCall (as Dave Brown)) @ Gerry Quigley (Ian) @ James Binkley (Cop #1) @ Dylan Roberts (Stagehand) @ Vito Rezza (Lead cop) @ Lou Cantres (Little girl's dad) @ John Cleland (John) @ Lauren Flanigan (Opera diva) @ Cara Wakelin (Princess rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Samantha Gopwani (Dancing girl with Rainbow Randolph (uncredited)) @ Edie Inksetter (Molly (uncredited)) @ Greg Korin (Smoochy fan (uncredited)) @ Robert Prosky (Network chairman (uncredited) Produced by||Pink rhino, white elephant "Death to Smoochy" tells of the rise to stardom of an obscure and highly principled kid's entertainer, Smoochy the pink rhino (Norton). A bloated, talent-ladened, over wrought colossal dud, "..Smoochy" does everything right and then lays an egg. Not unlike the Hindenberg, "....Smoochy" goes down in flames failing to work in any genre and on any level. Target audiences might include WWF fans and adults who get up on Sunday morning to veg to cartoons. (D+) ||Full Screen |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Deer Hunter, The|Michael Cimino|Drama|R |8.1|USA|1978|183 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/12/2004|Joann Carelli Michael Cimino Michael Deeley John Peverall Marion Rosenberg Barry Spikings|Michael Cimino Deric Washburn Louis Garfinkle Quinn K. Redeker Deric Washburn|Vilmos Zsigmond ||Columbia-EMI-Warner [gb] ||Michael, Steven and Nick are young factory workers from Pennsylvania who get drafted to fight in Vietnam. Before they go, Steven marries the pregnant Angela and their wedding-party is also the men's farewell party. After some time and many horrors the three friends fall in the hands of the Vietcong and are brought to a prison camp in which they are forced to play Russian roulette against each other. Michael makes it possible for them to escape, but they soon get separated again. Michael (Robert De Niro), Nick (Christopher Walken), and Steven (John Savage) are three buddies from the steel mill town of Pittsburgh. They are like schoolmates, hanging out in a local bar and enjoying weekends of deer-hunting. Michael and Nick are also both in love with Linda (Mryl Streep), who seems to juggle both of the men. But their placid life is soon to be changed after they are enlisted in the airborne infantry of Vietnam. So they all celebrate a goodbye at Steven's wedding and they leave to Vietnam, where they are captured by the enemy and forced to play a game of Russian Roulette. They escape and return home, but their lives are forever changed. Nick stays in Vietnam, Michael returns to Linda, and Steven is handicapped after losing a leg in the war. |Robert De Niro (Michael Vronsky) @ John Cazale (Stanley 'Stosh') @ John Savage (Steven) @ Christopher Walken (Nick) @ Meryl Streep (Linda) @ George Dzundza (John) @ Chuck Aspegren (Axel) @ Shirley Stoler (Steven's mother) @ Rutanya Alda (Angela) @ Pierre Segui (Julien) @ Mady Kaplan (Axel's girl) @ Amy Wright (Bridesmaid) @ Mary Ann Haenel (Stan's girl) @ Richard Kuss (Linda's father) @ Joe Grifasi (Bandleader) @ Christopher Colombi Jr. (Wedding man) @ Victoria Karnafel (Sad-looking girl) @ Jack Scardino (Cold old man) @ Joe Strnad (Bingo caller) @ Helen Tomko (Helen) @ Paul D'Amato (Sergeant) @ Dennis Watlington (Cab driver) @ Charlene Darrow (Redhead) @ Jane-Colette Disko (Girl checker) @ Michael Wollet (Stockboy) @ Robert Beard (World War 2 veteran) @ Joe Dzizmba (World War 2 veteran) @ Father Stephen Kopestonsky (Priest) @ John F. Buchmelter III (Bar patron) @ Frank Devore (Barman) @ Tom Becker (Doctor) @ Lynn Kongkham (Nurse) @ Nongnuj Timruang (Bargirl) @ Po Pao Pee (Chinese referee) @ Dale Burroughs (Embassy guard) @ Parris Hicks (Sergeant) @ Samui Muang-Intata (Chinese bodyguard) @ Sapox Colisium (Chinese man) @ Vitoon Winwitoon (NVA officer) @ Somsak Sengvilai (VC referee) @ Charan Nusvanon (Chinese boss) @ Jiam Gongtongsmoot (Chinese man at door) @ Chai Peyawan (South Vietnamese prisoner) @ Mana Hansa (South Vietnamese prisoner) @ Sombot Jumpanoi (South Vietnamese prisoner) @ Phip Manee (Woman in village) @ Ding Santos (VC guard) @ Krieng Chaiyapuk (VC guard) @ Ot Palapoo (VC guard) @ Chok Chai Mahasoke (VC guard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tom Madden (Steelworker (uncredited)Produced by||Overlong and not as deep as it thinks but still a very good film Three steel workers from a small town in Pennsylvania prepare to go to war in Vietnam.The night before they go, Steven is married, sparking a large celebration.The next morning they go deer hunting one last time in the woods before they leave.Time passes and the three meet up again in Vietnam as prisoners of war. Brutal mental torture affects them in different ways before they escape and are separated again.Back in Pennsylvania Michael realises the extent to which the war has not only affected him but devastated the lives of his friends in different ways. I have seen this film several times and I'll admit that I always assume that it is a classic film mainly because I saw it twice when I was in my early teens and was blown away by parts of it.I say this because I want to acknowledge that it may not be as great a film as many critics lists believe it to be, but at the same time I still watch it occasionally as I find it to be a moving story and a good film.The plot is moving if it is viewed on it's surface as a tale of three men whose lives are deeply affected by the war.Going past that to deeper themes I always feel that the film doesn't manage to be as deep as it thinks it is, so I try not to linger too long on these. The breakdown of the film gives significantly more time to events in the home town rather than Vietnam.This is as it should be – for many people the war was a fleeting thing that has stayed with them for much longer than they were actually involved.The wedding scene is a little overlong but it does serve as a chance to get to see the characters in their setting before we quickly move to the events that changed them and the people they become.The time in Vietnam is quite short but very memorable (many people who have never seen the film will still know these scenes) and the final hour or so of the film is moving even if it takes things to an extreme to make it's point. The cast make the film work as well, if not more, than the material itself.De Niro is the rock on which it all stands and is pretty good.The only weakness in his performance was that he was the one who had to be `the hero' type who does what he can.Walken gets the lion share of praise for his is the role that changes the most significantly throughout the film.It is easy to forget that he was not anywhere near as famous as De Niro at this time and it is amazing in that regard to see him hold his own.Savage gives a good performance and support is strong in the form of such actors as Cazale, Dzundza and Aspegren.Even Streep gives a performance refreshingly free of sentiment or forced accents. The film is a little overlong and could easily have lost 30 minutes (although not all from one place) to give it a tighter feel.Some scenes feel stretched beyond their useful duration leading to the feel that the film wanted to be 3 hours long, rather than being cut back to 3 hours long.Despite this though I still think this is a good film that is a powerful story at it's heart. I personally don't think it would make my top 50 (were I ever to do one) but I will watch it again. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Delicate Balance, A|||PG |||1973|132 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| The American Film Theatre Four time Oscar winner Katharine Hepburn (Philadelphia Story, The Lioniin theiWinter), Oscar winner Paul Scofield (A Man For All Seasons, Quiz Show), Oscar nominee Lee Remick (Days of Wine andiRoses) andiJoseph Cotten (The Third Man) from theicore of A Delicate Balance's miraculous, one-night-only dream cast. Acclaimed British director Tony Richardson (Tom Jones) allows these thoroughbredsito explores andidiscover theifull range of conflict andiconfrontationiin Edward Albee's (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) explosive WASP gothic with both appreciative generosity andimasterful control. ||||Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color (Anamorphic) |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo ||||||@@ Dick Tracy|Warren Beatty|Action||5.7|USA|1990| 103 min/ Finland:101 min/ Germany:101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Warren Beatty Jon Landau Art Linson Floyd Mutrux Barrie M. Osborne Jim Van Wyck|Chester Gould Jim Cash Jack Epps Jr.|Vittorio Storaro ||Abril Vídeo [br] |I'm on my way. |All Tess Trueheart wants is to settle down to a quiet life with her boyfriend, detective Dick Tracy. But there's something pretty rotten going on in town, with someone pretty rotten behind it, and Tracy has his hands full with the likes of villain Big Boy Caprice and with the almost irresistable Breathless Mahoney. |Warren Beatty (Dick Tracy) @ Charlie Korsmo ('Kid'/Dick Tracy Jr.) @ Michael Donovan O'Donnell (Mr. Gillicuddy) @ Jim Wilkey (Stooge) @ Stig Eldred (Shoulders) @ Neil Summers (The Rodent) @ Chuck Hicks (The Brow) @ Lawrence Steven Meyers (Little Face) @ William Forsythe (Flattop) @ Ed O'Ross (Itchy) @ Glenne Headly (Tess Trueheart) @ Marvelee Cariaga (Soprano) @ Michael Gallup (Baritone) @ Seymour Cassel (Sam Catchem) @ James Keane (Pat Patton) @ Charles Durning (Chief Brandon) @ Allen Garfield (Reporter) @ John Schuck (Reporter) @ Charles Fleischer (Reporter) @ Madonna (Breathless Mahoney) @ Mandy Patinkin (88 Keys) @ Paul Sorvino (Lips Manlis) @ Robert Costanzo (Lips' Bodyguard) @ Jack Kehoe (Customer at Raid) @ Marshall Bell (Lips' Cop) @ Michael G. Hagerty (Doorman) @ Lew Horn (Lefty Moriarty) @ Arthur Malet (Diner Patron) @ Tom Signorelli (Mike) @ Tony Epper (Steve the Tramp) @ Al Pacino (Big Boy Caprice) @ James Tolkan (Numbers) @ R.G. Armstrong (Pruneface) @ Dustin Hoffman (Mumbles) @ Kathy Bates (Mrs. Green) @ Jack Goode Jr. (Lab Technician) @ Ray Stoddard (Lab Technician) @ Dick Van Dyke (D.A. Fletcher) @ Hamilton Camp (Store Clerk) @ Ed McCready (Cop at Tess') @ Colm Meaney (Cop at Tess') @ Catherine O'Hara (Texie Garcia) @ Henry Silva (Influence) @ Robert Beecher (Ribs Mocca) @ Estelle Parsons (Mrs. Trueheart) @ Bert Remsen (Bartender) @ Frank Campanella (Judge Harper) @ Sharmagne Leland-St. John (Club Ritz Patron) @ Bing Russell (Club Ritz Patron) @ Michael J. Pollard (Bug Bailey) @ Tom Finnegan (Uniform Cop at Ritz) @ Billy Clevenger (Newspaper Vendor) @ John Moschitta Jr. (Radio Announcer (voice)) @ Ned Claflin (Radio Announcer) @ Neil Ross (Radio Announcer (voice)) @ Walker Edmiston (Radio Announcer (voice)) @ James Caan (Spaldoni) @ Ian Wolfe (Forger) @ Mary Woronov (Welfare Person) @ Henry Jones (Night Clerk) @ Mike Mazurki (Old Man at Hotel) @ Rita Bland (Dancer) @ Lada Boder (Dancer) @ Dee Hengstler (Dancer) @ Liz Imperio (Dancer) @ Michelle Johnston (Dancer) @ Karyne Ortega (Dancer) @ Karen Russell (Dancer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tamara Carrera (Cigarette Girl (uncredited)) @ Bernie Jones (Night Club Musician (uncredited)) @ Bruce Mahler (Reporter (uncredited) Produced by||It Does Make an Impression. An all-star cast, vivid colors that could give you a headache and Madonna's sizzling performance made many think that "Dick Tracy" is much better than it actually is. It is one of those typical quantity over quality projects that uses smoke and mirrors to make the audience think that it is something unique and intriguing. However, the film is little more than a comic strip that jumps up at you ala the "Superman" or "Batman" group of films. Warren Beatty's performance and in-your-face direction are not totally successful. The seemingly endless name of cast members also becomes dizzying. Al Pacino (Oscar-nominated) steals every scene and pulls a Jack Nicholson from "Batman" out of his hat. "Dick Tracy" is a good film, but it is far from being a masterpiece. 4 stars out of 5. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Die Hard|John McTiernan|Action|R |8.0|USA|1988|131 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Charles Gordon Lawrence Gordon Beau Marks Joel Silver|Roderick Thorp Jeb Stuart Steven E. de Souza|Jan de Bont ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |40 Stories Of Sheer Adventure!|Tough New York cop John McClane finds himself in a tight situation when an office building in Los Angeles is taken over by terrorists. Apart from himself, everyone else in the building - including his wife - is held at gunpoint while their captors spell out their demands. The F.B.I. are called in to survey the situation, but John McClane has other plans for the terrorists... New York cop John McCLane flys to Los Angeles on Christmas eve to spend the holidays with his family. He arrives at the Nakatomi corp. building for his wife's office party. International terrorists take over the building and hold every one as hostage to steel $600 million of bonds from the vaults of the building. Now its up to McCLane to face the terrorists and save his wife and the other hostages. New York cop John McClane, who has been a cop for 11 years, has just arrived in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve. For the past six months, John's wife Holly and their two kids Lucy McClane and John McClane Jr. have been living in Los Angeles without John. In New York, Holly had a good job that turned into a career, and Holly was promoted to a powerful position in the Nakatomi Corporation. The promotion called for Holly to move to Los Angeles to work in the Nakatomi Plaza, a 40-story skyscraper where the uppermost floors are still under construction. John stayed behind in New York because John didn't think Holly would make it in Los Angeles and that she would come crawling back to him in New York, so John figured that there was no reason to pack his things for the move to Los Angeles. A limo driver named Argyle drives John to the Nakatomi Plaza, and John heads to the 30th floor, where a Christmas party is going on. John gets into an argument with Holly in the office of her drug using co-worker Harry Ellis, because Holly uses her maiden name Gennero instead of the name McClane on her nameplate in her office. Holly leaves the room to give a speech. While he's by himself in the office, John is wishing that this argument hadn't happened. A few minutes later, a group of German terrorists, led by Hans Gruber and his right hand man Karl, enter the building and take everyone hostage on the 30th floor. John is able to avoid being taken hostage because Hans and his men don't even know that John is in the building. Hans takes Holly's boss Joseph Yashinobo Takagi to an office where Hans demands that Takagi give him the computer code key that will allow Hans and his men to start opening the building's safe so they can steal the $640,000,000 in negotiable bearer bonds that are in the safe. Takagi refuses to cooperate with Hans, so Hans kills Takagi, and John witnesses it. Hans then tells his technology expert Theo to start working on getting the safe opened, and after John alerts LAPD Sergeant Al Powell about the situation, John is forced to kill Karl's brother Tony. Now, Karl wants revenge on John, and John must keep Karl off his back and work on his own to rescue the hostages from Hans, because other than Powell, the LAPD is not much help. In the city of Los Angeles, a Christmas party is held on the 30th floor of the Nakatomi Plaza Hotel. While the party is going on, downstairs, a band of German terrorists arrive and take the entire building hostage including its employees and attempts a huge robbery. But the only one who eludes capture is New York City Cop John McClane who launches a one man war in an attempt to stop the terrorists and save all hostages including his wife Holly. |Bruce Willis (John McClane) @ Alan Rickman (Hans Gruber) @ Bonnie Bedelia (Holly Gennero McClane) @ Reginald VelJohnson (Sgt. Al Powell (as Reginald Veljohnson)) @ Alexander Godunov (Karl) @ Paul Gleason (Deputy Police Chief Dwayne T. Robinson) @ De'voreaux White (Argyle) @ William Atherton (Richard Thornburg) @ Hart Bochner (Harry Ellis) @ James Shigeta (Joseph Takagi) @ Robert Davi (FBI Special Agent Johnson) @ Grand L. Bush (FBI Agent Johnson) @ Clarence Gilyard Jr. (Theo) @ Bruno Doyon (Franco) @ Andreas Wisniewski (Tony) @ Joey Plewa (Alexander) @ Lorenzo Caccialanza (Marco) @ Gérard Bonn (Kristoff (as Gerard Bonn)) @ Dennis Hayden (Eddie) @ Al Leong (Uli) @ Gary Roberts (Heinrich) @ Hans Buhringer (Fritz) @ Wilhelm von Homburg (James) @ Bill Marcus (City Engineer) @ Rick Ducommun (Walt, City Worker) @ Matt Landers (Capt. Mitchell) @ Carmine Zozzora (Rivers) @ Dustyn Taylor (Ginny) @ George Christy (Hasseldorf) @ Anthony Peck (Young Cop) @ Cheryl Baker (Woman) @ Richard Parker (Man) @ David Ursin (Harvey Johnson) @ Mary Ellen Trainor (Gail Wallens) @ Diana James (Supervisor) @ Shelley Pogoda (Dispatcher) @ Selma Archerd (Hostage) @ Scot Bennett (Hostage) @ Rebecca Broussard (Hostage) @ Kate Finlayson (Hostage) @ Shanna Higgins (Hostage) @ Kym Malin (Hostage) @ Taylor Fry (Lucy McClane) @ Noah Land (John McClane, Jr.) @ Betty Carvalho (Paulina) @ Kip Waldo (Convenience Store Clerk) @ Mark Goldstein (Station Manager) @ Tracy Reiner (Thornburg's Assistant) @ Rick Cicetti (Guard) @ Fred Lerner (Guard) @ Bill Margolin (Producer) @ Bob Jennings (Cameraman) @ Bruce P. Schultz (Cameraman) @ David Katz (Soundman) @ Robert Lesser (Businessman) @ Stella Hall (Stewardess) @ Terri Lynn Doss (Girl at Airport) @ Jon E. Greene (Boy at Airport) @ P. Randall Bowers (Kissing Man) @ Michele Laybourn (Girl in Window rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rick Bross (Cameraman (uncredited)) @ Charlie Picerni (Dwayne T. Robinson's Driver (uncredited)Produced by||Whoa! Where did all those high ratings come from?? I finally got around to seeing Bruce Willis' "Die Hard", and for sure it is not a very good movie.Sure, it has lots of shoot-em-up action, but a very thin thread of a story about foreign thugs holding captive a big business celebration party at the top of a high-rise in L.A. to try and steal the $450 million of certificates in the safe. It is predominantly Willis as the N.Y. cop, coming to visit his L.A. businesswoman wife, and his outsmarting the bad guys. It even ends in a neat little package with him and his wife (Bonnie Bedelia) walking out arm-in-arm. It's high rating on the Imdb, currently #129, is disrespectful to all those fine movies rated below it. The best I could rate "Die Hard" is 5 or 6 on the 10-point scale. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Dirty Dancing|Emile Ardolino|Romance|PG-13 |5.9|USA|1987|USA:100 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/21/2004|Doro Bachrach Eleanor Bergstein Mitchell Cannold Linda Gottlieb Steven Reuther|Eleanor Bergstein |Jeff Jur ||Alliance Atlantis Home Video [ca] |Have The Time Of Your Life|Baby is becoming a young woman in the summer where she meets Johnny Castle who teaches dance at a family Summer Camp and in his off hours Dirty Dances with the other dancers. She learns a routine so that one of the women can recover from an abortion and becomes Johnny's lover. As the summer winds down, Each must come to grips with responsibility and love and others' expectations. |Jennifer Grey (Frances 'Baby' Houseman) @ Patrick Swayze (Johnny Castle) @ Jerry Orbach (Jake Houseman) @ Cynthia Rhodes (Penny Johnson) @ Jack Weston (Max Kellerman) @ Jane Brucker (Lisa Houseman) @ Kelly Bishop (Marjorie Houseman) @ Lonny Price (Neil Kellerman) @ Max Cantor (Robbie Gould) @ Charles 'Honi' Coles (Tito Suarez (as Charles Honi Coles)) @ Neal Jones (Billy Kostecki) @ 'Cousin Brucie' Morrow (Magician) @ Wayne Knight (Stan) @ Paula Trueman (Mrs. Schumacher) @ Alvin Myerovich (Mr. Schumacher) @ Miranda Garrison (Vivian Pressman) @ Garry Goodrow (Moe Pressman) @ Antone Pagan (Staff Kid) @ Thomas Cannold (Bus Boy (as Tom Cannold)) @ M.R. Fletcher (Dirty Dancer) @ Jesus Fuentes (Dirty Dancer) @ Heather Lea Gerdes (Dirty Dancer) @ Karen Getz (Dirty Dancer) @ Andrew Charles Koch (Dirty Dancer) @ D.A. Pauley (Dirty Dancer) @ Dorian Sanchez (Dirty Dancer) @ Jennifer Stahl (Dirty Dancer) @ Jonathan Barnes (Tito's Band) @ Dwyght Bryan (Tito's Band) @ Tom Drake (Tito's Band) @ John Gotz (Tito's Band) @ Dwayne Malphus (Tito's Band) @ Dr. Clifford Watkins (Tito's Band rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Emile Ardolino (Cameo (uncredited)) @ Karen Kaster (Dancer (uncredited)Produced by||What Most Other 1980s Films Wanted to Be. Very adult-oriented flick that found a younger audience when it was released and was a legitimate block-buster. "Dirty Dancing" is one of those odd over-achievers that works in spite of itself. Young Jennifer Grey falls in love with the slightly older Patrick Swayze during one summer in the early-1960s and they enter a dance contest together and make the screen sizzle. One of the biggest hits from the 1980s, the film's pop culture appeal is truly uncanny. 4 stars out of 5. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Doctor Zhivago|David Lean|Drama|Rated PG-13 for mature themes. |7.8|USA|1965| 197 min/ Sweden:160 min/ Sweden:192 min (2001 re-release) / Sweden:200 min (1998 re-release) / UK:192 min (1999 re-release) / UK:193 min/ UK:200 min (1992 re-release) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Arvid Griffen David Lean Carlo Ponti|Boris Pasternak Robert Bolt|Freddie Young Nicolas Roeg||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] |A Love Caught in the Fire of Revolution|Lara inspires lechery in Komarovsky (her mother's lover who is a master at surviving whoever runs Russia) and can't compete with passion for the revolution of the man she marries, Pasha. Her true love is Zhivago who also loves his wife. Lara is the one who inspires poetry. The story is narrated by Zhivago's half brother Yevgraf, who has made his career in the Soviet Army. At the beginning of the film he is about to meet a young woman he believes may be the long lost daughter of Lara and Zhivago. Set just before and in the years following the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, the filme follows the life of Zhivago as he marries, raises a family, has his life totally disrupted by first World War One, and then by the Revolution. Shown against the Epic of a world turned on its head, his life and freedom are torn from him as the new society makes demands. A Russian epic, the movie traces the life of surgeon-poet Yury Zhivago before and during the Russian Revolution. Married to an upper-class girl who is devoted to him, yet in love with an unfortunate woman who becomes his muse, Zhivago is torn between fidelity and passion. Sympathetic with the revolution but shaken by the wars and purges, he struggles to retain his individualism as a humanist amid the spirit of collectivism. |Omar Sharif (Dr. Yuri Zhivago) @ Julie Christie (Nurse Lara) @ Geraldine Chaplin (Tonya) @ Rod Steiger (Victor Komarovsky) @ Alec Guinness (Gen. Yevgraf Zhivago) @ Tom Courtenay (Pasha Antipova/Strelnikov) @ Siobhan McKenna (Anna) @ Ralph Richardson (Alexander Gromeko) @ Rita Tushingham (The Girl) @ Jeffrey Rockland (Sasha) @ Tarek Sharif (Yuri at 8) @ Bernard Kay (Bolshevik) @ Klaus Kinski (Kostoyed Amourski (manacled on train)) @ Gérard Tichy (Liberius (as Gerard Tichy)) @ Noel Willman (Razin) @ Geoffrey Keen (Boris Kurt (Yuri's professor)) @ Adrienne Corri (Amelia (mother of Lara)) @ Jack MacGowran (Petya) @ Mark Eden (Engineer at dam) @ Erik Chitty (Old soldier) @ Roger Maxwell (Beet-faced colonel) @ Wolf Frees (Delegate (Moscow Encampment)) @ Gwen Nelson (Female janitor (Moscow Encampment)) @ Lucy Westmore (Katya) @ Lili Muráti (Train jumper (as Lili Murati)) @ Peter Madden (Political officer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Luana Alcañiz (Mrs. Sventytski (Christmas party) (uncredited)) @ Assad Bahador (Colonel of Dragoons (uncredited)) @ José María Caffarel (Militiaman (uncredited)) @ Emilio Carrer (Mr. Sventytski (uncredited)) @ Catherine Ellison (Raped woman (uncredited)) @ Pilar Gómez Ferrer ( (uncredited)) @ Víctor Israel ( (uncredited)) @ Inigo Jackson (Major (uncredited)) @ Gerhard Jersch (David (Tania's boyfriend) (uncredited)) @ Maria Martin (Gentlewoman (uncredited)) @ José Nieto (Priest (uncredited)) @ Ricardo Palacios (Extra (uncredited)) @ Ingrid Pitt (Extra (uncredited)) @ Mercedes Ruiz (Tonya at seven years old (uncredited)) @ Aldo Sambrell ( (uncredited)) @ Virgilio Teixeira (Captain (uncredited)) @ Brigitte Trace (Streetwalker (uncredited)) @ María Vico (Demented woman (uncredited) Produced by||beautifully shot Freddie Young's beautiful cinematography and Robert Bolt's script taken from the great novel by Boris Pasternak highlight this David Lean epic.The movie goes on too long and it gets very confusing but the acting along with the beauty of film more than make up for some of the confusion. Not as good as Lean's epics "The bridge on the river kwai" and "Lawrence of Arabia" but it's worth watching at least once. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead|Stephen Herek|Comedy||5.3|USA|1991| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Caroline Baron Davis Guggenheim Robert F. Newmyer Julia Phillips Michael Phillips Brian Reilly Jeffrey Silver|Neil Landau Tara Ison|Tim Suhrstedt ||Top Tape [br] |No rules. No curfews. No nagging. No pulse. |Single Mother goes away for the summer. The kids are first delighted but then find that Mom has hired the sitter from hell to stay with them. When the sitter dies of a sudden coronary they deposit the body at a mortuary only to discover all their Summer expense money was in her purse. The kids must find a way to survive the summer without mom or her money. This means actual work! The misadventures of five siblings, whose mother goes off on a two month vacation, leaving them under the care of a geriatric babysitter. The babysitter dies, and the fun begins. The oldest sibling, Sue Ellen, is left to fend for her younger siblings, who fight her every step of the way. |Christina Applegate (Sue Ellen 'Swell' Crandell) @ Joanna Cassidy (Rose Lindsey) @ John Getz (Gus) @ Josh Charles (Bryan) @ Keith Coogan (Kenneth 'Kenny' Crandell) @ Concetta Tomei (Mrs. Crandell/Mom) @ David Duchovny (Bruce) @ Kimmy Robertson (Cathy) @ Jayne Brook (Carolyn) @ Eda Reiss Merin (Mrs. Sturak) @ Robert Hy Gorman (Walter Crandell) @ Danielle Harris (Melissa Crandell) @ Christopher Pettiet (Zach Crandell) @ Chris Claridge (Lizard) @ Jeff Bollow (Mole) @ Michael Kopelow (Hellhound) @ Alejandro Quezada (Skull) @ Wendy Brainard (Jill) @ Sarah Buxton (Tess) @ Kawena Charlot (Becky) @ Laurie Morrison (Katrina) @ Deborah Tucker (Nicole) @ Sydney Lassick (Franklin the Designer) @ Michelle Mais (The Temp) @ Oscar Jordan (Mailroom Clerk) @ Marc Epstein (Lunch Waiter) @ Jim Holmes (Dinner Waiter) @ Cathy Ladman (Pam) @ Frank Dent (Mr. Egg) @ Bryan Clark (Dr. Permutter) @ Steve Ruggles (Officious Clerk) @ Randy Pelish (Delivery Man) @ E.E. Bell (Umpire) @ Kristen Corbett (Pretty Little Leaguer) @ Christopher Plummer (Howard) @ Carl Tramon (Musician #1) @ Ethan Wilson (Musician #2) @ Logan Duncan (Liza) @ David Shawn Michaels (Dolly) @ Christopher Morley (Marilyn) @ Robert F. Newmyer (Mortuary Worker) @ Brian Reilly (Mortuary Worker) @ Dan Castellaneta (Animated Babysitter (voice) Produced by||Five Kids. A Whole Summer. Fun Around Every Corner, So Long As They Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead! [CONTAINS SPOILERS] It was the summer time and Sue Ellen Crandell's friends were going to Europe for a graduation party but she soon learns that her mother was going to Australia for two months so it looked like a whole summer of freedom for her and her siblings: Kenny, a lazy party animal. Zach, who's got a date at age 11. Melissa, a smart allec and Walter, the youngest. But to Sue Ellen's horror, Mom had hired a babysitter: Mrs. Stirack, who seemed nice but as soon as Mom left, she pulled out a whistle and began making harsh rules for the kids. They couldn't take it much longer so Sue Ellen went to go have a talk with Mrs. Stirack who didn't move. She didn't breathe either. She was dead! They couldn't call the cops because they'd ask too many questions and they couldn't call Mom because she'd come home, so they do the only sensible things to do in that situation: they load Mrs. Stirack's corpse in a trunk and leave it outside the mortuary. So for a while, it looked like a summer of freedom for the kids. Just one problem: money. One of them had to get a job and since Kenny refused, Sue Ellen got a job at the Clown Dog fast food restaurant where she scrubbed fat vats. She met the handsome delivery boy, Bryan and the two become friends. She also grows tired of this job and quits. She then buckles down and studies on getting big jobs and writing resumés. She practically copied a resumé right out of the book and applied at a fashion corporation for the new secretary. The one they had now was a bubble-head. Sue Ellen met the senior vice president, Rose Lindsay, who boosted Sue Ellen right up to her assistant! Rose was such an easy-going boss and the work seemed like a piece of cake, especially when Sue Ellen had computer pro Cathy do the QED reports. So while Sue Ellen worked, the kids messed around at home. One night they go out to dinner in Mrs. Stirack's Buick and when they exit the restaurant, they find three drag queens stealing it! They acquire a ride home courtesy of Bryan! The job continued to go steady and Sue Ellen and Bryan go on a date and just hit it off! They bounce on bouncing balls at the toy store but were then told to get out. Sue Ellen soon discovers the petty cash box in her desk where she could borrow cash for necessities so she goes to the super market. The kids some how take it upon themselves to "borrow" from the cash box to buy such things as a home entertainment center! Sue Ellen was oblivious to this and would pay back what she took with her paycheck. She asked Kenny to help out a little around the house, like mow the lawn and do the dishes. Kenny did the dishes. He used them as clay pigeons! So Sue Ellen continued to run the house with little or no help from her siblings, but one day while Kenny had a get-together in his room, Walter climbed onto the roof to fix the cable antenna when he fell off and broke his ankle and what's more, Sue Ellen's paycheck was small due to taxes, but the real salt on the open wound was when Sue Ellen discovered the home entertainment center. She learns the kids had spent over $3,000! This was now embezzlement! Well things just kept getting worse because due to a protest on the proposed school uniforms, the fashion center Sue Ellen worked at was facing bankrupcy! But a last minute idea from Sue Ellen just might save them! Rose liked the idea and proposed a banquet. Sue Ellen offered to have it at her house. Carolyn, the secretary who Sue Ellen was supposed to be replacing grew jealous of her. Her little brother was Bryan and he and Sue Ellen fought when she demanded to keep her job a secret. Carolyn and her yuppie boyfriend Bruce tried to dig up some dirt on Sue Ellen. They found out about Cathy but Rose seemed entranced by that rather than angry. With a week until the party, Sue Ellen whipped her siblings into shape. Kenny mowed the lawn while everyone else cleaned the house and got it all ready for the banquet. Carolyn found Sue Ellen's driver's license, proof that she was 17, and showed it to Rose who called Carolyn a liar. Soon the banquet was on and Sue Ellen made a speech. Kenny, who learned to cook courtesy of Julia Child, prepared the meals. Zach was the maitre'd. Bryan stopped by in hopes of making amendments and nearly blew Sue Ellen's cover. What's more, Mom came home eary and then the dooty really hit the fan! Sue Ellen told the real truth to everyone. Rose was still her friend though and Mom seemed impressed on how Sue Ellen handled things in her absence, although she had just one more question, "Where's the babysitter?" A pretty good movie! Married...With Children's Christina Applegate plays Sue Ellen Crandell and was very good! Keith Coogan plays Kenny and played a very good little punk! Although in the movie Sue Ellen is older than Kenny, in reality Keith Coogan is a year older than Christina Applegate. How about that? Also in the cast are Joanna Cassidy (Who Framed Roger Rabbit?), Danielle Harris (Halloween 4 & 5), David Duchovny (The X-Files) and Robert Gorman (Leprechaun). Also, this film could really teach people responsibility. But anyway, if you like Christina Applegate or are in the mood for a juvenile comedy, then Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead is for you! ||Movies |2.35 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Double Jeopardy|Bruce Beresford|Thriller|Rated R for language, a scene of sexuality and some violence. |6.0|USA|1999| 105 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Leonard Goldberg Richard Luke Rothschild|David Weisberg Douglas Cook|Peter James ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Murder isn't always a crime. |When Nick Parsons appears to be murdered his wife Libby is tried and convicted. Six years later Libby is paroled and with the help of Travis Lehman (her parole officer) she sets out to find her son and the truth behind the "murder". Libby Parsons is happily married to Nick and has a wonderful son, Matty. One day while spending the night on their boat, Libby wakes up and finds Nick gone and blood all over the boat and a bloody knife. When an investigation begins, it's discovered that Nick was financial trouble and had a two million dollar insurance policy. Though claims that she knew nothing about it, she would be convicted and sent to prison. She entrusts Matty to her friend, Angela and it's during one of her calls to Matty that she learns that Nick is alive. And she also learns that since she's already been convicted of killing Nick already, she can kill him and not be charged. After seven she's paroled and placed in the custody of Travis, a parole officer. |Tommy Lee Jones (Travis Lehman) @ Ashley Judd (Elizabeth Parsons) @ Benjamin Weir (Matty Parsons, Age 4) @ Jay Brazeau (Bobby Long) @ Bruce Greenwood (Nicholas Parsons) @ John MacLaren (Rudy) @ Ed Evanko (Warren (as Edward Evanko)) @ Annabeth Gish (Angela Green) @ Bruce Campbell (Bartender at Party) @ Brennan Elliott (Yuppie Man) @ Angela Schneider (Yuppie Girl) @ Michael Gaston (Cutter) @ Gillian Barber (Rebecca Tingely) @ Tom McBeath (Coast Guard Officer) @ David Jacox (Deputy Ben) @ Betsy Brantley (Miss Halliwell, Prosecutor) @ Woody Jeffreys (Watch Stander) @ French Tickner (Judge) @ Roma Maffia (Margaret Skolowski) @ Davenia McFadden (Evelyn Lake) @ Maria Bitamba (Prisoner at Phone) @ Ben Bode (Karl Carruthers (as Ben Bodé)) @ Robin J. Kelley (Parole Board Member) @ Dana Still (Drug Counselor (as Dana Owen Still)) @ Gabrielle Rose (Georgia) @ Daniel Lapaine (Handsome Internet Expert) @ Maria Herrera (Libby's Roommate (as Maria R. Herrera)) @ Babs Chula (Ruby (as Babz Chula)) @ Enuka Okuma (Parolee) @ Peter Kimmerly (Ferry Captain (as Captain Peter Kimmerly)) @ George Gordon (Emergency Room Doctor) @ David Fredericks (Trucker) @ Anna Hagan (Libby's Mother) @ Fulvio Cecere (BMW Salesman) @ Tracy Vilar (Orbe) @ Addison Ridge (Sam, Boy at the Door) @ Crystal Verge (Sam's Mother) @ Joy Coghill (Neighbor in Garden) @ Bernard Cuffling (Clement Gallery Owner) @ Barth C. Phillips (Singer in Jackson Square) @ Jerome Alexander (Singer in Jackson Square) @ Reginald Ringo (Singer in Jackson Square) @ George Hunter (Singer in Jackson Square) @ Ingrid Torrance (Maison Beau Coeur Clerk) @ Roger R. Cross (Hotel Manager) @ Pamela Perry (Mrs. J. Kritch) @ Tim McDermott (Bellhop Bruce) @ Keegan Connor Tracy (Boutique Saleswoman (as Keegan Tracy)) @ Dave Hager (Jim Mangold, New Orleans Police) @ Jason Douglas (Detective Roiley) @ Jeannie Grelier Church (Scarf Woman) @ Austin B. Church (Scarf Woman's Husband) @ Michael Shannon Jenkins (Doorman) @ Joe Simon (Singer at Auction) @ Charles Detraz (Auctioneer) @ Susan LeCourt-Barbe (Bidder) @ Ramona Tyler (Bidder) @ C. Barrett Downing (Bidder) @ Michelle Stafford (Bidder Suzanne Monroe) @ Greg Di Leo (Bachelor at Auction) @ Lance Spellerberg (Bachelor at Auction) @ George Touliatos (New Orleans Bartender) @ Deryl Hayes (New Orleans Cop) @ Brent Woolsey (Dolmer, Mounted Cop) @ Eliza Murbach (Co-ed with Red Umbrella) @ Bob Harris (Preacher (as Roland 'Bob' Harris)) @ George Montgomery II (Matty Pretender) @ Lossen Chambers (Lucy, Parole Office Secretary) @ Harold Evans (New Orleans Cabbie) @ Thomas M. Mathews (St. Albans Coach) @ Gordon Starling Jr. (St. Albans Coach) @ Spencer Treat Clark (Matty Parsons, Age 11 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nicolas Roye (Bellhop (uncredited) Produced by||Judd And Jones Deliver **Possible Spoilers**Ashley Judd stars as Libby Parsons, a woman out for justice after being wrongly accused of her husband's murder in `Double Jeopardy,' a thriller from director Bruce Beresford.Libby is happily married and living in the Seattle area with her husband, Nick (Bruce Greenwood), and their four-year-old son, Matty (Benjamin Weir).Nick, however, is in big financial trouble, and they are about to lose everything; and Libby knows nothing about it.Under pretense of buying her a boat, Nick takes Libby sailing, alone.During the night he disappears, leaving behind evidence of his apparent murder, and orchestrating it to incriminate Libby. When she is convicted and sent to prison, Matty goes to stay with a family friend, Angela (Annabeth Gish), who disappears with the boy a month later. Adamant in her quest to locate Angela by tracking her through a series of phone numbers, she finally succeeds; and also discovers that Nick is still alive.And with Angela.Frustrated in her attempts to get someone to listen to her story, Libby can do nothing but serve her time, and wait. After serving six years in prison, she is paroled, and begins searching for her son, armed with a useful bit of information she learned on the inside: The law of Double Jeopardy; since she's already been convicted of killing her husband, she cannot be tried for it again, even if she shoots him in front of a crowd in the middle of Times Square.She does have one more problem, though.Her parole officer, Travis Lehman (Tommy Lee Jones) is out to track her down for violating her parole, and If he catches her, she'll go back to prison. Outstanding performances by Judd and Jones highlight this film, along with some nice touches by Beresford in keeping the tension high while moving it along at just the right pace.Judd makes Libby believable, infused with a vulnerability and determination that makes you pull for her; she's a strong woman who's been wronged, and you desperately want to see her get her life put back together.Jones is convincing as the hard-as-nails Lehman, who doesn't see parole as a second chance, but as a `last' chance.Beneath it all, however, you know that this is a man who also believes in justice, and will do what he can to make it so.Greenwood gives just the right touch of boorishness to Nick; he's like the successful used-car salesman you never want to have to deal with, and you wait for the moment when Libby will finally get her crack at him. The supporting cast includes Annabeth Gish (Angela), Michael Gaston (Cutter), Roma Maffia (Margaret) and Davenia McFadden (Evelyn).In a world in which the unjust too often prevail, it is gratifying to at least see the attempt made of putting things to right.`Double Jeopardy' does just that; it takes you on a wild ride and gives you hope at the same time.Maybe it's only a movie, but it's a good one.And sometimes, that'll just have to do. I rate this one 8/10. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Dracula|Francis Ford Coppola|Horror|Rated R for sexuality and horror violence. |7.0|USA|1992| 130 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Apted Francis Ford Coppola Susan Landau Finch Fred Fuchs James V. Hart Charles Mulvehill Robert O'Connor John Veitch|Bram Stoker James V. Hart|Michael Ballhaus ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Love Never Dies. |This version of Dracula is closely based on Bram Stoker's classic novel of the same name. A young lawyer (Jonathan Harker) is assigned to a gloomy village in the mists of eastern Europe. He is captured and imprisoned by the undead vampire Dracula, who travels to London, inspired by a photograph of Harker's betrothed, Mina Murray. In Britain, Dracula begins a reign of seduction and terror, draining the life from Mina's closest friend, Lucy Westenra. Lucy's friends gather together to try to drive Dracula away. |Gary Oldman (Dracula) @ Winona Ryder (Mina Murray/Elisabeta) @ Anthony Hopkins (Professor Abraham Van Helsing) @ Keanu Reeves (Jonathan Harker) @ Richard E. Grant (Dr. Jack Seward) @ Cary Elwes (Lord Arthur Holmwood) @ Bill Campbell (Quincey P. Morris) @ Sadie Frost (Lucy Westenra) @ Tom Waits (R.M. Renfield) @ Monica Bellucci (Dracula's Bride) @ Michaela Bercu (Dracula's Bride) @ Florina Kendrick (Dracula's Bride) @ Jay Robinson (Mr. Hawkins) @ I.M. Hobson (Hobbs) @ Laurie Franks (Lucy's Maid) @ Maud Winchester (Downstairs Maid) @ Octavian Cadia (Deacon) @ Robert Getz (Priest) @ Dagmar Stanec (Sister Agatha) @ Eniko Öss (Sister Sylva (as Eniko Oss)) @ Nancy Linehan Charles (Older Woman) @ Tatiana von Furstenberg (Younger Woman) @ Jules Sylvester (Zoo Keeper) @ Hubert Wells (Zoo Keeper) @ Daniel Newman (News Hawker) @ Honey Lauren (Peep Show Girl) @ Judi Diamond (Peep Show Girl) @ Robert Buckingham (Husband) @ Cully Fredricksen (Van Helsing's Assistant rest of cast listed alphabetically Diamanda Galas .... Special vocal performances (voice)) @ Kristina Fulton (Vampire girl (uncredited)) @ Moreen Littrell (Impaled Dancer (uncredited)) @ Philip Pucci (Lorryman (uncredited)) @ Heidi Schooler (Courtesan (uncredited) Produced by||* * * * out of 4. The best film Francis Ford Coppla ever made in my opinion. This magnificent production deals with Count Dracula (Gary Oldman) finding a woman (Winona Ryder) in the 1800's who resembles his long lost love who killed herself many centuries earlier. Gary Oldman turns in the performance of his career with this effort; he is romantic, scary, and captivating while changing from young man to an old ghoulish looking old man to a beast. Winona Ryder also does her best work in this film also; she captures the right balance between innocence and terror. Even Keenua Reeves who was something of a joke at the time of this production is credible. The costumes and sets are lush and breathtaking and the make-up effects are frightening. The film does an admireable job of balancing its romance sub-plot between the terror. And the film is always entertaining and haunting in its own way, especially the ending. The best horror film of the 90's and one of my top 10 favorite films of the 90's! Rated R; Graphic Violence, Nudity, and Sexual Situations. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Driving Miss Daisy|Bruce Beresford|Drama||7.3|USA|1989| 99 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Brown Robert Doudell Jake Eberts Alfred Uhry Lili Fini Zanuck Richard D. Zanuck|Alfred Uhry Alfred Uhry|Peter James ||Paris Vídeo [br] |The comedy that won a Pulitzer Prize|An elderly Jewish widow living in Atlanta can no longer drive. Her son insists she allow him to hire a driver, which in the 1950s meant a black man. She resists any change in her life but, Hoke, the driver is hired by her son. She refuses to allow him to drive her anywhere at first, but Hoke slowly wins her over with his native good graces. The movie is directly taken from a stage play and does show it. It covers over twenty years of the pair's life together as they slowly build a relationship that transcends their differences. |Morgan Freeman (Hoke Colburn) @ Jessica Tandy (Daisy Werthan) @ Dan Aykroyd (Boolie Werthan) @ Patti LuPone (Florine Werthan) @ Esther Rolle (Idella) @ Joann Havrilla (Miss McClatchey) @ William Hall Jr. (Oscar) @ Alvin M. Sugarman (Dr. Weil) @ Clarice F. Geigerman (Nonie) @ Muriel Moore (Miriam) @ Sylvia Kaler (Beulah) @ Carolyn Gold (Neighbor lady) @ Crystal R. Fox (Katie Bell (Boolie's cook)) @ Bob Hannah (Red Mitchell (Century Cadillac dealer)) @ Ray McKinnon (Alabama trooper #1) @ Ashley Josey (Alabama trooper #2) @ Jack Rousso (Slick) @ Fred Faser (Insurance agent) @ Indra A. Thomas (Baptist Choir Soloist rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Dean DuBois (Commerce Club member (uncredited)) @ D. Taylor Loeb (Girl at Temple (uncredited) Produced by||Great movie Once again, the IMDB has misrepresented itself by allowing a juvenile deliquent named Jeremy Barger have the 'user comment' on the main page for the movie.This kid should be banned from commenting on anything that doesn't star Will Smith, Adam Sandler or Ernest.Anyone who thinks this movie and "Secrets & Lies" are over-rated, needs his medication adjusted.I hate to see what other adult movies he has commented on. In the meantime, the adults in the world think this movie is well worth all the awards and praise it has received. The acting by Jessica Tandy and Morgan Freeman is a joy to behold and the late great Esther Rolle contributes her usual solid performance. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Dumb & Dumber|Peter Farrelly Bobby Farrell|Comedy||6.5|USA|1994| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ellen Dumouchel Bobby Farrelly Tracie Graham-Rice Bradley Jenkel Brad Krevoy Aaron Meyerson Gerald T. Olson Chad Oman Steven Stabler Bradley Thomas Charles B. Wessler|Peter Farrelly Bennett Yellin Bobby Farrelly|Mark Irwin ||Alliance |For Harry and Lloyd every day is a no-brainer.|Harry and Lloyd are two brainless losers who try to return a suitcase full of money to its pretty owner. After a journey full of accidents they arrive in snowy Aspen, Colorado and try to find her. But will they succeed? Lloyd and Harry are two men whose stupidity is really indescribable. When Mary, a beautiful woman, looses an important suitcase with money before she leaves for Aspen, the two friends (who have found the suitcase) decide to return it to her. After some "adventures" they finally get to Aspen where, using the lost money they live it up and fight for Mary's heart. |Jim Carrey (Lloyd Christmas) @ Jeff Daniels (Harry Dunne) @ Lauren Holly (Mary Swanson) @ Mike Starr (Joe 'Mental' Mentaliano) @ Charles Rocket (Nicholas Andre) @ Karen Duffy (J.P. Shay) @ Cam Neely (Sea Bass) @ Harland Williams (State trooper) @ Felton Perry (Detective Dale) @ Rob Moran (Bartender) @ Teri Garr (Helen Swanson) @ Hank Brandt (Karl Swanson) @ Joe Baker (Bernard) @ Victoria Rowell (FBI Special Agent Beth Jordan) @ Brady Bluhm (Billy) @ Brad Lockerman (Bobby) @ Kathryn Frick (Cashier) @ Zen Gesner (Dale's man) @ Lawrence Kopp (Dale's man) @ Connie Sawyer (Elderly woman) @ Lin Shaye (Mrs. Neugeboren) @ Fred Stoller (Anxious man at phone) @ Mike Watkis (Reporter) @ Diane Kinerk (Waitress #1) @ Lisa Stothard (Bus stop beauty) @ Sean Gildea (Sea Bass friend) @ Charles Chun (Flight attendant) @ Helen Boll (Swanson maid) @ Hillary Matthews (Waitress #2) @ Karen Ingram (Nicholas' girl) @ Jesse Borja (Martial artist) @ Vene L. Arcoraci (Bikini girl) @ Anna Åberg (Bikini girl) @ Samantha Carpel (Bikini girl) @ Elaine Wood (Bikini girl) @ Bruce Bowns (Barber) @ Denise Vienne (Concierge) @ Nancy Farrelly (Diner gawker) @ Catallina Izasa (Manicurist) @ Samatha Pearson (Masseuse) @ Ken Duvall (Mutt Cutts boss) @ Cecile Krevoy (Airport bystander) @ George Bedard (Peeing man) @ Bill Beauchene (Peeing man's friend) @ Gary Sivertsen (Aspen police officer) @ John Stoneham Jr. (Preservation partier) @ John Stroehman (Preservation partier) @ Terry Mullany (Preservation partier) @ Brad Blank (Preservation partier) @ Mark Miosky (Preservation partier) @ Mike Cavallo (Preservation partier) @ Tom Leasca (Preservation partier) @ Kevin Sheehan (Preservation partier) @ Kenny Griswold (Preservation partier) @ Brian Mone (Preservation partier) @ Brad Norton (Preservation partier) @ John Dale (Preservation partier) @ Mike Burke (Preservation partier) @ Kevin Constantine (Preservation partier) @ Chris Spain (Preservation partier) @ Paul Pelletier (Preservation partier) @ Mark Levine (Preservation partier) @ William Smith (Preservation partier) @ Mark Charpentier (Preservation partier) @ James Ahern (Preservation partier) @ Jim Blake (Preservation partier) @ Traci Adell (Sexy Woman) @ Anita Rice (Sweater friend #1) @ Pam Nielson (Sweater friend #2) @ Nancy Barker (Sweater friend #3) @ Brad Louder (Sweater friend #4) @ Doug Caputo (Sweater friend #5) @ James Horrocks (Sweater friend #6) @ Clint Allen (Coroner) @ Rolfe Brekke (Sweater friend #7) @ Clem Franek (Wallbanger rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Shae Acuff (Bikini girl (uncredited)) @ Marty Fresca (Singing farmworker ("Mocking Bird") (uncredited) Produced by||High Comedy. Oh goodness "Dumb & Dumber" is one of those films that is just crazed out of its mind. Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels star as two dimwits who go cross-country to Aspen, Colorado to find a beautiful woman (Lauren Holly) who left a briefcase full of money in an East Coast airport to pay kidnappers to get her husband back. Of course, Carrey does not know this and thinks she left the briefcase by accident so he takes the money unwittingly. Carrey also has an obsession with Holly to complicate manners. Throughout Carrey and Daniels dominate the action and the strangest coincidences occur as the bad guys think that Carrey and Daniels are after them and the good guys try to figure out the duo's connection with the kidnappers. In short this is one of those films that is just outstanding and serves its demented purpose to the paramount. 4 stars out of 5. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Dumbo|Ben Sharpsteen|Drama||7.5|USA|1941| 64 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Helen Aberson Otto Englander Joe Grant Dick Huemer Harold Perl Vernon Stallings|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |The One...The Only...The FABULOUS... |The stork delivers a baby elephant to Mrs Jumbo, veteran of the circus, but the newborn is ridiculed because of his truly enormous ears and dubbed "Dumbo". Dumbo is relegated to the circus' clown acts; it is up to his only friend, a mouse, to assist Dumbo to achieve his full potential. |Herman Bing (Ringmaster (uncredited) (voice)) @ Billy Bletcher (Clown (uncredited) (voice)) @ Edward Brophy (Timothy Q. Mouse (uncredited) (voice)) @ Jim Carmichael (Crow (uncredited) (voice)) @ Hall Johnson Choir (Crows (uncredited)) @ Cliff Edwards (Jim Crow (uncredited) (voice)) @ Verna Felton (Elephant Matriarch (uncredited) (voice)) @ Noreen Gammill (Elephant (uncredited) (voice)) @ Sterling Holloway (Mr. Stork (uncredited) (voice)) @ Malcolm Hutton (Skinny (uncredited) (voice)) @ Harold Manley (Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ John McLeish (Narrator (uncredited) (voice)) @ Tony Neil (Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Dorothy Scott (Elephant (uncredited) (voice)) @ Sarah Selby (Elephant (uncredited) (voice)) @ Billy Sheets (Joe/clown (uncredited) (voice)) @ Chuck Stubbs (Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Margaret Wright (Casey Jr. (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||brilliant Disney classic Disney's flying elephant with the big ears.Timothy Mouse and the peanuts. The pyramid of jumbos in the circus ring.The roustabouts building the big top.Elephants on parade.The heartbreak of Mrs Jumbo.Mr Stork and his stubborn packages up in the clouds.The crows. The animation is perfect and so are the songs on the soundtrack.Dumbo is an hour of perfection and one of Disney's best. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Dune|David Lynch|Action||6.3|USA|1984| 137 min/ USA:190 min (special edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Raffaella De Laurentiis José López Rodero Dino De Laurentiis|Frank Herbert David Lynch|Freddie Francis ||Altomedia. Co. Ltd. [kr] |A world beyond your experience, beyond your imagination.|In the far future, a duke and his family are sent by the Emperor to a sand world from which comes a spice that is essential for interstellar travel. The move is designed to destroy the duke and his family, but his son escapes and seeks revenge as he uses the world's ecology as one of his weapons. The desert planet Arrakis - we enter the year 10191 and the whole universe depends on the spice Melange which exists only on this dry and desolate planet. The natives of this planet await the arrival of their Messiah who will lead them into a holy war against the evil Harkonnen empire. This is the film adaptation based on Frank Herbert`s cult novel. Set in a distant future where life in the universe and space travel is dependent upon a spice found only on the planet Dune, this film tracks the rise of young Paul Atreides, son of good Duke Lito, from the time of his father's betrayal and murder by a rival lord, Baron Harkonnen, to his discovery of the great secret behind the planet Dune and his own destiny, which is to free the planet and its denizens of the cruel rule of the Emperor. |Francesca Annis (Lady Jessica) @ Leonardo Cimino (The Baron's Doctor) @ Brad Dourif (Piter De Vries) @ José Ferrer (Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV) @ Linda Hunt (Shadout Mapes) @ Freddie Jones (Thufir Hawat) @ Richard Jordan (Duncan Idaho) @ Kyle MacLachlan (Paul Atreides/Usul Muad'Dib) @ Virginia Madsen (Princess Irulan) @ Silvana Mangano (Reverend Mother Ramallo) @ Everett McGill (Stilgar) @ Kenneth McMillan (Baron Vladimir Harkonnen) @ Jack Nance (Captain Iakin Nefud) @ Siân Phillips (Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam) @ Jürgen Prochnow (Duke Leto Atreides) @ Paul L. Smith (The Beast Rabban (as Paul Smith)) @ Patrick Stewart (Gurney Halleck) @ Sting (Feyd-Rautha) @ Dean Stockwell (Doctor Wellington Yueh) @ Max von Sydow (Doctor Kynes) @ Alicia Witt (Alia (as Alicia Roanne Witt)) @ Sean Young (Chani) @ Danny Corkill (Otheym (as Honorato Magalone)) @ Judd Omen (Jamis) @ Molly Wryn (Harah rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Angélica Aragón (Bene Gesserit Sister (uncredited)) @ Miguel Cane (Little Fremen Boy (uncredited)) @ Humberto Elizondo (Czigo (uncredited)) @ Ernesto Laguardia (Harkonnen's victim (uncredited)) @ David Lynch (Spice Worker (uncredited)) @ Ramón Menéndez (Kinet (uncredited)) @ Ana Ofelia Murguía (Palace Maid (uncredited)) @ Claudia Ramírez (Fremen Girl (uncredited)) @ Julieta Rosen (Palace Maid (uncredited)) @ Margarita Sanz (Lady Jessica's Maid (uncredited) Produced by||Great!!! This film has got some lengths, sometimes it´s even boring, nevertheless it is one of the best sci-fi movies I´ve ever seen: "Dune" contains a great nightmarish atmosphere, lots of great actors, even in the supporting roles (I really was surprised what a good actor Sting is..!) and an intelligent and demanding story that makes "Star Wars: Episode 1" looking like a 120-minute playstation video game. I heard a rumour that David Lynch´s film was one of the biggest flops in the history of cinema..? Well, lovers of mainstream flicks like "Titanic" or "Pearl Harbor" should stay far away, because "Dune" is not a typical mega-budget production à la Hollywood, it is something like a piece of art. It seemed to be impossible to film Frank Herbert´s novel, but David Lynch has done really great work with his movie! Watch this film if you want to do a long journey into the realms of bizarre!!! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial|Steven Spielberg|Family|Rated PG for language and mild thematic elements. (2002 edited version) |7.8|USA|1982| 115 min/ USA:120 min (extended version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Melissa Mathison Steven Spielberg|Melissa Mathison |Allen Daviau ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |His Adventure On Earth|While visiting the Earth at Night, a group of alien botanists is discovered and disturbed by an approaching human task force. Because of the more than hasty take-off, one of the visitors is left behind. The little alien finds himself all alone on a very strange planet. Fortunately, the extra-terrestrial soon finds a friend and emotional companion in 10-year-old Elliot, who discovered him looking for food in his family's garden shed. While E.T. slowly gets acquainted with Elliot's brother Michael, his sister Gertie as well as with Earth customs, members of the task force work day and night to track down the whereabouts of Earth's first visitor from Outer Space. The wish to go home again is strong in E.T., and after being able to communicate with Elliot and the others, E.T. starts building an improvised device to send a message home for his folks to come and pick him up. But before long, E.T. gets seriously sick, and because of his special connection to Elliot, the young boy suffers, too. The situation gets critical when the task force finally intervenes. By then, all help may already be too late, and there's no alien spaceship in sight. A group of aliens visit earth and one of them is lost and left behind stranded on this planet. The alien is found by a 10 year old boy, Elliot. Soon the two begin to communicate, and start a different kind of friendship in which E.T learns about life on earth and Elliot learns about some new values for the true meaning of friendship. E.T. wants to go home, but if Elliot helps him, he'll lose a friend... |Henry Thomas (Elliott) @ Dee Wallace-Stone (Mary (as Dee Wallace)) @ Robert MacNaughton (Michael) @ Drew Barrymore (Gertie) @ Peter Coyote (Keys) @ K.C. Martel (Greg) @ Sean Frye (Steve) @ C. Thomas Howell (Tyler (as Tom Howell)) @ David M. O'Dell (Schoolboy) @ Richard Swingler (Science teacher) @ Frank Toth (Policeman) @ Robert Barton (Ultrasound man) @ Michael Durrell (Van man rest of cast listed alphabetically David Berkson .... Medic) @ Susan Cameron (Medic) @ David Carlberg (Medic) @ Erika Eleniak (Pretty girl) @ Will Fowler Jr. (Medic) @ Barbara Hartnett (Medic) @ Milt Kogan (Medic) @ Alexander Lampone (Medic) @ Diane Lampone (Medic) @ Rhoda Makoff (Medic) @ Robert Murphy (Medic) @ Richard Pesavento (Medic) @ Tom Sherry (Medic) @ Mary Stein (Medic) @ Mitchell Suskin (Medic) @ Ted Grossman (Government Agent (uncredited)) @ Pat Welsh (E.T. (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||One of the best films ever made & a personal fave E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (1982) **** Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Robert McNaughton, Drew Barrymore, Peter Coyote, Tom Howell (C. Thomas Howell), KC Martel, Sean Frye, Erika Eleniak.Steven Spielberg's classic sci-fi masterpiece about a lonely boy (Thomas in a remarkably natural debut) who befriends a stranded, freightened alien and the bond that strengthens between the two.Fantastic special effects, John Williams' heart warming score, and Carlo Rambaldi's creation of E.T. earned Oscars as well as for sound, stand out as well as Melissa Mathison's (that's Mrs. Harrison Ford to you!) wonderful script conveys beautifully how the human spirit can truly be.Speaking of spiritual, it is somewhat surprising just how spiritual the film is (i.e.: E.T.'s healing powers and 'resurrection').Memorable scenes: E.T.'s getting drunk and Thomas sharing his feelings (particularly the wonderful set up to his kiss with the towering Eleniak {who would be best known as the gravity-defying Elly May Clampett in the big screen version of "The Beverly Hillbillies"}; Wallace not noticing E.T. on Halloween; E.T. fixing Thomas' "ouch"; and one for the film vaults: the flight of the bicycles.In a word: perfect. ** incidentally I first saw this when I was 14 and the day I saw it my mom informed me and my sister she was divorcing my dad, so I totally relate to Thomas.** Noteworthy trivia: yes that is Debra Winger's voice as one of the many elements that went into the voice of E.T. ||2-Disc Limited Collector's Edition |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |Dolby Digital 6.1 EX ||||||@@ Edward Scissorhands|Tim Burton|Drama||7.6|USA|1990| 105 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Burton Denise Di Novi Richard Hashimoto Caroline Thompson|Tim Burton Caroline Thompson Caroline Thompson|Stefan Czapsky ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The story of an uncommonly gentle man|A modern day fairy tale which tells the story of Edward, the man created by an inventor, who died before finishing him and left Edward with scissors where he should have hands. One day when the local "Avon" representative calls at the historic mansion where Edward has been living alone, she takes him home to stay with her family. He has to adapt to the new life and environment that he isn't used to. Soon he shows a talent in cutting hair and hedges, and wins every body's heart. But life isn't always so sweet... Peg Boggs the local Avon lady is having a bad day. As a last resort she tries her luck at the old castle at the end of her street. Once at the castle she meets Edward, who's inventor died before he finished making him. Peg decides to adopt Edward and bring him down from the castle. Edward and his scissor hands soon stir up curiosity in the community and before long they have all took him to their hearts, but despite Edwards talents for cutting hair and hedges. Will the community accept him as a person? |Johnny Depp (Edward Scissorhands) @ Winona Ryder (Kim Boggs) @ Dianne Wiest (Peg Boggs) @ Anthony Michael Hall (Jim, Kim's Boyfriend) @ Kathy Baker (Joyce Monroe, Neighbor) @ Robert Oliveri (Kevin Boggs) @ Conchata Ferrell (Helen, Neighbor) @ Caroline Aaron (Marge, Neighbor) @ Dick Anthony Williams (Officer Allen) @ O-Lan Jones (Esmeralda) @ Vincent Price (The Inventor) @ Alan Arkin (Bill Boggs) @ Susan Blommaert (Tinka (as Susan J. Blommaert)) @ Linda Perri (Cissy) @ John Davidson (Talk Show Host) @ Biff Yeager (George Monroe) @ Marti Greenberg (Suzanne) @ Bryan Larkin (Max) @ John McMahon (Denny, Van Owner) @ Victoria Price (TV Newswoman) @ Stuart Lancaster (Retired Man) @ Gina Gallagher (Granddaughter) @ Aaron Lustig (Psychologist) @ Alan Fudge (Loan Officer) @ Steven Brill (Dishwasher Man) @ Peter Palmer (Editor) @ Marc Macaulay (Reporter) @ Carmen J. Alexander (Reporter) @ Brett Rice (Reporter) @ Andrew B. Clark (Beefy Man) @ Kelli Crofton (Pink Girl) @ Linda Jean Hess (Older Woman/TV) @ Rosalyn Thomson (Young Woman/TV) @ Lee Ralls (Red-Haired Woman/TV) @ Eileen Meurer (Teenage Girl/TV) @ Bea Albano (Rich Widow/TV) @ Donna Pieroni (Blonde/TV) @ Ken DeVaul (Policeman) @ Michael Gaughan (Policeman) @ Tricia Lloyd (Teenage Girl) @ Kathy Dombo (Other Teen) @ Rex Fox (Police Sergeant) @ Sherry Ferguson (Max's Mother) @ Tabetha Thomas (Little Girl on Bike) @ Tammy Boalo (Neighborhood Extra) @ Jackie Carson (Neighborhood Extra) @ Carol Crumrine (Neighborhood Extra) @ Suzanne Chrosniak (Neighborhood Extra) @ Ellen Dennis (Neighborhood Extra) @ Kathy Fleming (Neighborhood Extra) @ Jalaine Gallion (Neighborhood Extra) @ Miriam Goodspeed (Neighborhood Extra) @ Dianne L. Green (Neighborhood Extra) @ Mary Jane Heath (Neighborhood Extra) @ Carol D. Klasek (Neighborhood Extra) @ Laura Nader (Neighborhood Extra) @ Doyle Anderson (Neighborhood Extra) @ Harvey Bellman (Neighborhood Extra) @ Michael Brown (Neighborhood Extra) @ Gary Clark (Neighborhood Extra) @ Roland Douville (Neighborhood Extra) @ Russell E. Green (Neighborhood Extra) @ Cecil Hawkins (Neighborhood Extra) @ Jack W. Kapfhamer (Neighborhood Extra) @ Bill Klein (Neighborhood Extra) @ Phil Olson (Neighborhood Extra) @ Joe Sheldon (Neighborhood Extra) @ James Spicer (Neighborhood Extra rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nick Carter (Neighborhood Extra (uncredited)) @ L.A. Rothman (Girl in Diner (uncredited) Produced by||A Story Told In Beautiful Simplicity Edward Scissorhands is really an amazing movie.The plethora of lush cinematography, beautiful musical score, and great characters are extremely entertaining.The storyline is simple yet very moving.I still get misty-eyed at the end, even though I watched it many times already.The musical scores by the amazing Danny Elfman in Edward Scissorhands are one of his best work.It is achingly beautiful.Everytime Tim Burton and Danny Elfman worked together in a movie, magic happens.Burton's gothic style and Elfman's halloween-like scores always blends perfectly. The story surrounds an unfinished creation named Edward, played brilliantly by Johnny Depp.The talented actor managed to make Edward a simple being that radiates vulnerability as well as restrained passion suggesting the real, imperfect humanity within.Edward's intimidating scissorhands and strange black & white physical appearance looked out of place amongst the pastel-colored suburban surroundings.He is unique; we both laugh and sympathize when we see Edward having a hard time trying to eat a single green pea with his scissorhands, but then we become slack-jawed to see that his expression of artistry in sculpting are effortless, masterful, imaginative, and passionate. The movie ends rather sadly, yet beautifully at the same time.The tragic incident at the end over Jim (Anthony Michael Hall) is a single act of both unvented frustrations over the injustices done by Jim, as well as to protect Kim Boggs (Winona Ryder), the love of his life.This shows that although uncompleted, the fearsome scissorhands merely masks our eyes to his feelings, conflicts, and the imperfections of that of a real human being. His body is not completed, but his heart is. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Election|Alexander Payne|Comedy|Rated R for strong sexuality, sex-related dialogue and language, and a scene of drug use. |7.4|USA|1999| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Albert Berger Jim Burke David Gale Jacobus Rose Keith Samples Van Toffler Ron Yerxa|Tom Perrotta Alexander Payne Jim Taylor|James Glennon ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Reading, Writing, Revenge. |Tracy Flick is the smartest student in all Carver High and the only one having an affair with a teacher. Her other teacher Mr. McAllister is the most involved teacher at Carver High and is messing around with his wifes best friend. Elections are coming up and Tracy Flick is the only one running and after seeing Tracy always winning something and doing everything right, Mr. McAllister bribes the dumb jock Paul to run against her for his own pleasure. Tracy is mortified that Paul is even trying to compete. Tammy, Paul's lesbian sister who got dumped by her girlfriend to go with Paul decides that running against her brother is the best revenge. After the three say their speeches everything goes on a downfall. Who will win the election this year? Tracey Flick is running unopposed for this year's high school student council president election. But school civics teacher Jim McAllister has a different plan. Partly to establish a more democratic election, and partly to satisfy some deep personal anger towards Tracey, Jim talks popular varsity football player Paul Metzler to run for president as well. |Matthew Broderick (James T. 'Jim' McAllister) @ Reese Witherspoon (Tracy Enid Flick) @ Jessica Campbell (Tammy Metzler) @ Chris Klein (Paul Metzler) @ Phil Reeves (Principal Walter 'Walt' F. Hendricks) @ Molly Hagan (Diane McAllister) @ Delaney Driscoll (Linda Novotny) @ Mark Harelik (Dave Novotny) @ Colleen Camp (Judith R. Flick) @ Frankie Ingrassia (Lisa Flanagan) @ Joel Parks (Jerry Slavin) @ Matt Malloy (Vice-Principal Ron Bell) @ Holmes Osborne (Dick Metzler) @ Jeanine Jackson (Jo Metzler) @ Loren Nelson (Custodian) @ Emily Martin (Girl in Crisis) @ Jonathan Marion (Classroom Student Eric) @ Amy Falcone (Classroom Student Michele) @ Matt Justesen ('Eat Me' Boy) @ Nick Kenny ('Eat Me' Boy's Buddy) @ Brian Tobin (Adult Video Actor) @ Christa Young (Adult Video Actress) @ David Wenzel (Tracy's Friend Eric) @ Larry Kaiser (Chemistry Teacher) @ Marilyn Tipp (Carver Office Lady) @ Jeannie Brayman (Faculty Ballot-Giver) @ Nick D'Agosto (Larry Fouch) @ James Devney (Motel Clerk) @ L. Carmen Novoa (Spanish Teacher) @ Jason Paige (Kid in Georgetown Hall) @ Matt Golden (Kid in Georgetown Hall) @ Heather Koenig (Kid in Georgetown Hall) @ Jillian Crane (Jillian rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rob Kunkel (Bob the Mechanic (uncredited)) @ Rohan Quine (Village Guy (uncredited) Produced by||Good first draft. Not so much a satire of politics as of the late twentieth century work ethic.To the extent that Payne has the courage to deliver a positive message at all, it's the one best expressed by Ambrose Beirce: `It's not enough to tell me that you worked hard for your gold - so too does the Devil work hard.' But he muddies his message and dulls the story with needless cynicism.The story is this: Tracy Flick is running unopposed for school president, and teacher Jim McAllistar, unable to stomach her winning, `interferes with destiny' by convincing the school football star to run against her.This simple scenario takes a while to set up, partly because it's narrated from four points of view, and all four of the narrating characters refer darkly to the dire consequences of McAllistar's interference.After the tenth such reference we expect the consequences to be pretty damned dire: an extended French bedroom farce culminating in an apocalypse is about the least that will satisfy us.Needless to say, the denouement is a let-down.It needn't have been quite so much of a let-down as it is. A lot of time is devoted to McAllistar's marital infidelity.All of this time is wasted.The story Payne is trying (or ought to be trying) to tell is one of a man whose life is derailed by that irresistible force of nature, Tracy Flick.But most of the damage is done by things that take place outside the school and have nothing, whatever, to do with the main plot. This isn't a true tragedy at all.A true tragedy would have seen McAllistar done by a SINGLE character flaw manifesting itself in ONE train of events - and it would have been a better story.But McAllistar is loaded with half a dozen flaws that don't even seem to be part of his true character. People who liked Gus Van Sant's `To Die For' should love this movie.At any rate, they damned well OUGHT to, for while `To Die For' was contemptible rubbish, `Election' takes one or two of the more promising elements from the earlier film and actually makes something of them, if not something completely successful.One thing that IS completely successful is Reese Witherspoon's portrayal of Tracy Flick.Quite apart from the fact that any film with Reese Witherspoon in it must be worth watching, she conveys pure Flickness here: all innocent eyes, menacing smile, clenched teeth and flared nostrils. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Elizabeth|Shekhar Kapur|Drama|Rated R for violence and sexuality. |7.6|UK|1998| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Bevan Liza Chasin Eric Fellner Debra Hayward Alison Owen Mary Richards|Michael Hirst |Remi Adefarasin ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Absolute power demands absolute loyalty. |The story of Elizabeth's ascendency to the throne, the plot of the movie is full of palace intrigues, attempted assassinations and executions. The movie starts with England divided by faith, Protestant vs. Catholic. The queen, Mary Tudor has no heir and her Catholic supporters fear the succession of her half-sister Elizabeth, a Protestant. They convince the queen to have Elizabeth arrested and put in the Tower of London but the queen hesitates and eventually refuses to sign her death warrant. It is announced that the queen is pregnant but it turns out to be a tumor and she dies of it a while later. Her Catholic supporters are forced to give the throne to Elizabeth. Elizabeth's first few years are shaky as she is not versed with the art of realpolitik and "rules from the heart instead of the mind". There is also the question of her succession as she is yet unmarried and her death without heir would mean the throne falling back into Catholic hands. She has many suitors but she eventually rejects them all. And aided by Sir Francis Walsingham she manages to kill all her enemies and ascends the throne as the "Virgin Queen". When catholic Queen Mary dies the succession goes to Elizabeth, the protestant half-sister Mary was not prepared to execute. The new queen finds herself surrounded by advisors, some supportive but some plotting to restore the catholic line by almost any means. She is also under pressure to marry and produce an heir, but her lover Lord Robert Dudley is not considered suitable. Elizabeth realises she has some decisions to make, the most important being who rules England. |Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth I) @ Geoffrey Rush (Sir Francis Walsingham) @ Joseph Fiennes (Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester) @ Christopher Eccleston (Duke of Norfolk) @ Richard Attenborough (Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley) @ Fanny Ardant (Mary of Guise) @ Vincent Cassel (Duc d'Anjou) @ Kathy Burke (Queen Mary Tudor) @ Terence Rigby (Bishop Gardiner) @ James Frain (Alvaro de la Quadra) @ Peter Stockbridge (Palace Chamberlain) @ Amanda Ryan (Lettice Howard) @ Jamie Foreman (Earl of Sussex) @ Edward Hardwicke (Earl of Arundel) @ Valerie Gale (Mary's Dwarf) @ Rod Culbertson (Master Ridley) @ Paul Fox (Male Martyr) @ George Yiasoumi (King Philip II of Spain) @ Liz Giles (Female Martyr) @ Emily Mortimer (Kat Ashley) @ Kelly Macdonald (Isabel Knollys) @ Wayne Sleep (Dance Tutor) @ Sally Grey (Lady in Waiting) @ Kate Loustau (Lady in Waiting) @ Elika Gibbs (Lady in Waiting) @ Sarah Owen (Lady in Waiting) @ Lily Allen (Lady in Waiting) @ Joe White (Master of the Tower) @ Matt Andrews (Norfolk's Man) @ Liam Foley (Norfolk's Man) @ Lewis Jones (Priest) @ Michael Beint (Bishop Carlisle) @ Angus Deayton (Waad, Chancellor of the Eschequer) @ Eric Cantona (Monsieur de Foix) @ Kenny Doughty (Sir Thomas Elyot) @ Hayley Burroughs (Elizabeth's Dwarf) @ Joseph O'Conor (Earl of Derby (as Joseph O'Connor)) @ Brendan O'Hea (Lord William Howard) @ Edward Highmore (Lord Harewood) @ Daniel Moynihan (First Bishop) @ Jeremy Hawk (Second Bishop) @ James Rowe (Bishop (in Cellar)) @ Donald Pelmear (Third Bishop) @ Tim Bevan (Handsome Man) @ Charles Cartmell (Dudley's man) @ Edward Purver (Dudley's Man) @ John Gielgud (The Pope) @ Daniel Craig (John Ballard) @ Vladimir Vega (Vatican Cardinal) @ Alfie Owen-Allen (Arundel's Son (as Alfie Allen)) @ Daisy Bevan (Arundel's Daughter) @ Jennifer Lewicki (Arundel's Housemaid) @ Viviane Horne (Arundel's Wife) @ Nick Smallman (Walsingham's Man rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ James Britton (Member of Duc d'Anjou's Group (uncredited)) @ Ben Enwright (Royal Guard of Honour (uncredited)) @ Ben Frain (Young French Man (uncredited)) @ Shekhar Kapur (Man who stabs Bishop (uncredited)) @ Jean-Pierre Léaud ( (uncredited)) @ Matthew Rhys ( (uncredited)) @ Christian Simpson (Royal Guard (uncredited) Produced by||Good Historical Drama The opening scene is dark and horrific, and sets the tone for the remaining story.That story is a behind-the-scenes look at the English monarchy during the final days of the Catholic and childless Queen Mary, and the ascendancy of the Protestant and unmarried Elizabeth. Dark and brooding with deep colors, smoke and shadow, Elizabeth is not a light Renaissance romp.Bodies do pile up, and cross and double-cross abound as Elizabeth gropes her way to power. And that's about it as far as the story goes...Queen Mary's dying, the Earl of Norfolk and his friends try to kill Elizabeth and fail, Mary dies and Elizabeth becomes queen, Norfolk and friends try again and fail again, then its payback time for Elizabeth. One of my few complaints about the movie is the lack of character development outside of Elizabeth.The motivations of the surrounding characters is only superficially addressed.The movie's success rests on two pillars, Cate Blanchett's wonderful acting, and the beautiful cinematography and sets.Blanchett (and Geoffrey Rush) carry the acting chores, and they are remarkable.The remainder seem to go a little overboard, like they're doing a 1550s England bit for MTV. The movie certainly entertains and makes for a good viewing.My only regret is that I saw it on the small screen, and wished I'd seen it in a theater. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Emma|Douglas McGrath|Comedy|Rated PG for brief mild language. |6.9|UK|1996| 121 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Patrick Cassavetti Donna Gigliotti Donna Grey Steven Haft Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|Jane Austen Douglas McGrath|Ian Wilson ||Europa Filmes [br] |Cupid is armed and dangerous! |Emma Woodhouse is a congenial young lady who delights in meddling in other people's affairs. She is perpetually trying to unite men and women who are utterly wrong for each other. Despite her interest in romance, Emma is clueless about her own feelings, and her relationship with gentle Mr. Knightly. Based on the Jane Austen novel, "Emma" tells the story of a young woman in England who plays her town's matchmaker. When attempting to match up her friend with the Reverend Elton, Emma starts to run into complications, which multiply amongst themselves with cases of mistaken intentions of love, a cast of supporting characters who each love someone else, but Emma doesn't know who loves who, and Emma finally realizing the one person she truly loves. Reworking of Jane Austen's classic novel, set in nineteenth century England, about the rather unsuccessful attempts at matchmaking carried out by a beautiful young woman (Gwynneth Paltrow) on her unsuspecting friends. Emma is a very beautiful young woman who decides to devote her life in finding the right mate for the people around her. But, her cause will come to contestation when she will find love in the face of a much sought after man. |Gwyneth Paltrow (Emma Woodhouse) @ James Cosmo (Mr. Weston) @ Greta Scacchi (Mrs. Weston) @ Alan Cumming (Rev. Elton) @ Denys Hawthorne (Mr. Woodhouse) @ Sophie Thompson (Miss Bates) @ Jeremy Northam (Mr. Knightley) @ Toni Collette (Harriet Smith) @ Kathleen Byron (Mrs. Goddard) @ Phyllida Law (Mrs. Bates) @ Edward Woodall (Robert Martin) @ Brett Miley (Little Boy) @ Brian Capron (John Knightley) @ Karen Westwood (Isabella) @ Paul Williamson (Footman) @ Polly Walker (Jane Fairfax) @ Rebecca Craig (Miss Martin) @ Ewan McGregor (Frank Churchill) @ Angela Down (Mrs. Cole) @ John Franklyn-Robbins (Mr. Cole) @ Juliet Stevenson (Mrs. Elton) @ Ruth Jones (Bates Maid Produced by||Good, but not brilliant This is a good adaptation of Austen's novel. Good, but not brilliant. The cinematography is inventive, crossing at times the border to gimmickry, but it certainly avoids the trap of making this look like a boring TV soap in costumes, given that the entire story is dialogue-driven. The acting is competent.Ms Paltrow is aloof, as her character requires, but the required distance from the other characters is accompanied by a much less appropriate detachment from her own actions.In other words, she does not seem to care enough of the results of her match-making endeavours.Some of the supporting cast is guilty of over-acting - very much in the style that is appreciated on stage but out of place in motion pictures. Personally, I had problems accepting Alan Cumming as Mr Elton - to no fault of his own, except for having left such an impression as a gay trolley-dolly in "The High Life" that it is now difficult to accept him playing any serious part.Acting honours go to Toni Collette who manages to radiate warmth, and Jeremy Northam who pitches his character at just the right level. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Encino Man|Les Mayfield|Fantasy||4.9|USA|1992| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Hilton A. Green Michael Rotenberg George Zaloom|George Zaloom Shawn Schepps Shawn Schepps|Robert Brinkmann ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Where The Stone Age Meets The Rock Age!|Stoney and Dave find a caveman (Link) trapped in ice, thaw him out, and show him around town. Although Link is slow to catch on to basic concepts of 20th century life, he has no trouble impressing all the girls and helping Stoney and Dave find the coolness they've been searching for. |Sean Astin (Dave Morgan) @ Brendan Fraser (Link) @ Pauly Shore (Stoney Brown) @ Megan Ward (Robyn Sweeney) @ Robin Tunney (Ella) @ Michael DeLuise (Matt Wilson) @ Patrick Van Horn (Phil, Matt's Thug #1) @ Dalton James (Will, Matt's Thug #2) @ Rick Ducommun (Mr. Brush) @ Jonathan Ke Quan (Kim (as Jonathan Quan)) @ Mariette Hartley (Mrs. Morgan) @ Richard Masur (Mr. Morgan) @ Ellen Blain (Teena Morgan) @ Esther Scott (Mrs. Mackey) @ Steven Elkins (Mr. Beady) @ Wanda Acuna (Maria) @ Furley Lumpkin (Science Teacher) @ Peter Allas (Officer Sims) @ Michole White (Kathleen (as Michole Briana White)) @ Rose McGowan (Nora) @ Jack Noseworthy (Taylor, Skater #1) @ Christian Hoff (Boog, Skater #2) @ Sicily Rossomando (Señorita Vasquez) @ Erick Avari (Raji) @ Gerry Bednob (Kashmir) @ Doug McCallie (Police Officer (as Douglas McCallie)) @ R.D. Carpenter (Truck Driver) @ Kyle Scott Jackson (Intimidating Cop (as Kyle-Scott Jackson)) @ Jeffrey Anderson-Gunter (Bartender) @ Noel L. Walcott III (Rastadude) @ Mark Adair-Rios (Peyton (as Mark Adair)) @ José Luis Lozano (Charlie) @ Sandra Hess (Cave Nug) @ Deborah Lee Johnson (Fresh Nug) @ Julianne Christie (Fresh Nug) @ Toni Herkert (Fresh Nug) @ Therese Kablan (Fresh Nug) @ Renee Griffin (Fresh Nug (as Jerri Reneé Griffin)) @ Heather Bennett (Mountain Nug) @ Melinda Armstrong (Mountain Nug) @ Mike Muir (Infectious Grooves) @ Stephen Perkins (Infectious Grooves) @ Dean Pleasants (Infectious Grooves) @ Adam Siegel (Infectious Grooves) @ Robert Trujillo (Infectious Grooves Bassist) @ Richard Montoya (Enrique - Culture Clash) @ Ricardo Salinas (Loco - Culture Clash (as Ric Salinas)) @ Herbert Siguenza (Chuly - Culture Clash rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mark David (Extra (uncredited)) @ Ivan Dudynsky (Student (uncredited)) @ Vince Lozano (Charlie (uncredited) Produced by||Run of the mill comedy Same old stuff here as 2 30 year old high school lads unearth a quick frozen apeman and turn him into hot property around school. He presents a bad boy image so the girls go for him. Being an amazingly quick study, especially for a Neanderthal, he learns how to be a 90's kinda guy real fast [I suppose this is done to hurry the film along so all the teens won't get bored]. Not horrid, but merely the same old, same old. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ End of Days|Peter Hyams|Horror|Rated R for intense violence and gore, a strong sex scene and language. R|5.3|USA|1999|121 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Marc Abraham Armyan Bernstein Thomas A. Bliss Bill Borden Paul Deason Andrew W. Marlowe|Andrew W. Marlowe |Peter Hyams ||Buena Vista International [us] |Prepare for the end.|In 1979, an innocent newborn girl is secretly patronized by Satanists. Twenty years later, she has developed into a young woman, who is haunted by dreams about one strange man. Menawhile, private security guard Jericho takes down an old and homeless priest, who tried to shoot Jericho's customer, a successful Wall Street Banker. What Jericho does not know is that Satan himself roams the Streets of New York in order to mate with the chosen girl. If he manages to do so in the last hour before the next millenium, his only chance to get out of his eternal prison is gone and he has to wait another thousand years. Now it is up to atheist Jericho to find the girl before Satan does and protect her from harm. But Jericho does not have a clue who he's up against... L'ex-poliziotto Jericho Cane è molto depresso : dei criminali gli hanno sterminato la famiglia e lui cerca rifugio nell'alcool e medita il suicidio. Ma si avvicina la fine del millennio e, secondo le Scritture, il diavolo potrebbe riuscire ad assoggettare il genere umano se si accoppierà con una giovane donna nelle ultime ore dell'anno, per generare l'Anticristo. Perciò, il nostro eroe, che nel frattempo ha lasciato la polizia ed è diventato guardia del corpo di miliardari arrivisti, si trova a dover lottare contro la profezia e contro il Male. Chi, se non lui, potrebbe fermare il Maligno, che ha preso a prestito le sembianze di un uomo d'affari, ma dispone di una forza erculea? Jericho deve impegnarsi al massimo per sottrarre Christine, l'infelice predestinata, non soltanto alla infelice congiunzione con il demonio, ma anche ad una setta di preti fanatici decisi ad eliminarla. Dopo esplosioni e combattimenti con tutte le armi possibili con il Maligno, Jericho si rende conto che le armi materiali non bastano, per cui......si reca in chiesa, per la resa dei conti finale. |Arnold Schwarzenegger (Jericho Cane) @ Gabriel Byrne (The Man/Satan) @ Robin Tunney (Christine York) @ Kevin Pollak (Chicago) @ CCH Pounder (Detective Margie Francis) @ Derrick O'Connor (Thomas Aquinas) @ David Weisenberg (OB/GYN) @ Rainer Judd (Christine's Mother) @ Miriam Margolyes (Mabel) @ Udo Kier (Head Priest) @ Victor Varnado (Albino) @ Michael O'Hagan (Cardinal) @ Mark Margolis (Pope) @ Jack Shearer (Kellogg) @ Rod Steiger (Father Kovak) @ Eve Sigall (Old Woman) @ Luciano Miele (Pope's Advisor) @ Robert Lesser (Carson) @ Lloyd Garroway (Utility Worker #1) @ Gary Anthony Williams (Utility Worker #2) @ John Nielsen (Lead) @ Ioannis Bogris (Skateboarder) @ Elliot Goldwag (Thomas' Doctor) @ Elaine Corral Kendall (Anchor) @ Denice D. Lewis (Emily) @ Renee Olstead (Amy (as Rebecca Renee Olstead)) @ Matt Gallini (Monk) @ Marc Lawrence (Old Man) @ Van Quattro (Satan Priest) @ Charles A. Tamburro (Helicopter Pilot) @ Lynn Marie Sager (Head Priest's Wife) @ Linda Pine (Evie, Head Priest's Daughter) @ David Franco (Assistant Priest) @ Steve Kramer (Businessman (as Steven Kramer)) @ Melissa Mascara (Businessman's Wife) @ John Timothy Botka (Cop at Thomas') @ Walter von Huene (Motorman) @ Father Michael Rocha (Father Mike rest of cast listed alphabetically Kassandra Kay .... Nun) @ Terry Ostovich (Harlem Twelve Thug (uncredited)) @ Frankie Ray (Squatter (uncredited)) @ Paul Schackman (Radio DJ (uncredited)) @ Sven-Ole Thorsen (Thug (uncredited)Produced by||I Wonder What The Story Behind The Production Is ? Watching END OF DAYS I got the distinct impression this movie had problems in the early production stage . The story as revealed at the start of the film involves two sets of the clergy , one of which is trying to protect a young virgin from the clutches of Satan while the other set is trying to murder her so he won`t mate with her . So far so good , so why include the character of Jerico Cane , a burned out suicidal cop ? After all the story could have worked without his inclusion even though it may have been too similar toTHE FINAL CONFLICT in feel and execution , but I still feel Cane didn`t have to be included while the role of the hero could easily have gone to a good guy priest . Worse still Jerico Cane is played by big Arnie which means through box office necessity ( ie box office bucks ) instead of END OF DAYS being a haunting supernatural drama it ends up being a supernatural action/adventure movie that doesn`t work . It should also be pointed out that Arnie doesn`t have the acting range to play a burned out sucidal cop . How about this as a casting premise: Anthony Hopkins plays a disillusioned priest trying to save Christine York from Satan . Doesn`t that sound a whole lot better ? Not to be too negative the story is interesting in places , and I`m sure the first draft of the script was very moody and atmospheric until the screenplay was re-written to death . Gabriel Byrne plays Satan with the exact right mixture of charm and menace which leads me to believe he`d be the perfect choice as The Master if Hollywood ever make a big budget screen version of DOCTOR WHO . Peter Hyams direction while not perfect is far better than much of his work in recent years and does manage to inject a fair amount of mood into his work . But at the end of the day ( Pun intended ) this movie would have worked a lot better if we had an acting star instead of an action star as the hero ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Enigma|Michael Apted|Romance|Rated R for a sex scene and language. |6.7|UK|2001| 119 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robbert Aarts David Brown Guy East Thomas Garvin Hanno Huth Mick Jagger Ate de Jong Jeanney Kim Lorne Michaels Victoria Pearman Julian Plunkett-Dillon Nigel Sinclair Michael White|Robert Harris Tom Stoppard|Seamus McGarvey ||Ascot Elite Entertainment Group [ch] |Unlock the secret|During the heart of World War II, in March of 1943, cryptoanalysts at Britain's code-breaking center have discovered to their horror that Nazi U-boats have changed their Enigma Code. Authorities enlist the help of a brilliant young man named Tom Jericho (played by Dougray Scott) to help them break the code again. The possibility of a spy within the British code-breakers' ranks looms and Tom's love, Claire (Saffron Burrows), has disappeared. To solve the mysteries, Tom recruits Claire's best friend, Hester Wallace (Kate Winslet). In investigating Claire's personal life, the pair discovers personal and international betrayals. |Dougray Scott (Tom Jericho) @ Kate Winslet (Hester Wallace) @ Saffron Burrows (Claire Romilly) @ Jeremy Northam (Wigram) @ Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jozef 'Puck' Pukowski (as Nikolaj Coster Waldau)) @ Tom Hollander (Logie) @ Donald Sumpter (Leveret) @ Matthew MacFadyen (Cave) @ Richard Leaf (Baxter) @ Ian Felce (Proudfoot) @ Bohdan Poraj (Pinker) @ Paul Rattray (Kingcome) @ Richard Katz (De Brooke) @ Tom Fisher (Upjohn) @ Robert Pugh (Skynner) @ Corin Redgrave (Admiral Trowbridge) @ Nicholas Rowe (Villiers) @ Angus MacInnes (Commander Hammerbeck) @ Mary MacLeod (Mrs. Armstrong) @ Michael Troughton (Mermagen) @ Edward Hardwicke (Heaviside) @ Anne-Marie Duff (Kay) @ Tim Bentinck (U-Boat Commander) @ Rosie Thomson (Duty clerk) @ Emma Buckley (Land Army Girl) @ Mirijam De Rooij (Lady Lodger (as Mirjam De Rooij)) @ Adrian Preater (RAF Corporal) @ Edward Woodall (Bletchley Brain) @ Hywel Simons (Male Lodger) @ Emma Davies (Pamela) @ Martin Glyn Murray (RAF Officer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Wilhelm Brückner (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Josef Goebbels (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (arrives at rally) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Mick Jagger (Soldier in Bar (uncredited)) @ Viktor Lutze (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (uncredited) (archive footage) (unconfirmed)) @ Lee Montague ( (uncredited)) @ Julius Schaub (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Isobel Tate ( (uncredited)) @ Werner von Blomberg (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Werner von Fritsch (Himself (accompanies Hitler) (uncredited) (archive footage) (unconfirmed) Produced by||Plain Text Spoilers herein. Gosh, I waited for this eagerly. Tom Stoppard is the best screenwriting weaver of self-referential work. Kate Winslet is one of our finest actors who knows how to play multiple layers simultaneously and who also understands how to cross time shifts. Northam is less brilliant, but has been snappy with some Wilde material that plays with text. Saffron is queen of the musky images. The story is (even minus Alan Turing) one of the richest in all the history of the world in terms of the thing and the representation of the thing. What went wrong? In fact, the script is great. The problem is Apted, who is oblivious to the possibilities for manifolding studded into the script. Watch Kate struggle with an inept bureaucracy of the film while she does the same in character. Watch as they both (the Bletchley and Jagger crowds) make provision for genius without understanding it. I am into pairing films for viewing. This one goes with `A Bridge Too Far,' in terms of the poles of British competence in the War. Despite the clumsy filmmaking, and the thuggish score, and the laconic editing this is still worth seeing. But you must decode it to see the gem of a film that is hidden in there. My one fault with the decoded film is that it lacks a visual mapping of the mathematical/geometric vision some of these guys had. `Beautiful Mind' tried and botched it bigtime. What we need is Greenaway and Nyman. Ted's evaluation: 3 of 4 -- Worth watching. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Entrapment|Jon Amiel|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some language, sensuality, violence and drug content. |6.1|USA|1999| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ronald Bass Sean Connery Michael Hertzberg Arnon Milchan Iain Smith Rhonda Tollefson|Ronald Bass Michael Hertzberg Ronald Bass William Broyles Jr.|Phil Meheux ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The trap is set. |Following the theft of a highly-secured piece of artwork, an agent convinces her insurance agency employers to allow her to wriggle into the company of an aging but active master thief. Connery's burglar takes her on suspiciously and demands rigorous training before their first job together--stealing a highly-valued mask from a chichi party. Their deepening attraction and distrust could tear apart their partnership but the promise of a bigger prize (some eight billion odd dollars) by Zeta-Jones keeps the game interesting. Only, who's playing with whom? |Sean Connery (Robert MacDougal) @ Catherine Zeta-Jones (Virginia Baker) @ Ving Rhames (Aaron Thibadeaux) @ Will Patton (Hector Cruz) @ Maury Chaykin (Conrad Greene) @ Kevin McNally (Haas) @ Terry O'Neill (Quinn) @ Madhav Sharma (Security Chief) @ David Yip (Chief of Police) @ Tim Potter (Millennium Man) @ Eric Meyers (Waverly Technician) @ Aaron Swartz (Cruz's Man) @ William Marsh (Computer Technician) @ Tony Xu (Banker) @ Rolf Saxon (Director) @ Tom Clarke Hill (Operator (as Tom Clarke-Hill)) @ David Howard (Technician) @ Sai-Kit Yung (Doctor (as Stuart Ong)) @ Ravin J. Ganatra (1st Security Guard (as Ravin Ganatra)) @ Rhydian Jai-Persad (2nd Security Guard) @ Hari Dhillon (3rd Security Guard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kee Thuan Chye (Trader #1 (uncredited) Produced by||Good robbery scenes but most of the plot is stretched to breaking point Gin works for an insurance company investigating robberies committed by Mac MacDougal.In order to catch him red-handed she ?approaches him with a series of big jobs that they plan together.However as the crimes continue who is setting who up? and the double crosses begin to pile up. I had high hopes for this but it was a pretty big disappointment.The story is very weak and relies on the robbery scenes for excitement.These scenes are well done but are highs in a series of lows.The "romance" between Mac and Gin doesn't work, and the double crosses are clever at first but get stupid towards the end.The age difference between Connery and Jones is a problem - it makes the chemistry between them very uneasy.At several points where Zeta is bending and moving around with her curves highlighted, Connery looks on like a lecherous old man - at one point he emits a low "hmmm" which just made me feel really uncomfortable. The rest of the cast is OK, Will Patton and Ving Rhames seem to be doing extended cameos rather than playing characters.But Zeta's American accent made me wonder why she was picked for this role and Connery's role could have been played by a mature actor without him being so much older. Overall the robberies are exciting but the rest of the action is dull or stretched. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Erin Brockovich|Steven Soderbergh|Drama|Rated R for language. |7.4|USA|2000| 130 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Danny DeVito John Hardy Gail Lyon Carla Santos Shamberg Michael Shamberg Stacey Sher|Susannah Grant |Edward Lachman ||Columbia TriStar Egmont Film Distributors [fi] |She brought a small town to its feet and a huge corporation to its knees. |Erin Brockovich is an unemployed single mother, desperate to find a job, but is having no luck. This losing streak even extends to a failed lawsuit against a doctor in a car accident she was in. With no alternative, she successfully browbeats her lawyer to give her a job in compensation for the loss. While no one takes her seriously, with her trashy clothes and earthy manners, that soon changes when she begins to investigate a suspicious real estate case involving the Pacific Gas & Electric Company. What she discovers is that the company is trying quietly to buy land that was contaminated by hexavalent chromium, a deadly toxic waste that the company is improperly and illegally dumping and, in turn, poisoning the residents in the area. As she digs deeper, Erin finds herself leading point in a series of events that would involve her lawfirm in one of the biggest class action lawsuits in American history against a multi-billion dollar corporation. |Julia Roberts (Erin Brockovich) @ David Brisbin (Dr. Jaffe) @ Dawn Didawick (Rosalind) @ Albert Finney (Ed Masry) @ Valente Rodriguez (Donald) @ Conchata Ferrell (Brenda) @ George Rocky Sullivan (Los Angeles Judge) @ Pat Skipper (Defending Lawyer) @ Jack Gill (Defendant) @ Irene Olga López (Mrs. Morales) @ Emily Marks (Beth (8 months)) @ Julie Marks (Beth (8 months)) @ Scotty Leavenworth (Matthew) @ Gemmenne de la Peña (Katie) @ Erin Brockovich-Ellis (Waitress) @ Adilah Barnes (Anna) @ Irina V. Passmoore (Babysitter) @ Aaron Eckhart (George) @ Ron Altomare (Biker Friend) @ Charles John Bukey (Biker Friend) @ Marg Helgenberger (Donna Jensen) @ Randy Lowell (Brian Frankel) @ Jamie Harrold (Scott) @ Sarah Ashley (Ashley Jensen) @ Scarlett Pomers (Shanna Jensen) @ T.J. Thyne (David Foil) @ Joe Chrest (Tom Robinson) @ Meredith Zinner (Mandy Robinson) @ Michael Harney (Pete Jensen) @ William Lucking (Bob Linwood) @ Mimi Kennedy (Laura Ambrosino) @ Scott Sowers (Mike Ambrosino) @ Cherry Jones (Pamela Duncan) @ Kristina Malota (Annabelle Daniels) @ Wade Williams (Ted Daniels (as Wade Andrew Williams)) @ Cordelia Richards (Rita Daniels) @ Ashley Pimental (Beth (18 months)) @ Brittany Pimental (Beth (18 months)) @ Tracey Walter (Charles Embry) @ Larry Martinez (Nelson Perez) @ Judge LeRoy A. Simmons (Himself) @ Don Snell (PG&E Lawyer) @ Michael Shamberg (PG&E Lawyer) @ Gina Gallego (Ms. Sanchez) @ Peter Coyote (Kurt Potter) @ Ronald E. Hairston (Car Messenger) @ Veanne Cox (Theresa Dallavale) @ Scott Allen (Town Meeting Plaintiff) @ Sheila Shaw (Ruth Linwood) @ Matthew Kimbrough (Bartender) @ Jason Cervantes (Check Messenger rest of cast listed alphabetically Mike Malone .... Baxter (scenes deleted)) @ Norma Maldonado (Woman #1 (uncredited)) @ Tom Tangen (Ned (uncredited) Produced by||Success story. In real life ,the main character was arguably an admirable woman;in the movie,the character is given a treatment which is by no means convincing. First of all,Julia Roberts overplays :the rest of the cast is completely wasted,and serves as a foil to her;look at paunchy aging Finney:he has become his own caricature;Peter Coyote's part is scarcely more than a walk-on and what can we say about his female counterpart,a sexually repressed(?) earnest educated woman?Roberts' long-haired partner barely dares to say a word as well. The intentions are very dubious ;sometimes,it seems that Roberts is not at all some Florence Nightingale,but rather a go-getter who wants to do her walk of life:the last scene ,focussing on money ,is sheer bad taste .We're supposed to find her likeable because she's always swearing like a trouper.But her swagger is in direct contrast with that:wherever and whenever she moves, pursuing cockroaches or meeting chic people,she seems to go out of a beauty parlor.Directing is undistinguished,recalling made-for-TV quality. Word to the wise:(if there's any of us left)try "Silkwood " instead:Meryl Streep is a much better thespian than Roberts,and the woman she plays did not fight for money but for dear life,because,unlike Erin,she was a victim from the start. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Escape to Witch Mountain|John Hough|Fantasy||6.0|USA|1975| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jerome Courtland Ron Miller|Alexander Key Robert M. Young|Frank V. Phillips ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Caught in a world where they don't belong... they have one chance to escape! |Tia (Kim Richards) and Tony (Ike Eisenmann) are two orphaned youngsters with extraordinary powers. Lucas Deranian (Donald Pleasence) poses as their uncle in order to get the kids into the clutches of Deranian's megalomaniacal boss, evil millionaire Aristotle Bolt (Ray Milland), who wants to exploit them. Jason (Eddie Albert), a cynical widower, helps Tia and Tony "escape to witch mountain," while at the same time Tia and Tony help Jason escape the pain of the loss of his wife. |Eddie Albert (Jason) @ Ray Milland (Aristotle Bolt) @ Donald Pleasence (Lucas Deranian) @ Kim Richards (Tia) @ Ike Eisenmann (Tony) @ Walter Barnes (Sheriff Purdy) @ Reta Shaw (Mrs. Grindley) @ Denver Pyle (Uncle Bene) @ Alfred Ryder (Astrologer) @ Lawrence Montaigne (Ubermann) @ Terry Wilson (Biff Jenkins) @ George Chandler (Grocer) @ Dermott Downs (Truck) @ Shepherd Sanders (Guru) @ Don Brodie (Gasoline Attendant) @ Paul Sorenson (Sergeant Foss) @ Alfred Rossi (Police Officer No. 3) @ Tiger Joe Marsh (Lorko) @ Harry Holcombe (Capt. Malone) @ Sam Edwards (Mate) @ Dan Seymour (Psychic) @ Eugene Daniels (Cort) @ Al Dunlap (Deputy) @ Rex Holman (Hunter No. 1) @ Tony Giorgio (Hunter No. 2 Produced by||Good adventure film for kids In fact, I thought it was a good film for adults. It was a typical Disney effort, the plot was obvious and the ending was more so, but still a film worth watching. The kids were cute, brave, smart, etc.; the villains were nasty, evil, money hungry, etc. A lovely ending was had, and everybody lived happily ever after. Kids will love this one. ||Movies |1.75 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Exorcist II: The Heretic|John Boorman|Drama|R |3.4|USA|1977|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/28/2004|John Boorman Richard Lederer Charles Orme|William Peter Blatty John Boorman William Goodhart Rospo Pallenberg|William A. Fraker ||Warner Bros. [us] |It's four years later...what does she remember?|The demon is back in this the second film of the three part series as a new priest played by Richard Burton tries to find the demon still living inside Regan (Linda Blair). Father Lamont (Richard Burton) is sent by his Cardinal (Paul Henreid) to discover the death of Father Merrin (Max von Sydow) and also to see why Regan (Linda Blair) was possessed by the demon Pasuzu. Father Lamont travels around the globe to Africa in search of another possessed by the same demon named Kokumo (James Earl Jones) which Father Merrin had performed an exorcism several years in the past. Kokumo tells Father Lamont that the demon lives inside locusts who fly around the world. When Father Lamont returns to New York were Regan lives he discovers the demon has reached Regan through Dr. Gene Tuskin's (Louise Fletcher) hypnosis machine. Father Lamont travels to Regan's old home in Georgetown to defeat the demon. However this time the demon takes control of Regan, Father Lamont, and Sharon (Kitty Winn). Father Merrin's spirit returns to help. |Linda Blair (Regan MacNeil) @ Richard Burton (Father Lamont) @ Louise Fletcher (Dr. Gene Tuskin) @ Max von Sydow (Father Merrin) @ Kitty Winn (Sharon Spencer) @ Paul Henreid (The Cardinal) @ James Earl Jones (Older Kokumo) @ Ned Beatty (Edwards) @ Belinda Beatty (Liz) @ Rose Portillo (Spanish Girl) @ Barbara Cason (Mrs. Phalor) @ Tiffany Kinney (Deaf Girl) @ Joey Green (Young Kokumo) @ Fiseha Dimetros (Young Monk) @ Ken Renard (Abbot) @ Hank Garrett (Conductor) @ Lorry Goldman (Accident Victim) @ Bill Grant (Taxi Driver) @ Shane Butterworth (Gary Tuskin) @ Joey Lauren Adams (Linda Tuskin (as Joey Adams)) @ Robert Lussier (Man on the Plane) @ Karen Knapp (Pazuzu (uncredited)) @ Dana Plato (Sandra Phalor (uncredited)Produced by||* *1/2 out of 4. This review applies to the 118 min. version. If you ever watch this film, please stay away from the 110 min. versions and TV prints. All they do is cut out important scenes that will leave you confused. The demon that plagued Reagen (Linda Blair) in the original Exorcist is discovered to still be haunting her. A doctor (Louise Fletcher), who acts as a mother figure to Reagen, and a priest (Richard Burton), who is also sent to discover what caused Father Merrin's (Max Von Sydow) death, are sent to help her. However, the priest discovers that the same demon that haunts Linda Blair is the same one that he exorcised from an African tribalsman (James Earl Jones). After his inquiry sends him all the way to Africa, Burton finds out from Jones that the demon travels worldwide in locusts. After arriving back in the states, Burton discovers that Fletcher's treatments have caused Reagen to be possessed again. Possibly the most under-rated sequel in history boosts aterrific cast (that also includes Ned Beatty and Kittty Winn) and features a good leading performance from Linda Blair. The direction is top notch and the special effects, score, & cinematography are all very impressive. Also the film tries to build upon the original by giving it complex layers and by taking this franchise in a brand new direction. This first-rate thriller only suffers from one thing, the script (which I will admit is quite good) is like an H.P. Lovecraft book, it is nearly impossible to translate to the screen. Still you got to give the cast and crew a lot of credit for really being original and daring. Rated R; Violence and Profanity. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Exorcist, The|William Friedkin|Horror|R |7.9|USA|1973|122 min/ Germany:132 min (2001 re-release) / USA:132 min (2000 re-release)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/18/2004|William Peter Blatty Noel Marshall David Salven|William Peter Blatty |Owen Roizman Billy Williams||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Something beyond comprehension is happening to a little girl on this street, in this house. A man has been called for as a last resort to try and save her. That man is The Exorcist.|Based on the 1971 novel by William Peter Blatty, The Exorcist marries three different scenarios into one extraordinary plot. A visiting actress in Washington, D.C., notices dramatic and dangerous changes in the behavior and physical make-up of her 12-year-old daughter. Meanwhile, a young priest at nearby Georgetown University begins to doubt his faith while dealing with his mother's terminal sickness. And, book-ending the story, a frail, elderly priest recognizes the necessity for a show-down with an old demonic enemy. Blatty's novelization of a real case of possession that happened in a Washington Suburb (Mt. Ranier, MD) puts Regan, an adolescent girl, Living with her mother in Georgetown in Washington, into a more and more difficult situation. She exhibits strange symptoms, including levitation and great strength. When all medical possibilities are exhausted, her mother is sent to a priest who is also a psychiatrist. He becomes convinced that Regan is possessed and he and a second priest experienced in exorcism try to drive the spirit from Regan before she dies. Very graphic for it's time. |Ellen Burstyn (Chris MacNeil) @ Max von Sydow (Father Lankester Merrin) @ Jason Miller (Father Damien Karras) @ Lee J. Cobb (Lieutenant William Kinderman) @ Kitty Winn (Sharon Spencer) @ Jack MacGowran (Burke Dennings) @ Linda Blair (Regan Teresa MacNeil) @ Reverend William O'Malley (Father Dyer) @ Barton Heyman (Dr. Klein) @ Peter Masterson (Dr. Barringer, Clinic Director (as Pete Masterson)) @ Rudolf Schündler (Karl) @ Gina Petrushka (Willi) @ Robert Symonds (Dr. Taney) @ Arthur Storch (Psychiatrist) @ Reverend Thomas Bermingham (Tom, President of University) @ Vasiliki Maliaros (Karras' Mother) @ Titos Vandis (Karras' Uncle) @ Wallace Rooney (Bishop Michael) @ Ron Faber (Chuck, Assistant Director) @ Donna Mitchell (Mary Jo Perrin) @ Roy Cooper (Jesuit Dean) @ Robert Gerringer (Senator at Party) @ Mercedes McCambridge (Pazuzu (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ William Peter Blatty (Producer (uncredited)) @ Mary Boylan (First Mental Patient (uncredited)) @ Richard Callinan (Astronaut (uncredited)) @ Mason Curry ( (uncredited) (voice)) @ Eileen Dietz (Pazuzu's Face (uncredited)) @ Yvonne Jones (Bellevue Nurse (uncredited)) @ John Mahon (Language Lab Director (uncredited)) @ Reverend John Nicola (Priest (uncredited)) @ Vincent Russell (Subway Vagrant (uncredited)Produced by||bland look at demonic possession A little girl becomes possessed by demons. Her mother becomes upset and calls in a group of Catholic ghostbusters. The little girl talks funny, levitates, and makes ugly faces. The priests bust the ghost and all live happily ever after. What a droll film. *yawn* || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Fahrenheit 9/11|Michael Moore|Documentary|Rated R for some violent and disturbing images, and for language. R|7.9|USA|2004|122 min|English||||||||||False||||||||11/8/2004|Jim Czarnecki Rita Dagher Carl Deal Kurt Engfehr Jeff Gibbs Kathleen Glynn Monica Hampton Tia Lessin Jay Martel Agnès Mentre Michael Moore Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|Michael Moore |Mike Desjarlais Kirsten Johnson William Rexer||Lions Gate Films Inc. [ca] |The temperature where freedom burns!|In this film, muckraker Michael Moore turns his eye on George W. Bush and his War on Terrorism agenda. He illustrates his argument about how this failed businessman with deep connections to the royal house of Saud of Saudia Arabia and the Bin Ladins got elected on fraudulent circumstances and proceeded to blunder through his duties while ignoring warnings of the looming betrayal by his foreign partners. When that treachery hits with the 9/11 attacks, Moore explains how Bush failed to take immediate action to defend his nation, only to later cynically manipulate it to serve his wealthy backers' corrupt ambitions. Through facts, footage and interviews, Moore illustrates his contention of how Bush and his cronies have gotten America into worse trouble than ever before and why Americans should not stand for it. |Michael Moore (Himself rest of cast listed alphabetically Khalil Bin Laden .... Himself (archive footage)) @ Barbara Bush (Herself (archive footage)) @ Jenna Bush (Herself (archive footage)) @ Neil Cavuto (Himself (archive footage)) @ John Conyers (Himself (also archive footage)) @ Byron Dorgan (Himself) @ Al Gore (Himself (archive footage)) @ Abdul Henderson (Himself) @ Lila Lipscomb (Herself) @ Jim McDermott (Himself) @ Rep. Patsy Mink (Herself (archive footage)) @ Craig Unger (Himself) @ Ben Affleck (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited) ) @ John Ashcroft (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ James Baker III (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ James Bath (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Jon Bon Jovi (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Tom Brokaw (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Barbara Bush (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ George Bush (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ George W. Bush (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Jeb Bush (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Laura Bush (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Tucker Carlson (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Dick Cheney (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Bill Clinton (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Katie Couric (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Peter Damon (Himself (soldier in hospital) (uncredited)) @ Tom Daschle (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Robert De Niro (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ John T. Doolittle (Himself (uncredited)) @ Tipper Gore (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Katherine Harris (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Saddam Hussein (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Osama bin Laden (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Colin Powell (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Dan Rather (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Condoleezza Rice (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Donald Rumsfeld (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Tim Russert (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Britney Spears (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ John Tanner (Himself (uncredited)) @ Helen Thomas (Herself (voice) (uncredited)) @ Maxine Waters (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Paul Wolfowitz (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Stevie Wonder (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited) Produced by||More disciplined, less bombastic than "Columbine", but very sharp! 8/10 I watched "Fahrenheit 9/11" at the New York public premiere late last night in the early hours of Wednesday, June 23rd, the first opportunity for anyone not connected with Hollywood or the media to see this film. I say this so that you take prior reviews (particularly those dismissing the film outright) with a hefty dose of skepticism. I am also a Marine Corps veteran of Operation Desert Storm, and thus am acutely aware of the realities of war and its intended use only as a last resort when all alternate options are exhausted. I've seen all three of Michael Moore's films; "Roger & Me", "Bowling for Columbine", and now 'Fahrenheit.' Of the three, this current film has a far more disciplined approach. There is generally far less music, grandstanding, and general joking-around. While perhaps disappointing to his long-time audience of liberal partisans (myself among them), this more even-handed approach is truly welcome, because it instills the documentary with a sense of reason and perspective that will appeal to independents and perhaps even conservatives. Moore's audience here is not his long-time left-wing choir; it is the millions of Americans who trusted a President to be one thing and who has turned out to be quite another indeed. The major newspaper reviewers justifiably point to the first 20 minutes and the last 20 minutes, about Bush's Saudi links and the carnage in Iraq, as the strongest segments. Indeed, the sequence where a series of minority representatives are gaveled to silence in the Congress is shocking in the extreme. Yet the film is fascinating throughout; it is sometimes inchoate and contradictory, but it constantly encourages and demands critical thinking. This is perhaps the real target of Moore's fury; the unaccepting, unthinking acceptance of authority figures and 'leaders' who have not earned that respect. He uses Britney Spears to make this point with devastating finality and grim hilarity. He asks, indirectly, which side are you on-that of unquestioning obedience to a betrayer of the nation's best interests, or the side of truth, criticism, and transparency. It will be hard for Bush supporters to muster the energy to defend their addled puppet after Moore's calmly launched but devastating salvos. Furthermore, it asks the American public to take responsibility for sending its children (mostly middle- and working-class) into harm's way for less than convincing reasons. The deaths of our servicemembers are the price we pay for this president's leadership, and Moore demands that the viewer analyze this war with a eye to its true costs and motives. I am sad that there are so many in this country who will refuse to see this film for head- in-the-sand political reasons. Moore lets Bush and his cabal do most of the talking, and as such lets them indict themselves far more effectively than Al Franken or Howard Dean ever could. The film makes an absolute mockery of this president, and it is *richly* deserved. It is likely that this effort will finally 'screw to the sticking place' the courage of a national media that has shamefully aided and abetted this belligerent and bumbling national disgrace. All this being said, this is not a depressing film, at least not for me. Many of the images and themes are certainly profoundly discomfiting, yet the very existence of this film (in nationwide release) is a testament to the endurance and beauty of the American system. This country has tolerated and then dismissed other scoundrels and crooks, and soon enough this current pack of liars and cranks will be added to the dustbin of history. You can thank Moore for his courage and true understanding of our freedoms, rights, and responsibilities that you have the opportunity to see this film and form your own judgment. Do that. Its high time for all Americans to become responsibly informed, and to consider anew the true ideals of American democracy and freedom which have lately become so distorted. Election day is November 2nd. That's the most important review of all. || |1.78 : 1 |||||||@@ Fallen|Gregory Hoblit|Horror|Rated R for violence and language. |6.6|USA|1998| 123 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert Cavallo Elon Dershowitz Patricia Graf Nicholas Kazan Ted Kurdyla Charles Roven Kelley Smith-Wait Dawn Steel Richard Suckle|Nicholas Kazan |Newton Thomas Sigel ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Don't trust a soul.|Det. John Hobbes is convinced that when killer Edgar Reese is executed, all of his troubles are over. But when people he knows and people on the street start to sing the same tune that Reese sang in the gas chamber, and those same people taunt him, he is told that maybe the cursed fallen angel Azazel is behind it all. Azazel is cursed to roam the Earth without a form, and he can switch bodies by any contact, making him hard to track. When Hobbes is forced to kill a man possessed by Azazel, he must clear his name while protecting his family and others from the evil, vengeful Azazel. Homicide detective John Hobbes witnesses the execution of a demonic serial killer Edgar Reese. Soon after the execution the killings start again, and they are very similar to the style of Reese. John Hobbes watches Edgar Reese, a convicted murderer Hobbes' brought to justice executed. Reese dies with great bravado, and then a series of murders are committed using Reese's methods. As Hobbes follows up the last clues Reese left, we see an evil presence move from person to person by touch. Hobbes comes closer and closer to the secret as the presence taunts him more and more openly, threatening everyone Hobbes holds dear in the world. |Denzel Washington (John Hobbes) @ John Goodman (Jonesy) @ Donald Sutherland (Lt. Stanton) @ Embeth Davidtz (Gretta Milano) @ James Gandolfini (Lou) @ Elias Koteas (Edgar Reese) @ Gabriel Casseus (Art) @ Michael J. Pagan (Sam) @ Robert Joy (Charles) @ Frank Medrano (Charles' Killer) @ Ronn Munro (Mini-Golf owner) @ Cynthia Hayden (Society woman) @ Ray Xifo (Society man) @ Tony Michael Donnelly (Toby) @ Tara Carnes (Teenage girl) @ Reno Wilson (Mike) @ Wendy Cutler (Denise) @ Aida Turturro (Tiffany) @ Jeff Tanner (Lawrence) @ Jerry Walsh (Fat man) @ Bob Rumnock (Schoolteacher) @ Ellen Sheppard (Nun on bus) @ Christian Aubert (Prof. Louders) @ Bill Clark (Det. Bill Clark) @ Allelon Ruggiero (Executioner) @ Jill Holden (Gracie) @ Drucie McDaniel (Vendor) @ John R. Russell (Distinguished Gentleman (as John Raphael Russell)) @ Lynn Wanlass (Complaining woman) @ John Descano (Cab Driver) @ Cress Williams (Det. Joe) @ Rick Warner (Governor) @ Jim Grimshaw (Warden) @ Brandon Zitin (Muscle builder) @ Rozwill Young (Prison Guard) @ Michael Shamus Wiles (Prison Guard) @ Frank Davis (Prison Guard) @ Barry Shabaka Henley (Uniformed Cop (as Barry 'Shabaka' Henley)) @ Mike Cichetti (Moustache Man) @ Chuck Jeffreys (Transit Cop (as William C. Jeffreys III)) @ Ben Siegler (Priest) @ Jason Winston George (College Kid) @ Anika Hawkins (Girlfriend) @ Stan Kang (Japanese Businessman) @ Thomas J. McCarthy (Witness) @ Sheila Bader (Witness) @ Elleanor Jean Hendley (Reporter) @ Michael Aron (Reporter) @ Byron Scott (Reporter) @ Pat Ciarrocchi (Anchor) @ Steve Highsmith (Anchor) @ Kent Manahan (Anchor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ford Austin (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Graham Beckel ( (uncredited)) @ J. Emerson McGowan (Demon Passer (uncredited)) @ Scott Roman (Witness (uncredited)) @ Glen Witko (Muscovich (murder victim in bathtub) (uncredited) Produced by||If you are an action freak - go directly to jail! Do not push "start." Way too cerebral to have had any hope of general success! This is one very clever film, beautifully constructed and acted, with a superbly thought-provoking ending - DOES it end?Who miscalculated? Denzel Washington is a committed detective.What he has no experience of is a serial killer with the ability to switch bodies simply by touch. Exactly how he came by this talent IS explained but leaves Denzel with one mother of a problem. You don't "cuff" guys like this! Excellent support is provided by John Goodman as his long suffering partner, in fact there isn't a weak performance in the film. If you are prepared to LISTEN, INGEST and EVALUATE, you cannot fail to draw something constructive from this film. If you are a moron (ask someone!) give it a wide berth! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Falling Down|Joel Schumacher|Action|R |7.2|USA|1993|113 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/28/2004|William S. Beasley Stephen Brown Nana Greenwald Timothy Harris Dan Kolsrud Arnold Kopelson Arnon Milchan Ebbe Roe Smith John J. Tomko Herschel Weingrod|Ebbe Roe Smith |Andrzej Bartkowiak ||Warner Bros. Española S.A. [es] |The adventures of an ordinary man at war with the everyday world.|William (D-FENS) just wants to get home to see his daughter on her birthday. Unfortunately, nothing seems to be going right for him. First there's the traffic jam, then the unhelpful Korean shopkeeper who "doesn't give change". D-FENS begins to crack and starts to fight back against the every day "injustices" he encounters on his journey home. The film has a story running in parallel about a desk-bound cop who is about to retire. He's retiring for his wife's sake, and obviously isn't happy about it. The cop tracks down D-FENS and in the final scene..... A divorced engineer for the defense industry gets stuck in L.A. traffic and finally snaps. He gets out of his car and begins a walk through central L.A., where he encounters various levels of harassment, which he learns to deal with by acquiring weapons along the way. His actions attract the attention of a retiring cop, and he gets involved with the case, following the engineer's path toward Venice, where his daughter is having a birthday party. |Michael Douglas (William Foster/D-Fens) @ Robert Duvall (Prendergast) @ Barbara Hershey (Beth) @ Tuesday Weld (Amanda Prendergast) @ Rachel Ticotin (Sandra) @ Frederic Forrest (Nick, Surplus Store Owner) @ Lois Smith (D-Fen's Mother) @ Joey Hope Singer (Adele (Beth's Child)) @ Ebbe Roe Smith (Guy on Freeway) @ Michael Paul Chan (Mr. Lee) @ Raymond J. Barry (Captain Yardley) @ D.W. Moffett (Detective Lydecker) @ Steve Park (Detective Brian) @ Kimberly Scott (Det. Jones) @ James Keane (Detective Keene) @ Macon McCalman (Det. Graham) @ Richard Montoya (Detective Sanchez) @ Bruce Beatty (Police Clerk) @ Matthew Saks (Officer At Station) @ Agustin Rodriguez (Gang Member One) @ Eddie Frias (Gang Member Two) @ Pat Romano (Gang Member Three) @ Julian Scott Urena (Gang Member Four (as Fabio Urena)) @ Karina Arroyave (Angie) @ Irene Olga López (Angie's Mother) @ Benjamin Mouton (Uniformed Officer at Beth's) @ Dean Hallo (Uniformed Officer's Partner) @ James Morrison (Construction Sign Man by Bus Stop) @ John Fleck (Seedy Guy in Park) @ Brent Hinkley (Rick (Whammyburger)) @ Dedee Pfeiffer (Sheila) @ Carole Androsky (Woman Who Throws Up) @ Margaret Medina (Lita the Waitress) @ Vondie Curtis-Hall (Not Economically Viable Man) @ Mark Frank (Man at Phone Booth) @ Peter Radon (Gay Man) @ Spencer Rochfort (Second Gay Man) @ Carole White (Second Officer at Beth's) @ Russell Curry (Second Officers Partner) @ John Fink (Guy Behind Woman Driver) @ Jack Kehoe (Street Worker) @ Valentino D. Harrison (Kid (with Missile Launcher)) @ Jack Betts (Frank (Golfer)) @ Al Mancini (Jim) @ John Diehl (Dad (Back Yard Party)) @ Amy Morton (Mom (Back Yard Party)) @ Abbey Barthel (Trina (Back Yard Party)) @ Susie Singer (Suzie the Stripper) @ Wayne Duvall (Paramedic) @ Valisha Jean Malin (Prendergasts Daughter rest of cast listed alphabetically Sibel Ergener) @ Jeffrey Byron (CHP Officer (uncredited)) @ Thomas M. Harrigan (Construction Worker (uncredited)Produced by||Not All That Good But Not All That Bad Either Urban alienation , lousy service in shops and worst of all the absolute apathy from society, boy as an angry not so young man I should be able to connect with FALLING DOWN in the same way I connected with TAXI DRIVER but somehow failed to I`m not the only person who failed to connect with FALLING DOWN . I remember when the movie was released in the States it made a lot of money at the box office but many critics absolutely despised it with many of them criticising the movie for having racist overtones . I think they`re over reacting , America does suffer from gangs drive by shootings , ethnic divides , massive gaps between rich and poor etc and the film does point this out but my problem with it isn`t that Ebbe Roe Smith mentions this , but mentions it in a totally heavy handed way . His script is also somewhat unfocussed . Logically speaking the film should play out like a Roger Waters or Matt Johnson soundtrack of a man being crushed by the unfairness of life but the script mixes in too many themes and tones to work and there`s a scene in an army surplus store that feels it should belong to an entirely different movie . For the most part director Joel Schumacher can`t really be blamed for this film`s flaws and I find it totally ridiculous that he has a reputation as one of Hollywood`s worst directors . Come on it`s not like he`s Michael Bay , Victor Salva or Jan De Bont . My only real criticism of Schumacher is that D-Fens doesn`t really come across as bitter enough on screen or that the cop trying to catch him doesn`t seem intense enough . Maybe the director should have cast Jack Nicolson in one of the roles or swapped the roles around for Douglas and Duvall . A not very good movie spoiled by the script rather than the direction || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Family Guy: Volume 1||Animation|NR ||USA|2000|624 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|||||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [us] || 4-Disc Set Contains All 28 Episodes from Seasons 1 & 2! Meet theiGriffins: Peter, theibig, lovable oaf who always says what's onihis mind. Lois, theidoting mother who can't figure out why her baby son keeps tryingito kill her. Their daughter Meg, theiteen drama queen who's constantly embarrassed byiher family. Chris, theibeefy 13-year-old who wouldn't hurtia fly, unless it landed onihis hot dog. Stewie, theimaniacal one-year-old bent oniworld domination. And Brian, theisarcastic dog withia witias dryias theimartinis he drinks. The animated adventures of this outrageous family will have your whole family laughing out loud. |Seth MacFarlane (Peter Griffin/Brian Griffin/Stewie Griffin/Glen Quagmire/Tom Tucker/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Alex Borstein (Lois Griffin/Loretta/Tricia Takanawa/Barbara Pewterschmidt/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mila Kunis (Meg Griffin (2000-2002) (voice)) @ Seth Green (Chris Griffin/Neil Goldman (2001-2002)/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mike Henry (Cleveland/Cleveland Jr. (voice)) @ Patrick Warburton (Joe Swanson (voice)) @ Butch Hartman (Mr. Jonathan Weed (1999-2001) (voice)) @ Lori Alan (Diane Simmons/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Carlos Alazraqui (Mr. Jonathan Weed (1999-2000)) @ Adam West (Mayor Adam West (2000-2002) (voice)) @ Josh Peck (Charlie) @ Jennifer Tilly (Bonnie Swanson (voice)) @ John G. Brennan (Mort Goldman (2001-2002) (as Johnny Brennan)) @ Wally Wingert (Additional Voices (1999-2002) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Lacey Chabert (Meg Griffin (1999-2000) (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||The funniest show on Fox [episode spoilers included] Ever since FAMILY GUY first came on in 1999, I have been a big fan of the show. I watch it every week [well, the weeks that it's on] and am amazed at how each episode gets funnier and funnier. For some reason, Fox keeps canceling it for a while then puts it back on the air for a while. The show has a unique sense of humor that no other show on television can match. I've always loved this show and I always will. It's one of the best shows on television at the moment. I love Chris. He's the coolest [and funniest] character. |Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Family Guy: Volume 2 / DVD-Video|||NR ||||495 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/14/2004||||||| Season 3 Family Guy Volume 2 sees theireturn of America's most outrageous animated family with all 21 season three episodes, plus one never-before-seen episode-"When You Wish Uponia Weinstein" banned from TV, andionly availableiin this collection! ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Fantasia|James Algar Samuel Armstrong Ford Beebe Norman Ferguson Jim Handley T. Hee Wilfred Jackson Hamilton Luske Bill Roberts Paul Satterfield Ben Sharpstee|Family|G |7.8|USA|1940|120 min/ USA:124 min (restored roadshow version) / USA:80 min (cut version)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney Ben Sharpsteen||James Wong Howe Maxwell Morgan||Walt Disney Productions [us] |Walt Disney's Technicolor FEATURE triumph|Disney animators set pictures to classical music as Leopold Stokowski conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra. "The Sorceror's Apprentice" features Mickey Mouse as an aspiring magician who oversteps his limits. "The Rite of Spring" tells the story of evolution, from single-celled animals to the death of the dinosaurs. "Dance of the Hours" is a comic ballet performed by ostriches, hippos, elephants and alligators. "Night on Bald Mountain" and "Ave Maria" set the forces of darkness and light against each other as a devilish revel is interrupted by the coming of a new day. |Leopold Stokowski (Himself (Conductor, The Philadelphia Orchestra)) @ Deems Taylor (Himself (Narrator) rest of cast listed alphabetically Hugh Douglas .... Himself (Narrator: 1982 re-release) (voice)) @ Julietta Novis (Soloist (segment "Ave Maria") (voice)) @ Corey Burton (Narrator: Deems Taylor overdubs (2000 restoration) (uncredited) (voice)) @ Walt Disney (Mickey Mouse (segment "The Sorcerer's Apprentice") (uncredited) (voice)) @ James MacDonald (Himself/Percussionist (uncredited)) @ Paul J. Smith (Himself/Violinist (uncredited)Produced by||Classic animation I've recently bought the Silly Symphonies DVD. My daughter Sarah and I have watched one cartoon every day, culminating in Fantasia. We didn't watch it all at once, but spread it over the course of a week (I tend to agree with other comments - it's too much for kids in one viewing). She sat on my lap and loved every minute of it, even 'Night on Bald Mountain'. I must admit I hadn't watched it for years and forgot about this section, but she wasn't scared by it. This is surprising when you consider the spider in 'Mother Goose Melodies' frightened her! In my opinion Fantasia is the ultimate Silly Symphony. It's obvious all the groundwork for the film came from them, which is why it's so good - the artists had ten years to hone and perfect their skills while Walt Disney had the vision to realise it. I wonder if he had thought of it a decade earlier and waited until the right moment to create it...? It's a real shame he never lived to see its success because he deserved to. It's hard to find the right words to surmise this film; I suppose I could break each section down and give my opinion as others have done, but as a whole - well, it's got good bits and bad bits; happy and sad bits, it's scary and funny and gloomy and sunny. It's spirited, colourful, sparkling, animated... but let's not get carried away here. It's only a film and some bits of it are quite boring. If you randomly wound through it you could find yourself watching any one of the above, and this to me sums it up - it's unique. What other film can you say that about? Fantasia is a light that will shine for generations to come. 9/10. ||Special 60th Anniversary Edition |1.37 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.0 ||||||@@ Fantasia/2000|James Algar Gaëtan Brizzi Paul Brizzi Hendel Butoy Francis Glebas Eric Goldberg Don Hahn Pixote Hun|Family||7.4|USA|1999| 75 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lisa C. Cook Roy Edward Disney Donald W. Ernst Patricia Hicks David Lovegren|Hans Christian Andersen Carl Fallberg Joe Grant Irene Mecchi Perce Pearce David Reynolds|Tim Suhrstedt ||Buena Vista International [ar] ||In this update of Disney's masterpiece film mixture of animation and music, new interpretations of great works of music are presented. It begins with an abstract battle of light and darkness set to the music of Beethoveen's Fifth Symphony. Then we see the adventures of a Humpback Whale calf and his pod set to "The Pines of Rome." Next is the humourous story of several lives in 1930's New York City, scored with "Rhapsody in Blue." Following is a musical telling of the fairy tale, "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" set to Dmitri Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 2. Then a goofy Flamingo causes havoc in his flock with his yo-yo to the tune of the finale of "Carnival of the Animals." This is followed by the classic sequence from the original film, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" starring Mickey Mouse and followed by "Pomp and Circumstance" starring Donald Duck as a harried assistant to Noah on his Ark. Finally, we see the awesome tale of the life, death and renewal of a forest in a sequence featuring the composition, "The Firebird." |Leopold Stokowski (Conductor (segment "The Sorcerer's Apprentice") (archive footage)) @ Ralph Grierson (Pianist (segment "Rhapsody in Blue")) @ Kathleen Battle (Feature Soprano (segment "Pomp and Circumstance") (voice)) @ Steve Martin (Host (Film Introduction)) @ Itzhak Perlman (Host (segment "Pines of Rome")) @ Quincy Jones (Host (segment "Rhapsody in Blue")) @ Bette Midler (Hostess (segment "Piano Concerto No. 2, Allegro, Opus 102")) @ James Earl Jones (Host (segment "Carnival of the Animals")) @ Penn Jillette (Host (segment "The Sorcerer's Apprentice") (as Penn)) @ Teller (Host (segment "The Sorcerer's Apprentice")) @ James Levine (Host (segment "Pomp and Circumstance"), Conductor (Chicago Symphony Orchestra)) @ Angela Lansbury (Hostess (segment "Firebird Suite - 1919 Version")) @ Wayne Allwine (Mickey Mouse (segment "Pomp and Circumstance") (voice)) @ Tony Anselmo (Donald Duck (segment "Pomp and Circumstance") (voice)) @ Russi Taylor (Daisy Duck (segment "Pomp and Circumstance") (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Deems Taylor .... Host (segment "Fantasia Introduction") (archive footage)) @ Gaëtan Brizzi (Animator (uncredited)) @ Paul Brizzi (Animator (uncredited)) @ Yefim Bronfman (Pianist (segment "Piano Concerto No. 2, Allegro, Opus 102") (uncredited)) @ Hendel Butoy (Animator (uncredited)) @ Eric Goldberg (Animator (segment "Carnival of the Animals") (uncredited) Produced by||A Marvellous Continuation Of "The Concert Feature" In 1940, Walt Disney Productions created their animated masterpiece, "Fantasia." Arguably the world's first music video, this legendary film combined stellar classical music with phenomenal Disney animation, presented in the form of a classical music concert. Well, here we are 60 years later, and Disney have at long last made a follow-up film to "Fantasia," entitled---what else---"Fantasia 2000." The new movie follows the same "Concert Feature" format as the original movie, with seven brand-new Disney-animated segments set to classical music, plus the return of an old favorite from the original "Fantasia," "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" starring Mickey Mouse. Does "Fantasia 2000" top the original film, or even equal it? Not quite, but it DOES come darn close to the original movie in it's breathtaking quality. I've now seen "Fantasia 2000" on both an IMAX and standard-size theater screen, but no matter what size screen you see it on (even on your little TV screen sometime down the road), the movie is an absolute mindblower in it's own right. With "Fantasia 2000," Disney have once again brilliantly married timeless classical music to awe-inspiring animation. The program for the film is as follows: Beethoven: Symphony #5. In a kind of tip-of-the-hat to the original "Fantasia," the new film opens the same way as the original film did, with a striking animation of abstract shapes and objects dancing through the heavens and such. A wonderful opening. Resphigi: Pines Of Rome. Easily one of the film's best segments, this one combines traditional hand-drawn animation with the software kind, presenting a fantastic segment of magical whales that can fly. Even on a standard-size screen, these whales, soaring along with Resphigi's classic music, are breathtaking. Gershwin: Rhapsody In Blue. This is the "odd" segment of the film, odd in that the animation, based on Al Hirschfeld's drawing style, doesn't *look* like something that would fit "Fantasia." Nonetheless, this a very amusing piece set in the hussle & bussle of New York City, and it's nicely animated, too. Shostakovich: Piano Concerto #2, Allegro, Opus 102. Another high point is hit with this marvellous segment based on the story, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, about a one-legged tin soldier courting a beautiful ballerina doll, and battling the evil jack-in-the-box who vies for her affections. Brilliant animation, and a wonderful story, too. Saint-Saens: Carnival Of The Animals. A flock of pink flamingos playing with a yo-yo! It's the shortest piece of the film, but it's quite charming & funny. Dukas: The Sorcerer's Apprentice. Mickey's back! The famous segment from the original "Fantasia" is included here in a very welcomed, encore presentation. What a great treat to see it again. Elgar: Pomp And Circumstance, Marches 1 to 4. Donald Duck finally gets his moment in the "Fantasia" spotlight, in a hilarious adventure set aboard Noah's ark. Way to go, Donald! Stravinsky: Firebird Suite--1919 Version. "Fantasia 2000" concludes in the same impressive style that the original film did, telling a tale of the conflict between good & evil, with good eventually winning the day. This time it's beautiful Mother Nature herself versus the dark forces of the mighty Firebird. This is an astoundingly powerful segment, with astonishing animation & music, that'll leave you breathless. Simply fantastic! "Fantasia 2000" runs a half-hour shorter than it's more-famous celluloid brother, and, like the original "Fantasia," it may take some time before the new film is regarded in cinema history as a true "classic," but I'm quite confident that it will be recognised as such eventually---"Fantasia 2000" is a triumph, a delicious feast for the eyes & ears, and an outstanding continuation of Disney's masterwork from 1940. I'm quite confident that there will be more "Fantasia" films in the future---let's just hope that Disney doesn't make us wait 60 years for the next one! || |1.37 : 1 (segment "Sorcerer's Apprentice, The") |Dolby Digital 5.0 ||||||@@ Far from Heaven|Todd Haynes|Drama|Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, sexual content, brief violence and language. PG-13|7.7|France|2002|107 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/11/2004|Declan Baldwin Tracy Brimm George Clooney Jean-Charles Levy Jody Patton Eric Robison Bradford Simpson John Sloss Steven Soderbergh Christine Vachon John Wells|Todd Haynes |Edward Lachman ||ARP Distribution [fr] |What imprisons desires of the heart?|Cathy (Julianne Moore) is the perfect 50s housewife, living the perfect 50s life: healthy kids, successful husband, social prominence. Then one night she surprises her husband Frank (Dennis Quaid) kissing another man, and her tidy world starts spinning out of control. In her confusion and grief, she finds consolation in the friendship of their African-American gardener, Raymond (Dennis Haysbert) - a socially taboo relationship that leads to the further disintegration of life as she knew it. Despite Cathy and Frank's struggle to keep their marriage afloat, the reality of his homosexuality and her feelings for Raymond open a painful, if more honest, chapter in their lives. |Julianne Moore (Cathy Whitaker) @ Dennis Quaid (Frank Whitaker) @ Dennis Haysbert (Raymond Deagan) @ Patricia Clarkson (Eleanor Fine) @ Viola Davis (Sybil) @ James Rebhorn (Dr. Bowman) @ Bette Henritze (Mrs. Leacock) @ Michael Gaston (Stan Fine) @ Ryan Ward (David Whitaker) @ Lindsay Andretta (Janice Whitaker) @ Jordan Puryear (Sarah Deacon) @ Kyle Timothy Smith (Billy Hutchinson (as Kyle Smith)) @ Celia Weston (Mona Lauder) @ Barbara Garrick (Doreen) @ Olivia Birkelund (Nancy) @ Stevie Ray Dallimore (Dick Dawson) @ Mylika Davis (Esther) @ Jason Franklin (Photographer) @ Gregory Marlow (Reginald Carter) @ C.C. Loveheart (Marlene) @ June Squibb (Elderly Woman) @ Laurent Giroux (Man with Mustache) @ Alex Santorello (Spanish Bartender) @ Matt Malloy (Red Faced Man) @ J.B. Adams (Farnsworth) @ Kevin Carrigan (Soda Jerk) @ Chance Kelly (Tallman) @ Declan Baldwin (Officer #1) @ Brian Delate (Officer #2) @ Pamela Evans (Kitty) @ Joe Holt (Hotel Waiter) @ Ben Moss (Hutch's Friend) @ Susan Willis (Receptionist) @ Karl Schroeder (Conductor) @ Lance Olds (Bail Clerk) @ Johnathan McClain (Staff Member #1) @ Nicholas Joy (Kenny) @ Virl Andrick (Blond Boy's Father) @ Jezabel Montero (Hooker) @ Geraldine Bartlett (Woman at Party) @ Ernest Rayford III (Glaring Man) @ Duane McLaughlin (Jake) @ Betsy Aidem (Pool Mother) @ Mary Anna Klindtworth (Pool Daughter) @ Ted Neustadt (Ron) @ Thomas Torres (Band Leader) @ Blondell Cooper (Hostess rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ben Hauck (Refreshments Boy (uncredited)) @ Michael Linstroth (Blonde boy's brother (uncredited)) @ Sarah Beth Nelson (Box Office Ticket Seller (uncredited)) @ John H. Tobin (Hartford art buyer (uncredited)) @ Kristen Vermilyea (New Year's Eve Party Goer (uncredited)Produced by||Douglas Sirk Redux Who would have thought this could work?Director Todd Haynes makes a Douglas Sirk 50s style movie in 2002--and it works!Douglas Sirk was a director of such 50s movies as "Magnificent Obsession". "All That Heaven Allows", "Written on the Wind"--all beautful films shot in rich Technicolor. Everything and everybody looked perfect, but character's lives were being torn apart by tragedy left and right.Haynes follows that formula but inserts themes that Sirk couldn't have gotten away with (mainly homosexuality). In 1957 housewife Cathy Whitaker (Julianne Moore) comes to realize her husband (Dennis Quaid) is gay.Reeling from that she becomes attracted to handsome, hunky Raymond Deagan (Dennis Haysbert)--who's black.And the town doesn't approve. Beautifully shot, well-acted (especially by Moore, Haysbert and Patricia Clarkson) and thorought engrossing.Haynes makes a good, strong movie is Sirks' style--he gets everything right, even down to the lousy back projection that plagued some of Sirks' movies!The film is very subtle in its themes--Quaid's homosexuality is never called by name and the most we see is a discreet kiss.Actually, that works in the films favor.The suntlety somehow makes the drama more poignant. Well worth catching...but it is a little depressing. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Fargo|Joel Coen Ethan Coe|Crime|Rated R for strong violence, language and sexuality. |8.2|USA|1996| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Bevan John Cameron Ethan Coen Eric Fellner|Joel Coen Ethan Coen|Roger Deakins ||Ascot Elite Entertainment Group [ch] |A homespun murder story.|Jerry Lundegaard is in a financial jam and, out of desperation, comes up with a plan to hire someone to kidnap his wife and demand ransom from her wealthy father, to be secretly split between Jerry and the perpetrators. Jerry, who is not the most astute of individuals, hires a couple of real losers from the frozen northern reaches of Fargo, North Dakota for the job. Then things begin to slip from bad to worse as Jerry helplessly watches on. Jerry hires two men to kidnap his wife so he can get his rich father in law to pay the ransom. Once the ransom is paid Jerry and the kidnappers will split the money down the middle. That's the plan, but what happens is something totally different. Blood is shed when a cop and two innocent people are killed. Marge Gunderson is the Chief who investigates the murders. While Marge investigates, Jerry gets involved in deeper problems, ranging from financial troubles, to threats from the kidnappers. |Frances McDormand (Marge Gunderson) @ William H. Macy (Jerry Lundegaard) @ Steve Buscemi (Carl Showalter) @ Harve Presnell (Wade Gustafson) @ Peter Stormare (Gaear Grimsrud) @ Kristin Rudrüd (Jean Lundegaard) @ Tony Denman (Scotty Lundegaard) @ Gary Houston (Irate Customer) @ Sally Wingert (Irate Customer's Wife) @ Kurt Schweickhardt (Car Salesman) @ Larissa Kokernot (Hooker #1) @ Melissa Peterman (Hooker #2) @ Steve Reevis (Shep Proudfoot (as Steven Reevis)) @ Warren Keith (Reilly Diefenbach) @ Steve Edelman (Morning Show Host) @ Sharon Anderson (Morning Show Hostess) @ Larry Brandenburg (Stan Grossman) @ James Gaulke (State Trooper) @ J. Todd Anderson (Victim in the Field (as symbol spoofing tAFKaP)) @ Michelle Suzanne LeDoux (Victim in Car) @ John Carroll Lynch (Norm Gunderson) @ Bruce Bohne (Lou) @ Petra Boden (Cashier) @ Steve Park (Mike Yanagita) @ Wayne A. Evenson (Customer (as Wayne Evenson)) @ Cliff Rakerd (Officer Olson) @ Jessica Shepherd (Hotel Clerk) @ Peter Schmitz (Airport Lot Attendant) @ Steven I. Schafer (Mechanic (as Steve Schaefer)) @ Michelle Hutchison (Escort (as Michelle Hutchinson)) @ David S. Lomax (Man in Hallway (as David Lomax)) @ José Feliciano (Himself) @ Bix Skahill (Night Parking Attendant) @ Bain Boehlke (Mr. Mohra) @ Rose Stockton (Valerie) @ Robert Ozasky (Bismarck Cop #1) @ John Bandemer (Bismarck Cop #2) @ Don Wescott (Bark Beetle Narrator rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bruce Campbell (Soap Opera Actor (uncredited)) @ Clifford Nelson (Heavyset Man In Bar (uncredited) Produced by||Excellent acting, but smugness hangs over the whole thing like a frosty pall Minnesota car-dealer arranges to have his wife kidnapped in order to get his hands on his father-in-law's money, but the plan goes awry. Another blood-soaked black comedy from the Coen brothers(Joel directed, and he and Ethan wrote the screenplay from a "true story", which won them Oscars). Frances McDormand, William H. Macy(in a star-making performance)and nearly everyone else in the cast give funny, credible and memorable performances, but the movie is really wobbly and at times brutal(but nearly always undermined by a quasi-comedic tone, which is both tiresome and tasteless). It's overscaled and cut very broadly, and despite some very strong sequences, it can't escape the Coens' penchant for self-reverence. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Father of the Bride|Charles Shyer|Family|PG |6.4|USA|1991|105 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004|Carol Baum Bruce A. Block Jim Cruickshank Sandy Gallin Nancy Meyers James Orr Howard Rosenman Cindy Williams|Frances Goodrich Albert Hackett Nancy Meyers Charles Shyer|John Lindley ||Abril Vídeo [br] |Love is wonderful. Until it happens to your only daughter.|In this remake of the Spencer Tracy classic, George and Nina Banks are the parents of young soon-to-be-wed Annie. George is a nervous father unready to face the fact that his little girl is now a woman. The preparations for the extravagant wedding provide additional comic moments. George Banks (Steve Martin) is an ordinary, middle-class man whose 21 year-old daughter Annie (Kimberly Williams) has decided to marry a man (George Newbern) from an upper-class family, but George can't think of what life would be like without his daughter. He becomes slightly insane, but his wife (Diane Keaton) tries to make him happy for Annie, but when the wedding takes place at their home and a foreign wedding planner (Martin Short) takes over the ceremony, George must try to handle the fact that people grow up. |Steve Martin (George Stanley Banks) @ Diane Keaton (Nina Banks) @ Kimberly Williams (Annie Banks) @ Kieran Culkin (Matty Banks) @ George Newbern (Bryan MacKenzie) @ Martin Short (Franck Eggelhoffer) @ B.D. Wong (Howard Weinstein) @ Peter Michael Goetz (John MacKenzie) @ Kate McGregor-Stewart (Joanna MacKenzie) @ Carmen Hayward (Grace) @ April Ortiz (Olivia) @ Mina Vasquez (Marta) @ Gibby Brand (David) @ Richard Portnow (Al) @ Barbara Perry (Female Factory Worker) @ Martha Gehman (Andrea) @ Frank Kopyc (Don, the Field Engineer) @ David Pasquesi (Hank) @ Ira Heiden (Stock Boy) @ Thomas Wagner (Police Officer) @ Marissa Lefton (Annie Banks (At 3 Years Old)) @ Sarah Rose Karr (Annie Banks (At 7 Years Old)) @ Amy Young (Annie Banks (At 12 Years Old)) @ Hallie Meyers-Shyer (Flower Girl) @ Annie Meyers-Shyer (Flower Girl) @ Morgan Dox (Bridesmaid) @ Elisa Mandell (Bridesmaid) @ Christine Beliveau (Bridesmaid) @ Natasha Wieland (Bridesmaid) @ Eric Kay (Usher) @ Scott Hogan (Usher) @ Peter Cooper (Usher) @ David Day (Usher) @ Ed Williams (Church reverend) @ Patricia Meyers (Guest at Reception) @ Irving Meyers (Guest at Reception) @ Mark Steen (Waiter #1) @ Robert Bauer (Waiter #2) @ Kevin Shaw (Waiter #3) @ Bruce A. Block (Photographer) @ Peter Murnik (Patrolman) @ Chauncey Leopardi (Cameron, Matty's Friend) @ Steve Tyrell (Bandleader rest of cast listed alphabetically Jane Alden .... (voice)) @ Steve Alterman ( (voice)) @ Ruth Britt ( (voice)) @ Greg Finley ( (voice)) @ J.D. Hall ( (voice)) @ Doris Hess ( (voice)) @ Tom Irish (Ben Banks) @ Daamen J. Krall ( (voice)) @ Eugene Levy (Singer at Audition) @ Joanna Lipari ( (voice)) @ David McCharen ( (voice)) @ David Randolph ( (voice)) @ Gary Schwartz ( (voice)) @ Suzanne Stone ( (voice)) @ Nicole Abramson (Neighbor Girl (uncredited)) @ Britt Leach (Assistant Manager of Supermarket (uncredited)Produced by||A good remake. Father Of The Bride is a great wedding comedy. Steve Martin is terrific in this film. The direction is solid and the rest of the cast is very good. Other than Martin, the real standout is Martin Short. Short adapts a very strange accent and chews all the scenery in every scene that allows him a bit of leeway. I found this movie very entertaining. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ FernGully: The Last Rainforest|Bill Kroyer|Family||5.6|USA|1992| 76 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert W. Cort Jim Cox Jeff Dowd Peter Faiman Ted Field Richard Harper Tom Klein Brian Rosen William F. Willett Wayne Young|Jim Cox Diana Young|||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] ||The fairy people of FernGully have never seen humans before, but when Christa sees one, Zak, she accidentally shrinks him down to her size. But there is trouble in FernGully, for Zak is part of a logging team who is there to cut down the forest. Ferngully, a spectacular rainforest where a bat named batty, whose radar has gone haywire, joins together with Crysta, Pips and the Beetle Boys to save their world from the evil Hexxus. Ignoring the warnings of her friends, Crysta, the curious tree fairy, explores the world beyond Ferngully. She discovers Zak, a human who is helping to demolish the rainforest. Once Zak sees the beauty and magic of Ferngully, he vows to save it. But it may be too late. The diabolical Hexxus is on the loose and is intent on destroying all of Ferngully. |Tim Curry (Hexxus (voice)) @ Samantha Mathis (Crysta (voice)) @ Christian Slater (Pips (voice)) @ Jonathan Ward (Zak (voice)) @ Robin Williams (Batty Koda (voice)) @ Grace Zabriskie (Magi Lune (voice)) @ Geoffrey Blake (Ralph (voice)) @ Robert Pastorelli (Tony (voice)) @ Cheech Marin (Stump (voice)) @ Tommy Chong (Root (voice)) @ Tone Loc (Goanna (voice)) @ Townsend Coleman (Knotty (voice)) @ Brian Cummings (Ock (voice)) @ Kathleen Freeman (Edler (voice)) @ Janet Gilmore (Fairy (voice)) @ Naomi Lewis (Elder #2 (voice)) @ Danny Mann (Ash/Voice Dispatch (voice)) @ Neil Ross (Elder (voice)) @ Pamela Segall (Fairy (voice)) @ Anderson Wong (Rock (voice)) @ Lauri Hendler (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Rosanna Huffman (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Harvey Jason (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Dave Mallow (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Paige Pollack (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Holly Dorff (Additional Voices (voice) (as Holly Ryan)) @ Gary Schwartz (Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||A treasure with a message I remember loving this when it first came out and I was only about 10 years old. I recently came upon a couple of the books that I had saved of the movie and that got me thinking back on this. I haven't seen it in years, but I just bought it and can't help but love it. I love the visuals, colors and overall look of the film. And of course, Robin Williams as Batty Koda was hilarious. In describing humans, "They walk around like 'Hi Helen!'" I love the message most of all, and it does a good job of representing the greed and destruction of our times through images, actions and dialogue. I especially love how the fairy Crysta is so in touch with nature and its feelings that she can touch a tree and we literally see its energy flow into her. She shows this to the human, Zak, who, like every other human, is out of tune with nature and its feelings. Gradually, though, he too feels it, and all it took was for someone to wake him up to it. That's all it takes for us, too. We needed something like this movie to be made in order to wake some of us up to what we're doing. It may sound cliche or like a lecture, but it's one that needs to be said and for that I'm thankful to Ferngully and the people behind it who believed enough in the message they were attempting to get across. I read it loud and clear. ||Movies ||Movies ||||||@@ Ferris Bueller's Day Off|John Hughes|Comedy||7.7|USA|1986| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Chinich James Giovannetti Jr. John Hughes Tom Jacobson|John Hughes |Tak Fujimoto ||CIC Vídeo [br] |One Man's Struggle To Take It Easy|Ferris is a street-wise kid who knows all the tricks. Today he decides to take the day off school. When Ferris takes the day off, so must his best friends, Cameron and Sloane. Cameron is reluctantly persuaded to borrow his father's Ferrari, and together they hatch a plan to get Sloane out of class. Suspicious dean of students Ed Rooney knows all about Ferris, but can never catch him. Ferris' sister Jeanie is also frustrated that Ferris always gets away with his tricks and she doesn't. Furthermore, Ferris is an 'angel' in his parents eyes. It's Ferris' day off, he's out to enjoy himself, and he does!. |Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller) @ Alan Ruck (Cameron Frye) @ Mia Sara (Sloane Peterson) @ Jeffrey Jones (Ed Rooney) @ Jennifer Grey (Jeanie Bueller) @ Cindy Pickett (Katie Bueller) @ Lyman Ward (Tom Bueller) @ Edie McClurg (Grace, the secratary) @ Charlie Sheen (Boy in police station) @ Ben Stein (Economics teacher) @ Del Close (English teacher) @ Virginia Capers (Florence Sparrow) @ Richard Edson (Garage attendant) @ Larry Flash Jenkins (Attendant's co-pilot) @ Kristy Swanson (Simone Adamley) @ Lisa Bellard (Economics student) @ Max Perlich (Anderson) @ Scott Coffey (Adams (as T. Scott Coffee)) @ Eric Saiet (Shermerite) @ Jason Alderman (Shermerite) @ Joey Garfield (Shermerite) @ Kristin Graziano (Shermerite) @ Bridgett Baron (Shermerite (as Bridgett McCarthy)) @ Anne Ryan (Shermerite) @ Eric Edidin (Shermerite) @ Brendan Baber (Shermerite (as Brendan Babar)) @ Tiffany Chance (Shermerite) @ Jonathan Schmock (Chez Quis maitre-d') @ Tom Spratley (Men's room attendant) @ Dave Silvestri (Businessman) @ Debra Montague (Girl in pizza joint) @ Joey D. Vieira (Pizza man (as Joey Viera)) @ Louie Anderson (Flower deliveryman) @ Stephanie Blake (Singing nurse) @ Robert McKibbon (Balloon man) @ Paul Manzanero (Pumpkinhead) @ Miranda Whittle (Girl on trampoline) @ Robert Kim (Det. Steven Lim) @ Dick Sollenberger (Politician at parade) @ Bob Parkinson (Minister at parade) @ Richard Rohrbough (Minister at parade) @ Edward Le Beau (Gym teacher) @ Polly Noonan (Girl on bus) @ Dee Dee Rescher (Bus driver rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Katie Barberi (Economics student (uncredited)) @ Harry Caray (TV broadcaster (uncredited) (voice)) @ John Hughes (Guy running between cabs (uncredited)) @ Lockport Township High School Band (Marching Band at Parade (uncredited)) @ John Richard Petersen (Parade spectator (uncredited)) @ Steve Stone (TV broadcaster (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||"Ferris Bueller, You're My Hero." [CONTAINS SPOILERS] Meet Ferris Bueller. High school student. I'm sure we're all familiar with the pressures of high school life: homework, studying, the teacher always breathing down your neck, getting heckled by classmates. Well Ferris wasn't going to take it anymore. It was high time he got a day off so he feigned illness. His parents bought it. His sister, Jeanie did not. She was also sick of her parents liking Ferris seemingly more than her. So once Mom, Dad and Sis leave, Ferris decides to enjoy himself. At school, the surly principal, Ed Rooney, noticed Ferris Bueller wasn't in school and grew suspicious. He was wise to Bueller's ways and was determined to get to the bottom of this; Ferris' friend, Cameron Frye, was home sick too. Or rather, he was faking it as well. If only Ferris' girlfriend Sloane was out of school too then they could get together and rock the town. Luckily, Ferris had a plan. He set up some things to make it look as if he was still sick in bed then he called Cameron and they met at his place. Ferris wanted to use Cameron's dad's classic Ferrari. Cameron was worried because if that car got a single ding or scratch, Cameron would be toast. Ferris promised to be careful and the two head to the school and cleverly get Sloane out of school then they head to downtown Chicago to have a great time. They valet park the Ferrari and go to the top of the Sears tower then Ferris lip- synchs to a Beatles song, but while they were away, the valet parkers were joyriding in the Ferrari with the Star Wars theme montage. Good choice, by the way! When Ferris, Cameron and Sloane were finished and ready to go. Cameron noticed the odometer on the car had gone up alot. If his father found out they had take out the car, Cameron would be in deep donkey manure so Ferris got the idea of setting the car up on blocks and letting it run in reverse which would turn back the odometer. It didn't work and an accident causes the Ferrari to fall off the blocks and crash out the window and falling to its death. Ed Rooney investigates the Bueller household. He is confronted by Jeanie. But our story has a happy ending. Ferris enjoyed his day off and may one day take another one; It's an OK movie, not great. It's from John Hughes who brought us Uncle Buck and Home Alone. Matthew Broderick was good, so was Alan Ruck and Mia Sara. Jeffrey Jones plays yet another interesting villain. Watch for cameos by Charlie Sheen and Edie McClurg! - || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Fiddler on the Roof|Norman Jewison|Musical||7.6|USA|1971| 181 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Norman Jewison Patrick J. Palmer|Sholom Aleichem Joseph Stein Joseph Stein|Oswald Morris ||Fox Home Entertainment [br] |Fiddler on the Roof" on the screen|Film version of the stage musical, based on the stories of Sholom Aleichem. Tevye the Milkman is a Jewish peasant in pre-Revolutionary Russia, coping with the day-to-day problems of `shtetl' life, his Jewish traditions, his family (wife and daughters), and state-sanctioned pogroms. |Topol (Tevye) @ Norma Crane (Golde) @ Leonard Frey (Motel) @ Molly Picon (Yente) @ Paul Mann (Lazar Wolf) @ Rosalind Harris (Tzeitel) @ Michele Marsh (Hodel) @ Neva Small (Chava) @ Paul Michael Glaser (Perchik (as Michael Glaser)) @ Ray Lovelock (Fyedka (as Raymond Lovelock)) @ Elaine Edwards (Shprintze) @ Candy Bonstein (Bielke) @ Shimen Ruskin (Mordcha) @ Zvee Scooler (Rabbi) @ Louis Zorich (Constable) @ Alfie Scopp (Avram) @ Howard Goorney (Nachum) @ Barry Dennen (Mendel) @ Vernon Dobtcheff (Russian Official) @ Ruth Madoc (Fruma Sarah) @ Patience Collier (Grandma Tzeitel) @ Tutte Lemkow (Fiddler) @ Stella Courtney (Shandel) @ Jacob Kalich (Yankel) @ Brian Coburn (Berl) @ George Little (Hone) @ Stanley Fleet (Farcel) @ Arnold Diamond (Moishe) @ Marika Rivera (Rifka) @ Mark Malicz (Ezekial) @ Aharon Ipalé (Sheftel (as Aharon Ipale)) @ Roger Lloyd-Pack (Sexton (as Roger Lloyd Pack)) @ Vladimir Medar (Priest) @ Sammy Bayes (Russian Dancer) @ Larry Bianco (Russian Dancer) @ Walter Cartier (Russian Dancer) @ Peter Johnston (Russian Dancer) @ Guy Lutman (Russian Dancer) @ Donald Maclennan (Russian Dancer) @ René Sartoris (Russian Dancer) @ Roy Durbin (Bottle Dancer) @ Ken Robson (Bottle Dancer) @ Robert Stevenson (Bottle Dancer) @ Lou Zamprogna (Bottle Dancer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nigel Kingsley ( (uncredited)) @ Joel Rudnick (Marcus (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Waller ( (uncredited) Produced by||One of the last great musicals, what a pity! FIDDLER ON THE ROOF (1971) 9/10 SINGIN' IN THE RAIN. MY FAIR LADY. TOP HAT. THE MUSIC MAN. THE SOUND OF MUSIC. AN AMERICAN IN PARIS. THE WIZARD OF OZ. GIGI. WEST SIDE STORY. It's easy to name the classic musicals before 1970, but after... what we have of good... CABARET... ALL THAT JAZZ... HAIR... of course, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. This may be one of the last great musicals, maybe the last, because all the musicals that came after it were really different from the old ones. Coincidence or not, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, directed with maestry by Norman Jewison and starring Topol, in a joyous performance as Tevye, is about tradition. FIDDLER is about the fight between the traditional values and the new ones. But it's not just an uplifting story; it's bittersweet, even depressing at times. In fact, I like this film so much because I felt every kind of emotion while watching it: happiness, fun, excitement, sadness... It's a complete film, one that touches you deep inside. The cinematography is gorgeous, the visuals are great and the songs are excellent. I highly recommend this film. It closed the door for the old fashioned musicals, but it was time. Audiences needed something new, but the musical genre isn't a favorite nowadays. I hope that MOULIN ROUGE, the best movie of 2001 so far, opens the door for a new kind of musical. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Field of Dreams|Phil Alden Robinson|Fantasy||7.7|USA|1989| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Brian E. Frankish Charles Gordon Lawrence Gordon Lloyd Levin|W.P. Kinsella Phil Alden Robinson|John Lindley ||Columbia Home Video [br] |All his life, Ray Kinsella was searching for his dreams. Then one day, his dreams came looking for him.|Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella hears a voice in his corn field tell him, "If you build it, he will come." He interprets this message as an instruction to build a baseball field on his farm, upon which appear the ghosts of Shoeless Joe Jackson and the other seven Chicago White Sox players banned from the game for throwing the 1919 World Series. When the voices continue, Ray seeks out a reclusive author to help him understand the meaning of the messages and the purpose for his field. |Kevin Costner (Ray Kinsella) @ Amy Madigan (Anni Kinsella) @ Gaby Hoffmann (Karin Kinsella) @ Ray Liotta (Shoeless Joe Jackson) @ Timothy Busfield (Mark) @ James Earl Jones (Terence Mann) @ Burt Lancaster (Dr. Archibald 'Moonlight' Graham) @ Frank Whaley (Archie Graham) @ Dwier Brown (John Kinsella) @ James Andelin (Feed Store Farmer) @ Mary Anne Kean (Feed Store Lady) @ Fern Persons (Annie's Mother) @ Kelly Coffield (Dee, Mark's Wife) @ Michael Milhoan (Buck Weaver (3B)) @ Steve Eastin (Eddie Cicotte (P)) @ Charles Hoyes (Swede Risberg (C)) @ Art LaFleur (Chick Gandil (1B)) @ Lee Garlington (Beulah, the Angry PTA Mother) @ Mike Nussbaum (Principal) @ Larry Brandenburg (PTA Heckler) @ Mary McDonald Gershon (PTA Heckler) @ Robert Kurcz (PTA Heckler) @ Don John Ross (Boston Butcher) @ Beatrice Fredman (Boston Yenta) @ Geoffrey Nauffts (Boston Pump Jockey) @ Anne Seymour (Chisolm Newspaper Publisher) @ C. George Biasi (First Man in Bar) @ Howard Sherf (Second Man in Bar) @ Joseph R. Ryan (Third Man in Bar (as Joseph Ryan)) @ Joe Glasberg (Customer) @ Mark Danker (Additional Ballplayer) @ Frank Dardis (Additional Ballplayer) @ Jim Doty (Additional Ballplayer) @ Mike Goad (Additional Ballplayer) @ Jay Hemond (Additional Ballplayer) @ Mike Hodge (Additional Ballplayer) @ Steve Jenkins (Additional Ballplayer) @ Terry Kelleher (Additional Ballplayer) @ Ron Lucas (Additional Ballplayer) @ Fred Martin (Additional Ballplayer) @ Curt McWilliams (Additional Ballplayer) @ Jude Milbert (Additional Ballplayer) @ Steve Olberding (Additional Ballplayer) @ Gene Potts (Additional Ballplayer) @ James Rogh (Additional Ballplayer) @ Paul Scherrman (Additional Ballplayer) @ Dale Till (Additional Ballplayer) @ Brian Waldvogel (Additional Ballplayer (as Tom Vogel)) @ Brian E. Frankish (Clean-shaven Umpire (as Brian Frankish)) @ Jeffrey Neal Silverman (Clean-shaven Center Fielder rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kevin Fennessy (Baseball Fan (uncredited) Produced by||baseball fantasy An Iowa farmer hears a soft voice giving him certain directions all leading up to a reunion with his dead father.Thats a very basic outline of "Field of Dreams", a light hearted baseball fantasy starring Kevin Costner.Many things other than the acting turn this tale into a great movie; the beautiful cinematography, james horners score, family values, and americas pastime. Moments of humor and drama blend well making this baseball fantasy very enjoyable, especially for fans of the great game. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Fight Club|David Fincher|Drama|Rated R for disturbing and graphic depiction of violent anti-social behavior, sexuality and language. R|8.5|USA|1999|139 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Ross Grayson Bell Ceán Chaffin John S. Dorsey Art Linson Arnon Milchan|Chuck Palahniuk Jim Uhls|Jeff Cronenweth ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Mischief. Mayhem. Soap.|Jack è un giovane in carriera sfiduciato ed annoiato. In cerca di emozioni forti, incontra Tyler Durden, un pò nichilista ed un pò psicopatico, che ha organizzato una palestra in cui uomini altrettanto delusi e repressi possono sfogarsi picchiandosi. Intuendo che Jack è un possibile affiliato/complice della sua attività, Tyler gli brucia la casa ("Solo quando hai perso tutto sei libero di fare ciò che vuoi !"), per coinvolgerlo sempre di più. Intanto l'iniziativa ha successo e Tyler diventa una sorta di guida verso un progetto di scardinamento dell'economia mondiale. Ma non ha fatto i conti con Marla Singer, anche lei abbastanza dissociata, che metterà in discussione il rapporto fra i due. You're young. You have an easy, well-paid deskjob. You have a condo, Swedish furniture, artistic coffee tables and a fridge full of condiments. Yet you feel emotionally and spiritually empty. You eventually find comfort in going to support groups for lukemia and cancer victims when there's nothing wrong with you until they're hijacked from you by another faker. Then you meet Tyler Durden, a man that shows you that not only can you live without material needs but that self-destruction, the collapse of society and making dynamite from soap might not be such a bad idea either. When a nameless thirty-ish yuppie grows bored of his comfortable life, he becomes involved in an anarchic subculture called "Fight Club", lead by charismatic Tyler Durden. But is this a hard-edged vacation from normalcy, or participation in the de-evolution of a civilized society? Based on the debut novel by recent University of Oregon graduate Chuck Palanhiuk about a confused young man in the not too distant future. With no family or close friends, he frequents cancer and disease support groups as a way to bond with others, pretending to be terminally ill or feigning various other infirmities to fit in. Sick of his dead end, white bread, white collar corporate career and disgusted with the empty consumer culture that his generation has been doomed to inherit, he and a very devious friend named Tyler Durden create a new club where young men come to relieve their frustrations by beating each other to a pulp. The popularity of this club grows exponentially, and eventually some very profound rules are created to govern it. Because one of those rules is no more than 50 people to a fight club, soon new fight clubs are popping up everywhere and spread across the nation. Tyler Durden, the fight club's founder, quickly becomes a cult hero of epic proportions, a new messiah for a dead generation. While all this is happening, the nameless, narrating main character manages to get involved in a love triangle with Tyler and a girl named Marla who seems to have an endless supply of ex-boyfriends just as screwed up as he is. |Edward Norton (Narrator) @ Brad Pitt (Tyler Durden) @ Helena Bonham Carter (Marla Singer) @ Meat Loaf (Robert 'Bob' Paulson (as Meat Loaf Aday)) @ Zach Grenier (Richard Chesler) @ Richmond Arquette (Intern) @ David Andrews (Thomas) @ George Maguire (Group Leader) @ Eugenie Bondurant (Weeping Woman) @ Christina Cabot (Group Leader) @ Sydney 'Big Dawg' Colston (Speaker) @ Rachel Singer (Chloe) @ Christie Cronenweth (Airline Attendant) @ Tim De Zarn (Inspector Bird) @ Ezra Buzzington (Inspector Dent) @ Dierdre Downing-Jackson (Woman) @ Robert J. Stephenson (Airport Security Officer) @ Charlie Dell (Doorman) @ Rob Lanza (Man in Suit) @ David Lee Smith (Walter) @ Holt McCallany (The Mechanic) @ Joel Bissonnette (Food Court Maitre'd) @ Eion Bailey (Ricky) @ Evan Mirand (Steph) @ Robby Robinson (Next Month's Opponent) @ Lou Beatty Jr. (Cop at Marla's Building) @ Thom Gossom Jr. (Detective Stern) @ Valerie Bickford (Cosmetics Buyer) @ Jared Leto (Angel Face) @ Peter Iacangelo (Lou) @ Carl Ciarfalio (Lou's Body Guard (as Carl N. Ciarfalio)) @ Stuart Blumberg (Car Salesman) @ Todd Peirce (First Man at Auto Shop) @ Mark Fite (Second Man at Auto Shop) @ Matt Winston (Seminary Student) @ Joon B. Kim (Raymond K. Hessel) @ Bennie Moore (Bus Driver with Broken Nose (as Bennie E. Moore Jr.)) @ W. Lauren Sanchez (Channel 4 Reporter) @ Pat McNamara (Commissioner Jacobs) @ Tyrone R. Livingston (Banquet Speaker) @ Owen Masterson (Airport Valet) @ David Jean Thomas (Policeman (as David Jean-Thomas)) @ Paul Carafotes (Salvator - Winking Bartender) @ Christopher John Fields (Proprietor of Dry Cleaners) @ Anderson Bourell (Bruised Bar Patron #1) @ Scotch Ellis Loring (Bruised Bar Patron #2) @ Michael Shamus Wiles (Bartender in Halo) @ Andi Carnick (Hotel Desk Clerk) @ Edward Kowalczyk (Waiter at Clifton's) @ Leonard Termo (Desk Sergeant) @ Van Quattro (Detective Andrew) @ Markus Redmond (Detective Kevin) @ Michael Girardin (Detective Walker rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Paul Dillon (Irvin (uncredited)) @ Phil Hawn (Banquet Guest (uncredited)) @ Kevin Scott Mack (Passenger Clutching Armrest (uncredited)) @ J.T. Pontino ( (uncredited)) @ Chad Randau (Waiter (uncredited)) @ David Rockit Hynes (Bruised Fighter (uncredited)) @ Marcio Rosario (Fighter (uncredited)) @ Gregory Silva (Riley Wilde (Fighter) (uncredited)Produced by||Probably the best film of 1999, and one you should see whether you love it or hate it. Edward Norton plays the unnamed Narrator, a recall operator for a car manufacturing company that sells vehicles with untested brakes.His life is empty.He lives in a condo and frequently buys furniture and other household items that he doesn't really want nor need, he just buys them because they're expensive and come with designer names. He's an insomniac, and one day goes to doctor to seek a cure.Pleading with the doctor that he's "in pain", the Narrator is told that if he wants to see people in pain, he should go to a support group for men with testicular cancer.He takes this literally, and finds out that by seeing people worse off than himself, and being mistaken by them for someone who really is dying, he can sleep again. Of course, this doesn't last that long.He starts to notice Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter) , a chain-smoker who always seems to dress in black clothing, at the different support groups he oftens goes too, and because he knows he isn't the only one around who isn't really dying, his insomnia returns. Then, on a business trip, he meets a soap-salesman with apparently authentic recipes for home made explosives, Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt).Tyler gives the Narrator his business card with his phone number on it, and they part. When the Narrator returns from the trip he finds that his home has mysteriously blown up.Police say that it was probably a gas leak and a spark from his refrigorator than caused the fire.The Narrator doesn't know who to call. At first he calls Marla, but hangs up when she answers.He then calls Tyler, and goes to a bar called Lou's Tavern for a few drinks. We learn that Tyler is a part time projectionist who takes that job so he can splice single frames of hardcore pornography into childrens films at key moments, and that he's also a waiter, who sneezes, urinates, passes wind and does even worse things on peoples food. Out in the parking lot of the bar,the Narrator asks Tyler if he can live with him for a while, and Tyler lets him...on the condition that he return the favour by punching Tyler as hard as he can. Soon they are fighting, and what's more, enjoying themselves.And so Fight Club is born, a place where frustrated males vent their anger on one another in the basement of Lou's Tavern on a weekly basis. Fight Club is, like director David Fincher's previous films, Alien3, Seven and The Game, dark, but it's not deadly serious.It is a comedy, albeit a very black one.And while there are moments of gross-out humour that seemed to appear in all films during the late 1990s and early 2000s (like when the central duo steal liposuctioned fat and sell it back to its original owners as bars of soap), it's really a satire on modern consumerism and masculinity.It's an intelligent, complex film, and long, which means it requires alot of attention, but it's very rewarding.As well as three very strong performances from the leads, Fincher's direction is exceptional. Jim Uhls screenplay, adapting alot of the same dialogue from Chuck Palahniuk, has many memorably sharp lines.One of the best is, when the Narrator is describing his home, "The walls were solid concrete.A foot of concrete is important when your next-door neighbor lets her hearing aid go and has to watch game shows at full volume."The film also, like The Sixth Sense which was released around the same time, has a twist three-quarters of the way through that many considered to be both the best a worst thing about the film.Many claimed there were dozens of obvious plot-holes, but when you go to pick them out, you'll find that there aren't as many as you may believe. That's another reason why Fight Club is such an above-average movie.In order to make sure that it all makes sense, Uhls and Fincher plan everything out, cover every significant detail, and doesn't leave the revelation until the very end like in alot of movies (The Usual Suspects, for example), delivering it a good way through so that the audience won't spend all their time trying to figure out what the twist is, so even if they do get it, there's still a half an hour left for more surprises. Don't be surprised if you come out of Fight Club claiming that it's all unbelievable trash.It probably wasn't the film makers intention to have the film make entire sense on a first look.It's the kind of movie that was designed for repeated viewing, so that you can look for all the hints you never noticed the first time around leading up to its big revalation.And if anyone can find any genuine plot holes, then please e-mail me and let me know. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Final Destination|James Wong|Horror|Rated R for violence and terror, and for language. R|6.6|USA|2000|98 min|English||||||||||False||||||||11/13/2004|Chris Bender Richard Brener Glen Morgan Craig Perry Art Schaeffer Brian Witten Warren Zide|Glen Morgan James Wong Jeffrey Reddick Jeffrey Reddick|Robert McLachlan ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |No Accidents. No Coincidences. No Escapes. You Can't Cheat Death.|When a boy starts having a premonition of Flight 180 crashing, he tells his friends before they board that it is a bad idea and to not to take the flight. His friends listen to him and don't go and soon after the plane crashes. Now since his friends didn't get on the plane one by one they are getting killed in mysterious ways. Alex and a group of high school students take a flight to Paris for a French class trip. Before they set off, Alex has a premonition of the plane bursting into flames minutes after take off. He tells everyone to get off the ill-fated aircraft. Moments later in the departure lounge the student see the plane explode before their very eyes. Now the FBI thinks that Alex had something to do with it and follows his every move. His friends start to believe he had something to do with it also and slowly fade out of his life. But now, each one of his friends is mysteriously being killed by something that appears to the Grim Reaper. Alex starts to believe that fate is starting to taking it's toll. Alex, a teen has a premonition that a flight he's on headed to France will crash. He convinces his friends not to board the flight and the plane does crash. Soon after though, the teens are stalked and killed by Death who is intent on collecting the souls of those who cheated it. Alex and his senior french class are going on a trip to France in the spring. Alex is very nervous, and has a deadly premonition that the plane he is on will explode after take off. Alex and six others, including his teacher, get off the plane. Soon after, the plane explodes. Now his teacher and friends are starting to avoid him. Shortly after school ends, Alex and his friends are being hunted down by Death, angry that they cheated the "design". It doesn't take long for Alex to realize that you can't cheat death! After boarding an airplane destined for Paris, Alex Browning, a high school student going on his senior trip has a premonition about the plane exploding after takeoff. Scrared and freaked out, Alex tries to tell everyone about the explosion causing him to quarrel with a fellow student, Carter Horton which gets them both kicked off the plane. Along with them, Carter's girlfriend Terry who follows Carter, Alex's best friend Tod who gets off to make sure Alex is okay, Billy Hitchcock who was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, one of the faculty members Ms. Lewton, and Clear Rivers whose motive for leaving was just out of belief of what Alex saw. Soon after the plane takes off, the students watch as it explodes sending fear and curiousity into their hearts. A little over a month goes by when one of the survivors turns up dead. After that Alex begins to question whether or not himself and the rest of the survivors are in danger. Could there really be a design? Does death really have a pattern planned out for everyone? And if so, after cheating death once, can you find a way to do it again? |Devon Sawa (Alex Chance Browning) @ Ali Larter (Clear Rivers) @ Kerr Smith (Carter Horton) @ Tony Todd (William Bludworth) @ Kristen Cloke (Ms. Valerie Lewton) @ Seann William Scott (Billy Hitchcock) @ Daniel Roebuck (Agent Weine) @ Roger Guenveur Smith (Agent Schreck) @ Chad Donella (Tod Waggner (as Chad E. Donella)) @ Amanda Detmer (Terry Chaney) @ Brendan Fehr (George Waggner) @ Forbes Angus (Mr. Larry Murnau) @ Lisa Marie Caruk (Christa Marsh) @ Christine Chatelain (Blake Dreyer) @ Barbara Tyson (Mrs. Barbara Browning) @ Robert Wisden (Mr. Ken Browning) @ P. Lynn Johnson (Mrs. Linda Waggner) @ Larry Gilman (Mr. Jerry Waggner) @ Guy Fauchon (Hare Krishna) @ Randy Stone (Flight Attendant) @ Mark Holden (Co-Pilot) @ Marrett Green (TV News Anchor) @ Fred Keating (Howard Seigel) @ John Hainsworth (Minister) @ Pete Atherton (Student Singer) @ Nicole Robert (Ticket Clerk) @ Kristina Matisic (Reporter Marilyn Eckerle rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mark Marriott (Scared Airline Passenger (uncredited)) @ Troy Yorke (Lou Gehrig's Man (uncredited) Produced by||Clever, highly self-referential This is a clever little movie. I'm 53, and go to see teen movies out of curiousity and to try to stay tuned to a quickly evolving, often intriguing culture. Sometimes I get discouraged at how mindless culturemakers think teens are. I felt this way after seeing Romeo Must Die. But this movie gave me hope, as did the little gem GO last year. I know that there are many who would go looking to be scared, who would take this movie (or any one) seriously -- folks who even rank grossness as a thrill. But this movie is like the first Scream movies in making fun not at slasher flicks, but at the people who come to see slasher picks, or more precisely, the reasons they do. However, this movie does so much better than scream because it uses a novel device: many of the deaths are extremely complex sequences of improbable coincidences. It fits with the story, as only death could string these together. But it provides what Scream lacked: a greater distance from the actual slash. In fact this movie is NOT scary, nor gory by current standards. Instead, it spends its time on introspection about the medium. Andy Warhol sophistication finally hits teen culture. The level of this humor gives me hope about the future of the minds of our kids. I only wonder what can come of it next. If every instance of distance requires that we carry the vulgar with it as referent, does this give new life to the base? ||New Line Platinum Series |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Final Destination 2|David R. Ellis|Horror|Rated R for strong violent/gruesome accidents, language, drug content and some nudity. R|6.3|USA|2003|90 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/6/2004|Richard Brener Toby Emmerich Justis Greene Sheila Hanahan Matt Moore Craig Perry Jeffrey Reddick Warren Zide|Jeffrey Reddick J. Mackye Gruber Eric Bress Jeffrey Reddick J. Mackye Gruber Eric Bress|Gary Capo ||Cinergia Ltd. [ua] |For every beginning there is an end.|Kimberly Corman, 19, was just taking a trip with her friends.. But when she escapes a horrific car accident, she finds herself in Death's path of destruction. Now, Kimberly, along with the other survivors, must find a way to save themselves... Kimberly Corman and her friends decide to head out on a trip. On the way, they get caught up in a horrible accident, in which Kimberly survives, but her friends die brutally. Kimberly also saves a few other people. Soon after the accident, the survivors of the accident start dropping like flies. Now, it's up to Kimberly, along with the help of Flight 180 junkie Thomas Burke, Clear Rivers, and the Mortician William Bloodworth, Kimberly must find a way to stop death before it's to late... Before it's her turn. After a dream of a horrific car crash, Kimberly helps save several people and causes another rift in Death's design, but this time its different, since Alex walked off the plane Death's design did not only affect the survivors of Flight 180, but every single person they've come in contact with, now how will they stop it? "It has been one year today since the tragic explosion of flight 180." After having a premonition of a horrific multi-car pileup on the highway, Kiberly panics and blocks off the onramp she is on holding up several cars. Kimberly tries to tell Officer Burke, who was one of the people behind her what was about to happen. As he looks at her in disbelief cars begin to crash and explode about 1/2 mile from them as they stare in shock. Later that same day, one of the survivors dies in a freak accident and Kimberly starts to wonder if the flight 180 incident and the events after weren't just a coincidence. Her only hope lies in Clear Rivers, the sole survivor of flight 180. Can she help them cheat death one more time. |A.J. Cook (Kimberly Corman) @ Ali Larter (Clear Rivers) @ Michael Landes (Officer Thomas Burke) @ Tony Todd (William Bludworth) @ Terrence 'T.C.' Carson (Eugene Dix (as T.C. Carson)) @ Jonathan Cherry (Rory Peters) @ Keegan Connor Tracy (Kat Jennings) @ Lynda Boyd (Nora Carpenter) @ James Kirk (Tim Carpenter) @ David Paetkau (Evan Lewis) @ Justina Machado (Isabella Hudson) @ Sarah Carter (Shaina) @ Alex Rae (Dano) @ Shaun Sipos (Frankie) @ Andrew Airlie (Mr. Corman) @ Christina Jastrzembska (Administrator) @ Eileen Pedde (Anesthesiologist) @ Jill Krop (Anchorwoman) @ Marrett Green (Anchorman) @ Don Bell (Biker) @ Odessa Munroe (Biker's Girlfriend) @ Noel Fisher (Brian Gibbons) @ Benita Ha (Dental Receptionist) @ Aaron Douglas (Deputy Steve) @ Eric Keenleyside (Detective Suby) @ Enid-Raye Adams (Dr. Kalarjian) @ Fred Henderson (Dr. Lees) @ Veena Sood (ER Nurse) @ David Purvis (Guest) @ Marke Driesschen (Host) @ Darcy Laurie (Man in Elevator) @ John R. Taylor (Man with Hooks) @ Alf Humphreys (Mr. Gibbons (as Alfred E. Humphreys)) @ Chilton Crane (Mrs. Gibbons) @ Klodyne Rodney (Obstetrician) @ Rheta Hutton (On-Ramp Lady) @ John Stewart (Paramedic at Farm) @ Cam Cronin (Paramedic at Hospital) @ Alison Matthews (Physician) @ Mark Lukyn (Rescue Worker) @ Lorne Stewart (Skate Rat) @ Jenny Lang (Young Woman rest of cast listed alphabetically Roger R. Cross .... Isabella's husband (scenes deleted)) @ Michael S. Bolton (Sheriff Perry (uncredited)) @ Sarah Hattingh (Nurse in Delivery Room (uncredited)Produced by||I probably missed the point but I found this generally lazy and quite offensive One year on from the events that followed the destruction of Flight 180, Kimberly Corman and her friends are on a trip. On the road Kimberley has a vision of a horrific pile up and stops her car, blocking the access road. When the accident occurs Kimberley survives and has saved many other drivers. However when the survivors start to die in mysterious circumstances, Kimberley contacts Clear Rivers who survived the 180 flight and finds that death is coming after each of them in turn. I saw this with family and had no voice in the choice. I only semi-enjoyed the first film and couldn't see this being any better. The start of the film (i.e. the crash) is powerful and pretty well done - it is horrific, scary and very unsettling. However after this the film settles back into the rut it was in the second half of last time. In place of genuine scares the film goes for gore by killing each person in increasingly unlikely and gory ways. If this is your thing then you'll enjoy it, however I wanted more than just effects and gore. There is no tension and no scares - as a horror it works in terms of gore but nothing else. The characters are simply meat and nothing more - the film could have been 15 minutes long by cutting out all the pointless plot and just having the death scenes together. I felt no interest in any of these people and the majority of them were just given enough presence to make an impact when they were killed. I find this type of laziness really annoying - the makers just wanted the cinematic equivalent of a slaughter house, no substance or meaning, just a production line of body parts. I usually write a little about the actors and their performances when i do reviews but here it would be a waste of my time as no-one actually gave a performance worth talking about. They stuck in my mind only because of how they died. Only the Candyman added interest in a minor role. Even as a horror movie this is a messy failure. It has one good scene that is terrifying but after that nothing - just one more protracted list of red herrings leading to the eventual gory death scene. I found it offensive that someone felt I would want to spend 90 minutes watching people be cut up and killed in gory ways without having anything else to offer. No characters, no plot (other than a rehash of the last film), nothing new, no spark, no flair, no good performances, few real scares and basically a real lazy and unnecessary sequel.Like I said - I found this gory film to be offensive, dull and quite unpleasant to watch. Avoid it or you'll only be encouraging the producers to come back for a third one - and no one wants that. ||Infinifilm |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Finding Nemo|Andrew Stanton Lee Unkric|Adventure||8.3|USA|2003| USA:100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jinko Gotoh John Lasseter Graham Walters|Andrew Stanton Andrew Stanton Bob Peterson David Reynolds Bob Peterson Andrew Stanton|Sharon Calahan Jeremy Lasky||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Grab shell dude!|Marlin (a clown fish) is a widower who only has his son Nemo left of his family after a predator attack. Years later, on Nemo's first day of school, he's captured by a scuba diver and taken to live in a dentist office's fish tank. Marlin and his new absent-minded friend Dory set off across the ocean to find Nemo, while Nemo and his tankmates scheme on how to get out of the tank before he becomes the dentist's niece's new pet. A tale which follows the comedic and eventful journeys of two fish, the fretful Malin and his young son Nemo, who are separated from each another in the Great Barrier Reef when Nemo is unexpectedly taken from his home, and thrust into a fish tank in a dentist's office overlooking Sydney Harbor. Buoyed by the companionship of a friendly but forgetful fish named Dory, the overly cautious Malin embarks on in a dangerous trek and finds himself the unlikely hero of an epic journey to rescue his son. Meanwhile the young Nemo hatches a few daring plans of his own to return home safely. |Albert Brooks (Marlin (voice)) @ Ellen DeGeneres (Dory (voice)) @ Alexander Gould (Nemo (voice)) @ Willem Dafoe (Gill (voice)) @ Brad Garrett (Bloat (voice)) @ Allison Janney (Peach (voice)) @ Austin Pendleton (Gurgle (voice)) @ Stephen Root (Bubbles (voice)) @ Vicki Lewis (Deb/Flo (voice)) @ Joe Ranft (Jacques (voice)) @ Geoffrey Rush (Nigel (voice)) @ Andrew Stanton (Crush (voice)) @ Elizabeth Perkins (Coral (voice)) @ Nicholas Bird (Squirt (voice)) @ Bob Peterson (Mr. Ray (voice)) @ Barry Humphries (Bruce (voice)) @ Eric Bana (Anchor (voice)) @ Bruce Spence (Chum (voice)) @ Bill Hunter (Dentist (voice)) @ LuLu Ebeling (Darla (voice)) @ Jordan Ranft (Tad (voice) (as Jordy Ranft)) @ Erica Beck (Pearl (voice)) @ Erik Per Sullivan (Sheldon (voice)) @ John Ratzenberger (Fish School (voice) Produced by||Too cute and innocent for me, but still pretty good Pixar can never do wrong, it will never do wrong, and it will make money from any movie it makes. Without a stellar voice cast or an obnoxious ad campaign, this movie proved that Pixar doesn't need to hype its own films anymore. I really thought this film would be a sinker, but the first week grosses proved otherwise. What I do admire about this film were the underwater sequences, which proved to be rather vibrant and more cutting edge than the previous Pixar films. While being a cynical 20-something, I can't say the film was particularly brilliant beyond visual appeal and animation, but for the younger kids, this is definitely quality entertainment a parent can take their child to. || |1.85 : 1 |6.1 EX ||||||@@ Flamingo Kid, The|Garry Marshall|Comedy||6.1|USA|1984| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Nick Abdo Michael Phillips|Bo Goldman Garry Marshall Neal Marshall|James A. Contner ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] ||Jeffrey feels boxed in; in his home, in his life, in his dreams. At the Flamingo beach club his eyes are opened to a world filled with what he sees as beautiful people and perfect lives. He turns his back on his family in pursuit of easy street. Jeffrey falls in love with pretty beach girl Carla, and appears to be on his way to a cushy job selling sports cars for the slick Mr. Brody. It all begins to fall apart when Jeffrey discovers that Mr. Brody misled him; and further disintegrates when he notices Mr. Brody cheating at cards. Jeffrey must finally choose between his dreams and honor. He returns to his family, which he now sees not as a box, but as a foundation. |Matt Dillon (Jeffrey Willis) @ Hector Elizondo (Arthur Willis) @ Molly McCarthy (Ruth Willis) @ Martha Gehman (Nikki Willis) @ Richard Crenna (Phil Brody) @ Jessica Walter (Phyllis Brody) @ Carole Davis (Joyce Brody) @ Janet Jones (Carla Samson) @ Brian McNamara (Steve Dawkins) @ Fisher Stevens (Hawk Ganz) @ Leon (Fortune Smith) @ Bronson Pinchot (Alfred Shultz) @ Frank Campanella (Col. Eastland) @ Richard Stahl (Charlie Cooper) @ Joe Grifasi (Mario Minetta) @ Ron McLarty (Pat McCarty) @ Seth Allen (Jerry Berlin) @ Irving Metzman (Big Sid) @ Adam Klugman (Lewis Madrone) @ Ray Roderick (Danny Walsh) @ Googy Gress (Freddy) @ Sharon Thomas (Mrs. Unger rest of cast listed alphabetically Mel Allen .... Himself) @ David Berry (Steve's father) @ George Blumenthal (Hawk's father) @ Blake Brocksmith (Shel) @ Richard Buck (Man on lounge) @ Bobbie Jo Burke (Bobbie Jo) @ Christopher Chadman (Dance instructor) @ Marvin Chatinover (Dr. Gold) @ Lauren Costa (Lauren McCarty) @ Linda Costa (Peter's Mother) @ Eric Douglas (Donny) @ Beth Noreen Einhorn (Bridgette the Contortionist) @ Jack Danny Foster (Pete from Pinky's) @ Freddy Frogs (Hot Dog Man) @ Bradley Kane (Mitch) @ Mark Kaplan (Ron the Car Salesman) @ Kristina Kossi (Kristina) @ Michael C. Mahon (Lifeguard) @ Michael Markowitz (Nervous Man (as Mike Markowitz)) @ Kathleen Marshall (Adventurer's Inn Hostess (as Kathi Marshall)) @ Scott Marshall (Stickball Player) @ Lee Morey (Mrs. Bakalentnikoff) @ Novella Nelson (Lizzy the Housekeeper) @ David Paul (The Barbarian Brothers) @ Frances Peach (Aunt Frances) @ Tracy Reiner (Polly) @ Lisa Beth Ross (Bimbette) @ Bo Sabato (Uncle Jack) @ Leslie S. Sachs (Big Sid's Girl) @ Jillian Scharf (Waitress) @ Lee Steele (Furniture Store Man) @ Mark Strait (Bocko from Pinky's) @ Laurie Stratford (Bimbette) @ Marisa Tomei (Mandy) @ John Turturro (Ted from Pinky's) @ Steven Weber (Paul Hirsch) @ Carol Williard (Mrs. Rifkin) @ Steve Witting (Frank) @ Peter Costa (Himself (uncredited) Produced by||The Flamingo Kid Charming comedy from Garry Marshall starring Dillon as a Brooklyn teenager taken aback by the smooth lifestyles at a posh beach club. At the club he meets swift characters like car dealer Richard Crenna, in a wonderful role and the lovely Janet Jones, before the Gretzky. Hector Elizondo is also stand out as Dillon's father. Marshall also wrote the script for the film and it flows with heart and humor all the way through. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Flashdance|Adrian Lyne|Drama|R |5.5|USA|1983|95 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/28/2004|Jerry Bruckheimer Peter Guber Tom Jacobson Lynda Obst Jon Peters Don Simpson|Thomas Hedley Jr. Thomas Hedley Jr. Joe Eszterhas|Donald Peterman ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |What a feeling.|Alex Owens is a female dynamo: steel worker by day, exotic dancer by night. Her dream is to get into a real dance company, though, and with encouragement from her boss/boyfriend, she may get her chance. The city of Pittsburgh co-stars. What a feeling! |Jennifer Beals (Alex Owens) @ Michael Nouri (Nick Hurley) @ Lilia Skala (Hanna Long) @ Sunny Johnson (Jeanie Szabo) @ Kyle T. Heffner (Richie) @ Lee Ving (Johnny C.) @ Ron Karabatsos (Jake Mawby) @ Belinda Bauer (Katie Hurley) @ Malcolm Danare (Cecil) @ Philip Bruns (Frank Szabo (as Phil Bruns)) @ Micole Mercurio (Rosemary Szabo) @ Lucy Lee Flippin (Secretary) @ Don Brockett (Pete) @ Cynthia Rhodes (Tina Tech) @ Durga McBroom (Heels) @ Stacey Pickren (Margo) @ Liz Sagal (Sunny) @ Norman Scott (Normski) @ Marc Lemberger (Mr. Freeze) @ Wayne Frost (Frosty Freeze) @ Kenneth Gabbert (Prince Ken Smith) @ Crazy Legs (Crazy Legs (as Richard Colon)) @ Robert Wuhl (Mawby's regular) @ Steve Price (Mawby's regular) @ Matt Landers (Mawby's regular) @ Darren Roy (Mawby's regular) @ Frank Pesce (Mawby's regular) @ Larry John Meyers (Welder #1) @ David DiManna (Welder #2) @ Helen Dexter (Dancer #1 at repertory) @ Mark Anthony Moschello (Dancer #2 at repertory) @ Debra Gordon (Dancer #3 at repertory) @ Erika Leslie (Blonde skater) @ Jim McCardle (Ice Rink official #1) @ Ernie Tate (Ice Rink official #2) @ Bettina Birnbaum (Stripper #1) @ Deirdre L. Cowden (Stripper #2) @ Colin Hamilton (Maitre D') @ Tony De Santis (Waiter #2 (as Tony de Santis)) @ Marjean Dennis (Woman at restaurant) @ Bob Harks (Priest) @ Ann Muffly (Woman at Hanna Long's) @ Hank Crowell (Racquetball player) @ Frank Tomasello (Harry) @ Evette de Marco (Ballet Dancer (courtesy of Los Angeles Ballet)) @ Richard Fritz (Ballet Dancer (courtesy of Los Angeles Ballet) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mike Berro (Dance judge #5 (uncredited)) @ Monique Gabrielle (Stripper (uncredited)Produced by||Weakest of the Paramount 80's music offerings. WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS If anything, FLASHDANCE is a movie that defines the look of the 80's movie, rather than the effect. One of the biggest hits from Paramount during the decade, it is also one of the first key hits of the Simpson/Bruckheimer collaboration, which also paved the way for Adrian Lyne's career which began afterwards with 9 AND A 1/2 WEEKS. Similar in plot to SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER, merely changing the sex and setting (female working woman dances in the evenings and has to pursue her dream to become more than she is) FLASHDANCE is a frustrating film, not least in the evidence that very little is going on and you can't help wondering if there were some elements edited out to make way for the film's raison d'etre. Still, for all that, when Jennifer Beals arrives for her fateful audition, you know that the real energy of the film will kick in (a sequence which has been used on more recent music videos from J-Lo and Geri Halliwell) Controversial for the use of a double in Marine Jahan (who danced Beals silhouetted club and audition dances) but with a classic title track behind it, FLASHDANCE is a weaker variation on the musical movie of the 80's. || ||||||||@@ Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas, The|Brian Levant|Family|Rated PG for innuendo and brief language. PG|3.8|USA|2000|90 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Joseph Barbera Bart Brown Bruce Cohen William Hanna Dennis E. Jones|William Hanna Joseph Barbera Deborah Kaplan Harry Elfont Jim Cash Jack Epps Jr.|Jamie Anderson ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |Get ready to rock!||Mark Addy (Fred Flintstone) @ Stephen Baldwin (Barney Rubble) @ Kristen Johnston (Wilma Slaghoople) @ Jane Krakowski (Betty O'Shale) @ Joan Collins (Pearl Slaghoople) @ Thomas Gibson (Chip Rockefeller) @ Alan Cumming (Gazoo/Mick Jagged) @ Harvey Korman (Colonel Slaghoople) @ Alex Meneses (Roxie) @ John Taylor (Keith Rockhard) @ Tony Longo (Big Rocko) @ Danny Woodburn (Little Rocko) @ Taylor Negron (Gazaam & Gazing) @ Jack McGee (Bronto Crane Examiner) @ David Jean Thomas (Bronto Crane Examiner (as David Jean-Thomas)) @ Brian Coughlin (Bronto Crane Worker) @ Richard Karron (Bronto Crane) @ Gary Epp (Dean Agate) @ Jennifer Simard (Bride-To-Be) @ Heather Simpson (Tennis Girl (as Heather McClurg)) @ Chene Lawson (Kitty) @ Beverly Sanders (Photographer) @ John Cho (Parking Valet) @ Nora Burns (Party Guest) @ Cheryl Holdridge (Genevieve (as Cheryl)) @ Mark Kubr (Party Guest) @ Buck Kartalian (Old Man at Bronto King) @ Matt Griesser (Booth Worker) @ Irwin Keyes (Joe Rockhead) @ Mary Jo Smith (Gambler Woman) @ Duane Davis (Goon) @ Kevin Grevioux (Associate Goon) @ Steve Schirripa (Croupier) @ John Wills Martin (Casino Security Guard) @ Lucille M. Oliver (Hotel Worker) @ Joel Virgil Vierset (Keyboard Player) @ Rachel Winfree (Confessor) @ Ted Rooney (Confessor) @ Jim Doughan (Dinosaur Confessor) @ Jason Kravits (Choreographer (as Jason Kravitz)) @ John Stephenson (Showroom Announcer (voice)) @ Brian Mahoney (Audience Man) @ Ann Martel Mahoney (Audience Woman) @ Walter Gertz (Wedding Minister) @ Mel Blanc (Puppy Dino (voice) (archive sound)) @ Rosie O'Donnell (Octopus Masseuse (voice)) @ William Hanna (Special Appearance) @ Joseph Barbera (Special Appearance) @ Jennifer Arden (Rockette) @ Jennifer Bachler (Rockette) @ Tracie Burton (Rockette) @ Teresa Chapman (Rockette) @ Jacqueline Case (Rockette) @ Betsy Chang (Rockette) @ Darlene Dillinger (Rockette) @ Kristen Dinsmore (Rockette) @ Tracie Hendricks (Rockette) @ Helena Hultberg (Rockette) @ Katherine Miller (Rockette) @ Jessica Page (Rockette) @ Kim Timbers-Patteri (Rockette) @ Cristal Williams (Rockette rest of cast listed alphabetically Allan Trautman .... Juicer (voice)) @ Michael Bower (Trailer Park Neighbor (uncredited)) @ MarLee Candell (High Roller (uncredited)) @ Paul Gebeau (Neanderthal butler (uncredited)) @ Gordon Hart (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Brandon Henschel (Dancing Sailor (uncredited)) @ Josef S. Klus (Quarry Neanderthal (uncredited)) @ Brandon Molale (Neanderthal Jail Guard (uncredited)) @ Mary Morrissey (Cave Club Diner/Flower Girl (uncredited)) @ Scott L. Schwartz (Caveman Boxer (uncredited)Produced by||Not As Good As The First! This was not nearly as good as the 1994 original! I know they were making the characters look younger so they couldn't get the original actors back, but the actors in this film weren't any good.Stephen Baldwin is just not a very good actor. He wasn't that good in anything I've seen, so I just don't see him playing Barney Rubble. Mark Addy just doesn't hold a candle to John Goodman.Apparently in this movie, it was before the Flintstones and the Rubbles became a family. But the story idea still could've worked. Instead of this movie being a prequel, it still could've been a sequel: The families go to Rock Vegas. But no. They just had to make it a prequel. I can sort of understand why they did it, but they should've put more effort into it. That's all I'm saying. || |1.85 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Flintstones, The|Brian Levant|Family||4.5|USA|1994| 91 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Joseph Barbera Bruce Cohen William Hanna Kathleen Kennedy David Kirschner Gerald R. Molen David Silverman Steven Spielberg Colin Wilson|Tom S. Parker Jim Jennewein Steven E. de Souza|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Yabba-Dabba-Doo! |The Flintstones and the Rubbles are modern stone-age families. Fred and Barney work at Slate and Company, mining rock. Fred gives Barney some money so he and Betty can adopt a baby. When Fred and Barney take a test to determine who should become the new associate vice president, Barney returns the favor by switching his test answers for Fred's, whose answers aren't very good. Fred gets the executive position, but little realizes that he's being manipulated by Cliff Vandercave to be the fall guy for an embezzlement scheme. |John Goodman (Fred Flintstone) @ Elizabeth Perkins (Wilma Flintstone) @ Rick Moranis (Barney Rubble) @ Rosie O'Donnell (Betty Rubble) @ Kyle MacLachlan (Cliff Vandercave) @ Halle Berry (Sharon Stone) @ Elizabeth Taylor (Pearl Slaghoople) @ Dann Florek (Mr. Slate) @ Richard Moll (Hoagie) @ Irwin Keyes (Joe Rockhead) @ Jonathan Winters (Grizzled Man) @ Harvey Korman (Dictabird (voice)) @ Elaine Silver (Pebbles) @ Melanie Silver (Pebbles) @ Hlynur Sigurdsson (Bamm-Bamm) @ Marino Sigurdsson (Bamm-Bamm) @ Sheryl Lee Ralph (Mrs. Pyrite) @ Jean Vander Pyl (Mrs. Feldspar (conga line dancer)) @ Janice Kent (Stewardess) @ Jack O'Halloran (Yeti) @ Becky Thyre (Roxanne) @ Rod McCary (Store Manager) @ Kate Pierson (BC-52's) @ Fred Schneider (BC-52's) @ Keith Strickland (BC-52's) @ Jim Doughan (Maitre d') @ Laraine Newman (Susan Rock) @ Jay Leno (Bedrock's Most Wanted Host) @ Alan Blumenfeld (Fred Look-A-Like) @ Sam Raimi (Cliff Look-A-Like) @ Messiri Freeman (Miss Stone Look-A-Like) @ Alex Zimmerman (Accuser) @ Tommy Terrell (Accuser) @ Tabbie Brown (Accuser) @ Andy Steinfeld (Aerobics Instructor) @ Bradford Bryson (Foreman) @ Dean Cundey (Technician) @ Lita Stevens (Woman at Chevrox) @ Joseph Barbera (Man driving Mersandes) @ William Hanna (Executive in Boardroom rest of cast listed alphabetically Mel Blanc .... Dino (voice) (archive sound)) @ Carole Reed ( (uncredited)) @ Craig Richards (Quarry Worker (uncredited)) @ Ken Tipton ( (uncredited) Produced by||Wonderful Film I have always been a skeptic when it comes to seeing cartoons transferred to live action. What works in animation may not work with flesh and blood actors. Luckily, The Flinstones was one of the better films adapted from a cartoon. A lot of it's success rests with the actors-John Goodman, Rick Moranis, Elizabeth Perkins and Rosie O'Donnell. I cannot imagine anyone else being able to pull it off apart from the four above. The story itself is very good. Just like the cartoon show we see two good friends in Barney Rubble and Fred Flinstone helping each other out and just generally enjoying life the way life should be enjoyed. The story was great, the casting was great but I think it would be fair to also mention the great sets and props in this film. They just added to the magic of this wonderful movie. Yabba-Dabba Doo. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Flintstones, The: Season One / DVD-Video|||NR ||||737 mins|||||||||||False||||||||11/13/2004||||||| Bedrock's most famous familyias audiences first felliin love with them! ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Mono FRENCH: Dolby Digital Mono FRENCH-CANADIAN: Dolby Digital Mono||||||@@ Flubber|Les Mayfield|Family|Rated PG for slapstick action and mild language. |4.7|USA|1997| 93 min/ Spain:90 min (DVD edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Hughes Ricardo Mestres David Nicksay Michael Polaire Nilo Rodis-Jamero William Ryan|Samuel W. Taylor John Hughes Bill Walsh|Dean Cundey ||Buena Vista Home Entertainment [es] |The stuff dreams are made of.|Professor Phillip Brainard, an absent minded professor, works with his assistant Weebo, trying to create a substance that's a new source of energy and that will save Medfield College where his sweetheart Sara is the president. He has missed his wedding twice, and on the afternoon of his third wedding, Professor Brainard creates flubber, which allows objects to fly through the air. I looks like rubber, so he calls it flubber. This film is based on the 1961 Disney classic, "The Absent-Minded Professor. |Robin Williams (Professor Philip 'Phil' Brainard) @ Marcia Gay Harden (Dr. Sara Jean Reynolds) @ Christopher McDonald (Wilson Croft) @ Raymond J. Barry (Chester Hoenicker (as Raymond Barry)) @ Clancy Brown (Smith (Hoenicker's thug)) @ Ted Levine (Wesson (Hoenicker's thug)) @ Wil Wheaton (Bennett Hoenicker) @ Edie McClurg (Martha George) @ Jodi Benson (Weebo (voice)) @ Leslie Stefanson (Sylvia) @ Malcolm Brownson (Father) @ Benjamin Brock (Window Boy) @ Dakin Matthews (Minister) @ Zack Zeigler (Teenage Boy) @ Samuel Lloyd (Willy Barker) @ Scott Michael Campbell (Dale Jepner) @ Bob Sarlatte (Rutland Coach) @ Bob Greene (Referee) @ Tom Barlow (Medfield Basketball Player) @ Scott Martin Gershin (Flubber (voice)) @ Julie Morrison (Weebette (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Adryenn Ashley .... Fan (scenes deleted)) @ Scott Bowe (Garbage Man (uncredited)) @ Teresa Couch (Basketball Fan (uncredited)) @ Pat Hughes (Basketball announcer (uncredited) (voice)) @ Bernadette Humphrey (Basketball crowd extra (uncredited)) @ Janean Christine Mariani (Fan With Broken Leg (uncredited)) @ Bryan Nelson (Student (uncredited)) @ Nancy Olson (Secretary at Ford Company (uncredited)) @ Freddy W. Smith (Basketball Player (uncredited)) @ Tony Sommers (Wedding Guest (uncredited)) @ Dan Trimble (Basketball Fan (uncredited)) @ Scott Trimble (Basketball Fan (uncredited)) @ Rick Van Meter (Basketball Audience Extra (uncredited)) @ James D. Weston II (Spectator (uncredited)) @ Peter White (Mr. Sylvan 'The CEO of Ford Motor Co.' (uncredited) Produced by||A pretty sorry looking picture... Flubber dos'nt seem to know whether it's coming or going,much like the constant green goo which goes flying hither and yon throughout the course of the picture.Robin Williams is on unreassuring form as Philip Bearnard,an absent minded professor who keeps forgetting his missis wedding ,only to create a magical green serum which ,to the audience,seems to have no other purpose than to fly around in the air constantly and cause wacky predicaments. The humour here,Williams best gift,no matter what the oscars opinion of his roles in Dead Poet's Society and Good Will Hunting may be,is disappointingly tepid,and not very charasmatically handled.Quite empty stuff,and too broad for kids. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Forrest Gump|Robert Zemeckis|Drama|Rated PG-13 for drug content, some sensuality and war violence. |8.1|USA|1994| 142 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Wendy Finerman Charles Newirth Steve Starkey Steve Tisch|Winston Groom Eric Roth|Don Burgess ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The world will never be the same once you've seen it through the eyes of Forrest Gump.|The story follows the life of low I.Q. Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) and his meeting with the love of his life Jenny. The film chronicles his accidental experiences with some of the most important people and events in America from the late 1950's through the 1970's including a meeting with Elvis Presley, JFK, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, fighting in Vietnam, etc. The problem is, he's too stupid to realize the significance of his actions. Forrest becomes representative of the baby boomer generation having walked through life blindly. A low-intelligence man tells his life's tale to people waiting at a small town bus stop. He has captured fame, fortune and glory, but his one true love has continuously eluded him. Il film racconta la storia di Forrest Gump, che vive i momenti salienti della propria vita incrociando i momenti importanti della storia Americana dagli anni '60 ai giorni nostri: infatti, incontra personaggi famosi e potenti (i presidenti Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon e il cantante John Lennon); combatte in Vietnam; diventa ricco con la pesca, quasi miracolosa, dei gamberi (dopo un uragano). Come il CANDIDO di Voltaire vive con semplicità anche momenti difficili e drammatici. Dopo la morte della madre, decide di attraversare di corsa tutti gli USA. Dal suo unico, e non sempre corrisposto, grande amore, riceverà anche il suo unico figlio, poco prima della morte di lei. |Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump) @ Robin Wright Penn (Jenny Curran (as Robin Wright)) @ Gary Sinise (Lt. Dan Taylor) @ Mykelti Williamson (Pvt. Benjamin Buford 'Bubba' Blue) @ Sally Field (Mrs. Gump) @ Rebecca Williams (Nurse at Park Bench) @ Michael Conner Humphreys (Young Forrest Gump) @ Harold G. Herthum (Doctor (as Harold Herthum)) @ George Kelly (Barber) @ Bob Penny (Crony) @ John Randall (Crony) @ Sam Anderson (Principal) @ Margo Moorer (Louise, Mrs. Gump's housekeeper) @ Ione M. Telech (Elderly Woman) @ Christine Seabrook (Elderly Woman's Daughter) @ Peter Dobson (Elvis Presley) @ Siobhan Fallon (Dorothy Harris, School Bus Driver (as Siobhan J. Fallon)) @ Alexander Zemeckis (School Bus Boy) @ Logan Livingston Gomez (School Bus Boy) @ Ben Waddel (School Bus Boy) @ Elizabeth Hanks (School Bus Girl) @ Hanna R. Hall (Young Jenny Curran) @ Tyler Long (Red Headed Boy) @ Christopher Jones (Boy with Cross) @ Grady Bowman (Fat Boy) @ Kevin Mangan (Mr. Curran, Jenny's Father) @ Fay Genens (Jenny's Grandmother) @ Frank Geyer (Police Chief) @ Rob Landry (Red Headed Teen) @ Jason McGuire (Fat Teen) @ Pete Auster (Teen with Cross) @ Sonny Shroyer (Coach Paul 'Bear' Bryant) @ Brett Rice (High School Football Coach) @ Ed Davis (High School Football Coach) @ Daniel C. Striepeke (Recruiter (as Daniel Striepeke)) @ Bruce Lucvia (Kick Off Return Player) @ David Brisbin (Newscaster) @ Kirk Ward (Earl, Demonstration observer at Univ. of Alabama) @ Angela Lomas (Black Student) @ Timothy Record (Black Student) @ Deborah McTeer (Woman with Child on Park Bench) @ Mark Matheisen (Billy, Jenny's date) @ Al Harrington (Local Anchor #1) @ Jed Gillin (President John F. Kennedy (voice)) @ Bob Harks (University Dean) @ Don Fischer (Army recruiter (Sfc.)) @ Kenneth Bevington (Army Bus Driver) @ Michael Flannery (Bus Recruit) @ Gary Robinson (Bus Recruit) @ Marlena Smalls (Mrs. Blue, Bubba's Mother) @ Kitty K. Green (Bubba's Great-Grandmother) @ John Worsham (Southern Gentleman) @ Afemo Omilami (Drill Sergeant) @ Matt Wallace (Barracks Recruit) @ Danté McCarthy (Topless Girl) @ Paulie DiCocco (Strip Club Emcee) @ Mike Jolly (Club Patron) @ Michael Kemmerling (Club Patron) @ John Voldstad (Club Patron) @ Jeffrey Winner (Club Patron) @ Russ Wilson (Pick-up Truck Driver) @ Daniel J. Gillooly (Helicopter Gunman) @ Calvin Gadsden (Staff Sergeant at Fort Platoon Vietnam) @ Aaron Izbicki (Pvt. Dallas (from Phoenix)) @ Michael Burgess (Pvt. Cleveland (from Detroit)) @ Steven Griffith (Tex) @ Bill Roberson (Fat Man at Bench) @ Michael McFall (Army Hospital Male Nurse) @ Eric Underwood (Mail Call Soldier) @ Byron Minns (Wounded Soldier) @ Stephen Bridgewater (Hospital Officer (as Stephen Wesley Bridgewater)) @ Bonnie Ann Burgess (Army Nurse) @ Scott Oliver (National Correspondent #1) @ John William Galt (President Lyndon B. Johnson (voice)) @ Hilary Chaplain (Hilary) @ Isabel Rose (Isabel) @ Jay Ross (Veteran at War Rally) @ Richard D'Alessandro (Abbie Hoffman) @ Dick Stilwell (Policeman at War Rally) @ Kevin Davis (Black Panther) @ Michael Jace (Black Panther) @ Geoffrey Blake (Wesley, SDS organizer) @ Tim Perry (Hippie at Commune) @ Vanessa Roth (Hollywood Boulevard Girlfriend) @ Emily Carey (Hollywood Boulevard Girlfriend) @ Paul Raczkowski (Man in VW Bug) @ Valentino (Chinese Ping Pong Player) @ Dick Cavett (Himself) @ Joe Stefanelli (John Lennon (voice)) @ Tiffany Salerno (Cunning Carla, Prostitute at Bar) @ Marla Sucharetza (Long-Limbs Lenor, Prostitute at Bar) @ Aloysius Gigl (Musician Boyfriend) @ Jack Bowden (National Correspondent #4) @ Joe Alaskey (President Richard Nixon (voice)) @ Lazarus Jackson (Discharge Officer) @ W. Benson Terry (Stanley Loomis) @ Matt Rebenkoff (Drugged Out Boyfriend) @ Peter Bannon (Local Correspondent #2) @ Joe Washington (Local Anchor #2) @ Nora Dunfee (Elderly Southern Woman on Park Bench) @ Nathalie Hendrix (Local Anchor #3) @ Hallie D'Amore (Waitress in Cafe) @ Chiffonye Cobb (Hannibal Reporter) @ Juan Singleton (Hannibal Reporter) @ Bobby Richardson (Hannibal Reporter) @ Michael Mattison (Taxi Driver) @ Lenny Herb (Young Man Running) @ Charles Boswell (Aging Hippie) @ Timothy McNeil (Wild Eyed Man (as Tim McNeil)) @ Haley Joel Osment (Forrest Gump Jr.) @ Lonnie Hamilton (The Minister) @ Teresa Denton (Susan, Lt. Dan's fiancee rest of cast listed alphabetically Steve DeRellian .... Wounded Soldier (as Stephen Derelian)) @ John Glenn Harding (Wounded Soldier) @ Rob Adams (College Quarterback (uncredited)) @ Neil Armstrong (Himself (steps onto Moon) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jim Boeke (U of A Assistant Football Coach (uncredited)) @ Arthur Bremer (Himself (shoots George Wallace) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Dick Clark (Himself (on New Year's Eve) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ John Connally (Himself (with JFK in Dallas) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Gerald Ford (Himself (assassination attempt) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Zach Hanner (Barracks Recruit (uncredited)) @ Bob Hope (Himself (in Vietnam) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Lyndon Johnson (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Shann Johnson ( (uncredited)) @ Jim Keller (Hippie at Commune (uncredited)) @ John F. Kennedy (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Robert F. Kennedy (Himself (after 1968 California primary) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Aaron Michael Lacey (Lt. Venetti (uncredited)) @ John Lennon (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jacqueline Lovell (Football fan (uncredited)) @ Richard Nixon (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Elvis Presley (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Ronald Reagan (Himself (assassination attempt) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Kurt Russell (Elvis Presley (uncredited) (voice)) @ Brendan Shanahan (Football player (uncredited)) @ Mary Ellen Trainor (Jenny's Babysitter (uncredited)) @ USC Trojan Marching Band (Alabama Marching Band (uncredited)) @ George Wallace (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage) Produced by||Tom Hanks and Amazing Special Effects "Forrest Gump" dominated 1994.The film was a box office smash and won six Academy Awards.Tom Hanks (in his second Oscar winning performance consecutively) plays a simple man with an IQ of 75 who is somehow involved with every major American event from the mid-1950s to the early-1980s. Through his journey we meet his mother (Sally Field), his one true love Jenny (Robin Wright), his friend from the army Bubba (Mykelti Williamson), and his commanding officer Lieutenant Dan (Gary Sinise in an Oscar-nominated performance).Gump is thrown into every significant event through amazing visual effects and editing techniques."Forrest Gump" is an outstanding achievement in the cinema from every point imaginable.The cast is great and so are the mind-blowing visual effects which are still unbelievable six years later.Robert Zemeckis, a Steven Spielberg disciple, became a household name with this film.The screenplay is based on a book that was hardly read by anyone before this film came out in 1994.It was the best film of 1994 and, with the exception of "Schindler's List", may be the best and most important film of the 1990s.The fact that it won the Best Picture Oscar over "Pulp Fiction" and "The Shawshank Redemption" just adds to the greatness of this outstanding motion picture.5 stars out of 5. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Four Weddings and a Funeral|Mike Newell|Comedy||7.2|UK|1994| 117 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Bevan Richard Curtis Eric Fellner Duncan Kenworthy|Richard Curtis |Michael Coulter ||Columbia TriStar Home Video [au] |He's quite engaging. She's otherwise engaged.|The film follows the fortunes of Charles and his friends as they wonder if they will every find true love and marry. Charles thinks he's found "Miss Right" in Carrie, an American. This British subtle comedy revolves around Charlie, his friends and the four weddings and one funeral which they attend. |Hugh Grant (Charles (Wedding one)) @ James Fleet (Tom (Wedding one)) @ Simon Callow (Gareth (Wedding one)) @ John Hannah (Matthew (Wedding one)) @ Kristin Scott Thomas (Fiona (Wedding one)) @ David Bower (David (Wedding one)) @ Charlotte Coleman (Scarlett (Wedding one)) @ Andie MacDowell (Carrie (Wedding one)) @ Timothy Walker (Angus the groom (Wedding one)) @ Sara Crowe (Laura the bride (Wedding one)) @ Ronald Herdman (Vicar (Wedding one)) @ Elspet Gray (Laura's Mother (Wedding one)) @ Philip Voss (Laura's Father (Wedding one)) @ Rupert Vansittart (George the boor at The Boatman (Wedding one)) @ Nicola Walker (Frightful Folk Duo (Wedding one)) @ Paul Stacey (Frightful Folk Duo (Wedding one)) @ Simon Kunz (John with the unfaithful wife (Wedding one)) @ Rowan Atkinson (Father Gerald (Wedding one)) @ Robin McCaffrey (Serena (Wedding one)) @ Michael Mears (The Boatman waiter (Wedding one)) @ Kenneth Griffith (Mad old man (Wedding one) (as Kenneth Griffiths)) @ David Haig (Bernard the groom (Wedding two)) @ Sophie Thompson (Lydia the bride (Wedding two)) @ Corin Redgrave (Hamish (Wedding two)) @ Donald Weedon (Master of Ceremonies (Wedding two)) @ Nigel Hastings (Tea-tasting Alistair (Wedding two)) @ Emily Morgan (Vomiting Veronica (Wedding two)) @ Amanda Mealing (Naughty Nicki (Wedding two)) @ Melissa Knatchbull (Mocking Martha (Wedding two)) @ Polly Kemp (Miss Piggy (Wedding two)) @ Anna Chancellor (Henrietta (Wedding two)) @ Hannah Taylor-Gordon (Young bridesmaid (Wedding two) (as Hannah Taylor Gordon)) @ Bernice Stegers (Shop assistant (Wedding two)) @ Robert Lang (Lord Hibbott (Wedding two)) @ Jeremy Kemp (Sir John Delaney (Wedding two)) @ Rosalie Crutchley (Mrs. Beaumont (Wedding two)) @ Ken Drury (Vicar (Wedding three)) @ Struan Rodger (Best Man (Wedding three)) @ Lucy Hornack (Married Woman (Wedding three)) @ Randall Paul (Chester (Wedding three)) @ Pat Starr (Gareth's dance partner (Wedding three)) @ Tim Thomas (Doctor (Wedding three)) @ Neville Phillips (Vicar (Funeral)) @ Susanna Hamnett (Deirdre (Wedding four)) @ John Abbott (Polite Verger (Wedding four)) @ Richard Butler (Vicar (Wedding four)) @ David Wright (Rock and Roll Band Member (Wedding one)) @ Ray Uren (Rock and Roll Band Member (Wedding one)) @ Gordon Blackwell (Rock and Roll Band Member (Wedding one)) @ Ron Griffiths (Rock and Roll Band Member (Wedding one)) @ Richard Allen (Rock and Roll Band Member (Wedding one)) @ Mark James (Swing Band Member (Wedding two)) @ Jason Bruer (Swing Band Member (Wedding two)) @ Simon Wallace (Swing Band Member (Wedding two)) @ Jason McDermid (Swing Band Member (Wedding two)) @ Bryn Burrows (Swing Band Member (Wedding two)) @ Paulette Ivory (Swing Band Member (Wedding two) Produced by||Best Hugh Grant movie In this movie, Hugh Grant creates the role he does best. OK, let's be honest, the ONLY role he does!. The dialogue is sharp and funny, the various characters are on the whole realistic and interesting (Andie McDowell's is the weakest), and the story works well as a simple vehicle for the characters to reveal themselves in. The pathetic attempt to do a sequel (Notting Hill - gimme a break!) pales in comparison to this movie. The two gay characters are especially well done; no-one notices they are gay until the funeral. Simon Callow is brilliant as Gareth, and John Hannah's eulogy had people flocking to bookstores in Britain to buy copies of Auden's poem. The ending is kinda obvious and I thought a little too drawn out, but that is minor. A comedy the Brits can be proud of. || |1.66 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ French Kiss|Lawrence Kasdan|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some sexuality, language and drug references. PG-13|6.2|UK|1995|111 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/7/2004|Tim Bevan Liza Chasin Eric Fellner Kathryn F. Galan Charles Okun Meg Ryan|Adam Brooks |Owen Roizman ||Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Kates' stuck in a place where anything can happen with a guy who'll make sure that it does|Kate hates flying, but her husband to be is in Paris with another woman, and she's determined to win him back. On the flight to Paris, she is seated next to an obnoxious French criminal named Luc. Kate's introduction to Paris is a disaster. Luc pretends to be a gentleman, but he's really out to recover some stollen jewels. The results border on farce as Kate tries to win back her man and Luc his loot. |Meg Ryan (Kate) @ Kevin Kline (Luc Teyssier) @ Timothy Hutton (Charlie) @ Jean Reno (Jean-Paul) @ François Cluzet (Bob) @ Susan Anbeh (Juliette) @ Renée Humphrey (Lilly) @ Michael Riley (Campbell) @ Laurent Spielvogel (Concierge) @ Victor Garrivier (Octave) @ Elisabeth Commelin (Claire) @ Julie Leibowitch (Olivia) @ Miquel Brown (Sgt. Patton) @ Louise Deschamps (Jean-Paul's girl) @ Olivier Curdy (Jean-Paul's boy) @ Claudio Todeschini (Antoine Teyssier) @ Jerry Harte (Herb) @ Thomasine Heiner (Mom) @ Joanna Pavlis (Monotonous-voiced woman) @ Florence Soyez (Flight attendant) @ Barbara Schulz (Pouting girl) @ Clément Sibony (Pouting Boy) @ Adam Brooks (Perfect Passenger) @ Marianne Anska (Cop 1) @ Philippe Garnier (Cop 2) @ Frédéric Therisod (Cop 3) @ Patrice Juiff (French Customs Official) @ Jean Corso (Desk Clerk) @ François Xavier Tilmant (Hotel Waiter) @ Williams Diols (Beach Waiter) @ Mike Johns (Lucien) @ Marie-Christine Adam (Juliette's Mother) @ Jean-Paul Jaupart (Juliette's Father) @ Fausto Costantino (Beefy Doorman) @ Jean-Claude Braquet (Stolen Moto Owner) @ Dominique Régnier (Attractive Passport Woman) @ Ghislaine Juillot (Jean-Paul's Wife) @ Inge Offerman (German Family) @ Nicholas Hawtrey (German Family) @ Wolfgang Pissors (German Family) @ Nikola Obermann (German Family) @ Alain Frérot (Old Man) @ Dorothée Picard (Mrs. Cowen) @ Jean Allain (Mr. CowenProduced by||Cute little movie. I have watched French Kiss several times because I have the videotape. The plot is not exactly sophisticated and it is highly unlikely that "Kate" Meg Ryan (You've Got Mail) would fall in love with someone like "Luc Teyssier" Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wanda) because she is too wise for that. But I enjoyed the music and the photography. Kevin Kline sings "La Mer" after the movie ends. I like Lawrence Kasdan (The Accidental Tourist, The Big Chill).French Kiss is a good movie for a snowy day, it is a feel good, cute little movie. I recommend it! My favorite Scenes: Kate hiding behind trees and trays of pastry in the restaurant where her ex-fianceé is with his new girl friend and family. That scene made me think of Lucille Ball. Is is something that Lucy would do. My favorite quote: Kate's friend: "You guys are crazy, I am never going to buy a house or anything else worth anything! " Kate: "Why not?"Friend: "Because you think you owe something like that and it end up owing you, and then one day someone forgets to put out their cigarette and it all burns to the ground." || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Friday the 13th|Sean S. Cunningham|Horror||5.8|USA|1980| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Sean S. Cunningham Alvin Geiler Steve Miner|Victor Miller Ron Kurz|Barry Abrams ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |You'll wish it were only a nightmare...|Many years after two summer camp councilers are killed at Camp Crystal Lake, the owner decides to reopen, which sparks a series of grisly murders. In 1957, a young boy named Jason drowned at Camp Crystal Lake. In 1958, the teenagers supposedly responsible are murdered by an unknown assailant. The camp closed, but in 1980 it is reopened by Steve Christie, who hires a few teenagers to be councillors. Mayhem happens when each one is murdered one by one by an unknown killer In 1957, a young boy drowns at Camp Crystal Lake, the next year, two counselors are murdered by an unseen person, and the story flashes forward to Friday June 13th, "Present Day" which has Camp Crystal Lake opening again. The counselors are killed off one by one, again by an unseen person. The killer is revealed to the lone survivor, and the movie comes back with a surprise ending. Twenty-two years ago a small boy drowned while attending a summer camp on Crystal Lake. The camp was shut down soon after the incident but has recently been re-opened by a young couple. The local residents have not yet recovered from the tragedy, and they warn the young counselors not to stay. While preparing the camp for the summer season the kids begin to disappear, one by one, as a murderer attempts to stop the rebirth of Camp Crystal Lake. |Betsy Palmer (Mrs. Pamela Voorhees) @ Adrienne King (Alice Hardy) @ Harry Crosby (Bill) @ Laurie Bartram (Brenda (as Laurie Bartham)) @ Jeannine Taylor (Marcie Cunningham) @ Kevin Bacon (Jack Burrell) @ Mark Nelson (Ned Rubenstein) @ Robbi Morgan (Annie) @ Peter Brouwer (Steve Christy) @ Rex Everhart (Enos the Truck Driver) @ Ronn Carroll (Sergeant Tierney) @ Ron Millkie (Officer Dorf) @ Walt Gorney (Crazy Ralph) @ Willie Adams (Barry) @ Debra S. Hayes (Claudette) @ Dorothy Kobs (Trudy) @ Sally Anne Golden (Sandy the Diner Waitress) @ Mary Rocco (Operator) @ Ken L. Parker (Doctor) @ Ari Lehman (Jason Voorhees rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Noel Cunningham (Customer in cafe (uncredited)) @ Irwin Keyes (Busboy (uncredited) Produced by||A Classic, genre defining Without a doubt, the work of Cunningham and Carpenter during 1978 & 1980 rocked the world of the horror genre. Friday the 13th is one of the films that to this day still has repercussions. It demonstrated the importance of setting the tone in horror movies, making the audience themselves feel as if they too were being stalked. Cunningham also was one of the few directors to introduce the idea of a possible female serial killer. Without this film, Scream's Randy would have never uttered those famous words, 'There are certain rules to surviving a horror movie..' This film combined with Carpenter's Halloween, firmly etched the rules in stone. The creepy music, the infamous "ch-ch-ch-ha-ha-ha", the crude photography and the graphic depiction of the murders of the counsellors all blend together to give a classic piece of film history. It scared the hell out of multitudes of teenagers who, in many instances could see themselves in the victims of the stalker. These weren't bad people getting killed, these were just your typical average American kids, having a good time, getting picked off. That is what makes this film so defining, that is why, for all its crude and harsh imagery, this is a classic. This is why alot of recent attempts at horror don't measure up. It's not the effects or the blood necessarily, it's the atmosphere and the familiarity that bring it home.It is more frightening to think, "That could be me" || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |1.0 ||||||@@ Friday the 13th Part 2|Steve Miner|Horror|R |4.7|USA|1981|87 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/7/2004|Lisa Barsamian Tom Gruenberg Frank Mancuso Jr. Steve Miner Dennis Murphy|Ron Kurz |Peter Stein ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The body count continues...|After killing the crazy Mrs. Voorhees, who was avenging her son Jason's death, Alice can finally sigh with relief. But there is just one problem. Jason never drowned in Crystal Lake and lived in the nearby woods as a hermit all this time. The day that ALice beheaded his mother, Jason saw everything and his heart filled with thirst for revenge. Two months later Alice gets stabbed by an ice pick in the temple and dissapears. Is Jason behind this? Five years later a camp next do to Camp Crystal Lake is build and the couselors start snooping around the old, abondoned camp ruins. This makes Jason very upset, since his shack is next to the remains of Camp Crystal Lake and what is inside the shack shall be kept secret forever, even if it means killing nine people! Thought to have drowned in Crystal Lake, Jason Voorhees returns with an arsenal of weapons to exact his revenge on the unknowing campers of the lake. The movie starts off with the survivor of Part I being killed, and it flashes forward five years to a new camp that has been opened across the lake from the infamous "Camp Blood" (Crystal Lake). This time the killer is Jason Voorhees, who is in mourning for his mother. Again, the counselors are killed one by one, leaving the lone survivor running through the woods... |Amy Steel (Ginny Field) @ John Furey (Paul Holt) @ Adrienne King (Alice) @ Kirsten Baker (Terri) @ Stuart Charno (Ted (as Stu Charno)) @ Warrington Gillette (Jason Voorhees) @ Walt Gorney (Crazy Ralph) @ Marta Kober (Sandra Dier) @ Tom McBride (Mark) @ Bill Randolph (Jeffrey) @ Lauren-Marie Taylor (Vicky) @ Russell Todd (Scott) @ Betsy Palmer (Mrs. Pamela Voorhees) @ Cliff Cudney (Maxwell) @ Jack Marks (Deputy Winslow) @ Jerry Wallace (The prowler) @ David Brand (Extra counselor) @ China Chen (Extra counselor) @ Carolyn Louden (Extra counselor) @ Jaime Perry (Extra counselor) @ Tom Shea (Extra counselor) @ Jill Voight (Extra counselor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rex Everhart (Enos (truck driver) (uncredited)Produced by||Forgettable and worthless, but moodily directed. While you're watching "Friday The 13th, Part 2", it's important to forget for a while your normal requirements from a movie. The characters are pitifully uninteresting, the ending is super-idiotic, the whole movie is cheap-looking, exploitive and trashy in the extreme. However, what distinguishes it from the other early "Friday The 13th" outings is the moody, atmospheric direction and the reasonably tight pacing. Miner (who made the far, far inferior "Part 3D" the following year) uses many point-of-view shots that are maybe even more effective than the similar shots in the first "Halloween"! So, while the film is about as bad as the offensively inept "Final Chapter" in terms of characters and acting, it is possibly the best of the series in terms of directing. And it is a HUGE improvement over the original. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Friday the 13th Part 3|Steve Miner|Horror|R |4.2|USA|1982|95 min/ Sweden:91 min (2002 re-rating)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/4/2004|Lisa Barsamian Tony Bishop Frank Mancuso Jr. Peter Schindler|Martin Kitrosser Ron Kurz Victor Miller Carol Watson|Gerald Feil ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A New Dimension In Terror...|Originally filmed in 3-D, Friday the 13th Part 3 presents another chapter in the life (or should I say after-life) of Jason, a boy who drowned in the waters of Crystal Lake. Camp counselors have proven to be no match for Jason in the earlier films of this series, but this time he encounters more formidable opponents in the form of members of a motorcycle gang. The action takes place on a rustic farm that provides both the serene setting and the privacy Jason desires when stalking his prey. Friday the 13th part 3 (actually filmed in 3D format) once again follows the crazied Jason Voorhees, who as a child drowned off the waters of Crystal Lake. Unlike part 2, where Jason used a pillow case to cover his face (yes ne never always had the hockey mask) he dawns the now infamous hockey mask. is there anyone that can put an end to Jason's murderous rampage? Chris higgin's who was attacked by jason in the past returns back to camp crystal lake with her friends for a weekend of fun, but what they don't know is jason is watching them, everyone is killed one by one except chris,who tries to stay alive and kill jason |Dana Kimmell (Chris Higgins) @ Paul Kratka (Rick) @ Richard Brooker (Jason Voorhees) @ Nick Savage (Ali) @ Rachel Howard (Chili) @ David Katims (Chuck) @ Larry Zerner (Shelly) @ Tracie Savage (Debbie) @ Jeffrey Rogers (Andy) @ Catherine Parks (Vera Sanchez) @ Kevin O'Brien (Loco) @ Gloria Charles (Fox) @ Cheri Maugans (Edna Hatcher) @ Steve Susskind (Harold Hatcher) @ David Wiley (Abel) @ Perla Walter (Mrs. Sanchez) @ Charles Messenger (State trooper #1 (as Charlie Messenger)) @ Terry Ballard (State trooper #2) @ Terence McCorry (State trooper #3) @ Gianni Standaart (Newswoman) @ Anne Gaybis (Cashier) @ Amy Steel (Ginny Field (archive footage)) @ John Furey (Paul Holt (archive footage)) @ Betsy Palmer (Mrs. Pamela Voorhees (archive footage) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Steve Miner (Newscaster (uncredited)Produced by||3D and a Hockey Mask. Typical installment has Jason terrorizing those unlucky enough to be around Crystal Lake all over again. The only things that are different are the facts that Jason dons the hockey mask for the first time and the film was in a three-dimensional format originally in the theaters. The silly gimmick worked as the film would be a box office success and spawn more stupid sequels. 2 stars out of 5. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Fried Green Tomatoes|Jon Avnet|Drama||7.3|USA|1991| 130 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jon Avnet Anne Marie Gillen Martin Huberty Jordan Kerner Norman Lear Lisa Lindstrom Yuriko Matsubara Andrew Meyer Ric Rondell Tom Taylor|Fannie Flagg Fannie Flagg Carol Sobieski|Geoffrey Simpson ||Filmax International S.A. [es] |The secret of life? The secret's in the sauce. |Evelyn Couch is having trouble in her marriage, and no one seems to take her seriously. While in a nursing home visiting relatives, she meets Ninny Threadgoode, an outgoing old woman, who tells her the story of Idgie Threadgoode, a young woman in 1920's Alabama. Through Idgie's inspiring life, Evelyn learns to be more assertive and builds a lasting friendship of her own with Ninny. |Kathy Bates (Evelyn Couch) @ Mary Stuart Masterson (Idgie Threadgoode) @ Mary-Louise Parker (Ruth Jameson) @ Jessica Tandy (Ninny Threadgoode) @ Gailard Sartain (Ed Couch) @ Stan Shaw (Big George) @ Cicely Tyson (Sipsey) @ Gary Basaraba (Grady Kilgore) @ Grace Zabriskie (Eva Bates) @ Richard Riehle (Reverend Scroggins) @ Grayson Fricke (Buddy Threadgoode Jr.) @ Lashondra Phillips (Young Naughty Bird) @ Enjolik Oree (Older Naughty Bird) @ Nick Searcy (Frank Bennett) @ Ginny Parker (Ruth's Mother) @ Lois Smith (Mama Threadgoode) @ Danny Nelson (Papa Threadgoode) @ Afton Smith (Leona Threadgoode) @ Chris O'Donnell (Buddy Threadgoode) @ Reid Binion (Young Julian) @ Nancy Moore Atchison (Little Idgie) @ Haynes Brooke (Older Julian) @ Reiner Schöne (Curtis Smoote (as Raynor Scheine)) @ Tim Scott (Smokey Lonesome) @ Constance Shulman (Missy) @ Ronald McCall (Ocie) @ Tom Even (Judge) @ David Dwyer (Hooded Man) @ Wallace Merck (KKK Man) @ James Mayberry (Orderly) @ Macon McCalman (Prosecutor) @ Bob Hannah (Defense Attorney) @ Evan Lockwood (Tim) @ Bob Penny (Bailiff) @ Genevieve Fisher (Peggy Hadley) @ Todd Eller (College Buddy) @ LaTanya Richardson (Janeen) @ Leonard Shinew (Mr. Dunaway) @ Fannie Flagg (Teacher) @ Jo Harvey Allen (Women's Awareness Teacher) @ Tres Holton (Boy in Supermarket) @ Missy Wolf (Girl #2) @ Kathy Larson (Girl #1 (as Catherine Larson)) @ Carole Mitchell-Leon (Sue Otis) @ Suzi Bass (Nurse) @ Bill Ewin (College Dean) @ Paul Armbruster (Gas Station Attendant) @ Michael Burgess (Wingo, Man at BBQ) @ Marion Williams (Gospel Singer) @ Ted Manson (Bailiff rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jacob Avnet (Wedding Guest (uncredited)) @ Shelby Hofer (School Girl (uncredited)) @ Drew Wilkins (Young Cleo (uncredited) Produced by||A good look at the good old days What an excellent movie. Jessica Tandy was at her best in this one, as was Kathy Bates. I especially liked the use of flashback all throughout the show. This technique allowed the viewer to see the characters develop in an unusual way. A movie for the entire family, it will make you laugh and cry almost simultaneously. ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Frosty the Snowman|Jules Bass Arthur Rankin Jr|Family||7.1|USA|1969| 22 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004||Romeo Muller |||Broadway Video [us] ||A discarded silk tophat becomes the focus of a struggle between a washed-up stage magician and a group of schoolchildren after it magically brings a snowman to life. Realizing that newly-living Frosty will melt in spring unless he takes refuge in a colder climate, Frosty and a young girl who he befriends stow away on a freight train headed for the north pole. Little do they know that the magician is following them, and he wants his hat back. This animated short is based on the popular Christmas song of the same name. |Jimmy Durante (Narrator (voice)) @ Billy De Wolfe (Professor Hinkle (voice)) @ Jackie Vernon (Frosty the Snowman (voice)) @ Paul Frees (Santa Claus, Traffic Cop, Additional Voices (voice)) @ June Foray (Teacher, Karen, Additional Voices (voice) Original Music by||a great one This one has always worked for me--where else can you find Jimmy Durante come Christmas time on Primetime TV nowadays? A special done with great heart, good work by Paul Frees, June Foray, and the great Billy De Wolfe. We always loved his 'Think Nasty! Think Nasty!' bit as kids. He was a funny man, a stand up comedian/magician combo. All I can say is that Rankin Bass hit a homer with this one, and I am glad CBS keeps on trotting it out every December. **** outta ****, this one works. || |1.33 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Full Monty, The|Peter Cattaneo|Comedy|Rated R for language and some nudity. R|7.2|UK|1997|91 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/7/2004|Paul Bucknor Polly Leys Uberto Pasolini Lesley Stewart|Simon Beaufoy |John de Borman ||20th Century Fox de Argentina [ar] |Six men. With nothing to lose. Who dare to go....|Six unemployed steel workers, inspired by the Chippendale's dancers, form a male striptease act. The women cheer them on to go for "the full monty" - total nudity. The setting is Sheffield England, once the "City of Steel", home of a massive steel industry and jobs aplenty. Today with the industry in decline and the steelworks closed down there is widespread unemployment and despair. Two unemployed friends stumble upon a Chippendales-like show that's very popular with the local women. Eventually they decide they too would like to give it a go, but they can't dance and aren't what most would call good physical specimens. They have their doubts but are determined to give it a shot. On their way they pick up four other unlikely candidates and begin practising for the big night. To drum up interest, they boast they'll go 'the full monty' (a phrase meaning 'all the way' - nude), something they hadn't planned and aren't sure they can deliver. Will they ?, won't they ?, can they keep their antics from their families ?, can they stay out of trouble ? can they pull a crowd ?. All will be revealed, well maybe. Sheffield-Yorkshire (Gran Bretagna). Dopo decenni di boom metallurgico, la fiorente industria locale del miglior acciaio inglese viene costretta alla chiusura dalla crisi economica. Centinaia di lavoratori si trovano senza lavoro e non sanno come tirare avanti. Un gruppetto di loro, guidati da Gaz, divorziato e con figlio (che non riesce ad incontrare a causa degli alimenti per la ex moglie), decide, per raggranellare dei soldi, di organizzare uno spettacolo di....spogliarello maschile, per sole donne (sulla scia dei Chippendales, famoso gruppo maschile di strip inglese). Ma la crisi inizia subito: chi troppo vecchio, chi troppo grasso, chi troppo magro e via dicendo. Inoltre, nessuno sa veramente ballare. Iniziano le prove, dure e scoraggianti. Alla 'prova generale', organizzata nella loro fabbrica ora in disuso, vengono arrestati per oltraggio alla decenza. Pensano di arrendersi, ma la notizia dell'arresto viene diffusa dai giornali locali e serve loro da trampolino pubblicitario, per cui decidono di andare avanti: "the show must go on!" ed i soldi servono a tutti. Alla fine tutti riacquistano la fiducia nel loro "lavoro" e lo spettacolo ha luogo, fra il tripudio delle donne del posto e davanti alle loro mogli, esaltate da tale successo. |Robert Carlyle (Gaz) @ Mark Addy (Dave) @ William Snape (Nathan) @ Steve Huison (Lomper) @ Tom Wilkinson (Gerald) @ Paul Barber (Horse) @ Hugo Speer (Guy) @ Lesley Sharp (Jean) @ Emily Woof (Mandy) @ Deirdre Costello (Linda) @ Paul Butterworth (Barry) @ Dave Hill (Alan) @ Bruce Jones (Reg) @ Andrew Livingston (Terry (as Andrew Livingstone)) @ Vinny Dhillon (Sharon) @ Kate Layden (Bee) @ Joanna Swain (Sheryl) @ Diane Lane (Louise) @ Kate Rutter (Dole Clerk) @ June Broughton (Lomper's Mum) @ Glenn Cunningham (Police Inspector) @ Chris Brailsford (Duty Sergeant) @ Steve Garti (Policeman) @ Malcolm Pitt (Job Club Manager) @ Dennis Blanch (Director) @ Daryl Fishwick (Social Worker) @ David Lonsdale (Repossession Man) @ Muriel Hunt (Horse's Mum (as Muriel Hunte)) @ Fiona Watts (Beryl) @ Theresa Maduemezia (Horse's Sister) @ Fiona Nelson (Horse's SisterProduced by||A seductive, playful piece of comic gumption The Full Monty offers a seductive, playful piece of comic gumption:Six unemployed steel workers become amateur male strippers, baring themselves as an antidote to the dole.The title is British slang for "buck naked," but the film isn't about nudity, or lust, exactly.It takes as its subject the free-falling sense of desperation provoked by unemployment.As these flaccid bodies strive to exude "sexiness," director Peter Cattaneo turns their struggle into a blue-collared survival reflex, which yields a thin yet agreeable amount of emotional weight. Robert Carlyle plays a bitter but devoted divorced father trying to meet his support payments so his son will trust him, and Mark Addy just wants to provide for his nurturing wife, who worries about the secret G-string buried in her flabby husband's underwear drawer. Suffering ritual-humiliation for the sake of loved ones, these men pawn their dignity for economic survival.Cattaneo allows the script to hint at the social and fiscal conditions endured by the working-class under Thatcher, but mostly he avoids politicizing the material.Instead, he aims for rowdy, laugh-out-loud passages about awkward pseudo-debauchery.Perhaps The Full Monty settles for rather broad, coarse humor, but it has intensely pleasing charms and Cattaneo gives it an unexpected deadpan consistency.He exposes the comedy of shame, and then the comedy of shamelessness. ERIC BELTMANN || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Fun and Fancy Free|Jack Kinney Hamilton Luske William Morga|Family||6.8|USA|1947| 73 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Homer Brightman Eldon Dedini Sinclair Lewis Lance Nolley Tom Oreb Harry Reeves Ted Sears|Charles P. Boyle ||RKO Radio Pictures Inc. [us] ||Disney version of fairy tale "Jack and the Beanstalk", featuring Mickey, Donald and Goofy in the main roles. Also contains another short film, re-released as "Bongo" |Edgar Bergen (Himself) @ Pinto Colvig (Goofy (voice)) @ Walt Disney (Mickey Mouse (voice)) @ Cliff Edwards (Jiminy Cricket (voice)) @ Billy Gilbert (Willie the Giant (voice)) @ Anita Gordon (Singing Harp (voice)) @ Clarence Nash (Donald Duck (voice)) @ Luana Patten (Herself) @ Dinah Shore ( (voice) Produced by||Historical curiosity?Disney doesn't get more historically curious than this "Bambi" (1942) was the last REAL animated feature the Disney studio released in the 1940s.Until 1950, there would only be shorts - which in general weren't as good either as the innovative ones made in the 1930s, or Jack Hannah's comic masterpieces of the 1950s - and compilation features: "The Reluctant Dragon" (1941), "Saludos Amigos" (1943), "The Three Caballeros" (1945), "Make Mine Music" (1946), "Fun and Fancy Free" (1947), "Melody Time" (1948), "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad" (1949).You're unlikely to have seen ANY of these.All of them were stripped apart into their component pieces long ago, largely because, with the exception of "The Three Caballeros", there's no reason to keep any of them in one piece. ("Fantasia" is another exception, so much so that I've left it off the list altogether - it's a completely different kind of endeavour.) I say this even though "The Three Caballeros" is the only one I'VE seen.I have seen most of the material that went into these movies, though, and trust me: it's uneven, and there's no coherent way of gluing most of it together.-"Fun and Fancy Free", in any event, consists of just two extended shorts: "Bongo" and "Mickey and the Beanstalk".I'm writing mainly to defend the latter.People are much too hard on it.There's a marked similarity between it and the winning short cartoon "The Brave Little Tailor" (1938), another fairytale with Disney characters taking the lead roles, and while "Beanstalk" lacks the earlier short's freshness, it has the advantage of having Donald and Goofy in it, two terribly under-rated cartoon stars who, although capable of sustaining shorts on their own, play off well against one another.(That's why it's impossible to make a Mickey/Donald/Goofy cartoon that's a TOTAL failure.)"Mickey and the Beanstalk" is one of the few post-war cartoons to recapture the spirit of Disney's depression-era stuff. "Bongo" is of almost no interest - a vapid, directionless account of a circus bear who must adapt to life in the wild, complete with songs.People interested in the history of animation should see every Disney production they can get their eyes on; there's no other reason to see this one.The sheer POINTLESSNESS of pairing "Bongo" with "Mickey and the Beanstalk" makes this Disney's most bizarre compilation feature of the decade.-I wish I'd seen the linking segments.They can't possibly JUSTIFY the film's arbitrary nature, but it might be entertaining to see them try. ||Gold Collection |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Funny Farm|George Roy Hill|Comedy|PG |5.4|USA|1988|101 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Bruce Bodner Robert L. Crawford Patrick Kelley|Jeffrey Boam Jay Cronley|Miroslav Ondrícek ||Warner Home Vídeo [br] |Chevy Chase finds life in the country isn't what it's cracked up to be!|When Andy and Elizabeth buy a farm in Vermont, they can't imagine the trouble that awaits them. Andy has quit his job as a sports journalist and is planning to use the peace and quiet of the country to write the Great American Novel. From the moment the movers' truck gets lost with their furniture, though, there's little peace and less quiet. From a manical mailman to a dead body buried in the garden, Andy is distracted by the town and its wacky inhabitants. His effort at a novel is mediocre, at best, and he's threatened by Elizabeth's foray into writing when she attempts a children's book. Can the Farmers survive the townsfolk and each other? Andy and Elizabeth are sick of life in the city, and decide to move to the country. Buying a home near a picturesque town, then soon discover (to their horror) that things are done differently in the country. They must deal with all of the local characters, the local animals, as well as any skeletons in the closet. |Chevy Chase (Andy Farmer) @ Madolyn Smith-Osborne (Elizabeth Farmer) @ Kevin O'Morrison (Sheriff Ledbetter) @ Joseph Maher (Michael Sinclair) @ Jack Gilpin (Bud Culbertson) @ Caris Corfman (Betsy Culbertson) @ William Severs (Newspaper Editor) @ Mike Starr (Crocker) @ Glenn Plummer (Mickey) @ William Duell (Old Character) @ Helen Lloyd Breed (Old Operator) @ Kit Le Fever (Young Operator (as Le Fevre)) @ Dakin Matthews (Marion Corey Jr.) @ William Newman (Gus Lotterhand) @ Alice Drummond (Mrs. Ethel Dinges) @ Brad Sullivan (Brock) @ Nesbitt Blaisdell (Hank) @ George Buck (Peterbrook) @ Audrie J. Neenan (Ivy) @ MacIntyre Dixon (Mayor Barclay) @ Bill Fagerbakke (Lon Criterion) @ Nicholas Wyman (Dirk Criterion) @ Raynor Scheine (Oates (as Raynor Scheine)) @ Peter Boyden (Reporter) @ Reg E. Cathey (Reporter) @ Dan Desmond (Reporter) @ Don Plumley (Reporter) @ Brett Miller (Teenager) @ Jamie Meyer (Teenager) @ David Woodberry (Ike) @ Kevin Murphy (Ewell) @ Dennis Barr (First Base Coach) @ Barbara Baker (Woman in Stands) @ David Williams (Marcus) @ Steve Jonas (Driving Instructor) @ Russell Bletzer (Councilman) @ Evelyn McLean (Caroler) @ Steven John (Caroler) @ Robert Conner (Caroler) @ Judson Duncan (Caroler) @ Alison Hannas (Caroler) @ Robert Ingram (Caroler) @ Mary Johnson (Caroler) @ Kristin Kellom (Caroler) @ Paul Linke (Caroler (as Paul Link) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kevin Conway (Crum Petree, the Mailman (uncredited)) @ Sarah Michelle Gellar (Elizabeth's Student (uncredited)) @ Darren Higgins (Boy with Deer (uncredited)) @ Mic Nuggette (Caroler (uncredited)Produced by||Wildly uneven... This Chevy Chase vehicle moves along agreeably most of the way, occasionally takes off with some laugh-out-loud-gags (like the sequence involving the bridge), other times disappoints with misfired jokes, generally keeps you lightly amused until it suddenly takes a wrong turn towards seriousness halfway through, and leads to an ending that, at least to me, seemed predictable, fake and pathetically hypocritical. |||1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Futurama: Volume 1||Animation|NR ||USA|1999|30 min (72 episodes)|English||||||||||False||||||||11/13/2004|||||Fox Film Corporation [us] ||Phillip Fry is a 25-year-old pizza delivery boy whose life is going nowhere. When he accidentally freezes himself on December 31, 1999, he wakes up 1,000 years in the future and has a chance to make a fresh start. He goes to work for the Planet Express Corporation, a futuristic delivery service that transports packages to all five quadrants of the universe. His companions include the delivery ship's captain, Leela, a beautiful one-eyed female alien who kicks some serious butt, and Bender, a robot with very human flaws. Philip J. Fry is a 25 year old delivery boy living in New York City who is cryogenically frozen on New Year's 2000 for almost 1000 years, where he wakes up in New New York City on December 31, 3000. There, he meets Turanga Leela, a tough but loving, beautiful one-eyed alien with purple hair who turns out to be a mutant human; and Bender, an alchol-powered bending robot who is addicted to liquor, cigars, stealing, amongst other things. Eventually, they all meet up with Fry's Great, Great, Great, etc... Nephew, Hubert J. Farnsworth. Farnsworth is a very old man who is a genius but is very senile and forgetful. Fry, Leela, and Bender wind up working for Farnsworth's Planet Express Delivery Service. They then meet their co-workers; Amy Wong, who is a Martian intern who comes from a rich family, but is still a human who is very hip. Also, there is Hermes Conrad, who manages the delivery service and is pretty strict. Hermes seems Jamaican in voice and look. And finally, there's Dr. John Zoidberg, a lobster-like alien who is the crew's doctor. Unfortunately, he knows nothing about humans. Fry, Leela, Bender, and sometimes Amy and Dr. Zoidberg travel around the universe risking life and limb delivering packages and performing charitable tasks for tax deductions. |Billy West (Philip J. Fry/Prof. Hubert J. Farnsworth/Dr. Zoidberg/Zapp Brannigan/Leo Wong/Smitty/President Richard Nixon's Head/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Katey Sagal (Turanga Leela (voice)) @ John Di Maggio (Bender Bending Rodriguez Unit 22/Flexo/Elzar/Sal/Mr. Panucci/Joey Mousepad/Yancy J. Fry, Sr./Additional Voices (voice) (as John DiMaggio)) @ Tress MacNeille (Mom/Linda the Newsanchor/Tinny Tim/Hattie/Monique/Nd-Nd/Petunia/Turanga Munda/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Maurice LaMarche (Lt. Kif Kroker/Morbo/Calculon/Walt/Lrrr/Raoul/Donbot/iHawk/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Lauren Tom (Amy Wong/Mrs. Inez Wong/Jrrr (voice)) @ David Herman (Mayor C Randall Poopenmayer/Professor Ogden Wernstrum/Turanga Morris/Larry/Dwayne/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Phil LaMarr (Hermes Conrad/Rev. Lionel Preacherbot/iZac/Additonal Voices (voice)) @ Tom Kenny (Yancy Fry Jr/Adlai/Abner Doubledeal/Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Kath Soucie .... Cubert J. Farnsworth/Michelle/Albert/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Nibbler/Additional Voices (voice)Regular guests:Dawnn Lewis .... LaBarbara Conrad / Jackie Anderson (7 episodes)||Boy, am I glad you can't be forced to watch anything. It's just about impossible to comment on "Futurama" and not compare it to "The Simpsons," so I won't even try. Let's just say that many feel it's superior, while many disagree. I fall into the latter camp. My problem with this series (well, apart from the fact that the current season sucked like a Hoover) is that while it's got fine animation, ideas, design and music, Matt Groening and David X. Cohen's New New York is home to some of the most unlikeable characters on television - Fry is even more stupid and punchable than Homer J. Simpson, and everyone else (Leela and the cute Amy excluded, and even the latter isn't up to carrying an episode) is similarly irritating in one way or another; blessedly, Zapp Brannigan (who sees off all competition to be the most obnoxious of the lot - admittedly he's supposed to be irritating, but surely they didn't mean this much) doesn't appear as much as he used to. Admittedly Springfield is also home to people you wouldn't want to meet in real life, but at least they're funny and often touching; "Futurama" is seldom endearing and the only consistently funny cast member here is the great Bender. Which doesn't mean I like him much either. If reports that Fox has stopped production on the show are to be believed, the drinks will be on me. (Still better than "Stressed Eric" though.) || |1.33 : 1 |||||||@@ Futurama: Volume 2 / DVD-Video|||NR ||||437 mins|||||||||||False||||||||12/2/2004||||||| "As clever, wild andifunnyias The Simpsons!" -The Hollywood Reporter ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Futurama: Volume 3 / DVD-Video|||NR ||||506 mins|||||||||||False||||||||12/2/2004||||||| Fasten your space beltsifor another blastito theifuture with Futurama, theiirresistibly irreverent brainchild of "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening.This 4-disc set includes 22 robot-packed episodes, plusia shipload of outrageous extras.So join Fry, Bender, Leela anditheigangifor more of theifunniest animated adventures onitheiplanet...and beyond! ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Gangs of New York|Martin Scorsese|Crime|Rated R for intense strong violence, sexuality/nudity and language. R|7.3|USA|2002|166 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Gerry Robert Byrne Laura Fattori Alberto Grimaldi Maurizio Grimaldi Michael Hausman Michael Jackman Graham King Michael Ovitz Joseph P. Reidy Rick Schwartz Colin Vaines Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Rick Yorn|Jay Cocks Jay Cocks Steven Zaillian Kenneth Lonergan|Michael Ballhaus ||Miramax Films [us] |America Was Born In The Streets.|The film starts in 1846 and ends in 1863 with the draft riots. The setting is New York's five points, the most violent part of the world at the time. The story is risen out of the conflicts between the white Anglo-Saxon "natives" and the Irish immigrants coming into the five points. One boy needs to avenge the death of his father... It's 1860s Manhattan. The crime-plagued city is run by corrupt politicians of the Tammany Hall era, and gang warfare between the powerful Manhattan Irish gangs escalates into deadly draft riots. Against this backdrop, a young man (DiCaprio) teams up with a pickpocket (Diaz) to seek vengeance against the man (Day-Lewis) who killed his father. |Leonardo DiCaprio (Amsterdam Vallon) @ Daniel Day-Lewis (William 'Bill the Butcher' Cutting) @ Cameron Diaz (Jenny Everdeane) @ Jim Broadbent (William 'Boss' Tweed) @ Henry Thomas (Johnny Sirocco) @ Liam Neeson (Priest Vallon, Amsterdam's Father) @ Brendan Gleeson (Walter 'Monk' McGinn) @ John C. Reilly ('Happy' Jack Mulraney) @ Gary Lewis (McGloin) @ Stephen Graham (Shang) @ Eddie Marsan (Killoran) @ Alec McCowen (Rev. Raleigh) @ Larry Gilliard Jr. (Jimmy Spoils) @ Cara Seymour (Hell-Cat Maggie) @ David Hemmings (Mr. Schermerhorn) @ Roger Ashton-Griffiths (P.T. Barnum) @ Peter-Hugo Daly (One-Armed Priest (as Peter Hugo Daly)) @ Cian McCormack (Young Amsterdam Vallon) @ Andrew Gallagher (Young Johnny Sirocco) @ Philip Kirk (O'Connell Guard Leader) @ Rab Affleck (Plug Uglies Leader) @ Bill Barclay (Shirt Tails Leader) @ Nick Bartlett (Chichesters Leader) @ Robert Goodman (Forty Thieves Leader) @ Tim Pigott-Smith (Calvinist Minister) @ Liam Carney (Bill The Butcher's Gang #1) @ Gary McCormack (Bill The Butcher's Gang #2) @ David McBlain (Bill The Butcher's Gang #3) @ Dick Holland (True Blue American Speaker) @ Katherine Wallach (Jenny's Girl) @ Carmen Hanlon (Jenny's Girl) @ Ilaria D'Elia (Jenny's Girl) @ Laurie Ventry (Resident Woman) @ Ford Kiernan (Black Joke Chief) @ Alec McMahon (Resident Man) @ Nevin Finnegan (Dead Rabbit Gang Member (as Nevan Finegan)) @ Dominique Vandenberg (Dead Rabbit Gang Member) @ Sai-Kit Yung (Chinese At Sparrow's Pagoda (as Stuart Ong)) @ Basil Chung (Elderly Chinese At Pagoda) @ Finbar Furey (Satan's Circus Singer) @ Sean Gilder (Rat Pit Game Master) @ Richard Graham (Card Player) @ Richard Strange (Undertaker) @ Douglas Plasse (Medical Student) @ R. Bruce Steinheimer (Army Recruiter (as Bruce Steinheimer)) @ David Bamber (Passenger On Omnibus) @ Barbara Bouchet (Mrs. Schermerhorn) @ Michael Byrne (Horace Greeley) @ Lucy Davenport (Miss Schermerhorn) @ Maura O'Connell (Street Singer) @ Alex Howden (Assistant Hangman) @ James Ramsay (Condemned Man (Arthur)) @ Iain McColl (Condemned Man) @ Louie Brownsell (Legless Soldier) @ Gennaro Condemi (She-He) @ Kieran Hurley (Recruiter) @ John Sessions (Harry Watkins) @ Michael H. Billingsley (Uncle Tom) @ Steven C. Matthews (Mr. Shelby) @ Giovanni Lombardo Radice (Mr. Legree) @ Alexia Justine Murray (Topsy (as Alexia J. Murray)) @ Flaminia Fegarotti (Miss Eliza) @ Bronco McLoughlin (Assassin) @ Channing C. Holmes (Tap Dancer (as Channing Cook Holmes)) @ Eliane Chappuis (Chinese Whore) @ Roberta Quaresima (Whore #1) @ Marta Pilato (Whore #2) @ Jian Su (Chinese Acrobat) @ Man Cao (Chinese General) @ Kathy Shao-Lin Lee (Chinese Dancer) @ Alexander Deng (Chinese Boy Singer) @ Peter Berling (Knife Act Caller) @ Patrick Gordon (Surgeon) @ Brendan White (Archbishop) @ Brendan Dempsey (Provost Marshal Registrar) @ Taddeo Harbutt (Unruly Man) @ Nazzareno Natale (Don Whiskerandos) @ Colin Hill (Nativist Candidate) @ Robert Linge (One-Armed Veteran) @ Richard Syms (Drunken Repeater) @ Christian Burgess (The Mayor) @ Gerry Robert Byrne (Draft Official) @ David Nicholls (O'Connell Guard Leader (as Dave Nicholls)) @ Tim Faraday (Plug Uglies Leader) @ Sean McGinley (Forty Thieves Leader) @ John Anthony Murphy (Kerryonians Leader) @ Terry O'Neill (Chichesters Leader) @ Vincent Pickering (American Guard Leader) @ Nick Miles (Atlantic Guard Leader) @ Ian Pirie (Slaughter Housers Leader) @ John McGlynn (Bowery Boys Leader) @ Larry Kaplan (Bloodied Bureaucrat) @ Leo Burmester (Telegraph Operator #1 (voice) (as Leo Burmeister)) @ Justin Brennan (Telegraph Operator #2 (voice)) @ Brian Mallon (Telegraph Operator #3 (voice)) @ Joseph P. Reidy (Police Chief (as Joseph Reidy)) @ Joel Strachan (Telegraph Operator) @ Bill Murdoch (Robber On Dock) @ Angela Pleasence (Woman Accomplice (as Angela Pleasance)) @ Ian Agnew (Gen. Wool) @ Michael Hausman (Gunboat Captain) @ Bob Colletti (Soldier In Mist rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Salvatore Billa (Native (uncredited)) @ Brennan Caitlin (Hot Corn Girl (uncredited)) @ Trevor Cooper (Man in Tweed's Office (uncredited)) @ Blaise Corrigan (Riot Thug "There's a $300 man..." (uncredited)) @ Raffaella Ponzo (Johnny's Girlfriend (uncredited)) @ Martin Scorsese (Wealthy Homeowner (uncredited)) @ Donald Stewart (Anatomist (uncredited)) @ Massimo Vanni (Soldier (uncredited)Produced by||An epic triumph, one of the best pictures of the year... > A year of delays, public battles, and running time questions have lead to this: one of the finest motion pictures of the year. Martin Scorsese's `Gangs Of New York' is a vicious, hard fought film that reveals that Scorsese is capable of making motion pictures bigger than life, and yet preserving the awe of epic filmmaking that has been lost for years. The year is 1846, and a clan of Irish immigrants, lead by Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson) have come to the deadliest part of the burgeoning New York City, the Five Corners, to battle with a madman named William Cutting, aka Bill The Butcher (Daniel Day-Lewis), and his horde of Anglo-Saxon `natives.' When Priest Vallon is killed by William, his son Amsterdam (Leonardo DiCaprio) is sent away to an orphanage, and spends the next 16 years stewing in his plans for retribution. Arriving back at the Five Corners, Amsterdam plots his way to William, who now runs the city. Seeking help from all the individual gangs that creep and swindle around the streets, plus assistance from a pickpocket (Cameron Diaz) who has direct access to William, Amsterdam tries to overthrow the Butcher. And all the while, the city is bulging with the violence which will culminate in the draft riots of 1863. Working from historical events, and a screenplay written by frequent collaborator Jay Cocks (along with work by Kenneth Lonergan and Steven Zaillian), `Gangs Of New York' is easily the grandest film Scorsese has ever attempted. After years of inward looking, soul-searching films (`Bringing Out The Dead,' `Kundun') `Gangs' opens up the director to a scale of filmmaking not touched since the days of David Lean, with its wide open spaces, hundreds of extras, and story that seethes with passion. The film maintains the director's expected reverence for New York City, and some brutal, wholly necessary violence as well (the gang battle set pieces are the film's outstanding achievement), but the magnitude of the film is what is so remarkable. Scorsese works on the two boundaries presented, an intimate revenge story, and the backdrop of the Draft Riots. He never drops either subplot, seamlessly intertwining both stories to a great result. To fully appreciate Scorsese's sprawling vision, one must look back to his 1999 documentary `My Voyage To Italy,' a 4 hour soliloquy on the Italian cinema that influenced this legendary director. Inhaling large helpings of Rossellini, De Sica, and Visconti, along with a desire to make a full-fledged production in Rome's fabled Cinecitta studios, Scorsese has made a film that's as big as life, yet comes pouring out from his heart. A magnum opus of construction, design, and performance, `Gangs' is as close to an honest-to-god epic as we're going to see in a long time. Starting with the stunning art direction by Robert Guerra and Stefano Maria Ortloni, with production design work by Dante Ferretti (`Casino,' `Bringing Out The Dead`), they form an strikingly authentic city for the story to exist in. Few if any computer landscapes are used, with real sets built 360 degrees around and featuring obscenely elaborate workmanship. The result is a film that's simply staggering to behold. Every conceivable period detail has been accounted for, from the slimy wax on the tips of moustaches, the muddy, dangerous `Welcome To America' streets, the yellow, decaying teeth, to the knife-pocked wood that holds up the rotting buildings of the Five Corners. While other filmmakers scramble to the keyboards to fill up their vistas, Scorsese had all his fiction built for real, helping the actors to find the truth in their surroundings, and giving the production a bona fide glow that isn't betrayed for even one frame of the film. A flawless production. Also faultless is the work from actor Daniel Day-Lewis. The normally reclusive actor (this is his first film since leaving the business in 1997), comes out of hiding to deliver a thrilling performance as the fiery demon, Bill The Butcher. The work is unexpected, repulsive, and splendidly sadistic, and Day-Lewis handily steals the film away from an impressive cast of acting heavyweights, including sturdy lead work from DiCaprio, and supporting work from Jim Broadbent, Brendan Gleeson, Liam Neeson, John C. Reilly, David Hemmings, and Henry Thomas. This is the second pairing of Day-Lewis and Scorsese (the equally as brilliant `The Age Of Innocence' being the other), but I hope it isn't their last. If having Day-Lewis in retirement means performances like this one every decade, than I wish him a happy time. This type of acting is worth the wait. `Gangs Of New York' will have you ducking your head, at the edge of your seat, and thrilled that Scorsese's considerable risks have paid off. This is magnificent filmmaking from a director that has yet to let down. ---- 10/10 || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Garfield And Friends: Volume 1 / DVD-Video|||NR ||||576 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/23/2004||||||| Get setifor theifirst Garfield & Friends collection, featuring 24 episodes of theihilarious animated Saturday morning TV series starring that fat andisassy feline who livesifor lasagna andican't stand diets, exercise andiMondays! Along with his not-too-bright pooch pal, Odie, andigullible owner, Jon, Garfield coughs upia hairball of humor that every human will love. ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Mono||||||@@ Gattaca|Andrew Niccol|Drama|Rated PG-13 for brief violent images, language, and some sexuality. |7.5|USA|1997| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Danny DeVito Georgia Kacandes Joshua Levinson Michael Shamberg Stacey Sher|Andrew Niccol |Slavomir Idziak ||Columbia Pictures [us] |There Is No Gene For The Human Spirit.|Gattaca Corp. is an aerospace firm in the future. During this time society analyzes your DNA and determines where you belong in life. Ethan Hawke's character was born with a congenital heart condition which would cast him out of getting a chance to travel in space. So in turn he assumes the identity of an athlete who has genes that would allow him to achieve his dream of space travel. Vincent is one of the last "natural" babies born into a sterile, genetically-enhanced world, where life expectancy and disease likelihood are ascertained at birth. Myopic and due to die at 30, he has no chance of a career in a society that now discriminates against your genes, instead of your gender, race or religion. Going underground, he assumes the identity of Jerome, crippled in an accident, and achieves prominence in the Gattaca Corporation, where he is selected for his lifelong desire: a manned mission to Titan. Constantly passing gene tests by diligently using samples of Jerome's hair, skin, blood and urine, his now-perfect world is thrown into increasing desperation, his dream within reach, when the mission director is killed - and he carelessly loses an eyelash at the scene! Certain that they know the murderer's ID, but unable to track down the former Vincent, the police start to close in, with extra searches, and new gene tests. With the once-in-a-lifetime launch only days away, Vincent must avoid arousing suspicion, while passing the tests, evading the police, and not knowing whom he can trust... |Ethan Hawke (Vincent Freeman) @ Uma Thurman (Irene Cassini) @ Jude Law (Jerome Eugene Morrow) @ Gore Vidal (Director Josef) @ Xander Berkeley (Dr. Lamar) @ Jayne Brook (Marie Freeman) @ Elias Koteas (Antonio Freeman) @ Maya Rudolph (Delivery nurse) @ Una Damon (Head nurse) @ Elizabeth Dennehy (Preschool teacher) @ Blair Underwood (Geneticist) @ Mason Gamble (Younger Vincent) @ Vincent Nielson (Younger Anton) @ Chad Christ (Young Vincent) @ William Lee Scott (Young Anton) @ Clarence Graham (Personnel officer) @ Ernest Borgnine (Caesar) @ Tony Shalhoub (German) @ Alan Arkin (Det. Hugo) @ Carlton Bembry (Gattaca Hoover) @ Grace Sullivan (Sequencing customer) @ Ken Marino (Sequencing technician) @ Cynthia Martells (Cavendish) @ Loren Dean (Anton Freeman) @ Gabrielle Reece (Gattaca trainer) @ Ryan Dorin (Twelve-fingered pianist) @ Dean Norris (Cop on the beat) @ Russell Milton (Gattaca detective) @ George Marshall Ruge (Beaten detective) @ Steve Bessen (Blood-test detective) @ Lindsey Ginter (Mission Commander rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Beverly Griffith (Anatomy teacher (uncredited)) @ David LeBell (Invalid (uncredited) Produced by||What's the Code Kenneth? There are several distinct types of science fiction. Probably the least interesting is the type that identifies one single thread or idea from current society and then performs extreme extrapolation into a future so we can see the results, usually negative. You can do this two ways, either to extrapolate everything else in society into the future world, creating a complex futureworld fabric. Or you can be lazy, or in the case of films cheap, and just extrapolate that one thing. In this case, everything else stays the same. Same elevators, food and so one. That's what we get here. There is no future, and actually some of the extrapolation is into the past as in the 50's style corporate suits. So we end up with some really unbalanced plot devices that hamstring the story and blunt the effect. For instance is it likely that DNA will be checked just to get into the building, especially by drawing blood? Already, we have relatively cheap biometrics that are more accurate than DNA. Is it likely that there would not be equally extensive psychological profiling and brain monitoring? The point is that this is poor scifi, on top of being less than excellent in other respects. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Gaudi Afternoon|Susan Seidelman|Comedy|Rated R for language and sexual content. |6.5|Spain|2001| 97 min/ Argentina:93 min (Mar del Plata Film Festival) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Andrés Vicente Gómez Nadine Luque James Myhre Susan Seidelman Frida Torresblanco|James Myhre Barbara Wilson|Josep M. Civit ||Filmauro Distribuzione [it] ||Cassandra, a solitary writer in Barcelona (a US ex-pat) gets a call for help from a stranger - a stylish woman named Frankie - who wants Cassandra to find her husband, so he can sign some important papers. Nothing Frankie says is true: the husband turns out to be a woman, the issue isn't legal papers but a child's custody, and even Frankie's most obvious identity, in red cape and red pumps, is a false front. But Cassandra keeps at it, at first to earn her promised fee, and then to help Frankie, then Frankie's ex, then the child. Along the way, this solitary and somewhat disconnected and bewildered writer frees herself to finish a novel and re-establish a broken relationship. |Judy Davis (Cassandra Reilly) @ Marcia Gay Harden (Frankie Stevens) @ Lili Taylor (Ben) @ Juliette Lewis (April) @ Courtney Jines (Delilah) @ María Barranco (Carmen) @ Christopher Bowen (Hamilton) @ Sergi Ruiz (Carlos) @ Gloria Casas (Elisa) @ Aitor Extravizz (Esteban) @ Pep Molina (Paco) @ Víctor Álvaro (Juan rest of cast listed alphabetically Santi Canto .... Young Stud) @ Josep Clará (Waiter) @ Jesús Ferrer (Policeman) @ Saskia Giró (Old Scrubwoman) @ Abraham Hurtado (Bartender) @ Steve Itkin (Harry (voice)) @ Saskia Lange (Maria) @ Ricardo López (Check-in Desk) @ Pilar Rebollar (Fortune Teller) @ Gloria Roig (Carmen's Mother) @ Manel Solás (Food Stand Vendor) @ Cati Solivelles (Receptionist) @ Artur Trias (Schack Bar Waiter Produced by||I'm Sorry, This Movie Just Bored Me I gave it a rating of 3 out of 10. And what's sad is, I made a point of looking up the movie schedule for that channel so I wouldn't miss seeing it.I wanted to watch this film because it is based on a book by one of my favorite authors, Barbara Wilson.As a lesbian, I expected to love this film. I don't know how Ms. Wilson felt about the film, but I found it a major disappointment. It should have been intriguing - it was a mystery - set in Spain, and the main character, Cassandra, is a language translator who gets contacted by a mysterious, beautiful woman who offers Cassandra a great deal of money to locate her ex-husband, Ben. There are secrets galore revealed, but for some reason it just didn't matter.It was like, oh, so what. I could not get involved with these characters or come to care about them, or feel for them.I couldn't even identify with these characters. I think a large part of the film's failure was the actress playing the main character.She looked old, tired, worn out, and as dull as dishwater. Her hair was a perpetual mess, her baggy clothes were boring, and she just was not appealing or interesting. The best part of the film was getting to hear a Dean Martin recording, but even that was ruined by the weird make-up worn by the man who was dancing and lip-synching to the song.Believe me - it was nothing like getting to see the suavely handsome Mr. Martin performing it. The ending is so syrupy you'll wish you had some pancakes to go with the syrup. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Ghost|Jerry Zucker|Romance||6.7|USA|1990| 128 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steven-Charles Jaffe Howard W. Koch Bruce Joel Rubin Lisa Weinstein|Bruce Joel Rubin |Adam Greenberg ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Before Sam was murdered he told Molly he'd love and protect her forever.|Sam and Molly are a very happy couple and deeply in love. Walking back to their new apartment after a night out at the theatre, they encounter a thief in a dark alley, and Sam is murdered. He finds himself trapped as a ghost and realises that his death was no accident. He must warn Molly about the danger that she is in. But as a ghost he can not be seen or heard by the living, and so he tries to communicate with Molly through Oda Mae Brown, a psychic who didn't even realise that her powers were real. Sam Wheat is bank executive, who has moved in with his girlfriend, Molly. One night while out on a date, a man comes out of nowhere and pulls out a gun and demands Sam's wallet, Sam was about to give it to him when a scuffle broke out and Sam was killed. But Sam's spirit remains on Earth and is walking around and encounters other spirits, who tell him about his transformation. Sam hangs around Molly and despite her not knowing it is watching over her. One day the man who killed him breaks into the apartment and Sam stop's him before he could do anything to Molly. Sam follows him and discovers where he lives but unfortunately can't tell anyone. Sam then meets a supposed spiritualist, Oda Mae Brown, who is so obviously a huckster but who doesn't know that she can hear the dead. so when Sam speaks he hears her. He convinces her to tell Molly about the guy who broke into the apartment. Molly then goes to the police and they in turn tell her that Oda Mae's a con woman. She then tells her friend, Carl about what Oda Mae told her. He goes to investigate and Sam goes with him and discovers something terrible. |Patrick Swayze (Sam Wheat) @ Demi Moore (Molly Jensen) @ Whoopi Goldberg (Oda Mae Brown) @ Tony Goldwyn (Carl Bruner) @ Stanley Lawrence (Elevator Man) @ Christopher J. Keene (Elevator Man) @ Susan Breslau (Susan) @ Martina Deignan (Rose) @ Rick Kleber (Mover) @ Macka Foley (Mover) @ Rick Aviles (Willie Lopez, Burgler) @ Phil Leeds (Emergency Room Ghost) @ John Hugh (Surgeon) @ Sam Tsoutsouvas (Minister) @ Sharon Breslau (Cemetery Ghost (as Sharon Breslau Cornell)) @ Vincent Schiavelli (Subway Ghost) @ Angelina Estrada (Rosa Santiago) @ Armelia McQueen (Oda Mae's Sister) @ Gail Boggs (Oda Mae's Sister) @ Thom Curley (Workman in Loft) @ Stephen Root (Detective Sergeant NYPD) @ Laura Drake (NYPD Policewoman Sergeant) @ Augie Blunt (Orlando) @ Alma Beltran (Woman Ghost) @ Vivian Bonnell (Ortisha) @ Derek Thompson (Ortisha's Friend) @ J. Christopher Sullivan (Man Ghost) @ Charlotte Zucker (Bank Officer) @ Tom Finnegan (Bank Guard) @ Bruce Jarchow (Lyle Furgeson, Bank Official) @ Sondra Rubin (Nun at St. Joseph's Shelter for the Homeless) @ Faye Brenner (Nun at St. Joseph's Shelter for the Homeless) @ William Cort (Bank Co-Worker) @ Minnie Summers Lindsey (Apartment Woman (as Minnie Lindsay)) @ Mabel Lockridge (Apartment Woman) @ Said Faraj (Cab Driver) @ Mike Jittlov (Dark Spirits Produced by||All 3 main characters were great. I really liked this movie because it shows you the life that has been taken from a man name Sam Wheat(Patrick Swayze) and the woman(Molly Jensen-Demi Moore) he left behind.What I liked about this movie was how Whoopi Goldberg had shown Sam the way to reach his goal.Whoopi Goldberg is a brilliant actress and that is mainly it.Those who haven't yet seen this movie should go and see it. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The|Joseph L. Mankiewicz|Fantasy||7.8|USA|1947| 104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Fred Kohlmar |R.A. Dick Philip Dunne|Charles Lang ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] ||In 1900, strong-willed widow Lucy Muir goes to live in Gull Cottage by the British seaside, even though it appears to be haunted. Sure enough, that very night she meets the ghost of crusty former owner Captain Gregg...and refuses to be scared off. Indeed, they become friends and allies, after Lucy gets used to the idea of a man's ghost haunting her bedroom. But when a charming live man comes courting, Lucy and the captain must deal with their feelings for each other. Living in a haunted house by the sea is a less frightening prospect for Lucy Muir, a young widow with a small daughter, than continuing to live with her sisters-in-law. At first Captain Gregg plays the same tricks on Lucy he has used to get rid of previous tenants. This ghost who loves solitude soon comes to admire her spunk and to make it possible for her to afford to stay in the house he decides she will write a best-seller, his memoirs. When Lucy visits a London publisher, she also impresses a famous author of children's books, Miles Fairley. Can a ghost be jealous? |Gene Tierney (Lucy Muir) @ Rex Harrison (Capt. Daniel Gregg) @ George Sanders (Miles Fairley) @ Edna Best (Martha Huggins) @ Vanessa Brown (Anna Muir as an Adult) @ Anna Lee (Mrs. Miles Fairley) @ Robert Coote (Mr. Coombe) @ Natalie Wood (Anna Muir as a Child) @ Isobel Elsom (Angelica, Mother-in-law) @ Victoria Horne (Eva, Sister-in-law rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Helen Freeman (Author Displaced by Lucy (uncredited)) @ Stuart Holmes (Man Ordered out of Train Compartment by Captain (uncredited)) @ Whitford Kane (Sproule, London Publisher (uncredited)) @ Buster Slaven (Enquiries at Sproule's (uncredited)) @ William Stelling (Bill, Anna's Fiancee (uncredited)) @ Houseley Stevenson (Passerby at Fairley Residence (uncredited)) @ David Thursby (Mr. Scroggins (Carved Anna's Name) (uncredited)) @ Heather Wilde (Fairley Maid (uncredited) Produced by||A sweet and touching romance This is a wonderful movie about love that goes beyond the boundaries of life into death. Gene Tierney is excellent in the part of Lucy Muir, the widow who moves into a supposedly haunted cottage. She finds out it is haunted, by a dead sea captain named Daniel Gregg. He haunts the house because he wants things to be kept as they are. But he finds himself very attracted to Lucy, and decides to let her stay in the house. But Lucy has money problems, and might have to leave. This is when Daniel decides that Lucy will write the "unvarnished" biography of a sailor's life. Daniel and Lucy fall deeply in love with each other while writing the book. When it is published, and Lucy gets a lot of money and doesn't have financial troubles anymore. Lucy falls for a man named Miles Fairley, an author of children's books. So Daniel decides to leave, because of the decision Lucy has made to marry Miles. He tells Lucy in her sleep that their times together were only dreams. This part is especially sad, when Daniel says, "Goodbye, my darling".(pronounced "mudarling" like he always says it!) But after he leaves, the plot twists, and the movie ends very differently than you expect it to. I won't give the ending away, but it's great! Everyone has to see this movie at least once, because it is one of the great classics! Rex Harrison is magnificent as Captain Gregg, and George Sanders is his devilish self as Miles Fairley. Therefore, I give "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" a 10 out of 10. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ Ghost Dad|Sidney Poitier|Comedy||3.8|USA|1990| 83 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Terence Nelson Stan Robertson David Wisnievitz|Brent Maddock S.S. Wilson Chris Reese Brent Maddock S.S. Wilson|Andrew Laszlo ||CIC Vídeo [br] ||Elliot, a widower with three children, suffers an accident and stays some days in coma. But his spirit leaves his body during that time and turns into a ghost who roams around and only materializes in the dark. Elliot Hopper is a widower with three children, he is currently working on a deal. It seems like his wife illness was very costly and this deal could put them out of the red. However he gets into a cab that is driven by a maniac, and Elliot crashes and the next thing he knows he is floating around and finds himself in the lab of a scientist who studies paranormal. Elliot asks the scientist to send him back so that he could finish the deal and make sure that his children are taken cared of. |Bill Cosby (Elliot Hopper) @ Kimberly Russell (Diane Hopper) @ Denise Nicholas (Joan) @ Ian Bannen (Sir Edith Moser) @ Christine Ebersole (Carol) @ Barry Corbin (Mr. Emery Collins) @ Salim Grant (Daniel 'Danny' Hopper) @ Brooke Fontaine (Amanda Hopper) @ Dakin Matthews (Mr. Seymour) @ Dana Ashbrook (Tony Ricker) @ Omar Gooding (Stuart) @ Reiner Schöne (Curtis Burch, the Cabbie (as Raynor Scheine)) @ Arnold Stang (Mr. Cohen, elderly patient) @ Brian Mitchell (Teacher) @ Lisa Mene Nemacheck (Jonelle) @ Donzaleigh Abernathy (E.R. Nurse) @ George Ganz (Mr. Nero) @ Cyndi James Gossett (E.R. Doctor) @ Josef Hajduk (Student #1) @ Kevin Lee (Student #2) @ Becky Katzen (Student #3) @ Bryant Edwards (Student #4) @ Trenton Teigen (Student #5) @ Mary Munday (Executive #1) @ Norman Merrill (Executive #2) @ Ted Hayden (Executive #3) @ Raymond E. Foti (Executive #4) @ Frank Biro (Executive #5) @ Amy Hill (Nurse #1) @ Patrika Darbo (Nurse #2) @ Kenny Ford Jr. (Buddy #1) @ Adam Jeffries (Buddy #2) @ Austin Garrett (Buddy #3) @ Douglas Johnson (Lab Technician) @ James McIntire (Sheriff) @ Eric Menyuk (Clinic Doctor) @ Rita Vassallo (ICU Nurse #1) @ Jeanne Mori (ICU Nurse #2) @ Jizelle Morris (Screaming Girl) @ Pamela Poitier (Nurse Satler, the X-ray nurse) @ Robin Pearson Rose (Hospital Administrator) @ Becky Sweet (Classmate) @ Robert Covarrubias (Man in Waiting Room) @ Meredith Gordon (Woman in Taxi) @ Cedric Scott (Radio Announcer) @ LaGloria Scott (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Kerry Gutierrez (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Kaleena Kiff (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Rocky Krakoff (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jonathan Brandis (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Ryan McWhorter (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Suzanne Stone (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Barbara Harris (Additional Voices (voice) (as Barbara Iley)) @ Carol King (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Doris Hess (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Cathy Cavadini (Additional Voices (voice)) @ David McCharen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ David Randolph (Additional Voice (voice) (as David J. Randolph)) @ Greg Finley (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bryan Scott (Additional Voices (voice)) @ J.D. Hall (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Joseph Chapman (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John C. McDonnell (Patient (uncredited) Produced by||Strong candidate for bottom 100 list This movie is probably the worst I have ever seen, and I saw both of the Problem Child disasters.Bill Cosby, a normally competent TV actor fails here as does the rest of the cast--most of whom have a serious lack of acting skills (especially the daughter in the hospital scenes.)The writing is childish, nose-wrinklingly weak and so boring I found myself wondering who put up the money to actually produce this monstrosity.The end, which is supposed to be touching, is the only enjoyable part because the credits are soon to roll.Personally, I'd be embarrassed to have my name appear in connection to this cinematic mistake. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai|Jim Jarmusch|Action|Rated R for strong violence and language. R|7.4|France|1999|116 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/1/2004|Richard Guay Jim Jarmusch Diana Schmidt|Jim Jarmusch |Robby Müller ||Channel Four Films [gb] |Live by the code. Die by the code.|In New York, an African-American hit man follows Hagakure: The Way of the Samurai. He lives alone, in simplicity, with pigeons, calling himself Ghost Dog. His master, who saved his life eight years' ago, is part of the local mob. When the boss's daughter witnesses one of Ghost Dog's hits, he is expendable. The first victims are his birds, and in response, Ghost Dog goes right at his attackers but does not want to harm his master or the young woman. On occasion, he talks with his best friend, a French-speaking Haitian who sells ice cream in the park, and with a child, with whom he discusses books. Can he stay true to his code? And if he does, what is his fate? |Forest Whitaker (Ghost Dog) @ John Tormey (Louie) @ Cliff Gorman (Sonny Valerio) @ Dennis Liu (Chinese Restaurant Owner) @ Frank Minucci (Big Angie) @ Richard Portnow (Handsome Frank) @ Tricia Vessey (Louise Vargo) @ Henry Silva (Ray Vargo) @ Gene Ruffini (Old Consigliere) @ Frank Adonis (Valerio's Bodyguard) @ Victor Argo (Vinny) @ Damon Whitaker (Young Ghost Dog) @ Kenny Guay (Boy in Window) @ Vince Viverito (Johnny Morini) @ Gano Grills (Gangsta in Red) @ Touché Cornel (Gangsta in Red) @ Jamie Hector (Gangsta in Red) @ Chuck Jeffreys (Mugger) @ Yan Ming Shi (Kung-Fu Master) @ Vinny Vella (Sammy the Snake (as Vinnie Vella)) @ Joseph Rigano (Joe Rags (as Joe Rigano)) @ Roberto Lopez (Punk in Alley) @ Salvatore Alagna (Punk in Alley) @ Jerry Todisco (Punk in Alley) @ Isaach De Bankolé (Raymond) @ Dreddy Kruger (MC in blue) @ Timbo King (MC in blue) @ Clay Da Raider (MC in blue) @ Dead And Stinking (MC in blue) @ Deflon Sallahr (MC in blue) @ Camille Winbush (Pearline) @ Gary Farmer (Nobody) @ Clebert Ford (Pigeonkeeper) @ José Rabelo (Rooftop Boatbuilder) @ Jerry Sturiano (Lefty) @ Tony Rigo (Tony) @ Alfred Nittoli (Al) @ Angel Caban (Social Club Landlord) @ Luz Valentin (Girl in Silver) @ Rene Bluestone (Club Couple) @ Jordan Peck (Club Couple) @ Jonathan Teague Cook (Bear Hunter (as Jonathan Cook)) @ Tracy Howe (Bear Hunter) @ Harry Shearer (Voice of Scratchy (voice)) @ Vanessa Hollingshead (Female Sheriff) @ Sharon Angela (Blonde with Jaguar) @ RZA (Samurai in Camouflage (as The RZA) rest of cast listed alphabetically Scott Bryce .... Accountant (scenes deleted)) @ Paul Diomede (Young Gangster (uncredited)Produced by||The United States as seen through the eyes of an afro American samurai. Jarmusch up to par with his best works. Always inspired and humorously aware of good sides and social contradictions in his country Jim shows us how a blend of races, creeds and traditions can come to a successful end. His irony on all aspects of interpersonal connections lightens the films spirit, without diminishing the spiritual impact of the samurai philosophy. Actors are at their best with a special mention for the mega-talented Whitaker who is once again a surprisingly versatile performer. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Ghost World|Terry Zwigoff|Comedy|Rated R for strong language and some sexual content. |7.8|USA|2000| 111 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Pippa Cross Janette Day Lianne Halfon Barbara A. Hall John Malkovich Russell Smith Michael Shamberg|Daniel Clowes Daniel Clowes Terry Zwigoff|Affonso Beato ||Advanced [de] |Accentuate the negative.|Set during the summer after they graduate from high school, two ultra-hip friends, Enid and Becky fear drifting apart when Becky considers moving across the country to attend college. When Enid develops an attraction to offbeat Seymour and Becky sets her sights on Josh - on whom both girls have a crush - their friendship is forever changed. Set in the summer after graduation, Enid and Rebecca are both outsiders in a world slowly being engulfed by fake 50's diners and starbucks. Enid must attend an art class to officialy graduate high school as Rebecca gets a job. When the two play a mean joke on a much older, geeky record collecter Enid finds a fellow soul and begins to discover the complexities of becoming an adult in the modern world. |Thora Birch (Enid) @ Scarlett Johansson (Rebecca) @ Steve Buscemi (Seymour) @ Brad Renfro (Josh) @ Illeana Douglas (Roberta) @ Bob Balaban (Enid's Dad) @ Stacey Travis (Dana) @ Charles C. Stevenson Jr. (Norman) @ Dave Sheridan (Doug) @ Tom McGowan (Joe) @ Debra Azar (Melorra) @ Brian George (Sidewinder Boss) @ Pat Healy (John Ellis) @ Rini Bell (Graduation Speaker) @ T.J. Thyne (Todd) @ Ezra Buzzington (Weird Al) @ Lindsey Girardot (Vanilla (Graduation Rapper)) @ Joy Bisco (Jade (Graduation Rapper)) @ Venus DeMilo (Ebony (Graduation Rapper) (as Venus DeMilo Thomas)) @ Ashley Peldon (Margaret) @ Chachi Pittman (Phillip) @ Janece Jordan (Black Girl) @ Kaileigh Martin (Snotty Girl) @ Alexander Fors (Hippy Boy) @ Marc Vann (Angry Guy (Jerome)) @ James Sie (Asian Guy (Steven)) @ Paul Keith (Fussy Guy (Paul)) @ David Cross (Pushy Guy (Gerrold)) @ J.J. Bad Boy Jones (Fred Chatman (as J.J. 'Bad Boy' Jones)) @ Dylan Jones (Red-Haired Girl) @ Martin Grey (MC) @ Steve Pierson (Blueshammer Member) @ Jake La Botz (Blueshammer Member (as Jake LaBotz)) @ Johnny Irion (Blueshammer Member) @ Nate Wood (Blueshammer Member) @ Charles Schneider (Joey McCobb) @ Sid Hillman (Zine-O-Phobia Creep (as Sid Garza-Hillman)) @ Joshua Wheeler (Zine-O-Phobia Creep) @ Patrick Fischler (Masterpiece Video Clerk (as Patrick Fishler)) @ Daniel Graves (Masterpiece Video Customer) @ Matt Doherty (Masterpiece Video Employee) @ Joel Michaely (Porno Cashier) @ Debi Derryberry (Rude Coffee Customer) @ Joseph Sikora (Reggae Fan (as Joe Sikora)) @ Brett Gilbert (Alien Autopsy Guy) @ Alex Solowitz (Cineplex Manager) @ Tony Ketcham (Alcoholic Customer) @ Mary Bogue (Popcorn Customer) @ Brian Jacobs (Soda Customer) @ Patrick Yonally (Garage Sale Hipster) @ Lauren Bowles (Angry Garage Sale Woman) @ Lorna Scott (Art Show Curator) @ Jeff Murray (Roberta's Colleague) @ Jerry Rector (Dana's Co-Worker) @ John Bunnell (Seymour's Boss (as Sheriff John Bunnell)) @ Diane Salinger (Psychiatrist) @ Anna Berger (Seymour's Mother) @ Bruce Glover (Feldman (Wheelchair Guy) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joan M. Blair (Lady Crossing Street Slowly (uncredited)) @ Michael Chanslor (Keyboardist, Orange Colored Sky (graduation band) (uncredited)) @ Teri Garr (Maxine (uncredited)) @ Ernie Hernandez (Guitarist, Orange Colored Sky (graduation band) (uncredited)) @ Felice Hernandez (Singer, Orange Colored Sky (graduation band) (uncredited)) @ Larry Klein (Drummer, Orange Colored Sky (graduation band) (uncredited)) @ Edward T. McAvoy (Mr. Satanist (uncredited)) @ Margaret Kontra Palmer (Lady at Garage Sale (uncredited)) @ Larry Parker (Bassist, Orange Colored Sky (graduation band) (uncredited)) @ Greg Wendell Reid (Yuppie #1 (uncredited)) @ Michelle Marie White (Mom in Convenience Store (uncredited)) @ Peter Yarrow (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage) Produced by||Pretty quirky film, enjoyable if you trust yourself and it. SOME MINOR SPOILERS - "Ghost World" is a film based on what is called an "underground" comic book, whatever that means. I wish I had known that upfront, it would have been easier to enjoy. Throughout much of the film I found myself worrying about where all this was leading. I thought there was way too much "blue" language, you know, mindless profanity, and too much casual use of blasphemy "Oh God" this and that. But it seems that everyone is doing that in real life too. The title plays on the concept that our old familiar world continues to change to the point that it has become a "Ghost World." Enid (Thora Birch) is the aimless high school almost graduate, and Rebecca (the Johannsen kid from Horse Whisperer) is her friend trying to get some aim in life. They play a trick on misfit Seymour (Steve Buscemi), pretending to be the lady he seeks in a personal ad, and just show up at the restaurant to make fun of im. But when they follow him, and Enid buys an old record from him, she finds out that she actually identifies with him, and likes him. The film is funny throughout. The main characters are all good, especially, as we have come to expect, Buscemi.Ebert's review is very accurate. At the end, Enid gets on the bus whose line has been terminated, and the lone passenger metaphorically heads for her new destination in life. As does Seymour, both worse and better for having met Enid. A good movie to watch again after you know its basic substance and structure. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Ghost Busters|Ivan Reitman|Sci-Fi||7.4|USA|1984| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bernie Brillstein Michael C. Gross Joe Medjuck Ivan Reitman|Dan Aykroyd Harold Ramis Rick Moranis|László Kovács ||Columbia Pictures [us] |They're Here To Save The World.|Three odd-ball scientists get kicked out of their cushy positions at a university in New York City where they studied the occult. They decide to set up shop in an old firehouse and become Ghostbusters, trapping pesky ghosts, spirits, haunts, and poltergeists for money. They wise-crack their way through the city, and stumble upon a gateway to another dimension, one which will release untold evil upon the city. The Ghostbusters are called on to save the Big Apple. Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, and Egon Spengler are three scientists at Columbia University in New York City. When their grant expires, the guys are fired and they go into business as a ghost extermination company called "Ghostbusters". Their first customer is orchestra cello player Dana Barrett, who was scared out of her apartment on the 22nd floor of a high rise apartment building on Central Park West. It seems that Dana's neighbor, Louis Tully, is also being affected by the strange happenings in the apartment building. Armed with proton guns, the Ghostbusters become wildly popular, and they are joined by Winston Zeddmore, who is looking for a job with good pay. Overzealous Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) agent Walter Peck thinks the Ghostbusters are frauds, and he has the Ghostbusters put in jail. Peck is forced to believe the Ghostbusters when New York City is put under siege by an ancient Sumerian God named Gozer the Gozerian, who is channeled through the apartment building that Dana and Louis live in, and the mayor has no choice but to let the Ghostbusters out of jail to face Gozer. After being kicked out of their university, parapsychology professors Spengler, Stantz and Venkman decide to go into business for themselves by trapping and removing ghosts from haunted houses. After some initial skepticism, business is soon booming as The Ghost Busters rid New York of its undead. When a downtown skyscraper becomes the focal point of spirit activity linked to the ancient god Gozer, however, the problem may be more than the team can handle. |Bill Murray (Dr. Peter Venkman) @ Dan Aykroyd (Dr. Raymond Stantz) @ Sigourney Weaver (Dana Barrett) @ Harold Ramis (Dr. Egon Spengler) @ Rick Moranis (Louis Tully/Vinz Clortho, the Key Master) @ Annie Potts (Janine Melnitz) @ William Atherton (Walter Peck, EPA) @ Ernie Hudson (Winston Zeddemore) @ David Margulies (Mayor Lenny) @ Steven Tash (Male Student) @ Jennifer Runyon (Female Student Jennifer) @ Slavitza Jovan (Gozer) @ Michael Ensign (Hotel Manager) @ Alice Drummond (Librarian Alice) @ Jordan Charney (Dean Yeager) @ Timothy Carhart (Violinist) @ John Rothman (Library Administrator Roger Delacorte) @ Tom McDermott (Archbishop Mike) @ Roger Grimsby (Himself) @ Larry King (Himself) @ Joe Franklin (Himself) @ Casey Kasem (Himself) @ John Ring (Fire Commissioner John) @ Norman Matlock (Police Commissioner) @ Joe Cirillo (Police Captain) @ Joe Schmieg (Police Seargeant) @ Reginald VelJohnson (Jail Guard (as Reggie VelJohnson)) @ Rhoda Gemignani (Real Estate Woman) @ Murray Rubin (Man at Elevator) @ Larry Dilg (Con Edison Man) @ Danny Stone (Coachman) @ Patty Dworkin (Woman at Party) @ Jean Kasem (Tall Woman at Party) @ Lenny Del Genio (Doorman) @ Frances E. Nealy (Chambermaid) @ Sam Moses (Hot Dog Vendor) @ Christopher Wynkoop (T.V. Reporter) @ Winston May (Businessman in Cab) @ Tommy Hollis (Mayor's Aide) @ Eda Reiss Merin (Louis's Neighbor) @ Ric Mancini (Policeman at Apartment (as Rick Mancini)) @ Kathryn Janssen (Mrs. Van Hoffman) @ Stanley Grover (Reporter) @ Carol Ann Henry (Reporter) @ James Hardie (Reporter (as James Hardy)) @ Frances Turner (Reporter) @ Nancy Kelly (Reporter) @ Paul Trafas (Ted Fleming) @ Cheryl Birchenfield (Annette Fleming) @ Ruth Oliver (Library Ghost) @ Kymberly Herrin (Dream Ghost (as Kym Herrin) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Matteo Cafiso (Boy at Hot Dog Stand (uncredited)) @ Paddi Edwards (Gozer (voice) (uncredited)) @ Deborah Gibson (Birthday Girl in Tavern on the Green (uncredited)) @ Joseph Marzano (Man in Taxi (uncredited)) @ Joe Medjuck (Man at Library (uncredited)) @ Frank Patton (City Hall Cop (uncredited)) @ Harrison Ray (Terror Dog (uncredited)) @ Ivan Reitman (Zuul/Slimer (voice) (uncredited)) @ Mario Todisco (Prisoner (uncredited)) @ Bill Walton (Himself (uncredited) Produced by||Dogs and cats living together!Mass hysteria!!! GHOSTBUSTERS (1984) **** Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson, William Atherton, Annie Potts. Blockbuster comedy masterpiece by funmeister director Ivan Reitman about three nutty paranormal NYC college scientists who set up shop in a suddenly spectre plagued Big Apple and find their one client to be living in "spook central".Great special effects and hilarious teaming of Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis (Venkman, Stanz, and Spengler to you!) who share the comic gifts of, respectively, Groucho Marx, Bob Hope, and Bud Abbott.Originally written in mind for John Belushi as Venkman.Great lines: "We came, we saw... we kicked its ASS!" "He slimed me!" "Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!" "Your mother!" "MotherPussBucket!" "I love this town!" and of course the film's tagline "Who Ya Gonna Call?" ||Collector's Series |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Ghosts of Mississippi|Rob Reiner|Drama|PG-13 |6.4|USA|1996|130 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/21/2004|Frank Capra III Charles Newirth Nicholas Paleologos Rob Reiner Andrew Scheinman Jeffrey Stott Frederick Zollo|Lewis Colick |John Seale ||Castle Rock Entertainment [us] |In 1963 civil rights leader Medgar Evers was murdered in his own driveway.For 30 years his assassin has remained free. Is it ever too late to do the right thing?|Ghosts of Mississippi is a drama covering the final trial of the assassin, Bryon De La Beckwith (Woods), of the 60s civil rights leader Medgar Evers. It begins with the murder and the events surrounding the two initial trials which both ended in a hung jury. The movie then covers District Attorney, Bobby DeLaughters (Baldwin) transformation and alliance with Myrlie Evers (Goldberg), wife of Medgar Evers, of the, as he becomes more involved with bringing Beckwith to trial for the third time 30 years later. Some of the characters are played by the actual participants in this story. Medgar Evers is a black civil rights activist in Mississipi, who was killed by a gunman. It is later suspected that Byron De La Beckwith, a racist is the killer and he would be tried a couple of times and both trials ended in hung juries. For more than 20 years, Evers widow Myrlie has been trying to bring De La Beckwith to justice and she believes that she has what it takes to bring him to trial again. However, most of the evidence in the old trial have disappeared but Bobby De Laughter an assistant D.A. decides to do what he can to help her despite being warned that it might hurt his political aspirations and the strain it's causing on his marriage. |Alec Baldwin (Bobby DeLaughter, Assistant D.A. Hinds Co. Mississippi) @ James Woods (Byron De La Beckwith) @ Virginia Madsen (Dixie DeLaughter) @ Whoopi Goldberg (Myrlie Evers) @ Susanna Thompson (Peggy Lloyd) @ Craig T. Nelson (Ed Peters, District Attorney Hinds Co. Mississippi) @ Lucas Black (Burt DeLaughter) @ Joseph Tello (Drew DeLaughter) @ Alexa Vega (Claire DeLaughter) @ William H. Macy (Charlie Crisco, Bobby DeLaughter's Assistant) @ Ben Bennett (Benny Bennett, Bobby Laughter's Assistant (as Lloyd 'Benny' Bennett)) @ Darrell Evers (Himself) @ Yolanda King (Reena Evers) @ Jerry Levine (Jerry Mitchell, Reporter) @ James Van Evers (Van Evers) @ Sky Rumph (Jared Lloyd) @ Zoaunne LeRoy (Thelma De La Beckwith) @ Michael O'Keefe (Merrida Coxwell) @ Bill Smitrovich (Jim Kitchens) @ Terry O'Quinn (Judge Hilburn) @ Rex Linn (Martin Scott, Posted bail for De La Beckwith) @ Bill Henderson (Minister) @ James Pickens Jr. (Medgar Evers) @ G. Ja'ron Henderson (Darrell Evers (age 11)) @ Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly (Reena Evers (age 10) (as Rae'ven Larrymore Kelly)) @ Curtis Tyler Haynes (Van Evers (age 3)) @ Richard Riehle (Tommy Mayfield, Clara's Husband) @ Jim Harley (Delamar Dennis, Prosecution Witness) @ Bonnie Bartlett (Billie DeLaughter) @ Brock Peters (Walter Williams) @ Wayne Rogers (Morris Dees, Myrlie's Attorney from Southern Poverty Law Center) @ Finn Carter (Cynthia Speetgens) @ William Howard (Fred Sanders) @ Diane Ladd (Grandma Caroline Moore) @ Andy Romano (Hardy Lott) @ Richard Stahl (Judge Hendrick) @ David Carpenter (Bill Walter) @ Bill Cobbs (Charlie Evers, DJ at WMPR) @ Jordan Lund (Deputy) @ Jerry Hardin (Grandpa Barney DeLaughter) @ Ramon Bieri (James Holley, Defense Witness) @ C.R. Doan (Bob Patterson) @ Katherine Wood (Young Barbara Holder) @ L.D. Bass Sr. (Black Man) @ Monty Thomas (Security Guard) @ Eliott Keener (Sheriff McMillan) @ Brandon McKennah (Roy Wilkins) @ William L. Donald (Howard, Waiter at Country Club) @ Jim Stallings (Hollis Cresswell) @ Michael Strasser (Bomb Squad Man) @ Diana Bellamy (Barbara Holder) @ Rance Howard (Ralph Hargrove, Prosecution Witness) @ Thomas Kopache (Thorn McIntyre, Prosecution Witness) @ Frank Hoyt Taylor (Dan Prince) @ Sarah Hunley (Peggy Morgan, Prosecution Witness) @ Marilyn Lovell (Bridge Lady) @ Jill Andre (Bridge Lady) @ Leigh French (Bridge Lady) @ James Marshall Wolchok (Press Reporter) @ John A. Horhn (CNN Reporter) @ Spencer Garrett (Reporter) @ Fenton Lawless (Reporter) @ David Armstrong (Reporter) @ Michael Hewes (Reporter) @ James Homer Best (Reporter) @ Thom Barry (Bennie Thompson (as Thomas Barry)) @ Louis E. Armstrong (Louis Armstrong) @ Ed Bryson (Himself) @ Maggie Wade (Herself) @ Jane Jenkins (Assistant D.A (as J.J. Chaback)) @ Keenan K. Evers (Daniel Evers-Everette) @ Nicole Evers-Everette (Cambi Evers-Everette) @ Dijon S. Williams (Keenan Evers) @ Tracey Costello (Assistant D.A.) @ Margo Martindale (Clara Mayfield, Bobby's Secretary rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Stokely Carmichael (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Eva Ford (Courtroom Observer (uncredited)) @ John F. Kennedy (Himself (Equal Rights speech) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Martin Luther King (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Joe Louis (Himself (bends over opponent) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Jesse Owens (Himself (races in Berlin) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Jackie Robinson (Himself (runs to first base) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ John M. Sullivan II (CNN Reporter #2 (uncredited)) @ Malcolm X (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)Produced by||respectful, well-made historical drama In the 1960's Medgar Evers is gunned down in front of his home. Roughly thirty years later ambitious attorney Baldwin befriends widow Goldberg and reopens the case to bring aged murderer Woods to justice. Talky drama isn't raw enough or energetic enough to interest all viewers, but still maintains solidity with compelling performances from it's leads. 3/4 || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Gia|Michael Cristofer|Drama|Rated R for graphic depiction of drug abuse, strong sexual content, language and some violence. |6.9|USA|1998| 120 min/ USA:126 min (unrated version) / South Korea:105 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|James D. Brubaker David R. Ginsburg Ilene Kahn Marvin Worth|Jay McInerney Michael Cristofer|Rodrigo García ||Home Box Office (HBO) Home Video [us] |Too Beautiful To Die. Too Wild To Live.|Fact-based story of supermodel Gia Marie Carangi follows her life from a rebel working in her father's diner at age 17 to her death in 1986 at age 26 from AIDS, one of the first women in America whose death was attributed to the disease. In between, she followed a downward spiral of drug abuse and failed relationships. |Angelina Jolie (Gia Marie Carangi) @ Elizabeth Mitchell (Linda) @ Eric Michael Cole (T.J.) @ Kylie Travis (Stephanie) @ Louis Giambalvo (Joseph Carangi) @ John Considine (Bruce Cooper) @ Scott Cohen (Mike Mansfield) @ Edmund Genest (Francesco) @ Mercedes Ruehl (Kathleen Carangi) @ Faye Dunaway (Wilhemina Cooper) @ Holly Baker (Emergency Room Nurse) @ Joe Basile (Tony) @ Rick Batalla (Phillipe) @ Lombardo Boyar (Hood #2) @ Jullian Dulce Vida (Hood #3) @ Brian Donovan (Junkie At Shooting Gallery) @ Alexander Enberg (Chris Von Wagenheim) @ Vylétte Jezél Fágerholm (Blonde Girl In Philadelphia (as Vylétte Jezél Fãgerholm)) @ Guido Föhrweißer (German Makeup Artist (as Guido Foehrweisser)) @ Scott Genkinger (Philadelphia Photographer) @ Judy Gillett (Beverly) @ Johnny Green Jr. (Joey Carangi) @ Cee Cee Michaela (Winter (as CeeCee Harshaw)) @ Meleney Humphrey (Booker #1) @ Tim Hutchinson (T.V. Interviewer) @ Michelle Jonas (Vogue Assistant #1) @ Mila Kunis (Gia at Age 11) @ Steve Larson (Drug Dealer In Alley) @ Drinda Lalumia (Booker #3 (as Drinda La Lumia)) @ Shelby Leverington (Woman At Funeral) @ Allison Mackie (Red Dress Designer) @ Norman Merrill (Doctor In AIDS Ward) @ Tricia O'Neil (Vogue Editor) @ Sam Pancake (Francesco Stylist #1) @ Adina Porter (Girl at Group Therapy) @ Joan Pringle (Therapist at Rehab) @ Michael E. Rodgers (Red Dress Photographer) @ Holly Sampson (Amy) @ Paul Sandman (Vogue Assistant #2) @ Antony Sandoval (John Casablancas) @ John-Clay Scott (Policeman) @ Phillip Simon (Fashion Show Manager) @ Alexis Smart (Jenny) @ Nick Spano (Michael Carangi) @ Lisa Stothard (Lisa) @ Jason Stuart (Booker #2) @ Samantha Torres (Patty) @ Nick Toth (Man In Elevator) @ Jennie Vaughn (Francesco Stylist #2) @ Torsten Voges (German Photographer) @ James Haven (Young Man On Sansom Street (as James Haven Voight)) @ Lynn Wanlass (Methadone Clinic Nurse) @ Audrey Wasilewski (Wilhemina's Receptionist) @ Christian Wienker (Long Haired Guy At Disco) @ Chuck Zito (Harley Biker rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jill Sharp (Luanne (uncredited) Produced by||What happens when the prettiest girl of all grows up? A tremendous biography of a supermodel, Gia Carangi. Her beauty graced magazines profusely in the late 70's. She knew as a little girl just how attractive she was. Her short life dealt with defiance of authority, lesbianism, love/hate relationships, drug addiction and AIDS. Angelina Jolie was excellent as Gia. Her profanity, nudity and lesbian love scenes scorch the screen. Ranking among the best on film. Also in this eye opener is Elizabeth Mitchell, Mercedes Ruehl and Faye Dunaway. With all the violence, nudity and profanity; can not believe this is rated R instead of X. But I am not complaining. This is a tragic story about a complicated life. A very interesting bio. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Gift, The|Sam Raimi|Drama|Rated R for violence, language, and sexuality/nudity. R|6.8|USA|2000|112 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/28/2004|Grant Curtis Sean Daniel Gregory Goodman James Jacks Gary Lucchesi Tom Rosenberg Ted Tannebaum Robert G. Tapert Richard S. Wright|Billy Bob Thornton Tom Epperson|Jamie Anderson ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The only witness to the crime was not even there|In the bayous near Savannah lives Annie, a widow with three young sons and a gift: she's clairvoyant, supporting her family by reading cards. Not long after she's menaced by Donnie Barksdale, the abusive husband of a client, the sultry daughter of a prominent citizen (and fiancée of the school principal) goes missing. Annie leads the police to the woman's watery grave, Donnie's pond. At the trial and after, Annie must sort through an attack on her credibility and her gift, knowledge of the dead woman's affairs, her own attraction to the principal, and a separate crisis brought on by the mental illness of one of her neighbors. The visions won't quit either: what if Donnie is innocent? When a local woman (Katie Holmes) disappears and the police can't seem to find any leads, her father (Chelcie Ross) turns to a poor young woman (Cate Blanchett) with psychic powers. Slowly she starts having visions of the woman chained and in a pond. Her visions lead to the body and the arrest of an abusive husband (Keanu Reeves), but did he really do it? Greg Kinnear is the missing woman's fiancee, Hilary Swank plays Reeve's abused wife, and Gary Cole is a sleazy attorney with ties to the missing woman. |Cate Blanchett (Annabelle 'Annie' Wilson) @ Giovanni Ribisi (Buddy Cole) @ Keanu Reeves (Donnie Barksdale) @ Katie Holmes (Jessica King) @ Greg Kinnear (Wayne Collins) @ Hilary Swank (Valerie Barksdale) @ Michael Jeter (Gerald Weems) @ Kim Dickens (Linda) @ Gary Cole (David Duncan) @ Rosemary Harris (Annie's Granny) @ J.K. Simmons (Sheriff Pearl Johnson) @ Chelcie Ross (Kenneth King) @ John Beasley (Albert Hawkins) @ Lynnsee Provence (Mike Wilson) @ Hunter McGilvray (Miller Wilson) @ Nathan Lee Lewis (Cornelius (as Nathan Lewis)) @ Benjamin Peacock (Tommy) @ Alex Lee (Paul Dean) @ Clay James (Stanley) @ David Brannen (Ben Wilson) @ Russ Comegys (Ben Sr. (as Russell Durham Comegys)) @ Janell McLeod (Mrs. Francis) @ Robby Preddy (Lady #2) @ Lucky Lawrence (Member of The Souvenirs Band/Handsome Man at Bar) @ Mo (Member of The Souvenirs Band) @ Boots Kutz (Member of The Souvenirs Band) @ Buck Edwards (Member of The Souvenirs Band) @ D.J. Pawlak (Member of The Souvenirs Band) @ Kipp Chambers (Boy at Dance) @ Dallas Johnson (Dallas) @ Stuart Greer (Officer Huggins) @ Jeff Bragg (Jed Barksdale) @ Danny Elfman (Tommy Lee Ballard) @ S.D. Stephens (Deputy on Shore) @ Samuel E. Parlin Jr. (Deputy in Boat) @ Ed Reddick (Judge) @ Rebecca Koon (Buddy's Mother) @ Erik Cord (Buddy's Father rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Cameron Beach (Enforcer for the Barksdales (uncredited)) @ Sam Edens (Member of Barksdale Clan (uncredited)Produced by||Cate Blanchett Displays Her Own "Gifts" In a small town deep in the South, a single mother endowed with a special ability becomes involved with the disappearance of a young woman and has a brush with the supernatural, in `The Gift,' directed by Sam Raimi.Cate Blanchett stars as Annie Wilson, a young widow attempting to raise her three kids and provide a decent life for her family, scraping out a living on Social Security since the tragic death of her husband in a work related accident the previous year.She supplements her meager income by doing `readings' for the local townsfolk, accepting their donations for the insights she offers them into their own lives.Annie has a `gift,' the ability to see certain things in the cards that enables her to advise her clients about personal issues.It's something she can't explain; she knows only that it's inherited (which she learned from her grandmother), and that it's real.And though it's helped her maintain her home, she soon finds that it doesn't always make for the most pleasant of situations, as when she must advise a young woman, Valerie Barksdale (Hilary Swank), on how to cope with her abusive husband, Donnie (Keanu Reeves), or attempt to help a troubled young man, Buddy Cole (Giovanni Ribisi) come to terms with some sensitive aspects of his life.Then, when a client comes to her to ask for help when his daughter disappears, not only does it take her to the dark side of the human experience, she discovers that certain individuals, including local sheriff Pearl Johnson (J.K. Simmons) do not believe that her `gift' is real. Stylistically crafted and delivered, Raimi's film will keep you engrossed and on the edge of your seat until the very end.He successfully blends reality with just a touch of the supernatural that makes for riveting suspense while keeping it within the realm of believability.The relationship played out between Donnie and Valerie is anything but unique-- you've seen this before, many times in many films-- but within the context of this story it's fresh and it works.The doubtful sheriff and the cynical, jaded defense attorney, Gerald Weems (Michael Jeter), are fairly stereotypical, but that can be easily overlooked in light of the overall story and especially due to the credibility of the Annie character, which is well developed and never presented as anything beyond what can be readily accepted as true to life.As the central character, Annie anchors the film and enables the circumstances in which she is involved to be perceived as real; it's the strength of the film, and it's what makes it all work so well. What also makes it work is the strong performance by Cate Blanchett, who makes Annie so real and accessible, displaying her `gift' with restraint and avoiding the possible pitfall of taking it too far over the edge, which could easily have made it suspect.Instead, she brings a depth to the character that draws you into her world and allows you to empathize with her, which would have been impossible had she invested Annie with even a touch of the charlatan.With consummate skill, Blanchett creates a well rounded character which demonstrates that as an actor, she definitely has a very real `gift' of her own. Ribisi also does a memorable turn as Buddy, with a striking performance in which he creates some disturbing moments that are almost painful to watch; his is a character study of a soul in distress, seeking solace and resolution, and even as he attempts to sort out his life, you are able to sympathize with his plight as you share Buddy's experiences.And it's through Buddy (as well as Annie, of course), that the audience is able to make that necessary and very real connection with the film.With films like `Saving Private Ryan' and now this one, Ribisi is on his way to establishing himself as one of the premiere character actors in the business today. Playing somewhat against type, Reeves proves that he can be a good `bad' guy, giving possibly one of his best performances ever as Donnie.He very credibly conveys that sense of explosiveness lying just beneath the surface that makes his character menacing and dark, which in turn makes Donnie psychologically as well as physically threatening.It's a good job by Reeves, who deserves credit for taking on a role that is so disagreeable and insensitive. The supporting cast includes Greg Kinnear (Wayne), Katie Holmes (Jessica), Kim Dickens (Linda), Gary Cole (David) and Rosemary Harris (Annie's Granny). A taut thriller that is emotionally involving, `The Gift' delivers what it promises early on, which is exceptional, as many films of this nature often fail to actually follow through after a tremendous opening act.Rest assured, this one does and has it all; suspense, credibility and some memorable moments, all courtesy of Raimi, a good story and a superb cast. And that's the magic of the movies.I rate this one 9/10. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Gladiator|Ridley Scott|Drama|Rated R for intense, graphic combat. |8.0|UK|2000| 155 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Franzoni Branko Lustig Laurie MacDonald Terry Needham Walter F. Parkes Douglas Wick Ridley Scott|David Franzoni David Franzoni John Logan William Nicholson|John Mathieson ||Myndform [is] |What We Do In Life Echoes In Eternity.|Maximus is a powerful Roman general, loved by the people and the aging Emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Before his death, the Emperor chooses Maximus to be his heir over his own son, Commodus, and a power struggle leaves Maximus and his family condemned to death. The powerful general is unable to save his family, and his loss of will allows him to get captured and put into the Gladiator games until he dies. The only desire that fuels him now is the chance to rise to the top so that he will be able to look into the eyes of the man who will feel his revenge. In Gladiator, victorious general Maximus Decimus Meridias has been named keeper of Rome and its empire by dying emperor Marcus Aurelius, so that rule might pass from the Caesars back to the people and Senate. Marcus' neglected and power-hungry son, Commodus, has other ideas, however. Escaping an ordered execution, Maximus hurries back to his home in Spain, too late to save his wife and son from the same order. Taken into slavery and trained as a gladiator by Proximo, Maximus lives only that he might someday take his revenge and fulfill the dying wish of his emperor. The time soon comes when Proximo's troupe is called to Rome to participate in a marathon of gladiator games held at the behest of the new emperor, Commodus. Once in Rome, Maximus wastes no time in making his presence known, and is soon involved in a plot to overthrow the emperor with his former-love Lucilla, Commodus' sister, after whom he lusts, and also the widowed mother of Lucius, heir to the empire after his uncle, and democratic-minded senator, Gracchus. Upon the sudden death of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, his trusted and successful general Maximus Meridas is unlawfully imprisoned and condemned to the gladiator games by Marcus' twisted son Commodus. As the new emperor, Commodus fears Maximus could use his heroic stature to depose him and become leader himself. But Maximus gains fame as a gladiator and uses his celebrity to cause further damage to Commodus' tenuous hold on the susceptible Roman people, hoping to inspire them to rediscover their lost values and overcome the corruption that is eating away at them. These actions prompt Commodus to square off mano a mano with Maximus in the Colisseum with the fate of Rome at stake. A dying Marcus Aurelius plans to name his loyal and brave General Maximus as his successor in order to restore the power of the Roman Senate. However, his power-hungry, jealous son Commodus learns of the plan, murders Marcus Aurelius, and plans to execute Maximus in order to secure his claim to the throne. Maximus escapes execution, but is sold into slavery and is forced to become a gladiator. Eventually, Maximus and his fellow gladiators are sent to Rome to perform for Commodus. Through his bravery he wins over the masses and reveals his true identity, much to the chagrin of Commodus. Can Maximus use his newfound popularity to avenge Marcus Aurelius' death, or will Commodus be able to keep the throne? Roma imperiale, 180 a.C. Il glorioso e stimato imperatore Marco Aurelio muore, ucciso a tradimento dal figlio Commodo, accusato di inettitudine dal padre. Ma il nuovo imperatore non ha il carisma del genitore : i suoi unici intenti sono la violenza ed il cinismo. Viene così incrementata la pratica dei duelli nelle arene, con gladiatori e bestie feroci. Il migliore fra i gladiatori è Maximus, ex generale dell'esercito imperiale, reso schiavo dalla gelosia di Commodo. Ed il drammatico confronto fra i due sarà il punto di partenza per la vendetta dell'eroico gladiatore, fino allo scontro finale frai due, nell'Arena del Colosseo. |Russell Crowe (Maximus) @ Joaquin Phoenix (Commodus) @ Connie Nielsen (Lucilla) @ Oliver Reed (Proximo) @ Richard Harris (Marcus Aurelius) @ Derek Jacobi (Senator Gracchus) @ Djimon Hounsou (Juba) @ David Schofield (Senator Falco) @ John Shrapnel (Senator Gaius) @ Tomas Arana (Quintus) @ Ralf Moeller (Vibius) @ Spencer Treat Clark (Lucius) @ David Hemmings (Cassius) @ Tommy Flanagan (Cicero) @ Sven-Ole Thorsen (Tigris) @ Omid Djalili (Slave Trader) @ Nicholas McGaughey (Praetorian Officer) @ Chris Kell (Scribe) @ Tony Curran (Assassin #1) @ Mark Lewis (Assassin #2) @ John Quinn (Valerius) @ Alun Raglan (Praetorian Guard #1) @ David Bailie (Engineer) @ Chick Allen (German Leader) @ David Nicholls (Giant Man (as Dave Nicholls)) @ Al Ashton (Rome Trainer #1 (as Al Hunter Ashton)) @ Billy Dowd (Narrator) @ Ray Calleja (Lucius' Attendant) @ Giannina Facio (Maximus' Wife) @ Giorgio Cantarini (Maximus' Son rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Christian Simpson (Chief Catapult Operator (uncredited) Produced by||Entertaining, yet flawed Gladiator, though entertaining, is one of the most overrated movies of the year. The biggest problem with this movie is the direction during the battle and fight sequences.The camera is too close to the action.This closeness causes many problems.First of all, the close camera work during the fight scenes left me feeling cheated.The close camera work puts us into the action a little too much, and some of the fight sequences weren't as exciting as they could have been if there were a few wide shots put in there.This closeness also made the "special effects" of the Colosseum look hokey.The people siting in the nosebleed sections of the stadium looked fake (granted, they WERE computer generated, but shouldn't they at least appear real?). Other problems with this movie include cliches ("On my signal, unleash hell"), anachronisms (Maximus says something in Italian, though the language doesn't appear until much later) and historical inaccuracies (Marcus Aurelius didn't die that way the last time I checked) Other than that, this movie is an entertaining one.The acting is excellent, especially by Joaquin Phoenix as the evil twit Commodus.All in all, I would recommend this movie simply for entertainment purposes.As for Best Picture of the year...I think not. **1/2 out of **** ||Signature Selection |2.35 : 1 |DTS 6.1 ES Discrete ||||||@@ Glass House, The|Daniel Sackheim|Thriller|Rated PG-13 for sinister thematic elements, violence, drug content and language. PG-13|5.6|USA|2001|106 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Neal H. Moritz Michael I. Rachmil Heather Zeegen|Wesley Strick |Alar Kivilo ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Be Careful Who You Trust|Trust can be as transparent as glass. When Ruby Baker's (Leelee Sobieski) parents (Rita Wilson & Michael O'Keefe) are killed in a car accident, her and her brother, Rhett (Trevor Morgan), must travel to Malibu, to live with Terrence and Erin Glass (Stellan Skarsgård & Diane Lane), their former neighbors. At first, Ruby and Rhett are comfortable and happy. Ruby is making new friends at school and Rhett is getting more video games and flashy toys then he could possibly know what to do with! But, when Ruby speaks to her family's estate lawyer (Bruce Dern), he tells her that her parents have left her and Rhett $4 million. Suddenly, Ruby begins to notice odd behavior from Terry and Erin. After the sudden death of their parents in a car accident, 16-year-old Ruby Baker and her 11-year-old brother Rhett are sent to live with Terry and Erin Glass, old family friends of the parents, in their posh Malibu house. But Ruby soon learns that her new foster parents are not all as they seem to be when Ruby and an unsuspecting Rhett are drawn by Terry and Erin into a deadly game of deception and mind games apparently stemming from Terry's shady business dealings in which he sets sights on Ruby and Rhett's $4 million trust fund. When Ruby (Leelee Sobieski) and Rhett Baker's (Trevor Morgan) parents (Rita Wilson & Michael O'Keefe) are killed in a car accident, their carefree lives are suddenly shattered. Moving into an incredible house in Malibu with the Glasses (Stellan Skarsgård & Diane Lane) - old friends of the family - seems to be the beginning of a new life for them. But Ruby soon stumbles information that leads her to suspect that her new guardians might somehow be responsible for her parents' deaths. Now she finds herself all alone in a duel of wits with the ruthless couple - and she's the only thing standing between them and her $4 million inheritance. When Ruby Baker and her brother Rhett are suddenly orphaned by the death of their parents, their parents' lawyer tells Ruby that they will move in with the Glasses', their former neighbors. They are getting along well with the Glasses' when they are pampered with new clothes and new video games and things to play with. Suspicions arise when Ruby overhears Terry's business deals, finds some suspicious letters, and sees Terry and Erin doing mysterious things. She then finds out that maybe all the suspicious actions are connected with the four million dollar inheritance she has. |Leelee Sobieski (Ruby Baker) @ Diane Lane (Erin Glass) @ Stellan Skarsgård (Terrence 'Terry' Glass) @ Bruce Dern (Begleiter) @ Kathy Baker (Nancy Ryan) @ Trevor Morgan (Rhett Baker) @ Chris Noth (Uncle Jack) @ Michael O'Keefe (Dave Baker) @ Vyto Ruginis (Don) @ Gavin O'Connor (Whitey) @ Carly Pope (Tasha) @ China Shavers (E.B. (as China Jesusita Shavers)) @ Agnes Bruckner (Zoe) @ Michael Paul Chan (Mr. Kim) @ Rachel Wilson (Hannah) @ Rutanya Alda (Vice Principal) @ Erick Avari (Ted Ross) @ Mia Barrentine (5 Year Old Ruby) @ John Billingsley (Driving Instructor) @ Richard Anthony Crenna (Cop) @ Maia Danziger (Deirdre (as Maya Danziger)) @ Leslie Sackheim (Waitress) @ Stephanie Ittelson (Officer) @ Harry Johnson (Minister) @ January Jones (Girl) @ Kirk Kinder (Sheriff) @ Maya McLaughlin (Receptionist) @ Wayne Morse (Psycho Killer) @ Michelle Nordin (Teen Queen) @ Brent Sexton (Mechanic) @ Paul Tuerpe (Traffic Cop) @ Julia Vera (Vicki) @ Hunter Shepard (Male Student) @ Kim Webster (Miss Drake) @ D. Elliot Woods (Cop) @ Kempton Kilbarger (Valet) @ Alice Hirson (Mrs. Morgan) @ Drew Snyder (Mr. Morgan rest of cast listed alphabetically Harris Mann .... Young Father) @ Rita Wilson (Grace Avery-Baker (uncredited)Produced by||Visibility Spoilers herein. There aren't many movies that try to work with architecture, so we need to celebrate them when they do. Some have been hugely successful, like the second Harry Potter, and some largely incompetent like `Life as a House.' A few rather effective for what they are: `Camelot' and `Thirteen Ghosts' for instance.All are based on principles developed by Welles and Tarkovsky. What we have here is pretty competent so far as the use of the house, both as a metaphor and a device. It works well to add texture to the photography (with the water) and framing. All else (story, acting, editing) is too ordinary to spend time with. Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 4: Has some interesting elements. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Glory|Edward Zwick|Drama||8.1|USA|1989| 122 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Pieter Jan Brugge Sarah Caplan Freddie Fields P.K. Fields Ray Herbeck Jr.|Robert Gould Shaw Lincoln Kirstein Peter Burchard Kevin Jarre|Freddie Francis ||Columbia Pictures Corporation Ltd. [gb] |Their innocence. Their heritage. Their lives. Nothing would be spared in the fight for their freedom. |Based on the letters of Colonel Robert G. Shaw. Shaw was an officer in the Federal Army during the American Civil War who volunteered to lead the first company of black soldiers. Shaw was forced to deal with the prejudices of both the enemy (who had orders to kill commanding officers of blacks), and of his own fellow officers. |Matthew Broderick (Col. Robert Gould Shaw) @ Denzel Washington (Pvt. Trip) @ Cary Elwes (Maj. Cabot Forbes) @ Morgan Freeman (Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins) @ Jihmi Kennedy (Pvt. Jupiter Sharts) @ Andre Braugher (Cpl. Thomas Searles) @ John Finn (Sgt. Maj. Mulcahy) @ Donovan Leitch (Capt. Charles Fessenden Morse) @ JD Cullum (Henry Sturgis Russell (as John David Cullum)) @ Alan North (Gov. John Albion Andrew) @ Bob Gunton (Gen. Harker) @ Cliff De Young (Col. James M. Montgomery (as Cliff DeYoung)) @ Christian Baskous (Edward L. Pierce) @ RonReaco Lee (Mute drummer boy) @ Jay O. Sanders (Gen. George Crockett Strong) @ Richard Riehle (Kendric) @ Daniel Jenkins ('A' Co. officer) @ Michael Smith Guess ('A' Co. soldier) @ Abdul Salaam El Razzac ('A' Co. soldier) @ Peter Michael Goetz (Francis George Shaw) @ Pete Munro (Steward) @ Benji Wilhoite (Young soldier at Antietam) @ Ethan Phillips (Hospital steward) @ Mark A. Levy (Bigoted soldier) @ Randell Haynes (Haggis) @ Afemo Omilami (Tall contraband) @ Keith Noble (Short contraband) @ Dan Biggers (Minister) @ Marc Gowan (Dr. William B. Rogers) @ Raymond Godshall Jr. (Dr. Charles G. Thorpe) @ Bob Minor (Contraband soldier in Darien) @ Joan Riordan (White woman) @ Saundra Franks (Black woman) @ Mark A. Jones (54th Massachusetts soldier) @ Peter Grandfield (10th Connecticut soldier) @ Mark Margolis (10th Connecticut soldier) @ Paul Desmond (10th Connecticut soldier) @ Tom Barrington (10th Connecticut soldier) @ Michael Fowler (10th Connecticut soldier) @ Richard Wright (10th Connecticut soldier rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jane Alexander (Sarah Blake Sturgis Shaw (uncredited)) @ Carla Brothers (Charlotte Forten (uncredited)) @ Rachel Lea Grundfast (Ellen Shaw (uncredited)) @ Kevin Jarre (10th Connecticut soldier (uncredited)) @ Bill Nunn ( (uncredited)) @ Larry Peterson (Union Officer (uncredited)) @ Brian Pohanka (Union Officer at Antietam (uncredited)) @ Roger Ragland (Cavalry officer (uncredited)) @ Raymond St. Jacques (Frederick Douglass (uncredited) Produced by||a masterpiece; the way history should be brought to life Gripping historical drama about the first black unit of the Civil War, led by young colonel Broderick, who faced fear, doubt, and hostility to prove their worthiness. Rock solid performances all around, along with powerfully good battle scenes, but it's the emotional aspect of the film that really keeps it afloat. A model for decades to come. **** || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Gods and Monsters|Bill Condon|Drama|Rated R for sexual material and language. |7.6|USA|1998| 105 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Clive Barker Paul Colichman Gregg Fienberg David Forrest Mark R. Harris Sam Irvin Stephen P. Jarchow Lisa Levy Valorie Massalas Spencer Proffer Beau Rogers John Schouweiler|Christopher Bram Bill Condon|Stephen M. Katz ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||The story of James Whale, the director of Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein, in the time period following the Korean War. Whale is homosexual and develops a friendship with his gardener, an ex-Marine. Set in 1957, Whale, the director of Show Boat, The Invisible Man, Frankenstein and Bride Of, had long since stepped back from the glamour and glitz of Hollywood. A stroke triggers once buried flashes of memory of his life in Dudley, his film career, and, most influentially, the trenches during the Great War. Haunted and lonely, he recounts many of his experiences to his muscle bound gardener, Clay Boone. Despite the divide that exists between them, their friendship develops. Reliant on his sternly disapproving housemaid, Hannah, the flamboyant director whose time has passed sees himself slipping away, unable to stop the decline, and indulges his fantasies by coaxing Boone to model for him. Il protagonista del film è James Whale, l'inventore del cinema horror del sonoro. Il film racconta, tra fantasia e realtà, gli ultimi mesi di vita di Whale, nella sua lussuosa dimora, che, uscito dall'ospedale dopo un grave infarto e ritiratosi da tempo a vita solitaria dopo i successi cinematografici, in preda ad ossessioni e fantasmi del passato, vorrebbe farla finita con la vita. Trova così in Clayton Boone, personaggio immaginario, ex-marine e giardiniere nerboruto ed attraente, l'alter-ego che dovrebbe ucciderlo. Ma il giovane non ha alcuna intenzione di farlo ed una notte di pioggia (come nei film di Whale), al ritorno da una grande e noiosa festa a casa di George Cukor, dopo un litigio seguito ad una ennesima provocazione del regista mirata ad un gesto di violenza che ponga fine alle sue sofferenze, Boone va a dormire. La mattina dopo viene ritrovato il corpo di Whale nella piscina della villa (come in SUNSET BOULEVARD). Il grande regista ha deciso di farla finita ! Il mistero sulla sua morte rimase impresso nel mondo di Hollywood ed ancora oggi non si è certi se sia stato realmente suicidio. |Ian McKellen (James Whale) @ Brendan Fraser (Clayton Boone) @ Lynn Redgrave (Hanna) @ Lolita Davidovich (Betty) @ David Dukes (David Lewis) @ Kevin J. O'Connor (Harry) @ Mark Kiely (Dwight) @ Jack Plotnick (Edmund Kay) @ Rosalind Ayres (Elsa Lanchester) @ Jack Betts (Boris Karloff) @ Matt McKenzie (Colin Clive) @ Todd Babcock (Leonard Barnett) @ Cornelia Hayes O'Herlihy (Princess Margaret) @ Brandon Kleyla (Young Whale) @ Pamela Salem (Sarah Whale) @ Michael O'Hagan (William Whale) @ David Millbern (Dr. Payne) @ Amir Aboulela (The Monster) @ Marlon Braccia (Starlet) @ Jesse Long (Assistant Director (as Jesse H. Long)) @ Owen Masterson (Camera Assistant) @ Lisa Vastine (Librarian) @ Kent George (Whale at 25) @ Martin Ferrero (George Cukor) @ David Fabrizio (Photographer) @ Jesse James (Michael Boone) @ Lisa Darr (Dana Boone) @ Paul Michael Sandberg (Sound Man) @ Judson Mills (Young Man at Pool rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Arthur Dignam (Ernest Thesiger (uncredited)) @ John Gatins (Kid Saylor (uncredited)) @ James Lecesne (Jack Pierce (uncredited)) @ Sarah Ann Morris (Daisy (uncredited) Produced by||An excellent, if somewhat flawed, look at the life and work of James Whale I've always been fascinated by James Whale, if for no other reason than the fact that, in one career, he directed Frankenstein and The Invisible Man on one hand and also directed the 1936 version of Showboat and The Great Garrick!That kind of dichotomy is not something you see every day.All four films are at least very good and two are exceptional.Gods and Monsters is very much a film about people and Ian McKellen does his best work that I've seen to date.But Lynn Redgrave's performance is even better and probably her best ever.Make no mistake, this is McKellen's film. Aided by an excellent script and with most of the performances top-notch, McKellen delivers a fine portayal of Whale.Brenden Fraser is the one somewhat of a clinker here.He has his moments, but for the most part, he is barely adequate and at times isn't terribly believable.Had he done a better job, Gods and Monsters could have been in the Best Picture race instead of The Thin Red Line.But even at that, this is well worth your time. ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Gods Must Be Crazy II, The|Jamie Uys|Comedy|PG |5.8|South Africa|1989|98 min|Afrikaans||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Boet Troskie |Jamie Uys |Buster Reynolds ||Columbia Pictures [us] |This time, everybody's going crazier.|Xixo is back again. This time, his children accidentally stow away on a fast-moving poachers' truck, unable to get off, and Xixo sets out to rescue them. Along the way, he encounters a couple of soldiers trying to capture each other and a pilot and passenger of a small plane, who are each having a few problems of their own. |N!xau (Xixo) @ Lena Farugia (Dr. Ann Taylor) @ Hans Strydom (Dr. Stephen Marshall) @ Nadies (Xisa) @ Eiros (Xiri) @ Richard Loring (Jack) @ Paddy O'Byrne (Narrator rest of cast listed alphabetically Erick Bowen .... Mateo) @ Andrew Dibb (Computer Operator) @ Lesley Fox (Ann's Secretary) @ Ken Marshall (Convener) @ Shimane Mpepela (Man on Bike) @ Simon Sabela (General) @ Lourens Swanepoel (Brenner) @ Treasure Tshabalala (Timi) @ Peter Tunstall (Chief Game Warden) @ Pierre Van Pletzen (GeorgeProduced by||Worth seeing for Lena While "Gods...II" is not quite as hilarious as the first, it is still well worth seeing, especially for the performance of the lovely Lena Farugia. Two questions will come to mind. "Why haven't we seen her before?" and "Why haven't we seen her since?" Lena Farugia is an American born, New York trained actress living and working in South Africa, with experience as a writer and producer in television. I don't know if she did her own stunts in the movie, but if not, that was one beautiful stunt double! || |1.66 : 1 (intended ratio) | ||||||@@ Gods Must Be Crazy, The|Jamie Uys|Action|PG |6.8|Botswana|1980|109 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Jamie Uys |Jamie Uys |Robert Lewis Buster Reynolds||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] ||A Sho in the Kalahari desert encounters technology for the first time--in the shape of a Coke bottle. He takes it back to his people, and they use it for many tasks. The people start to fight over it, so he decides to return it to the God--where he thinks it came from. Meanwhile, we are introduced to a school teacher assigned to a small village, a despotic revolutionary, and a clumsy biologist. COMMENT:Pejoratives have been removed. Misery is brought to a small group of Sho in the Kalahari desert in the form of a cola bottle. In his quest to throw the evil object over the edge of the earth, Xixo encounters Western "civilization," a haphazard doctor and a tyranical despot. |Marius Weyers (Andrew Steyn) @ Sandra Prinsloo (Kate Thompson) @ N!xau (Xixo) @ Louw Verwey (Sam Boga) @ Michael Thys (Mpudi) @ Nic De Jager (Jack Hind) @ Fanyana H. Sidumo (Card 1) @ Joe Seakatsie (Card 2) @ Brian O'Shaughnessy (Mr. Thompson) @ Vera Blacker (Mrs. Thompson) @ Ken Gampu (President) @ Paddy O'Byrne (Narrator) @ Jamie Uys (The ReverendProduced by||A subtle comic masterpiece The bushmen are not, of course, meant to represent actual Kalahari bushmen - although here Uys seriously under-estimated how naïve audiences could be; either that, or he knew full well how naïve we could be, and had a private joke at our expense.I, for one, DID believe that the people of the Kalahari led the pure, utopian life depicted here.(I was very young, but so were many others in the audience.)I even believed the white lie about Africans who shook their heads in order to say `yes', and the one about rhinos who put out fires ... the latter may even be true, for all I have since learned to the contrary, but I'm sure it isn't. Anyway: IS the life of the bushmen so utopian?Do we really want to be like them?Of course not.Their unvarying level of soporific happiness makes my blood run cold; their bland, brittle, uncultured society reminds me of nothing so much as that of the Eloi from H.G. Wells's `The Time Machine'.If there's anyone in this film whose position is to be envied it's Andrew.He found out what he wanted from life, and he managed to get it.Many of the people from the city fall short of doing one or other of these two things.The bushmen - again I should stress that they're NOT the real bushmen, but a kind of fantasy vision out of Rousseau - are playing life for lower stakes, scarcely able to form desires or plans at all. The exception is Xixo, the first and the last member of his society to embark on a quest.He even manages to complete it.Then he returns to what we think we think is utopia. So there IS a serious comment here, about how we think we want to live in paradise.Sorry to go on about it at length, when Uys made the point so wittily and gracefully, albeit without many people realising he was making it, and perhaps without realising he was making it himself.But a comedy is never so funny as when it grows naturally out of a good story.`The Gods Must Be Crazy' may be the funniest film of its decade.(`The Life of Brian' is its only real rival.)Admittedly, I found that the tears-to-the-eyes hilarity more or less vanished after the first viewing, and I don't think I could stand to watch the film too often, but there are clearly those who feel differently.A cinema in Brisbane made its living by screening the film continuously for over a year.It may even have been two years.Either feat is impressive. || |2.35 : 1 | ||||||@@ Gone in Sixty Seconds|Dominic Sena|Action|Rated PG-13 for violence, sexuality and language. PG-13|5.7|USA|2000|117 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/17/2004|Jerry Bruckheimer Denice Shakarian Halicki Jonathan Hensleigh Aristides McGarry Chad Oman Pat Sandston Mike Stenson Robert Stone Webster Stone Barry H. Waldman|H.B. Halicki Scott Rosenberg|Paul Cameron ||Buena Vista International Spain S.A. [es] |Ice Cold, Hot Wired.|Car theft in Long Beach went down 47% when Randall "Memphis" Raines walked away from the life. He gets dragged back into it by assuming the job his brother Kip screwed up for stolen-car broker Raymond Calitri: steal 50 exotic cars and have them on a container ship by 8 AM Friday morning, and he got this news on a Monday. With Calitri threatening to kill him and Kip, and the police GRAB unit breathing down his neck, Memphis reassembles his old crew and attempts to pull off the logistically impossible. Kip Raines, a young car thief, was contracted to steal 50 specific cars but something went wrong. Now the man who hired him, Raymond Calitri, wants his head. When his brother, Memphis, once a great car thief, who retired a few years ago, learns of this, he comes back to town to see if he can help his brother. The only thing that will appease Calitri is if the order is fulfilled. So Memphis has to assemble his old crew, and he has to do the job in a few days. And a cop who hounded him, upon learning of his return, is keeping an eye on him. And another car thief, whom he competed with before wants to get the Calitri job, and is telling Memphis to back off, but he won't. |Nicolas Cage (Randall 'Memphis' Raines) @ Giovanni Ribisi (Kip Raines) @ Angelina Jolie (Sara 'Sway' Wayland) @ T.J. Cross (Mirror Man) @ William Lee Scott (Toby) @ Scott Caan (Tumbler) @ James Duval (Freb) @ Will Patton (Atley Jackson) @ Delroy Lindo (Det. Roland Castlebeck) @ Timothy Olyphant (Det. Drycoff) @ Chi McBride (Donny Astricky) @ Robert Duvall (Otto Halliwell) @ Christopher Eccleston (Raymond Vincent Calitri) @ Vinnie Jones (The Sphinx) @ Grace Zabriskie (Helen Raines) @ Mike Owen (Kid in Rice Burner) @ Jaime Bergman (Blonde in Drag Race) @ Holiday Hopke (Waitress) @ Harry Van Gorkum (Forge) @ Frances Fisher (Junie Halliwell) @ Grace Una (Jenny) @ Jesse Corti (Officer Axton) @ Stephen Shellen (Roger the Car Salesman) @ Alexandra Balahoutis (DMV Clerk) @ Rainbow Borden (Carjacker #1) @ Vic Manni (Worker (as Victor Manni)) @ Sanjay (Glass House Guy) @ Doria Anselmo (Glass House Girl) @ Lois Hall (Old Woman) @ Dean Rader-Duval (Hype) @ C.J. Picerni (Go-Kart Kid) @ Kevin Weisman (Intern #2) @ Anthony Boswell (Buddy) @ Billy Devlin (Det. Jurgens) @ Bodhi Elfman (Fuzzy Frizzel) @ Arye Gross (James S. Lakewood) @ Greg Collins (San Pedro Cop) @ Cosimo Fusco (Adjacent Mechanic) @ Eddie Mui (Billy Moony) @ Joseph Patrick Kelly (Snake G.R.A.B.) @ Scott Burkholder (Rent-a-Cop) @ Margaret Kontra Palmer (Televangelist Wife) @ Charlene Bloom (Swimming Girl) @ Kevin West (Intern #1) @ Billy 'Sly' Williams (Cop) @ Alex Walters (Fireman) @ Lombardo Boyar (Paramedic) @ Angela Tassoni (Accident Victim) @ Scott Rosenberg (Private Doctor) @ Steve Danton (G.R.A.B. Officer #2) @ Tyler Patton (Security Guard) @ Carmen Argenziano (Det. Mayhew) @ Dan Hildebrand (Saul) @ King Alexander (Bar Dude) @ Nick Meaney (Thug) @ Michael Pena (Ignacio (as Michael A. Pena)) @ Juan Pina (Gangbanger #2) @ Tim De Zarn (Shotgun Guy (as Tim Dezarn)) @ John Carroll Lynch (Impound Manager) @ Douglas Bennett (Mel the Wrecker Driver (as Doug Bennett)) @ Bob Sattler (CHP Officer rest of cast listed alphabetically Cris Borgnine .... Drunk in bar) @ Donte Calarco (Girlfriend #1) @ David 'Shark' Fralick (Car Thief (uncredited)) @ Cecily Gambrell (Accident Victim (uncredited)) @ Trevor Goddard (Don (uncredited)) @ Brad Henke ( (uncredited)) @ Ken Jenkins (Televangelist (uncredited)) @ Master P (Johnnie B. (uncredited)) @ Drew Renkewitz (Toolie the Bartender (uncredited)Produced by||In a word...disappointing. Ever see a bunch of cop cars chasing someone around the streets of L.A.? How many times? Ten? A hundred? Well, you're gonna see it again (in Long Beach/San Pedro). "Gone..", an unoriginal and top heavy flick, sports a budget-busting and talented cast which itwastes as it fails to deliver on all levels. Too much Cage with no stretch. Not enough Jolie. A nemesis smaller than life, not bigger. Action done by rote. No human connection.Marginally creative. The list goes on and on. "Gone..." is a dud and a sad waste of top talent. Nonetheless, it's probably worth the price of a video rental on a rainy night. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Gone with the Wind|Victor Fleming George Cukor Sam Woo|Drama||8.1|USA|1939| 238 min/ Sweden:223 min (1969 re-release) / Sweden:234 min (1985 re-release) / UK:224 min (1994 re-release) / UK:233 min (1989 re-release) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David O. Selznick |Margaret Mitchell Sidney Howard Ben Hecht David O. Selznick Jo Swerling John Van Druten|Ernest Haller Lee Garmes||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] |The most magnificent picture ever! |Scarlett is a woman who can deal with a nation at war, Atlanta burning, the Union Army carrying off everything from her beloved Tara, the carpetbaggers who arrive after the war. Scarlett is beautiful. She has vitality. But Ashley, the man she has wanted for so long, is going to marry his placid cousin, Melanie. Mammy warns Scarlett to behave herself at the party at Twelve Oaks. There is a new man there that day, the day the Civil War begins. Rhett Butler. Scarlett does not know he is in the room when she pleads with Ashley to choose her instead of Melanie. This classic film narrates the love between Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler during the American civil war. It's the history of a selfish woman who doesn't want to admit her feelings about the man she loves, and finally loses him. The epic tale of a woman's life during one of the most tumultuous periods in America's history. From her young, innocent days on a feudalistic plantation to the war-torn streets of Atlanta; from her first love whom she has always desired to three husbands; from the utmost luxury to absolute starvation and poverty; from her innocence to her understanding and comprehension of life. |Thomas Mitchell (Gerald O'Hara) @ Barbara O'Neil (Ellen O'Hara (as Barbara O'Neill)) @ Vivien Leigh (Scarlett O'Hara) @ Evelyn Keyes (Suellen O'Hara) @ Ann Rutherford (Carreen O'Hara) @ George Reeves (Stuart Tarleton) @ Fred Crane (Brent Tarleton) @ Hattie McDaniel (Mammy) @ Oscar Polk (Pork) @ Butterfly McQueen (Prissy) @ Victor Jory (Jonas Wilkerson (the overseer)) @ Everett Brown (Big Sam) @ Howard C. Hickman (John Wilkes (as Howard Hickman)) @ Alicia Rhett (India Wilkes) @ Leslie Howard (Ashley Wilkes) @ Olivia de Havilland (Melanie Hamilton) @ Rand Brooks (Charles Hamilton) @ Carroll Nye (Franklin Kennedy) @ Clark Gable (Rhett Butler) @ Laura Hope Crews (Aunt Pittypat Hamilton) @ Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson (Uncle Peter (as Eddie Anderson)) @ Harry Davenport (Dr. Meade) @ Leona Roberts (Mrs. Meade) @ Jane Darwell (Mrs. Dolly Merriwether) @ Ona Munson (Belle Watling) @ Paul Hurst (Yankee deserter) @ Cammie King (Bonnie Blue Butler) @ J.M. Kerrigan (Johnny Gallagher) @ Jackie Moran (Phil Meade) @ Lillian Kemble-Cooper (Bonnie's nurse in London (as L. Kemble-Cooper)) @ Marcella Martin (Cathleen Calvert) @ Mickey Kuhn (Beau Wilkes) @ Irving Bacon (Corporal) @ William Bakewell (Mounted officer) @ Isabel Jewell (Emmy Slattery) @ Eric Linden (Amputation case) @ Ward Bond (Tom (Yankee captain)) @ Cliff Edwards (Remniscent soldier) @ Yakima Canutt (Renegade) @ Louis Jean Heydt (Hungry soldier) @ Olin Howlin (Yankee businessman (as Olin Howland)) @ Robert Elliott (Yankee major) @ Mary Anderson (Maybelle Merriwether rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eric Alden (Rafe Calvert (uncredited)) @ John Arledge (Dying soldier (uncredited)) @ Roscoe Ates (Convalescent soldier (uncredited)) @ Trevor Bardette ( (uncredited)) @ Ralph Brooks (Gentleman (uncredited)) @ Daisy Bufford (Housemaid (evening prayers) (uncredited)) @ Ann Bupp ( (uncredited)) @ James Bush (Gentleman (uncredited)) @ Ruth Byers (Housemaid (evening prayers) (uncredited)) @ Gary Carlson (Beau Wilkes (uncredited)) @ Louise Carter (Bandleader's wife (uncredited)) @ Eddy Chandler (Sergeant at Hospital (uncredited)) @ Wallis Clark (Poker-playing captain (uncredited)) @ Frank Coghlan Jr. (Collapsing soldier (uncredited)) @ Gino Corrado ( (uncredited)) @ Martina Cortina (Housemaid at Twelve Oaks (uncredited)) @ Luke Cosgrave (Bandleader (uncredited)) @ Kernan Cripps (Yankee soldier in Shantytown (uncredited)) @ Ned Davenport (One-armed soldier (uncredited)) @ Lester Dorr ( (uncredited)) @ Phyllis Douglas (Bonnie Blue Butler, age 2 (uncredited)) @ Joan Drake (Hospital nurse (uncredited)) @ F. Driver (Housemaid (evening prayers) (uncredited)) @ Edythe Elliott (General's wife (uncredited)) @ Frank Faylen (Soldier aiding Dr. Meade (uncredited)) @ Kelly Griffin (Bonnie Blue Butler (newborn) (uncredited)) @ George Hackathorne (Wounded soldier in pain (uncredited)) @ C. Hamilton (Yankee soldier in Shantytown (uncredited)) @ Evelyn Harding (Cancan girl (uncredited)) @ Inez Hatchett (Housemaid at Twelve Oaks (uncredited)) @ Jean Heker (Hosptial nurse (uncredited)) @ Ricky Holt (Melanie's son (uncredited)) @ Shep Houghton (Southern dandy (uncredited)) @ Si Jenks (Yankee on street (uncredited)) @ Tommy Kelly (Boy in band (uncredited)) @ W. Kirby (Yankee soldier in Shantytown (uncredited)) @ William McClain (Old Levi (uncredited)) @ George Meeker (Poker-playing captain (uncredited)) @ Alberto Morin (Rene Picard (uncredited)) @ Adrian Morris (Carpetbagger orator (uncredited)) @ Lee Murray (Drummerboy (uncredited)) @ H. Nellman (Yankee soldier in Shantytown (uncredited)) @ David Newell (Cade Calvert (uncredited)) @ N. Pharr (Housemaid (evening prayers) (uncredited)) @ Lee Phelps (Bartender (uncredited)) @ Jolane Reynolds (Cancan girl (uncredited)) @ Marjorie Reynolds (Guest at Twelve Oaks (uncredited)) @ Suzanne Ridgeway (Cancan girl (uncredited)) @ Azarene Rogers (Housemaid at Twelve Oaks (uncredited)) @ Tom Seidel (Tony Fontaine (uncredited)) @ Terry Shero (Fanny Elsing (uncredited)) @ William Stack (Minister (uncredited)) @ William Stelling (Returning veteran (uncredited)) @ Harry Strang (Tom's aide (uncredited)) @ Emerson Treacy ( (uncredited)) @ Phillip Trent (Gentleman/Bearded Confederate on Steps of Tara (uncredited)) @ Julia Ann Tuck (Bonnie at six months (uncredited)) @ Tom Tyler (Commanding officer during evacuation (uncredited)) @ Fred Warren (Frank Kennedy's clerk (uncredited)) @ Blue Washington (Renegade's companion (uncredited)) @ Rita Waterhouse (Girl in blue dress (uncredited)) @ Dan White (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Sarah Whitley (Housemaid at Twelve Oaks (uncredited)) @ Ernest Whitman (Carpetbagger's friend (uncredited)) @ Guy Wilkerson (Wounded card player (uncredited)) @ Zack Williams (Elijah (uncredited)) @ John Wray ( (uncredited) Produced by||The Film That Changed Hollywood Forever Arguably the greatest and most beloved movie of all time, "Gone With the Wind" is cinematic magic at its finest.The film is about Scarlett O'Hara's (Vivien Leigh, in an Oscar-winning role) experiences, in the South, during our country's Civil War.We see the triumphs and tribulations of this amazing character through some of our nation's darkest years.The screenplay, based on the popular novel, is super.Victor Fleming received an Oscar for his direction, but there were rumored to be as many as 12 directors who collaborated on the final product.Clark Gable (Oscar-nominated) gives the performance of a lifetime and the fact that he failed to win the Oscar is one of life's true mysteries.Hattie McDaniel did win in the supporting actress category (she was the first African-American to win an Oscar).Her win cost Olivia de Havilland, who also received a nomination in that group.In all the film won eight competitive Oscars and two special achievement awards.It was nominated for 13 overall, an unheard of number for Oscar in 1939."Gone With the Wind" is one of those films that set the mark for excellence in film-making.In over 60 years there are maybe five films, at the most, who have matched or bettered "Gone With the Wind".5 stars out of 5. || |1.37 : 1 (intended ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Good Morning, Vietnam|Barry Levinson|Comedy||7.1|USA|1987| 119 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Harry Benn Larry Brezner Mark Johnson Ben Moses|Mitch Markowitz |Peter Sova ||Abril Vídeo [br] |The wrong man.In the wrong place.At the right time.|A new Disc Jockey is shipped from Crete to Vietnam to bring humor to Armed Forces Radio. He turns the studio on it's ear and becomes wildly popular with the troops but runs afoul of the middle management who think he isn't G.I. enough. While he is off the air, he tries to meet Vietnamese especially girls, and begins to have brushes with the real war that never appears on the radio. |Robin Williams (A2C Adrian Cronauer) @ Forest Whitaker (Pfc. Montesque Garlick) @ Tung Thanh Tran (Tuan (aka Phan Duc To)) @ Chintara Sukapatana (Trinh) @ Bruno Kirby (2nd Lt. Steven Hauk) @ Robert Wuhl (SSgt. Marty Lee Dreiwitz) @ J.T. Walsh (Sgt. Maj. Phillip 'Dick' Dickerson) @ Noble Willingham (Brig. Gen. Taylor) @ Richard Edson (Pvt. Abersold) @ Juney Smith (Sgt. Phil McPherson) @ Richard Portnow (Dan 'The Man' Levitan) @ Floyd Vivino (Eddie Kirk) @ Cu Ba Nguyen (Jimmy Wah, Owner Jimmy Wah's) @ Dan Stanton (Censor #1 (SSgt.)) @ Don Stanton (Censor #2 (SSgt.)) @ Danny Aiello III (MP #1) @ John Marshall Jones (MP #2 (as J.J.)) @ James McIntire (Sergeant #1 at Jimmy Wah's) @ Peter Mackenzie (Sergeant #2 at Jimmy Wah's) @ No Tran (Vietnamese Student) @ Hoa Nguyen (Vietnamese Student) @ Uikey Kuay (Vietnamese Student) @ Suvit Abakaz (Vietnamese Student) @ Panas Wiwatpanachat (Vietnamese Student) @ Lerdcharn Namkiri (Vietnamese Student) @ Hanh Hi Nguyen (Vietnamese Student) @ Tuan Lai (Vietnamese Student) @ Boonchai Jakraworawut (Vietnamese Student) @ Joe B. Veokeki (Vietnamese Student) @ Wichien Chaopramong (Vietnamese Student) @ Kien Chufak (Vietnamese Student) @ Prasert Tangpantarat (Vietnamese Student) @ Tim O'Hare (Convoy Soldier) @ John Goyer (Convoy Soldier) @ Louis Hood (Convoy Soldier) @ Christopher Mangan (Convoy Soldier) @ Kenneth Pitochelli (Convoy Soldier) @ Jonathan MacLeod (Convoy Soldier) @ Gregg T. Knight (Convoy Soldier) @ Ralph Tabakin (Chaplain) @ Sangad Sangkao (Viet Cong Leader in Jungle) @ Vanlap Sangko (Viet Cong Leader in Jungle rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Richard Nixon (Himself (explains situation in Vietnam) (uncredited) (voice) (archive sound) Produced by||R. William's best This is Robin William's best movie where in the setting and formula of the movie created a very suitable credibility to R. William's out of this world style of humour.Also,the movie gives a very good peek into a slice of the Vietnam war.Very good screenplay and performances.A definite classic.One of the best comedies of all time.Bravo.... || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Good Will Hunting|Gus Van Sant|Drama|Rated R for strong language, including some sex-related dialogue. |7.8|USA|1997| 126 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Su Armstrong Lawrence Bender Jonathan Gordon Chris Moore Scott Mosier Kevin Smith Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|Matt Damon Ben Affleck|Jean-Yves Escoffier ||Alliance |Wildly charismatic. Impossibly brilliant. Totally rebellious. For the first 20 years of his life, Will Hunting has called the shots. Now he's about to meet his match. |Will Hunting (Damon) is a genius who's living a rough life in Boston's south end, while being employed at a prestigious college in Boston, he's discovered by a Fields Medal winning Professor (Skarsgard) who eventually tries to get Will to turn his life around with the help of Sean Maguire (Williams), as Will begins to realize that there's more to himself then he thinks there is. A janitor at MIT, Will Hunting (Matt Damon) has a gift for maths that can take him light-years beyond his blue-collar roots, but to achieve his dream he must turn his back on the neighborhood and his best friend (Ben Affleck). To complicate matters, two strangers enter the equation: a washed-up shrink (Robin Williams) who starts to coach Will through his transformation, and a med student (Minnie Driver) who shows him that there can be a pretty face along with his life of the mind. Matt Damon plays Will Hunting, a boy genius who was severely abused as a child and has been in trouble with the law ever since. When Will finally agrees to get counseling to keep himself out of jail and with his girlfriend (Minnie Driver), he meets Sean, the therapist (Robin Williams) who will change his life. Good Will Hunting tells the poignant story of Will and Sean's coming to terms with the blows life has dealt them and with the questions that lie in the future. |Robin Williams (Sean Maguire) @ Matt Damon (Will Hunting) @ Ben Affleck (Chuckie Sullivan) @ Stellan Skarsgård (Gerald Lambeau) @ Minnie Driver (Skylar) @ Casey Affleck (Morgan O'Mally) @ Cole Hauser (Billy McBride) @ John Mighton (Tom) @ Rachel Majorowski (Krystyn) @ Colleen McCauley (Cathy) @ Matt Mercier (Barbershop Quartet #1) @ Ralph St. George (Barbershop Quartet #2) @ Rob Lynds (Barbershop Quartet #3) @ Dan Washington (Barbershop Quartet #4) @ Alison Folland (M.I.T. Student) @ Derrick Bridgeman (M.I.T. Student) @ Vik Sahay (M.I.T. Student (as Vic Sahay)) @ Shannon Egleson (Girl on Street) @ Rob Lyons (Carmine Scarpaglia) @ Steven Kozlowski (Carmine Friend #1) @ Jennifer Deathe (Lydia) @ Scott William Winters (Clark) @ Philip Williams (Terry/Head Custodian) @ Patrick O'Donnell (Marty/Assistant Custodian) @ Kevin Rushton (Courtroom Guard) @ Jimmy Flynn (George H. Malone, the Judge) @ Joe Cannon (Prosecutor) @ Ann Matacunas (Court Officer) @ George Plimpton (Henry Lipkin, Psychologist) @ Francesco Clemente (Rich, Hypnotist) @ Jessica Morton (Bunker Hill College Student) @ Barna Moricz (Bunker Hill College Student) @ Libby Geller (Toy Store Cashier) @ Chas Lawther (M.I.T. Professor) @ Richard Fitzpatrick (Timmy) @ Frank Nakashima (Executive #1) @ Christopher Britton (Executive #2 (as Chris Britton)) @ David Eisner (Executive #3) @ Bruce Hunter (NSA Agent) @ Robert Talvano (2nd NSA Agent) @ James Allodi (Security Guard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joseph M. Khoury ( (uncredited)) @ Harmony Korine (Jerve (uncredited) Produced by||Snark Hunting I admire films that shoot high and miss. But it really rankles me when a film pretends to shoot high, avoids doing so because of lack of talent, and lies to us in the process. There's great drama in the mere existence of an idiot savant. These are people who often are intolerable socially, inadequate in common thinking skills, and generally lead a cursed `elephantman' life, except for their celebration as (in this case) mathematicians. Instead, we're given a watered down likeable homeboy who has been abused. Oh and he has a photographic memory which is a separate pathology (the two never coincide). Depth discarded. There's truly deep drama in the mathematical problems good Will would be dealing with. But this would require a Nabokov, and his mastery of metaphor. Instead we get the koolaid version for dummies in some (as it turns out) meaningless scribbles and a bubble diagram. Depth is twice discarded. Believe me, this could be played up big; the power of a christ in some of the insights that are speculated -- the voice and eye of God. There's also common, but good drama in the dedicating of one's life to their gift at great personal sacrifice. We actually have some good films in this regard concerning musicians. Math is better since you don't even get the applause. Here the guy with the insights but lack of language would be codependent martyr with the expert in the formalisms but no vision. But too hard, so pass. I can attest that there are cinematic depths to be mined at NSA, MIT, even Southie in terms of the absolutely unique and strange feel of the places. How could this film have missed those dark assets and end up so totally without atmosphere? This movie got made for one reason only: Robin Williams saw a part for himself. Therefore, the previously describedignorances are filled by an amplifiedbackstory so Williams can find himself after losing his wife. Pretty damned offensive given the possibilities. I predict that someone will do this story (or something like it) well sometime before I die. It's just too rich, and we do have some bright minds available. Its just not these two kids. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Goofy Movie, A|Kevin Lima|Family||6.2|USA|1995| 78 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Dan Rounds Michael Serrian|Jymn Magon Chris Matheson Brian Pimental|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |It's hard to be cool, when your dad's Goofy.|It's the last day of school, and Max wants to catch the eye of Roxanne, one of the more attractive girls in school. But how can you be cool when your dad's Goofy? Stage an impromptu concert at the final assembly, that's how! Or at least it sounded good until Principal Mazer found out. Goofy finds out about his son's antics (sort of), and decides a fishing trip, like his dad took him on, is the solution. Of course, he doesn't know that Max finally lands a date with Roxanne for a party thrown by the class valedictorian. Through the movie, Goofy tries to bring Max out of his shell, while Max resents being taken away, and lying to Roxanne about the trip (he tells her he & his dad will be appearing on TV at the PowerLine concert in LA). Will Max sink or swim? Will Goofy goof up his son's first shot at romance? Will Bigfoot step back? And what about those nuns? |Bill Farmer (Goofy Goof (voice)) @ Jason Marsden (Maximillian 'Max/Maxy' Goof (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Peter Pete (voice)) @ Kellie Martin (Roxanne (Girl in School) (voice)) @ Rob Paulsen (P.J. Pete (voice)) @ Wallace Shawn (Principal Mazur (voice)) @ Jenna von Oÿ (Stacey (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Bigfoot (voice)) @ Kevin Lima (Lester: Main Possum Park Emcee (voice)) @ Florence Stanley (Waitress (voice)) @ Jo Anne Worley (Principle Miss Maples (voice)) @ Brittany Alyse Smith (Photo Studio Girl (voice)) @ Robyn Richards (Lester's Grinning Girl (voice)) @ Julie Brown (Lisa (voice)) @ Klee Bragger (Tourist Kid (voice)) @ Joey Lawrence (Chad (voice)) @ Pat Buttram (Possum Park Emcee (voice)) @ Wayne Allwine (Mickey Mouse (voice)) @ Herschel Sparber (Security Guard (voice)) @ Dante Basco (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Sheryl Bernstein (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Corey Burton (Wendell/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Pat Carroll (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Carol Holliday (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Steve Moore (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Brian Pimental (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jason Willinger (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Walter Alice .... Goofy Goof (voice)) @ Tevin Campbell (Powerline) @ Elizabeth Daily (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Gisela Fritsch (Waitress (voice: German version)) @ Denise Gorzellany (Principle Miss Maples (voice: German version)) @ Fabian Heinrich (P.J.Pete (voice)) @ Bernd Klinzmann (Lester (voice)) @ Wolfgang Kühne (Pete Pete (voice)) @ Aaron Lohr (Max (singing) (singing voice)) @ Gerrit Schmidt-Foß (Max Goof (Dialog) (voice)) @ Pauly Shore (Robert 'Bobby' Zimmeruski (School Mate) (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||Disney at its finest.A superb movie! A Goofy Movie ranks upon my top 5 favorites.It gives an accurate representation of adolescent life in an uplifting, comedic, and often heartwarming fashion.The animation is good, the songs are great, the screenplay is superb, the voices fit each character perfectly (Especially Max's.Good job Mr. Marsden!) and many nice cinematic effects are included. This "kids" movie is a real treat to the older, and, at times is symbolic of deeper messages.A real winner that should be in the hands of any Goofy, Disney, or movie fan, for that matter! || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Goonies, The|Richard Donner|Adventure||7.0|USA|1985| 114 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Harvey Bernhard Richard Donner Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg|Steven Spielberg Chris Columbus|Nick McLean ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |They call themselves "The Goonies." The secret caves. The old lighthouse. The lost map. The treacherous traps. The hidden treasure. And Sloth... Join the adventure.|A group of west coast kids facing their last days together before a development paves over their homes stumble onto evidence of pirate's treasure, which attracts the attention of a family of criminals. Mikey and Brandon Walsh are two brothers whose family is preparing to move due to a new development that is sure to be started unless enough money is raised, which is quite doubtful. But, when Mikey stumbles on a treasure map of the famed "One-Eyed" Willy's hidden fortune, he, his brother, and a few friends set out on a quest to find the riches in hopes to save their homes. The entrance to a cavern is found, but it is located underneath the house of the Fratelli family, a treacherous group of thieves who attempt to beat the "Goonies" to the treasure. |Sean Astin (Michael 'Mikey' Walsh) @ Josh Brolin (Brandon 'Brand' Walsh) @ Jeff Cohen (Lawrence 'Chunk' Cohen) @ Corey Feldman (Clark 'Mouth' Devereaux) @ Kerri Green (Andrea 'Andy' Carmichael) @ Martha Plimpton (Stefanie 'Stef' Steinbrenner) @ Jonathan Ke Quan (Richard 'Data' Wang (as Ke Huy Quan)) @ John Matuszak (Lotney 'Sloth' Fratelli) @ Robert Davi (Jake Fratelli) @ Joe Pantoliano (Francis Fratelli) @ Anne Ramsey (Mama Fratelli) @ Lupe Ontiveros (Rosalita, cleaning woman) @ Mary Ellen Trainor (Harriet Walsh) @ Keith Walker (Irving Walsh) @ Curtis Hanson (Elgin Perkins (Troy's Father)) @ Steve Antin (Troy Perkins) @ Paul Tuerpe (Sheriff) @ George Robotham (Prison Guard) @ Charles McDaniel (Jerry Cohen (Chunk's Father)) @ Elaine Cohen McMahon (Mrs. Cohen (Chunk's Mother)) @ Michael Paul Chan (Mr. Wang (Data's Father)) @ Nick McLean (Mr. Devereaux (Mouth's Father) (as George Nicholas McLean)) @ Bill Bradley (Bill) @ Jeb Stuart Adams (Troy's Friend #1) @ Eric Briant Wells (Troy's Friend #2) @ Gene Ross (Man in Shower #1) @ Max Segar (Man in Shower #2) @ Newt Arnold (Man in Shower #3 (as Newton Dennis Arnold)) @ Jack O'Leary (Reporter #1) @ Patrick Cameron (Reporter #2) @ Orwin C. Harvey (Tennis Player (as Orwin Harvey)) @ Ted Grossman (FBI Man rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Richard Donner (Policeman (uncredited)) @ Jennie Lew Tugend (Mrs. Wang, Data's Mother (uncredited) Produced by||Groovy goonies!!!!!!!! This was a really funny movie that people of all ages. It is about a group of kids (who call them self the goonies) that find a map in their attic, and they believe that will lead them to a forgotten treasure. This is a hilarious movie that must be seen. **** stars out of ***** || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Green Mile, The|Frank Darabont|Drama|Rated R for violence, language and some sex-related material. |8.1|USA|1999| 188 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Frank Darabont David Valdes|Stephen King Frank Darabont|David Tattersall ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Miracles do happen.|Death Row guards at a penitentiary, in the 1930's, have a moral dilemma with their job when they discover one of their prisoners, a convicted murderer, has a special gift. Paul Edgecomb is a slightly cynical veteran prison guard on Death row in the 1930's. His faith, and sanity, deteriorated by watching men live and die, Edgecomb is about to have a complete turn around in attitude. Enter John Coffey, He's eight feet tall. He has hands the size of waffle irons. He's been accused of the murder of two children... and he's afraid to sleep in a cell without a night-light. And Edgecomb, as well as the other prison guards - Brutus, a sympathetic guard, and Percy, a stuck up, perverse, and violent person, are in for a strange experience that involves intelligent mice, brutal executions, and the revelation about Coffey's innocence and his true identity. Il 'miglio verde' è il corridoio ricoperto di linoleum che i condannati a morte dovevano percorrere dalla cella alla sedia elettrica. Tratto da un racconto di Stephen King, il film racconta di Paul Edgecomb, secondino in un carcere di massima sicurezza negli anni trenta, che racconta , ormai vecchio, la storia di John Coffey, gigantesco negro condannato a morte, in possesso di poteri soprannaturali. In un lungo flash-back, il secondino ci parla del rapporto di amicizia che si instaura fra i due, di guarigioni, resurrezioni e di Mr. Jingles, il topolino che Eduard Delacroix usa per restare attaccato alla vita, in attesa della esecuzione. |Tom Hanks (Paul Edgecomb) @ David Morse (Brutus "Brutal" Howell) @ Bonnie Hunt (Jan Edgecomb) @ Michael Clarke Duncan (John Coffey) @ James Cromwell (Warden Hal Moores) @ Michael Jeter (Eduard Delacroix) @ Graham Greene (Arlen Bitterbuck) @ Doug Hutchison (Percy Wetmore) @ Sam Rockwell ('Wild Bill' Wharton) @ Barry Pepper (Dean Stanton) @ Jeffrey DeMunn (Harry Terwilliger) @ Patricia Clarkson (Melinda Moores) @ Harry Dean Stanton (Toot-Toot) @ Dabbs Greer (Old Paul Edgecomb) @ Eve Brent (Elaine Connelly) @ William Sadler (Klaus Detterick) @ Mack Miles (Orderly Hector (as Mack C. Miles)) @ Rai Tasco (Man in Nursing Home) @ Edrie Warner (Lady in Nursing Home) @ Paula Malcomson (Marjorie Detterick) @ Christopher Joel Ives (Howie Detterick (as Christopher Ives)) @ Evanne Drucker (Katie Detterick) @ Bailey Drucker (Cora Detterick) @ Brian Libby (Sheriff McGee) @ Brent Briscoe (Bill Dodge) @ Bill McKinney (Jack Van Hay) @ Gary Sinise (Burt Hammersmith) @ Rachel Singer (Cynthia Hammersmith) @ Scotty Leavenworth (Caleb Hammersmith) @ Katelyn Leavenworth (Hammersmith's Daughter) @ Bill Gratton (Earl the Plumber) @ Dee Croxton (Woman at Del's execution) @ Rebecca Klingler (Wife at Del's execution) @ Gary Imhoff (Husband at Del's execution) @ Van Epperson (Police Officer) @ David E. Browning (Reverend at Funeral (as Reverend David E. Browning) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Phil Hawn (Police Photographer (uncredited)) @ Judy Ann Herrera (Bitterbuck's Daughter (uncredited)) @ Todd Thompson (Prison Guard (uncredited)) @ James Marshall Wolchok (Prison Guard (uncredited) Produced by||Film was invented for creations like this. The Green Mile is a masterwork. This is film as art, at it's very best. The depth of the cast is extraordinary, with all of the players delivering excellent performances. There is a clear sense here that all involved in the production knew that this was something special, and gave it their all. See this film if you truly enjoy actors giving everything to their craft. Watch for the countless subtleties of expression, and the great power that the cast creates with silence. This is evident in the opening sequence and remains throughout. Above all, Michael Duncan as John Coffey is exceptional. He brings gripping emotion to a unique, fascinating character. The Green Mile should bring you joy, laughter, and if you are like most in the theater this night, tears. BRAVO! || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Gremlins|Joe Dante|Comedy||6.8|USA|1984| 106 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Finnell Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg|Chris Columbus |John Hora ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Cute. Clever. Mischievous. Intelligent. Dangerous. [Crossed Out] We're Here!|Minature green monsters tear through the small town of Kingston Falls. Hijinks ensue as a mild-mannered bank teller releases these hideous loonies after gaining a new pet and violating two of three simple rules: No water (violated), no food after midnight (violated), and no bright light. Hilarious mayhem and destruction in a town straight out of Norman Rockwell. So, when your washing machine blows up or your TV goes on the fritz, before you call the repair man, turn on all the lights and look under all the beds. 'Cause you never can tell, there just might be a gremlin in your house. A loveable but mysterious exotic pet brought home from Chinatown becomes the source of a slew of miseries for an American suburb when the "Mogwai's" owners disobey a few basic precautions and help spawn a host of evil creatures. Sure, he's cute. Of course you can keep him. But heed these three warnings: Don't ever get him wet. Keep him away from bright light. And the most important thing, the one thing you must never forget: no matter how much he cries, no matter how much he begs . . . never, never feed him after midnight. With these mysterious instructions, young Billy Peltzer takes possession of his cuddly new pet. He gets a whole lot more than he bargained for. Gremlins begins with inventor Rand Peltzer trying to find a quick gift for his son Billy before returning home from a New York trip. He settles on a unique pet in a Chinatown curio shop--a cute, furry creature known as a Mogwai. Before he leaves, he is warned by the shop's owner that three rules must be obeyed by a Mogwai owner: 1) Keep it away from bright light, 2) Don't get any water on it, and 3) Never, never ever feed it after midnight. Rand takes note of these rules and returns home with the Mogwai to his idyllic small-town home of Kingston Falls. Rand's gift is an instant hit: Billy loves his adorable new pet, naming it Gizmo and taking it everywhere he goes. Unfortunately, he and his friends also begin breaking the rules of Mogwai care. When water is accidentally spilled on Gizmo, it causes him to multiply and produce a number of mischievous little brothers. Among these is the mean-tempered Stripe. Soon enough, the new Mogwai get hold of some food after midnight and this causes them to change from cute fur-balls into nasty, scaly monsters dubbed 'Gremlins.' |Zach Galligan (Billy Peltzer) @ Phoebe Cates (Kate Beringer) @ Hoyt Axton (Randall Peltzer) @ Frances Lee McCain (Lynn Peltzer) @ Polly Holliday (Ruby Deagle) @ Glynn Turman (Roy Hanson) @ Dick Miller (Murray Futterman) @ Keye Luke (Mr. Wing) @ Scott Brady (Sheriff Frank) @ John Louie (Chinese Boy) @ Judge Reinhold (Gerald) @ Jackie Joseph (June Futterman) @ Harry Carey Jr. (Mr. Anderson) @ Corey Feldman (Pete F.) @ Don Steele (Rockin' Ricky Rialto) @ Susan Burgess (Little girl) @ Arnie Moore (Alex) @ Donald Elson (Man on street) @ Belinda Balaski (Mrs. Joe Harris) @ Daniel Llewelyn (Hungry Harris Child) @ Edward Andrews (Mr. Corben) @ Lois Foraker (Bank teller) @ Chuck Jones (Mr. Jones) @ Kenny Davis (Dorry's Tavern owner) @ Nicky Katt (Schoolchild) @ Tracy Wells (Schoolchild) @ John C. Becher (Dr. Molinaro) @ Gwen Willson (Mrs. Molinaro) @ Jonathan Banks (Deputy Brent) @ Joe Brooks (Dave Meyers (Santa)) @ Jim McKrell (Lew Landers (WDHB-TV reporter)) @ Frank Welker (Stripe and other Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Howie Mandel (Voice of Gizmo (voice)) @ Fred Newman (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Mark Dodson (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Michael Winslow (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Peter Cullen (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Bob Berger (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Michael Sheehan (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice)) @ Bob Holt (Mogwai and Gremlins (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Mushroom .... Barney) @ Jerry Goldsmith (Man in telephone booth staring at camera (uncredited)) @ Marvin Miller (Robbie The Robot (uncredited) (voice)) @ Robby the Robot (Robot (uncredited)) @ William Schallert (Man putting letters in mailbox (uncredited)) @ Steven Spielberg (Man in electric wheelchair (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Tobey (Mobil gas station attendant (uncredited) Produced by||Enjoyable 1980s Non-Sense "Gremlins" is one of those guilty pleasures.It is not a very good film, but there is just something about this film that makes it watchable and enjoyable.Young Zach Galligan gets a pet for Christmas, but everything goes terribly wrong when the pet gets wet.Now there are several of these cute creatures, but the new ones are evil and after eating a bucket of chicken after midnight, they become the title "Gremlins".Chaos follows and the small mid-western town is torn apart piece by piece.The film is fun, but pretty short on direction, screenplay, and characterization.All in all, a film that over-achieves for the most-part.3.5 out of 5 stars. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Groundhog Day|Harold Ramis|Fantasy||7.9|USA|1993| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Trevor Albert C.O. Erickson Harold Ramis Whitney White|Danny Rubin Danny Rubin Harold Ramis|John Bailey ||Columbia Pictures [us] |He's having the worst day of his life... over, and over...|A weather man is reluctantly sent to cover a story about a weather forecasting "rat" (as he calls it). This is his fourth year on the story, and he makes no effort to hide his frustration. On awaking the 'following' day he discovers that it's Groundhog Day again, and again, and again. First he uses this to his advantage, then comes the realisation that he is doomed to spend the rest of eternity in the same place, seeing the same people do the same thing EVERY day. |Bill Murray (Phil Connors) @ Andie MacDowell (Rita) @ Chris Elliott (Larry) @ Stephen Tobolowsky (Ned Ryerson) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Buster) @ Marita Geraghty (Nancy Taylor) @ Angela Paton (Mrs. Lancaster) @ Rick Ducommun (Gus) @ Rick Overton (Ralph) @ Robin Duke (Doris the Waitress) @ Carol Bivins (Anchorwoman) @ Willie Garson (Kenny) @ Ken Hudson Campbell (Man in Hallway) @ Les Podewell (Old Man) @ Rod Sell (Groundhog Official) @ Tom Milanovich (State Trooper) @ John M. Watson Sr. (Bartender) @ Peggy Roeder (Piano Teacher) @ Harold Ramis (Neurologist) @ David Pasquesi (Psychiatrist) @ Lee R. Sellars (Cop) @ Chet Dubowski (Bank Guard Felix) @ Doc Erickson (Bank Guard Herman) @ Sandy Maschmeyer (Phil's Movie Date) @ Leighanne O'Neil (Fan on Street) @ Evangeline Binkley (Jeopardy! Viewer) @ Samuel Mages (Jeopardy! Viewer) @ Ben Zwick (Jeopardy! Viewer) @ Hynden Walch (Debbie (as Hynden Walsh)) @ Michael Shannon (Fred) @ Timothy Hendrickson (Waiter Bill) @ Martha Webster (Waitress Alice) @ Angela Gollan (Piano Student) @ Shaun Chaiyabhat (Boy in Tree) @ Dianne B. Shaw (E.R. Nurse) @ Barbara Ann Grimes (Flat Tire Lady) @ Ann Heekin (Flat Tire Lady) @ Lucina Paquet (Flat Tire Lady) @ Brenda Pickleman (Buster's Wife) @ Amy Murdoch (Buster's Daughter) @ Eric Saiet (Buster's Son) @ Lindsay Albert (Woman with Cigarette (as Lindsay Reinsch)) @ Roger Adler (Guitar Player) @ Ben A. Fish (Bass Player) @ Don Riozz McNichols (Drum Player) @ Brian Willig (Saxophone Player) @ Richard Henzel (D.J. Voice) @ Rob Riley (D.J. Voice) @ Scooter (The Groundhog rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Douglas Blakeslee (Man with snow shovel (uncredited)) @ Leslie Frates (Herself (Jeopardy contestant) (uncredited)) @ Mason Gamble ( (uncredited)) @ Simon Harvey (News Reporter (uncredited)) @ Grady Hutt ( (uncredited)) @ Regina Prokop (Polka Dancer (uncredited)) @ Paul Terrien (Ground hog official (uncredited) Produced by||There's nothing I love more than watching a comedy where the main character divulges into the human nature - in other words, I love watching the character do something the average human would do when given the power(s). And that's exactly what Phil does in "Groundhog Day." And that is why, among other things, it is one of my favorites. REVIEW BY JOHN ULMER Bill Murray plays Phil Connors, a weatherman for a local news station. Every year he goes to Puxatawney, Pennsylvania for the Puxatawney Phil event: commonly recognized as Groundhog Day. You know how it goes. The groundhog comes out. If it sees its shadow, it's six more weeks of winter. If it doesn't, it's spring. Well, the only problem about going to this event every year for Phil is that he hates it. He hates the cheery people. The little town. The weather. The event. The story. Everything. He hates it. He is a lonely, desolate, forsaken soul. With a great cynical side. Andie McDowell plays a new manager--err, womanager :)--who goes with Phil to the event, along with Chris Elliot, the cameraman. Phil reports, they tape it, it's a done deal. The end. Phil goes back home. Only one problem. Due to severe weather, the roads have all been closed, leaving only one option: Stay in Puxatawney until the storm blows over. So, Phil heads back to his cheery hotel, and tucks in for a dreaded nap. But when he wakes the next morning, something odd happens. The day is the exact same day as before. It is Groundhog Day. Again. Phil panicks as he finds everything exactly the same as it was the day before. He knows everything that is going to happen. He shrugs it off as a weird case of deja-vu and heads back to sleep. But when he wakes up, alas! The day is...yesterday. Again. Technically. So Phil comes to terms with the fact that there is now way out of this small little town. He tries everything. He steps in front of a moving car. He electrocutes himself. He jumps off a building. All to no avail. Oh, he dies, all right. But the next day he's back and it's Groundhog Day again. Part of what makes "Groundhog Day" so excellent is the story. The characters and actors alone are great enough to recommend this movie, but the truth is, I cannot think of a better story to throw someone like Bill Murray into. He uses his smart-alecky ways to a new extreme. His character is a bit like Scrooge from the tale "A Christmas Story," which is ironic, because Murray was in a parody on Scrooge's tale called "Scrooged." Anyway. Bill Murray is perfect as the irreverent and cynical Phil. Everything he does he carries out with a dumb, "I'm-smarter-than-you" face. He thinks himself better than everyone else. He thinks he is smart by skipping the big Holiday ordeal. It is all so stupid to him. But, as this story teaches us, having an attitude like that can get you in big trouble. Harold Ramis, director of "Analyze This," star of "Stripes," directed "Groundhog Day." Bill and he are old pals, and it sure shows. I bet they had a great time making this movie. But what is good about it is that while making a fun movie they didn't forget to come up with an interesting and audience-catching tale. Another thing that is great about "Groundhog Day" is that Phil Connors does what we would do. For example: When he finds out he has this ability to repeat the same day over and over, he does things the average person would do. The human weakness. Too many comedies with the same formula don't try to exploit this human weakness, but "Groundhog Day" does. We see Phil memorize the steps to successfully robbing an armored truck filled with cash. But the reason he can go to bed with a clear conscience is because he knows the next day that everything will be back to normal again. He will never have robbed the truck, never have bought a Ferarri, etc. Phil does what WE would do, and that is one importance aspect of "Groundhog Day." I would never rob an armored truck, but if I was stuck living the same day over and over, it would do no harm to take the cash - it would be back in the truck in the morning! So, I might do that. (although my conscience would still get in the way.) There was a little comedy with John Candy named "Delirious." It was about a soap opera writer getting trapped in his own world. And everything he writes on his typewriter comes true. While the movie was good, and pretty interesting, there were so many things Candy could have done with the ability to create and control any - and every- thing, and he didn't do them. I think that's where "Groundhog Day" steps in, filling in the blanks. There's nothing I love more than watching a comedy where the main character divulges into the human nature - in other words, I love watching the character do something the average human would do when given the power(s). And that's exactly what Phil does in "Groundhog Day." And that is why, among other things, it is one of my favorites. 5/5 stars || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Grumpier Old Men|Howard Deutch|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for salty language and innuendos. PG-13|6.2|USA|1995|101 min|English||||||||||False||||||||12/2/2004|Richard C. Berman John Davis George Folsey Jr. John J. Smith Elena Spiotta|Mark Steven Johnson Mark Steven Johnson|Tak Fujimoto ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Still Yelling. Still Fighting. Still Ready For Love.|Things don't seem to change much in Wabasha County: Max and John are still fighting after 35 years, Grandpa still drinks, smokes, and chases women , and nobody's been able to catch the fabled "Catfish Hunter", a gigantic catfish that actually smiles at fishermen who try to snare it. Six months ago John married the new girl in town (Ariel), and people begin to suspect that Max might be missing something similar in his life. The only joy Max claims is left in his life is fishing, but that might change with the new owner of the bait shop. |Walter Matthau (Max Goldman) @ Jack Lemmon (John Gustafson) @ Ann-Margret (Ariel Gustafson) @ Sophia Loren (Maria Ragetti) @ Burgess Meredith (Grandpa Gustafson) @ Daryl Hannah (Melanie Gustafson) @ Kevin Pollak (Jacob Goldman) @ Katie Sagona (Allie, Melanie's Daughter) @ Ann Morgan Guilbert (Mama Ragetti (as Ann Guilbert)) @ James Andelin (Sven) @ Marcus Klemp (Eddie, Assistant Manager) @ Max Wright (County Health Inspector) @ Cheryl Hawker (Lena) @ Wayne A. Evenson (Handsome Man) @ Allison Levine (Assistant at Dog Pound) @ John Patrick Martin (Reverend) @ Adam Ward (Skeleton) @ Ryan Waldoch (Power Ranger #1) @ James Cada (Husband Shopper) @ Jaclyn Ross (Wife Shopper) @ Kyle Christopherson (Stockboy) @ Michelle Johnston (Sears Salesperson/Chicken Polka Girl) @ Jeffrey L. Smith (The Frugal Gourmet) @ Geraldo Rivera (Himself) @ Warren Schueneman (Old Man #1) @ Jack Mitsch (Old Man #2) @ Sterling Robson (Old Man #3) @ Gregory Schuneman (Pizza Kid) @ Denny Schusted (Limo Driver) @ Wallace Olson (Polka Musician) @ Carl Johnson (Polka Musician) @ Eugene Karels (Polka Musician) @ Lawrence Grivna (Polka Musician Produced by||Grumpier than the First = Worse than the First. "Grumpy Old Men" didn't work for two reasons. One, it was an unfortunate shouting match cashing in on the film's stars' earlier coupling, "The Odd Couple," and without witty material like their original pairing, the film sank low. Two, it was boring. Now we have a sequel, even worse than the original. It is all about Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon arguing, still, after the mutal agreement at the end of the original. But this time they are arguing because Lemmon's daughter (Daryl Hannah) and Matthau's son (Kevin Pollack) are gettin' hitched. This is bad for the two men, because that means they will be loosely related, I suppose. Anywho, they bicker some more, and we see Jack Lemmon posing nude in one scene (carefully covered by the camera), which I could live for the rest of my life without seeing. They are also arguing because Matthau is in love with a new Italian woman (Sophia Loren) who has just moved in, opening up a restaurant taking place of "Chuck's Bait Shop." The inhabitants of Grump Land don't like this, because the customers will scare away the fish, so they start pulling mean tricks and pranks on poor Sophia. "Grumpier Old Men" is the name of this film, as if you didn't already know, and it truly is grumpier. It's worse than the first (hey, that ryhmes) and as I snored I was bored at the sight of this tripe that has scarred my brain for the rest of my life. If you didn't pick up on that sentence, this is what I'm saying: this film is an utter bore from beginning to end, with basically no laughs. At all. And something else worth noting: Isn't it funny how out of all the eligible bachelors out there, the women in the "Grumpy Old Men" films seem to go straight for the oldest men in town? Walter Matthau is in his seventies here, and the woman he's dating is about forty-something. It's even worse than Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones' relationship--Grump relationships are an outrage! Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau are a good comic pairing, but as I said in my review of "Grumpy Old Men," film executives seem to see "The Odd Couple" as a shouting match, when it was so much more. So now studio execs seem to think that if they get these two actors to shout on screen, the film will be good. Wrong! The charm of their "Odd Couple" pairing was due to deep, three-dimensional characters, witty dialogue and tons of laughs. Here we just get shouting, and that's the film's major flaw. 2/5 stars - John Ulmer || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Grumpy Old Men|Donald Petrie|Comedy||6.6|USA|1993| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Richard C. Berman Darlene K. Chan John Davis Dan Kolsrud Kathy Sarreal|Mark Steven Johnson |Johnny E. Jensen ||Warner Bros. Española S.A. [es] |A Fifty-Year Fight. |John and Max are elderly men living next door to each other. They're continuously arguing and insulting each other, and have been this way for over 50 years. One day, Ariel, moves into the street. Both men are attracted to her, and their rivalry steps up a gear. |Jack Lemmon (John Gustafson) @ Walter Matthau (Max Goldman) @ Ann-Margret (Ariel Truax) @ Burgess Meredith (Grandpa Gustafson) @ Daryl Hannah (Melanie) @ Kevin Pollak (Jacob Goldman) @ Ossie Davis (Chuck) @ Buck Henry (Snyder) @ Christopher McDonald (Mike) @ Steve Cochran (Weatherman) @ Joe Howard (Pharmacist) @ Isabell O'Connor (Nurse (as Isabell Monk)) @ Buffy Sedlachek (Punky) @ John Carroll Lynch (Moving Man) @ Charles Brin (Fisherman) @ Oliver Osterberg (Fisherman Produced by||The Actors are Mortal, The Comedy Eternal The opening credits in this film roll to the tune of "Heat Wave", and it was during a recent heat wave that I dusted off my well-worn copy of "Grumpy Old Men" and settled in to once again watch the first of four movies that made up the "second coming" of the Jack Lemmon/Walter Matthau team.To those who have not yet seen the movie, (yes, there may be a few) it was set (and filmed) in snowy Minnesota, which give the film an authentic small town feel that the talented set designers of Hollywood would be hard pressed to duplicate.From the stars' first lines in the film ("'Morning ****head", "Hello moron") we know what to expect, and the movie doesn't disappoint us. The verbal sparring between Max and John continues non-stop through 100+ laugh filled minutes.Both the plot and the ending are not quite believable, but who really cares? For those who want reality, there are many depressing films out there, not to mention the news- papers and CNN. I have never read if all the cast members were the first choices for the parts, but every one of the cast fits their roles perfectly.Ann-Margret has evolved from her dancing, grinding "sexpot" image in the 60's to a wonderful, natural actress. Burgess Meredith....what can I say?He's perfect as John's father, a crusty, lovable old man.The interplay between Jack and Burgess is so easy, and why not?Who better to play a 94 year old than the 80+ year old Meredith. While Burgess is lovable, Daryl Hannah is lovely. As John's daughter Melanie, I have never seen her look more beautiful and heart-melting as she does in this picture.Ozzie Davis, Kevin Pollak, and Buck Henry round out the cast, and bring their many talents to the picture. While much has been written about the comedy, very little is said about the realistic side of"Grumpy Old Men".There are a few fleeting scenes that reveal the heartache and loneliness of growing old.And John's dealings with the I.R.S. in the movie, while hilarious, points out what can happen when the machine-like IRS process starts to roll over an individual not caring about the human-real life side of the situation. The only "downer" for me in again watching this movie is the knowlege that the string is over.Walter and Jack and Burgess are gone.I can't watch this movie without feeling just a tinge of sorrow.When most actors their age pass on, we feel sorrow, and then watch their classics from decades ago.With Walter and Jack the best was yet to come. I have read elsewhere that scripts were in the works for "Grumpy Old Men 3"and "Odd Couple 3".Who knows how many more successful films this brilliant team could have made together.I doubt if the formula for their success would have grown stale, because both Walter and Jack no longer acted....their roles where just an extension of themselves. Whether it be Grumpy or Grumpier Old Men, "Odd Couple II", or "Out to Sea" we were as much visiting with old friends as we were watching a movie.Old friends get more endearing with age, and we would have never tired of new visits from them, no matter what the role. Burgess, Jack, and Walter.....wherever you are...thanks for the laughs you've given us over the years.You made us feel good, which is the best epitaph anyone could wish for. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Guess Who's Coming to Dinner|Stanley Kramer|Comedy||7.5|USA|1967| 108 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|George Glass Stanley Kramer|William Rose |Sam Leavitt ||Columbia Pictures [us] |a love story of today |The answer to that question is, your new son-in-law's parents. A wealthy white family is informed that their daughter's intended is coming to meet them, and he's black. Scripted in the late 60s, the idea of a bi-racial marriage was still fairly shocking. To smooth this over, the son-in-law to be is a prince. He's a Doctor who lives in Switzerland and intends to take their daughter there to live. Set in California, it's not quite a return to Selma, Alabama, but was controversial in its day. |Spencer Tracy (Matt Drayton) @ Sidney Poitier (Dr. John Wade Prentice) @ Katharine Hepburn (Christina Drayton) @ Cecil Kellaway (Monsignor Mike Ryan) @ Beah Richards (Mrs. Prentice) @ Isabel Sanford (Matilda 'Tillie' Binks, Drayton Maid) @ Roy Glenn (Mr. Prentice (as Roy E. Glenn, Sr.)) @ Virginia Christine (Hilary St. George) @ John Hudkins (Cab Driver) @ Barbara Randolph (Dorothy) @ Alexandra Hay (Carhop) @ D'Urville Martin (Frankie) @ Skip Martin (Delivery Boy) @ Katharine Houghton (Joanna 'Joey' Drayton) @ Tom Heaton (Peter) @ Grace Gaynor (Judith rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Himself, in photo on Matt's Desk (uncredited) Produced by||Overlook the "dated" aspect. This film is of course dated in many portions but still remains a powerful motion picture over thirty years after its release. Superb acting and dialog is what overcomes the dated aspect. Hepburn and Tracy are Mattand Christina Drayton a wealthy and successful couple who have a daughter named Joey played by Katherine Houghton who comes home and tells them she has met the man of her dreams. The only problem in the story is that he is of a different race. Sidney Poitier is John Wade Prentice a successful individual who is the man ofJoeys dreams and is ofthe different race.The Draytons are people who in theoryhold no prejudice toward any one regardless of their race, color or creed but now have those same views put harshly to the test when it'stheir own daughter involved. Sort of like the NIMBY philosophy "YES YES build more prisons, build more nuclear power plants, build more missile silosbut Not In My BackYard! " Sure I believe in interracial marriage as long as it's not my daughter". John Wades parents essentially share the same views asthe Draytons. However Johns parents particularly his father played by Roy E. Glenn Sr. seems more realistic when speaking to his child about the situationthan does Matt Drayton. He tells his son the way it really is and most likely will be. "You'll even be illegal in some states" he reminds his son.The two couples eventually come to grips with the factthat no matter what they say they will not be able to prevent their two children from going through with their plans.Spencer Tracy throughout his film careerdelivered many powerful lines of dialog. The final moments of this film he delivers perhaps his greatest. Which also turned out to be his last. AFI ranked this film number ninety-nine on their list of top one hundred. Because of it's powerful story and social issue it deserved to be higher.Other films that deal with interracial marriage to see are 1956's GIANT and 1961's Bridge to the Sun. || |1.85 : 1 |3.0 ||||||@@ Gypsy|Mervyn LeRoy|Musical||7.2|USA|1962| 143 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mervyn LeRoy |Arthur Laurents Gypsy Rose Lee Leonard Spigelgass|Harry Stradling Sr. ||Warner Bros. [us] |Let this tuneful Broadway classic entertain you.|Mama Rose lives to see her daughter June succeed on Broadway by way of vaudeville. When June marries and leaves, Rose turns her hope and attention to her elder, less obviously talented, daughter Louise. However, having her headlining as a stripper at Minsky's Burlesque is not what she initially has in mind. This is the story of how a no-talented Louise Hovick rises from behind her little sister's shadow, Dainty June and vaudeville to become the 1930's burlesque queen, Gypsy Rose Lee. While the title suggest that this musical is about the famous stripper Gypsy Rose Lee, it is really about her hard-driven, determined stage mother, Mama Rose. In the beginning, Rose concentrates on her talented younger daughter, June, leaving older, less talented Louise in the cold. When June tires of being cute and runs away, Rose turns to Louise instead. Louise eventually does become "Gypsy", and Rose is left by herself, her aspirations for her kids realized, but her own show-business aspirations still unrealized. |Rosalind Russell (Rose Hovick) @ Natalie Wood (Louise 'Gypsy Rose Lee' Hovick) @ Karl Malden (Herbie Sommers) @ Paul Wallace (Tulsa No. 2) @ Betty Bruce (Tessie Tura) @ Parley Baer (Mr. Kringelein) @ Harry Shannon (Grandpa) @ Morgan Brittany ('Baby' June (as Suzanne Cupito)) @ Ann Jillian ('Dainty' June (as Ann Jilliann)) @ Diane Pace ('Baby' Louise) @ Faith Dane (Mazeppa) @ Roxanne Arlen (Electra) @ Jean Willes (Betty Cratchitt) @ George Petrie (George) @ Ben Lessy (Mervyn Goldstone) @ Guy Raymond (Pasty) @ Louis Quinn (Cigar rest of cast listed alphabetically Dee Ann Johnston .... Hollywood Blonde) @ Dorothy Adams (Stage Mother (uncredited)) @ Trudi Ames (Scottish Girl (Uncle Jocko Scene) (uncredited)) @ Renee Aubry (Hollywood Blonde (uncredited)) @ Jack Benny (Himself (uncredited)) @ Shirley Chandler (Hollywood Blonde (uncredited)) @ Dina Claire (Dolores (uncredited)) @ Mike Cody (Farmboy (uncredited)) @ William Fawcett (Mr. Willis (uncredited)) @ Dick Foster (Farmboy (uncredited)) @ Eddie Foster (Wichita Burlesque Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Teri Hope ( (uncredited)) @ Jim Hubbard (Farmboy (uncredited)) @ Frances Karath (Hollywood Blonde (uncredited)) @ Lisa Kirk (Rose Hovick (singing voice) (uncredited)) @ Harvey Korman (Press Agent (uncredited)) @ Danny Lockin (Gerry 'Yonkers' (uncredited)) @ Robert Lyons (Clarence the Clarinetist (uncredited)) @ Paula Martin (Hollywood Blonde (uncredited)) @ Bert Michaels (Farmboy (uncredited)) @ James Millhollin (Mr. Beckman (uncredited)) @ Jeff Parker (Farmboy (uncredited)) @ Lois Roberts (Agnes (uncredited)) @ Jule Styne (Conductor during opening credits sequence (uncredited)) @ Frank Sully (Wichita Burlesque Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Ian Tucker (Angie (uncredited)) @ Bo Wagner (Farmbou (uncredited) Produced by||Russell and Wood Shine! Although the television remake is truer to the original script Bette Midler was a dreadful Mama Rose she peaked way too early for us to care about her. by the time Rose' Turn happens we want her to shut up.Roz Russell has so much more depth in the role playing the caracter, not just the songs. True she is a bit weak vocally but she is always on key and the emotional levels are right on. Natalie Wood is charming as Louise and Virbrantly sexy as Gypsy. her transformation is flawless.Malden is avery good Herbie but too bad they cut "together" The three actors would hae been a joy to watch in that number. Over all this is a very good film. not perfect but it hits the right chords. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Hairspray|John Waters|Comedy||6.5|USA|1988| 92 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stanley F. Buchthal Pat Moran Rachel Talalay John Waters|John Waters |David Insley ||Astral Films [ca] |Get Back To Your Roots!|'Pleasantly Plump' teenager Tracy Turnblad achieves her dream of becoming a regular on the Corny Collins Dance Show. Now a teen hero, she starts using her fame to speak out for the causes she believes in, most of all integration. In doing so, she earns the wrath of the show's former star, Amber Von Tussle, as well as Amber's manipulative, pro-segregation parents. The rivalry comes to a head as Amber and Tracy vie for the title of Miss Auto Show 1963. |Sonny Bono (Franklin von Tussle) @ Ruth Brown (Motormouth Mabel) @ Divine (Edna Turnblad/Arvin Hodgepile) @ Colleen Fitzpatrick (Amber von Tussle) @ Deborah Harry (Velma Von Tussle) @ Joann Havrilla (Prudence Pingleton) @ Ricki Lake (Tracy Turnblad) @ Ric Ocasek (Beatnik Cat) @ Leslie Ann Powers (Penny Pingleton) @ Clayton Prince (Seaweed) @ Michael St. Gerard (Link Larkin) @ Jerry Stiller (Wilbur Turnblad) @ Mink Stole (Tammy) @ Shawn Thompson (Corny Collins) @ Alan J. Wendl (Mr. Pinky (as Alan Wendl)) @ Pia Zadora (Beatnik Chick) @ Josh Charles (Iggy) @ Jason Downs (Bobby) @ Holter Graham (I.Q.) @ Dan Griffith (Brad) @ Regina Hammond (Pam) @ Bridget Kimsey (Consuella) @ Frankie Maldon (Dash) @ Brooke Stacy Mills (Lou Ann) @ John Orofino (Fender) @ Kim Webb (Carmelita) @ Debra Wirth (Shelly) @ Dawn Hill (Nadine) @ Cyrkle Milbourne (L'il Inez) @ Doug Roberts (Paddy Pingleton) @ Toussaint McCall (Himself) @ Lydia Troy (Mrs. Malinski) @ Verna Day (Nadine's Mother) @ Kevin Joseph (Joke Store Customer) @ Cory Tabachow (Joke Store Customer) @ Marcy Brodsky (Joke Store Customer) @ Donald Wheeler (Clinton) @ Paul Zimmerman (Brent) @ Jennifer Johns (Amy) @ Brook Yeaton (Tough Guy #1) @ Jeff Gardner (Tough Guy #2) @ Jay Hillmer (Principal Davidson) @ Rhea Feikin (Geometry Teacher) @ Mark Oliver (Geometry Student) @ Coley Sohn (Slapped Girl) @ Susan Lowe (Angry Mother) @ Rosemary Knower (Mrs. Shipley) @ Colleen Simon (Girl in Lunchroom) @ Kathleen Wallace (Gym Teacher) @ Keith Douglas (Lead Lafayette) @ Al Granick (Lafayette #2) @ Robert Di Santo (Lafayette #3) @ Mollie Hall (Girl in Classroom) @ Dorie Ellwood (Girl in Classroom) @ Maggie Linton (Trinklette #1) @ Brenda Alford (Trinklette #2) @ Carolyn Walker (Trinklette #3) @ Mary Jefferson (Street Lady #1) @ Alfie Brown (Street Lady #2) @ Tipper Burton (Wino) @ Leo Rocca (Governor) @ Jim Parisi (Governor's Aide) @ Margo Tully (First Lady) @ Matt Myers (Singing Bum) @ Beverly Brigham (Snoopy Old Lady) @ Wilbur Griffin (Teen Center Boy) @ Adam Tucker (Cop) @ David Samson (WZZT Official) @ Robb Case (WZZT Official) @ Joey Perillo (TV Secruity Guard) @ Mary Vivian Pearce (Hairhopper Mother) @ Mojo Gentry (Street Watcher) @ Dale Guy Madison (Street Watcher) @ Mark Murray-Mazwi (Street Watcher) @ Christine Mason (Montrose Guard) @ Mmekutmfon Essien (Montrose Inmate) @ William Brown (Governor's Mansion Pickets (as W.H. Brown)) @ Fredella Calloway (Governor's Mansion Pickets) @ Joseph Eubanks (Governor's Mansion Pickets) @ Angel Harper (Governor's Mansion Pickets) @ Cornell Hills (Governor's Mansion Pickets) @ Gorham Scott (Governor's Mansion Pickets) @ Darrell Taylor (Governor's Mansion Pickets) @ Peter Koper (Governor's Mansion Policeman) @ Kevin Murray (Governor's Mansion Policeman) @ George Stover (Governor's Mansion Policeman) @ Buddy Deane (Governor's Mansion Newsman) @ Michael Willis (Governor's Mansion Newsman) @ Chuck Yeaton (Governor's Mansion Newsman) @ Rick Anderson (Von Tussle Pickets) @ Harold Anthony (Von Tussle Pickets) @ Milton Clark Jr. (Von Tussle Pickets) @ Harold A. Cornish (Von Tussle Pickets) @ Bernice Moore (Von Tussle Pickets) @ June Thorne (Von Tussle Pickets) @ Scheryll Anderson (Amusement Park Patron) @ Cheryl Andrews (Amusement Park Patron) @ Sonja Bonair (Amusement Park Patron) @ Sylvia Byrd-Leitner (Amusement Park Patron) @ Charlie Hawke (Amusement Park Patron) @ Rudy Jones (Amusement Park Patron) @ William Rose (Amusement Park Patron) @ Miriam Kiss (Slob Redneck Woman) @ Patrick Mitchell (Teen Street Fan) @ Jim Lyons (News Announcer) @ Frederick Strother (Policeman (as Frederick Strother Jr.)) @ Christopher Golley (Redneck Puncher) @ Mary Lou Barber (Dodge 'em Car Patron rest of cast listed alphabetically Brad Baker .... Amusement Park Patron) @ John Waters (Dr. Fredrickson) @ John Carhart III (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Jeffrey Charles Meyer (The Creep (uncredited)) @ Lisa M. DeHaven (Hair Hoppin' Mother (uncredited)) @ Vincent De Paul (Carmelita's Partner (uncredited) Produced by||Mega-Trash goes Mainstream Despite the fact that I was a teenager in the early-1980's, for some reason I can easily sit through 1960's movies, including this one. For the first time, the undeclared prince of puke is allowed to direct a movie that isn't shown to a fringe audience. This was the final movie of Divine, the debut of Ricki Lake, and the only time Lake ever looked good -- and she looked fabulous, even with her hair ironed. John Waters made the right decision when he turned down Divine's request for a dual role as Tracy and Edna Turnblad. Somehow, Corny Collins' assistant Tammy(Dreamland veteran Mink Stole) seemed like a pre-cursor to Kevin Smith's "Silent Bob."Also, the fact that Amber Von Tussle(Colleen Fitzpatrick) was willing to dance to a song like "Shake a Tailfeather," against her mother's wishes gives me a sense that her character might not be as much of a bitch if it weren't for her parents. As Motormouth Maybelle, Ruth Brown kicks a$$ as a soul DJ with a hidden(?) agenda -- Wiping out segregation in Metropolitan Baltimore. When she introduced Gene Pitney's "Town Without Pity,"you knew she was directing it at those who still insist on the false policy of "separate but equal." One of the most hilarious moments was the cartoon-like segment where Prudy Pingleton (Joanne Havrila) enters a black neighborhood to 'rescue' her daughter Penny from the arms of her black boyfriend Seaweed, foolishly thinking she was "snatched" by those "natives."A much more subtle aspect is that one of the reporters interviewing the Governor of Maryland was Buddy Deane, the real-life inspiration for Corny Collins. As mainstream as it was, looking back on it you'd never think anyone else but John Waters could make a movie like this. It's unfortunate that the real-life incidents Waters based portions of it upon didn't turn out as happily as they did here, but like all storytellers, he can make things better than they really are. I did get a sense though during one of the dance sequences that Penny Pingleton(Leslie Ann Powers) didn't exactly like dancing with Seaweed, and was actually more interested in Link. Maybe that was why she was only in one movie, but I suppose we'll never know unless Powers tells us herself. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Halloween|John Carpenter|Horror|R |7.6|USA|1978|91 min/ USA:101 min (extended version)|English||DVD||||||||False|||||||||Moustapha Akkad Debra Hill Kool Lusby Irwin Yablans John Carpenter|John Carpenter Debra Hill|Dean Cundey ||Anchor Bay Entertainment [us] |The Night HE Came Home!|Michael Myers has been in an institution since he was a young boy, after murdering his sister. Now he's escaped and is heading back home to terrorise the quiet community which still rememebers him. Six year old Michael Myers murders his sister on Halloween night in 1963. He is then taken to a mental hospital where he is studied by Doctor Loomis. Then, in 1978, he escapes from the hospital, and on Halloween night he returns to the town where he murdered his sister, so that he can do harm to a baby-sitter and her friends. Halloween 1978 is the night HE came home. On Halloween 1963, the small town of Haddonfield is shocked when six-year-old Michael Myers returns from trick-or-treating and for some unknown reason stabs his older sister to death with a big kitchen knife and is found by his parents staring into space with the bloody knife in his hand. Sent to a mental institution, Michael spends the next 15 years just sitting, still staring into space despite the best efforts of his Doctor, Dr. Samuel Loomis. Now, on October 30th 1978, something triggers Michael off and during a storm manages to steal a car from Dr. Loomis and Nurse Marion (who was coming to take Michael to a court to keep him locked up) and goes back to Haddonfield where he steals a white mask. There, Laurie Stode, student and daughter of an Estate Agent, finds that for some unknown reason Michael is stalking her during the day (at school, at her home etc - but she doesn't know who he is.) As Dr. Loomis arrives and with the Sheriff frantically looks for Michael he doesn't know that Laurie is baby-sitting Lindsey and Tommy and that Laurie's friends Annie, Lynda and Bob are disappearing one by one... On a cold Halloween night in Haddonfield, Illinois in 1963, six year old Michael Myers brutally murdered his teenage sister after she had sex with her boyfriend. Michael is then locked inside Smith's Grove Warren County Sanitarium where he is placed under the care of Dr. Sam Loomis who is the only one who sees the pure evil within the soul of Michael. In October 1978, Michael escapes from the sanitarium. After witnessing the escape, Dr. Loomis heads back to Haddonfield where he knows Michael will kill again on Halloween night. Michael begins stalking three teenagers, Laurie Strode and her friends Annie and Lynda. With the help of the town sheriff, Loomis hunts for Michael and hopes to put an end to his grisly murder spree. |Donald Pleasence (Dr. Samuel 'Sam' J. Loomis) @ Jamie Lee Curtis (Laurie Strode) @ Nancy Kyes (Annie Brackett (as Nancy Loomis)) @ P.J. Soles (Lynda) @ Charles Cyphers (Sheriff Leigh Brackett) @ Kyle Richards (Lindsey Wallace) @ Brian Andrews (Thomas 'Tommy' Doyle) @ John Michael Graham (Bob Simms) @ Nancy Stephens (Nurse Marion Chambers) @ Arthur Malet (Graveyard Keeper) @ Mickey Yablans (Richie) @ Brent Le Page (Lonnie Elamb) @ Adam Hollander (Keith) @ Robert Phalen (Dr. Terence Wynn) @ Tony Moran (Michael Myers (age 23)) @ Will Sandin (Michael Myers (age 6)) @ Sandy Johnson (Judith Margaret Myers) @ David Kyle (Judith's Boyfriend) @ Peter Griffith (Morgan Strode) @ Nick Castle (The Shape rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Carpenter (Paul, Annie's Boyfriend (uncredited) (voice)) @ George O'Hanlon (Mr. Peter Myers (uncredited)Produced by||The Start of Some of the Weakest Films Ever Produced "Halloween" could be considered the "Citizen Kane" of modern horror films in the fact that it paved the way for numerous other films of the kind (seven "Halloween" films, nine "Friday the 13th" films, and seven "Nightmare on Elm Street" films).Unfortunately, as far as the cinema is concerned, this was not the start of anything special.The evil Michael Myers is a masked and crazed slasher who will do anything to kill his little sister (a very young Jamie Lee Curtis).It is never really explained why he is after her, but he is.Psychiatrist Donald Pleasance is the expert who knows that Myers must be stopped.Pleasance is solid (as he usually is in these films) and Curtis shows a glimmer of potential here.The screenplay is pretty weak, but the direction over-achieves.Overall a fair horror film that is nothing special, but looks like a masterpiece when compared to its tireless sequels.2.5 out of 5 stars. || |2.35 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Hand That Rocks the Cradle, The|Curtis Hanson|Thriller||6.2|USA|1992| 110 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/27/2004|Robert W. Cort Ted Field Ira Halberstadt Rick Jaffa David Madden|Amanda Silver |Robert Elswit ||Abril Vídeo [br] |... is the hand that rules the world.|Peyton Flanders seemed to be the perfect nanny, but secretly she was out to wreck the lives of the family she was supposed to be helping. Before becoming the nanny, Peyton had a miscarriage, and blamed it on Claire (the mother). Claire suspects nothing, having never met Peyton before. A gynecologist committs suicide when he is accused for having sexually molested 5 of his patients, and his wife loses her unborn baby as a result of stress. She then takes on another name and applies to the nanny position that the first woman to make the accusation has announced. She gets the job and she's up for revenge in her sly ways. |Annabella Sciorra (Claire Bartel) @ Rebecca De Mornay (Peyton Flanders/Mrs. Mott) @ Matt McCoy (Michael Bartel) @ Ernie Hudson (Solomon) @ Julianne Moore (Marlene Craven) @ Madeline Zima (Emma Bartel) @ John de Lancie (Victor Mott, OBGYN) @ Kevin Skousen (Marty Craven) @ Mitchell Laurance (Lawyer) @ Justin Zaremby (Roth (the Schoolyard Bully)) @ Eric Melander (Joey 'Joe' Bartel (Baby Joe)) @ Jennifer Melander (Joey 'Joe' Bartel (Baby Joe)) @ Ashley Melander (Joey 'Joe' Bartel (Baby Joe)) @ Cliff Lenz (Seattle Today Host) @ Penny LeGate (Seattle Today Host) @ Mary Anne Owen (Maria (Dr. Mott's Nurse)) @ Therese Tinling (Receptionist (as Therese Xavier Tinling)) @ Todd Jamieson (Surgeon) @ Laura Ferri (Emergency Room Nurse) @ Dee Dee Van Zyl (Emergency Room Nurse) @ Cristine McMurdo-Wallis (Peyton's Nurse) @ Sara Jennifer Sharp (Peyton's Nurse) @ Susan Chin (Newscaster) @ Kimberly Hill (Newscaster) @ Jane Jones (Woman in Park) @ Ericka Matson (Child in Schoolyard) @ Robert James (Child in Schoolyard) @ Aimee Kanemori (Child in Schoolyard) @ Elane Micklesen (Child in Schoolyard) @ Brian Finney (Stan (the Botanical Gardens Worker)) @ Stephen West (Federal Express Clerk) @ David Scully (Gilbert (the Male Lab Worker)) @ Julie Clemmons (Female Lab Worker) @ Joseph Franklin (Joe (the Man at the Cleaners)) @ Tom Francis (Marlene's Assistant) @ Jeff Conkel (Paramedic) @ Patrick Ryals (Al (the Policeman)) @ Charles Lucia (Bruce Silverman (the Realtor) (as Chip Lucia) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Valerie Masterson (Recorded Singer (uncredited) Produced by)||Never underestimate the wrath of a mother when you try to steal her children. SPOILERS - Four main characters. Claire (Annabella Sciorra) is the mother who is pregnant for her second. Peyton (Rebecca DeMornay) is the wife of Claire's OBGYN. Marl (Julianne Moore) is a real estate agent and Claire's friend. Solomon (Ernie Hudson) is a mentally-challenged handyman who can build a 'mean' white picket fence. Movie starts with Claire having her checkup, and realizes the doctor is actually molesting her. She complains, 4 others come forward, doctor kills himself, and Peyton is distraught and has a miscarriage, plus an emergency hysterectomy. No husband, no kids, and can't have any. Drives her crazy. She targets Claire's family for revenge. She takes the name Peyton and becomes the nanny. She systematically plans to get rid of Claire and take over her husband and children. She turns them against Solomon, claiming he mistreated the kids. She rigs the greenhouse to kill Claire. Marl, meanwhile, notices a feature in the unsold OBGYN's house that leads her to believe Peyton may be the widow. She goes to the library and confirms it in an old newspaper photo at the funeral. She confronts Peyton, who tells her Clair is in the greenhouse, where Marl goes, and dies in the roof collapse. However, Clair eventually retraces Marl's last steps, finds the house, realizes who Peyton is, they order her out of the house. However, she gets back in, crazy, wanting her husband and children, injures the husband with a shovel, Solomon shows up to help, and finally Claire attacks Peyton, pushing her through the attic window, and she falls onto the picket fence below, daid!! Good suspense movie, good acting, especially by DeMornay and Hudson. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Hannibal|Ridley Scott|Horror|Rated R for strong gruesome violence, some nudity and language. |6.2|UK|2001| 131 min/ Germany:133 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Dino De Laurentiis Branko Lustig Terry Needham Martha Schumacher Ridley Scott Lucio Trentini|Thomas Harris David Mamet Steven Zaillian|John Mathieson ||Filmauro Distribuzione [it] |Break The Silence|Part three in the Hannibal Lecter Trilogy. Having escaped the asylum in "Silence of the Lambs," Dr Lecter goes into hiding in Florence, Italy. Back in America, Mason Verger, an old victim of the doctor's, seeks revenge. Disfigured and confined to a life-support system, he plans to draw Lecter out of his hiding place, using the one thing he truly cares for: Clarice Starling. Hannibal begins after Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Sir. Anthony Hopkins) escaped from the asylum in Baltimore to Florence, Italy where he has become the one of the curators of the Palazzo Vecchio and has learned to stop eating human flesh all the time. But his cover is broken when cop Rinaldo Pazzi (Giancarlo Giannini) will turn Dr. Lecter over, for money, to his old patient, Mason Verger (Gary Oldman). Mason is a person more twisted and evil than the doctor, because Dr. Lecter made him cut his own face off with a piece of glass and feed it to his dogs. It also caused him to be paralyzed and be on a respirator, which furthered his anger even more. But FBI agent Clarice Starling (Julianne Moore) finds out about Mason's evil plot to feed Dr. Lecter to a bunch of man-eating hogs and will do anything to make sure that Mason doesn't succeed. After having successfully eluded the authorities for years, Hannibal peacefully lives in Italy in disguise as an art scholar. Trouble strikes again when he is discovered leaving a deserving few dead in the process. He returns back to his homeland of America to once again make contact with now disgraced Agent Clarice Starling who is suffering the wrath of a malicious FBI official/rival as well as the media. Meanwhile, Hannibal must survive the advances by a disfigured and vengeful victim he first came in contact with years ago as a patient. He also finds himself being tracked down by the authorities as well as vengeful people who are relatives of the deceased victims of Hannibal. |Anthony Hopkins (Dr. Hannibal Lecter) @ Julianne Moore (Agent Clarice Starling) @ Giancarlo Giannini (Inspector Rinaldo Pazzi) @ Gary Oldman (Mason Verger) @ Ray Liotta (Paul Krendler) @ Frankie Faison (Barney Matthews (as Frankie R. Faison)) @ Francesca Neri (Allegra Pazzi) @ Zeljko Ivanek (Dr. Cordell Doemling) @ Hazelle Goodman (Evelda Drumgo) @ David Andrews (FBI Agent Clint Pearsall) @ Francis Guinan (FBI Director Noonan) @ James Opher (DEA Agent Eldridge) @ Enrico Lo Verso (Gnocco) @ Ivano Marescotti (Carlo Deogracias) @ Fabrizio Gifuni (Matteo Deogracias) @ Alex Corrado (Piero) @ Marco Greco (Tommaso) @ Robert Rietty (Sogliato) @ Terry Serpico (Officer Bolton) @ Boyd Kestner (FBI Special Agent Hayden Burke) @ Peter Shaw (FBI Agent John Brigham) @ Kent Linville (Geoffrey the FBI Mail Boy) @ Don McManus (Assistant Mayor Benny Holcombe) @ Harold Ginn (Larkin Wayne) @ Ted Koch (BATF Agent Sneed) @ William Powell-Blair (FBI Agent (as Wm. Powell Blair)) @ Aaron Craig (Il Mostro Detective) @ Andrea Piedimonte (Agent Benetti) @ Ennio Coltorti (Ricci) @ Ian Iwataki (Young Boy in Plane) @ Mark Margolis (Perfume Expert) @ Ajay Naidu (Perfume Expert) @ Kelly Piper (Perfume Expert) @ Bruce MacVittie (FBI Tech/Lecter's Letter) @ Giannina Facio (Verger's Fingerprint Technician) @ Andrew C. Boothby (Police Officer) @ Kenneth W. Smith (Police Sergeant) @ Judie Aronson (News Reporter) @ Tom Trigo (News Reporter) @ Sam Wells (News Reporter) @ Ricardo Miguel Young (News Reporter (as Ric Young)) @ Joseph M. West Jr. (News Reporter) @ Roberta Armani (Theatergoer) @ Johannes Kiebranz (Mr. Konie) @ Bruno Lazzaretti (Dante) @ Danielle de Niese (Beatrice rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Heidi Burger (Shopper (uncredited)) @ Robert Randolph Caton (Upscale Business Man (uncredited)) @ Jacob Davis (Janitor/Il Mostro (uncredited)) @ Gano Grills (Red Scarf Gang Banger (uncredited)) @ Jamie Harrold (Baltimore State Forensic Hospital Caretaker (uncredited)) @ Cal Johnson (Swat Team Leader (uncredited) Produced by||A good example to those directors making a sequel Ten years have rolled on since Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) escaped from custody and Clarice Starling (Now played by Julianne Moore), graduated as an FBI agent, by helping them catch serial killer Buffalo Bill and rescue his female prisoner. Now Agent Starling, who is suffering the rage of the FBI and the media after her previous case when atrociously wrong, finds herself back on the case of Dr. Hannibal Lecter after Mason Verger (Gary Oldman), Dr. Lector's fourth victim - the only one who survived, now hideously disfigured and paralyzed claims he has received some new information. Dr. Lecter has been residing in Florence, Italy, for the last decade, living under a false name, but Italian cop Rinaldo Pazzi (Giancarlo Giannini) is on his trail and will hand him over to Verger, when captured, for a large sum of money, because Verger, eager to seek his revenge on Lecter has plans to make Lecter pay.When Clarice, against the FBI's advice, becomes involved in Verger's scan, all turns into a cat and mouse chase . . . ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |DTS 5.1 ||||||@@ Hard Rain|Mikael Salomon|Action|Rated R for violence. R|5.5|USA|1998|97 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/11/2004|Ian Bryce Mark Gordon Gary Levinsohn Art Levinson Allison Lyon Segan Christian Slater|Graham Yost |Peter Menzies Jr. ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Prepare for hard rain.|Set during a massive flood started by a dam accident in a small town, Christian Slater is an armored truck guard who gets robbed by Morgan Freeman. Slater gets away with all the money and hides it. In a panic, Slater tells the sheriff about the area he hid the money in and the sheriff locks him up. Now Slater has to get to the money and keep himself alive battling the sheriff, Morgan Freeman and his crew and the elements. Young Tom helps his uncle Charlie, who is a bank armoured-truck driver. Criminal Jim leads a gang of four, they want to steal that truck with money, but the city is taken by a flood. Tom manages to hide the moneybags and everyone wants them, including local sheriff, who wants that money for himself. Heavy Rainfall causes a Indiana river to swell and flood the town. All inhabitants are forced by public services to leave instantly. Tom and his uncle Charlie work for a money transport firm and their assignment is to evacuate all cash from the banks along the flooding river. So, their truck is loaded with about three million Dollars. Hank tries to prevent further flooding, as he's the guy responsible for the dam up the river, but he has to open one gate in order to save the old dam from breaking. Only the police under the Sheriff's leadership stay in town to prevent looting. As the water level rises, Tom and Charlie's Truck gets stuck in the flooded road. This is the moment, Jim, an elderly thief, and his gang have been waiting for. In an attempt to get the money from the truck, Charlie gets shot and Tom swims off to save the cash bags. While trying to hide, he meets Karen, who resisted to leave the old church she has been restoring for eight months. She thinks he is a looter, and calls the cops to bring him in. But as the Sheriff finds out about that much cash in a situation like this, he radios his old pal Hank, up at the dam... |Morgan Freeman (Jim) @ Christian Slater (Tom) @ Randy Quaid (Sheriff) @ Minnie Driver (Karen) @ Edward Asner (Uncle Charlie) @ Michael A. Goorjian (Kenny (as Michael Goorjian)) @ Dann Florek (Mr. Mehlor) @ Ricky Harris (Ray) @ Mark Rolston (Wayne Bryce) @ Peter Murnik (Phil) @ Wayne Duvall (Hank) @ Richard A. Dysart (Henry Sears (as Richard Dysart)) @ Betty White (Doreen) @ Ray Baker (Mayor) @ Lisa Fuhrman (Mayor's Wife) @ Jay Patterson (Mr. Wellman) @ Michael Monks (Father on Local News) @ Mackenzie Bryce (Baby on Local News rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Anthony Montgomery (Extra (uncredited)Produced by||Architectural Water Spoilers herein. If I were to imagine the perfect film, the one that would be at the top of the `most important' lists, one quality it is likely to have is some new cinematic grammar for space using water. The thing that makes film unique is the way it can take your mind to unfamiliar worlds. This is through the eye, and for the result to qualify as a world, it has to have some architectural substance. Perhaps since `Abyss,' the film world has been aware of the challenge and promise that water presents. We've seen some glimpses of the possibilities: the underwater world of `In Dreams,' and the maze of `Alien Resurrection.' `Titanic's' success in my mind was largely because Cameron grazed the possibilities. At some point, someone will create a visual grammar for this, as Welles did for static architecture, and Luhrmann did for the dynamic case. And then we will be a wholly different people, with somewhat expanded conceptual reasoning ability. But until then, we have the attempts. `Hard Rain' shoots high. It was conceived with an eye toward finding a next generation formula and failed because of a simple lack of adventure. Too bad, because the safe approach doomed the picture. Better to have risked more. What is your guess about what would be the breakthough? My guess is that some narrative device will give the vocabulary a hook, like `noir' did for architectural films. It probably will be in the thriller category, because that mode can afford the talent and computer help that will be required. It will probably focus a lot on foam at the edges and have a two-dimensional quality, like Chinese paintings. It will probably have subliminal color, like the bazillions of microscopic colors that make up the white of snow (or the colors in 12th century cathedral glass). It will probably have a fluid, non-human camera derived from the more adventuresome ideas of de Palma, possibly with perceptual frame bleeds like `In the Mood for Love.' The editing will be a whole new deal, mostly rhythmic with some splashes in the face. Darks and lights will alternate in unfamiliar ways. Lenses will extend into the environment. A new style of acting will emerge, more capricious and dynamically focused. And then someone will make this film right, or something like it. And we'll be as shocked in comparison as we are now with Sean Penn compared to John Wayne. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Harold and Maude|Hal Ashby|Comedy||7.8|USA|1971| 91 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Colin Higgins Mildred Lewis Charles Mulvehill|Colin Higgins |John A. Alonzo ||Paramount Home Video [us] |His Hangups Are Hilarious|Harold is a depressed, death-obsessed 20-year-old man-child who spends his free time attending funerals and staging fake suicides in front of his mother. At a funeral, Harold befriends Maude, a 79-year-old woman who has a zest for life. She and Harold spend much time together during which she exposes him to the wonders and possibilities of life. After rejecting his mother's three attempts to set him up with a potential wife, and committing fake suicide in front of all of them, Harold announces that he is to be married to Maude. However, Maude has a surprise for Harold that is to change his life forever. |Ruth Gordon (Maude) @ Bud Cort (Harold Chasen) @ Vivian Pickles (Mrs. Chasen) @ Cyril Cusack (Glaucus) @ Charles Tyner (Uncle Victor) @ Ellen Geer (Sunshine Doré) @ Eric Christmas (Priest) @ G. Wood (Psychiatrist) @ Judy Engles (Candy Gulf) @ Shari Summers (Edith Phern) @ Tom Skerritt (Motorcycle Officer (as M. Borman)) @ Susan Madigan (Girlfriend) @ Ray K. Goman (Police Officer (as Ray Goman)) @ Gordon Devol (Police Officer (as Gordon DeVol)) @ Harvey Brumfield (Police Officer) @ Henry Dieckoff (Butler) @ Philip Schultz (Doctor) @ Sonia Sorrell (Head Nurse) @ Margot Jones (Student Nurse) @ Barry Higgins (Intern rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Hal Ashby (Bearded man in amusement park arcade (uncredited)) @ Jerry Randall ( (uncredited) Produced by||Interesting love tale If so irreverent a story were to be told today, how would one react? As was probably the case when the film was released, people would probably find the theme edgy, if not inappropriate. Such is the case with the cult film `Harold and Maude.' It openly explores themes of suicide, love, death and life with a fresh perspective. The interesting part is how this film will likely find you. In most societies, an older man will likely fall for a woman years his junior. However, Harold (Bud Cort)-a shy teenager with an affinity for death-meets his 80-year-old true love Maude (Ruth Gordon), not at a dance or social event, but at funerals. The meeting almost seems reminiscent of Edward Norton's character's support group addiction in `Fight Club.' Harold loves the attention he gets from staging fake suicides to frighten his obtuse and superficial haute-culture mother. In a reaction, she enlists him in a computer dating service in a vain matchmaking attempt to fix him up with Beetle-driving yuppies-to-be. The beauty is he frightens off all his prospective mates with cleverly staged fake suicides. At the same time, he meets Maude, a free-spirited senior who teaches him to appreciate life. After spending more time with her, he finds himself in love with her. However, a barrage of authority-i.e. priests, army-loving uncles and a psychiatrist-urge him not to follow through with his relationship. `Harold and Maude' plays on '60s-esque themes of anti-establishment and open minds. Harold's militaristic uncle comes across as comical in his war-mongering vices-right down to his armless right sleeve that salutes when he pulls the string. Harold seems unhappy though he's surrounded by extravagance that rivals anything on MTV's `Cribs.'Not only that but his mother's lack of sense and indifference to her son mirrors her addiction to affluence. In addition to the swarm of brides-to-be, she tries to pacify him with material possessions-including a spanking-new Jaguar convertible, which he converts into a hearse. Cat Stevens' open-air, acoustic-driven rock 'n' roll provides the soundtrack for the film. It gives the film a decent organic sound indicative of its demeanor. This is a film that chases happiness wherever it can be found with a Woodstock-sense of responsibility. Maude's vices of vehicular larceny and bong smoking match Harold's love of fake hara-kiris and hearses. In a way, this movie comes across as a bit dated in that time has indeed erased the '60s anticipation of The Age of Aquarius and replaced it with `Fight Club' desperation. However what the film lacks in reality, it makes up for in heart. This movie is not meant to be taken seriously; it's only to break down paradigms of societal thought. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets|Chris Columbus|Fantasy|Rated PG for scary moments, some creature violence and mild language. |7.4|USA|2002| 161 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Barnathan David Barron Chris Columbus Paula DuPré Pesman David Heyman Mark Radcliffe Tanya Seghatchian|J.K. Rowling Steven Kloves|Roger Pratt ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Dobby Has Come To Warn You Sir.|Harry Potter is in his second year of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He is visited by a house-elf named Dobby and warned not to go back to Hogwarts. Harry ignores his warning, and returns. He is still famous, although still disliked by Snape, Malfoy, and the rest of the Slytherins. But then, strange things start to happen. People are becoming petrified, and no-one knows what is doing it. Harry keeps hearing a voice.. a voice which seems to be coming from within the walls. They are told the story of the Chamber of Secrets. It is said that only Salazar Slytherin's true descendent will be able to open it. Harry, it turns out, is a Parsel-tongue. This means that he is able to speak/understand snakes. Everyone thinks that it's him that has opened the Chamber of Secrets because that is what Slytherin was famous for. In his second term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is warned by an elf named Dobby that disaster will strike when he returns to Hogwarts. Besides the fact that he is still disliked by Professor Snape (Alan Rickman) and hated by Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton), Harry gets off to a great start with his two best friends, Ron Weasly (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson), and famous writer Gilderoy Lockhart (Kenneth Branagh) has joined the Hogwarts staff and is the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. But now, Hogwarts students are strangely being turned into stone. But who is the one doing it, Malfoy, gamekeeper Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane), or, even, Harry? But what if it's Lord Voldemort trying to make his evil return? Harry Potter's adventures continue...Harry Potter begins his second year at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, but is warned by a mysterious creature that danger awaits him at the school. Malevolent voices whisper from the walls. Soon it's not just Harry who is worried about survival, as dreadful things begin to happen at Hogwarts. Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) returns to Hogwarts School of Wizardry for his second year. After a confrontation with a house elf named Dobby, Harry escapes to the Weasley house with Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) in a flying car. They are then late for the train and have to ride it to school. When they get there, strange happenings invade the school. "Mudbloods" (people of Muggle families) are "petrified" by an evil monster lurking in the grounds. When every one suspects that it is him, the trio then set out to find the culprit and find out more than they bargained for: the diary of Tom Riddle, why Hagrid was expelled and what the Chamber of Secrets is and why is it so feared in Hogwarts. |Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) @ Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) @ Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) @ Richard Griffiths (Uncle Vernon) @ Fiona Shaw (Aunt Petunia) @ Harry Melling (Dudley Dursley) @ Toby Jones (Dobby the House Elf (voice)) @ Jim Norton (Mr. Mason) @ Veronica Clifford (Mrs. Mason) @ James Phelps (Fred Weasley) @ Oliver Phelps (George Weasley) @ Julie Walters (Molly Weasley) @ Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) @ Mark Williams (Arthur Weasley) @ Chris Rankin (Percy Weasley) @ Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) @ Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy) @ Edward Tudor-Pole (Mr. Borgin) @ Jenny Tarren (Aged Witch) @ Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus Hagrid) @ Tom Knight (Mr. Granger) @ Heather Bleasdale (Mrs. Granger) @ Isabella Columbus (Girl in Bookstore) @ Kenneth Branagh (Gilderoy Lockhart) @ Peter O'Farrell (Short Man) @ Ben Borowiecki (Angus) @ Harry Taylor (Station Guard) @ Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom) @ Devon Murray (Seamus Finnigan) @ David Bradley (Argus Filch) @ Alan Rickman (Professor Snape) @ Richard Harris (Albus Dumbledore) @ Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall (as Dame Maggie Smith)) @ Jamie Waylett (Vincent Crabbe) @ Joshua Herdman (Gregory Goyle (as Josh Herdman)) @ Miriam Margolyes (Professor Sprout) @ Gemma Padley (Penelope Clearwater) @ John Cleese (Nearly Headless Nick) @ Hugh Mitchell (Colin Creevey) @ Alfred Enoch (Dean Thomas) @ Eleanor Columbus (Susan Bones) @ Sean Biggerstaff (Oliver Wood) @ Rochelle Douglas (Alicia Spinnet) @ Emily Dale (Katie Bell) @ Danielle Taylor (Angelina Johnson) @ Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick) @ Violet Columbus (Girl with flowers) @ Peter Taylor (Man - Moving Picture) @ Luke Youngblood (Lee Jordan) @ Scott Fern (Adrian Pucey (as Scott Fearn)) @ David Holmes (Slytherin Beater #1) @ David Massam (Slytherin Beater #2) @ Tony Christian (Slytherin Beater #3) @ David Churchyard (Slytherin Keeper) @ Gemma Jones (Madam Pomfrey) @ Shirley Henderson (Moaning Myrtle) @ Edward Randell (Justin Finch-Fletchley) @ Sally Mortemore (Irma Pince) @ Louis Doyle (Ernie MacMillan) @ Charlotte Skeoch (Hannah Abbott) @ Brendan Columbus (Boy in Study Hall 1) @ Robert Ayres (Boy in Study Hall 2) @ Alfred Burke (Professor Dippet) @ Leslie Phillips (The Sorting Hat (voice)) @ Helen Stuart (Millicent Bulstrode) @ Daisy Bates (Brunette Lady - Moving Picture) @ David Tysall (Count - Moving Picture) @ Christian Coulson (Tom Marvolo Riddle) @ Martin Bayfield (Rubeus Hagrid (age 13)) @ Robert Hardy (Cornelius Fudge) @ Julian Glover (Aragog (voice)) @ Les Bubb (Reader rest of cast listed alphabetically Jamie Yeats .... Marcus Flint) @ Adrian Rawlins (James Potter (uncredited)) @ Geraldine Somerville (Lily Potter (uncredited) Produced by||The Chamber of Secrets has been opened at long last!!!! Lessons learned since the 1st film! Clearly this film was edited at script stage rather than the cutting room floor stage!! This story reads as film narrative, rather than a book illustration, which was the big mistake of the 1st film. Anyone can watch this film and follow it without knowing the book. The 1st hour is pure laugh out loud fun (the adults in my Cinema audience were shouting with laughter!). The last hour is scary, wand dropping tension. The problem is: how do we convince muggles put-off by the 1st film to go see this one? Why should they give this one a chance? Answer: If you know someone who likes Fun, make them see this film! This film is not about 'Oscars' & Acting, despite the fabulous performances by all the adults, it is about enjoying the overall effect of the film, this being to give the viewer a long lasting buzz. Brilliant! The staging is very theatrical in it's minimalism, yet extravagantly arty in visual specifics. In the not to distant future I see fans going to a regular weekend slot at their local cinema for Audience Participation fun. Wands, swords, sorting hat, spiders, mandrakes & crucial ear muffs as standard props! Lots of gaps for us to shout out funny quips. A Rocky Horror Show Audience Participation Show for kids! Long overdue. My Rating: 8/10. Not a masterpiece of cinematic potential, but such jolly good fun that no one should be denied the joy of a "Bloody Marvelous" frolic. A film for the child within us adults. Go see it with a predominantly adult audience if you want to experience the real buzz of unfettered emotion. Only three children were present at the Preview I witnessed and they were silently spellbound whereas the adults evoked emotion noisily throughout and then stood up, cheered and applauded at the end! I shall never forget this truly magical experience. Richard Harris you can not be replaced, you will always be Dumbledore, and hence Omnipresent. Thank you for the fantastic finale to a wonderful life that you gave us. Thank you. And Thank you JK & Chris. You did it, the Chamber is well & truly open now! ||Movies |2.35 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone|Chris Columbus|Adventure|Rated PG for some scary moments and mild language. |7.3|USA|2001| 152 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Todd Arnow Michael Barnathan Chris Columbus Paula DuPré Pesman Duncan Henderson David Heyman Mark Radcliffe Tanya Seghatchian|J.K. Rowling Steven Kloves|John Seale ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Let The Magic Begin.|Young Harry Potter has to lead a hard life: His parents have died in a car crash when he was still a baby, and he is being brought up by his Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. For some reason unbeknownst to the bespectacled ten-year-old, the Dursleys let him live in the small chamber under the stairs, and treat him more like vermin than like a family member. His fat cousin Dudley, the Dursley's real son, keeps bothering Harry all the time. On his eleventh birthday, Harry Potter finally receives a mysterious letter from a certain Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, telling him that he is chosen as one of the future students of that supposedly renowned school. Hagrid, the gigantic man who brought the letter, finally introduces Harry into the real circumstances of his life: His parents were a wizard and a witch, they were killed by the evil wizard Voldemort protecting him. Harry still has a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead from that event. Since he survived the attack as a baby, and also somehow deprived Voldemort from his powers, he has been famous in the wizarding world ever since. The Dursleys, strong disbelievers in that magical crap, never told Harry anything about his true self. So, Harry is strongly surprised, yet absolutely happy to start his training. At Hogwarts, Harry meets his teachers, and becomes friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. The three of them accidentally find out that the potions master, Severus Snape, seems to plot on stealing something that is guarded by a three-headed dog. Since nobody would believe some first years to have found out such important things that even would incriminate a Hogwarts teacher, they take it on themselves to find out what Snape is up to. Their quest for the truth leads across many obstacles, from keeping up the everyday school life, a bewitched Quidditch match (Quidditch is a popular wizard sport), Fluffy, the three-headed monster dog and quite some tasks one has to overcome to get to the guarded object. Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) has spent the first ten years of his life living under the stairs in the house of his Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon, who generally dislike him. Then, one day, a giant, named Hagrid, comes to him with an invitation to study at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry soon discovers that there are two worlds: one is the dreary world of the Muggles where he's grown up, and the other is one of magic and fantasy, and it's the latter in which he's destined to live. On his 11th birthday, young Harry Potter discovers the life he never knew he had, the life of a wizard. In his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he meets his two best friends Ron Weasley, an expert at Wizard Chess, and Hermione Granger, a girl with non-magic parents. Harry learns the game of Quiditch and Wizard Chess on his way to facing a Dark Arts teacher who is bent on destroying him. |Richard Harris (Albus Dumbledore) @ Maggie Smith (Professor Minerva McGonagall) @ Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus Hagrid) @ Saunders Triplets (Harry Potter (Age 1)) @ Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) @ Fiona Shaw (Aunt Petunia) @ Harry Melling (Dudley Dursley) @ Richard Griffiths (Uncle Vernon) @ Derek Deadman (Tom) @ Ian Hart (Professor Quirrell) @ Ben Borowiecki (Diagon Alley Boy) @ Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick/Goblin Bank Teller) @ Verne Troyer (Griphook the Goblin (as Vern Troyer)) @ John Hurt (Mr. Ollivander) @ Richard Bremmer (He Who Must Not Be Named (voice)) @ Geraldine Somerville (Mrs. Lily Potter) @ Harry Taylor (Station Guard) @ Julie Walters (Mrs. Molly Weasley) @ Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) @ Chris Rankin (Percy Weasley) @ James Phelps (Fred Weasley) @ Oliver Phelps (George Weasley) @ Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) @ Jean Southern (Dimpled Woman on Train) @ Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) @ Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom) @ Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) @ Jamie Waylett (Vincent Crabbe) @ Joshua Herdman (Gregory Goyle (as Josh Herdman)) @ Devon Murray (Seamus Finnigan) @ Alfred Enoch (Dean Thomas) @ Leslie Phillips (The Sorting Hat (voice)) @ Eleanor Columbus (Susan Bones) @ John Cleese (Nearly Headless Nick) @ Terence Bayler (The Bloody Baron) @ Simon Fisher-Becker (Fat Friar (as Simon Fisher Becker)) @ Nina Young (The Grey Lady) @ David Bradley (Argus Filch) @ Alan Rickman (Professor Severus Snape) @ Zoë Wanamaker (Madame Hooch) @ Luke Youngblood (Lee Jordan) @ Sean Biggerstaff (Oliver Wood) @ Elizabeth Spriggs (Fat Lady) @ Danielle Taylor (Angelina Johnson) @ Leilah Sutherland (Alicia Spinnet) @ Emily Dale (Katie Bell) @ David Holmes (Adrian Pucey) @ Scott Fern (Marcus Flint) @ Will Theakston (Marcus Flint) @ Adrian Rawlins (James Potter) @ Ray Fearon (Firenze Produced by||Hermione's Mouth Spoilers herein. For a long time, we have been warned about what will happen when a couple large companies own all the news, publicity, publishing and film channels. Now, we have the results, a film product that is as moribund as Microsoft software. In both the new MS and HP products, we have more than an order of magnitude more spent on promotion than on real innovation or imagination. This is a completely pedestrian effort. The books are fun, but only about as much as scores of prior ones. The rest is hype. About the film, I found no charm and three things that impressed me with their lack of skill. --The most puzzling of these is the score. Though always derivative, Williams has created scores that have become the floor of imagination for vast areas of our minds. He is tepid here, and one can only think is by direction from the Committee. --No puzzle with the camerawork. The blocking and angles have less art and adventure than any major film this year. Compare the perspectives with `Monsters,' which aren't noticeably arty, but which really adds thrills to the experience. --The thing that impressed was the ordinariness of the architecture. Casper could do this well -- Ridley Scott can repeatedly. Why do we get buildings that would be unremarkable even in the real world? || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Hearts in Atlantis|Scott Hicks|Drama|Rated PG-13 for violence and thematic elements. |6.8|USA|2001| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Bruce Berman Michael Flynn Kerry Heysen Jodi Zuckerman|Stephen King William Goldman|Piotr Sobocinski Allen Daviau Emmanuel Lubezki||Karo Premiere [ru] |What if one of life's great mysteries moved in upstairs? |This is a gentle, innocent film about the reflections of an aging man (David Morse), who returns to his home town after the death of his best friend. Memories of life at age 11 floods back as it was a magical time that changed his life. Three 11 year old children (Anton Yelchin as Bobby, Mika Boorem as Carol, and Will Rothaar as Sully) share their lives. Carol & Bobby have a special affection for one another including sharing a kiss "by which all others will be measured". Bobby lives with his mother (Hope Davis), a bitter, vain woman who looks for pleasures for herself without sharing much with her son. Into their lives comes a mysterious new boarder (Anthony Hopkins), who befriends the boy but generates distrust from the mother. As time passes, the man and boy share confidences and special powers are revealed. The man warns the boy to be on the lookout for the "lowmen", who were seeking him. The two share a summer's adventures and come to love one another before the inevitable happens. A confrontation with a school bully (Timothy Reifsnyder) also changes everyone. |Anthony Hopkins (Ted Brautigan) @ Anton Yelchin (Robert 'Bobby'/'Bobby-O' Garfield) @ Hope Davis (Elizabeth 'Liz' Garfield) @ Mika Boorem (Carol Gerber) @ David Morse (Bobby Garfield (Adult)) @ Alan Tudyk (Monte Man) @ Tom Bower (Len Files) @ Celia Weston (Alana Files) @ Adam LeFevre (Don Biderman) @ Will Rothhaar (Sully-John) @ Timothy Reifsnyder (Harry Doolin (as Timmy Reifsnyder)) @ Deirdre O'Connell (Mrs. Gerber) @ Terry Beaver (Mr. Oliver) @ Joe T. Blankenship (Richie O'Rourke) @ Brett Fleisher (Willie Shearman) @ Joel F. Haberli (Sully's Dad) @ Evan Moses (Sully's Little Brother) @ Joshua Billings (Cabbie) @ Valerie Karasek (Sully's Widow) @ Graham Bardsley (Minister) @ Keith Beyer (Soldier at Funeral (as Keith H. Beyer)) @ Sean Edwards (Soldier at Funeral) @ Robert V. Maine (Soldier at Funeral) @ Mickey Leon McBride (Soldier at Funeral) @ Wes Johnson (Sports Announcer (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Bourke Floyd .... Low Man) @ Lawrence Gaughan (Low Man) @ Jim Hild (Low Man) @ Steve Little (Low Man) @ Bud Pezet (Low Man) @ Jamie Watson (Low Man) @ Eric Eggen (Coast Guardsman at Carnival (uncredited)) @ Kathie France (Rider at Carnival (uncredited)) @ Sara Hamilton (Hot Dog Vendor at Carnival (uncredited)) @ Terry Jernigan (Bobby's Father, in a Photo (uncredited)) @ Kristina Lash (Carousel Rider at Carnival (uncredited)) @ Joleen Neighbours (Carnival Vendor (uncredited)) @ David Rivitz (Shady Vendor (uncredited)) @ Joseph M. West Jr. (Checkers Player (uncredited) Produced by)||Fascinating and touching By the end of this movie, I was in tears.This is a real tearjerker, yet not in a manipulative sense.Now, I haven't read Stephen King's novel, so excuse me if I'm not as biased.But I did watch the interview between Scott Hicks and Anthony Hopkins on the DVD edition, and Hicks mentioned that he was aware he ommitted the subplot about Hopkins' character being from outer space, because he felt the relationship between Ted (Hopkins) and the boy was so strong that he wanted to base the story mainly on that. Anthony Hopkins is one of my favorite actors, and he blesses us with another brilliant, memorable performance.And the young boy, Anton Yelchin, is also very impressive.For him to able to pull off such a powerful performance at that age, he definitely deserves at least an Oscar nod.And the girl who plays Carol is also great.Hope Davis is really good as the selfish mother who can put together enough money to buy fancy dresses, but supposedly can't shell out enough cash to support her own son. The relationship between Ted and the boy put a big smile on my face.This is a character study, a coming-of-age film and a human drama all in one. "Hearts in Atlantis" is a very touching film that exemplifies the power of friendship.The boy in the story had no father to turn to, so Ted was like his father figure and his best friend.And I, like him, didn't want Ted to be taken away.You really feel for these two characters.And when you watch him many years later, as played by David Morse, reminiscing on those moments you just want to cry. This movie has its heart in the right place.If you want to watch a film that will stay in your memory and leave you with a sad but refreshing feeling, then look no further. My score:8 (out of 10) || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Hidalgo|Joe Johnston|Action|Rated PG-13 for adventure violence and some mild innuendo. PG-13|6.5|USA|2004|136 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/24/2004|Patricia Carr Chris Salvaterra Casey Silver Don Zepfel|John Fusco |Shelly Johnson ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Unbridled. Unbroken. Unbeaten.|Held yearly for centuries, the Ocean of Fire--a 3,000 mile survival race across the Arabian desert--was a challenge restricted to the finest Arabian horses ever bred, the purest and noblest lines, owned by the greatest royal families. In 1890, a wealthy sheik invited an American, Frank T. Hopkins, and his horse to enter the race for the first time. During the course of his career, Hopkins was a cowboy and dispatch rider for the U.S. cavalry--and had once been billed as the greatest rider the West had ever known. The Sheik puts his claim to the test, pitting the American cowboy and his mustang, Hidalgo, against the world's greatest Arabian horses and Bedouin riders--some of whom are determined to prevent a foreigner from finishing the race. For Frank, the Ocean of Fire becomes not only a matter of pride and honor, but a race for his very survival as he and his horse attempt the impossible. Frank T. Hopkins, a cowboy (Viggo Mortensen) working in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show is troubled by the events he saw at Wounded Knee and by the way the Indians are treated in the show. Billed as the world's greatest endurance rider, an Arabian sheik (Omar Sharif) challenges the title and the rider to come ride in a great race across the desert. Once there he becomes embroiled in political intrigue - a desert prince is trying to seize the sheik's breeding secrets to the great Arabian horses. Also an Englishwoman (Louise Lombard) is trying to win the rights to breed one of her thoroughbred with the great Arabian champion. Hidalgo is the small, mixed breed horse that Hopkins rides and is a metaphor for Hopkins himself who is a half-breed born to a Lakota Indian woman, but has hid it from most everyone. If you take the film on surface value, it is a fun film; however the political overtones can be overweighing. It clearly offers cowboys and Arabs (nee Indians). The sheik's daughter (Zuleikha Robinson) wants her freedom and exposes her face to the cowboy. Then there are gaping plot holes - it is amazing how many Arabs, including a lowly goat herder do speak English. Nevertheless, if you want to suspend your belief and can overlook the political implications of the movie, it can be a fun ride. Contains considerable violence, both in a depiction of the massacre at Wounded Knee and later killings during the Arabian adventure. There is one particularly grueling event involving an injury to Hidalgo. Frank Hopkins was a rider for the Army, who was at the Wounded Knee Massacre, which would haunt him for life and he copes by turning to the bottle. He joins Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, and is billed as the greatest horseman and his horse, Hidalgo is billed as the greatest horse in the world because of the countless races he has won. But an Arab questions that claim because they have not competed in a race like the Oceans of Fire which is very grueling. Hopkins decides to join it. So he travels to the Middle East to enter and has several rivals and there are those who don't want him to win. And Frank gets to face some of the demons that plague him. |Viggo Mortensen (Frank Hopkins) @ Zuleikha Robinson (Jazira) @ Omar Sharif (Sheikh Riyadh) @ Louise Lombard (Lady Anne Davenport) @ Adam Alexi-Malle (Aziz) @ Saïd Taghmaoui (Prince Bin Al Reeh) @ Silas Carson (Katib) @ Harsh Nayyar (Yusef) @ J.K. Simmons (Buffalo Bill Cody) @ Adoni Maropis (Sakr) @ Victor Talmadge (Rau Rasmussen) @ Peter Mensah (Jaffa) @ Joshua Wolf Coleman (The Kurd) @ Franky Mwangi (Slave Boy) @ Floyd 'Red Crow' Westerman (Chief Eagle Horn (as Floyd Red Crow Westerman)) @ Elizabeth Berridge (Annie Oakley) @ C. Thomas Howell (Preston Webb) @ Stevan Rimkus (Military Cistern Lieutenant) @ Jerry Hardin (Nate Salisbury) @ Frank Collison (Texas Jack) @ Chris Owen (First Soldier) @ Marshall Manesh (Camel Skinner) @ Philip Sounding Sides (Chief Big Foot) @ George Gerdes (Major Whitside) @ Todd Kimsey (Corporal at Wounded Knee) @ Ednah New Rider Weber (Old Lakota Woman) @ Adam Ozturk (Bedouin Rider) @ John Prosky (Officer at Horse Corral) @ Michael Canavan (Cattleman) @ David Midthunder (Black Coyote) @ Lee Trotter (Soldier at Wounded Knee) @ Dave Florek (Sentry at Wounded Knee) @ Jeff Kober (Sergeant at Wounded Knee) @ Sam Sako (Call to Prayer Singer) @ Te'Amir Sweeney (Tower Boy) @ Jake Miller (Ghost Dance Singer) @ Mary Ellis (Mary) @ Clement Richards (Lakota Wagon Driver) @ Kimberly Norris (Frank's Mother) @ Zachary Badasci (Young Frank Hopkins rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joseph J. Dawson (Wild West performer (uncredited)) @ Beverly Graham (Saloon Gal (uncredited)) @ Malcolm McDowell (Major Davenport (uncredited)) @ Jonathan Passow (Bar Cowboy (uncredited)) @ Shawn Michael Perry (Ghostdancer (uncredited)) @ Francesca Poston (Madam in Saloon (uncredited)) @ T.J. (Hidalgo (Horse) (uncredited)Produced by||Mortensen with a maddening mumble and overstuffed storyline ruins what should've been a big, cleanly written adventure... Hidalgo In the 1880s, horse courier and long distance horse racing champion Frank Hopkins (Viggo Mortensen) has fallen into depression after witnessing the slaughter of Native Americans at Wounded Knee. Hiding from himself and others in Buffalo Bill's Wild West stunt show, Hopkins is summoned by an Arabian sheik (a majestic Omar Sharif) to come to the Middle-East and compete in the `Ocean of Fire;' a 3,000 mile horse race featuring competition from only the best steeds in the land, on a desert terrain that's unbeatable. Armed with his trusty horse Hidalgo, Hopkins agrees to the race, and begins the fight of his life trying to best the elements, his fellow riders, and a sheik who doesn't quite trust him. What filmmaker Joe Johnston is going after with the adventure film `Hidalgo' is a return to the old fashioned appeal of good guys, bad guys, dialog in big lettering, and adventure the audience can sink their teeth into. Taken separately, each of those elements are represented wonderfully in `Hidalgo.' But put together in this overlong (130 minutes) motion picture, and the event lacks quite a bit of oomph. Johnston, a veteran of `Jumanji,' the magnificent `The Rocketeer,' and the underrated `Jurassic Park III,' obviously understands what it takes to cook up some high adventure and low-wattage drama. At its core, `Hidalgo' is a gorgeous picture, captured with David Lean-ish visual diamonds by cinematographer Shelly Johnson. Movies don't come much prettier than this. The lively action set pieces are staged with `Indiana Jones' grace and a `Lethal Weapon' body count, which helps this slow film move. Again, nothing much to gripe about there. It's when the screenplay by John Fusco (`Spirit') tries to meld these elements along with a convoluted storyline that `Hidalgo' finds its greatest weakness. What opens as a tale about a dangerous race over an unforgiving landscape soon involves seductions, treachery, `Doors' style Native American mysticism, genocide, sandstorms, cheetahs, kidnappings, and even more treachery. It's all too much, with the film working at its best when it hunkers down and deals with the hardships of the race. There's a terrific 90 minute movie in `Hidalgo,' but the present length only hints at that possibility. After ascending into the stratosphere of fame with his role in the `Lord of the Rings' trilogy, actor Viggo Mortensen saddles up in `Hidalgo' to ride out his first starring role since the Hobbitt series drew to a close last year. `Hidalgo' showcases Mortensen as the kind of actor he was before he took on Aragorn: a poor one. Hiding behind a maddening mumble, Mortensen acts his best through his eyes, which served him well in the `Rings' films. Unfortunately, `Hidalgo' requires more than just looking the part. 10 years ago, Kevin Costner would've knocked this role out of the park, and 20 years back, Harrison Ford would've made a perfect Frank Hopkins. Mortensen just isn't a strong enough actor to bring Hopkins to life, even with the simplistic heroic cape the film has hung on this notorious teller of tall tales. `Hidalgo' is mounted very broadly, with thick Middle-Eastern, English upper crust, and American cowboy portraits. This helps sweeten the bitter medicine of the awful dialog, but it also threatens to turn `Hidalgo' into a cartoon. Frankly, the film could've benefited from such an idea. ---- 5/10 ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ High Fidelity|Stephen Frears|Romance|Rated R for language and some sexuality. R|7.6|USA|2000|113 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/1/2004|Tim Bevan Liza Chasin John Cusack D.V. DeVincentis Alan Greenspan Mike Newell Steve Pink Rudd Simmons|Nick Hornby D.V. DeVincentis Steve Pink John Cusack Scott Rosenberg|Seamus McGarvey ||Buena Vista Home Vídeo [br] |A comedy about fear of commitment, hating your job, falling in love and other pop favorites.|Based on the cult novel of the same name by Nick Hornby, High Fidelity follows the 'mid-life' crisis of Rob (Cusack), a thirty-something record-store owner who must face the undeniable facts - he's growing up. In a hilarious homage to the music scene, Rob and the wacky, offbeat clerks that inhabit his store expound on the intricacies of life and song all the while trying to succeed in their adult relationships. Are they listening to pop music because they are miserable? Or are they miserable because they listen to pop music? This romantic comedy provides a touching and whimsical glimpse into the male view of the affairs of the heart. Arrested development confronts 30-something Rob Gordon when Laura, his smart and successful lover, leaves him because he hasn't changed since they met. He reviews his top five worst breakups (he constantly makes top five lists, though usually about music). He recalls each breakup, reconnects with these former loves to find out why they dumped him, and wallows in misery losing Laura. Much of it plays out at his vinyl record store where he and two clerks, socially-inept savants, live and breathe obscure contemporary music. Rob makes fruitless attempts to win Laura back, indulges in new relationships laced with fantasy, and tries introspection. What will Laura do? Rob gets ditched (yet again) by his current femalething. This catalysts a sordid self examinatory process about all his failed relationships. It's centred around his record shop, and coloured by his two motley socially inadequate assistants. |John Cusack (Rob Gordon) @ Iben Hjejle (Laura) @ Todd Louiso (Dick) @ Jack Black (Barry) @ Lisa Bonet (Marie DeSalle) @ Catherine Zeta-Jones (Charlie Nicholson) @ Joan Cusack (Liz) @ Tim Robbins (Ian 'Ray' Raymond) @ Chris Rehmann (Vince) @ Ben Carr (Justin) @ Lili Taylor (Sarah Kendrew) @ Joelle Carter (Penny Hardwick) @ Natasha Gregson Wagner (Caroline Fortis) @ Shannon Stillo (Alison Ashmore) @ Drake Bell (Young Rob Gordon) @ Laura Whyte (Laura's Mom) @ Sara Gilbert (Annaugh Moss) @ Rich Talarico (Barry's Customer) @ Matt O'Neill (Beta Band Customer) @ Brian Powell (Middle Aged Customer) @ Margaret Travolta (Rob's Mom) @ Jill Peterson (Laura's Sister) @ Dick Cusack (Minister) @ Susan Yoo (19-Year-Old Girl) @ Christopher Bauer (Paul (as Chris Bauer)) @ K.K. Dodds (Miranda) @ Marilyn Dodds Frank (Alison's Mom) @ Duke Doyle (Kevin Bannister) @ Aaron Himelstein (Boy in Park) @ Jonathan Herrington (Chris Thompson) @ Daniel Lee Smith (Rock Guy) @ Leah Gale (Mourner) @ David Darlow (Mourner) @ Erik Gundersen (Marco) @ Bruce Springsteen (Himself) @ Alex Désert (Louis) @ Alan S. Johnson (Man in Store) @ Ian Belknap (Party Guest) @ Andrew Micheli (Party Guest) @ Polly Noonan (Party Guest) @ Philip Rayburn Smith (Party Guest) @ Michele Graff (Party Guest) @ Susie Cusack (Party Guest) @ Liam Hayes (Piano Player) @ Damian Rogers (Greenday Girl) @ Robert A. Villanueva (Skateboarder) @ Joe Spaulding (Flea Market Musician) @ Scott A. Martin (Bartender) @ Heather Norris (Laura's Friend rest of cast listed alphabetically Harold Ramis .... Rob's dad (scenes deleted)) @ Ian Bugno (Guy in Chem Lab (uncredited)) @ Marc Busey (Club Kid (uncredited)) @ Beverly D'Angelo (Too Tan Woman (scenes deleted) (uncredited)) @ Jennifre' DuMont (Pedestrian (uncredited)) @ Mark Finney (Record Store Customer (uncredited)) @ Lisa Harrison (Cafe Patron (uncredited)) @ Susan Hegarty (Voice of Laura's Mom (uncredited)) @ Kip Stevens (Guy Sitting on Grass (uncredited)Produced by||Cusack continues winning streak with this film I read the novel when it first came out because the title intrigued me, and I found it quite good.When I heard John Cusack was adapting it and moving the action to Chicago(from London in the novel), I was a little worried, because I worry about changing things during adaptations for arbitrary reasons, but I needn't have worried; though I have a few quibbles, which we'll get to later, Cusack and Co. have done a fine job adapting the novel. First off, I've read one comment which claims it stereotypes "music geeks."The type of people Hornby, Cusack, his co-writers(D.V. DeVincentis and Steve Pink, who also co-wrote GROSSE POINT BLANK, and Scott Rosenberg), and director Stephen Frears are portraying is a very particular type of "music geek"; the type who is a snob about music.Almost all of us, I would say, are aggressive about our likes and dislikes when it comes to music, but not many, I agree, compare liking Marvin Gaye and Art Garfunkel to "agreeing with both the Israelis and the Palestinians."And probably not many of us would be so cut off from feelings that, when hearing about a person's death, would find no better way of expressing their sorrow than listing their top 5 songs about death.Yet we do like these people as characters because we see even if they have some snotty attitudes, they do have a genuine love for their music, and they're in a low-paying job because they love what they do.And who among us hasn't turned to music when we've felt sad(or happy), like Rob does, or wished that Bruce Springsteen(and a pox on the person who, in their comments, implied he was passe.Bruce will NEVER be passe) would talk to us directly like he talks to us through his music?The novel and the movie captures all of that. Another strength, of course, is Cusack's performance.Woody Allen once said that while American actors were very good at playing virile men of action, there weren't many who could play more "normal," regular people.Cusack, on the other hand, has carved out a niche for himself playing regular guys.He doesn't look like The Boy Next Door, and he's neither stereotypically sensitive or hip, but comes across as a guy who feels both at ease and yet still longs for something more.At his best, like in movies such as THE SURE THING, SAY ANYTHING, THE GRIFTERS, BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, GROSSE POINT BLANK, and this, he plays people on the cusp of growing up, who are able to if they want to, but aren't sure if they want to, and yet he's made each of them different.Rob's condition may be a little more conventional - he's not sure if he wants to settle down yet - but Cusack, while unafraid to show his unlikable qualities, makes us like Rob anyway. The rest of the cast is also quite good.The well-known names only get short takes(Lisa Bonet, Joan Cusack, Tim Robbins, Lili Taylor, Catherine Zeta-Jones), but they make the most of their time.I've never seen Iben Hjejle before(I haven't seen MIFUNE), but she does well as the most grown-up person in the movie.But the real stars, besides Cusack and the music, are Jack Black and Todd Louiso as Rob's co-workers.Black especially reminds me of people I knew. As I said, I do have some quibbles.There are a couple of incidents in the book which don't make it to the film which I would have liked to see(the Sid James Experience, and the lady who wanted to sell Rob a ton of valuable records for a ridiculously low price).I'm getting tired of movies which use rain as an expression of sorrow, and this is an example of overuse.And the character of Laura isn't developed as well in the movie as she was in the novel.Nevertheless, this is well worth checking out. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ History of the World: Part I|Mel Brooks|Comedy|R |6.3|USA|1981|92 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/18/2004|Mel Brooks Stuart Cornfeld Alan Johnson Joel Chernoff|Mel Brooks |Woody Omens ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |a little something to offend everyone...|From the dawn of man to the distant future, mankind's evolution (or lack thereof) is traced. Often ridiculous but never serious, we learn the truth behind the Roman Emperor, we learn what REALLY happened at the last supper, the circumstances that surrounded the French Revolution, how to test eunuchs, and what kind of shoes the Spanish Inquisitor wore. |Mel Brooks (Moses/Comicus/Torquemada/Jacques/Louis XVI) @ Dom DeLuise (Emperor Nero) @ Madeline Kahn (Empress Nympho) @ Harvey Korman (Count de Monet) @ Cloris Leachman (Madame DeFarge) @ Ron Carey (Swiftus) @ Gregory Hines (Josephus) @ Pamela Stephenson (Mademoiselle Rimbaud) @ Shecky Greene (Marcus Vindictus) @ Sid Caesar (Chief Caveman) @ Mary-Margaret Humes (Miriam) @ Orson Welles (Narrator (voice)) @ Rudy De Luca (Captain Mucus) @ Leigh French (Prehistoric Man) @ Richard Karron (Prehistoric Man) @ Susette Carroll (Prehistoric Man) @ Sammy Shore (Prehistoric Man) @ J.J. Barry (Prehistoric Man) @ Earl Finn (Disciple) @ Suzanne Kent (Prehistoric Man) @ Michael Champion (Prehistoric Man) @ Howard Morris (Court Spokesman) @ Charlie Callas (Soothsayer) @ Dena Dietrich (Competance) @ Paul Mazursky (Roman Officer) @ Ron Clark (Stoned Soldier) @ Jack Riley (Stoned Soldier) @ Art Metrano (Leonardo DaVinci) @ Diane Day (Caladonia) @ Henny Youngman (Chemist) @ Hunter von Leer (Lt. Bob) @ Fritz Feld (Maitre d') @ Hugh M. Hefner (Entrepreneur) @ Pat McCormick (Plumbing Salesman) @ Barry Levinson (Column Salesman) @ Sid Gould (Barber/Bloodletter) @ Ronny Graham (Jew #2) @ Jim Steck (Gladiator) @ John Myhers (Leader of Senate) @ Lee Delano (Wagon Driver) @ Robert Goldberg (Senator #1) @ Alan U. Schwartz (Senator #2) @ Jay Burton (Senator #3) @ Robert Zappy (Roman Citizen) @ Ira Miller (Roman Citizen) @ Milt Freedman (Roman Citizen) @ Johnny Silver (Small Liar) @ Charles Thomas Murphy (Auctioneer) @ Rod Haase (Roman Officer) @ Cleo Rocos (Slave) @ Eileen Saki (Slave) @ John Hurt (Jesus) @ Henry Kaiser (Disciple) @ Zale Kessler (Disciple) @ Anthony Messina (Disciple) @ Howard Mann (Disciple) @ Sandy Helberg (Disciple) @ Mitchell Bock (Disciple) @ Gilbert Lee (Disciple) @ Molly Basler (Game Show Girl) @ Deborah Dawes (Game Show Girl) @ Christine Dickinson (Game Show Girl) @ Lisa Sohm (Vestal Virgin) @ Michele Drake (Vestal Virgin) @ Jeana Tomasina (Vestal Virgin) @ Lisa Welch (Vestal Virgin) @ Janis Schmitt (Vestal Virgin) @ Heidi Sorenson (Vestal Virgin) @ Karen Morton (Vestal Virgin) @ Kathy Collins (Vestal Virgin) @ Lori Sutton (Vestal Virgin) @ Lou Mulford (Vestal Virgin) @ Jackie Mason (Jew #1) @ Phil Leeds (Chief Monk) @ Jack Carter (Rat Vendor) @ Jan Murray (Nothing Vendor) @ Andréas Voutsinas (Bearnaise) @ Spike Milligan (Monsieur Rimbaud) @ John Hillerman (Rich Man) @ Sydney Lassick (Applecore Vendor) @ Jonathan Cecil (Poppinjay) @ Andrew Sachs (Gerard) @ Fiona Richmond (Queen) @ Nigel Hawthorne (Citizen Official) @ Bella Emberg (Baguette) @ Geoffrey Larder (Footman) @ George Lane Cooper (Executioner) @ Stephanie Marrion (Lady Marie) @ Royce Mills (Duke D'Honnefieur) @ Mike Cottrell (Tartuffe) @ Gerald Staddon (Le Fevre) @ John Ghavan (Marche) @ Rusty Goffe (Le Muff (as Rusty Goff)) @ Scott Henderson (Coming Attractions) @ Michael Miller (Coming Attractions) @ Royce D. Applegate (Coming Attractions rest of cast listed alphabetically Beatrice Arthur .... Dole office clerk) @ Rod Haask (Prehistoric Man) @ Sean Barry-Weske (Insolent Flunkey (uncredited)) @ Albert Whitlock (Used Chariot Salesman (uncredited)Produced by||Mel Brooks--You da man!!!! Another hilarious outing for genius comedy writer/director Mel Brooks.He once again graces us with his incomparable talent.Brooks' method of spoofing historical events and topping it off with a little off-color humor is very impressive indeed. The first two acts are hilarious!I could not stop laughing!There's a good deal of memorable moments that fans of Mel will remember for ages and ages.One (which often comes up in retrospectives) is the scene where Moses (played by Brooks) has to deliver his Fifteen--I mean, Ten Commandments.Another moment I will always remember is when Comicus (also Brooks as a stand-up philosopher in ancient Greece--Yes, you heard right) is the waiter for Jesus and his disciples when Leonardo Da Vinci paints his famous work "The Last Supper."Comicus repeatedly yells "Jesus" and Jesus repeatedly responds, "What?"I really got a kick out of that.Expect many great performers (many of which are regulars in Brooks' work) including the late Madeline Kahn, Gregory Hines, Sid Caesar, Harvey Korman, Cloris Leachman and others.Another great ensemble cast for another great Mel Brooks comedy! I also have to note the great Spanish Inquisition musical number--another classic moment.This includes a cameo by buddy Carl Reiner ("Talkamatta!You can't talkamatta anything!").I admit, towards the end the comedy sags a bit.The gags in the third act aren't as memorable as the previous ones. So if you're a fan of the Brooksmeister--or just a fan of good comedy!--please check out this gem.You won't be disappointed!History has never been this fun! My score:8 (out of 10) || |2.35 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Hocus Pocus|Kenny Ortega|Family|PG |5.2|USA|1993|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Bonnie Bruckheimer Mick Garris Steven Haft Jay Heit David Kirschner Ralph Winter|David Kirschner Mick Garris Mick Garris Neil Cuthbert|Hiro Narita ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] ||More than 300 years ago, 3 witches were sentenced to die in Salem, Massachusetts and a boy was turned into a cat (a black cat, naturally). Now it's Halloween, and the witches (who fly on [I kid you not] vacuum cleaners) are back. This time, they've got their eyes on immortal life and have turned their wrath on trick-or-treaters and it's up to the 300-year-old cat to save the day. |Jason Marsden (Binx the cat (voice)) @ Bette Midler (Winifred Sanderson) @ Sarah Jessica Parker (Sarah Sanderson) @ Kathy Najimy (Mary Sanderson) @ Omri Katz (Max) @ Thora Birch (Dani) @ Vinessa Shaw (Allison) @ Amanda Shepherd (Emily Binx) @ Larry Bagby (Ernie/Ice) @ Tobias Jelinek (Jay) @ Stephanie Faracy (Jenny) @ Charles Rocket (Dave) @ Doug Jones (Billy Butcherson) @ Karyn Malchus (Headless Billy Butcherson) @ Sean Murray (Thackery Binx) @ Steve Voboril (Elijah) @ Norbert Weisser (Thackery's Father) @ Kathleen Freeman (Miss Olin) @ D.A. Pauley (Fireman #1) @ Ezra Sutton (Fireman #2) @ Don Yesso (Bus Driver) @ Michael McGrady (Cop) @ Leigh Hamilton (Cop's Girlfriend) @ Devon Reeves (Little Girl 'Neat Broom') @ Joseph Malone (Singer) @ Jordan Redmond (Little Angel) @ Frank Del Boccio (Lobster Man) @ Jeff Neubauer (Boy in Class) @ Teda Bracci (Calamity Jane) @ Peggy Holmes (Dancer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Chris Henry Coffey (Car Hop (uncredited)) @ Garry Marshall (Master (uncredited)) @ Penny Marshall (Master's wife (uncredited)Produced by||Good Halloween Fun! The Sanderson Sisters are three witches who were sentenced to death more then three hundred years ago in Salem, Massachusetts and a young boy was turned into a black cat. Three Hundred years on and it's Halloween. The three witches are back to cause havoc on the mortal world. It's up to the black cat and a couple of teenagers, Max, Dani and Allison to save the day and everyone else. Hocus Pocus features a great cast, including the brilliant Omri Katz who is so gorgeous and talented, Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Thora Birch. They all give really great performances here as usual. The only problem in the movie though is the awful Kathy Najimy. Why does she have to be here. Hocus Pocus is good, but she ruins it. She's such a horrible actress. Let's hope I don't get see anything else with her. Hocus Pocus is a fun, Halloween movie. The music goes well with the movie too and Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker's rendition of witchy songs are funny and good. Disney always bring out good movies which all ages will like and there's no exception here. This is great. Just FORGET the awful Kathy Najimy! || ||5.1 ||||||@@ Hollywood Ending|Woody Allen|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some drug references and sexual material. PG-13|6.3|USA|2002|112 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/16/2004|Letty Aronson Charles H. Joffe Helen Robin Jack Rollins Stephen Tenenbaum|Woody Allen |Wedigo von Schultzendorff ||A-Film Distribution [nl] |It's Going to be a Shot in the Dark!|Woody Allen plays Val Waxman, a film director, who was once big in the 1970's and 1980's, but has now has been reduced to directing TV commercials. Finally, he gets an offer to make a big film. But, disaster strikes, when Val goes temporarily blind, due to paranoia. So, he and a few friends, try to cover up his disability, without the studio executives or the producers knowing that he is directing the film blind. |Téa Leoni (Ellie) @ Bob Dorian (Galaxie Executive) @ Ivan Martin (Galaxie Executive) @ Gregg Edelman (Galaxie Executive) @ George Hamilton (Ed) @ Treat Williams (Hal Jaeger) @ Woody Allen (Val Waxman) @ Debra Messing (Lori Fox) @ Neal Huff (Commercial A.D.) @ Mark Rydell (Al Hack) @ Douglas McGrath (Barbeque Guest) @ Stephanie Roth (Barbeque Guest (as Stephanie Roth Haberle)) @ Bill Gerber (Barbeque Guest) @ Roxanne Perry (Barbeque Guest) @ Barbara Carroll (Carlyle Pianist) @ Howard Erskine (Carlyle Patron) @ Yu Lu (Cameraman Kau Chan (as Lu Yu)) @ Barney Cheng (Translator Chau) @ Isaac Mizrahi (Art Director Elio Sebastian) @ Marian Seldes (Alexandra) @ Anthony Arkin (Audition Reader) @ Ramsey Faragallah (Audition Reader) @ Olivia Hayman (Balthazar Hostess) @ Peter Van Wagner (Warren, Man in Balthazar) @ Judy Toma (Warren's Companion) @ Tiffani Thiessen (Sharon Bates) @ Jodie Markell (Andrea Ford, Writer for Esquire) @ Sarah Polen (Seder Guest) @ Amanda Jacobi (Amanda, Seder Guest) @ Steve Hurwitz (Seder Guest) @ Ruth Last (Seder Guest) @ Robert Lloyd Wolchok (Seder Guest) @ Joel Eidelsberg (Seder Guest) @ Kenneth Edelson (Dr. Koch, Eye Doctor) @ Ted Neustadt (MRI Doctor) @ Peter Gerety (Psychiatrist) @ Reiko Takahashi (Movie Extra) @ Greg Mottola (Assistant Director) @ Fred Melamed (Pappas) @ Jeff Mazzola (Prop Man) @ Aaron Stanford (Actor) @ Erica Leerhsen (Actress) @ Ray Garvey (Grip) @ Rochelle Oliver (Script Supervisor) @ Joseph Rigano (Wally, the Projectionist (as Joe Rigano)) @ Maurice Sonnenberg (Banquet Emcee) @ Mark Webber (Tony Waxman/Scumbag X) @ Mary Schmidtberger (Galaxie Executive rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Russell Gibson (Chauffeur (uncredited)Produced by||One liners steal the show Allen is a director, and here he plays one as well, who becomes psycho-psematically blind right before he starts shooting his latest picture for 60 million dollars.And so, his agent tags along to make sure he stays on the picture in one piece.The one liners here are classic Allen as there is not one scene that doesn't have them and while they don't all work, when they do it's laugh out loud.The film is also a good dish for movie buffs.The ending itself, by the way, is absolutely appropriate.Favorite lines- the black plague (he calls this as a disease in an early restaurant scene), call Dr. Kevorkian (after the first screening of the movie), and- you should put a full page ad in the DGA cause you'll never stop working (after Thiessen shows Allen her assets).A- || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Home Alone|Chris Columbus|Family||6.3|USA|1990| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tarquin Gotch John Hughes Mark Levinson Mark Radcliffe Scott M. Rosenfelt|John Hughes |Julio Macat ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |A Family Comedy Without The Family.|8-year-old Kevin McAllister is accidentally left behind when his family takes off for a vacation in France over the holiday season. Once he realizes they've left him home by himself, Kevin learns to fend for himself, and eventually has to protect his house against bumbling burglars Harry and Marv, who are planning to rob every house in Kevin's suburban Chicago neighborhood. Kevin's mother Kate is frantic when she realizes that she and the family have unintentionally left Kevin behind in Chicago, and she tries to make it back to Chicago as fast as she can, getting help from a polka band leader named Gus Polinski. In this film, Macaulay Culkin is an eight years old boy that is left at home by his parents, when they leave with the rest of the family for Christmas holidays to Paris. At first he seems to enjoy living alone, but after a while he understands that things aren't so easy. Especially when two robbers deside to break in a particular house. HIS house! Is he able to defend his home? A large upper-middle class family goes on a Christmas vacation to France, but accidentally leaves their eight year old son behind in Chicago. This is the film which made Macaulay Culkin famous. When Kevin McCallister is accidently left 'home alone' by his family, vacationing in France, he takes his house into his own hands and haves himself his own vacation. But his delight ends up crashing and burning when he comes into contact with to criminals, Harry and Marv, that are after his house. |Macaulay Culkin (Kevin McCallister) @ Joe Pesci (Harry Lime) @ Daniel Stern (Marv Merchants) @ John Heard (Peter McCallister) @ Roberts Blossom (Old Man Marley) @ Catherine O'Hara (Kate McCallister) @ Angela Goethals (Linnie McCallister) @ Devin Ratray (Buzz McCallister) @ Gerry Bamman (Uncle Frank McCallister) @ Terrie Snell (Aunt Leslie McCallister) @ Hillary Wolf (Megan McCallister) @ Larry Hankin (Sergeant Larry Balzak) @ Michael C. Maronna (Jeff McCallister) @ Kristin Minter (Heather McCallister) @ Daiana Campeanu (Sandra McCallister) @ Jedidiah Cohen (Rod McCallister) @ Kieran Culkin (Fuller McCallister) @ Senta Moses (Tracy McCallister) @ Anna Slotky (Brook McCallister) @ John Candy (Gus Polinski, Polka Band Chief) @ Jeffrey Wiseman (Mitchell 'Mitch' Murphy) @ Virginia Smith (Aunt Georgette McCallister) @ Matt Doherty (Steffan) @ Ralph Foody (Gangster 'Johnny' (On T.V.)) @ Michael Guido (Gangster 'Snakes' (On T.V.)) @ Ray Toler (Uncle Rob McCallister) @ Billie Bird (Irene, Woman at Airport) @ Bill Erwin (Ed, Man at Airport) @ Gerry Becker (Officer #1) @ Victor Cole (Officer #2) @ Porscha Radcliffe (Cousin) @ Brittany Radcliffe (Cousin) @ Clarke Devereux (Officer Devereux) @ Dan Charles Zukoski (Little Nero, the Pizza Boy) @ Lynn Mansbach (French Woman) @ Peter Siragusa (Lineman) @ Alan Wilder (Scranton Ticket Agent) @ Hope Davis (French Ticket Agent) @ Dianne B. Shaw (Airline Counter Person) @ Tracy J. Connor (Check-Out Woman) @ Jim Ryan (Stock Boy) @ Ken Hudson Campbell (Santa Claus) @ Sandra Macat (Elf in Black) @ Mark Beltzman (Stosh) @ Ann Whitney (Drugstore Clerk) @ Richard J. Firfer (Store Manager) @ Jim Ortlieb (Herb, the Drugstore Clerk) @ Kate Johnson (Rose, the Police Operator) @ Michael Hansen (Airport Driver) @ Peter Pantaleo (Airport Driver) @ Jean Claude Sciore (French Gate Agent) @ Monica Devereux (Flight Attendant) @ Edward Bruzan (Polka Band Member) @ Frank Cernugel (Polka Band Member) @ Eddie Korosa (Polka Band Member) @ John Hardy (Polka Band Member) @ Robert Okrzesik (Polka Band Member) @ Leo Perion (Polka Band Member) @ Vince Waidzulis (Polka Band Member rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Larry Nazimek (Airline Pilot (uncredited)) @ Luciano Saber (Airport Traveler (uncredited) Produced by||an average and conventional comedy The first time I saw this film was when I was a child and it pleased me a lot because I only saw its comic side. I saw it recently and it disappointed me although the story is original: during Christmas holidays, the McCallister family decided to celebrate Christmas at Paris, unfortunately they forgot one of their children. First of all, Kevin is elated but he realizes that two thieves want to burgle his house. In order to get rid of them, he puts in several traps; the thieves are under arrested and Kevin finds again his family. If I had to choose one adjective to judge this film, it would be the term: conventional. Several sides of the film are showing it. For example, Kevin's family seem to ignore and despise him and consequently he feels rejected and outraged and ,at the end, his family and especially his mother discovers how much she loves him, moreover, they say that Kevin's neighbour is a killer and he's got a wicked reputation but Kevin finds out that he's not a murderer and he had an unhappy life. Not only is the film conventional but the screenplay is sometimes predictable : when Kevin finds out that is "home alone" he wants to have fun as much as he can, and finer feelings are often put forward . Nevertheless, Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci, the two thieves are very entertaining and the sequence where they have to endure Kevin's traps is very funny. At last, I think that this film was especially made for children and young teenagers and it was useless to make it follow by two poor sequels. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Honey I Blew Up The Kid|||PG |||1992|89 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| Honey, I Blew Up The Kid isitheihilarious sequelito theienormously popular comedy hit, Honey, I Shrunk theiKids- andian even greater adventure!This time, wacky inventor Wayne Szalinski (Rick Moranis) accidentally zaps his two-and-a-half-year-old son withia particle beam, causing theichildito grow whenever comingiin contact with electricity. Soon topping 112 feet, theiovergrown baby isiattractedito theibright, shiny lights of Las Vegas, andinothing standsiin his way! Now theichase ision. The excitement isigrowing. And you're headedifor thrills andilaughter bigger than ever! ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] ||||||@@ Honey, I Shrunk the Kids|Joe Johnston|Family||5.9|USA|1989| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Penney Finkelman Cox Jon Landau Thomas G. Smith Brian Yuzna|Stuart Gordon Brian Yuzna Ed Naha Ed Naha Tom Schulman|Hiro Narita ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] ||Wayne Szalinski is your average "nutty scientist", working on a top secret machine which miniaturizes objects. When it unexpectedly starts working, he's so amazed he forgets to tell his family to be careful. And when they wander into his lab... Wayne Szalinski is a crazy scientist who invents a miniaturizing machine that is so powerful it only blows things up. When the kid next door hits a baseball through the window and it lands in the path of the machine's laser, it begins working. Wayne's two kids plus the two kids next door end up becoming tiny. Wayne accidentally sweeps them up and puts them out with the garbage, so the kids then have to travel through the thick grass back to the house, while braving giant bugs, sprinklers and a lawn mower. Rick Moranis stars as a preoccupied inventor who just can't seem to get his electr-magnetic shrinking machine to work. Then, when he accidently shrinks his kids down to 1/4-inch tall and tosses them out in the trash, the real adventure begins! Now the kids face incredible dangers as they try to make their way home through the jungle of their own backyard! Hurricane sprinklers! Dive-bombing bees! A runaway lawn mower and much, much more! |Rick Moranis (Wayne Szalinski) @ Matt Frewer (Russell 'Russ' Thompson, Sr. (Big Russ Thompson)) @ Marcia Strassman (Diane Szalinski) @ Kristine Sutherland (Mae Thompson) @ Thomas Wilson Brown (Russell 'Russ' Thompson, Jr. (Little Russell Thompson)) @ Jared Rushton (Ronald 'Ron' Thompson) @ Amy O'Neill (Amy Szalinski) @ Robert Oliveri (Nick Szalinski) @ Carl Steven (Tommy Pervis) @ Mark L. Taylor (Donald 'Don' Forrester) @ Kimmy Robertson (Gloria Forrester) @ Lou Cutell (Dr. Brainard) @ Laura Waterbury (Female Cop) @ Trevor Galtress (Male Cop) @ Martin Aylett (Harold Boorstein) @ Janet Sunderland (Lauren Boorstein rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Patrick Brown ( (uncredited)) @ Craig Richard Nelson (Professor Frederickson (uncredited) Produced by||welcome to the jungle The subject of the man who's shrinking isn't new because Jack Arnold had broached it (with brio) in "the incredible shrinking man" thirty-two years ago. Here, in this new variation of the man who's shrinking it's not one man but four teenagers who shrunk. Moreover, the philosophical and pessimistic sides have disappeared. Instead, Joe Johnston made a familial comedy and a vibrating movie, often funny with some quite successful special effects. He also succedded in changing a familiar place (the garden) that you think you know like the back of your hand into an unfriendly jungle where the insects are as huge as elephants and the humans become unwittingly monsters: Wayne Szalinski, in spite of him, will put to the test several times the teenagers and he'll nearly eat his son for his breakfast. This doesn't stop the movie from being quite conventional. It's not surprising as the screenplay was written by Tom Schulman, the one who wrote the screenplay of this overrated and conventional movie that is "Dead Poet Society" (the two movies were launched at the same time). Here, for example, Ross' father attempts to lay down to his elder son, his likings and passions but then, he'll find out that it's not the right way to gain his son's affection. The movie doesn't also avoid certain clichés: Rick Moranis epitomizes the model crazy learned: he's wearing glasses, he invented a machine supposed to be revolutionary and his odd habits make the neighbours (the Thompsons) mistrustful and distant. But they'll show gratitude to him because he'll know how to come back their children to their human height. Nevertheless, Johnston and Schulman reach their goal: entertain the spectator without any ulterior motives. So "honey I shrunk the kids" remains a pleasant comedy that was designed to please to a large public ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Hook|Steven Spielberg|Family||5.7|USA|1991| 144 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gary Adelson Craig Baumgarten Bruce Cohen Dodi Fayed James V. Hart Kathleen Kennedy Malia Scotch Marmo Frank Marshall Gerald R. Molen|J.M. Barrie J.M. Barrie James V. Hart Nick Castle James V. Hart Malia Scotch Marmo|Dean Cundey ||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |What if Peter Pan grew up? |Peter Pan (Williams) has grown up to be a cut-throat merger and acquisitions lawyer, and is married to Wendy's granddaughter. Captain Hook (Hoffman) kidnaps his children, and Peter returns to Never Land with Tinkerbell (Roberts). With the help of her and the Lost Boys, he must remember how to be Peter Pan again in order to save his children by battling with Captain Hook once again. |Dustin Hoffman (Captain James S. Hook) @ Robin Williams (Peter Banning/Peter Pan) @ Julia Roberts (Tinkerbell) @ Bob Hoskins (Smee, Captain Hook's Servant/Garbage Sweeper in Kensington Gardens) @ Maggie Smith (Granny Wendy/Middle-Aged Wendy) @ Caroline Goodall (Moira Banning) @ Charlie Korsmo (Jack 'Jackie' Banning) @ Amber Scott (Maggie Banning) @ Laurel Cronin (Liza, Wendy's house keeper) @ Phil Collins (Inspector Good) @ Arthur Malet (Tootles) @ Isaiah Robinson (Pockets (Lost Boy)) @ Jasen Fisher (Ace (Lost Boy)) @ Dante Basco (Rufio, King of the Lost Boys) @ Raushan Hammond (Thud Butt (Lost Boy)) @ James Madio (Don't Ask (Lost Boy)) @ Thomas Tulak (Too Small (Lost Boy)) @ Alex Zuckerman (Latchboy (Lost Boy)) @ Ahmad Stoner (No Nap (Lost Boy)) @ Bogdan Georghe (Lost Boy) @ Adam McNatt (Lost Boy) @ René González Jr. (Additional Lost Boy) @ Brian Willis (Additional Lost Boy) @ Brett Willis (Additional Lost Boy) @ Ryan Francis (Young Peter Pan) @ Maxwell Hoffman (5-Year-Old Peter Pan) @ Kelly Rowan (Jane Banning (Peter's Mother)) @ Stephanie Furst (Mermaid) @ Shannon Marie Kies (Mermaid) @ Regina Russell (Mermaid) @ Jewel Newlander Hubbard (Peter Pan in Play) @ Jeannine Renshaw (Drama Teacher) @ Rebecca Hoffman (Jane in Play) @ Jeannine Wagner (Pianist) @ Francesca Serrano (Lost Boy in Play) @ Kevin Gasca (Lost Boy in Play) @ Andre Bollinger (Lost Boy in Play) @ Lauren Friedler-Gow (Lost Boy in Play) @ Bryce Armstrong (Lost Boy in Play) @ Margie Takeda (Lost Boy in Play) @ Alyson Healing (Lost Boy in Play) @ Zoe Koehler (Lost Boy in Play) @ Scott Williamson (Coach) @ Wayne Aten (Umpire) @ Michael Hirshenson (Umpire) @ Jake Hoffman (Little League Player (as Jacob Hoffman)) @ Geoff Lower (Brad) @ Don S. Davis (Dr. Fields) @ Cameron Thor (Ron) @ Brad Parker (Jim (as Brad Blumenthal)) @ Brenda Isaacs Booth (Secretary (as Brenda Isaacs)) @ Jan Cobler (Secretary) @ Ruth de Sosa (Secretary) @ Stuart White (Chauffeur) @ Gwyneth Paltrow (Young Wendy) @ Don McLeod (Mime/Shadow) @ Kim O'Kelley (Prostitute) @ Beverly Polcyn (Prostitute) @ Randi Pareira (Prostitute) @ Mary Bond Davis (Prostitute) @ David Crosby (Tickles) @ Nick Tate (Noodler) @ Tony Burton (Bill Jukes) @ Glenn Close (Gutless) @ Nick Ullett (Pirate Jailer) @ Matthew Van Ginkel (Baby Peter Banning) @ Ray Tveden (Man in Stands) @ Kim Robillard (Toothless Cripple) @ Michael Runyard (Screaming Pirate (as Mike Runyard)) @ Gary Epper (Growling Pirate rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Robert Amico (Pirate (uncredited)) @ Jimmy Buffett (Shoe Stealing Pirate (uncredited)) @ Lonnie Burr (Pegleg (uncredited)) @ Brian DiMuccio (Pirate (uncredited)) @ Carrie Fisher (Woman kissing on bridge (uncredited)) @ Rick Kleber (Pirate (uncredited)) @ George Lucas (Man kissing on bridge (uncredited)) @ Bruce Mahler (Pirate (uncredited)) @ John Michael (Doctor (uncredited)) @ Lisa Wilhoit (Baby Tinkerbell (uncredited) Produced by||Spielberg missed this one. Hook is one of Steven Spielberg's near misses. At least it shows that he is a normal director sometimes. I mean he cranks out great film after great film, so he was due for a weaker film. This one is overlong and very pretentious. Don't get me wrong this film isn't bad, it's just not as good as it could have been. A lot of great talent in this film. Dustin Hoffman's turn as Captin Hook is inspired, but Robin Wiliams portrayal of Peter Pan is very goofy. I will say that the film's score is awesome. Kids will probably dig it, but most adults won't care. I think making adults care is the whole point of this film. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Hours, The|Stephen Daldry|Drama|Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements, some disturbing images and brief language. PG-13|7.7|USA|2002|114 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/4/2004|Michael Alden Robert Fox Mark Huffam Ian MacNeil Scott Rudin Marieke Spencer|Michael Cunningham David Hare|Seamus McGarvey ||Paramount Pictures [us] |Always|In 1951, Laura Brown, a pregnant housewife, is planning a party for her husband, but she can't stop reading the novel 'Mrs. Dalloway'. Clarissa Vaughn, a modern woman living in present times is throwing a party for her friend Richard, a famous author dying of AIDS. These two stories are simultaneously linked to the work and life of Virginia Woolf, who's writing the novel mentioned before. In 1923, Virginia Woolf (Kidman) is starting to write her novel, 'Mrs. Dalloway,' under the care of doctors and family. In 1951, Laura Brown (Moore) is planning for her husband's birthday, but is preoccupied with reading Woolf's novel. In 2001, Clarrisa Vaughn (Streep) is planning an award party for her friend, an author dying of AIDS. Taking place over one day, all three stories are interconnected with the novel mentioned before, as one is writing it, one is reading it, and one is living it. Recuperating from a nervous breakdown, Virginia Woolf begins work on her depression-themed novel "Mrs. Dalloway", which goes on to play a key role not only in her own life but in the lives of a 1950s housewife contemplating suicide and a new-millennium posh lesbian publisher caring for her dying friend. The film concerns three women each suffering from depression. Virginia Woolf (Kidman) is beginning writing her book Mrs. Dalloway in the '20s. She is coming to the realization of her lesbianism and fighting her pure dispair of life and migrains. Virginia recieves a visit from her sister Vanessa and Vanessa's two sons and daughter. The daughter places a strong influence on Virginia's emotions through the death of a bird. Eventually Virgnia must face the decision to run away to London, stay with her beloved husband suffering in Richmond, or move to London where the doctors forbid her to go. Laura Brown (Moore), a mother fearing her ability to be a mother, is reading Mrs Dalloway in the early '50s. Laura is trying to throw a wonderful birthday party for her husband. Laura thinks she won't be an adequate mother to her daughter to be born in a few months and son. Laura must make the decision to run away from it all or live miserably with her happy husband. Clarissa Vaughan (Streep) is living in present times. Her nickname, given by her poet-friend, Richard, who is dieing of aids, is Mrs. Dalloway. Clarissa is also throwing a party but for Richard (Harris) who is recieving an award for his poetry. Clarissa is also a lesbian but also wonders if she is in love with Richard with whom she once dated. At the end, the whole plot twists and comes together. The basic theme of the film is wondering if it is better to live your life for your own happiness or others'. |Nicole Kidman (Virginia Woolf) @ Julianne Moore (Laura Brown) @ Meryl Streep (Clarissa Vaughan) @ Stephen Dillane (Leonard Woolf) @ Miranda Richardson (Vanessa Bell) @ George Loftus (Quentin Bell) @ Charley Ramm (Julian Bell) @ Sophie Wyburd (Angelica Bell) @ Lyndsey Marshal (Lottie Hope (as Lyndsay Marshal)) @ Linda Bassett (Nelly Boxall) @ Christian Coulson (Ralph Partridge) @ Michael Culkin (Doctor) @ John C. Reilly (Dan Brown) @ Jack Rovello (Richie Brown) @ Toni Collette (Kitty Barlowe) @ Margo Martindale (Mrs. Latch) @ Colin Stinton (Hotel Clerk) @ Ed Harris (Richard Brown) @ Allison Janney (Sally Lester) @ Claire Danes (Julia Vaughan) @ Jeff Daniels (Louis Waters) @ Eileen Atkins (Barbara) @ Carmen De Lavallade (Clarissa's Neighbor) @ Daniel Brocklebank (Rodney rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Michael Cunningham (Man outside flower shop (uncredited)) @ Kate Super (Young Clarissa Vaughan (uncredited)Produced by||Moore is amazing In all honesty, as much as I liked Nicole Kidman's performance, the movie was made for me with Julianne Moore's.She made me so nervous, has me so much on edge, cause you didn't know what the hell was wrong with her.Did she have a crush on Toni Collette?Did she just have a breakdown?Does she want to burn the house down?To the movie's credit, you don't know what exactly is wrong, until the end.But as tense as it made me, I realized that in most movies you are clearly tipped off as far as who is angry, and why.This movie doesn't, and I didn't appreciate that until it was over. Kidman was great, but I've always thought she had more talent than she was given credit for.Not many people could have made "To Die For" so convincing.Kudos to Nic for her career choices, post-divorce. Streep, Ed Harris and Jeff Daniels were non-entities.I worship Streep and Ed Harris, but their part of the story didn't do a single thing for me.I kept waiting to see if Julianne was going to drive her car off a cliff.Without having seen all the nominees in Best Supporting Actress, I'd have to say another actress would have to go pretty damn far to impress me as much as she did.8/10. ||Full Screen |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ House on Haunted Hill|William Castle|Horror|NR |6.6|USA|1959|75 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|William Castle |Robb White |Carl E. Guthrie ||Allied Artists Pictures Corporation [us] |The 13 greatest shocks of all time!|Five diverse people are invited to a 'haunted house' party. They are offered $10,000 each by an eccentric millionaire and his wife to spend the night in a house with a murderous past. Eccentric millionaire Fredrick Loren and his 4th wife, Annabelle, have invited 5 people to the house on Haunted Hill for a "haunted House" party. Whoever will stay in the house for one night will earn ten thousand dollars each. As the night progresses, all the guests are trapped inside the house with ghosts, murderers, and other terrors. |Vincent Price (Frederick Loren) @ Carol Ohmart (Annabelle Loren) @ Richard Long (Lance Schroeder) @ Alan Marshal (Dr. David Trent) @ Carolyn Craig (Nora Manning) @ Elisha Cook Jr. (Watson Pritchard (as Elisha Cook)) @ Julie Mitchum (Ruth Bridgers) @ Leona Anderson (Mrs. Slydes) @ Howard Hoffman (Jonas SlydesProduced by||A special night of fright. Famed director William Castle invites you to shivers, fright and alarming terror . A wealthy man offers ten thousand dollars to anyone that can survive a haunted house party. Campy and fun to watch. Stars include:Vincent Price, Richard Long, Elisha Cook Jr., Carol Ohmart and Alan Marshal. A seventy-five minute cult classic. || ||1.0 ||||||@@ House Party|Reginald Hudli|Comedy|R |5.6|USA|1990|102 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Warrington Hudlin Gerald T. Olson|Reginald Hudlin |Peter Deming ||New Line Cinema [us] |If they get caught it's all over. If they don't, it's just the beginning!|Young Kid has been invited to a party at his friend Play's house. But after a fight at school, Kid's father grounds him. None the less, Kid sneaks out when his father falls asleep. But Kid doesn't know that three of the thugs at school has decided to give him a lesson in behaviour... House Party isia fast andifresh look at one teenager's pursuit of life, liberty andihappiness.Kid (Christopher Reid) has three things goingifor him --ia tall fade,ia wide grin andia way with women.But three equally powerful things are against him, trio "Full Force,"ias theipumped-up punks who wantito put oniendito Kid's fun, an over-protective father (Robin Harris), anditheivery beautiful best friends who want Kidito choose between them.What'sia Kidito do? |Christopher Reid (Kid) @ Robin Harris (Pop) @ Christopher Martin (Play) @ Martin Lawrence (Bilal) @ Tisha Campbell (Sidney) @ A.J. Johnson (Sharane) @ Paul Anthony (Stab) @ Bow-Legged Lou (Pee Wee) @ B-Fine (Zilla) @ Edith Fields (Principal) @ Kelly Jo Minter (La Donna) @ Clifton Powell (Sharane's Brother) @ Verda Bridges (Sharane's Sister) @ Desi Arnez Hines II (Peanut) @ Kimi Sung (Sunni) @ Barry Diamond (Cop #1) @ Mike Pniewski (Cop #2) @ Randy Harris (Roughouse) @ Diana Mendoza (Lover) @ George Clinton (Himself) @ J. Jay Saunders (Sidney's Dad) @ Myra J. (Guest) @ Norma Donaldson (Mildred) @ Gene 'Groove' Allen (Groove) @ Daryl Mitchell (Chill) @ Belal Miller (Herman) @ Shaun Baker (Clint) @ Leah Aldridge (Benita) @ Val Gamble (La Shay) @ John Witherspoon (Mr. Strickland) @ Bebe Drake (Mrs. Strickland (as Bebe Drake-Massey)) @ Richard McGregor (Everett) @ Anthony Johnson (E.Z.E.) @ Ronn Riser (Guy) @ Bentley Kyle Evans (Tall Teen (as Bentley Evans)) @ Reginald Hudlin (Burglar #1) @ Warrington Hudlin (Burglar #2) @ George Logan (Pimp) @ Rodney Hill (Albert) @ Cliff Frazier (Brutus) @ Stan Haze (Hatchett) @ Chino 'Fats' Williams (Fats) @ Jaime Cardriche (Tattoo) @ Alexander Folk (Guard rest of cast listed alphabetically Ellaraino .... Sidney's Mom) @ Cedrick Hardman (Rock) @ Ludie Washington (Uncle Otis) @ Robert Factor (Manson (uncredited)Produced b||If you're still jiggy with hip-hop, see this movie. This definitely deserves a spot in the "cult classic" category. A truckload of jiggy dialogue would have greater impact on serving to a limited audience without mass hysteria. The funny moments ensue the lack of horrid raunchiness, making this aged film a step above CAN'T HARDLY WAIT. I hate to go back to the first time I entered high school. That's when hair-dos styled inches high made life miserable. HOUSE PARTY is good if you like to go back to those wild days. It isn't bad for the comedy, for which Kid & Play did best at it. Just don't complain about the expensive power bill that shows up after you've wasted a good 100+ minutes on a relic that been way past its prime. |Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color (Anamorphic) Standard 1.33:1 Color|5.1 ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC]||||||@@ How the Grinch Stole Christmas!|Chuck Jones Ben Washa|Musical||8.3|USA|1966| 26 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Chuck Jones Dr. Seuss|Bob Ogle Dr. Seuss Irv Spector|||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] ||Bitter and hateful, the Grinch is irritated at the thought of the nearby village having a happy time celebrating Christmas. So disguised as Santa Claus, with his dog made to look like a reindeer, he raids the village to steal all the Christmas things. The village is sure to have a sad Christmas this year. |Boris Karloff (Narrator/The Grinch (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ June Foray (Cindy Lou Who (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||This is one of the best of the holiday season Dr. Seuss' classic story comes to life in one big animated cartoon that is one of the best ever produced for the holiday season. What Christmas classic that comes around the most joyous time of the year about a mean spirited Grinch who wrecks havoc at the Whos is not to be missed! It ranks right up there at one of the top ten holiday specials of all time right up there with the likes of "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer","Frosty The Snowman","A> Charlie Brown Christmas",and not to mention "A Fat Albert Christmas" to name a few. It's the story of a mean spirited Grinch who finds a way to stop Christmas from coming but also finds a way to return the kindness to the people from which he stole from around the town of Whoville. "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" is a must-see from the beginning to the end,with brilliant animation by Chuck Jones and narrated by the great Boris Karloff with additional voiceover support from two of the best in cartoon characterizations---the great June Foray and Mel Blanc. Ever since this holiday classic,which premiered in December of 1966,has been showing constantly every holiday season on CBS-TV for the past three decades until the late 1990's when the rights for showing this holiday special change hands and went from the tiffany network,CBS,to the head honchos at Turner Broadcasting which runs it even in the summertime during Cartoon Network's Christmas in July,to the executives in charge in children's programming over at the WB. As for the Chuck Jones version of Dr. Seuss' classic children's tale is way,way better than what Jim Carrey did. So,the cartoon is a holiday classic,and stay away from the live-action version that was totally destroyed by Ron Howard. || ||2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days|Donald Petrie|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some sex-related material. PG-13|6.2|USA|2003|116 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/21/2004|Robert Evans Christine Forsyth-Peters Robin Guthrie Elizabeth Joan Hooper Lynda Obst Robin Guthrie Prybil Richard Vane Brian Alexander|Michele Alexander Jeannie Long Kristen Buckley Brian Regan Burr Steers|John Bailey ||Paramount Filmes do Brasil [br] |One of them is lying. So is the other.|A single man (McConaughey) who likes to play the field makes a bet that he can stay in a relationship for more than 10 days. However, he picks the wrong woman (Hudson), seeing as she desperately wants to get rid of him almost as soon as she meets him. Andie is a writer who works at a woman's magazine but longs to write about something more substantial like politics and the environment but her boss won't let her. Ben works in advertising, and he has suggested to his boss that they go after a diamond merchant, which he agrees but is considering giving to two female employees, Spears and Green, cause he feels that it neeeds the feminine touch. Andie's friend announces at a meeting that she's been dumped, and their boss comes up with the idea of writing an article about how one goes about getting a guy to leave or dump them. Andie agrees to do it on the condition that she be allowed to write what she wants to write and her boss says yes. Now Spears and Green were at the magazine trying to court them to join their agency and hear about Andie's assignment. Later that evening, Ben meets with his boss and the girls and insists that he be allowed to handle the account of the diamond merchant. In the end the girls bet Ben that if he could get a girl to fall in love with him in 10 days, he can handle the account. And the girls pick Andie, who was there looking for her subject, and knowing about her article, they knew that she will do everything possible to turn him off. And she does but Ben endures everything she does, and she finds herself falling for him. Benjamin Berry is a guy who makes a bet to his boss that he can win the job of advertising diamonds before the two evil girls, Green and Spears, do. Andie Anderson is a girl who is trying to reach her goal to be able to write anything she likes in the magazine company that she works for, Composure. Just when her friend has broken up with her man, the boss of Composure finds out and decides to write it up as an article. Best friend Andie kicks in and offers the boss, Lana, a deal to write an article called "How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days". Lana agrees and if she successfully does the article, she can write anything she likes. At a bar, Benjamin shows up and Green and Spears challenge him to a bet to see if Andie will love him in the end of 10 days. Uh-oh, Andie is trying to LOSE a guy in 10 days. So you understand the rest. |Kate Hudson (Andie Anderson) @ Matthew McConaughey (Benjamin 'Ben' Barry) @ Kathryn Hahn (Michelle Rubin) @ Annie Parisse (Jeannie Ashcroft) @ Adam Goldberg (Tony) @ Thomas Lennon (Thayer) @ Michael Michele (Judy Spears) @ Shalom Harlow (Judy Green) @ Robert Klein (Phillip Warren) @ Bebe Neuwirth (Lana Jong) @ Samantha Quan (Lori) @ Justin Peroff (Mike) @ Celia Weston (Glenda) @ James Murtaugh (Jack) @ Archie MacGregor (Uncle Arnold) @ John DiResta (Joey Sr.) @ Scott Benes (Joey Jr.) @ Zachary Benes (Joey Jr.) @ Rebecca Harris (Dora) @ Liliane Montevecchi (Mrs. DeLauer) @ James Mainprize (Mr. DeLauer) @ William Hill (DeLauer Security) @ Georgia Craig (Receptionist Candi) @ Tony Longo (Sensitive Moviegoer) @ Warner Wolf (Himself) @ Doug Murray (Mark Sawyer) @ Natalie Madison-Brown (Mrs. Sawyer (as Natalie Brown)) @ Andrew Moodie (Poker Pal Ronald) @ David Macniven (Poker Pal Francis) @ Jeff Gruich (Poker Pal Joe) @ William Duell (Old Concession Worker) @ Ross Gallo (Young Concession Worker) @ Gina Sorell (Vegetarian Waitress) @ Diego Fuentes (Kitchen Worker) @ Ingrid Hart (Mullen's Hostess) @ Al Bernstein (Party Waiter) @ Marvin Hamlisch (Himself) @ Collin Barrett (Orchestra) @ Bruce Farquhar (Orchestra) @ Rod MacDonald (Orchestra) @ Bob Reeves (Orchestra) @ Gery Soles (Orchestra) @ Jim Paris (Orchestra) @ Frank Penny (Orchestra) @ Marv Albert (The Voice of the New York Knicks (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically R. Kelly Clipperton .... Guy at fashion show (scenes deleted)) @ Tamara Gorski (Supermodel (scenes deleted)) @ Randy Kerdoon (Arena Announcer (voice)) @ Ames Adamson (Extra (uncredited)) @ Craig Castaldo (Himself (uncredited)) @ David C. Roehm Sr. (Motorist (uncredited)Produced by||A Very Funny Romantic Comedy Andie Anderson (Kate Hudson) writes a column in a female magazine about shallow subjects. She indeed was a great student of journalism and wants to have a chance of writing serious matters about politics, environment and economics. Her editor promises her that if she writes a successful article about how to lose a guy in ten days, she would write about whatever she wants. Ben Barry (Matthew McConaughey) is an advertising executive who wants to get the account of a huge diamond company, but two othercolleagues (and beautiful) women are disputing this account with him. He offers a bet to his chief and two colleagues competitors: he would conquest any woman and after ten days, she would fall in love and go with him to the initial campaign party for the client. The two girls had been introduced to Andie a few moments ago and knew about her article, so they suggest Andie to Ben. Ben accepts and dates with Andie. From this moment on, there are many funny situations with them. Andie does anything possible and impossibleto imagine to make Ben give-up on her. And Ben supports all those evil and humiliates situations, because he needs the presence of Andie in the party with him. Obviously, the rest of the plot is very predictable, and Andie and Ben fall in love for each other. The screenplay of this movie is really funny and this movie is a good entertainment. My vote is seven. ||Widescreen |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Hulk|Ang Lee|Sci-Fi|Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, some disturbing images and brief partial nudity. PG-13|6.2|USA|2003|USA:138 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Avi Arad Kevin Feige Larry J. Franco Gale Anne Hurd Stan Lee James Schamus Cheryl A. Tkach David Womark|Stan Lee Jack Kirby James Schamus John Turman Michael France James Schamus|Frederick Elmes ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The inner beast will be released|After a terrible accident of Bruce banner in the lab his extraordinary mind is now making him angry.He then figures out that David banner is his real father.Bruce has now turned into hulk and nothing can stop him for when he is angry.Betty is the only person that can stop him from being angry.Betty has now gone to the father to ask for help how to help him,but the father has now sent his super villian dogs like hulk to kill her,hulk is now the only person to stop the mutant dogs.David banner has now transformed himself into anything he touches and with evil power,hulk must now save the world and save the people. |Eric Bana (Bruce Banner) @ Jennifer Connelly (Betty Ross) @ Sam Elliott (Ross) @ Josh Lucas (Talbot) @ Nick Nolte (Father) @ Paul Kersey (Young David Banner) @ Cara Buono (Edith Banner) @ Todd Tesen (Young Ross) @ Kevin O. Rankin (Harper (as Kevin Rankin)) @ Celia Weston (Mrs. Krensler) @ Mike Erwin (Teenage Bruce Banner) @ Lou Ferrigno (Security Guard) @ Stan Lee (Security Guard) @ Regi Davis (Security Guard) @ Craig Damon (Security Guard) @ Geoffrey Scott (President) @ Regina McKee Redwing (National Security Advisor) @ Daniel Dae Kim (Aide) @ Daniella Kuhn (Edith's Friend) @ Michael Kronenberg (Bruce Banner as Child) @ David Kronenberg (Bruce Banner as Child) @ Rhiannon Leigh Wryn (Betty Ross as Child) @ Lou Richards (Pediatrician) @ Jenn Gotzon (Waitress (as Jennifer Gotzon)) @ Louanne Kelley (Delivery Doctor) @ Toni Kallen (Delivery Nurse) @ Paul Hansen Kim (Officer) @ John Littlefield (Security NCO) @ Lorenzo Callender (Soldier) @ Todd Lee Coralli (Soldier) @ Johnny Kastl (Soldier) @ Eric Ware (Soldier) @ Jesse Corti (Colonel) @ Rob Swanson (Colonel) @ Mark Atteberry (Technician) @ Eva Burkley (Technician) @ Rondda Holeman (Technician) @ John Maraffi (Technician (as John A. Maraffi)) @ Michael Papajohn (Technician) @ David St. Pierre (Technician) @ Boni Yanagisawa (Technician) @ David Sutherland (Tank Commander) @ Sean Mahon (Comanche Pilot) @ Brett Thacher (Comanche Pilot) @ Kirk B.R. Woller (Comanche Pilot) @ Randy Neville (F-22 Pilot) @ John Prosky (Atheon Technician) @ Amir Faraj (Boy) @ Ricardo Aguilar (Boy's Father) @ Victor Rivers (Paramilitary) @ Lyndon Karp (Davey rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Andy Arness (Soldier (uncredited)Produced by||Perfect! I was fortunate to get invited to a screening to this film.Before I review this film, I will say that I have stopped watching trailers.All together stopped.Why?Trailers give too much of a movie away, and spoil the surprises. Now then, having not seen the trailer(s) for "HULK" I was completely oblivious to the look or feel of this film, therefore when it began, I was in awe of it.It was better than I could have ever imagined, it was perfect!!It gives you a tragedy, and a love story, a sympathetic hero and villain.It gives you cause and effect.All the elements "Jekyl and Hyde" are here, as well as a Greek tragedy, and a tale of fathers and sons. As you have no doubt noticed I haven't given any specifics to the films plot or details as to the actions, I won't spoil anything for you.You will see for yourselves."HULK" is not for everyone, not everyone will like it, but I strongly doubt this film will go away quietly, it has enough punch to jolt the general viewing public, and the box office! ||2-Disc Special Edition Full Screen |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Hunchback of Notre Dame, The|Gary Trousdale Kirk Wis|Animation|G |6.5|USA|1996|91 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Roy Conli Don Hahn Philip Lofaro|Victor Hugo Irene Mecchi Tab Murphy Jonathan Roberts Bob Tzudiker Noni White|||Buena Vista Home Video (BVHV) [us] ||In 15th century Paris, Clopin the puppeteer tells the story of Quasimodo, the misshapen gentle-souled bell ringer of Notre Dame, who was nearly killed as a baby by Claude Frollo, the Minister of Justice. But Frollo was forced by the Archdeacon of Notre Dame to raise Quasimodo as his own. Now a young man, Quasimodo is hidden from the world by Frollo in the belltower of the cathedral. But during the Festival of Fools, Quasimodo, cheered on by his gargoyle friends Victor, Hugo, and Laverne, decides to take part in the festivities, where he meets the lively gypsy girl Esmeralda and the handsome soldier Phoebus. The three of them find themselves ranged against Frollo's cruelty and his attempts to destroy the home of the gypsies, the Court of Miracles. And Quasimodo must desperately defend both Esmeralda and the very cathedral of Notre Dame. |Tom Hulce (Quasimodo (voice)) @ Demi Moore (Esmeralda (voice)) @ Tony Jay (Judge Claude Frollo (voice)) @ Kevin Kline (Captain Phoebus (voice)) @ Paul Kandel (Clopin (voice)) @ Jason Alexander (Hugo (voice)) @ Charles Kimbrough (Victor (voice)) @ Mary Wickes (Laverne (voice)) @ David Ogden Stiers (The Archdeacon (voice)) @ Heidi Mollenhauer (Esmeralda (singing voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Mary Kay Bergman .... Quasimodo's mother (voice)) @ Corey Burton (Brutish Guard (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Misc. Guards and Gypsies (voice)) @ Bill Fagerbakke (Oafish Guard (voice)) @ Patrick Pinney (Misc. Guards and Gypsies (voice)) @ Gary Trousdale (The Old Heretic (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Baby Bird (voice)) @ Jane Withers (Laverne (additional dialogue) (voice)) @ Merwin Foard (Additional Voices (uncredited) (voice)) @ Dana Hill (Additional Voice (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||Disappointing, but only to be expected In an interview published in 1992 Kirk Wise was asked what he wanted to work on after "Beauty and the Beast".His reply was the obvious one.He said he liked B&B but he wanted to work (with co-director Gary Trousdale) on something very different. Instead Wise and Trousdale were given "The Hunchback of Notre Dame".Does anyone notice the similarity in subject matter?That was the problem: the two men simply couldn't make a film sas sincere and heartfelt as their first, under the circumstances; and so they didn't.In attempting to be more quirky and amusing they simply fell between two stools, missing out on both comedy and tragedy.Ah, well.Their next film will be "Atlantis" - which shows that Disney CAN learn from its mistakes. "Hunchback" has to be pulled to pieces, since it really doesn't come together to begin with.It's just good bits and bad bits.A few random pot-shots: Editing was too brisk - for many spectacular shots, we didn't get a good look at anything.The animation of Quasimodo was superb.Ditto Clopin. Esmeralda's "lascivious" dance fell surprisingly flat and was even jerkily animated - it certainly wasn't sexy.The song she sings later is, I hate to say, no more than modern-day Christian guitar music.(Once upon a time Christianity inspired songs like those in Handel's "Messiah".How the mighty have fallen ...)The opening song and the "A Guy Like You" song were nice, and cleverly staged.They didn't belong in the same film, though. The dark and violent slapstick in the final battle was an inspired return to an old genre.The weather changed a bit too often at the mere whim of the directors.Computer animation is not yet ready to handle crowd scenes in the way Wise and Trousdale attempted them.Completely harmless sections were cut from the Australian release in order to secure a "G" rating, which is an outrage.I could go on ... If you're wondering what my comments have to do with each other - well, I wonder the same about the different parts of the film.Actually, MOST of the scenes play well, and most of the film is enjoyable to watch, but to there is no cumulative effect.If I must pass a verdict on the film as a whole it must be, "misfire".So it's back to "Beauty and the Beast" - or forward to "Atlantis". || |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Hunt for Red October, The|John McTiernan|Action||7.5|USA|1990| 134 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Larry DeWaay Mace Neufeld Jerry Sherlock|Tom Clancy Larry Ferguson Donald Stewart|Jan de Bont ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Invisible.Silent.Stolen.|Based on the Best Selling novel by Tom Clancy this film tells the story of Captain Marko Ramius, the skipper of the Soviet Union's newest nuclear sub. Jack Ryan of the CIA gets involved in a tense, tangled hunt for this sub, when Ramius defects, taking the "Red October" with him. The story is an action packed techno-thriller. Sean Connery stars with Alec Baldwin in John McTiernan's blockbuster The Hunt For Red October. Connery plays Marko Ramius, a senior Russian sub captain whose plans to defect are met with strong opposition by his own Soviet navy, and American misconceptions of his intentions. Baldwin plays CIA analyst Jack Ryan, the one man who sees the defection, and must convince most of the American navy he is correct. The action climaxes with an amazing naval battle, but who will win The Hunt for Red October? A new, technologically-superior Soviet sub, the Red October, is heading for the U.S. coast under the command of Marko Ramius (Connery). The American government thinks Ramius is planning to attack. A lone CIA analyst (Baldwin) has a different idea: he thinks Ramius is planning to defect, but he has only a few hours to find him and prove it--because the entire Russian naval and air commands are trying to find him, too. The hunt is on! Red October is a new Soviet Submarine. When the Americans are given photographs of it, they are extremely curious as to why is it so special. Jack Ryan, a CIA analyst, consults with a friend, who deduces that it's equipped with a new engine that can make it run virtually silent and with such a device, they can position themselves on the outskirts of any coastal city and launch their missles and not give their target any warning. Marko Ramius the sub's captain kills their political officer after they open their orders which basically has them conducting routine maneuvers but he kills him and burns their orders and replaces it. He then tells the crew that they are going to test their new engine by positioning themselves by New York and run missile drills. Ryan is then called by his boss to attend a briefing that concerns Red October. It is at this briefing that they discover that Ramius sent a letter to high ranking Soviet official, who after reading the letter went to meet with the Soviet Premier and it was shortly after that meeting that the Soviet navy was deployed to find Red October and sink it. Everyone assumes that Ramius has turned rogue but Ryan who once did research on Ramius assumes that he might be trying to defect. While everyone dismisses him, the National Security Adviser tells Ryan to go out there and find out for sure if he is right cause once Ramius is in position to fire his missiles they have take him out. Ryan reluctantly goes and is not use to fieldwork, is having a hard time coping with the sea. At the same time someone in the Red October crew knows that Ramius has deviated from his assignment and is doing what he can to stop him. |Sean Connery (Captain Marko Ramius) @ Alec Baldwin (Jack Ryan) @ Scott Glenn (Captain Bart Mancuso) @ Sam Neill (Captain Vasily Borodin) @ James Earl Jones (Admiral James Greer) @ Joss Ackland (Ambassador Andrei Lysenko) @ Richard Jordan (National Security Advisor Jeffrey Pelt) @ Peter Firth (Political Officer Ivan Putin - Red October) @ Tim Curry (Dr. Petrov) @ Courtney B. Vance (Petty Officer 2nd Class Jones) @ Stellan Skarsgård (Captain Tupolev) @ Jeffrey Jones (Skip Tyler) @ Timothy Carhart (Bill Steiner) @ Larry Ferguson (Chief of the Boat Watson - USS Dallas) @ Fred Dalton Thompson (Admiral Joshua Painter - USS Enterprise) @ Daniel Davis (Captain Charlie Davenport - USS Enterprise) @ Ned Vaughn (Seaman Beaumont - USS Dallas) @ Anthony Peck (Lieutenant Commander Thompson - USS Dallas) @ Mark Draxton (Seaman - USS Dallas) @ Tom Fisher (Seaman - USS Dallas) @ Pete Antico (Seaman - USS Dallas) @ Ronald Guttman (Lieutenant Melekhin, Engineer - Red October) @ Tomas Arana (Loginov, Cook - Red October) @ Michael George Benko (Ivan - Red October) @ Anatoli Davydov (Officer #1 - Red October (as Anatoly Davydov)) @ Ivan G'Vera (Officer #2 - Red October) @ Artur Cybulski (Yuri, Diving Officer - Red October) @ Sven-Ole Thorsen (Russian Chief of the Boat - Red October) @ Michael Welden (Kamarov - Red October) @ Boris Lee Krutonog (Victor Slavin - Red October (as Boris Krutonog)) @ Kenton Kovell (Seaman - Red October) @ Radu Gavor (Seaman - Red October) @ Ivan Ivanov (Seaman - Red October) @ Ping Wu (Seaman - Red October) @ Herman Sinitzyn (Seaman - Red October) @ Vlado Benden (Seaman - Konovalov) @ George Saunders (Seaman - Konovalov (as George Winston)) @ Don Oscar Smith (Helicopter Pilot) @ Rick Ducommun (Navigator C-2A) @ George H. Billy (DSRV Officer) @ Reed Popovich (Lieutenant Jim Curry) @ Andrew Divoff (Andrei Amalric - Konovalov) @ Peter Zinner (Admiral Yuri Padorin) @ Tony Veneto (Padorin's Orderly) @ Ben Hartigan (Admiral at Briefing) @ Ray Reinhardt (Judge Moore at Briefing) @ F.J. O'Neil (General at Briefing) @ Robert Buckingham (Admiral #2 at Briefing) @ A.C. Lyles (Advisor #1) @ John McTiernan Sr. (Advisor #2) @ David Sederholm (Sunglasses) @ John Shepherd (Foxtrot Pilot) @ William Bell Sullivan (Lieutenant Commander Mike Hewitt) @ Gates McFadden (Caroline Ryan) @ Louise Borras (Sally Olivia Ryan) @ Denise E. James (Stewardess rest of cast listed alphabetically Krzysztof Janczar .... Andrei Bonovia (as Christopher Janczar) Produced by||Ok The more I watch this film the less I like it, but its still entertaining.The acting is excellent, Harrison Ford is a bad Jack Ryan, and this predecessor film is better with his absence.Its a interesting story of a defecting submarine crew attempt to enter the United States. Twists, turns, and a rememberable ending make this film fun to watch.I describe the submarine shot the best I've ever seen. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ I Am Sam|Jessie Nelson|Drama|Rated PG-13 for language. PG-13|7.1|USA|2001|132 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/3/2004|Lisa Campbell Michael De Luca Barbara A. Hall Marshall Herskovitz Jessie Nelson Claire Rudnick Polstein David Rubin Richard Solomon Edward Zwick|Kristine Johnson Jessie Nelson|Elliot Davis ||Alliance Atlantis Home Video [ca] |love is all you need|Sam Dawson has the mental capacity of a 7-year-old. He works at a Starbucks and is obsessed with the Beatles. He has a daughter with a homeless woman; she abandons them as soon as they leave the hospital. He names his daughter Lucy Diamond (after the Beatles song), and raises her. But as she reaches age 7 herself, Sam's limitations start to become a problem at school; she's intentionally holding back to avoid looking smarter than him. The authorities take her away, and Sam shames high-priced lawyer Rita Harrison into taking his case pro bono. In the process, he teaches her a great deal about love, and whether it's really all you need. |Sean Penn (Sam Dawson) @ Michelle Pfeiffer (Rita Harrison) @ Dakota Fanning (Lucy Diamond Dawson) @ Dianne Wiest (Annie Cassell) @ Loretta Devine (Margaret Calgrove) @ Richard Schiff (Turner) @ Laura Dern (Randy Carpenter) @ Brad Silverman (Brad) @ Joseph Rosenberg (Joe) @ Stanley DeSantis (Robert) @ Doug Hutchison (Ifty) @ Rosalind Chao (Lily) @ Ken Jenkins (Judge Philip McNeily) @ Wendy Phillips (Miss Wright) @ Mason Lucero (Conner Rhodes) @ Scott Paulin (Duncan Rhodes) @ Bobby Cooper (George) @ Kit McDonough (Ms. Davis) @ Kimberly Scott (Gertie) @ Michael B. Silver (Dr. Jaslow) @ Caroline Keenan (Rebecca) @ Eileen Ryan (Estelle) @ Mary Steenburgen (Dr. Blake) @ Marin Hinkle (Patricia) @ Chase MacKenzie Bebak (Willy Harrison) @ Rafer Weigel (Bruce) @ Emiko Parise (Nurse) @ Pamela Dunlap (Grace) @ Brent Spiner (Shoe Salesman) @ David Nathan Schwartz (Principal) @ Kathleen Robertson (Big Boy Waitress) @ Karen Bankhead (Rita's Colleague) @ Janet Adderley (Obnoxious Mom) @ Katie McGloin (Cristina) @ Steven Maines (Collin) @ Dennis Fanning (Vice Cop) @ David Poynter (Cafeteria Worker) @ R.D. Call (Cop at Park) @ John Paizis (Starbucks Father) @ Russ Fega (Starbucks Angry Man) @ Erinn Seaghda Rice Goletz (Starbucks Barrister) @ Julie Claire (Starbucks Customer) @ Marnie Martin (Starbucks Woman) @ Tony Abatemarco (Court Clerk) @ Will Wallace (Bill Carpenter) @ Scott Weintraub (Scarecrow) @ Nicholas Mele (Booking Cop) @ Brian Bialick (Brian) @ Molly Gordon (Callie) @ Nora Kroopf (Sara) @ Allison Thormahlen (Lucy Infant) @ Jillian Thormahlen (Lucy Infant) @ Ryan Williams (Lucy 6 Months) @ Felicity Ann Forbes (Lucy 18 Months) @ Makindra Sherry Forbes (Lucy 18 Months) @ Elle Fanning (Lucy 2 Years) @ Amanda Lehaf (Lucy 4 Years rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mackenzie Cholas (Baby (uncredited)) @ Mikayla Cholas (Baby (uncredited)) @ Roma Maffia (First Family Court Judge (uncredited)) @ Michael McElroy ( (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||Penn and Fanning are brilliant... I Am Sam Sam (Sean Penn) is a mentally-disabled man who makes a modest living working at Starbucks and enjoys life with his friends. After a one-night-stand with a homeless woman, Sam is left, nine months later, with Lucy (Dakota Fanning), his baby daughter. As Lucy grows older, it becomes clear to the educators around her that by age 8, she will surpass Sam's mental capacity, thereby almost becoming Sam's parent in a way. When Lucy is taken away from Sam by child protection services, he retains a high-strung lawyer (Michelle Pfeiffer) and fights to prove how worthy a father he truly is. "I Am Sam" would be nothing without Sean Penn. I cannot explain it more appropriate than that. A true chameleon, Penn becomes Sam in just about every way possible. The talking, the looks, the way Sam walks... this performance is completely committed. Taking on an almost Houdini-esque approach to his acting, Penn holds together "I Am Sam" dazzlingly. He doesn't play Sam for the fool, or the lovable disabled person that most actors fall into a trap portraying. Sam is an individual, and doesn't invite too much unearned sympathy. You can thank Penn for that. He also adds this character to his inconceivable list of insanely committed performances, ranging from surfer dude Jeff Spicoli to the cold-blooded convicted murderer Matthew Poncelet. Penn is a master actor, and though his attention span can be too short at times, when his focus is unbreakable there is just not a better actor around. Of course, Penn doesn't come to the film without backup. Playing Sam's daughter Lucy is an extraordinary young actress named Dakota Fanning. A mixture of juvenile and adult to Sam's pure child, Fanning is exceptional. And being only the age of 7, Fanning even manages to hold her own against the likes of Penn and Michelle Pfeiffer. Not a small feat. Writer/Director Jesse Nelson instills "I Am Sam" with just the right mix of sentimentality and real-world cruelty that she placed in her previous film, "Corrina, Corrina." That's not to say "Sam" isn't littered with moments that betray honesty in the pursuit of tears, but those moments are tempered with the film's unusually fair point of view. Sam isn't a character who heals or has all the answers for the people around him. He is a character who is disabled, and for all his good intentions, honestly cannot take care of his daughter. Nelson approaches this with the utmost care, but makes the case against Sam just as believable as the one for him. I couldn't detect many false, audience-pleasing tendencies for most of the film, though Nelson finally breaks down for a climax that doesn't serve the rest of the film fairly. Nelson also chooses to simulate Sam's chaotic and impaired world through the use of constantly zooming and reframing camerawork. Think "NYPD Blue" without the cold, dead New York streets. I cannot say this benefits the film greatly, as it predictably becomes annoying and overused as the film rolls along. Yet, at certain moments, this aesthetic choice clearly conveys just where Sam is coming from and how he perceives his world. Since the material is strong enough to withstand the overindulgence this brings, it could also survive if camera movement wasn't employed at all. Just make sure to take some Dramamine before you attend this film. Since Sam is a Beatlemaniac, "I Am Sam" is scored with covers of classic Beatles tunes. The songs act as kind of a guide to the moods of the film, and although they are only just covers (and I'd like to meet the person who asked The Wallflowers to murder "I'm Looking Through You"), they fit the movie very sweetly. Nothing speaks more about the bond between Sam and Lucy than to hear the brilliant song "Two Of Us" during the montage of the young girl growing up. "I Am Sam" runs a little long and ends a little too neatly, but heavens, it's tough to find a movie with its heart in a more loving place. Go to see it for the genius acting by Penn and Fanning, but stay for the lump in your throat that will develop as you watch the rare movie that shows that fathers - even mentally disabled ones like Sam - can love too. ----------- 9/10 || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ I Know What You Did Last Summer|Jim Gillespie|Horror|Rated R for strong horror violence and language. |5.2|USA|1997| 100 min/ Germany:99 min (cut version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|William S. Beasley Stokely Chaffin Erik Feig Neal H. Moritz|Lois Duncan Kevin Williamson|Denis Crossan ||Columbia Pictures [us] |If you're going to bury the truth, make sure it stays buried.|Adaptation of Lois Duncan's thriller about four teenagers trying to cover up a hit-and-run. Love Hewitt plays Julie, a high school senior who goes trip with her friends and accidently hits a fisherman. They think he is dead and dump him into the waters. But later they get a strange letter that says "I know what you did last summer." Based upon Lois Duncan's book, four teenagers run down a man on a cliffside road. Thinking that he's dead, they throw him in the water. A year later, they receive messages saying "I KNOW"... El género gore que tanto éxito tuvo en la década de los 80 entre los jóvenes vuelve a finales de los 90, tras el éxito de "Scream". Aquí unos jovencitos atropellan involuntariamente a un peatón. Lo entierran e intentan olvidarse. Un año después, un psicópata les aterrorizará...al igual que a los espectadores. It's the fourth of July and four friends Julie, Ray, Helen, and Barry are celebrating along with graduation. On their way home they hit a pedestrian walking down a curved corner. They make a pact to keep it a secret in hopes of saving their futures. While dumping the body in a near by sea, the body becomes alive and tries to attach Helen. They throw him in and never return to that site. One year later, Julie returns home from college for summer break. In the mail she receives a letter stating that "I know what you did last summer." Julie freaks out and gathers up her old friends who are now separated, miserable and not speaking. They all decide to find out who saw them that fateful night and in the process of tracking the suspect down, the body count goes up. |Jennifer Love Hewitt (Julie James) @ Sarah Michelle Gellar (Helen Shivers) @ Ryan Phillippe (Barry William Cox) @ Freddie Prinze Jr. (Ray Bronson) @ Bridgette Wilson (Elsa Shivers) @ Anne Heche (Melissa 'Missy' Egan) @ Johnny Galecki (Max Neurick) @ Muse Watson (Benjamin Willis) @ Stuart Greer (Officer David Caporizo) @ J. Don Ferguson (Emcee) @ Deborah Hobart (Mrs. James) @ Mary McMillan (Mrs. Cox) @ Rasool J'Han (Deb) @ Dan Albright (Sheriff) @ Lynda Clark (Pageant Official) @ Shea Broom (Contestant #1) @ John Bennes (Old Man) @ Jennifer Bland (Contestant #2) @ William Neely (Hank) @ Jonathan Quint (David Franklin Egan) @ Richard Dale Miller (Band Member) @ Mary Neva Huff (Band Member) @ David Lee Hartman (Band Member rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Patti D'Arbanville (Mrs. Shivers (uncredited)) @ Johnna Jalot (Party Guest (uncredited) Produced by||Who Is The Real Villain ? I remember when IKWYDLS was released in 1997 it topped the US box office for a couple of weeks and in horror movie terms it got pretty good reviews , but I fail to see why it was so popular . After all it`s just another film featuring teens getting stalked and slashed by a mysterous killer even if it was written by SCREAMscreenwriter Kevin Williamson . There is a major problem with the screenplay to this movie and that is we are asked to empathise with a group of teenagers who get drunk , drive a car , kill a padestrian and then cover up the crime . If someone wants to bump off drink drivers who kill people they`ve got my support and I found myself siding with the bad guy in this movie because it`s the victims who are the real villains in my opinion Thankfully Williamson has written a script devoid of post modernist humour but director Jim Gillespie has a laugh at the expense of the audience . As a child of the 1970s I used to watch TISWAS on Saturday mornings and the villain of that anarchistic show was the phantom flan flinger , a sinister faceless figure dressed completely in black and wearing a black hat who`d attack guests and presenters with custard pies , and it`s impossible not to notice the killer in this movie is dressed exactly - And I do mean exactly - like the phantom flan flinger from TISWAS . Considering Gillespie is Scottish and was a child in the 1970s this is no coincidence || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Ice Age|Carlos Saldanha Chris Wedg|Adventure|Rated PG for mild peril. |7.3|USA|2002| 81 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John C. Donkin Lori Forte Christopher Meledandri|Michael J. Wilson Michael Berg Michael J. Wilson Peter Ackerman James Bresnahan Galen T. Chu Doug Compton Xeth Feinberg Jeff Siergey Mike Thurmeier|||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The Coolest Event In 16,000 Years.|Back when the Earth was being overrun by glaciers, and animals were scurrying to save themselves from the upcoming Ice Age, a stupid sloth named Sid, a woolly mammoth named Manny, a saber-toothed tiger named Diego, and an acorn-loving saber-toothed squirrel named Scrat are forced to become unlikely heroes. The four reluctantly come together when they have to return a human child to its father while braving the deadly elements of the impending Ice Age. 20,000 years before, our planet is entering an ice age. All kinds of animals begin immigrating to the south, seeking more warm climates. Sid, a sloth who never stops talking is left behind sleeping while everyone else begins the journey to the south. Awaking, he meets Manny, a mammoth who travels to the north, and decides to follow him. When a humans camp is attacked by tigers, a woman takes her baby and jumps on a river. Before she drowns, the baby is rescued by Manny and Sid. The two animals decide to search for the father and return the baby to him. Diego, one of the tigers that attacked the humans, comes also claiming the baby. |Ray Romano (Manfred (voice)) @ John Leguizamo (Sid (voice)) @ Denis Leary (Diego (voice)) @ Goran Visnjic (Soto (voice)) @ Jack Black (Zeke (voice)) @ Cedric the Entertainer (Rhino (voice)) @ Stephen Root (Rhino/Start (voice)) @ Diedrich Bader (Saber-Toothed Tiger (voice)) @ Alan Tudyk (Saber-Toothed Tiger/Dodo/Freaky Mammal (voice)) @ Lorri Bagley (Female Sloth (voice)) @ Jane Krakowski (Female Sloth (voice)) @ Peter Ackerman (Dodo/Freaky Mammal (voice)) @ P.J. Benjamin (Dodo (voice)) @ Josh Hamilton (Dodo/Aardvark (voice)) @ Chris Wedge (Dodo/Scrat (voice)) @ Denny Dillon (Glypto (voice)) @ Mitzi McCall (Glypto (voice)) @ Tara Strong (Start (voice) Produced by||Oh So Very Cool. Excellent computer-generated animated feature that makes a case for one of the finest films of 2002. It is the frozen era and prehistoric animals try to find their way to land that is warmer and drier. An early group of human hunters become the hunted themselves as a group of sabertooth tigers begin to plot revenge. As an attack occurs, a small infant child is taken out of harm's way. Enter a kind wooly mammoth (voiced by the priceless Ray Romano) and a silly sloth (voiced by John Leguizamo) who find the young child and decide to return it to the humans. It appears that a sabertooth tiger (Denis Leary) is helping the duo, but his motives are devious as he is trying to lead them all into a trap of other sabertooth tigers. The film is another great animated piece of film-making that has important messages for the youngsters and is also highly entertaining for all audiences. 5 stars out of 5. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ If These Walls Could Talk 2|Jane Anderson Martha Coolidge Anne Hech|Drama|Rated R for sexuality, language and some drug content. R|6.5|USA|2000|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|Ellen DeGeneres Mary Kane Pamela Post Jennifer Todd Suzanne Todd|Jane Anderson Anne Heche Alex Sichel Sylvia Sichel|Peter Deming Paul Elliott Robbie Greenberg||Home Box Office (HBO) Home Video [us] |Women love women|Semi-follow up of the first "If These Walls Could Talk" with three segments set in the same house, but with different occupants which spans nearly 40 years. While the first film delt with women and the topic of abortion, this deals with women and the topic of lesbianism. 1961: When Abby dies of a stroke, her surviving partner of 50 years, Edith, must silently face heartbreak and the denial of her status as "family" by the hospital and Abby's heirs. 1972: Linda, a feminist, out, college student is ousted, along with her lesbian cohorts, from the on-campus womens' group: the cause of feminism comes first, apparently. In an attempt to forget their troubles, the friends go to the only lesbian bar in town, where Linda meets Amy, who is too butch to pass muster with Linda's friends. Intrigued, despite her friends' disapproval, Linda comes to understand and fall in love with Amy while learning about her own prejudices. 2000: Fran and Kal want to have a baby. But they want the baby to be theirs and theirs alone, so to the sperm bank they go. But the decisions to be made! Ordering over the internet? Which donor? What race? What gender? And what if the sperm bank is out of that particular perfect donor? And above all, is it right to bring a baby into a world that will undoubtedly be prejudiced? Or will love and laughter see them through? |Vanessa Redgrave (Edith Tree (segment "1961")) @ Marian Seldes (Abby Hedley (segment "1961")) @ Paul Giamatti (Ted Hedley (segment "1961")) @ Elizabeth Perkins (Alice Hedley (segment "1961")) @ Jenny O'Hara (Marge Carpenter (segment "1961")) @ Marley McClean (Maggie Hedley (segment "1961")) @ Donald Elson (Sam (segment "1961")) @ Susan Mosher (Nurse June (segment "1961")) @ Lisa Welti (Nurse Trish (segment "1961")) @ Jill Brennan (Nurse Betty (segment "1961")) @ C.J. Bates (Nurse Murphy (segment "1961")) @ Michelle Williams (Linda (segment "1972")) @ Chloë Sevigny (Amy (segment "1972")) @ Nia Long (Karen (segment "1972")) @ Natasha Lyonne (Jeanne (segment "1972")) @ Heather McComb (Diane (segment "1972")) @ Amy Carlson (Michelle (segment "1972")) @ Lee Garlington (Georgette (segment "1972")) @ Rashida Jones (Feminist (segment "1972")) @ Kirk Trutner (Neighbor (segment "1972")) @ Sharon Stone (Fran (segment "2000")) @ Ellen DeGeneres (Kal (segment "2000")) @ Regina King (Allie (segment "2000")) @ Kathy Najimy (Doctor (segment "2000")) @ Mitchell Anderson (Arnold (segment "2000")) @ George Newbern (Tom (segment "2000")) @ Lucinda Jenney (Ella's Mommy (segment "2000")) @ Steffani Brass (Ella (segment "2000") (as Steffani Anne Brass) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Shirley MacLaine (Footage from The Children's Hour (segment "1961") (archive footage) (uncredited)Produced by||Could Be Better I was really touched by the first segment with Vanessa Redgrave mourning the loss of her lover but the other two segments failed to deliver any kind of message. I didn't care too much about the love scenes but I thought they could at least back it up with some real concrete plots. The second segment with Chloe Sevigny and Michelle Williams, both brilliant, however failed to tell me exactly what the lesbians in the 70's had to go through because that was what I really wanted to know by watching this movie. The third segment with Ellen and Sharon Stone did fairly better but it could have been really good if they had emphasised the difficulties lesbian couples face in adopting children. It barely scratched the surface. All in all, I thought the first If These Walls Could Talk 1 was so much better. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ In & Out|Frank Oz|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for sexual content and some strong language. |6.2|USA|1997| 90 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|G. Mac Brown Scott Rudin Suzanne Santry Adam Schroeder|Paul Rudnick |Rob Hahn ||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |An out-and-out comedy. |A high school English teacher is outed as a gay man by a former student while accepting an Academy Award. Comedy ensues in the teacher's private life and small town where he teaches. Story rumored to be loosely based upon Tom Hanks acceptance speech when receiving his Academy Award for "Philadelphia". Howard Brackett (Kevin Kline) is a high school teacher in a small town in New York state with everything going for him; a nice job, an attractive fiancee named Emily (Joan Cusack) and respect from everyone. Everything changes in one night when a former high school student of his, named Cameron Drake (Matt Dillon), now a famous actor living in Hollywood, makes an acceptance speech after receiving an Academy Award for his portrayal of a homosexual army soldier and 'outs' Howard Brackett as his inspiration for his role. The media circus immediately begins as Howard desperately tries keep his life from falling apart by protesting that he is not gay and that the whole thing with Cameron's speach is a simple misunderstanding. While most of the townspeople want to believe Howard, Peter Malloy (Tom Selleck), an openly gay TV reporter who arrives in town to cover the story, suspects that the teacher is in denial. |Kevin Kline (Howard Brackett) @ Joan Cusack (Emily Montgomery) @ Tom Selleck (Peter Malloy) @ Matt Dillon (Cameron Drake) @ Debbie Reynolds (Berniece Brackett) @ Wilford Brimley (Frank Brackett) @ Bob Newhart (Tom Halliwell) @ Gregory Jbara (Walter Brackett) @ Shalom Harlow (Sonya) @ Shawn Hatosy (Jack) @ Zak Orth (Mike) @ Lauren Ambrose (Vicky) @ J. Smith-Cameron (Trina Paxton) @ Alexandra Holden (Meredith) @ Kate McGregor-Stewart (Aunt Becky) @ Lewis J. Stadlen (Edward 'Ed' Kenrow) @ Deborah Rush (Ava Blazer) @ Debra Monk (Mrs. Lester) @ Ernie Sabella (Aldo Hooper) @ John Cunningham (Voice on 'Be a Man' Tape) @ Gus Rogerson (Danny, Wounded Soldier in Film) @ Dan Hedaya (Military Attorney, in Film) @ Joseph Maher (Father Tim) @ William Parry (Fred Mooney) @ William Duell (Emmett Wilson) @ Richard Woods (Reverend Morgan) @ Kevin Chamberlin (Carl Mickley) @ Wally Dunn (Cousin Lenny) @ Larry Clarke (Cousin Ernie) @ June Squibb (Cousin Gretchen) @ Alice Drummond (Aunt Susan) @ Mary Diveny (Cousin Ellen) @ Anne Russell (Aunt Marge) @ Patrick Garner (Stan Forrest) @ Adam LeFevre (Bachelor Party Guest) @ Bill Camp (Bachelor Party Guest) @ Scott Robertson (Bachelor Party Guest) @ John Christopher Jones (Bachelor Party Guest) @ MacIntyre Dixon (Bachelor Party Guest) @ Joanna Wolff (Jennifer the Flower Girl) @ Chris McKenna (Locker Room Guy (as Chris L. McKenna)) @ Mark Ballou (Locker Room Guy) @ Charles Newmark (Locker Room Guy) @ Andrew Levitas (Locker Room Guy) @ Jon Hershfield (Locker Room Guy) @ Daniel Joseph (Locker Room Guy) @ Seth Ullian (Locker Room Guy) @ Greg Siff (Locker Room Guy) @ Ryan Janis (Locker Room Guy) @ Jane Hoffman (Mrs. Baxter) @ Becky Ann Baker (Darlene) @ Bill Hoag (Bartender (as William P. Hoag)) @ Danny Canton (Cameraman) @ Selma Blair (Cousin Linda) @ Patricia Guinan (Billy's Mom) @ Nesbitt Blaisdell (Billy's Dad) @ Samantha Buck (Classroom Student) @ Lauren Fox (Classroom Student) @ Lizzy Mahon (Classroom Student) @ Simone Marean (Classroom Student) @ Michael McGruther (Classroom Student) @ Niki Roma (Classroom Student) @ Jacqueline Maloney (Classroom Student) @ Patrick Mylod (Classroom Student) @ Ginger R. Williams (Classroom Student) @ Joshua Wade Miller (Student) @ Jill Horner (Student) @ Lauren Ward (Student) @ Julie Entwisle (Student) @ Clare Kramer (Student) @ Miranda Kent (Student) @ Tara Carnes (Student) @ Arden Myrin (Student) @ Ian Sherwood (Student) @ Kevin Keating (Student) @ Kathy Lyn Cavanaugh (Student) @ Jo-Jo Lowe (Awards Event Model) @ Lisa Emery (Classroom Reporter) @ Gary DeWitt Marshall (Classroom Reporter (as Gary Dewitt Marshall)) @ Marla Sucharetza (School Reporter) @ Ronald Rand (School Reporter) @ Ross de Marco (School Reporter) @ Joanne DiMauro (School Reporter) @ Tony Jones (School Reporter) @ Grace DeSena (School Reporter) @ Bruce Bennetts (School Reporter) @ Tracy Appleton (School Reporter) @ Jim Taylor McNickle (School Reporter) @ Laura Caulfield (School Reporter) @ Mimi Stuart (School Reporter) @ Dinah Gravel (School Reporter) @ Peter Barmonde (Wedding Photographer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Glenn Close (Herself (uncredited)) @ Charles Dumas (Military court panelist (uncredited)) @ Whoopi Goldberg (Herself (uncredited)) @ Jay Leno (Himself (uncredited)) @ Anthony Ruivivar ( (uncredited)) @ Todd Stockman (Audience Member (uncredited) Produced by||The feel-bad movie of 1997 This movie made my teeth ache. It purports to be pro-gay, but in all actuality might do more harm than good. Oscar-winning actor(Matt Dillon??)thanks his gay drama teacher during his acceptance speech, but the teacher(Kevin Kline, overdoing it)confirms to everyone in his cozy little bigoted Midwestern town that he's straight, but is he? There was absolutely no reason to bring in gay reporter Tom Selleck(more question marks)nor is the final 'coming out' extravaganza anything more than facile and phony. The set-up for the finale(a wedding)is given a preamble with two gay men fixing their tuxedos in front of a mirror(implying they're the bride and groom)which made the theater audience I saw this with actually HISS! When audiences leave a movie-house feeling this hostile, I don't think a film like "In & Out" has done it's job. *1/2 from **** || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Incredible Mr. Limpet, The|Arthur Lubin|Animation||5.6|USA|1964| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John C. Rose |Jameson Brewer Joe DiMona Theodore Pratt John C. Rose|Harold E. Stine ||Warner Bros. [us] |GLUB! The Face That Launched A Thousand Torpedoes!|Milquetoast Henry Limpet experiences his fondest wish and is transformed into a fish. As a talking fish he assists the US Navy in hunting German submarines during World War II. |Don Knotts (Henry Limpet) @ Carole Cook (Bessie Limpet) @ Jack Weston (George Stickel) @ Andrew Duggan (Harlock) @ Larry Keating (Adm. P.P. Spewter) @ Oscar Beregi Jr. (Nazi admiral (as Oscar Beregi)) @ Charles Meredith (Fleet admiral) @ Elizabeth MacRae (Ladyfish (voice)) @ Paul Frees (Crusty (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Phil Arnold (Short fisherman (uncredited) Produced by||a sweet film, good for kids... I remember seeing this movie as a child. I can sympathize with the title character, who is not appreciated because he is unable to pass the physical to be accepted into the military (for World War II, I think). Because he is not 'manly' enough, people think he doesn't have anything to contribute.Any child who couldn't "make the team" will understand how he feels. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Indian In The Cupboard|||PG |||1985|96 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| An Adventure Comes To Life! The most amazing adventure isiawaiting.Are you readyito unlock theisecret? ||||Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.78:1 Color (Anamorphic) Standard 1.33:1 Color|ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Stereo FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade|Steven Spielberg|Action|PG-13 |8.0|USA|1989|127 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/16/2004|George Lucas Frank Marshall Arthur F. Repola Robert Watts|George Lucas Philip Kaufman George Lucas Menno Meyjes Jeffrey Boam|Douglas Slocombe ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Have the adventure of your life keeping up with the Joneses|Renowned archeologist and expert in the occult, Dr. Indiana Jones, returns for the 3rd and final Indy film. Teaming up with his father, Indiana sets out to try and find the Holy Grail. Once again, the Nazis are after the same prize, and try to foil Indianas plans. Indiana Jones returns again, and again this time, to save the world from the Nazis. In this film, the Nazis have kidnapped Indy's father, Professor Henry Jones, for his diary, which contains maps and first-hand accounts of many of the world's most sacred and hidden items. One of these such items, the Holy Grail, is what the Nazis are after, and is the reason they had kidnapped Prof. Jones and his diary. Indy must then make his way directly into the "lion's den" - Nazi Germany - in order to save his father, his diary, and the Holy Grail - all from the Nazis. This time, Indy (Harrison Ford) is on a perilous hunt for the Holy Grail. He's not alone, either. Joining Junior--uh, Indy--is none other than his cantankerous dad (Sean Connery). Father and son have rarely seen eye to eye. But if the adventure they share can't bridge the generation gap, nothing can. It can. It does. Also a brief glimpse into the life of Indy as an adolescent which reveals how the fedora, the bullwhip, and the ophidiophobia (fear of snakes) became part of Indy lore. |Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones) @ Sean Connery (Professor Henry Jones) @ Denholm Elliott (Dr. Marcus Brody) @ Alison Doody (Dr. Elsa Schneider) @ John Rhys-Davies (Sallah) @ Julian Glover (Walter Donovan) @ River Phoenix (Young Indy) @ Michael Byrne (Vogel) @ Kevork Malikyan (Kazim) @ Robert Eddison (Grail Knight) @ Richard Young (Fedora) @ Alexei Sayle (Sultan) @ Alex Hyde-White (Young Henry (scenes deleted)) @ Paul Maxwell (Panama Hat) @ Isla Blair (Mrs. Donovan (as Mrs. Glover)) @ Vernon Dobtcheff (Butler) @ J.J. Hardy (Herman) @ Bradley Gregg (Roscoe) @ Jeff O'Haco (Half Breed) @ Vince Deadrick Sr. (Rough Rider (as Vince Deadrick)) @ Marc Miles (Sheriff) @ Ted Grossman (Deputy Sheriff) @ Tim Hiser (Young Panama Hat) @ Larry Sanders (Scout Master) @ Will Miles (Scout #1) @ David Murray (Scout #2) @ Frederick Jaeger (WWI Ace (scenes deleted)) @ Jerry Harte (Professor Stanton) @ Billy J. Mitchell (Dr. Mulbray) @ Martin Gordon (Man at Hitler Rally) @ Paul Humpoletz (German Officer at Hitler Rally) @ Tom Branch (Hatay Soldier in Temple) @ Graeme Crowther (Zeppelin Crewman) @ Luke Hanson (Principal SS Officer at Castle) @ Chris Jenkinson (Officer at Castle) @ Nicola Scott (Female Officer at Castle) @ Louis Sheldon (Young Officer at Castle) @ Stefan Kalipha (Hatay Tank Gunner) @ Peter Pacey (Hatay Tank Driver) @ Pat Roach (Gestapo) @ Suzanne Roquette (Film Director (scenes deleted)) @ Eugene Lipinski (G-Man) @ George Malpas (Man on Zeppelin) @ Julie Eccles (Irene) @ Nina Almond (Flower Girl rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nick Gillard (Tank Crewman Hit by Periscope (uncredited)) @ Ronald Lacey (Heinrich Himmler (uncredited)) @ Michael Sheard (Adolf Hitler (uncredited)) @ Tip Tipping (Tank Crewman (uncredited)Produced by||Very good third installment This one was a lot better to me than the Temple of Doom.What made this one fun to watch was great action and great interplay between Connery and Harrison Ford.Sean Connery really added a spark to this one and provided the film with some of its more humorous elements (Still like Raiders best though).This one has Indiana looking for the Holy Grail...the villains, once again it is the Nazis.This one starts out with kind of an earlier Jones adventure with the late River Phoenix as the young Indiana Jones taking an artifact from this tomb raiders cause as Indy says, "it belongs in a museum".Then the story flash forwards to him trying to recover the same artifact.Then he goes after the Holy Grail because his father has disappeared while looking for it.This leads Indy to Venice then to a castle in, I think, Austria where he finds his dad a prisoner of the Nazis.After they get away they have to go into the heart of Germany to retrieve a book that will help them get through traps that protect the Holy Grail.They take a zephyr and there is a cool bi-plane fight and then it is off to a Middle Eastern country to find the grail.The trap scenes are cool and there is a great tank scene before the traps.Then comes the only complaint I have and that is the chamber with the Holy Grail...the guy guarding it was a bit lame.Other than that though, this was a really great movie. ||Full Screen |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Raiders of the Lost Ark|Steven Spielberg|Action|PG-13 |8.7|USA|1981|115 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/1/2004|Howard G. Kazanjian George Lucas Frank Marshall Robert Watts|George Lucas Philip Kaufman Lawrence Kasdan|Douglas Slocombe ||CIC Vídeo [br] |The creators of JAWS and STAR WARS now bring you the ultimate hero in the ultimate adventure.|Renowned archeologist and expert in the occult, Dr. Indiana Jones, is hired by the U.S. Government to find the Ark of the Covenant, which is believed to still hold the ten commandments. Unfortunately, agents of Hitler are also after the Ark. Indy, and his ex-flame Marion, escape from various close scrapes in a quest that takes them from Nepal to Cairo. You're in for thrills as Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) confronts snakes, Nazis and one astonishing cliffhanger after another--all topped off by awesome sequences involving the discovery and opening of the mystical Ark of the Covenant. It's one of the greatest adventures of all time. Spring 1936. In the thick jungle of the South American continent, a renowned archeologist and expert on the occult is studying fragments of a map, when one of his exploration party pulls a gun. The archeologist pulls out a bullwhip and with such disarms the turncoat, sending him running - thus does Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones stay alive. He and a guide enter a dank and oppressively vast cave that contains several traps created by the ancient race which hid inside a famous handheld statue; Indy barely escapes such traps but is cornered by native tribesmen served by Belloq, an old enemy who arrogantly makes off with the statue, while Indy must flee for his life and escape on a friend's seaplane. Back in the US Indy teaches at an LA-area university, where two agents from US Army intelligence tell him of Nazi German activities in archeology, including a gigantic excavation site in Egypt - a site that an intercepted cable indicates to Indy is the location of the Ark of the Covenant, the powerful chest bearing the Ten Commandments, that the Nazis can use to obliterate any enemy. Indy must recruit a former girlfriend (the daughter of his old professor) and an old chum in Cairo to infiltrate the Nazi site and make off with the Ark, but along the way Indy gets involved in a series of fights, chases, and traps, before the Nazis learn the full power of the Ark. |Harrison Ford (Indy) @ Karen Allen (Marion Ravenwood) @ Paul Freeman (Dr. Rene Belloq) @ Ronald Lacey (Toht) @ John Rhys-Davies (Sallah) @ Denholm Elliott (Dr. Marcus Brody) @ Alfred Molina (Satipo) @ Wolf Kahler (Dietrich) @ Anthony Higgins (Gobler) @ Vic Tablian (Barranca/Monkey Man) @ Don Fellows (Col. Musgrove) @ William Hootkins (Major Eaton) @ Bill Reimbold (Bureaucrat) @ Fred Sorenson (Jock) @ Patrick Durkin (Australian Climber) @ Matthew Scurfield (2nd Nazi) @ Malcolm Weaver (Ratty Nepalese (as Malcom Weaver)) @ Sonny Caldinez (Mean Mongolian) @ Anthony Chinn (Mohan) @ Pat Roach (Giant Sherpa/1st Mechanic) @ Christopher Frederick (Otto) @ Tutte Lemkow (Imam) @ Ishaq Bux (Omar) @ Kiran Shah (Abu) @ Souad Messaoudi (Fayah) @ Terry Richards (Arab Swordsman) @ Steve Hanson (German Agent) @ Frank Marshall (Pilot) @ Martin Kreidt (Young Soldier) @ George Harris (Katanga) @ Eddie Tagoe (Messenger Pirate) @ John Rees (Sergeant) @ Tony Vogel (Tall Captain) @ Ted Grossman (Peruvian Porter rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Peter Diamond (German Soldier (uncredited)) @ Romo Gorrara (German Soldier (uncredited)) @ Dennis Muren (Nazi Spy on the Airplane (uncredited)) @ Michael Sheard (U-Boat Captain (uncredited)Produced by||`'Raiders of the Lost Ark' achieves its goal of being not only a great popcorn flick, but also a great flick in all sense of the word. It delivers the goods in more than one way..." "Raiders of the Lost Ark" is just the kind of movie that serves its purpose: it is entertaining, thoroughly enjoyable with great actors; and most of all, just plain fun. Harrison Ford plays Dr. "Indiana" Jones, a knowledgeable professor by day, famed archeologist by night (sorta). After he loses the glasses and suit at night (or when his darker, more adventurous side is needed), and equips himself with a whip and a hat, he becomes the most adventurous history-powered character in.well.history. This time around (well, the first time for the audience), Jones is hired by the American government to find a mysterious, Biblical artifact named "The Ark of the Covenant," which, anyone who has gone to Bible school should know, is a very powerful weapon that only priests could touch without dying as history tells. Well, guess what? Some Nazis are hoping to find it before Jones and they want to - wait for it - use it as a weapon.This cannot happen. So Indy gears up and ships out to get them thar' Nazis (I love talking in hick language during plot summaries!) along with an old flare, Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) who has in her possession a very important medallion. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" achieves its goal of being not only a great popcorn flick, but also a great flick in all sense of the word. It delivers the goods in more than one way. Harrison Ford is completely believable as Indy, a guy who is not as gung-ho as the stereotypical heroes of the average adventure-dramas. We feel that he is at many times stressed with his missions but carries them out with a smug smirk anyway, just because he is Indy, and that's what he does. Karen Allen provides just enough umph and sassiness to the film to keep the plot and character progression moving, as well as to add a few gray hairs to Indy's head. Steven Spielberg directs this film excellently with help from writer/co-producer George "Star Wars" Lucas and Philip "The Right Stuff" Kaufman. The cinematography is beautiful, and the camerawork brings out the emotions in the characters in both visual and symbolic ways. Essentially, "Raiders..." has established itself as a film franchise in of itself over the years, spawning two (no, wait, an upcoming three) sequels since its release in 1981. When it came out it was a huge hit, and now it is marked in history books, as well as having been branded in the culture of not only America, but also the whole world. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" is without a doubt one of the best adventure movies ever, that set the path for many films we see today. If you have not seen this movie yet, then go out right now and rent it. I mean it. Right now. 5/5 stars ||Full Screen |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom|Steven Spielberg|Action|PG-13 |7.2|USA|1984|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/29/2004|Kathleen Kennedy George Lucas Frank Marshall Robert Watts|George Lucas Willard Huyck Gloria Katz|Douglas Slocombe ||CIC Vídeo [br] |If adventure has a name... it must be Indiana Jones.|Renowned archeologist and expert in the occult, Dr. Indiana Jones, is back in action in the 2nd Indy film. He teams up with a night club singer and a 12 year old named Short Round. They end up in an Indian village, where the people believe evil spirits have taken their children away after a sacred stone was stolen. Indiana agrees to try and retrieve the stone for the villagers. 1935. At a swanky nightclub in Hong Kong, Indiana Jones confronts Lao Che, a Chinese gangster, for a trade - a reward in exchange for the ashes of a Ming dynasty emperor. The gangster's sons, however, won't let Indy get out of the trade alive, and a violent struggle ensues that snares up the gangster's moll, torch singer Wilhemina Scott. Indy and Willie escape with Indy's pre-teen sidekick, Short Round, and fly out of Hong Kong - unaware their plane belongs to Lao Che and the two pilots are ordered to bail out over India. Indy, Willie, and Shorty manage to escape and wind up being greeted by a village elder who shows them the ruins of his village - ruins caused by the theft of three stones of great magic power, taken to a gigantic mountaintop palace. The palace, however, belongs to a peaceful young Indian prince who assures that no such action occurred from his palace. Indy, however, is attacked in his bedroom and finds a vast underground system of caverns that lead to an ancient terrorist cult long thought dead, a cult that has kidnapped the children of the village and is using them to dig for the magic stones. When Indy and his friends are captured they are to be sacrificed to the pit of molten rock, but a violent showdown begins that erupts into a savage brawl, gunfire, a mad minecar pursuit, the collapse of an undcerground dam, and a showdown at a rope bridge that threatens to kill Indy, his friends, and the cult. |Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones) @ Kate Capshaw (Wilhelmina 'Willie' Scott) @ Jonathan Ke Quan (Short Round (as Ke Huy Quan)) @ Amrish Puri (Mola Ram) @ Roshan Seth (Chattar Lal) @ Philip Stone (Captain Blumburtt) @ Roy Chiao (Lao Che) @ David Yip (Wu Han) @ Ric Young (Kao Kan) @ Chua Kah Joo (Chen) @ Rex Ngui (Maitre d') @ Philip Tan (Chief Henchman (as Philip Tann)) @ Dan Aykroyd (Weber) @ Dr. Akio Mitamura (Chinese Pilot (as Akio Mitamura)) @ Michael Yama (Chinese Co-Pilot) @ D.R. Nanayakkara (Shaman) @ Dharmadasa Kuruppu (Chieftain) @ Stany De Silva (Sajnu) @ Ruby De Miel (Village Woman) @ D.M. Denawake (Village Woman) @ I. Serasinghe (Village Woman) @ Dharshana Panangala (Village Child) @ Raj Singh (Little Maharaja) @ Frank Olegario (Merchant #1) @ Ahmed El Shenawi (Merchant #2) @ Arthur F. Repola (Eel Eater (as Art Repola)) @ Nizwar Karanj (Sacrifice Victim) @ Pat Roach (Chief Guard) @ Moti Makan (Guard) @ Mellan Mitchell (Temple Guard) @ Bhasker (Temple Guard (as Bhasker Patel)) @ Arjun Pandher (1st Boy in Cell) @ Zia Gelani (2nd Boy in Cell) @ Debbie Astell (Dancer) @ Maureen Bacchus (Dancer) @ Corinne Barton (Dancer) @ Carol Beddington (Dancer (as Carol Bebbington)) @ Sharon Boone (Dancer) @ Elizabeth Burville (Dancer) @ Marisa Campbell (Dancer) @ Christine Cartwright (Dancer) @ Andrea Chance (Dancer) @ Jan Colton (Dancer) @ Louise Dalgleish (Dancer) @ Lorraine Doyle (Dancer) @ Vanessa Fieldwright (Dancer) @ Brenda Glassman (Dancer) @ Elaine Gough (Dancer) @ Sue Hadleigh (Dancer) @ Sarah-Jane Hassell (Dancer) @ Samantha Hughes (Dancer) @ Julie Kirk (Dancer) @ Deirdre Laird (Dancer) @ Vicki McDonald (Dancer) @ Nina McMahon (Dancer) @ Julia Marstand (Dancer) @ Gaynor Martine (Dancer) @ Lisa Mulidore (Dancer) @ Dawn Reddall (Dancer) @ Rebekkah Sekyi (Dancer) @ Clare Smalley (Dancer) @ Lee Sprintall (Dancer) @ Jenny Turnock (Dancer) @ Ruth Welby (Dancer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Sidney Ganis (Missionary (uncredited)) @ George Lucas (Missionary (uncredited)) @ Frank Marshall (Tourist at Airport (uncredited)) @ Anthony Powell (Missionary (uncredited)) @ Steven Spielberg (Tourist at Airport (uncredited)Produced by||People may put it down, but I liked it Temple of Doom is a perfect transition fromLost Ark to the Last Crusade. Every filmseries needs its dark chapter, which provedto be the dark and unusual Temple of Doom.Harrison Ford was especially good in hisrole as Jones, being a little more subduedand action oriented compared to the original.While this film is considered the weakest inthe series, I'm not one to go against thisassumption. However, in most years, a filmlike Temple of Doom would be better thanthe garbage that is typically thrown out on ayearly basis. If this film is ever in a midnightshowing or something, I'll definitely go for it. ||Full Screen |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Insomnia|Christopher Nolan|Crime|Rated R for language, some violence and brief nudity. R|7.4|USA|2002|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|George Clooney Ben Cosgrove Broderick Johnson Paul Junger Witt Andrew A. Kosove Edward McDonnell Kim Roth Charles J.D. Schlissel Steven Soderbergh Emma Thomas Tony Thomas Steven P. Wegner|Nikolaj Frobenius Erik Skjoldbjærg Hillary Seitz|Wally Pfister ||Buena Vista International [gb] |Don't close your eyes.|Sent from the city to investigate the murder of a teenage girl in a small Alaska town, a police detective (Pacino) accidentally shoots his own partner while trying to apprehend a suspect. Instead of admitting his guilt, the detective is given an unexpected alibi, but this "solution" only multiplies the emotional complexity and guilt over his partner's death. He's also still got a murder to solve, in addition to the blackmail and framing of an innocent bystander being orchestrated by the man they were chasing. There's also a local detective (Swank) who is conducting her own personal investigation... of his partner's death. Will it all come crashing down on him? |Al Pacino (Detective Will Dormer) @ Martin Donovan (Detective Hap Eckhart) @ Oliver 'Ole' Zemen (Pilot) @ Hilary Swank (Detective Ellie Burr) @ Paul Dooley (Chief Charlie Nyback) @ Nicky Katt (Fred Duggar) @ Larry Holden (Farrell) @ Jay Brazeau (Francis) @ Lorne Cardinal (Rich) @ James Hutson (Officer #1) @ A.R. Campbell (Officer #2 (as Andrew Campbell)) @ Paula Shaw (Coroner) @ Crystal Lowe (Kay Connell) @ Tasha Simms (Mrs. Connell) @ Maura Tierney (Rachel Clement) @ Jonathan Jackson (Randy Stetz) @ Malcolm Boddington (Principal) @ Katharine Isabelle (Tanya Francke) @ Robin Williams (Walter 'Walt' Finch) @ Kerry Sandomirsky (Trish Eckhart) @ Chris Gauthier (Uniformed Officer (as Chris Guthior)) @ Ian Tracey (Warfield) @ Kate Robbins (Woman on the Road) @ Emily Perkins (Girl at Funeral (as Emily Jane Perkins)) @ Dean Wray (Ticket TakerProduced by||Don't go to sleep! There is a crime to solve. This is a thriller that just keeps stacking on the intrigue and excitement. Powerful and masterful acting. Al Pacino is a high profile detective that goes to Alaska with his partner to help out in a murder case. Hilary Swank plays a young cop that is also trying to solve the crime along with the Alaskan police. After Pacino accidentally kills his partner, he is blackmailed by the hunted sadistic killer(Robin Williams)who witnessed the shooting. When Pacino is not playing cat and mouse with Williams, he is trying like hell to get some sleep; but sleep doesn't come. Pacino is convincing and it is really interesting to see the darker side of Williams. Swank is actually impressive and could have handled a meatier role. Kudos to director Christopher Nolan for the atmospheric chiller. Highly recommended. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles|Neil Jordan|Drama|R |7.1|USA|1994|123 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|David Geffen Redmond Morris Stephen Woolley|Anne Rice Anne Rice|Philippe Rousselot ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Drink From Me And Live Forever|It hadn't even been a year since a plantation owner named Louis had lost his wife, and now he had lost his will to live. A vampire named Lestat takes a liking to Louis and offers him the chance to become a creature of the night: a vampire. Louis accepts, and Lestat drains Louis' mortal blood and then replaces it with his own turning Louis into a vampire. Louis must learn from Lestat the ways of the vampire. In 1791, plantation owner Louis outside New Orleans has lost his courage to live. He gets bitten by the vampire Lestat and is himself turned into one. He hates being a vampire and refuses to kill humans. Louis and Lestat turn a little girl, Claudia, into a vampire, and together they live on through the centuries. |Tom Cruise (Lestat de Lioncourt) @ Brad Pitt (Louis de Pointe du Lac) @ Kirsten Dunst (Claudia) @ Stephen Rea (Santiago) @ Antonio Banderas (Armand) @ Christian Slater (Daniel Malloy) @ Virginia McCollam (Whore on waterfront) @ John McConnell (Gambler) @ Mike Seelig (Pimp) @ Bellina Logan (Tavern girl) @ Thandie Newton (Yvette) @ Indra Ové (New Orleans whore) @ Helen McCrory (Whore #2) @ Lyla Hay Owen (Widow St. Clair) @ Lee Emery (Widow's lover) @ Monte Montague (Plague victim bearer) @ Nathalie Bloch (Maid) @ Jeanette Kontomitras (Woman in square) @ Roger Lloyd-Pack (Piano teacher) @ George Kelly (Dollmaker) @ Nicole DuBois (Creole woman (as Nicole DuBois)) @ Micha Bergese (Paris vampire) @ Rory Edwards (Paris vampire) @ Marcel Iures (Paris vampire) @ Susan Lynch (Paris vampire) @ Louise Salter (Paris vampire) @ Matthew Sim (Paris vampire) @ François Testory (Paris vampire) @ Andrew Tiernan (Paris vampire) @ Simon Tyrrell (Paris vampire) @ George Yiasoumi (Paris vampire) @ Sara Stockbridge (Estelle) @ Laure Marsac (Mortal woman on stage) @ Katia Caballero (Woman in audience) @ Louis Lewis-Smith (Denis the Mortal Boy) @ Domiziana Giordano (Madeleine rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Daniel Kamin (Carlos, plantation overseer (uncredited)) @ Burgin Sund (Bit part (uncredited)) @ Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc (News anchor (uncredited)Produced by||Vampire essence I have a passion for films with dark settings. What's even better is when the film is not only dark and dismal but also deep and engrossing. With a combination of Anne Rice's script and Neil Jordan's direction, the overlooked Interview with the Vampire not only looks great but contains good material. Most of the time when a film is based on a novel it will try to capture the themes of the novel by choosing areas to work from. Luckily Anne Rice also writes the screenplay and understands more than anyone else what areas need addressing, providing the backbone to the dialogue and plot. Set in 1791 Orleans and progressing through different periods of time, IWTV is technically excellent and aware of its surroundings. From the first moment your eyes are fixed on the screen. This is the sign of great art direction coupled with costume design and set pieces that are more than pleasing on the eye. Far from in your face the film allows a taste of each period with a mixture of light and colourful scenes to the more prominent dreary settings it encompasses. Moonlit streets, abandoned plague ridden residential and underground gothic architectures all add to the great detail that has been taken in creating a believable and picturesque look to the films periods it contains. Helped also by a musical score that really lurks in the background, depicts the time and in some areas the feeling aptly. The story, told with a mixture of narration from the protagonist (Brad Pitt in this case) and a screenplay with enough room for all the stars makes a tight little package. At just over 2 hours long though, this may put off the viewer looking for an all out action vampire piece or those with little patience. Interview after all is a drama at heart with horror elements but what sets it apart from others is the humane way in which it's dealt with. A point in the film that leans on stereotypical vampire views sets the tone of the film perfectly, fiction aside Vampires aren't so unlike humans which is portrayed through the emotions (or rejection of them) throughout. One of the key players in such a task is surprisingly Tom Cruise as the bad influence Lestat. In one of his more challenging roles, Cruise conveys a charm that fits the theatricals of his character perfectly. Through excellent makeup and clothes from a period he refuses to break free from, Cruise is less distinguishable but all the more better for losing the usual side of him that may have been too familiar. Left only with a look of ferocity and impertinence Cruise works his role to a brilliant combination that really brings out the character of Lestat making him extremely fun to watch. Lestat's mood swings and cruel insinuations really spark the film up, stealing every scene he's in. What makes the film interesting is how every character has a background and each character has different things that make them tick. Along for the ride with Cruise and Pitt is a very young Kirsten Dunst as the disillusioned vampire child Claudia. It seems that Jordan is a good director for getting performances as Dunst gives a fine performance at such a young age, definitely showing more promise than the usual teenage focal points she has set herself on since. While Lestat is the most enjoyable character and practically the teacher, Louis and Claudia are the key elements to a story of self-discovery concerning the dark world they have joined. Other than this Christian Slater and Antonio Banderas share little screen time but enough to make their characters wholesome enough. One area that I applaud but others may disclude is the vivid scenes of a gory nature used profusely throughout. Jordan, going for realism and with blood being an important part of vampire life includes graphic details.. and with no holds barred. Jordans realistic touches add only to the plausibility of the vampire way of life, emphasising the grotesque way of living they are lumbered with for eternity. Such a eternal damnation is one of the main themes of the film exploring the depreciation of Louis and Claudia and how they come to terms with their new life. It would seem that such a serious tone to a fictional tale would make it hard to enjoy but with a mixture of dark humour throughout the film knows not to take itself 'too' seriously. The end clearly establishes this fact nicely. Minor quibbles aside like some hokey dialogue from time to time and despite Pitt underplaying his performance a little, among the Vampire genre and even as a drama this is a classy piece of work from a intelligent director with a flair for dark style (in most of his other films too), and more importantly produces a epic tale with sturdy direction. If you have the interest for a drama, specifically based around vampires there is little other choice than this. Through its fine performances and stunning look one things for sure, you wont forget this one easily. 7.5 out of 10 || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ It|Tommy Lee Wallace|Horror||6.5|USA|1990| 192 min/ Germany:182 min (2 parts) / Spain:179 min (DVD edition) / Sweden:181 min (DVD edition) / 60 min (3 episodes) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mark Bacino Allen S. Epstein Jim Green Matthew O'Connor|Stephen King Lawrence D. Cohen Lawrence D. Cohen Tommy Lee Wallace|Richard Leiterman ||Warner Home Video [es] |The Master of Horror unleashes everything you were ever afraid of. |A series of murders prompts Mike Hanlon to suspect that the supernatural menace that he and a group of friends battled as children has returned. He begins to call his friends to remind them of the oath they swore: if It returned again, they would come back to Derry to do battle again. Derry, Maine is a town plagued by a disease known as "It", that has caused a series of horrible deaths every 30 years. Only children are falling victim to "It" through his form of a manipulative clown named Pennywise and the adults act like "It" doesn't happen although ironically they know about "It". Seven kids who defeat "It" in their childhood reunite in their middle ages after learning about "It's" return. Can they defeat "It" and cure Derry of "It's" terror? Based on the Best-Selling novel by Stephen King. In the quiet town of Derry, Maine, Seven freinds, Bill, Eddie, Mike, Bev, Stan, Richie and Ben (the losers club) have all been seeing and hearing strange things. Most of which revolve around a Clown called pennywise in which they all admit being real, the kids eventually discover that the leader of the club, Bill's little brother fell victim to this evil. The group sets out to stop the force and put it to rest once and for all. 30 years after defeating IT, Mike Hanlon, the only Member who remained in derry, is suspecting that IT has returned and is forced to call back all of the Losers club, due to a promise they all made to return if its evil shall ever resurface. Uncovering new powers, clues and evil the club reunites as adults and come face to face with the evil that has haunted and fed on derry for the last centuries. |Harry Anderson (Richard 'Richie/Trashmouth' Tozier) @ Dennis Christopher (Eddie Kaspbrak) @ Richard Masur (Stanley 'Stan' Uris) @ Annette O'Toole (Beverly 'Bev/Bevvie' Marsh Rogan) @ Tim Reid (Michael 'Mike/Mikey' Hanlon) @ John Ritter (Ben 'Haystack' Hanscom) @ Richard Thomas (William 'Stuttering Bill' Denbrough) @ Tim Curry (Robert 'Bob' Gray/Pennywise the Dancing Clown/It) @ Jonathan Brandis (William 'Stuttering Bill' Denbrough (age 12)) @ Brandon Crane (Ben 'Haystack' Hanscom (age 12)) @ Adam Faraizl (Eddie Kaspbrak (age 12)) @ Seth Green (Richard 'Richie' Tozier (age 12)) @ Ben Heller (Stanley 'Stan' Uris (age 12)) @ Emily Perkins (Beverly 'Bev/Bevvie' Marsh (age 12)) @ Marlon Taylor (Michael 'Mike/Mikey' Hanlon (age 12)) @ Olivia Hussey (Audra Phillips Denbrough) @ Michael Cole (Henry Bowers) @ Sheila Moore (Mrs. Sonya Kaspbrak) @ Jarred Blancard (Henry Bowers (age 14)) @ Florence Patterson (Mrs. Gray Kersh) @ Jay Brazeau (Taxi Driver) @ Drum Garrett (Reginald 'Belch' Huggins) @ Gabe Khouth (Patrick Hocksetter) @ Ryan Michael (Thomas 'Tom' Rogan) @ Charles Siegel (Nat) @ Venus Terzo (Cyndi) @ Frank C. Turner (Alvin Marsh) @ Caitlin Hicks (Patricia 'Patti' Blum Uris) @ Tony Dakota (George 'Georgie' Elmer Denbrough) @ Steven Hilton (Zack Denbrough) @ Sheelah Megill (Sharon Denbrough) @ Kim Kondrashoff (Joey) @ Noel Geer (Bradley Douglas) @ Chelan Simmons (Laurie Ann Winterbarger) @ Merrilyn Gann (Mrs. Winterbarger) @ William B. Davis (Mr. Gedreau) @ Susan Astley (Aunt Jean) @ Claire Brown (Mrs. Arlene Hanscomb) @ Gary Chalk (Physical Education Coach) @ Terence Kelly (Police Officer Aloysius Nell) @ Donna Peerless (Mrs. Douglas) @ Steve Makaj (Mr. Hanscomb) @ Scott Swanson (Rademacher) @ Nicola Cavendish (Convience Shop Clerk) @ Tom Heaton (Norbert Keene) @ Paul Batten (Chemist Pharmacist) @ Russell Roberts (Greco) @ Bill Croft (Koontz) @ Amos Hertzman (Fat School Student) @ Boyd Norman (Gas Station Attendant) @ Helena Yea (Hostess Rose) @ Suzie Payne (Female Taxi Driver) @ Megan Leitch (Libary Aide) @ Deva Neil DePodesta (Homeless Person) @ Katherine Banwell (Television Announcer) @ Douglas Newell (Hospital Doctor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Laura Harris (Loni (uncredited)) @ Gary Hetherington (Police Deputy (uncredited) Produced by||Classic Supernatural Horror. WOW, is this a good movie. YES!!!! "IT" is one of the best Stephen King films around!!!! The plot and story was terrific! I even think that the film is better than the book!! The acting was great, including John Ritter, and the script is great!!! Also Tim Curry's performance as "Pennywise the Clown" is brillaint and scary! The story is great! A murderous clown terrorizes and murders children in the town "Derry", then seven children defeat "IT" and are reunited years later, on account of "IT" coming back and terrorizing more children in Derry! It's a brillaint film!!! I'll tell you what, don't even bother with the book, and watch this great and terrifying film! This is the ULTIMATE Stephen King Movie!!! Everyone should see this movie!!! I give this great film a 10 out of 10!!! || ||2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ It's a Wonderful Life|Frank Capra|Drama||8.6|USA|1946| 130 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Frank Capra |Philip Van Doren Stern Frances Goodrich Albert Hackett Frank Capra Jo Swerling Michael Wilson|Joseph F. Biroc Joseph Walker Victor Milner||Artisan Entertainment [us] |They're making memories tonight!|George Bailey has so many problems he is thinking about ending it all - and it's Christmas ! As the angels discuss George, we see his life in flashback. As George is about to jump from a bridge, he ends up rescuing his guardian angel, Clarence. Clarence then shows George what his town would have looked like if it hadn't been for all his good deeds over the years. Will Clarence be able to convince George to return to his family and forget about suicide ? George Bailey spends his entire life giving up his big dreams for the good of his town, Bedford Falls, as we see in flashback. But in the present, on Christmas Eve, he is broken and suicidal over the misplacing of an $8000 loan and the machinations of the evil millionaire, Mr. Potter. His guardian angel, Clarence, falls to Earth, literally, and shows him how his town, family, and friends would turn out if he had never been born. George meant so much to so many people; should he really throw it all away? On Christmas eve, all of the citizens of the small town of Bedford Falls pray to the heavens to help George Bailey. It's then decided that Clarence, an angel who hasn't earned his wings, to help George. Before he does, he should know who George Bailey. George Bailey grew up in Bedford Falls, which is a small town, he dreams of somebody leaving it and making his mark on the world. His family's business is all what stands between the good citizens and Mr. Potter, a rich miser who takes sick pleasure in taking from everybody, without even caring how it affects them. George was all set to leave when his father died and George had to take care of the business. George would forever be stymied with his plans to leave and when he thinks that he is nothing but a failure, he decides to kill himself and that's when Clarence comes in and tries to convince him that he has made something with his life and that he had a "Wonderful Life". |James Stewart (George Bailey) @ Donna Reed (Mary Hatch Bailey) @ Lionel Barrymore (Mr. Potter) @ Thomas Mitchell (Uncle William 'Billy' Bailey) @ Henry Travers (Clarence Oddbody) @ Beulah Bondi (Ma Bailey) @ Frank Faylen (Ernie Bishop (taxi driver)) @ Ward Bond (Officer Bert) @ Gloria Grahame (Violet Bick) @ H.B. Warner (Mr. Gower (the druggist)) @ Frank Albertson (Sam Wainwright) @ Todd Karns (Harry Bailey) @ Samuel S. Hinds (Peter Bailey (Pa)) @ Mary Treen (Cousin Tilly) @ Virginia Patton (Ruth Dakin Bailey) @ Charles Williams (Cousin Eustace) @ Sarah Edwards (Mrs. Hatch) @ William Edmunds (Mr. Martini (bar owner) (as Bill Edmunds)) @ Lillian Randolph (Anne (Bailey family maid)) @ Argentina Brunetti (Mrs. Martini) @ Ronnie Ralph (Little Sam) @ Jean Gale (Young Mary) @ Jeanine Ann Roose (Little Violet) @ Danny Mummert (Little Marty Hatch) @ Georgie Nokes (Little Harry Bailey) @ Sheldon Leonard (Nick (bartender at Martini's)) @ Frank Hagney (Potter's bodyguard) @ Ray Walker (Joe (luggage salesman)) @ Charles Lane (Rent collector (in Potter's office) (as Charlie Lane)) @ Edward Keane (Tom (building & loan depositor) (as Edward Kean)) @ Carol Coombs (Janie Bailey (as Carol Coomes)) @ Karolyn Grimes (Zuzu Bailey) @ Larry Simms (Peter Bailey (son)) @ Jimmy Hawkins (Tommy Bailey rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jean Acker ( (uncredited)) @ Ernie Adams (Ed (building & looan deposit [$20]) (uncredited)) @ Monya Andre ( (uncredited)) @ Stanley Andrews (Mr. Welch (teacher's husband) (uncredited)) @ Sam Ash (Nervous banker (uncredited)) @ Mary Bayless ( (uncredited)) @ Beth Belden ( (uncredited)) @ Joseph E. Bernard ( (uncredited)) @ Al Bridge (Sheriff (uncredited)) @ Buz Buckley ( (uncredited)) @ Marian Carr (Mrs. Jane Wainwright (uncredited)) @ Lane Chandler (Man (uncredited)) @ Michael Chapin (Kid (uncredited)) @ Tom Chatterton ( (uncredited)) @ Harry Cheshire (Dr. Cavanaugh (Chairman of Board of Directors) (uncredited)) @ Edward Clark ( (uncredited)) @ Tom Coleman ( (uncredited)) @ Ellen Corby (Miss Davis (building & loan depositor [$17.50]) (uncredited)) @ Bryn Davis ( (uncredited)) @ Lew Davis (High school teacher at poolside (uncredited)) @ Harry Denny ( (uncredited)) @ Dick Elliott (Man on porch (uncredited)) @ Tom Fadden (Tollhouse keeper (uncredited)) @ Frank Fenton (Violet's boyfriend, with mustache (uncredited)) @ Eddie Fetherston (Horace (bank teller) (uncredited)) @ Sam Flint (Relieved banker in Potter's office (uncredited)) @ Lee Frederick (Man (uncredited)) @ Herschel Graham ( (uncredited)) @ Charles Halton (Carter (bank examiner) (uncredited)) @ Carl Eric Hansen ( (uncredited)) @ Herbert Heywood (Building & Loan depositor (uncredited)) @ Harry Holman (Mr. Partridge (school principal) (uncredited)) @ Art Howard ( (uncredited)) @ Bert Howard ( (uncredited)) @ Eddie Kane (Building & Loan depositor (uncredited)) @ Joseph Kearns (Angel (uncredited) (voice)) @ Carl Kent ( (uncredited)) @ Milton Kibbee (Building & Loan director (uncredited)) @ Effie Laird ( (uncredited)) @ Mike Lally ( (uncredited)) @ Harold Landon (Marty Hatch (uncredited)) @ J. Farrell MacDonald (House owner (uncredited)) @ Irene Mack ( (uncredited)) @ Wilbur Mack ( (uncredited)) @ Charles Meakin ( (uncredited)) @ Bert Moorhouse (Bouncer at Nick's (uncredited)) @ Philip Morris ( (uncredited)) @ Frank O'Connor ( (uncredited)) @ Moroni Olsen (Voice of senior angel (uncredited) (voice)) @ Garry Owen (Bill Poster (uncredited)) @ Netta Packer ( (uncredited)) @ Franklin Parker ( (uncredited)) @ Cy Schindell (Nick's bouncer (uncredited)) @ Bobby Scott (Mickey (uncredited)) @ Almira Sessions (Potter's secretary (uncredited)) @ Cedric Stevens ( (uncredited)) @ Charles Sullivan (Counterman (uncredited)) @ Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer (Freddie Othello (uncredited)) @ Max Wagner (Cashier/Assistant bouncer at Nick's (uncredited)) @ Charles C. Wilson (Charlie (Building & Loan depositor) (uncredited) Produced by||So is the movie... Review edited and therefore quite choppy due to maximum word limit. For full review see wiredonmovies.com... Has there ever been a truer and more heartfelt character than George Bailey? This is a man whose life is one of great significance, but he, like all of us, does not always realize that this is so. He does not recognize his impact on the world until an angel erases his existence like chalk on a board. It is then that he is hit by the fact that one man's failing life isn't always as inconsequential as it may seem. We all remember when Clarence (Henry Travers) first appears on that snowy bridge and saves George Bailey (James Stewart) from committing suicide. He explains nonchalantly that he is an angel and George is incredulous--until Clarence wipes away his entire past. His mother doesn't recognize him. George tells her about his uncle as a source of belief. She states that his uncle has been dead for some time, now. The best scene in the entire film is that following when George is thrown out by his mother. He runs towards the camera in an intense wide shot, his face registering emotions of fear, horror, and ultimately the horrid understanding of what has happened. This role is the highlight of James Stewart's career--he never came anywhere close to the superb performance he gives in this movie. There is a reason it was his favorite film he ever starred in. Stewart's portrayal of George Bailey is the grown image of all of us: As a child he dreamed of nothing but exotic locations and adventurous travels to foreign lands. But now he is a family man, a father and a husband. He has left behind his silly bachelor notions, but they still come back to haunt him. Bailey owns the town savings and loan, left to him by his father. The cranky Mr. Potter (Lionel Barrymore) wants complete monopoly over the town, and all that stands in his way is Bailey and his little bank. But Bailey, an inner disgust and hatred towards Potter brewing since his childhood days, refuses to cave in and give it all away. Then one day, George's absentminded and quite eccentric uncle (Thomas Mitchell), misplaces a large sum of money, leaving George hopeless and Potter with a serious advantage. After blowing up at his wife (Donna Reed) and kids at home, George gets drunk at a local bar, is scorned at by a schoolteacher's wife, and left dazed and confused, walking through the snowy town at night during the happy Christmas season without a hope in the world. Battered and delirious, thinking back over his apparently pointless and wasted life, he contemplates suicide. He prays to God and wishes that he had never existed. Which is why Clarence comes down from heaven to sort things out and answer his prayer. Essentially bombing at the box office when it was first released, and then proceeding to fall into copyright problems for years, "It's a Wonderful Life" resurfaced only years later when it was brought back into the public domain circa 1970. When other channels were airing expensive Hollywood movies during the Christmas season, PBS picked up the film and played it as a counter attack, a weak hope prevailing in them that the classic film buffs out there would tune in. They did. And so did families across the nation. Every year the ratings got stronger and stronger and now, almost sixty years following the movie's initial release, it is considered a holiday tradition. George considers suicide as a way of escaping his problems without really thinking over the possible outcomes given his final choice. He looks back upon his life as wasted potential; he wanted to become an adventurer, break his family's small-town tradition and become something huge. Mentally scanning his life to the point in time when he stands on that bridge, George Bailey believes that he has simply and truly created a waste of space. He's ready to end his (assumed) pointless life when his entire point of view is wholly altered by the power of God. George suddenly realizes that though he never lived out his boyhood fantasies, he did so much more than he ever dreamed of. He saved his brother's life, which resulted in a huge impact in later years; he made an influence in the lives of others and brought peace and harmony to an otherwise small town by prevailing at the requests of Mr. Potter; he married a beautiful wife and had children, all of whom will no doubt have some measure of significance later in the world. And his wish on that bridge was that he had never been born. Often I am asked to name my favorite movie, and though I ignore requests and state that I have not seen every existing movie and therefore my judgment carries no significance, I have the lightest whimsy that "It's a Wonderful Life" may be my favorite motion picture to date. I cherish few other films just as close, but to me, "It's a Wonderful Life" is more moving than "Casablanca," a better study of one man's life than "Citizen Kane," and a movie that will live on in the hearts and memory of viewers long after we are gone. I believe that this is the definitive Americana motion picture, regardless of how I compare it to my other favorites, which may carry the same weight but not the same true significance. Few films come as close to the heart as "It's a Wonderful Life." And few films come as close to "It's a Wonderful Life" at all, for that matter. 5/5. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Jakob the Liar|Peter Kassovitz|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for violence and disturbing images. |5.8|USA|1999| 120 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Nick Gillott Steven Haft Lew Rywin Marsha Garces Williams Robin Williams|Jurek Becker Peter Kassovitz Didier Decoin|Elemér Ragályi ||Columbia Pictures [us] |When all hope was lost, he invented it.|In 1944 Poland, a Jewish shop keeper named Jakob is summoned to ghetto headquarters after being caught out after curfew. While waiting for the German Kommondant, Jakob overhears a German radio broadcast about Russian troop movements. Returned to the ghetto, the shopkeeper shares his information with a friend and then rumors fly that there is a secret radio within the ghetto. Jakob uses the chance to spread hope throughout the ghetto by continuing to tell favorable tales of information from "his secret radio." Jakob, however, has a real secret in that he is hiding a young Jewish girl who escaped from a camp transport train. A rather uplifting and slightly humorous film about World War II Jewish Ghetto life. During World War II in Nazi occupied Poland, poor Jewish café owner Jakob (Robin Williams) accidentally overhears a forbidden radio news bulletin signaling Soviet military successes against German forces. To fight the incredible depression and suicide throughout the ghetto, Jakob tells fictitious news bulletins about Allied advances against the Nazis. These lies keep hope and humor alive among the ghetto inhabitants. The Germans learn of the mythical radio, however, and begin a search for the resistance hero who dares operate it. Polonia. Seconda Guerra Mondiale. Nel ghetto ebraico di una piccola città, durante l'occupazione nazista, Jakob, ex proprietario di un caffè, ascolta per caso da una radio tedesca che le armate russe si stanno organizzando al confine. Per una serie di malintesi, la notizia diventa di pubblico dominio e tutti si convincono che l'uomo ha con sé una radio (proibita agli ebrei dagli invasori), dalla quale ascolta i bollettini alleati, che parlerebbero di una prossima vittoria sulle truppe di occupazione. Per tenere sollevati gli animi, Jakob sta al gioco e continua a far pensare agli altri queste cose, diramando anche falsi bollettini alleati. Il gioco, però, si fa sempre più pericoloso, perché anche i nazisti credono alla esistenza della radio e torturano in pubblico il povero Jakob per sapere dov'è nascosta. Per non far perdere le speranze ai propri concittadini, il malcapitato 'eroe per forza' non parla, e viene ucciso. Di lì a poco i russi arrivano davvero a salvare la cittadina dai nazisti. |Robin Williams (Jakob Heym/Narrator) @ Hannah Taylor-Gordon (Lina Kronstein (as Hannah Taylor Gordon)) @ Éva Igó (Lina's Mother (as Eva Igo)) @ István Bálint (Lina's Father (as Istvan Balint)) @ Justus von Dohnanyi (Preuss) @ Kathleen Gati (Hooker) @ Bob Balaban (Kowalsky) @ Alan Arkin (Max Frankfurter) @ Michael Jeter (Avron) @ Mark Margolis (Fajngold) @ János Gosztonyi (Samuel) @ Liev Schreiber (Mischa the Prizefighter) @ Armin Mueller-Stahl (Dr. Kirschbaum aka Professor) @ Ádám Rajhona (The Whistler (as Adam Rajhona)) @ Antal Leisen (Peg-Leg) @ Mathieu Kassovitz (Herschel) @ Péter Rudolf (Roman (as Peter Rudolf)) @ Jan Becker (Young German) @ János Kulka (Nathan (as Janos Kulka)) @ Gregg Bello (Blumenthal) @ Nina Siemaszko (Rosa Frankfurter) @ Grazyna Barszczewska (Mrs. Frankfurter) @ Judit Sagi (Mrs. Avron) @ Ilona Psota (Grandmother) @ Ági Margittay (Miss Esther (as Agi Margitai)) @ Iván Darvas (Hardtloff (as Ivan Darvis)) @ László Borbély (Doctor (as Laszlo Borbely)) @ Zolí Anders (Meyer (as Zoli Anders)) @ Miroslaw Zbrojewicz (SS Officer 1) @ Józef Mika (Soldier (as Josef Mika)) @ György Szkladányi (SS Officer 2) @ Zofia Saretok (Neighbor) @ Michael Mehlmann (Escaping Man) @ Mirtill Micheller (Lady Singer) @ Orsolya Pflum (Lady Singer) @ Beatrix Bisztricsan (Lady Singer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (Behind Us Comes Germany Speech) (voice) (uncredited) (archive footage) Produced by||Robin Williams should really stick to more serious roles like this. I was completely stunned at how well Robin Williams pulled off more serious dramatic roles, since he's much more well-known for high-energy comedy. But his roles as the bad guy in movies like Insomnia or, even better, One Hour Photo display the extent of his acting abilities, since he is able to pull off such different characters so well. In Jakob the Liar, his comedic talents are restricted just enough so that he is able to function properly within the atmosphere of the movie, but is still allowed a scene or two in which his ability to get laughs can come out. He plays Jakob, a Jewish shopkeeper in a Nazi ghetto who tells a friend that he has a radio in order to prevent that friend from committing suicide. Things do not appear to be going well within the ghetto, the war seems like it will never end, and morale among the imprisoned Jews is steadily waning, resulting in suicides left and right. As Jakob finds a friend of his doing something that will certainly get him killed by the Nazis (this particular friend decided to make a ham-handed attempt at escape rather than overtly kill himself), Jakob runs to him and tells him that he heard on the radio that the Russians were closing in and would liberate them any day. His skeptical friend doubts him, so Jakob quickly tells him that he has a radio so that he will believe the Russians will be there to save them all soon, and his friend's suicide is prevented. By the next morning, literally everyone in the ghetto knows that Jakob Heym has a radio, and so he is venerated like a God and constantly hounded about what the newest news is, and thus enters the main conflict of the movie. And speaking of which, one of the things that I really liked about the movie was the complexity of its conflict. It's a conflict that you sit there knowing what needs to happen for a happy ending and so you sit there and hope for that, because every option has terrible consequences. Jakob, first and foremost, is absolutely terrified that word will reach the Nazis who will execute him if they discover he has a radio (whether he really has it or not), yet at the same time he can't let it get out within the ghetto that he DOESN'T have a radio, because since the whole rumor began the rampant suicides have completely ceased. What he has to do, then, is walk the fine line between delivering lots of fictitious good news to the whole ghetto without letting the Nazis find out about it. There is definitely something that needs to be said about the importance of a movie like this. Obviously, holocaust movies are nothing new, and different depictions of the holocaust have been especially in the spotlight since Roberto Benigni made a holocaust movie called Life Is Beautiful in 1997, at least half of which was a comedy. A lot of people felt that it was distasteful to present something as serious and tragic as the holocaust in such a light. And not just average moviegoers like me, either. Spielberg thought it was too lighthearted for such weighty subject matter, and from a certain point of view, he's right. On the other hand, however, the fact that you laughed during the film does not change the meaning of the war that it focuses on. The Nazis killed funny people, too. I read a review on the title page for Jakob the Liar here on the IMDb, where a reviewer who completely missed the boat on this movie criticized it for things like the comedic content, the behavior and presentation of the Jews of the ghetto, and the choice of Robin Williams for the role of Jakob Heym. To be perfectly honest, I can never understand people like that. The way I see it, as long as a movie takes the holocaust seriously then it should not be criticized for being a holocaust film that's not in the right format or that had an actor who has done too many comedy roles. This same reviewer, by the way, praised Life Is Beautiful, a spectacular film, as is Jakob the Liar. I can certainly understand that there are people who are touchy about the holocaust. It is inarguably one of the most tragic events in all of recorded human history, made even more tragic by the fact that it was perpetrated by humans against other humans. It's sickening. But there are no jokes about the holocaust in Jakob the Liar. The Jews do not act like victims. It is historically accurate and does not compromise the truth of what happened for the sake of entertainment. It presents a story of a ghetto full of captive Jews who have had their lives stolen from them and are desperate for some hope, and one man tries to help and inadvertently finds himself in a position to provide massive amounts of hope to them, but at massive risk to his own safety. So if you don't like to see Robin Williams playing serious, dramatic roles (roles at which he is increasingly displaying his massive talent ), don't watch the movie! It is neither a secret that Williams is in the movie, nor that it's a serious role. One look at the cover box will tell you that. But if it's the holocaust being taken seriously that troubles you, maybe you should be more concerned about the fact that there are people, alive TODAY, here in the 21st Century, and presumably relatively educated American citizens, who DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THE HOLOCAUST EVER EVEN HAPPENED. So like I said, if you're that concerned about the portrayal of the holocaust, maybe focus your efforts on these nutcases who have convinced themselves that the holocaust itself is just a fable. Maybe a myth that mothers started telling their kids to make them scared of Germans or some other such nonsense. Jakob the Liar has no illusions, it takes a tragedy in human history and tells a story of a man who did what he could to help those suffering around him, and Robin Williams should obviously be commended for the power of his performance, as should the rest of the cast. The thing to keep in mind is that there is no certain perspective from which to view things like the holocaust. Everyone has different thoughts and feelings about it, and in the movies these different perspectives can be provided in different ways without compromising the severity and finality of the event itself. Jakob the Liar does not at all trivialize the holocaust in any way, what it does is honor the loss of its victims, who came from all walks of life. || ||5.1 ||||||@@ Jaws|Steven Spielberg|Adventure||8.2|USA|1975| 124 min/ USA:130 min (TV version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Brown Richard D. Zanuck|Peter Benchley Carl Gottlieb John Milius Howard Sackler Robert Shaw|Bill Butler ||DiscoVision [us] |The terrifying motion picture from the terrifying No. 1 best seller.|Martin Brody is the new police chief of Amity, an island resort town somewhere in New England. He has a wife named Ellen, and two sons named Michael and Sean. On a Summer morning, Brody is called to the beach, where the mangled body of Summer vacationer Chrissie Watkins has washed ashore. The medical examiner tells Brody that it could have been a shark that killed Watkins. Mayor Larry Vaughn, who is desperate to not lose the money that will be brought in by 4th of July tourists, wants Brody to say Watkins's death was caused by a motorboat propeller instead of a shark, because the thought of a shark in Amity's waters would drive tourists away from Amity. It looks like Vaughn is a mayor who puts money ahead of people's lives. Shark expert Matt Hooper believes Watkins was killed by a shark. Hooper is proven right a few days later, when Alex Kintner is killed by the shark that killed Watkins. Looking for the quickest solution, Vaughn tells all of the local fishermen to let him know if they see the shark. A shark hunter named Quint offers to find the shark and kill it, but Vaughn thinks Quint's price of $10,000 is too high. When a tiger shark is killed and hauled in by a couple of boaters, Vaughn hastily says that the shark crisis is over, but Hooper says the shark that's been killing people a huge great white shark is still in Amity's waters, but Vaughn leaves the beaches opened because all he cares about is the 4th of July tourist money. On the 4th of July, Vaughn encourages people to swim at the beach, and Hooper is proven right again when the shark kills a man, biting the man's leg off. Michael, who was in the water at the time of the attack, is taken to the hospital, where he's treated for shock after watching the shark kill the guy. Brody asks Vaughn to hire Quint to find the shark. Because his own kids were at that beach too, Vaughn agrees to hire Quint to find the shark. Quint, Hooper, and Brody are sent out to sea in Quint's boat, the Orca, ready to do whatever it takes to find the shark. The peaceful community of Amity island is being terrorised. There is something in the sea that is attacking swimmers. They can no longer enjoy the sea and the sun as they used to, and the spreading fear is affecting the numbers of tourists that are normally attracted to this island. After many attempts the great white shark won't go away and sheriff Brody, with friends Hooper and Quint decide to go after the shark and kill it. A Great White Shark decides to make the small beach resort town of Amity his private feeding grounds. This greatly frustrates the town police chief who wants to close the beaches to chase the shark away. He is thwarted in his efforts by the town's mayor who finally relents when nothing else seems to work and the chief, a scientist, and an old fisherman with revenge on his mind take to the sea to kill the beast. The people of Amity Island used to live a peaceful and quiet life in the small summer resort town. But now the people of the small town have become victim to a man-eating Great White Shark. The town officials hesitate to warn people about the shark for fear of losing business during their busiest time of year, Fourth of July weekend. So the shark is kept quiet from almost all of the town until someone is attacked in broad daylight and killed. Martin Brody, the chief of police, takes it upon himself to kill the shark, with help from Matt Hooper, a young marine biologist, and Quint, a shark expert. They sail out to sea, hoping to catch the shark dead or alive. Of course it all depends on whether the shark gets them first. |Roy Scheider (Police Chief Martin Brody) @ Robert Shaw (Quint) @ Richard Dreyfuss (Matt Hooper) @ Lorraine Gary (Ellen Brody) @ Murray Hamilton (Mayor Larry Vaughn) @ Carl Gottlieb (Ben Meadows) @ Jeffrey Kramer (Deputy Leonard 'Lenny' Hendricks (as Jeffrey C. Kramer)) @ Susan Backlinie (Christine 'Chrissie' Watkins) @ Jonathan Filley (Tom Cassidy) @ Chris Rebello (Michael 'Mike' Brody) @ Jay Mello (Sean Brody) @ Lee Fierro (Mrs. Kintner) @ Jeffrey Voorhees (Alex M. Kintner) @ Craig Kingsbury (Ben Gardner) @ Dr. Robert Nevin (Medical Examiner) @ Peter Benchley (TV Interviewer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Chris Anastasio (Out of Towner (uncredited)) @ Allison Caine (Additional Voices (uncredited) (voice)) @ Robert Carroll (Mr. Polk (uncredited)) @ Edward Chalmers Jr. (Mr. Denherder (uncredited)) @ Robert Chambers (Charlie (uncredited)) @ Denise Cheshire (First Victim/Swimming Girl (uncredited)) @ Fritzi Jane Courtney (Mrs. Taft (uncredited)) @ Cyprian R. Dube (Mr. Posner (uncredited)) @ Paul Goulart (Clarinet Player in Music Store (uncredited)) @ Ted Grossman (Boater (uncredited)) @ John Landis (Extra (uncredited)) @ Belle McDonald (Mrs. Posner (uncredited)) @ Donald Poole (Frank Silva, Harbor Master (uncredited)) @ Steven Spielberg (Amity Point Lifestation Worker (uncredited) (voice)) @ Alfred Wilde (Harry Wiseman (uncredited)) @ Dick Young (Pratt (uncredited) Produced by||Man Does It Bite All right, it's hokey and boring and ultimately idiotic, but the central idea just keeps it afloat: a bigmouthed fish that devours everything (maybe even a car, it's suggested). You can have it, just give me the ferryboat shot, the sparse gags, and Murray Hamilton in his coat of many anchors. I suppose it's intended as a parody of Moby Dick as directed by Irwin Allen. There is perhaps a reference to The Searchers (which is reportedly screened by Spielberg before starting any movie) in the Orca's departure filmed through a set of shark jaws (cp. Ford's opening or closing shot). ||Anniversary Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Jaws 2|Jeannot Szwarc|Horror|PG |5.3|USA|1978|116 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/6/2004|Joe Alves David Brown Richard D. Zanuck|Carl Gottlieb Howard Sackler|Michael C. Butler ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water...|The small island resort town of Amity is trying to bounce back from the financial problems it had after becoming known as the site of shark attacks four years ago. Mayor Larry Vaughn is welcoming developer Len Peterson and his new resort to Amity. Two scuba divers are exploring the area where the Orca sank after police chief Martin Brody killed a huge shark four years ago. A shark shows up and kills the two divers, but not before one of the divers takes a close-up picture of the shark's eye, and sometime later, while a mother is driving a boat that's pulling her water-skiing teenage daughter, the shark kills the daughter and causes the mother to accidentally blow up the boat, then a killer whale is found on the shore with a huge bite on it. After Brody sees this, he knows there's another huge great white shark in Amity's waters, but Vaughn and Peterson explain these attacks away as non-shark accidents, because the thought of another shark in Amity's waters would drive tourists away from the new resort and cause the new resort to lose money. It looks like Vaughn is still a mayor who puts money ahead of people's lives. Brody tips his gun's hollow point bullets with cyanide and melted candle wax and tells his sons Michael and Sean to stay away from the beaches and tells them to not go sailing with Mike's friends, who include Vaughn's son Larry Vaughn Jr. Everyone thinks Brody's fears are shark trauma-induced paranoia. Brody even tries to call his friend Matt Hooper, who is doing research on a boat in the Antarctic Circle, and Matt will be in the Antarctic Circle for a few more months. While keeping an eye on the waters from the beach's shark tower, Brody sees a huge dark spot in the water and rings the tower's alarm bell, but it turns out to be a school of bluefish. Vaughn fires Brody for causing this panic at the beach and scaring tourists and their money away, and even though they were told not to, Michael and Sean go out sailing with Junior Vaughn and their friends, unaware that the shark is trailing them. Brody knows it's up to him to find them before the shark kills too many of them. Four years after the events of the original "Jaws", the town of Amity suddenly experiences series of mysterious boating accidents and disappearances. Chief of Police, Martin Brody, fears that another shark is out there, but he is ignored by the townsfolk. Unfortunately, he's right. There is another Great White in the sea. And it wants revenge. The chief of police of Amity Island must contend again with a man-eating great white shark when a group of boating teenagers including his son are attacked. Four years after having to contend with a killer Great White Shark, a series of boating accidents and mysterious incidents convince the chief of Police of Amity Island that another Great White had appeared in the vicinity. Unfortunately he is unable to obtain proof and the island officials refuse to believe the threat exists, while various swimmers and boating enthusiasts carry on regardless. After four years of peace and quiet, another killer Great White Shark appears. A series of boating accidents and mysterious incidents have convinced Chief Brody that another Great White has come to Amity Island. He struggles to convince the town officials that another shark is out there, but they refuse to believe him and he loses his job in the process. Meanwhile, more boating accidents occur and when Chief Brody's two sons go out sailing with friends, he has to reach them before the shark does. |Roy Scheider (Police Chief Martin Brody) @ Lorraine Gary (Ellen Brody) @ Murray Hamilton (Mayor Larry Vaughn) @ Joseph Mascolo (Len Peterson) @ Jeffrey Kramer (Deputy Jeff Hendricks) @ Mark Gruner (Michael 'Mike' Brody) @ Ann Dusenberry (Tina Wilcox) @ Collin Wilcox Paxton (Dr. Lureen Elkins) @ Barry Coe (Tom Andrews) @ Susan French (Grace Witherspoon) @ Gary Springer (Andy Nicholas) @ Donna Wilkes (Jackie Peters) @ Gary Dubin (Eddie Marchand) @ John Dukakis (Paul 'Polo' Loman) @ G. Thomas Dunlop (Timmy Weldon) @ David Elliott (Larry Vaughn Jr.) @ Marc Gilpin (Sean Brody) @ Keith Gordon (Doug Fetterman) @ Cindy Grover (Lucy (as Cynthia Grover)) @ Ben Marley (Patrick) @ Martha Swatek (Marge) @ Billy Van Zandt (Bob) @ Gigi Vorgan (Brooke Peters) @ Coll Red McLean (Red ('Old Man of the Sea')) @ Fritzi Jane Courtney (Mrs. Taft (as Jane Courtney)) @ Alfred Wilde (Harry Wiseman (as Al Wilde)) @ Herb Muller (Phil Fogarty) @ Jerry M. Baxter (Helicopter pilot) @ Jean Coulter (Diane (Ski boat driver)) @ Daphne Dibble (Swimmer #1) @ Christine Freeman (Terri (water skier)) @ April Gilpin (Renee) @ William Griffith (Lifeguard) @ Gregory Harris (Diver #2) @ Susan O. McMillan (Female sailor) @ David Owsley (Male sailor) @ Allan L. Paddack (Crosby) @ Frank James Sparks (Diver #1) @ Thomas A. Stewart (Sparky (assistant dive master)) @ David Tintle (Swimmer #2) @ Jim Wilson (Swimmer with child) @ Kathy Wilson (Mrs. Bryant) @ Bill Green (Irate 'dancing' man) @ Mary A. Gaffney (Mrs. Silvera rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ George Buck (Irate 'letterbox' man (uncredited)) @ Jane Courtney (Select Woman (uncredited)) @ Cyprian R. Dube (Posner (uncredited)) @ Oneida Rollins (Ambulance driver (uncredited)Produced by||More shark + more Lorraine Gary = less thrills I wasn't a fan of the shark killings in the first movie(Steven Spielberg showed off quite a morbid side of himself, and a perverse delight in bloody carnage), and this sequel, with empty spots left by Robert Shaw and AWOL Richard Dreyfuss, is filled with shark attacks. Still, the overblown B-flick is less unpleasant than the first film simply because it's such a cartoon. An early shark attack on a water-skier is so ridiculous it's embarrassing. Poor Roy Scheider, tanned to the point of being mistaken for a Mexican cliff-diver, is lean and alert throughout as Chief Brody, but the script offers him empty heroics and nothing more. Screaming teens take up much of the running time. But nobody was fooled; the picture made money but the lack of a star-director or solid supporting cast left everyone languishing in drive-in hell. *1/2 from **** || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 2.0 ||||||@@ Jerk, The|Carl Reiner|Comedy|R |6.7|USA|1979| 94 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peter MacGregor-Scott William E. McEuen David V. Picker|Steve Martin Carl Gottlieb Steve Martin Carl Gottlieb Michael Elias|Victor J. Kemper ||MCA [us] |A rags to riches to rags story|Navin is an idiot. Hew grew up in Mississippi as adopted son of a black family. But at his 18th birthday he feels he wants to discover the rest of the world and sets out to St. Louis... Everyone exploits his naivety, but then a simple invention brings him a fortune. |Steve Martin (Navin R. Johnson/Cat Juggler/Pig Eye Jackson/Engineer Fred (also as Pig Eye Jackson)) @ Bernadette Peters (Marie Kimble) @ Catlin Adams (Patty Bernstein) @ Mabel King (Mother) @ Richard Ward (Father) @ Dick Anthony Williams (Taj Jonson) @ Bill Macy (Stan Fox) @ Dick O'Neill (Frosty, Navin's Boss) @ Maurice Evans (Hobart, Navin's Butler) @ Helena Carroll (Hester, Navin's Maid) @ Ren Woods (Elvira Jonson (as Ren Wood)) @ Pepe Serna (Punk #1 in Blue Chevy) @ Sonny Terry (Blues Singer) @ Brownie McGhee (Blues Singer) @ Jackie Mason (Harry Hartounian, Gas Station Owner) @ David Landsberg (New Accounts Bank Manager) @ Domingo Ambriz (Father De Cordoba) @ Richard Foronjy (Con Man) @ Lenny Montana (Con Man) @ Carl Gottlieb (Iron Balls McGinty) @ Clete Roberts (American Times News Magazine Announcer) @ Frances E. Williams (Grandma Johnson) @ Lydia McGhee (Cleotis Johnson) @ Niko Denise Holmes (Satch Johnson) @ Shawn Harris (Pierre Johnson) @ Niles Harris (Leroy Johnson) @ Susan Denise Harrison (Lisa Johnson) @ Douglas S. Close (Fireman) @ Sharon Johansen (Mrs. Lenore Hartounian) @ Trinidad Silva (Punk #2 in Blue Chevy) @ Alston Ahern (Bride) @ Lawrence Green (Father of Bride) @ Ken Magee (Carnival Rube) @ Tom J. Delaney (Tourist) @ Alfred Dennis (Irving) @ Marc Loge (Farm Boy) @ Jon Leichter (Billy) @ Lillian Adams (Tillie) @ Joe Lynn (Voodoo Dancer) @ Maurice Marsac (French Waiter) @ Gene LeBell (Con Man) @ Fred Lerner (Con Man) @ Jerry G. Velasco (Man in Garden) @ Kimberly Carson (Disco Party (as Kimberly Cameron)) @ Elizabeth Macey (Disco Party) @ Richie Reiner (Disco Party) @ Daniel Trevor (Disco Party) @ Carl Reiner (Carl Reiner, the Celebrity Suing Navin rest of cast listed alphabetically M. Emmet Walsh .... Oil Can Sniper/Process Server) @ Luis Contreras (Extra in 'Cat Juggling' Scene (uncredited)) @ Flower Parry (Bag Lady (uncredited)) @ Rob Reiner (Truck Driver Picking Up Navin (uncredited)) @ Gailard Sartain (Guy with Cracked Airplane Seats (uncredited)) @ William Schallert (Judge M.A. Loring (uncredited) Produced by||Lord loves a workin' man; don't trust whitey; see a doctor and get rid of it. Why is the rating for "The Jerk" so low? Every comment said that this movie was hilarious! Hey, anyone out there who gave "The Jerk" a low rating, come write a comment! I don't even know what's not to like about this movie. The script is extremely funny. The naive, ambitious Navin Johnson is the role that Steve Martin was born to play. This is one of the funniest movies ever (any fans of my comments know that I say that often, but I really mean it!). P.S. If you're a worried parent wondering if this movie is okay for your child to see, let him / her see it. It's actually pretty tame. I couldn't tell what made it an R-rated movie. |Region 1 | |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Jetsons The Complete First Season / DVD-Video|||NR ||||629 mins|||||||||||False||||||||12/2/2004||||||| Go backito theifuture - andimeet theioriginal space age family! ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono ||||||@@ Joe Versus the Volcano|John Patrick Shanley|Comedy||5.3|USA|1990| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Roxanne Rogers Teri Schwartz Steven Spielberg|John Patrick Shanley |Stephen Goldblatt ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |An Average Joe. An Adventurous Comedy.|Joe versus the Volcano is a fable which opens with somewhat surrealistic scenes of the dehumanization of Joe Bank's job and work environment (at a company whose product rather literally screws people) with imagery that seems to have been inspired by the classic film Metropolis. Joe is diagnosed with an incurable disease, quits his dehumanizing job, and accepts an offer to briefly "live like a king, die like a man" - but to fulfill his agreement he must willingly jump into a live volcano on the island of Waponi Woo in order to appease the volcano god. En route to the island, Joe meets a series of interesting characters in NYC and LA, then boards a yacht, captained by Patricia Graynamore. During the voyage Joe and Patricia survive disaster, fall in love, and finally arrive at the island where they face their destiny. Diagnosed as having only a few months to live, Joe is persuaded by a rich businessman to jump into a volcano on a Pacific island in order to satisfy the inhabitants. On his trip to the island, Joe meets Meg Ryan playing three different characters. |Tom Hanks (Joe Banks) @ Meg Ryan (DeDe/Angelica Graynamore/Patricia Graynamore) @ Lloyd Bridges (Samuel Harvey Graynamore) @ Robert Stack (Dr. Ellison) @ Abe Vigoda (Waponis Chief) @ Dan Hedaya (Mr. Frank Waturi) @ Barry McGovern (Luggage Salesman) @ Amanda Plummer (Dagmar) @ Ossie Davis (Marshall) @ Jayne Haynes (Nurse) @ David Burton (Mike) @ Carol Kane (Cassandra (hairdresser) (as Lisa Le Blanc)) @ Jim Hudson (Fred (Guard)) @ Antoni Gatti (Italian tailor) @ Darrell Zwerling (Underwear Salesman) @ Jim Ryan (Bellman) @ Karl Rumburg (Ralph) @ Brian Esteban (Emi (Waponi lookout)) @ Nathan Lane (Ben, the Waponi Advance Man) @ Wally Ruiz (Spanish Singer) @ Guillermo Guzmán (Spanish singer) @ Tom Franco (Spanish Singer (as Tommy Franco)) @ Tony Salome (Clerk (at The Rectal Probe Company)) @ Courtney Gibbs (Saleswoman at Hammacher Schlemmer) @ Lala Sloatman (Waitress (as Lala)) @ Jennifer Stewart (Statue of Liberty) @ William Ward (Salesman (Hammacher Schlemmer)) @ Paul Michael Thorpe (The (Waponi) God Woo rest of cast listed alphabetically Jon Conrad Pochron .... Tony (as Jon Pochran)) @ Jack E. Herman (Waponi Warrior (uncredited) Produced by||Turn It Off After They Get to the Island... Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan star in a pre-"Sleepless in Seattle" romantic-comedy, which is brilliantly directed and acted, but otherwise flawed. Tom Hanks plays a man diagnosed with a rare brain disease that will kill him within days (or was it weeks?). Meg Ryan plays two parts that I won't get into soley because it is not that important to what I am telling you of the movie. Basically, the great parts of this dark comedy are the first forty-five to sixty minutes, where Tom Hanks' office area is explored and recorded amazingly. The dark atmosphere is excellent. Then, the whole shopping-spree thing is very nice. But once they get to the boat, I turn off the film, because the rest of it is very stupid and boring. So, basically, watch this movie, but just turn it off once they leave their homeland. 3/5 stars - John Ulmer || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Joseph: King of Dreams|Rob LaDuca Robert C. Ramire|Drama||6.0|USA|2000| 75 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Penney Finkelman Cox Steve Hickner Jeffrey Katzenberg Traci Tolman Mars Ken Tsumura Mitch Watson Randi Yaffa|Eugenia Bostwick-Singer Raymond Singer Joe Stillman Marshall Goldberg|||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||Based on the well-known story which, in terms of religion, is known to be taken from the book of Genesis, 'King of Dreams' centers on the life of Joseph, a "miracle child" with the gift of interpreting dreams. Because he was born to a barren woman, his parents dubbed him such and he quickly became the favorite of his father, Jacob, much to the envy of his ten older brothers. After Jacob gives Joseph a beautiful coat; and after Joseph shares his dreams of the brothers bowing down to him, they decide that they've had enough of it. So one unseemingly unsuspecting day, they gang up on Joseph and sell him to slave traders, who, in turn, take him to faraway Egypt. There, he is sold to Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh's army. Even as a slave, Joseph continues to stand out because of his hard work and Potiphar eventually comes to notice this. As a result, he puts Joseph in charge of his entire household. It is also here where Joseph meets Asenath, his first love interest. Potiphar's wife also notices Joseph, but in a romantic manner. One night, after attempting to "approach" him, he refuses her company and he is falsely accused of harming her. Because of this, he is thrown into prison by Potiphar. There, he meets the Pharaoh's baker and butler, whose dreams he interprets. After they are released, Joseph is left there for a few more years until one day when Potiphar released him because Pharaoh needs him to interpret a dream that has been torturing him lately - as he heard from his butler. Joseph interprets Pharaoh's dreams which resemble a famine of Egypt, and because of this Pharaoh puts Joseph in charge of the whole country and makes him the second most powerful man in the land. From here, Joseph meets Asenath again and they marry; and afterwards, he prepares the country for the famine. It is during this time when he is reunited with his brothers who come to Egypt for food. After scheming up a way to reveal himself to them, as well as meeting his new brother Benjamin, Joseph finally confesses himself after placing his cup in Benjamin's sack after a banquet; and there a heartwarming exchange of apologies and forgiveness occurs. Afterwards, Joseph invites his whole family to live in Egypt and is reunited with his father once more. From there, the next big thing, 'The Prince of Egypt,' begins. |Ben Affleck (Joseph (voice)) @ Mark Hamill (Judah (voice)) @ Richard Herd (Jacob (voice)) @ Maureen McGovern (Rachel (voice)) @ Jodi Benson (Asenath (voice)) @ Judith Light (Zuleika (voice)) @ James Eckhouse (Potiphar (voice)) @ Richard McGonagle (Pharaoh (voice)) @ David Campbell (Joseph (singing voice)) @ Steven Weber (Simeon/Slave Trader (voice)) @ Dan Castellaneta (Auctioneer/Horse Trader (voice)) @ Rene Auberjonois (Butler (voice)) @ Ken Hudson Campbell (Baker (voice) (as Ken Campbell)) @ Tom Virtue (Reuben (voice)) @ Jeff Bennett (Levi (voice)) @ Jess Harnell (Issachar/Lead Trader (voice)) @ Matt Levin (Benjamin (voice) Produced by)||Not Exactly Biblically Correct, but still a great story. No, I'm not a Bible-Thumper.However, Joseph is one of the most precious examples of a man who trusted God with everything he had and did, and how God was with him throughout his life. Joseph, King of Dreams doesn't quite reflect that total, precious trust in my opinion.However, this is a children's animated story and I know that some liberty has to be taken to get the point across to kids in a way that they will be both entertained, and remember well.This story does achieve that goal in spades.My nieces and nephew are glued to the set whenever we put this movie in, and my oldest niece can almost recite it verbatim. I can just imagine how hard it must be for the actors to put life and feeling into an animated character, and all of the actors who lent their voices were positively excellent.I gave this film an overall rating of 8 - if you have little children and are wondering how in the world to introduce your kids to the greatest story ever told, here's your answer for a stupendous start. ||Special Edition ||5.1 ||||||@@ Jumanji|Joe Johnston|Family|Rated PG for menacing fantasy action and some mild language. |6.0|USA|1995| 104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert W. Cort Ted Field Larry J. Franco Scott Kroopf William Teitler|Chris Van Allsburg Greg Taylor Jim Strain Chris Van Allsburg Jonathan Hensleigh Greg Taylor Jim Strain|Thomas E. Ackerman ||Columbia Pictures [us] |An Adventure For Those Who Seek To Find A Way To Leave Their World Behind.|After being trapped in a jungle board game for 26 years, a Man- Child (Robin Williams) wins his release from the game. But, no sooner has he arrived that he is forced to play again, and this time sets the creatures of the jungle loose on the city. Now it is up to him to stop them. Alan Parris (Williams) has been trapped in an ancient magical board game, Jumanji, for 25 years. When he is finally freed by two children, a herd of wild exotic animals have accidentally been released as well. Now, Alan must try to save his hometown from destruction. Features spectacular special effects from Industrial Light and Magic. Twelve-year old Alan Parrish finds "Jumanji", a board game, in 1969. He and Sarah Whittle play it that night. When a quote says "In the jungle you must wait, til the dice roll 5 or 8" Alan is suddenly pulled into the game. Twenty-six years later, two more kids find this game. One of them rolls a 5 and Alan Parrish (Robin Williams) comes back. But he is soon forced to find Sarah (Bonnie Hunt) and finish the game. Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt and Kirsten Dunst star in this adaptation of the award-winning children's book! When young Alan Parrish discovers a mysterious board game, he doesn't realize its unimaginable powers until he is magically transported--before the startled eyes of his friend Sarah--into the untamed jungles of Jumanji! There he remains for 26 years until he is freed from the game's spell by two unsuspecting children. Now a grown man, Alan (Robin Williams) reunites with Sarah (Bonnie Hunt) and, together with Judy (Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (Bradley Pierce), tries to outwit the game's powerful forces. |Robin Williams (Alan Parrish, 1995) @ Jonathan Hyde (Samuel Alan Parrish/Hunter Van Pelt) @ Kirsten Dunst (Judy Shepherd) @ Bradley Pierce (Peter Shepherd) @ Bonnie Hunt (Sarah Whittle, 1995) @ Bebe Neuwirth (Aunt Nora Shepherd) @ David Alan Grier (Carl Bentley, Shoe Factory Cobbler 1969/Police Officer 1995) @ Patricia Clarkson (Carol Anne Parrish) @ Adam Hann-Byrd (Alan Parrish, 1969) @ Laura Bundy (Sarah Whittle, 1969 (as Laura Bell Bundy)) @ James Handy (Exterminator) @ Gillian Barber (Mrs. Thomas, Real Estate Agent) @ Brandon Obray (Benjamin (Game Disposer in 1869)) @ Cyrus Thiedeke (Caleb (Game Disposer in 1869)) @ Gary Joseph Thorup (Billy Jessup the Bully) @ Leonard Zola (Bill the Cop) @ Lloyd Berry (Shoe Factory Bum) @ Malcolm Stewart (Jim Shepherd) @ Annabel Kershaw (Martha Shepherd) @ Darryl Henriques (Gun Salesman) @ Robyn Driscoll (Paramedic) @ Peter Bryant (Paramedic) @ Sarah Gilson (Girl) @ Florica Vlad (Girl) @ June Lion (Baker) @ Brenda Lockmuller (Pianist) @ Frederick Richardson (Barber) @ Mike Mitchell (Bit Part rest of cast listed alphabetically Frank Welker .... Special Vocal Effects (voice) Produced by||This Ain't No Game! [CONTAINS SPOILERS] In 1869, two boys bury something unknown but whatever it is, it's very dangerous. It stays for 100 years. In 1969, young Alan Parrish rides his bike one lovely day, unfortunately he's soon chased by Billy Jessup and his gang. Alan goes to his father, Samuel's shoe factory. Alan tells his father what's up, but his father merely tells him that he must stand and face something you're afraid of, so Alan did and got the crap kicked out of him. Suddenly, he heard drums beating. It was in a construction site. He dug up a wooden board game called Jumanji. At home, Alan's parents have announced that they shall send him to Cliffside School for Boys. Alan refuses to go. Samuel get's mad and storms out of the house with his wife. Alan's friend, Sarah Widdle, comes over that night and the two decide to play the game Alan found. It resulted in Alan being sucked into the game until someone would roll a 5 or 8. 26 years later-1995. A woman named Nora, her niece Judy and nephew Peter buy the old Parrish house. One aternoon, while Aunt Nora left for the office and the kids were about to leave for school when they hear drums beating. The game was calling. They dig it out of the attic and decide to play it. Out of the game comes monkeys, mosquitos and a lion! Also, Alan comes out. He's very grateful, then goes to the old shoe factory to find his parents. He learns of their passing; by finishing the game, they can put an end to the wild animal attacks, so the three go off to find Sarah Widdle, because according to the game, it was her turn. At first she was reluctant to play, but she did. They encounter a huge pod plant and a hunter, Van Pelt who wants to kill Alan for some reason. Well, after braving a stampede, a huge rain fall, giant spiders and an earthquake, the game was over and all went back to 1969 where Alan patched things up with his father, he and Sarah get rid of the game and live happily ever after in the bright and cheerful 1995, rather than the dark one Jumanji had created. Pretty good movie! Nice special effects. Robin Williams was good, as always. Bonnie Hunt was good. The kids were too. Kirsten Dunst grew up to play Spiderman's love interest. Also, the same actor that plaus Samuel Parrish (Jonathan Hyde of Richie Rich) also plays Van Pelt. I hear there's going to be a sequel: Jumanji 2. But it doesn't have Robin Williams. For the life of me, I can't figure out what it will be like. But for now, you gotta see the first one! -- || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Jurassic Park|Steven Spielberg|Horror||7.3|USA|1993| 127 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Gerald R. Molen Lata Ryan Colin Wilson|Michael Crichton Michael Crichton David Koepp|Dean Cundey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |An Adventure 65 Million Years In The Making|Scientists develop a means of bringing dinosaurs to life using DNA taken from dino' blood, which has been preserved inside insects encased in amber. Whilst Hammond is showing off his dinosaur 'theme park' to a selected audience [a lawyer (Gerrano), mathematician (Malcolm), dino' expert (Grant), palaeobotanist (Sattler) and his grandchildren (Tim & Lex)], Nedry (computer expert) disables the security system so that he can make his escape with some stolen embryos. This enables all the dinosaurs to escape their enclosures... Look out the dinosaurs are coming ! On a remote island, a wealthy entrepreneur secretly creates a theme park featuring living dinosaurs drawn from prehistoric DNA. Before opening the attraction to the public, he invites a top paleontologist, a paleobotanist, a mathematician/theorist, and his two eager grandchildren to experience the park -- and help calm anxious investors. However, their park visit is anything but tranquil as the park's security system breaks down, the prehistoric creatures break out, and the excitement builds to surprising results. Based on Michael Crichton's best-selling novel. |Sam Neill (Dr. Alan Grant) @ Laura Dern (Dr. Ellie Sattler) @ Jeff Goldblum (Dr. Ian Malcolm) @ Richard Attenborough (John Hammond) @ Bob Peck (Robert Muldoon) @ Martin Ferrero (Donald Gennaro) @ Joseph Mazzello (Tim Murphy) @ Ariana Richards (Lex Murphy) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Ray Arnold) @ B.D. Wong (Henry Wu) @ Wayne Knight (Dennis Nedry) @ Gerald R. Molen (Gerry Harding (as Jerry Molen)) @ Miguel Sandoval (Juanito Rostagno) @ Cameron Thor (Lewis Dodgson) @ Christopher John Fields (Volunteer #1) @ Whitby Hertford (Volunteer Boy) @ Dean Cundey (Mate) @ Jophery C. Brown (Worker in Raptor Pen (as Jophery Brown)) @ Tom Mishler (Helicoptor Pilot) @ Greg Burson (Mr. D.N.A. (voice)) @ Adrian Escober (Worker at Amber Mine) @ Richard Kiley (Jurassic Park Tour Voice (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Laura Burnett (Archeologist (uncredited)) @ Brian Smrz (Driver of Grant, Sattler & Malcolm's Jeep (uncredited)) @ Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc (InGen Helicoptor Pilot (uncredited) Produced by||I want to see Tertiary Park I'm amazed how badly this film has aged - it's only been six years.I enjoyed it back in 1993, but on seeing it again last night all manner of uncharitable thoughts kept popping into my head, chief among them the impression that Spielberg, who had lavished so much effort on `Jaws', just wasn't trying. The dinosaur mystique is hard for me to understand.Sure, they're fantastic beasties, but so are many other extinct animals; and if I had a choice I'd rather pay to see a mammoth, or a giant wombat, or a tiny Eocene horse.But PART of the dinosaur mystique is bound up with the idea of a lost world. That's what really thrills people about `King Kong'.The island Spielberg's dinosaurs occupy, by contrast, is prosaic and modern.No doubt it was a deliberate artistic decision to combine dinosaurs with cars, electric fences, cafés and air vents, but it's hard to find two consecutive shots that don't remind us of the modern world in some way, most of the charm of the creatures is thereby lost.This is the more inexcusable in a film that throws everything else to the winds - story, character, wit, plausibility - to concentrate on the strangely attractive flavour of dinosaurs. As for the dinosaurs ... Some time before `Jurassic Park' there was the Cambrian explosion, when all manner of special effects techniques proliferated; after `Jurassic Park' all, with the exception of computer animation, became extinct, or virtually extinct.It's not the film's fault. Most of the dinosaurs on display did NOT originate in the belly of a computer; those that did look neither better nor worse than those that did not.The computer animation is more than adequate but charmless, with something subtly but deeply wrong - exactly like all subsequent computer animation.The art hasn't progressed.`Jurassic Park' is still as good as it gets. So far, so bland: what's intolerable is the preaching.This was the only thing that irritated me in 1993 and it irritates me more now.The moral of the story, with which we are repeatedly bludgeoned, is twofold: (a) people who think they don't like children are either mistaken or villains, in either case in need of therapy; and (b) man should not play God - any attempt to develop some biological science will strike us down, because of chaos theory, or quantum mechanics, or some such.This is all piffle.But it's not the ridiculous messages that annoys me: it's the fact that I'm being preached to AT ALL, and so clumsily.(Did you, too, develop a desire to throttle Jeff Goldblum in mid-speech?I hope so.)`Jaws' didn't pretend that it was a statement about how we will be struck down by divine anger if we arrogantly disregard nature and go swimming at the beach. ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ K-9|Rod Daniel|Action||5.2|USA|1989| 101 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Charles Gordon Lawrence Gordon Lloyd Levin Steven Siegel Donna Smith|Steven Siegel Scott Myers|Dean Semler ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Meet the two toughest cops in town.|The extravagant cop Michael Dooley needs some help to fight a drug dealer who has tried to kill him. A "friend" gives him a dog named Jerry Lee, who has been trained to smell drugs. With his help, Dooley sets out to put his enemy behind the bars, but Jerry Lee has a personality of his own and works only when he wants to. On the other hand, the dog is quite good at destroying Dooley's car, house and sex-life... |James Belushi (Dooley) @ Mel Harris (Tracy) @ Kevin Tighe (Lyman) @ James Handy (Byers) @ Ed O'Neill (Brannigan) @ Jerry Lee (Himself/The Dog) @ Daniel Davis (Halstead) @ Cotter Smith (Gilliam) @ John Snyder (Freddie) @ Pruitt Taylor Vince (Benny the Mule) @ Sherman Howard (Dillon) @ Jeff Allin (Chad) @ David Haskell (Doctor) @ Alan Blumenfeld (Rental Salesman) @ William Sadler (Salesman Don (as Bill Sadler)) @ Marjorie Bransfield (Receptionist) @ Mark Mooring (Cop) @ Jerry Levine (Ernie) @ Rick Cicetti (Waiter) @ Dan Castellaneta (Maitre d') @ Wendel Meldrum (Pretty Girl with Dog) @ John Castellanos (Man in Rolls Royce) @ Colleen Morris (Woman in Rolls Royce) @ McKeiver Jones III (Sergeant) @ J.W. Smith (Pimp) @ Dean Hill (Butler) @ Gary Combs (Sculley) @ Steve Artiaga (Latino Employee) @ Lucy Butler (Nurse) @ Vic Cuccia (Security Guard) @ Ralph Elias (Officer Produced by||Not a buddy-cop movie..... quite. For a short time during the eighties, Hollywood discovered to concept of the Buddy-Dog movie with this and Turner & Hooch coming out in the same year. This is probably the funniest of the two with Belushi delivering another wonderful comic performance. However, it is probably slightly poorer than the Tom Hanks film as the script is less rounded, with only the fairly run-of-the-mill drug smuggling story to occupy you. However, the action and laughs keep coming throughout the movie, leaving another underrated, overlooked comedy gem from Belushi. I can't wait for the sequel coming out this year. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Kate & Leopold|James Mangold|Romance|Rated PG-13 for brief strong language. |6.4|USA|2001| 118 min/ USA:123 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Christopher Goode Cathy Konrad Kerry Orent Meryl Poster Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|Steven Rogers James Mangold Steven Rogers|Stuart Dryburgh ||Miramax Films [us] |If they lived in the same century they'd be perfect for each other.|Kate and her actor brother live in N.Y. in the 21st Century. Her ex-boy friend, Stuart, lives above her apartment and finds this space near the Brooklyn Bridge where there is a gap in time. He goes back to the eighteen hundreds and takes pictures of the place. Leopold, a man living in the 1870's, was puzzled by Stuart's tiny camera and decides to follow him and they both ended up in this century. Leopold is clueless about his new surroundings. He gets help and insights from Charlie who thinks that Leopold is an actor who is always in character. Leopold is a highly intelligent man and tries his best to learn and even improve the modern conveniences that he encounters. |Meg Ryan (Kate McKay) @ Hugh Jackman (Leopold Alexis Elijah Walker Gareth Thomas Mountbatten) @ Liev Schreiber (Stuart Besser) @ Breckin Meyer (Charlie McKay) @ Natasha Lyonne (Darci) @ Bradley Whitford (J.J. Camden) @ Paxton Whitehead (Uncle Millard) @ Spalding Gray (Dr. Geisler) @ Josh Stamberg (Colleague Bob) @ Matthew Sussman (Ad Executive Phil) @ Charlotte Ayanna (Patrice) @ Philip Bosco (Otis) @ Andrew Jack (Roebling) @ Stan Tracy (Photographer) @ Kristen Schaal (Miss Tree) @ William Sanford (Barry) @ Arthur J. Nascarella (Gracy) @ Robert Ray Manning Jr. (Passerby (as Robert Manning)) @ Roma Torre (TV Newscaster) @ Viola Davis (Policewoman) @ Ray Seiden (Sanitation Worker) @ Jonathan Fried (Faux Wolfgang) @ Francis Dumaurier (Faux Emeril) @ Cole Hawkins (Hector) @ Stephanie Montalvo (CRG Intern) @ Ebony Jo-Ann (Nurse Ester) @ George Hahn (Assistant Director) @ Joe Mosso (Cameraman) @ Cornelius Patrick Byrne (Carriage Driver (as Cornelius Byrne)) @ Chazz Menendez (Purse Thief) @ Brandon Parrish (Dennis) @ Brittney Startzman (Monica) @ Martha Madison (Office Woman) @ Stephanie Sanditz (Gretchen) @ Nai Yuan Hu (Rooftop Violinist) @ Michael Shelle (Distinguished Actor) @ Matthew Beisner (Commercial Director) @ Bill Corsair (Limo Driver) @ John Rothman (Executive #1) @ Dennis Rees (Executive #2) @ Michael Cassady (Executive #3) @ Brian Letscher (Ad Executive) @ Meg Gibson (Executive's Wife) @ Kevin Daniels (Doorman at Party) @ Henry Boyle (Cab Driver) @ Russell Di Perna (Bridge Cop) @ Frank Arcuri (1876 Doorman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ David Aaron Baker (2nd Studio Executive (uncredited)) @ Andrea Barnes (Clara (uncredited)) @ Craig Bierko (Actor in Advertisement (uncredited)) @ Lee Burkett (Smoking Man at Barrel Shop (uncredited)) @ Monique Curnen (Monica Martinez (uncredited)) @ Bart DeFinna (Film Editor (uncredited)) @ Aimee Denaro (Movie Goer (uncredited)) @ Fabrizio Fante (Softball Player (uncredited)) @ Howard Feller (Hospital patient (uncredited)) @ Domenick Lombardozzi (Counterman (uncredited)) @ Eddie Marrero (Hospital Orderly (uncredited)) @ Celia A. Montgomery (Red-Haired Flirting Woman at Brooklyn Bridge (1870s) (uncredited)) @ Todd Poudrier (Bartender (uncredited) Produced by||The Magic Just Isn't There In itself, there's a sense of the romantic in the notion of time travel; and when you introduce the idea of two people traveling through time to find one another-- when you factor in love-- it puts the romance in the romantic. It's quite a concept, and it's the basis of director James Mangold's `Kate and Leopold,' starring Meg Ryan and Hugh Jackman, a film that asks the audience to suspend disbelief for a couple of hours and just go with the flow.In other words, don't look too deep into this one; if you can do that, you may have a good time with this film, but bear in mind you're going to have to meet it at least half-way for it to be what it was meant to be: Pure entertainment; no more, no less. It's New York, 1876; the Brooklyn Bridge (which ultimately figures prominently in the plot) is being built, and though John Roebling's `erection' (as it is referred to) is of great interest to Leopold Mountbatten (Jackman), Duke of Albany, there are more pressing matters in his life.His Uncle Millard (Paxton Whitehead) is insisting that Leopold choose a bride from amongst the most rich and available of society, and has arranged for a ball to be held at his mansion, at which time his nephew will announce the name of the lucky lady.At the ball, however, a stranger catches Leopold's eye, who-- when he notices he is being watched-- bolts from the premises with Leopold in pursuit.The chase takes them to the bridge, whereupon something inexplicable happens, and Leopold suddenly finds himself in New York, 2001, in the apartment of the man he had been chasing, Stuart Besser (Liev Schreiber).Things happen fairly rapidly after that, and very quickly Leopold meets Stuart's ex-girlfriend (who lives upstairs), Kate McKay (Ryan).And then the real story begins as, not surprisingly (refer to title of film here), Kate and Leopold discover that there may be something more to their chance meeting than just a newly founded friendship. But there's a problem, and it's a big one:They happen to live in different centuries... In the final analysis, this mildly diverting, minor romantic fantasy is buoyed by the star power it employs, without which it would barely stay afloat.Not that it's a `bad' movie, but it suffers from a decided lack of originality in both story and presentation.Given the concept of the film, it needed an imaginative touch to really make it work, and unfortunately, Mangold was unable to provide it.And it's a shame, because in Ryan and Jackman he had two of the main ingredients for success, but he failed to make the most of it.Like mixing metaphors, mixing genres is a hard sell to begin with, and it's imperative that the filmmaker have a definite vision going into such an undertaking; Spike Jonze did with `Being John Malkovich' (from which this film borrows the concept, as well as the context, of the `time portal,') and was successful.Mangold, however, failed to realize such a vision, and the moment passed him by. As the Duke, Hugh Jackman gives a convincing performance, complete with a passable British accent.And you have to give Jackman credit for constantly striving to expand his horizons artistically; he's done science fiction (`X-Men'), romantic comedy (`Someone Like You'), action/thriller (`Swordfish') and now this, which is different still.Also to his credit, he's done well in them all.With such a diverse resume, he's already demonstrated his versatility and ability as an actor, and add to that the fact that he has a definite screen presence, and you know-- without a doubt-- that you're looking at a `star' who is only just beginning his ascent, the kind who will bring more than `celebrity' to whatever role he takes on.Definitely an actor of whom we will be seeing a lot more. Meg Ryan is a versatile actor, as well, who can do drama (she was outstanding in `When A Man Loves A Woman'), or action/drama (`Proof of Life'), but her forte is romantic comedy (`Sleepless In Seattle,' `You've Got Mail').As Kate, however, she gets caught up in her character with the same misdirection that characterizes this entire film.On one hand, Kate is sweet and perky (traits upon which Ryan has successfully capitalized elsewhere), but there is also a more jaded side to Kate, the businesswoman striving to get ahead (More like Diane Keaton's J.C. in `Baby Boom'), and these two sides of Kate's personality, rather than making her a complex character, simply do not seem to gel, and at times the demands of the way in which the character is written takes it's toll on credibility; and in a story like this, the one thing you absolutely need is believable characters, people you can accept as presented.And there are too many moments in which the side Ryan is attempting to convey seems forced.I hasten to add that it is not entirely her fault; the character is poorly written, and Mangold did not serve his star well.It goes back to the vision of the director.A Nora Ephron, for example, knows how to get the best out of someone like Ryan, whereas Mangold simply does not. Turning in notable performances in supporting roles are Liev Schreiber, another gifted actor who has yet to have his day in the spotlight (he has one of the best voices in the business, so effective in his terrific portrayal of Orson Welles in `RKO 281'); and Breckin Meyer, convincing as Kate's actor brother, Charlie. The supporting cast includes Natasha Lyonne (Darci), Bradley Whitford (J.J.), and Philip Bosco (Otis).The anticipation for this film was high, but ambiguous direction and lack of definition causes `Kate and Leopold' to misfire at just about every turn.Ryan, Jackman, Schreiber and Meyer deserve better than this, and so does the audience.The magic just isn't there.6/10. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Kill Bill: Vol. 1|Quentin Tarantino|Action|Rated R for strong bloody violence, language and some sexual content. R|8.3|USA|2003|111 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/9/2004|Lawrence Bender Koko Maeda Dede Nickerson Kwame Parker Erica Steinberg E. Bennett Walsh Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|Quentin Tarantino Uma Thurman Quentin Tarantino|Robert Richardson ||Miramax Films [us] |In the year 2003, Uma Thurman will kill Bill|"The Bride" was once part of a group of world class female assassins, until the group leader, "Bill" and the other assassins turn against her. Five years later "The Bride" awakens from the coma the assassins left her in and heads out to seek bloody revenge. Unlike conventional movies, Kill Bill is told in chapter format making the narrative flow more like a book than a film. Uma Thurman stars in Quentin Tarantino's fourth film venture, Kill Bill. Thurman plays a character known as the Bride, a pregnant assassin who is shot by her boss, Bill (David Carradine), on her wedding day, leaving herself and the wedding guests lying for dead. She survives and after being in a coma for five years, she wakes to seek revenge on her co-workers and boss who had attacked her. She sets out to strike down her once fellow assassins, leaving Bill for last. The Bride (Uma Thurman) was once a top member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. And then, one day, she decided to leave the business, assume a new identity, and get married. But it was on the day of her marriage that her old "friends," O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), Elle Driver (Darryl Hannah), Budd (Michael Madsen), and Vernita Green (Vivica A. Fox), not to mention her boss, Bill (David Carradine), showed up out of the blue. They assassinate the entire ceremony and Bill shoots the Bride in the head, putting her in a coma. Well, Bill and his people should have tried a little harder, because after four years, the Bride has awakened from her coma. And Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned... The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad consists of five most deadly killers, led by Bill. There is O'Ren-Ishii as Cottonmouth, Elle Driver as California Mountain Snake, Vernita Green as Copperhead, Budd as Sidewinder. And there is The Bride, whose name is not spoken, who wanted to quit because she was pregnant. One day, somewhere in the Texas desert, The Bride wanted to marry the love of her life. Then Bill and her former colleagues showed up and killed everyone there. But they did not do a good enough job: The Bride survives, barely, and is in a coma for four years. Her colleagues know this but won't kill her in her sleep, it would just ruin the reputation. One day, The Bride awakens. For her, not a second has consciously passed, and after she realizes all the things that have happened, The Bride decides to take revenge. Bloody revenge. On each single one of those who betrayed her. First on her death list is Cottonmouth, who has become the yakuza boss of Tokio, second in line is Copperhead, who chose a more decent life as well. The Bride sets out to take back what was once hers: Her life. |Uma Thurman (The Bride) @ Lucy Liu (O-Ren Ishii) @ Vivica A. Fox (Vernita Green) @ Daryl Hannah (Elle Driver) @ David Carradine (Bill) @ Michael Madsen (Budd) @ Julie Dreyfus (Sofie Fatale) @ Chiaki Kuriyama (Gogo Yubari) @ Sonny Chiba (Hattori Hanzo) @ Chia Hui Liu (Johnny Mo (as Gordon Liu)) @ Michael Parks (Earl McGraw) @ Michael Bowen (Buck) @ Jun Kunimura (Boss Tanaka) @ Kenji Ohba (Bald Guy (Sushi Shop) (as Kenji Oba)) @ Yuki Kazamatsuri (Proprietor) @ James Parks (Edgar McGraw) @ Sakichi Satô (Charlie Brown) @ Jonathan Loughran (Trucker) @ Yoshiyuki Morishita (Tokyo Business Man) @ Tetsuro Shimaguchi (Crazy 88 #1 (Miki)) @ Kazuki Kitamura (Crazy 88 #2) @ Yoji Tanaka (Crazy 88 #3 (as Yoji Boba Tanaka)) @ Issei Takahashi (Crazy 88 #4) @ Satoshi Yamanaka (Crazy 88 #5 (as So Yamanaka)) @ Julie Manase (Crazy 88 #6 (Girl) (as Juri Manase)) @ Akaji Maro (Boss Ozawah) @ Goro Daimon (Boss Honda) @ Shun Sugata (Boss Benta) @ Zhang Jin Zhan (Boss Orgami) @ Xiaohui Hu (Young 88 (Spanked Boy)) @ Ambrosia Kelley (Nikki Bell) @ Sachiko Fujii (The 5, 6, 7, 8's) @ Yoshiko Yamaguchi (The 5, 6, 7, 8's) @ Ronnie Yoshiko Fujiyama (The 5, 6, 7, 8's) @ Shu Lan Tuan (Okinawa Airline Ticket Agent) @ Ai Maeda (O-Ren (anime sequence) (voice)) @ Naomi Kusumi (Boss Matsumoto (anime sequence) (voice)) @ Hikaru Midorikawa (Pretty Riki (anime sequence) (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Michael Kuroiwa (Crazy 88 Fighter (uncredited)) @ Christopher Allen Nelson (The Groom (uncredited)) @ Stevo Polyi (Tim (uncredited)Produced by||Tarantino's stylish and exciting encyclopedia of trash culture is pure entertainment! A purely visual, visceral super cool popcorn movie. I've just been to see 'Kill Bill'. Please excuse me if I find it a bit difficult to get my thoughts together, cos I'm still taking my jaw off the floor! First thing is I've been a fan of Tarantino since I saw 'Reservoir Dogs' ten years ago. I'm not a teenage fanboy who thinks QT is God. I'm a cynical old geezer who has seen a few movies in my time. If 'Kill Bill' sucked I would be the first to shout it from the rooftops. But it doesn't suck. It's easily the most entertaining action movie I've seen since... well, I can't even think of anything to compare it to. And yes, this is an ACTION movie, so if you're expecting depth to the characters, and any kind of insight into the human condition, you're out of luck. Tarantino showed in 'Jackie Brown' that he can do that. This time round he's come up with a purely visual, visceral popcorn movie. I usually despise most modern examples of that. All those cynically packaged and carefully marketed CGI-infested "blockbusters". The main reason I enjoyed 'Kill Bill' so much is that it was blatantly obvious that Tarantino has made this movie to please nobody but himself. That's why it really works for me. He doesn't give a damn whether you like it or not, he's just making a movie he thinks is super cool. Thankfully I agree with him! It's jam-packed with pop-culture references, and echoes of movies past and present - obvious ones, obscure ones, from 70s chop socky classics through to the outrageous genre-busting of Takashi Miike ('Dead Or Alive', 'Ichi The Killer', 'City Of Lost Souls',etc.) via spaghetti westerns and Peckinpah's 'The Killer Elite'. The soundtrack is mind-bogglingly eclectic and ranges from Nancy Sinatra to Morricone to Isaac Hayes to Krautrock legends Neu! to '60s one-hit-wonders The Human Beinz, plus some rockin' live numbers from Japanese girl band The 5.6.7.8.'s. There's Bruce Lee in-jokes and nods to 'Battle Royale' (one of the stars of the latter Chiaki Kuriyama is featured in the most exciting fight scene here), and a cameo from Sonny Chiba, and even - get this! - a homage to the hilarious martial arts cult classic 'The One Armed Boxer vs. The Flying Guillotine'. But look, you don't have to get all the references and recognize Tarantino's sources of inspiration to enjoy 'Kill Bill'. The more you know the more you'll get out of it, but even a novice will find plenty to entertain them. To say I eagerly await Volume 2 of 'Kill Bill' is the understatement of the decade!! || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ King And I (Warner)|Richard Rich|Family|G |3.8|USA|1999|88 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peter Bakalian Robert Mandel Arthur Rankin Jr. James G. Robinson|Margaret Landon Oscar Hammerstein II Arthur Rankin Peter Bakalian Jacqueline Feather David Seidler Brian Nissen|||Líder Films S.A. [es] || Travelingito theiexotic kingdom of Siamito instruct the Royal children, English school teacher Anna Leonowens soon discovers that her most difficult challenge isitheistubborn, imperious King himself. But even asia wondrous friendship grows between Anna anditheiarrogant monarch, an evil sorcerer isiconjuring upia plotito steal theithrone! Sparkling with playful new characters kids will love, it's an enchantingly animated tale of royal romance, courtly intrigue anditimeless musical favorites! |Miranda Richardson (Anna Leonowens (voice)) @ Christiane Noll (Anna Leonowens (singing voice)) @ Martin Vidnovic (The King of Siam (voice)) @ Ian Richardson (The Kralahome (voice)) @ Darrell Hammond (Master Little (voice)) @ Allen D. Hong (Prince Chululongkorn (voice)) @ David Burnham (Prince Chululongkorn (singing voice)) @ Armi Arabe (Tuptim (voice)) @ Tracy Venner Warren (Tuptim (singing voice)) @ Adam Wylie (Louis Leonowens (voice)) @ Sean Smith (Sir Edward Ramsay (voice) Produced by||What a Waste of Time and Money Having two younger children, I try to take them to movies like this, sight or review unseen, when I can.They, like most kids, have seen the violence, heard the profanity, and fell into the lowest common denominator of most movies being made today.That's what makes this such a disappointment.I like to observe their reactions and their responses and not rain on their parades.But all they talked about when the thing was over was the guy who kept losing his teeth (remember that from the original broadway musical?), and the mango throwing monkey.This is their memory of "The King and I." Both my kids have visited Thailand and I thought perhaps this would bring up some of the spirit of that world.Instead, we have this exploitative mess that throws out most of the cultural issues and the dramatic impact for a supernatural villain (where did he get these powers?The King didn't have any, other than incredible athleticism).And, of course, is there a movie around that doesn't have a Martial Arts component?I know that kickboxing is big in Thailand but....I am generally very accepting of the things that are put out there for the kids, but this was terrible.A message to the producers:"Please, please, please, leave Rodgers and Hammerstein alone.I don't want to watch an interplanetary war version of "Oklahoma"! |Region 1 | |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 SPANISH: Dolby Digital Stereo FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ K-PAX|Iain Softley|Drama|Rated PG-13 for a sequence of violent images, and brief language and sensuality. PG-13|7.2|USA|2001|120 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|Gene Brewer Robert F. Colesberry Lawrence Gordon Lloyd Levin Michael Levy Susan G. Pollock|Gene Brewer Charles Leavitt|John Mathieson ||01 Distribuzione [it] |Change the way you look at the world.|The film tells the story of a mysterious patient (Kevin Spacey) at a mental hospital who claims to be from a distant planet called K-PAX. As his psychiatrist (Jeff Bridges) tries to figure out exactly how to help the patient, he gradually begins to realize that this so-called alien is having a remarkable effect on the mental health of the hospital's other patients. |Kevin Spacey (Prot) @ Jeff Bridges (Dr. Mark Powell) @ Mary McCormack (Rachel Powell) @ Alfre Woodard (Claudia Villars) @ David Patrick Kelly (Howie) @ Saul Williams (Ernie) @ Peter Gerety (Sal) @ Celia Weston (Doris Archer) @ Ajay Naidu (Dr. Chakraborty) @ Tracy Vilar (Maria) @ Melanee Murray (Bess) @ John Toles-Bey (Russell) @ Kimberly Scott (Joyce Trexler) @ Conchata Ferrell (Betty McAllister) @ Vincent Laresca (Navarro) @ Mark Christopher Lawrence (Simms) @ Brian Howe (Dr. Steve Becker) @ Mary Mara (Abby) @ Tess McCarthy (Natalie Powell (Age 6)) @ Natasha Dorfhuber (Gabby Powell (Age 9)) @ Brandon de Paul (Josh (Age 10) (as Brandon Michael Depaul)) @ Aaron Paul (Michael Powell (Age 21)) @ William Lucking (Sheriff) @ Kelly Connell (Walter Fleen) @ Peter Maloney (Dr. Duncan Flynn) @ Lance E. Nichols (David Patel (as Lance Nichols)) @ Paul Linke (Stuart Hessler) @ Christopher Jason Brown (Danny Trexler) @ Greg Lewis (Dominic McAllister) @ Clarke Peters (Freddie the Homeless Veteran) @ Olga Merediz (Transit Officer Romano) @ Joe Holt (Transit Officer) @ Lola Pashalinski (Russian Woman) @ Kateri Walker (Sara Porter) @ Katya Abelski (Rebecca Porter) @ Scott Lincoln (Daryl Walker) @ Clebert Ford (Homeless Man) @ Norman Alden (Babbling Man) @ Rawle D. Lewis (Security Guard) @ Eric LaRay Harvey (Security Guard) @ Zofia Borucka (Woman on Train) @ Tony Rhune (Thug) @ Vinny Capone (Thug (as Vincent Capone)) @ B'Jahn (Ward patient) @ Anne Carroll (Ward patient) @ Lisa Cohen (Ward Patient) @ Clete Francis (Ward patient) @ Leo Frank (Ward patient) @ Valerie Giocondo (Ward patient) @ William Godbolt (Ward patient) @ Ralph Hadida (Ward patient) @ Pat Jankiewicz (Ward patient (as Patrick Janiewicz)) @ Josef S. Klus (Ward patient (as Josef Klus)) @ Coco Leigh (Ward patient) @ Lydia Murray (Ward patient) @ Rafael Real (Ward patient) @ Julie Sands (Ward Patient) @ Gene Smith (Ward patient rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Frank Collison (Screaming Man (uncredited)) @ Moet Meira (Jennifer (uncredited)Produced by||A Charming, Hidden Gem Of A Movie It never ceases to amaze me how movies like this get made. No car crashes, no explosions, no pyrotechnical performances with people screaming at each other or themes/bravura megalomaniacal rants that self-consciously have "Please nominate me for an Oscar" whispering in the Academy's ear. No, instead we're given a quiet, enormously fascinating, compassionate, well-intentioned film that sits back and realizes that above beautiful cinematography (Which it has in spades), before performances which nail you to your seat (Which it carries in abundance), the most important thing of all is story.And K-Pax despite all "common sense" in Hollywood, throws out every safe-bet to get a movie produced and gives us just that.Wonderful story.Marvelous story. I don't need to talk about that.Everyone from the science fiction fans (Who appreciated the depth and seriousness of the subject matter) to the warm n' fuzzy brigade (Who "Get the message" of the movie) have done their part to praise the various facets of a film that refuses to be categorized and is simply a very, very good story. And perhaps because of that, because no one knows precisely what it is, just that's it's wonderful--Not unlike Prot himself--the people who came to this picture and created it have made a film that doesn't slant itself one way or the other but does a wonderful job of juggling seemingly disparate elements--the science, the drama, the message,the psychological aspects--and approach the movie fresh-eyed and innocent.The cinematography is, at times, simply beautiful and inspiring.And Iain Softley obviously had an enormous respect for the material because when it came time to tell the stories and let it speak through the actors, he pulled back, kept it simple and left the audience to witness to incredible performances by Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey to leave viewers with the same feeling; the acting is beautiful and inspiring. Kevin Spacey's "Prot" is a wonderfully understated character with the gentle, knowing presence of an outsider who understands.It is his very calmness and seeming omnipotence that make his emotional outbursts, when they come, that much more intense and painful for audiences.He brings to the story the delicate sense of ironic humanity that comes from someone who may not actually lay claim to being human. Jeff Bridges provides the warm, tired, cynical but still hopeful center of the film that provides reality to Spacey's quiet otherworldliness.Jeff Bridges is the much needed Everyman of this movie who is like so many of us out there; intelligent, wanting to do the right thing, essentially a good person at heart who is perhaps little lost and a LOT tired of the shackling nature of every day life in a first world nation.He asks the hard questions, he clings to his perceived reality.But he also wants to help. And all he's looking for is an excuse, some kind of spark to ignite his hope. I suspect that K-Pax is going to occupy the same space in most people's hearts as that of a good book.I can't see it raking in buzillions of dollars, despite the fact that far, FAR less worthy films do that every summer.Instead, it will carry along, fondly or even maniacally supported by lovers of the film by word of mouth, quietly finding a new audience and making change where ever it goes.It's a gentle, engaging, quiet film that punches viewers between the eyes not through editing, action or shouting, but through that most basic and often forgotten art of cinema, finding a strong story and just letting it tell itself. || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Kundun|Martin Scorsese|Drama|Rated PG-13 for violent images. |7.0|USA|1997| 128 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Barbara De Fina Laura Fattori Scott Harris Melissa Mathison Perry Santos|Melissa Mathison |Roger Deakins ||AMLF [fr] |The destiny of a people lies in the heart of a boy.|The Tibetans refer to the Dalai Lama as 'Kundun', which means 'The Presence'. He was forced to escape from his native home, Tibet, when communist China invaded and enforced an oppressive regime upon the peaceful nation of Tibet. The Dalai Lama escaped to India in 1959 and has been living in exile in Dharamsala ever since. In 1937, in a remote area of Tibet close to the Chinese border, a two year old child is identified as the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, the compassionate Buddha. Two years later, the child is brought to Lhasa where he is schooled as a monk and as head of state amidst the color and pageantry of Tibetan culture. The film follows him into adulthood: when he is 14, the Chinese invade Tibet and he is forced into a shaky coalition government; he travels to China to meet with a cynical Mao; and, finally, in 1959, ill and under siege, he flees to India. Throughout, he has visions of his people's slaughter under Chinese rule. |Tenzin Thuthob Tsarong (Dalai Lama (Adult)) @ Gyurme Tethong (Dalai Lama (Aged 10)) @ Tulku Jamyang Kunga Tenzin (Dalai Lama (Aged 5)) @ Tenzin Yeshi Paichang (Dalai Lama (Aged 2)) @ Tencho Gyalpo (Dalai Lama's Mother) @ Tsewang Migyur Khangsar (Dalai Lama's Father) @ Geshi Yeshi Gyatso (Lama of Sera) @ Sonam Phuntsok (Reting Rimpoche) @ Lobsang Samten (Master of the Kitchen) @ Gyatso Lukhang (Lord Chamberlain) @ Jigme Tsarong (Taktra Rimpoche) @ Tenzin Trinley (Ling Rimpoche) @ Robert Lin (Chairman Mao rest of cast listed alphabetically Vyas Ananthakrishnan .... Indian Soldier) @ Kim Chan (Second Chinese General) @ Yoon C. Joyce ( (voice)) @ Ben Wang (General Chang Ching-Wu) @ R. Gern Trowbridge (Monk (uncredited) Produced by||Culture Lock Spoilers herein. What slaves we are to our home culture! With intellect, some can apply a discipline to change who they are. But most of us are on an automatic pilot set by the diffuse forces of our legacy culture. That is even more true with most artists who rely on intuition, because that intuition is so heavily colored to create serious walls. Scorsese has made powerful films, and he gives the impression of artistic integrity. But they are all Italian in nature. All effusively emotional, with emotion defined in physical terms. Everything is a struggle with fate. Even Jesus is seen this way. One imagines the man making this bold move to escape the prison of that almost comically small world. And so we have this. It is a double sorrow. The story is of one culture failing to come to terms with the larger world. That culture's limitations are laid at the feet of a limited leader -- here the limits are because he is a child and locked into patterns defined eons ago. And so we have with Scorsese: the film is hollow in tone because he just cannot escape his small world to find a creative platform in the larger one. Just as it all seems the fault of the leader-child in Tibet, so too it seems the fault of the similarly limited leader of this film project. Oh, we have lovely pictures -- these are from the eye of an enthusiastic visitor. And we have a fairly enticing score. But it is more of an self-aware examination, a more German compulsion for introspection -- it doesn't match the visions. And we have actors who aren't, but are showing what they consider to be their `real' selves. This all worked in `Taxi Driver,' where the visions were of Scorsese's home town, and the actors from that very spot, mimicking folk from their neighborhoods. But here, it is as if all the parts came from different minds, which indeed they did. But there is no confluence. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ L.A. Confidential|Curtis Hanson|Crime|R |8.4|USA|1997|138 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/5/2004|Curtis Hanson Brian Helgeland Dan Kolsrud Arnon Milchan Michael G. Nathanson David L. Wolper|James Ellroy Brian Helgeland Curtis Hanson|Dante Spinotti ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Off the record, on the QT, and very hush-hush...|1950's Los Angeles is the seedy backdrop for this intricate noir-ish tale of police corruption and Hollywood sleaze. Three very different cops are all after the truth, each in their own style: Ed Exley, the golden boy of the police force, willing to do almost anything to get ahead, except sell out; Bud White, ready to break the rules to seek justice, but barely able to keep his raging violence under control; and Jack Vincennes, always looking for celebrity and a quick buck until his conscience drives him to join Exley and White down the one-way path to find the truth behind the dark world of L.A. crime. LA in the 50's: someone's killing imprisoned mob boss Mickey Cohen's gang. The police, led by Captain Dudley, convince wiseguys from Jersey, Cleveland, and elsewhere to go home. Rich developer, Pierce Patchett, runs a stable of high-class hookers who are ringers for movie stars. The plot to replace Cohen blindsides three plainclothes cops: White watched his father beat his mother to death then vanish, he punishes abusers with quick violence; Exley's father was a hero cop killed mysteriously, he seeks justice by the book; Vicennes, a clothes horse, consults for a Dragnet-like TV show. Will they escape corruption and murder, will they find their own morality? Three detectives in the corrupt and brutal L.A. police force of the 1950s use differing methods to uncover a conspiracy behind the shotgun slayings of the patrons at an all-night diner in this lush tribute to tough film noir crime films. Based on the multi-layered James Ellroy novel. |Kevin Spacey (Jack Vincennes) @ Russell Crowe (Officer Wendell 'Bud' White) @ Guy Pearce (Det. Lt. Edmund Jennings Exley) @ James Cromwell (Capt. Dudley Liam Smith) @ Kim Basinger (Lynn Bracken) @ Danny DeVito (Sid Hudgens) @ David Strathairn (Pierce Morehouse Patchett) @ Ron Rifkin (Dist. Atty. Ellis Loew) @ Matt McCoy (Brett Chase) @ Paul Guilfoyle (Meyer Harris 'Mickey' Cohen) @ Paolo Seganti (Johnny Stompanato) @ Elisabeth Granli (Mickey Cohen's Mambo Partner) @ Sandra Taylor (Mickey Cohen's Mambo Partner) @ Steve Rankin (Officer Arresting Mickey Cohen) @ Graham Beckel (Sgt. Richard Alex 'Dick' Stensland) @ Allan Graf (Wife Beater) @ Precious Chong (Wife) @ Symba Smith (Karen, Jack's Dancing Partner) @ Bob Clendenin (Reporter at Hollywood Station) @ Lennie Loftin (Photographer at Hollywood Station) @ Will Zahrn (Liquor Store Owner) @ Amber Smith (Susan Lefferts) @ Darrell Sandeen (Leland 'Buzz' Meeks) @ Michael Warwick (Sid's Assistant) @ Simon Baker (Matt Reynolds (as Simon Baker Denny)) @ Shawnee Free Jones (Tammy Jordan) @ Matthew Allen Bretz (Officer Escorting Mexicans) @ Thomas Rosales Jr. (Mexican #1) @ Shane Dixon (Officer #1 at Hollywood Station) @ Norman Howell (Officer #2 at Hollywood Station) @ Brian Lally (Intoxicated Officer at Hollywood Station) @ Don Pulford (Officer #4 at Hollywood Station) @ Chris Short (Officer #5 at Hollywood Station) @ John Mahon (Police Chief) @ Tomas Arana (Det. Michael Breuning) @ Michael McCleery (Det. William Carlisle) @ George Yager (Gangster at Victory Motel) @ Jack Conley (Vice Captain) @ Ginger Slaughter (Secretary in Vice) @ Jack Knight (Detective at Detective Bureau) @ John H. Evans (Patrolman at Nite Owl Cafe) @ Gene Wolande (Forensic Chief) @ Brian Bossetta (Forensic Officer) @ Michael Chieffo (Coroner) @ Gwenda Deacon (Mrs. Lefferts) @ Mike Kennedy (Bud's Rejected Partner) @ Ingo Neuhaus (Jack's Rejected Partner) @ Robert Harrison (Pierce Patchett's Bodyguard) @ Jim Metzler (City Councilman) @ Robert Barry Fleming (Boxer) @ Jeremiah Birkett (Raymond 'Sugar Ray' Collins) @ Salim Grant (Louis Fontaine) @ Karreem Washington (Ty Jones) @ Noel Evangelisti (Stenographer) @ Marisol Padilla Sánchez (Inez Soto (as Marisol Padilla Sanchez)) @ Jeff Sanders (Sylvester Fitch) @ Steven Lambert (Roland Navarette) @ Jordan Marder (Officer at Detective Bureau) @ Gregory White (Mayor) @ April Breneman (Lookalike Dancer #1) @ Lisa Worthy (Lookalike Dancer #2) @ Beverly Sharpe (Witness on 'Badge of Honor') @ Colin Mitchell (Reporter at Hospital) @ John Slade (Photographer at Hospital) @ Brenda Bakke (Lana Turner) @ Kevin Maloney (Frolic Room Bartender) @ Patrice Walters (Police File Clerk) @ Rebecca Klingler (Police File Clerk (as Rebecca Jane Klingler)) @ Irene Roseen (Ellis Loew's Secretary) @ Scott Eberlein (West Hollywood Sheriff's Deputy) @ David St. James (Detective at Hush-Hush Office) @ Bodie Newcomb (Officer at Hush-Hush Office) @ Jeff Austin (Detective) @ Robert Foster (Detective) @ Kevin Kelly (Detective) @ Henry Marder (Detective) @ Monty McKee (Detective) @ Henry Meyers (Detective) @ Michael Ossman (Detective) @ Dick Stilwell (Detective) @ Jess Thomas (Detective) @ Robert Samuel Thompson (Detective (as Samuel Thompson)) @ Jody Wood (Detective rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jonathan Adler (Photographer (uncredited)) @ Hennen Chambers (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Deborah Kerr (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Virginia Mayo (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Scott McKinley (Cop (uncredited)) @ Marilyn Monroe (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Jimmy Ortega (2nd Mexican (uncredited)) @ Gilbert Rosales (3rd Mexican (uncredited)) @ Nectar Rose (Marilyn Monroe (uncredited)) @ Jane Russell (Herself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Rocco Salata (Uniformed Patrol Officer (uncredited)) @ Frank Sinatra (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Stacey Swall ( (uncredited)Produced by||Gritty noir L.A. CONFIDENTIAL (1997) **** Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, James Cromwell, David Strathairn, Kim Basinger, Danny De Vito.Superb adaptation of James Ellroy's sprawling film noir hommage exposing police corruption in a web of intrigue set in 1950s L.A. entangling three disparate cops at odds with each other and themselves: Spacey as a been there,done that cop who lives for his moonlighting job as an advisor for a tv police drama; Crowe as a pitbull/white knight jacked up cop with a vendetta with female abusers; and Pearce as an ambitious yet naïve detective who uncovers some dark secrets.Tautly directed by Curtis Hanson (who co-scripted the gritty Oscar-winning screenplay with Brian Helgeland) with verve and panache enfused by the powerhouse acting by the three comrades in arms.Basinger won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of a call girl whose resemblance to Veronica Lake is only secondary to her desire for something better.Reminiscent of Hammett and Chandler with atouch of `Chinatown' yet uniquely original nonetheless.Flawlessly executed.The film was nominated for 9 Academy Awards but this was the year of `TITANIC' so that explains why it lost the top spots of Picture and Director but still can't fathom why it copped no nominations for best actor/supporting actor!!! ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Lady and the Tramp|Clyde Geronimi Wilfred Jackson Hamilton Lusk|Drama|G |7.4|USA|1955|75 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Walt Disney Erdman Penner|Ward Greene Erdman Penner Joe Rinaldi Ralph Wright Don DaGradi|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |One of the Greatest Love Stories Ever Told.|Lady, a golden cocker spaniel, meets up with a mongrel dog who calls himself the Tramp. He is obviously from the wrong side of town, but happenings at Lady's home make her decide to travel with him for a while. This turns out to be a bad move, as no dog is above the law. |Peggy Lee (Darling/Si/Am/Peg (voice)) @ Barbara Luddy (Lady (voice)) @ Larry Roberts (Tramp (voice)) @ Bill Thompson (Jock/Bulldog in Pound/Policeman at Zoo/Dachsie/Joe (voice)) @ Bill Baucom (Trusty (voice)) @ Stan Freberg (Beaver (voice)) @ Verna Felton (Aunt Sarah (voice)) @ Alan Reed (Boris (voice)) @ George Givot (Tony (voice)) @ Dal McKennon (Toughy/Professor Pedro (voice)) @ Lee Millar (Jim Dear/Dog Catcher (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Bill Lee .... Dog (as The Mello Men)) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Al the Alligator/Dog (as The Mello Men)) @ Max Smith (Dog (as The Mello Men)) @ Bob Stevens (producer||A CLASSIC If this film isn't a classic, I don't know what is! This is a great story about two dogs who fall in love, although they're from different sides of the railroad tracks, so to speak. These dogs act more human than many humans do. It's heartwarming, humorous and just plain clean family entertainment! This is a film that has stood the test of time and passed with flying colors. This is one to BUY and keep! So what are you waiting for? Go buy it! ||Limited Issue |1.37 : 1 (spherical version) |||||||@@ Langoliers, The|Tom Holland|Sci-Fi|Rated PG-13 for violence and some sci-fi terror. |5.5|USA|1995| 180 min/ 60 min (3 episodes) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mitchell Galin David R. Kappes Richard P. Rubinstein|Stephen King Tom Holland|Paul Maibaum ||Artisan Entertainment [us] ||A blind girl, a teacher, a machine worker, a musician, a stoner, a mystery writer, a businessman, a mysterious Englishman, and a raving psychopath in a business suit on a flight to Boston find themselves utterly alone when the rest of the passengers and all of the crew vanish. Diverting the plane to Bangor, Maine, they discover that they seem to be the only people left on the planet, and that time and the Langoliers are catching up with them all too quickly... When a plane passes through a mysterious time warp, all but a few onboard vanish. The survivors manage to land, and discover that time seems to stand still--and the mysterious Langoliers are in hot pursuit. The Langoliers' job is to erase moments in time that have already passed into history. The survivors still exist because they were asleep when the plane passed through the warp, and they determine that if they can all be asleep once again when the plane returns, they will survive. However, one passenger must remain awake--and doomed to die--to pilot the plane on its return through the warp... Nine passengers on a plane headed to Boston go through a time warp. Among them are a blind girl named Dinah Bellman, a colored machine worker, a stoner, a musician, a mystery writer, a mysterious Englishman, a teacher, a businessman, and raving psychopath named Craig Toomy. |Patricia Wettig (Laurel Stevenson) @ Dean Stockwell (Bob Jenkins) @ David Morse (Captain Brian Engle) @ Mark Lindsay Chapman (Nick Hopewell) @ Frankie Faison (Don Gaffney) @ Baxter Harris (Rudy Warwick) @ Kimber Riddle (Bethany Simms) @ Christopher Collet (Albert Kaussner) @ Kate Maberly (Dinah Catherine Bellman) @ Bronson Pinchot (Craig Toomy) @ Tom Holland (Harker) @ Julie Arnold Lisnet (Aunt Vicki) @ Michael Louden (Richard Logan) @ Kymberly Dakin (Doris Heartman) @ David Forrester (Danny Keene) @ Chris Hendrie (James Deegan) @ Jennifer Nichole Porter (Gate Agent) @ John Griesemer (Roger Toomy) @ Christopher Cooke (Craig Toomy (9 years old)) @ Stephen King (Tom Holby) @ David Kelly (Little Boy) @ Stephanie Dunham (Little Girl) @ John Winthrop Philbrick (Father rest of cast listed alphabetically S. William Hinzman .... Cameo appearance Produced by||Another great Stephen King movie This is a great movie.The acting was really good and it was stylishly scary.The thing that made this movie better was that I saw this a week before I went on a plane.People on an airplane fall asleep and wake up in another dimension.The first person to wake up is a blind girl named Dina. Her hearing is powerful and it is useful for her later in the movie. Everybody else wakes up and they end up stopping in some empty airport.It turns out that time has stopped and something is moving that Dina hears. The rest of the movie is just great and I loved it. Overall the movie was freaky and the best performance was from Bronson Pinchot.He was cast perfectly for his role as Craig Toomy.This is again a great Stephen King movie.Rating 10 out of 10. || ||5.1 ||||||@@ Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life|Jan de Bont|Action|Rated PG-13 for action violence and some sensuality. PG-13|5.3|USA|2003|117 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/24/2004|Shelly Clippard Holly Goline Lawrence Gordon Lloyd Levin Jeremy H. Smith Louis A. Stroller|Steven E. de Souza James V. Hart Dean Georgaris|David Tattersall ||Paramount Pictures [us] |||Angelina Jolie (Lara Croft) @ Gerard Butler (Terry Sheridan) @ Ciarán Hinds (Jonathan Reiss) @ Chris Barrie (Hillary (as Christopher Barrie)) @ Noah Taylor (Bryce) @ Djimon Hounsou (Kosa) @ Til Schweiger (Sean) @ Simon Yam (Chen Lo) @ Terence Yin (Xien) @ Daniel Caltagirone (Nicholas Petraki) @ Fabiano Martell (Jimmy Petraki) @ Jonathan Coyne (Gus Petraki) @ Robert Cavanah (MI6 Agent Stevens) @ Ronan Vibert (MI6 Agent Calloway) @ Lenny Juma (Village Leader) @ Raymond Ofula (Village Leader (as Raymond Offula)) @ Hezron Ajuala (Village Leader) @ Alfred Kalipso (Tribesman) @ Vincent Mbaya (Tribesman) @ Ace Yonamine (Shay Ling Giant (as Ace Shigeo Yonamine)) @ Robert Atiko (Armin Kal) @ Shirley Chantrell (Shu Mei) @ Sang Lui (Shay Ling Messenger) @ Richard Ridings (Mr. Monza) @ Elizabeth Seal (Buyer) @ Hajaz Akram (Buyer) @ Daryl Kwan (Buyer) @ Richard Woo (Buyer) @ David Kershaw (Buyer) @ Marem Hernandez (Air Stewardess) @ Kate Loustau (Air Stewardess) @ Ralf Beck (Sean's Man) @ Tom Wu (Sean's Man) @ Gerald Kyd (Sean's Man) @ Mark Sung (Taipei Father) @ Loan Tran (Taipei Mother) @ Charlotte Nguyen (Taipei Girl) @ Vincent Poon (Taipei Boy) @ Tom Yang (Reiss' Guard) @ Jamie Cho (Reiss' Guard) @ Khan Bonfils (Reiss' Guard) @ Jose Cuenco Jr. (Reiss' Guard) @ Andrew Joshi (Reiss' Guard) @ Mark Hampton (Reiss' Guard) @ Michael Wagg (Lead Tech) @ Martin Glyn Murray (Submarine Medic) @ Graham McTavish (Submarine CaptainProduced by||Slightly better than the first The problem I have with the 'Tomb Raider'-films is that they seem a little too serious. Between the ridiculous action scenes, that is what I mean. Because things are handled in such a serious way the action sequences, though fun to look at, seem really stupid in comparison to the serious scenes we saw right before the action. If there was a little more fun in the scenes between action sequences I would not mind the goofy action. May be I should not care about that. May be the good thing is that it seems this serious and therefore the action can be really funny. But I think 'Tomb Raider'-films don't want us to find the action sequences funny, may be we are allowed to chuckle a bit. Still, to be a little positive, this sequel is better than the original. That I really hated the first movie helps with that. The story is a search for Pandora's Box. Lara Croft (Angelina Jolie) takes us from one continent to another. She has the help of Terry Sheridan (Gerard Butler) with searching a certain ball that can tell where you can find "the Cradle of Life", the place where Pandora's Box must be hidden. The villain named Jonathan Reiss (Ciarán Hinds) is searching for the same thing. His motives are not important but I guess they have to do something with world domination or so. 'Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life' has the premise for a great action adventure film like the 'Indiana Jones'-films. There are moments it comes close but unfortunately they do not last long. The reason I was able to sit through the movie is the way it looks. The visual effects together with the production design are pretty good. The director is Jan de Bont who directed 'The Haunting', another film where the visual effects and production design were pretty good but the movie itself was not. He also made the terrific action movie 'Speed' and the highly entertaining 'Twister' so I was hoping for a sequel that was a lot better instead of a little, but after his terrible 'Speed 2: Cruise Control' director Jan de Bont seems to have lost it. ||Full Screen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Lara Croft: Tomb Raider|Simon West|Action|Rated PG-13 for action violence and some sensuality. PG-13|5.2|USA|2001|100 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/13/2004|Stuart Baird Lawrence Gordon Chris Kenny Bobby Klein Lloyd Levin Michael Levy Jib Polhemus Jeremy H. Smith Colin Wilson|Sara B. Cooper Mike Werb Michael Colleary Simon West Patrick Massett John Zinman|Peter Menzies Jr. ||Concorde Filmverleih GmbH [de] |Who Is Lara Croft?|A member of a rich British aristocratic family, Lara Croft is a "tomb raider" who enjoys collecting ancient artifacts from ruins of temples, cities, etc. worldwide, and doesn't mind going through death-defying dangers to get them. She is skilled in hand-to-hand combat, weapons training, and foreign languages - and does them all in tight outfits. Well, the planets of the solar system are going into planetary alignment (Which occurs every 5,000 years), and a secret society called the Illuminati is seeking an ancient talisman that gives its possessor the ability to control time. However, they need a certain clock/key to help them in their search, and they have to find the talisman in one week or wait until the next planetary alignment to find it again. Lara happens to find that key hidden in a wall of her mansion. The Illuminati steal it, and Lara gets an old letter from her deceased father telling her about the society's agenda (Her father was also the one who hid the key). Now, she must retrieve the key and find and destroy the talisman before the Illuminati can get their hands on it. Based on the popular video game series, Tomb Raider features the adventures of Lara Croft an antiquities hunter-for-hire. She travels to exotic locales in search of treasures and artifacts in the catacombs of ancient tombs and ruins remaining from age-old empires. A female Indiana Jones, Croft's expeditions are always chock full of action, danger, intrigue, suspense and her omnipresent knack for defying death in tight outfits. Lara Croft is a wealthy, British archeologist/tomb raider who tries to thwart a secret society/doomesday cult seeking two pieces of a mysterious device hidden in two different places of the world in order to use it during a rare planetary alignment to bring them unlimited power to control or destroy the world. |Angelina Jolie (Lara Croft) @ Jon Voight (Lord Richard Croft) @ Iain Glen (Manfred Powell) @ Noah Taylor (Bryce) @ Daniel Craig (Alex West) @ Richard Johnson (Distinguished Gentleman) @ Chris Barrie (Hillary (as Christopher Barrie)) @ Julian Rhind-Tutt (Mr. Pimms) @ Leslie Phillips (Wilson) @ Robert Phillips (Julius, Assault Team Leader) @ Rachel Appleton (Young Lara) @ Henry Wyndham (Boothby's Auctioneer) @ David Cheung (Head Laborer (as David Y. Cheung)) @ David K.S. Tse (Head Laborer) @ Ozzie Yue (Aged Buddhist Monk) @ Wai-Keat Lau (Young Buddhist Monk) @ Carl Chase (Ancient High Priest) @ Olegar Fedoro (Russian Commander) @ Richenda Carey (Imperious Woman) @ Sylvano Clarke (UPS Guy) @ Ayla Amiral (Little Cambodian Girl) @ Stephanie Burns (Little Inuit Girl) @ Anna Maria Everett (Shocked Maid rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ James Embree (Special forces Team (uncredited)) @ Jimmy Roussounis (Venetian Rogue (DVD only) (uncredited)Produced by||Less than great, but why completely carp? Lara Croft is played very well by Angelina Jolie in Tomb Raider, where her character isn't as demanding as the ones she has had in the past.She has fun with her role, and being one of the best looking women in Hollywood, it is worth it to see her all sexy and all (the guys will like that aspect over the action I bet). The story is so lame, contrived and non-sensical, it might be just as well to give up trying to find anything logical and take the Spaz look at it (obscure O & A reference) in just some action, effects and large heaving boobs. While the action is well plotted in good locations and setting, the suspense is very, very thin, which is strange for this type of movie.It's almost like we don't care what's going to happen because most of us have been down this genre road before (last month's Mummy 2, for example), and we know the outcome better than a fixed poker game.Plus, the opening steals the show.Action filled with fun in absurdity to go around, but it is very far from a great popcorn movie.But at least Jolie is hot.Jolie's real life dad Voight plays her on-screen dad here.B (like it's genre) || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Last Emperor, The|Bernardo Bertolucci|Drama||7.7|France|1987| 160 min/ Japan:219 min (extended version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Daly Franco Giovale Joyce Herlihy Jeremy Thomas|Mark Peploe Bernardo Bertolucci Henry Pu-yi|Vittorio Storaro ||Artisan Entertainment [us] |He was the Lord of Ten Thousand Years, the absolute monarch of China.He was born to rule a world of ancient tradition.Nothing prepared him for our world of change. |A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as just another peasant worker in the People's Republic. A biography of Aisin-Gioro "Henry" Pu Yi, who at the age of three was named the Emperor of China, and dies as a gardener at the Botanical Gardens of Peking. Told in an interesting flashback/flashforward style, we learn of Pu Yi's childhood, the time he spent imprisoned in the Forbidden City, his term as the emperor of Japans Manchukuo, and his eventual release back to public life in 1959. |John Lone (Emperor (Henry) Pu Yi) @ Joan Chen (Empress (Elizabeth) Wan Jung) @ Peter O'Toole (Reginald Fleming 'R.J.' Johnston) @ Ruocheng Ying (Governor of Foo Shoe Detention Center (as Ying Ruocheng)) @ Victor Wong (Chen Pao Shen) @ Dennis Dun (Big Li, valet) @ Ryuichi Sakamoto (Amakasu) @ Maggie Han (Eastern Jewel) @ Ric Young (Interrogator) @ Vivian Wu (Wen Hsiu, First Concubine (as Wu Jun Mei)) @ Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Chang) @ Jade Go (Ar Mo) @ Fumihiko Ikeda (Yoshioka) @ Richard Vuu (Pu Yi, at 3) @ Tsou Tijger (Pu Yi, at 8) @ Tao Wu (Pu Yi, at 15) @ Guang Fan (Pu Chieh, Pu Yi's Brother) @ Henry Kyi (Pu Chieh, at 7) @ Alvin Riley III (Pu Chieh, at 14) @ Lisa Lu (Dowager Empress Tzu Hsui) @ Hideo Takamatsu (General Ishikari) @ Hajime Tachibana (Japanese Translator) @ Basil Pao (Prince Chun, Pu Yi's father) @ Henry O (Lord Chamberlain (as Jiang Xi Ren)) @ Kaige Chen (Captain of Imperial Guard (as Chen Kai Ge)) @ Liangbin Zhang (Big Foot) @ Wenjie Huang (Hunchback) @ Dong Liang (Lady Aisin-Gioro, Pu Yi's mother) @ Zhendong Dong (Old Doctor) @ Jiechen Dong (Doctor) @ Constantine Gregory (Oculist) @ Huaikuei Soong (Lung Yu) @ Ruzhen Shao (First High Consort) @ Li Yu (Second High Consort) @ Guangli Li (Third High Consort) @ Xu Chunqing (Grey Eyes) @ Tianmin Zhang (Old Tutor) @ Hongnian Luo (Sleeping Old Tutor) @ Shihong Yu (Hsiao Hsiu) @ Jun Wu (Wen Hsiu, at 12) @ Lucia Hwong (Lady of the Book) @ Jingping Cui (Lady of the Pen) @ Hai Wu (Republican Officer) @ Junguo Gu (Tang) @ Xu Tongrui (Captain of Feng's Army) @ Fusheng Li (Minister of Trade) @ Shu Chen (Chang Chinghui) @ Shuyan Cheng (Lady Hiro Saga, Pu Chieh's wife) @ Daxing Zhang (Tough Warder) @ Ruigang Zu (Second Warder) @ Yuan Jin (Party Boss) @ Akira Ikuta (Japanese Doctor) @ Michael Vermaaten (American) @ Matthew Spender (Englishman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Hongxiang Cai (Scarface (uncredited)) @ Xinmin Cui (Japanese Bodyguard (uncredited)) @ Zhenduo Li (Dignitary (uncredited)) @ Shigang Luo (Chang Chinghui's Secretary (uncredited)) @ Guang Ma (Japanese Bodyguard (uncredited)) @ Biao Wang (Prisoner (uncredited)) @ Baozong Yang (General Yuan Shikai (uncredited)) @ Hongchang Yang (Scribe (uncredited)) @ Lingmu Zhang (Emperor Hirohito (uncredited) Produced by||epic story Bernardo Bertolucci's epic story ofemperor Pu Yi's life is a stunningly beautiful film.Filled with dazzling imagery and a compelling yet sometimes unfulfilling story.Winner of 9 oscars, well deserved for costume, cinematography, and director. Great historical telling, even if the editing may have cut alot that would of answered alot of questions.Worth viewing for the great performances and the amazing beauty of the film. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Last Picture Show, The|Peter Bogdanovich|Drama|Rated R for sexuality, nudity and language. R|8.0|USA|1971|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Stephen J. Friedman Bert Schneider Harold Schneider|Larry McMurtry Larry McMurtry Peter Bogdanovich|Robert Surtees ||Columbia Pictures [us] ||In tiny Anarene, Texas, in the lull between World War Two and the Korean Conflict, Sonny and Duane are best friends. Enduring that awkward period of life between boyhood and manhood, the two pass their time the best way they know how -- with the movie house, basketball, and girls. Jacey is Duane's steady, wanted by every boy in school, and she knows it. Her daddy is rich and her mom is good looking and loose. It's the general consensus that whoever wins Jacey's heart will be set for life. But Anarene is dying a quiet death as folks head for the big cities to make their livings and raise their kids. The boys are torn between a future somewhere out there beyond the borders of town or making do with their inheritance of a run-down pool hall and a decrepit movie house -- the legacy of their friend and mentor, Sam the Lion. As high school graduation approaches, they learn some difficult lessons about love, loneliness, and jealousy. Then folks stop attending the second-run features at the movie house and the time comes for the last picture show. With the closure of the movie house, the boys feel that a stage of their lives is closing. They stand uneasily on the threshold of the rest of their lives. (The movie was adapted from the novel by Larry McMurtry). |Timothy Bottoms (Sonny Crawford) @ Jeff Bridges (Duane Jackson) @ Cybill Shepherd (Jacy Farrow) @ Ben Johnson (Sam the Lion) @ Cloris Leachman (Ruth Popper) @ Ellen Burstyn (Lois Farrow) @ Eileen Brennan (Genevieve) @ Clu Gulager (Abilene) @ Sam Bottoms (Billy) @ Sharon Ullrick (Charlene Duggs (as Sharon Taggart)) @ Randy Quaid (Lester Marlow) @ Joe Heathcock (The Sheriff) @ Bill Thurman (Coach Popper) @ Barc Doyle (Joe Bob Blanton) @ Jessie Lee Fulton (Miss Mosey) @ Gary Brockette (Bobby Sheen) @ Helena Humann (Jimmie Sue) @ Loyd Catlett (Leroy) @ Robert Glenn (Gene Farrow) @ John Hillerman (Teacher) @ Janice E. O'Malley (Mrs. Clarg (as Janice O'Malley)) @ Floyd Mahaney (Oklahoma Patrolman) @ Kimberly Hyde (Annie-Annie Martin) @ Noble Willingham (Chester) @ Marjorie Jay (Winnie Snips) @ Joye Hash (Mrs. Jackson) @ Pamela Keller (Jackie Lee French) @ Gordon Hurst (Monroe) @ Mike Hosford (Johnny) @ Faye Jordan (Nurse) @ Charles Seybert (Andy Fanner) @ Grover Lewis (Mr. Crawford) @ Rebecca Ulrick (Marlene) @ Merrill Shepherd (Agnes) @ Buddy Wood (Bud) @ Kenny Wood (Ken) @ Leon Brown (Cowboy in Cafe) @ Bobby McGriff (Truck Driver) @ Jack Mueller (Oil Pumper) @ Robert Arnold (Brother Blanton) @ Frank Marshall (Tommy Logan) @ Tom Martin (Larry) @ Otis Elmore (1st Mechanic) @ Charles Salmon (Roughneck Driver) @ George Gaulden (Cowboy) @ Will Morris Hannis (Gas Station Man) @ The Leon Miller Band (Themselves rest of cast listed alphabetically Peter Bogdanovich .... Disc Jockey (voice)) @ Antonia Bogdanovich (Singer (uncredited)Produced by||An American classic In this nostalgic, atmospheric study of small town life in the fifties as seen a decade later, filmed on location in Wichita Falls and Archer City, Texas (from a novel by the incomparable Larry McMurtry), the force of slow, inevitable change is symbolized in the showing of the last picture at the local movie house.That last picture show, incidentally, is Howard Hawks' celebrated Western, Red River (1948) starring John Wayne and Montgomery Clift. Well, the movie houses came back to life as multiplexes charging eight bucks a pop, but the Western movie died out, and the boys watching that movie went their separate ways into manhood. Peter Bogdanovich's direction is episodic and leisurely, naturalistic with just a hint of the maudlin. We get a sense of the North Texas prairie wind blowing through a cattle town where there is not a lot to do and a whole lot of time to do it.Hungry women and a sense of drift.Boredom, gray skies and a lot of dust.You could set `Anarene, Texas' down any place in southwestern or midwestern America, circa 1951, and you wouldn't have to change much: a main drag, a Texaco gas station, a café, a feed store, flat lands all around, old pickup trucks and a pool hall, youngsters with a restless yearning to grow up, drinking beer out of brown bottles giggling and elbowing each other in the ribs, and the old boys playing dominoes and telling tales of bygone days. Robert Surtees's stark, yet romantic black and white cinematography, captures well that bygone era.The wide shot of the bus pulling out, taking Duane off to the Korean War with Sonny watching, standing by the Texaco station with the missing letter in the sign, was a tableau in motion, a moment stopped in our minds. Cybill Shepherd made her debut here as Jacy Farrow, a bored little rich girl playing at love and sexuality.Part of the restorations in the video not shown in theaters in the early seventies includes some footage of her in the buff after stripping on a diving board (!).She is as shallow as she is pretty, and one of the reasons for seeing this film, although in truth her performance, while engaging, was a little uneven. The rest of the cast was outstanding, in particular Timothy Bottoms whose Sonny Crawford is warm and forgiving, sweet and innocent.Jeff Bridges's Duane Jackson is two-faced, wild and careless, self-centered and probably going to die in Korea.Ben Johnson and Cloris Leachman deservedly won Oscars as best supporting actors.Leachman was especially good as the lonely 40-year-old wife of the football coach who has an awkward affair with the 18-year-old Sonny, while Johnson played a lovable, crusty guy that the kids looked up to.Sam Bottoms played the retarded Billy with steady, tragic good humor.Ellen Burstyn as Jacy's terminally bored mother, and Eileen Brennan as the wise waitress with a hand on her hip were also very good. Memorable, but perhaps too obviously insertional, are the medley of country, pop, and rock and roll tunes from the late forties/early fifties jingling out of car radios and 45 record players throughout the film. Peter Bogdanovich followed this with some hits, including the comedy What's Up Doc (1972) with Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, and Madeline Kahn, and the excellent Paper Moon (1973) with Ryan and Tatum O'Neal, but then tailed off.I don't think he ever lived up to the promise of this film, an American classic not to be missed. ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Last Samurai, The|Edward Zwick|Action|Rated R for strong violence and battle sequences. R|7.8|USA|2003|Japan:154 min/ USA:154 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/25/2004|Tom Cruise Michael Doven Tom Engelman Ted Field Marshall Herskovitz Scott Kroopf Graham Larson Charles Mulvehill Yôko Narahashi Richard Solomon Paula Wagner Vincent Ward Edward Zwick|John Logan John Logan Edward Zwick Marshall Herskovitz|John Toll ||Warner Bros. [us] |In the face on an enemy, in the Heart of One Man, Lies the Soul of a Warrior.|In Japan, Civil War veteran Captain Nathan Algren trains the Emperor's troops to use modern weapons as they prepare to defeat the last of the country's samurais. But Algren's passion is swayed when he is captured by the samurai and learns about their traditions and code of honor. American War Captain Nathan Algren (Cruise) trains and lead's a group of Japenese soldiers to defeat a rebellion of the countries remaining Samurai. Algren is captured by the Samurai and soon becomes part of the village he is being held hostage in and find's that his true warrior is becoming unleashed as he trains to become a Samurai with the very people we once called his enemies. Soon, the Japenese forces begin to search for the Samurai again... ready to begin a war with them that will soon determine the fate of Japenese traditions, and thier lives. |Ken Watanabe (Katsumoto) @ Tom Cruise (Nathan Algren) @ William Atherton (Winchester Rep) @ Chad Lindberg (Winchester Rep Assistant) @ Ray Godshall Sr. (Convention Hall Attendee) @ Billy Connolly (Zebulon Gant) @ Tony Goldwyn (Colonel Bagley) @ Masato Harada (Omura) @ Masashi Odate (Omura's Companion) @ John Koyama (Omura's Bodyguard) @ Timothy Spall (Simon Graham) @ Shichinosuke Nakamura (Emperor Meiji) @ Togo Igawa (General Hasegawa) @ Satoshi Nikaido (N.C.O.) @ Shintaro Wada (Young Recruit) @ Shin Koyamada (Nobutada) @ Hiroyuki Sanada (Ujio) @ Shun Sugata (Nakao) @ Koyuki (Taka) @ Sosuke Ikematsu (Higen) @ Aoi Minato (Magojiro) @ Seizo Fukumoto (Silent Samurai) @ Shoji Yoshihara (Sword Master) @ Kosaburo Nomura IV (Kyogen Player #1) @ Takashi Noguchi (Kyogen Player #2) @ Noguchi Takayuki (Kyogen Player #3) @ Sven Toorvald (Omura's Secretary) @ Scott Wilson (Ambassador Swanbeck) @ Yuki Matsuzaki (Soldier in Street #1) @ Mitsuyuki Oishi (Soldier in Street #2) @ Jiro Wada (Soldier in Street #3) @ Hiroshi Watanabe (Guard) @ Yusuke Myochin (Sword Master's Assistant) @ Hiroaki Amano (Samurai Ensemble) @ Kenta Daibo (Samurai Ensemble) @ Koji Fujii (Samurai Ensemble) @ Makoto Hashiba (Samurai Ensemble) @ Shimpei Horinouchi (Samurai Ensemble) @ Takashi Kora (Samurai Ensemble) @ Shane Kosugi (Samurai Ensemble) @ Takeshi Maya (Samurai Ensemble) @ Seiji Mori (Samurai Ensemble) @ Lee Murayama (Samurai Ensemble) @ Takeru Shimizu (Samurai Ensemble) @ Shinji Suzuki (Samurai Ensemble) @ Hisao Takeda (Samurai Ensemble) @ Ryoichiro Yonekura (Samurai Ensemble) @ Ryoichi Noguchi (Samurai Ensemble rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Darin Fujimori (Gatling gun operator (uncredited)Produced by||The Last Samurai! The Last Samurai is a decent film. I think Tom Cruise was very good in the movie and in fact I think this maybe his best performance. His look was very fitting. All of the actors were also good including William Atherton, Billy Connolly, Scott Wilson, and Tony Goldwyn. The film has some great action but since the film is well of the two hour mark and only a handful of battles this will probably disappoint many fans of the genre. Despite the movie's slowness the end is really incredible. The music by Hans Zimmer was very good. The movie has very good direction by Edward Zwick. Everything looked very realistic like the armor the Samurai's wore was awesome looking! This film in My opinion is original and does not try to be like other films. If you like Tom Cruise and the cast mentioned above and want to see some great sword fighting action then I strongly recommended you watch The Last Samurai today! ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Lawrence of Arabia|David Lean|Adventure||8.6|UK|1962| 216 min/ UK:187 min (1970 re-release) / UK:210 min (original version) / UK:222 min (premiere version) / UK:228 min (director's cut) / USA:227 min (restored roadshow version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert A. Harris Sam Spiegel|T.E. Lawrence Robert Bolt Michael Wilson|Freddie Young ||Columbia Pictures [us] |From the creators of "The Bridge on the River Kwai."|A biography of T.E.Lawrence. The young lieutenant Lawrence manages to get a job as an observer with Prince Feisal, the leader of an Arab tribal army. Lawrence decides to stay and help Feisal. His adventures are detailed by Jackson Bentley, a journalist. T. E. Lawrence is a young maladjusted lieutenant in the British Army in North Africa during World War One. Unhappy with his current assignment coloring maps, he is ecstatic when he is offered a job as an observer in what is now Arabia. At this point, the story of his life becomes the stuff that legends are made of. |Peter O'Toole (T.E. Lawrence) @ Alec Guinness (Prince Feisal) @ Anthony Quinn (Auda abu Tayi) @ Jack Hawkins (Gen. Allenby) @ Omar Sharif (Sherif Ali ibn el Kharish) @ José Ferrer (Turkish Bey (as Jose Ferrer)) @ Anthony Quayle (Col. Harry Brighton) @ Claude Rains (Mr. Dryden) @ Arthur Kennedy (Jackson Bentley) @ Donald Wolfit (Gen. Murray) @ I.S. Johar (Gasim) @ Gamil Ratib (Majid) @ Michel Ray (Farraj) @ John Dimech (Daud) @ Zia Mohyeddin (Tafas) @ Howard Marion-Crawford (Medical officer (as Howard Marion Crawford)) @ Jack Gwillim (Club secretary) @ Hugh Miller (RAMC colonel rest of cast listed alphabetically Rafael Hernández) @ Bruce Beeby ( (uncredited)) @ Fred Bennett (Sergeant at Cairo headquarters (uncredited)) @ John Bennett ( (uncredited)) @ Robert Bolt (Officer with pipe gazing at Lawrence (uncredited)) @ Peter Burton ( (uncredited)) @ Tim Clutterbuck (Turkish pilot (uncredited)) @ Barbara Cole (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Captain John Crewdson (Turkish pilot (uncredited)) @ Basil Dignam ( (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Fortescue (Allenby's aide (uncredited)) @ Harry Fowler (William Potter (uncredited)) @ Jack Hedley (Reporter at Lawrence's funeral (uncredited)) @ Bert Holliday (Driver (uncredited)) @ David Lean (Motorcyclist by Suez Canal (uncredited)) @ Ian MacNaughton (Michael George Hartley (uncredited)) @ Clive Morton ( (uncredited)) @ Henry Oscar (Reciter (uncredited)) @ Bryan Pringle (Driver (uncredited)) @ Kamal Rashid (Auda's son (uncredited)) @ Norman Rossington (Cpl. Jenkins (uncredited)) @ John Ruddock (Elder Harith (uncredited)) @ Fernando Sancho (Turkish sergeant (uncredited)) @ Stuart Saunders (Regimental Sergeant Major (uncredited)) @ Roy Stevens (Truck driver (uncredited) Produced by||Heroism brilliantly shown When it come to making epics, David Lean is the master and what better proof than this masterpiece."Lawrence Of Arabia" was first shown in 1962 and after almost 40 years later, it is still beautiful.The story of T. E. Lawrence is wonderfully brought to us by David Lean, director of another masterpiece called "The Bridge On The River Kwai". David Lean has shown us a man's long, yet never boring (at least for me) journey into the deserts of Arabia.Lawrence (Peter O'Toole) is an ordinary man that becomes a hero (at least in my eyes) during his extensive tenure in Arabia.He becomes a traveler, a great man, and a leader to the people that he has associated with.Only director David Lean could have given us a movie experience like this. An assortment of phenomenal actors are collected for this movie and what a cast!Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif, Anthony Quinn, Alec Guiness and so much more portray their characters with intensity and believability.Never have I been so impressed. As Lawrence, Peter O'Toole plays the role of which his name is most associated with and is surprising for me that he made the role his own because before I got a chance to see this movie I imagined a man opposite from someone like Peter O'Toole.Omar Sharif as Ali is one of the most charismatic characters in film history.I will not say anymore about the cast because I'm allowed only 1,000 words to use in my comment. Will all do respect to classics such as "Gone With The Wind" and even "Bridge on the River Kwai"this is without a doubt the most exciting epic of all time.I highly recommend it! || |2.20 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ League of Their Own, A|Penny Marshall|Comedy||6.9|USA|1992| 128 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Elliot Abbott Ronnie D. Clemmer Robert Greenhut Joseph Hartwick Amy Lemisch Penny Marshall Bill Pace|Kim Wilson Kelly Candaele Lowell Ganz Babaloo Mandel|Miroslav Ondrícek ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Once in a lifetime you get a chance to do something different.|The Second world war is beginning. Most of the baseball players are being drafted. In an attempt to save the sport, several owners formed the All American Girls Baseball League. The film begins in the 90s as one of the players from the 40s leaves to attend their installation in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The story told in one long flashback, is of two sisters who play in the inaugural year of the league. They have to establish themselves with baseball professionals, the public and each other as they try and live the lives of women athletes in the 1940s. |Tom Hanks (Jimmy Dugan) @ Geena Davis (Dottie Hinson) @ Madonna (Mae 'All-The-Way-Mae' Mordabito - CF) @ Lori Petty (Kit Keller - P) @ Jon Lovitz (Ernie Capadino) @ David Strathairn (Ira Lowenstein) @ Garry Marshall (Walter Harvey) @ Bill Pullman (Bob Hinson) @ Megan Cavanagh (Marla Hooch - 2B) @ Rosie O'Donnell (Doris Murphy - 3B) @ Tracy Reiner (Betty 'Betty Spaghetti' Horn - LF) @ Bitty Schram (Evelyn Gardner - RF) @ Don S. Davis (Racine Coach Charlie Collins (as Don Davis)) @ Renée Coleman (Alice Gaspers - LF/C) @ Ann Cusack (Shirley Baker - LF) @ Eddie Jones (Dave Hooch) @ Freddie Simpson (Ellen Sue Gotlander - SS/P) @ Anne Ramsay (Helen Haley (as Anne Elizabeth Ramsay)) @ Robin Knight ('Beans' Babbitt - SS) @ Patti Pelton (Marbleann Wilkenson - 2B) @ Kelli Simpkins (Beverly Dixon - OF) @ Neezer Tarleton (Neezer Dalton - OF) @ Connie Pounds-Taylor (Connie Calhoun - OF) @ Kathleen Marshall ('Mumbles' Brockman - OF) @ Sharon Szmidt (Vivian Ernst - 2B) @ Pauline Brailsford (Miss Cuthbert) @ Justin Scheller (Stilwell 'Stilwell Angel' Gardner) @ Alan Wilder (Nelson) @ Michael Haley (Empathetic Umpire (as R.M. Haley)) @ Janet Jones (Racine Pitcher) @ Brenda Ferrari (Racine Catcher) @ Téa Leoni (Racine 1B) @ Laurel Cronin (Maida Gilespie) @ Robert Stanton (Western Union Man) @ Wantland L. Sandel Jr. (Doctor) @ Joe Krowka (Heckler) @ Harry Shearer (Newsreel Announcer) @ Blaire Baron (Margaret) @ Ryan Howell (Jeffrey) @ Brian Boru Gleeson (Bobby) @ David Franks (Vacuum Salesman) @ Ryan Olsen (Dollbody Kid) @ Ellie Weingardt (Charm School Instructor) @ Larissa Collins (Charm School Assistant) @ Douglas Blakeslee (Doris' Fan #1) @ Joey Slotnick (Doris' Fan #2) @ Brian Flannery (Autograph Kid #1) @ Stephen Feagley (Autograph Kid #2) @ Rae Allen (Ma Keller) @ Gregory Sporleder (Mitch Swaley) @ Eddie Mekka (Mae's Guy in Bar) @ Stephen Mailer (Kit's Date in Bar) @ Ray Chapman (Ticket Scalper) @ Joette Hodgen (Opera Singer) @ Lynn Cartwright (Older Dottie) @ Kathleen Butler (Older Kit) @ Eunice Anderson (Older Mae) @ Vera Johnson (Older Doris) @ Patricia Wilson (Older Marla) @ Mark Holton (Older Stilwell) @ Barbara Erwin (Older Shirley) @ Betty Miller (Older Betty) @ Eugenia McLin (Older Ellen Sue) @ Barbara Pilavin (Older Helen) @ Marvin Einhorn (Older Ira) @ Shirley Burkovich (Older Alice) @ Dolores 'Pickles' Dries (Lady in Bleachers) @ Shelly Adlard (Additional Player) @ Vickie Buse (Additional Player) @ K.C. Carr (Additional Player) @ Julie Croteau (Additional Player) @ Tonya Gilles Koch (Additional Player) @ Kirsten Gretick (Additional Player) @ Stacey Gustaferro (Additional Player) @ Lisa Hand (Additional Player) @ Cheryl Jones (Additional Player) @ Shelly Niemeyer (Additional Player) @ Sally Rutherford (Additional Player) @ Lita Schmitt (Additional Player) @ Amanda Walker (Additional Player) @ Brenda Watson (Additional Player rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Andrea Helene (Model (uncredited)) @ Gary Houston (Ray Foster (uncredited)) @ David L. Lander (Radio Sportscaster (uncredited)) @ Kindra Marra (Racine Pitcher (uncredited)) @ Ed Quinn (Mr. Murphy (Doris' Dad) (uncredited)) @ Keith Schrader (Umpire (uncredited)) @ Ray Toler (Loudmouth from Lukash (uncredited) Produced by||"There is no crying in baseball!" Oh, wow. This movie was amazing. It's funny, it's dramatic, and historic. I have known this movie since I was a little girl. And I am taking a film class in college and it said in the book that this movie is "overly femineme" I was insulted. I know what feminest is and this wasn't a big "Women rule!" kind of movie. It was explaining the history of the All American Girl Baseball League in WW2. I love this movie. There are a couple parts of Geena Davis' character that drag down a little bit. But not too much. Go ahead and give this movie a shot. 9/10 || |2.35 : 1 |4.0 ||||||@@ Legend|Ridley Scott|Fantasy|PG |6.0|UK|1985|94 min/ USA:114 min (director's cut) / USA:89 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/24/2004|Tim Hampton Arnon Milchan|William Hjortsberg |Alex Thomson ||Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) [ar] |"No Good without Evil.No Love without Hate. No Innocence without Lust.I am Darkness."|A demon who seeks to create eternal night by destroying the last of the unicorns and marrying a fairy princess is opposed by the forest boy Jack and his elven allies in this magical fantasy. Two different versions of this picture feature soundtracks by either Tangerine Dream or Jerry Goldsmith. This movie is a magical adventure whitch features elves, demons and other mythical creatures like this. Darkness, the personification of evil, plans to disprese eternal night in the land where this story takes place, by killing every unicorn in the world. Although he looks unbeatable, Jack (Tom Cruise in his first important role) and his friends, are disposed to do everything to save the world and princess Lili (who Darkness intends to make his wife) from the hands of this evil monster. |Tom Cruise (Jack) @ Mia Sara (Princess Lily) @ Tim Curry (The Lord of Darkness) @ David Bennent (Honeythorn Gump) @ Alice Playten (Blix/Honeythorn Gump) @ Billy Barty (Screwball) @ Cork Hubbert (Brown Tom) @ Peter O'Farrell (Pox) @ Kiran Shah (Blunder) @ Annabelle Lanyon (Oona) @ Robert Picardo (Meg Mucklebones) @ Tina Martin (Nell) @ Ian Longmur (Demon Cook) @ Mike Crane (Demon Cook) @ Liz Gilbert (Dancing Black Dress) @ Eddie Powell (Mummified Guard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mike Edmonds (Tic (uncredited)Produced by||To take the horn of the Unicorn is to end all hope! Never did the phrase "a beautiful film" have more relevance than in this wonderful piece of adult fantasy. Make no mistake, this masterpiece, Ridley Scott's fourth film (it followed BLADE RUNNER) was never intended for children. Those who have written it off as a kids' movie totally betray their limitations and inability to see what is being offered here. A youthful Tom Cruise was such a good choice as Jack, the forest dweller destined to plunge the world into darkness and then have but one opportunity to restore the light. Mia Sara is the beautiful princess, part Cinderella, part angel, all virgin! and Tim Curry? well, what a simply staggering contribution as the Lord of Darkness. Totally unrecognizable both visually and audibly but what a performance. All the Ridley Scott trademarks are here, the back-projected blue light, the filtered scenes of wonderment, central characters in a crisis, the enigma of life itself. If anything, LEGEND is better now than when it was released. In '85 it received critical praise - just no-one went to see it! Well that's not strictly true. I attended the Sydney premiere and sat thru it entranced as others fidgeted, whispered, and generally brought attention to their limited attention spans and lowered perceptions! Certainly it is a film that on one level children could relate to and even enjoy but it is a far deeper film with a host of reflective ideas and quite magical concepts. What really IS the Lord of Darkness? What is the significance of the Unicorns? What becomes of the innocence we leave behind in childhood? If none of this interests you, make sure you avoid this film! ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Leggenda del pianista sull'oceano, La|Giuseppe Tornatore|Drama|Rated R for language. R|7.5|Italy|1998|125 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/24/2004|Marco Chimenz Laura Fattori Francesco Tornatore|Alessandro Baricco Giuseppe Tornatore|Lajos Koltai ||Fine Line Features [us] |An epic story of a man who could do anything... except be ordinary.|Shortly after the Second World War, Max, a transplanted American, visits an English pawn shop to sell his trumpet. The shopkeeper recognizes the tune Max plays as one on a wax master of an unreleased recording, discovered and restored from shards found in a piano salvaged from a cruise ship turned hospital ship, now slated for demolition. This chance discovery prompts a story from Max, which he relates both to the shopkeeper and later to the official responsible for the doomed vessel, for Max is a born storyteller. Though now down on his luck and disillusioned by his wartime experiences, the New Orleans-born Max was once an enthusiastic and gifted young jazz musician, whose longest gig was several years with the house band aboard the Virginian, a posh cruise ship. While gaining his sea legs, he was befriended by another young man, the pianist in the same band, whose long unlikely name was Danny Boodman T.D. Lemons 1900, though everyone just called him 1900, the year of his birth. Abandoned in first class by his immigrant parents, 1900 was found and adopted by Danny, a stoker, and raised in the engine rooms, learning to read by reading horseracing reports to his adoptive dad. After Danny's death in an accident, 1900 remained on the ship. Increasingly lured by the sound of the piano in the first-class ballroom, he eventually became a gifted pianist, a great jazz improvisationist, a composer of rich modern music inspired by his intense observation of the life around him, the stories passengers on all levels of the ship trusted him enough to tell. He also grew up to be a charming, iconoclastic young man, at once shrewd and oddly innocent. His talent earned him such accolades that he was challenged by, and bested Jelly Roll Morton in an intense piano duel that had poor Max chewing paper on the sofa in agonies of suspense. And yet for all the richness and variety of his musical expression, he never left the ship, except almost, once, in the aftermath of his infatuation with a beautiful young woman immigrant who inspired the music committed to the master Max discovers in the pawnshop. Max realizes that 1900 must still be on the ship, and determines to find him, and to find out once and for all why he has so consistently refused to leave. |Tim Roth (Danny Boodmann T.D. Lemon Nineteen Hundred '1900') @ Pruitt Taylor Vince (Max Tooney) @ Mélanie Thierry (The Girl) @ Bill Nunn (Danny Boodmann) @ Clarence Williams III (Jelly Roll Morton) @ Peter Vaughan ('Pops', the Shopkeeper) @ Niall O'Brien (Harbor Master) @ Gabriele Lavia (Farmer) @ Vernon Nurse (Fritz Hermann, the Bandleader) @ Alberto Vasquez (Mexican Stoker (as Alberto Vazquez)) @ John Armstead (The Young 1900 II) @ Norman Chancer (Musician) @ Katy Monique Cuom (Captain) @ Andrew Dunford (The Young 1900 I) @ Eamon Geoghegan (Sergente) @ Piero Gimondo (Mattress Maker (as Aida Noriko)) @ Bernard Padden ( (uncredited)) @ Angelo Di Loreta (The Cook (uncredited)) @ Julien Lovett (Child 1900 (uncredited)Produced by||What a pity I loved the idea for this movie when I first heard about it a couple of years ago.I was looking forward to the movie, which I finally saw last night.It was a major disappointment, and I cannot even imagine how agonizing it was before the edits.The dialogue was some of the worse I've heard in awhile - maybe it doesn't translate well.In any event, I'd never recommend it. ||Home Edition |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Vita è bella, La|Roberto Benigni|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for holocaust-related thematic elements. |8.4|Italy|1997| 122 min/ USA:118 min |Italian||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gianluigi Braschi Mario Cotone John M. Davis Elda Ferri|Vincenzo Cerami Roberto Benigni|Tonino Delli Colli ||Ascot Elite Entertainment Group [ch] |An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all. |In 1930s Italy, a carefree Jewish book keeper named Guido starts a fairy tale life by courting and marrying a lovely woman from a nearby city. Guido and his wife have a son and live happily together until the occupation of Italy by German forces. In an attempt to hold his family together and help his son survive the horrors of a Jewish Concentration Camp, Guido imagines that the Holocaust is a game and that the grand prize for winning is a tank. Guido is an Italian Jew, and he and his family are taken to a Nazi concentration camp during World War 2. He has to protect his son by turning the whole situation into a game, telling him that the winner will win a tank. He tries vigorously to protect his son from the horrors around him. It's 1939. The ebullient, playful Guido comes to town. He works as a waiter under his uncle's eye, an elegant man who is also a Jew. Guido falls for Dora, a schoolteacher, whom he calls "princess" and courts by popping up at unexpected times. She dumps her fiancé to choose Guido. The film jumps ahead to the last months of the war. Nora and Guido have a child, Giosué, and when Guido and the lad are shipped to a concentration camp, Dora voluntarily follows. Although the men and women in the camp are separated and a child is in mortal peril, Guido finds ways to communicate with Dora, to hide Giosué, and to convince him this is an elaborate game, a special contest to win a tank. The film starts in the 1930s when Guido relocates from the country to a large Tuscan town where he falls in love with schoolteacher Dora. She is already engaged to another guy, but Guido stills fights for her. The story continues 5 years later, during wartime, Guido is married to Dora and they have a son called Giosue. Guido is of Jewish origin, and he is sent to a concentration camp with Giosue and Dora follows them, only to be sent to another camp. |Roberto Benigni (Guido Orefice) @ Nicoletta Braschi (Dora) @ Giustino Durano (Eliseo Orefice) @ Sergio Bini Bustric (Ferruccio Papini) @ Giuliana Lojodice (School principal) @ Amerigo Fontani (Rodolfo) @ Pietro De Silva (Bartolomeo) @ Francesco Guzzo (Vittorino) @ Raffaella Lebboroni (Elena) @ Giorgio Cantarini (Giosué Orefice) @ Marisa Paredes (Madre di Dora) @ Horst Buchholz (Dr. Lessing) @ Claudio Alfonsi (Amico Rodolfo) @ Gil Baroni (Prefect) @ Massimo Bianchi (Man with key) @ Jürgen Bohn (German orderly at party) @ Verena Buratti (German auxilliary) @ Robert Camero (German executioner) @ Ennio Consalvi (Gen. Graziosi) @ Giancarlo Cosentino (Ernesto (waiter)) @ Aaron Craig (U.S. tank soldier) @ Alfiero Falomi (King) @ Daniela Fedke (German auxilliary) @ Antonio Fommei (School janitor) @ Stefano Frangipani (Player) @ Ernst Frowein Holger (German sergeant) @ Alessandra Grassi (Teacher) @ Hannes Hellmann (German corporal) @ Wolfgang Hillinger (German major at party) @ Margarita Lucia Krauss (Female soldier at children's dinner) @ Patrizia Lazzarini (Woman #1 at Grand Hotel) @ Maria Letizia (Woman #2 at Grand Hotel) @ Concetta Lombardo (Gigliola) @ Maria Rita Macellari (Queen) @ Carlotta Mangione (Eleonora) @ Franco Mescolini (School inspector) @ Francesca Messinese (Woman at the opera) @ Inger Lise Middelthon (German auxilliary) @ Andrea Nardi (Tappezziere) @ Günther Pfanzelter (German soldier) @ Cristiana Porchiella (Old-maid teacher) @ Antonio Prester (Bruno (as Nino Prester)) @ Gina Rovere (Governante Dora) @ Laura Rudeberg (German auxilliary) @ Massimo Salvianti (Bookstore polceman) @ Richard Sammel (German lieutenant at station) @ James Schindler (Tedesco) @ Andrea Tidona (Grand Hotel porter) @ Dirk K. van den Berg (German soldier (as Dirk Karsten van den Berg)) @ Giovanna Villa (City Hall secretary rest of cast listed alphabetically Lidia Alfonsi .... Guicciardini) @ Omero Antonutti (Giosuè as an adult in re-edited version (voice)) @ Ilaria Borrelli ( (uncredited) Produced by||A superb tragi-comedy Roberto Benigni's Vita e bella, is in many ways similar to Chaplin's Great Dictator.Both are comic attacks on fascism, but the former's is the more successful.Benigni initially accesses the emotions of his audience through simple comedy, which is a pleasant mix of Keaton and Chaplin.Romance ensues with his real life wife Nicoletta Braschi.The first half of this film has been seen by various critics as being inferior to the second, but this is certainly not the case.In the first section we follow the delightful romance that will eventually lead to marriage and the creation of the wonderful Giosue (Giorgio Cantarini). It is the first half where the audience can laugh the loudest and delight at the immense comedy talent of Benigni.Unlike so many films nowadays there is nothing crude or course, his is simple innocent humour, which is all the more effective.The way he ties together little strand in the film to create comedy elements shows a great writing ability, and a mastery of timing when it comes to their execution on screen.Various incidents related to the rise of anti-semitism and fascism in Italy show that there are sinister forces at work which come to the fore in the second segment. Guido (Benigni) moves events on from Tuscany in 1939 to the last year of the war in a concentration camp.In this period he and Dora (Braschi) have had their son Giosue (Cantanarini).The five year old greatly reminds me of Toto in Cinema Paradiso, and plays an equally important role in his prospective film (though in Paradiso's case it is at the beginning of the movie).The relationship between the two is very similar to that of Jackie Coogan and Charlie Chaplin (though Benigni, unlike Chaplin, keeps the best of the comedy moments).Guido attempts to keep from the boy the horrors of what is going on, and this eventually manifests itself as a game where the aim is to score 100 points, with the winner winning a real tank (which, of course appeals to the young boy).Comic moments are still present, that involving Guido's translation of the rules of the camp is particularly notable, but it becomes somewhat more difficult to laugh when we consider the gravity of what is going on. The emphasis begins shifts, and we realise that this is a film about human spirit above all else.Guido not only appeals to the audience due to his comedy and sheer pleasantness, but also in the way that he loves his family and the measures that he will go to to protect them. This is certainly no Schindler's List, but it never pretends to be. Occasionally events seem a little contrived, but this does seem to work in the film's favour.However, this film avoids the tendency of Hollywood to go far over the top in emotional and credibility terms. Benigni shines like a lantern throughout the picture, showing that he is a talent, not only in comedy terms, that far outshines his peers.Cantanari is a delight, and Braschi also plays her part well.There is even an appearance by The Magnificent Seven's Horst Buchholz as Doctor Lessing, a man who events change for the worse. Please don't let the fact that it, to all but the Italians, is a foreign language film.The language itself adds a beauty of form to the film, much as it did in the case of Il Postino.This has to be a certainty for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, though something tells me that it will be overlooked for other awards as it is Italian and not a mainstream English language picture. Please see this film, and make up your own mind.It is appealing in so many different ways that I'm sure that you will not be disappointed. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Life of Brian|Terry Jones|Comedy|NR |8.0|UK|1979|94 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/22/2004|Tarak Ben Ammar John Goldstone Tim Hampton George Harrison Denis O'Brien|Graham Chapman John Cleese Terry Gilliam Eric Idle Terry Jones Michael Palin|Peter Biziou ||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [gb] |See the movie that's controversial, sacrilegious, and blasphemous. But if that's not playing, see The Life of Brian.|Irreverent satire of Biblical films and religious intolerance focuses on Brian, a Jew in Roman-occupied Judea. After joining up with an anti-Roman political organization, Brian is mistaken for a prophet, and becomes a reluctant Messiah. Brian is born in a stable on Christmas, right next to You Know Who. The wise men appear and begin to distribute gifts. The star moves further, so they take it all back and move on. This is how Brian's life goes. The Jews are looking for a release from the Romans, Spiritual and political decay, keep looking for signs and a group decides Brian is the Messiah. He cannot convince them he is not. He joins the Judean People's Front, one of several dozen separatist groups who actually do nothing, but really hate the Romans. While not about Jesus, it is about those who hadn't time, or interest to listen to his message. Many Political and Social comments. The Monty Pyton team tells the life, death and resurrection (?) of Brian from Nazareth, an unwilling prophet who wants to free his land from the oppression of Rome. When Brian covers a huge wall with the writing "ROMANI ITE DOMUM" (Romans go home), a local revolutionary group begins to take him seriously... |Graham Chapman (Wise Man #2/Brian Cohen/Biggus Dickus) @ John Cleese (Wise Man #1/Reg/Jewish Official/Centurion/Deadly Dirk/Arthur) @ Terry Gilliam (Man Even Further Forward/Revolutionary/Jailer/Blood & Thunder Prophet/Geoffrey/Audience Member/Crucifee) @ Eric Idle (Wiseguy/Stan (Loretta)/Harry the Haggler/Culprit Woman/Warris/Intensely Dull Youth/Jailer's Assistant/Otto/Lead Singer Crucifee) @ Terry Jones (Mandy Cohen/Colin/Simon the Holy Man/Bob Hoskins/Saintly Passer-by/Alarmed Crucifixion Assistant) @ Michael Palin (Wise Man #3/Mr. Big Nose/Francis/Mrs. A/Ex-Leper/Announcer/Ben/Pontius Pilate/Boring Prophet/Eddie/Shoe Follower/Nisus Wettus) @ Terence Bayler (Gregory) @ Carol Cleveland (Mrs. Gregory) @ Kenneth Colley (Jesus) @ Neil Innes (A weedy Samaritan) @ Charles McKeown (False Prophet/Blind Man/Giggling Guard/Stig) @ John Young (Matthias, Son of Deuteronomy of Gath) @ Gwen Taylor (Mrs. Big Nose) @ Sue Jones-Davies (Judith) @ Peter Brett (Pilate's Wife) @ Chris Langham (Alfonso/Giggling Guard) @ Andrew MacLachlan (Another Official Stoners Helper/Giggling Guard) @ Bernard McKenna (Parvus/Official Stoners Helper/Giggling Guard) @ Spike Milligan (Spike rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ George Harrison (Mr. Papadopolous (uncredited)) @ Charles Knode (Passer-by (uncredited)Produced by||A Funny Spin on the Gospel Story A must see for all Python fans and followers of the gospel alike. John Cleese displays his intelligence as an all rounder actor by playing a centurion and various other characters educating the peasants through the laws od language. One of the most remarkable scenes of the film is when the crowd follow who they think is the messiah and ask for a sign. A sandal is indicated and they offer praise to the sandal. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Como agua para chocolate|Alfonso Arau|Drama||7.3|Mexico|1992| 123 min/ Argentina:105 min/ Australia:105 min/ Germany:105 min |Spanish||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Alfonso Arau Emilia Arau Óscar Castillo|Laura Esquivel |Steven Bernstein Emmanuel Lubezki||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A feast for the senses! |This movie is about how life used to be in Mexico. It is a love story between Pedro and Tita, and why they coudn't get married because Tita's mother wanted her oldest daughter to get married first, and have Tita to stay and take care of her. It shows how marriage was imposed on those times, and how a love between two people can change everything. This picture set a new epoch in Mexican movies all over the world. Tita and Pedro want to get married, but Tita has to take care of her ageing mother and is not allowed to marry. Pedro ends up marrying Tita's sister, but lets Tita know he only married her sister to be closer to her. When Tita is forced to make the wedding cake, the guests at the wedding are overcome with sadness... Tita has discovered she can do strange things with her cooking. In a forgotten Mexico Tita and Pedro fall in love, but are forbidden to marry. Mama Elena sees Tita's role as her caretaker for life - no youngest daughter has ever married and her daughter will not be the first to break tradition. Tita's heart breaks when her mother instead offers to Pedro her other daughter, and he accepts. Now they live in the same house, and Mama Elena cannot forbid their love as she did their marriage. |Marco Leonardi (Pedro) @ Lumi Cavazos (Tita) @ Regina Torné (Mamá Elena) @ Mario Iván Martínez (Doctor John Brown) @ Ada Carrasco (Nacha) @ Yareli Arizmendi (Rosaura) @ Claudette Maillé (Gertrudis) @ Pilar Aranda (Chencha) @ Farnesio de Bernal (Cura) @ Joaquín Garrido (Sargento Treviño) @ Rodolfo Arias (Juan Alejándrez) @ Margarita Isabel (Paquita Lobo) @ Sandra Arau (Esperanza) @ Andrés García Jr. (Alex) @ Regino Herrera (Nicolás) @ Genaro Aguirre (Rosalio) @ David Ostrosky (Juan de la Garza) @ Brígida Alexander (Tía Mary) @ Amado Ramírez (Padre de Pedro) @ Arcelia Ramírez (Bisnieta) @ Socorro Rodríguez (Amiga de Paquita) @ Rafael García Zuazua (Padrino) @ Rafael García Zuazua Jr. (Alex de niño) @ Edurne Ballesteros (Tita de adolescente) @ Melisa Mares (Rosaura de niña) @ Gabriela Canudas (Rosaura de adolescente) @ Natalia De la Fuente (Gertrudis de niña) @ Beatriz Elías (Gertrudis de adolescente) @ Rodolfo Mejía (Venerable maestro) @ Ricardo Mendoza (Primer vigilante) @ Jaime R. Rodríguez (Maestro masón) @ Osvaldo Martínez (Maestro masón) @ Javier Mares (Maestro masón) @ Miguel Mares (Maestro masón) @ Jorge Vizales (Maestro masón Produced by||Food and love and sex and fate This movie stayed so true to the book that the director/write should be applauded.It's hard for non-hispanics to understand all the magic and ritual in Hispanic culture.The film is graphically pleasing and sensual. and the end is one of the best ever.... we are consumed in many way- our appetites for food and sex-- and this movie addresses them well. ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Lion King, The|Roger Allers Rob Minkof|Family||7.7|USA|1994| 89 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Alice Dewey Don Hahn Sarah McArthur Thomas Schumacher||||Abril Vídeo [br] |Life's greatest adventure is finding your place in the Circle of Life.|A young lion prince is born in Africa, thus making his uncle Scar the second in line to the throne. Scar plots with the hyenas to kill King Mufasa and Prince Simba, thus making himself King. The King is killed and Simba is led to believe by Scar that it was his fault, and so flees the kingdom in shame. After years of exile he is persuaded to return home to overthrow the usurper and claim the kingdom as his own thus completing the "Circle of Life". |Jonathan Taylor Thomas (Young Simba (voice)) @ Matthew Broderick (Adult Simba (voice)) @ Jason Weaver (Young Simba (singing) (singing voice)) @ Joseph Williams (Adult Simba (singing) (singing voice)) @ Jeremy Irons (Scar (voice)) @ James Earl Jones (Mufasa (voice)) @ Moira Kelly (Adult Nala (voice)) @ Sally Dworsky (Adult Nala (singing) (singing voice)) @ Niketa Calame (Young Nala (voice)) @ Laura Williams (Young Nala (singing) (singing voice)) @ Nathan Lane (Timon (voice)) @ Ernie Sabella (Pumbaa (voice)) @ Robert Guillaume (Rafiki (voice)) @ Rowan Atkinson (Zazu (voice)) @ Whoopi Goldberg (Shenzi (voice)) @ Cheech Marin (Banzai (voice)) @ Madge Sinclair (Sarabi (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Ed/Gopher (voice)) @ Zoe Leader (Sarafina (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jeff Bennett .... Zazu (Morning Report) (singing voice) (voice)) @ Cathy Cavadini (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Judi M. Durand (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Daamen J. Krall (Additional Voices (voice)) @ David McCharen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mary Linda Phillips (Additional Voices (voice) (as Linda Phillips)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voices (voice)) @ David Randolph (Additional Voices (voice) (as David J. Randolph)) @ Evan Saucedo (Young Simba (Morning Report) (singing voice)) @ Frank Welker (Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||a bit mundane The Lion King, while being consistently entertaining, ends up being kind of disappointing by the end. The reasons for this are many and varied. First off, the film is very short. Only 88 minutes. I do not know why, but I thought that this film was supposed to be about 2 hours long. I think it is because I have always heard how much of an epic quality the film had. This is simply untrue. The film has very little in the way of script. Not much really happens in the film. You could probably sum up in only a couple of sentences. The characters and situations of the film are somewhat trite. It is unfair to dismiss this category of criticism because this a children's cartoon. The heroes and villains of other Disney films are much less formulaic, as well as the challenges they encounter (e.g., The Little Mermaid, Pinnochio, Beauty and the Beast).Simba's challenge was a bit interesting, but, as I complained above, it is brought up and resolved in a half-hour's time. The only characters I found really interesting were the villains, and not Scar, but the Heyenas. It is this third complaint which actually pushed me into the realm of disliking this film: the music. I've always felt that the music of Disney's animated fare was bad. There are three exceptions I can think of offhand: The Little Mermaid, Pinnochio, and the Jungle Book. All other Disney animated films have a collection of some of the worst music that has ever been produced. I think The Lion King takes the cake for general rottenness in the music department. There was not one song that did not make me cringe. All in all, surely the Lion King is okay for kids, but there are so many better films, even from Disney's canon, that one should expose their children to. My suggestions are any of those Disney films I've listed as good above. As for non-Disney films, I think My Neighbor Totoro (age range 2-10, I would say) and Kiki's Delivery Service (age range 6-18; the best lessons ever of responsibility and self-reliance are found in this film), both from Japan but also both easily available in any video store dubbed into English, are the two best films for children ever made. Also, The Prince of Egypt is pretty good for slightly older children (I would put The Lion King in the 3-8 age range and The Prince of Egypt from 9-13). I give The Lion King 5/10 = good for children, pretty uninteresting to adults. || |1.50 : 1 (approx.) (IMAX version) |5.1 ||||||@@ Little Man Tate|Jodie Foster|Drama||6.6|USA|1991| 99 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peggy Rajski Scott Rudin Randy Stone|Scott Frank |Mike Southon ||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |It's not what he knows. It's what he understands. |Dede is a sole parent trying to bring up her son Fred. When it is discovered that Fred is a genius, she is determined to ensure that Fred has all the opportunities that he needs, and that he is not taken advantage of by people who forget that his extremely powerful intellect is harboured in the body and emotions of a child. The story of the intellectually-gifted eight-year-old Fred Tate, his mother Dede and the director of a program for gifted children, Dr Jane Grierson. It explores the tension between Fred's emotional and intellectual needs and between his mother and Dr Grierson. |Jodie Foster (Dede Tate) @ Dianne Wiest (Jane Grierson) @ Adam Hann-Byrd (Fred Tate) @ Harry Connick Jr. (Eddie) @ David Hyde Pierce (Garth (as David Pierce)) @ Debi Mazar (Gina) @ P.J. Ochlan (Damon Wells) @ Alex Lee (Fred Tate at 2) @ Michael Shulman (Matt Montini) @ Nathan Lee (Matt's Teammate) @ Celia Weston (Miss Nimvel) @ Danitra Vance (Clinic Doctor) @ Richard Fredette (Bartender) @ George Plimpton (Winston F. Buckner) @ Jennifer Trier (Grierson Institute Teacher) @ John Bell (Joey X) @ Ishe Costa (Cherry Reynolds) @ Chucky Ocampo (Bob Yee) @ Mark Lienhart (Fenton) @ Richard Hanson (Odyssey of the Mind Leader #1) @ Mar Ya Zuke (Odyssey of the Mind Leader #2) @ Lauren Ashley Stacey (Valerie) @ Josh Mostel (Physics Professor) @ Michael Mantell (Coral Ray Owner) @ Erica Staton (Girl Outside Classroom) @ Michael Keavey (Auctioneer) @ Carolyn Lawrence (Sorority Girl) @ George Kaufman (Eddie's Friend) @ Gordon Greene (Fred's Doctor) @ Barry J. Williams (Preppy Boy in Cafeteria) @ Alexandra Auder (Eddie's Girlfriend) @ Sam Womelsdorf (Eddie's Roommate) @ Ellen McElduff (Make-Up Woman) @ Adam Midkiff (Evan) @ Sheadrick Richards ('LIVEWIRE' Boy Guest) @ Elizabeth Frietsch ('LIVEWIRE' Girl Guest rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bob Balaban (Quizmaster (uncredited) Produced by||Very touching I was a little shocked, I thought I would be bored when I watched this movie. But it kept me interested. I mean, you think "A gifted child? Who cares?". The plot is very unique though. I would recommend this to anyone. 7/10 || ||2.1 Surround ||||||@@ Little Mermaid, The|Ron Clements John Muske|Family|G |7.3|USA|1989|83 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Howard Ashman Maureen Donley John Musker|Roger Allers Hans Christian Andersen Howard Ashman Ron Clements John Musker|||Abril Vídeo [br] |Somewhere under the sea and beyond your imagination is an adventure in fantasy.|Loosely based upon the story by Hans Christian Andersen. Ariel, youngest daughter of King Triton, is dissatisfied with life in the sea. She longs to be with the humans above the surface, and is often caught in arguments with her father over those "barbaric fish-eaters". She goes to meet Ursula, the Sea Witch, to strike a deal, but Ursula has bigger plans for this mermaid and her father. |Jodi Benson (Ariel (voice)) @ Christopher Daniel Barnes (Eric (voice)) @ Pat Carroll (Ursula (voice)) @ Jason Marin (Flounder (voice)) @ Samuel E. Wright (Sebastian (voice)) @ Kenneth Mars (Triton (voice)) @ Buddy Hackett (Scuttle (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Charles Adler .... Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jack Angel (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Rene Auberjonois (Louis (voice)) @ Hamilton Camp (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Nancy Cartwright (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Violette Chauveau (Ariel (French Langauge Version)) @ Jim Cummings (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Tim Curry (Additional Voices (voice)) @ J.D. Daniels (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jennifer Darling (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Paddi Edwards (Flotsam/Jetsam (voice)) @ Gail Farrell (Additional Vocalist) @ Ed Gilbert (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Gerrit Graham (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mark Hamill (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Anne Lockhart (Additional Voices) @ Edie McClurg (Carlotta (voice)) @ Mickie McGowan (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Rod McKuen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Malachi Pearson (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Kimmy Robertson (Alana (voice)) @ Will Ryan (Seahorse (voice)) @ Lee Tockar (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Robert Weil (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Ben Wright (Grimsby (voice)) @ Matthew Balaban (Atina (uncredited) (voice)Produced by||May Have Saved Disney's Movie Franchise. Disney animated films had become somewhat second-rate by 1989 and it appeared that one of the great genres in the cinema was on life-support. But that all changed with "The Little Mermaid". The film is a cinematic classic that tells the story of a young mermaid princess who just wants to be human so she makes a deal with an evil sea witch to get her wish, but she loses her beautiful voice in the process and she must be kissed by her true love to get it back. A really great motion picture that has some really memorable songs in it. 5 stars out of 5. || |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Little Monsters|Richard Greenberg|Comedy|PG |4.7|USA|1989|100 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Dori Berinstein Mitchell Cannold John Davis Jack Grossberg Andrew Licht Jeffrey A. Mueller|Terry Rossio Ted Elliott|Dick Bush ||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] ||A child meets the monster that lives under his bed. He even becomes one of his best friends. Soon the child discovers a whole new world of fun and games under his bed where pulling pranks on kids and other monsters is the main attraction. |Fred Savage (Brian Stevenson) @ Howie Mandel (Maurice) @ Daniel Stern (Glen Stevenson) @ Margaret Whitton (Holly Stevenson) @ Rick Ducommun (Snik) @ Frank Whaley (Boy) @ Ben Savage (Eric Stevenson) @ William Murray Weiss (Todd) @ Devin Ratray (Ronnie Coleman) @ Amber Barretto (Kiersten) @ J. Michael Hunter (Mr. Finn) @ Tom Hull (Principal) @ Magbee (Bus Driver) @ Lisa Cain (Holly's Friend) @ Tony Bonsignore (Beach Bum) @ Dana Wood (Arnold) @ Byron Faler (Schmoog) @ Doug Turner (St. Louis Monster) @ Donna Strickland (TV Guest) @ Howard Spiegel (Father) @ Jessica Hauser (Innocent Girl) @ Jessica Greenberg (Painted Face Girl) @ Natanya Ross (Kid on Trial) @ Michael Weaver (Kid on Trial) @ Luke Greenberg (Kid on Trial) @ Morgan Greenberg (Kid on Trial) @ Alexander Kroll (Kid on Trial) @ Herbert Duarte (Kid on Trial) @ Kala Savage (Little Monster) @ Rachel Weiss (Little Monster) @ Matt Cavenaugh (Little Monster) @ Amy Holden (Little Monster) @ Stacy Pochowicz (Little Monster) @ Laura Winstead (Little Monster) @ Elise Schillmoller (Little Monster) @ Trent Jobin (Little Monster) @ Amy Plaskett (Little Monster) @ Ashley Broadfoot (Little Monster) @ Ginny Broadfoot (Little Monster) @ Jeremy Fowler (Little Monster) @ Scott Bayzle (Little Monster) @ Matthew Norton (Little Monster) @ Davy Beard (Little MonsterProduced by||Bobby's World meets Swing Kids, meets The Wonder Years, SPOILERS. I was renting movies, and I noticed this one had a few of my favorite actors in it.So I rented not even noticing what it was.I finally read up on the plot and found it kind of interesting.Stupid, but interesting.I popped it in, and watched the whole thing twice.I was really dissapointed, here's a list of complaints. Complaint 1:The post production cuts.I have a copy of the original script, before production time cuts, and it was pretty good, and could've fit into a 2 hour time set. Complaint 2: Fred Savage.He was way to old to play this kind of character, and a little to chirpy.Maybe someone who could've played a pestimist better, because that is the kind of roll this is. Complaint 3: Howie Mandell overdose.Howie Mandell is a good actor, in fact one of my favorites, but this is a good role for him, considering his style. He is good in this, but over an amount of time, he becomes tedious. Complaint 4: Frank Whaley under dose. Frank Whaley had an interesting character, and I'm not just saying that because he is my favorite actor. It would of been a good idea to put his character in a few more places, as a dillema. Complaint 5: The ending.The ending is very corny and rushed.Better idea for ending: They become monsters,but through some kind of power (as in love or friendship) they regain their souls and rise up against the evil monsters, defeat them, and all the other children turned monsters become children again.Sound a lot better, huh? Conclusion: Could have been a good movie.But serious problems doomed it to a piece of eighties pre-teen junk food. |||1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Little Shop of Horrors|Frank Oz|Comedy||6.4|USA|1986| 94 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Geffen William S. Gilmore Denis Holt David W. Orton|Charles B. Griffith Howard Ashman Howard Ashman|Robert Paynter ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A Singing Plant. A Daring Hero. A Sweet Girl. A Demented Dentist. |Seymour, an orphan and a nerd, is taken in and given a job by Mr. Mushnik, the owner of a run down Florists in the seedy part of town. Seymour spends his time doing menial tasks and dreaming of the shop assistant, Audrey. One day, just after an eclipse of the Sun, Seymour discovers a strange plant. He buys it and names is Audrey II. While caring for Audrey II, Seymour discovers the plant's rather unique appetite. The plant grows and grows, as does Seymour's infatuation for Audrey, but who will get her first? FEED ME! |Rick Moranis (Seymour Krelborn) @ Ellen Greene (Audrey) @ Vincent Gardenia (Mr. Mushnik) @ Steve Martin (Orin Scrivello, D.D.S.) @ Tichina Arnold (Crystal) @ Michelle Weeks (Ronette) @ Tisha Campbell (Chiffon) @ Levi Stubbs (Audrey II (voice)) @ James Belushi (Patrick Martin) @ John Candy (Wink Wilkinson) @ Christopher Guest (The First Customer) @ Bill Murray (Arthur Denton) @ Stan Jones (Narrator (voice) (as Stanley Jones)) @ Bertice Reading ('Downtown' Old Woman) @ Ed Wiley ('Downtown' Bum #1) @ Alan Tilvern ('Downtown' Bum #2) @ John Scott Martin ('Downtown' Bum #3) @ Vincent Wong (Chinese Florist) @ Mak Wilson (Doo Wop Street Singer) @ Danny Cunningham (Doo Wop Street Singer) @ Danny John-Jules (Doo Wop Street Singer) @ Gary Palmer (Doo Wop Street Singer) @ Paul Swaby (Doo Wop Street Singer) @ Mildred Shay (Second Customer) @ Melissa Wiltsie (Third Customer) @ Kevin Scott (Fourth Customer) @ Barbara Rosenblat (Fifth Customer) @ Adeen Fogle (WSKID Radio Assistant) @ Kelly Huntley (Audrey & Seymour's Daughter) @ Paul Reynolds (Audrey & Seymour's Son) @ Miriam Margolyes (Dental Nurse) @ Abbie Dabner (Boy Patient) @ Frank Dux (Second Patient) @ Peter Whitman (Patient on Ceiling) @ Heather Henson (Girl Patient) @ Judith Morse (Girl's Mother) @ Bob Sherman (Lecturing Tours Agent) @ Doreen Hermitage ('Life' Magazine Lady) @ Kerry Shale ('Life' Magazine Assistant) @ Robert Arden (NBC Network Exec #1) @ Stephen Hoye (NBC Network Exec #2) @ Bob Sessions (NBC Network Exec #3) @ Michael Shannon (Television Reporter (as Michael J. Shannon) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Paul Dooley (Patrick Martin (Scenes Deleted) (uncredited)) @ Pam Ferris (Orin's Mother (In photograph) (uncredited) Produced by||Fabulous. Failing florist Mr. Mushnik is down on his luck on Skid Row. He isn't selling a single stem, his employee's are either turning up at closing time or breaking everything. But young Seymour Krelborn has discovered a plant. A very unusual plant indeed. Sort of like a Venus fly trap, only with a personality. He names it Audrey II, after his helium-voiced, pneumatic colleague Audrey, who Seymour harbours a serious crush on. Yet Audrey is in a relationship with sadistic dentist Orin, who likes nothing more than torturing her and his patients. Audrey II picks up business like never before, and the money rolls in. But Audrey II doesn't need water to grow. No, he needs something with a kick. He needs blood. Seymour reluctantly complies, and soon enough, Audrey II is a gargantuan, talking plant with a taste for human flesh, and nothing will stop him from getting it. But he also has some hidden plans up his thorny sleeve. Little Shop Of Horrors is a fabulous musical, proving that the spark and he magic is still there in the genre. It's quality all the way. What did surprise me most about it was how dark the whole affair was. Orin is beating up Audrey on a regular basis, Audrey II wants Seymour to go on a killing spree so he can get some lunch, Orin delights in ripping the back teeth out of his patients like there's no tomorrow. What's even more surprising is the contrast between these and the quite brilliant songs in the film (Classic numbers include "Suddenly Seymour", "Somewhere That's Green" and the show-stopping title theme). This rather strange mix works excellently, resulting in an irresistible film. The cast are all a revelation in their roles, blending the right mix of camp behaviour and pathos to great effect. Rick Moranis is very good as down-trodden Seymour, whilst Ellen Greene is amazing as Audrey, squeaky and ditzy one minute, then belting out a song with uncompromising power. Vincent Gardenia is suitably slimy as Mr. Mushnik and Steve Martin is brilliant as evil dentist Orin. His big musical number is comedy genius. Also, Tichina Arnold, Michelle Weeks and Tisha Campbell are gloriously glitzy as the narrative chorus. But the real star is Audrey II, with Levi Stubbs providing an excellent vocal performance. The plant seems so real, right down to his evil grin. The one problem with the film is the seemingly unnecessary cameo's that pop up every now and again. Sometimes they work (Bill Murray), sometimes they don't (James Belushi, John Candy). It's the only tiny problem in an otherwise fantastic film. I guarantee that Little Shop Of Horrors will stay with you for a long time after you've seen it. It really is a brilliant film. Addictive doesn't even begin to describe. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Little Women|Gillian Armstrong|Drama||7.1|USA|1994| 115 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Warren Carr Denise Di Novi Robin Swicord|Louisa May Alcott Robin Swicord|Geoffrey Simpson ||Columbia Pictures [us] |The story that has Lived in our hearts For generations, Now comes to the screen For the holidays|With their father away fighting in the Civil War, Joe, Meg, Beth and Amy grow up with their mother in somewhat reduced circumstances. They are a close family who inevitably have their squabbles and tragedies. But the bond holds even when, later, men friends start to become a part of the household. |Winona Ryder (Jo March) @ Gabriel Byrne (Friedrich Bhaer) @ Trini Alvarado (Meg March) @ Samantha Mathis (Older Amy March) @ Kirsten Dunst (Younger Amy March) @ Claire Danes (Beth March) @ Christian Bale (Laurie) @ Eric Stoltz (John Brooke) @ John Neville (Mr. Lawrence) @ Mary Wickes (Aunt March) @ Susan Sarandon (Mrs. March) @ Florence Patterson (Hannah) @ Robin Collins (Carriage Boy) @ Corrie Clark (Belle Gardiner) @ Rebecca Toolan (Mrs. Gardiner) @ Curt Willington (Red Haired Young Man) @ Billie Pleffer (Naughty Girl) @ Louella Pleffer (Naughty Girl) @ Janne Mortil (Sally Moffat) @ Sarah Strange (Sally's Friend) @ Ahnee Boyce (Sally's Friend) @ Michele Goodger (Hortense) @ Marco Roy (Mr. Parker) @ A.J. Unger (Ned Moffat) @ Janie Woods-Morris (Boston Matron) @ Patricia Leith (Boston Matron) @ Christine Lippa (Mrs. Hummel) @ Kristina West (Hummel Child) @ Nicole Babuick (Hummel Child) @ Jenna Percy (Hummel Child) @ Alan Robertson (Dr. Bangs) @ Mar Andersons (Fred Vaughan) @ Cameron Labine (Averill) @ Matthew Walker (Mr. March) @ Bethoe Shirkoff (Art Teacher) @ Marilyn Norry (Mrs. Kirk) @ Andrea Libman (Kitty Kirk) @ Tegan Moss (Minnie Kirk) @ Janet Craig (Miss Norton) @ Beverley Elliott (Irish Maid) @ James Leard (Office Worker) @ Charles Baird (Office Worker) @ Jay Brazeau (Dashwood) @ Demetri Goritsas (Bhaer's Student) @ Kate Robbins (Opera Singer 'Leila') @ David Adams (Opera Singer 'Nadir') @ Donal Logue (Jacob Mayer) @ Scott Bellis (John McCracken) @ John Shaw (Charles Botts (as John C. Shaw)) @ Irene Miscisco (French Maid) @ Peter Haworth (Male Secretary) @ Natalie Friisdahl (Daisy) @ Kristy Friisdahl (Daisy) @ Bryan Finn (Demi) @ Sean Finn (Demi rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eric Bruno Borgman (Returning Civil War Soldier (uncredited)) @ Mark Marriott (Butler (uncredited)) @ Jerry Robbins (Banker (uncredited) Produced by||Nice holiday/family movie Little Women is an excellent movie based on Louisa May Alcott's book of the same title, about four sisters and their mother. It contains terrific acting by all, especially by Winona Ryder and is a great holiday movie for the family to watch. 9/10 || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Look Who's Talking|Amy Heckerling|Romance||5.5|USA|1989| 93 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Enson Bob Gray Jonathan D. Krane Simon R. Lewis|Amy Heckerling |Thomas Del Ruth ||Columbia Pictures Corporation Ltd. [gb] ||Mollie is a single mum who's on the lookout for a reliable and normal boyfriend. Her son Mikey, (unbeknownst to her) seems to have a better idea of which of the men she dates would make a good father figure! If only she could understand him... Mollie is an accountant who has been having an affair with one of her clients, Albert, who happens to be married. When she becomes pregnant by him, she feels that he will be there always for her and the new baby. But when she gives birth, he breaks it off and Mollie is left to raise a new baby all by herself. She also is searching for the perfect father for her new son, Mikey. She meets James, a swift cab driver, who seems to be a perfect match with her and Mikey. But when Albert comes to her, who will Mollie choose? |John Travolta (James Ubriacco) @ Kirstie Alley (Mollie) @ Olympia Dukakis (Rosie) @ George Segal (Albert) @ Abe Vigoda (Grandpa) @ Bruce Willis (Mikey (voice)) @ Twink Caplan (Rona) @ Jason Schaller (Mikey) @ Jaryd Waterhouse (Mikey) @ Jacob Haines (Mikey) @ Christopher Aydon (Mikey) @ Joy Boushel (Melissa) @ Don S. Davis (Dr. Fleisher) @ Louis Heckerling (Lou) @ Brenda Crichlow (Secretary) @ Andrea Mann (Salesgirl) @ Douglas Tuck (Cab Stealer) @ Alex Bruhanski (Street Worker) @ Casey Grant (Admitting Clerk) @ Oscar B. Ramos (Hospital Worker) @ Aurelio Dinunzio (Orderly) @ Jeff Irvine (Admitting Doctor) @ Shirley Barclay (Nurse) @ William B. Davis (Drug Doctor) @ David Berner (Mr. Impatience) @ Jerry Wasserman (Mr. Aral) @ Daliah Novak (Carrie) @ Zena Darawalla (Lupe) @ Nicholas Rice (Harry) @ Neal Israel (Mr. Russ) @ Blu Mankuma (Director) @ William Britos (Home Orderly) @ Dee Jay Jackson (Burly Orderly) @ Isa Burner (Lady) @ Bea Cartwell (Lady) @ Eleanor Haines (Lady) @ Mollie Israel (Little Girl) @ Ryan McIntosh (Little Boy) @ Gerry Bean (Pilot Friend) @ Deryl Hayes (Pilot Friend) @ Enid Saunders (Ester) @ Nicole Stevens (Silly Baby) @ Christy Smith (Baby Megan) @ Sabrina Bailey (Sand Box Baby) @ Farah Abassi (Chatting Baby) @ Amber Brownmiller (Blowing Kiss Baby) @ Ariel Perryman (Nursery Baby) @ Nigel John Crowe (Nursery Baby) @ Michael Joseph Materi (Nursery Baby rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joan Rivers (Julie (voice) (uncredited) Produced by||Good comedy with a sexy performance from Kirstie Alley. I just watched this movie for the first time last night on TBS and I must say I loved it! The story is great and also very funny. The concept of a talking baby and the whole plot centered around the world of a baby is just great and funny! Bruce Willis does a great job as the voice of the baby, the performances from John Travolta and Kirstie Alley are just great. Once Kirstie has the baby the search for the right dad goes on and on only to end up being the funny and nice New York cab driver (John Travolta). The performance from Kirstie Alley ranks as maybe her best ever she is not only charming, but very sexy as well. The sexy scene I like of Kirstie is when she starts to make love with Travolta, and I noticed that lovely and light colored purple bra she is wearing now I just love that color purple! Look Who's Talking is a great movie watch if you haven't for a great mixture of laughter, charm, and sex appeal. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Lord of the Flies|Harry Hook|Adventure||5.8|USA|1990| 90 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lewis M. Allen Peter Allen Jeffrey Bydalek David V. Lester Ross Milloy Lewis Newman Peter Newman|William Golding Sara Schiff|Martin Fuhrer ||Columbia Pictures [us] |No parents. No teachers. No rules... No mercy.|Adapted from William Golding's novel of the same name, this is the story of a group of prep school boys who become stranded on an island. With no adult supervision, they develop their own society, with frightening and powerful consequences. |Balthazar Getty (Ralph) @ Chris Furrh (Jack Merridew) @ Danuel Pipoly (Piggy) @ James Badge Dale (Simon (as Badgett Dale)) @ Andrew Taft (Sam, Twin #1) @ Edward Taft (Eric, Twin #2) @ Gary Rule (Roger) @ Terry Wells (Andy) @ Braden MacDonald (Larry) @ Angus Burgin (Greg) @ Martin Zentz (Sheraton) @ Brian Jacobs (Peter) @ Vincent Amabile (Patterson) @ David Weinstein (Mikey) @ Chuck Bell (Steve) @ Everado Elizondo (Pablo) @ James Hamm (John) @ Charles Newmark (Will) @ Brian Matthews (Tony) @ Shawn Skie (Rapper) @ Judson McCune (Luke) @ Zane Rockenbaugh (Tex) @ Robert Shea (Billy) @ Gordon Elder (Rusty) @ Bob Peck (Marine Officer) @ Bill Schoppert (Marine Petty Officer) @ Michael Greene (Captain Benson, the Pilot rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Edward Downer (Drowning Boy (uncredited) Produced by||Fairly compelling; not as good as it could have been. I haven't read the book, which theoretically is an advantage (it is distracting when you have to compare all the time and locate "what they missed"), but in any case there IS something missing from this film, something that could have made it much better. Is it perhaps the fact that we never get enough background information on the kids for us to truly connect to them? The actors themselves are not bad at all, and the photographydoes achieve some beautiful contrasts between the sea and the land. But overall the film is not exceptional in any way. (**1/2) || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The|Peter Jackson|Fantasy|Rated PG-13 for epic battle sequences and some scary images. |8.8|New Zealand|2001| 178 min/ USA:208 min (special extended edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peter Jackson Michael Lynne Mark Ordesky Barrie M. Osborne Rick Porras Tim Sanders Jamie Selkirk Robert Shaye Ellen Somers Frances Walsh Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|J.R.R. Tolkien Frances Walsh Philippa Boyens Peter Jackson|Andrew Lesnie ||A-Film Distribution [nl] |The Legend Comes to Life|An ancient Ring thought lost for centuries has been found, and through a strange twist in fate has been given to a small Hobbit named Frodo. When Gandalf discovers the Ring is in fact the One Ring of the Dark Lord Sauron, Frodo must make an epic quest to the Cracks of Doom in order to destroy it! However he does not go alone. He is joined by Gandalf, Legolas the elf, Gimli the Dwarf, Aragorn, Boromir and his three Hobbit friends Merry, Pippin and Samwise. Through mountains, snow, darkness, forests, rivers and plains, facing evil and danger at every corner the Fellowship of the Ring must go. Their quest to destroy the One Ring is the only hope for the end of the Dark Lords reign! In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-Earth still it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell, by chance, into the hands of the Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins. On his eleventy-first birthday, Bilbo disappeared, bequeathing to his young nephew, Frodo, the Ruling Ring, and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-Earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord and destroy the Ring by casting it into the Cracks of Doom. |Noel Appleby (Everard Proudfoot) @ Sean Astin (Sam Gamgee) @ Sala Baker (Sauron) @ Sean Bean (Boromir) @ Cate Blanchett (Galadriel) @ Orlando Bloom (Legolas Greenleaf) @ Billy Boyd (Pippin) @ Marton Csokas (Celeborn) @ Megan Edwards (Mrs. Proudfoot) @ Michael Elsworth (Gondorian Archivist) @ Mark Ferguson (Gil-Galad) @ Ian Holm (Bilbo Baggins) @ Ian McKellen (Gandalf) @ Christopher Lee (Saruman) @ Lawrence Makoare (Lurtz) @ Brent McIntyre (Witch-King) @ Peter McKenzie (Elendil) @ Sarah McLeod (Rosie Cotton) @ Dominic Monaghan (Merry) @ Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) @ Ian Mune (Bounder) @ Craig Parker (Haldir) @ Cameron Rhodes (Farmer Maggot) @ John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) @ Martyn Sanderson (Gate Keeper) @ Andy Serkis (Gollum) @ Harry Sinclair (Isildur) @ Liv Tyler (Arwen) @ David Weatherley (Barliman Butterbur) @ Hugo Weaving (Elrond) @ Elijah Wood (Frodo Baggins) @ Alan Howard (The Ring (voice)) @ Lee Hartley (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Sam La Hood (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Chris Streeter (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Jonathan Jordan (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Semi Kuresa (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Clinton Ulyatt (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Paul Bryson (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Lance Fabian Kemp (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Jono Manks (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Ben Price (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Philip Grieve (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths) @ Billy Jackson (Cute Hobbit Child) @ Katie Jackson (Cute Hobbit Child rest of cast listed alphabetically Peter Corrigan .... Otho (Extended Version)) @ Lori Dungey (Mrs. Bracegirdle (extended edition)) @ Norman Forsey (Gaffer Gamgee (extended edition)) @ Bill Johnson (Old Noakes (extended edition) (as William Johnson)) @ Elizabeth Moody (Lobelia Sackville-Baggins (extended edition)) @ Brian Sergent (Ted Sandyman (extended edition)) @ Timothy Bartlett (Hobbit (uncredited)) @ Victoria Beynon-Cole (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths (uncredited)) @ Taea Hartwell (Child Hobbit (uncredited)) @ Peter Jackson (Albert Dreary (uncredited)) @ Thomas McGinty (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths (uncredited)) @ Kate O'Rourke (Hero Orcs, Goblins, Uruks & Ringwraiths (uncredited)) @ Shane Rangi (White Witch King of Agmar (uncredited) Produced by||Way too long, and way too much mumbo-jumbo. The movie abuses it's use of fantasy. A disappointment. ** (out of four). THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING / (2001) ** (out of four) By Blake French: (WARNING: Minor spoilers ahead.) The only thing worse than a bad movie is a bad movie that thinks it is good. The only thing worse than a bad movie that thinks it is good is a three hour long bad movie that thinks it is good. Case in point: "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," based on the towering trilogy of novels by J.R.R Tolkien. According to this film's production notes, this is one of the most colossal movie productions ever embarked upon, based on one of the most famous trilogies ever written. And you though "Harry Potter" had big expectations… One of the biggest movie productions ever embarked upon? That's certainly a big statement-but I believe every word. It has taken four decades for cinema technology to reach the level of sophistication to bring this story to life. Everything about the film is B-I-G. It took over one-hundred million dollars to bring the vision to life, and this is only the first installment of three. Even the film's production notes-that embody 20 pages of single-spaced, Times New Roman, 12 point font-are of the longest I have seen. Peter Jackson, the film's director, has vowed to make three motion pictures simultaneously to capture Tolkien's lengthy epic in its entirety. LOTR thinks it is hot stuff, too. With amazing special effects, astonishing makeup, impressive costumes, dazzling sets, and a production crew big enough to occupy every hotel room in Chicago, it would be easy to let all the glamour get to your head. Case in point: The film took home a whole pile of Golden Globe nominations. It's currently ranked as the best movie of all time on the Internet Movie Database. It will surely break box office records, setting a new standard for film adaptations. Sure, the film's technical aspects are vastly elaborate, the characters well cast, and the special effects amazing. So, what else do you expect from a big budget extravaganza like this? How about a story that does not find itself distracted with every step? Or characters that are not puppets of the plot? Is it really too much to ask for a movie to obey the guidelines it sets for itself. I guess so. The screenplay, by Jackson, Frances Walsh, and Philippa Boyens, seems to calculate every move out of a strict book of rules. Unfortunately, this book is like the English language-it appears to have an exception for every single rule. In this movie, anything can happen at anytime-as long as it doesn't interfere with the plot. This makes it quite difficult to take the movie seriously. In this part of the trilogy, a shy young hobbit named Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) inherits a ring-but it's no ordinary ring. It is really an instrument of absolute power that could allow a grumpy old wizard to rule the planet. Frodo and a loyal fellowship of hobbits, men, a wizard, a dwarf, and an elf vow to take a journey to destroy the ring. To rid the world of this treacherous jewelry, they must travel across Middle-Earth to the place where it first was first created. Of course, the entire course of future history is entwined with the fate of the fellowship. Actually, it's quite humorous of what this movie makes us buy. There is an old wizard man who escapes a towering prison by summoning an enormous bird to rescue him-at the last minute, of course. Where is this great and powerful bird when the character later falls to his doom in a deep, treacherous cave? Then there's the old evil wizard. The movie makes it obvious that this being possesses mighty powers. Powers so great he can throw a full-sized person across a large room using only his thoughts. He can even make a bolt of lightning strike a snow-covered mountain, creating a destructive avalanche. LOTR convinces us this character can do just about anything. So why doesn't this diabolical warlock just rid himself of the Fellowship of the Ring? Strike them dead with a lightning bolt? Crush them with a big rock? I will tell you why, because that would be too simple-after all, we need a three hour movie out of this installment alone. "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" plays like the big fat novel it is based on. We can almost see the page turning. The chapters arriving. There are many moments of silence, where the character's process what seems like pages of thoughts. The dialogue often sounds like written English. We listen to tons of mumbo jumbo about spirits, magic, power, evil, good, and, of course, rings. Much of it is hard to buy, even if you suspend disbelief. One scene actually inspires giggles. Two old cripples take part in a vicious supernatural battle, where their bodies fly across rooms, slamming into walls and hard, pointy objects. A simple punch should knock such a person out permanently-but these are wizards, or, more importantly, characters in this movie. Death is only real when the screenplay requires it to be. During another battle between a big, fiery monster, all of a sudden, it is possible for the old man to die. It's difficult to review a movie when it is only the first installment of a three-part series, and it's even more difficult when you have no previous knowledge about the book or the outcome of the story. Perhaps, years down the road, after I watch the rest of the installments, I will look back and understand this movie… But I doubt it. LOTR bored me to death. The best way to tell if a book adaptation really works it to ask if the movie makes you want to read the material it is based on. Before watching LOTR, I was inspired by the great hype, and considered read Tolkien's towering novels. After watching this movie, I would not read any of the author's books if they were the last novels on the face of the planet. I fear the next two productions in this dreadful series. We can only hope they're not three hours long! ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The|Peter Jackson|Fantasy|Rated PG-13 for intense epic battle sequences and frightening images. (also extended edition) PG-13|9.1|USA|2003|201 min/ USA:251 min (extended edition)|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Peter Jackson Michael Lynne Mark Ordesky Barrie M. Osborne Rick Porras Jamie Selkirk Robert Shaye Frances Walsh Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|J.R.R. Tolkien Frances Walsh Philippa Boyens Peter Jackson|Andrew Lesnie ||New Line Cinema [us] |This Christmas the journey ends.|While Frodo & Sam continue to approach Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring, unaware of the path Gollum is leading them, the former Fellowship aid Rohan & Gondor in a great battle in the Pelennor Fields, Minas Tirith and the Black Gates as Sauron wages his last war against Middle-Earth. The Fellowship divides to conquer as Frodo and Sam, with the help and hindrance of Gollum, continue their way to Mount Doom. Gandalf and Pippin ride to Minas Tirith to help defend Gondor while Merry remains with Eowyn and the other Rohan fighters. Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli seek aid from those that live in the Cursed Mountains. All these battles have one goal in mind: distract the Eye of Sauron and buy Frodo a little more time to destroy the ring. |Noel Appleby (Everard Proudfoot) @ Alexandra Astin (Elanor Gamgee) @ Sean Astin (Sam) @ David Aston (Gondorian Soldier 3) @ John Bach (Madril) @ Sean Bean (Boromir) @ Cate Blanchett (Galadriel) @ Orlando Bloom (Legolas) @ Billy Boyd (Pippin) @ Sadwyn Brophy (Eldarion) @ Alistair Browning (Damrod) @ Marton Csokas (Celeborn) @ Richard Edge (Gondorian Soldier 1) @ Jason Fitch (Uruk 2) @ Bernard Hill (Theoden) @ Ian Holm (Bilbo) @ Bruce Hopkins (Gamling) @ Ian Hughes (Irolas) @ Lawrence Makoare (Witch King/Gothmog) @ Ian McKellen (Gandalf) @ Bret McKenzie (Elf Escort) @ Sarah McLeod (Rosie Cotton) @ Maisie McLeod-Riera (Baby Gamgee) @ Dominic Monaghan (Merry) @ Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) @ John Noble (Denethor) @ Paul Norell (King of the Dead) @ Miranda Otto (Eowyn) @ Bruce Phillips (Grimbold) @ Shane Rangi (Harad Leader 2) @ John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) @ Todd Rippon (Harad Leader 1) @ Thomas Robins (Deagol) @ Andy Serkis (Gollum/Smeagol) @ Harry Sinclair (Isildur) @ Peter Tait (Shagrat) @ Joel Tobeck (Orc Lieutenant 1) @ Liv Tyler (Arwen) @ Karl Urban (Eomer) @ Stephen Ure (Gorbag) @ Hugo Weaving (Elrond) @ David Wenham (Faramir) @ Elijah Wood (Frodo) @ Alan Howard (The Ring (voice)) @ Ross Duncan (Orc rest of cast listed alphabetically Brad Dourif .... Grima Wormtongue (extended edition)) @ Christopher Lee (Saruman (extended edition)) @ Bruce Spence (The Mouth of Sauron (extended edition)) @ Peter Jackson (Mercenary On Boat (uncredited)Produced by||My objective and unhyped view? Stunning. Simply stunning. Frodo and Sam continue their quest to destroy the ring, led by the untrustworthy Gollum.Meanwhile the rest of the Fellowship prepare for another battle to hold a human city against an onslaught of orcs. If you check my other reviews you will note that I wasn't a massive fan of the first two films - I loved them, but was not blind to their faults. However, let me just lay my cards out here, I was totally blown away by this film.For the vast majority (and more of that later) the narrative flowed really well where the other two films had struggled to really keep consistent.Here the various strands work well together and, while characters have only brief times to tell stories, on the whole it manages it well.I got the feeling that the film really let rip - it knew this was the ending and it did feel that everything came together in a collection of noise and energy which really made it feel like the final part of a trilogy rather than just a stand alone film. The one area where the film really stutters (and actually caused people to leave the cinema in annoying numbers) is ironically the place where Jackson is true to the book, and that's the final 20 minutes.There is a clear scene where the film ends, however it then runs for another 20 minutes - which is a mix of scenes that all fade out like they were the end.To Joe Public (ie me!) I would have been happy not to have all the loose ends tied up in the way the book does it - the film should have ended on a high (with the King being crowned etc) but instead it seems to crawl to an end in a way that is not in line with the momentum of the film (if not the whole trilogy!)This problem is minor on the grand scheme of things, but I would rather have left the cinema on my high than be made to wonder `when's this ending? Is this the end now? Oh, maybe this is it now?' - but I do understand why it was done this way. The cast, as they have been all the way, are excellent.Wood's Frodo changes well during this film while Astin is touching in his portrayal of unerring friendship.Bloom and Rhys-Davis had less to do but came into their own during the battle scenes - adding both action and the odd comic touch (`that still counts as one' being accepted by the audience as a chance to break the tension).Mortensen is the title character and serves it well, with McKellen also continuing his strong role.I could list through the whole cast but I will stick with noting two things.Firstly, both Monaghan and Boyd had bigger and more meaningful roles and rose to them well. Secondly I continue with my belief from the second film that Serkis is the stand out actor of the trilogy.His Gollum is so much more than an effect - he is tragic, fearsome, hateful and funny.Praise of course goes to the special effects for making this character tell so much with an expression but to pretend that the work of the actor is secondary to the character (as opposed the look) is foolish.He deserved one for Two Towers so I hope an Oscar goes his way.It was a shame to not have screen time for Lee but the film works well without him and it was a brave move by the editors. The special effects do not stand out - and that's a compliment.Even in state of the art movies of late I have been aware that I could be watching a video game.Here I only occasionally noticed that things were clear computer effects, even though the majority of the film was!This is how they SHOULD be used - not as a draw in their own right but as part of the film.Whether it be the massive battle scenes that are spectacular or the animated spider or just the fact that I forget that Gollum is only an effect, I cannot fault it's use of effects or the sheer visual feast that is this film. I have tried not to gush because there will be plenty of others to do that without me joining them, but it is hard to really fault this film.It is the strongest of the trilogy and brings it all together really well, it is an emotional event more than a film and, if Jackson needs 20 minutes of slow closure to finish it to his satisfaction then I can give him that in return for all the hours of wonderful cinema that he has given me. ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The|Peter Jackson|Fantasy|Rated PG-13 for epic battle sequences and scary images. |8.9|USA|2002| 179 min/ USA:223 min (special extended edition) / Sweden:224 min (special extended edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peter Jackson Michael Lynne Mark Ordesky Barrie M. Osborne Rick Porras Jamie Selkirk Robert Shaye Frances Walsh Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|J.R.R. Tolkien Frances Walsh Philippa Boyens Stephen Sinclair Peter Jackson|Andrew Lesnie ||A-Film Distribution [nl] |A New Power Is Rising.|The Fellowship has been broken. Boromir (Sean Bean) is dead, Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) and Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin) have gone to Mordor alone to destroy the One Ring, Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd) have been captured by the Uruk-hai, and Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), and Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) have made friends of the Rohan, a race of humans that are in the path of the upcoming war, led by its aging king, Théoden (Bernard Hill). The two towers between Mordor and Isengard, Barad-dúr and Orthanc, have united in their lust for destruction. The corrupt wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee), under the power of the Dark Lord Sauron, and his slimy assistant, Gríma Wormtongue (Brad Dourif), have created a grand Uruk-hai army bent on the destruction of Man and Middle-earth. The rebellion against Sauron is building up and will be led by Gandalf the White (Sir Ian McKellen), who was thought to be dead after the Balrog captured him. One of the Ring's original bearers, the creature Gollum (Andy Serkis), has tracked Frodo and Sam down in search of his 'precious', but is captured by the Hobbits and used as a way to lead them to Mt. Doom. The War of the Ring has now begun... Sauron's forces increase. His allies grow. The Ringwraiths return in an even more frightening form. Saruman's army of Uruk Hai is ready to launch an assault against Aragorn and the people of Rohan. Yet, the Fellowship is broken and Boromir is dead. For the little hope that is left, Frodo and Sam march on into Mordor, unprotected. A number of new allies join with Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas, Pippin and Merry. And they must defend Rohan and attack Isengard. Yet, while all this is going on, Sauron's troops mass toward the City of Gondor, for the War of the Ring is about to begin. Frodo and Sam take Gollum prisoner and continue on to Mordor on the mission to destroy The One Ring. Whilst their former companions Strider, Legolas, Gimli, Merry and Pippin make new allies in the Ents, The Riders of Rohan and the Stewards of Gondor and launch an assault on Isengard. All the while a growing Shadow falls upon Middle-earth as the Dark Lord's Army marches on to Gondor. The War of the Ring has begun. After the fellowship has broken, Merry and Pippin, taken by orcs, make new allies in the Ents, while Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn make allies in the people of Rohan, and all of them must launch an assault on Isengard. Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam force Gollum to guide them through Mordor, trusting him with their lives. |Elijah Wood (Frodo Baggins) @ Ian McKellen (Gandalf the Grey/Gandalf the White) @ Liv Tyler (Arwen) @ Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) @ Sean Astin (Samwise 'Sam' Gamgee) @ Cate Blanchett (Galadriel) @ John Rhys-Davies (Gimli/Voice of Treebeard) @ Bernard Hill (Theoden) @ Christopher Lee (Saruman the White) @ Billy Boyd (Peregrin 'Pippin' Took) @ Dominic Monaghan (Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck) @ Orlando Bloom (Legolas Greenleaf) @ Hugo Weaving (Elrond) @ Miranda Otto (Eowyn) @ David Wenham (Faramir) @ Brad Dourif (Grima Wormtongue) @ Andy Serkis (Gollum/Sméagol) @ Karl Urban (Eomer) @ Craig Parker (Haldir) @ Bruce Allpress (Aldor) @ John Bach (Madril) @ Sala Baker (Man Flesh Uruk) @ Jed Brophy (Sharku/Snaga) @ Sam Comery (Éothain) @ Calum Gittins (Haleth) @ Bruce Hopkins (Gamling) @ Paris Howe Strewe (Théodred, Prince of Rohan) @ Nathaniel Lees (Uglúk) @ John Leigh (Háma) @ Robbie Magasiva (Mauhur) @ Robyn Malcolm (Morwen) @ Bruce Phillips (Rohan Soldier) @ Robert Pollock (Mordor Orc) @ Olivia Tennet (Freda) @ Ray Trickett (Bereg) @ Stephen Ure (Grishnákh) @ Billy Jackson (Cute Rohan Refugee Child) @ Katie Jackson (Cute Rohan Refugee Child rest of cast listed alphabetically Hannah Wood .... Woman in Cave) @ Sean Bean (Boromir (extended edition) (uncredited)) @ Paul Holmes (Orc (uncredited)) @ Peter Jackson (Rohirrim Warrior (uncredited)) @ John Noble (Denethor, Steward of Gondor (extended edition) (uncredited)) @ Piripi Waretini (Uruk-Hai soldier (uncredited) Produced by||A grand improvement over "Fellowship"... The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers I initially panned `The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring' for various reasons (all, I still believe, are quite deserved), and it lead me to kind of dread returning to this intricate, but overblown fantasy realm that so many people hold in such high esteem. So here we are, a year later, and what a thrill it is to report that almost every element that I felt acted like cement shoes on `Fellowship' has either been abandoned, or at the very least, ignored in the latest chapter, `The Two Towers.' The Fellowship of the Ring has been broken, with hobbits Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) continuing on their way to destroy the One Ring in the fiery pits of Mordor. Repeatedly lost and losing faith, the pair meets Gollum, a wicked, corrupted hobbit consumed with his quest to get the ring back. For Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), elf Legolas (Orlando Bloom), and dwarf Gimli (John Rhys-Davies), their quest to save their kidnapped hobbit friends, Pippin (Billy Boyd), and Merry (Dominic Monaghan), has detoured, as the two have been taken into the forest in the care of the Ents, a race of walking, talking trees. Aragorn leads his team to the far-off land of the Rohan, a peace loving people who have recently seen their king restored to power. When Aragorn learns of Saruman's (Christopher Lee) plan to unleash an army of Uruk Hais to take over Middle Earth, a battle commences at Helm's Deep, the hideout for the Rohan, that could change the balance of power in the quest for the ring for good. `The Two Towers' is a more personable, more beguiling moviegoing experience than `Fellowship of the Ring' for many reasons. For starters, the picture isn't hampered by the necessity of establishing elaborate character backstory and plot threads. It's free to hit the ground running, which inserts substantial energy into this picture, with assertive drama occurring right off the bat. The crosscutting between the different story arcs also rewards the film, with less attention paid to Frodo and Sam's redundant subplot (they seem to accomplish nothing in this chapter), and most of the running time devoted to Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas, who clearly have the juiciest parts of the tale to work with. Also, Tolkien's rich environmental subtext is more perceptibly explored in this film, with Jackson gladly drawing the parallels between the Tolkien world and our own. Another significantly important improvement has been made to the picture's emotional core. I found `Fellowship' to be a cold fish, with only the fleeting romantic moments between Aragorn and Arwen (Liv Tyler) among the few virtues of the film. You cannot have a horde of special effects without providing any kind of emotional involvement, and Jackson seems to have recognized this in making `Two Towers.' Along with a more in depth investigation into the relationship between Aragorn and Arwen, there is the introduction of Eowyn (Miranda Otto, `Love Serenade`), who is developing feelings for the future king, making for a nice romantic triangle to come. The bond between the former Fellowship is also deepening, paying off in `The Two Towers' with exceptionally sweet and noble acts of friendship between the warriors, dwarves, elves, and hobbits. This is exactly what the trilogy needs to survive, and I'm thrilled Jackson is allowing a little more sun to shine on this often dreary, overcast tale. Even with all the advances to the story and the density of the film, there are some nagging open sores that carry over from the first picture. Namely, the special effects. In the course of the year, Jackson seems to have become more confident in his special effects shots. `The Two Towers' features substantially fewer soaring, spiraling computer vistas (which still look like cruddy videogame cinematic interstitials), but a small handful remain. These shots always irritate me, as they scream the artificiality at the very top of their lungs, adding zilch to the scope or awe of the film. Jackson finds greater success in simply keeping the camera steady, and allowing the effects to pass through the frame, which he does often here. I also enjoyed how many of the F/X are presented in broad daylight, eschewing the muddy, hide-the-seams usefulness of keeping the visuals in the dark. Most of these new worlds and creatures (especially the Ents) look great, and with such confidence in presenting them this time around, `Two Towers' is a much more visually satisfying sit. Of course, when talking about special effects and `The Two Towers' (they do seem to go hand in hand), one cannot neglect the work of the WETA workshop with the character Gollum. An emaciated, cracked hobbit, Gollum is a entirely CG character, much along the lines of (bad example) Jar Jar Binks in `The Phantom Menace,' and more recently (good example), Dobby, in the `Harry Potter' sequel. Gollum represents the very state of art in character animation rendering, and for all intensive purposes, is a true feast for the eyes. Having said that, there is still an inconsistency in the animation, in that the character's facial features cannot compete (or keep up) with the gorgeous vocal performance provided by Andy Serkis (`24 Hour Party People`). Gollum remains a mysteriously empathic, yet ghastly figure, but also embodies a continued excellence in pursuing richly detailed CG characters. For the first time in this series I've felt the glee, the wanderlust, and the wonderment of Tolkien's story and Jackson's interpretation. How long will this last? I guess I'll find out holiday 2003 with `The Return of the King.` But until then, I can say with sincerity that I genuinely enjoyed at least a third of this rapidly expanding trilogy so far. --------- 8/10 ||Movies |2.35 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Lost Boys, The|Joel Schumacher|Comedy|R |6.7|USA|1987|97 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/5/2004|Harvey Bernhard Mark Damon Richard Donner John W. Hyde John Hyde|Jeffrey Boam Janice Fischer James Jeremias|Michael Chapman ||Warner Bros. [us] |Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It's fun to be a vampire.|A mother and her two sons move to a small coast town in California. The town is plagued by bikers and some mysterious deaths. The younger boy makes friends with two other boys who claim to be vampire hunters while the older boy is drawn into the gang of bikers by a beautiful girl. The older boy starts sleeping days and staying out all night while the younger boy starts getting into trouble because of his friends' obsession. Financial troubles force a recent divorcee and her teenage sons Mike and Sam to settle down with her father in the California town of Santa Carla. At first, Sam laughs off rumours he hears about vampires who inhabit the small town. But after Mike meets a beautiful girl at the local amusement park, he begins to exhibit the classic signs of vampirism. Fearing for his own safety, Sam recruits two young vampire hunters to save his brother by finding and destroying the head vampire. |Jason Patric (Michael Emerson) @ Corey Haim (Sam Emerson) @ Dianne Wiest (Lucy Emerson) @ Barnard Hughes (Grandpa) @ Edward Herrmann (Max) @ Kiefer Sutherland (David) @ Jami Gertz (Star) @ Corey Feldman (Edgar Frog) @ Jamison Newlander (Alan Frog) @ Brooke McCarter (Paul) @ Billy Wirth (Dwayne) @ Alex Winter (Marko (as Alexander Winter)) @ Chance Michael Corbitt (Laddie Thompson) @ Alexander Bacon Chapman (Greg) @ Nori Morgan (Shelly) @ Todd Feder (Surf Nazi #1) @ Christopher Peters (Surf Nazi #2) @ Keith Butterfield (Surf Nazi #3) @ Gerald Younggren (Surf Nazi #4) @ Eric Graves (Surf Nazi #5) @ J. Dinan Myrtetus (Vernon Beasley) @ Kelly Jo Minter (Maria) @ Timmy Cappello (Beach concert star) @ Jim Turner (Gas station owner) @ Tony Cain (Lost Child) @ Melanie Bishop (Child's mother) @ Sandra E. Garcia (Runaway #1) @ Ian Guindon (Runaway #2) @ Jane Bare (Mother Frog) @ B. Lowenberg (Father Frog) @ Captain Colourz (Tattoo man) @ Inez Pandalfi (Mrs. Beasley) @ Cody (Nanook (dog)) @ Folsom (Thorn (dog) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Peggy Malone ( (uncredited)) @ Douglas Mellor ( (uncredited)) @ Mercedes Moseley (Girl getting ears pierced (uncredited)Produced by||"Holy s##t, it's the attack of Eddie Munster!" Lucy (Dianne Wiest) moves with her sons Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim) to California where Michael gets mixed up with local teenage gang, headed by David (Kiefer Sutherland), that is actually a group of vampires. "The Lost Boys" is an entertaining modern vampire movie with lots of flash, style, 1980's music, and flamboyant effects and interesting design.There's no substance to this picture, but I don't think that the film-makers cared about that.No, they just made a picture strictly catered to the young crowd that is really just for straightforward fun.Don't worry about looking for hidden meanings or symbolism. David and his gang are a cool-looking bunch with two members (Brooke McCarter, Billy Wirth) who look like they could have been part of a rock group and the third guy is played by Alex Winter - a.k.a. "Bill" of "Bill & Ted". The young cast is okay; I would only have real criticisms for Jami Gertz's 'performance'.Wiest, as usual, is excellent, and seasoned performer Edward Herrmann kind of looks out of place but he makes up for it with a typically good performance. Echo and the Bunnymen do a good cover of the Doors' "People Are Strange" and Roger Daltrey does an equally fine cover of Elton Johns' "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me". "The Lost Boys" is fun if never truly scary. 8/10 || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Lost in Space|Stephen Hopkins|Action|Rated PG-13 for some intense sci-fi action. PG-13|4.7|USA|1998|130 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/21/2004|Chris Carreras Michael De Luca Carla Fry Akiva Goldsman Tim Hampton Stephen Hopkins Michael Ilitch Jr. Mark W. Koch Mace Neufeld Julie Pye Robert Rehme Hugo Sands Richard Saperstein Kris Wiseman McIntyre|Irwin Allen Akiva Goldsman|Peter Levy ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Danger Will Robinson!|In the near future, earth's fossil resources are about to be used up. In an attempt to save the human race, scientists have begun building a gate, through which faster than light travel will be possible - but only if there is a gate at the destination to receive the travelers. The Robinson Family has been chosen to travel to Alpha Prime - the only other inhabitable planet known - at normal speed, ten years, cryogenically frozen. But Dr. Smith, a sinister man, sabotages their spaceship, Jupiter 2, but is also betrayed by his people. So, he has to work together with the Robinsons in order to survive himself. When Jupiter 2 is falling into the sun, the only chance to survive is to activate the hyperdrive - without a gate at the other end. Soon, the Robinsons are someplace really unknown, where they meet unfriendly silicon-based space spiders, take in a little ape-like creature and name new star systems after Bugs Bunny and Porky Pig. They have to reach Alpha Prime in order to build the second gate, or earth's only hope is gone. With the Earth running short of natural energy resources the Jupiter mission to colonize and exploit Alpha Prime seems to be the only chance of survival. Professor John Robinson ('William Hurt' ) together with his wife Maureen (Mimi Rogers), his family and fighter pilot Don West (Matt LeBlanc) lead a desperate attempt to create a Hyper-Gate in orbit around the planet Alpha Prime to enable the rescue of Earth to begin. However, others have different reasons for reaching Alpha Prime and Dr. Smith (Gary Oldman) sabotages the Jupiter 2 but fails to get clear and becomes an unwelcome stowaway aboard ship. To escape the gravitational pull of the sun the Hyper-Drive is fired and the Jupiter 2, after a trip through hyperspace, emerges into a completely unknown part of the galaxy. A search of the star charts reveals that they are completely lost in an uncharted sector of space but this is only the beginning of their problems... |William Hurt (Prof. John Robinson) @ Mimi Rogers (Dr. Maureen Robinson) @ Lacey Chabert (Penny Robinson) @ Heather Graham (Judy Robinson) @ Jack Johnson (Will Robinson) @ Gary Oldman (Dr. Zachary Smith) @ Matt LeBlanc (Maj. Don West) @ Jared Harris (Older Will Robinson) @ Mark Goddard (General) @ Lennie James (Jeb Walker) @ Marta Kristen (Reporter #1) @ June Lockhart (Principal Cartwright) @ Edward Fox (Businessman) @ Adam Sims (Lab Technician) @ Angela Cartwright (Reporter #2) @ John Sharian (Noah Freeman) @ Abigail Canton (Annie Tech) @ Richard Saperstein (Global Sedition attack pilot) @ Dick Tufeld (Rambler-Crane series Robot (voice)) @ Gary A. Hecker (Blarp (voice) (as Gary Hecker)) @ William Todd Jones (Spider Smith's StudentProduced by||HELL yeah. This is some excellent sci-fi. Contains spoilers Lost In Space is a tremendously upgraded adaptation of the old campy TV show, in which the Robinson family is, of course, lost in space. The film has an excellent opening battle sequence that nearly rivals anything that George Lucas has ever done and comes close to being as exciting as the opening of any of the James Bond films. It is particularly noteworthy that Matt LeBlanc was able to deliver such a convincing performance as a tremendously skilled fighter pilot, given his popularity from Friends. Lost In Space presents a pretty dismal prediction of the future. The movie takes place (initially) in the year 2058, and John Robinson, the father in the famous Robinson family, has been working for years on a mission to Alpha Prime, a planet which is capable of supporting human life. It seems that in another two decades, Earth will no longer be capable of supporting human life. The wooden performance of William Hurt in the role of John Robinson takes a little getting used to, but overall, he pulls it off very well. Probably the best character in the film is Dr. Zachary Smith, the self proclaimed `monster' of a man that was hired to sabotage the Robinson's mission, played with flawless precision by the brilliant Gary Oldman. It turns out that he is double-crossed himself, and he winds up on the ship with the Robinsons, along with the robot that Smith re-programmed to destroy the family as well as the ship's navigation systems. Science fiction films generally have very weak and simple plots, and it was great to see that this one got interesting so fast. The thing that really causes the family to get lost in space is that they accidentally get caught in the sun's gravitational pull, and because they don't have enough power to escape it, they have to open up the stargate (meant to traverse the tremendous distance between Earth and Alpha Prime instantaneously) and go THROUGH the sun, thus delivering them into an unknown part of space. Lost. The trip through was a little much, but it definitely was cool, and the resulting setting that they find themselves in is just fascinating. And as if a trip to unknown space wasn't enough, they throw in a great time travel element to the story, making it that much more interesting. Almost immediately after shooting though the stargate and finding themselves lost in space, the Robinsons come across a spaceship from Earth, and in the captain's log they find a recording of an old man who says that he `refuses to give up' in his search for the Robinsons. Even though they had only been lost for a matter of hours, this ship had been searching for them for YEARS. While there was some highly entertaining acting in this film, not all of the characters were as well presented and acted as John Robinson and Dr. Smith and Major Don West (LeBlanc).Mimi Rogers provided an effective and believable mother in the family, as well as the life sciences expert, but the high pitched Lacey Chabert, the pedophile's dream, got real annoying real quick, and Heather Graham was horribly miscast as Judy Robinson. After several of her previous roles, it would be best if she would avoid taking on a role that is to be taken seriously for quite a while. And there were a few things in the film that didn't make sense. There is the obvious problem (that all Back To The Future fans will notice right away) with the older Will's plan to travel back to the day they left and stop the ship from taking off - you already know that won't happen, because when they left at the beginning of the movie, Will would have shown up and told them not to leave. And how about the scene where Dr. Smith tricks Will into using his voice-print ID on his gun to `enable for all users,' only to have Smith turn it on him? Wouldn't it have been just as easy for Will to use the voice ID to turn the gun off while it was pointed at him? Seems that such a smart kid would have realized that all he had to do was talk to the gun in order to eliminate all danger. Lost In Space is also famous for its ludicrous amount of special effects and, surprisingly enough, they were very well done and very effective. Obviously, special effects are mandatory for a space movie, but they are most often screwed up so badly that they ruin the movie (see: Mission To Mars). In this movie, though, the special effects have the unique distinction of being both way overdone and very effective - with the exception of that damn alien monkey that doesn't look real in a single frame in the entire film and is also totally unnecessary. The only thing that really took a lot away from the film was the transformed Dr. Smith at the end of the film. Sure, it was a cool idea that he got transformed into one of the spiders in true vampire form after having been scratched by one, but the cartoonish creature that he turned into was just too far, even for this otherwise high-quality science fiction movie. A lot of things are never clarified, like how Will (who sure grew up to be an ugly guy) comes up with the tools necessary to build time traveling warp zones and whatnot, but it doesn't really matter that this isn't explained. This is usually not good, but Lost In Space is an unusually well made science fiction thriller that is fun for all ages, so it can get away with a lot of stuff like that. The tremendous gap at the end of this film makes it pretty obvious that at least one sequel is inevitable, and we can only hope that any sequels live up to the original. ||New Line Platinum Series |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Lost in Translation|Sofia Coppola|Drama|Rated R for some sexual content. R|8.0|USA|2003|102 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/6/2004|Francis Ford Coppola Sofia Coppola Mitch Glazer Callum Greene Kiyoshi Inoue Ross Katz Fred Roos Stephen Schible|Sofia Coppola |Lance Acord ||A-Film Distribution [nl] |Everyone wants to be found.|Americans abroad, almost innocents. Charlotte, fresh out of Yale with a degree in philosophy, is in Tokyo with her husband, a photographer whose work takes him away that week. She's adrift, her soul on ice. Bob, mid-50s, a semi-retired movie star, is there to make $2 million doing a Scotch ad. At home are a wife and young children, but he's jaded and melancholy. Both are jet-lagged, and Tokyo's culture and language push them further off kilter. When they meet in the hotel bar and spend their free time together for a few days, possibilities arise amidst the losses. Their friendship becomes an experience: does he have something to teach; can she reconnect him to life? Bob Harris (played by Bill Murray) is an American film actor, far past his prime. He visits Tokyo to appear in commercials, and he meets Charlotte (Scarlett Johannson), the young wife of a visiting photographer. Bored and weary, Bob and Charlotte make ideal if improbable travelling companions. Scarlet is looking for "her place in life," and Bob is tolerating a mediocre stateside marriage. Both separately and together, they live the experience of the American in Tokyo. Bob and Charlotte suffer both confusion and hilarity due to the cultural and language differences between themselves and the Japanese. As the relationship between Bob and Charlotte deepens, they come to the realization that their visits to Japan, and one another, must soon end. Or must they? |Scarlett Johansson (Charlotte) @ Bill Murray (Bob Harris) @ Akiko Takeshita (Ms. Kawasaki) @ Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe (Press Agent) @ Kazuko Shibata (Press Agent) @ Take (Press Agent) @ Ryuichiro Baba (Concierge) @ Akira Yamaguchi (Bellboy) @ Catherine Lambert (Jazz Singer) @ François du Bois (Sausalito Piano) @ Tim Leffman (Sausalito Guitar) @ Gregory Pekar (American Businessman #1) @ Richard Allen (American Businessman #2) @ Giovanni Ribisi (John) @ Yutaka Tadokoro (Commercial Director) @ Jun Maki (Suntory Client) @ Nao Asuka (Premium Fantasy Woman) @ Tetsuro Naka (Stills Photographer) @ Kanako Nakazato (Make-Up Person) @ Fumihiro Hayashi (Charlie) @ Hiroko Kawasaki (Hiroko) @ Daikon (Bambie) @ Anna Faris (Kelly) @ Asuka Shimuzu (Kelly's Translator) @ Ikuko Takahashi (Ikebana Instructor) @ Koichi Tanaka (Bartender, NY Bar) @ Hugo Codaro (Aerobics Instructor) @ Akiko Monou (P Chan) @ Akimitsu Naruyama (French Japanese Nightclub Patron) @ Hiroshi Kawashima (Bartender, Nightclub) @ Kobayashi Hiromi (Hiromix (as Hiromix)) @ Nobuhiko Kitamura (Nobu) @ Nao Kitman (Nao) @ Akira (Hans) @ Kunichi Nomura (Kun) @ Yasuhiko Hattori (Charlie's Friend) @ Shigekazu Aida (Mr. Valentine) @ Kazuo Yamada (Hospital Receptionist) @ Akira Motomura (Old Man) @ Osamu Shigematu (Doctor) @ Takashi Fujii (Matthew Minami (as Matthew Minami)) @ Kei Takyo (TV Translator) @ Ryo Kondo (Politician) @ Yumi Ikeda (Politician's Aide) @ Yumika Saki (Politician's Aide) @ Yuji Okabe (Politician's Aide) @ Diedrich Bollman (German Hotel Guest) @ Georg O.P. Eschert (German Hotel Guest) @ Mark Willms (Carl West) @ Lisle Wilkerson (Sexy Businesswoman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nancy Steiner (Lydia Harris (uncredited) (voice)Produced by||We Do Have Problems....But We'll Always Have Tokyo. Excellent motion picture experience that speaks volumes with crazed situations, quiet moments and moving cinematic expressions. Seemingly washed-up American actor Bill Murray (in his greatest role) has come to Tokyo to film an advertisement for a brand of scotch. Simultaneously young adult Scarlett Johansson is staying at the same high-rise hotel as Murray with her photographer husband (Giovanni Ribisi). She has just completed her education at Yale (getting a degree in philosophy), but now she does not know what to do with her life. It is painfully clear that both Murray and Johansson are suffering from jet lag and struggle to sleep properly. Their ailments go much further than physical time clocks though. Both are lonely, sad and isolated in one of the largest cities in the world. Their struggle to communicate with the natives and their want to just go back to the U.S. lead them both together. On first glance they appear to be total opposites except for their nationality. But it becomes clear very quickly that both do not have love in their lives and both are concerned with living in general. Murray is distraught at how his life has turned out while Johansson is worried about how her life is going to play out. Strangely Johansson sometimes appears as a window to Murray's past. His past seems to be filled with many similarities to Johansson's present state. Frequent phone calls from Murray's wife paints a picture of a partnership rather than a marriage. The discussions seem to go towards money and carpeting rather than their children or how much they miss one another. Johansson and Ribisi also act more like business partners than spouses. Murray, obviously a loving father, still wonders if having children was the right thing to do (a very difficult balancing act of emotions here). The situations throughout are often hilarious, but still poignant and effective. Everything in this picture has a deeper meaning than it shows on the surface. This is one of the deepest and more emotional films I have encountered. "Lost in Translation" could best be described as "Casablanca" for the Generation X and Y groups. The love story between Murray and Johansson is strictly platonic and as the movie moves along it is clear that they share a connection that goes beyond their ages, their backgrounds and even their personal tastes. Sofia Coppola's landmark screenplay and unique direction are revelations. She has a wide array of characters who come and go, but never loses the focus on her two leads. Murray is exceptional. He finally found a role that shows his hidden abilities and Johansson might even be better. This is bound to be a role that could make her a marketable super-star. It is very easy to get lost in this world and "Lost in Translation" is probably the greatest picture to show just how true this is. 5 stars out of 5. ||Widescreen |1.66 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Magical Legend of the Leprechauns, The|John Henderson|Comedy|NR |5.6|UK|1999|Germany:172 min (2 parts)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/3/2004|Peter Barnes Robert Halmi Sr. Paul Lowin|Peter Barnes |Clive Tickner ||National Broadcasting Company (NBC) [us] ||American businessman Jack Woods rents a cottage on the enchanted Emerald Isle which is occupied by a family of leprechauns. Leprechaun Seamus Muldoon and his son crash the fairies' costume ball and Muldoon's son falls in love with fairy Princess Jessica. Their love re-ignites a feud between the leprechauns and the fairies, which escalates into a war. The Grand Banshee warns of terrible consequences and Jack Woods is chosen to make peace. Woods interrupts his own romance with an Irish beauty to help, and becomes involved in a strange and wonderful magical adventure. |Randy Quaid (Jack Woods) @ Whoopi Goldberg (The Grand Banshee) @ Roger Daltrey (King Boric) @ Colm Meaney (Seamus Muldoon) @ Kieran Culkin (Barney Devine) @ Zoë Wanamaker (Mary Muldoon) @ Daniel Betts (Mickey Muldoon) @ Orla Brady (Kathleen Fitzpatrick) @ Caroline Carver (Princess Jessica) @ Frank Finlay (General Bulstrode) @ Phyllida Law (Lady Margaret) @ Michael Williams (Father Daley) @ Harriet Walter (Queen Morag rest of cast listed alphabetically Danny Babington .... 1st Fairy) @ Christopher Benjamin (Troll Manager) @ Tony Bluto (1st Troll Assistant) @ Neil Conrich (Pooka Captain) @ Arthur Cox (2nd Farmer) @ Tony Curran (Sean Devine) @ Fercal Fay (Irish Dancer) @ Jonathan Firth (Count Grogan) @ Simon Greiff (Chief Grococh) @ James Hayes (Innkeeper) @ J.D. Kelleher (Stallholder/1st Oakshee) @ Clive Kneller (1st Fairy Flunkee) @ Gary Lydon (Dunlang the Dullahan/James Fitzpatrick) @ Conor McDermottroe (John Fitzpatrick) @ Edward A. McDermottroe (Fergus Flynn) @ Kevin McKidd (Jericho O'Grady) @ Nula McMannican (Irish Dancer) @ Clive Merrison (Chamberlain) @ Stephen Moore (Jentee) @ Anthony O'Donnell (Bert Bagnell) @ Peter Serafinowicz (George Fitzpatrck) @ Owen Sharpe (Harry Fitzpatrick) @ David Shaw Parker (Leprechaun CaptainProduced by||A total waste of time This is one of the worst worst tv movie series I have ever seen, and worst of all bought. It's boring, badly directed, terribly acted and not amusing at all. Hallmark may be eager to produce this kind of movies, but they should be more careful with their content. A total waste of time. || ||||||||@@ Majestic, The|Frank Darabont|Drama|Rated PG for language and mild thematic elements. PG|6.7|USA|2001|152 min/ Argentina:150 min/ Colombia:153 min/ Finland:154 min/ Spain:156 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Jim Behnke Claudia Cummings Frank Darabont Linda Fields Anna Garduno Michael Sloane|Michael Sloane |David Tattersall ||Warner Bros. GmbH [de] |Sometimes your life comes into focus one frame at a time.|Peter Appleton is an ambitious young screenwriter working for HHS Studios during Hollywood's Golden Age, 1951 in particular. "Ashes to Ashes" is about to be released, and he's dating the attractive movie star, Sandra Sinclair. Just when everything seems to be going his way, it is discovered he (unwittingly) attended a Communist meeting during college when pulled there by his girlfriend at the time, and thus heavy suspicion settles over him and he'll have to stand before Congress. Afraid of what might happen if they don't, HHS cancels Appleton's contract and aborts the release date of the film. Appleton promptly begins to wallow in self-pity and spends nearly an entire night at a bar, then drives intoxicated through the streets of the California course until plummeting into a stormy river and getting knocked unconscious. Washing up on the beaches of a small town called Lawson. Although the people there are pleasant and likeable, the town is depressed and lifeless due to having lost 62 of it's sons in World War II. One of them, Luke Trimble, was missing in action; and miraculously, Peter bears a striking resemblence to the black and white photos, close enough to fool even Luke's father, Harry. However, thanks to the blow to the head and the alcohol, Peter has suffered amnesia and decides he must be who they think he is. Besides, it's not a bad life: Luke's beautiful lover, lawyer Adele Stanton, is all over him, the town has suddenly come back to life with excitement, and he and his "father" rebuild a movie palace Harry used to run, the Majestic. Unfortunately, Peter's memory returns in time for G-men to track him down. In this Capra-esque drama set during the 1950's blacklist, a young, ambitious Hollywood screenwriter loses his job and his identity, only to find new courage, love and the power of conviction in the heart of a small town's life. Peter Appleton is a script writer during the 1950's who is suspected to be a Communist among many Hollywood film people (which is not true). Along the way, he gets into a freak car accident and suffers amnesia, then ends up in a small California town. There he lives in a run down movie theatre where he learns the magic of experiencing a movie in it. Soon, the Communist hunters find him and call him to testify before a Senate hearing committee. |Jim Carrey (Peter Appleton) @ Bob Balaban (Elvin Clyde) @ Jeffrey DeMunn (Ernie Cole) @ Hal Holbrook (Congressman Doyle) @ Laurie Holden (Adele Stanton) @ Martin Landau (Harry Trimble) @ Brent Briscoe (Sheriff Cecil Coleman) @ Ron Rifkin (Kevin Bannerman) @ Gerry Black (Emmett Smith) @ David Ogden Stiers (Doc Stanton) @ James Whitmore (Stan Keller) @ Susan Willis (Irene Terwilliger) @ Catherine Dent (Mabel) @ Brian Howe (Carl Leffert/Head of the Studio) @ Karl Bury (Bob Leffert) @ Chelcie Ross (Avery Wyatt) @ Amanda Detmer (Sandra Sinclair) @ Allen Garfield (Leo Kubelsky) @ Daniel von Bargen (Federal Agent Ellerby) @ Shawn Doyle (Federal Agent Saunders) @ Mario Roccuzzo (Jerry the Bartender) @ Frank Collison (Subpoena Server) @ Bill Gratton (Daley) @ Ginger Williams (Louise) @ Ken Magee (Coastal Engineer) @ Csilla Horvath (Nurse Muriel) @ April Ortiz (Vera) @ Larry Cox (Grauman's Usher) @ Julie Richardson (Grauman's Bon-Bon Girl) @ Scotty Leavenworth (Joey) @ Grant Vaught (Boy on Beach) @ Bob Wells (Reverend) @ Kevin DeMunn (Western Union Man) @ Earl Boen (Newsreel Announcer (voice)) @ Bruce Campbell (Roland the Intrepid Explorer) @ Cliff Curtis (The Evil But Handsome Prince Khalid) @ Michael Sloane (Kindly Old Professor Meredith) @ Garry Marshall (Studio Executive (voice)) @ Paul Mazursky (Studio Executive (voice)) @ Sydney Pollack (Studio Executive (voice)) @ Carl Reiner (Studio Executive (voice)) @ Rob Reiner (Studio Executive (voice)) @ Matt Damon (Luke Trimble (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Matt G. Wiens .... Spencer Wyatt) @ Jeffrey Adams (Principal Swing Dancer (uncredited)) @ Kris Andersson (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Alvah Bessie (Himself (Hollywood Ten, arrives, behind Cole) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Herbert J. Biberman (Himself (Hollywood Ten, arrives) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Jennifer Blaire (Carl's Date (uncredited)) @ Chris Carver (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Lester Cole (Himself (Hollywood Ten, arrives) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Corey Foxx (Photographer (uncredited)) @ Kate Greeke (Popcorn Girl (uncredited)) @ Gordon Hart (Swing Dancer (uncredited)) @ J. Edgar Hoover (Himself (targets Communists) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Shirley Jones (Principal Swing Dancer (uncredited)) @ Mary Kircher (Swing Dancer (uncredited)) @ Ring Lardner Jr. (Himself (Hollywood Ten, arrives, behind Biberman) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ John Howard Lawson (Himself (Hollywood Ten, testifies) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Brian Libby (Studio Guard Hal (uncredited)) @ Martin W. McDonough (Principal Swing Dancer (uncredited)) @ Amanda Melby (Young Mrs. Trimble (uncredited)) @ Melissa Noble (Swing Dancer (uncredited)) @ Samuel Ornitz (Himself (Hollywood Ten, arrives) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Maudie Purcell (Old Lady (uncredited)) @ George Ratliff (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Craig Richards (Studio Guard (uncredited)) @ Adrian Scott (Himself (Hollywood Ten, arrives, behind Cole) (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Gary Sommers (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Robert Thorne (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Jack Truman (Party Member (uncredited)) @ Steven Paul Zsenyuk (Driver/Theater Patron (uncredited)Produced by||Man brings a town back to life, town brings the man back to life. I don't go to movies at the theater anymore. I always see films on DVD at home, so I have lots of opportunity to read reviews first. I don't understand why the reviews for "The Majestic" are so mixed, because it is a really fine film. Jim Carrey is superb in the lead role, and new-to-film Laurie Holden is very well cast as his love interest. (In many angles she looks amazingly like a young Kathleen Turner.) At almost 2.5 hours, it is slow only in a few places and doesn't seem overly long.It is ambitious in dealing with three main topics, but pulls it off well, if not perfectly. some SPOILERS follow -- Set in the early 1950s USA, Pete is a B-movie script writer who once, in college, attended a meeting of an organization that was believed affiliated with Communists. Why? Because "he was horny", trying to win the affections of a girl he followed there. Still, the House Committee on Unamerican Activities learned of this years later, and he was destined for the Holloywood "blacklist." Distraught, he went for a long ride up into northern California (much was shot in Mendocino), got into an accident (I would have run over the possum), hit his head, was discovered the next day on a river bank by an old man who walked him into town. Pete had no memory, was mistaken by townsfolk, even the dad, for Luke who had been missing from the war and presumed dead. Had he really shown up after 9 1/2 years?Everyone wanted to believe so, even his old girl who was about to get her law license. But those close to Luke began to realize this person was probably not him. Still, after losing so many young men to the war, this "Luke" was the inspiration for the town to re-awaken itself and quit mourning over their losses. This was manifest in part by the refurbishing and re-opening of the movie house, "The Majestic", which Luke and his dad had run before the war. It was during the showing of one movie, Pete had written, that he began to remember who he really was. Daniel VonBargen in a small but good role was the agent who got onto Pete's track and finally found him in the small town, brought him back to L.A. for a special session of the HCUA, where his stand on Communism was to be questioned. In the process he realized what a mikquetoast he was, always doing what was easiest to save his skin, but realizing how much the small town gave honor to hero Luke. Which got him to change his attitude, gave up script writing, returned to Luke's hometown, married Luke's old girlfriend, continued to run the Majestic, raised a family. The film is ambitious in tackling three issues -- the nation's obsession with Communism at that time, Pete's finding himself, and the town re-awakening after its terrible losses of young men to the war. It handles all three acceptably, and the overall result is a fine film. Especially enjoyable is the middle hour and a half where Pete is meeting all these people he is supposed to remember, and the effort to re-open the Majestic. Fun scene, night dance, old piano teacher tries to get "Luke" to play classical, but "Pete" starts to play great jazz instead. The DVD's extras are not particularly enticing, but the DVD itself, in Dolby 5.1 digital sound, is very impressive. It is done so well it rarely calls attention to itself. But, in scenes that benefit from it, the surround sound puts you right in the middle of a crowd or the street, with sounds from all around. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Man for All Seasons, A|Fred Zinnemann|Drama||8.0|UK|1966| 120 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|William N. Graf Fred Zinnemann|Robert Bolt Robert Bolt|Ted Moore ||Columbia Pictures [us] |A Film For All Time|Henry VIII wants to divorce his wife, and seeks the approval of the aristocracy. Sir Thomas More is a man of principle and reason, and is thus placed in a difficult position: should he stand up for his principles, risking the wrath of a corrupt King fond of executing people for treason? Or should he bow to the seemingly unstoppable corruption of Henry VIII, who has no qualms about bending the law to suit his own needs? Il re Enrico VIII d'Inghilterra vuole divorziare da Caterina d'Aragona, che non gli ha dato figli, e vuole sposare Anna Bolena. La Chiesa Cattolica, tuttavia, ostacola questo disegno ed il Papa non vuole concedere l'annullamento. Solo sir Thomas More, in tutta l'Inghilterra, potrebbe spingere la causa del re presso il Papa a Roma essendo membro dell'Alto Consiglio della Corona, uomo profondamente religioso e amato e rispettato in tutta Europa. Alla morte del Cardinal Wolsey, Thomas More viene nominato cancelliere, ma l'elevato grado raggiunto, gli alti onori tributatigli, e le minacce non varranno a farlo recedere dalla sua avversione nei riguardi del piano di Enrico VIII. Alla fine viene condannato a morte per disubbidienza al re, ma ugualmente accetta la condanna con fierezza e salute morale. |Paul Scofield (Sir Thomas More) @ Wendy Hiller (Alice More) @ Leo McKern (Thomas Cromwell) @ Robert Shaw (King Henry VIII) @ Orson Welles (Cardinal Wolsey) @ Susannah York (Margaret More) @ Nigel Davenport (The Duke of Norfolk) @ John Hurt (Richard Rich) @ Corin Redgrave (William Roper (the Younger)) @ Colin Blakely (Matthew) @ Cyril Luckham (Archbishop Cranmer) @ Jack Gwillim (Chief Justice) @ Thomas Heathcote (Boatman) @ Yootha Joyce (Averil Machin) @ Anthony Nicholls (King's Representative) @ John Nettleton (Jailer) @ Eira Heath (Matthew's wife) @ Molly Urquhart (Maid) @ Paul Hardwick (Courtier) @ Michael Latimer (Norfolk's Aide) @ Philip Brack (Captain of Guard) @ Martin Boddey (Governor of Tower) @ Eric Mason (Executioner) @ Matt Zimmerman (Messenger) @ Vanessa Redgrave (Anne Boleyn rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Raymond Adamson ( (uncredited)) @ Drewe Henley ( (uncredited) Produced by||A fine dramatic performance So much has already been said about this oscar-winning film that I needn't add more except to say I recently bought the video and still become transfixed to watch the entire movie from start to finish, so totally absorbing is the dramatic dialogue. It certainly is food for the mind as far as movies go, an excellent script. Although I've seen "A Man for All Seasons" countless times since it first came out decades ago, it's one of those movies you never tire of experiencing as it gives you much to think over long after it has ended. It's included in my Top Five list! || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh, The: 25th Anniversary Edition|||G ||||74 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/18/2004||||||| "Three Cheers For 'Winnie The Pooh'!… Exactly Right-Wistful, Sprightly And Often Hilarious." -The New York Times Celebrate theimagical andiheartwarming stories that have delighted familiesifor generations!Pooh's first andimost beloved feature film marks it 25th anniversary withia special edition of theiclassic animated movie favorite. ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Stereo FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Mary Reilly|Stephen Frears|Drama|Rated R for notable gore and some strong violence. R|5.5|USA|1996|108 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Norma Heyman Lynn Pleshette Iain Smith Nancy Graham Tanen Ned Tanen|Valerie Martin Christopher Hampton|Philippe Rousselot ||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |Evil loves innocence.|We are somewhere in England in the 19th century. A Pretty housemaid works in a nice house, which is Dr. Jekyll's house. Mary Reilly think she found her best job, because she is poor and the doctor is well-known and rich. The film tells the 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' story as a woman sees the two men, one of them is good and the other is evil. And she loves them ... Mary Reilly is a lonely servant in the home of Dr Henry Jekyll, devoted to her position and her master. Slowly, a gradual friendship between Mary and the doctor begins as well as a growing attraction. However, Mary's quiet presence is thrown upside down when she meets Henry Jekyll's assistant, the handsome but enigmatic Edward Hyde. Although initially repelled, Mary soon finds herself drawn towards his passionate nature. But Edward Hyde is not all he seems... |Julia Roberts (Mary Reilly) @ John Malkovich (Dr. Henry Jekyll/Mr. Edward Hyde) @ George Cole (Mr. Poole the Butler) @ Michael Gambon (Mary's Father) @ Kathy Staff (Mrs. Kent) @ Glenn Close (Mrs. Farraday) @ Michael Sheen (Bradshaw) @ Bronagh Gallagher (Annie) @ Linda Bassett (Mary's Mother) @ Henry Goodman (Haffinger) @ Ciarán Hinds (Sir Danvers Carew) @ Sasha Hanau (Young Mary) @ Moya Brady (Young Woman) @ Emma Griffiths Malin (Young Whore) @ David Ross (Doctor) @ Tim Barlow (Vicar) @ Isabella Marsh (Screaming Girl) @ Wendy Nottingham (Screaming Girl's Mother) @ Richard Leaf (Screaming Girl's Father) @ Stephen Boxer (Inspector) @ Bob Mason (Policeman) @ Ellie Crockett (Farraday Girl) @ Robbi Stevens (Farraday Girl) @ Kadamba Simmons (Farraday Girl) @ Evelyn Doggart (Farraday Girl) @ Pui Fan Lee (Farraday Girl) @ Mimi Potworowska (Farraday Girl) @ Samantha Hones (Farraday Girl) @ Julia Hagen (Farraday GirlProduced by||A boring, non scary film It's been over three years since I've seen this film, and I still have no desire to view it anytime soon.This movie, though advertised as a scary, modern version of the classic "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde", it is quite the opposite, not scary and to me, it did not follow the "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" formula. I suppose the first clue as to how bad this film would be was the title. I knew Mary Reilly wouldn't be Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde, but I thought it would focus around her seeing the horrible changes between the two and trying to save the good side of the character.Instead, the movie was almost completely about her and only seemed to use Dr. Jekyll as a supporting character.They could have done that, but I would have like to have been told before I bought the movie ticket. So, seeing that it was a sorry excuse, for a horror movie, I try to look at it as a drama.Still, it's very boring and badly put together. "Mary Reilly" is a true disappointment.It's a very dark film which I expected, but what I didn't expect was even worse.I didn't expect it to be so dreadfully boring. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Mask, The|Chuck Russell|Fantasy||6.4|USA|1994| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ann Burgund Michael De Luca Robert Engelman Carla Fry Mike Richardson Chuck Russell|Michael Fallon Mark Verheiden Mike Werb|John R. Leonetti ||Laurenfilm S.A. [es] |From zero to hero|Stanley Ipkiss is a bank clerk that is an incredibly nice man. Unfortunately, he is too nice for his own good and is a pushover when it comes to confrontations. After one of the worst days of his life, he finds a mask that depicts Loki, the Norse night god of mischief. Now, when he puts it on, he becomes his inner, self: a cartoony romantic wild man. However, a small time crime boss, Dorian Tyrel, comes across this character dubbed "The Mask" by the media. After Ipkiss's alter ego indirectly kills his friend in crime, Tyrel now wants this green-faced goon destroyed. A bank clerk without much success with women comes in to possession of a mysterious mask which transforms him into his inner personality. Set in "Edge City", a big American city with a pollution and gangster problem, as "The Mask" the bumbling clerk becomes an unconventional super hero in search of justice and a good time too. Stanley Ipkiss is a young shy man who works in a bank. One day, he discovers a mask by the sea, which (according to an archaeologist) pictures the Norse god of tricks and deception, Loki. When Stanley puts on the mask, he transforms into an uncontrolled reflection of himself, that does crazy things and amazes the people. This new super-hero, the "Mask", falls in love with a singer, Tina Carlyle while he decides to eliminate every gangster in the city. Jim Carrey stars as mild-mannered bank clerk Stanley Ipkiss, who discovers a mysterious ancient mask that brings his inner most desires to wild, screaming life! Now, together with his sidekick Milo, this wise-cracking green tornado is taking Edge City over the top. |Jim Carrey (Stanley Ipkiss) @ Peter Riegert (Lt. Mitch Kellaway) @ Peter Greene (Dorian Tyrell) @ Amy Yasbeck (Peggy Brandt) @ Richard Jeni (Charlie Schumaker) @ Orestes Matacena (Niko) @ Tim Bagley (Irv) @ Nancy Fish (Mrs. Peenman) @ Johnny Williams (Burt) @ Reg E. Cathey (Freeze (as Reginald E. Cathey)) @ Jim Doughan (Doyle) @ Denis Forest (Sweet Eddy) @ Cameron Diaz (Tina Carlyle) @ Joseph Alfieri (Police Officer) @ B.J. Barie (Alley Punk #1) @ Catherine Berge (Cigarette Girl) @ Phil Boardman (Guard) @ Krista Buonauro (Lady Cop) @ Debra Casey (Alley Punk #3) @ Blake Clark (Murray) @ Christopher Darga (Paramedic #3) @ Suzanne Dunn (Reporter) @ Joely Fisher (Maggie) @ Kevin Grevioux (Henchman #7) @ Peter Jazwinski (Park Policeman) @ Howard Kay (Niko's Thug #2) @ Robert Keith (Police Officer) @ Beau Lotterman (Megaphone Cop) @ Scott McElroy (Niko's Thug #1) @ Richard Montes (Henchman #1) @ Ivory Ocean (Mayor Mitchell Tilton) @ Robert O'Reilly (The Figure) @ Louis Ortiz (Coco Bongo Vallet) @ Daniel James Peterson (Henchman #6) @ Jeremy Roberts (Bobby the Bouncer) @ Eamonn Roche (Mr. Dickey) @ Randi Ruimy (Screaming Lady) @ Ben Stein (Dr. Arthur Neuman (as Benjamin J. Stein)) @ Nils Allen Stewart (Orlando) @ Chris Taylor (Coco Bongo Cop #1) @ Bullet Valmont (Alley Punk #2) @ Wendy L. Walsh (Herself (as Wendy Walsh)) @ Meadow Williams (Pebbles) @ Max (Milo the Dog rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Krista Miller (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Garret Sato ( (uncredited) Produced by||When I wear this mask, I can be whatever I want... A quite important number of movies paid a tribute to Tex Avery's cartoons like "who framed Roger Rabbit?". "The Mask" ranks among them and is a great success, although this movie takes back some characteristics suitable to American movies and particularly this one: the transition for a character from a low level to the degree of hero. Here, the main protagonist (Jim Carrey) is introduced as a clumsy person in the beginning. But the discovery of a weird mask will turn his life upside down and make him become the hero of "Edge City". This mask will also allow him to conquer Cameron Diaz's heart and to triumph over a gang who wished to take the city under control. As a consequence, the movie uses a globally thin and convenient screenplay but fortunately, it's compensated by the funny moments where "the Mask" tops the bill and this is the occasion to intervene a fanciful, but efficient humor that finds again the devastating tone of the cartoons from the forties and the fifties. It also doesn't hesitate in parodying the gangster movies from the thirties and even "gone with the wind". Jim Carrey's performance remains one of his best to date. He's well directed and never hams it up unlike the silly "Ace Ventura in Africa". Let's add an amusing description of the Kellaway cop (Peter Riegert). A movie eventually entertaining enough to sustain the interest in spite of its weaknesses. ||New Line Platinum Series |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Masque of the Red Death, The|Roger Corman|Horror|NR |6.8|UK|1964|89 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/7/2004|Roger Corman George Willoughby|Charles Beaumont R. Wright Campbell Edgar Allan Poe|Nicolas Roeg ||American International Pictures (AIP) [us] |We defy you to stare into this face.|Satanist Prince Prospero invites several dozen of the local nobility to his castle for protection against an oncoming plague, the Red Death. Prospero orders his guests to attend a masked ball and, amidst a general atmosphere of debauchery and depravity, notices the entry of a mysterious hooded stranger dressed all in red. Believing the figure to be his master, Satan, Prospero is horrified at the revelation of his true identity. |Vincent Price (Prospero) @ Hazel Court (Juliana) @ Jane Asher (Francesca) @ David Weston (Gino) @ Nigel Green (Ludovico, Francesca's father) @ Patrick Magee (Alfredo) @ Paul Whitsun-Jones (Scarlatti) @ Robert Brown (Guard) @ Julian Burton (Senor Veronese) @ David Davies (Hop Toad) @ Gaye Brown (Senora Escobar) @ Verina Greenlaw (Esmeralda) @ Doreen Dawn (Anna-Marie) @ Brian Hewlett (Lampredi) @ Sarah Brackett (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Anelay (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Gerry Atkins (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Jill Bathurst (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Julian Bolt (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Norris Boyd (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Ricky Clarke (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Ronald Curran (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Alan Dalton (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Gladys Davison (Old woman (uncredited)) @ Robert de Warren (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Rosemarie Dunham ( (uncredited)) @ Jane Evans (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Fraser (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Edith Gey (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Terry Gilbert (Special dancer (uncredited)) @ Sally Gilpin (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Bertie Green (Special dancer (uncredited)) @ Harvey Hall (Clistor (uncredited)) @ Janet Hall (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Janet Kedge (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Brigitte Kelly-Espinoza (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Joanna Kubik (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Seraphina Lansdown (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Gale Law (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Delia Linden (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Jean Lodge (Scarlatti's wife (uncredited)) @ Tony Manning (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Len Martin (Special dancer (uncredited)) @ Norman McDowell (Special dancer (uncredited)) @ Hugh Morton ( (uncredited)) @ Bill Owen (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Joan Palethorpe (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Fred Peters (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Maureen Sims (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Roy Staite (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ John Stone (Guard (uncredited)) @ Angela Symonds (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Caroline Symonds (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Stanley Tiller (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Jenny Till (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ John Westbrook (Man in red (uncredited)) @ David Wishart (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Selina Wylie (Female dancer (uncredited)Produced by||Pretty Good for the Genre A reviewer linked to this site described "The Masque of the Red Death" as Bergmanesque. A Roger Corman film Bergmanesque? Since I've only seen one Ingmar Bergman film, and it bored me silly, this was not much of an endorsement. When I was a kid and Corman's Edgar Alan Poe adaptations were new, they scared the be-jeebers out of me. So would have "The Masque of the Red Death". After watching the movie recently, I didn't gain any insight into Mr. Bergman's film style, but I was entertained. And happily, the movie is free of the campy acting that seeps into so many of the Corman opus.Especially good is Vincent Price as the Satan-worshipping Prince Prospero, in whose castle his debauched guests wait out the plague that is ravishing the countryside. Dark and grotesque, this is an excellent example of Corman's work. Actually, one of the best I've seen. |Region 1 |Midnite Movies Double Feature |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Matrix Reloaded, The|Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowsk|Sci-Fi|Rated R for sci-fi violence and some sexuality. |7.2|USA|2003| 138 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/27/2004|Bruce Berman Grant Hill Andrew Mason Vicki Popplewell Steve Richards Joel Silver Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowski|Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowski Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowski|Bill Pope ||Warner Bros. [us] |Free your mind.|Neo, Morpheus, Trinity, and the rest of their crew continue to battle the machines that have enslaved the human race in the Matrix. As their quest unfolds, Neo learns more about his super-heroic abilities, including the ability to see the codes of the people and things around him. Simultaneously, now, more humans are waking up out of the Matrix and attempting to live in the real world. As their numbers grow, the battle moves to Zion--the last real-world city and center of human resistance. Roughly six months after the original "Matrix", Neo begins to have nightmares about Trinity plunging to her death. Meanwhile, the rebels have returned to the city of Zion to learn that 250,000 sentinels are digging towards them in order to seek Zion and wipe out the human resistance. The Oracle gives Neo instructions to find the keymaker and seek out the source. If Neo fails the mission, then the rebellion will be crushed, and the machines will win the war. Zion is falling under siege from the machine army. In a matter of hours 250,000 Sentinels, programmed to destroy mankind, will attack and yet the citizens of Zion, encouraged by Morpheus, are placing their faith in The Oracle's prophecy that The One will end the machine war and restore peace. But can Neo live up to their expectations? He may have new powers, including the ability to fly, but his recurring visions of Trinity's death are jeopardising his chances whenever he's in The Matrix... Some time after Neo is revealed to be "the One", the revolution has taken a drastic turn, as more and more minds are freed from the matrix. The machines, then, gather an immense army to destroy Zion once and for all. Morpheus and Neo eagerly await contact from the Oracle, whom they believe will tell them how to prevent this disaster. Meanwhile, Agent Smith has returned, having escaped deletion. Now a computer virus, he is able to infect anyone he touches, his only purpose is to destroy Neo. Now, to save Zion, the human race, and most of all the woman he loves, Neo, Morpheus and the other rebels must battle freakish program "exiles", new upgraded Agents, evil masterminds, and a mob of Agent Smith duplicates to reach the Source. But at the Source, Neo must learn the truth about the Matrix, a truth that shakes the very foundations of all that he has known. |Ray Anthony (Power Station Guard) @ Christine Anu (Kali) @ Andy Arness (Police #2) @ Alima Ashton-Sheibu (Link's Niece) @ Helmut Bakaitis (The Architect) @ Steve Bastoni (Soren) @ Don Battee (Vector (as Don Batte)) @ Monica Bellucci (Persephone) @ Daniel Bernhardt (Agent Johnson) @ Valerie Berry (Priestess) @ Ian Bliss (Bane) @ Liliana Bogatko (Old Woman at Zion) @ Michael Budd (Zion Controller) @ Stoney Burke (Bike Carrier Driver) @ Kelly Butler (Ice) @ Josephine Byrnes (Zion Virtual Control Operator) @ Noris Campos (Woman with Groceries) @ Sing Ngai (Seraph (as Collin Chou)) @ Paul Cotter (Corrupt) @ Marlene Cummins (Another Old Woman at Zion) @ Attila Davidhazy (Young Thomas Anderson at 12) @ Essie Davis (Maggie) @ Terrell Dixon (Wurm) @ Nash Edgerton (Security Guard #5) @ Laurence Fishburne (Morpheus) @ Gloria Foster (The Oracle) @ David Franklin (Maitre D') @ Austin Galuppo (Young Thomas Anderson at 4) @ Nona M. Gaye (Zee (as Nona Gaye)) @ Daryl Heath (A.P.U. Escort) @ Roy Jones Jr. (Ballard) @ Malcolm Kennard (Abel (as Malcom Kennard)) @ David Kilde (Agent Jackson (as David A. Kilde)) @ Randall Duk Kim (The Keymaker) @ Christopher Kirby (Mauser) @ Peter Lamb (Colt) @ Nathaniel Lees (Mifune) @ Harry J. Lennix (Commander Lock (as Harry Lennix)) @ Tony Lynch (Computer Room Technician) @ Robert Mammone (AK) @ Joshua Mbakwe (Link's Nephew) @ Matt McColm (Agent Thompson) @ Scott McLean (Security Bunker Guard #2) @ Chris Mitchell (Power Station Guard) @ Steve Morris (Computer Room Guard) @ Carrie-Anne Moss (Trinity) @ Tory Mussett (Beautiful Woman at Le Vrai) @ Rene Naufahu (Zion Gate Operator) @ Robyn Nevin (Councillor Dillard) @ David No (Cain) @ Genevieve O'Reilly (Officer Wirtz) @ Socratis Otto (Operator) @ Harold Perrineau Jr. (Link (as Harold Perrineau)) @ Jada Pinkett Smith (Niobe) @ Montaño Rain (Young Thomas Anderson at 8) @ Adrian Rayment (Twin #2) @ Neil Rayment (Twin #1) @ Rupert Reid (Lock's Lieutenant) @ Keanu Reeves (Neo) @ David Roberts (Roland) @ Shane C. Rodrigo (Ajax) @ Nick Scoggin (Gidim Truck Driver) @ Kevin Scott (18 Wheel Trucker (as Kevin C. Scott)) @ Tahei Simpson (Binary) @ Frankie Stevens (Tirant) @ Nicandro Thomas (Young Thomas Anderson at 2) @ Gina Torres (Cas) @ Andrew Valli (Police #1) @ Steve Vella (Malachi) @ John Walton (Security Bunker Guard) @ Clayton Watson (Kid) @ Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith) @ Cornel West (Councillor West) @ Leigh Whannell (Axel (as Leigh Whannel)) @ Bernard White (Rama-Kandra) @ Lambert Wilson (Merovingian) @ Anthony Wong (Ghost) @ Anthony Zerbe (Councillor Hamann Produced by)||Sometimes ridiculous, sometimes awesome, but ALWAYSspectacular! Last night I was fortunate enough to stumble across some tix to the "Reloaded" premiere.Since the original "Matrix" came out a few years ago everyone has imitated its' kenetic action style, which led me to think there's no way they can recapture that fresh and exciting edge again.But they did.The Wachowskis have way out done the new "Star Wars" films and without a doubt have far surpassed the "X-Men films."At times the dialogue is clunky and the Zion scenes are a little too Star Trek and Buck Rogers, but the action is always astonishing, and the humor is always in the right place...if not too much in the right place...For example Neo uses one of the many Agent Smiths to take down other Agent Smiths sending them all crashing with the sound of falling bowling pins.A little goofy but fun. The action though, I can't say enough about.The center chase scene is awesome and the opening cycle scene is....Okay, no more words, "The Matrix: Reloaded" will not disappoint and by the time you reach the cliffhanger ending you're more than ready for a break from this double talking, mind bending adventure. ||Widescreen Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Matrix, The|Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowsk|Action|Rated R for sci-fi violence and brief language. R|8.5|USA|1999|136 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/4/2004|Bruce Berman Dan Cracchiolo Carol Hughes Andrew Mason Richard Mirisch Barrie M. Osborne Joel Silver Erwin Stoff Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowski|Andy Wachowski Larry Wachowski|Bill Pope ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Be Afraid Of The Future|In the near future, a computer hacker named Neo (Keanu Reeves) discovers that all life on Earth may be nothing more than an elaborate facade created by a malevolent cyber-intelligence, for the purpose of placating us while our life essence is "farmed" to fuel the Matrix's campaign of domination in the "real" world. He joins like-minded Rebel warriors Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and Trinity (Carrie Ann Moss) in their struggle to overthrow the Matrix. Computer hacker Thomas Anderson has lived a relatively ordinary life--in what he thinks is the year 1999--until he is contacted by the enigmatic Morpheus who leads him into the real world. In reality, it is 200 years later, and the world has been laid waste and taken over by advanced artificial intelligence machines. The computers have created a false version of 20th-century life--the "Matrix"--to keep the human slaves satisfied, while the AI machines draw power from the humans. Anderson, pursued constantly by "Agents" (computers who take on human form and infiltrate the Matrix), is hailed as "The One" who will lead the humans to overthrow the machines and reclaim the Earth. Keanu Reeves plays Neo, a computer hacker who discovers that the world around him is a computer simulation called the Matrix. He learns this from Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), who also tells him that the Matrix uses humans as fuel for his quest of total domination. Morpheus has been searching his entire life for a "chosen one" to destroy the Matrix, and he believes Neo is it. Neo has his doubts, but through all his adventures with Morpheus and his crew, he starts to believe, and is ready to destroy the Matrix. Viviamo davvero in un mondo ed in una realtà solamente ed assolutamente 'virtuali' ? Questo l'interrogativo che ci pone il film. La storia è quella di un gruppo di 'hacker', pirati informatici, che si ribellano al potere di Matrix, l'intelligenza artificiale che comanda il pianeta, in un futuro prossimo venturo. Guidati da Morfeo i ribelli fidano in Neo, atteso come il 'salvatore' annunciato da un oracolo. Il film è una girandola di combattimenti ed inseguimenti, nella eterna lotta fra il Bene ed il Male, mescolando western post-moderno e musical cibernetico, arti marziali e fumetti manga, filosofie orientali e new-age. |Keanu Reeves (Neo (Thomas A. Anderson)) @ Laurence Fishburne (Morpheus) @ Carrie-Anne Moss (Trinity) @ Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith) @ Joe Pantoliano (Cypher) @ Marcus Chong (Tank) @ Gloria Foster (Oracle) @ Julian Arahanga (Apoc) @ Matt Doran (Mouse) @ Belinda McClory (Switch) @ Anthony Ray Parker (Dozer) @ Paul Goddard (Agent Brown) @ Robert Taylor (Agent Jones) @ David Aston (Rhineheart) @ Marc Gray (Choi) @ Ada Nicodemou (Dujour) @ Denni Gordon (Priestess (as Deni Gordon)) @ Rowan Witt (Spoon Boy) @ Elenor Witt (Potential) @ Tamara Brown (Potential) @ Janaya Pender (Potential) @ Adryn White (Potential) @ Nathalie Tjen (Potential) @ Bill Young (Lieutenant) @ David O'Connor (FedEx Man) @ Jeremy Ball (Businessman) @ Fiona Johnson (Woman in Red) @ Harry Lawrence (Old Man) @ Steve Dodd (Blind Man) @ Luke Quinton (Security Guard) @ Lawrence Woodward (Guard) @ Michael Butcher (Cop Who Captures Neo) @ Bernard Ledger (Big Cop (as Bernie Ledger)) @ Robert Simper (Cop) @ Chris Scott (Cop) @ Nigel Harbach (Parking CopProduced by||The benchmark for all sci-fi films to come The story of a reluctant Christ-like protagonist set against a baroque, MTV backdrop, The Matrix is the definitive hybrid of technical wizardry and contextual excellence that should be the benchmark for all sci-fi films to come. Hollywood has had some problems combining form and matter in the sci-fi genre.There have been a lot of visually stunning works but nobody cared about the hero. (Or nobody simply cared about anything.)There a few, though, which aroused interest and intellect but nobody 'ooh'-ed or 'aah'-ed at the special effects.With The Matrix, both elements are perfectly en sync.Not only did we want to cheer on the heroes to victory, we wanted them to bludgeon the opposition.Not only did we sit in awe as Neo evaded those bullets in limbo-rock fashion, we salivated. But what makes The Matrix several cuts above the rest of the films in its genre is that there are simply no loopholes.The script, written by the Wachowski brothers is intelligent but carefully not geeky.The kung-fu sequences were deftly shot -- something even Bruce Lee would've been proud of.The photography was breathtaking.(I bet if you had to cut every frame on the reel and had it developed and printed, every single frame would stand on its own.)And the acting?Maybe not the best Keanu Reeves but name me an actor who has box-office appeal but could portray the uneasy and vulnerable protagonist, Neo, to a T the way Reeves did.But, come to think of it, if you pit any actor beside Laurence Fishburne, you're bound to confuse that actor for bad acting.As Morpheus, Mr. Fishburne is simply wicked!Shades of his mentor-role in Higher Learning, nobody exudes that aura of quiet intensity than Mr. Fishburne.His character, battle-scarred but always composed Morpheus, is given an extra dose of mortality (He loves Neo to a fault.) only Mr. Fishburne can flesh out. People will say what they want to say about how good The Matrix is but the bottomline is this: finally there's a philosophical film that has cut through this generation.My generation. The Wachowski brothers probably scribbled a little P.S. note when they finished the script saying: THINK FOR A MOMENT ABOUT YOUR EXISTENCE.What is the Matrix, you ask?Something that's closer to reality than you think. Either that or it's my personal choice for best film of all-time. ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Medicine Man|John McTiernan|Adventure|PG-13 |5.6|USA|1992|106 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Sean Connery Donna Dubrow Beau Marks Andrew G. Vajna|Tom Schulman Tom Schulman Sally Robinson|Donald McAlpine ||Araba Films [es] |On the trail of an amazing discovery he finds an explosive adventure!|An eccentric scientist working for a large drug company is working on a research project in the Amazon jungle. He sends for a research assistant and a gas chromatograph because he's close to a cure for cancer. When the assistant turns out to be a "mere woman," he rejects her help. Meanwhile the bulldozers get closer to the area in which they are conducting research, and they eventually learn to work together, and begin falling in love. |Sean Connery (Dr. Robert Campbell) @ Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Rae Crane) @ José Wilker (Dr. Miguel Ornega) @ Rodolfo De Alexandre (Tanaki) @ Francisco Tsiren Tsere Rereme (Jahausa) @ Elias Monteiro Da Silva (Palala) @ Edinei Maria Serrio Dos Santos (Kalana) @ Bec-Kana-Re Dos Santos Kaiapo (Imana) @ Angelo Barra Moreira (Medicine Man) @ José Lavat (Government ManProduced by||Medicine Man The "Medicine Man" is set in the middle of the Amazon Rainforest which has become home to the eccentric Dr. Robert Campbell (Sean Connery), a biochemist doing field research.In befriending the natives and studying the `Tribal Witch Doctor' (Angelo Barra Moreira), he has accidentally discovered the cure for cancer from a flower extract that grows wild in the rainforest.He is assisted by Dr. Rae Crane (Lorraine Bracco) in trying unsuccessfully to duplicate the formula, before the commercial loggers come in and destroy his hope for a cure.Dr. Crane comes to the jungle with the motive of pulling the research grant for the project, as Dr. Campbell has been uncooperative with the bureaucracy. Coming to the jungle with guilt and regret from a prior research trip, `Morcara,' his work becomes his life, escaping reality and trying to compensate for the devastation he experienced.It was interesting to see how the natives accepted him, brought him into their `circle.'They accepted his medical knowledge and entwined it with their superstitions and natural remedies.He became so protective of the tribe, respecting their way of life, and customs that they come to trust him and call him the `Medicine Man.' The movie was released on February 7, 1992 and while the work of Director John McTierman, was different than his other movies "Hunt for Red October" or the "Predator,"Sean Connery played out the part well.The sound of his voice is always welcomed.I've seen him in stronger parts, but I cannot see anyone taking his place beside Lorraine Bracco.The knowledge and wisdom of the experienced is passed to the inexperienced. I liked the environmental message that the director sent.The scenery was great from the tree top scenes to the trip through the jungle and the waterfalls.Anytime elements of nature can be used to heal the human body or someone can survive in the jungle by utilizing the natural habitat is a wonderful thing.It shows us everything actually depends on the natural creation of the earth from which it came. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Meet Joe Black|Martin Brest|Fantasy|Rated PG-13 for an accident scene, some sexuality and brief strong language. PG-13|6.5|USA|1998|178 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/21/2004|Martin Brest Celia D. Costas Ronald L. Schwary David J. Wally|Ron Osborn Jeff Reno Kevin Wade Bo Goldman Alberto Casella Walter Ferris Maxwell Anderson Gladys Lehman|Emmanuel Lubezki ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |No one can die - while he loves!|Bill Parrish, media tycoon, loving father and still a human being, is about to celebrate his 65th birthday. One morning, he is contacted by the Inevitable - by hallucination, as he thinks. Later, Death itself enters his home and his life, personified in a man's body: Joe Black has arrived. His intention was to take Bill with him, but accidentally, Joe's former host and Bills beautiful daughter Susan have already met. Joe begins to develop certain interest in life on earth as well as in Susan, who has no clue who she's flirting with. Quale Ragazza non vorrebbe essere irretita da quel "diavolo" di Brad Pitt ? La storia del film è semplice. Il Male assume le sembianze del fidanzato di una ricca e bella ragazza, morto in un incidente d'auto, senza che lei lo sappia. Il bel tenebroso è venuto sulla Terra per prendere il padre di lei, ricco tycoon newyorkese, con il quale stringe un patto: ritarderà la "consegna" in cambio della scoperta dei piaceri terreni ed umani. Naturalmente il nostro si innamorerà della bella figlia del suo "lavoro", scoprendo le gioie del sesso ed il dolore del dover ritornare fra i dannati. Lungo come si conviene alla moda ricorrente, il film scorre placido, in ambienti superlusso della upper-class newyorkese. Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins enter into a most unusual gentleman's agreement. Wealthy media tycoon William Parrish (Hopkins) leads a charmed existence until Death (Pitt) comes calling with an extraordinary proposition - he'll delay Bill's imminent demise in exchange for a tour of life. Innocent, enigmatic and often hilarious, Joe (Pitt) disrupts Bill's world of privilege and corporate intrigue. But when he falls for Bill's beautiful daughter (Claire Forlani), Joe threatens to change the rules. Now Bill must fight not for his future, but for those he loves in this bittersweet tale of life and death. |Brad Pitt (Joe Black) @ Anthony Hopkins (William Parrish) @ Claire Forlani (Susan Parrish) @ Jake Weber (Drew) @ Marcia Gay Harden (Allison) @ Jeffrey Tambor (Quince) @ David S. Howard (Eddie Sloane) @ Lois Kelly-Miller (Jamaican Woman) @ Jahnni St. John (Jamaican Woman's Daughter) @ Richard Clarke (Butler) @ Marylouise Burke (Lillian) @ Diane Kagan (Jennifer) @ June Squibb (Helen) @ Gene Canfield (Construction Foreman) @ Suzanne Hevner (Florist) @ Steve Coats (Electrician) @ Madeline Balmaceda (Madeline (as Madeline N. Balmaceda)) @ Julie Lund (Drew's Secretary) @ Kay Gaffney (Boardmember) @ Anthony Kane (Boardmember) @ Joe H. Lamb (Boardmember) @ Robert C. Lee (Boardmember) @ Jim Taylor McNickle (Boardmember (as Jim McNickle)) @ Hardy Phippen Jr. (Boardmember) @ Stephen Adly-Guirgis (Hospital Receptionist) @ Leo Marks (Party Waiter) @ Michelle Youell (Party Guest) @ Gene Leverone (Party Guest rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eric Bruno Borgman (Van Winkle Tent Man (uncredited)) @ Christine Jones (Miriam (uncredited)Produced by||Very good film I thought this was one of the best films I've seen in a while. A very unusual story which was well thought out and played to perfection. The performances, with the exception of a stiff Brad Pitt, were done to excellence. The settings were nice, especially that poolroom overlooking the city; everything was just luscious. The ending worked out satisfactorily, also. 4 stars. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Men in Black|Barry Sonnenfeld|Action|Rated PG-13 for language and sci-fi violence. |6.8|USA|1997| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Laurie MacDonald Steven R. Molen Walter F. Parkes Graham Place Steven Spielberg|Lowell Cunningham Ed Solomon Ed Solomon|Donald Peterman ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Protecting the earth from the scum of the universe|Men in Black follows the exploits of agents Kay (Jones) and Jay (Smith), members of a top-secret organization established to monitor and police alien activity on Earth. The two Men in Black find themselves in the middle of the deadly plot by an intergalactic terrorist (Vincent D'Onofrio) who has arrived on Earth to assassinate two ambassadors from opposing galaxies. In order to prevent worlds from colliding, the MiB must track down the terrorist and prevent the destruction of Earth. It's just another typical day for the Men in Black. In present-day America, Tommy Lee Jones plays Agent K, a member of an organization that has been keeping track of extra-terrestrial aliens on Earth for over 40 years. When K finds himself in need of a new partner, a brash NYPD detective, James Edwards (Will Smith) fills the position, becoming Agent J. Armed with space-age technology (which J barely understands) and their razor-sharp wits, J and K investigate a newcomer (played by Vincent D'Onofrio) who is bad news for Earth. |Tommy Lee Jones (Agent K (Kay)) @ Will Smith (Agent J (Jay)) @ Linda Fiorentino (Dr. Laurel Weaver/Agent L (Elle)) @ Vincent D'Onofrio (Edgar) @ Rip Torn (Chief Zed) @ Tony Shalhoub (Jack Jeebs) @ Siobhan Fallon (Beatrice, Edgar's Wife) @ Mike Nussbaum (Gentle Rosenburg the Arquillian Jeweler) @ Jon Gries (Nick the Van Driver) @ Sergio Calderón (Jose) @ Carel Struycken (Arquillian) @ Fredric Lehne (INS Agent Janus (as Fredric Lane)) @ Richard Hamilton (Agent D (K's first Partner)) @ Kent Faulcon (1st Lt. Jake Jensen) @ John Alexander (Mikey) @ Keith Campbell (Perp) @ Ken Thorley (Zap-Em Exterminator) @ Patrick Breen (Reggie Redgick) @ Becky Ann Baker (Mrs. Redgick) @ Sean Whalen (Passport Officer) @ Harsh Nayyar (Manny the News Vendor) @ Michael Willis (Cop in Morgue) @ Willie C. Carpenter (Police Inspector) @ Peter Linari (Tow Truck Driver) @ David Cross (Newton the Morgue Attendant) @ Charles C. Stevenson Jr. (Agent B) @ Boris Leskin (Cook) @ Steve Rankin (INS Agent) @ Andy Prosky (INS Agent) @ Michael Goldfinger (NYPD Sergeant at Edwards ' Interrogation) @ Alpheus Merchant (Security Guard) @ Norma Jean Groh (Mrs. Irma Edelson, Edwards' Alien Teacher) @ Bernard Gilkey (Baseball Player) @ Sean Plummer (First Contact Alien) @ Michael Kaliski (First Contact Alien) @ Richard Arthur (2nd First Contact Alien) @ Debbie Lee Carrington (Alien Father) @ Verne Troyer (Alien Son) @ Mykal Wayne Williams (Scared Guy) @ Tim Blaney (Frank the Pug (voice)) @ Mark Setrakian (Rosenberg Alien (voice)) @ Brad Abrell (Worm Guy (voice)) @ Thom Fountain (Worm Guy (voice)) @ Carl J. Johnson (Worm Guy (voice)) @ Drew Massey (Worm Guy (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Darrah (Army Officer (uncredited)) @ Karen Lynn Gorney (Announcer (uncredited)) @ Patricia McPherson (Elizabeth Ann Reston, K's Old Girl (uncredited)) @ Stephanie Paliferro (INS Agent (uncredited)) @ Joe Paparone (Police Inspector (uncredited)) @ Chloe Sonnenfeld (Alien on TV Monitors (uncredited) Produced by||a mysterious group of men battle aliens I thought this was going to be a sequel of sorts to that lousy movie "Independence Day", but it wasn't. It was much better than I thought it would be, in fact, it was very funny and exciting. The men in black were a secret group dedicated to thwarting the invasion of aliens here on earth. Snappy dialogue and a cool story kept this film rocking right along. 3 stars. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Men in Black II|Barry Sonnenfeld|Action|Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence and some provocative humor. PG-13|5.6|USA|2002|88 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/16/2004|Marc Haimes Stephanie Kemp Laurie MacDonald Walter F. Parkes Graham Place Steven Spielberg|Lowell Cunningham Robert Gordon Robert Gordon Barry Fanaro|Greg Gardiner ||Cascade Film [ru] |Same Planet. New Scum.|It has been four years since the alien-seeking agents averted an intergalactic disaster of epic proportions. Kay has since returned to the comforts of civilian life while Jay continues to work for the Men in Black, the highly funded yet unofficial government agency that regulates all things alien on earth. While investigating a seemingly routine crime, Jay uncovers a diabolical plot masterminded by Serleena, an evil Kylothian monster who disguises herself as a sexy lingerie model. It's a race against the clock as Jay must convince Kay--who not only has no memory of his time spent with the agency, but is also the only person alive who has the expertise to save the galaxy--to reunite with the MIB before Earth is destroyed completely. Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith are back in black as the scum-fighting super-agents Kay and Jay - regulators of all things alien on planet Earth. Their latest mission: to save the world from a total intergalactic disaster! When a renegade Kylothian monster disguised as a lingerie model threatens the survival of the human race, the boys of the MIB get the call to step up and get busy. With their headquarters under siege and time running out, Agents Kay and Jay enlist the help of Frank the Pug and a posse of hard-living worms to help them kick some seriously sexy alien butt! |Tommy Lee Jones (Kevin Brown, Agent Kay) @ Will Smith (Agent Jay) @ Rip Torn (Zed) @ Lara Flynn Boyle (Serleena) @ Johnny Knoxville (Scrad/Charlie) @ Rosario Dawson (Laura Vasquez) @ Tony Shalhoub (Jack Jeebs) @ Patrick Warburton (Agent Tee) @ Jack Kehler (Ben) @ David Cross (Newton) @ Colombe Jacobsen-Derstine (Hailey (as Colombe Jacobsen)) @ Peter Spellos (Captain Larry Bridgewater, The Motorman) @ Michael Rivkin (Man with Harvey, the Dog) @ Michael Bailey Smith (Creepy) @ Lenny Venito (New York Guy) @ Howard Spiegel (New York Guy) @ Alpheus Merchant (MIB Guard) @ Jay Johnston (Younger Pizza Parlor MIB Agent) @ Joel McKinnon Miller (Agent) @ Derek Cecil (Repairman Agent) @ Sean Rouse (MIB Agent) @ Peter Spruyt (MIB Customs Agent) @ Kevin Cotteleer (MIB Customs Agent) @ Marty Belafsky (MIB Customs Agent) @ Rick Baker (MIB Passport Control Agent) @ Martha Stewart (Herself) @ Michael Jackson (Agent M) @ Sid Hillman (Agent Gee (as Sid Garza-Hillman)) @ Tom Whitenight (MIB Agent C) @ Nick Cannon (MIB Autopsy Agent) @ Andre Blair (Central Park Agent) @ Jeremy Howard (Bird Guy Alien/Postal Sorting Alien) @ Mary Stein (Bird Lady Alien) @ Martin Klebba (Family Child Alien (as Marty Klebba)) @ John Alexander (Jarra/Family Dad Alien) @ Denise Cheshire (Family Mom/Locker Alien) @ Ernie Grunwald (Young Postal Employee) @ Chloe Sonnenfeld (Elizabeth, Young Girl at the Post Office) @ John Andrew Berton Jr. (Split Alien Guy (as John Berton)) @ William E. Jackson (Eye Guy) @ Doug Jones (Joey) @ Peter Graves (Himself) @ Linda Kim (Ambassador Lauranna) @ Paige Brooks ('Mysteries in History' Lauranna) @ Stephanie Kemp (Neuralyzed Mother) @ Barry Sonnenfeld (Neuralyzed Father) @ Victoria Jones (Neuralyzed Daughter) @ Michael Garvey (Corn Face) @ Michael Dahlen (Flesh Balls) @ Kevin Grevioux (Pineal Eye) @ Derek Mears (Mosh Tendrils) @ Sonny Tipton (Dog Poop) @ John Richardson (Postman) @ Phillip Goodwin (Diner Guy (as Philip Goodwin)) @ Tim Blaney (Frank the Pug (voice)) @ Greg Ballora (Sleeble (voice)) @ Carl J. Johnson (Gleeble (voice)) @ Thom Fountain (Neeble (voice)) @ Brad Abrell (Mannix (voice)) @ Richard Pearson (Gordy (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Michael Beardsley (Suspicious Video Store Patron (uncredited)) @ Darrell Foster (MIB Autopsy Agent (uncredited)) @ Ned Gorman (Cockroach on Sidewalk (uncredited) (voice)) @ William Jackson Jr. (Eye Guy (uncredited)) @ Gene LeBell (Subway Passenger (uncredited)) @ Pete Macnamara (Man in Black (uncredited)) @ Biz Markie (Rapping Alien (uncredited)) @ Matthew McGrory ( (uncredited)) @ Christopher Metas (Alien Accountant (uncredited)) @ Bart Mixon (Alien Puppeteer (uncredited)) @ David Patykewich (Bald Kid Alien (uncredited)) @ David C. Roehm Sr. (Alien (uncredited)) @ Thomas Rosales Jr. (Subway Passenger (uncredited)) @ Peter Siragusa (Mayor of Grand Central Station Locker Aliens (uncredited) (voice)) @ Brian Steele (Sharkmouth (uncredited)) @ Victor Yerrid (Puppeteer (uncredited)) @ David K. Zandi (Alien (uncredited)Produced by||Quite fun as long as you know what to expect When alien Serleena returns to earth looking for `the light' that alluded her over 20 years ago, she takes control of MIB headquarters in order to flush out those who know where the light would be hidden.Agent J heads out to recover Agent K, now living a normal live with no awareness of his past.K is the only person who knows where the light is and he and J follow clues he left years ago as he had removed the memory to protect himself. When I watched the first film I thought to myself that it was a film that looked like it was designed to spawn a sequel rather than be a film in it's own right.A few years later and I was right.This sequel basically tries to repeat the chemistry of the first film and to a certain degree succeeds.The plot is basically a rerun of the first film except with everything bigger.Most of it works because it is short, punchy, funny and energetic – the jokes are mostly new and not straight lifts from the first film.The characters have changed a little and it manages to pull off the same blockbuster humour that it had before. The effects are good but really it is the humour that drives it.While much of it is amusing rather than hilarious, there are plenty of laugh out loud moments to keep it going.Smith is slumming it here – he gives a sort of typical `urban attitude' play to things and says `your ass' a lot.Want to see what money will do to someone? Watch him in 6 degrees of separation and then watch this!Jones is the core of the film as he was before and is a great straightman. Smith carries 15 minutes and then wisely they bring back Jones.Boyle is so-so, she doesn't have much to do to be fair.Knoxville is alright I guess.Dawson is good but I'm biased as I've liked her since Kids and He Got Game.Torn and Shalhoub make good returns. Overall this is not rocket science – it is the original formula done again with bells on.It won't win many awards for content but it is an entertaining, undemanding blockbuster that does what it says on the tin.Quite fun as long as you don't expect the world. ||Widescreen Special Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Mercury Rising|Harold Becker|Action|Rated R for violence and language. R|5.6|USA|1998|108 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004|Brian Grazer Karen Kehela Ric Kidney Thomas J. Mack Paul Neesan Maureen Peyrot Joseph Singer|Ryne Douglas Pearson Lawrence Konner Mark Rosenthal|Michael Seresin ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Someone knows too much.|Bruce Willis is an outcast FBI agent who is assigned to protect a 9 year old autistic boy who is the target for assassins after cracking a top secret government code. The United States government is about to launch it's brand new super code. Impossible to break, or so they thought until it was broken by a nine year old autistic boy. Now the bodies are piling up to keep it secret and the mercury is rising. |Bruce Willis (Art Jeffries) @ Alec Baldwin (Lt. Col. Nicholas Kudrow) @ Miko Hughes (Simon Lynch) @ Chi McBride (FBI Agent Thomas 'Bizzi' Jordan) @ Kim Dickens (Stacey Siebring) @ Robert Stanton (Dean Crandell) @ Bodhi Elfman (Leo Pedranski (as Bodhi Pine Elfman)) @ Carrie Preston (Emily Lang) @ Lindsey Ginter (Peter Burrell (as L.L. Ginter)) @ Peter Stormare (Stayes) @ Kevin Conway (FBI Chief Lomax) @ John Carroll Lynch (Martin Lynch) @ Kelley Hazen (Jenny Lynch) @ John Doman (Supervisor Hartley, FBI Special Agent In Charge) @ Richard Riehle (Edgar Halstrom, South Dakota Bank Robber) @ Chad Lindberg (James) @ Hank Harris (Isaac) @ James MacDonald (SWAT Team Leader Francis) @ Camryn Manheim (Dr. London) @ Jack Conley (Detective Nichols) @ Maricela Ochoa (Charlayne) @ Peter Fontana (Pasquale) @ Kirk B.R. Woller (Lieutenant) @ Betsy Brantley (Special Ed Teacher) @ Ashley Knutson (Samantha) @ Tom Gallop (Medic) @ Margaret Travolta (Autism Expert Nurse) @ Tiffany Fraser (Night Nurse) @ KoKo Taylor (Herself) @ Matt Levert (Tommy Jordan Jr.) @ Lisa Summerour (Dana Jordan) @ Barbara Alexander (Librarian) @ Gwen McGee (Security Woman) @ Ned Schmidtke (Senator) @ Kristina Eliot Johnson (Special Ed Teacher #1) @ James Krag (Rookie Agent Roger) @ Wadell Brown (Bank Security Guard) @ Tim Grimm (Ted the Security Guard) @ Annabel Armour (Ruth) @ Brent Freeman (Marine Guard) @ Gary Hand (Kudrow's Assistant) @ Michael Chieffo (South Dakota Bank Robbery Hostage) @ Steve Key (Cop at Lynch House) @ Darryl Alan Reed (Ambulance Driver) @ Steve Rankin (WGEX Helicopter Pilot) @ Maureen Gallagher (Flea Market Lady) @ Mark Collins (Train Conductor) @ Denise Woods (Nurse in Elevator) @ Kim Robillard (Motorman rest of cast listed alphabetically John T. Scanlon .... South Dakota Helicopter Pilot) @ Thomas F. Duffy (Audey (uncredited)) @ David Fordham ( (uncredited)) @ Rosemary Garris (Office Worker (uncredited)) @ Joel King ( (uncredited)) @ Deborah Leydig ( (uncredited)Produced by||decent action flick Okay, I'll get something out of the way first: yes, there are plot holes in the film the size of Antarctica. Yes, the story is predictable and the chase scenes border-line unbelievable. Yes, some of the stuff is superfulous and ludicrous. And yes, you do have to suspend disbelief during the course of the film. I think I have just summed up just about every action movie ever made. This movie stands out a little bit because of certain character and plot elements. Bruce Willis is good as always. One question: when the boy cracks the code, wouldn't it have been easier to change the code rather than sic the bad guys on him to kill him? Oh, well. If they did, we wouldn't have a movie, would we? You might like this if you are a Willis fan. ** 1/2 out of **** || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Mermaids|Richard Benjamin|Comedy|Rated R for brief strong language. |6.2|USA|1990| 110 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lauren Lloyd Wallis Nicita Patrick J. Palmer Suzanne Rothbaum|Patty Dann June Roberts|Howard Atherton ||Fox Home Entertainment [br] |This is our mother.Pray for us.|After yet another failed relationship, Mrs. Flax (Cher) ups her family to the east coast to start all over again. Reluctantly dragged along with her is her daughter Charlotte - going through a very confusing time of her life - who wants to become a nun, and instead falls in love with a quiet, mild-mannered church employee, to the mixed response of her mother. Set at around the time of the Kennedy Assassination. |Cher (Rachel Flax) @ Bob Hoskins (Lou Landsky) @ Winona Ryder (Charlotte Flax) @ Michael Schoeffling (Joe Porretti) @ Christina Ricci (Kate Flax) @ Caroline McWilliams (Carrie) @ Jan Miner (Mother Superior) @ Betsy Townsend (Mary O'Brien) @ Richard McElvain (Mr. Crain) @ Paula Plum (Mrs. Martha Crain) @ Dossy Peabody (Coach Parker) @ William Paul Steele (Fred, Boss in Oklahoma) @ Rex Trailer (Dr. Reynolds) @ Pete Kovner (Perfect Family Father) @ Patricia Madden (Perfect Family Mother) @ Justin Marchisio (Perfect Family Boy) @ Caitlin Marie Bottomley (Perfect Family Girl) @ Amy Gollnick (Girl in Bathroom #1) @ Seacia Pavao (Girl in Bathroom #2) @ Merle Perkins (Nurse) @ Baxter Harris (Foster, Boss in Massachusetts) @ Carol Moss (Foster's Fiancee) @ Denise Cormier (Pretty Girl at Shoe Store) @ Al Hodgkins (Crying Man on Street) @ Tamasin Scarlet Johnson (Young Nun) @ Sandra Shipley (Crying Nun) @ Russell Jones (Judge at Swim Meet) @ Shawna Sullivan (Charlotte 5 Years Old) @ Bob Rogerson (Charlotte's Dad) @ Tom Kemp (Carrie's Husband) @ Janice James (New Year's Partyer) @ Bill McCann (New Year's Partyer) @ Dottie Healy (New Year's Partyer (as Dotty Pagliaro)) @ Arnie Cox (Kennedy Mourner) @ Michelle Faith (Kennedy Mourner) @ Grace Costa (Kennedy Mourner) @ John McGee (Kennedy Mourner) @ Bill McDonald (Kennedy Mourner) @ Harry Cooper (Kennedy Mourner) @ Lynda Robinson (Kennedy Mourner) @ Jerry Quinn (Policeman Produced by||Cute and funny Cher plays a free-spirited, uninhibited and saucy mother of two.Charlotte (Winona Ryder) and Kate (Christina Ricci), who are about 15- and 8-years old respectively, are her daughters.Cher's behavior and appearance is an embarrassment to Charlotte who is trying to think "pure thoughts" on her way to becoming a nun.Ironically (considering Ryder's recent troubles) the part she plays has no interest in new clothes and even refuses new shoes, content with her old square boots that look like they were made in the former Soviet Union during the reign of Stalin.This is a nice (but increasingly familiar) switch on the mother who is embarrassed by her daughter's precocious sexuality, and Cher and Ryder play their parts well. The story, from a novel by Patty Dann, begins with the trio moving into yet another town, this time somewhere in New England.They are always on the run, so to speak, because Cher is afraid of commitment or of staying around long enough to lose her heart to some guy.Enter predictably a man (Bob Hoskins) with the right stuff to win her over and a cute guy (Michael Schoeffing) to rearrange Charlotte's priorities.Director Richard Benjamin plays it as a romantic comedy cum coming of ager with wit and charm.Ryder is adorably cute as a conservative Christian miss goody two shoes who is always lecturing mom while Cher is voluptuous as the kind of woman who says yes, early and often, but underneath it all has strength and a kind of intuitive wisdom about herself and the people around her.Little Ricci really is the mermaid since she likes to practice holding her breath under water. Part of the strength of the film is in the dialogue and the sharp repartee between Ryder and Cher.My favorite line is from Charlotte who is always dialoging with God.After seeing Schoeffing, who drives the school bus, and realizing what she is feeling, prays "Oh please God, don't make me fall in love and want to do disgusting things!" || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Message in a Bottle|Luis Mandoki|Drama|Rated PG-13 for a scene of sexuality. PG-13|5.5|USA|1999|126 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Kevin Costner Denise Di Novi Leslie Weisberg Jim Wilson|Nicholas Sparks Gerald Di Pego|Caleb Deschanel ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A story of love lost and found.|A woman finds a romantic letter in a bottle washed ashore and tracks down the author, a widowed shipbuilder whose wife died tragically early. As a deep and mutual attraction blossoms, the man struggles to make peace with his past so that he can move on and find happiness. A divorced single mother finds a bottle on the shore whilst out jogging. Much taken with the sentiments of the message inside she uses the resources of the Chicago paper she works for to track down the sender. When she meets him an affection quickly forms between them, and his cantankerous father is also taken with her. But it is obvious something in the past is casting a terrible shadow. Mentre corre su una spiaggia isolata, la giornalista Theresa Osborne scopre una bottiglia contenente una lettera d'amore. Il messaggio è firmato semplicemente 'G'. Incuriosita anche professionalmente, la ragazza si mette alla ricerca dell'autore del messaggio e si imbatte in Garret Blake, modesto costruttore di barche. I due si frequentano e si piacciono ; entrambi sono soli : lei divorziata e con un figlio, lui vedovo da due anni e chiuso in casa in compagnia del padre, che cerca di distarlo dall'ossessivo ricordo della moglie. Ovviamente la giornalista scopre che è proprio il bel tenebroso l'autore della lettera affidata al mare e non perde l'occasione per fare il suo scoop. Arrivato a Chicago, dal North Carolina dove vive, per raggiungerla, Garret scopre che la sua storia è al centro dell'interesse pubblico, proprio a causa della donna di cui nel frattempo si è innamorato, ed alla fine....... Who meets by Fate, shall be sealed by Fate. Theresa Osborune is running along the beach when she stumbles upon a bottle washed up on the shore. Inside is a message, reading the letter she feels so moved and yet she felt as if she has violated someone's thoughts. In love with a man she has never met Theresa tracks down the author of the letter to a small town in Wilmington, 2 lovers with crossed paths. But yet one can't let go of their past. |Kevin Costner (Garret Blake) @ Robin Wright Penn (Theresa Osborne) @ Paul Newman (Dodge Blake) @ John Savage (Johnny Land) @ Illeana Douglas (Lina Paul) @ Robbie Coltrane (Charlie Toschi) @ Jesse James (Jason Osborne) @ Bethel Leslie (Marta Land) @ Tom Aldredge (Hank Land) @ Viveka Davis (Alva) @ Raphael Sbarge (Andy) @ Richard Hamilton (Chet) @ Rosemary Murphy (Helen at the B&B) @ Steven Eckholdt (David) @ Susan Brightbill (Catherine) @ Patricia Belcher (Annie) @ Steve Mellor (Man on Dock) @ Lance Gilbert (Man on Sinking Boat) @ Hayden Panettiere (Girl on Sinking Boat) @ Walt MacPherson (Pete the Cop) @ Justin DiPego (Typewriter Repairman) @ Meagan Riley-Grant (Mary) @ Karen Fowler (Mother in Car) @ Caleb Deschanel (Man at the B&B) @ Anthony Genovese (News Photographer) @ Elizabeth Guindi (Christine) @ Donald Watson (Diner Patron #1) @ W. Clapham Murray (Diner Patron #2) @ Gregg Trzaskowski (Johnny Friend #1) @ Robert E. Tarlow (Johnny Friend #2) @ Philip Traynor (Boy in Car) @ Daniel V. Trefts (Policeman on Boat) @ Christina Bergstrom (Office Worker #1) @ Norman Fessler (Office Worker #2) @ Robert Kenney (Helicopter Pilot #2 rest of cast listed alphabetically Yasmine Delawari) @ Sherry Koftan (Girl on the Boat) @ Jennifer Lamb (Woman on Sinking Boat) @ Mauricio Ochmann (Mail boy) @ David Paris (Helicopter Pilot #1 (as David W. Paris)) @ Marcello Robinson (El BoyProduced by||A great romance I really enjoyed this film.The story was touching and the two actors played their roles with obvious chemistry.It was great to see how they fell in love and how both were afraid to get hurt by the other.But I have to say that what makes this film such a pleasure is the presence of Paul Newman.He steals every scene he's in and you can't wait for him to come back on screen and throw out some witty line. This is a great date movie and the end really will have an affect on you. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, The|Luc Besson|Drama|Rated R for strong graphic battles, a rape and some language. |6.2|France|1999| 160 min/ USA:148 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Luc Besson Marc Jenny Patrice Ledoux Oldrich Mach|Luc Besson Andrew Birkin|Thierry Arbogast ||Columbia Pictures [us] ||In 1412, a young girl called Jeanne is born in Domrémy, France. The times are hard: The Hunderd Years war with England has been going on since 1337, English knights and soldiers roam the country. Jeanne develops into a very religious young woman, she confesses several times a day. At the age of 13, she has her first vision and finds a sword. When coming home with it, she finds the English leveling her home town. Years after that, in 1428, she knows her mission is to be ridding France of the English and so sets out to meet Charles, the Dauphin. In his desperate military situation, he welcomes all help and gives the maiden a chance to prove her divine mission. After the successful liberation of Orléans and Reims, the Dauphin can be crowned traditionally in the cathedral of Reims - and does not need her anymore, since his wishes are satisfied. Jeanne d'Arc gets set up in his trap and is imprisoned by the Burgundians. In a trial against her under English law, she can't be forced to tell about her divine visions she has had continuously since childhood. Being condemned of witchcraft and being considered as relapsed heretic, she is sentenced to death. Jeanne d'Arc is burnt alive in the marketplace of Rouen on May 30th, 1431, at only 19 years of age. |Milla Jovovich (Joan of Arc) @ Dustin Hoffman (The Conscience) @ Faye Dunaway (Yolande D'Aragon) @ John Malkovich (Charles VII) @ Tchéky Karyo (Dunois) @ Vincent Cassel (Gilles de Rais) @ Pascal Greggory (The Duke of Alençon) @ Richard Ridings (La Hire) @ Desmond Harrington (Aulon) @ Timothy West (Pierre Cauchon) @ Rab Affleck (Comrade) @ Stéphane Algoud (Look Out) @ Edwin Apps (Bishop) @ David Bailie (English Judge) @ David Barber (English Judge) @ Christian Barbier (Captain) @ Timothy Bateson (English Judge) @ David Begg (Nobleman -- Rouen's Castle) @ Christian Bergner (Captain) @ Andrew Birkin (Talbot) @ Dominic Borrelli (English Judge) @ John Boswall (Old Priest) @ Matthew Bowyer (The Bludgeoned French Soldier) @ Paul Brooke (Domremy's Priest) @ Bruce Byron (Joan's Father) @ Charles Cork (Vaucouleur's Priest) @ Patrice Cossoneau (Captain) @ Tony D'Amario (Compiegne's Mayor) @ Daniel Daujon (Church's Peer -- Coronation) @ Tonio Descanvelle (Xaintrailles) @ Philippe Du Janerand (Dijon) @ Sylviane Duparc (Mary of Anjou's Lady's Companion) @ Barbara Elbourn (The Aunt) @ Christian Erickson (La Trémoïlle) @ Tara Flanagan (Woman -- Rouen's Castle) @ Bruno Flender (Poitiers' Inquisitor) @ Serge Fournier (Church's Peer -- Coronation) @ David Gant (The Duke of Bedford) @ Sid Golder (Cell's Guard) @ Jessica Goldman (Duchess of Bedford's Lady's Companion) @ Framboise Gommendy (Joan's Mother) @ Robert Goodman (Blackbeard) @ Jean-Pierre Gos (Laxart) @ Joanne Greenwood (Catherine) @ Bernard Grenet (Senlis' Bishop) @ Valerie Griffiths (The Hag) @ Timothee Grimbalt (Conscience -- Child) @ Richard Guille (English Guard -- Rouen's Castle) @ Thierry Guilmard (Assessor) @ Jerome Hankins (Nobleman -- Rouen's Castle) @ Jacques Herlin (Orleans' Priest) @ Len Hibberd (Comrade) @ Didier Hoarau (Assessor) @ Vera Jakob (Woman at the Cemetery) @ Michael Jenn (The Duke of Burgundy) @ Toby Jones (English Judge) @ Gérard Krawczyk (Church's Peer -- Coronation) @ Richard Leaf (Conscience -- Young Man) @ Franck Lebreton (Assessor (as Frank Lebreton)) @ Joseph Malerba (Beaurevoir's Guard) @ Dominique Marcas (Poitiers' Inquisitor) @ Eric Mariotto (Young Monk) @ René Marquant (Rouen's Priest) @ Carl McCrystal (Glasdale) @ Gina McKee (The Duchess of Bedford) @ Phil McKee (Red Beard) @ Simon Meacock (The Teeth Soldier) @ John Merrick (Regnault de Chartres) @ Joseph O'Conor (Poitiers' Chief Inquisitor) @ Quentin Ogier (Louis) @ Kevin O'Neill (Scribe at Process) @ Mélanie Page (Young Girl in Bath) @ Brian Pettifer (The Executioner/Torturer at Process) @ Philip Philmar (English Judge) @ Enee Piat (Monk at Coronation) @ Irving Pompepui (Louis XI -- 5 Years Old) @ Brian Poyser (English Judge) @ Olivier Rabourdin (Richemont) @ Vincent Regan (Buck) @ René Remblier (Dijon's Assistant) @ Joseph Rezwin (Poitiers' Inquisitor) @ Ralph Riach (English Judge) @ Mark Richards (Corridor's Guard in Rouen) @ Malcolm Rogers (Bishop) @ Tara Römer (Gamaches) @ Julie-Anne Roth (Young Girl in Bath) @ Olga Sékulic (Mary of Anjou) @ Joseph Sheridan (Canon) @ Eric Tonetto (Captain) @ Vincent Tulli (Orleans' Physician) @ Jane Valentine (Joan -- 8 Years Old) @ Jemima West (Girl) @ Tat Whalley (Raymond) @ Peter Whitfield (English Judge) @ Frédéric Witta (Poitiers' Inquisitor Produced by||Well-intentioned but disappointing The settings, sets, and costumes of this well-intentioned film are great. Also, the political intrigues and two-facedness that caused the tragic death of Joan are presented thoroughly. However, the problems begin at the beginning with introductory text of the historical backgrounds rolling up the screen in hard-to-read small gothic type that moves so quickly that the audience can barely read the text, let alone absorb it. Another problem is the casting. While Mille Jovovich can pass as a boy (Joan in male's clothing) in some scenes, she is still not an actress of the depth needed for this film to really work. She presents Joan's shifting personalities in a set of stock responses ranging from manic to bland, but she never gives us the soul of a girl who was able to make armies follow her and a whole nation believe in her. I also found Dustin Hoffman as her "conscience" a bit laughable, especially with the New York accent. This would have worked in Ken Smith's satiric comedy DOGMA, but not here in a serious setting. Ian McKellan could have done it, but not Hoffman. At the end, we are left wondering whether Joan, as presented in the film, was just a mad masochist or someone who was genuinely touched by God. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Mickey Mouse In Black And White: Walt Disney Treasures Limited Edition Tin / DVD-Video|||NR ||||256 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/30/2004||||||| A Limited Series of Select Rare Material from theiDisney Studio Vaults ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 B&W |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC] ||||||@@ Mickey Mouse In Living Color: Walt Disney Treasures Limited Edition Tin / DVD-Video|||NR ||||217 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/30/2004||||||| A Collection Of Color Adventures Celebrate Mickey Mouse's careeriin color cartoons with 26 original shorts released between 1935 andi1938 -ia timeless collection chronicling Mickey's first steps out of theiworld of black andiwhite, ushering inia new era of animation. ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono [CC] ||||||@@ Midnight Cowboy|John Schlesinger|Drama||7.9|USA|1969| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jerome Hellman Kenneth Utt|James Leo Herlihy Waldo Salt|Adam Holender ||Criterion Collection [us] |For those who have never seen it and those who have never forgotten it. (1980 re-release) |A "cowboy," Joe Buck, moves to New York City from Texas to make his fortune as a hustler servicing rich Park Avenue women. Shortly after arriving, he is hustled by homeless con man Ratzo Rizzo, who had said he would manage him for a $20 fee. Bent on getting his money back, Buck finds the rapidly deteriorating Rizzo, ends up feeling sorry for him, and moving into Rizzo's room in an abandoned building to care for him. The two remain hopeful of striking it rich with Rizzo managing Buck's career, but it soon becomes obvious that they are no match for the urban jungle. En naiv texas-gutt drar til New York og tror han skal svinge seg til de store høyder ved å selge seksuelle tjenester til rike kvinner. I stedet havner han så langt nede på bånn som man kan tenke seg. Filmen er både en tragikomisk skildring av to menneskeskjebner og et samfunnskritisk portrett av det moderne Amerika. |Dustin Hoffman (Enrico Salvatore 'Ratso' Rizzo) @ Jon Voight (Joe Buck) @ Sylvia Miles (Cass) @ John McGiver (Mr. O'Daniel) @ Brenda Vaccaro (Shirley) @ Barnard Hughes (Towny) @ Ruth White (Sally Buck) @ Jennifer Salt (Annie) @ Gilman Rankin (Woodsy Niles (as Gil Rankin)) @ Gary Owens (Little Joe) @ T. Tom Marlow (Little Joe) @ George Eppersen (Ralph, Cafeteria Cook) @ Al Scott (Cafeteria Manager) @ Linda Davis (Mother on the Bus) @ J.T. Masters (Old Cow-hand) @ Arlene Reeder (Old Lady on Bus) @ Georgann Johnson (Rich Lady on Street) @ Jonathan Kramer (Jackie) @ Anthony Holland (TV Bishop) @ Bob Balaban (The Young Student) @ Jan Tice (Freaked-out Lady, in Diner with Child) @ Paul Benjamin (Bartender) @ Peter Scalia (Vegetable Grocer) @ Vito Siracusa (Vegetable Grocer) @ Peter Zamagias (Hat Shop Owner) @ Arthur Anderson (Hotel Clerk) @ Tina Scala (Laundromat Lady) @ Alma Felix (Laundromat Lady) @ Richard Clarke (Escort Service man) @ Ann Thomas (Frantic Lady at Hotel) @ Viva (Gretel McAlbertson) @ Gastone Rossilli (Hansel McAlbertson) @ Ultra Violet (At the Party) @ Paul Jabara (At the Party) @ International Velvet (At the Party) @ Cecelia Lipson (At the Party) @ Taylor Mead (At the Party) @ Paul Morrissey (At the Party) @ Joan Murphy (The Waitress in Florida) @ Al Stetson (Bus Driver to Florida rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Randall Carver (Rapist (in flashback) (uncredited)) @ Marlene Clark (Girl at Party (uncredited)) @ William Door (At the Party (uncredited)) @ Paul Jasmin (Party Guest (uncredited)) @ Ron Lundy (Voice on Radio (uncredited)) @ Jay Morran (Pimp (uncredited)) @ Waldo Salt (Joe Pyne on TV show (uncredited) Produced by||Disturbing in a way, but great as well 'Midnight Cowboy' was rated X with the original release back in 1969. There are some scenes where you can understand that, just a little. The movie about Joe Buck (Jon Voight) coming from Texas to New York City to become a hustler is sometimes a little disturbing. Dressed up as a cowboy he tries to live as a hustler, making money by the act of love. It does not work out as he planned. After a guy named Rico 'Ratso' Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman) first pulled a trick on him and stole some money they become friends. They live in an empty and very filthy apartment. Then Ratso gets sick and Joe has to try to make some money. The movie was probably rated X for the main subject but on the way we see some strange things. The editing in this movie is great. We see dream sequences from Joe and Ratso interrupted by the real world in a nice and sometimes funny way. Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight and the supporting actors give great performances. Especially Hoffman delivers some fine famous lines. The score is done by John Barry and sounds great. All this makes this a great movie that won the Best Picture Oscar for a good reason. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil|Clint Eastwood|Crime|Rated R for language and brief violence. R|6.4|USA|1997|155 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/28/2004|Clint Eastwood Michael Maurer Tom Rooker Arnold Stiefel Anita Zuckerman|John Berendt John Lee Hancock|Jack N. Green ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||This panoramic tale of Savannah's eccentricities focuses on a murder and the subsequent trial of Jim Williams: self made man, art collector, antiques dealer, bon vivant and semi-closeted homosexual. John Kelso a magazine reporter finds himself in Savannah amid the beautiful architecture and odd doings to write a feature on one of William's famous Christmas parties. He is intrigued by Williams from the start, but his curiosity is piqued when he meets Jim's violent, young and sexy lover, Billy. Later that night, Billy is dead, and Kelso stays on to cover the murder trial. Along the way he encounters the irrepressible Lady Chablis, a drag queen commedienne, Sonny Seiler, lawyer to Williams, whose famous dog UGA is the official mascot of the Georgia Bulldogs, an odd man who keeps flies attached to mini leashes on his lapels and threatens daily to poison the water supply, the Married Ladies Card Club, and Minerva, a spiritualist. Between being Jim's buddy, cuddling up to a torch singer, meeting every eccentric in Savannah, participating in midnight graveyard rituals and helping solve the mysteries surrounding Billy's murder, Kelso has his hands full. |John Cusack (John Kelso) @ Kevin Spacey (James 'Jim' Williams) @ Jack Thompson (Sonny Seiler) @ Irma P. Hall (Minerva) @ Jude Law (Billy Carl Hanson) @ Alison Eastwood (Mandy Nichols) @ Paul Hipp (Joe Odom) @ Lady Chablis (Lady Chablis (as The Lady Chablis)) @ Dorothy Loudon (Serena Dawes) @ Anne Haney (Margaret Williams) @ Kim Hunter (Betty Harty) @ Geoffrey Lewis (Luther Driggers) @ Richard Herd (Henry Skerridge) @ Leon Rippy (Detective Boone) @ Bob Gunton (Finley Largent) @ Michael O'Hagan (Geza Von Habsburg) @ Gary Anthony Williams (Bus Driver) @ Tim Black (Jeff Braswell) @ Muriel Moore (Mrs. Baxter) @ Sonny Seiler (Judge White) @ Terry Rhoads (Assistant D.A.) @ Victor Brandt (Bailiff) @ Patricia Herd (Juror #1) @ Nick Gillie (Juror #20) @ Patrika Darbo (Sara Warren) @ J. Patrick McCormack (Doctor) @ Emma Kelly (Herself) @ Tyrone Lee Weaver (Ellis) @ Greg Goossen (Prison Cell Lunatic (as Gregory Goossen)) @ Shannon Eubanks (Mrs. Hamilton) @ Virginia Duncan (Card Club Woman #1) @ Rhoda Griffis (Card Club Woman #2) @ Judith Robinson (Card Club Woman #3) @ Jo Ann Pflug (Cynthia Vaughn (as Joann Pflug)) @ James Moody (Mr. Glover) @ John Duncan (Gentleman in Park) @ Bess S. Thompson (Pretty Girl) @ Jin Hi Soucy (Receptionist) @ Michael Rosenbaum (George Tucker) @ Dan Biggers (Harry Cramm) @ Georgia Allen (Lucille Wright) @ Collin Wilcox Paxton (Woman at party) @ Charles Black (Alpha) @ Aleta Mitchell (Alphabette) @ Kevin Harry (Phillip (as Michael 'Kevin' Harry)) @ Dorothy Kingery (Jim Williams' Sister) @ Amanda Kingery (Jim Williams' Niece Amanda) @ Susan Kingery (Jim Williams' Niece Susan) @ Ted Manson (Passerby) @ Margaret R. Davis (Ruth) @ Danny Nelson (Senator) @ Bree Luck (Woman at Club) @ Ann Cusack (Delivery Woman) @ Jerry Spence (Hair Dresser rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Karl Dahlquist (Jail Guard (uncredited)) @ Lawrence Mandley (Inmate (uncredited)Produced by||Spacey rocks. Think of it as an art-house film. I haven't read the book. Might have hated the film if I had. But I liked it. I did read some reviews before viewing the film, and I was prepared to dislike it. A lot of the criticism has some validity. The movie isn't really a linear type of murder mystery. It's partly that and partly a quirky travelogue of Savannah. The Lady Chablis character gets way too much screen time, apparently because Eastwood thinks that it will entertain us. It does, but only to a point. However, this is a different sort of movie, so I understand why Eastwood includes so much of Chablis, and the voodoo woman, and the fly guy. Also, John Cusack plays it with the same dead-fish expressionlessness that he brings to most of his roles. This isn't really bad, it's just that he's always the same. I had never seen one of Kevin Spacey's films before, and I am impressed at how he really nailed the role. I thought his performance made this film. A word or two about the accents. Most non-Southern actors really murder Southern accents. I'm from Texas, not the Georgia coast, but I thought Spacey hit the accent just right all the way through. It was always there, but was never the focus. (Streepian in its apparent effortlessness) Jack Thompson did his accent very well, also, particularly since I understand that he's an Aussie. Some other cast members didn't do well with the Southern accent, like Alison Eastwood. She overdid it. It seemed strained. And oh, yeah, Cusack sounds like an accentless Californian rather than a New Yorker. Overall, I guess I've written a lot more criticism than praise, but that wasn't my intent. This was a good movie. Think of it more as an art-house film rather than a mass-market picture, and you might have more realistic expectations. ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Midsummer Night's Dream, A|Michael Hoffman|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some sexual content. |6.3|UK|1999| 116 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Nigel Goldsack Michael Hoffman Arnon Milchan Leslie Urdang Ann Wingate|William Shakespeare Michael Hoffman|Oliver Stapleton ||20th Century Fox [jp] |Love makes fools of us all.|Shakespeare's intertwined love polygons begin to get complicated from the start--Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander. Bad news is, Hermia's father wants Demetrius for a son-in-law. On the outside is Helena, whose unreturned love burns hot for Demetrius. Hermia and Lysander plan to flee from the city under cover of darkness but are pursued by an enraged Demetrius (who is himself pursued by an enraptured Helena). In the forest, unbeknownst to the mortals, Oberon and Titania (King and Queen of the faeries) are having a spat over a servant boy. The plot twists up when Oberon's head mischief-maker, Puck, runs loose with a flower which causes people to fall in love with the first thing they see upon waking. Throw in a group of labourers preparing a play for the Duke's wedding (one of whom is given a donkey's head and Titania for a lover by Puck) and the complications become fantastically funny. Shakespeare's comedy about two couples in love with the wrong partners, and how they are finally brought together rightly, thanks in part to the bungling work of Puck. It is completely in the language of the Bard, with Pfeiffer as the Fairy Queen and Kline as the one turned into her evening's lover with donkey ears. Monte Atena, nella campagna toscana, agli inizi del Novecento. Egeo, notabile locale, vorrebbe che la figlia Ermia sposasse Demetrio, giovane benestante, ma la ragazza ama, ricambiata, Lisandro. Perciò i due giovani amanti decidono di fuggire nella foresta, dove si sono recati anche lo stesso Demetrio ed Elena, che lo ama inutilmente. Il tutto sullo sfondo dei preparativi per le nozze del duca Teseo con Ippolita. Le vicende si intrecciano con quelle di una scalcagnata compagnia di comici che spera di recitare alla presenza del duca e con le schermaglie fra Oberon e Titania, re e regina di elfi e fate della foresta. Le scorribande amorose si complicheranno maggiormente a causa del maldestro intervento del folletto Puck, paggio di Oberon. Alla fine, come nelle migliori tradizioni, tutto si aggiusta e le nozze celebrate.......saranno tre ! |Kevin Kline (Nick Bottom) @ Michelle Pfeiffer (Titania) @ Stanley Tucci (Puck (Robin Goodfellow)) @ Rupert Everett (Oberon) @ Calista Flockhart (Helena) @ Dominic West (Lysander) @ Christian Bale (Demetrius) @ Anna Friel (Hermia) @ David Strathairn (Theseus) @ Sophie Marceau (Hippolyta) @ Roger Rees (Peter Quince) @ Sam Rockwell (Francis Flute) @ Gregory Jbara (Snug) @ Bill Irwin (Tom Snout) @ Max Wright (Robin Starveling) @ Bernard Hill (Egeus) @ John Sessions (Philostrate) @ Deirdre Harrison (Hard-Eye Fairy) @ Heather Parisi (Bottom's Wife) @ Annalisa Cordone (Cobweb) @ Paola Pessot (Mustardseed) @ Solena Nocentini (Moth) @ Flaminia Fegarotti (Peaseblossom) @ Valerio Isidori (Master Antonio) @ Daniele Finizio (Dangerous Boy) @ Damiano Salvatori (Dangerous Boy) @ Chomoke Bhuiyan (Changeling Boy) @ Nathalie Van Ravenstein (Fairy Musician) @ Venera Torti (Fairy Musician) @ Xenia F. Wilson (Fairy Musician) @ Veronica Del Chiappa (Fairy) @ Monica La Vezzari (Fairy) @ Cristina Guglielmino (Fairy) @ Alessandra Monti (Fairy) @ Anna Cirigliano (Fairy) @ Elisabetta Carnevale (Nymph) @ Chiara Conti (Nymph) @ Valentina Sciarrini (Nymph) @ Alessandra Carbone (Nymph) @ Sabrina Marazzi (Pantomime Dwarf) @ Paolo Risi (Pantomime Dwarf) @ Davide Marotta (Pantomime Dwarf) @ Elisabetta La Padula (Pantomime Dwarf) @ Antonia Petrucca (Dwarf) @ Vittoria Danese (Dwarf) @ Marina Ficuciello (Dwarf) @ Marina Boccini (Dwarf) @ Roberta Galli (Fury rest of cast listed alphabetically Tommaso Accardo .... Forge Man) @ Anna Burt (Fury) @ Francesco Caruso (Winged Man) @ Stefano Cesarini (Satyr) @ Endrius Colombaioni (Fire Eater) @ Gaetano Delfini (Satyr Musician) @ Gianluca Del Mastro (Satyr) @ Vincenzo Dettole (Satyr) @ Donato Fierro-Perez (Commedia Dell'Arte Troop) @ Filippo Fugazzotto (Goat Headed Creature) @ Isabella Rita Gallinelli (Soprano Aida) @ Giuseppe Gambino (Winged Man) @ Emanuele Gullotto (Fawn) @ Luce Maioli (Fairy Musician) @ Walter Maioli (Satyr Musician) @ Laura Maltoni (Commedia Dell'Arte Troop) @ Cristina Mantis (Medusa) @ Mauro Marino (Egyptian Pharaoh) @ Aldo Marinucci (Satyr Musician) @ Victoria Eugenia Martinez (Female Monster) @ Manuela Metri (Desdemona) @ Vincenzo Moretti (Othello) @ Paola Murgia (Sphinx) @ Lucia Nardelli (Janus Figure) @ Luisa Nardelli (Janus Figure) @ Daniele Quistelli (Fawn) @ Marco Rossetti (Fawn) @ Rudy Ruggiero (Voice) @ Ester Salis (Commedia Dell'Arte Troupe) @ Roberto Stanco (Satyr Musician) @ Alba Tiberi (Sphinx) @ Beniamino Vitale (Satyr) @ Carlo Vitale (Fawn Produced by||A **Serious** Dream "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is one of Shakespeare's most beloved plays. Part of it's timeless, worldwide appeal is that it's an uproarious, joyful comedy about fools & fairies in love. However, Michael Hoffman's 1999 film version of "Dream" puts a completely different coat of paint onto this comedy: now, it's a DRAMA. Looking at the picture, I can't tell if Hoffman simply wanted to present "Dream" in a completely different, dramatic light, or if he simply misinterpreted the play as a drama when he read it, and directed the film as such. Either way, this film version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is curiously lacking in humor, but still has enough good performances and visual beauty in it to keep it interesting. Just. The humor has been all but removed in this version of "Dream." The cast, including Michelle Pfeiffer, Kevin Kline, Calista Flockhart & Stanley Tucci all play their parts in a straight, serious fashion---the complete opposite of how these characters SHOULD be played. Even the comedy relief characters of Bottom (Kline) and Puck (Tucci) have had their comedy toned down considerably. Why, they've even invented **marital problems** for Bottom (and I don't recall the character ever being married, let alone unhappily). And, of course, the story unfolds dramatically as well. With everybody in the film being directed to behave so *seriously*, there's simply no laughs to be had in this "Dream." That is, until Bottom & his fellow actors perform their sendup of Romeo & Juliet, entitled "Pyramus & Thisby"---but you have to wait until the end for that one. So, what ultimately saves this "Dream" from being a cinematic nightmare? Well, there ARE some good performances, even if they are misdirected. While Kevin Kline isn't allowed to be uproarious here (and that's a shame), he's still a quite likeable Bottom, if somewhat restrained. Calista Flockhart doesn't completely shed her "Ally McBeal" persona as Helena, but at least she tries, and her spunky presence in the film is a welcome one (and thin or not, Calista IS very attractive, whether fully-dressed or semi-nude, as she is in a pair of scenes). And the very talented Michelle Pfeiffer is simply radiant as Titania, Queen Of The Fairies. Other cast members don't fare as well: Stanley Tucci doesn't quite fit the role of Puck---he simply isn't mischevious enough. And Rupert Everett is simply a snoozefest as Oberon, King Of The Fairies---he's much too sullen and quiet. But perhaps both actors were simply the victims of Hoffman's misdirection. Ultimately, though, it is Kline, Flockhart & Pfeiffer who save the day in the acting department. And, I must admit, the film LOOKS great. The movie is exquisitely photographed, and the magic forest that most of the film takes place in is gorgeously lush. There's also just the right amount of sensuality in the film, with oh-so-brief flashes of nudity, mostly from the beautiful female fairies that serve Queen Titania. In the end, Michael Hoffman's version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is certainly flawed in it's dramatic presentation---this is supposed to be a COMEDY, goshdarnit---but it isn't a nightmare, either. You DO get a trio of good performances, some very beautiful locales, and some good laughs---at the very end---courtesy of Kline's Bottom The Weaver and his fellow acting troupe. I'll give this "Dream" a passing grade, but for a REAL movie version of "Dream," check out the 1935 version with James Cagney. It's great AND it's wonderfully funny, just like "A Midsummer Night's Dream" should be. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Misery|Rob Reiner|Drama||7.5|USA|1990| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steve Nicolaides Rob Reiner Andrew Scheinman Jeffrey Stott|Stephen King William Goldman|Barry Sonnenfeld ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Paul Sheldon used to write for a living. Now, he's writing to stay alive. |Novelist Paul Sheldon crashes his car on a snowy New England road. He is found by Annie Wilkes, the "number one fan" of Paul's heroine Misery Chastaine. Annie is also somewhat unstable, and Paul finds himself crippled, drugged and at her mercy. |James Caan (Paul Sheldon) @ Kathy Bates (Annie Wilkes) @ Richard Farnsworth (J.T. McCain) @ Frances Sternhagen (Virginia McCain) @ Lauren Bacall (Marcia Sindell) @ Graham Jarvis (Libby) @ Jerry Potter (Pete) @ Thomas Brunelle (Anchorman (as Tom Brunelle)) @ June Christopher (Anchorwoman) @ Julie Payne (Reporter #1) @ Archie Hahn III (Reporter #2) @ Gregory Snegoff (Reporter #3) @ Wendy Bowers (Waitress rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rob Reiner (Helicopter pilot (uncredited)) @ J.T. Walsh (State Trooper Sherman Douglas (uncredited) Produced by||Gripping... Misery is a dark, but witty venture into Stephen King territory.It's about a popular novelist who crashes his car on a snowy mountain road and is rescued by a nurse who claims she is his number one fan.As the time goes by, he realizes she has no intention of letting him leave. The film moves with a brisk, taut pace thanks to director Rob Reiner, who helmed another excellent Stephen King film, Stand By Me.Tension is kept mostly throughout (there are some predictable moments...but who cares?) And the performances are also a major plus.James Caan is very easy to empathize with, and he manages to keep his cynical sense of humor. Richard Farnsworth, as a grizzled sheriff was a nice addition to the film since his character didn't exist in the book.He also has a nice sense of humor, and he's the kind of guy who you want to root for.But the most amazing performance is from Kathy Bates, who treads a fine line alternating between sweet and lovable to amazingly evil.She won an Oscar for this movie, and whole-heartedly deserved it. Side note:This is one of the few films which took an Oscar, that you can actually say the Academy had the guts to give out.Can anyone name another horror film which won such a notable prize? ANyway...by the end, the novelist and the viewer or put through some torturous activity.We sometimes feel his pain, and it is so much fun to hate this woman................the book is excellent.....the movie is just as good in about 1/6th of the time it would take to read.Either way, enjoy! || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Miss Congeniality|Donald Petrie|Action|Rated PG-13 for sexual references and a scene of violence. PG-13|6.3|USA|2000|109 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/6/2004|Bruce Berman Sandra Bullock Katie Ford Marc Lawrence Ginger Sledge|Marc Lawrence Katie Ford Caryn Lucas|László Kovács ||Warner Bros. GmbH [de] |Unpolished. Unkempt. Unleashed. Undercover.|When a serial killer indicates that his next target is the Miss United States beauty pageant, the F.B.I. decides that they must get an undercover agent as a participant in the contest. A search uncovers no suitable candidate other than a bumbling female agent (Sandra Bullock). Reluctantly, her captain (Ernie Hudson) agrees to let her join the team working the case. The team is led by a womanizing agent (Ben Bratt) who has an apparent reluctant attraction to Bullock's character. She enters as Miss New Jersey, replacing a contestant who was discovered to have acted in a porno film. The pageant managers (Candice Bergen, William Shatner) are immediately aghast about the agent appearing in the pageant, but arrange a top handler (Michael Caine) to come give her a quick makeover, with the expected outstanding results. Unfortunately, she still is bumbling. When the killer is suddenly caught, everything seems to be over, except the female agent tries to convince her boss that something is still not right. She has discovered that the pageant managers are being dismissed after 21 years for younger people, and Bergen's character may not be as solid as she seems on the surface. |Sandra Bullock (Gracie Hart/Gracie Lou Freebush) @ Michael Caine (Victor Melling) @ Benjamin Bratt (Eric Matthews) @ Candice Bergen (Kathy Morningside) @ Ernie Hudson (FBI Asst. Director Harry McDonald) @ William Shatner (Stan Fields) @ John DiResta (Agent Clonsky) @ Heather Burns (Cheryl Frasier (RI)) @ Melissa De Sousa (Karen Krantz, New York) @ Steve Monroe (Frank Tobin) @ Deirdre Quinn (Mary Jo Wright, Texas) @ Wendy Raquel Robinson (Leslie Davis, California) @ Asia De Marcos (Alana Krewson, Hawaii) @ Ken Thomas (FBI Agent Harris) @ Gabriel Folse (FBI Agent Jerry Grant) @ Christopher Shea (FBI Agent Jensen) @ Mary Ashleigh Green (Young Gracie Hart) @ Cody Linley (Tough Boy) @ Eric Ian Goldberg (Alan) @ Daniel Kamin (Krashow) @ Konstantin Selivanov (Ivan) @ Mona Lee Fultz (Russian Waitress (as Mona Lee)) @ Sergei Levtsuk (Russian Bodyguard) @ John Cann (Russian Bodyguard (as Johnny Caan)) @ Debbie Nelson (Stacey the Pageant Announcer) @ Don Cass (Dave the Pageant Director) @ Laurie Guzda (Assistant Director) @ Jimmy Graham (Scott the Backstage Security Guard) @ Rupert Reyes (Security Guard (as Ruperto Reyes Jr.)) @ Bernadette Nason (Pageant Matron) @ Stephen Bruton (Mike the Bartender) @ Jessica Holcomb (Beth Carter) @ Jennifer Gareis (Tina) @ Ellen H. Schwartz (Herself (as Ellen Schwartz)) @ Cassandra L. Small (Starbucks Cop) @ Marco Perella (Starbucks Guy) @ Cynthia Dorn (Preliminary Judge) @ Catenya McHenry (Newscaster) @ Paige Bishop (Warehouse Dentist) @ Lucien Douglas (Warehouse Hair Stylist) @ Georgia Foy (Lori Emerson-Summers/Former Miss United States) @ LeeAnne Locken (Kelly Beth Kelley (NB)) @ Pei-San Brown (Ali Lowchowski (AK)) @ Isamari White (Lana Harmony Frankfurt (FL)) @ Kimberly Crawford (Lily Hardywood (ME)) @ Jamie Drake Stephens (Wynni Tracey Concellio (MD)) @ Dyan Conner (Penelope Likkum (MA)) @ Kelly Bright (Jaimee Madison (MI)) @ Dee Dee Adams (Tinka Woods (MO)) @ Shana McClendon (Sky Greenleaves (NV)) @ Janie Terrazas (Hayley Downes (NM)) @ Holly Mills (Olivia Einstein (OH)) @ Angela Van De Walle (Uma Trough (OR)) @ Tarah Bartley (Vanessa Black-Wooding (SC)) @ Farah White (Belinda Brown (TN)) @ Summyr Miller (Inga van Horna (UT)) @ Jessica Hale (Patricia De Le Marco Los Conchita Amelia Carolina Maria Moses (VT)) @ Pam Green (Katwyna Towers, Washington) @ Nikki Martinez (Buffy O'Cattrell, Montana rest of cast listed alphabetically Scott Grossman .... Himself) @ Edward Herrmann (Gracie's Dad (scenes deleted)) @ Deborah Abbott (Kiki Call, DC (uncredited)) @ Cynthia Aguiar (Pageant Audience (uncredited)) @ Ricardo Azulay (Victor (uncredited)) @ Johnny Bartee (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Whitney Blake (Miss Georgia (uncredited)) @ Brea Cola (Erin McPherson, Pennsylvania (uncredited)) @ Lisa Del Dotto (Miss South Dakota (uncredited)) @ Jeremy Denzlinger (NY Cop (uncredited)) @ Troy Dillinger (Background (uncredited)) @ Katy Dunlap (Miss Iowa (uncredited)) @ Dan Eggleston (Pagaent Employee (uncredited)) @ Kirby M. Hiscox (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Ricky Lee (Child on playground (uncredited)) @ Jennifer Matyear (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Katie Pruitt (Pageant Employee (uncredited)) @ Nita Rainwater (Miss Indiana (uncredited)) @ Hollie Stenson (Miss Wyoming (uncredited)) @ Clint Tidwell (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Michelle Yerger (Miss Idaho (uncredited)Produced by||Federal agent vies for beauty queen Super comedy with Sandra looking adorable, as usual. Babes abound and many laughs were had as Sandy attempts to go from tomboy to lady with the help of a hilariously sarcastic Michael Caine. Good interplay between characters and well played out all the way to the end. The only down side was the unneeded hurrah for lesbianism; enough already, it is becoming boring. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Mission: Impossible|Brian De Palma|Action|Rated PG-13 for some intense action violence. PG-13|6.5|USA|1996|110 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/1/2004|Tom Cruise Paul Hitchcock Paula Wagner|Bruce Geller David Koepp Steven Zaillian David Koepp Robert Towne|Stephen H. Burum ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Expect the Impossible|This DePalma film is a big-screen remake of a prior American television show, modernized and updated with all of the eye-popping special effects that a Hollywood mega-budget can buy. The show's Jim Phelps is the leader of the 'Impossible Missions Force.' In this 'episode,' Ethan Hunt is the point man for an IMF mission to catch a spy in the act of stealing information about the 'covers' of many other covert operatives. In the tradition of the TV show, the viewer is led down many plot twists, turns, and reversals, while the IMF members employ the latest in technology, disguises, and spy gadgetry to accomplish their mission. Cruise stars as Ethan Hunt, a secret agent framed for the deaths of his espionage team. Fleeing from government assassins, breaking into the CIA's most impenetrable vault, clinging to the roof of a speeding bullet train, Hunt races like a burning fuse to stay one step ahead of his pursuers . . . and draw one step closer to discovering the shocking truth. Movie based on the television series finds Jim Phelps and his team charged with stopping a traitor from stealing and selling classified material. Everything was going well until the man they are following and all of the team are inexplicably killed except for Ethan Hunt. Ethan then calls the Director and goes to meet him when he discovers that the whole mission was to ferret a mole that they have been suspicious of for some time. The Director shows evidence that hints that Ethan's the one they have been looking for but Ethan knows that he is not, so he escapes. Ethan then arranges to meet the buyer and whom he warns against using the material he has and when they meet he offers to get what he paid for in exchange for telling whom the mole is. Ethan, along with Phelps' wife Claire recruits two disavowed agents to help him which won't be easy. |Tom Cruise (Ethan Hunt) @ Jon Voight (Jim Phelps) @ Emmanuelle Béart (Claire Phelps (as Emmanuelle Beart)) @ Henry Czerny (Eugene Kittridge) @ Jean Reno (Franz Krieger) @ Ving Rhames (Luther Stickell) @ Kristin Scott Thomas (Sarah Davies (as Kristin Scott-Thomas)) @ Vanessa Redgrave (Max) @ Dale Dye (Frank Barnes) @ Marcel Iures (Golitsyn) @ Ion Caramitru (Zozimov) @ Ingeborga Dapkunaite (Hannah Williams) @ Valentina Yakunina (Drunken female IMF agent) @ Marek Vasut (Drunken male IMF agent) @ Nathan Osgood (Kittridge technician) @ John McLaughlin (TV interviewer) @ Rolf Saxon (CIA Analyst William Donloe) @ Karel Dobry (Matthias (as Karel Dobrý)) @ Andreas Wisniewski (Max's companion) @ David Shaeffer (Diplomat Rand Housman) @ Rudolf Pechan (Mayor Brandl) @ Gaston Subert (Jaroslav Reid) @ Ricco Ross (Denied Area Security Guard) @ Mark Houghton (Denied Area Security Guard) @ Bob Friend (Sky News Man) @ Annabel Mullion (Flight Attendant) @ Garrick Hagon (CNN Reporter) @ Olegar Fedoro (Kiev Room Agent (as Oleg Fedorov)) @ Sam Douglas (Kiev Room Agent) @ Andrzej Borkowski (Kiev Room Agent (as Andrzei Borkowski)) @ Maya Dokic (Kiev Room Agent) @ Carmela Marner (Kiev Room Agent) @ Mimi Potworowska (Kiev Room Agent) @ Jirina Trebická (Cleaning Woman) @ David Schneider (Train Engineer) @ Helen Lindsay (Female Executive in Train) @ Pat Starr (CIA Agent) @ Richard D. Sharp (CIA Lobby Guard) @ Randall Paul (CIA Escort Guard) @ Sue Doucette (CIA Agent (as Suzanne Doucette)) @ Graydon Gould (Public Official) @ Tony Vogel (M.I. 5) @ Michael Rogers (Large Man) @ Laura Brook (Margaret Hunt) @ Morgan Deare (Donald Hunt) @ David Phelan (Steward on Train) @ Melissa Knatchbull (Air Stewardess rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Keith Campbell (Fireman (uncredited)) @ Michael Cella (Student (uncredited)) @ Emilio Estevez (Jack Harmon (uncredited)) @ John Knoll (Passenger on train in tunnel (uncredited)Produced by||Well I seen worse Not a bad movie, but his film was lacking something.I find when Brian DePalma directs he creates, sometimes, very cold and sterile movies like this one, and Snake eyes.Better then the second one in story, but colder in character then the first.I hope they do not make a mission impossible three. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Mission: Impossible II|John Woo|Action|Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violent action and some sensuality. PG-13|5.8|USA|2000|123 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/1/2004|Terence Chang Tom Cruise Michael Doven Paul Hitchcock Amy Stevens Paula Wagner|Bruce Geller Ronald D. Moore Brannon Braga Robert Towne|Jeffrey L. Kimball ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Expect the impossible again|IMF agent Ethan Hunt has been sent on a mission to retrieve and destroy the supply of a genetically created disease called 'Chimera'. His mission is made impossible due to the fact that he is not the only person after samples of the disease. He must also contest with a gang of international terrorists headed by a turned bad former IMF agent who has already managed to steal the cure called 'Bellerophon' and now need 'Chimera' to complete their grand plan of infecting the whole world. In order to infiltrate and locate the terrorist group he relies on the help of an international thief Nyah of whom he quickly develops a love interest. Time is not only running out for Agent Hunt to find and destroy 'Chimera' before the terrorists get their hands on it, but he must also find 'Bellerophon' so as to save his love interest who has already become infected by the disease from a terrible and rapid death. A scientist in Australia, who is a friend of Ethan Hunt sends for him to escort him to Atlanta. It's during the flight that the scientist discovers that something is wrong so he turns to Ethan to ask him what's happening, Ethan then kills him and takes his briefcase. He then takes off a mask to reveal that he is not Ethan, he and his asociates parachute out of the plane and sends it into a mountain. The real Ethan is then summoned by his superior to report to him but first he must recruit a woman named Nyah Hall, who is a thief, which he does after bedding her. He then goes to his commander who tells about the scientist and that since Ethan couldn't be found he sent another agent, Sean Ambrose, to pose as him. Ethan upon learning of what happen knows that Sean was behind it. He is then told that they have to find Ambrose and find out what the scientist was carrying that was so important. Ethan says it won't be easy to find him. Ethan's then told that Nyah's Sean's old girlfriend, and they want her to draw him out, Ethan's hesitant at first but upon learning just serious things are asks her do it, which she does. And Ethan just wants it to be over so that she doesn't have to spend anymore time with Sean than she has to. A scientist, who is a friend of IMF agent Ethan Hunt, who is in Ausralia, wants him to escort him to Atlanta, which he does. While on the plane something bizarre happens and Ethan kills the scientist. It is then revealed that Ethan is not Ethan but someone posing as him. He and his cohorts jump out of the plane and then proceed to crash it into a mountain. The real Ethan is then summoned by his superior for a mission but before undertaking it he is instructed to recruit a woman named Nyah Hall, who is a thief to help them. He does and goes to meet his boss who tells him about his friend and the crash. He then tells him since Ethan was unavailable he sent another agent Sean Ambrose who like Ethan is a disguise expert. They then conclude that Ambrose was the one who crashed the plane and took what his friend was carrying, which he called Chimera. Ethan's mission is to get it back. He is then told that Nyah's Sean's old girlfriend and that he wants her back. Ethan is hesitant because it seems that the two of them have connected but is convinced that she is their best chance to find Ambrose, so he asks her and she agrees. |Tom Cruise (Ethan Hunt) @ Dougray Scott (Sean Ambrose) @ Thandie Newton (Nyah Nordoff-Hall) @ Ving Rhames (Luther Stickell) @ Richard Roxburgh (Hugh Stamp) @ John Polson (Billy Baird) @ Brendan Gleeson (John C. McCloy) @ Rade Serbedzija (Dr. Nekhorvich (as Radé Sherbedgia)) @ William Mapother (Wallis) @ Dominic Purcell (Ulrich) @ Matthew Wilkinson (Michael) @ Nicholas Bell (McCloy's Accountant) @ Cristina Brogers (Flamenco Dancer #4) @ Kee Chan (McCloy's Chemist) @ Kim Fleming (Larrabee) @ Alan Lovell (Biocyte Security Guard #2) @ Dan Luxton (Relief Pilot) @ Christian Manon (Dr. Gradsky) @ Karl McMillan (Biocyte Security Guard #1) @ Lester Morris (Bookie) @ Kelly Ons (Flamenco Dancer #1) @ Nicholas Papademetriou (Prison Guard #2) @ Brett Partridge (Biocyte Security Guard #3) @ Candice Partridge (Flamenco Dancer #7) @ Natalie Reis (Flamenco Dancer #2) @ Daniel Roberts (Co-Pilot) @ Adriana Rodríguez (Flamenco Dancer #5) @ Sandra Rodríguez (Flamenco Dancer #6) @ Nada Rogic (Flamenco Dancer #3) @ Antonio Vargas (Senor De L'Arena rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Anthony Hopkins (Mission Commander Swanbeck (uncredited)) @ Billy Morts (Man with Mission Rocket in helicopter (uncredited)) @ Tory Mussett (Extra (uncredited)Produced by||Really dumb and lazy film – barely manages to be fun at all IMF Agent Ethan Hunt is sent on a seemingly impossible mission to capture a destroy the only existing supply of a deadly disease known as Chimera.However a group of terrorists, led by ex-IMF agent Ambrose also want the disease so that they can us it to infect the world as they have already got the only cure.Hunt turns to jewel thief Nyah to help him by infiltrating her ex-lover's (Ambrose) group to spy on them. John Woo must have thought of the elements he needed to follow up the solid thrills of the original movie.Big action scenes? Yes.Slow-motion? Yes.Plot?Characters?Good theme music?Logic of any kind?Nope – won't be needing those!Or at least that's how it felt.The plot of the first film was clever despite being open to holes – the plot here makes the first one look like a watertight piece of genius!The story only really serves to set up action scenes and the like – I can barely remember the disease and can only recall rubbish action scenes! For a director like John Woo I knew to expect slow-mo and OTT action, but I didn't know that it would all be so very superficial and weak.For example the car chase where Hunt and Nyah meet is just ridiculous and very annoying.The robbery of the disease is a pale shadow of the original film's robbery scene and the final motorbike chase is good but only a hint of what Woo has done before.The plot overuses the whole `face mask' thing – it must do it about 8 or 9 times – many of those time's there's no way Hunt could have made a mask of the people involved!It's another example of how silly it is. While Cruise was cool in the first film, here he is slick and tough – an image that doesn't work.He was much better in the first film.Scott is non-existent as a villain and is pretty dull.Newton is sexy but no more than that.Rhames is good and Hopkins has an enjoyable minor role. Overall this film is an OTT mess.The plot is a shambles and the action scenes are silly and often have no logical reason behind them!The overuse of the face masks just points to the total lack of a good script and Woo's slow motion just feels tired and unimaginative.Only the final action scene is enjoyable, but by then you're ony interesting in turning this off and watching De Palma's much better film instead. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Monsters, Inc.|Peter Docter David Silverman Lee Unkric|Animation|G |8.0|USA|2001|92 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Darla K. Anderson John Lasseter Kori Rae Andrew Stanton|Robert L. Baird Jill Culton Peter Docter Ralph Eggleston Dan Gerson Jeff Pidgeon Rhett Reese Jonathan Roberts Andrew Stanton|||Buena Vista International [ar] |You Won't Believe Your Eye.|James P. Sullivan (AKA "Sulley") and Mike Wazowski pick up their paychecks at Monsters Inc., the utility company that generates energy from the goose bumps of children. Sulley, the No. 1 scream-generator at the plant accidentally lets in a little girl into the monster world. Since monsters are actually terrified of children it's a major cause for alarm and a major headache for Sulley and Mike. In a land of monsters, James P. Sullivan is king. He and his coworker/ friend Mike Wazowski are two of many monsters that work for Monsters Inc. a utility company that generates power for a very paranoid and nervous city of monsters. This power, oddly enough, is generated from the screams of children, which is produced by scaring them in their sleep. One night, however, Sully uncovers a devious plot to rid Monster city of it's power problems, but in all the wrong ways. Together, ironically, Sully and Mike will fight to protect the innocence of the children they scare every night. In the world behind our closet doors, monsters like Mike and Sulley work hard for their income. To be exact, the monster world depends on our children's screams: It is their energy that makes lightbulbs glow and cars drive. Big companies like Monsters, Inc. collect the scream energy, and many monsters work there in shifts. In these times, it is getting harder and harder to shock the kids properly, since they're so spoiled by television, so that there's an energy shortage in the monster world. Sulley, the number one frightener, one day accidentally lets a human child into the monster world. Since kids are supposed to be poisonous and carry loads of diseases, pandemonium ensues. After Mike and Sulley discover that the girl they named Boo actually seems quite harmless, they decide to bring her back through her door into her room. But Boo's presence is more than just a mere accident. Now, Mike and Sulley have to face an enemy within their own ranks. |John Goodman (James P. "Sulley" Sullivan (voice)) @ Billy Crystal (Mike Wazowski (voice)) @ Mary Gibbs (Boo/Mary (voice)) @ Steve Buscemi (Randall Boggs (voice)) @ James Coburn (Henry J. Waternoose III (voice)) @ Jennifer Tilly (Celia (voice)) @ Bob Peterson (Roz (voice)) @ John Ratzenberger (Yeti (voice)) @ Frank Oz (Fungus (voice)) @ Dan Gerson (Needleman/Smitty (voice) (as Daniel Gerson)) @ Steve Susskind (Floor Manager (voice)) @ Bonnie Hunt (Flint (voice)) @ Jeff Pidgeon (Bile (voice)) @ Samuel Lord Black (George Sanderson (voice) (as Sam Black)) @ Jack Angel (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Bob Bergen (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Rodger Bumpass (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Gino Conforti (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Jennifer Darling (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Patti Deutsch (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Peter Docter (Additional Voice (voice) (as Pete Docter)) @ Bobby Edner (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Ashley Edner (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Paul Eiding (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Katie Evans (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Bill Farmer (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Keegan Farrell (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Pat Fraley (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Teresa Ganzel (Additional Voice (voice) (as Terese Ganzel)) @ Taylor Gifaldi (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Marc John Jefferies (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Joe Lala (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Noah Luke (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Sherry Lynn (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Danny Mann (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Mona Marshall (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Mickie McGowan (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Laraine Newman (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Kay Panabaker (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Bret 'Brook' Parker (Additional Voice (voice) (as Bret Parker)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voice (voice) (as Phil Proctor)) @ Josh Qualtieri (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Guido Quaroni (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Jan Rabson (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Lisa Raggio (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Joe Ranft (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Sophia Ranft (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Katherine Ringgold (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Bob Scott (Additional Voice (voice)) @ David Silverman (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Jim Thornton (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Lee Unkrich (Additional Voice (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Claire Keim .... French version (voice)) @ Lola Krellenstein (Bouh (French version) (voice)) @ Isabelle Leprince (French version (voice)) @ Wallace Shawn (Rex the Green Dinosaur (outtakes) (uncredited)Produced by||Now here's a story children and adults can relate too.Monsters in the closet. While monsters in the closet may seem to be a scary reality for some children, `Monsters, Inc.' makes it light hearted by showing them it's all in a night's work.The characters are as charming as the cast that speaks for them. It's a learning experience children get to see how an industry works. Monsters, Inc. is an in-genius corporation that has scientifically learned how to channel children's screams into energy that is used for electrical power.It has monster employees, an assembly line of doors (which give monsters access to children's bedrooms), a top-flight training program and some of the top Monsters in the scaring business. There's a colorful Metropolis, filled with houses, buildings, businesses, cars and everything that makes a city run smoothly along with a population of colorful creatures.One of the colorful groups of creatures is the yellow swat team.Their job is to protect the Metropolis of Monsters, Inc. from human contamination. But what happens when a human child mysteriously gets through the bedroom door and terrorizes the city with screams and boo's.It's wondrous and funny.In the mist of all this is industrial crime, brought on by greed. But, the story ends on a very happy note. John Goodman is the voice of `Sulley' a colorful large blue-green ape like monster who's the star Monsters, Inc. employee.He's some type of monster, cut, cuddly, and he has a conscience that leads him to feelings of regret about scarring children.He becomes attached to Boo (voice of Mary Gibbs) a cute, little big-eyed girl who is mysteriously brought to Monsters, Inc. and in his quest to return her home becomes very attached to her. Sulley's best friend is Mike (voice of Billy Crystal) who's a funny looking green ball with stick legs and one huge eye.His comedy is seen through out the movie.Mike is Sulley's driving force, acting as his agent.Mike's job is to make sure Sulley remains the top Monsters, Inc. employee. But when it comes to laughter Mike proves he's on top. Mike's girl friend Celia (voice of Jennifer Tilley) is the stylish employee who has Mike's best interest at heart.Her job is to keep him out of trouble. I give Monsters, Inc. a ten.It is an animated movie that can be enjoyed by the whole family.It makes for great family fun. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Monty Python and the Holy Grail|Terry Gilliam Terry Jone|Adventure||8.4|UK|1975| 91 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mark Forstater John Goldstone Michael White|Graham Chapman John Cleese Eric Idle Terry Gilliam Terry Jones Michael Palin|Terry Bedford ||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [gb] |Makes Ben Hur look like an Epic|We follow King Arthur and his knights in their search for the Holy Grail. Thisisn't your average medieval knights and horses story - for a start, due to a shortage in the kingdom, all the horses have been replaced by servants clopping coconuts together ! |Graham Chapman (King Arthur/Voice of God/Middle Head/Hiccoughing Guard) @ John Cleese (2nd Soldier with a keen interest in birds/The Black Knight/Peasant 3/Sir Lancelot, the Brave/The Ferocious French Taunter/Tim the Enchanter) @ Eric Idle (The Dead Collector/Peasant 1/Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-as-Sir Launcelot/The Guard Who Doesn't Hiccough but Tries to Get Things Straight/Concorde (Sir Launcelot's Trusty Steed)/Roger the Shrubber/Brother Maynard) @ Terry Gilliam (Patsy/Green Knight/Old Man/Sir Bors/Animator) @ Terry Jones (Dennis's Mother/Sir Bedevere/Left Head/Voice of Cartoon Scribe/Prince Herbert) @ Michael Palin (1st Soldier with a Keen Interest in Birds/Dennis/Peasant 2/Right Head/Sir Galahad the Pure/Leader of the Knights Who Say 'Ni!'/Narrator/King of Swamp Castle/Brother Maynards Brother) @ Connie Booth (The Witch) @ Carol Cleveland (Zoot and Dingo) @ Neil Innes (The First Self-Destructive Monk/Robin's Least Favourite Minstrel/The Page Crushed by a Rabbit/The Owner of a Duck) @ Bee Duffell (Old Crone to Whom King Arthur Said 'Ni!') @ John Young (The Dead Body That Claims It Isnt/Historian) @ Rita Davies (Historian's Wife) @ Avril Stewart (Dr. Piglet) @ Sally Kinghorn (Dr. Winston) @ Mark Zycon (Prisoner) @ Elspeth Cameron (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Mitsuko Forstater (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Sandy Johnson (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Sandy Rose (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Romilly Squire (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Joni Flynn (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Alison Walker (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Loraine Ward (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Anna Lanski (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Sally Coombe (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Vivienne MacDonald (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Yvonne Dick (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Daphne Darling (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Fiona Gordon (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Gloria Graham (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Judy Lams (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Tracy Sneddon (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Sylvia Taylor (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Joyce Pollner (Girl in Castle Anthrax) @ Mary Allen (Girl in Castle Anthrax rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Julián Doyle (Police Sergeant (uncredited)) @ Patsy Kensit (Prin (uncredited)) @ Charles Knode (Camp' Guard/One of Robins Minstrels (uncredited)) @ William Palin (Sir Not-Appearing-in-this-Film (photograph) (uncredited)) @ Tom Raeburn (Guard Eating Apple (uncredited)) @ Roy Forge Smith (Inspector End of Film (uncredited)) @ Maggie Weston (Page turner (hand only) (uncredited) Produced by||Inspired lunacy MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL (1975)***1/2 John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin.The British comic troupe's comic masterpiece send up of the legend of King Arthur and The Knights of the Roundtable with their trademark insolent, snarky intellectual humor and gross caricatures with some truly brilliant moments including: the deadly encounter with the `Killer Rabbit' and The Knights Who Say `Nee!' || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 ||||||@@ Monty Python's The Meaning of Life|Terry Gilliam Terry Jone|Comedy|R |7.3|UK|1983|107 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/7/2004|John Goldstone |Graham Chapman John Cleese Terry Gilliam Eric Idle Terry Jones Michael Palin|Peter Hannan Roger Pratt||Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) [cz] |It took God six days to create the earth, and Monty Python just 90 minutes to screw it up.|The comedy groups last full length movie returns to the feel of the hugely popular BBC TV show. It features small comedy sketches dealing with all of the stages and trials of life. Expect the un-expected. Plenty of religious, vulgar, and sexual humor may offend some groups. There are even musical numbers, but with that same unmistakable brand of Python humor. The Monty Python group examines the meaning and purpose of life in a series of sketches from conception to death and beyond. In typical Monty Python fashion they satirizes and humourizes almost everyone. |Graham Chapman (Fish #1/Obstetrician/Harry Blackitt/Wymer/Hordern/General/Narrator #2/Dr. Livingstone/Strange Woman/Eric/Coles/Chairman/Guest #4/Arthur Jarrett/Geoffrey/Tony Bennett) @ John Cleese (Fish #2/Dr. Spenser/Humphrey Williams/Sturridge/Ainsworth/Waiter/Man/Maitre D/Grim Reaper) @ Terry Gilliam (Fish #4/Walters/Zulu Announcer/M'Lady Joeline/Mr. Brown/Howard Katzenberg) @ Eric Idle (Fish #3/Singer/Mr. Moore/Mrs. Blackitt/Watson/Atkison/Perkins/Victim #3/Front End/Mrs. Hendy/man in Pink/Noel Coward/Gaston/Angela) @ Terry Jones (Fish #6/Mum/Priest/Biggs/Sergeant/Strange Man/Mrs. Brown/Mr. Creosote/Maria/Bert/Leaf #1/Fiona Portland-Smyth) @ Michael Palin (Fish #5/Mr. Pycroft/Dad/Narrator #1/Chaplain/Carter/Spadger/Sargeant Major/Pakenham-Walsh/Rear End/Lady Presenter/Mr. Marvin Hendy/Harry/Padre/Debbie Katzenberg) @ Carol Cleveland (Wife of Guest #4/Heaven Greeter) @ Simon Jones (Jeremy Portland-Smythe) @ Patricia Quinn (Mrs. Williams) @ Judy Loe (First Nurse) @ Andrew MacLachlan (Groom) @ Mark Holmes (Severed Head) @ Valerie Whittington (Mrs. Moore) @ Jennifer Franks (Bride) @ Imogen Bickford-Smith (Second Nurse) @ Angela Mann (Second Guest's Wife) @ Peter Lovstrom (Young Man) @ George Silver (Diner eating Howard the fish) @ Chris Grant ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Guy Bertrand ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Andrew Bicknell ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Ross Davidson ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Myrtle Devenish ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Tim Douglas ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Eric Francis ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Matt Frewer ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Billy John ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Russell Kilmister ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Peter Mantle ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Len Marten ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Peter Merrill ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Cameron Miller ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Gareth Milne ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Larry Noble ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Paddy Ryan ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Leslie Sarony ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ John Scott Martin ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Eric Stovell ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Wally Thomas ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Jack Armstrong ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Robert Carrick ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Douglas Cooper ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ George Daly ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Chick Fowles ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Terry Grant ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Robin Hewlett ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Tommy Isley ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Juba Kennerley ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Tony Lang ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ John Murphy ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Terry Rendell ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Ronald Shilling ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")) @ Albert Welch ((segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance") rest of cast listed alphabetically Paul Bourke .... Dancer) @ Bonnie Bryg (Dancer) @ Charlotte Corbett (Dancer) @ Geoff Davids (Dancer) @ Emma-Kate Davies (Dancer) @ Sandra Easby (Dancer) @ Donna Fielding (Dancer) @ Dawn Gerrard (Dancer) @ Natascha Gilbrooke (Dancer) @ Donnette Goddard (Dancer) @ Roy Goyle (Dancer) @ Nigel Hawthorne (Man walking by Crimson Insurance building as anchor is raised) @ Alison Jane Hierlihy (Dancer) @ Laura James (Dancer) @ Kim Elizabeth Leeson (Dancer) @ Maddie Loftin (Dancer) @ Michelle Mackie (Dancer) @ Paul Madden (Dancer) @ Caroline Meacher (Dancer) @ Lorraine Meacher (Dancer) @ Sue Menhenick (Dancer) @ Tammy Needham (Dancer) @ Trudy Pack (Dancer) @ Floyd Anthony Pearce (Dancer) @ Peter Salmon (Dancer) @ Lizie Saunderson (Dancer) @ Steve St. Klonis (Dancer) @ Lorraine Whitmarsh (Dancer) @ Dominique Wood (Dancer) @ Carole Anne (Topless pursuer (uncredited)) @ Luke Baxter (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Stephen Beasley (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Heavon Grant (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Jane Leeves (Christmas in Heaven Dancer (uncredited)) @ Helen Mason (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Kerri Murphy (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Jane Newman (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Garry Noakes (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Victoria Plum (Daughter (uncredited)) @ Wanda Rokicki (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Anne Rosenfeld (Daughter (uncredited)) @ Voyd (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Timothy Ward (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Michelle Welch (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Gess Whitfield (Dancer (uncredited)Produced by||Lots of laughs A bunch of different skits deal with everything ranging from war,death,sperm, the machine that goes PING and other topics. Since this is Monty Python, it's not surprising it's often hilarious.Not as great as Holy Grail, but very much worth your time.The short film before the actual movie begins is a hoot. Rating:**** (out of five) || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Mothman Prophecies, The|Mark Pellington|Thriller|Rated PG-13 for terror, some sexuality and language. PG-13|6.5|USA|2002|119 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/3/2004|Jason Free Gary W. Goldstein Adrienne Gruben Richard Hatem Rachel Hudgins Gary Lucchesi Terry McKay James McQuaide Tom Rosenberg Ted Tannebaum Richard S. Wright|John A. Keel Richard Hatem|Fred Murphy ||Barton Films S.L. [es] |What do you see?|When John Klein, a Washington Post journalist, and his wife Mary finally find the house of their dreams, they just can't believe their luck. On the way back from the bargain, Mary nearly runs over a caped, winged figure, jerks the wheel and skids into the sidewalk. She hits her head badly, and dies in the hospital a little later. John, completely devastated, soon finds some sketches his wife made after the accident. They all show a winged creature, yet there is no angel resemblance at all. Two years later, John all of a sudden finds himself one night in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. He has no idea how he has journeyed the 400 miles in less than two hours. In the small town, local cop Connie struggles with many sightings of a mothlike creature taller than a man being reported, while John believes that an explanation for his wife's fate can be found. The deeper John digs, the clearer the mothman's purpose arises - only to leave his life in immediate danger, as it seems. John Klein (Richard Gere), a Washington newspaper reporter leaves his job after his wife (Debra Messing) dies to investigate strange reports, including psychic visions ("prophecies") and sightings of winged creatures ("mothmen"), in a small West Virginia town, that may be the signs of an alien invasion of Earth... |Richard Gere (John Klein) @ David Eigenberg (Ed Fleischman) @ Bob Tracey (Cyrus Bills) @ Ron Emanuel (Washington Post Reporter) @ Debra Messing (Mary Klein) @ Tom Stoviak (Brian) @ Yvonne Erickson (Dr. McElroy) @ Scott Nunnally (Orderly) @ Harris Mackenzie (TV Journalist) @ Will Patton (Gordon Smallwood) @ Lucinda Jenney (Denise Smallwood) @ Laura Linney (Connie Parker) @ Tom Tully (Motel Manager) @ Zachary Mott (Otto (as Billy Mott)) @ Ann McDonough (Lucy Griffin) @ Shane Callahan (Nat Griffin) @ Nesbitt Blaisdell (Chief Josh Jarrett) @ Dan Callahan (C.J.) @ Christin Frame (Holly) @ Rohn Thomas (Dr. Williams) @ Susan Nicholas (News Anchor #1) @ Bill Laing (Indrid Cold) @ Tim Hartman (Sonny) @ Alan Bates (Alexander Leek) @ Jennifer Martin (Coffee Shop Cashier) @ Mark Pellington (Bartender) @ Murphy Dunne (Gov. Rob McCallum) @ Pete Handelman (Aide #1) @ Matt Miller (Aide #2) @ Josh Braun (Aide #3) @ Doug Korstanje (News Anchor #2) @ Betsy Zajko (Tory Pherris) @ Elizabeth Cazenave (Bellhop) @ Sam Nicotero (Man on Bridge rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eric Cazencave (Travel Lodge Clerk (uncredited)) @ Nick Keeley (Spectator #1 (uncredited)) @ David Press (Woodrow (uncredited)) @ Mike Reiser (Washington Post Staff Reporter (uncredited)) @ Bettina Rousos (Spectator #4 (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Silver (Ruth (uncredited)) @ Jason Billy Simmons (Spectator #3 (uncredited)) @ Dixie Tymitz (Spectator #2 (uncredited)Produced by||Motheyes Spoilers herein. I love it when this happens -- when the presentation of the film matches the content and tone of the story. The actual story is slight, but it is given texture by the fact that so much is unexplained, there's more that just doesn't make sense. Rather than a weakness, it adds texture to the mystery. Because we are not supposed to know. And so it is with Gere's character: he has moments where some part is lucid to him, but most is not. Some of his deductions are wrong, but in general, his moments of knowledge are mere islands in a sea of confusion And so also with us the viewer, and here is the good part. Pellington has really come into his own as a master of the camera. What he has done is give us moments of visual clarity in a sea of confusing movement in which we can't make sense. The visual method of the story reflects the content of the story. Great, just great. ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Moulin Rouge!|Baz Luhrmann|Drama|Rated PG-13 for sexual content. |7.8|USA|2001| 127 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steve E. Andrews Fred Baron Martin Brown Catherine Knapman Baz Luhrmann Catherine Martin|Baz Luhrmann Craig Pearce|Donald McAlpine ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |No Laws. No Limits. One Rule. Never Fall In Love.|In 1900, Christian, an impoverished writer who has come from Scotland the year before, types his story: he arrived in Montmartre and fell in with Toulouse-Lautrec and Bohemians who believe in freedom, truth, beauty, and love. They want to sell a show to the Moulin Rouge, and its impresario wants a backer so he can build a proper theatre. He's plying a duke, who wants exclusive access to the favors of Satine, the Moulin Rouge's consumptive star. She wants to be a proper actress, so the duke's offer is fine - except that she and Christian fall in love. Can Satine keep the duke at bay without losing his patronage, will he discover the lovers and kill Christian, and can love trump jealousy? Christian, a young wannabe Bohemian poet living in 1899 Paris, defies his father by joining the colorfully diverse clique inhabiting the dark, fantastical underworld of Paris' now legendary Moulin Rouge. In this seedy but glamorous haven of sex, drugs and newly-discovered electricity, the poet-innocent finds himself plunged into a passionate but ultimately tragic love affair with Satine, the club's highest paid star and the city's most famous courtesan. Their romance is played out against the infamous club - a meeting place of high life and low, where slumming aristocrats and the fashionably rich mingled with workers, artists, Bohemians, actresses and courtesans. |Nicole Kidman (Satine) @ Ewan McGregor (Christian) @ John Leguizamo (Henri Toulouse-Lautrec) @ Jim Broadbent (Harold Zidler) @ Richard Roxburgh (The Duke) @ Garry McDonald (The Doctor) @ Jacek Koman (The Unconscious Argentinean) @ Matthew Whittet (Satie) @ Kerry Walker (Marie) @ Caroline O'Connor (Nini Legs-in-the-Air) @ Christine Anu (Arabia) @ Natalie Jackson Mendoza (China Doll (as Natalie Mendoza)) @ Lara Mulcahy (Môme Fromage) @ David Wenham (Audrey) @ Kylie Minogue (The Green Fairy) @ Ozzy Osbourne (The Green Fairy (voice)) @ Dhobi Oparei (Le Chocolat (as Deobia Oparei)) @ Linal Haft (Warner) @ Keith Robinson (Le Petomane) @ Peter Whitford (Stage Manager) @ Norman Kaye (Satine's Doctor) @ Arthur Dignam (Christian's Father) @ Carole Skinner (Landlady) @ Jonathan Hardy (Man in the Moon) @ Plácido Domingo (Man in the Moon (voice)) @ Kiruna Stamell (Le Petite Princess) @ Anthony Young (Orchestra Member) @ Dee Donavan (Character Rake) @ Johnny Lockwood (Character Rake) @ Don Reid (Character Rake) @ Tara Morice (Prostitute) @ Daniel Scott (Absinthe Drinker/Guitarist) @ Veronica Beattie (Montmartre Dancer) @ Lisa Callingham (Montmartre Dancer) @ Rosetta Cook (Montmartre Dancer) @ Fleur Denny (Montmartre Dancer) @ Kelly Grauer (Pearly Queen) @ Jaclyn Hanson (Montmartre Dancer) @ Michelle Hopper (Montmartre Dancer) @ Fallon King (Montmarte Dancer) @ Wendy McMahon (Montmartre Dancer) @ Tracie Morley (Montmartre Dancer) @ Sue-Ellen Shook (Montmartre Dancer) @ Jenny Wilson (Montmartre Dancer) @ Luke Alleva (Montmartre Dancer) @ Andrew Aroustian (Montmartre Dancer) @ Stephen Colyer (Montmartre Dancer) @ Steve Grace (Montmartre Dancer (as Steven Grace)) @ Mark Hodge (Montmartre Dancer) @ Cameron Mitchell (Montmartre Dancer) @ Deon Nuku (Montmartre Dancer) @ Shaun Parker (Montmartre Dancer) @ Troy Phillips (Montmartre Dancer) @ Rodney Syaranamual (Montmartre Dancer) @ Ashley Wallen (Montmartre Dancer) @ Nathan Wright (Montmartre Dancer) @ Susan Black (Parisian Dancer) @ Nicole Brooks (Parisian Dancer) @ Danielle Brown (Parisian Dancer) @ Anastacia Flewin (Parisian Dancer) @ Fiona Cage (Urchin) @ Alex Harrington (Parisian Dancer) @ Camilla Jakimowicz (Parisian Dancer) @ Rochelle G. Jones (Parisian Dancer (as Rochelle Jones)) @ Caroline Kaspar (Parisian Dancer) @ Mandy Liddell (Parisian Dancer) @ Melanie Mackay (Parisian Dancer) @ Elise Mann (Parisian Dancer) @ Charmaine Martin (Parisian Dancer) @ Michelle Wriggles (Parisian Dancer) @ Michael Boyd (Parisian Dancer) @ Lorry D'er Cole (Parisian Dancer (as Lorry D'Ercole)) @ Michael Edge (Parisian Dancer) @ Glyn Gray (Parisian Dancer) @ Craig Haines (Parisian Dancer) @ Stephen Holford (Parisian Dancer) @ Jamie Jewell (Parisian Dancer) @ Jason King (Parisian Dancer) @ Ryan Males (Parisian Dancer) @ Harlin Martin (Parisian Dancer) @ Andrew Micallef (Parisian Dancer) @ Jonathan Schmolzer (Parisian Dancer) @ Bradley Spargo (Parisian Dancer) @ Joseph 'Pepe' Ashton (Tabasco Brother) @ Jordan Ashton (Tabasco Brother) @ Marcos Falagan (Tabasco Brother) @ Mitchel Falagan (Tabasco Brother) @ Chris Mayhew (Tabasco Brother) @ Hamish McCann (Tabasco Brother) @ Adrien Janssen (Tabasco Brother) @ Shaun Holloway (Tabasco Brother) @ Darren Dowlut (Cocoliscious Brother) @ Dennis Dowlut (Cocoliscious Brother) @ Pina Conti (La Ko Ka Chau) @ Nandy McLean (Twin) @ Maya McLean (Twin) @ Patrick Harding-Irmer (Waiter) @ Albin Pahernik (Waiter) @ Aurel Verne (Waiter) @ Kip Gamblin (Latin Dancer rest of cast listed alphabetically Sandi Finlay .... Eccentric Wealthy Lesbian Club Attendee) @ Wilson Alcorn (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Byron Barriga (Musician (uncredited)) @ Jabe Bromhall (Hooker #2 (uncredited)) @ Kerry Casey (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Ray Chambers (Fan Bearer (uncredited)) @ Peter Collingwood (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Darrell Dixon (Fan Bearer (uncredited)) @ Nash Edgerton (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Coralie Eichholtz (Hooker #1 (uncredited)) @ Judi Eldred (Female Patron (uncredited)) @ Tim Elliott (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Pat Evans (Seamstress (uncredited)) @ Nicole Fantl (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Waldo Garrido (Musician (uncredited)) @ Scott Gregory (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Trent Harlow (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Troy Harrison (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Matthew Hooper ( (uncredited)) @ Alexander Houle (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Judy Howard (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Geoffrey Kiem (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Harold Kissin (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Simon Kriszyk (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Reginald Larner (Musician (uncredited)) @ Ian Lind (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ László Lukas (Conductor (uncredited)) @ Otto Luppo (Fan Bearer (uncredited)) @ Tony Lynch (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Angus Martin (Pawnbroker (uncredited)) @ Paul Maybury (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Peter Muirhead (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Caroline Nahlous (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ John Pagan (Old Crone (uncredited)) @ Billy Pat (Fan Bearer (uncredited)) @ Scott Peters (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Chris Pickard (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Greg Poppleton (Nervous Nellie (uncredited)) @ Brett Praed (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ Thern Reynolds (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Greg Robinson (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ David Scotchford (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Adrian Sicari (Fan Bearer (uncredited)) @ Sotiri Sotiropoulos (Stagehand (uncredited)) @ David Whitford (Audience Member (uncredited)) @ Matt Wilson (Slave Trader (uncredited)) @ Robert Yearley (Coach (uncredited) Produced by||One colossal little love story. The vivid, vibrant, highly graphic strokes and style of French impressionist Toulouse-Lautrec was inspired by the colorful night life of the Montmartre district of Paris -- the circuses, the brothels(!), but notably the Moulin Rouge cabaret which he frequented often and became a routine host to an elite, partygoing bunch of artistic intellects and deviants.Were he alive today, he could very well have been reinspired by this ambitious recreation of the Moulin Rouge 100 years later.A mammoth, toyingly libidinous piece of escapism to be certain, the painter would simply revel in the outre, over-the-top, visually assaultive mind of its creator writer/director Baz Luhrmann. I, too, was quite bowled over by this "everything but the kitchen sink" extravaganza, although not always as ecstatically as I would have wanted to be, but certainly enough to appreciate the intentions of this masterful deluge of gaudy Gallic grandeur circa 1899. Refreshingly original (the previews had me fooled), what did NOT race through my categorical mind while experiencing this film!In its initial stage, the love story seemed to borrow its concept directly from Christopher Isherwood's "Berlin Stories," specifically the Sally Bowles "Cabaret"-inspired chapter in which a naive, struggling writer recalls (via his typewriter) his doomed love affair with a capricious entertainer who got caught up in the phony glitz and decadent glamour around her.But from then on, it was anybody's guess.A potpourri of other musical shows and films flashed through my mind --from the typical (Jose Ferrer's "Moulin Rouge," "Can-Can," "Les Girls," "An American in Paris") to the more imaginative and surreal ("Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," "Blade Runner," "Fellini Satyricon," Fosse's "All That Jazz," the phantasmagorical "Yellow Submarine", anything Gilbert & Sullivan-ish, and Disney's "Aladdin").Don't even ask me why on some of these. Nicole Kidman's Satine could have easily been based on the life of the indelible French star Renee Adoree, a one-time circus performer who became a Folies Bergere dancer.She subsequently was ushered to Hollywood and illuminated one classic love story, "The Big Parade" with John Gilbert, that remains a silent screen treasure.A frail beauty, Renee died in her mid-30s of tuberculosis/consumption. Once the incessant battering by the camera's eye took a breather and I was allowed to actually focus on something tangible -- like the love story -- I found the enticing, highly photogenic Kidman, coupled with Ewan McGregor's honest-guy Christian, to be quite affecting as a pair, even moving.And that wasn't easy.The visual bombardment and gimmicky use of modern songs constantly threaten to isolate the viewer from the film's emotional core. Fortunately, it did not succeed. Speaking of, the use of contemporary pop and classic rock songs worked better at the beginning when it was a novelty but, of course, the pattern eventually wore out its welcome as I started spending my time ingenously thinking about what next classic hit should be used for the present scene -- much like the so-so musical "Mamma Mia!" wherein a series of Abba songs are thrown together (very weakly) to create a ridiculous storyline.I thought the "Material Girl" number (despite the engaging presence of Jim Broadbent's bombastic impresario, Zidler, and Richard Roxburgh's oily villain, the Duke of Worchester) was stretching a potential good idea too far.However, Kidman's breathy song stylings and, especially, McGregor's sturdy pop tenor handled the love songs quite effectively. As for the handling of simple little love stories, however, I sincerely hope Luhrmann doesn't get any ideas by setting his sights on a remake of "The Fantasticks."I don't think the fragile little story could take it! ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Mr. Holland's Opus|Stephen Herek|Drama|Rated PG for mild language. |7.1|USA|1995| 143 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert W. Cort Patrick Sheane Duncan Ted Field Judith James Scott Kroopf Michael Nolin William Teitler|Patrick Sheane Duncan |Oliver Wood ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |It's not about the direction you take.It's about the direction you give.|Glenn Holland (Dreyfuss) is a musician and composer who takes a teaching job to pay the rent while, in his 'spare time', he can strive to achieve his true goal - compose one memorable piece of music to leave his mark on the world. As Holland discovers 'Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans' and as the years unfold the joy of sharing his contagious passion for music with his students becomes his new definition of success. |Richard Dreyfuss (Glenn Holland) @ Glenne Headly (Iris Holland) @ Jay Thomas (Bill Meister, Phys-Ed Teacher JFK High School) @ Olympia Dukakis (Principal Ellen Jacobs) @ William H. Macy (Vice Principal Gene Wolters (as W.H. Macy)) @ Alicia Witt (Gertrude Lang) @ Terrence Dashon Howard (Louis Russ (as Terrence Howard)) @ Damon Whitaker (Bobby Tidd) @ Jean Louisa Kelly (Rowena Morgan) @ Alexandra Boyd (Sarah Olmstead, Teacher) @ Nicholas John Renner (Cole at 6 Years Old) @ Joseph Anderson (Cole at 15 Years Old) @ Anthony Natale (Cole at 28 Years Old) @ Joanna Gleason (Gertrude Lang as an adult) @ Beth Maitland (Deaf School Principal) @ Patrick Fong (Study Hall Student) @ Benjamin J. Dixon (Mr. Mims) @ Kathryn Arnett (Ms. Swedlin) @ Freeman O. Corbin (Mr. Sullivan) @ Moira Feeney (Ms. Godfrey) @ Joshua Minnick (Mr. Shapiro) @ Ashley Hamrick (Miss Reeves) @ Janine Shouse (Miss Schumaker) @ Spencer Riviera (Mr. Hosta) @ Daniel J. Vhay (Mr. Malone) @ Sean Bevington (Mr. McMartin) @ John Henry Redwood (Mr. Russ) @ Ted Roisum (Dr. Sorenson) @ Mark Daniels (Ralph) @ Kaili Carlton (Ms. Wayne) @ Adam Fitzhugh (Mr. McKenzie) @ Eric Michael Cole (Boy 2) @ Joe Campbell (Boy 3) @ Tomiko Peirano (Girl 2) @ Kasey Nelson (Girl 3) @ Zoe McLellan (Girl 4) @ Kelly M. Casey (Deaf School Teacher) @ Michael Mendelson (Chaplain) @ Alex Dudgeon (Auditioner 1) @ Rachel Wooley (Auditioner 2) @ Jordan Carlton (Auditioner 3) @ Aurora J. Miller (Auditioner 4) @ Paul Bernard (Auditioner 5) @ Mary Kay O'Mealy (Auditioner 6) @ Dieffyd Gilman-Frederick (Auditioner 7) @ Tara Eng (Auditioner 8) @ Jay Frank (Auditioner 9) @ Conan Doherty (Toby Klein) @ Stacey Siegel (Diner Waitress) @ Nicolas Sirianni (Football Player 1) @ Jacob Adams (Football Player 2) @ Chris Marth (Football Player 3) @ Brent Archie (Football Player 4) @ Kevin Calaba (Football Player 5) @ Keith Swift (Football Player 6) @ John Boyer (Billy Faraday) @ Linda Williams Janke (Secretary) @ David Clegg (Superintendent) @ Don Burns (City Official) @ Dennis Biasi (Adult Stadler rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Balthazar Getty (Young Stadler (uncredited)) @ Tom Peterson (Parade Announcer (uncredited) Produced by||One man's struggles with life This is one of my favorite movies of all times. As usual, Richard Dreyfuss is excellent in his portrayal of a gifted but frustrated musician. He gives up on his dreams for the drudgery of marriage and fatherhood. I think he would have been better off going for his dreams, rather than being pressed down by other people's little lives. Instead he became a role model for his students in the high school in which he taught, giving a few excellent guidance, which helped them out later in life. Great movie. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Mummy, The|Stephen Sommers|Adventure|Rated PG-13 for pervasive adventure violence and some partial nudity. |6.5|USA|1999| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Patricia Carr Sean Daniel James Jacks Kevin Jarre Megan Moran|Nina Wilcox Putnam Richard Schayer John L. Balderston Stephen Sommers Lloyd Fonvielle Kevin Jarre Stephen Sommers|Adrian Biddle ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The sands will rise. The heavens will part. The power will be unleashed.|As punishment for killing Pharaoh Seti and sleeping with his mistress, Egyptian priest Imhotep was mummified alive and cursed. But in 1923 he is inadvertently resurrected by treasure hunters and must be stopped before he can wreak his final vengeance on the world. In 1926, a group of archeologists stumble upon a tomb at Hamunaptra. Inside this tomb the group finds the body of Imhotep, Pharoah Seti's priest and one-time lover of Seti's mistress. However, when the group accidentally brings Imhotep back to life, the results are fatal. Dopo 3700 anni, la mummia del sacerdote egizio Imhotep intende ritornare in vita. Rick, giovane ed avventuroso legionario, Evelyn, bella e sensuale, e Jonathan, il fratello di lei, si trovano a dover combattere le forze del male, evocate dallo stesso sacerdote, che si sta ricomponendo. In ancient Egypt, high priest Imhotep started a forbidden relationship with Anck-su-namun, Pharaoh Seti's Mistress. When Seti finds out about what's going on, Imhotep and his loved one stab him, but can't escape the trustworthy guards: Anck-su-namnun chooses to commit suicide while Imhotep is bestowed with the Hom-Dai, the most feared curse of all: He is mummified alive in Hamunaptra, the city of the Dead. More than thirty-six centuries later, in 1923, to be exact, adventurer Rick leads Egyptologist Evelyn and her brother Johnathan to mysterious Hamunaptra. While Johnathan is keen on finding the legendary Egyptian treasures, Evelyn wants to search for the Book of the Living, which would clarify a lot in historical knowledge about the ancient Egyptians. Unfortunately, they and a rivaling group of careless American adventurers free Imhotep's mummy from his eternal prison. Now, with the ancient and quite agile high priest on the loose, the adventurers and scientists face not only a dangerous enemy, but also a massive threat to today's world: Imhotep wants to bring Anck-su-namun back to life by using Evelyn's body, but he also wants to rid the world of the disbelieving crowd of democracy-supporters to be able to enforce his tyrannic dictatorship. |Brendan Fraser (Richard 'Rick' O'Connell) @ Rachel Weisz (Evelyn Carnahan) @ John Hannah (Jonathan Carnahan) @ Arnold Vosloo (High Priest Imhotep) @ Kevin J. O'Connor (Beni Gabor) @ Oded Fehr (Ardeth Bey) @ Jonathan Hyde (Dr. Allen Chamberlain) @ Erick Avari (Dr. Terrence Bey) @ Bernard Fox (Captain Winston Havlock) @ Stephen Dunham (Mr. Henderson) @ Corey Johnson (Mr. Daniels) @ Tuc Watkins (Mr. Burns) @ Omid Djalili (Warden Gad Hassan) @ Aharon Ipalé (Pharaoh Seti I) @ Patricia Velasquez (Anck Su Namun) @ Carl Chase (Hook) @ Mohammed Afifi (Hangman) @ Abderrahim El Aadili (Camel Trader) @ Jake Arnott (Mummy) @ Mason Ball (Mummy) @ Isobel Brook (Mummy) @ James Traherne Burton (Mummy) @ Peter Chequer (Mummy) @ Porl Smith (Mummy) @ Ian Warner (Mummy Produced by||Revisionistic success on a moth-eaten classic THE MUMMY (1999) ***1/2 Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Kevin J. O'Connor, Arnold Vosloo, Jonathan Hyde, Oded Fehr, Omid Djalili.Fabulous special effects laden remake of the classic horror flick with a ‘90's tongue-through-cheek twist.Fraser makes an appealingly tough yet goofy hero as an adventurer (sort of Indiana Jones lite) who teams up with a hottie British Egyptian interpreter/museum clerk (Weisz in a plucky turn) and her boozing brother (Hannah in a dry, comic go) in search for a long buried city of the dead that instead unleashes 3,500 year old cursed spirit of Imhotep (Vosloo) whose vengeance must be satisfied!The visuals and plenty of good natured humor mixed with some at-times eerily effective scary jolts makes for a giddy, guilty pleasure.And watch out for those nasty, flesh-eating scarabs(!)HANG ON! ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Murder by Numbers|Barbet Schroeder|Crime|Rated R for violence, language, a sex scene and brief drug use. |6.0|USA|2002| 120 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Sandra Bullock Frank Capra III Richard Crystal Susan Hoffman Barbet Schroeder Jeffrey Stott Nur Nur Cummings Scott Simons|Tony Gayton |Luciano Tovoli ||Warner Bros. GmbH [de] |Let The Mind Games Begin|'Murder By Numbers' is a psychological suspense-thriller that tells the story of a tenacious homicide detective, Cassie Mayweather (Sandra Bullock) and her new partner Sam Kennedy (Ben Chaplin) who become pitted against two malevolently brilliant young men (Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt) in an ingenious battle of wits as they try to solve a murder case. |Sandra Bullock (Cassie 'Cass' Mayweather, aka Jessica Marie Hudson) @ Ben Chaplin (Sam Kennedy) @ Ryan Gosling (Richard 'Richie' Haywood) @ Michael Pitt (Justin Pendleton) @ Agnes Bruckner (Lisa Mills) @ Chris Penn (Raymond 'Ray' Feathers) @ R.D. Call (Captain Rod Cody) @ Tom Verica (Al Swanson, Assistant District Attorney) @ Janni Brenn (Ms. Elder) @ John Vickery (Restaurant Manager) @ Michael Canavan (Mr. Chechi) @ Krista Carpenter (Olivia Lake, the Victim) @ Neal Matarazzo (Male Officer in Flashback) @ Adilah Barnes (Lab Technician) @ Jim Jansen (Lawyer) @ Paula Scarpino (Female Officer in Flashback) @ Brian Stepanek (Parole Board Marshall) @ Sharon Madden (Nurse) @ John Doolittle (Fingerprint Technician) @ Dennis Cockrum (Criminalist #1 at Ray's House) @ Eric Saiet (Criminalist #2 at Ray's House) @ Nancy Osborne (Richard's Mother) @ Ralph Seymour (Paramedic) @ Christine Healy (Justin's Mother) @ Nick Offerman (Cop at Richard's House) @ Todd Leatherbury (Cop at First Crime Scene rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Michael Samluk (Carl Hudson (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||A winner STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs A hard nosed murder investigator (Sandra Bullock) and her rookie partner (Ben Chaplin) try to solve the murder of a young woman by a couple of evil high school students (Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt) and discover nasty secrets about the teenager's past along the way. It's an original and intriguing premise,there are some sharp and effective thrills 'n' spills and damn Sandra looks sexy prancing around in a leather jacket.Barbet Schroder has succeeded again.Go see.**** || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Muriel's Wedding|P.J. Hogan|Comedy|Rated R for sex-related dialogue and some sexuality. |7.1|France|1994| 106 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael D. Aglion Lynda House Tony Mahood Jocelyn Moorhouse|P.J. Hogan |Martin McGrath ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |She's not just getting married, she's getting even.|Muriel finds life in Porpoise Spit, Australia dull and spends her days alone in her room listening to Abba music and dreaming of her wedding day. Slight problem, Muriel has never had a date. Then she steals some money to go on a tropical vacation, meets a wacky friend, changes her name to Mariel, and turns her world upside down. |Toni Collette (Muriel Heslop/Mariel Heslop-Van Arckle) @ Bill Hunter (Bill Heslop) @ Rachel Griffiths (Rhonda Epinstalk) @ Sophie Lee (Tania Degano) @ Rosalind Hammond (Cheryl) @ Belinda Jarrett (Janine) @ Pippa Grandison (Nicole) @ Jeanie Drynan (Betty Heslop) @ Daniel Wyllie (Perry Heslop) @ Gabby Millgate (Joanie Heslop) @ Gennie Nevinson (Deidre Chambers) @ Matt Day (Brice Nobes) @ Chris Haywood (Coach Ken Blundell) @ Daniel Lapaine (David Van Arckle) @ Susan Prior (Girl at wedding) @ Cecily Polson (Tania's mother) @ Nathan Kaye (Peter 'Chook' Vernell) @ Rob Steele (Leo Higgins) @ Geneviève Picot (Store detective) @ Richard Sutherland (Const. Saunders) @ Steve Smith (Const. Gillespie) @ Katie Saunders (Penelope Heslop) @ Dene Kermond (Malcolm Heslop) @ Jeamin Lee (Chinese waitress) @ Jon-Claire Lee (Chinese maitre d') @ Kuni Hashimoto (Akira) @ Ken Senga (Victor Keinosuke) @ Des Rodgers (Island M.C.) @ Rohan Jones (Restaurant boy) @ Scott Hall-Watson (Restaurant boy) @ Craig Olson (Restaurant Boy) @ Justin Witham (Restaurant Boy) @ Rodney Arnold (Ejected Diner) @ Barry Crocker (Himself) @ Steve Cox (Cruise Taxi Driver) @ Kevin Copeland (Sailor) @ James Schramko (Sailor) @ Richard Morecroft (Himself) @ Richard Carter (Federal Policeman) @ John Gaden (Doctor) @ Heather Mitchell (Bridal Manageress #1) @ Heidi Lapaine (Bridal Assistant #1) @ Diane Smith (Physiotherapist) @ Darrin Klimek (Rhonda's taxi driver) @ Penne Hackforth-Jones (Bridal Manageress #2) @ Kirsty Hinchcliffe (Bridal Assistant #2) @ Robert Alexander (Barrister) @ Troy Hardy (Young Boy) @ Robyn Pitt Owen (Singer at Muriel's wedding) @ Annie Byron (Rhonda's mother) @ Jacqueline Linke (Press Member at Muriel's wedding) @ Alvaro Marques (Press Member at Muriel's wedding) @ Fiona Sullivan (Press Member at Muriel's wedding) @ Ineke Rapp (Press Member at Muriel's wedding) @ Julian Garner (Press Member at Muriel's wedding) @ Vincent Ball (Priest) @ John Hoare (Well-wisher at Muriel's wedding) @ Frankie Davidson (Sergeant) @ Louise Cullen (Deidre's friend) @ Basil Clarke (Funeral Priest) @ John Walton (Taxi Driver rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Michael Howson (Himself (uncredited) Produced by||Collette shines in fine film I've always been a fan of Australian films and I love the unconventional way Australian filmmakers tell their quirky stories. Here's the story of a fat and lonely young woman named Muriel (Toni Collette) who dreams of getting married and thinks she'll be a real somebody when that happens. Her father is a local politician who criticizes his family as worthless at every turn. Muriel's friends are very shallow and finally tell her that they don't want to be friends with her anymore. Muriel steals money from her father and follows her former friends to a resort and runs into Rhonda (Rachel Griffiths) who use to go to high school with Muriel and soon become fast friends. They both end up in Sydney living together and talking about never going back to Porpoise Spit, the city where they are from. The story is both funny and sad and even the humor sometimes rides a very thin edge of seriousness. Muriel decides to marry a South African athlete who is competing for the Olympics and wants a visa. Muriel thinks this is her time to change and be a different person. Overall message is pretty clear but the writing and directing are presented in a fresh manner by P.J. Hogan who despite some very serious character flaws in all her characters maintains a sense that she likes and cares for them all. This makes the film more absorbing and the personality flaws allow for each character to have they're own special moments. Griffiths exudes pure energy on the screen and she has that special quality that just cannot be taught in acting classes. She's interesting and exciting and you just can't take your eyes off her when she's on screen. Seeing Toni Collette now makes her practically unrecognizable in this film. She really is overweight! Collette is terrific as Muriel and her performance is the core of the film. As good of a script as this is and as exciting as Griffiths is its still Collette's picture. Her casting was pivotal to the film. Collette has never been better and that includes her performance in "The Sixth Sense". Collette adds just the right blend of pathos and unusual charm that Lynn Redgrave gave in "Georgy Girl". Her performance resonates both pity and smiles allduring the course of the film and thats not an easy feat. Message is simple but the characters and the performances really lift this fine film to a must see! ||Miramax Classics |1.66 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Music Man, The|Morton DaCosta|Musical|NR |7.5|USA|1962|151 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/4/2004|Morton DaCosta Joel Freeman|Meredith Willson Franklin Lacey Marion Hargrove|Robert Burks ||Warner Bros. [us] |We're getting ready to blow our horn like we've never blown it before! We've got[The Music Man]|Confidence man Harold Hill arrives at staid River City intending to cheat the community with his standard scam of offering to equip and train a boy's marching band, then skip town with the money since he has no music skill anyway. Things go awry when he falls for a librarian he tries to divert from exposing him while he inadvertently enriches the town with a love of music. Professor Harold Hill likes a challenge and when the other drummers on the train west tell him that Iowa is the biggest test of all of sales ability, he gets off at River City. We know it's the 20th century there, only because of a reference in one of the songs to Gary, Indiana. Marian the librarian doesn't buy the professor's line but he convinces many of his other potential customers that the new pool table that has just been placed in the billiard parlor could mean "trouble in River City." How to keep the youngsters "moral after school?" Form a boys marching band. |Robert Preston (Harold Hill) @ Shirley Jones (Marian Paroo) @ Buddy Hackett (Marcellus Washburn) @ Hermione Gingold (Eulalie Mackechnie Shinn) @ Paul Ford (Mayor George Shinn) @ Pert Kelton (Mrs. Paroo) @ Vern Reed (Jacey Squires (as The Buffalo Bills)) @ Al Shea (Ewart Dunlop (as The Buffalo Bills)) @ Bill Spangenberg (Olin Britt (as The Buffalo Bills)) @ Wayne Ward (Oliver Hix (as The Buffalo Bills)) @ Timmy Everett (Tommy Djilas) @ Susan Luckey (Zaneeta Shinn) @ Ron Howard (Winthrop Paroo (as Ronny Howard)) @ Harry Hickox (Charlie Cowell (anvil salesman)) @ Charles Lane (Constable Locke) @ Mary Wickes (Mrs. Squires) @ Sara Seegar (Maud Dunlop) @ Adnia Rice (Alma Hix) @ Peggy Mondo (Ethel Toffelmier) @ Jesslyn Fax (Avis Grubb) @ Monique Vermont (Amaryllis rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rand Barker (Duncan Shyball (uncredited)) @ Charles Alvin Bell (Police Officer (uncredited)) @ Jeannine Burnier (Jessie Shyball (uncredited)) @ Shirley Claire (Amy Dakin (uncredited)) @ Natalie Core (Truthful Smith (uncredited)) @ Ronnie Dapo (Norbert Smith (uncredited)) @ Roy Dean (Gilbert Hawthorne (uncredited)) @ William Fawcett (Lester Lonnergan (Wells Fargo wagon) (uncredited)) @ Percy Helton (Train conductor (uncredited)) @ Patty Lee Hilka (Gracie Shinn (uncredited)) @ Rance Howard (Oscar Jackson (uncredited)) @ Delos Jewkes (Harley MacCauley (uncredited)) @ Elaine Joyce (Extra (uncredited)) @ Ray Kellogg (Harry Joseph (uncredited)) @ Ann Loos (Stella Jackson (uncredited)) @ Robert Lyons (Band member (uncredited)) @ Therese Lyon (Dolly Higgins (uncredited)) @ Penelope Martin (Lila O'Brink (uncredited)) @ Natalie Masters (Farmer's wife (Iowa Stubborn) (uncredited)) @ Arthur Mills (Herbert Malthouse (uncredited)) @ Milton Parsons (Farmer (Iowa Stubborn) (uncredited)) @ Barbara Pepper (Feril Hawkes (Snapping Beans) (uncredited)) @ Charles Percheskly (Salesman (uncredited)) @ Gary Potter (Dewey Malthouse (youngest boy in the band) (uncredited)) @ Maudie Prickett (Townswoman (uncredited)) @ Larry Steven Randel (Band member (uncredited)) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Man (uncredited)) @ Max Showalter (Salesman on the train (uncredited)) @ David Swain (Chet Glanville (uncredited)) @ Hank Worden (Undertaker (uncredited)) @ Peggy Wynne (Ada Nutting (uncredited)Produced by||One of the best musicals of all time! A musical without a flaw. The score includes such classics as "Till There Was You", "76 Trombones", Lida Rose, and the catchy "Trouble".Robert Preston's portrayal of Prof. Harold Hill is outstanding. Look for a young Ronnie Howard and the barber shop quartet "The Buffalo Bills" adding to the fun. It is a film that will make you feel good. Don't miss it! ||Special Edition |2.20 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ My Big Fat Greek Wedding|Joel Zwick|Comedy|Rated PG for sensuality and language. |7.1|USA|2002| 96 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Paul Brooks David Coatsworth Gary Goetzman Tom Hanks Mark Hufnail Jim Milio Melissa Jo Peltier Steve Shareshian Norm Waitt Rita Wilson|Nia Vardalos |Jeff Jur ||20th Century Fox of Germany [de] |Love is here to stay... so is her family. |Toula Portokalos is 30, Greek, and works in her family's restaurant, Dancing Zorba's, in Chicago. All her father Gus wants is for her to get married to a nice Greek boy. But Toula is looking for more in life. Her mother convinces Gus to let her take some computer classes at college (making him think it's his idea). With those classes under her belt, she then takes over her aunt's travel agency (again making her father think it's his idea). She meets Ian Miller, a high school English teacher, WASP, and dreamboat she had made a fool of herself over at the restaurant; they date secretly for a while before her family finds out. Her father is livid over her dating a non-Greek. He has to learn to accept Ian; Ian has to learn to accept Toula's huge family, and Toula has to learn to accept herself. |Nia Vardalos (Toula Portokalos) @ John Corbett (Ian Miller) @ Lainie Kazan (Maria Portokalos) @ Michael Constantine (Gus Portokalos) @ Gia Carides (Nikki) @ Louis Mandylor (Nick Portokalos) @ Bess Meisler (Yiayia) @ Bruce Gray (Rodney Miller) @ Fiona Reid (Harriet Miller) @ Ian Gomez (Mike) @ Jayne Eastwood (Mrs. White) @ Andrea Martin (Aunt Voula) @ Joey Fatone (Angelo) @ Christina Eleusiniotis (Toula at 6) @ Kaylee Vieira (Schoolgirl) @ John Kalangis (Greek Teacher) @ Marita Zouravlioff (Toula at 12) @ Sarah Osman (Athena at 15) @ Petra Wildgoose (Car Pool Friend) @ Melissa Todd (Car Pool Friend) @ Gerry Mendicino (Taki) @ Stavroula Logothettis (Athena) @ Constantine Tsapralis (Foti) @ Frank Falcone (Suitor) @ Eugene Martel (Suitor) @ Joe Persechini (Suitor) @ Peter Xynnis (Suitor) @ Anthony Kandiotis (Priest) @ Nick Kutsukos (Bouzouki Player) @ Peter Tharos (Yianni) @ Chrissy Paraskevopoulos (Cousin Jennie) @ Maria Vacratsis (Aunt Freida) @ Kathryn Haggis (Marianthi) @ Gale Garnett (Lexy (as Gale Zoe Garnett)) @ Charlene Bitzas (Nota) @ Chris Savides (Greek Chanter) @ Constantine Vardalos (Greek Chanter) @ Scott Khouri (Waiter) @ John Tsifliklis (Wedding Singer) @ Peter Chalkiopoulos (Wedding Band Member) @ Peter Gogos (Wedding Band Member) @ Spiro Milankou (Wedding Band Member) @ Victor Politis (Wedding Band Member) @ Jim Rouvas (Wedding Band Member) @ Arielle Sugarman (Paris Produced by||It is never too late in life That is the message I got from this film.It is nice to see a fellow Winnipeger doing well.I thought this movie was going to be an Artsie film, but I was pleasantly surprised.I understand the humour in this film as I grew up in East Kildonan and a lot of my friends' families were this way. All cultures have the good and the bad, but in the end it is what type of people they are.I believe Windex will fix anything.I wonder how much of this is from real life or was it all made up.It was worth renting.This one should of been one that I should of seen in the theatre.8/10 || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ My Blue Heaven|Herbert Ross|Comedy||6.0|USA|1990| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Joseph M. Caracciolo Nora Ephron Goldie Hawn Herbert Ross Andrew Stone Anthea Sylbert|Nora Ephron |John Bailey ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The stars of Parenthood in comedy about an urban hood finding suburbanhood.|FBI agent Barney Coopersmith is assigned to protect former Mafia figure turned informant Vincent Antonelli. In the witness protection program one is supposed to keep a low profile, but that is something that Antonelli has trouble doing. Coopersmith certainly has his hands full keeping Antonelli away from the Mafia hitmen who want to stop him testifying, not to mention the nightclubs... |Steve Martin (Vincent 'Vinnie' Antonelli) @ Rick Moranis (Barney Coopersmith) @ Joan Cusack (Hannah Stubbs) @ Melanie Mayron (Crystal) @ Bill Irwin (Kirby) @ Carol Kane (Shaldeen) @ William Hickey (Billy Sparrow) @ Deborah Rush (Linda) @ Daniel Stern (Will Stubbs) @ Jesse Bradford (Jamie) @ Corey Carrier (Tommie) @ Seth Jaffe (Umberto Mello) @ Robert Miranda (Lilo Mello) @ Ed Lauter (Underwood) @ Julie Bovasso (Vinnie's Mother) @ Colleen Camp (Dr. Margaret Snow Coopersmith) @ Gordon Currie (Wally Bunting) @ Raymond O'Connor (Dino) @ Troy Evans (Nicky) @ Dick Boccelli (Rocco) @ Ron Karabatsos (Ritchie) @ Tony DiBenedetto (Benny) @ Melissa Hurley (Angela) @ Leslie Cook (Marie) @ Darren Chuckry (Supermarket Manager) @ Duke Stroud (Supermarket Employee) @ Carol Ann Susi (Filomena) @ Frank Gio (Gaetano (as Frankie Gio)) @ Joel Polis (U.S. Attorney) @ Larry Block (Defense Attorney) @ Arthur Brauss (Judge) @ Greta Blackburn (Stewardess) @ Eva Charney (Stewardess) @ Ellen Albertini Dow (Nun) @ David Knell (Checker) @ John Harnagel (Motel Manager) @ LaWanda Page (Hotel Maid) @ Daniel Riordan (Removal Man) @ Thomas Wagner (Umpire) @ Jean Spray (Gatto) @ James Emery (FBI Man) @ Matt Roe (FBI Man) @ John Rogers (Policeman at Motel) @ Valerie Wildman (TV Reporter) @ Daniel Trent (Bailiff) @ Rudy E. Morrison (Maitre d') @ Frank R. Roach (Judge) @ Jeff Fredricks (Booking Cop rest of cast listed alphabetically Leonard Termo) @ Kathleen Mackechnie (Customer (uncredited)) @ Gregory Schmauss (Policeman at construction (uncredited)) @ Eric Stormoen (Ice Cream Sales Person (uncredited) Produced by||Amazing Martin Setting aside the fact that Joan Cusack is a fantastically beautiful woman and always worth the price of admission, I am continually amazed that Steve Martin can ham it up and make it work.Rick Moranis is always the worried little guy and that's OK but Martin is at his best, clowning it up as a Mafia good guy, wearing some of the most outlandish outfits since Jack Nicholson in Prizzi's Honor.Don't get me wrong.There's nothing funny about the mafia or the mob.But, Martin creates his own persona with some great lines as funny as Marissa Tomei and Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinnie.As a loveable sleazebag, Martin is great...and, of course, Joan Cusack is also great.Check this one out.It's fun. ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ My Fair Lady|George Cukor|Comedy||7.8|USA|1964| 170 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|James C. Katz Jack L. Warner|George Bernard Shaw Alan Jay Lerner Alan Jay Lerner|Harry Stradling Sr. ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The loverliest motion picture of them all!|Henry Higgins is a Professor of languages and a rather snobbish and arrogant man. A visiting colleague, Colonel Pickering, makes him a bet that he can't take a "commoner" and turn her into someone who would not be completely out of place in the social circles of upper-class English society. Gloriously witty adaptation of the Broadway musical about Professor Henry Higgins, who takes a bet from Colonel Pickering that he can transform unrefined, dirty Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle into a lady, and fool everyone into thinking she really is one, too! He does, and thus young aristocrat Freddy Eynsford-Hill falls madly in love with her. But when Higgins takes all the credit and forgets to acknowledge her efforts, Eliza angrily leaves him for Freddy, and suddenly Higgins realizes he's grown accustomed to her face and can't really live without it. |Audrey Hepburn (Eliza Doolittle) @ Rex Harrison (Professor Henry Higgins) @ Stanley Holloway (Alfred P. Doolittle) @ Wilfrid Hyde-White (Colonel Hugh Pickering) @ Gladys Cooper (Mrs. Higgins) @ Jeremy Brett (Freddie Eynsford-Hill) @ Theodore Bikel (Zoltan Karpathy) @ Mona Washbourne (Mrs. Pearce) @ Isobel Elsom (Mrs. Eynsford-Hill rest of cast listed alphabetically Alan Napier .... Gentleman escorting Eliza to the Queen) @ John Alderson (Jamie (uncredited)) @ Lois Battle (Second Maid (uncredited)) @ Marjorie Bennett (Cockney with Pipe (uncredited)) @ Oscar Beregi Jr. (Greek Ambassador (uncredited)) @ Betty Blythe (Lady at Ball (uncredited)) @ Iris Bristol (Flower Girl (uncredited)) @ Buddy Bryant (Prince of Transylvania (uncredited)) @ Walter Burke (Bystander who warns Eliza (uncredited)) @ Jennifer Crier (Mrs. Higgins' Maid (uncredited)) @ Maurice Dallimore (Selsey Man (uncredited)) @ Henry Daniell (Ambassador (uncredited)) @ Roy Dean (Footman (uncredited)) @ Brendan Dillon (Leading Man (uncredited)) @ Kai Farelli (Juggler (uncredited)) @ Charles E. Fredericks (King George V, in fantasy sequence (uncredited)) @ Ayllene Gibbons (Fat Woman at Pub (uncredited)) @ Jack Greening (George (uncredited)) @ Beatrice Grenough (Grans Lady (uncredited)) @ Clive Halliday (Costermonger (uncredited)) @ Sam Harris (Guest at Ball (uncredited)) @ Eric Heath (Costermonger (uncredited)) @ Eugene Hoffman (Juggler (uncredited)) @ James W. Horan ( (uncredited)) @ Lillian Kemble-Cooper (Lady Ambassador (uncredited)) @ Alma Lawton (Flower Girl (uncredited)) @ Queenie Leonard (Cockney Bystander (uncredited)) @ Moyna MacGill (Lady Boxington (uncredited)) @ Laurie Main (Hoxton Man not Hoston (uncredited)) @ Owen McGiveney (Man at Coffee Stand (uncredited)) @ John McLiam (Harry (uncredited)) @ Barbara Morrison ( (uncredited)) @ Nick Navarro (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Marni Nixon (Eliza Doolittle (singing voice) (uncredited)) @ James O'Hara (Costermonger (uncredited)) @ Richard Peel (Costermonger (uncredited)) @ Barbara Pepper (Doolittle's Dance Partner (uncredited)) @ Olive Reeves-Smith (Mrs. Hopkins (uncredited)) @ Christopher Riordan (Suitor at Ball (uncredited)) @ Dinah Ann Rogers (First Maid (uncredited)) @ Victor Rogers (Policeman (uncredited)) @ Baroness Rothschild (Queen of Transylvania (uncredited)) @ Kenny Salvatt (Racegoer in 'Ascot Gavotte' Sequence (uncredited)) @ Miriam Schiller (Landlady (uncredited)) @ Bill Shirley (Freddie Eynsford-Hill (singing voice) (uncredited)) @ Jacqueline Squire (Parlor Maid (uncredited)) @ Michael St. Clair (Bartender (uncredited)) @ Geoffrey Steele (Taxi Driver (uncredited)) @ Grady Sutton (Ascot Extra/Guest at Ball (uncredited)) @ Gwendolyn Watts (Cook (uncredited)) @ Ron Whelan (Algernon/Bartender (uncredited)) @ Ben Wright (Footman at Ball (uncredited)) @ Ben Wrigley (Costermonger (uncredited) Produced by||Weighs like a pound-cake soaking wet Heavy, heavy, heavy film-adaptation of the Broadway success, based on Shaw's "Pygmalion", has flower-seller Audrey Hepburn turned into a 'lady' by smug professor Rex Harrison. The whole movie is smug, and embalmed. Audrey usually sparkles without effort--here she's grim, with her tight little mouth held in check. Rex Harrison is blithe and condescending and wonderful, and gives the carpeted proceedings a little well-needed polish. The film is a musical but it doesn't sing, it plods. ||Premiere Collection |2.20 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Ma vie en rose|Alain Berliner|Comedy|Rated R for brief strong language. |7.4|France|1997| 88 min |French||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Carole Scotta |Alain Berliner Chris Vander Stappen|Yves Cape ||Alpha Filmes Ltda. [br] |Sometimes you just have to be yourself. |Ludovic is a small boy who cross-dresses and generally acts like a girl, talks of marrying his neighbor's son and can not understand why everyone is so surprised about it. His actions lead to problems for him and his family. Ludovic is a young boy who can't wait to grow up to be a woman. When his family discovers the little girl blossoming in him they are forced to contend with their own discomfort and the lack of understanding from their new neighbors. Their anger and impatience cave and Ludovic is sent to see a psychiatrist in the hopes of fixing whatever is wrong with him. A movie that addresses trans-gender and gender issues in general through the eyes of a child. |Michèle Laroque (Hanna Fabre) @ Jean-Philippe Écoffey (Pierre Fabre) @ Hélène Vincent (Élisabeth) @ Georges Du Fresne (Ludovic Fabre) @ Daniel Hanssens (Albert) @ Laurence Bibot (Lisette) @ Jean-François Gallotte (Thierry) @ Caroline Baehr (Monique) @ Julien Rivière (Jérôme) @ Marie Bunel (Psychoanalyst) @ Gregory Diallo (Thom Fabre) @ Erik Cazals De Fabel (Jean Fabre) @ Cristina Barget (Zoé Fabre) @ Delphine Cadet (Pam) @ Morgane Bruna (Sophie) @ Raphaelle Santini (Christine) @ Marine Jolivet (Fabrienne) @ Anne Coesens (Teacher) @ Vincent Grass (Principal) @ Catherine Hirsh (Secretary) @ Kevin Martin (Kevin) @ Marie Beatrice Paillard (Manon) @ Peter Bailey (Jeremie) @ Charly Esposito (Tristan) @ Jeremy Durieu (Lucien) @ Michael Cordera (Ben) @ Erwan Demaure (Jonathan) @ Simon Poitier (Bertrand) @ Alexandra Genoves (producer||Wonderfully touching This is a beautiful movie that will touch your heart.A movie about accepting those we love for who they are, and not what we wish they were. It's a very real look at families and how they interact.About how hard it is for a parent to admit, either to themselves or others, that their child may be "different", even when they truly love that child.The child in this movie will steal your heart. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Mystic Pizza|Donald Petrie|Comedy||6.1|USA|1988| 104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/27/2004|Samuel Goldwyn Jr. Mark Levinson Scott M. Rosenfelt Susan Vogelfang|Amy Holden Jones Amy Holden Jones Perry Howze Randy Howze Alfred Uhry|Tim Suhrstedt ||CTV International [fr] |A romantic comedy with the works.|Sisters Kat and Daisy work along with Jojo at the pizza parlour in Mystic, Connecticut. Kat, shortly off to Yale, finds herself drawn to a local architect she is babysitting for, while her more tearaway sister starts dating a guy from the money side of the tracks. Jojo leaves her man at the alter; she loves him but shies away from commitment. Meanwhile the fame of the pizza continues to spread; it seems to contain something almost ..... mystic. Sisters, Daisy and Kat, work in a local Pizza store. Daisy is beautiful but seems to be wasting her life, Kat is going to College. The story revolves around the love lives of the two sisters and their friend Jojo. Jojo has stood at the alter but couldn't go through with a marriage, Daisy hasn't found Mr Right yet, and Kat hasn't got time for boyfriends. |Annabeth Gish (Kat Arujo) @ Julia Roberts (Daisy Arujo) @ Lili Taylor (Jojo) @ Vincent D'Onofrio (Bill (as Vincent Phillip D'Onofrio)) @ William R. Moses (Tim Travers) @ Adam Storke (Charles Gordon Windsor, Jr.) @ Conchata Ferrell (Leona) @ Joanna Merlin (Mrs. Arujo) @ Porscha Radcliffe (Phoebe Travers) @ Arthur Walsh (Manny) @ John Fiore (Jake) @ Gene Amoroso (Mr. Barboza) @ Sheila Ferrini (Mrs. Barboza) @ Janet Zarish (Nicole Travers) @ Louis Turenne (Hector Freshette) @ Lauren O'Brien (Serena) @ John Cunningham (Mr. Charles Gordon Windsor, Sr.) @ Ann Flood (Mrs. Polly Windsor) @ Suzanne Shepherd (Aunt Tweedy) @ Matt Damon (Steamer) @ Jack Ringstad (Uncle Ned) @ Jody Raymond (Teresa) @ James Andrew O'Connor (George (as James O'Connor)) @ Jeri Leer (Loma) @ Robin Joss (Carrie) @ Ray Zuppa (Mitch) @ Paul Timothy Burke (Ray) @ Nikki Bruno (Woman Customer) @ Bill Devany (Ralph) @ Christina Fadala (Tourist #1) @ Keith Jochim (Tourist #2) @ June Sjostrom (Tourist Date) @ John Gary (Car Guy) @ Rita M. Herbert (Whiny Customer) @ John Klater (Bartender) @ Wiley Moore (Newscaster) @ Lew Resseguie (Maitre D') @ Ingrid Sonnichsen (Lobster Woman (as Inilip Sonnichsen)) @ Dennis Paiva (Singer at Wedding) @ Robert Vanaria (Baritone) @ Marc A. Vitale (Rocky) @ Al Hodgkins (Priest rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joe Monaco (Fisherman (uncredited) Produced by)||3 girls find love and romance in a small town A pizza joint is the setting for much of this film. The 3 waitresses working there are in and out of love and lust all the time, causing themselves a lot of grief. So-so romantic comedy. ||Contemporary Classics |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear|David Zucker|Comedy|PG-13 |6.3|USA|1991|85 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/3/2004|Jim Abrahams Michael Ewing Robert LoCash Gil Netter John D. Schofield Robert K. Weiss Jerry Zucker|Jim Abrahams David Zucker Jerry Zucker David Zucker Pat Proft|Robert M. Stevens ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Frank Drebin is back.Just accept it.|Lt. Frank Drebbin returns to save the day once again. This time he's out to foil the "big boys" in the energy business. A top scientist (Dr Mainheimer) is about to publish his report on energy supply for the future. Things don't look good for the traditional suppliers; oil, coal and nuclear. To save their industries, the suppliers kidnap Mainheimer and replace him with a decoy with a more favourable report. Jane, the Dr's secretary, is Drebbin's old flame; they're passionate love affair is thus rekindled. Lt. Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen) loves a mystery. Why are we here? Is there life after sex? Yes, Drebin tackles the big issues--and the biggest of all is how to stop devious Quentin Hapsburg's (Robert Goulet) plan to destroy the environment! Returning with Leslie Nielsen are Priscilla Presley as Jane, the woman who can melt a cheese sandwich from 20 paces; George Kennedy as the intrepid Capt. Ed Hocken; and O.J. Simpson, the man so famous a beverage is named after him, as hard-luck cop Nordberg. The gang's all here. And so are the laughs. |Leslie Nielsen (Lt. Frank Drebin) @ Priscilla Presley (Jane Spencer) @ George Kennedy (Captain Ed Hocken) @ O.J. Simpson (Nordberg) @ Robert Goulet (Quentin Hapsburg) @ Richard Griffiths (Dr. Albert S. Mainheimer/Earl Hacker) @ Jacqueline Brookes (Commissioner Anabell Brumford) @ Anthony James (Hector Savage) @ Lloyd Bochner (Terence Baggett) @ Tim O'Connor (Donald Fenswick) @ Peter Mark Richman (Arthur Dunwell) @ Ed Williams (Ted Olsen) @ John Roarke (President George Bush) @ Margery Ross (First Lady Barbara Bush) @ Peter Van Norden (Chief of Staff John Sununu) @ Gail Neely (Winnie Mandela) @ Colleen Fitzpatrick (Blues Singer at Blue Note Club) @ Sally Rosenblatt (Mrs. Redmond) @ Alexander Folk (Crackhouse Cop) @ Jose Gonzales-Gonzales (Mariachi (as José Gonzáles-Gonzáles)) @ Larry McCormick (TV Reporter) @ Cliff Bemis (Barbecue Dad) @ D.D. Howard (Barbecue Mom) @ William Woodson (Hexagon Oil Commercial Announcer) @ Mel Tormé (Himself - Party Guest Dancing with Jane) @ Zsa Zsa Gabor (Herself) @ Bill Chemerka (White House Announcer) @ Christopher J. Keene (Norm, Institute Guard) @ Ken Kerman (Ken, Institute Guard) @ Al Fann (Al, Institute Guard) @ Tom McGreevey (Waiter (as Thomas McGreevey)) @ James Gilstrap (Sam, Blue Note Club Pianist) @ 'Weird Al' Yankovic (Police Station Thug) @ Gina Mastrogiacomo (Sex Shop Worker) @ Jeff Wright (Sex Shop Assistant) @ C. Lindsay Workman (Banquet Doorman) @ Gokul (Apartment Resident (as Datta V. Gokhale)) @ John Stevens (Banquet Butler) @ Charlotte Zucker (Banquet Lady) @ Don Pugsley (Warehouse Thug) @ Carlos Betancourt (Mariachi #2) @ Bernardo Márquez (Mariachi #3) @ Margarito Mendoza (Mariachi #4) @ Lee Terri (Wheelchair Assault Witness) @ Claude Jay McLin (Jock #1) @ Manny Perry (Jock #2) @ Alex Zimmerman (Jock #3) @ Reiner Schöne (Explosion Thug #1 (as Raynor Scheine)) @ John Fleck (Explosion Thug #2) @ Susan Breslau (Banquet Woman #1) @ Leslie Maier (Banquet Woman #2) @ Ron Rosenblatt (Mr. Redmond) @ Jennifer Kretchmer (Barbecue Daughter) @ Ryan Harrison (Barbecue Son) @ David Zucker (Davy Crockett) @ Robert Weil (George Russell) @ Robert K. Weiss (Obstetrician) @ Robert LoCash (FBI Agent) @ Burton Zucker (Lab Technician) @ Lewis Friedman (Lab Technician) @ Bob Reitman (Lab Technician) @ Gene Mueller (Lab Technician) @ Gino Salomone (Lab Technician) @ Robert J. Elisberg (McTigue, Police Sketch Artist) @ Mindy Newborn (Slave to the Composer) @ Jan Campbell (Lady in Waiting) @ Wendy Hogan (Lady in Waiting rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nathaniel Bellamy Jr. (Basketball Player (uncredited)Produced by||nearly as funny as the first! the naked gun 2 1/2 is very funny, very close to being as funny as the first one. there are some unbelievable jokes in this movie. if you liked the first one then you'll have to like this one.i give it *** out of **** || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult|Peter Segal|Comedy|PG-13 |5.7|USA|1994|83 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Jim Abrahams Michael Ewing William C. Gerrity Robert LoCash Gil Netter Robert K. Weiss Jeff Wright David Zucker Jerry Zucker|Jim Abrahams David Zucker Jerry Zucker Pat Proft David Zucker Robert LoCash|Robert M. Stevens ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Mostly All New Jokes|Frank Drebin is persuaded out of retirement to go undercover in a state prison. There he is to find out what top terrorist, Rocco, has planned for when he escapes. Frank's wife, Jane, is desperate for a baby.. this adds to Frank's problems. A host of celebrities at the Academy awards ceremony are humiliated by Frank as he blunders his way trying to foil Rocco. Oscar night. Who will win? Who will lose? And will someone please kick that numbskull off stage? Wait! That's no ordinary numbskull. That's Lt. Frank Drebin, crashing the ceremonies to stop a terrorist plot that could mean curtains for him -- or will a simple window shade be enough? |Leslie Nielsen (Lt. Frank Drebin) @ Priscilla Presley (Jane Spencer Drebin) @ George Kennedy (Captain Ed Hocken) @ O.J. Simpson (Nordberg) @ Fred Ward (Rocco Dillon) @ Kathleen Freeman (Muriel Dillon) @ Anna Nicole Smith (Tanya Peters) @ Ellen Greene (Louise) @ Ed Williams (Ted Olsen) @ Raye Birk (Papshmir) @ Matt Roe (Clayton) @ Wylie Small (Defense Attorney) @ Sharon Cornell (Stenographer) @ Earl Boen (Dr. Stuart Eisendrath) @ Jeff Wright (Store Manager) @ Lorali Hart (Melon Lady) @ Mallory Sandler (Grocery Mother) @ Karen Segal (Purse Woman) @ Brad Lockerman (Jason, Soap Opera Actor) @ Rosalind Allen (Bobbi, Soap Opera Actress) @ Charlotte Zucker (Nurse) @ Lois De Banzie (Dr. Kohlzak) @ Doris Belack (Dr. Roberts) @ Nigel Gibbs (Carjacker) @ Andre Rosey Brown (Corridor Guard) @ Randall 'Tex' Cobb (Big Hairy Con) @ Ann B. Davis (Herself) @ Alex Zimmerman (Mess Hall Convict) @ Marc Alaimo (Trucker) @ Tom Finnegan (Priest) @ Hammam Shafie (Cabbie) @ Jeffrey Anderson-Gunter (Cabbie) @ Danny D. Daniels (Cabbie) @ Joe Grifasi (Director) @ Vanna White (Herself) @ 'Weird Al' Yankovic (Himself) @ Rick Scarry (Security Guard) @ Mary Lou Retton (Herself) @ James R. Scribner (Phil Donahue's Make-Up Man) @ Lou Felder (Presenter) @ Chrissy Bocchino (Mother Theresa) @ Pia Zadora (Herself) @ Joe D'Angerio (Security Guard) @ Gary Cooper (Cop) @ Christopher J. Keene (Cop) @ Joe Flood (Cop) @ Scott Evers (Umpire) @ Paul Hutton (Doctor) @ Burton Zucker (Clinic Patient (as Burt Zucker)) @ Susan Breslau (Train Lady #1) @ Erin MacArthur (Train Lady #2) @ Marcy Goldman (Train Lady #3) @ David Zucker (Teleprompter Guy) @ Robert K. Weiss (Tuba Player) @ Peter Segal (Producer of 'Sawdust & Mildew') @ Robert LoCash (Producer of 'Sawdust & Mildew') @ William Kerr (Producer of 'Sawdust & Mildew') @ Jolie Chain (Producer's Wife) @ Wendy Hogan (Producer's Wife) @ Jeri Caldwell (Producer's Wife) @ Michael Ewing (Assistant Director) @ David 'Skippy' Malloy (Maalox Boy) @ Vanessa Sandin (Gabriella) @ Julie Strain (Dominatrix) @ Andrew Craig (Bryce Porterhouse Guard) @ David Fresco (Lifetime Award Recipient) @ Bill Erwin (Conductor) @ Adam Hasart (Frank Drebin Jr.) @ John Capodice (Mr. Big) @ Glen Chin (Sumo Wrestler) @ Philip Yamaguchi (Sumo Wrestler) @ Florence Henderson (Herself) @ Tim Bohn (Waldo) @ Timothy Watters (President Clinton) @ Eugene Greytak (The Pope) @ Aaron Seville (Cop) @ Blane Savage (Dancer) @ Michael Chambers (Dancer) @ T.C. Diamond (Dancer) @ Brett Heine (Dancer) @ Jerald Vincent (Dancer) @ Wayne 'Crescendo' Ward (Dancer) @ Brian Wightman (Dancer) @ Bryan Anthony (Dancer) @ Paul Feig (Oscar Audience Member) @ Joel Madison (Oscar Audience Member) @ Steve Pepoon (Oscar Audience Member) @ Scott Herriott (Oscar Audience Member) @ Edward Weber (Oscar Audience Member) @ Adrienne Parsons (Mercedes Lady) @ Robert J. Elisberg (Taxi Driver) @ Elisa Gabrielli (Mourner (as Elisa Pensler-Gabrielli)) @ Taran Killam (Boy of Geriatric Park) @ Marianne Davis (Girl of Geriatric Park) @ Bill Zuckert (Old Man) @ Nicole Segal (Screaming Supermarket Baby rest of cast listed alphabetically Michael Boatman .... Male Clinic Nurse (scenes deleted)) @ Shirley Brody (Woman on Street (scenes deleted)) @ Lil Chain (Woman Crossing Behind O.J. (scenes deleted)) @ Eric Christmas (Prison Chaplain (scenes deleted)) @ Benjamin Cohen (Hairy Butt Boy (scenes deleted)) @ Shannen Doherty (Herself (uncredited)) @ Olympia Dukakis (Herself (uncredited)) @ R. Lee Ermey (Mess Hall Guard (uncredited)) @ Morgan Fairchild (Herself (uncredited)) @ Elliott Gould (Himself (uncredited)) @ Kevin Grevioux (Prison Guard (uncredited)) @ Mariel Hemingway (Herself (uncredited)) @ Barry Hickey ( (uncredited)) @ James Earl Jones (Himself (uncredited)) @ Symba Smith (Oscar Guest in Birdcage Skirt (uncredited)) @ Ken Tipton (Cop (uncredited)) @ Raquel Welch (Herself (uncredited)) @ Bruce A. Young (Tyrone (uncredited)Produced by||An appropriately funny and silly conclusion to the police squad spoof series Retirement has not been good for Frank Drebin. His marriage is on the rocks and he feels emasculated as he no longer has the power of the law or the ability to shot bad guys. When he is offered the chance to help out with some undercover work, Frank jumps at the chance – even though Jane storms out. When the info Frank finds points to imprisoned bomb expert Rocco Dillon he agrees to go into the jail and infiltrate his gang in order to find out his plan. Despite the fact that the second part was a little bit of a dip from part 1, Debin was brought back for a final insult and managed to produce a very enjoyable conclusion to the series. Opening with one of the best moments from all three films (a hilarious expansion of The Untouchable train station scene) the film keeps up a very consistent tone that has plenty of big laughs as well as lots of little things that will keep you chuckling. Its not that the film has no misses (it does) but they are covered by the sheer weight of hits that it includes. The plot is fairly simple but is well done to include a few basic set ups – the prison, the break out and the Oscars; each part is very funny if you're in the mood for it and, hey, even if you're not it is pretty infectious. The writing is good – it is easy to forget how hard it is to write a good spoof, but recent attempts have shown had easy it is to misjudge the film and just be silly rather than funny. Another big part of the film working is yet another great performance from Leslie Neilsen, who makes it all look so easy! Ward is a great addition to the cast and is much better than the bad guy from the second film – Ward plays it gruff and straight, making it all the funnier. Presley is so-so, with her character kind of shoe-horned into the film to her detriment, but she does have some good moments. Freeman is good value and Smith, well, Smith has a good body and that's about it – but fair play to her for sending herself up like that, it's not like she needed the money after all. Overall, this is a very enjoyable film as long as you are in the mood. Even if you aren't roaring with laughter you'll still be chuckling along. The material is hardly the height of wit or intelligence and some viewers may find it to be all a bit broad but fans of the genre will love it and get plenty of laughs from the material and the mostly good performances. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!, The|David Zucker|Comedy||7.4|USA|1988| 85 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jim Abrahams Kevin Marcy John D. Schofield Robert K. Weiss David Zucker Jerry Zucker|Jim Abrahams David Zucker Jerry Zucker Jerry Zucker Jim Abrahams David Zucker Pat Proft|Robert M. Stevens ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |You've read the ad, now see the movie! |A re-run of many of the gags from the original TV series 'Police Squad'. An Airplane type spoof, this time with the an incompetent lieutenant (Drebin) who always 'gets his man'. Visual gags come thick and fast, and it's impossible to catch them all with one viewing. The plot.. Queen Elizabeth II of England is coming to town, and Vincent Ludwig has plans to assassinate her using a brainwashed baseball player. Leslie Nielsen stars as Police Squad's own granite-jawed, rock-brained cop Frank Drebin, who bumbles across a mind-control scheme to assassinate Queen Elizabeth. Priscilla Presley, O.J. Simpson, a stuffed beaver, two baseball teams an odd assortment of others joing the wacko goings-on. |Leslie Nielsen (Lt. Frank Drebin) @ Priscilla Presley (Jane Spencer) @ Ricardo Montalban (Vincent Ludwig) @ George Kennedy (Captain Ed Hocken) @ O.J. Simpson (Det. Nordberg) @ Susan Beaubian (Wilma Nordberg) @ Nancy Marchand (Mayor Barkley) @ Raye Birk (Papshmir) @ Jeannette Charles (Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II) @ Ed Williams (Ted Olsen) @ Tiny Ron (Al, Tall Lab Tech) @ 'Weird Al' Yankovic (Himself) @ Leslie Maier (Herself) @ Winifred Freedman (Stephanie) @ Joe Grifasi (Pier 32 Dockman) @ Tony Brafa (Enrico Pallazzo) @ Lorali Hart (Fat Woman on Stadium Ledge) @ Nicholas Worth (Thug #1) @ Ronald G. Joseph (Thug #27) @ Doris Hess (Nurse #2) @ Charlotte Zucker (Dominique, Ludwig's Secretary) @ Larry Pines (Drug Dealer #1) @ Tom Dugan (Drug Dealer #2) @ Burton Zucker (Airport Photographer) @ David Katz (Arafat) @ Bob Lujan (Khadafi) @ Charles Gherardi (Khomeini) @ Prince Hughes (Idi Amin) @ David Lloyd Austin (Gorbachev) @ Ken Minyard (Ken) @ Robert Arthur (Bob (as Bob Arthur)) @ Greg Breslau (Man Deleted from Fireworks Scene) @ Sharon Breslau (Woman Deleted from Fireworks Scene) @ Reggie Jackson (Angel Right Fielder, (assassin)) @ Michael J. Montes (Angels Shortstop) @ Charles Fick (Angels Catcher) @ Lawrence Tierney (Angels Manager) @ Hank Robinson (First Base Umpire) @ Joe West (Third Base Umpire) @ Jay Johnstone (Seattle First Up) @ Randy Harvey (Seattle Pitcher) @ Brett Bartlett (Seattle Centerfielder) @ Dennis Packer (Baseball P.A. Announcer) @ Dick Vitale (Baseball Announcer) @ Dick Enberg (Baseball Announcer) @ Jim Palmer (Baseball Announcer) @ Mel Allen (Baseball Announcer) @ Curt Gowdy (Baseball Announcer) @ Tim McCarver (Baseball Announcer) @ Dr. Joyce Brothers (Baseball Announcer) @ Don Woodard (Airport Reporter) @ Christopher J. Keene (Dock Policeman) @ Mary Norman (Press Conference Panelist) @ Susan Breslau (Woman at Police Station) @ Rick Seaman (Truck Driver) @ Fredric Arnold (Man at Queen's Reception) @ Ron Tank (Press Conference Reporter) @ Mallory Sandler (Nurse #1) @ Edwina Moore (Stadium Official) @ Jeff Wright (Stadium Head Usher) @ Jim Smith (Stadium Janitor) @ Mark Holton (Man in Stadium Crowd) @ Jane Couris (Woman at Stadium rest of cast listed alphabetically Sydney Urshan .... Man Pushing Nordberg's Wheelchair) @ Arthur Lamont Berger (Woman Hugger at Stadium (uncredited)) @ Maureen Flaherty ( (uncredited)) @ John Houseman (Driving Instructor (uncredited)) @ Stuart Lancaster (Press Conference Toilet Voiceover (uncredited)) @ Conrad E. Palmisano (Hi-jacked Taurus Driver (uncredited)) @ Brinke Stevens (Woman in Shower (uncredited)) @ USC Trojan Marching Band (Themselves (uncredited)) @ Robert K. Weiss (Park Hot Dog Vendor (uncredited) Produced by||In praise of Leslie Nielsen.... The movie itself is funny."The Naked Gun" is without a doubt the best skewering of all cop movie cliches available in this day and age.It works on every conceivable level and a few that haven't been conceived yet. But what puts it over the top is Leslie Nielsen. It's amazing: he was great in "Airplane!", another classic from the ZAZ team (Zucker, Abrahams, Zucker), and in the lamentably short TV series "Police Squad!".But here, he spreads his wings and flies to new heights of insanity and delerium.With jaw set square and tongue firmly in cheek, Neilsen makes the role of Lt. Frank Drebin all his own and the movie-going public's collective life is all the more enriched because of it. He's aided and abetted by greats like Kennedy, Presley and Montalban (who knew?) and the movie even finds good moments for John Houseman and Reggie Jackson. As I said, the movie takes off and finds great things to do with police cars with a mind all their own and goes on from there to take on such cliches as car chases, illegal searches, the cleaning out of the desk, the trip to the police lab, shoot-outs, the lax housework of a single police detective, etc., etc., etc..... And what other cop movie in the history of the world has a music video in the middle, courtesy of Herman's Hermits? Just one. Ten stars and a Dugout Dog for "The Naked Gun", the film that answers once and for all - can Leslie Nielsen do comedy? I think you know the answer. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ European Vacation|Amy Heckerling|Comedy|PG-13 |5.2|USA|1985|95 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/21/2004|Stuart Cornfeld Matty Simmons|John Hughes Robert Klane|Robert Paynter ||Warner Bros. [us] |For over two thousand years, Europe has survived many great disasters. Now for the real test. Chevy Chase & his family are coming from America!|The Griswalds win a vacation to Europe on a game show, and thus pack their bags for the continent. They do their best to catch the flavor of Europe, but they just don't know how to be be good tourists. Besides, they have trouble taking holidays in countries where they CAN speak the language... In a game show family Griswald wins a trip to Europe. They set out for Britain, France, Germany and Italy, ignorant to the damage they do to other people: In Britain Clark has slight problems to adapt to driving on the left side, runs several people over and accidentally lays down Stone Henge in reverse gear. In Germany they visit the wrong relatives and are chased by angry 'Schuhplattl' dancers. Finally in Rome they unknowingly help robbers in a hold-up and then Ellen gets kidnapped... simple jokes, always following the same scheme. When the Griswolds accidentally win the grand prize on the "Pig in a poke" TV show, a trip to Europe for all of them, they happily decide to go. But the family's name would not be Griswold if everything went without complication. In London, they see Big Ben and Parliament extensively, but only after Clark learned to drive on the left side by not doing so; in Paris, Rusty's hormones disastrously spring to live; in Germany, the Griswolds visit the wrong relatives and in Italy, the family gets in touch with crime and a videotape that was in the camera that was stolen back in Paris. In addition, Audrey, who is in love with less-caring beau Jack, keeps ringing up the phone bill, Rusty keeps hitting on girls and Ellen keeps keeping them all together when times are bad. |Chevy Chase (Clark Wilhelm Griswold, Jr.) @ Beverly D'Angelo (Ellen Griswold) @ Dana Hill (Audrey Griswold) @ Jason Lively (Russell 'Rusty' Griswold) @ John Astin (Kent Winkdale, host of 'Pig in a Poke'/Policeman at Stonehenge, England) @ Sheila Kennedy (Game Show Hostess #1) @ Paul Bartel (Mr. Froeger) @ Cynthia Szigeti (Mrs. Froeger) @ Malcolm Danare (Son Froeger) @ Kevi Kendall (Daughter Froeger) @ Tricia Lange (Game Show Hostess #2) @ William Zabka (Jack) @ Wendy Goldman (Stewardess) @ Angus MacKay (Announcer at Court) @ Julie Wooldridge (Princess Diana) @ Peter Hugo (Prince Charles) @ Jeannette Charles (Queen Elizabeth) @ Derek Deadman (Taxi Driver) @ Mel Smith (Hotel Manager) @ Gwen Nelson (Hotel Manager's Mother) @ Robbie Coltrane (Man in the Bathroom) @ Maureen Lipman (Lady in the Bed) @ Paul McDowell (First English Motorist) @ Ballard Berkeley (Second English Motorist) @ Eric Idle (Bike Rider) @ Elizabeth Arlen (Mrs. Garland) @ David Gersh (Mr. Garland) @ Jacques Herlin (Hotel Desk Clerk) @ Jacques Maury (Hotel's Assistant Manager) @ Philippe Sturbelle (Cafe Waiter) @ Alice Sapritch (Dowager on the Eiffel Tower) @ Isa Carol Horio (Blonde Girl at Eiffel Tower) @ Isabelle Massaro (Brunette Girl at Eiffel Tower) @ Sylvie Badalati (Rusty's French Girl) @ Didier Pain (Video Camera Thief) @ Willy Millowitsch (Fritz Spritz) @ Erika Wackernagel (Helga Spritz) @ Claudia Neidig (Claudia, Rusty's German Girl) @ Victor Lanoux (The Thief) @ Massimo Sarchielli (The Other Thief) @ Jorge Krimer (Unfortunate Express Agent) @ Moon Unit Zappa (Rusty's California Girl) @ Gloria Charles (Stewardess rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Salvatore Billa (Policeman (uncredited)Produced by||VERY BAD!!!!! This is the worst of all Vacation movies. Why? I think the real bring down of the movie was the actors who played the kids. Jason Lively and Dana Hill. Very bad acting!! Plus their personalities were changed, like Rusty was a sex-crazed adolescent and Audrey would not stop bitching about Europe and Jack. Geez!! Why didn't they leave her at home? Plus this movie shows what an idiot Clark is. A funny idiot. But not so funny in this movie. So if you'd like my advice, see the Walley World one, the Christmas one and the Vegas one. NOT the European one! ||Browse titles in the DVD section by letter: |1.85 : 1 |Browse titles in the DVD section by letter: ||||||@@ Animal House|John Landis|Comedy|R |7.5|USA|1978|109 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/12/2004|Ivan Reitman Matty Simmons|Harold Ramis Douglas Kenney Chris Miller|Charles Correll ||CIC Vídeo [br] |It was the Deltas against the rules... the rules lost!|Faber College has one frat house so disreputable it will take anyone. It has a second one full of white, anglo-saxon, rich young men who are so sanctimonious no one can stand them except Dean Wormer. The dean enlists the help of the second frat to get the boys of Delta House off campus. This film gives high-jinks and fooling around a bad name. P The dean's plan comes into play just before the homecoming parade to end all parades for all time. |John Belushi (John 'Bluto' Blutarsky) @ Tim Matheson (Eric 'Otter' Stratton) @ John Vernon (Dean Vernon Wormer) @ Verna Bloom (Marion Wormer) @ Tom Hulce (Larry 'Pinto' Kroger (as Thomas Hulce)) @ Cesare Danova (Mayor Carmine DePasto) @ Peter Riegert (Donald 'Boon' Schoenstein) @ Mary Louise Weller (Mandy Pepperidge) @ Stephen Furst (Kent 'Flounder' Dorfman) @ James Daughton (Greg Marmalard) @ Bruce McGill (Daniel Simpson 'D-Day' Day) @ Mark Metcalf (Doug Neidermeyer) @ DeWayne Jessie (Otis Day) @ Karen Allen (Katy) @ James Widdoes (Robert Hoover) @ Martha Smith (Barbara 'Babs' Jansen) @ Sarah Holcomb (Clorette DePasto) @ Lisa Baur (Shelly) @ Kevin Bacon (Chip Diller) @ Donald Sutherland (Prof. Dave Jennings) @ Douglas Kenney (Stork) @ Chris Miller (Hardbar (as Christian Miller)) @ Bruce Bonnheim (B.B.) @ Joshua Daniel (Mothball) @ Sunny Johnson (Otter's Co-Ed) @ Stacy Grooman (Sissy) @ Stephen Bishop (Charming guy with guitar) @ Eliza Roberts (Brunella (as Eliza Garrett)) @ Aseneth Jurgenson (Beth) @ Katherine Denning (Noreen) @ Raymone Robinson (Mean dude) @ Robert Elliott (Meaner dude) @ Reginald Farmer (Meanest dude (as Reginald H. Farmer)) @ Jebidiah R. Dumas (Gigantic dude) @ Priscilla Lauris (Dean's secretary) @ Rick Eby (Omega) @ John Freeman (Man on Street) @ Sean McCartin (Lucky Boy) @ Helen Vick (Sorority Girl) @ Rick Greenough (Mongol rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Judith Belushi-Pisano (Bluto's Dance Partner at Toga Party (uncredited)) @ Robert Cray (Bandmember, Otis Day and the Knights (uncredited)) @ Fred Simonds (Grim, balding professor (uncredited)Produced by||Too Choppy and Underrealized Quality Rating: ** (out of 4) Mind you, I didn't go into a film like ANIMAL HOUSE expecting numerous layers of storytelling ingenuity, and I've feverishly enjoyed many, many uncouth, junky pics of this kind, but this is one choppy, underrealized production that could have used more pizazz. Point the finger at director John Landis, who, with the exception of THE BLUES BROTHERS, has never mastered the rudiments of basic filmmaking. He doesn't shape his sequences, which are always depleted of fresh spontaniety and energy. Everything is overly calculated, too mechanically and joylessly worked out, which wouldn't be so unforgivable if the scenes didn't come off as so pitifully ragged. There are a few good moments to be had here, sure. But the only scene that indicates that Landis knows what he's doing is the setpiece in Donald Sutherland's house, where, as one of the campus's teachers, he gloriously lets his hair down and introduces his new students to the fundamentals of smoking pot. The juxtapositioning of the shots here are perfectly modulated, showing that Landis can do some of his most inspired work when he's not trying so hard at creating over-the-top guffaws. ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Christmas Vacation|Jeremiah S. Chechik|Comedy|PG-13 |6.8|USA|1989|97 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/21/2004|William S. Beasley Mauri Syd Gayton John Hughes Tom Jacobson Matty Simmons Ramey E. Ward Daniel Grodnik|John Hughes |Thomas E. Ackerman ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Yule crack up!|It's Christmas time and the Griswolds are preparing for a family seasonal celebration, but things never run smoothly for Clark, his wife Ellen and their two kids. Clark's continual bad luck is worsened by his obnoxious family guests, but he manages to keep going knowing that his Christmas bonus is due soon. All Clark wanted to do is make Christmas nice with his family at their big home in Chicago. Instead of having an "Old Fashioned Family Christmas," Clark and the rest of the Griswold's got an evening of hell! It's Christmas time - Clark decided to invite all the family to have 'the most fun-filled old-fashioned family Christmas', which nobody shall ever forget. When the first relatives arrive, Clark soon flees on the roof to rig the lighting. The one thing the loving father wants to surprise the whole family with is the installation of a pool, which he already ordered. Unfortunately, the bonus check Clark expects any minute is overdue - and tempers rise, but not only because of the check. A big event is the arrival of uninvited cousin Eddie with his family in their mobile home, as well as a little sledding afternoon with a new lubricant from Clark's company, or his shifting relationship with the very hip and clean neighbours. Cousin Eddie chooses to top off all presents with his very own special creation, only intending to deliver a real reason to be jolly. |Chevy Chase (Clark Wilhelm Griswold, Jr.) @ Beverly D'Angelo (Ellen Griswold) @ Juliette Lewis (Audrey Griswold) @ Johnny Galecki (Russell 'Rusty' Griswold) @ John Randolph (Clark Wilhelm Griswold, Sr.) @ Diane Ladd (Nora Griswold) @ E.G. Marshall (Art) @ Doris Roberts (Frances) @ Randy Quaid (Cousin Eddie) @ Miriam Flynn (Cousin Catherine) @ Cody Burger (Cousin Rocky) @ Ellen Hamilton Latzen (Cousin Ruby Sue) @ William Hickey (Uncle Lewis) @ Mae Questel (Aunt Bethany) @ Sam McMurray (Bill) @ Nicholas Guest (Todd Chester) @ Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Margo Chester) @ Nicolette Scorsese (Mary) @ Keith MacKechnie (Delivery Boy) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Mr. Frank Shirley) @ Natalia Nogulich (Mrs. Helen Shirley) @ Tony Epper (Bozo #1) @ Billy Hank Hooker (Bozo #2 (as Hank Hooker)) @ Alexander Folk (SWAT Commander) @ Jeremy Roberts (Lead SWAT Cop) @ Woody Weaver (Cop) @ Michael Kaufman (Young Executive) @ Doug Llewelyn (Macy's Parade Announcer (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Devin Bailey (Clark (age 9) (uncredited)Produced by||Merrry Christmas from Chevy Chase! This is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. It is definatly up there with "A Christmas Story" and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas". This is my Christmas. Silly relatives, a Christmas-loving psycho, and one of the best times of my life. Show this movie to everyone in your life. You can relate to it somehow, trust me. 9/10 || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 ||||||@@ Unendliche Geschichte, Die|Wolfgang Petersen|Fantasy||7.2|West Germany|1984| 94 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mark Damon Bernd Eichinger Dieter Geissler John Hyde Klaus Kaehler Klaus Kähler Günter Rohrbach Bernd Schaefers|Michael Ende Wolfgang Petersen Herman Weigel|Jost Vacano ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A boy who needs a friend finds a world that needs a hero in a land beyond imagination! |Bastian is a young boy who lives a dreary life being tormented by school bullies. On one such occasion he escapes into a book shop where the old proprieter reveals an ancient story-book to him, which he is warned can be dangerous. Shortly after, he "borrows" the book and begins to read it in the school attic where he is drawn into the mythical land of Fantasia, which desperately needs a hero to save it from destruction. An unhappy boy is bullied by older youths and seeks sanctuary in a bookstore. The owner gives him a magic book in which he is able to follow the adventures of a boy who is everything he believe he is not, brave, strong, successful. He begins to understand that he is a part of the story and that the survival of the world about which he has been reading is in part up to him. Pursued by bullies, dreamy Bastian, 10, flees into a used book store where a strange leather-bound volume attracts him. The owner warns him away from it, explaining that it is dangerous: once entering its world, the reader cannot escape. Bastian borrows the now irresistable book and hides in the school attic. He reads of a beautiful, doomed land named Fantasia, and a brave boy desperately anointed by the princess to stop its mysterious ongoing destruction. Drawn into young Atreyu's quest as with no other book, Bastian discovers astonished that the Fantasians hear Bastian scream and see Bastian in mirrors. Where is Fantasia, and where is he? Can Atreyu save Fantasia, or is the princess really summoning Bastian himself? Chased by school bullies, reprimanded by his father for daydreaming too much Bastian is lost in his own world. Bastian escapes school bullies one rainy day by hiding in an old used book store. After explaining his predicament to the old clerk Bastian notices a large leather bound book with a symbol of two snakes intertwined into an emblem. Soon after the clerk warns Bastian that this book is not for him Bastian, rushes away with it "borrowing" it, while the clerk is in another room. Taking refuge in the attic of his school Bastian opens the book, and a world of fantasy. Learning that the wonderous, beautiful land of Fantasia is being destroyed by a terrible "Nothing" Bastian is taken deeper into the story. Soon discovering the ChildLike Empress is deathly ill, the cause; she needs a new name. A young warrior named Atreyu is called and Bastian follows his adventures, unknowing that he, himself is slowly being written into the mysterious book. Soon realizing that he is now written in the book Bastian realizes that the only one who can save Fantasia is him. Bastian is having a hard time recovering from his mother's death when he stumbles into a bookstore and learns of a book that's "not safe". Unable to resist such a temptation, he borrows the book and begins to read about the land of Fantasia, the land of human fantasy. The land is being consumed by the Nothingness, and the Empress is dying. A warrior named Atreyu is chosen to save Fantasia from the Nothingness. As Bastian reads the adventures, he is drawn into the story, identifying with Atreyu. Soon, however, he learns what the storekeeper meant about the book when he finds that the characters in the book seem to be aware of him, as well. All seems hopeless as the Nothingness is consuming Fantasia. Can Atreyu save them? Can Bastian? |Barret Oliver (Bastian) @ Gerald McRaney (Bastian's Father) @ Drum Garrett (1st Bully) @ Darryl Cooksey (2nd Bully) @ Nicholas Gilbert (3rd Bully) @ Thomas Hill (Koreander) @ Deep Roy (Teeny Weeny) @ Tilo Prückner (Night Hob) @ Moses Gunn (Cairon) @ Noah Hathaway (Atreyu) @ Alan Oppenheimer (Falkor (voice)) @ Sydney Bromley (Engywook) @ Patricia Hayes (Urgl) @ Tami Stronach (The Childlike Empress rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Silvia Seidel (Fairy (uncredited) Produced by||My life changed that autumn afternoon... The Neverending story is by far the best "Fantasy" film ever made and I doubt that it will ever be topped. I saw this movie with my dad one cold autumn afternoon, and my life changed forever that day. This movie taught me that fantastic places and wonderful creatures really do exist. You only have to want them to. Even today, aged 23, working in the computer industry, I find myself slipping in the Neverending Story soundtrack in my CD player and dreaming away to Fantasia... This movie the most beautiful and touching movies ever created. It's an example of a timeless story, told with wonderful creatures and dazzling vistas of the land of Fantasia. The amazing and perfect soundtrack help capture your heart and won't let go until the end credits fill the screen. At which time you notice that you've been crying for the last ½ hour. I consider myself extremely lucky that this wonderful movie was shown to me at such a young age, telling me that the world is what you make of it. And luckily, this September I can watch it all on DVD!! This is a masterpiece, nothing less || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ New Adventures Of Pippi Longstocking, The|||G |||1988|100 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| The amazing freckle-faced Pippi Longstocking isibackifor fun, laughter and, of course,ia lot of mischiefiin her best adventure yet!When Pippi, an extraordinary, independent girl withia quick mind, good sense of humor andimagical powers, isisailing with her sea captain father, she isisuddenly washed overboard andilost inia fierce storm.Holding onitoia raft andiher optimistic spirit, Pippi eventually drifts ashoreitoia small coastal town where she sets up her houseiin theiancient, vacated mansion "Villa Villekulla."There, with her horse Alphonso andimonkey Mr. Neilson, Pippi beginsianew life without any adult supervision.The result isinewfound friendship with young neighbors Annika andiTommy, soaring theiskies inia homemade flying machine, enjoyingia river barrel ride andiescaping theiconniving tactics of ruthless businessmen andian unhappy tripitoia children's home.Great funifor theiwhole family, theimusical, magical The New Adventures Of Pippi Longstocking isitheifirst American live-action adaptation of theiinternationally popular books byiAstrid Lindgren. ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Nightmare Before Christmas, The|Henry Selick|Animation||7.7|USA|1993| 76 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Burton Denise Di Novi Danny Elfman Kathleen Gavin Jill Jacobs Diane Minter Lewis Philip Lofaro Jeffrey Katzenberg|Tim Burton Michael McDowell Caroline Thompson|Pete Kozachik ||Abril Vídeo [br] |A ghoulish tale with wicked humour & stunning animation. |Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king of Halloween Town, is bored with doing the same thing every year for Halloween. One day he stumbles into Christmas Town, and is so taken with the idea of Christmas that he tries to get the resident bats, ghouls, and goblins of Halloween town to help him put on Christmas instead of Halloween -- but alas, they can't get it quite right. Jack Skellington, Pumpkin King, ruler of Halloweentown, happens upon Christmastown, and decides to change Christmas into another Halloween. He kidnaps Santa Claus, then takes it upon himself to deliver some alternative gifts to unsuspecting children. |Chris Sarandon (Jack Skellington (voice)) @ Danny Elfman (Jack Skellington (singing), Barrel, Clown with the Tearaway Face (voice)) @ Catherine O'Hara (Sally, Shock (voice)) @ William Hickey (Dr. Finklestein (voice)) @ Glenn Shadix (The Mayor of Halloween Town (voice)) @ Paul Reubens (Lock (voice)) @ Ken Page (Oogie Boogie (voice)) @ Ed Ivory (Santa (voice)) @ Susan McBride (Big Witch (voice)) @ Debi Durst (Corpse Kid, Corpse Mother, Small Witch (voice)) @ Greg Proops (Harlequin Demon, Devil, Sax Player (voice) (as Gregory Proops)) @ Kerry Katz (Man Under the Stairs, Vampire, Corpse Father (voice)) @ Randy Crenshaw (Mr. Hyde, Behemoth, Vampire (voice)) @ Sherwood Ball (Mummy, Vampire (voice)) @ Carmen Twillie (Undersea Gal, Man Under the Stairs (voice)) @ Glenn Walters (Wolfman (voice)) @ Mia Brown (Additional Voices (voice)) @ L. Peter Callender (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Ann Fraser (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jesse McClurg (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jennifer Levey (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Robert Olague (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Elena Praskin (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Judi M. Durand (Additional Voices (voice)) @ John Morris (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Daamen J. Krall (Additional Voices (voice)) @ David McCharen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bobbi Page (Additional Voices (voice)) @ David Randolph (Additional Voice (voice) (as David J. Randolph)) @ Trampas Warman (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Doris Hess (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Christina MacGregor (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Gary Raff (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Gary Schwartz (Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||Ghoulish, dark christmas story. From Henry Selick (JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH) and the master of horror Tim Burton (SLEEPY HOLLOW) comes the greatest Halloween and Christmas classic of all time. Talk about a creative mixture, this movie is one of the most ingenious films ever made. It takes place in the dark, horrific city of Halloween Town, where everything is scary, ghoulish and gloomy (just the way I like it). The movie is overrun with vampires, werewolves, skeletons, and undead children roaming the streets. And it leaves me with one thing: this movie is one of the coolest things I have ever seen! While the movie is not really a kids movie, it is kid friendly. The dialogue is friendly (no swear words) and the story is also friendly for the younger ones. What is not friendly is the ghoulish and gothic images (which are absolutely awesome!) and the horrific cast of Halloween characters that do things with items such as devices of torture, severed heads and other things like that. I know it sounds stupid, but this really is something your kids should not be seeing. I really don't care, let them see it, it is one of the coolest things I have ever seen. Just be advised that some of the scary elements might be a little much for their simple minds to handle. This movie is definetley good for a change of pace, especially when there hasn't been a good classic like this in a long, long time. I also recommend JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH. THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS gets 5/5. || |1.66 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Nightmare On Elm Street, A|Wes Craven|Horror||7.0|USA|1984| 91 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Burrows Stanley Dudelson Sara Risher Robert Shaye Joseph Wolf|Wes Craven |Jacques Haitkin ||Abril Vídeo [br] |If Nancy Doesn't Wake Up Screaming She Won't Wake Up At All...|Nancy is having nightmares about a frightening, badly-scarred figure who wears a glove with razor-sharp "finger knives". She soon discovers that her friends are having similar dreams. When the kids begin to die, Nancy realizes that she must stay awake to survive. Uncovering the secret identity of the dream killer and his connection with the children of Elm Street, the girl plots to draw him out into the real world. Freddy Kruger is the substance of nightmares. He always appears strangely dressed and has knives on the fingers of his right hand. A group of four teenagers all begin to have the same strange dreams about Freddy and then one of them is gruesomely murdered in her sleep. The survivors soon realise that if Freddy kills them in their sleep, then they will die in real life too. Thus begins an ordeal of wakefulness as they try to find some way to stop Freddy. Nancy and her friends are having violent nightmares which all feature one common element, a disfigured serial killer with a glove made of razors on his right hand. When one of the group is murdered in their sleep. Nancy realises that she must stay awake and try uncover the truth behind this phantasmic killer Freddy Krueger. Nancy (Langenkamp) is having nightmares, violent nightmares about a mysterious badly burned man with a razor fingered glove on his right hand that calls himself Freddy (Englund). When she realizes that her friends are having the same nightmares and that one by one they are being brutaly murdered in their sleep she turns to her father (Saxton) who does not believe her and thinks her to be crazy. After she finds out the horrible truth behind Freddy's rampage she decides to take action and bring this dream murderer out of dreamland and into the real world where she can send him straight to where he belongs. |John Saxon (Lt. Thompson) @ Ronee Blakley (Marge Thompson) @ Heather Langenkamp (Nancy Thompson) @ Amanda Wyss (Tina Grey) @ Jsu Garcia (Rod Lane (as Nick Corri)) @ Johnny Depp (Glen Lantz) @ Charles Fleischer (Dr. King) @ Joseph Whipp (Sgt. Parker) @ Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger) @ Lin Shaye (Teacher) @ Joe Unger (Sgt. Garcia) @ Mimi Craven (Nurse (as Mimi Meyer-Craven)) @ Jack Shea (Minister) @ Ed Call (Mr. Lantz) @ Sandy Lipton (Mrs. Lantz) @ David Andrews (Foreman) @ Jeff Levine (Coroner (as Jeffrey Levine)) @ Donna Woodrum (Tina's Mom) @ Shashawnee Hall (Cop #1) @ Carol Pritikin (Cop #2) @ Brian Reise (Cop #3) @ Jason Adams (Surfer #1) @ Don Hannah (Surfer #2) @ Leslie Hoffman (Hallguard) @ Paul Grenier (Tina's Mom's Boyfriend rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Richard Petersen (John, Kid in Classroom (uncredited) Produced by||Still Delivers after seventeen years (SOME SPOILERS) I remeber when I first saw this film I had to be about three or four it scarred me then and it still scares me now. The plot about someone who kills you in your sleep is scary as anything. Robert Enguland made the perfect bad and set the genre for wisecracking villains(later in the sequels). Wes Craven knew what he was doing with this film and it bogged down after a while because New Line wanted a sequel and not a plot. Any if you've never seen this check it out. Watch it with the lights down and the surround all the way up. || ||5.1 ||||||@@ Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge, A|Jack Sholder|Horror|R |4.4|USA|1985|87 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/21/2004|Michael S. Murphey Robert Shaye Joel Soisson|David Chaskin |Jacques Haitkin ||Alliance Atlantis Home Video [ca] |He's back, but he's not happy.|A new family moves into the house on Elm Street, and before long, the kids are again having nightmares about deceased child murderer Freddy Krueger. This time, Freddy attempts to possess a teenage boy to cause havoc in the real world, and can only be overcome if the boy's sweetheart can master her fear. The Grady family, including their teenage son Jesse, moves into a house on Elm Street which has been vacant for some time. Hardly surprising, since it was the same house in which the first Nightmare on Elm Street took place. Ron starts having strange nightmares and finds that Freddy Kruger is using him to commit terrible deeds. It is up to his girlfriend to find some way of stopping Freddy. |Mark Patton (Jesse Walsh) @ Kim Myers (Lisa Webber) @ Robert Rusler (Ron Grady) @ Clu Gulager (Ken Walsh) @ Hope Lange (Cheryl Walsh) @ Marshall Bell (Coach Schneider) @ Melinda O. Fee (Mrs. Webber) @ Tom McFadden (Mr. Webber) @ Sydney Walsh (Kerry) @ Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger) @ Edward Blackoff (Biology Teacher) @ Christie Clark (Angela Walsh) @ Lyman Ward (Mr. Grady) @ Donna Bruce (Mrs. Grady) @ Hart Sprager (Teacher) @ Allison Barron (Girl on Bus) @ JoAnn Willette (Girl on Bus) @ Steve Eastin (Policeman) @ Brian Wimmer (Do-Gooder) @ Robert Chaskin (Bar-B-Que Boy) @ Kerry Remsen (Girlfriend) @ Kimberly Lynn (Patty) @ Steven Smith (Victim) @ Jonathan Hart (Spike rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Robert Shaye (Bartender (uncredited)Produced by||Turd. The first "Nightmare on Elm Street" is rather overrated,but still pretty good and entertaining horror flick(I still think that Krug and his companions from "Last House on the Left" are infinite times scarier than this so-called horror icon Freddy Krueger),but this one is beyond lame.Fred Krueger(Robert Englund)is back in the dreams of Springwood teen Mark Patton,and uses the sulky youth to bring him more souls.Credit must go to the effects team for some fine work,but otherwise,this entry from the director of "Alone in the Dark" is extremely weak.The acting(especially from Mark Patton-gotta love his laughable scream!)is hysterical and the film is full of homosexual overtones-what kind of crap are we dealing here with?So if you want to amuse yourself check out this laugh-fest,but if you want to be scared steer clear. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Nine Months|Chris Columbus|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for language and sexual innuendo. PG-13|5.3|USA|1995|103 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Michael Barnathan Joan Bradshaw Chris Columbus Paula DuPré Pesman Anne François Christopher Lambert Mark Radcliffe|Patrick Braoudé Chris Columbus|Donald McAlpine ||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [us] |Ready or Not.|Samuels life is perfect. That is, until he finds out his girlfriend is pregnant. Now he must face the issues that come with being an expecting father, in a most entertaining way. Samuel Faulkner panics when he learns that his girlfriend of five years, Rebecca Taylor, is pregnant. Samuel is a child psychiatrist who is frustrated by children. Samuel doesn't want the baby, but Rebecca wants to settle down, even if she has to be a single mother. After a breakup and a makeover by Samuel's friend Sean, he realizes that he loves Rebecca very much, and he will love his child. Samuel proposes to Rebecca, and learns to love his child, and life. |Hugh Grant (Samuel Faulkner) @ Julianne Moore (Rebecca Taylor) @ Tom Arnold (Marty Dwyer) @ Joan Cusack (Gail Dwyer) @ Jeff Goldblum (Sean Fletcher) @ Robin Williams (Dr. Kosevich) @ Mia Cottet (Lili) @ Joey Simmrin (Truman) @ Ashley Johnson (Shannon Dwyer) @ Alexa Vega (Molly Dwyer) @ Aislin Roche (Patsy Dwyer) @ Priscilla Alden (Older Woman) @ Edward Ivory (Older Man) @ James Brady (Bicyclist (as James M. Brady)) @ Charles Martinet (Arnie) @ Brendan Columbus (Little Boy on Beach) @ Eleanor Columbus (Little Girl #1 in Ballet Class) @ Anna Barnathan (Little Girl #2 in Ballet Class) @ Zelda Williams (Little Girl #3 in Ballet Class) @ Peter Bankins (Tow Truck Driver) @ Betsy Monroe (Bobbie) @ Ngaio S. Bealum (Sean's Friend #1) @ Cynthia Urquhart (Sean's Friend #2) @ Tim Moffett (Sean's Friend #3) @ Mia Liban (Sean's Friend #4) @ Kumar Singh (Sean's Friend #5) @ Amanda Girard (Praying Mantis) @ Val Diamond (Dr. Kosevich's Receptionist) @ Jerry Masan (Clown Outside Toy Store) @ Irene Columbus (Woman in Toy Store) @ Violet Columbus (Baby in Toy Store) @ Brittany Radcliffe (Child #1 at Toy Store) @ Porscha Radcliffe (Child #2 at Toy Store) @ Cody Dorkin (Child #3 at Toy Store) @ Emily Gosnell (Child #4 at Toy Store) @ Bradley Gosnell (Child #5 at Toy Store) @ Kristin Davis (Tennis Attendant) @ Angela Hopkins (Ultrasound Receptionist) @ Emily Yancy (Dr. Thatcher) @ Hayley Rose Hansen (Baby in Ultrasound) @ Shawn Cady (Rollerblade Girl) @ George Mauricio (Moving Man) @ Paul Simon (Car Salesman) @ Frank P. Verducci (Car Lot Customer #1) @ Barbara Olson (Car Lot Customer #2) @ Morgan Miller (Kid Being Choked in Park) @ Carol DePasquale (Maternity Floor Receptionist) @ Bruce Devan (Doctor in Hallway) @ Cheryl Lee Thorup (Christine) @ Clarke Devereux (Emergency Attendant #1) @ Tommy Banks (Emergency Attendant #2) @ Susan Ilene Johnson (Delivery Room Head Nurse) @ Maureen McVerry (Pregnant Woman #1) @ Velina Brown (Pregnant Woman #2) @ Joy M. Cook (Pregnant Woman #3) @ Sue Murphy (Pregnant Woman #4) @ Lee Ann Manley (Pregnant Woman #5) @ Diane Amos (Rebecca's Nurse) @ Betsy Aidem (Gail's Nurse) @ Terence McGovern (Dr. Newsoe, the Anesthesiologist) @ Geoff Bolt (Male Delivery Room Nurse) @ Gwen Holloway (Female Delivery Room Nurse rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Deb Fink (Pregnant Woman in Toy Store (uncredited)) @ Jennifer Robertson (Nurse (uncredited)Produced by||Rubbish – go watch `About a Boy' Samuel Faulkner has it good.He lives a semi-bachelor life but has a steady girlfriend.When she announces she's pregnant he fears the worst and isn't very supportive.Soon she's off but he learns a lesson from his friend Sean and tries to get back with her. Chris Columbus romantic comedies are never going to be the cutting edge of variety and innovation – but this is just plain old and lame.The story could have been written by a child it is so predicable, with little funny lines – and you know you're in the s**t when it falls back into a 10 minute keystone cops style conclusion.There are two funny scenes – one with Robin Williams and one where a Barney-esque (Arnie) dinosaur gets the live kicked out of it in a toy store.This was made the most interesting bit in the film for me simply because Arnie was played by Charles Martinet – who has done the voice of Super Mario in video games for the past decade or so. Outside of pop cultures references like these the film relies of coy, sickly sentiment and dumb jokes.Robin Williams' Russian doctor gets a few chuckles but the rest is lame.Grant is not the most versatile actor in the world but here he just plays his floppy haired, blinking fop to death.He even gets to re-do his opening speech from 4 Weddings (but with the language toned down for the American audience).He's annoying from start to finish.Moore deserved so much better and will probably see this as one of her lows on her CV.Arnold is terrible and Cusack is wasted.Jeff Goldblum is the only one is resembles a real person and is good, and Williams is hammy but at least manages to raise a few smiles. Overall this is terrible.A star looking for a break in America signs up to do a sure-thing (a soapy romantic comedy) with lots of big names around to protect him in his first big US movie.People criticised Grant for being with a whore just after this movie came out – but they missed the fact that, by selling out and buying into clichéd American s**t that panders to the least demanding of audiences, he'd whored himself out just as much as Divine Brown had. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Notting Hill|Roger Michell|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for sexual content and brief strong language. |7.0|USA|1999| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Bevan Richard Curtis Eric Fellner Duncan Kenworthy Mary Richards|Richard Curtis |Michael Coulter ||Budapest Film [hu] |Can the most famous film star in the world fall for just an ordinary guy? |A leading American actress (Julia Roberts) accidentally meets an attractive, but unassuming British travel book seller (Hugh Grant) and love immediately blossoms. However, fame and her American actor boyfriend (Alec Baldwin in an obnoxious cameo role) gets in the way. Every man's dream comes true for William Thacker, a successless Notting Hill bookstore owner, when Anna Scott, the world's most beautiful woman and best-liked actress, enters his shop. A little later, he still can't believe it himself, William runs into her again - this time spilling orange juice over her. Anna accepts his offer to change in his nearby apartment, and thanks him with a kiss, which seems to surprise her even more than him. Eventually, Anna and William get to know each other better over the months, but being together with the world's most wanted woman is not easy - neither around your closest friends, nor in front of the all-devouring press. William Thacker, proprietario di una piccola libreria di Notting Hill, a Londra, è divorziato ed è una persona particolarmente tranquilla.....fino al giorno in cui Anna Scott, la più famosa attrice cinematografica del momento, che entra nella sua libreria e gli dà un bacio. Amore a prima vista ! ? ! Dopo una serie di incontri/scontri e di separazioni fra i due, il lieto fine è inevitabile. Quasi una "Cenerentola" al maschile per il film di maggior successo (annunciato) di questo periodo. Due attori belli e simpatici per una storia dolce e delicata, condita con un pò di moderno frastuono interiore ed esteriore (i media invadenti e le crisi di identità e di carriera). |Julia Roberts (Anna Scott) @ Hugh Grant (William Thacker) @ Richard McCabe (Tony) @ Rhys Ifans (Spike) @ James Dreyfus (Martin) @ Dylan Moran (Rufus the Thief) @ Roger Frost (Annoying Customer) @ Henry Goodman (Ritz Concierge) @ Julian Rhind-Tutt ('Time Out' Journalist) @ Lorelei King (Karen, Anna's Publicist) @ John Shrapnel (P.R. Chief) @ Clarke Peters ('Helix' Lead Actor) @ Arturo Venegas (Foreign Actor) @ Yolanda Vazquez (Interpreter) @ Mischa Barton (American Starlet) @ Tim McInnerny (Max) @ Gina McKee (Bella) @ Emma Chambers (Honey) @ Hugh Bonneville (Bernie) @ Dorian Lough (Loud Man in Restaurant #1) @ Sanjeev Bhaskar (Loud Man in Restaurant #2) @ Paul Chahidi (Loud Man in Restaurant #3) @ Matthew Whittle (Loud Man in Restaurant #4) @ Melissa Wilson (Tessa) @ Emma Bernard (Keziah) @ Emily Mortimer (Perfect Girl) @ Tony Armatrading (Security Man) @ September Buckley (Third Assistant Director) @ Phillip Manikum (Harry the Sound Man (as Philip Manikum)) @ Samuel West (Anna's Co-Star (as Sam West)) @ Dennis Matsuki (Japanese Businessman) @ Patrick Barlow (Savoy Concierge) @ Andy de la Tour (Journalist #1) @ Maureen Hibbert (Journalist #2) @ Rupert Procter (Journalist #3) @ David Sternberg (Journalist #4) @ Ann Beach (William's Mother rest of cast listed alphabetically Sally Phillips .... Carolyn (scenes deleted)) @ Alec Baldwin (Jeff King (uncredited)) @ Ian Boo Khoo (Journalist (uncredited)) @ Simon Callow (Himself in Film within Film (uncredited)) @ Omid Djalili (Cashier at Coffee Shop (uncredited)) @ Michael Higgs (Man at market (uncredited)) @ Matthew Modine (Movie-Within-Movie Actor (uncredited)) @ Richard Woolfenden (Press Photographer (uncredited) Produced by||The most shocking film in years. By shocking, of course, I mean shockingly GOOD. Hugh Grant is one of those actors that I have never been able to tolerate, and I have never been a huge Julia Roberts fan either (although I was truly impressed with Runaway Bride), but Notting Hill is one of the best romantic comedies that I have seen in years, easily surpassing Runaway Bride, one of my current favorites. Hugh Grant plays a normal guy who owns a travel bookstore in a tiny town called Notting Hill in London. He gives a surprisingly convincing performance in this role, and Julia Roberts is also excellent as the hugely popular Hollywood movie star because, whether you like it or not, she is a hugely popular Hollywood movie star. She plays the part of Anna Scott, the film star who happens to wander into William's (Grant) bookstore while in London shooting a film. One of the things that distinguishes this movie from other romantic comedies is the hesitant way that William and Anna grow to know each other. It's true that the whole oops-I'm-sorry-for-spilling-my-drink-on-you bit is not entirely original, but the good acting and directing made over-used material interesting again. By far the funniest character in the film, of course, is Spike, William's nut-case of a roommate (or `flatmate,' as William calls him). Some of the things that he did in the film are funnier than anything I've seen in years. For example, the way that he blows smoke through his nose into the snorkeling goggles, the way he mistakes mayonnaise for yogurt, or the scene where he finds out that William turned down Anna Scott (`You daft prick…'). While the movie may be a little bit long for some people, and as a whole, it doesn't really present anything really new in the genre of the romantic comedy, it moves along so smoothly and is so entertaining and funny that it is more than worth the extra time. I think that the fact that I am personally not a fan of either of the main stars, and yet I thoroughly enjoyed the film, says something about the quality of the movie. An excellent date movie, for everyone from first dates to happily married couples, so don't miss it. Just be prepared to be sore from laughing so much. ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Now and Then|Lesli Linka Glatter|Drama|Rated PG-13 for adolescent sex discussions. |6.0|USA|1995| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|I. Marlene King Eric McLeod Demi Moore Jennifer Todd Suzanne Todd|I. Marlene King |Ueli Steiger ||Gativideo [ar] |A summer when four friends made a promise to return anytime they needed each other. Twenty years later, that time has come.|Four childhood friends (Griffith, Moore, O'Donnell and Wilson) gather together to prepare for the birth of Wilson's baby. While together, they reminesce about when they were kids (Birch, Hoffmann, Ricci and Moore respectively) in 1970. |Christina Ricci (Young Roberta Martin) @ Rosie O'Donnell (Dr. Roberta Martin) @ Thora Birch (Young Tina 'Teeny' Tercell) @ Melanie Griffith (Tina 'Teeny' Tercell) @ Gaby Hoffmann (Young Samantha) @ Demi Moore (Samantha Albertson) @ Ashleigh Aston Moore (Young Chrissy DeWitt) @ Rita Wilson (Chrissy DeWitt Williams) @ Devon Sawa (Scott Wormer) @ Walter Sparrow (Crazy Pete) @ Cloris Leachman (Grandma Albertson) @ Lolita Davidovich (Mrs. Albertson) @ Janeane Garofalo (Wiladene) @ Hank Azaria (Bud Kent) @ Bonnie Hunt (Mrs. DeWitt) @ Rumer Willis (Angela Albertson (as Willa Glen)) @ Bradley Coryell (Wormer Brother) @ Justin Humphrey (Wormer Brother) @ Travis Robertson (Wormer Brother) @ James Wilson Keane (Boy with Basketball) @ Ric Reitz (Ted Albertson) @ Kellen Crosby (Kenny) @ Joey Stinson (Outfielder) @ James Paul Cleckler (Catcher) @ Tucker Stone (Young Morton Williams) @ Carl Espy (Dr. Morton Williams) @ Jamison B. Dowd (Bully) @ Beverly Shelton (Eda) @ Geoff McKnight (Tractor Driver) @ T.S. Morgan (Limo Driver) @ Alice Tew (Baby rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rand Courtney (Brett Jones (uncredited)) @ Brendan Fraser (Vietnam Veteran (uncredited)) @ Brandon Kleyla (Bobby Fricker (uncredited) Produced by||I Love This Movie Now and Then used to be my favorite movie when I was younger and it still remains one of my favorites. It's about four friends that have made a pact when they were younger that if one of them ever needed each other they would be there. Now that time has come. Chrissy( Rita Wilson) is about to deliver a child and she wants her friends to be there. Roberta( Rosie O'Donnell), Teeny( Melanie Griffith) and Samantha(Demi Moore) have all arrived and are about to reunite again. While all this is happening, Samantha is telling the story of their childhood and how their friendship began. In the younger days, samantha is played by Gaby Hoffmann, Roberta by Christina Ricci, Teeny by Thora Birch and Chrissy is being played by Ashleigh Aston Moore. This movie is absolutely wonderful, it puts me in such a great mood. The story is just so great, i could watch the movie all over again.It makes you think that real friends do exist. I would give Now And Then 10/10 || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Now, Voyager|Irving Rapper|Drama||7.7|USA|1942| 117 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Hal B. Wallis |Olive Higgins Prouty Casey Robinson|Sol Polito ||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] ||Charlotte Vale suffers under the domination of her Boston matron mother until Dr. Jaquith gets her to visit his sanitarium where she is transformed from frump to elegant, independent lady. When she goes off on a South American cruise she falls in love with Jerry, already married. Back home she confronts her mother who dies of a heart attack. Charlotte, guilt-ridden, returns to the sanitarium where she finds Jerry's depressed daughter Tina. Tina achieves happiness through her attachment to Charlotte and the two move back to Boston. When Jerry sees how happy his daughter is, he leaves her with Charlotte. What about marriage for Charlotte and Jerry? "Don't ask for the moon when we have the stars." The love story of Charolette Vale, a middle-aged spinstress who suffers a nervous breakdown because of her domineering mother and is finally freed after a brief love affair with Jerry, a man she meets while on a cruise after spending time in a sanitarium. They never marry, but through a miracle of chance Vale ends up raising his daughter for some time. |Bette Davis (Charlotte Vale) @ Paul Henreid (Jerry Durrance) @ Claude Rains (Dr. Jaquith) @ Gladys Cooper (Mrs. Henry Windle Vale) @ Bonita Granville (June Vale) @ John Loder (Elliot Livingston) @ Ilka Chase (Lisa Vale) @ Lee Patrick ('Deb' McIntyre) @ Franklin Pangborn (Mr. Thompson) @ Katharine Alexander (Miss Trask (as Katherine Alexander)) @ James Rennie (Frank McIntyre) @ Mary Wickes (Nurse Dora Pickford rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tod Andrews (Dr. Dan Regan (uncredited)) @ David Clyde (William (uncredited)) @ Frank Dae (Passenger (uncredited)) @ Yola d'Avril (Celestine (uncredited)) @ Donald Douglas (George Weston (uncredited)) @ Charles Drake (Leslie Trotter (uncredited)) @ Claire Du Brey (Hilda (uncredited)) @ Elspeth Dudgeon (Aunt Hester (uncredited)) @ Bill Edwards (Passenger (uncredited)) @ Mary Field (Passenger (uncredited)) @ Bess Flowers ( (uncredited)) @ Reed Hadley (Henry Montague (uncredited)) @ Sheila Hayward (Katie (uncredited)) @ Bill Kennedy (Hamilton Hunneker (uncredited)) @ George Lessey (Uncle Herbert (uncredited)) @ Lester Matthews (Captain (uncredited)) @ Corbet Morris (Hilary (uncredited)) @ Tempe Pigott (Mrs. Smith (uncredited)) @ Hilda Plowright (Justine (uncredited)) @ Frank Puglia (Giuseppe (uncredited)) @ Constance Purdy (Rosa (uncredited)) @ Georges Renavent (M. Henri (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Vaughan (Woman (uncredited)) @ Janis Wilson (Tina Durrance (uncredited)) @ Isabel Withers (Passenger (uncredited)) @ Ian Wolfe (Lloyd (uncredited)) @ Charlotte Wynters (Grace Weston (uncredited) Produced by)||Bette strikes gold again. It's Davis' show all the way, and she makes it very interesting to watch. The story is interesting anyway, although it's again odd to note the changes the film's writers made from the book. For instance, the cruise is switched from the Mediterranean to South America (which makes the comment on the balcony of the hotel early in the morning more understandable. Charlotte says how disgracefully late it is and Jerry responds that it's still dinner time in Boston -- not true if the hotel is in Brazil.) Regardless of these little changes, the film is a great example of Hollywood gloss in the 40's. The acting is quite good, and you come to root for Charlotte in her impossible situation. Despite the famous cigarette-lighting sequences, these people did smoke too much, though! ||Movies |1.37 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ O Brother, Where Art Thou?|Joel Coen Ethan Coe|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some violence and language. |7.8|UK|2000| 106 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Tim Bevan John Cameron Ethan Coen Eric Fellner Robert Graf|Homer Ethan Coen Joel Coen|Roger Deakins ||Bac Films [fr] |They have a plan, but not a clue. |Three 1920's convicts escape from jail intent on getting to the loot stashed away by one of them. As this is at his house soon to be flooded by a new dam, speed is of the essence. They find themselves fast-talking their way out of one jam after another, and along the way not only have to be wary of riverside sirens but even get to make a pretty good country record. Loosely based on Homer's 'Odyssey' the movie deals with the grotesque adventures of Everett Ulysses McGill and his companions Delmar and Pete in 1930s Mississipi. Sprung from a chain gang and trying to reach Everetts home to recover the buried loot of a bank heist they are confronted by a series of strange characters. Among them sirens, a cyclops, bankrobber George 'Babyface' Nelson (very annoyed by that nickname), a campaigning Governor, his opponent, a KKK lynch mob, and a blind prophet, who warns the trio that "the treasure you seek shall not be the treasure you find." |George Clooney (Everett) @ John Turturro (Pete) @ Tim Blake Nelson (Delmar) @ John Goodman (Big Dan Teague) @ Holly Hunter (Penny) @ Chris Thomas King (Tommy Johnson) @ Charles Durning (Pappy O'Daniel) @ Del Pentecost (Junior O'Daniel) @ Michael Badalucco (George Nelson) @ J.R. Horne (Pappy's Staff) @ Brian Reddy (Pappy's Staff) @ Wayne Duvall (Homer Stokes) @ Ed Gale (The Little Man) @ Ray McKinnon (Vernon T. Waldrip) @ Daniel von Bargen (Sheriff Cooley/The Devil (as Daniel Von Bargen)) @ Royce D. Applegate (Man with Bullhorn) @ Frank Collison (Wash Hogwallop) @ Quinn Gasaway (Boy Hogwallop) @ Lee Weaver (Blind Seer) @ Millford Fortenberry (Pomade Vendor) @ Stephen Root (Radio Station Man) @ John Locke (Mr. French) @ Gillian Welch (Voice of Siren (uncredited)/Soggy Bottom Customer (voice)) @ A. Ray Ratliff (Record Store Clerk) @ Mia Tate (Siren) @ Musetta Vander (Siren) @ Christy Taylor (Siren) @ April Hardcastle (Waitress) @ Michael W. Finnell (Interrogator) @ Georgia Rae Rainer (Wharvey Gal) @ Marianna Breland (Wharvey Gal) @ Lindsey Miller (Wharvey Gal) @ Natalie Shedd (Wharvey Gal) @ John McConnell (Woolworths Manager) @ Issac Freeman (Gravedigger) @ Wilson Waters Jr. (Gravedigger) @ Robert Hamlett (Gravedigger) @ Willard Cox (Cox Family) @ Evelyn Cox (Cox Family) @ Suzanne Cox (Cox Family) @ Sidney Cox (Cox Family) @ Buck White (The Whites) @ Sharon White (The Whites) @ Cheryl White (The Whites) @ Ed Snodderly (Village Idiot) @ David Holt (Village Idiot rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jerry Douglas (Dobro Player (uncredited)) @ Christopher Francis (KKK Member (uncredited)) @ Geoffrey Gould (Head of Mob (uncredited)) @ Nathaniel Lee Jr. (Ice Boy on The Right (Straw Hat) (uncredited) Produced by||Weaving Dualities How blessed we are with the current blizzard of fine films! Spoilers herein. Here the Coens embark on their most ambitious effort yet, playing with multiple dualities: --the real world and amagical reality of myth --the world of performance and the world of politics --the stories of song and those of image --the lovely bright yellow land of the south and the unlovely people who partly covered it In the center of each duality, they placed the pretense of our trio moving through what Goethe said of Ulysses was an apprentice voyage. Clooney will really be p***ed when he realizes how these guys goofed on him. Turturro is a long time Coenite who understands their light regard for the patina of entertainment the ordinary viewer expects. In fact, he has just come off of two rather ambitious projects concerned with just these four dualities and the complex role of the actor in weaving them into apparent entertainment: his remarkable `Illuminata,' which he funded, wrote and directed, and Tim Robbins' similar (but more political) project, `Cradle Will Rock.' Turturro is becoming a phenomenon, real intelligence. Tim Blake Nelson participated in the highly adventurous `Hamlet' of last year, tilted toward just such an issue -- with Hamlet as a film student musing about these dualities. He then took Julia Stiles, the Ophelia, and directed the forthcoming `O,' a version of Othello that is held up I understand because it is `too intelligent.' He has written and directed other films which I haven't seen, but `Eye of God,' written and directed by him is supposed to also be about this same stuff. Natch, all the bright filmmakers are buzzing about these issues. Together, Turturro and Nelson play the game of switching realities, while both Clooney's character and Clooney are oblivious. The title is from a Sturges film-within-a-film. Same issues -- everything revolves around the chicken dance. A small complaint: the symbol of blindness was too heavihanded, much as with Woody Allen in `Crimes.' And `soggy bottom?" Joyce. || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ October Sky|Joe Johnston|Drama|Rated PG for language, brief teen sensuality and alcohol use, and for some thematic elements. PG|7.7|USA|1999|108 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Peter Cramer Larry J. Franco Charles Gordon Marc Sternberg|Homer H. Hickam Jr. Lewis Colick|Fred Murphy ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Sometimes one dream is enough to light up the whole sky.|In 1950's mining town called Coalwood, Homer Hickam is a kid with only one future in sight, to work in the local coalmine like his father. However in October 1957, everything changes when the first artificial satellite, Sputnik goes into orbit. With that event, Homer becomes inspired to learn how to build rockets. With his friends and the local nerd, Homer sets to do just that by trial and a lot of error. Unfortunately, most of the town and especially Homer's father thinks that they are wasting their time. Only one teacher in the high school understands their efforts and lets them know that they could become contenders in the national science fair with college scholarships being the prize. Now the gang must learn to perfect their craft and overcome the many problems facing them as they shoot for the stars. Based on fact, this is the story of a teenager named Homer Hickam, growing up in a coal town in West Virginia where a boy's usual destiny was to "end up in the mines." But Homer had his eye on the sky and a love for flying rockets... to the dismay of his mine-foreman father, and the consternation of the townsfolk generally. A misfit for sure, he and three of his equally outcast buddies begin making rockets, which they fly from a patch of barren land eight miles out of town... so as to no longer terrorize the community with their oft-times errant rockets. However, the people become intrigued and soon start coming out in droves to watch the 'Rocketboys' send off their homemade missiles, and with the enthusiastic support of Miss Riley, their teacher, plus a signed picture from Wernher von Braun in response to a question Homer had written him, they finally are entered in the National Science Awards competition. But none of this was all that easy, especially for Homer, as problems much more dire than flying rockets seemed to push the young man toward maturity, as well as to his eventual destiny... as an instructor of our shuttle mission astronauts. |Jake Gyllenhaal (Homer Hickam) @ Chris Cooper (John Hickam) @ Laura Dern (Miss Frieda Riley) @ Chris Owen (Quentin Wilson) @ William Lee Scott (Roy Lee Cook) @ Chad Lindberg (Sherman O'Dell) @ Natalie Canerday (Elsie Hickam) @ Scott Miles (Jim Hickam) @ Randy Stripling (Leon Bolden) @ Chris Ellis (Principal Turner) @ Elya Baskin (Ike Bykovsky) @ Courtney Cole-Fendley (Dorothy Platt (as Courtney Fendley)) @ David Dwyer (Jake Mosby) @ Terry Loughlin (Mr. Dantzler) @ Kailie Hollister (Valentina Carmina (as Kaili Hollister)) @ David Copeland (Coach Gainer) @ Don Henderson Baker (Jensen) @ Tom Kagy (Lenny) @ Donald Thorne (Trooper One) @ Justin Whitsett (Kid) @ Larry Rue (Neighbor) @ Neva Howell (Neighbor) @ Terry Nienhuis (Neighbor) @ Brady Coleman (Anderson) @ Rick Forrester (Roper) @ Terrence Gibney (Basil Thorpe, Blue Field Telegraph Reporter) @ Doug Swander (Corvette Guy) @ Keeli Hale Kimbro (Corvette Girl) @ Mark Jeffrey Miller (Vernon) @ Blaque Fowler (Reverend) @ Don Tilley (Rescue Worker) @ Rockford Davis (Chemistry Teacher) @ John Bennes (Doctor) @ Jonathan Fawbush (Barney) @ Larry Black (Fred Smith) @ Frank Schuler (Moonshiner) @ Tommy Smeltzer (Man at Mine) @ Charles Lawlor (Miner) @ Tom Turbiville (Miner) @ Ida Ginn (Quentin's Mom) @ Richard Lumpkin (Judge at Welch) @ Mark W. Johnson (Union Official (as Mark Whitman Johnson)) @ Don Taylor (Union Official) @ Don G. Campbell (Mr. Morris) @ Elizabeth Byler (Ivy League Girl) @ Bradford Ryan Lund (Ivy League Boy) @ Frank Hoyt Taylor (Judge at Indy) @ Dave Hager (Head Judge) @ Ray Elder (Tom Webster) @ Andy Stahl (Jack Palmer) @ Joe Digaetano (Wernher von Braun (as Joey DiGaetano)) @ Thomas Taylor (Miner in Elevator) @ David Ducey (Man in Crowd) @ Jenny Patterson (Nurse) @ O. Winston Link (Locomotive EngineerProduced by||I loved it Even though its obvious and there isn't one surprise on board, I loved "October Sky" very much and have recommended it.It's the cast and their chemistry that make it the rich experience that it is.I loved "Homer" and his story and I wasn't ashamed to shed a tear at the end. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Office Space|Mike Judge|Comedy|Rated R for language and brief sexuality. |7.6|USA|1999| 89 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Daniel Rappaport Guy Riedel Michael Rotenberg Mike Judge|Mike Judge Mike Judge|Tim Suhrstedt ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Work Sucks.|Peter Gibbons, thanks to a hypnotic suggestion, decides not to go to work at the same time his company is laying people off. When layoffs affect his two best friends, they conspire to plant a virus that will embezzle money from the company into their account. |Ron Livingston (Peter Gibbons) @ Jennifer Aniston (Joanna) @ Ajay Naidu (Samir Nagheenanajar) @ David Herman (Michael Bolton) @ Gary Cole (William 'Bill' Lumbergh) @ Stephen Root (Milton Waddams) @ Richard Riehle (Tom Smykowski) @ Alexandra Wentworth (Anne) @ Joe Bays (Dom Portwood) @ John C. McGinley (Bob Slydell) @ Diedrich Bader (Lawrence) @ Paul Willson (Bob Porter) @ Kinna McInroe (Nina) @ Todd Duffey (Brian, Chotchkie's Waiter) @ Greg Pitts (Drew) @ Michael McShane (Dr. Swanson (as Micheal McShane)) @ Linda Wakeman (Laura Smykowski) @ Josh Bond (Initech Security Guard) @ Jennifer Jane Emerson (Female Temp) @ Kyle Scott Jackson (Rob Newhouse, Smykowski's Lawyer) @ Orlando Jones (Steve, Magazine Salesman) @ Barbara George-Reiss (Peggy, Lumbergh's Secretary) @ Tom Schuster (Construction Foreman) @ Jackie Belvin (Swanson's Patient #1) @ Rupert Reyes (Mexican Waiter (as Ruperto Reyes Jr.)) @ Gabriel Folse (Swanson's Patient #2) @ Jesse De Luna (Cop at Fire) @ Mike Judge (Stan, Chotchkie's Manager (as William King)) @ Justin Possenti (Spectator) @ Jack Betts (Judge rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Suzanne Cryer (Customer at Chotchkie's (uncredited)) @ Natalie Denning (Initech Employee (uncredited)) @ K. Todd Lytle (Rush Hour Driver (uncredited) Produced by||"Uh, Yeaaah, Peter...What's Happening?..." There's something about a study of life in a `cubicle' to which just about everyone can relate; at least everyone who has ever had to get up every day, go to work and punch a time clock, then go home and wait to do it all over again the next day.In `Office Space,' writer/director Mike Judge (the guy who gave us `Beavis and Butthead') captures the essence of the work-a-day world, in this case in an office setting, though it could be on any job anywhere, from the largest conglomerate to the smallest business concern; anywhere a `corporate structure' is in place and employed.The subtle humor of Judge's vision is funny, and often downright hilarious, and all with very little exaggeration of the way things really are, from the weekly `motivational' talks from the boss, to staff meetings, corporate `mission statements' and the protocol of cover sheets and memos, all of which-- as portrayed here-- have a sterling ring of truth to them. The central character of Judge's story is a guy named Peter Gibbons (Ron Livingston), a software analyst for `Initech,' who after working with a therapist finds himself in something of a transcendental state of mind, whereupon he divulges to a pair of consultants-- `efficiency experts' sent in to streamline the company's operation-- that he does only about `fifteen minutes of real work' a week, due to the very structure (or lack thereof) of the company itself.And his refreshingly honest candor in outlining his job description soon has quite an unexpected effect on his life, as well as that of a couple of co-workers.Judge perceptively expands the satire to encompass facets of Peter's life outside the office, as well, which gives the audience even more with which to identify, like driving to work in bumper to bumper freeway traffic that has slowed to a stop-- in Peter's lane-- while the cars in the next lane going flying by; and when he changes into THAT lane, IT comes to a standstill while the cars in the lane he just left start to whiz on by.It's an application of Murphy's Law that -- while certainly nothing new-- works well within the context of this particular story, in which the humor is derived from emphasizing the annoying, mundane things that happen to us all on a daily basis.Like getting in the shortest line at the supermarket and taking longer than anyone else to get checked out. Livingston gives a notable performance, giving Peter that sense of the `everyman' who'd like nothing better than to break free of the rigors of the 8 to 5 existence.He brings an affable presence to the screen that perfectly communicates what Judge is attempting to say, and does it in such a way that it validates Peter's being selected as `Champion of the Cause' as it were.Also turning in memorable performances are Stephen Root (a terrific character actor), as Milton, a guy whose very existence seems to be a study in suffering abuse and degradation; and Gary Cole, as Peter's boss, Bill Lumbergh, whose impudent, laconic methods of intimidation, delivered in such a droll manner, make him the boss everybody loves to hate. The supporting cast includes Jennifer Aniston as Joanna, the waitress with a minimum of `flare' who has trouble `expressing' herself, according to her boss; Ajay Naidu (Samir); David Herman (Michael Bolton); Richard Riehle (Tom); Joe Bays (Dom); John C. McGinley (Bob Slydell); Paul Wilson (Bob Porter) and Diedrich Bader (Lawrence).Reminiscent of the world portrayed in the `Dilbert' comic strip, `Office Space' works because it effectively puts real people in real situations, and brings you into contact with some characters you're going to recognize; I guarantee that no matter what you do to live, thrive and survive, you've run into these people, worked for them, and alongside them.It's a case of art reflecting reality, and to Judge's credit he's succeeded in making a funny movie that really hits close to home, without resorting to any gross or infantile humor to do it.It's a film that simply puts the `corporate experience' in the spotlight and gives you a chance to laugh at `the boss,' and maybe even a little bit at yourself along the way.I rate this one 8/10. ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Oh, God!|Carl Reiner|Comedy||6.1|USA|1977| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jerry Weintraub |Avery Corman Larry Gelbart|Victor J. Kemper ||Warner Bros. [us] |Anybody who could turn Lot's wife into a pillar of salt, incinerate Sodom and Gomorrah and make it rain for forty days and forty nights has got to be a fun guy.|Jerry, a assistant grocery manager (John Denver) is approached by God to help spread his message. Reluctant at first, Jerry finally ends up in a court case involving the slander of a popular evangelist. Jerry Landers, (John Denver) a supermarket assistant manager and a good yet non-religious person, suddenly finds a note in the mail one day that grants him an "interveiw" with God. Thinking it to be a hoax he tosses it away, but when it keeps reappearing he finally gives in. Skeptical at first, he ends up carrying His personal message - that the world can work with what God's given us. |John Denver (Jerry Landers) @ George Burns (God) @ Teri Garr (Bobbie Landers) @ Donald Pleasence (Doctor Harmon) @ Ralph Bellamy (Sam Raven) @ William Daniels (George Summers) @ Barnard Hughes (Judge Baker) @ Paul Sorvino (Reverend Willie Williams) @ Barry Sullivan (Bishop Reardon) @ Dinah Shore (Herself) @ Jeff Corey (Rabbi Silverstone) @ George Furth (Briggs) @ David Ogden Stiers (Mr. McCarthy, District Produce Manager) @ Titos Vandis (Greek Bishop Markos) @ Moosie Drier (Adam Landers) @ Rachel Longaker (Becky Landers) @ Jerry Dunphy (HimselfTechn) @ Mario Machado (TV Reporter) @ Connie Sawyer (Mrs. Green (Store Customer)) @ Jane Lambert (Mrs. Levin (Store Customer)) @ Kres Mersky (Check-out Girl) @ Byron Paul (TV Engineer) @ Hector Morales (Room Service Waiter) @ Wonderful Smith (Court Clerk) @ Murphy Dunne (Court Stenographer) @ Boyd Bodwell (Religious Fanatic) @ Zane Buzby (Girl) @ Dennis Kort (Norman, Store Clerk) @ Bob McClurg (Mechanic) @ Celeste Cartier (2nd Check-out Girl) @ Carl Reiner (Dinah's Guest Produced by||Oh, brother! Dated but cute look at God's take on people and their reaction to him. I didn't think the film was particularly amusing, but I did appreciate some of God's thoughts on how we earthlings could work to get along better. Seemed to me as though the producer concocted a humanistic, feel good creator as opposed to a more demanding one which is what we really have. No doubt the makers of Oh, God felt HE would be more palatable in this form. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Old Man and the Sea, The|John Sturges Henry King Fred Zinneman|Adventure|NR |6.9|USA|1958|86 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Leland Hayward |Ernest Hemingway Peter Viertel|Floyd Crosby James Wong Howe||Warner Bros. [us] ||An old Cuban fisherman goes out to get fish, something he has not done well at for the last three months. He catches a huge one which is devoured by sharks before he can land it. Based on the classic, Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name by Ernest Hemingway. The story of an aging, life-long fisherman attempting to find himself, and hopefully a fish, on a fishing trip in the gulf waters off Cuba. After spending most of his life alone, and losing his only companion, a young Cuban boy, the old man heads out to sea once again, the laughing-stock of all other fisherman. His 80+ days without a notable catch end on this trip, but will he be able to defeat the odds after catching a gigantic marlin? |Spencer Tracy (The Old Man\Narrator) @ Felipe Pazos (The Boy) @ Harry Bellaver (Martin) @ Don Diamond (Cafe Proprietor) @ Don Blackman (Hand Wrestler) @ Joey Ray (Gambler) @ Mary Hemingway (Tourist) @ Richard Alameda (Gambler) @ Tony Rosa (Gambler) @ Carlos Rivero (Gambler) @ Robert Alderette (Gambler) @ Mauritz Hugo (Gambler rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Don Alvarado (Waiter (uncredited)Produced by||Adaption and reiteration are not the same thing. Usually when a movie is adapted from a novel, the screenplay is based on the novel, but the dialogue is altered for a sense of originality.This is not the case in this film.It seemed like the screenplay was the novel.It appeared the narrator was just reading directly from the novel and the actors were acting based solely on the novel's descriptions.I found Spencer Tracy to be very dull in his performance.The only things I liked about the movie were the set design and musical score.I don't see how anyone who is a fan of the novel could be satisfied with this inept adaption. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Oliver & Company|George Scribner|Family||6.2|USA|1988| 72 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004||Roger Allers Jim Cox Charles Dickens Timothy J. Disney James Mangold|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |The first Disney movie with attitude. |Inspired by Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist". A homeless kitten named Oliver, roams the streets of New York, where he is taken in by a gang of homeless mutts who survive by stealing from others. During one of these criminal acts, Oliver meets a wealthy young girl named Jenny Foxworth. This meeting will forever change his life. |Joey Lawrence (Oliver (voice)) @ Billy Joel (Dodger (voice)) @ Cheech Marin (Tito (voice)) @ Richard Mulligan (Einstein (voice)) @ Roscoe Lee Browne (Francis (voice)) @ Sheryl Lee Ralph (Rita (voice)) @ Dom DeLuise (Fagan (voice)) @ Taurean Blacque (Roscoe (voice)) @ Carl Weintraub (DeSoto (voice)) @ Robert Loggia (Sykes (voice)) @ Natalie Gregory (Jenny (voice)) @ William Glover (Winston (voice)) @ Bette Midler (Georgette (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jonathan Brandis (Additional Voices (uncredited) Original Music by||Disney's worst animated feature. Disney hasn't been too successful with its cat movies, since the other one, `The Aristocats' (1970), was probably the second worst.-No, wait.There' s also `The Lion King'.Okay, scratch that theory.It's really just that `The Aristocats' was the first in a line of cut-price, uncertain, fumbling animated features from the studio - not all of them bad, but all of them damaged in some way; and all of them (`The Aristocats' itself excepted) with some animation or artwork that looks as if it belongs on TV.`Oliver and Company' is the last, but also the least. To begin with the artwork.The animation is good in places - Disney's stable was getting better and would continue to get better - but it's betrayed by character designs that seem to be the result of no work whatever.Oliver is just a round kitten and he looks like every other round kitten ever drawn.Good animation can't take him very far.And often the animation isn't THAT good.Georgette moves like a marionette; and when she sings it's painfully apparent that her snout movements don't match the sounds coming out.In passing, I'd like to say that the song I'm referring to is staged with remarkable ineptitude, that blunts whatever impact a performance by Bette Midler of Barry Manilow might otherwise have had. (Yes, exactly.)Backgrounds look unfinished, humans are poorly integrated and Disney doesn't have the resources to make New York look at all populated. As for the story ... if you forget the occasional parallel with Charles Dickens, this is the story of a girl and her kitten.(Yes, exactly.) Whatever slanders may have been voiced about Disney films being made for children, how many of them (the animated ones, I mean) are actually ABOUT children?Well, it's possible to think of several that probably are, in a sort of a way, but there are always mitigating circumstances.There's always SOME reason why the child's story might appeal to adults.There are none here.`A book worth reading only in childhood is not worth reading even then,' writes C.S. Lewis; to which we might add, `A film that's only good for children isn't good for anyone.' Sorry - this is only good for children. || |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest|Milos Forman|Drama||8.7|USA|1975| 133 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Douglas Martin Fink Saul Zaentz|Bo Goldman Lawrence Hauben Ken Kesey|Haskell Wexler ||Pioneer Entertainment [us] ||McMurphy thinks he can get out of doing work while in prison by pretending to be mad. His plan backfires when he is sent to a mental asylum. He tries to liven the place up a bit by playing card games and basketball with his fellow inmates, but the head nurse is after him at every turn. McMurphy has been dating a fifteen year old (fifteen going on thirty-five) and is sentenced for a short term for contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Rather than spend his time in jail, he convinces the guards that he's crazy enough to need psychiatric care and is sent to a hospital. He fits in frighteningly well, and his different point of view actually begins to cause some of the patients to progress. Nurse Ratched becomes his personal cross to bear as his resistence to the hospital routine gets on her nerves. |Jack Nicholson (Randle Patrick McMurphy) @ Louise Fletcher (Nurse Mildred Ratched) @ William Redfield (Harding) @ Michael Berryman (Ellis, tall bald patient) @ Peter Brocco (Col. Matterson) @ Dean R. Brooks (Dr. John Spivey) @ Alonzo Brown (Miller) @ Scatman Crothers (Orderly Turkle) @ Mwako Cumbuka (Attendant Warren) @ Danny DeVito (Martini) @ William Duell (Jim Sefelt) @ Josip Elic (Bancini) @ Lan Fendors (Nurse Itsu) @ Nathan George (Attendant Washington) @ Ken Kenny (Beans Garfield) @ Mel Lambert (Harbormaster) @ Sydney Lassick (Charlie Cheswick) @ Kay Lee (Night nurse) @ Christopher Lloyd (Taber) @ Dwight Marfield (Ellsworth, dancing patient) @ Ted Markland (Hap Arlich) @ Louisa Moritz (Rose) @ Philip Roth (Woolsey (as Phil Roth)) @ Will Sampson (Chief Bromden) @ Mimi Sarkisian (Nurse Pilbow) @ Vincent Schiavelli (Frederickson) @ Mews Small (Candy (as Marya Small)) @ Delos V. Smith Jr. (Scanlon) @ Tin Welch (Ruckley) @ Brad Dourif (Billy Bibbit rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tom McCall (News commentator (uncredited)) @ Saul Zaentz (Captain on shore when boat returns (uncredited) Produced by||Best film of It's era Milos Forman's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a landmark (one of the few I might add) in cinema.Pretty much everything in this film is at or close to perfection.And rightfully so, it became only the 2nd (1 in 3 films in history along with It Happened One Night and Silence of the Lambs) film to win the top five Oscars- Best Picture, Actor (Jack Nicholson), Actress (Louise Fletcher), Director (Forman), and Screenplay (Bo Goldman). The story (based on Ken Kessey's novel) focuses on a rowdy misfit named Randle Patrick McMurphy (Nicholson) who is put in a mental hospital with other people (some voluntarily in) who are not all there.Some of these guys include Danny DeVito (in his first role), Christopher Lloyd, Brad Dourif (in his Oscar nominated role) and the never forgetable Will Sampson who played the Chief.The film, It's actors and scenes will always be terrific achivements in cinema and is one of my fav's. A++ ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ One Hour Photo|Mark Romanek|Drama|Rated R for sexual content and language. R|7.2|USA|2002|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Jeremy W. Barber Robert Katz Pamela Koffler Robert B. Sturm Christine Vachon John Wells Stan Wlodkowski|Mark Romanek |Jeff Cronenweth ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |There's nothing more dangerous than a familiar face.|Seymour 'SY' Parrish has been doing photo development for 20 years. He has a vast knowledge of modern photography and develops photos at a local department store for a living. But SY lives a sad and lonely life and begins spying on the Yorkin family, his biggest customers who seem to have everything in the world. SY begins to feel that he wants to be in the Yorkin's life, but when he discovers that the Yorkins are not as perfect as they seem, he becomes a man on a mission to expose the imperfections of the Yorkin family that could tear them apart. |Robin Williams (Seymour 'Sy' Parrish) @ Connie Nielsen (Nina Yorkin) @ Michael Vartan (William 'Will' Yorkin) @ Dylan Smith (Jake Yorkin) @ Erin Daniels (Maya Burson) @ Paul H. Kim (Yoshi Araki (as Paul Hansen Kim)) @ Lee Garlington (Waitress) @ Gary Cole (Bill Owens) @ Marion Calvert (Mrs. Von Unwerth) @ David Moreland (Mr. Siskind) @ Shaun P. O'Hagan (Young Father) @ Jim Rash (Amateur Porn Guy) @ Nick Searcy (Larry, the Repairman) @ Dave Engfer (Sav-Mart Clerk) @ Jimmy Shubert (Soccer Coach) @ Eriq La Salle (Detective James Van Der Zee) @ Clark Gregg (Detective Paul Outerbridge) @ Andrew A. Rolfes (Officer Dan Lyon) @ Carmen Mormino (Officer Bravo) @ Izrel Katz (Superintendent) @ Peter Mackenzie (Hotel Desk Manager (as Pete Mackenzie)) @ Andy Comeau (Duane) @ Robert Clotworthy (Eye Surgeon) @ Jesse Borja (Cook) @ Jeana Wilson (Nurse) @ Megan Corletto (Risa Owens rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Alec Boyadjian (Baby (uncredited)) @ Nico Boyadjian (Baby (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Dixon (Security Guard (uncredited)) @ Noah Forrest (Cop (uncredited)) @ Wayne Wilderson (Booking Clerk (uncredited)Produced by||Possibly one of the best films of the year so far Mark Romanek, usually a music video director, takes a jab at the feature film department and makes an uncannily (yet righteously) awkward, yet extremely well crafted dramatic thriller of a movie with One Hour Photo. Robin Williams gives what could be an oscar nominated performance from my standpoint, as a lonley and obsessive photo shop worker who it seems is a bit tranced over a family that has sent their pictures to his department for the past eleven years (and unbeknownst to them all of those pictures are glued onto his living room wall from eleven years).Williams tries to always think they are the perfect family, but when he begins to see different, his obsession goes another step. A very creepy sense of realism is brought to the whole tone of the film and it works splendidly when brought along side Williams' performance, which is at times observant (the keen narration), sympathetic and totally out of sync with the rest of the true world.And in the end I felt I had witnessed an original work that pumps with greatness in it's photoshop veins.Also stars Connie Nielson, Michael Vartan as the husband and wife, and Gary Cole as Williams' boss, all quite good supporting performances.Grade: between A+ and A || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Abre los ojos|Alejandro Amenábar|Drama|Rated R for some strong sexuality, language and some violence. |7.8|Spain|1997| 117 min |Spanish||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Ana Amigo Fernando Bovaira José Luis Cuerda Andrea Occhipinti Alain Sarde|Alejandro Amenábar Mateo Gil|Hans Burman ||AFMD [fr] ||An imprisoned man who hides his face behind a mask is telling his story, as a flashback, to a psychiatrist: His name is César, he is an orphan but he had inherited a fortune from his parents and used to live in a luxurious house of his his own. He was also very handsome and a renowned womanizer. His best friend, Pelayo, was jealous of him, because he was not very successful with girls. But one night, Pelayo showed up in one of César's parties with a beautiful woman named Sofía. When César met her and talked to her for a while, he began to feel something he had never felt before: he was falling in love. And, although she was supposed to be Pelayo's girlfriend, he tried to conquer her, spending that night at her home. But Nuria, with whom César had his last affair, was very jealous; he went to pick him up in her car the next morning, and commited suicide by ramming it into a tree. César survived the crash, but his face was hideously disfigured, his beauty gone. The doctors said they couldn't help him. He was very depressed, and still in love with Sofía. One night he went out with her and Pelayo, and he felt that they were very uncomfortable with him. But the morning after, his luck seemed to change completely: Sofía came to him, saying that it was him who she really loved, and the doctors called him and told him that, with a revolutionary new technique, they could rebuild his face, which they did. César was happier than ever; but that's when the really strange and scary things started to happen, and César found out that the real nightmare had only just began for him... |Eduardo Noriega (César) @ Penélope Cruz (Sofía) @ Chete Lera (Antonio) @ Fele Martínez (Pelayo) @ Najwa Nimri (Nuria) @ Gérard Barray (Duvernois (señor TV)) @ Jorge de Juan (Encargado L.E.) @ Miguel Palenzuela (Commissar) @ Pedro Miguel Martínez (Chief Doctor) @ Ion Gabella (Paranoic recluse) @ Joserra Cadiñanos (Guard) @ Tristán Ulloa (Waiter) @ Pepe Navarro (TV Presenter) @ Jaro (Doctor 1) @ Walter Prieto (Doctor 2) @ Carola Angulo (Doctor 3) @ Fanny Gautier (Secretary (as Fanny Solorzano)) @ Luis García (Jury guard 1) @ Javier Martín (Jury guard 2) @ José Ángel Egido (Policeman) @ Richard Cruz (Driver) @ Raúl Otegui (Service boy) @ Pepe (The cat rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Alejandro Amenábar (Guy in disco bathroom laughing (uncredited) Produced by||Good. Forget overrated "Vanilla Sky"-this is a real deal!"Abre los ojos" directed by Spanish director Alejandro Amenabar("Tesis","The Others")reminds me a little bit David Lynch's stuff,mainly because the plot is pretty complicated.Amenabar creates here a very strange and unique atmosphere-the viewer isn't sure what is reality and what is imagination.The acting is excellent and the ending is totally surprising.The film has also some striking visuals and eerie scenes.Highly recommended. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Ordinary People|Robert Redford|Drama|R |7.8|USA|1980|124 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/5/2004|Ronald L. Schwary |Nancy Dowd Judith Guest Alvin Sargent|John Bailey ||CIC Vídeo [br] |some films you watch, others you feel.|Beth, Calvin, and their son Conrad are living in the aftermath of the death of the other son. Conrad is overcome by grief and misplaced guilt to the extent of a suicide attempt. He is in therapy. Beth had always preferred his brother and is having difficulty being supportive to Conrad. Calvin is trapped between the two trying to hold the family together. |Donald Sutherland (Calvin 'Cal' Jarrett) @ Mary Tyler Moore (Beth Jarrett) @ Judd Hirsch (Dr. Tyrone C. Berger) @ Timothy Hutton (Conrad 'Con' Jarrett) @ M. Emmet Walsh (Coach Salan) @ Elizabeth McGovern (Jeannine Pratt) @ Dinah Manoff (Karen) @ Fredric Lehne (Lazenby) @ James Sikking (Ray Hanley (as James B. Sikking)) @ Basil Hoffman (Sloan) @ Scott Doebler (Jordan 'Buck' Jarrett) @ Quinn K. Redeker (Ward (as Quinn Redeker)) @ Mariclare Costello (Audrey) @ Meg Mundy (Grandmother) @ Elizabeth Hubbard (Ruth) @ Adam Baldwin (Stillman) @ Richard Whiting (Grandfather) @ Carl DiTomasso (Van Buren) @ Tim Clarke (Truan) @ Ken Dishner (Genthe) @ Lisa Smyth (Gail) @ Ann Eggert (Mitzi) @ Randall Robbins (Bryce) @ Cynthia Baker (Ms. Mellon (as Cynthia Baker Johnson)) @ John Stimpson (John) @ Liz Kinney (Liz) @ Rudy Hornish (Ed) @ Clarissa Downey (Chris) @ Cynthia Burke (Annie) @ Jane Alderman (Linda) @ Paul Preston (Dennis) @ Gustave Lachenauer (Gus) @ Marilyn Rockafellow (Sarah) @ Don Billett (Philip) @ Ronald Solomon (Joel) @ Virginia Long (Choir Director) @ Paula Segal (Shopper) @ Estelle Meyers (Saleslady) @ Stuart Shiff (Waiter) @ Rose Wool (Waitress) @ Douglas Kinney (Actor) @ Constance Addington (Actress) @ Edwin Bederman (McDonald's Manager) @ Bobby Coyne (Young Jordan 'Buck' Jarrett) @ Michael Creadon (Young Conrad Jarrett rest of cast listed alphabetically Steven Hirsch .... Mack (as Steve Hirsch)) @ Allison Caine (Additional Voice (uncredited)) @ Randy De Troit (Man on Bridge (uncredited)Produced by||Intense Character Study That Stopped the "Raging Bull" in 1980 "Ordinary People" appears to be a simple film on the surface, but it is an intense character study that works because of its performances, screenplay, and top-notch direction.Oscar-winner Timothy Hutton stars as a young man who has just attempted suicide because he is feeling the after-effects of his older brother's death during a terrible storm while they were on a sailboat in the sea.Hutton is confused because he does not understand why his brother (loved by all) was taken while he (ordinary by his own standards) was spared.His upper-class parents (Donald Sutherland and Oscar-nominee Mary Tyler Moore) just do not know how to cope with the situation.Sutherland tries valiantly, but he just cannot figure his son out.Moore, on the other hand, is bitter and cold.It is made clear that her deceased son was her favorite and she does not have a real connection with Hutton.Hutton confides in psychiatrist Judd Hirsch (also Oscar-nominated) and we see flashbacks into Hutton's awful ordeal.The inability of Moore to help the situation is going to lead to turmoil between her and Sutherland.In the end, happiness is not definite by any stretch of the imagination."Ordinary People" is a good-looking film which appears tame on first glance, but is full of fireworks.The performances are all perfect, with the four aforementioned players all doing the best work of their lives.Hutton is the revelation.He became the youngest recipient of the Best Supporting Actor Oscar and it is his performance that is the wrap-around to the entire film.Robert Redford's directing debut is outstanding.In all the film captured five Academy Awards in 1980.Looking back, "Raging Bull" (also a 1980 Best Picture nominee) is definitely a better film in almost every possible department.However, "Ordinary People" is still a great film that was worthy, for the most part, of its accolades that year.4.5 out of 5 stars. || |1.85 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Others, The|Alejandro Amenábar|Drama|Rated PG-13 for thematic elements and frightening moments. |7.9|USA|2001| 101 min/ Finland:104 min/ USA:104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Fernando Bovaira Eduardo Chapero-Jackson Tom Cruise José Luis Cuerda Miguel Ángel González Emiliano Otegui Rick Schwartz Park Sunmin Paula Wagner Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein|Alejandro Amenábar |Javier Aguirresarobe ||Angel Films A/S [dk] |Sooner Or Later They Will Find You.|A woman named Grace retires with her two children to a mansion on Jersey, towards the end of the Second World War, where she's waiting for her husband to come back from battle. The children have a disease which means they cannot be touched by direct sunlight without being hurt in some way. They will live alone there with oppressive, strange and almost religious rules (eg. "don't open a door until you've closed the previous"), until she needs to hire a group of servants for them. Their arrival will accidentally begin to break the rules with unexpected consequences. |Nicole Kidman (Grace) @ Fionnula Flanagan (Mrs. Mills) @ Christopher Eccleston (Charles) @ Alakina Mann (Anne) @ James Bentley (Nicholas) @ Eric Sykes (Mr. Tuttle) @ Elaine Cassidy (Lydia) @ Renée Asherson (Old Lady) @ Gordon Reid (Assistant) @ Keith Allen (Mr. Marlish) @ Michelle Fairley (Mrs. Marlish) @ Alexander Vince (Victor) @ Ricardo López (2nd Assistant) @ Aldo Grilo (Gardener Produced by||Suspenseful, stylish horror film ***/**** The others ***/**** "The Others" is a suspenseful horror film unlike many these days. Most are concerned with blood and gore, teenage girls getting naked, body count, and not scary. "The Others" is atmospheric, spooky, bloodless, and carried by strong acting and fleshed out characters. Yet, it takes too long to make an impact and the final payoff is not as shocking as it should be. The plot is simple and not especially innovative (your average ghost story), but it seems fresh thanks to strong acting and a well-crafted, eerie atmosphere that rivals that of a Tim Burton film. Nicole Kidman is Grace, a beautiful young married mother who must raise her two children, Anne (Alakina Mann) and Nicholas (James Bentley) alone in their gigantic (actually, ridiculously large) mansion on a British isle, around the end of WWII. They are alone, for the husband and father has been at war and has not returned, and their housekeepers mysteriously vanished. Suddenly, a trio of friendly caretakers arrive one day. Mrs. Mills (Fionnula Flanagan) is the amiable old lady, Lydia (Elaine Cassidy) is a mute young girl, and Mr. Tuttle (Eric Sykes) is the not-so-social gardener. However, there is a strange, arcane facet to the trio; they have little background and had no way of knowing that Grace was offering positions at her manor. Aside from this, Grace must deal with her children, who have a deadly allergy to light, which means that the house must be dark all the time, allowing for a spooky dark, shadowy ambience. Anna and Nicholas, most importantly, have been visited - by a family of ghosts. Noises - crying, piano music, and running - have been heard. And curtains that stop light from entering the house are opening and closing by themselves. The film is based around Grace's efforts to solve the enigma. I love the atmosphere of "The Others," set in a nostalgic and ominous 1940's estate. Snowy mist blankets the grass and crisp fall leaves. Murky waters of a lake border the chateau. Elegant furniture, polished marble and wood floors, neatly-woven blankets, tautly fabricated furnishings of wood and olive green cloth, coal black German sedans, lightly wrinkled sweaters and jackets are all seemingly authentic from the era. One spectacular and tense scene has Grace haplessly stumbling through an impenetrably thick ocean of milky fog that weaves through overhanging trees and a ground of crunchy bronze and russet leaves. The action takes a while to get started up, which is a major negative. This is due to the director, Amenabar, spending time to develop an involving plot, 3-D characters, and the aforementioned décor. While Amenabar succeeds in those respects, we find ourselves wishing something would happen. Many people will easily become bored, feel tempted to sleep or leave, etc., but I, while not exactly enthralled by that point in the film, was still enjoying it. When we finally are treated to doses of suspense and chills (not so much horror and terror), it is satisfying. You most likely will find yourself on the edge of your seat or huddled in a ball anxiously awaiting the potentially fatal results of Grace's investigation. This is not so much because you care about her character, but really because you expect a sudden scream and heart-stopping outburst of maniacal ghosts. Most scenes are chilling, including the door shutting in the piano room, the old lady in the white dress, and the final chaotic conclusion. However, I can not say that I was truly horrified and paranoid from this film, unlike "The Sixth Sense," where I was freaked out for months. I was still very entertained. I must commend all the actors in the film, especially Nicole Kidman. The acting was down to earth and realistic, despite Nicole Kidman forced into saying some foolish lines ("Something.. Diabolical!). The two child actors, Mann and Bentley, were excellent in a fairly difficult role for children. Another important downside to the film was the "shocking" conclusion. While I must admit that I found it brilliant, it lacked the powerful punch I wish it had. I don't know why this is, it just isn't. I am disappointed at how much potential the ending could have packed and how little it did. Overall, I found "The Others" a highly entertaining thriller with magnetic milieus and plenty of startles. ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Virgen de los sicarios, La|Barbet Schroeder|Drama|Rated R for strong violence, language, sexuality and drug content. R|6.9|France|2000|98 min|Spanish||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/1/2004|Margaret Ménégoz Jaime Osorio Gómez Barbet Schroeder|Fernando Vallejo Fernando Vallejo|Rodrigo Lalinde ||BIM Distribuzione [it] ||The tempestuous love story between Fernando, an older man who has recently returned to his crime-ridden drug capitol hometown of Medellin, Colombia and the gun-happy 16-year-old assassin Alexis, who murders all too easily. When Alexis himself is fatally gunned down, grief-stricken Fernando hunts for his young lover's killer in the Medellin slums, but instead encounters Wilmar, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Alexis. |Germán Jaramillo (Fernando) @ Anderson Ballesteros (Alexis) @ Juan David Restrepo (Wilmar) @ Manuel Busquets (Alfonso) @ Wilmar Agudelo (Child Sniffing Glue) @ Juan Carlos Álvarez (4x4 Thief) @ Jairo Alzate (Taxi Driver Santa Domingo) @ Zulma Arango (Waitress) @ José Luis Bedoya (Taxi Sabaneta 1) @ Cenobia Cano (Alexis's Mother) @ Eduardo Carvajal (Taxi Driver Clinic) @ Olga Lucía Collazos (Pregnant Woman) @ Jorge A. Correa (Dead Man) @ Phanor Delgado (Taxi Driver with Machete) @ Albeiro Lopera (Punk) @ Wilson Lopez (Taxi Driver Sabaneta 2) @ Alexander Molina (Alexis's Brother) @ Aníbal Moncada (Don Anibal) @ Jaime Osorio Gómez (Forensic Pathologist (as Jaime Osorio)) @ Carlos Ordóñez (Old gay man) @ Teyler Pérez (4x4 Youth) @ Edwin Porras (Bad Guy #1) @ Gustavo Restrepo (La Plaga (The Pest)) @ Ohn Mario Restrepo (Bad Guy #2) @ Juan Tejada (Alexis's Brother) @ Carlos A. Danita (Parcero (Partner)) @ Nicolas Franco (Hired Assassin) @ Héctor Galan (Tango Singer) @ Rubí Henao (Beggar) @ John Jaramillo (Child Beggar) @ Juan Fdo. León (Hired Assassin) @ Carlos Zapata (Motel Receptionist) @ Serafín Zapata (Clown) @ Martha Libia Zuluaga (Dead Punk Witness rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ César Gaviria (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Ernesto Samper (Himself (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Barbet Schroeder ( (uncredited)Produced by||Black magic realism Occasionally venturing into dreamlike surrealism, the movie mostly hits you with a heavy dose of cinema verite. The movie is about the city of Medellin in the same way that Midnight Cowboy is about New York. The characters aren't dealing with the problem of staying human in a huge metropolis, but staying human in the midst of instability that verges on anarchy. The effects of fifty years of civil war aggravated by narcotrafficking and the associated crime are shown in two ways, which are the central themes of the film: the shift from the old and traditional to the modern, and the loss of value that human life has suffered. The banality of the several killings in the movie drives home the second, and the explorations that Fernando and his two boyfriends (sequential, not simultaneous) take through the city show the first. The movie is violent like the Godfather is violent: the killings are not gratuitous, they are there to make a point. As a document of life in an industrial Andean city which just happens to be the second city of the country poised to become the next Vietnam, or better said, the next El Salvador, La virgen de los sicarios is excellent. It is sophisticated in its writing and its photography. The characters are human and complex. It ought to be in far wider release than just one screen in the whole L.A. area - which happens to be on the West Side, where Spanish-speaking people typically don't live. || |1.78 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Out of Africa|Sydney Pollack|Drama||6.8|USA|1985| 150 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Anna Cataldi Terence A. Clegg Kim Jorgensen Sydney Pollack Judith Thurman|Isak Dinesen Kurt Luedtke Errol Trzebinski|David Watkin ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Based on a true story. |Follows the life of Karen Blixen, who establishes a plantation in Africa. Her life is Complicated by a husband of convenience (Bror Blixen), a true love (Denys), troubles on the plantation, schooling of the natives, war, and catching VD from her husband. Karen Blixen, a Danish woman, marries a friend for the title of Baroness and they move to Africa and start a coffee plantation. Things unfold when her husband begins cheating on her and is away on business often, so she's at home alone, working on the farm and bonding with two men she met in her first day in Africa. She eventually falls in love with the one, Denys Finch-Hatton and goes on safari and whatnot with him. Later, she begins to want more from him than the simple friendship/relationship they have and pushes marriage, but Denys still wants his freedom. By the end, she's gained a much better understanding and respect for the African culture than when she came. A study of the life of Danish noblewoman and storyteller Karen ('Isak') Dinesen Blixen, from her marriage and departure for Kenya in 1913 until her return to Denmark in 1931. As she struggles to maintain a coffee farm through various struggles and disasters, and strives to improve relations with the local natives, her marriage of convenience to a titled aristocrat gradually gives way to an enduring romance with the noted hunter and adventurer Denys Finch Hatton. |Meryl Streep (Karen Christence Dinesen Blixen-Finecke) @ Robert Redford (Denys George Finch Hatton) @ Klaus Maria Brandauer (Baron Bror Blixen-Finecke) @ Michael Kitchen (Berkeley Cole) @ Malick Bowens (Farah) @ Joseph Thiaka (Kamante) @ Stephen Kinyanjui (Kinanjui) @ Michael Gough (Lord Delamere) @ Suzanna Hamilton (Felicity) @ Rachel Kempson (Lady Belfield) @ Graham Crowden (Lord Belfield) @ Leslie Phillips (Sir Joseph) @ Mike Bugara (Juma) @ Shane Rimmer (Belknap, farm manager) @ Job Seda (Kanuthia) @ Mohammed Umar (Ismail) @ Donal McCann (Doctor) @ Kenneth Mason (Banker) @ Tristram Jellinek (First Commissioner) @ Stephen B. Grimes (Second Commissioner (as Stephen Grimes)) @ Annabel Maule (Lady Byrne) @ Benny Young (Minister at Wedding) @ Sbish Trzebinski (Beefy Drunk) @ Allaudin Qureshi (Rajiv) @ Niven Boyd (Young Officer) @ Iman (Mariammo) @ Peter Strong (Huge Man) @ Abdulla Sunado (Esa) @ Amanda Parkin (Victoria) @ Muriel Gross (Lady Delamere) @ Ann Palmer (Dowager) @ Keith Pearson (Missionary Teacher rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Maryam d'Abo ( (uncredited) Produced by||Where is the plot? Painfully slow-moving story beautifully photographed... One of the most boring, painfully slow-moving stories ever brought to the big screen has to be "Out of Africa", a snail's pace rendering of what is supposed to be a great love story. Visually, it's a stunning film to see with its broad landscapes and valleys of Africa and the wild animals, as seen from helicopter viewpoint, and all of it is accompanied by a truly fine score by John Barry that aims to capture the picture's mood. But aside from the great color photography and the spellbinding music, it's empty at the core with two passionless performances by Meryl Streep and Robert Redford, neither one of whom is able to bring real life to their characters. It's worth noting that although the film was nominated for several Oscars (including Streep and Klaus Maria Brandauer for his supporting role), it did not receive the Best Editing award--in my opinion, precisely because its three hours weren't scissored enough! With a slender plot that is almost invisible to the naked eye, three hours of running time is too much to subject this viewer to, however beautiful the National Geographic type of photography is. I can only say that in my case, "Out of Africa" was enjoyable only for the music of John Barry. ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |4.1 ||||||@@ Outbreak|Wolfgang Petersen|Action|Rated R for language. |6.4|USA|1995| 127 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stephen Brown Nana Greenwald Duncan Henderson Gail Katz Anne Kopelson Arnold Kopelson Sanford Panitch Wolfgang Petersen|Laurence Dworet Robert Roy Pool|Michael Ballhaus ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Try to remain calm.|A deadly airborne virus finds its way into the USA and starts killing off people at an epidemic rate. Col Sam Daniels' job is to stop the virus spreading from a small town, which must be quarantined, and to prevent an over reaction by the White House. A lethal virus is transported to the United States via an African monkey host. The U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infections Diseases and the Centre for Disease Control are two Federal agencies headed by an ex-husband and his former wife rush to stop its deadly spread. Will they succeed? When a disease in Africa is discovered, Colonel Sam Daniels of the United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases or USAMRIID, is sent to investigate. When he reports back to his superior officer General Ford and tells him that they should put out an alert on this disease but the General that since the disease is so far away and not airborne that it can't possibly reach the U.S. However, a monkey from that part of Africa was captured and brought to the U.S. and a man who works at the customs house took it and tried to sell it but when the person he tried to sell it to rejected it he released it. Later the man who arrived in Boston collapses and dies, Col. Daniels wants to look into it but General Ford denies his request so he turns to his ex-wife, who works at the Center for Disease Control or CDC to look into and they discover it's the African disease but since it kills very quickly, Col. Daniels feels that it's been contained until another outbreak! |Dustin Hoffman (Col. Sam Daniels) @ Rene Russo (Robby Keough) @ Morgan Freeman (Brig. Gen. Billy Ford) @ Kevin Spacey (Maj. Casey Schuler) @ Cuba Gooding Jr. (Maj. Salt) @ Donald Sutherland (Maj. Gen. Donald McClintock) @ Patrick Dempsey (Jimbo Scott) @ Zakes Mokae (Dr. Benjamin Iwabi) @ Malick Bowens (Dr. Raswani) @ Susan Lee Hoffman (Dr. Lisa Aronson) @ Benito Martinez (Dr. Julio Ruiz) @ Bruce Jarchow (Dr. Mascelli) @ Leland Hayward III (Henry Seward) @ Daniel Chodos (Rudy Alvarez) @ Dale Dye (Lt. Col. Briggs) @ Cara Keough (Kate Jeffries) @ Gina Menza (Mrs. Jeffries) @ Per Didrik Fasmer (Mr. Jeffries) @ Michelle Joyner (Sherry Mauldin) @ Donald Forrest (Mack Mauldin) @ Julie Pierce (Erica Mauldin) @ Tim Ransom (Tommy Hull) @ Michelle M. Miller (Darla Hull) @ Maury Sterling (Sandman One) @ Michael Emanuel (Sandman One Co-Pilot) @ Lucas Dudley (Viper One Pilot) @ Robert Alan Joseph (Viper Two Pilot) @ Joseph Latimore (Viper Two Co-Pilot) @ Michael Sottile (Gunner Pilot) @ Ed Beechner (Gunner) @ Matthew Saks (Sgt. Wolf) @ Diana Bellamy (Mrs. Pananides) @ Lance Kerwin (American Mercenary) @ Brett Oliver (Belgian Mercenary) @ Eric Mungai Nguku (African Nurse) @ Larry Hine (Young McClintock) @ Nickolas H. Marshall (Young Ford) @ Douglas Hebron (Ju-Ju Man) @ Jae Woo Lee (Korean Captain) @ Derek Kim (Seaman Chulso Lee) @ Bill Stevenson (Biotest Guard) @ Kellie Overbey (Alice) @ Dana Andersen (Corinne) @ Patricia Place (Mrs. Foote) @ Nicholas Pappone (Little Boy on Plane) @ Traci Odom (Little Boy's Mother) @ Herb Jefferson Jr. (Boston Doctor #1) @ Thomas Crawford (Boston Doctor #2) @ Buzz Barbee (Boston Doctor #3) @ Jenna Byrne (Tracy) @ Brian Reddy (Tracy's Father) @ Ina Romeo (Mrs. Logan) @ Teresa Velarde (Nurse Emma) @ Jane Jenkins (Nurse Jane (as J.J. Chaback)) @ Carmela Rappazzo (Hospital Receptionist) @ Kurt Boesen (Mayor Gaddis) @ Jack Rader (Police Chief Fowler) @ Robert Rigamonte (Country Health Official) @ Mimi Doyka (Frightened Mother) @ C. Jack Robinson (Biotest Manager) @ Robert Alan Beuth (George Armistead) @ Gordon Michaels (Man in Line) @ Peter Looney (White House Counsel) @ Conrad Bachmann (California Governor) @ Cary J. Pitts (Anchorman) @ Cynthia Harrison (Co-Anchor) @ Marcus Hennessy (Station Manager) @ Albert Owens (Broadcast Director) @ David Silverbrand (TV Reporter) @ Julie Araskog (Janet Adams) @ Frank Rositani (Sen. Rosales) @ George Christy (Senator) @ Bruce Isacson (Jaffe) @ Marilyn Brandt (Ford's Secretary) @ Philip Handy (Sgt. Meyer) @ Tim Frazee (MP #1) @ Moses Williams (MP #2) @ Roland Tsui (MP #3) @ Keith Butler (MP #4) @ Davi Lee Phillips (MP #5) @ Ralph Miller (Officer #1) @ Mark Brown (Officer #2) @ Jim Antonio (Dr. Drew Reynolds rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Brad Frost (Street Thug (uncredited)) @ Jack Kyle (Doctor (uncredited)) @ J.T. Walsh (Chief of Staff (uncredited)) @ Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc (Army Pilot (uncredited) Produced by||Be Afraid. A virus carried from an African monkey takes an amazing journey to infect a small U.S. town in this deeply disturbing and frightening film. The virus makes Ebola look like the common flu as it moves from person to person in a matter of seconds it seems. The fact that it is airborne just adds to its destruction. Wolfgang Petersen's typical intriguing screenplay and the top-notch performances from Dustin Hoffman, Kevin Spacey, Rene Russo, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Morgan Freeman and Donald Sutherland all add a real tension and fear in this surprising thrill-ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat until its finale. Somewhat simple story-line told near perfectly. 4 stars out of 5. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Overboard|Garry Marshall|Comedy|PG |6.1|USA|1987|106 min/ 112 min (TCM print)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/6/2004|Nick Abdo Roddy McDowall Alexandra Rose Anthea Sylbert|Leslie Dixon |John A. Alonzo ||Warner Home Vídeo [br] ||Rich bitch Joanna hires country carpenter Dean to build a closet on her yacht. When the two don't see eye-to-eye, Dean is left unpaid while Joanna sets sail. The following day, Joanna is fished out of the sea, after falling overboard, suffering from amnesia. Dean sees a neat way to regain the money she owes him... he tells her she's his wife; that way Dean gets a free housekeeper and mother for his four kids. Joanna Slayton is very rich and very spoiled. When she falls overboard from her yacht in the harbor of a small Oregon town she develops amnesia. She's taken in by Dean Profitt, a local carpenter she's previously maligned. Profitt, in revenge, persuades her that she is his wife and the mother of his three boys. Eventually, they "humanize" her and even when her memory returns she realizes she has fallen in love with Dean and his boys. Joanna Stayton (Hawn) is a rich snotty millionairess and Dean Proffitt (Russell) is a struggling carpenter trying to get by with 4 obnoxious children. After doing a job which Joanna is dissatisfied with, she tosses Dean overboard and refuses to pay him, then Joanna gets amnesia and Dean decides to get back at her by claiming her as his "wife" and mother of his 4 brats. |Goldie Hawn (Joanna Stayton/Annie Proffitt) @ Kurt Russell (Dean Proffitt) @ Edward Herrmann (Grant Stayton III) @ Katherine Helmond (Edith Mintz) @ Michael G. Hagerty (Billy Pratt (as Michael Hagerty)) @ Roddy McDowall (Andrew) @ Jared Rushton (Charlie Proffitt) @ Jeffrey Wiseman (Joey Proffitt) @ Brian Price (Travis Proffitt) @ Jamie Wild (Greg Proffitt) @ Frank Campanella (Captain Karl) @ Henry Alan Miller (Dr. Norman Korman) @ Frank Buxton (Wilbur Budd) @ Carol Williard (Rose Budd) @ Doris Hess (Adele Burbridge) @ Ed Cree (Thud Gittman) @ Mona Lyden (Gertie) @ Lucinda Crosby (Waitress) @ Bing Russell (Sheriff Earl) @ Richard Stahl (Hospital Psychiatrist) @ Ray Combs (Cop at Hospital) @ Marvin Braverman (Doctor at Hospital) @ Tim Wright (The Wright Brothers Band) @ Tom Wright (The Wright Brothers Band) @ John McDowell III (The Wright Brothers Band) @ Steven Walker (The Wright Brothers Band) @ Israel Juarbe (Engine Room Crewman) @ Robert Goldman (Crew Helmsman) @ Keith Syphers (Crew) @ Robert Meadows (Crew) @ Julie Paris (Grant's Girlfriend) @ Lisa Hunter (Grant's Girlfriend) @ Lisa Beth Ross (Grant's Girlfriend) @ Erin Grant (Grant's Girlfriend) @ Liz Stewart (Grant's Girlfriend) @ Laura Fabian (Grant's Girlfriend) @ Paul Tinder (Coast Guard Captain) @ Scott Marshall (Coast Guard Spotter Lucas) @ Bill Applebaum (Coast Guard Friend) @ Don Thompson (Coast Guard Guy rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Hector Elizondo (Garbage Scow Skipper (uncredited)) @ Garry Marshall (Drummer (uncredited)) @ Blair Richwood (Psychiatric Nurse (uncredited)Produced by||A charming and fun romantic comedy that the whole family can enjoy. Overboard is a fun movie! It's also one of those romantic comedies that could have been really awful but manages, not only to be better then average but MUCH better then average despite the "hollywood" tone through it. There are a couple of reasons for that number one being the chemistry Between Russell and Horn. Unlike alot of hollywood real life couples who do movies together and have NO chemistry, these two are the exception. You can feel as you watch the movie how much these two genuinely like each other-it shows in their work. They created a really fun, feel good, romantic comedy that neatly avoids being either to corny or to sappy. Instead it's just charming, fun and sweet-with a touch of hilarity now and then. The other thing that Horn and Russell do is make this unbelievable story believable in a way. With other romantic comedies, for example "maid in manhatten", you'r always aware your watching Jennifer Lopez play a movie role. That happens in alot of romantic comedies but in this, the characters created are fun and unique and you can buy into it without constantly thinking of the actors/actresses behind the roles. It's rare that a movie can be THIS hollywood and still come off as fun as it did. This is one the whole family can enjoy. It's alot of fun watching The ritsy socialite with amnesia and the gruff carpenter with the heart of gold as they start to sorten toward each other and ultimately fall in love. Best of all, the movie takes its time with that and doesn't just throw events in,it never becomes boring and it's always fun to watch. Obviously, certain parts are unrealistic-but who cares? This is the perfect movie to watch when your home sick, or your tired and want to perk up and it's also a great date movie as well as great family fun! My rating is 8 out of 10. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Panic Room|David Fincher|Drama|Rated R for violence and language. |7.1|USA|2002| 112 min/ Spain:113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ceán Chaffin John S. Dorsey Judy Hofflund David Koepp Gavin Polone|David Koepp |Conrad W. Hall Darius Khondji||Columbia Pictures [us] |It was supposed to be the safest room in the house |This story centers around a divorced woman in her 30's and her daughter, who are caught up in a cat-and-mouse game inside their new New York brownstone when three burglars come looking for a hidden cache of cash. Mother and daughter hide in the "panic room," a secret room designed for just such a purpose, but still end up fighting for their lives... |Jodie Foster (Meg Altman) @ Kristen Stewart (Sarah Altman) @ Forest Whitaker (Burnham) @ Dwight Yoakam (Raoul) @ Jared Leto (Junior) @ Patrick Bauchau (Stephen Altman) @ Ann Magnuson (Lydia Lynch) @ Ian Buchanan (Evan Kurlander) @ Andrew Kevin Walker (Sleepy Neighbor) @ Paul Schulze (Officer Keeney) @ Mel Rodriguez (Officer Morales) @ Richard Conant (SWAT Cop) @ Paul Simon (SWAT Cop) @ Victor Thrash (SWAT Cop) @ Ken Turner (SWAT Cop rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nicole Kidman (Stephen's Girlfriend on the Phone (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||Just OK Jodie and her diabetic daughter close themselves off in a panic room when a trio of hoodlums break in for a hidden fortune in a safe.The problem: the safe is in the panic room. It's well-acted (especially by Jodie Foster and Jared Leto), well-directed (Fincher achieves some incredible traveling shots and shots between floors and walls) and purposefully dark--but it's just average. The plot is original but, other than that, it goes through the same motions any other genre picture would go through.I saw every single plot twist coming and the constant darkness and dim lighting really gets depressing after a while.Also I never felt any urgency for the people and their situation--I was always aware I was watching a movie.And I don't like it when movies put an innocent little girl in danger. It is somewhat worth seeing for Jodie alone (with all due respect, she's a better actor than director) but she's done better movies.Ditto for director Fincher.So, I can't really recommend it, but you could do worse. ||Superbit |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Papillon|Franklin J. Schaffner|Drama||7.8|USA|1973| 150 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert Dorfmann Robert O. Kaplan Ted Richmond Franklin J. Schaffner|Henri Charrière Dalton Trumbo Lorenzo Semple Jr.|Fred J. Koenekamp ||Allied Artists Pictures Corporation [us] |The greatest adventure of escape ever filmed!|Based on a true story, Papillon tells the story of Henri Charriere, also known as Papillon, which is French for 'butterfly', because he sports a large tattoo of a butterfly. Papillon, a petty criminal, is wrongly convicted of murder and sentenced to life in the French penal colony in Guyana (South America). Papillon is determined to escape but his first attempts result in eventual recapture, despite reaching such locales as an Indian paradise and a leper's colony. As punishment, he is sent to Devil's Island, a prison within the Guyana prison, from which no one has ever escaped. He continues his attempts to escape despite incarcerations in solitary confinement as punishment. |Steve McQueen (Henri 'Papillon' Charriere) @ Dustin Hoffman (Louis Dega) @ Victor Jory (Indian chief) @ Don Gordon (Julot) @ Anthony Zerbe (Toussaint Leper Colony chief) @ Robert Deman (Maturette) @ Woodrow Parfrey (Clusiot) @ Bill Mumy (Lariot) @ George Coulouris (Dr. Chatal) @ Ratna Assan (Zoraima) @ William Smithers (Warden Barrot) @ Val Avery (Pascal) @ Gregory Sierra (Antonio) @ Vic Tayback (Sergeant (as Victor Tayback)) @ Mills Watson (Guard) @ Ron Soble (Santini) @ Barbara Morrison (Mother Superior) @ Don Hanmer (Butterfly trader) @ E.J. André (Old con) @ Richard Angarola (Commandant) @ Jack Denbo (Classification officer) @ Len Lesser (Guard) @ John Quade (Masked Breton) @ Fred Sadoff (Deputy Warden) @ Allen Jaffe (Turnkey) @ Liam Dunn (Old trustee rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Richard Farnsworth (Manhunter (uncredited)) @ Billy M. Greene (Old man (uncredited)) @ Anne Byrne Hoffman (Mrs. Dega (uncredited)) @ Fred Lerner (Convict on ship (uncredited)) @ Harry Monty ( (uncredited)) @ Ellen Moss (Nun (uncredited)) @ Dalton Trumbo (Commandant (uncredited) Produced by||Some of McQueen's best acting. Papillon contains some of Steve McQueen's best acting and it's a brilliantly told story of escape. Dustin Hoffman is great as Dega and the direction from Franklin J. Schaffner is solid. Definitely one of the most entertaining movies you will ever watch, don't pass it by. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Parenthood|Ron Howard|Comedy/Drama||7.0|USA|1989| 124 min/ Argentina:125 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004|Joseph M. Caracciolo Brian Grazer|Lowell Ganz Babaloo Mandel Ron Howard Lowell Ganz Babaloo Mandel|Donald McAlpine ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |It could happen to you.|The story of the Buckman family and friends, attempting to bring up their children. They suffer/enjoy all the events that occur: estranged relatives, the "black sheep" of the family, the eccentrics, the skeletons in the closet, and the rebellious teenagers. |Steve Martin (Gil Buckman) @ Dianne Wiest (Helen Buckman Lampkin Bowman) @ Dennis Dugan (David Brodsky) @ Mary Steenburgen (Karen Buckman) @ Paul Linke (George Bowman) @ Jason Robards (Frank Buckman) @ Rick Moranis (Nathan Merrick) @ Tom Hulce (Larry Buckman)||Took itself way to seriously. This movie looked really funny in the trailers...I found, however, that most of the funnier scenes were already shown in the trailers show there wasn't much else to see.All the funny stuff happens within the first 10 or so minutes into this one and after that there are just one or two more laughs scattered here and there.For the most part I found this movie way to serious, and it wasn't entertaining to me.I can see how others can relate to it, but I am a single guy with no kids or girlfriend...so I cannot really relate to it.If you are a parent though it might be worth your while to ignore this review and go ahead and watch the movie. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Party Monster|Fenton Bailey Randy Barbat|Crime|Rated R for pervasive drug use, language and some violence. R|5.9|USA|2003|98 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Fenton Bailey Randy Barbato Wouter Barendrecht Jon Marcus Edward R. Pressman John Schmidt Bradford Simpson Thairin Smothers Sofia Sondervan Derrick Tseng Christine Vachon John Wells Michael J. Werner|Fenton Bailey Randy Barbato James St. James|Teodoro Maniaci ||Strand Releasing [us] |good. evil. fun.|Set in the New York club scene of the late 1980's thru the 1990's, a tale which chronicles the rise and fall of club-kid promoterMichael Alig, a party organizer, whose extravagant life was sent spiralling downward when he boasted on television that he had killed his friend, roommate, and drug dealer, Angel Melendez. Originally from Indiana, Alig moved to New York, and came to be an underground legend, known for his excessive drug use and outrageous behavior in the club world. At his peak, he had his own record label, and magazine, and hosted Disco 2000, one of the biggest club nights in New York in the '90s. He was doing a lot of drugs, and as his addiction got worse, his party themes became darker and more twisted. Alig's saga reached its tragic crescendo when he viciously murdered his drug dealer, Angel, by injecting him with Drano and throwing him in the East River. The power he wielded on the club scene made him feel untouchable, so he didn't hestitate to boast of the murder. The press thought it was a publicity stunt--until Angel's body washed ashore. |Seth Green (James) @ Macaulay Culkin (Michael) @ Diana Scarwid (Elke) @ Chloë Sevigny (Gitsie) @ Dillon Woolley (Young James) @ Marilyn Manson (Christina) @ Dylan McDermott (Peter Gatien) @ Mia Kirshner (Natasha) @ Wilmer Valderrama (Keoki) @ Elliot Kriss (Cabbie) @ Natasha Lyonne (Brooke) @ Janis Dardaris (TV Reporter) @ Daniel Franzese (The Rat/Dallas MC) @ Wilson Cruz (Angel) @ Manny Perez (Johnny) @ Justin Hagan (Freez) @ Brendan O'Malley (Young Michael) @ Phillip Knasiak (Young Wrestler) @ John Summerour (Rodney) @ John Stamos (Talk Show Host) @ Michael Kaycheck (Ben) @ Steven Marcus (Bill rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joey Gray (Karl (uncredited)) @ Amanda Lepore (Herself (uncredited)) @ Walt Paper (Himself (uncredited)) @ Richie Rich (Himself (uncredited)) @ James Sheldon (Male Geisha (uncredited)) @ Bil Slavin (Clara the carefree chicken (uncredited)Produced by||One of the worst films of 2003 Truly horrendous dramatization of the true story of Michael Alig.A gay man, he became the king of the club kid scene in the late 1980s.Eventually he became hooked on drugs which led to his downfall and involved murder. There is only one good thing in this film--Seth Green's performance as James St. James, Michael's best friend.He's flamboyent, hysterically funny and plays his role with just the right amount of camp.That aside, virtually everything else sucks. The casting of Macaulay Culkin in the lead is easily the worst mistake.He can't act and says everything in a dull monotone with a blank look on his face.He's worse now than when he was a child actor!Wilmer Valderrama briefly perks up the movie as Michael's lover DJ Keoki.He's incredibly handsome, full of charisma and gives a much better performance than the material deserves.Unfortunately he disappears after the first half hour. Also the movie doesn't play fair here--when Alig and Keoki are about to kiss, the camera goes black!I think in the year 2003 audiences can deal with 2 guys kissing--especially in an R-rated film.Dylan McDermott gives in a dull one-note performance as club owner Pater Gatien.Chloe Sevigny pops up late in the film...and is given nothing to do.Wilson Cruz (looking just great) also helps the movie playing Angel...but is also given nothing to do. The script is scattershoot--it rambles all over the place and, by the end, you don't know where you are or what's happening.Where is Alig living at the end?Where is he getting all the drugs when he has no money?Why does Keoki even bother showing up at the end?Why does Angel demand money when he knows Alig is broke?etc etc.Also the direction is WAY off.Half the time the camera isn't even pointing at the actors who are speaking...other times it seems to wander around aimlessly. Boring, pointless, unpleasant and seems much much longer than it's 98 minutes.A total waste of time.Avoid at ALL costs!!!!!! || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Passion of the Christ, The|Mel Gibson|Drama|Rated R for sequences of graphic violence. R|7.4|USA|2004|127 min|Aramaic||||||||||False||||||||11/8/2004|Bruce Davey Mel Gibson Stephen McEveety Enzo Sisti|Benedict Fitzgerald Mel Gibson|Caleb Deschanel ||Newmarket Film Group [us] ||The Passion of The Christ focusses on the last twelve hours of Jesus of Nazareth's life. The film begins in the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus has gone to pray after sitting the Last Supper. Jesus must resist the temptations of Satan. Betrayed by Judas Iscariot, Jesus is then arrested and taken within the city walls of Jerusalem where leaders of the Pharisees confront him with accusations of blasphemy and his trial results in a condemnation to death. |James Caviezel (Jesus) @ Maia Morgenstern (Mary) @ Hristo Jivkov (John) @ Francesco De Vito (Peter) @ Monica Bellucci (Magdalen) @ Mattia Sbragia (Caiphas) @ Toni Bertorelli (Annas) @ Luca Lionello (Judas) @ Hristo Shopov (Pontius Pilate (as Hristo Naumov Shopov)) @ Claudia Gerini (Claudia Procles) @ Fabio Sartor (Abenader) @ Giacinto Ferro (Joseph of Arimathea) @ Olek Mincer (Nicodemus) @ Sheila Mokhtari (Woman in Audience) @ Lucio Allocca (Old Temple Guard) @ Paco Reconti (Whipping Guard) @ Adel Bakri (Temple Guard) @ Luciano Dragone (Second Man) @ Adel Ben Ayed (Thomas) @ Franco Costanzo (Accuser) @ Lino Salemme (Accuser) @ Emanuele Gullotto (Accuser) @ Francesco De Rosa (Accuser) @ Maurizio Di Carmine (Elder) @ Francesco Gabriele (Elder) @ Angelo Di Loreta (Elder) @ Federico Pacifici (Elder) @ Roberto Santi (Elder) @ Giovanni Vettorazzo (Elder) @ Ted Rusoff (Elder) @ Tom Shaker (Eyepatch) @ Andrea Coppola (Grizzled Beard) @ Romuald Andrzej Klos (Roman Soldier (as Romuald Klos)) @ Giuseppe Lo Console (Roman Soldier) @ Dario D'Ambrosi (Roman Soldier) @ Luciano Federico (Man in Audience) @ Omar Capalbo (Boy) @ Valerio Esposito (Boy) @ Antonello Iacovone (Boy) @ Nicola Tagarelli (Boy) @ Ivan Gaudiano (Boy) @ Chokri Ben Zagden (James) @ Roberto Bestazzoni (Malchus) @ Luca De Dominicis (Herod) @ Pietro Sarubbi (Barabbas (as Pedro Sarubbi)) @ Abel Jefry (2nd Temple Officer (as Abel Jafry)) @ Lello Giulivo (Brutish Roman) @ Emilio De Marchi (Scornful Roman) @ Roberto Visconti (Scournful Roman) @ Sergio Rubini (Dismas) @ Francesco Cabras (Gesmas) @ Andrea Refuto (Young Jesus (as Andrea Ivan Refuto)) @ Giovanni Capalbo (Cassius) @ Matt Patresi (Janus) @ Sabrina Impacciatore (Seraphia) @ Daniela Poti (Young Girl) @ Jarreth J. Merz (Simon of Cyrene (as Jarreth Merz)) @ Noemi Marotta (Woman) @ Rossella Longo (Woman) @ Davide Marotta (Baby) @ Rosalinda Celentano (Satan) @ Danilo Di Ruzza (Pilate's Servant) @ Vincenzo Monti (Herod's Courtier) @ Danilo Maria Valli (Herod's Courtier) @ Nuot Arquint (Herod's Courtier) @ Abraam Fontana (Herod's Courtier) @ Valerio Isidori (Herod's Courtier) @ Paolo Dos Santos (Herod's Boy) @ Arianna Vitolo (Herod's Court Woman) @ Gabriella Barbuti (Herod's Court Woman) @ Ornella Giusto (Herod's Court Woman) @ Michelle Bonev (Herod's Court Woman) @ Lucia Stara (Herod's Court Woman) @ Evelina Meghangi (Herod's Court Woman (as Evelina Meghnagi)) @ Francis Dokyi (Herod's Servant (as Francis Dokyi Baffour) Produced by||captivating religio-historic porn Let me establish at least one very basic parameter regarding this cinematic examination.I am not a religious scholar.Never have been, never will be. My religious training is strictly limited to an upbringing in a Catholic household that included weekly mass attendance and after school CCD.My scholarly interests are more artistic, centering on film, so my criticism of The Passion of the Christ, while undeniably touched by my Catholicism, is geared toward the film as an artistic endeavor.The great debate over its accuracy, its adherence to new versus old precepts of the Catholic Church, lies outside my realm of expertise.I leave such analysis to those religious scholars far more suited than myself to heading up such a discourse. As to The Passion of the Christ as a movie, it is undeniably powerful in its imagery, blatantly manipulative in its adaptation of the greatest story ever told, and incredibly difficult to watch with its seemingly endless scenes of torture.The film tells the story of the last twelve hours in the life of Christ (Jim Caviezel, looking as if he'd just stepped off a DaVinci canvas), from his betrayal by Judas Iscariot, to his death on the cross. In Gibson's version of the story, the Jewish leaders arrest Christ because of his claims to be the Son of God and the King of the Jews.He is considered a blasphemer who deserves death, so they turn to the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, for approval to have Jesus executed.Pilate sees no reason to kill Christ, but ultimately bows to the mob demanding death, though not before trying to appease the angry throng by having Jesus tortured to within an inch of his life. Gibson pulls no punches in his depiction of the suffering Jesus endured before dying.As if being beaten, kicked and spat on by the Jews weren't enough, the Romans prove themselves to be masters of torture devices, ripping, cutting and gouging the flesh from his bloodied body with everything from canes to chains to razors, long before his death march to Golgotha, where he is nailed to the cross and dies.While those scenes are horrifying to sit through, they are also, unquestionably, that which gives the film its power.The images of Christ's physical abuse are so excruciatingly vivid, Gibson's message comes through crystal clear - Christ suffered and died for all mankind's sins. Much has been made of the violence Gibson uses to tell his story, that it is too much and unnecessary.It's not as if there isn't historic precedent for this kind of violence, or the outcry that has accompanied it. Directors from Stanley Kubrick (A Clockwork Orange) to Sam Peckinpah (The Wild Bunch) to Arthur Penn (Bonnie and Clyde) to William Friedkin (The Exorcist) rode out tidal waves of criticism over movie violence following their film's release.Each of those films is now deemed a masterpiece, each one's violence considered tame by latter day standards. That is not to mitigate the violence in Gibson's film, but merely to point out the critical and moral backlash against such depictions don't have the staying power of the film's message and imagery.Lingering over the shots of his scarred and bleeding body, gives The Passion of the Christ a kind of grisly beauty, at once unsettling and hypnotic.The film will likely follow a similar path to the aforementioned films, with the charges of excessive violence eventually being eclipsed by questions of the movie's content. The other hotly debated aspect of The Passion of the Christ is Gibson's apparent laying of the blame for Jesus' death on the Jews.Whether his film will fan the flames of antisemitism and intolerance is anyone's guess. Having grown up during the post-Vatican II era, I never blamed the Jews for Christ's death anyway.I was taught that Jesus' death was preordained, by God himself, and everyone involved, from Peter and his denial, to Judas Iscariot and his betrayal, to Pontius Pilate and his death decree, were merely pawns, destined to carry out their role in His master plan.If the Jews, as well as the Romans, are fulfilling God's will, how can either be blamed for something over which they had no control? Films generally do one of two things - enlighten or entertain.Some do both.Unless you are a sadist or a masochist, The Passion of the Christ will not entertain you.As to enlightenment, the film leaves open too many questions to be truly revelatory.Chief among those questions is `why?' Why, if Gibson is to be believed, did the Roman soldiers feel the need to be so cruel to someone who clearly posed no physical threat to them?Also, why did the Jews turn on Jesus a mere five days after his triumphant entrance into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday?It's a question posed by Pilate, yet neatly sidestepped in Gibson's screenplay. For myself, an even bigger question is why Gibson, so absorbed by the spirituality of Christ's story, gives such short shrift to Jesus' rising from the dead following his crucifixion, the very heart of his power over mortality.While Gibson adheres strictly to certain aspects of the story of Jesus as we have come to know it (every Sunday School moment is here, including Veronica's wiping of his face with the shroud of Turin, and Mary cradling Jesus' body ala Michelangelo's Pieta), perhaps there is a deeper examination that would result in an even more spiritually uplifting movie. (***) ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Patch Adams|Tom Shadyac|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for some strong language and crude humor. PG-13|6.1|USA|1998|115 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Allegra Clegg Alan B. Curtiss Mike Farrell Barry Kemp Marvin Minoff Devorah Moos-Hankin Charles Newirth Steve Oedekerk Tom Shadyac Marsha Garces Williams|Patch Adams Maureen Mylander Steve Oedekerk|Phedon Papamichael ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Laughter is contagious.|Robin Williams stars as Patch Adams, in this true story of a heroic man, determined to become a medical doctor because he enjoys helping people. Unfortunately, the medical and scientific community does not appreciate his methods of healing the sick, while the actual patients, medical professors, and hospital nurses all appreciate the work *he* can do, because they are unable to do it. In 1969, Hunter Adams was a troubled man who voluntarily committed himself into a mental institution. Once there, he finds that helping his fellow inmates there gives him a purpose in life. Thus inspired, he leaves the asylum and vows to become a doctor to help people professionally. However, what he finds at medical school is a sickeningly callous philosophy that advocates an arms-length attitude to the patients that does not address their emotional needs or the quality of their lives. "Patch" Adams is determined to find a better way to help them, although the consequences of his defiance of the rules and the authorities are severe. Fact-based story of Hunter "Patch" Adams (Robin Williams), the founder of the Gesundheit Clinic, a clinic which deals with their patients with humor and pathos. The film starts with Hunter admitting himself as a patient in a mental ward. While there, he found he enjoyed helping the other patients and found the staff to be cold and separative from the patients. Vowing to change things, he releases himself from the hospital and headed to the Virginia Medical College. His unorthodox methods cast him up against many of the doctors and deans of the university, despite him getting some of the highest grades in his class. Recognizing that many poor people were not being treated, as a student he formed the Gesundheit Clinic to aid those who were not getting proper treatment at the hospital. However, this brought him up before the Medical Review Board for practicing without a license. Un'altra grande prova di attore per Robin Williams nell'ultimo film di Tom Shaydac, nel quale si racconta l'incredibile storia (vera) di Patch Adams, prima studente di medicina, poi paziente ed infine medico in un istituto per malattie mentali, convinto della necessità di dover curare le persone, prima delle malattie. Il film è ispirato alle autentiche vicende del Dr Hunter Patch Adams, fondatore del Gesundheit Institute, nel North Carolina, una clinica specializzata nella cura emotiva e psicologica del paziente, prima che medica. La storia parte dalle esperienze studentesche di Patch. Il preside della facoltà, Walcott, si oppone alle sue idee strampalate, ma l'entusiasmo di Patch contagia comunque altre persone, fra le quali l'infermiera Joletta e i compagni di corso Truman e Carin. Intanto Patch, con il suo atteggiamento divertente ed eccentrico riesce ad aprire un varco nelle paure dei più piccini. Combattendo contro la medicina ufficiale con la convinzione che "una risata è la miglior cura" il giovane rischia la propria carriera, ma riesce, alla fine, ad ottenere appoggi e validi risultati. Arriva anche a fondare l'Istituto che ancora dirige con successo e pubblica, nel 1993, un libro in cui spiega la propria esperienza e le strane ricette che prescrive, a base di travestimenti e palloncini colorati : l'importante è riuscire a stabilire un contatto di simpatia e di fiducia con i piccoli pazienti per poter ottenere positivi risultati clinici. Questa la storia. E pensiamo che non ci poteva essere altro attore in grado di vestire i panni di questo personaggio folle, ma estremamente deciso e motivato nelle proprie scelte di aiutare il prossimo. |Robin Williams (Hunter 'Patch' Adams) @ Daniel London (Truman Schiff) @ Monica Potter (Carin Fisher) @ Philip Seymour Hoffman (Mitch Roman) @ Bob Gunton (Dean Walcott) @ Josef Sommer (Dr. Eaton) @ Irma P. Hall (Joletta) @ Frances Lee McCain (Judy) @ Harve Presnell (Dean J.P. Anderson) @ Daniella Kuhn (Adelane) @ Peter Coyote (Bill Davis) @ James Greene (Bile) @ Michael Jeter (Rudy) @ Harold Gould (Arthur Mendelson) @ Bruce Bohne (Trevor Beene) @ Harry Groener (Dr. Prack) @ Barry Shabaka Henley (Emmet) @ Steven Anthony Jones (Charlie) @ Richard Kiley (Dr. Titan) @ Douglas Roberts (Lawrence 'Larry' Silver) @ Ellen Albertini Dow (Aggie Kennedy) @ Alan Tudyk (Everton) @ Ryan Hurst (Neil) @ Peter Siteri (Chessman) @ Don West (Instructor) @ Domenique Lozano (Passerby) @ Ralph Peduto (Organizer) @ Ken Hoffman (Big Texan) @ Roy Conrad (E.R. Doctor) @ Jay Jacobus (Jack Walton) @ Dot Jones (Miss Meat) @ Geoff Fiorito (3rd Year Student) @ Samuel Sheng (3rd Year Student) @ Kathleen Stefano (Margery) @ Piers Mackenzie (Dr. Hashman) @ Alex Gonzalez (Hispanic Boy) @ Ismael 'East' Carlo (Hispanic Father) @ Jake Bowen (Bryan) @ Cameron Brooke Stanley (Children's Ward Patient) @ Jamieson Downes (Children's Ward Patient) @ Jena Marie Thomas (Children's Ward Patient) @ Wesley G. Haines (Children's Ward Patient) @ Aaron Alexander (Children's Ward Patient) @ Amadeius Cheadle (Children's Ward Patient) @ David Cooper (Children's Ward Patient) @ Peter Idiart (Children's Ward Patient) @ Tim Johnson (Children's Ward Patient) @ Kate Keith (Children's Ward Patient) @ Alberto Rocha (Children's Ward Patient) @ Domonique Tate (Children's Ward Patient) @ Joseph Trefry (Children's Ward Patient) @ Richard J. Silberg (Patch Pirate) @ William Joseph Scharff (Patch Pirate) @ James Anthony Cotton (Patch Pirate) @ Michael X. Sommers (Patch Pirate) @ Howard Allison Williams (Patch Pirate) @ David Fine (Patch Pirate) @ James Carraway (Patch Pirate) @ J. Stephen Coyle (Patch Pirate) @ Wanda McCaddon (Woman in Lobby) @ Wanda Christine (Nurse Klegg) @ Lorri Holt (Pediatric Nurse) @ Stephanie Smith (Laughing Nurse) @ Mary DeLorenzo (Nurse) @ Vivis Cortez (Hysterical Woman (as Vivis)) @ Donna Kimball (Waitress) @ Norman Alden (Truck Driver) @ Lydell M. Cheshier (Younger Man) @ Diane Amos (Older Waitress) @ Sonya Eddy (Older Waitress) @ Kelvin Han Yee (Orderly (as Kelvin Yee)) @ Doreen Foo Croft (Asian Woman (as Doreen Chou Croft)) @ Bill Roberson (Fred Jarvis) @ Randy Oglesby (Fairfield Man) @ Vilma Vitanva (Maria) @ Bonnie Johnson (Walcott's Secretary) @ Helen Tourtillott (Feeble Woman) @ Christine Pineda (Hippie Girl) @ Karen Michel (Mrs. Davis) @ James Allen (Ed) @ Katherine Fitzhugh (Mrs. Catherine O'Bannon (as Katherine A. Fitzhugh)) @ Kyle Timothy Smith (Davis' Son) @ Jonathan Holder (Davis' Son) @ Renee Rogers (Receptionist) @ Shannon Orrock (Receptionist) @ Don Rizzo (Minister at Funeral) @ George Lee (Boardroom Doctor (as George Lee Masters)) @ Dan Hannafin (Boardroom Doctor (as Daniel P. Hannafin)) @ Roger W. Durrett (Boardroom Doctor) @ Richard C. Adkins (Gynecologist) @ Ralph David Westfall (Gynecologist) @ Bob Feaster (Gynecologist) @ Thom McIntyre (Gynecologist) @ Alfred Salley (Gynecologist) @ Adam Bryant (Harlod S. Willis, M.D. (Gynecologist) rest of cast listed alphabetically Patricia M. Fairchild .... Patient) @ Alan Home (Main Wiener) @ Brian Rice (Dr. Wilson S. Anders) @ Jonathan Schancupp (Man) @ Andy Arness (Orderly (uncredited)) @ Galen Black (Student (uncredited)) @ Antonio LaBell (Orderly (uncredited)) @ Charles Ritter (Convention Guest (uncredited)) @ Greg Sisero (Jaime (Monica Potter's brother) (uncredited)) @ James Marshall Wolchok (Gynecologist (uncredited)Produced by||Laughter Is The Best Medicine. Patch Adams is the remarkable true story about a man determined to become a medical doctor because he enjoys helping people. The medical community though do not like his methods of healing the sick patients, even though everyone else appreciates and enjoys what he does as he is the only one who can do so. Robin Williams stars as Patch 'Hunter' Adams and he does a brilliant job as always. He's an amazing actor and *really* funny too. Other good performances, come from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Monica Potter. Patch Adams is a must-see and I give the movie a 10/10. || |2.35 : 1 |5.0 ||||||@@ Patriot Games|Phillip Noyce|Action|R |6.8|USA|1992|117 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/30/2004|Charles H. Maguire Mace Neufeld Robert Rehme|Tom Clancy W. Peter Iliff Donald Stewart|Donald McAlpine Stephen Smith||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Not for honor.Not for country.For his wife and child.|Jack Ryan, the hero of Tom Clancy's techno-thriller series, returns in the sequel to _The Hunt for Red October_. Ryan is on vacation in England when he spoils an assassination attempt on an important member of the Royal Family. Ryan gets drawn back into the CIA when the same splinter faction of the IRA targets him and his family. Jack Ryan and his family ruin the IRA's plans to assasinate one of England's highest rated political men, and soon end up being targeted by them. Jack Ryan tries to prevent this, leading to action and terror. Harrison Ford stars as Jack Ryan in this thriller based on Tom Clancy's international best-seller. His days as an intelligence agent behind him, former CIA analyst Jack Ryan has traveled to London to vacation with his wife (Anne Archer) and child (Thora Brich). Meeting his family outside of Buckingham Palace, Ryan is caught in the middle of a terrorist attack on Lord Holmes (James Fox), a member of the Royal Family. Ryan helps to thwart Holmes' assailants and becomes a local hero. But Ryan's courageous act marks him as a target in the sights of the terrorist (Sean Bean) whose brother he killed. Now Ryan must return to action for the most vital assignment of his life: to save his family. Costarring James Earl Jones. |Harrison Ford (Jack Ryan) @ Anne Archer (Cathy Muller Ryan) @ Patrick Bergin (Kevin O'Donnell) @ Sean Bean (Sean Miller) @ Thora Birch (Sally Ryan) @ James Fox (Lord Holmes) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Lt. Cmdr. Robert Jefferson 'Robby' Jackson) @ Polly Walker (Annette) @ J.E. Freeman (Marty Cantor) @ James Earl Jones (Adm. James Greer) @ Richard Harris (Paddy O'Neil) @ Alex Norton (Dennis Cooley) @ Hugh Fraser (Geoffrey Watkins) @ David Threlfall (Insp. Highland) @ Alun Armstrong (Owens) @ Berlinda Tolbert (Sissy Jackson) @ Hugh Ross (Barrister Atkinson) @ Gerald Sim (Lord Justice) @ Pip Torrens (First aide) @ Thomas Russell (Ashley) @ Jonathan Ryan (Jimmy O'Reardon) @ Andrew Connolly (Charlie Dugan) @ Karl Hayden (Paddy Boy) @ Claire Oberman (Lady Holmes) @ Oliver Stone (Young Holmes) @ Tom Watt (Electrician) @ P.H. Moriarty (Court guard) @ Rebecca Mayhook (Schoolgirl) @ Roger Blake (Constable) @ Martin Cochrane (Constable) @ Tim Dutton (Constable) @ Ellen Geer (Rose) @ John Lafayette (Alex Winter) @ Duke Moosekian (Tony Ferro) @ Fritz Sperberg (Spiva) @ Brenda James (Secretary (as Brenda Klemme)) @ Allison Barron (CIA analyst) @ Ted Raimi (CIA technician (as Theodore Raimi)) @ Philip Levien (Dr. Shapiro) @ Jesse D. Goins (FBI Agent Shaw (as Jesse Goins)) @ John Shepard (FBI helicopter pilot) @ Stephen Held (FBI rifleman) @ Debora Weston (CNN reporter) @ Bob Gunton (Interviewer) @ Ivan Kane (TV reporter) @ Kim Delgado (TV reporter) @ Keith Campbell (Ned Clark) @ Jeff Mandon (Marine guard) @ Eric Paul (Marine guard) @ Jeff Gardner (Midshipman) @ Lester T. Tillery (Midshipman) @ Franklin Dam (Midshipman) @ Frankie Maldonatti (Midshipman) @ Bonnie Webster (Midshipman) @ Pamela Saxon (Midshipman) @ Leah Tabassi (Midshipman) @ Michael Ryan Way (Avery) @ Gregory Paul Jackson (Taxi driver) @ Fred Toma (Arab soldier) @ Ruben Garfias (Anesthesologist) @ Michael Francis Kelly (O'Neil's bodyguard rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Markus Alexander (Midshipman (uncredited)) @ Bret Culpepper (Patriot Club rowdy (uncredited)) @ Lucia Noyce (Schoolgirl at crossing (uncredited)Produced by||Get yer Irish up! PATRIOT GAMES (1992) *** Harrison Ford, Patrick Bergin, Anne Archer, James Earl Jones, Sean Bean, Thora Birch, James Fox, Richard Harris, Samuel L. Jackson.Fast-paced Tom Clancy thriller with CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Ford at his first attempt) facing a personal vendetta by an Irish terrorist sect out for revenge after his interference on an assassination attempt on the British royal family.Some finely directed moments and nice transition from Alec Baldwin's departure. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Pay It Forward|Mimi Leder|Drama|Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements including substance abuse/recovery, some sexual situations, language and brief violence |6.7|USA|2000| 123 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peter Abrams Paddy Carson Robert L. Levy Mary McLaglen Steven Reuther Jonathan Treisman|Catherine Ryan Hyde Leslie Dixon|Oliver Stapleton ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Sometimes The Simplest Idea Can Make The Biggest Difference.|Young Trevor McKinney, troubled by his mother's alcoholism and fears of his abusive but absent father, is caught up by an intriguing assignment from his new social studies teacher, Mr. Simonet. The assignment: think of something to change the world and put it into action. Trevor conjures the notion of paying a favor not back, but forward--repaying good deeds not with payback, but with new good deeds done to three new people. Trevor's efforts to make good on his idea bring a revolution not only in the lives of himself, his mother and his physically and emotionally scarred teacher, but in those of an ever-widening circle of people completely unknown to him. A school social studies assignment leads to social changes that spread from city-to-city. Assigned to come up with some idea that will improve mankind, a young boy (Haley Joel Osment) decides that if he can do three good deeds for someone and they in turn can "pay it forward" and so forth, positive changes can occur. What appears to initially be a failure, is indeed a success that is not immediately known but is traced backwards by a reporter who is a benefactor. The initial recipients of the boy are a drug addict (James Cavaziel), his badly scarred school teacher (Kevin Spacey), and his alcoholic mother (Helen Hunt). While physically and mentally scarred by past events, the teacher is not the only one bearing scars. The young boy fears his mother's fate, particularly at his brutal, alcoholic father's (Jon Bon Jovi) hands. The mother also bears scars from her childhood with a homeless, alcoholic mother (Angie Dickinson). |Kevin Spacey (Eugene Simonet) @ Helen Hunt (Arlene McKinney) @ Haley Joel Osment (Trevor McKinney) @ Jay Mohr (Chris Chandler) @ James Caviezel (Jerry) @ Jon Bon Jovi (Ricki McKinney) @ Angie Dickinson (Grace) @ David Ramsey (Sidney) @ Gary Werntz (Thorsen) @ Colleen Flynn (Woman on Bridge) @ Marc Donato (Adam) @ Kathleen Wilhoite (Bonnie) @ Liza Snyder (Michelle) @ Jeanetta Arnette (Nurse) @ Hannah Werntz (Thorsen's Daughter) @ Tina Lifford (Principal) @ Loren D. Baum (Rough Kid #1) @ Nico Matinata (Rough Kid #2) @ Zack Duhame (Rough Kid #3) @ Shawn Pyfrom (Shawn) @ Alexandra Kotcheff (Alexandra) @ Bradley White (Jordan) @ Christi Colombo (Christi) @ Phillip D. Stewart (Phillip) @ Justin Parsons (Justin) @ Myeshia Dejore Walker (Myeshia) @ Brenae Suzanne Davey (Brenae) @ Molly Kate Bernard (Molly) @ Andrew Patrick Flood (Andy) @ Tameila N. Turner (Tameila) @ Julian Correa (Julian) @ Carrie Ann Sullivan (School Girl) @ Patricia Deanda (Change Girl) @ Ryan Berti (Hallway Kid #1) @ Gabriela Rivas (Hallway Kid #2) @ Carrick O'Quinn (Man In Window) @ Stephanie Feury (Woman In Window) @ Bernard White (Cop) @ Tom Bailey (Liquid Man #1) @ Tim De Zarn (Liquid Man #2 (as Tim Dezarn)) @ Jonathan Nichols (Liquid Man #3) @ Ron Keck (Lowlife #1) @ John Powers (Lowlife #2) @ Bob McCracken (Creepy Middle-Aged Man) @ Frank Whiteman (Doctor) @ Eugene Osment (Cop Who Gives Directions) @ Kendall Tenney (Male Newscaster) @ Sue Tripathy (Female Newscaster) @ Rusty Meyers (News Stand Guy) @ Leslie Dilley (The Governor rest of cast listed alphabetically Stacy Bellew .... School Girl) @ Rachel Rose Kennedy (Classroom Kid) @ Meghan Albano (Neighbor (uncredited)) @ Cynthia Ettinger ( (uncredited)) @ Ian Hodgkinson (Vampiro (archive footage) (uncredited)) @ Ryan Keating (Stranded Motorist (uncredited)) @ Lana Kinnear (Dancer (uncredited) Produced by||What movies are supposed to be Pay It Forward is a prime example of what films are supposed to do:make you laugh a little, cry a lot, and profoundly affect you in a way that keeps you thinking about the movie for weeks afterwards.I saw it at a special preview screening and was blown away.My friends and I sat through the entire credits because we were so taken by what we had seen.Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt, and the phenomonal Haley Joel Osment once again give performances worthy of Oscars.I only hope there isn't some "retaliation" of sorts because of their previous wins and nominations because they deserve it again this year.But the big winner here is director Mimi Leder who has moved from action films into great cinema.She demonstrates the fine tuned skills she showed while directing ER.As I sat there, one eye kept a close watch of the story while the other marveled at the beautiful direction of every scene.They have my vote for Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actress, and Screenplay.Awe-inspiring!!!! || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Paycheck|John Woo|Sci-Fi|Rated PG-13 for intense action violence and brief language. PG-13|6.0|USA|2003|119 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/6/2004|Arthur Anderson Terence Chang John Davis Michael Hackett Keiko Koyama Stratton Leopold Caroline Macaulay David Solomon David Solomon John Woo|Philip K. Dick Dean Georgaris|Jeffrey L. Kimball ||DreamWorks Distribution LLC [us] |Remember the future.|Jennings (Ben Afleck) is the best reverse-engineer in the business. He is hired by clients to take apart other companies technologies and find out how they work. He is hired to do a special job, against the advice of some of his associates. When the job is completed, all memory of what he has been working on is ereased from his mind. That's when his problem really start to begin. He is hunted for something he has no recollection of doing and has only a little time to work it out. He has sent himself 19 seemingly unconnected objects, before his memory was wiped, to allow him to put the puzzle together and discover just what has gone on and what he has done. But the authorities are after him and time is very quickly running out. An computer engineer named Jennings (Affleck) awakens one day to discover that the last three years of his life and the work he did for a man named Rethrick (Eckhart) during that time has been erased from his memory. He also learns that he agreed to the three years secret work and erasure in exchange for a huge sum of money. But when he goes to collect his paycheck, Jennings learns that before his memory was erased, he gave up the money in exchange for a small bag of worthless clues and trinkets. When the feds come looking for him, Jennings must go on the lam and try to put together the last three years so he can prove his innocence. Using the strange trinkets he previously left for himself, he goes on a journey in search of Rethrick, for whom he used to work, and how he knew that these worthless items would save his life. Jennings (Affleck), an engineer who has had part of his memory erased, struggles to to find clues to his whereabouts for the past two years. Turns out his employer did the evil deed as a security measure, leaving him only with a collection of random objects to help him reconstruct his past. An engineer named Jennings (Affleck) awakens one day to discover that the last two years of his life and the work he did for a man named Rethrick (Eckhart) during that time has been erased from his memory. He also learns that he agreed to the two years secret work and erasure in exchange for a huge sum of money. But when he goes to collect his paycheck, Jennings learns that before his memory was erased, he gave up the money in exchange for a small bag of worthless clues and trinkets. When the police come looking for him, Jennings must go on the lam and try to put together the last two years so he can prove his innocence. Using the strange trinkets he previously left for himself, he goes on a journey in search of Rethrick, where he used to work, and how he even knew that these worthless items would save his life. |Ben Affleck (Michael Jennings) @ Aaron Eckhart (James Rethrick) @ Uma Thurman (Dr. Rachel Porter) @ Paul Giamatti (Shorty) @ Colm Feore (John Wolfe) @ Joe Morton (Agent Dodge) @ Michael C. Hall (Agent Klein) @ Peter Friedman (Atty. Gen. Brown) @ Kathryn Morris (Rita Dunne) @ Ivana Milicevic (Maya-Rachel) @ Christopher Kennedy (Stevens) @ Fulvio Cecere (Agent Fuman) @ John Cassini (Agent Mitchell) @ Callum Keith Rennie (Jude, Guard) @ Michelle Harrison (Jane) @ Claudette Mink (Sara Rethrick) @ Ryan Zwick (Street Kid) @ Dee Jay Jackson (Guard (as Deejay Jackson)) @ Serge Houde (Dekker) @ Calvin Finlayson (Balloon Boy) @ Kendall Cross (Scientist) @ Catherine Lough Haggquist (Scientist) @ Darryl Scheelar (Plainclothes Federal Agent) @ Mark Brandon (Lottery Host) @ Roger Haskett (Lottery Official) @ Steve Wright (Allcom Helicopter Pilot) @ Craig Hosking (FBI Helicopter Pilot) @ Emily Holmes (Betsy, Salesgirl) @ Krista Allen (Holographic Woman) @ Barclay Hope (Suit) @ Peter Shinkoda (Suit) @ David Lewis (Suit) @ Robert Clark (Member of String Quartet) @ Andrea Siradze (Member of String Quartet) @ Isabelle Roland (Member of String Quartet) @ Peter Caton (Member of String Quartet) @ Ryan Robbins (Husband) @ Benita Ha (Wife) @ Chelah Horsdal (Young Mother) @ Craig March (Janitor) @ Jason Calder (Wolfe Goon) @ Mike Godenir (Wolfe Goon) @ Brad Kelly (Wolfe Goon) @ Brent Connolly (Wolfe Goon) @ Michelle Anderson (Nursery Customer) @ Lori Barrera (Nursery Customer (as Lori Berlanga) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Sandra-Jessica Couturier (Extra (uncredited)) @ Joe Coyle (School Teacher (uncredited)) @ Richard Cummins (Plant Scientist (uncredited)) @ Aaron Douglas (Scientist #3 (uncredited)) @ Peggy Flood (Computer (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||James Dwan's Paycheck Review Set in the near future Ben Affleck stars as Michael Jennings a 'reverse engineer' who hacks into new electronic technologies for rival companies to duplicate. To protect his client's confidentiality Jennings agrees to have his memory erased, but after a highly paid top-secret assignment for the shady James Rethrick (Aaron Eckhart), Jennings is awoken to discover that he has forfeited his paycheck. In return he receives an envelope of seemingly meaningless items, which may well later become integral to his survival. Jennings must discover what he has been working on in the past two years before his memory was erased, and why he's been accused of murder, but time is not on his side, and he must piece together the clues he left for himself before the Feds or his former employer catch up with him. Paycheck starts promisingly as an intelligent story with intriguing fast-paced action, but unfortunately the chase becomes relentless and the action tedious, as the characters remain underdeveloped and the script underwritten. Based on the work of sci-fi writer Philip K. Dick, Paycheck doesn't live up to other cinematic adaptations of his works such as Blade Runner or Total Recall, and Dick's warped and paranoid futuristic world is unrealised in John Woo's under-designed future. This film is ultimately a disappointment which falls short of the intriguing story promised by its trailer, but nevertheless it is a better than Affleck's and Woo's respective disappointments with their previous projects Gigli and Windtalkers. On the other hand Uma Thurman has taken a backward step after her success with Kill Bill by playing such as diminutive role as Rachel the 'plant biologist,' even if that is an ass-kicking bitch of a plant biologist. This film is at times completely unoriginal, borrowing and in some cases completely ripping off other recent films such as Memento, Minority Report and Die Another Day. Paycheck is ultimately rescued by its chase scene into which Woo crams cars, motorbikes, helicopters and a few well placed discarded pipes, topped off with a few explosions Woo shows us why he's still one of the best action directors and although this film isn't bad enough to demand your money back its not one to remember either. 3/5 ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Pearl Harbor|Michael Bay|Drama|Rated PG-13 for sustained intense war sequences, images of wounded, brief sensuality and some language. |5.5|USA|2001| 183 min/ USA:184 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kenny Bates Michael Bay Jerry Bruckheimer Scott Gardenhour Bruce Hendricks K.C. Hodenfield Jennifer Klein Chad Oman Selwyn Roberts Pat Sandston Mike Stenson Barry H. Waldman Randall Wallace|Randall Wallace |John Schwartzman ||Buena Vista Home Video (BVHV) [us] |December 7, 1941 - It Was A Sunday Morning...|Set during the time of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, two friends (Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett) are caught up in the events that draw the United States into World War II. One of them enlists with the U.S. Army Air Corps and the other flies for the British Royal Air Force, but they both find themselves in love with the same woman (Kate Beckinsale). The classic story of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor is told through the eyes of two boyhood friends, now serving as officers in the Army Air Corps. Rafe is an energetic young pilot who is selected to fly with the British in Europe while America is still not at war. After Rafe is shot down and presumed killed, however, Danny comforts Rafe's former lover, Evelyn, and the two draw closer. But, when Rafe turns up alive, the two former friends become enemies, and it is through the turmoil of Pearl Harbor that the two may reconcile their differences. Two childhood best friends, Rafe (Ben Affleck) and Danny (Josh Hartnett), grow up wanting to fly planes. When Rafe gets the chance to join the Royal Air Force during World War II, he takes it - leaving his new love, Evelyn (Kate Beckinsale), a dedicated Navy nurse, and Danny, also a pilot, behind. Danny and Evelyn are transferred separately to the idyllic paradise of Hawaii, where they eventually meet through a connection to Rafe, who has been declared missing. But just as the love triangle begins to get complicated, Dec. 7, 1941 arrives, changing all of their lives forever. |Ben Affleck (Capt. Rafe McCawley) @ Josh Hartnett (Capt. Danny Walker) @ Kate Beckinsale (Nurse Lt. Evelyn Johnson) @ Cuba Gooding Jr. (Petty Officer Doris 'Dorie' Miller) @ Jon Voight (President Franklin Delano Roosevelt) @ Alec Baldwin (Lt. Col. James 'Jimmy' Doolittle) @ Tom Sizemore (Sergeant Earl Sistern) @ William Lee Scott (Lt. Billy Thompson) @ Greg Zola (Lt. Anthony Fusco) @ Ewen Bremner (Lt. Red Winkle) @ Jaime King (Nurse Betty Bayer (as James King)) @ Catherine Kellner (Nurse Barbara) @ Jennifer Garner (Nurse Sandra) @ Sara Rue (Nurse Martha) @ Michael Shannon (Lt. Gooz Wood) @ Dan Aykroyd (Captain Thurman) @ Colm Feore (Admiral Husband E. Kimmel) @ John Fujioka (Nishikura) @ Mako (Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto) @ Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Commander Mirou Genda) @ Matthew Davis (Joe (as Matt Davis)) @ Reiley McClendon (Young Danny) @ Jesse James (Young Rafe) @ William Fichtner (Danny's Father) @ Steve Rankin (Rafe's Father) @ Brian Haley (Training Captain) @ David Hornsby (Flyer with Murmur) @ Scott Wilson (General George C. Marshall) @ Graham Beckel (Admiral Chester W. Nimitz) @ Howard Mungo (George) @ Randy Oglesby (Strategic Analyst) @ Ping Wu (Japanese Officer) @ Stan Cahill (Pentagon Lieutenant) @ Kevin Wensing (XO U.S.S. West Virginia) @ Tom Everett (Frank Knox, the Secretary of the Navy) @ Tomas Arana (Vice Admiral Frank J. 'Jack' Fletcher) @ Beth Grant (Motherly Secretary) @ Sung Kang (Listener) @ Raphael Sbarge (Kimmel's Aide) @ Marty Belafsky (Louie the Sailor) @ Yuji Okumoto (Japanese Shy Bomber) @ Josh Green (Pvt. Ellis (radar operator)) @ Ian Bohen (Radar Private #2) @ Michael Milhoan (Army Commander) @ Peter Firth (Captain Mervyn Bennion (USS West Virginia)) @ Andrew Bryniarski (Joe the Boxer) @ Marco Gould (Pop-Up Sailor) @ Nicholas Downs (Terrified Sailor) @ Tim Choate (Navy Doctor) @ John Diehl (Senior Doctor) @ Joseph Patrick Kelly (Medic (as Joe Kelly)) @ Ron Harper (Minister) @ Ted McGinley (Army Corps Major) @ Madison Mason (Admiral Raymond A. Spruance) @ Kim Coates (Jack Richards) @ Andrew Baley (Hornet Radio Op) @ Glenn Morshower (Rear Admiral William F. 'Bull' Halsey Jr.) @ Paul Francis (Doolittle Co-Pilot) @ Scott Wiper (Gunner) @ Eric Christian Olsen (Gunner) @ Rod Biermann (Navigator) @ Noriaki Kamata (Japanese Soldier) @ Garret Sato (Japanese Soldier (as Garret T. Sato)) @ Eiji Inoue (Japanese Soldier) @ Precious Chong (Nursing Supervisor) @ Jeff Wadlow (Next Guy In Line) @ Will Gill Jr. (Train Conductor) @ Seth Sakai (Japanese Tourist) @ Curtis Andersen (18 Year Old Typist (as Curtis Anderson)) @ Blaine Pate (Orderly in Aftermath) @ John Pyper-Ferguson (Naval Officer in Hospital (as John Pyper Ferguson)) @ Michael Shamus Wiles (Captain of the Hornet) @ Brett Pedigo (Next Guy in Line #2) @ Toru Tanaka Jr. (Samoan Bouncer (as Toru M. Tanaka Jr.)) @ Sean Gunn (Traction Sailor) @ Josh Ackerman (Wounded Sailor #1 (as Joshua Ackerman)) @ Matt Casper (Wounded Sailor #2) @ David Kaufman (Young Nervous Doctor) @ Lindsey Ginter (Captain Low (as L.L. Ginter)) @ Joshua Aaron Gulledge (Buster) @ Guy Torry (Teeny Mayfield) @ Leland Orser (Major Jackson) @ Peter James Smith (Mission Listener) @ Mark Noon (Medic) @ Pat Healy (News Reel Guy) @ Thomas Wilson Brown (Young Flier) @ Chad Morgan (Pearl Harbor Nurse) @ James Saito (Japanese Aide #1) @ Angel Sing (Japanese Aide #2) @ Tak Kubota (Japanese Aide #3) @ Robert Jayne (Sunburnt Sailor) @ Vic Chao (Japanese Doctor) @ Michael Gradilone (Screaming Sailor) @ Frederick Koehler (Wounded Sailor #3 (as Fred Koehler)) @ John Padget (Hospital Chaplain) @ Ben Easter (Baja Sailor #1) @ Cory Tucker (Baja Sailor #2) @ Abe Sylvia (Baja Sailor #4) @ Jason Liggett (Baja Sailor #5) @ Mark Panasuk (Baja Sailor #6) @ Bret Roberts (Baja Sailor #7) @ John Howry (Lieutenant in Boat) @ Rufus Dorsey (Dorie's Friend) @ Patrice Martinez (French Fisherman) @ Rodney Bursiel (Sailor with Dog) @ Rob McCabe (Rescue Sailor) @ Brandon Lozano (Baby Danny) @ Seiki Moriguchi (Akagi Communication Officer) @ Brian D. Falk (Helmsman #1) @ Estevan Gonzalo (Bombing Sailor) @ Christopher Stroop (Helmsman #2) @ Sean Faris (Danny's Gunner) @ Vincent J. Inghilterra (Preacher) @ Nicholas Farrell (RAF Squadron Leader) @ Tony Curran (Ian) @ Viv Weatherall (Pilot #1) @ Benjamin Farry (Pilot #2 (as Ben Farry)) @ Daniel Mays (Pilot #3) @ Toshi Toda (Dentist) @ Jaymee Ong (Dental Assistant rest of cast listed alphabetically Ken Goth .... Army 2nd Lieutenant) @ Hank Harris (Young Harbor Patrolman (scenes deleted)) @ Greg Baine (Young Sailor (uncredited)) @ Annika Banko (Extra (uncredited)) @ Wally Burr (Newsreel Voice (uncredited)) @ Winston Churchill (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Jeremy Denzlinger (Sailor (uncredited)) @ David de Vos (Medical Orderly (uncredited)) @ Jeremy Gilbreath (Toothbrush Sailor (uncredited)) @ Geoffrey Gould (Dental Patient (uncredited)) @ Anthony Grimley (British Air Commander Peter Tubbs (uncredited)) @ Adolf Hitler (Himself (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Frieda Jane (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Saburo Kurusu (Himself (in Washington with Nomura) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Elizabeth Leaff (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Kathleen Mullan (Stearn Nurse (uncredited)) @ Robert C. Nelson (Army Officer (uncredited)) @ Naoko Niya (Hawaiian Bar Girl (uncredited)) @ Kichisaburo Nomura (Himself (in Washington with Kurusu) (uncredited) (archive footage)) @ Lin Oeding (Japanese Sailor (uncredited)) @ Pete Romano (Soldier in the Water (uncredited)) @ Lisa Ross (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Barbara Scolaro (Mrs. Doolittle (uncredited)) @ Leway Shih (Japanese Airplane Mechanic (uncredited)) @ Lijay Shih (Japanese Airplane Pilot (uncredited)) @ Jack Truman (Train Conductor (uncredited)) @ Clyde Tull (Army Officer (uncredited)) @ Larry Wegger (Taxi Driver (uncredited)) @ Mark Weiler (Naval Messenger (uncredited)) @ James Yeung (Japanese Sailor (uncredited)) @ Johnny Zander (Gunmen #1 (uncredited) Produced by||The epic of this year! MUST SEE MOVIE! Pearl Harbor must be some of the epic movies that has hit the big screen in the last five years. Beautifully portrayed characters with realistic emotions of war time. When I first saw it, it was breathtaking. I had friends that said part of it was predictable where one of the main characters "dies" in Europe. What I see on that part of the movie was a common scenario during the war when you thought someone was dead but they actually weren't. It was used well and people that didn't like that concept need to realise that that was a reality of war. Anyway, the computer graphics effects are incredible. One of the most amazing parts of the movie is the Japanese pilot (which the movie orientates a bit around) is aiming his bomb site over the USS Arizona. He hits the switch and we watch in awe as the bomb falls out of the plane and the camera follows it all the way down towards the ship. It was deffinitely the most stunning 3D effects I have seen in a movie. In the huge 3 hours of playtime, Pearl Harbor manages to take the viewer back into 1941 and the storyline is very real and gripping. Michael Bay (Director) has shown true directing skills all round in all aspects of this film. This film had little bits that were a tad boring, but most films have a bit of that. Rafe McCaulley (Affleck) is a master fighter pilot with his best friend Danny Walker (Hartnett) who is also. Certain situations cause them both to fall in love with a courageous army nurse Evelyn Johnson (Beckinsale). Other characters that I personally thought where played well was Jimmy Dolittle (Alec Baldwin), President Roosevelt (Jon Voight) and Earl (Tom Sizemore). I give Pearl Harbor 10/10 for its action packed, drama filled, epic movie ofthis year, maybe even decade!! ||60th Anniversary Commemorative Edition |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Pee-wee's Big Adventure|Tim Burton|Adventure||6.6|USA|1985| 90 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Richard Gilbert Abramson William E. McEuen Robert Shapiro Paul Reubens|Phil Hartman Paul Reubens Michael Varhol|Victor J. Kemper ||Warner Bros. [us] |The story of a rebel and his bike. |The love of Pee-wee Herman's life is his bicycle. When it is stolen, he is send on a wild cross country adventure after a fortune teller tells him his bicycle is in the basement of the Alamo. Along the way, Pee-wee encounters an escaped convict, a waitress with wanderlust and a jealous boyfriend, and a mysterious female truck driver. Pee Wee Herman goes on a big adventure when his bike is stolen. He hitches across America, encountering various people and situations in his own special way, but will he find his beloved bike ? Pee-wee's bicycle, a material object he desires above all human relationships, is stolen. The journey he is forced to make exposes him to the land that suburbia forgot, a mythical working-class America filled with truck stops, waitresses and runaway convicts. This is Tim Burton's remake of Vittorio De Sica's Italian neo-realist classic, The Bicycle Thief. middle class in America. |Paul Reubens (Pee-wee Herman (as Pee-wee Herman)) @ Elizabeth Daily (Dottie) @ Mark Holton (Francis) @ Diane Salinger (Simone) @ Judd Omen (Mickey) @ Irving Hellman (Neighbor) @ Monte Landis (Mario) @ Damon Martin (Chip) @ David Glasser (BMX Kid) @ Gregory Brown (BMX Kid) @ Mark Everett (BMX Kid) @ Daryl Roach (Chuck) @ Bill Cable (Policeman #1) @ Peter Looney (Policeman #2) @ Starletta DuPois (Sgt. Hunter) @ Professor Toru Tanaka (Butler) @ Ed Herlihy (Mr. Buxton) @ Ralph Seymour (Francis' Accomplice) @ Lou Cutell (Amazing Larry) @ Raymond Martino (Gang Member) @ Erica Yohn (Madam Ruby) @ Bill W. Richmond (Highway Patrolman) @ Alice Nunn (Large Marge) @ Ed Griffith (Trucker) @ Simmy Bow (Man in Diner) @ Jon Harris (Andy) @ Carmen Filpi (Hobo Jack) @ Jan Hooks (Tina) @ John Moody (Bus Clerk) @ John O'Neill (Cowboy #1) @ Alex Sharp (Cowboy #2) @ Chester Grimes (Biker #1) @ Luis Contreras (Biker #2) @ Lonnie Parkinson (Biker #3) @ Howard Hirdler (Biker #4) @ Cassandra Peterson (Biker Mama) @ Jason Hervey (Kevin Morton) @ Bob McClurg (Studio Guard) @ John Paragon (Movie Lot Actor) @ Susan Barnes (Movie Lot Actress) @ Zachary Hoffman (Director) @ Lynne Marie Stewart (Mother Superior) @ George Sasaki (Japanese Director) @ Richard Brose (Tarzan) @ Drew Seward (Kid #1) @ Brett Fellman (Kid #2) @ Bob Drew (Fireman) @ John Gilgreen (Policeman at Pet Shop) @ Noreen Hennessey (Reporter (as Noreen Hennessy)) @ Phil Hartman (Reporter) @ Michael Varhol (Photographer) @ David Rothenberg (Hobo) @ Patrick Cranshaw (Hobo (as Pat Cranshaw)) @ Sunshine Parker (Hobo) @ Gilles Savard (Pierre) @ James Brolin (Himself, as PeeWee) @ Morgan Fairchild (Herself, as 'Dottie') @ Tony Bill (Terry Hawthorne) @ Dee Snider (Himself (Twisted Sister) (as Twisted Sister) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Milton Berle (Himself (uncredited)) @ Cleve Hall (Godzilla, 'Satan's Helpers' Biker Gang Member (uncredited) Produced by||Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) Pee-wee's Big Adventure (the first full-length feature by acclaimed film-maker Tim Burton) is the kind of movie you'd have to force yourself NOT to like. Adapted from Paul Reubens' hit children's (and adult's) television show, it is a delightful fantasy that is bound to entertain. The tagline for the film describes it as "the story of a rebel and his bike," and that really about sums up the entire movie, but there's something about Pee-wee that taps into everyone's inner child and captures the care-freeness of youth, making his adventures irresistible and utterly captivating ... because -- afterall -- Pee-wee is still the coolest man-child out there (take THAT, Michael Jackson!). The plot (which is really rather insignificant) revolves around Pee-wee's prized bike, which is tragically stolen while he's shopping for novelty toys at the mall (who DOESN'T wish they had this man's life?). After deciding that the police couldn't possibly help him in his endeavors, he "takes the law into his own hands" and sets out on a quest to find his bicycle -- which a phony fortune-teller has told him is in the basement of the Alamo. The film can be enjoyed on a number of levels: while there is always the sheer fun and hilarity of Reubens comic genius, there is another genius at work here -- Burton's. One of the many pleasures of watching a Burton movie is that you can tell you're watching a movie by a man who's watched a lot of movies, and each feature of his is drenched with homages, parodies, and inside jokes: Pee-wee's Big Adventure features references to beach blanket movies, horror movies, Godzilla movies, Tarzan movies, and even The Wizard of Oz. The other great thing about Burton is that he always adds a dark edge to his work, regardless of how flippant the work may be: when Pee-wee's bike is stolen, it's a moment of almost Hitchcockian intensity. Burton's playful use of shadows and cartoonish set pieces conveys a sense of simultaneous lightheartedness and malice; his films accomplish that rare feat of creating a world entirely of their own. But even if all of this film-geek babble means absolutely nothing to you, you can still have fun on this adventure, because Pee-wee is one of the most likable characters in the history of entertainment: anyone who claims to find Reubens obnoxious or unfunny is either lying to you or has no sense of humor. The screenplay for Pee-wee's Big Adventure was written by Reubens and Saturday Night Live alumni Phil Hartman, and its combination of childish humor ("I know you are, but what am I?") and unexpected insight is absolutely charming. With top-notch direction and full-blown hilarity (the "Tequila" scene is one for the time capsule), it is one of the most purely enjoyable films ever made; it's that rare cult movie that's just as good as its fans would tell you it is. So go on: give into your temptation and watch it. As Pee-wee himself would say, "I triple-dog-dare ya" not to like it. Grade: B || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Perfect Storm, The|Wolfgang Petersen|Adventure|Rated PG-13 for language and scenes of peril. |6.2|USA|2000| 129 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Alan B. Curtiss Duncan Henderson Gail Katz Barry Levinson Brian McNulty Wolfgang Petersen Paula Weinstein|Sebastian Junger William D. Wittliff|John Seale ||Sandrew Metronome Distribution Finland [fi] |In the Fall of 1991, the "Andrea Gail" left Gloucester, Mass. and headed for the fishing grounds of the North Atlantic. Two weeks later, an event took place that had never occurred in recorded history.|In October 1991, a confluence of weather conditions combined to form a killer storm in the North Atlantic. Caught in the storm was the sword-fishing boat Andrea Gail. Magnificent foreshadowing and anticipation fill this true-life drama while minute details of the fishing boats, their gear and the weather are juxtaposed with the sea adventure. Billy Tyne is a sword-fishing-boat captain out of Gloucester, highly competitive and stung by a string of poor outings. His crew is hardly back in port when he tells them he's going out again, even though it's October and the weather can turn ugly. Five join him: the young Bobby, newly in love; Murph, a devoted father recently divorced; Sully, a guy Murph despises; Bugsy, who's finally met a woman who likes him; and Alfred, a quiet Jamaican. They catch little, so they sail east, with Tyne ignoring storm warnings behind him. Finally, the fish bite, but the ice machine fails. Should they head home through the storm of the century, or wait it out and lose their catch? Fearful, the women wait. |George Clooney (Captain Billy Tyne) @ Mark Wahlberg (Bobby Shatford) @ Diane Lane (Christina 'Chris' Cotter) @ Karen Allen (Melissa Brown) @ William Fichtner (David 'Sully' Sullivan) @ Bob Gunton (Alexander McAnally III, Owner of Sailboat Mistral) @ John C. Reilly (Dale 'Murph' Murphy) @ Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (Linda Greenlaw) @ Allen Payne (Alfred Pierre) @ John Hawkes (Mike 'Bugsy' Moran) @ Christopher McDonald (Todd Gross, Channel 9 TV Meteorologist) @ Dash Mihok (Sergeant Jeremy Mitchell) @ Josh Hopkins (Captain Daryl Ennis) @ Michael Ironside (Bob Brown) @ Cherry Jones (Edie Bailey) @ Rusty Schwimmer (Irene) @ Janet Wright (Ethel Shatford) @ Bruce Mahler (Moss) @ Todd Kimsey (Lieutenant Rob Petit) @ Brad Martin (Gloucester Fisherman #1) @ Chris Palermo (Flight Engineer Borgers) @ Hayden Tank (Dale Murphy, Jr.) @ Merle Kennedy (Deb Murphy) @ Joseph D. Reitman (Douglas Kosco) @ Sandy Ward (Quentin, the Old Timer) @ Melissa Samuels (Pam, Todd Gross' Assistant) @ J. Scott Shonka (Communications Officer) @ Billy Mayo (C-130 Pilot) @ Patrick Stinson (T.V. News Reporter #1) @ Terry Anzur (T.V. News Reporter #2) @ James Lee (Helmsman) @ Christopher Melberg (Mourner) @ Lloyd Malone (Falcon Jet Copilot) @ Tim Trotman (C-130 Navigator) @ Katelyn C. Brown (Carrot Top Kid #1) @ Michael Spasee (Lookout) @ Walter Altman (Bartender) @ Miles Schneider (Carrot Top Kid #2) @ Barry Rutstein (C-130 Engineer) @ Jim Argenbright (Quartermaster) @ Steve Barr (Commander Brudnicki rest of cast listed alphabetically Eric Bruno Borgman .... Courthouse Worker (scenes deleted)) @ Edmund Loughlin (Local) @ Wiley M. Pickett (Sgt. 'Jonesy' Jones) @ Janet Borgman (Church Parishioner (uncredited)) @ Matthew Casey (Extra (uncredited)) @ Elizabeth Duff (Billy Tyne's Ex-Wife (uncredited)) @ Alan Francis (Assistant Medical Examiner (uncredited)) @ James Grant (Extra in Funeral Scene (uncredited)) @ Sebastian Junger (Crow's Nest Patron (uncredited)) @ Kevin McNamara (Coast Guard Sailor (uncredited)) @ Ken Parham (Fisherman in Bar (uncredited)) @ Anya Slavin (Extra (uncredited)) @ Mike Swanson (Police Photographer (uncredited)) @ Alex Wallace (Person at Funeral (uncredited) Produced by||An intense, real and emotional experience. Heading into this film I did not expect the full on and intense experience that it delivered. I expected brilliant and seamless computer graphics, they were delivered. I expected a fairly personal story about the people involved, that was delivered. I expected some amazing sounds and sights, and I got them. While I was watching this film, I couldn't help being aware of the fact that the people being tossed around the sea were, at least in part, real and that this movie was based on what they went through. But I also got more... I got to be in the storm and feel my heart quicken a little as the fishing vessel edges up impossibly large waves, and then crashes down to face another. It is not a pretty film, it portrays very well the harsh environment in which it is set. It is a 'real' film, that doesn't seem to pull any punches. The photography is excellent and really draws you in, it is fluid and makes you feel close to the action. The acting is very good, it really connects you with the crew of the Andrea Gail and those around them. The computer animation is what you would expect it to be - almost seamless - it delivers huge waves and powerful storm cells. This is one of the best films I have seen in a long time, and truly removes you from your reality and into the storm. || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 6.1 EX ||||||@@ Pet Sematary|Mary Lambert|Horror||5.6|USA|1989| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mitchell Galin Richard P. Rubinstein Ralph S. Singleton Tim Zinnemann|Stephen King Stephen King|Peter Stein ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Sometimes dead is better.|The Creeds have just moved to a new house in the countryside. Their house is perfect, except for two things: the semi-trailers that roar past on the narrow road, and the mysterious cemetary in the woods behind the house. The Creed's neighbours are reluctant to talk about the cemetary, and for good reason too. The Creeds buy a house in Ludlow, Maine. Not so far away is clear path that leads to a little Pet Sematary in the woods,which hides a mysterious Micmac Indian Burying ground. The story is about , when Louis Creed's daughter's cat Church gets killed in the road, and Jud taked Louis up to a sacred place to bury the cat, the Micmac Indian Burying Ground, and didn't come back the same, Church came back evil. And soon, and Louis's son Gage gets killed in the road, and a couple of days later after Gage's funeral, Louis dug him up, and buries Gage in the Minmac Indian Burying Ground. Gage doesn't come back the same, he came back evil, and soon things get out of control, and what is Louis going to do about it? |Dale Midkiff (Louis Creed) @ Fred Gwynne (Jud Crandall) @ Denise Crosby (Rachel Creed) @ Brad Greenquist (Victor Pascow) @ Michael Lombard (Irwin Goldman) @ Miko Hughes (Gage Creed) @ Blaze Berdahl (Ellie Creed) @ Susan Blommaert (Missy Dandridge) @ Mara Clark (Marcy Charlton) @ Kavi Raz (Steve Masterton) @ Mary Louise Wilson (Dory Goldman) @ Andrew Hubatsek (Zelda) @ Liz Davies (Girl at infirmary) @ Kara Dalke (Candystriper) @ Matthew August Ferrell (Jud as a child) @ Lisa Stathoplos (Jud's mother) @ Stephen King (Minister) @ Elizabeth Ureneck (Rachel as a child) @ Chuck Courtney (Bill Baterman) @ Peter Stader (Timmy Baterman) @ Richard Collier (Young Jud) @ Chuck Shaw (Cop) @ Dorothy McCabe (Seatmate #1) @ Mary R. Hughes (Seatmate #2) @ Eleanor Grace Courtemanche (Logan gate agent) @ Donnie Greene (Orinco driver) @ Lila Duffy (Budget clerk) @ John David Moore (Hitchhike driver) @ Beau Berdahl (Ellie Creed II Produced by||Stephen King chiller. The dead don't always stay dead. The Stephen King screenplay is based on his own bestseller novel. This is not a full blown horror film, but will give you chills and an overall creepy feeling. A young college MD(Dale Midkiff)brings his young family to a small town in Maine. The family cat is killed and buried in a special burial ground that folklore claims has the power to revive the dead. Strangely enough the cat returns fit as a fiddle. The doctor's young son is accidentally killed and next comes the thoughts of burying the child in the pet cemetery. Also starring are Denise Crosby, Mara Clark, Fred Gwynne and Miko Hughes. There is a cameo for King as a minister. Timeless jitters to be had by all. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Pet Sematary II|Mary Lambert|Horror|R |3.6|USA|1992|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004|Ralph S. Singleton |Richard Outten |Russell Carpenter ||CIC Vídeo [br] |Raise some hell.|The "sematary" is up to its old zombie-raising tricks again. This time, the protagonists are Jeff Matthews, whose mother died in a Hollywood stage accident, and Drew Gilbert, a boy coping with an abusive stepfather. The Pet Sematary continues with the dead rising, but we have new characters in this film. Jeff Matthews and Drew Gilbert. The story is mainly about Drew's dog Zowie gets shot by his father, and Drew has to his dog, and Jeff went along with him. They didn't bury him in the Pet Sematary, the buried him in the Micmac Indian Burying ground beyond the Pet Sematary, Drew heard about the story of Louis Creed and Jud Crandall burying pets and people up there, and so he decided to try it out. And soon, Zowie comes back with shocking results, and things get worse! |Edward Furlong (Jeff Matthews) @ Anthony Edwards (Chase Matthews) @ Clancy Brown (Gus Gilbert) @ Jared Rushton (Clyde Parker) @ Darlanne Fluegel (Renee Hallow) @ Jason McGuire (Drew Gilbert) @ Sarah Trigger (Marjorie Hargrove) @ Lisa Waltz (Amanda Gilbert) @ Jim Peck (Quentin Yolander) @ Len Hunt (Director) @ Reid Binion (Brad) @ David Ratajczak (Stevie) @ Lucius Houghton (Puppeteer) @ Wilbur Fitzgerald (First assistant director) @ Elizabeth Ziegler (Steadicam operator) @ Ken Fisher (Assistant Steadicam operator) @ Gil Roper (Electrician) @ Robert Easton (Priest) @ Judson Vaughn (Reporter) @ Bruce Evers (Mover) @ Janell McLeod (Schoolteacher) @ Christy Dennis (Susan) @ Rick Andosca (Pathologist) @ Joe Dorsey (Caretaker) @ Donna Lowry (Newscaster) @ Emily Woodward (Twins' mother) @ Amanda Mitchell (Screaming Twin) @ J.L. Parker (Potato Truck Driver rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ D. Taylor Loeb ( (uncredited)) @ Bart Mixon (Bumbling Technician (uncredited)Produced by||Makes the first one look like "Gone With the Wind" I had vague memories of seeing this when it came out in 1992.I hated the first one but I had some hope that maybe the sequel would be better.I remember hating it worse than the first one!Seeing it again last night (Why?Damned if I know) all those feelings came rushing back. The plot is basically a retread of the first--a spooky cemetary in the Maine woods has the power to bring the dead back to life.Naturally the dead come back as killers. The first one was a cruel, stupid horror film.This one manages to be even crueller and much, much stupider.The script is horrible--full of unlikable characters and has an extremely mean-spirited tone to it.The movie opens with a young boy seeing his mother electrocuted to death and then cuts to a dog being put to sleep by lethal injection!That's just the opening--all through the movie there are vivid scenes of child and animal abuse shoved in your face.It makes you feel dirty and disgusted.Also there's a truly sick (and unnecessary) rape scene and pointless female nudity.And there's some really sick, graphic gore. The direction is lackluster and (with one exception) all the actors are terrible--Anthony Edwards appears to be sleepwalking and Edward Furlong is just pathetic in the lead role. The only thing that makes this film bearable is Clancy Brown's hilarious performance as a resurrected sheriff.But that's not enough to sit through this crap. Cruel, sick, badly acted, badly directed, stupid script--to be avoided at all costs.This definetely does belong in IMDB's bottom 100. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Peter Pan|Clyde Geronimi Wilfred Jackson Hamilton Lusk|Family||7.2|USA|1953| 76 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Milt Banta J.M. Barrie William Cottrell Winston Hibler Bill Peet Erdman Penner Joe Rinaldi Ted Sears Ralph Wright|||Abril Vídeo [br] |It will live in your heart forever! |Adaptation of J. M. Barrie's story about a boy who never grew up. The three children of the Darling family receive a visit from Peter Pan, who takes them to Never Never Land where an ongoing war with the evil Pirate Captain Hook is taking place. Based upon Sir James M. Barrie's 1904 play about the boy who refuses to grow up, this film begins in the London nursery of Wendy, John and Michael Darling. The three children are visited by Peter Pan, the boy who refuses to grow up. With the help of his tiny friend, the fairy Tinkerbell, Peter takes the three children on a magical flight to Never Land. This enchanted island is home to Peter, Tink, the Lost Boys, Tiger Lily and her Indian tribe, and the scheming Captain Hook who is as intent on defeating Peter Pan as he is from escaping the ticktocking crocodile that once bit off the pirate's hand. |Bobby Driscoll (Peter Pan (voice)) @ Kathryn Beaumont (Wendy Moira Angela Darling (voice)) @ Hans Conried (Captain J. S. Hook/Mr. George Darling (voice)) @ Bill Thompson (Mr. Smee/Other Pirates (voice)) @ Heather Angel (Mrs. Mary Darling (voice)) @ Paul Collins (John (voice)) @ Tommy Luske (Michael (voice)) @ Candy Candido (Indian Chief (voice)) @ Tom Conway (Narrator (voice)) @ Roland Dupree (Extra Voices (voice)) @ Don Barclay (Extra Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Tony Butala (Lost Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Carol Coombs ( (uncredited) (voice)) @ Robert Ellis (Lost Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ June Foray (Mermaid/Squaw (uncredited) (voice)) @ Connie Hilton (Mermaid (uncredited) (voice)) @ Margaret Kerry (Mermaid (uncredited) (voice)) @ Karen Kester ( (uncredited) (voice)) @ Johnny McGovern (Lost Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Norma Jean Nilsson ( (uncredited) (voice)) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Chorus singer (uncredited) (voice)) @ Jeffrey Silver (Lost Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Stuffy Singer (Lost Boy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Anne Whitfield ( (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||A great cartoon classic, one of Disney's best This wonderful Disney production offers flights of fancy that appeal directly to children's fertile imaginations. The ability to fly, to be a devil-may-care youngster and never grow up, to engage in derring-do with pirates, never having to bother with school, and exploring fantasy worlds of islands, mermaids, Indians and mysterious caves is a powerful magnetic pull for young dreamers. The lush color lensing of this animated adventure is superb, and the characters and catchy tunes add to the pleasure of watching this film, for young and old alike. Peter Pan, the title character, is a spry, charming lad who loves his carefree existence. He is, however, upstaged by his companion, the delightfully naughty Tinker Bell, a temperamental pixie who literally sees red when Wendy accompanies Peter Pan to Never Land. Captain Hook and his shadow, the crocodile, the sniveling Smee, the beautiful mermaids, and the stoic Tiger Lily are the characters who stand out in this movie. Wendy and her brothers, John and Michael are okay and basically come along for the ride. The sprightly song "You Can Fly!-You Can Fly!-You Can Fly!" is just one of the memorable tunes for which Peter Pan is fondly remembered. ||Limited Issue |1.37 : 1 |4.0 ||||||@@ Peter Pan|Vincent J. Donehue|Family|NR |7.0|USA|1960|100 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Richard Halliday |J.M. Barrie |||GoodTimes Home Video [us] ||In this magical tale about the boy who refuses to grow up, Peter Pan and his mischievous fairy sidekick Tinkerbell visit the nursery of Wendy, Michael and John Darling. With a sprinkling of pixie dust, Peter and his new friends fly out the nursery window and over London to Never-Never Land. The children experience many wonderful and exciting adventures with the Lost Boys, Tiger Lily's Indian tribe, and Peter's arch enemy the dastardly pirate Captain Hook. |Mary Martin (Peter Pan) @ Cyril Ritchard (Captain Hook/George Darling) @ Maureen Bailey (Wendy/Jane) @ Margalo Gillmore (Mrs. Darling) @ Sondra Lee (Tiger Lily) @ Joe E. Marks (Smee) @ Joey Trent (John) @ Kent Fletcher (Michael) @ Jacqueline Mayro (Liza) @ Edmund Gaynes (Slightly) @ Bill Snowden (Curly) @ Carson Woods (Nibs) @ Brad Herrman (First Twin) @ Luke Halpin (Second Twin) @ David Komoroff (Tootles) @ Richard Wyatt (Lion) @ Joan Tewkesbury (Ostrich) @ Peggy Maurer (Wendy Grown-up) @ John Holland (Black Bill) @ Robert Vanselow (Starkey (as Bob Vanselow)) @ Richard Winter (Cecco) @ George Zima (Kangaroo) @ Frank Lindsay (Pirate) @ Frank Marasco (Pirate) @ Arthur Partington (Pirate) @ Jim Sisco (Pirate) @ Kirby Smith (Pirate) @ John Smolko (Pirate) @ Arthur Tookoian (Pirate) @ James B. Welch (Pirate) @ Linda Dangcil (Indian) @ George Lake (Indian) @ Lisa Lang (Indian) @ Diki Lerner (Indian) @ Annabelle Lyon (Indian) @ Robert Piper (Indian) @ Suzanne Rivera (Indian) @ Anne Wallace (Indian) @ Lynn Fontanne (Narrator rest of cast listed alphabetically Jerry Johnson .... Pirate) @ Norman Shelly (Nana and CrocodileProduced by||Oh, the wonderful memories this brings back... As I was growing up, this film always had a special place in my heart next to The Wizard of Oz; it was shown live in 1955 and 1960.The 1960 production was preserved on kinescope and then shown once or twice in 1961 or 1962 and never again until 1991 or so. During those years that it was forgotten by the networks, there wasn't a baby-boomer out there that had truly forgotten it.It was one of those magical shows that we all talked about and wished they'd run again.Now, it's finally available on tape and on DVD; the DVD version is very well done and the picture is colorful, bright and clear, even though it's from the only kinescope copy of the live show.It's very much a filmed stage play, and the sets reflect this.It was preserved in color, which is a miracle considering there were virtually no color sets in existence then. Mary Martin is great as Peter (she was 47 years old when she did this very acrobatic role!), but Cyril Ritchard pretty much steals the production from her with his Hook.He and his pirates are so over the top that the other actors are hard put to keep up.Watch his face and his body during the singing and dancing scenes; he's just a delight.The songs are all wonderful, too.This is a film that probably won't be very popular with the children of the 90's, but my guess is that it was really meant for those of us who loved it when we were kids, because I purchased the DVD the minute it came out.Buy it while it's still available, and enjoy the memories. ||||||||||@@ Pete's Dragon|Don Chaffey|Animation||5.7|USA|1977| 128 min/ Argentina:130 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jerome Courtland Ron Miller|S.S. Field Malcolm Marmorstein Seton I. Miller|Frank V. Phillips ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Brazzle Dazzle Brilliance!|In New England in the early 20th century, Pete is a nine-year-old orphan escaping from his brutal adoptive parents, the Gogans, with his only friend, a cartoon dragon named Elliott. Pete and Elliott successfully escape to Passamaquoddy, Maine, and live with Nora, a lighthouse keeper, and her father, Lampie. Elliott is sought for medicinal purposes by the corrupt Doctor Terminus. |Helen Reddy (Nora) @ Jim Dale (Dr. Terminus) @ Mickey Rooney (Lampie) @ Red Buttons (Hoagy) @ Shelley Winters (Lena Gogan) @ Sean Marshall (Pete) @ Jane Kean (Miss Taylor) @ Jim Backus (The Mayor) @ Charles Tyner (Merle) @ Jeff Conaway (Willie) @ Gary Morgan (Grover) @ Cal Bartlett (Paul) @ Charlie Callas (Elliot (voice)) @ Walter Barnes (Captain) @ Al Checco (Fisherman #1) @ Henry Slate (Fisherman #2) @ Jack Collins (Fisherman #3) @ Robert Easton (Store Proprietor) @ Roger Price (Man with Visor) @ Robert Foulk (Old Sea Captain) @ Ben Wrigley (Egg Man) @ Joe Ross (Cement Man rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Calvin Bartlett (Undetermined Role (uncredited)) @ Dinah Ann Rogers (Townsperson (uncredited)) @ Dennis Stewart (Fisherman (uncredited) Produced by||I quote a man from "Pod People": "It stinks!" Pete's Dragon Decent Disney film made at the height of their corny, rapid film output of the mid-70s--when a lot of really bad "family films" were shipped out on to the market in an order to draw in mass amounts of cash. This story concerns the tale of an orpan who sees an invisible dragon that only reveals itself to the boy--until a wandering town drunkard (Mickey Rooney) catches a glimpse and sings about his sighting, too. Come to think of it, this movie is really, really bad. I own it and I used to watch it quite often as a kid--the songs are bad, the filming is bad, the villains are bad examples of poor acting (or is that good examples of poor acting?)... Still, enjoyable enough to recommend. ***/***** || |1.75 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Philadelphia Story, The|George Cukor|Comedy|NR |8.2|USA|1940|112 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Joseph L. Mankiewicz |Philip Barry Donald Ogden Stewart Waldo Salt|Joseph Ruttenberg ||Atalanta Filmes [pt] |Uncle Leo's bedtime story for you older tots! The things they do among the playful rich - Oh, boy!|Philadelphia heiress Tracy Lord throws out her playboy husband C.K. Dexter Haven shortly after their marriage. Two years later, Tracy is about to marry respectable George Kittredge whilst Dexter has been working for "Spy" magazine. Dexter arrives at the Lord's mansion the day before the wedding with writer Mike Connor and photographer Liz Imbrie, determined to spoil things. Haughty divorced socialite Tracy Lord is preparing for her second marriage. Enter Dexter Haven, her first husband, and Macaulay Connor, a tabloid reporter with a distrust of the wealthy. What follows is a rapid-fire war of words as the two men try to help Tracy discover the heart beneath her holier-than-thou exterior. |Cary Grant (C. K. Dexter Haven) @ Katharine Hepburn (Tracy Samantha Lord) @ James Stewart (Macaulay (Mike) Connor) @ Ruth Hussey (Elizabeth (Liz) Imbrie) @ John Howard (George Kittredge) @ Roland Young (Uncle Willie) @ John Halliday (Seth Lord) @ Mary Nash (Margaret Lord) @ Virginia Weidler (Dinah Lord) @ Henry Daniell (Sidney Kidd) @ Lionel Pape (Edward) @ Rex Evans (Thomas rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Hillary Brooke (Main Line Society Woman (uncredited)) @ Veda Buckland (Elsie (uncredited)) @ Lita Chevret (Manicurist (uncredited)) @ Russ Clark (John (uncredited)) @ David Clyde (Man (uncredited)) @ Robert De Bruce (Dr. Parsons (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Fay (Main Line Society Woman (uncredited)) @ Claude King (Uncle Willie's Butler (uncredited)) @ Florine McKinney (Main Line Society Woman (uncredited)) @ Lee Phelps (Bartender (uncredited)) @ Hilda Plowright (Librarian (uncredited)) @ Helene Whitney (Main Line Society Woman (uncredited)Produced by||A Witty, Distinctive Classic This witty, distinctive classic is very entertaining and has substance, too.The scenario is quite interesting, and the script makes excellent use of all the possibilities, but most of all it is the terrific cast that makes it such a fine and memorable film.You could not ask for better performers (or better casting) than to have Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Jimmy Stewart as the three lead characters.Not only are they all ideal in their own roles, but they also make a wonderful combination in their scenes together.Plenty of credit also goes to the supporting cast, which is very good in its own right, and their characters get some good moments, too. The story takes the familiar situation of a woman pursued by suitors both past and present, and adds in some creative details, plus the background of an eccentric family, to make it rise far above the banal level where so many movies of this kind stay.It moves at a pleasant pace, with many good scenes.While there are no big surprises, it features enough quirky developments to keep from becoming predictable, and it's quite satisfying once everything is resolved.It's an enjoyable movie both for its story and for its great cast. || |1.37 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Phone Booth|Joel Schumacher|Thriller|Rated R for pervasive language and some violence. R|7.4|USA|2002|81 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Ted Kurdyla Gil Netter Eli Richbourg David Zucker|Larry Cohen |Matthew Libatique ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Your life is on the line.|A slick New York publicist (Farrell) who picks up a ringing receiver in a phone booth is told that if he hangs up, he'll be killed... and the little red light from a laser rifle sight is proof that the caller isn't kidding. Stuart (Colin Farrell) hasn't been totally honest. In fact, he's about the most dishonest man you'll meet. Everyday, at the same time, he goes to a phone booth in NYC to call his girlfriend (Katie Holmes), so that his wife (Radha Mitchell) can't trace the phone call. Today is no longer just an ordinary day. Now, someone's calling him, leaving his life on the line. A fiendish publicist finds himself being held hostage in a phone booth by an extreme moralist who watches his victim's every move through the scope of his high-power sniper rifle, while speaking to the publicist via the phone booth. The caller prides himself on using force to punish corrupt people by forcing them to admit all of their lies and sins through mental games, or killing them. At the same time, he eliminates other people as well; everyday people who are guilty of brutal dishonesty and/or corruption, such as a murderous street pimp and a pushy pizza man (all of which, if you look hard enough in the film, have a guilt link). The caller himself is corrupt, and uses it defeat other corruption. It is evil fighting evil in the phone booth. |Colin Farrell (Stu Shepard) @ Kiefer Sutherland (The Caller) @ Forest Whitaker (Captain Ramey) @ Radha Mitchell (Kelly Shepard) @ Katie Holmes (Pamela McFadden) @ Paula Jai Parker (Felicia) @ Arian Waring Ash (Corky (as Arian Ash)) @ Tia Texada (Asia) @ John Enos III (Leon) @ Richard T. Jones (Sergeant Cole) @ Keith Nobbs (Adam) @ Dell Yount (Pizza Guy) @ James MacDonald (Negotiator) @ Josh Pais (Mario) @ Yorgo Constantine (ESU Commander) @ Colin Patrick Lynch (ESU Technician) @ Troy Gilbert (ESU Sniper) @ Richard Paradise (ESU Guy) @ Seth William Meier (Officer McDuff (as Seth Meier)) @ Svetlana Efremova (Erica) @ Billy Erb (Lars) @ Domenick Lombardozzi (Wyatt) @ Maile Flanagan (Lana) @ Tom Reynolds (Richard) @ Julio Oscar Mechoso (Hispanic Medic) @ Kahara Muhoro (Nigerian Vendor) @ Zidu Chen (Korean Husband) @ Shu Lan Tuan (Korean Wife) @ Dean Cochran (Reporter #1) @ Amy Kowallis (Reporter #2) @ Tory Kittles (Reporter #3) @ Bruce Roberts (Reporter #4) @ Tyree Michael Simpson (Doorman (as Tyree Simpson)) @ Dean Tarrolly (Newscaster) @ Mary Randle (Dispatcher) @ Paul Fontana (Dispatcher rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Cathy Jo Cooke (Newscaster #1 (uncredited)) @ Mia Cottet (Lu Ann (uncredited)) @ Jared Huckaby (1st Officer (uncredited)) @ Chris Huvane (Wiseass (uncredited)) @ Kim Posnett (News Anchor (uncredited)Produced by||When a phone rings... Director Joel Schumacher preserves his reputation with a script by Larry Cohen about personal morals and hopefully the truth providing some kind of redemption. This is a white knuckle nerve wrecker about a self-serving publicist(Colin Farrell)making the mistake of his life by answering a public telephone. On the other end of the phone is a self empowered mad man(Kiefer Sutherland) inflicting demands on the fast talking, fast thinking publicity dealer who just happened to be walking by the phone booth he passes every day. The mystery voice on the phone demands the publicist to stay in the phone booth until he tells his wife(Radha Mitchell)and the TV watching public of his cheating, lying and making use of others. Of course behind the demanding voice is a sharpshooter that is not afraid to pull the trigger. The senior officer on the scene(Forest Whitaker)tries to make sense of the situation while fighting back thoughts of his own past personal problems. At least 90% of this thriller is made up of witty, threatening and revealing banter between Farrell and Sutherland. And talk about a clever twist to end this flick. Also of note in the cast are: Katie Holmes, Richard T. Jones and Paula Jai Parker. Think twice about answering that ringing phone. || |2.35 : 1 | ||||||@@ Pink Panther, The|Blake Edwards|Comedy|NR |7.2|USA|1963|113 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/8/2004|Dick Crockett Martin Jurow|Maurice Richlin Blake Edwards|Philip H. Lathrop ||United Artists [us] |A Madcap Frolic Of Crime and Fun|As a child, Princess Dala is given, by her father, the largest diamond in the world, in which if you stare into it can be seen a "Pink Panther" hence the name. However, now as a young woman, rebels in her home country have seized power and are demanding the return of the jewel. Dala relaxes on holiday in an exclusive skiing resort but noted British playboy, Sir Charles Lytton is in town. He is secretly "The Phantom" - infamous jewel thief who has eyes on the Pink Panther. Charles's playboy nephew George follows to the resort in an attempt to steal it and blame it on "The Phantom", not knowing that it's his uncle. On the Phantom's trail is Inspector Jacques Clouseau, from France, and his wife who, unknowingly to Jacques, is the lover of Charles and helper in the Phantom's crime. Jacques tries to stop the attempts but he is so clueless that when several attempts are made at a fantasy-dress party, Jacques looks everywhere but the right place... A French detective, Inspector Clouseau, is obsessed with the capture of a glamourous jewel thief known only as "The Phantom". A lead takes Clouseau to Switzerland and to Sir Charles, a rich English playboy. During the course of his investigations the most unexpected of persons becomes a strong suspect. The pink panther is a gem with an imperfection that looks like a pink panther. It is the goal of the Phantom, a jet set thief who has been terrorizing the European smart set. He is pursued by Inspector Clouseau, the most bumblng detective in Europe. Assisting the phantom are his nephew and the wife of Clouseau. The trademark of The Phantom, a reknowned jewel thief, is a glove left at the scene of the crime. Inspector Clouseau, an expert on The Phantom's exploits, feels sure that he knows where The Phantom will strike next and leaves Paris for Switzerland, where the famous Lugashi jewel `The Pink Panther' is going to be. However, he does not know who The Phantom really is, or for that matter who anyone else really is... |David Niven (Sir Charles Lytton) @ Peter Sellers (Inspector Jacques Clouseau) @ Robert Wagner (George Lytton) @ Capucine (Simone Clouseau) @ Brenda De Banzie (Angela Dunning) @ Colin Gordon (Tucker) @ John Le Mesurier (Defense Attorney (as John LeMesurier)) @ James Lanphier (Saloud) @ Guy Thomajan (Artoff) @ Michael Trubshawe (Novelist) @ Riccardo Billi (Greek Shipowner) @ Meri Welles (Hollywood Starlet) @ Martin Miller (Photographer) @ Fran Jeffries (Greek 'Cousin') @ Claudia Cardinale (Princess DalaProduced by||The worst of the Sellers "Pink Panther" series... Blake Edwards' famous "Pink Panther" series gets off to a bumbling start with Peter Sellers' universally-known Inspector Clouseau chasing down a jewel thief trying to get his (or her) hands on the "Pink Panther" diamond. Not many laughs, pretty poor comedy, I give it "2" of 5. Many of the sequels were better, although not those without Sellers. Getting a new installment next year with Steve Martin. It'll either be hilarious or disastrous. || |2.20 : 1 (negative ratio) |1.0 ||||||@@ Pinocchio|Hamilton Luske Ben Sharpstee|Animation||7.7|USA|1940| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Aurelius Battaglia Carlo Collodi William Cottrell Otto Englander Erdman Penner Joseph Sabo Ted Sears Webb Smith|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Pure enjoyment... with no strings attached. [1984 re-release]|Inventor Gepetto creates a wooden marionette called Pinocchio. His wish that Pinocchio be a real boy is unexpectedly granted by a fairy. The fairy assigns Jiminy Cricket to act as Pinocchio's "conscience" and keep him out of trouble. Jiminy is not too successful in this endeavor and most of the film is spent with Pinocchio deep in trouble. |Mel Blanc (Hiccup sound effect (uncredited) (voice)) @ Don Brodie (Barker (uncredited) (voice)) @ Walter Catlett (J. Worthington Foulfellow (uncredited) (voice)) @ Frankie Darro (Lampwick (uncredited) (voice)) @ Cliff Edwards (Jiminy Cricket (uncredited) (voice)) @ Dickie Jones (Pinocchio (uncredited) (voice)) @ Charles Judels (Stromboli/The Coachman (uncredited) (voice)) @ Christian Rub (Geppetto (uncredited) (voice)) @ Evelyn Venable (The Blue Fairy (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||When "Pinocchio" came out it was suddenly apparent that "Snow White" had been a mere ranging shot. There are a hundred great things about "Pinocchio".Pleasure Island, for one.I'm amazed how quick the Disney artists were to discover that the multiplane camera, as well as providing accurate perspective and spectacular landscape shots, could be used more subtly to suggest sinister murk.(We get a similar effect in "Fantasia" in the first half of "The Rite of Spring".)And Lampwick's transformation into a donkey is a disturbing moment, for many reasons ... today they might have made the mistake of using flashy computer morphing, which would have been a mistake: expert animation and cutting gives us the distinct impression - almost all done with shadows - that there is a donkey BREAKING THROUGH from inside; which, in his case, is metaphorically accurate.(Probably the reason Pinocchio survives us that he is as free from native vice as from native virtue.He must LEARN to adopt the mind-set of Pleasure Island.This takes time: time enough for him to escape.) But there's much, much more: clever use of songs (note the obvious, but none the less effective, irony of "I've Got No Strings"); daring use of stark WHITE backgrounds as well dense crowded ones; an intelligent, mythic story; a wonderful dash of humanity in the form of a cricket; a good musical score; rich atmosphere.The last is hard to describe.Of all Disney's films this one has the most pronounced Old World feeling, yet it doesn't seem to take place anywhere in particular - not even in Italy.Nor does it seem to take place in any particular era.I fear that no modern film could be so imprecisely evocative; the artistic innocence in which "Pinocchio" was forged may be lost forever. ||Limited Issue |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Pinocchio|Roberto Benigni|Comedy|G |3.9|Italy|2002|108 min/ Argentina:112 min|Italian||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/1/2004|Gianluigi Braschi Nicoletta Braschi Mario Cotone Elda Ferri|Roberto Benigni Vincenzo Cerami Carlo Collodi Brendan Donnison|Dante Spinotti ||Asmik Ace Entertainment [jp] ||Despite guidance from the Blue Fairy, and the love of his father, Gepetto, a wooden puppet's curious spirit leads him into one wild adventure after another. |Roberto Benigni (Pinocchio) @ Breckin Meyer (Pinocchio (voice: US version)) @ Nicoletta Braschi (Blue Fairy) @ Glenn Close (Blue Fairy (voice: US version)) @ Carlo Giuffrè (Gepetto) @ James Belushi (Geppetto (voice: US version)) @ Kim Rossi Stuart (Lucignolo) @ Peppe Barra (The Talking Cricket) @ Mino Bellei (Medoro) @ Max Cavallari (The Cat) @ Bruno Arena (The Fox) @ Luis Molteni (Omino di burro) @ Alessandro Bergonzoni (Ring Master) @ Regis Philbin (Circus Master (voice: US version)) @ Corrado Pani (Giudice) @ Vincenzo Cerami (Man with the Mustache) @ Giorgio Ariani (Host of the Gambero Rosso) @ Tommaso Bianco (Pulcinella) @ Franco Iavarone (Mangiafuoco (as Franco Javarone)) @ Giorgio Noè (Boy) @ Riccardo Bizzarri (Butter Man (voice: US version)) @ John Cleese (The Talking Cricket (voice: US version)) @ Topher Grace (Leonardo (voice: US version)) @ Eddie Griffin (Cat (voice: US version)) @ Eric Idle (Medoro (voice: US version)) @ Queen Latifah (Dove (voice: US version)) @ Cheech Marin (Fox (voice: US version)) @ David Suchet (Narrator/Geppetto/The Judge (voice: US version)Produced by||Megalodon's attack A sad story tell us in a smart way. Benigni show us how is a great director and actor and how been able to directing very good actors,over all Kim Rossi Stuart,his eyes and Lights used on the scene's before departing for Paese dei Balocchi are simply amazing,his acting remind me a little of Jurgen Prochnow. Dante Spinotti like always make a great job,his way to lighting woods and nights remind me Olmi's the secret of old wood and a special mention goes to the supervison of the CGI effect used in a very good clever way ,like was The Megalodon's Attack scene a bit of incredible pure fear. Danilo Donati doing the rest...e Rest in Peace great Man! I'm happy because finally I'm looking something of very intresting and different on the sad outline of italian cinema. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl|Gore Verbinski|Adventure|Rated PG-13 for action/adventure violence. PG-13|8.0|USA|2003|143 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/3/2004|Jerry Bruckheimer Paul Deason Bruce Hendricks Chad Oman Pat Sandston Mike Stenson|Ted Elliott Terry Rossio Stuart Beattie Jay Wolpert Ted Elliott Terry Rossio|Dariusz Wolski ||Buena Vista Home Entertainment [br] |Prepare to be blown out of the water.|Pirates of the Caribbean is a sweeping action-adventure story set in an era when villainous pirates scavenged the Caribbean seas. This roller coaster tale teams a young man, Will Turner, with an unlikely ally in rogue pirate Jack Sparrow. Together, they must battle a band of the world's most treacherous pirates, led by the cursed Captain Barbossa, in order to save Elizabeth, the love of Will's life, as well as recover the lost treasure that Jack seeks. Against improbable odds, they race towards a thrilling, climactic confrontation on the mysterious Isla de Muerta. Clashing their swords in fiece mortal combat, Will and Jack attempt to recapture The Black Pearl ship, save the British navy, and relinquish a fortune in forbidden treasure thereby lifting the curse of the Pirates of the Caribbean. After the Governer's daughter, Elizabeth Swann, is kidnapped by the Pirate Captain Barbossa, Elizabeth's childhood friend Will Turner must team up with rogue pirate Jack Sparrow to save her. Little do they know that these pirates are cursed. Forced to exist between living and dead, and only revealing their skeleton forms in the moonlight, the pirates intend to use Elizabeth's blood and necklace (a part of their curse) to return to their normal state. Caribbean sea, in the 17th century. Jack Sparrow, a gentleman rogue of a pirate, teams up with Will Turner, friend of the daughter of a governor to stop the evil plan of a ship of dangerous pirates, led by the evil Captain Barbossa, who are trying to reverse an ancient curse that leaves them stuck between life and dead,with the light of the moon revealing their skeletons, like some kind of undead monsters. |Johnny Depp (Jack Sparrow) @ Geoffrey Rush (Barbossa) @ Orlando Bloom (Will Turner) @ Keira Knightley (Elizabeth Swann) @ Jack Davenport (Norrington) @ Jonathan Pryce (Governor Weatherby Swann) @ Lee Arenberg (Pintel) @ Mackenzie Crook (Ragetti) @ Damian O'Hare (Lt. Gillette) @ Giles New (Murtogg) @ Angus Barnett (Mullroy) @ David Bailie (Cotton) @ Michael Berry Jr. (Twigg) @ Isaac C. Singleton Jr. (Bo'sun) @ Kevin McNally (Joshamee Gibbs (as Kevin R. McNally)) @ Treva Etienne (Koehler) @ Zoe Saldana (Anamaria) @ Guy Siner (Harbormaster) @ Ralph P. Martin (Mr. Brown) @ Paula J. Newman (Estrella (as Paula Jane Newman)) @ Paul Keith (Butler) @ Dylan Smith (Young Will) @ Lucinda Dryzek (Young Elizabeth) @ Michael Sean Tighe (Seedy Looking Prisoner) @ Greg Ellis (Officer) @ Dustin Seavey (Sentry) @ Christian Martin (Steersman) @ Trevor Goddard (Grapple) @ Vince Lozano (Jacoby) @ Ben Wilson (Seedy Prisoner #2) @ Antonio Valentino (Seedy Prisoner #3) @ Lauren Maher (Scarlett) @ Brye Cooper (Mallot) @ Michael Babcock (Seedy Prisoner #4 (as Mike Babcock)) @ Owen Finnegan (Town Clerk) @ Ian McIntyre (Sailor) @ Vanessa Branch (Giselle) @ Sam Roberts (Crying Boy) @ Ben Roberts (Crying Boy) @ Martin Klebba (Marty) @ Félix Castro (Moises: Jack's Crew) @ Mike Haberecht (Kursar: Jack's Crew) @ Rudolph McColam (Matelot: Jack's Crew) @ Gerard J. Reyes (Tearlach: Jack's Crew (as Gerard Reyes)) @ M. Scott Shields (Duncan: Jack's Crew) @ Christopher Sullivan (Ladbroc: Jack's Crew (as Chris 'Sully' Sullivan)) @ Craig Thomson (Crimp: Jack's Crew) @ Fred Toft (Quartetto: Jack's Crew) @ D.P. FitzGerald (Weatherby: Barbossa's Crew) @ Jerry Gauny (Ketchum: Barbossa's Crew) @ Maxie J. Santillan Jr. (Maximo: Barbossa's Crew) @ Michael Earl Lane (Monk: Barbossa's Crew (as Michael Lane)) @ Tobias McKinney (Dog Ear: Barbossa's Crew) @ David Patykewich (Clubba: Barbossa's Crew) @ Tommy Schooler (Scarus: Barbossa's Crew) @ Michael A. Thompson (Simbakka: Barbossa's Crew) @ Michael W. Williams (Hawksmoor: Barbossa's Crew) @ Jose Zelaya (Katracho: Barbossa's Crew) @ Finneus Egan (Scratch: Barbossa's Crew) @ Don LaDaga (Nipperkin: Barbossa's Crew rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Gregory R. Alosio (Pirate (uncredited)) @ Paul Cagney (Sailor (uncredited)) @ Brazil Joseph Grisaffi III (Marine (uncredited)Produced by||Really good fun – doesn't take itself too seriously and is played to perfection by a wonderful Depp Sailing with her father as a girl, Elizabeth Swann, is on board when the military ship comes across a wreck from which they rescue only a young boy, Will Turner.Elizabeth hides the boy's medallion in order to hide the fact that he is a pirate, she also thinks she sees the mysterious ship The Black Pearl.Years later Elizabeth is being wooed by officers while Will is a blacksmith in her father's service.When hermedallion calls out to another force, it brings the crew of the Pearl to the bay in search of the gold.Elizabeth is kidnapped and Will resolves to go after her.He turns to the only man he knows who knows the black pearl – incarcerated pirate Captain Jack Sparrow.However how can you trust a pirate's word? I'll be honest and say that I didn't want to see this film – I had been totally turned off by the trailer.The one attempt at humour in the trailer is that awful `try wearing a corset' line, it didn't get a laugh in the film or on the trailer.However I did go and see it and, after Hulk and Matrix, I was very glad I did.The plot is pretty enjoyable allowing for lots of fights but also enough twists and turns to hold the interest.It doesn't all make total sense but, like the ride it is based on, the film moves on before you have time to think too hard about anything. Unlike those other blockbusters I mentioned, POTC doesn't take itself too seriously.It doesn't make fun of itself either, but it does have it's tongue in it's cheek the whole time.This is seen in the vein of gentle humour that runs through it in the dialogue, action and characters – the film is basically having fun so it is easy for the audience to get with it too. As every other reviewer on earth has said, the biggest strength of the film is Depp's Captain Jack.Playing him like a drugged out rock star who clings to his half-fame like a life raft, Depp wrings so much humour out of every line, every scene and every little thing he does (`but why is the rum on fire?' being my favourite line).It is a performance that could have been awful but he pitches it just perfectly and stops the film ever becoming anything less than fun.The only downside of his character (who makes his appearance on a ship revealed to be a tiny, sinking boat) is that the film sags a little when he is off screen for longer than 5 minutes. Bloom and Knightly carry the film's more serious core and thus have a less glorious job.Both do well however and are good if not quite stars – certainly I was surprised to see Knightly with such a big role in a big film.Rush enjoys himself as Barbossa and the crew also have fun.The effects are used just as they should always be used – to compliment the film rather than be the raison d'etre!The effects are good without replacing plot or characters – they are well blended into the flow so never bring the film to a halt by their use (although wine flowing through and out of Barbossa is pretty impressive). Overall I enjoyed this film a great deal.Sure it is not a classic film or a perfect one, but it does exactly what a summer film should be – entertain.It doesn't take itself too seriously and moves a long at a fair pace without ever lapsing into impatient editing or flashy visuals.Having said that, if Depp was not onboard the film would be much the lesser.His exaggerated performance enhances the tongue in cheek feel to the film and makes it a much funnier, livelier and all round fun experience. || |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Pit And The Pendulum, The (MGM)|||NR |||1961|80 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/24/2004||||||| Betrayal Cuts Both Ways! Happily-ever-after goes under theiknifeiin this "eerie [and] excellent" (The Hollywood Reporter) saga of murder, madness andiforbidden desire.Starring Hollywood horror great Vincent Price, this "spine-tingling thriller" (Redbook Magazine) isia "lush, elegant andibloody" (Cue) tale of razor-sharp terror!Haunted byihorrifying childhood memories, theison (Price) of theiSpanish Inquisition's most notorious assassin teeters onitheibrink of insanity.But when his adulterous wife fakes her own deathito drive him over theiedge, she soon discovers that betrayal cuts both ways -ias theiman she wantsito destroy becomes not only her judge andijury - but also her executioner! ||||Region 1 | |Widescreen 2.35:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono [CC] FRENCH: Dolby Digital Mono||||||@@ Planes, Trains & Automobiles|John Hughes|Comedy||7.2|USA|1987| 93 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bill Brown Michael Chinich John Hughes Neil A. Machlis|John Hughes |Donald Peterman ||CIC Vídeo [br] |What he really wanted was to spend Thanksgiving with his family. What he got was three days with the turkey. |All that Neal Page wants to do is to get home for Thanksgiving. His flight has been cancelled due to bad weather, so he decides on other means of transport. As well as bad luck, Neal is blessed with the presence of Del Griffith, Shower Curtain Ring Salesman and all-around blabbermouth, who is never short of advice, conversation, bad jokes, or company. And when he decides that he is going the same direction as Neal.... |Steve Martin (Neal Page) @ John Candy (Del Griffith) @ Laila Robins (Susan Page) @ Michael McKean (State Trooper) @ Kevin Bacon (Taxi Racer) @ Dylan Baker (Owen) @ Carol Bruce (Joy) @ Olivia Burnette (Marti) @ Diana Douglas (Peg) @ Martin Ferrero (Motel Clerk) @ Larry Hankin (Doobie) @ Richard Herd (Walt) @ Susan Kellerman (Waitress) @ Matthew Lawrence (Little Neal) @ Edie McClurg (Car Rental Agent) @ George Petrie (Martin (as George O. Petrie)) @ Gary Riley (Motel Thief) @ Charles Tyner (Gus) @ Susan Isaacs (Marie) @ Lulie Newcomb (Owen's Wife) @ John Randolph Jones (Cab Dispatcher) @ Nicholas Wyman (New York Lawyer) @ Gaetano Lisi (Cab Driver - New York) @ Diana Castle (Stewardess) @ Julie H. Morgan (Stewardess) @ Bill Erwin (Man on Plane) @ Ruth de Sosa (New York Ticket Agent (as Ruth De Soza)) @ Ben Stein (Wichita Airport Rep) @ Kim Genell (Receptionist) @ Grant Forsberg (Brand Manager) @ David Raiport (Cafe Patron) @ Andrew J. Hentz (Bus Lover) @ Karen Meisinger (Bus Loverette) @ Gary Palmer (Pilot) @ Diane Nieman (Earring Customer) @ Sylvia Vitrungs (Earring Customer) @ Joann Taylor (Earring Customer) @ Julie A. Herbert (Earring Customer) @ Jennifer Allswang (Earring Customer) @ Wendy Lee Avon (Earring Customer) @ Amy Meyers (Earring Customer) @ John Moio (Screaming Driver) @ Victoria Vanderkloot (Screaming Driver's Wife rest of cast listed alphabetically Jeri Ryan .... (scenes deleted)) @ Troy Evans (Trucker (uncredited)) @ Daniel Niswander (Man at Wichita Airport (uncredited)) @ Ken Tipton (Holiday Traveler (uncredited)) @ Lyman Ward (John (uncredited)) @ William Windom (Bryant (uncredited) Produced by||JOHN CANDY'S best Spoiler!!!! This film is Candy's best; too bad his career ended so early.Steve Martin (SNL) whose career started with a big bang, started to slowly die, and this was his last good film.Candy who never seems to get the roles or respect he deserved (this was a tailor made character).The results were hilarious. I love the scene where Candy and Martin (one of his first straight roles) kept looking at the bed in the hotel room, with that camera close up and music.Then Candy asks if he wants a shower;One of many great roles.The ending gets very serious, and we find that Martin actually has a heart. 8/10 || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Planet of the Apes|Franklin J. Schaffner|Action||7.8|USA|1968| 112 min/ Argentina:115 min/ Spain:107 min (DVD edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mort Abrahams Arthur P. Jacobs|Pierre Boulle Michael Wilson Rod Serling|Leon Shamroy ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Somewhere in the Universe, there must be something better than man!|Charlton Heston and two other astronauts come out of deep hibernation to find that their ship has crashed. Escaping with little more than clothes they find that they have landed on a planet where men are pre-lingual and uncivilized while apes have learned speech and technology. Heston is captured and taken to the city of the apes after damaging his throat so that he is silent and cannot communicate with the apes. In the year 3978A.D. a spaceship with a crew of 4 crashes down on a distant planet. One of the crew members had died in space and the other 3 head out to explore the planet. They soon learn that the planet is much like their own. They then find the planet is inhabited by intelligent apes. One of the men is shot and killed and the others are taken to the apes' city. There, one undergoes brain surgery and is put into a state of living death. The other (Charlton Heston) befriends some of the apes but is feared by most. After being put through ape trial he escapes with a female human native to the planet. After helping his ape friends escape a religious heresy trial he escapes out into the wilderness with the female. There he learns the planet might not be so distant after all... Astronaut Taylor (Heston) crash lands on a distant planet ruled by apes who use a primitive race of humans for experimentation and sport. Soon Taylor finds himself among the hunted, his life in the hands of a benevolent chimpanzee scientist (McDowall). |Charlton Heston (George Taylor) @ Roddy McDowall (Cornelius) @ Kim Hunter (Zira) @ Maurice Evans (Dr. Zaius) @ James Whitmore (President of the Assembly) @ James Daly (Dr. Honorious) @ Linda Harrison (Nova) @ Robert Gunner (Landon) @ Lou Wagner (Lucius) @ Woodrow Parfrey (Dr. Maximus) @ Jeff Burton (Dodge) @ Buck Kartalian (Julius) @ Norman Burton (Leader of the hunt) @ Wright King (Dr. Galen) @ Paul Lambert (Minister rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Priscilla Boyd (Human #1 (uncredited)) @ Eldon Burke (Gorilla (uncredited)) @ David Chow (Chimpanzee (uncredited)) @ Billy Curtis (Child ape (uncredited)) @ Frank Delfino (Bit part (uncredited)) @ Robert Lombardo (Gorilla photographer (uncredited)) @ Jerry Maren (Bit part (uncredited)) @ Harry Monty ( (uncredited)) @ Gene O'Donnell ( (uncredited)) @ Jane Ross ( (uncredited)) @ Felix Silla (Child gorilla (uncredited)) @ Dianne Stanley (Stewart (uncredited) Produced by||Over rated! I expected much more from this film, after hearing all the hype.I like science fiction, I never thouht Rod Cerling was that good of a Sci fie writer.Maybe, it is the age of the film and it does not shock today, but in the end I felt dispointed.Heston plays a good role, and its funny how for bush human's Heston ends up with a very clean, well dressed, done up female one.Don't bother 4/10 || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Pleasantville|Gary Ross|Fantasy|Rated PG-13 for some thematic elements emphasizing sexuality, and for language. |7.4|USA|1998| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Allen Alsobrook Robin Bissell Andy Borowitz Susan Borowitz Michael De Luca Robert John Degus Jon Kilik Edward Lynn Mary Parent Gary Ross Steven Soderbergh Allison Thomas|Gary Ross |John Lindley ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Pleasantville- It's Just Around the Corner|David, single, lonely and not happy with his life, flees reality by watching Pleasantville - a 1950's b&w soap opera, where everything is just...pleasant. His sister Jennifer, sexually far more active than her brother, gets in a fight with him about a very strange remote control - given to them just seconds after the TV broke by an equally strange repair man - and they suddenly find themselves in Pleasantville, as Bud and Mary-Sue Parker, completely assimilated and therefore black and white, in clothes a little different and with new parents...pleasant ones. David wants to get out of the situation as well as his sister, but whereas he tries to blend in (effortlessly, with his knowledge), she does what she likes to do. One event leads to the other, and suddenly there is a red rose growing in Pleasantville. The more rules are broken, the more colorful life gets in Pleasantville, USA. A brother and sister from the 1990s are sucked into their television set and suddenly find themselves trapped in a "Leave it to Beaver" style 1950's television show, complete with loving parents, old fashioned values, and an overwhelming amount of innocence and naivete. Not sure how to get home, they integrate themselves into this "backwards" society and slowly bring some color to this black and white world. But as innocence fades, the two teens begin to wonder if their 90s outlook is really to be preferred. Brother & Sister are sucked into a black and white TV show called Pleasantville. Their real world antics begin to change the Pleasantville universe. |William H. Macy (George Parker) @ Joan Allen (Betty Parker) @ Natalie Ramsey (Real Mary Sue Parker) @ Kevin Connors (Real Bud Parker) @ Jeff Daniels (Mr. Bill Johnson) @ Tobey Maguire (David Wagner) @ Heather McGill (Girl in School Yard) @ Paul Morgan Stetler (College Counselor) @ Denise Y. Dowse (Health Teacher (as Denise Dowse)) @ McNally Sagal (Science Teacher) @ Jane Kaczmarek (David and Jennifer's Mom) @ Giuseppe Andrews (Howard) @ Reese Witherspoon (Jennifer Wagner) @ Marissa Ribisi (Kimmy) @ Jenny Lewis (Christin) @ Justin Nimmo (Mark Davis) @ Kai Lennox (Mark's Lackey #1) @ Jason Behr (Mark's Lackey #2) @ Don Knotts (TV Repairman) @ Robin Bissell (Commercial Announcer) @ Harry Singleton (Mr. Simpson) @ John Ganun (Fireman #1) @ Paul Walker (Skip Martin) @ Dawn Cody (Betty Jean) @ Maggie Lawson (Lisa Anne) @ Andrea Taylor (Peggy Jane) @ Lela Ivey (Miss Peters) @ Jim Patric (Tommy) @ Marc Blucas (Basketball Hero) @ Stanton Rutledge (Coach) @ Jason Maves (Paperboy) @ Gerald Emerick (TV Weatherman) @ Charles C. Stevenson Jr. (Dr. Henderson) @ Nancy Lenehan (Marge Jenkins) @ Weston Blakesley (Gus) @ Patrick Thomas O'Brien (Roy (as Patrick T. O'Brien)) @ Jim Antonio (Ralph) @ J.T. Walsh (Big Bob) @ Danny Strong (Juke Box Boy) @ Kristin Rudrüd (Mary) @ Laura Carney (Bridge Club Lady) @ Dan Gillies (Fireman #2) @ Marley Shelton (Margaret Henderson) @ Erik MacArthur (Will) @ Adam Carter (Boy in Soda Shop) @ David Tom (Whitey) @ Johnny Moran (Pete) @ Jeanine Jackson (Woman) @ J. Patrick Lawlor (Thug) @ James Keane (Police Chief Dan rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eva Ford (Townsperson (uncredited)) @ John Michael (Townsfolk (uncredited)) @ Meredith Louise Thomas (Girl in Soda Shop (uncredited) Produced by||Not everything is black and white! Pleasantville is story of how peoples perseptions of a perfect life are not always as perfect as they seem.It is the story of a brother and sister who get sucked into a tv show about a pleasant town with perfect people who lead angelic lives and how the two peoples values and own way of life gradually rub off.If this is for the better it is up to you to judge . The transision from old pleasantville to the new pleasantville is very clever . The old turn from black and white into colour to show the progression. This film was a little slushy and maybe a bit to long but over all not bad. 7 out of 10. ||New Line Platinum Series |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Pocahontas|Mike Gabriel Eric Goldber|Animation|G |5.7|USA|1995|81 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/3/2004|Baker Bloodworth James Pentecost|Carl Binder Andrew Chapman Joe Grant Susannah Grant Philip LaZebnik|||Abril Vídeo [br] |An American legend comes to life|Capt. John Smith leads a rag-tag band of English sailors & soldiers to the New World to plunder its riches for England (or, more precisely, for Governor Ratcliffe, who comes along for the ride). Meanwhile, in this "New World," Chief Powhatan has pledged his daughter, Pocahontas, to be married to the village's greatest warrior. Pocahontas, however, has other ideas. She has seen a vision of a spinning arrow, a vision she believes tells her change is coming. Her life does indeed change when the English ship lands near her village. Between Ratcliffe, who believes the "savages" are hiding the gold he expected to be plentiful, and Powhatan, who believes these pale newcomers will destroy their land, Smith and Pocahontas have a difficult time preventing all-out war, and saving their love for each other. |Irene Bedard (Pocahontas (voice)) @ Judy Kuhn (Pocahontas (singing voice)) @ Mel Gibson (John Smith (voice)) @ David Ogden Stiers (Governor Ratcliffe/Wiggins (voice)) @ John Kassir (Meeko (voice)) @ Russell Means (Powhatan (voice)) @ Christian Bale (Thomas (voice)) @ Linda Hunt (Grandmother Willow (voice)) @ Danny Mann (Percy (voice)) @ Billy Connolly (Ben (voice)) @ Joe Baker (Lon (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Flit (voice)) @ Michelle St. John (Nakoma (voice)) @ James Apaumut Fall (Kocoum (voice)) @ Gordon Tootoosis (Kekata (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jim Cummings .... Powanton/Wise Man/Additional Voices (voice)Produced by||Preety good but not as great as "Mulan". This is the story of a Native American woman named " Pocahontas" who sees new visitors from England, her people are fearing that these white people from another land might be dangerous, so she meets one named " John Smith" ( voiced by Mel Gibson) and she falls in love with him, she wants to convince that people can be different and not to have war on those who are different. A preety good and greatly drawn but not as great as " Mulan", it does have a few catchy songs but this is nowhere i mean nowhere as great as " Mulan", which this one is from the same producers and animators of that flick. 6/10. ||Gold Collection |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Police Academy|Hugh Wilson|Comedy|R |5.7|USA|1984|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004|Paul Maslansky |Neal Israel Pat Proft Neal Israel Pat Proft Hugh Wilson|Michael D. Margulies ||The Ladd Company [us] |The new police recruits. Call them slobs. Call them jerks. Call them gross. - Just don't call them when you're in trouble.|New rules enforced by the Lady Mayoress mean that sex, weight, height and intelligence need no longer be a factor for joining the Police Force. This opens the floodgates for all and sundry to enter the Police Academy, much to the chagrin of the instructors. Not everyone is there through choice, though. Social misfit Mahoney has been forced to sign up as the only alternative to a jail sentence and it doesn't take long before he falls foul of the boorish Lieutenant Harris. But before long, Mahoney realises that he is enjoying being a police cadet and decides he wants to stay... while Harris decides he wants Mahoney out! The city is in need of more police officers, so the mayor decides to alter the requirements for acceptance into the Police Academy. Among the new cadets is Moses Hightower, a gentle giant who was a florist. Leslie Barbara, who is tired of being picked on. Laverne Hooks, a mousy, meek voice person. Karen Thompson, a socialite, who hopes that it'll allow her the opportunity to meet some unusual people. Eugene Tackleberry, a guy who likes to discharge his weapon. Larvell Jones, a human sound effects machine, who was met at the police station by Carey Mahoney, a guy who is basically a good guy but has a little trouble with authority figures, a retaliates by committing outrageous acts that get him arrested. He is fortunate that police Captain Reed is a good friend of his father and has been bailing him out but now Reed thinks that jail is what Mahoney needs but Mahoney disagrees. Reed suggest that Mahoney join the police academy but must complete the 14 week course or else he will be sent to jail. So Mahoney brings Jones with him hoping that he can help Mahoney get thrown out. It also seems that the police chief doesn't agree with the mayor so he instructs Commandant Lassard and Lieutenant Harris to encourage the bad apples to quit. |Steve Guttenberg (Cadet Carey Mahoney) @ Kim Cattrall (Cadet Karen Thompson) @ G.W. Bailey (Lt. Thaddeus Harris) @ Bubba Smith (Cadet Moses Hightower) @ Donovan Scott (Cadet Leslie Barbara) @ George Gaynes (Cmndt. Eric Lassard) @ Andrew Rubin (Cadet George Martín) @ David Graf (Cadet Eugene Tackleberry) @ Leslie Easterbrook (Sgt. Debbie Callahan) @ Michael Winslow (Cadet Larvell Jones) @ Debralee Scott (Mrs. Fackler) @ Bruce Mahler (Cadet Douglas Fackler) @ Ted Ross (Capt. Reed) @ Scott Thomson (Cadet Chad Copeland) @ Brant von Hoffman (Cadet Kyle Blankes (as Brant Van Hoffman)) @ Marion Ramsey (Cadet Laverne Hooks) @ Georgina Spelvin (Hooker) @ Doug Lennox (Main Bad Guy) @ George R. Robertson (Chief Henry Hurst) @ Don Lake (Mr. Wig) @ Bill Lynn (Parking Lot Manager) @ Michael J. Reynolds (Office Executive) @ Joyce Gordon (Mrs. Thompson) @ Don Payne (Barber) @ Bruce McFee (Supply Clerk) @ Beth Amos (Little Old Lady) @ Araby Lockhart (Mrs. Lassard) @ Barry Greene (Cadet with Hat) @ Gary Farmer (Sidewalk Store Owner) @ Josef Field (Blue Oyster Dancer) @ Gary Colwell (Blue Oyster Dancer) @ James Bearden (Driver (as Jim Bearden)) @ Fred Brigham (Street Punk) @ Marco Bianco (Tough) @ Ted Hanlan (Tough) @ F. Braun McAsh (Tough (as Braun McAsh)) @ Rob Watson (Tough) @ Roger Dunn (Booking Sergeant) @ Wally Bondarenko (Officer) @ J. Winston Carroll (Officer) @ David Clement (Officer) @ George E. Zeeman (Officer (as George Zeeman)) @ Gino Marrocco (Arresting Cop) @ Gene Mack (Street Thug) @ Bob Collins (Drill Instructor) @ Danny Pawlick (Pool Hall Man) @ Ruth Sisberg (Mayor) @ Peter Cox (Bar Patron) @ Danny Lima (Bar Patron) @ Dwayne McLean (Bar Patron) @ Brent Meyers (Bar Patron) @ Carole Alderson (Martín's Lady) @ Suzanne Barker (Martín's Lady) @ Kimberley Boorman (Martín's Lady) @ Jayne Broughton (Martín's Lady) @ Julie McLeod (Martín's Lady) @ Karen Robyn (Martín's Lady rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Charles W. Gray (Weird Waiter (uncredited)) @ T.J. Scott (Tough (uncredited)) @ Hugh Wilson (Angry Driver (uncredited)Produced by||A classic! I rented POLICE ACADEMY one night because it had a good cast and I heard that it was pretty funny. I didn't expect it would be a bad movie, I just didn't expect that it would be this good. It was the first time I saw a comedy that was actually funny and a good movie. Most comedies seem to be funny just not very good, but POLICE ACADEMY is both funny and a good movie. It's hilarious. The movies kind of crude, but it's nothing compared to some of the movies out today. If you like crude comedies, you will love this, but if you're not then this isn't the movie for you. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Poltergeist|Tobe Hooper Steven Spielber|Horror||7.2|USA|1982| 114 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Steven Spielberg|Steven Spielberg Steven Spielberg Michael Grais Mark Victor|Matthew F. Leonetti ||C.I.C. [no] |They're here.|A young family are visited by ghosts in their home. At first the ghosts appear friendly, moving objects around the house to the amusement of everyone, then they turn nasty and start to terrorise the family before they "kidnap" the youngest daughter. While living an an average family house in a pleasant neighborhood, the youngest daughter of the Freeling family, Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke), seems to be connecting with the supernatural through a dead channel on the televison. It is not for long when the mysterious beings enter the house's walls. At first seeming like harmless ghosts, they play tricks and amuse the family, but they take a nasty turn- they horrify the family to death with angry trees and murderous dolls, and finally abduct Carol Anne into her bedroom closet, which seems like the entrance to the other side. |JoBeth Williams (Diane Freeling) @ Craig T. Nelson (Steve Freeling) @ Beatrice Straight (Dr. Lesh) @ Dominique Dunne (Dana Freeling) @ Oliver Robins (Robbie Freeling) @ Heather O'Rourke (Carol Anne Freeling) @ Michael McManus (Ben Tuthill) @ Virginia Kiser (Mrs. Tuthill) @ Martin Casella (Marty (as Marty Casella)) @ Richard Lawson (Ryan) @ Zelda Rubinstein (Tangina Barrons) @ Lou Perry (Pugsley) @ Clair E. Leucart (Bulldozer driver (as Clair Leucart)) @ James Karen (Mr. Teague) @ Dirk Blocker (Jeff Shaw) @ Allan Graf (Neighbor) @ Joseph Walsh (Neighbor (as Joseph R. Walsh)) @ Helen Baron (Woman buyer) @ Noel Conlon (Husband) @ Robert Broyles (Pool worker #1) @ Sonny Landham (Pool worker #2) @ William Vail (Implosion man (as Bill Vail)) @ Jeffrey Bannister (Implosion Man) @ Phil Stone (Football Announcer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Craig Simmons (Implosion Man (uncredited) Produced by||Poltergeist,the ultimate ghost movie! The Poltergeist trilogy is arguably one of the best movies series ever!The first Poltergeist is truly a masterpiece.Everyone was really good.Craig T. Nelson was really good.JoBeth Williams being a amazing actress performed as she is was really,really good and the late Heather O'Rourke and Dominique Dunne performed well. Zelda Rubinstein,Beatrice Straight,Oliver Robins,James Karen,and the rest of the cast was good.The special effects are spectacular,the music is perfect by Jerry Goldsmith,and the combination of Steven Spielberg,Tobe Hooper,Frank Marshal,and Kathleen Kennedy make this move special one indeed.There is just something special about this film.It has a big effect on you.I just love how the sky views are in the movie.This is just a classic movie and its very hard to defeat.There are two sequels to Poltergeist being Poltergeist II: The Other Side and Poltergeist III.In My opinion they are fine sequels and are just as entertaining and scary as the first.If you are a big fan of horror and ghost movies and what to see a movie with similar effects and style like the classic Ghostbusters series then look no further than the ultimate fright fest,Poltergeist! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Poltergeist II: The Other Side|Brian Gibson|Horror|PG-13 |4.8|USA|1986|USA:138 min (original cut) / 87 min (theatrical version)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/18/2004|Lynn Arost Freddie Fields Michael Grais Mark Victor|Michael Grais Mark Victor|Andrew Laszlo ||MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc. [us] |They're back.|The Freeling family move in with Diane's mother in an effort to escape the trauma and aftermath of Carol Anne's abduction by the Beast. But the Beast is not to be put off so easily and appears in a ghostly apparition as the Reverend Kane, a religeous zealot responsible for the deaths of his many followers. His goal is simple - he wants the angelic Carol Anne; but the love of her family and the power of psychic Tangina once again unite, along with an elderly native American, to fight for her life. |JoBeth Williams (Diane Freeling) @ Craig T. Nelson (Steve Freeling) @ Heather O'Rourke (Carol Anne Freeling) @ Oliver Robins (Robbie Freeling) @ Zelda Rubinstein (Tangina Barrons) @ Will Sampson (Taylor) @ Julian Beck (Kane) @ Geraldine Fitzgerald (Jessica 'Gramma Jess' Wilson) @ John P. Whitecloud (Old Indian) @ Noble Craig (Vomit Creature) @ Susan Peretz (Daughter) @ Helen Boll (Mother) @ Kelly Jean Peters (Young Jess) @ Jaclyn Bernstein (Young Diane) @ Robert Lesser (Kane's People) @ Jamie Abbott (Kane's People) @ Ann Louise Bardach (Kane's People) @ Syd Beard (Kane's People) @ David Beaman (Kane's People) @ Hayley Taylor-Block (Kane's People) @ Pamela Gordon (Kane's People) @ Chelsea Hertford (Kane's People) @ Whitby Hertford (Kane's People) @ Rocky Krakoff (Kane's People) @ Carrie Lorraine (Kane's People) @ Kathy Wagner (Kane's People) @ Bill Schroeder (Kane's PeopleProduced by||Still good. This was not as good as the first Poltergeist movie, but it is still good. I had to admit, it was scarier than the first one. The special effects are also a little better. But it is more bland than the first one, making it not quite as good. Worth a look. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Poltergeist III|Gary Sherman|Horror|PG-13 |3.6|USA|1988|98 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/18/2004|Barry Bernardi Gary Sherman|Gary Sherman Brian Taggert|Alex Nepomniaschy ||MGM Home Entertainment [us] |He's found her.|Carol Anne has been sent to live with her Aunt and Uncle in an effort to hide her from the clutches of the ghostly Reverend Kane, but he tracks her down and terrorises her in her relatives' appartment in a tall glass building. Will he finally achieve his target and capture Carol Anne again, or will Tangina be able, yet again, to thwart him? |Tom Skerritt (Bruce Gardner) @ Nancy Allen (Patricia Wilson-Gardner) @ Heather O'Rourke (Carol Anne Freeling) @ Zelda Rubinstein (Tangina Barrons) @ Lara Flynn Boyle (Donna Gardner) @ Kipley Wentz (Scott) @ Richard Fire (Dr. Seaton) @ Nathan Davis (Kane) @ Roger May (Burt) @ Paul Graham (Martin Moyer) @ Meg Weldon (Sandy) @ Stacy Gilchrist (Melissa) @ Joey Garfield (Jeff) @ Christian Murphy (Dusty (as Chris Murphy)) @ Roy Hytower (Nathan) @ Meg Thalken (Deborah) @ Dean Tokuno (Takamitsu) @ Catherine Gatz (Marcie Moyer) @ Paty Lombard (Helen Moyer) @ E.J. Murray (Mary) @ Sherry Narens (Mrs. Seaton) @ Phil Locker (Bill) @ Maureen Steindler (Old Woman) @ Alan Wilder (Observer) @ Brent Shaphren (Observer) @ Mindy Bell (Observer) @ Conrad Allan (Young Boy) @ Maureen Mueller (Gallery Woman) @ John Rusk (Gallery Man) @ Sam Sanders (Security Guard) @ Laurie V. Logan (Elevator Woman) @ Jerry Birn (Elevator Man) @ Jane Alderman (Scott's Mother) @ Mary Hogan (Extra) @ Lynn Koppel (Extra) @ Laura Koppel (Extra) @ Mark Zweigler (Extra) @ Chris Montana (Extra) @ Wendy Wolfman (Extra) @ Harold Taulbee (Extra) @ Christy Davis (Extra rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Corey Burton (Kane (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||Sad End to a Sad Series. "Poltergeist" was a series that seemed cursed in real life. There was the murder of Dominique Dunne (the oldest daughter in the first film) and the deaths of Heather O'Rourke, Will Sampson (Taylor in the second) and Julian Beck (the original Kane). This entry has O'Rourke staying with her aunt and uncle (Nancy Allen and Tom Skeritt) in Chicago in a new state-of-the-art high-rise building. Of course, O'Rourke's memories from the first two makes the poltergeists come back one last time. The film never makes much sense and the ending is weird to say the least. Overall the film is a major disappointment and it ends up being a sad finale to a series that was not bad to start with, but went downhill steadily. Turkey (0 stars out of 5). |||1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Practical Magic|Griffin Dunne|Fantasy|Rated PG-13 for some violence, intense thematic elements and sensuality. |5.4|USA|1998| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bruce Berman Denise Di Novi Mary McLaglen Robin Swicord|Alice Hoffman Robin Swicord Akiva Goldsman Adam Brooks|Andrew Dunn Patricia Van Over||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |There's a little witch in every woman.|Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman star in Griffin Dunne's PRACTICAL MAGIC, produced by Denise DiNovi. The wry, comic romantic tale, which is based on Alice Hoffman's best-selling novel, follows the Owens sisters, Sally (Bullock) and Gillian (Kidman), as they struggle to use their hereditary gift for practical magic to overcome the obstacles in discovering true love. Also included in the cast are Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing (as the Owens sisters' eccentric aunts), as well as Aidan Quinn and Goran Visnjic. Sally (Sandra Bullock) and Gillian (Nicole Kidman) Owens have always known they were different. Raised by their aunts (Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing) after their parents' death, the sisters grew up in a household that was anything but typical--their aunts fed them chocolate cake for breakfast and taught them the uses of practical magic. But the invocation of the Owens' sorcery also carries a price--some call it a curse: the men they fall in love with are doomed to an untimely death. Now adult women with very different personalities, the quiet Sally and the fiery Gillian must use all of their powers to fight the family curse and a swarm of supernatural forces that threatens the lives of all the Owens women. |Sandra Bullock (Sally Owens) @ Nicole Kidman (Gillian Owens) @ Stockard Channing (Frances Owens) @ Dianne Wiest (Aunt Bridget 'Jet' Owens) @ Goran Visnjic (Jimmy Angelov) @ Aidan Quinn (Officer Gary Hallet) @ Evan Rachel Wood (Kylie Owens) @ Alexandra Artrip (Antonia Owens) @ Mark Feuerstein (Michael) @ Caprice Benedetti (Maria Owens) @ Annabella Price (Lovelorn lady) @ Camilla Belle (Young Sally Owens) @ Lora Anne Criswell (Young Gillian Owens) @ Margo Martindale (Linda Bennett) @ Chloe Webb (Carla) @ Martha Gehman (Patty) @ Lucinda Jenney (Sara (adult)) @ Cordelia Richards (Nan) @ Mary Gross (Debbie) @ Jack Kirschke (Old Man Wilkes) @ Herta Ware (Old Woman Wilkes) @ Ellen Geer (Pharmacist) @ Courtney Dettrich (Young Sara) @ John McLeod (Puritan minister) @ Trevor Duncan (Sara's boy) @ Colby Cochran (Ice cream boy) @ Caitlyn Holley (Ice cream girl) @ Ken Serratt Jr. (Lovelorn's lover) @ Rich Sickler (Dwight) @ Jeanne Robinson (PTC mom #1) @ Deborah Kancher (PTC mom #2) @ Peter Shaw (Jack) @ Caralyn Kozlowski (Regina Owens Produced by||A Waste of Money and Talent This movie is a disaster, a waste of money and talent.The script, direction, even the soundtrack are dreadful.Four of my favorite actresses....wasted...it's a sin.Avoid this movie at all costs. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Predator|John McTiernan|Action|R |7.3|USA|1987|107 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/16/2004|John Davis Lawrence Gordon Beau Marks Laurence Pereira Joel Silver Jim Thomas John Vallone|Jim Thomas John Thomas|Donald McAlpine ||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [us] |Nothing like it has ever been on earth before.|Dutch and his group of commandos are hired by the CIA to rescue downed airmen from guerillas in a Central American jungle. The mission goes well but as they return they find that something is hunting them. Nearly invisible, it blends in with the forest, taking trophies from the bodies of it's victims as it goes along. Occasionally seeing through it's eyes, the audience sees it is an intelligent alien hunter, hunting them for sport, killing them off one at a time. Dutch (Arnlod Schwarzenegger) and a team of commandos have been sent into a Central American jungle to track down some missing airmen that were kidnapped by terrorists. By the time they get to the camp, the airmen have been butchered in a very violent fashion and the commandos retaliate on the terrorists' camp. After that's over, they wait for a helicopter to pick them up, but something strange begins to happen in the woods. It isn't long before the commandos start getting killed off and Dutch and a girl from the camp, Anna (Elpidia Carrillo), are the only people left and fighting for their lives. But what they discover is too shocking for them to imagine. What's been killing them is the Predator, an alien that hunts rare species and make his trophies out of their skulls. And human beings are the new species he has discovered. A team of commandos, led by Dutch Schaeffer, go on a mission to rescue captured airmen from terrorists. When they discover that the airmen have been slaughtered beyond recognition, the team decimates the enemy encampment. Before they can radio for a lift-off, an invisible alien specie begins to kill the team members. Hunted like animals by an enemy they cannot see, the team must survive in the jungle before they are all killed. |Arnold Schwarzenegger (Maj. 'Dutch' Schaeffer) @ Carl Weathers (Maj. George Dillon) @ Elpidia Carrillo (Anna) @ Bill Duke (Sgt. 'Mac' Eliot) @ Jesse Ventura (Blain) @ Sonny Landham (Billy) @ Richard Chaves (Poncho Ramirez) @ R.G. Armstrong (Gen. Phillips) @ Shane Black (Hawkins) @ Kevin Peter Hall (The Predator rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Steve Boyum (Hostage executed by the Russian (uncredited)) @ William H. Burton (Man shot down from tree (uncredited)) @ Sven-Ole Thorsen (Russian (uncredited)Produced by||A B-movie creature feature given the A treatment by a great action director A team of commandos are sent into a central American jungle to extradite US airmen that are being held by terrorists.During the rescue attempt the airmen and the terrorists are killed and the commandos being to return to their pickup location.However as they travel back across the jungle they are picked off one by one by an unseen assassin.With his teams' numbers dwindling, Dutch decides to take a stand. This ranks as one of Schwarzenegger's best films, mainly because he doesn't ham up the one-liners etc and just plays it straight.The story is pretty straight forward.Once the issue of the airmen rescue is forgotten it is a straight hunt or be hunted affair.The film manages to create a great sense of tension by not revealing the predator until near the end, this means we, like the commandos, are not quite sure what's doing the hunting.If the tension was so good then this could have been a slasher style film with each character being bumped off in a series of gory ways.However McTiernan makes sure that it never feels that basic. The action is good throughout.But the film benefits from a strong male cast - not great actors but they all fit the parts well.Schwarzenegger isn't wearing his star power on his sleeve like he does in other films and is good here.The rest of the cast are filled out by what could be kindly described as B list stars (except maybe Bill Duke), but Carl Weathers and ex-wrestler Jesse Ventura do well. Overall this is a B movie creature feature, but it's carried out with such style and aplomb that it's hugely enjoyable throughout. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Pretty Woman|Garry Marshall|Comedy||6.6|USA|1990| 119 min/ USA:125 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gary W. Goldstein Arnon Milchan Steven Reuther Laura Ziskin Walter von Huene Nancy Gross|J.F. Lawton |Charles Minsky ||Buena Vista Home Vídeo [br] |She walked off the street, into his life and stole his heart. |Edward is a rich, ruthless businessman who specializes in taking over companies and then selling them off piece by piece. He travels to Los Angeles for a business trip and decides to hire a prostitute. They take a liking to each other and he offers her money if she'll stay with him for an entire week while he makes the "rich and famous" scene (since it doesn't do for a man of his stature to be alone at society parties and polo matches). Romantic comedy (and complications) ensue. Vivian Ward has found a way of living by working as a prostitute on Hollywood Boulevard. When she runs into the prince of her dreams, who comes along on his wild horse, she first does not recognize him as her saviour. The prince, a ruthless and wealthy businessman by the name of Edward Lewis, does not know that she could be more than just a girl from the sidewalk, but he changes his decision after the first night with the beautiful stranger. Her being the first person in a long time who could surprise him, Edward can slowly feel the light at the end of the tunnel. He is on his way to become a better person, whereas Vivian has got a new chance to start over again. |Richard Gere (Edward Lewis) @ Julia Roberts (Vivian 'Viv' Ward) @ Ralph Bellamy (James 'Jim' Morse) @ Jason Alexander (Philip 'Phil' Stuckey) @ Laura San Giacomo (Kit De Luca) @ Alex Hyde-White (David Morse) @ Amy Yasbeck (Elizabeth Stuckey) @ Elinor Donahue (Bridget) @ Hector Elizondo (Barney Thompson, Hotel Manager) @ Judith Baldwin (Susan) @ Jason Randal (Magician (Party)) @ Bill Applebaum (Howard (Party)) @ Tracy Bjork (Female Guest (Party)) @ Gary Greene (Male Guest (Party)) @ Billy Gallo (Carlos (as William Gallo)) @ Abdul Salaam El Razzac (Happy Man (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Hank Azaria (Detective (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Larry Hankin (Landlord (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Julie Paris (Rachel (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Rhonda Hansome (Bermuda (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Harvey Keenan (Man in Car (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Marty Nadler (Tourist (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Lynda Goodfriend (Tourist (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Reed Anthony (Cruiser (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Frank Campanella (Pops (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Jackie O'Brien (Artist (Hollywood Blvd.) (as Jacqueline Woolsey)) @ Cheri Caspari (Angel (Hollywood Blvd.)) @ Scott Marshall (Skateboard Kid (as Scott A. Marshall)) @ Patrick Richwood (Dennis, Night Elevator Operator (Hotel)) @ Kathleen Marshall (Day Desk Clerk (Hotel) (as Kathi Marshall)) @ Laurelle Brooks (Night Desk Clerk (Hotel)) @ Don Feldstein (Desk Clerk (Hotel)) @ Marvin Braverman (Room Service Waiter (Hotel)) @ Al Sapienza (Night Doorman (Hotel) (as Alex Statler)) @ Jeff Michalski (Day Doorman (Hotel)) @ James Patrick Stuart (Day Bellhop (Hotel) (as Patrick D. Stuart)) @ Lloyd T. Williams (Bellhop (Hotel)) @ R. Darrell Hunter (Darryl, Limo Driver (Hotel)) @ James Patrick Dunne (Lounge Pianist (Hotel)) @ Valorie Armstrong (Woman in Lobby (Hotel)) @ Steve Restivo (Italian Businessman (Hotel)) @ Rodney Kageyama (Japanese Businessman (Hotel)) @ Douglas Stitzel (American Businessman (Hotel)) @ Larry Miller (Mr. Hollister (Beverly Hills)) @ Dey Young (Snobby Saleswoman (Beverly Hills)) @ Shane Ross (Marie (Beverly Hills)) @ Carol Williard (Saleswoman (Beverly Hills)) @ Minda Burr (Saleswoman (Beverly Hills)) @ Robyn Peterson (Saleswoman (Beverly Hills)) @ Mariann Aalda (Saleswoman (Beverly Hills)) @ R.C. Everbeck (Tie Salesman (Beverly Hills)) @ Michael French (Maitre D' (Beverly Hills)) @ Allan Kent (Waiter (Beverly Hills)) @ Stacy Keach Sr. (Senator Adams (Polo Game)) @ Lucinda Crosby (Olsen Sister (Polo Game) (as Lucinda Sue Crosby)) @ Nancy Locke (Olsen Sister (Polo Game)) @ Calvin Remsberg (Sod Stomping Announcer (Polo Game)) @ Lloyd Nelson (Game Announcer (Polo Game)) @ Norman Large (Polite Husband (Polo Game)) @ Tracy Reiner (Woman at Car (Polo Game)) @ Tom Nolan (Vance (Polo Game)) @ John David Carson (Mark (Polo Game)) @ Daniel Bardol (Jake (Polo Game)) @ Karin Calabro (Violetta (Opera)) @ Bruce Eckstut (Alfredo (Opera)) @ Amzie Strickland (Matron (Opera)) @ Mychael Bates (Usher (Opera) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Garry Marshall (Bum Tour Guide (uncredited)) @ Charles Minsky (Janitor with Water Hose (uncredited)) @ Blair Richwood (Blair, Secretary (uncredited) Produced by||A great love story Sometimes you have a romantic comedy that is remembered for a long time. Movies with Audrey Hepburn, 'When Harry Met Sally...' and little parts from other Meg Ryan-movies and 'Pretty Woman'. Of course we have the famous song and the real launch of Julia Roberts' career that help a little but it just is one sweet and very funny movie. Julia Roberts is great in romantic comedies and especially with this movie (and 'Notting Hill') she proves this. With Richard Gere she has a perfect chemistry and in the end that is all we want to see. That Roberts is a prostitute and Gere a very rich man, living in a penthouse, make things only more interesting, joke-wise. One of the better romantic comedies made in the past and definitely one to watch again. And again. And may be again. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Prince of Egypt, The|Brenda Chapman Steve Hickner Simon Well|Animation|Rated PG for intense depiction of thematic elements. |6.9|USA|1998| 99 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Penney Finkelman Cox Jeffrey Katzenberg Sandra Rabins Ron Rocha|Ken Harsha Carole Holliday Philip LaZebnik Nicholas Meyer Frank Tamura|||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Two brothers united by friendship divided by destiny|Egypt, eons of years ago: Pharao Seti commands all male hebrew babies to be drowned. A desperate mother places her son in a basket and lets the Hebrew god guide it along its way on the river. The basket is found by the Queen, and Moses is brought up as a brother to the heir of the throne, Ramses. Years later, the brothers, who grew up happily and wealthy, are split by Moses' recognition of his true heritage and the suppressing system his brother is about to inherit, willing to carry it on. Fleeing from the city in despair, Moses finds himself being called by God. He is given the task of being the messenger in order to free the Hebrews and to lead them into a country where milk and honey flow. |Val Kilmer (Moses, God (voice)) @ Ralph Fiennes (Rameses (voice)) @ Michelle Pfeiffer (Tzipporah (voice)) @ Sandra Bullock (Miriam (voice)) @ Jeff Goldblum (Aaron (voice)) @ Danny Glover (Jethro (voice)) @ Patrick Stewart (Pharaoh Seti I (voice)) @ Helen Mirren (The Queen (voice)) @ Steve Martin (Hotep (voice)) @ Martin Short (Huy (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jack Angel .... Additional Voices (voice)) @ Amick Byram (Moses (singing voice)) @ Linda Dee Shayne (The Queen (singing voice)) @ Sally Dworsky (Miriam (singing voice)) @ Ofra Haza (Yocheved (voice)) @ Brian Mitchell (Jethro (singing voice) (as Brian Stokes Mitchell)) @ Jan Rabson (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Eden Riegel (Young Miriam) @ Mel Brooks (Additional Voices (uncredited) (voice)) @ Natalie Portman (Additional Voices (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||Credit where credit is due This is very possibly the finest animation I've seen.Before commenting on the film as a whole, I want to make that clear, because in the inevitable rush to pick this film apart (the plot, the voices, the religious significance, the literary accuracy, the moral issues, the music, the comparisons with Disney and de Mille, etc...) one might easily become distracted from the aesthetic and technical triumphs of The Prince of Egypt, and that would be unfortunate.As someone who has an interest and appreciation of animation, I can say that this is the first film I've seen that successfully integrates computer-generated animation and traditional animation (and I've seen many attempts).More importantly, as someone who has eyes, I can say that the result is a visual experience of intense style and beauty.In fact, the initial depiction of Egypt is so breathtaking, that it seriously hinders the film's later efforts to vilify it. Comparisons with Disney are inevitable, especially because Prince of Egypt employs tired Disney formula in an attempt, I assume, to remain economically viable.What a shame, since Disney hasn't made a decent film since Aladdin. I am referring, of course, to the unnecessary musical numbers and the two high priests, the film's comic relief, who are drawn grossly out of proportion to the other characters.Even worse than their unoriginality, however, is the open mockery of ancient Egyption religion and culture, which these two characters embody.I found their musical number especially appalling.On the other hand, it's a story in which the protagonists succeed only through a greater capacity for cruelty and destruction and the slaughter of innocent children, so it's kind of hard to nail down any concrete moral standard here. In general, I thought the story was well told, with solid direction and a good script.The only complaint I have about the voice acting is that Jeff Goldblum's unmistakable mannerisms seriously distract from his character.I suspect that I wasn't really bothered by the others only because I hadn't seen a cast list before seeing the film.I wish they would stop relying on celebrity voices for animated features.No character can be effective if the viewer can't separate the voice from the actor supplying it. The bottom line is, despite any objections, complaints, or concerns I might have about this film, despite the moral, religious, or idealogical issues it brings up, and despite the $8 and two hours you'll spend, this film is worth seeing.It's worth seeing because of the animation.I hope it sets a new standard for feature-length animated films.At the very least, I think it will show the movie-going public what the medium is capable of. |Region 1 |Signature Selection |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Princess Bride, The|Rob Reiner|Fantasy||8.2|USA|1987| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Norman Lear Steve Nicolaides Rob Reiner Andrew Scheinman Jeffrey Stott|William Goldman William Goldman|Adrian Biddle ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Scaling the Cliffs of Insanity, Battling Rodents of Unusual Size, Facing torture in the Pit of Despair. - True love has never been a snap.|A kindly grandfather sits down with his grandson and reads him a bedtime story. The story is one that has been passed down through from father to son for generations. As the grandfather reads the story, the action comes alive. The story is a classic tale of love and adventure as the beautiful Buttercup is kidnapped and held against her will in order to marry the odious Prince Humperdinck, and Westley (her childhood beau, now returned as the Dread Pirate Roberts) attempts to save her. On the way he meets an accomplished swordsman and a huge, super strong giant, both of whom become his companions in his quest. They meet a few bad guys along the way to rescue Buttercup. When the lovely Buttercup is kidnapped by a ghastly gang intent on fermenting an international incident they find they are pursued by the Dread Pirate Roberts who just might be Westley, her one true love. Also after everyone is nasty Prince Humperdinck to whom Buttercup is now betrothed but who seems to care little for her continued survival. The stage is set for swordfights, monsters, and tortures - but will Grandpa be allowed to finish telling the story with all these kissy bits? Return to a time when men and swamps were swamps. Fire Swamps, that is. Full of quicksand and Rodents of Unusual Size. Lagoons were inhabited by shrieking eels. And the most beautiful woman in the world was named . . . Buttercup? Well, it's a bent fairy tale. Complete with all the fencing, chasing, escapes, and silly accents you'd expect. Including such unique folk as Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin), who has dreamt his whole life of finding the six-fingered man who killed his father. Andre the Giant as his enormous sidekick. And Billy Crystal as the kvetching miracle man, Max. Blonde Buttercup loves Westley, a poor stable boy. But when he's captured by pirates, she's chosen by evil Prince Humperdinck to be his princess bride. Along the way, she gets kidnapped, he gets killed. But it all ends up okay. |Cary Elwes (Westley) @ Mandy Patinkin (Inigo Montoya) @ Chris Sarandon (Prince Humperdinck) @ Christopher Guest (Count Tyrone Rugen) @ Wallace Shawn (Vizzini) @ André the Giant (Fezzik (as Andre the Giant)) @ Fred Savage (The Grandson) @ Robin Wright Penn (Buttercup/The Princess Bride (as Robin Wright)) @ Peter Falk (The Grandfather) @ Peter Cook (The Impressive Clergyman) @ Mel Smith (The Albino) @ Carol Kane (Valerie) @ Billy Crystal (Miracle Max) @ Anne Dyson (The Queen) @ Margery Mason (The Ancient Booer) @ Malcolm Storry (Yellin) @ Willoughby Gray (The King) @ Betsy Brantley (The Mother) @ Paul Badger (The Assistant Brute rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Sallie McLaughlin ( (uncredited) Produced by||"As you wish" means "I love you." By virtue of the "under 29" female vote, "Princess Bride" is somewhat overrated on the IMDB, but still is a good, fun movie.I rate it "8" of 10. The recently-released special edition DVD is the one to view. The colors are nicely saturated in most scenes, it has 5.1 Dolby Digital sound, and there are lots of extras, including one of the better "making of" specials. One of my favorite actors is Mandy Patinkin, and here he is great as the Spanish swordsman seeking revenge for his father's death at the hand of the six-fingered swordsman played by Christopher Guess. This was Robin Wright's first film, as a 19-year-old, playing Buttercup. Cary Elwes is also perfect as her love interest. Andre the Giant, who died in 1993 at age 45, was so fitting in his role as the giant. Overall a fine cast and a fine, entertaining, funny film. A "comic fairy tale in a strange land" as read to a child. The moral of the film, "True love conquers everything."How could anyone dislike such a story?? || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Private Benjamin|Howard Zieff|Comedy||6.0|USA|1980| 109 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Goldie Hawn Nancy Meyers Harvey Miller Charles Shyer|Nancy Meyers Harvey Miller Charles Shyer|David M. Walsh ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The army was no laughing matter until Judy Benjamin joined it. |When her husband dies in the wedding night Judy decides to join the army. What looks like a bad decision at first, turns out not so bad at all. That is, until her superior makes sexual advances. She is transferred to NATO headquarters in Europe and (re)meets the Frenchman Henri. Judy and Henri decide to marry, but will they ? |Goldie Hawn (Pvt. Judy Benjamin/Goodman) @ Eileen Brennan (Capt. Doreen Lewis) @ Armand Assante (Henri Alan Tremont) @ Robert Webber (Col. Clay Thornbush) @ Sam Wanamaker (Teddy Benjamin) @ Barbara Barrie (Harriet Benjamin) @ Mary Kay Place (Pvt. Mary Lou Glass) @ Harry Dean Stanton (1st Sgt. Jim Ballard) @ Albert Brooks (Yale Goodman) @ Alan Oppenheimer (Rabbi) @ Estelle Marlov (Vocalist at wedding) @ Everett Covin (Bandleader) @ Robert Hanley (Arnie) @ Lee Wallace (Mr. Waxman) @ James Dybas (Photographer) @ Gretchen Wyler (Aunt Kissy) @ Maxine Stuart (Aunt Betty) @ Lillian Adams (Mrs. Goodman) @ Sandy Weintraub (Harvey Goodman) @ Tim Haldeman (Stanley Goodman) @ Kopi Sotiropulos (Limo passerby) @ Stu Nahan (Newscaster) @ J.P. Bumstead (Induction officer) @ Hal Williams (SSgt. L.C. Ross (drill sergeant)) @ Toni Kalem (Pvt. Gianelli) @ Damita Jo Freeman (Pvt. Gloria Moe) @ Alston Ahern (Pvt. P.J. Soyer) @ P.J. Soles (Pvt. Wanda Winter) @ Craig T. Nelson (Capt. William Woodbridge) @ James R. Barnett (Drill instructor) @ Ray Oliver (Red Team soldier #1) @ Robin Hoff (Red Team soldier #2) @ Ed Lewis (Red Team soldier #3) @ Carrol Davis Carson (Referee) @ Clay Wright (Helicopter pilot (as Clayton D. Wright)) @ Danny Wells (Slick guy) @ Keone Young (Kim Osaka) @ George Roberts (Johnny Rourke) @ Helen Baron (Selma Lemish) @ Paul Marin (Leo Lemish) @ Mimi Maynard (Liz Lemish) @ Alice Hirson (Mrs. Thornbush) @ Wil Albert (Lt. Rahmi (SHAPE Hq., Paris)) @ Richard Herd (Brig. Gen. Foley) @ Sally Kirkland (Helga) @ Denise Halma (Gabrielle (Tremont's maid)) @ Lilyan Chauvin (Mrs. Tremont) @ David Olivier (Jean Claude) @ Elie Liardet (Mayor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Allison Caine (Additional Voice (uncredited)) @ Heather Haase (Young Judy Goodman (uncredited) Produced by||"Twenty-Nine Years Old, And Trained To Do Nothing" Oh dear.This is a difficult film to say generous things about.It has funny moments, but they are few and far between.It holds itself out as a satire on Jewish life, especially the materialism and the limitations of the complacent middle-class Jewish American lifestyle ... but when Judy Benjamin (who claims to have rejected her parents' values) is resisting Henri's amorous advances, she learns that he is Jewish and wealthy, and immediately succumbs. The early scene in which Jewish princess Benjamin complains to Captain Lewis (Eileen Brennan) is funny, but thereafter the military training is a long, long extension of one joke - namely, that Benjamin isn't very good at drill.However, as is always the way with these boot camp movies, the rookies bond and overcome their tribulations, and all goes well.That Benjamin should be sent to a cushy Paris posting is, even allowing for the plot point that brings it about, hard to believe. The 'Thorn Birds' segment is weak.Benjamin is in and out before the situation is properly established.Jewish weddings are frequent occurrences in American films, and accordingly rather tedious - but this movie manages to give us two fairly protracted ones.Other hackneyed conventions include Paris with accordion music (Henri's office happens to be in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower) and shots of Goldie and Henri walking across the Pont Alexandre III. Judy's second husband jabbered repeatedly about 'pre-nups', and this returns to haunt her when her prospective third husband insists on her signing a document which she doesn't understand.For all its celebration of marriage, the film's underlying attitude is cynical and materialistic. "Private Benjamin" was made in 1980, and it hasn't aged well.Sexual harrassment is treated as a joke, as is a Turk's inability to pronounce English clearly.Everybody smokes cigarettes openly onscreen, and 'reds' are considered as the enemy. Verdict - A Weak Goldie Hawn Vehicle || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 ||||||@@ Psycho|Alfred Hitchcock|Horror||8.6|USA|1960| 109 min/ Germany:108 min (cut version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Alfred Hitchcock |Robert Bloch Joseph Stefano|John L. Russell ||Action Gitanes [fr] |A new- and altogether different- screen excitement!!!|Phoenix officeworker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her. She has to meet her lover Sam in lunch breaks and they cannot get married because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam's California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by a quiet young man called Norman who seems to be dominated by his mother. Marion wants more out of life. She want to marry Sam, but he has very little money and cannot afford a wedding. She feels herself stuck in a no-win situation, until one Friday her boss asks her to deposit a large sum of money. Marion Crane works at a Real Estate Office in Arizona. She has a sister named Lila and a boyfriend named Sam. She wants to marry Sam, but the two do not have enough money, since Sam is still paying off his ex-wife's alimony, and she has a small job at Lowery's office. One Friday, December the eleventh, Mr. Cassidy, a rich oil tycoon, comes to the office to give Lowery $40,000 to buy a house for his daughter's wedding present. Lowery asks Marion to deposit the cash and she said she would. Instead, she packs up and heads for Fairvale to see Sam, with the money in her purse. She ends up at the Bates Motel where she meets Norman Bates, a troubled young man who seems to be obsessed with his Mother. After Norman feeds Marion dinner, she goes back to her room for a shower... |Anthony Perkins (Norman Bates) @ Janet Leigh (Marion Crane) @ Vera Miles (Lila Crane) @ John Gavin (Sam Loomis) @ Martin Balsam (Milton Arbogast) @ John McIntire (Sheriff Al Chambers) @ Simon Oakland (Dr. Richmond) @ Vaughn Taylor (George Lowery) @ Frank Albertson (Tom Cassidy) @ Lurene Tuttle (Eliza Chambers) @ Patricia Hitchcock (Caroline (as Pat Hitchcock)) @ John Anderson (Charlie) @ Mort Mills (Highway Patrol officer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Francis De Sales (Officer (uncredited)) @ George Eldredge (Chief (uncredited)) @ Sam Flint (Officer (uncredited)) @ Virginia Gregg (Norma Bates (uncredited) (voice)) @ Alfred Hitchcock (Man in cowboy hat outside realty office (uncredited)) @ Paul Jasmin (Norma Bates (uncredited) (voice)) @ Frank Killmond (Bob Summerfield (uncredited)) @ Ted Knight (Cell guard (uncredited)) @ Jeanette Nolan (Norma Bates (uncredited) (voice)) @ Helen Wallace (Customer in Sam's store (uncredited) Produced by||Shocking Psycho is one of Alfred Hitchcock's best films ever made and is one of the few horror masterpieces in film history.The scenes are well made out (and well memorable) and the shower scene (though over-rated) is quite well done. This film is more of a mystery though than a horror movie though, because we have to wait to find out who the killer is. But I can say one thing about this film, it gives new meaning to the word "Mother".Great entertainment all around till the end. ||Collector's Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Pumpkin|Anthony Abrams Adam Larson Brode|Comedy|Rated R for language and a scene of sexuality. |6.2|USA|2002| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Melanie Backer Karen Barber Albert Berger Willi Bär Francis Ford Coppola Betsy Danbury Linda Reisman Christina Ricci Andrea Sperling Ron Yerxa|Adam Larson Broder |Tim Suhrstedt ||Capitol Films |A comedy for the romantically challenged. |Perky, perfect Carolyn and her Alpha Omega Pi sisters plan to win Sorority of the Year by impressing the Greek Council with a killer charity: coaching mentally challenged athletes for the regional Challenged Games. When Carolyn's assigned to coach Pumpkin she's terrified at first, but soon sees in him something she's never seen before: a gentle humanity and honest clarity that touches her soul. To the horror of her friends and Pumpkin's overprotective mother, Carolyn falls in love, becoming an outcast in the process. As Carolyn's "perfect life" falls apart, Pumpkin teaches her that perfect isn't always perfect after all. |Christina Ricci (Carolyn McDuffy) @ Hank Harris (Pumpkin Romanoff) @ Brenda Blethyn (Judy Romanoff) @ Dominique Swain (Jeanine Kryszinsky) @ Marisa Coughlan (Julie Thurber) @ Samuel Ball (Kent Woodlands (as Sam Ball)) @ Harry J. Lennix (Robert Meary) @ Nina Foch (Betsy Collander) @ Caroline Aaron (Claudia Prinsinger) @ Lisa Banes (Chippy McDuffy) @ Julio Oscar Mechoso (Dr. Frederico Cruz) @ Phil Reeves (Burt Wohlfert) @ Marisa Petroro (Courtney Burke (as Marisa Parker)) @ Tait Smith (Hansie Prinsinger) @ Michael Bacall (Casey Whitner) @ Erinn Bartlett (Corinne) @ Michelle Krusiec (Anne Chung) @ Melissa McCarthy (Cici Pinkus) @ Amy Adams (Alex) @ Ginny Schreiber (Diana) @ Shaun Weiss (Randy Suskind) @ Julia Vera (Ramona Ramirez) @ Shane Johnson (Jeremy) @ Elsie Escobar (Sascha Santiago) @ John Henry Binder (Newscaster) @ Margaret Travolta (Vera Whitner rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Lawrence R. Coddens (Customer (uncredited)) @ David Gibbs (Todd Ridgeway (uncredited)) @ Paul Isaac Martin (Michael Windsor (uncredited)) @ Jeanne Orr ( (uncredited) Produced by||Beware: Scary Pumpkin! One of the scariest pumpkins I have ever encountered in my lifetime was not even experienced at Halloween time. Instead, it was witnessed when I watched the horrific film of the same name. `Pumpkin' stars Christina Ricci as shallow sorority chic who befriends and eventually falls in love with a disabled intrinsic named Pumpkin. However, the truly disabled individuals were the filmmakers of `Pumpkin'.Its premise was more presented as a humiliating love joke to disabled individuals. Christina Ricci, who was so amazing in the 1999 film `The Opposite of Sex', was quite the opposite here with her dreadful performance.In retrospect, this `Pumpkin' was more of a trick than a treat. * Failure || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Quiet Man, The|John Ford|Drama||8.0|USA|1952| 129 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Merian C. Cooper G.B. Forbes John Ford L.T. Rosso|Frank S. Nugent Maurice Walsh|Winton C. Hoch ||Artisan Entertainment [us] ||Sean Thornton has returned from America to reclaim his homestead and escape his past. Sean's eye is caught by Mary Kate Danaher, a beautiful but poor maiden, and younger sister of ill-tempered "Red" Will Danaher. The riotous relationship that forms between Sean and Mary Kate, punctuated by Will's pugnacious attempts to keep them apart, form the main plot, with Sean's past as the dark undercurrent. |John Wayne (Sean Thornton aka Trooper Thorne) @ Maureen O'Hara (Mary Kate Danaher/Thornton) @ Barry Fitzgerald (Michaleen Flynn, Town matchmaker, bookmaker) @ Ward Bond (Father Peter Lonergan, Narrator) @ Victor McLaglen (Squire 'Red' Will Danaher) @ Mildred Natwick (The Widow Sarah Tillane) @ Francis Ford (Dan Tobin) @ Eileen Crowe (Mrs. Elizabeth Playfair) @ May Craig (Fishwoman with basket at station) @ Arthur Shields (Reverend Cyril 'Snuffy' Playfair) @ Charles B. Fitzsimons (Hugh Forbes (as Charles FitzSimons)) @ James O'Hara (Father Paul) @ Sean McClory (Owen Glynn) @ Jack MacGowran (Ignatius Feeney, Squire Danaher's handyman (as Jack McGowran)) @ Joseph O'Dea (Molouney, train guard) @ Eric Gorman (Engine Driver Costello) @ Kevin Lawless (Train fireman) @ Paddy O'Donnell (Railway Porter rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Frank Baker (Man in bar (uncredited)) @ Tony Canzoneri (Boxing Second (uncredited)) @ Maureen Coyne (Dan Tobin's daughter (Ireland) (uncredited)) @ Ken Curtis (Dermot Fahy (uncredited)) @ Mimi Doyle (Dan Tobin's daughter (USA) (uncredited)) @ Douglas Evans (Ring Physician (uncredited)) @ Robert Foy (Driver of cart across river (uncredited)) @ Sam Harris (General (uncredited)) @ D.R.O. Hatswell (Guppy (uncredited)) @ John Horan (Man at railway station (uncredited)) @ David Hughes (Police Constable (uncredited)) @ Billy Jones (Bugler (uncredited)) @ Tiny Jones (Nell, Maid to Widow Tillane (uncredited)) @ Colin Kenny (Pub Extra (uncredited)) @ Mae Marsh (Father Paul's Mother (uncredited)) @ Jim McVeigh (Man following cart across river (uncredited)) @ Jim Morrin (Roof Thatcher (uncredited)) @ Al Murphy (Boxing referee (uncredited)) @ Michael O'Brian (Musha Musha man (uncredited)) @ Frank O'Connor (Ringside Photographer (uncredited)) @ Pat O'Malley (Man in bar (uncredited)) @ Web Overlander (Station Master Hugh Bailey (uncredited)) @ Bob Perry (Trooper Thorn's ringside trainer (uncredited)) @ Jack Roper (Tony Godello, Boxer (uncredited)) @ Philip Stainton (Anglican Bishop (uncredited)) @ Harry Tenbrook (Police Sergeant Hanan (uncredited)) @ Harry Tyler (Pat Cohan, the publican (uncredited)) @ Melinda Wayne (Girl on wagon at horse race (uncredited)) @ Michael Wayne (Teenage Boy at Races (uncredited)) @ Patrick Wayne (Boy on wagon at horse race (uncredited)) @ Toni Wayne (Teenage Girl at Races (uncredited) Produced by||Sean Thornton, Meet Mary Kate Danaher The lush and beautiful countryside of Ireland provides the setting for this engaging tale of an Irishman, raised in America, going back home to escape a past he'd just as soon forget.In `The Quiet Man,' director John Ford returns to his own roots, going on location to tell the story of Sean Thornton (John Wayne), a man troubled by an incident that changed his life, and now doing what he can to forget about it and just move on.And toward that end, Sean travels to the place he knows so well from the stories told him by his mother, to Innisfree, intending to buy the cottage in which he was born, White O'Morn, where he can make a fresh start and build a new life for himself.There's a problem, however; the land and the cottage is owned by the widow Sarah Tillane (Mildred Natwick), and borders the estate of one Red Will Danaher (Victor McLaglen), who not only fancies the widow herself, but wants to buy her land.Squire Danaher (as he's known) is not the only one Sean must deal with, though, as other matters arise upon his arrival in the small hamlet of his birth.And her name is Mary Kate (Maureen O'Hara)-- who just happens to be Squire Danaher's sister.But Danaher or no, it makes no difference to Sean, who as soon as he lays eyes on Mary Kate determines to make her his wife. Sean soon learns that in Ireland, however, such things are pursued quite differently than in America.To win the hand of Mary Kate he must employ the services of Michaleen Flynn (Barry Fitzgerald) a kind of matchmaker/chaperone/marriage broker, who will help him secure the consent of Squire Danaher, without which the marriage cannot and will not take place.So Sean has no choice but to acquiesce to the local traditions and customs, and Michaleen forthwith commences the appropriate overtures.In the meantime, he awaits the decision of the widow Tillane as to the purchase of White O'Morn, which he is determined to have at any cost. John Ford directed more than 140 motion pictures, going back to the days of silent films, and his favorite star, with whom he worked in at least a dozen of his feature films, was John Wayne.And when you think of the John Ford/John Wayne collaborations, it's the Western that instantly comes to mind:`Stagecoach,' `She Wore A Yellow Ribbon,' `Fort Apache,' `Rio Grande' or `The Searchers,' (to name a few).Yet, `The Quiet Man' is perhaps their most memorable effort, and remains a favorite among fans to this day.Ford (who received an Oscar for Best Director for it) presents the story on a very personal level, and in Sean and Mary Kate gives the audience characters to whom they can relate; and it's that personal connection he affords the viewer that may suggest the main reason behind this particular film's popularity.That, plus the fact that at the core of this story there is an honesty and genuine sincerity that rings so true-to-life.Ford also successfully captures the essence of all that is good and positive about Ireland, from the richness of all of his characters to the lavish cinematography that brings the country so vividly to life.It's quite simply a wonderful, uplifting film, impeccably crafted and delivered by Ford and his superb cast. Too often, John Wayne's work gets a bad rap; no matter what role he takes on, you're liable to hear `John Wayne is always John Wayne, the only difference is the character's name.'And, as he proves with his portrayal of Sean Thornton, it's not only a false statement, it's so unfair to an actor who brought so much to so many, in his craft as well as in his personal life.The Oscar he finally received for 1969's `True Grit' was way overdue, especially when you consider his performances in such films as `The Searchers,' `Red River' and, of course, this one.Is he the best actor of all time?Of course not; but he is good at what he does, much better than he is usually given credit for.And he (and his films) can always-- always-- be counted on to provide good, solid entertainment.Together, he and Ford have provided some of the most memorable moments in the history of the movies, and his pairing with Maureen O'Hara was a stroke of genius. There's real chemistry between them, which enables them to play so well off of one another.They made five films together between 1950 (`Rio Grande') and 1971 (`Big Jake'), and there is always that spark of magic between them, but never better than in this film. A gifted actor, Maureen O'Hara is also, without question, one of the most beautiful women ever to grace the silver screen.It's easy to understand how Sean Thornton can fall instantly in love with her when he first sees her walking through the fields of Innisfree.It's entirely believable.And when you get to know the woman behind the beauty-- who Mary Kate is down deep-- it's even more understandable.Perfectly cast, O'Hara, like Ford, returned to her roots to make this film (she was born in Milltown, Ireland, near Dublin), and apparently it agreed with her, because her performance is nothing less than natural and inspired.Mary Kate Danaher, in fact, is arguably one of her-- if not `the'--most memorable roles of her career. The supporting cast, topped by Fitzgerald (who is absolutely unforgettable as Michaleen) also includes Ward Bond (Father Lonergan), Francis Ford (Dan Tobin), Arthur Shields (Reverend Playfair) and Jack MacGowran (Feeney).A delightful and endearing motion picture, `The Quiet Man' is, of all of John Ford's achievements, one of his best.And Sean, Mary Kate, Michaleen and all the people of Innisfree are ones you'll remember and want to visit again.It's the magic of the movies.I rate this one 10/10. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Quills|Philip Kaufman|Comedy|Rated R for strong sexual content including dialogue, violence and language. |7.3|USA|2000| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Julia Chasman Mark Huffam Peter Kaufman Des McAnuff Sandra Schulberg Nick Wechsler Rudolf G. Wiesmeier|Doug Wright Doug Wright|Rogier Stoffers ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |There are no bad words... only bad deeds.|The story is a bawdy tale in the tradition of Moll Flanders and Tom Jones. The setting is the 1790s in a mental asylum where the Marquis is incarcerated. He is greatly humoured by the priest Abbe Coulmier, a bleeding heart, who provides him with writing materials as a cathartic therapy. The laundress Madeline smuggles the Marquis' pornographic plays out of the asylum where they are devoured by the populace. The notorious novel 'Justine' falls under the gaze of the Emperor who is outraged by their obscenity. He sends Dr. Royer-Collard to cure the Marquis, whose treatments include thumbscrews, ducking stools and the 'comforting chair'. Deprived of writing materials the Marquis writes his plays in blood and Madeline takes great risks getting them published. The lecherous doctor claims his bride of 15 from the nunnery and then proceeds to ride her every night. Marquis shames Abbe by performing a satire in which the cuckoo's nest of patients lampoons the doctor and his cradle stealing. A love triangle develops between the Marquis, Madeline and Abbe. This ends in high farce and tragedy as one of the patients acts out the Marquis last play.. This film directed by Philip Kaufman, is about a French notorious writer who writes books about sexual situations. Geoffrey Rush plays the Marquis de Sade. Kate Winslet Madeline LeCrec, de Sade's laundress who smuggles his last writings out of the asylum. Michael Caine will play de Sade's doctor and Joaquin Phoenix will play Abbe de Coulmier. |Geoffrey Rush (The Marquis de Sade) @ Kate Winslet (Madeleine 'Maddy' LeClerc) @ Joaquin Phoenix (The Abbe du Coulmier) @ Michael Caine (Dr. Royer-Collard) @ Billie Whitelaw (Madame LeClerc) @ Patrick Malahide (Delbené) @ Amelia Warner (Simone) @ Jane Menelaus (Renee Pelagie) @ Stephen Moyer (Prouix, the Architect) @ Tony Pritchard (Valcour) @ Michael Jenn (Cleante) @ Danny Babington (Pitou) @ George Yiasoumi (Dauphin) @ Stephen Marcus (Bouchon) @ Elizabeth Berrington (Charlotte) @ Edward Tudor-Pole (Franval) @ Harry Jones (Orvolle) @ Bridget McConnell (Madame Bougival (as Bridget McConnel)) @ Pauline McLynn (Mademoiselle Clairwill (as Pauline Mclynn)) @ Rebecca R. Palmer (Michette (as Rebecca Palmer)) @ Toby Sawyer (Louison) @ Daniel Ainsleigh (Guerin) @ Alex Avery (Abbe du Maupas) @ Terry O'Neill (Gaillon) @ Diana Morrison (Mademoiselle Renard) @ Carol MacReady (Sister Noirceuil (as Carol Macready)) @ Tom Ward (The Horseman) @ Richard Mulholland (Fop) @ Ron Cook (Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte) @ Julian Tait (Pawnbroker) @ Deborah Vale (Sister Rose Fatima) @ Tessa Vale (Sister Flavie) @ Howard Lew Lewis (First Vendor) @ Andrew Dunford (Second Vendor) @ Lisa Hammond (Prostitute) @ Mathew Fraser (Lunatic Band Member) @ Jamie Beddard (Lunatic at Play Produced by||Geoffrey Rush in a brave, Oscar-worthy performance, and a story an interesting as most anything this year; one of the year's best.***1/2 (out of four) QUILLS / (2000) ***1/2 (out of four) By Blake French: "To know virtue we must aquatint ourselves with vice." Marquis de Sade Philip Kaufman's "Quills" will leave some audiences cheering and others disappointed and disgusted; there are good logical arguments from both sides. One of the most controversial movie of the year, "Quills, " based on the play by Douglas Wright, doesn't entirely examine the torpid mind of the disreputable 18th century French author, the Marquis de Sade, but instead indicates the impact his sexually and sadistically explicit literary work influenced the public. The biggest argument could be made with the sanity of Marquis de Sade himself, as whether he was a perverted, sex-obsessed psychopath or simply a spirited aristocrat who only stood for artistic expression and freedom of speech. The movie's characters take their own sides; after becoming aware of the authors material, Napoleon wants de Sade (Geoffrey Rush) shot dead at the insane asylum he is being held at, but instead a sadistic torturer named Dr. Royer-Collard (Michael Caine) is assigned to take charge of the patient; the virginal laundress Madeleine (Kate Winslet) , thinks de Sade is a writer, not a madman, and helps to smuggle his erotic stories out of the institution for public publication; the asylum priest, Adde Coulmier (Joaquin Phoenix), first befriends de Sade and grants him special privileges, but once he discovers the extremity of his subversive ideas, he reluctantly changes opinions. De Sade inarguably had some fanatical fantasies, but the film leaves it up to us to realize his lustful imagination captured on paper are transpired due to his inability to experience them in the real world outside of his chambers. The subject is carnal and a bit unsettling, and the movie exploits the eroticism clearly on screen; the film is strictly intended for mature audiences. But director Philip Kaufman ("The Right Stuff") does not portray the likes of de Sade in a disturbing manner, but keeps the story engaging. The atmosphere feels accurate and convincing, and the movie is not without humor and the expected material found within the mental institution, like the patient who thinks he is a bird, a pyromaniac, and the hulking horny guy who has his mind set out on raping any human with two legs with no external organs between them. There are a few scenes that could have captured the audience a bit more exclusively. However the entirely convincing, intense, brave, Oscar worthy performances by Michael Caine and Geoffrey Rush make up for that. The Marquis was an extremely complex individual, and Rush captures that through a character without heart or compassion, but with spirit and zest; even though de Sade went through each day with suffering, he still approached life with insight, ambition and curiosity. He is so determined to fulfill his need to write his perverse ideas, after forbidden and when his quills are taken away he still prevails by using blood, wine, and feces in the place of ink, and his clothes, sheets, and walls as paper. De Sade stands as an example that society is most successfully established when people understand that we are all simply expressions of our own nature, that it is most healthy to declare our motives and passions to ourselves. He is also a prime example of self-control, and that freedom of speech only carries us so far. It would be interesting to see what would happen if Marquis de Sade was to live in present times and if he was to exploit his ideas on screen or in novels. I think he would push the envelope to yet another level and have quite an influence on today's society. I hope people who see the artful "Quills" share their opinions with one another, after all, that is the reason why filmmakers make movies like these. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Quiz Show|Robert Redford|Drama|PG-13 |7.4|USA|1994|133 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|Richard Dreyfuss Richard N. Goodwin Michael Jacobs Judith James Julian Krainin Jeff McCracken Susan Moore Gail Mutrux Michael Nozik Robert Redford Frederick Zollo|Richard N. Goodwin Paul Attanasio|Michael Ballhaus ||Abril Vídeo [br] |Fifty million people watched, but no one saw a thing.|An idealistic young lawyer (Rob Morrow) working for a Congressional subcommittee in the late 1950s discovers that TV quiz shows are being fixed. His investigation focusses on two contestants on the show "Twenty-One": Herbert Stempel (John Turturro), a brash working-class Jew from Queens, and Charles Van Doren (Ralph Fiennes), the patrician scion of one of America's leading literary families. Based on a true story. |John Turturro (Herbie Stempel) @ Rob Morrow (Dick Goodwin) @ Ralph Fiennes (Charles Van Doren) @ Paul Scofield (Mark Van Doren) @ David Paymer (Dan Enright) @ Hank Azaria (Albert Freedman) @ Christopher McDonald (Jack Barry) @ Johann Carlo (Toby Stempel) @ Elizabeth Wilson (Dorothy Van Doren) @ Allan Rich (Robert Kintner) @ Mira Sorvino (Sandra Goodwin) @ George Martin (Chairman) @ Paul Guilfoyle (Lishman) @ Griffin Dunne (Account Guy) @ Michael Mantell (Pennebaker) @ Byron Jennings (Moomaw) @ Ben Shenkman (Childress) @ Timothy Busfield (Fred) @ Jack Gilpin (Jack) @ Bruce Altman (Gene) @ Martin Scorsese (Martin Rittenhome) @ Joda Blaire (Lester Stempel (as Joda Hershman)) @ Ernie Sabella (Car Salesman) @ Barry Levinson (Dave Garroway) @ Debra Monk (Kintner's Secretary) @ Mario Cantone (Passerby) @ Timothy Britten Parker (Researcher) @ Grace Phillips (Mrs. Nearing) @ Jerry Grayson (Limo Driver) @ Scott Lucy (NBC Page) @ Matt Keeslar (NBC Page) @ Ron Scott Bertozzi (NBC Page) @ Harriet Sansom Harris (Enright's Secretary) @ Mary Shultz (Freedman's Secretary) @ Dave Wilson (Director) @ Robert Caminiti (Associate Director) @ Eddie Korbich (Lighting Director) @ Le Clanché du Rand (Cornwall Neighbor) @ Carole Shelley (Cornwall Aunt) @ Shawn Batten (Cornwall Cousin) @ Cornelia Ryan (Cornwall Cousin) @ Jeffrey Nordling (John Van Doren) @ Gina Rice (Mrs. John Van Doren) @ Vince O'Brien (Edmund 'Bunny' Wilson) @ Adam Kilgour (Thomas Merton, The Monk) @ Richard Seff (Congressman Devine) @ Bill Moor (Congressman Rogers) @ Nicholas Kepros (Congressman Flynt) @ Barry Snider (Congressman Springer) @ Chuck Adamson (Congressman Mack) @ Joseph Attanasio (Congressman Derounian) @ Dan Wakefield (Professor At Book Party) @ Hamilton Fish (Professor At Book Party) @ Merwin Goldsmith (Writer At Book Party) @ Illeana Douglas (Woman at Book Party (Elizabeth)) @ Gretchen Egolf (Student At Book Party) @ Stephen Pearlman (Judge Schweitzer) @ Anthony Fusco (Librarian) @ Douglas McGrath (Snodgrass) @ Calista Flockhart (Barnard Girl) @ Alysa Shwedel (Barnard Girl) @ Kelly Coffield (Queens Neighbor) @ Dede Pochos (Queens Neighbor) @ Maria Radman (Queens Neighbor) @ David Stepkin (Queens Neighbor) @ Steve Roland (Today Announcer) @ Bernie Sheredy (Reporter) @ Joe Lisi (Reporter) @ Greg Martin (Reporter) @ Reno (Woman At Door) @ Neil Leifer (Psychoanalyst) @ Caryn Krooth (Blonde) @ Mario Contacessi (Waiter) @ Pat Russell (NBC Secretary) @ Bill Cwikowski (Challenger) @ William Fichtner (Stage Manager) @ Vincent J. Burns (Crew Member) @ Katherine Turturro (First Mom rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ted Brunson (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Michael J. Burg (Student (uncredited)) @ Richard Council (Reporter #1 (uncredited)) @ Matthew T. Gitkin (NBC Staff (uncredited)) @ Ethan Hawke (Don Quixote Student (uncredited)) @ Michael Luceri (Student (uncredited)) @ Ron Ostrow (Photographer (uncredited)) @ Jonathan Marc Sherman (Don Quixote Student #2 (uncredited)) @ Nick Taylor (Herbie's Neighbor (uncredited)) @ Glenn Zarr (Press Photographer (uncredited)Produced by||A Quiz Show where only the audience wins. "Quiz Show" is a dramatic dissection of the 50's NBC quiz show scandal. An excellent production in general with the "feel" of a theatrical docudrama, the film does a good job of showing the nebulous nature of corruption; the blurring of good and evil, the compromising of moral precepts, the "whistle blowing", the covering up, the rationalizations, and the rest of the dialectic which all such scandals seem to follow. (eg: Watergate, The Insider, Erin Brocovich, etc.) "Quiz Show" has no clear winners with the exception of the audience. Its slightly obvious presentation makes it an enjoyable watch for all. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Rain Man|Barry Levinson|Drama|R |7.9|USA|1988|133 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Peter Guber Mark Johnson David McGiffert Gerald R. Molen Gail Mutrux Jon Peters|Barry Morrow Ronald Bass Barry Morrow|John Seale ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||Selfish yuppie Charlie Babbitt's father dies and leaves a fortune -- to Raymond, the institutionalized savant brother that Charlie didn't know he had. They set out on a cross-country journey of discovery. Charley is a hustler. He's been on his own long enough to know how to work people and situations. He finds that the father who threw him out as a teen ager has died. He's left him a now antique convertible and something more important, a previously unknown brother, Raymond. Raymond is Autistic, but is able to calculate complicated mathematical problems in his head with great speed and accuracy. Their father has left his fortune to Raymond who doesn't even understand what money is for. Charley is enraged by what has happened and by his father keeping Raymond's existence from him for his entire life. He kidnaps Raymond from his residential home but then finds that Raymond will only fly Quantas. The two begin a long road trip that will lead them to an understanding of each other. |Dustin Hoffman (Raymond 'Ray' Babbitt) @ Tom Cruise (Charles Sanford 'Charlie' Babbitt) @ Valeria Golino (Susanna) @ Gerald R. Molen (Dr. Bruner (as Jerry Molen)) @ Jack Murdock (John Mooney, Will Executor) @ Michael D. Roberts (Vern) @ Ralph Seymour (Lenny) @ Lucinda Jenney (Iris) @ Bonnie Hunt (Sally Dibbs, Diner Waitress) @ Kim Robillard (Small-Town Doctor) @ Beth Grant (Farmhouse Mother) @ Dolan Dougherty (Farmhouse Kid) @ Marshall Dougherty (Farmhouse Kid) @ Patrick Dougherty (Farmhouse Kid) @ John-Michael Dougherty (Farmhouse Kid) @ Peter Dougherty (Farmhouse Kid) @ Andrew Dougherty (Farmhouse Kid) @ Loretta Wendt Jolivette (Dr. Bruner's Secretary) @ Donald E. Jones (Minister at Funeral) @ Bryon P. Caunar (Man in Waiting Room) @ Donna J. Dickson (Nurse) @ Earl Roat (Man on Wallbrook Road) @ William Montgomery Jr. (Wallbrook Patient Entering TV Room) @ Elizabeth Lower (Bank Officer) @ Michael C. Hall (Police Officer at Accident) @ Robert W. Heckel (Police Officer at Accident) @ W. Todd Kenner (Police Officer at Accident) @ Kneeles Reeves (Amarillo Hotel Owner) @ Jack W. Cope (Irate Driver) @ Nick Mazzola (Blackjack Dealer) @ Ralph Tabakin (Shift Boss) @ Ray Baker (Mr. Kelso, Casino Security) @ Isadore Figler (Pit Boss) @ Ralph M. Cardinale (Pit Boss) @ Sam Roth (Floorman) @ Nanci M. Harvey (Lady at Blackjack Table) @ Kenneth E. Lowden (Guard in Video Room) @ Jocko Marcellino (Las Vegas Coroner) @ John Thorstensen (Train Conductor) @ Blanche Salter (Woman at Pancake Counter) @ Jake Hoffman (Boy at Pancake Counter) @ Royce D. Applegate (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ June Christopher (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Anna Mathias (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Archie Hahn (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ Luisa Leschin (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Ira Miller (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ Chris Mulkey (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ Tracy Newman (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Julie Payne (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Reni Santoni (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ Bridget Sienna (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Ruth Silveira (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Jonathan Stark (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ Lynne Marie Stewart (Voiceover Actress (voice)) @ Arnold F. Turner (Voiceover Actor (voice)) @ Gigi Vorgan (Voiceover Actress (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Richard A. Buswell (Car Driver (uncredited)) @ Barry Levinson (Doctor (uncredited)) @ Aaron Weiler (Airport Security Guard (uncredited)Produced by||Hoffman & Cruise turn in tremendous performances ... Hoffman & Cruise turn in tremendous performances in this story about an autistic savant(Hoffman) and his long lost brother(Cruise).The movie does not move into comedy & cliches but stays with the dramatic story which makes it work. Only downfall is some of the Vegas scenes where Cruise uses the autistic for his own means. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Rear Window|Alfred Hitchcock|Thriller||8.7|USA|1954| 112 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|James C. Katz Alfred Hitchcock|John Michael Hayes Cornell Woolrich|Robert Burks ||MCA Home Video [us] |See It! - If your nerves can stand it after PSYCHO! (1962 re-release)|Professional photographer L.B. "Jeff" Jeffries breaks his leg while getting an action shot at an auto race. Confined to his New York apartment, he spends his time looking out of the rear window observing the neighbours. He begins to suspect that the man opposite may have murdered his wife. Jeff enlists the help of his society model girlfriend Lisa Freemont and his nurse Stella to investigate. In 1950-something New York, an adventuresome free-lance photographer finds himself confined to a wheelchair in his tiny apartment while a broken leg mends. With only the occasional distraction of a visiting nurse and his frustrated love interest, a beautiful fashion consultant, his attention is naturally drawn to the courtyard outside his "rear window" and the occupants of the apartment buildings which surround it. Soon he is consumed by the private dramas of his neighbors lives which play themselves out before his eyes. There is "Miss Lonelyhearts," so desperate for her imaginary lover that she sits him a plate at the dinner table and feigns their ensuing chat. There is the frustrated composer banging on his piano, the sunbathing sculptress, the shapely dancer, the newlyweds who are concealed from their neighbors by a window shade, and a bungling middle-aged couple with a little yapping dog who sleep on the fire escape to avoid the sweltering heat of their apartment. ...And then there is the mysterious salesman whose nagging, invalid wife's sudden absence from the scene ominously coincides with middle-of-the-night forays into the dark, sleeping city with his sample case. Where did she go? What's in the trunk that the salesman ships away? What's he been doing with the knives and the saw that he cleans at the kitchen sink? |James Stewart (L. B. 'Jeff' Jeffries) @ Grace Kelly (Lisa Carol Fremont) @ Wendell Corey (Lt. Thomas J. Doyle) @ Thelma Ritter (Stella) @ Raymond Burr (Lars Thorwald) @ Judith Evelyn (Miss Lonelyheart) @ Ross Bagdasarian (Songwriter) @ Georgine Darcy (Miss Torso (the ballet dancer)) @ Sara Berner (Woman on fire escape) @ Frank Cady (Man on fire escape) @ Jesslyn Fax (Miss Hearing Aid) @ Rand Harper (Newlywed man) @ Irene Winston (Mrs. Anna Thorwald) @ Havis Davenport (Newlywed woman) @ Marla English (Girl at songwriter's party) @ Kathryn Grant (Girl at songwriter's party (as Kathryn Grandstaff)) @ Alan Lee (Landlord) @ Anthony Warde (Detective) @ Benny Bartlett (Man with Miss Torso) @ Fred Graham (Detective) @ Harry Landers (Man with Miss Lonelyheart) @ Dick Simmons (Man with Miss Torso) @ Iphigenie Castiglioni (Woman with bird) @ Ralph Smiley (Carl (the waiter)) @ Eddie Parker (Detective (as Edwin Parker)) @ Len Hendry (Policeman) @ Mike Mahoney (Policeman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jerry Antes (Dancer with Miss Torso (uncredited)) @ Barbara Bailey (Choreographer with Miss Torso (uncredited)) @ Nick Borgani ( (uncredited)) @ Sue Casey ( (uncredited)) @ James Cornell (Man (uncredited)) @ Bing Crosby (Singer on Miss Lonelyheart's radio (uncredited) (voice)) @ Bess Flowers (Songwriter's party guest with poddle (uncredited)) @ Alfred Hitchcock (Man winding clock in songwriter's apartment (uncredited)) @ Jonni Paris ( (uncredited)) @ Jack Stoney ( (uncredited) Produced by||In the mid-fifties, Hitchcock brought remarkable suspense by reverting to the logic of a silent film (with an observer behind the lens as the hero) Many reviewers and critics have commented on Alfred Hitchcock's theme of the voyeur in Rear Window (the mere thought of a voyeur in a suspense film conjures up images from other classic Hitchcock films), and I felt that voyeuristic bug as well.But I realized something that I hadn't thought of as I watched it for the first time- this is a return for Hitchcock to his skills as a master of silent-film chills.As L.B. Jeffries (Jimmy Stewart in one of his most infamous performances) is in his wheelchair viewing out one perspective to other inhabitants in the apartment, the audience views right along-side him.So, for more or less 50 percent of the film, the only sounds we hear are the sounds of mere realism, as Hitch's camera keeps a close eye on things. As the thrills build in the second hour of the film there is considerably more dialog than the first hour.This could, and occasionally does, present a challenge for the audience member that could either be accepted & payed off or resented- can one sit back and just watch things unfold as in a film from the 20's?Personally, the experience of seeing these events unfold and increase was near electrifying.Along with Stewart's performance, which ranges from amusing to terrified, compelling to frightened (i.e. Hitch's 'everyday man'), there's Grace Kelly as Lisa, who carries her own beauty & inner conflicts, and Raymond Burr as Thorvold, who could have things going a little better with his wife. If we empathize with Jeff, it's because we become as much apart of his mind-set/POV as he already is, and that's the ticket to the film's true success.Not only is there a magnetic kind of skill to which Hitchcock (and cinematographer Robert Burks) presents us with the apartments' supporting and minor characters and how their fates are played out against the enclosed backdrop, but the psychology of Jeff becomes parallel, or against, to the audience's.This is the story of one man's temptation and compulsion to be involved with those he can see (much like movie-goers have with any given film), and how perception of the realities around him become ours.Rear Window may have become dated for some movie-goers, particularly since the theme has been played on by other movies and TV shows (like The Simpsons for example).Yet there is a certain effectiveness to it all, even in the earlier scenes, that holds an edge over imitators.A+ ||The Alfred Hitchcock Collection |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Red Dragon|Brett Ratner|Crime|Rated R for violence, grisly images, language, some nudity and sexuality. |7.4|USA|2002| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Andrew Z. Davis Dino De Laurentiis James M. Freitag Terry Needham Martha Schumacher|Thomas Harris Ted Tally|Dante Spinotti ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Before the Silence|FBI Agent Will Graham has been called out of early retirement to catch a serial killer, known by authorities as "The Tooth Fairy". He asks for the help of his arch-nemesis, Dr. Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter, so that he can be able to catch "The Tooth Fairy" and bring him to justice. The only problem is that "The Tooth Fairy" is getting inside information about Graham and his family from none other than Dr. Lecter. 3 Years after retiring from the FBI because of a near-fatal encounter with Hannibal Lecter, who was helping him catch the "Chesapeake Ripper", only to reveal it was Hannibal himself, Will Graham is asked by his ex-partner Jack Crawford to come solve one last case - 2 slaughtered families every full moon. They have 3 weeks until the next full moon to find the madman, but an innocent blind woman has found him first... Will Graham must risk his family's security and his own safety to track down this one last murderer - the epitome of all evil - The Red Dragon. A set of grisly murders brings FBI Agent Will Graham (Norton) out of retirement and puts him in search of an atrocious killer (Fiennes) who's driven by the image of a painting. Yet his only means of survival and success are to seek the help of another madman, whom he himself captured, Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Hopkins). Marked by past scars and quickly running out of time, Graham finds himself tangled in a heap of madness, sacrificing his work, his family, and above all his own life, to put an end to pure evil. Will Graham is an FBI agent who has an ability to get into the minds of criminals. Currently he is pursuing someone who in addition to killing people is taking parts of their body. Initially it is believed that he is collecting them but Graham believes that he is actually eating them. So he goes to Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a forensic psychiatrist, whom he consults with. When Lecter leaves him for moment he discovers that Lecter is the man. Lecter then tries to kill him but Graham manages to subdue him. Both men are hospitalized and when they recover Graham testifies against Lecter and Lecter is convicted. Graham would leave the FBI. A few years later Graham is approached by his former boss who wants him to help him find this guy who kills a family every full moon. Graham who is still emotionally and psychologically scarred, reluctantly agrees. When Graham hits a wall, he goes to Lecter for help and Lecter wants to play games with him. |Anthony Hopkins (Dr. Hannibal Lecter) @ Edward Norton (Will Graham) @ Ralph Fiennes (Francis Dolarhyde) @ Harvey Keitel (Jack Crawford) @ Emily Watson (Reba McClane) @ Mary-Louise Parker (Molly Graham) @ Philip Seymour Hoffman (Freddy Lounds) @ Anthony Heald (Dr. Frederick Chilton) @ Ken Leung (Lloyd Bowman) @ Frankie Faison (Barney Matthews) @ Tyler Patrick Jones (Josh Graham) @ Lalo Schifrin (Conductor) @ Tim Wheater (Flautist) @ John Rubinstein (Dinner Guest) @ David Doty (Dinner Guest) @ Brenda Strong (Dinner Guest) @ Robert Curtis-Brown (Dinner Guest (as Robert Curtis Brown)) @ Mary Anne McGarry (Dinner Guest) @ Marc Abraham (Dinner Guest) @ Veronica De Laurentiis (Dinner Guest) @ Michael Cavanaugh (Forensic Dentist) @ Madison Mason (Police Commissioner) @ Bill Duke (Police Chief) @ Clifford Tate (Cop (as Cliff Dorfman)) @ Phillip B. Fahey (Cop) @ Katie Rich (Woman Detective) @ Alex Berliner (Photographer) @ Tom Verica (Charles Leeds) @ Marguerite MacIntyre (Valerie Leeds) @ Thomas Curtis (Billy Leeds (as Tommy Curtis)) @ Jordan Gruber (Sean Leeds) @ Morgan Gruber (Susie Leeds) @ Richard Pelzman (Locksmith) @ Alex D. Linz (Young Francis Dolarhyde (voice)) @ Azura Skye (Bookseller) @ Andreana Weiner (Dr. Bloom's Secretary) @ William Lucking (Byron Metcalf) @ Elizabeth Dennehy (Beverly) @ Stanley Anderson (Jimmy Price) @ Joseph Simmons (Janitor) @ Terence Rowley (Superintendent) @ Gianni Russo (Newsie) @ Al Brown (Tattler Guard) @ Edward Nickerson (FBI Agent) @ Anthony Reynolds (FBI Agent (as Tony Reynolds)) @ Jeanine Jackson (Dr. Hassler) @ Mark Moses (Father in Video) @ Kyra Helfrich (Child in Video) @ Frank Bruynbroek (Chef) @ Dwier Brown (Mr. Jacobi) @ Grace Stephens (Jacobi Child) @ Lucy Stephens (Jacobi Child) @ Kevin Bashor (Jacobi Child) @ Hillary Straney (Museum Secretary) @ Christopher Curry (Mr. Fisk) @ Tanya Newbould (Chromalux Secretary) @ Conrad E. Palmisano (Deputy in Car rest of cast listed alphabetically Frank Langella .... Voice of the Dragon (scenes deleted)) @ Sho Brown (Officer (uncredited)) @ Ellen Burstyn (Grandma Dolarhyde (uncredited) (voice)) @ Robert Randolph Caton (Museum Patron (uncredited)) @ Norman Fessler (Driver (uncredited)) @ Mary Beth Hurt (Museum Curator (uncredited)) @ Aaron Michael Lacey (TV Cameraman (uncredited)) @ Patty Malcolm (Dinner Guest (uncredited)) @ Lisa Thornhill (Mrs. Sherman (uncredited)) @ Frank Whaley (Ralph Mandy (uncredited) Produced by||The question must be asked - "why bother?" I swear I approached 'Red Dragon' with an open mind! I thought 'Hannibal' was lousy and I must admit the whole concept of remaking 'Manhunter' struck me as a stupid move. Still, I tried not to make up my mind before the movie even started, and there was some excellent actors in the cast like Harvey Keitel, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Emily Watson, so how bad could it be? Well, it's better than 'Hannibal' (almost ANYTHING is!), but no competition to 'Manhunter', and overall a very dull movie with little to recommend it. By no means an outright turkey, but not a film you are going to remember six months after you watch it. I must be one of the few moviegoers who Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lector bores stupid. He is not disturbing or scary in the least and his Freddy Krueger attempts at humour are lame and predictable. As there is much more Lector content in this than the original it made it difficult going. Edward Norton does very little for me, and I didn't think his performance was either interesting or convincing. Ralph Fiennes was okay, but I much prefer William Peterson and Tom Noonan in these roles as they had much more depth. The movie goes for roughly the same time as 'Manhunter' but felt at least half an hour longer. It really dragged. I blame director Brett Ratner for this, a guy whose background is in music videos and awful comedies. Why he was chosen to direct this is an absolute mystery Indeed, why this movie was made at all is difficult to say. If you haven't seen 'Manhunter' watch it instead. If you have, the question must be asked - "why bother watching 'Red Dragon?". Beats me! ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Rescuers, The|John Lounsbery Wolfgang Reitherman Art Steven|Animation||6.7|USA|1977| 77 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ron Miller Wolfgang Reitherman|Ken Anderson Ted Berman Larry Clemmons Vance Gerry Fred Lucky Burny Mattinson David Michener Dick Sebast Margery Sharp Frank Thomas|||Abril Vídeo [br] |Two tiny mice, one big adventure! |Bernard and Bianca, of the Rescue Aid Society (a mouse organization) receive a message in a bottle from an orphaned girl who appears to have been kidnapped by Madame Medusa, a selfish woman who has no qualms about using children for her own purposes. The two mice go off to Devil's Bayou to attempt to rescue the little girl. |Bob Newhart (Bernard (voice)) @ Eva Gabor (Miss Bianca (voice)) @ Geraldine Page (Madame Medusa (voice)) @ Joe Flynn (Mr. Snoops: the Swamp Custodian (voice)) @ Jeanette Nolan (Ellie Mae (voice)) @ Pat Buttram (Luke (voice)) @ Jim Jordan (Orville the Albatross (voice)) @ John McIntire (Rufus the Cat (voice)) @ Michelle Stacy (Penny (voice)) @ Bernard Fox (Mr. Chairman (voice)) @ Larry Clemmons (Gramps the Turtle (voice)) @ James MacDonald (Evinrude (voice)) @ George Lindsey (Deadeye the Rabbit (voice)) @ Bill McMillian (TV Announcer (voice)) @ Dub Taylor (Digger the Gopher (voice)) @ John Fiedler (Deacon Owl (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Robie Lester (Bianca (singing) (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||Strangely tired Disney It's worthwhile comparing the opening credits to "The Rescuers" with the opening credits to its sequel (released thirteen years later).The sequel's opening is detailed, tastefully colourful and full of movement - it leaps and bounds through the Australian landscape, and its dominant mood is exuberance.The original is anything but exuberant.ITS opening credits take place over a series of sombre seascape drawings - still drawings. These credits could not possibly have been more cheaply made; but they have their own charm and effect. There is something fitting about the grey world of "The Rescuers".A pair of mice (professional rescuers) receive a message from a young orphan girl who is being held captive by ... and so on.This is not a chandelier-swinging rescue story.The mice are tiny and largely helpless in a world of big things; and if they succeed at all it must be by quietly waiting their chance in the shadows. The mice, by the way, are adorable.Really, they are.Largely it's the voices that do it - Eva Gabor as a rich Hungarian, and Bob Newhart as a shy American floor-sweeper.Neither is self-consciously cute.Each is an innocent but not a child.When the story concentrates on them rather than the Miss MacGuffin they are rescuing it is at its most enjoyable. There is no doubt, though that the Disney studio was exhausted at the time it made this movie.There is one superb piece of animation - Madam Medusa, the villainess, perhaps the high point of animator Milt Kahl's career. Other character animation here and there is good too.But the spear-characters of the story have been done with what looks like almost no effort; and many scenes look as if they belong on television.Scale is often ignored (there is a turtle slightly smaller than the mice) - and this is a SERIOUS problem in this kind of fantasy.Overall there is a feeling of deep weariness. It's worth seeing for the mice, though. ||Special Collection |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Richard III|Richard Loncraine|Drama|Rated R for violence and sexuality. |7.5|UK|1995| 104 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Maria Apodiacos Stephen Bayly David Lascelles Ellen Dinerman Little Ian McKellen Lisa Katselas Paré Mary Richards Joe Simon Michele Tandy|William Shakespeare Ian McKellen Richard Loncraine|Peter Biziou ||Filmayer S.A. [es] |What Is Worth Dying For... Is Worth Killing For.|William Shakespeare's classic play is brought into the present with the setting as Great Britian in the 1930s. Civil war has erupted with the House of Lancaster on one side, claiming the right to the British throne and hoping to bring freedom to the country. Opposing is the House of York, commanded by the infamous Richard who rules over a fascist government and hopes to install himself as a dictator monarch. Based upon the famous National Theatre production Shakespeare's story of Richard III is set in a mythical fascist London of the 1930s. Richard seeks to gain the throne from his elder brother, Edward, by any means within his grasp including murder, marriage, and fratricide. But aside from Edward, his other brother (Clarence) and Edward's two young sons also stand between Richard and the crown of England. This film adaptation of Shakespeare's famous play is set into a hypothetical 1930's Europe. As sneering, leering Richard of Gloucester's ruthless machinations bring him ever nearer the throne of England, royal blood is mercilessly spilt. Finally, only one foe remains to challenge his grasping claim--valiant Richmond! Will he prevail? Heavy Nazi-like pageantry and iconography color this modern adaptation of a classic Shakespearean History. |Ian McKellen (Richard III) @ Annette Bening (Queen Elizabeth) @ Jim Broadbent (Duke of Buckingham) @ Robert Downey Jr. (Anthony, Earl of Rivers) @ Nigel Hawthorne (George, Duke of Clarence) @ Kristin Scott Thomas (Lady Anne) @ John Wood (King Edward IV) @ Maggie Smith (Duchess of York) @ Jim Carter (Lord William Hastings, Prime Minister) @ Edward Hardwicke (Lord Stanley) @ Adrian Dunbar (James Tyrell, Richard's Chief Henchman) @ Tres Hanley (Rivers' Mistress/Air Hostess) @ Dominic West (Henry, Earl of Richmond) @ Roger Hammond (Archbishop) @ Tim McInnerny (William Catesby, King Edward's Butler/Richard's Henchman) @ Stacey Kent (Ballroom Singer) @ Bill Paterson (Richard Ratcliffe) @ Denis Lill (Lord Mayor) @ Ryan Gilmore (George Stanley) @ Andy Rashleigh (Jailer in Tower) @ Marco Williamson (Prince of Wales) @ Edward Jewesbury (King Henry) @ Christopher Bowen (Prince Edward) @ Matthew Groom (Young Prince) @ Kate Steavenson-Payne (Princess Elizabeth) @ Donald Sumpter (Brackenbury) @ Bruce Purchase (City Gentleman) @ James Dreyfus (1st Subaltern) @ David Antrobus (2nd Subaltern rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Madeleine Mora (Dream Angel (uncredited) Produced by||An unfairly maligned interpretation From the very first Shakespeare film (a silent version of "King John," of all things), filmmakers have sought to impose their own unique visions on Shakespeare; in the case of "King John," it was fairly simple (a scene of John signing the Magna Carta, which isn't in Shakespeare's play). Ever since, Shakespeare adaptations have faced the difficulty of remaining true to the greatest writer in the history of the English language while bringing something new to the table; filmed plays, after all, belong on PBS, not in the cinema. Luckily, the minds behind this adaptation of "Richard III" is more than up to the challenge. To be fair, putting the movie in an alternate 1930's Fascist England doesn't serve the sort of lofty purpose that, say, Orson Welles' 1930s updating of "Julius Caesar" (intended to condemn the Fascist governments in Europe at that time) did. What it does do is allow the filmmakers to have a lot of fun. It's not necessarily more accessible -- the Byzantine intrigues and occasionally confusing plot can't be tempered by simply moving the setting ahead 500 years -- but it's definitely more entertaining. There's just something inherently amusing about Richard sneaking off for a pee after the "winter of our discontent" speech (still rambling on as he, ahem, drains the main), or giving the "my kingdom for a horse!" bit while trying to get his Jeep out of the mud. To be sure, the Fascist England shown in the film isn't very convicing -- from OUR historical hindsight -- but this isn't our world, this is a world fashioned from the imagination that just happens to look like our own, just as Shakespeare's were. You can't criticize "King Lear" for its faux-historical setting any more than you can criticize this film for the same reason. The complaint registered by a previous commentator -- more or less, "if you're going to move Shakespeare to a new period, you need to be true to that period" -- is utter bollocks, really. After all, it is inherently "untrue" to have people running around speaking Elizabethan dialogue in the 1700s, 1800s, 1900s, etc., so if you try to remain "true," you end up stripping away the dialogue -- the very essence of Shakespeare. I agree with the even more controversial Shakesperean theatre director Peter Sellars in that words are not what makes Shakespeare great, but rather his characters and ideas. But Shakespeare communicated those through his words, and if you change them, it's not Shakespeare anymore. The same commentator pointed to Branagh's more faithful interpretations as a counterweight to this film, yet Branagh's "Hamlet" is not only set in the 18th century but in a country that looks nothing like 1700s Denmark, even though the characters refer to it as such. The complaints about McKellen's "hamminess" are equally unfounded. What are they using as their basis of comparision? Olivier? Olivier's Richard makes McKellen's look positively restrained by comparision. Richard is egotistical, bombastic, and prone to spouting lines like "thine eyes, sweet lady, have infected mine." I have little doubt in my mind that Skakespeare did not intend Richard to be played "straight" -- indeed, if Shakespeare had any concept of what we call "camp," he was probably thinking of it when he wrote the play. From this point of view, the "silly" little touches like the Al Jolson song at the end and even the newsreel of Richard's coronation fit in perfectly. As with most Shakespeare films, the plot has been streamlined -- nearly all of the characters are here, but scenes and speeches have been truncated and removed, but despite what some have said, these aren't fatal to the plot or the characters. Richard's seduction of Anne does seem to occur to quickly, but it's not a completely successful one, seeing how she lapses into drug addiction later in the film. Besides, Richard's evil has nothing to do with the fact that his "inability to experience romantic love." Richard isn't a psychological portrait like Hamlet, he's a ruthless bastard, a piece of Tudor propaganda. When people praise "Richard III" (the play), it's not for its character depth. I notice I've focused more on answering the film's detractors instead of dilineating its merits; in a way, I guess this expresses how much I like it. The cinematography, direction, and acting are all top-notch. The sets are perfect, once you realize that this is NOT historical England -- the power plant subbing for the Tower is more imposing than the real thing could ever be, and the factory ruins that serve as Bosworth Field are certainly more interested than a bunch of tanks and Jeeps roaming around the open countryside. Shakespeare purists will, of course, hate it, but then they hate anyone who dares to put anything more than a cosmetic spin on the Bard, be it Welles' "Voodoo 'Macbeth'" or Brook's stage production of "Titus Andronicus." For everyone else, read the play, then see the movie -- it'll help increase your appreciation of both. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Riding in Cars with Boys|Penny Marshall|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, drug and sexual content. |6.3|USA|2001| 132 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Julie Ansell Timothy M. Bourne James L. Brooks Sara Colleton Beverly D'Onofrio Bridget Johnson Amy Lemisch Laurence Mark Richard Sakai Morgan Ward|Beverly D'Onofrio Morgan Ward|Miroslav Ondrícek ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Based on a true story.|Seriocomic story based on the memoir by Beverly Donofrio, the movie follows a young woman who finds her life radically altered by an event from her teen years. Born in 1950, Beverly grew up bright and ambitious in a working-class neighborhood in Connecticut; her father was a tough but good-hearted cop who listened to his daughter's problems, and her mother was a nervous woman eager to imagine the worst. From an early age, Beverly displays a keen intelligence and an interest in literature, and dreams of going to college in New York and becoming a writer. However, she also develops an early interest in boys, and at 15 finds herself madly in love with a boy from her high school. However, an attempt to get his attention leads to an embarassing incident at a party, and Ray, a sweet but thick-headed 18-year-old, steps forward to defend her. Beverly and Ray end up making out, and after one thing leads to another, Beverly discovers she's pregnant. Telling Ray is only marginally less difficult than informing her parents, and at 16, Beverly is a wife and mother. Against the odds, Beverly is determined to still finish high school and go on to college, but that goal becomes more difficult with time, especially after Beverly's marriage begins to fall apart. Ray tries to do the right thing but has trouble holding a job, and becomes addicted to heroin. |Drew Barrymore (Beverly D'Onofrio) @ Steve Zahn (Raymond Hasek) @ Adam Garcia (Jason D'Onofrio) @ Brittany Murphy (Fay Hope Forrester) @ James Woods (Mr. Leonard D'Onofrio) @ Lorraine Bracco (Mrs. Teresa D'Onofrio) @ Rosie Perez (Shirley Perro) @ Sara Gilbert (Christina Barr) @ Peter Facinelli (Tommy Butcher) @ Mika Boorem (Beverly D'Onofrio (Age 11)) @ Celine Marget (Janet (Age 8)) @ Vincent Pastore (Uncle Lou) @ Maryann Urbano (Aunt Ann) @ Alissa Dean (Townie Girl #1) @ Jessica Leshnower (Townie Girl #2) @ Aleksia Landeau (Jenny) @ Kristin Proctor (Cindy) @ Temple Brooks (Karen) @ Lauren Lake (Karen's Friend) @ Desmond Harrington (Bobby) @ Jordan Gelber (Kevin) @ Gabriel Carpenter (Sky Barrister) @ Kevin Thoms (Mark) @ Vincent De Paul (Linebacker #1) @ Joseph Cassese (Linebacker #2) @ Kevin O'Rourke (Jail Ward) @ Susan Forristal (Mrs. Forrester) @ John Bedford Lloyd (Mr. Forrester) @ Paz de la Huerta (1st Phone Call Flirt) @ Olivia Morgan Scheck (Janet (Age 12)) @ David Moscow (Lizard) @ Dusty Rizzo (Wedding Singer Tony) @ Gene Canfield (Pete) @ Carl Capotorto (Cop #1) @ Robert Greenhut (Cop #2) @ Heather Hodder (D'Onofrio Cousin) @ Sean Liotine (Zippy) @ Tracy Reiner (Nurse) @ Joseph M. Cannizaro (Jason (Newborn)) @ Noah Hartwick (Jason (Newborn)) @ Briana Tilden (Jason (Baby)) @ Skye Arens (Jason (Age 1)) @ Patrick Salerno (Jason (Age 2)) @ Robert Salerno (Jason (Age 2)) @ Logan Arens (Jason (Age 3)) @ Samantha Reale (Amelia (Age 3)) @ Wade Mylius (Al) @ Jon Korkes (Counselor) @ Cody Arens (Jason (Age 6)) @ Samantha Lucier (Amelia (Age 6)) @ Gaetano Lisi (Sweeny's Owner) @ Marisa Ryan (Janet (Age 19)) @ Maggie Gyllenhaal (Amelia Forrester) @ Logan Lerman (Jason (Age 8)) @ Skye McCole Bartusiak (Amelia (Age 8)) @ Michael Linstroth (Dennis Forrester rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Sophia Barricelli (Sophia (uncredited)) @ John DeGrazio (Louie (uncredited)) @ Shani Haller (Waitress (uncredited)) @ Richard Keith (Heald Family Member (uncredited)) @ Sara Klingebiel (Townie Girl #3 (uncredited)) @ Robin Paul (Student-Secretary from '69 (uncredited)) @ Kaitlyn Pick (Amelia (Age 1) (uncredited)) @ Randi Rosenholtz (Townie Girl #4 (uncredited)) @ Jared Scott (Baby Walker (uncredited)) @ Marilyn Spanier (Mary (uncredited)) @ Nicole Winston (2nd Phone Flirt (uncredited) Produced by||Getting lucky w/Drew Barrymore RIDING IN CARS WITH BOYS (2001) *** Drew Barrymore, Steve Zahn, Brittany Murphy, Adam Garcia, James Woods, Lorraine Bracco, Sara Gilbert, Cody Arens, Rosie Perez, Vincent Pastore. (Dir: Penny Marshall) Drew Barrymore is an old soul with a kinetic energy that is infallible and addictive.Her talents are large and she is a force to be reckoned with especially when she's got her game on.In her latest, a comedy/drama based on a real person's account of their life, she gives one of her best performances to date. As Beverly D'Onofrio, a 15 year old wild child in the rural Connecticut town o Wallingford, Barrymore enfuses this young woman with a life spirit to conquer the world even if she is having trouble getting out of her hometown to become a journalist as her life's ambition.What curtails that is her knack for getting into trouble with her loving yet strict parents, (Woods and Bracco giving fine turns too), with the odds against her when her dad is on the police force and regularly has her picked up for breaking curfew. Along the interim of her awkward adolescence she winds up getting pregnant by the sweet yet dense Ray (Zahn in an Oscar calibre supporting performance of pathos) who ineptly proposes marriage and a life of ultimate stagnation. Bev watches her fellow friends go on to better things except for her best friend Fay (the equally excellent Murphy proving to be one of the better character actress ingenues of her generation) who is in the same boat as Bev: one in the oven and a life that is ultimately getting bleaker by the year.The two's bond is the only thing keeping their sanity after their parents' initial dismay and distance only solidifies their friendship in sister hood. When Bev finally gives birth to Jason she is faced with the ultimate commitment (to her child) and sacrifice (of her dream) with heartbreak and a constant circle of disappointment largely to Ray's forgetfulness, immaturity and sadly his persuasion into alcoholism and lastly heroin addiction (wisely watered down in this comedy/drama of D'Onofrio's well-received novelization of her young life).Bev realizes the only way to break away for herself is to have Ray move out of their live and in one of the film's most emotional moments Ray quietly agrees and accepts that his life will never prosper as he bids his young son goodbye. The film is told in flashback and narrated by the young adult Jason (Garcia, who is actually 2 years older than Barrymore!) who has endured his mother's shortcomings and essentially blaming her existence as being held back just because of his very presence.His patience is on the edge when he has to tell her he is transferring from her wished for education at NYU for a Midwestern state college (unbeknownst to Bev) to hook up with his girlfriend Amelia, Fay's daughter. The film works largely to the acting and directing.Barrymore runs the gamut of emotions for her character and through the 20 years of onscreen transition accurately depicts a woman from a time who had many obstacles along the way, the least not being herself.She is ably supported by an excellently conceived cast especially the funny/sad Murphy (her mimicking of Bracco in a mock reaction to Bev's announcement of being pregnant and her wedding celebration toast are both treasures of laughter and poignancy) and Zahn is clearly one of the most talented character actors around who has practically collected a cottage industry of golden hearted nitwits but here his Ray is a man many of us have known (or came close to becoming) and his is the one most fleshed out avoiding pitfalls of being a typecast of a loser/bad husband; he's just another flawed human being. The adorable Arens makes little Jason identifiable also to a generation of broken homed children trying to be a kid but growing up faster than expected. Marshall's direction is right on the money extracting laughs from moments brimming near tears in the difficult balancing act of fine comedy to smart drama with moments of hilarity sprinkled (the aforementioned wedding and for me the biggest laugh was Ray's fighting style for Bev when they first hook up is priceless).The only thing the film seems to betray the storyline is how neatly things fall into place not unlike a well-produced tv movie-of-the-week (I'm sure there were a lot of trimmings from the warts-and-all tellings in D'Onofrio's book) yet the screenplay by Morgan Upton Ward does allow its characters to both shine and the unexpected occur (Woods in particular by the film's end). A laugh while you cry film that never ceases to amaze in an all-too familiar American story of rags to slight-riches abundant in character, both literal and metaphorical. ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Road to El Dorado, The|Bibo Bergeron Will Finn Don Paul David Silverman Jeffrey Katzenber|Animation|Rated PG for mild thematic material and language. |6.3|USA|2000| 89 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Brooke Breton Bill Damaschke Jeffrey Katzenberg Bonne Radford|Ted Elliott Edmund Fong Henry Mayo Terry Rossio|||Amuse Pictures Inc. [jp] |They came for the gold... they stayed for the adventure |The story is about two swindlers who get their hands on a map to the fabled city of gold, El Dorado while pulling off some sort of scam. Their plan goes bad and the rogues end up lost at sea after a number of misfortunes. Oddly enough, they end up on the shores of El Dorado and are worshiped by the natives for their foreign appearance. |Kevin Kline (Tulio (voice)) @ Kenneth Branagh (Miguel (voice)) @ Rosie Perez (Chel (voice)) @ Armand Assante (Tzekel-Kan (voice)) @ Edward James Olmos (Chief (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Cortes/others (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Altivo/various others (voice)) @ Tobin Bell (Zaragoza (voice)) @ Duncan Marjoribanks (Acolyte (voice)) @ Elijah Chiang (Kid #1 (voice)) @ Cyrus Shaki-Khan (Kid #2 (voice)) @ Elton John (Narrator (voice) Produced by||Tulio and Miguel Are Off on the Richest Adventure of Their Lives! [CONTAINS SPOILERS] Meet Tulio and Miguel, two bumbling con men living in 1519 Spain. A group of sailors lead by Cortes were preparing to sail to the new world while some others were playing a craps game with Tulio and Miguel. One of them bet a map which they won. It was a map of El Dorado, the city of gold. That's when the men learn that Tulio and Miguel played with loaded dice and gave chase. They chased them all over town. The guys hide in two water barrels and just as they are about to escape, they are loaded onto a ship which soon sets out to sea. Tulio and Miguel are soon discovered and Cortes is most definitely not pleased. He sentences them to slave labor for when they reach Cuba then are thrown in the brig. Tulio makes a lousy escape plan while Miguel talks Altivo the horse into helping them by finding a pry bar. Altivo throws them they keys and they get out. They load from provisions into a boat and set out to sea. Altivo comes along. For several days, Tulio, Miguel and Altivo drift along not seeing much of anything. They're at each other's throats then soon make laments for dying. Soon they reach land! Miguel was sure it was El Dorado and takes out his map. He leads Tulio and Altivo down the blazing trail which seemed to lead no where. They finally reach a giant stone with mystic writing on it. Tulio was upset and wanted to leave. That's when a group of Natives ride up. They had chased a beautiful thief, Chel. They saw Tulio and Miguel and figured them as gods. They're brought to the real El Dorado, city of gold. They meet Chief Tannok and High Priest Tzekel-Kan. The city was vast and beautiful. Tzekel-Kan and Chief both make offerings to the "gods". Tzekel-Kan offers a sacrifice and Chief offers gold. Tulio and Miguel like Chief's offering better. They also find their new palace to be quite relaxing. Unfortunately Chel over hears them saying they weren't really gods and agreed to keep a lid on it if she could join them when they go back to Spain. As time goes on, Tulio and Chel begin to get close while Miguel walks around the city and makes friends with the villagers. He even plays ball with some kids. When Tzekel-Kan sees, he challenges Tulio and Miguel to a ball game with some very tough players. It was alot like basketball except the hoop, or loop in this chase, was verticle and cemented to the wall. Tulio and Miguel were definitely no pros at the game, but Chel gave them a rolled up armadillo which they used as a ball and with luck they win the game. Tzekel-Kan offers to sacrifice the losing team and Tulio and Miguel don't like that. Miguel banishes Tzekel-Kan. Meanwhile, Cortes and his men arrive on the El Dorado beach; Miguel commissions Chief Tannok and his men to erect a boat so they can travel back to Spain with their gold but Miguel didn't want to go. Tulio on the other hand was just busting to go. Meanwhile, Tzekel-Kan was planning his revenge. He awakened a large, menacing Jaguar statue which began attacking the village. Soon Tzekel-Kan and the Jaguar have Tulio and Miguel on the edge of a cliff, but luckily it's the Jaguar and Tzekel-Kan who go over. When Tzekel-Kan surfaces, he is discovered by Cortes and his men and aims to lead them to El Dorado. Tulio and Miguel knew they were coming and had to make a plan. Tulio plans to have the boat destroy the entrance to El Dorado, making it safe so Tulio, Miguel, Altivo and Chel board the boat with the gold and sail out. The plan works fantastically and though the boat and all the gold is lost in the tidal wave, Tulio, Miguel, Altivo and Chel make it out safely and the entrance to El Dorado was blocked. Cortes, his men and Tzekel-Kan arrive then and when Cortes sees nothing, he commands Tzekel-Kan to be severely punished. So Chel, Miguel and Tulio hop on Altivo and head off on their next adventure. I enjoyed this movie. Tulio and Miguel are very enjoyable characters. They should get another movie together. Kevin Kline voices Tulio while Kenneth Branagh is Miguel. Edward James Olmos is Chief Tannok, Armand Assante is Tzekel-Kan, Rosie Perez is Chel and Jim Cummings is Cortes. I like the computer animated ships, barrels, trees, and gold! This is a great film for the whole family, although Chel is made out to be very sexy and Tulio says the words "hell" and "crappy", well it isn't a Disney picture! This is probably the best Dreamworks animated film. I didn't really like Spirit: Stallion of the Cimeron. I liked Shrek, though. Okay, it's ONE of the best. Anyway, if you're looking for something comic and adventurous to entertain your family, then The Road to El Dorado comes recommended by me! - ||Special Edition ||DTS 5.1 ||||||@@ Road to Morocco|David Butler|Adventure||7.1|USA|1942| 83 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Paul Jones |Frank Butler Don Hartman|William C. Mellor ||Image Entertainment Inc. [us] ||Jeff and Turkey, two wild and crazy guys adrift on a raft in the Mediterranean, are cast away on a desert shore and hop a convenient camel to an Arabian Nights city where Turkey soon finds himself sold as a slave...to luscious Princess Shalmar of Karameesh. Naturally, Jeff would like to rescue Turkey from this "dire" fate, even if it means taking his place! But they haven't figured on virile desert chieftain Mullay Kassim, who has designs on the princess himself... |Bing Crosby (Jeff Peters) @ Bob Hope (Orville 'Turkey' Jackson/Aunt Lucy) @ Dorothy Lamour (Princess Shalmar) @ Anthony Quinn (Mullay Kassim) @ Dona Drake (Mihirmah) @ Vladimir Sokoloff (Hyder Khan) @ Mikhail Rasumny (Ahmed Fey) @ George Givot (Neb Jolla rest of cast listed alphabetically Sara Berner .... Mabel, Lady Camel (voice)) @ Robert Barron (Giant Bearded Arab (uncredited)) @ Leon Belasco (Yusef, Undertaker (uncredited)) @ Monte Blue (Kassim's Aide (uncredited)) @ Dick Botiller (Warrior (uncredited)) @ Rita Christiani (Specialty Dancer (uncredited)) @ Harry Cording (Warrior (uncredited)) @ Yvonne De Carlo (Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ Theo De Voe (Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ Devi Dja ( (uncredited)) @ Edward Emerson (Bystander (uncredited)) @ Brooke Evans (Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ Vic Groves (Knife Dancer (uncredited)) @ Jamiel Hasson (Kassim's Aide (uncredited)) @ Brandon Hurst (English Announcer (uncredited)) @ Joe Jewett (Knife Dancer (uncredited)) @ Pete G. Katchenaro (Filipino Announcer (uncredited)) @ Cy Kendall (Fruit Vendor (uncredited)) @ Louise La Planche (Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ George Lloyd (Guard (uncredited)) @ Richard Loo (Chinese Announcer (uncredited)) @ Patsy Mace (Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ Michael Mark (Pottery Vendor (uncredited)) @ Ken Maynard (Leader of Arab Horsemen (uncredited)) @ Leo Mostovoy (Russian Announcer (uncredited)) @ Sylvia Opert (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Nestor Paiva (Sausage Vendor (uncredited)) @ Ralph Penney (Arabian Waiter (uncredited)) @ Stanley Price (Idiot (uncredited)) @ Suzanne Ridgeway (Handmaiden (uncredited)) @ Kent Rogers (Male Camel (uncredited) (voice)) @ Harry Semels (One of Jolla's Warriors (uncredited)) @ Dan Seymour (Slave Buyer (uncredited)) @ Nick Shaid (Arab guard (uncredited)) @ Sammy Stein (Guard (uncredited)) @ Andrew Tombes (Oso Bucco (uncredited)) @ Blue Washington (Nubian Slave (uncredited)) @ Poppy Wilde (Handmaiden (uncredited) Produced by||Road to Morocco The boys find themselves in the clutches of evil Anthony Quinn as Bob is sold into slavery by Bing. This is one of the best of the "Road to" pictures that features the wonderful tune "Moonlight Becomes You," sung, of course, by crooner Crosby. || |1.37 : 1 |PCM Mono ||||||@@ Road to Wellville, The|Alan Parker|Comedy|R |5.1|USA|1994|118 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Marc Abraham Armyan Bernstein Robert F. Colesberry Lisa Moran Alan Parker Tom Rosenberg|T. Coraghessan Boyle Alan Parker|Peter Biziou ||Columbia Pictures [us] ||A madcap portrayal of William Lightbody's stay at the health farm run by cereal king Dr. John Harvey Kellogg. William's wife, Eleanor, has persuaded him to go to Kellogg to have his system cleaned of impurities. Kellogg is very unconventional, and almost barbaric in his treatments. |Anthony Hopkins (Dr. John Harvey Kellogg) @ Bridget Fonda (Eleanor Lightbody) @ Matthew Broderick (William Lightbody) @ John Cusack (Charles Ossining) @ Dana Carvey (George Kellogg) @ Michael Lerner (Goodloe Bender) @ Colm Meaney (Dr. Lionel Badger) @ John Neville (Endymion Hart-Jones) @ Lara Flynn Boyle (Ida Muntz) @ Traci Lind (Nurse Graves) @ Camryn Manheim (Virginia Cranehill) @ Roy Brocksmith (Poultney Dab) @ Norbert Weisser (Dr. Spitzvogel) @ Monica Parker (Mrs. Tindermarsh) @ Jacob Reynolds (Young George Kellogg) @ Michael Goodwin (Dr. Frank Linniman) @ Marshall Efron (Bartholomew Bookbinder) @ Alexander Slanksnis (Mr. Unpronounceable) @ Carole Shelley (Mrs. Hookstratten) @ Gabriel Barre (Desk Clark) @ Robert Tracey (Ernest O'Reilly) @ Ann Tucker (Hannah) @ Jemila Ericson (Mrs. Kellogg) @ Marianne Muellerleile (Nurse Bloethal) @ Jean Wenderlich (Ralph) @ Mark Jeffrey Miller (Woodbine) @ Joanne Pankow (Laughing Lady) @ Mary Jane Corry (Pianist) @ Rich Valliere (Reporter (as Richard Valliere)) @ George Nannarello (Reporter) @ James Bigwood (Reporter) @ David Kraus (Laughing Instructor) @ D. Anthony Pender (Waiter on Train) @ Mary Lucy Bivins (Woman on Train) @ William Hempel (Bellman) @ Richard H. Thornton (Mr. Abernathy) @ Lisa Altomare (Mrs. Portois) @ Jim Bath (Bartender) @ Madeline Shaw (Waitress) @ Barbara Phillips (Waitress) @ Lindsay Hutchinson Berte (Breathing Instructor) @ Denise S. Bass (Nurse) @ Charlotte H. Ballinger (San Guest) @ John Henry Scott (Bath Attendant) @ Richard K. Olsen (Fox Fur Man) @ Ann Deagon (Fox Fur Woman) @ Thomas Myers Jr. (Process Server) @ Beth Bostic (Miss Jarvis) @ Kerry Maher (Doorman) @ Sam Garner (Farrington rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Brendan Boyce (Burly Attendant (uncredited)Produced by||I really don't know what to say I found it very difficult to give this movie a rating and to know comment on it. On one hand, it has a stellar cast, is clever, well written, skillfully acted (although I'm not too sure about Dana Carvey's role), and beautifully set and shot. On the other hand the film is somewhat slow, and its content frequently offensive. Some parts turned my stomach and almost made me switch the film off - and I am no prude. As a twentieth century look at the nineteenth century it is worrying, as a comment on quackery in any era it is somewhat interesting, but overall as a movie the offense I felt overrode the quality of the remainder. My rating 5/10 - be warned. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Rob Roy|Michael Caton-Jones|Drama|Rated R for violence and sexuality. |6.8|USA|1995| 139 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Peter Broughan Michael Caton-Jones Larry DeWaay Richard Jackson|Alan Sharp |Karl Walter Lindenlaub Roger Deakins||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Honor made him a man.Courage made him a hero.History made him a Legend |In the highlands of Scotland in the 1700s, Rob Roy tries to lead his small town to a better future, by borrwoing money from the local nobility to buy cattle to hurd to market. When the money is stolen, Rob is forced into a Robin Hood lifestyle to defend his family and honour. |Liam Neeson (Robert Roy MacGregor) @ Jessica Lange (Mary MacGregor) @ John Hurt (John Graham, Marquis of Montrose) @ Tim Roth (Archibald Cunningham) @ Eric Stoltz (Alan MacDonald) @ Andrew Keir (Duke of Argyll) @ Brian Cox (Killearn) @ Brian McCardie (Alasdair McGregor) @ Gilbert Martin (Will Guthrie) @ Vicki Masson (Betty) @ Gilly Gilchrist (Iain) @ Jason Flemyng (Gregor) @ Ewan Stewart (Coll) @ David Hayman (Sibbald) @ Brian McArthur (Ranald McGregor) @ David Brooks Palmer (Duncan McGregor) @ Myra McFadyen (Tinker Woman) @ Karen Matheson (Ceilidh Singer) @ Shirley Henderson (Morag) @ John Murtagh (Referee) @ Bill Gardiner (Tavern Lad) @ Valentine Nwanze (Servant Boy) @ Richard Bonehill (Gutherie's Opponent Produced by||`One must never underestimate the healing power of hatred' Michael Caton-Jones's Scottish period piece bears little connection to the Sir Walter Scott novel of the same name.. The setting is Scotland in 1718.. The film begins with Rob Roy and his men hunting down a group ofgypsies who have stolen several head of His Lordship's cattle.. The scene then switches to a sword-fighting contest attended bynoblemen (with longhair wigs, adorned shirts, soft colored coats, paleface make-up and conventional gestures..) Robert Roy MacGregor lives under the protection of a locallord named Marquis of Montrose.. When he enters an ill-advised trade agreement with Montrose, he innocently leaves himself exposed to the malicious plots of Montrose's evil-doers.. The unfolding of their perfidy is the most creative and pleasant part of the movie, though it takes a repugnant turn with a violent rape.. When Rob Roy is finally compelled to rebel against the English soldiers, the action becomes well understood, ending with the predictable duel between him and an expert with the blade.. Liam Neesoninjectsheroism andpassion to his character.. He is intelligent, fair and virile.. He carries his height with grace as the Scottish chieftain ofa small community.. He is a loving father, a passionate lover, and a noble husband.. driven to desperate acts by dastardly villains.. He'd rather die than tell a lie or betray a trust.. ("All men with honor are kings, but not all kings have honor..") Neeson plays the honorable title character with his usual hard-to-resist charm.. Oscar winner Jessica Lange gives the film class as the strong robust devoted wife.. A proud peasant woman.. brutally raped by an icy psychotic aristocrat.. (`Think of yourself a scabbard, Mistress McGregor, and I the sword. And a fine fit you were, too.') Lange's lines are filled with dignity and integrity: `I will think on you dead, until my husband makes you so. And then I will think on you no more.' John Hurt brings his usual clever touch with character roles to make Montrose something more than agreedy Marquis.. ruthless with money and tempered by the English court's fashion for foppery.. He is a pompous arrogantman with two villainous servants at his service.. Honor, in his view,seems a quaint notion.. He has two objectives:ruin the reputation of his rival, the Duke of Argyle.. andto hunt down the fugitive MacGregor.. He sends his soldiers to burn the Highlanders' homes..to kill their people and their livestock.. Tim Roth (The perfect antithesis to the hero..) is fearsome and strangely an effeminate enforcer.. He is a penniless British aristocrat..a nasty `hired sword'(wonderfully evil..)ravishing and murdering his way through the Scottish mist..His name is Archibald Cunningham.. He turns out to be a liar, thief and murderer.. Hedismisses himself as `but a bastard abroad, seeking his fortune and the favors of great men." and therefore can't care about anyone else: "Love is a dung hill and I am but a cock that climbs upon it to crow.." He even jokes that he once raped a young boy whom he mistook for a girl.. Hebeds his serving maid Betty -- "You think I'm a gentleman because I have linen and can manage a lisp." Cunningham seems pathetic ( He smiles foolishly.. and utters words with affected refinement..)but not terribly harmful--until a muscular swordsman insults him.. and we discover that he's a cool head and an expert with a sword.. (He really does steal the filmwith a performance that earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination..) Eric Stoltz isRob's best friendMacDonald.. He has been entrusted with getting the money and bringing it back to the clan's village. Andrew Keir is Montrose's rival, the powerful local aristocrat, the Duke of Argyll.. one of the few trustworthy men McGregor meets outside his own family..He arranges for the whole matter to be settled in a sword fight between Rob Roy and Cunningham.. Brian Cox is suitably odious as Killearn… He is behind all the hero's troubles.. Brian McCardie is Rob Roy's younger brother.. His scene (when he learns from Mary her secret..) crying and yelling after the retreating redcoats is particularly dramatic.. Vicki Masson isCunningham's (pregnant lover..) serving maid Betty.. She runs in despairto Mary for comfort and help.. What I liked most of the film: - The Marquis asks how he can be sure MacGregor will repay him.. Rob blithely replies, "You have my word." - Rob Roy's two boys spellingout the movie's theme: "Daddy, what is Honor?" and MacGregor answering: "Honor is a man's gift to himself.." - Mary's desperate refusal to let Rob know what happened.. (The relationship between Rob& Mary is the passionate portrayal of a loving married couple I have ever seen.. - Rob Roylooping his rope around Cunningham's neck and jumping over the bridge.. - The climactic duel (exciting in a more measured and calculated fashion..) between one man determined to restore his family's honor and a cretinous British aristocrat.. - Thebreathtaking view of the Scottish Highlands with its lakes.. and mountains.. Karl Walter Lindenlaub's cinematography is exquisite, showing the simple beauty of Scotland.. Set in 18th-century Scotland.. and withan atmospheric musical score.. `Rob Roy' is(really a love story between a man and his wife-`If it's a boy, call him Robert.. If it be a lass, name her after my love, Mary McGregor..'),arecognizably human story.. ( unjustly dwarfed byMel Gibson's `Braveheart'..) that does tell essentially the same story of provincial resentment of overbearing English landlords.. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves|Kevin Reynolds|Action||6.5|USA|1991| 143 min/ USA:155 min (extended edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stuart Baird Gary Barber Pen Densham Michael J. Kagan Richard Barton Lewis David Nicksay James G. Robinson John Watson Kevin Costner|Pen Densham Pen Densham John Watson|Douglas Milsome ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |For the good of all men, and the love of one woman, he fought to uphold justice by breaking the law|After being captured by Turks during the Crusades, Robin of Locksley and a Moor, Azeem, escape back to England where Azeem vows to remain until he repays Robin for saving his life. Meanwhile, Robin's father has been murdered by the Sheriff of Nottingham and when Robin returns home he vows to avenge his father's death. Even though Marian, his childhood friend, cannot help him, he escapes to the Forest of Sherwood where he joins a band of exiled villagers and becomes their leader. With their help he attempts to cleanse the land of the evil that the Sheriff has spread. |Kevin Costner (Robin of Locksley) @ Morgan Freeman (Azeem) @ Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (Marian Dubois) @ Christian Slater (Will Scarlett) @ Alan Rickman (Sheriff of Nottingham) @ Geraldine McEwan (Mortianna) @ Michael McShane (Friar Tuck) @ Brian Blessed (Robin's father, the Earl of Locksley) @ Michael Wincott (Guy of Gisborne) @ Nick Brimble (Little John) @ Soo Drouet (Fanny) @ Daniel Newman (Wulf) @ Daniel Peacock (Daniel of Doncaster) @ Walter Sparrow (Duncan) @ Harold Innocent (Bishop of Hereford) @ Jack Wild (Much the Miller's Son) @ Michael Goldie (Kenneth of Cowfall) @ Liam Halligan (Peter Dubois) @ Marc Zuber (Interrogator) @ Merelina Kendall (Old Woman) @ Imogen Bain (Sarah) @ Jimmy Gardner (Farmer) @ Bobby Parr (Villager) @ John Hallam (Red-Headed Baron) @ Douglas Blackwell (Gray-Bearded Baron) @ Pat Roach (Celtic Chieftain) @ Andy Hockley (Ox) @ John Dallimore (Broth) @ Derek Deadman (Kneelock) @ Howard Lew Lewis (Hal) @ John Tordoff (Scribe) @ Andrew Lawden (Sergeant) @ Susannah Corbett (Lady in Coach) @ Sarah Alexandra (Small Girl) @ Christopher Adamson (Soldier) @ Richard Strange (Executioner) @ John Francis (Courier rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ David Bowles (Morgar (uncredited)) @ Sean Connery (King Richard (uncredited)) @ Graham Riddell (Celtic Warrior (uncredited)) @ Mark Thomason (Oarsman (uncredited) Produced by||not as terrific as Curtiz's movie but much better than the Disney version! The Robin Hood character and the Tarzan character have got at least one common point: they were adapted in numerous movies until one's thirst is quenched. Their success was so enormous that cinema made myths of them. Now what to say about this new version of the famous outlaw? Well, as it is expected, the movie isn't worth Michael Curtiz's movie made in 1938 but it remains a spectacular and honorable success. This success is partly based on the actors. Sure, Kevin Costner hasn't got the greatness of Eroll Flynn but he can be dynamic, lucid and touching when it's necessary. On the other hand, the director Kevin Reynolds made the Nothingham sheriff a both proud and ridiculous man excellently built by Alan Rickman. As for Mary Elisabeth Mastrontonio, she's an ideal Mariann princess. But the qualities of this movie don't stop here. Of course, you ca judge that certain sequences are conventional like the final fight between Costner and Rickman in the church but there are several terrific action sequences, smart and often funny dialogs that enable to overpass the dramatic side of a few situations. Moreover, the movie introduces a realistic representation of the Middle Ages with its poverty and tyranny. A movie excellent enough to spend a truly good cinema time. The rating for this movie is 6.4 out 10? It's not enough... || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ RoboCop|Paul Verhoeven|Sci-Fi|R |7.1|USA|1987|102 min/ Germany:78 min (cut version) / Norway:98 min (cut version) / USA:103 min (unrated director's cut)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/4/2004|Jon Davison Stephen Lim Edward Neumeier Arne Schmidt Phil Tippett|Michael Miner Edward Neumeier|Sol Negrin Jost Vacano||Columbia TriStar Home Video [au] |Part man. Part machine. All cop. The future of law enforcement.|Detroit - in the future - is crime ridden, and run by a massive company. The company have developed a huge crime fighting robot, which unfortunately develops a rather dangerous glitch. The company sees a way to get back in favour with the public when a cop called Alex Murphy is killed by a street gang. Murphys body is reconstructed within a steel shell and named Robocop. The Robocop is very successful against criminals, and becomes a target of supervillian Boddicker. |Peter Weller (Officer Alex J. Murphy/RoboCop) @ Nancy Allen (Officer Anne Lewis) @ Dan O'Herlihy (The Old Man (as Daniel O'Herlihy)) @ Ronny Cox (Dick Jones) @ Kurtwood Smith (Clarence Boddicker) @ Miguel Ferrer (Bob Morton) @ Robert DoQui (Sergeant Warren Reed) @ Ray Wise (Leon Nash) @ Felton Perry (Johnson) @ Paul McCrane (Emil Antonowsky) @ Jesse D. Goins (Joe Cox (as Jesse Goins)) @ Del Zamora (Kaplan) @ Calvin Jung (Steve Minh) @ Rick Lieberman (Walker) @ Lee de Broux (Sal) @ Mark Carlton (Miller) @ Edward Edwards (Manson) @ Michael Gregory (Lieutenant Hedgecock) @ Freddie Hice (Bobby) @ Neil Summers (Dougy) @ Gene Wolande (Prisoner) @ Gregory Poudevigne (Slimey Lawyer) @ Charles Carroll (Bail Bondsman) @ Kevin Page (Kinney (as Ken Page)) @ Yolanda Williams (Ramirez) @ Tyress Allen (Starkweather) @ John Davies (Chessman) @ Laird Stuart (Cecil the Clerk) @ Stephen Berrier (Roosevelt) @ Sage Parker (Tyler) @ Karen Radcliffe (Technician #1) @ Darryl Cox (Technician #2) @ Jerry Haynes (Dr. McNamara) @ William Shockley (Creep) @ Donna Keegan (Rape Victim) @ Mike Moroff (Hophead) @ Marjorie Rynearson (Grocery Mom) @ Jo Livingston (Grocery Pop) @ Joan Pirkle (Barbara) @ Diane Robin (Chandra) @ Adrienne Sachs (Tawney) @ Maarten Goslins (Salesman) @ Angie Bolling (Ellen Murphy) @ Jason Levine (Jimmy Murphy) @ S.D. Nemeth (Bixby Snyder) @ Bill Farmer (Justin Ballard-Watkins) @ Michael Hunter (Peter the Homeowner) @ Spencer Prokop (Gas Station Attendant) @ Debra Zach (Nurse) @ L.J. King (Emergency Doctor) @ David Packer (Emergency Doctor) @ Leeza Gibbons (Jesse Perkins) @ Mario Machado (Casey Wong rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Don 'Tex' Clark (Boardroom Executive (uncredited)) @ Jon Davison (ED-209 (uncredited) (voice)) @ Allan Graf (Sal's Bodyguard (uncredited)) @ Andee Gray ( (uncredited)) @ Katie Griffin (Young Girl (uncredited)) @ Mark Edward Walters (Street Kid (uncredited)Produced by||A Cult Classic and A Personal Favorite of Mine [CONTAINS SPOILERS] This movie is an all-time favorite of mine. I didn't like it when I first saw it, but I went back and watched it again later and loved it. This one, II and III are all favorites. I rented them at the video store so much I probably put the retailer's kids through college. The city of Detroit is currently in turmoil. A cop killer named Clarence Boddicker and his men are wreaking havoc on the city and killing cops this way and that; A giant corporation called OCP (Omni Consumer Products) owns half of it. It's run by The Old Man (Halloween III: Season of the Witch's Dan O'Herlihy) and his partner Dick Jones (Ron Cox). OCP is also in control of the local police department where a new cop, Murphy (Peter Weller who turned 55 2 days ago) was joining. He's partnered with Anne Lewis, an aggressive street cop. Meanwhile, a meeting is held at the OCP complex. They've decided human police officers are inefficient so they've build a giant automation called ED-209, programmed to stop crime dead in its tracks. Literally. A young executive volunteers to do a demonstration, but ED-209 backfires and frontfires at the poor man. (Gruesome!!!) All seems lost until an ambitious executive Bob Morton (Miguel Ferrer) decides to make his own crime fighting machine. Only he must find a candidate to become the machine. Poor Murphy is killed by Clarence and his men so they turn him into the machine: RoboCop. He foils a liquor store robbery attempt and saves the mayor's life. Anne Lewis recognizes Murphy in all that armor. One by one, RoboCop arrests Clarence and his men. Only problem: they're on Dick Jones' payroll. He bails them out of jail and sics ED-209 on Robo. So he and Lewis hideout at a refinery. Clarence and his men go after him with hi-tech weaponry. Robo takes them all out then heads back to OCP to prove Dick Jones guilty. The day is saved, thanks to RoboCop (Murphy.) A brilliant movie, I must say. See it! I recommend it! (If you've got the uncut DVD, you'll see this movie the way it was meant to be seen. It's very gruesome and graphic, but if that's your cup of tea, it's your cup of tea). FUN QUOTES: Robocop: "Dead or alive, you're coming with me." Emil: "I know you. We killed you!" Robocop: "Stay out of trouble." (and you should) || |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Rocky Horror Picture Show, The|Jim Sharman|Comedy||6.7|UK|1975| 100 min/ USA:98 min (edited version) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lou Adler John Goldstone Michael White|Richard O'Brien Jim Sharman Richard O'Brien|Peter Suschitzky ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Action-packed... lotsa larfs & sex... gorgeous gals... thrills & chills... Transylvanian parties... romance|After Janet accepts Brad's marriage proposal, the happy couple drive away from Denton, Ohio, only to get lost in the rain. They stumble upon the castle of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a transvestite who is holding the annual convention of visitors from the planet Transsexual. Frank-N-Furter unveils his creation, a young man named Rocky Horror, who fears the doctor and rejects his sexual advances. When Frank-N-Furter announces that he is returning to the galaxy Transylvania, Riff Raff the butler and Magenta the maid declare that they have plans of their own. (An audience participation film) Brad e Janet, due fidanzati molto imbranati, decidono di andare a trovare il loro ex-professore per comunicargli la decisione di sposarsi. Per una foratura ad una gomma, sotto una pioggia torrenziale, si trovano a dover bussare al cancello del castello dove si sta per svolgere l'annuale Convegno Trans-sylvano per chiedere aiuto. Frank-n-Furter, il castellano, assistito da Riff-Raff, Columbia e Magenta, sta per creare (come un novello Frankenstein) la Creatura perfetta: un giovane biondo e bellissimo da usare per i suoi "giochini". I due ignari e sprovveduti si troveranno a vivere avventure sensuali e sessuali lontanissime dalle loro "abitudini". Alla fine, gli assistenti si ribelleranno al loro padrone e, dopo averlo eliminato, ripartiranno con tutto il castello per la Galassia dalla quale erano giunti, lasciandi i due ospiti sbigottiti. Cosa avranno imparato i due poveri ragazzi? Forse...a vivere! |Tim Curry (Dr. Frank-N-Furter) @ Susan Sarandon (Janet Weiss) @ Barry Bostwick (Brad Majors) @ Richard O'Brien (Riff Raff) @ Patricia Quinn (Magenta) @ Nell Campbell (Columbia (as Little Nell)) @ Jonathan Adams (Dr. Everett Von Scott) @ Peter Hinwood (Rocky Horror) @ Meat Loaf (Eddie (as Meatloaf)) @ Charles Gray (The Criminologist) @ Jeremy Newson (Ralph Hapschatt) @ Hilary Labow (Betty Munroe) @ Perry Bedden (The Transylvanians) @ Christopher Biggins (The Transylvanians) @ Gaye Brown (The Transylvanians) @ Ishaq Bux (The Transylvanians) @ Stephen Calcutt (The Transylvanians) @ Hugh Cecil (The Transylvanians) @ Imogen Claire (The Transylvanians) @ Tony Cowan (The Transylvanians) @ Sadie Corre (The Transylvanians) @ Fran Fullenwider (The Transylvanians) @ Lindsay Ingram (The Transylvanians) @ Peggy Ledger (The Transylvanians) @ Annabel Leventon (The Transylvanians (as Annabelle Leventon)) @ Anthony Milner (The Transylvanians) @ Pamela Obermeyer (The Transylvanians) @ Tony Then (The Transylvanians) @ Kimi Wong (The Transylvanians) @ Henry Woolf (The Transylvanians rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Gina Barrie (Bridesmaid (uncredited)) @ Gilda Cohen (The Transylvanians (uncredited)) @ Rufus Collins (The Transylvanians (uncredited)) @ Petra Leah (Bridesmaid (uncredited)) @ Frank Lester (Wedding dad (uncredited)) @ John Marquand (Father (uncredited)) @ Richard Nixon (Himself (archive audio: resignation speech) (uncredited) (voice) (archive sound)) @ Koo Stark (Bridesmaid (uncredited) Produced by||dammit Janet! Moving on from the riotious cult stage show which was born in a small studio theatre in the early 70s, this movie version is a well-cast, outrageous romp showcasing the absurdity and sci-fi obsession of Richard O'Brien's inventive musical. The small cast - the wonderful Tim Curry as Frank 'n Furter (the sweet transvestite from transsexual Transylvania'); Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon as the odd science students Brad and Janet; Patricia Quinn as Magenta ('a domestic'); Little Nell as Columbia ('a groupie'), Jonathan Adams as Dr Scott; Meat Loaf as Eddie; Richard O'Brien himself as the handyman Riff Raff; Peter Hinwood as the muscle man Rocky, created by Frank in a spoof on Frankenstein; and Charles Gray having a great time as the Criminologist - are all really good, and the songs are terrific, from the madness of 'The Timewarp' and 'Sweet Transvestite', to the ethereal 'There's a Light' and 'I'm Going Home', by way of the rocky 'Whatever Happened To Saturday Night?' and the film-reference heavy 'Science Fiction Double Feature'. Great, great fun and the floor show sequence in particular, showcasing Frank's obsession with Fay Wray and the RKO cheapies, is exceptional, with its statues in basques and its huge swimming pool.Trash, yes, but classy trash, and most enjoyable. ||25th Anniversary Edition |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Ronin|John Frankenheimer|Action|Rated R for strong violence and some language. R|7.0|UK|1998|121 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/21/2004|Paul Kelmenson Frank Mancuso Jr. Ethel Winant|J.D. Zeik J.D. Zeik David Mamet|Robert Fraisse ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Loyalty is bought, betrayal is a way of life...|Ronin is the Japanese word used for Samurai without a master. In this case, the Ronin are outcast specialists of every kind, whose services are available to everyone - for money. Dierdre (undoubtedly from Ireland) hires several Ronin to form a team in order to retrieve an important suitcase from a man who is about to sell it to the Russians. After the mission has been completed successfully, the suitcase immediately gets switched by a member of the team who seems to work into his own pocket. The complex net of everyone tricking everyone begins to surface slowly, and deadly... A woman assembles a team of professional killers from all over the world to get a hold on a certain case with some mysterious content. The case is in the hands of some ex-KGB spies and there are many people and organizations that will do anything to get it |Robert De Niro (Sam) @ Jean Reno (Vincent) @ Natascha McElhone (Deirdre) @ Stellan Skarsgård (Gregor) @ Sean Bean (Spence) @ Skipp Sudduth (Larry) @ Michael Lonsdale (Jean-Pierre) @ Jan Triska (Dapper Gent) @ Jonathan Pryce (Seamus O'Rourke) @ Ron Perkins (Man with the Newspaper) @ Féodor Atkine (Mikhi) @ Katarina Witt (Natacha Kirilova) @ Bernard Bloch (Sergi) @ Dominic Gugliametti (Clown Ice Skater) @ Alan Beckworth (Clown Ice Skater) @ Daniel Breton (Sergi's Accomplice) @ Amidou (Man at Exchange (as Amidou Ben Messaoud)) @ Tolsty (The 'Boss') @ Gérard Moulévrier (Tour Guide (as Gérard Moulevrier)) @ Lionel Vitrant (The 'Target') @ Vincent Schmitt (Arles Messenger) @ Léopoldine Serre (Arles Little Girl) @ Lou Maraval (Arles Little Girl) @ Frédéric Schmalzbauer (German Tour Guide) @ Julia Maraval (Girl Hostage) @ Laurent Spielvogel (Tourist in Nice) @ Ron Jeremy (Fishmonger (scenes deleted) (as Ron Hiatt)) @ Steve Suissa (Waiter in Nice) @ Katia Tchenko (Woman Hostage) @ Dyna Gauzy (Little Screaming Girl) @ Lilly-Fleur Pointeaux (Little Girl) @ Amanda Spencer (Little Girl) @ Dimitri Rafalsky (Russian Interpreter) @ Vladimir Tchernine (Russian Mechanic) @ Gérard Touratier (Ice Rink Security Guard) @ Cyril Prentout (Mikhi's Bodyguard) @ Henry Moati (Bartender) @ Christophe Maratier (Armed Police Officer) @ Pierre Forest (CRS Captain rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Nadère Boussandel (Weapon seller (uncredited)Produced by||Great car chases, but the plot doesn't hold together under pressure A group of unemployed military, intelligence and CIA agents from around the globe are employed for a covert operation in Europe.The group must capture a briefcase for Deirde, however a series of double crosses and set-ups leads some members of the group into a dangerous game of betrayal and treachery. This set itself out as something fantastically different from special FX films, but really this is an addition to the spy thriller genre with the same old hackneyed plot and rough characters.The plot here is quite good for the most part - the best bits being the build-up to getting the case and the chases, however the latter half falls into double-cross mania and loses much of the credibility it had early on.The film also tries to rope the plot into real life events involving the IRA, but this doesn't work and just creates a bit of a mess at the end.However, as I said, before all the baggage starts to weigh the film down this is a very tight little thriller with a simple plot. The main talking point of the film at the time of release was the car chase scenes.No using any CGI effects, these are very exciting and very well executed throughout the film and, unlike some critics claimed, you don't get bored of them after the first one (there's only 2 or 3).The direction is excellent during these scenes - highlighting the speed, danger and narrowness of the streets, the only criticism would be the camera lingering on several multiple pileups in the wake of the action, these made me feel like I was watching the Blues Brothers or Cannonball Run rather than a thriller. The characters are good, if a little stereotyped.De Niro and Reno and good together and have a nice chemistry for the most part. McElhone is good as the IRA leader of the group, while of the others Sean Bean and Skarsgård stand out.The worst link in the film is Jonathon Pryce's IRA mastermind - he has one of the worst Northern Ireland accents I've ever heard and his performance is limited by that. Overall an enjoyable thriller that loses it's way towards the end as it starts to get tangled up in it's own plot. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Rope|Alfred Hitchcock|Thriller||7.7|USA|1948| 80 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Sidney Bernstein Alfred Hitchcock|Patrick Hamilton Hume Cronyn Arthur Laurents Ben Hecht|William V. Skall Joseph A. Valentine||MCA/Universal Home Video [us] |Nothing ever held you like Alfred Hitchcock's Rope|Brandon and Philip are two young men who share a New York apartment. They consider themselves intellectually superior to their friend David Kentley and as a consequence decide to murder him. Together they strangle David with a rope and placing the body in an old chest, they proceed to hold a small party. The guests include David's father, his fiancée Janet and their old schoolteacher Rupert from whom they mistakenly took their ideas. As Brandon becomes increasingly more daring, Rupert begins to suspect. Manhattan socialites Brandon Shaw and Phillip Morgan choke the life out of an associate, David, as an intellectual challenge to commit the perfect murder. Not content to escape the penalty of law by simply disposing of the body quietly, they furthermore devise an elaborate and dangerous display of arrogance: The two stuff David's lifeless body into a chest and throw a dinner party serving their guests, literally, from the convenient tabletop of the young man's grave. In attendance are Mr. Henry Kentley and Mrs. Anita Atwater, the victim's father and aunt; Kenneth Turner, the victim's rival for the hand of Janet Walker, David's fiancée, who also attends; Mrs. Wilson, the servant; and Rupert Cadell, the murderers' former teacher whose flippant repartee regarding social caste festered into the pathological short circuit that led to Brandon's and Phillip's crime. Brandon's sense of intellectual superiority swells to reckless levels throughout the evening as he makes a nail-biting game out of cleverly dropping his guests hints at nasty goings on. Meanwhile, Phillip grows increasingly frightful and guilt-ridden as Rupert inches ever closer to discovering why David hasn't yet arrived at the party. |James Stewart (Rupert Cadell) @ John Dall (Brandon Shaw) @ Farley Granger (Phillip Morgan) @ Cedric Hardwicke (Mr. Kentley (as Sir Cedric Hardwicke)) @ Constance Collier (Mrs. Atwater) @ Douglas Dick (Kenneth Lawrence) @ Edith Evanson (Mrs. Wilson) @ Dick Hogan (David Kentley) @ Joan Chandler (Janet Walker rest of cast listed alphabetically The Three Suns .... Group cast appearance (radio sequence) Produced by||2 murderers kill a friend This was a great drama which took place in an apartment. Two men killed a friend in the very first scene, then went on to throw a party. One of the killers was cool and calm, the other was a guilty wreck, leading a good friend of theirs to become suspicious of them and a box they both seem to be showing to much attention to. Great dramatic dialogue and the scenery, though dated, was done just right. 4 stars ||The Alfred Hitchcock Collection |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Rosemary's Baby|Roman Polanski|Horror||7.8|USA|1968| 136 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|William Castle Dona Holloway|Ira Levin Roman Polanski|William A. Fraker ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |Pray for Rosemary's Baby |Rosemary and her new husband, Guy, move into a new apartment in New York, befriending an elderly couple who live near by. But when another girl in the block commits suicide, Rosemary starts getting more attention than she desires, from all the wrong people. And now with her (late) friend's warnings about witches in mind, she has a new problem - the protection of her forthcoming child. But it may not be the child that needs protection. Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse move into an apartment in a building with a bad reputation. They discover that their neighbours are a very friendly elderly couple named Roman and Minnie Castevet, and Guy begins to spend a lot of time with them. Strange things start to happen: a woman Rosemary meets in the washroom dies a mysterious death, Rosemary has strange dreams and hears strange noises and Guy becomes remote and distant. Then Rosemary falls pregnant and begins to suspect that her neighbours have special plans for her child. |Mia Farrow (Rosemary Woodhouse) @ John Cassavetes (Guy Woodhouse) @ Ruth Gordon (Minnie Castevet) @ Sidney Blackmer (Roman Castevet) @ Maurice Evans (Edward 'Hutch' Hutchins) @ Ralph Bellamy (Dr. Abraham Sapirstein) @ Victoria Vetri (Terry Gionoffrio (as Angela Dorian)) @ Patsy Kelly (Laura-Louise) @ Elisha Cook Jr. (Mr. Nicklas (as Elisha Cook)) @ Emmaline Henry (Elise Dunstan) @ Charles Grodin (Dr. C.C. Hill) @ Hanna Landy (Grace Cardiff) @ Phil Leeds (Dr. Shand (as Philip Leeds)) @ D'Urville Martin (Diego) @ Hope Summers (Mrs. Gilmore) @ Marianne Gordon (Rosemary's girlfriend) @ Wende Wagner (Rosemary's girlfriend (as Wendy Wagner) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bill Baldwin Sr. (Salesman (uncredited)) @ Walter Baldwin (Mr. Wees (uncredited)) @ Roy Barcroft (Sun-browned man (uncredited)) @ Charlotte Boerner (Mrs. Fountain (uncredited)) @ Gail Bonney (Babysitter (voice) (uncredited)) @ Carol Brewster (Claudia Comfort (uncredited)) @ Lynn Brinker (Sister Veronica (uncredited)) @ Sebastian Brook (Argyron Stavropoulos (uncredited)) @ William Castle (Man by pay phone (uncredited)) @ Gordon Connell (Allen Stone (Guy's agent) (uncredited)) @ Patricia Ann Conway (Mrs. John F. Kennedy (uncredited)) @ Tony Curtis (Donald Baumgart (voice) (uncredited)) @ Joyce Davis (Dee Bertillon (uncredited)) @ Paul Denton (Skipper (uncredited)) @ Duke Fishman (Man (uncredited)) @ Janet Garland (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Michel Gomez (Pedro (uncredited)) @ John Halloran (Mechanic (uncredited)) @ Ernest Harada (Young Japanese man (uncredited)) @ Marilyn Harvey (Dr. Sapirstein's receptionist (uncredited)) @ Jean Inness (Sister Agnes (uncredited)) @ Mona Knox (Mrs. Byron (uncredited)) @ Mary Louise Lawson (Portia Haynes (uncredited)) @ Natalie Masters (Young woman (uncredited)) @ Elmer Modling (Young man (uncredited)) @ Floyd Mutrux (Man at party (uncredited)) @ Patricia O'Neal (Mrs. Wees (uncredited)) @ Robert Osterloh (Mr. Fountain (uncredited)) @ Josh Peine (Man at party (uncredited)) @ Gale Peters (Rain Morgan (uncredited)) @ Joan T. Reilly (Pregnant woman (uncredited)) @ George R. Robertson (Lou Comfort (uncredited)) @ George Savalas (Workman (uncredited)) @ Almira Sessions (Mrs. Sabatini (uncredited)) @ Michael Shillo (Pope (uncredited)) @ Bruno Sidar (Mr. Gilmore (uncredited)) @ Tom Signorelli (Man at the party (uncredited)) @ Al Szathmary (Taxi driver (uncredited)) @ Clay Tanner (Devil (uncredited)) @ Sharon Tate (Girl at the party (uncredited)) @ Viki Vigen (Lisa (uncredited)) @ Frank White (Hugh Dunstan (uncredited) Produced by||A very scary film God and Satan make for great subjects for horror films.The reason for that is because we know so little about either of them.Sure we have what the Bible says, but that is all just theory.If the Bible is real, I don't believe that God would truly tell us, one of his creations, how powerful he is and I certainly don't think he would tell us how powerful his arch enemy, Satan, is. So when we see movies about Michael Myers and Jason and Freddy, sometimes the later sequels try to explain their superiority with Satanic possession.After all, what other reason would there be for these beings to be so evil?That is what makes Rosemary's Baby so frightening.The fear of the unknown.To be possessed by the devil is scary, to be impregnated by the devil is dire. Mia Farrow is great in this film, Cassavettes is very good as well but it is Gordon that is the epitome of fear.She hits every note perfectly and her smile gives me the creeps.And say nothing of Polanski.This film came out before TCM.And it really shows his love of the camera because he uses it like it was his best friend here.His filming of the dream sequence and the rape was as good as any scene filmed before the early 80's.And this was a true crystal ball into how good Texas Chainsaw was going to be. Rosemary's Baby is what horror movies are all about.It has great atmosphere, haunting lighting and a very spooky score.And on one final side note, I think there is one movie character that comes to mind when I think of what the devil could have looked like as a man.If you have never seen the film Angel Heart, check it out.DeNiro's turn as Louise Cypher is priceless and he almost seems like it was him that was the one who was haunting everyone in Rosemary's Baby. A great film.Much better than most 90's horror. || |1.66 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Rudy|David Anspaugh|Drama||7.1|USA|1993| 116 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert N. Fried Jeffrey I. Friedman Lee R. Mayes Alan J. Mintz Angelo Pizzo Cary Woods Richard J. Zinman|Angelo Pizzo |Oliver Wood ||Columbia TriStar Films de España S.A. [es] |When people say dreams don't come true, tell them about Rudy|Rudy grew up in a steel mill town where most people ended up working, but wanted to play football at Notre Dame instead. There were only a couple of problems. His grades were a little low, his athletic skills were poor, and he was only half the size of the other players. But he had the drive and the spirit of 5 people and has set his sights upon joining the team. |Sean Astin (Rudy Ruettiger) @ Jon Favreau (D-Bob) @ Ned Beatty (Daniel) @ Greta Lind (Mary) @ Scott Benjaminson (Frank) @ Mary Ann Thebus (Betty) @ Charles Dutton (Fortune) @ Lili Taylor (Sherry) @ Christopher Reed (Pete) @ Deborah Wittenberg (Young Sherry) @ Christopher Erwin (7-Year-Old Mark) @ Kevin Duda (9-Year-Old Bernie) @ Robert Benirschke (11-Year-Old Mark) @ Luke Massery (13-Year-Old Rudy) @ Robert J. Steinmiller Jr. (13-Year-Old Pete) @ Jake Armstrong (13-Year-Old Bernie) @ John Duda (15-Year-Old Frank) @ Joseph Sikora (17-Year-Old Johnny) @ Gerry Becker (Father Ted) @ Robert Swan (Father Zajak (as Bob Swan)) @ Robert Prosky (Father Cavanaugh) @ Leonard Kuberski (Classroom Priest) @ Father James Riehle (Locker Room Priest) @ Robert Mohler (Johnny) @ Todd Spicer (Boy in Neighborhood) @ Jason Miller (Ara Parseghian) @ Jean Plumhoff (Fran) @ Spyridon Stratigos (Coach Gillespie) @ John Beasley (Coach Warren) @ Ron Dean (Coach Yonto) @ Paul Bergan (Coach) @ Lorenzo Clemons (High School Assistant Coach) @ Sean Grennan (High School Assistant Coach) @ John Whitmer (Football Trainer) @ Scott A. Boyd (Lineman) @ William Bergan (Lineman) @ Kevin Thomas (Player from Sidelines) @ Tom Dennin (Announcer) @ Michael Sassone (Guard) @ Marie Anspaugh (Librarian) @ Chris Olson (Dan Dorman (as Chris Olsen)) @ Vince Vaughn (Jamie O'Hara (as Vincent Vaughn)) @ Peter Rausch (Steve) @ Kevin C. White (Roland) @ Jennie Israel (Rhonda) @ Amy Pietz (Melinda) @ Mitch Rouse (Jim) @ Lauren Katz (Elza) @ Chelcie Ross (Dan Devine) @ Christine Failla (Pretty Girl) @ Donna Cihak (Pretty Girl) @ Colleen Moore (Pretty Girl) @ Diana James (Pick-up Girl) @ Mindy Hester (Pick-up Girl) @ Casey Cooper (Pick-up Girl) @ Jenna Chevigny (Pick-up Girl) @ Beth Behrends (Girl in Cafeteria) @ Corelle Banjoman (Walk-on) @ Pablo Gonzales (Groundskeeper) @ Spencer Grady (Maintenance Worker) @ Kellie Malczynski (Maintenance Worker) @ Theodore Hesburgh (Priest) @ Edmund Joyce (Priest) @ Kent Hunsley (Mill Worker) @ Dennis McGowan (Barkeeper) @ Jennifer Patricia Phelps (Friend) @ Michael Scarsella (Friend) @ George Poorman (Senior) @ Robert Simmermon (Professor) @ Daniel 'Rudy' Ruettiger (Fan in Stands) @ Bob Zillmer (Usher) @ Scott Denny (Rick rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Matt Gallini (Notre Dame Football Player (uncredited)) @ Regina Prokop (Football Groupie (uncredited)) @ Jack Rooney (Team Sideline Priest (uncredited)) @ Keith Schrader (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Dan Severn ( (uncredited)) @ Al Snow (Notre Dame Football Player (uncredited) Produced by||An average film I first saw this movie a few months ago in my CP (college-prep)writing class.It's about a young college student who has had a lifelong dream to play for Notre Dame.Well there's some problems that interfere with that. His size for example.When he was a child, his brothers and sisters told him that he could never play for Notre Dame because he was too thin and didn't have enough muscle.I really can't remember much about this movie, but I do remember (and laughed at) a scene in which one guy told another guy to "wipe his ass!"This reminded me of a chubby Native American girl who went to my school.She told a skinny Caucasian (white) girl to wipe her butt.After the movie was over, my CP writing teacher gave us each a worksheet to fill out about the movie and it included questions about us and what goals we would like to reach.I don't know about you, but I'm gonna be a pretty darn good track athlete this year. ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Sabrina|Billy Wilder|Comedy|NR |7.6|USA|1954|113 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Billy Wilder |Samuel A. Taylor Billy Wilder Samuel A. Taylor Ernest Lehman|Charles Lang ||Paramount Home Video [us] |. . . the chauffeur's daughter who learned her stuff in Paris!|Linus and Davis Larrabee are the two sons of a very wealthy family. Linus is all work -- busily running the family corporate empire, he has no time for a wife and family. David is all play -- technically he is employed by the family business, but never shows up for work, spends all his time entertaining, and has been married and divorced three times. Meanwhile, Sabrina Fairchild is the young, shy, and awkward daughter of the household chauffeur, who has been infatuated with David all her life, but David hardly notices her -- "doesn't even know I exist" -- until she goes away to Paris for two years, and returns an elegant, sophisticated, beautiful woman. Suddenly, she finds that she has captured David's attention, but just as she does so, she finds herself falling in love with Linus, and she finds that Linus is also falling in love with her. Sabrina is the young daughter of the Larrabee family's chauffeur who has been in love with David Larrabee for all her life. David is very spoiled and crazy for women, and has been totally ignoring Sabrina for years. When Sabrina goes to Paris for a few years, she returns a very attractive and sophisticated woman, and David is quickly drawn to her. David's brother Linus sees this and fears that David's imminent wedding with a very rich woman may be endangered. If the wedding is canceled, so will a great corporate deal with the bride's family. So, Linus tries to keep Sabrina off his brother, and the best way to do so is by charming her himself. |Humphrey Bogart (Linus Larrabee) @ Audrey Hepburn (Sabrina Fairchild) @ William Holden (David Larrabee) @ Walter Hampden (Oliver Larrabee) @ John Williams (Thomas Fairchild) @ Martha Hyer (Elizabeth Tyson) @ Joan Vohs (Gretchen Van Horn) @ Marcel Dalio (Baron St. Fontanel) @ Marcel Hillaire (The Professor) @ Nella Walker (Maude Larrabee) @ Francis X. Bushman (Mr. Tyson) @ Ellen Corby (Miss McCardle rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ David Ahdar (Ship's steward (uncredited)) @ Raymond Bailey (Member of the Board (uncredited)) @ Marjorie Bennett (Margaret (cook) (uncredited)) @ Colin Campbell (Board member (uncredited)) @ Harvey B. Dunn (Party guest with tray (uncredited)) @ Otto Forrest (Elevator operator (uncredited)) @ Rand Harper (Man (uncredited)) @ Charles Harvey (The drink spiller (uncredited)) @ Paul Harvey (Dr. Calaway (uncredited)) @ Nancy Kulp (Jenny (maid) (uncredited)) @ Kay E. Kuter (Servant (houseman) (uncredited)) @ Bill Neff (Man with Linus Larrabee (uncredited)) @ Emory Parnell (Charles (butler) (uncredited)) @ Gregory Ratoff (Man with David Larrabee (uncredited)) @ Kay Riehl (Mrs. Tyson (uncredited)) @ Marion Ross (Spiller's girlfriend (uncredited)) @ Emmett Vogan (Board member (uncredited)Produced by||"It's all in the wrist!" Audrey Hepburn as a mousey chauffeur's daughter? Yes, and she's beguiling trying to gas herself death in the garage(and then quickly cracking a window)because gorgeous rich playboy William Holden doesn't notice her. But it's nothing that a little time away in Paris won't cure... Hepburn is absolutely radiant in this picture: dark brows over big Bambi eyes, sensual, flirtatious lips, and that long, long neck. She embodies the spirit of the Cinderella heroine, and director Billy Wilder milks her gamine appeal for all the millions it's worth. Holden is blithe and lively, and Humphrey Bogart manages to make his stuffy unease rather charming. Clever, biting, romantic, sweet, this version of "Sabrina" has it all. ***1/2 from **** ||The Audrey Hepburn Collection |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Santa Claus|Jeannot Szwarc|Adventure||4.7|UK|1985| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ilya Salkind Robert Simmonds Pierre Spengler|David Newman Leslie Newman David Newman|Arthur Ibbetson ||Anchor Bay Entertainment [us] |The Legend Comes To Life.|The first half of this film, set hundreds of years ago, shows how the old man who eventually became Santa Claus was given immortality and chosen to deliver toys to all the children of the world. The second half moves into the modern era, in which Patch, the head elf, strikes out on his own and falls in with an evil toy manufacturer who wants to corner the market and eliminate Santa Claus. |Dudley Moore (Patch) @ John Lithgow (B.Z.) @ David Huddleston (Santa Claus) @ Burgess Meredith (Ancient Elf) @ Judy Cornwell (Anya Claus) @ Jeffrey Kramer (Towzer) @ Christian Fitzpatrick (Joe) @ Carrie Kei Heim (Cornelia) @ John Barrard (Dooley) @ Anthony O'Donnell (Puffy) @ Melvyn Hayes (Goober) @ Don Estelle (Groot) @ Tim Stern (Boog) @ Peter O'Farrell (Honka) @ Christopher Ryan (Vout) @ Dickie Arnold (Goobler) @ Aimée Delamain (Storyteller) @ Dorothea Phillips (Miss Tucker) @ John Hallam (Grizzard) @ Judith Morse (Miss Abruzzi) @ Jerry Harte (Senate Chairman) @ Paul Aspland (Reporter) @ Sally Cranfield (Reporter) @ Michael Drew (Reporter) @ John Cassady (Wino) @ Ronald Fernee (Policeman) @ Michael A. Ross (Policeman (as Michael Ross) rest of cast listed alphabetically Walter Goodman .... Street Corner Santa Produced by||Santa Claus can't conquer a lousy second half ***SPOILER WARNING*** I was afraid that he wouldn't ask but I was relieved when he did.The man who is about to inherit the mantle of `Santa Claus' stands before an ancient elf (Burgess Meredith) and asks the most obvious question: `How can I deliver all these toys in a single night?'.The answer is beautiful.Time travels with him until his appointed rounds are finished. `Santa Claus: The Movie' does a wonderful job in it's first half of answering a lot of key questions about old Saint Nick.It begins as an origin story.A kindly old man (David Huddleston) delivers toys in a sleigh to children and one night braves a bad storm and ends up at the North Pole. That's where he meets the elf that gives him his superpowers.If this sounds unusually familiar consider that the producers of this movie also gave us the original `Superman'. We've come to expect from holiday specials that one of the elves is a clumsy misfit.This one's name is Patch (Dudley Moore) and his ideas for speeding up production are bringing less than stellar results.He leaves in disgrace and before long he meets up with an evil money-hungry toy manufacturer who goes to senate hearing to field charges that his stuffed animals are dangerous (to prove the point, a lawyer takes off the head of a panda and dumps broken glass out of the neck). The second half of the movie kind of falls apart.John Lithgow does an admirable job as the evil magnate but he doesn't have the snarling nastiness that would have made a perfect counterpoint to Santa Claus.Why make him a toy maker?Why not make him a Grinch like character who is trying to stop Christmas from coming?What a bright and cheerful opening.What a drab and uninspired second half. Rating: **½ (of four) ||Full Screen |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sarah, Plain and Tall|Glenn Jordan|Drama||7.2|USA|1991| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Glenn Close Glenn Jordan William Self|Patricia MacLachlan Patricia MacLachlan Carol Sobieski|Mike Fash ||Paris Vídeo [br] ||Set around the turn of the century. Jacob, a widowed farmer with two small children, places an ad in a paper for a new wife. The ad is answered by a spinster in Maine, who writes letters to them and describes herself as "plain and tall." And she takes a trip to Jacob's farm to see if she can make a difference. |Glenn Close (Sarah Wheaton) @ Christopher Walken (Jacob Witting) @ Lexi Randall (Anna Witting) @ Margaret Sophie Stein (Maggie Grant) @ Jon DeVries (Matthew Grant) @ Christopher Bell (Caleb Witting) @ James Rebhorn (William Wheaton) @ Woody Watson (Jess Stearns) @ Betty Laird (Mrs. Parkley) @ Marc Penney (Ticket Agent) @ Kara Beth Taylor (Rose Produced by||Beautifully Done I had always heard good things about this film but never got around to seeing it. My 8 year old daughter loves books on the prairie life and we saw the video at the library so we watched it and we were both so moved, so impressed. A lovely film, wonderfully acted - Walken is a nice surprise - after a long, Hollywood career playing weirdos and sickos - he gives a fully realized, delicate, heartbreaking performance as a widower Kansas farmer. The children stay away from cliched, hammy acting and the whole thing is touching and sweet. || ||2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ Saturday Night Fever|John Badham|Drama|Rated R for strong language, sexuality/nudity and some drug content. (2002 version) R|6.5|USA|1977|118 min/ USA:113 min (PG version)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/13/2004|Milt Felsen Kevin McCormick Robert Stigwood|Nik Cohn Norman Wexler|Ralf D. Bode ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |Where do you go when the record is over...|Tony is an uneducated Brooklyn teenager. The highlight of his week is going to the local disco, where he is the king of the dancefloor. Tony meets Stephanie at the disco and they agree to dance together in a competition. Stephanie resists Tony's attempts to romance her, as she aspires to greater things; she is moving across the river to Manhattan. Gradually, Tony also becomes disillusioned with the life he is leading and he and Stephanie decide to help one another to start afresh. |John Travolta (Tony Manero) @ Karen Lynn Gorney (Stephanie Mangano) @ Barry Miller (Bobby C.) @ Joseph Cali (Joey) @ Paul Pape (Double J) @ Donna Pescow (Annette) @ Bruce Ornstein (Gus) @ Julie Bovasso (Flo Manero) @ Martin Shakar (Frank Manero, Jr. (aka Father Frank)) @ Sam Coppola (Fusco (as Sam J. Coppola)) @ Nina Hansen (Grandmother) @ Lisa Peluso (Linda Manero) @ Denny Dillon (Doreen) @ Bert Michaels (Pete) @ Robert Costanzo (Paint Store Customer (as Robert Costanza)) @ Robert Weil (Becker) @ Shelly Batt (Girl in Disco) @ Fran Drescher (Connie) @ Donald Gantry (Jay Langhart) @ Murray Moston (Haberdashery Salesman) @ William Andrews (Detective) @ Ann Travolta (Pizza Girl) @ Helen Travolta (Lady in Paint Store) @ Ellen March (Bartender) @ Monti Rock III (The Deejay) @ Val Bisoglio (Frank Manero Sr. rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Roy Cheverie (The Wrong Partner (uncredited)) @ Alberto Vasquez (Gang Member (uncredited)Produced by||YOU SHOULD BE DANCING! SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER (1977) **** John Travolta, Karen Lynn Gorney, Joseph Cali, Barry Miller, Julie Bovasso, Val Bosoglio, Donna Pescow.Quintessential film about the Seventies' disco craze that made Travolta an American icon (Best Actor nominee) andsuperstar as Brooklynite Tony Manero, a free-wheelin' Italian kid who loves to dance but doesn't know what he wants from life despite his talent and some eye-opening advice from dance partner Gorney.Directed on location with gritty realism by John Badham this blockbuster features songs by the ultimate trio The Bee Gees.(My favorite: "How Deep Is Your Love?").Look for Fran Drescher and Denny Dillon in the dance sequences.For the film vault: a snake-hipped, lupine Travolta cutting loose to `You Should Be Dancing. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Saving Private Ryan|Steven Spielberg|Action||8.3|USA|1998| 170 min |Czech||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ian Bryce Bonnie Curtis Kevin De La Noy Mark Gordon Mark Huffam Gary Levinsohn Allison Lyon Segan Steven Spielberg|Robert Rodat |Janusz Kaminski ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The mission is a man.|In World War II, it is found that 3 soldiers who have been killed are brothers. The mother will be receiving three death notices on the same day. The army discovers that there were actually four brothers. A mission is deployed to find Private James Ryan and send him home. After learning that Private Ryans three brothers have all died in the war, the government attempts to locate him to send him home. The problem is they don't know if he is dead or alive behind enemy lines. During WWII, Chief of Staff, General Marshall is informed that three of a woman's sons have been killed and that she's going to receive the notifications of their demise at the same time. And when he learns that a fourth son is still unaccounted for, the General decides to send a unit to find him and bring him back, despite being told that it's highly unlikely that he is still alive and the area that he was known to be at is very dangerous. So the unit consisting of 8 men are sent to find him but as stated it's very dangerous and one by one, each of them are being picked off. Will they find him and how many of them will still be alive. Following the Allied invasion of Normandy, two brothers lay dead in the wake of the onslaught. Meanwhile, in New Guinea, a third brother has been killed fighting the Japanese. After the Army General Staff learns that a fourth brother is missing in the French countryside, a rescue mission is ordered to find the young soldier and return him safely home. The mission is mounted by a veteran Ranger Captain commanding a platoon of men who have mixed feelings about risking their lives to "Save Private Ryan". |Tom Hanks (Capt. John Miller) @ Edward Burns (Pvt. Richard Reiben) @ Tom Sizemore (Sgt. Michael Horvath) @ Matt Damon (Pvt. James Ryan) @ Jeremy Davies (Cpl. Timothy E. Upham, Interpreter) @ Adam Goldberg (Pvt. Stanley Mellish) @ Barry Pepper (Pvt. Daniel Jackson (sniper)) @ Giovanni Ribisi (Pvt. Irwin Wade, Medic) @ Vin Diesel (Pvt. Adrian Caparzo) @ Ted Danson (Capt. Fred Hamill) @ Max Martini (Cpl. Fred Henderson (as Maximilian Martini)) @ Dylan Bruno (Pvt. Alan Toynbe) @ Joerg Stadler (Steamboat Willie) @ Paul Giamatti (SSgt. William Hill) @ Dennis Farina (Lt. Col. Walter Anderson) @ Harve Presnell (Gen. George C. Marshall) @ Dale Dye (War Department Colonel) @ Ryan Hurst (Pvt. Roger Michaelson) @ Leland Orser (Lt. William Dewindt) @ Nick Brooks (Pvt. Joe D'Amato) @ Harrison Young (Old James Ryan) @ Daniel Cerqueira (Pvt. Steve Weller) @ Demetri Goritsas (Pvt. Ron Parker) @ Ian Porter (Pvt. Bill Trask) @ Gary Sefton (Pvt. Ray Rice) @ Julian Spencer (Pvt. David Garrity) @ Steve Griffin (Pvt. Don Wilson) @ William Marsh (Pvt. Bud Lyle) @ Marc Cass (Pvt. Bill Fallon) @ Markus Napier (Maj. Hoess) @ Neil Finnighan (Ramelle Paratrooper) @ Peter Miles (Ramelle Paratrooper) @ Paul Garcia (Field H.Q. Major) @ Seamus McQuade (Field H.Q. Aide) @ Ronald Longridge (Higgins Boat Coxswain) @ Adam Shaw (Pvt. Danny Delancey) @ Rolf Saxon (Lt. Frank Briggs) @ Corey Johnson (Shore Party Radioman) @ Loclann Aiken (Cpl. William Sampson) @ Maclean Burke (Pvt. Thomas Young) @ Aiden Condron (Pvt. Maxwell Davis) @ Shane Hagan (Pvt. Stan Debernardo) @ Shane Johnson (Pvt. Brad Lewis) @ Brian Maynard (Pvt. Robert McDonald) @ Mark Phillips (Pvt. Michael Parkes) @ Lee Rosen (Pvt. Andrew Payton) @ Matthew Sharp (Pvt. Ronald Short) @ Grahame Wood (Pvt. George Valk) @ John Sharian (Cpl. Carl Vittore) @ Glenn Wrage (Pvt. Joseph Doyle) @ John Barnett (Soldier on the Beach) @ Victor Burke (Soldier on the Beach) @ Paschal Friel (Soldier on the Beach) @ Paul Hickey (Soldier on the Beach) @ Laird Macintosh (Soldier on the Beach) @ Martin McDougall (Soldier on the Beach) @ Andrew Scott (Soldier on the Beach) @ Vincent Walsh (Soldier on the Beach) @ Crofton Hardester (Senior Medical Officer) @ Martin Hub (Czech Wehrmacht Soldier) @ Raffaello Degruttola (Pvt. Goldman (as Raph Taylor)) @ Nigel Whitmey (Pvt. Jerry Boyd) @ Sam Ellis (Pvt. Hastings) @ Erich Redman (German #1) @ Tilo Keiner (German #2) @ Stephan Grothgar (German #3 (voice on bullhorn)) @ Stephane Cornicard (Jean) @ Michelle Evans (Jean's Wife) @ Martin Beaton (Jean's Son) @ Anna Maguire (Jean's Daughter, Jacqueline) @ Nathan Fillion (Pvt. James Frederick, Ryan) @ Michael Mantas (Paratroop Lieutenant (Glide Pilot)) @ David Vegh (Paratrooper Oliver) @ Sam Scudder (Paratrooper #1) @ John Walters (Old French Man) @ Dorothy Grumbar (Old French Woman) @ James Innes-Smith (MP Lieutenant) @ Bryan Cranston (I.W. Bryce, War Department Colonel) @ David Wohl (T.E. Sanders, War Department Captain) @ Eric Loren (War Department Lieutenant) @ Valerie Colgan (War Department Clerk) @ Amanda Boxer (Mrs. Margaret Ryan) @ Kathleen Byron (Old Mrs. Ryan) @ Rob Freeman (Ryan's Son) @ Thomas Gizbert (Ryan's Grandson rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Linda Carol (Nurse (uncredited)) @ John de Lancie (Letter Reader (uncredited) (voice)) @ Nina Muschallik (Ryan's Granddaughter (uncredited) Produced by||War is hell, and "Saving Private Ryan" peeks into the gates of Hades I'd heard a couple of startling things about this film before seeing it. I'd heard that many veterans were having a hard time getting through the film without breaking down. I'd also seen interviews with veterans who'd seen the film and found the film to be incredibly realistic and consequently difficult to watch. Intriguing comments, since we all know there is no shortage of films about war from this century. There are not many films that I've seen that have actually made me physically react to the action on screen. I'm not speaking of the three-dimensional variety either. What I mean to say is this film had me contorting and cringing at the gripping, horrifying action on screen. Somehow the extreme violence can be justified as the whole world knows that this is an important chapter in human history and a startling, graphic depiction only adds more weight to the seriousness of the subject matter. I'd have to say this is probably one of the most important films of the 20th century because of its frank approach to one of the darkest periods of our time on this earth. I am always deeply moved and fiercely proud when given cause to consider those that gave their lives to protect our way of life and liberate those that already suffered dislocation, imprisonment and attempted genocide. These soldiers were truly noble and deserve our deepest gratitude. This sentiment is a common one, and will go some lengths to explain why this film has meant so much to so many. Even with the attention to detail and care taken into how it was shot to accentuate to the fullest degree its realistic approach, it is still hard to imagine what it must have been like to be part of a war. But this film goes a long way to help your mind get around it. It's hard for me to say what kind of impact the cinematography would have on someone watching it on the small screen of a television versus the big screen, but from my perspective, this film really does benefit from a theatrical presentation. What "Saving Private Ryan" does extremely well, is show the world the harsh reality of war without pulling any punches. The story about a squad of soldiers sent to retrieve the surviving brother of three dead soldiers is told with competency and due reverence from all perspectives of the characters involved. It is an uncommon and intriguing drama, but it serves as an excuse to describe a setting, rather than the other way around. The story manages to move us through all sorts of different landscapes and scenarios, giving us an unforgettable glimpse of a world unknown to most of us, and terrifying to those who are familiar with it from personal experience. ||Special Limited Edition |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Scary Movie|Keenen Ivory Wayans|Comedy|Rated R for strong crude sexual humor, language, drug use and violence. |5.5|USA|2000| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lisa Blum Eric L. Gold Cary Granat Brad Grey Robb Wilson King Lee R. Mayes Peter Safran Peter Schwerin Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Bo Zenga Keenen Ivory Wayans Marlon Wayans Shawn Wayans|Shawn Wayans Marlon Wayans Buddy Johnson Phil Beauman Jason Friedberg Aaron Seltzer|Francis Kenny ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |No mercy. No shame. No sequel.|A parody of modern horror films about a group of teenagers who are being terrorised by a serial killer. Some of the send-ups include: "Scream", "I Know What You Did Last Summer", "The Blair Witch Project", "The Sixth Sense" and "The Matrix". Six friends - Cindy Campbell (Anna Faris), Bobby Prinze (Jon Abrahams), Buffy Gilmore (Shannon Elizabeth), Greg Phillipe (Lochlyn Munro), Ray Wilkins (Shawn Wayans), and Brenda Meeks (Regina Hall) - are being stalked by a serial killer. A serial killer that is after them because of an accident that they caused last Halloween. A serial killer that seems to have come out of every other scary movie. The body count's already started with Drew Decker (Carmen Electra), the local town slut, and it's starting to build up. The friends are going to have to escape from both the killer's clutches and annoying news reporter Gail Hailstorm (Cheri Oteri) if they plan on living to the sequel... |Anna Faris (Cindy Campbell) @ Shawn Wayans (Ray Wilkins) @ Marlon Wayans (Shorty Meeks) @ Jon Abrahams (Bobby Prinze) @ Shannon Elizabeth (Buffy Gilmore) @ Cheri Oteri (Gail Hailstorm) @ Lochlyn Munro (Greg Phillippe) @ Regina Hall (Brenda Meeks) @ Dave Sheridan (Deputy Doofy Gilmore/Ghost Face) @ Carmen Electra (Drew Decker) @ Kurt Fuller (The Sheriff) @ David L. Lander (Principal Squiggy) @ Frank B. Moore (Not Drew's Boyfriend) @ Giacomo Baessato (Trick or Treater #1) @ Kyle Graham (Trick or Treater #2) @ Leanne Santos (Trick or Treater #3) @ Mark McConchie (Drew's Dad) @ Karen Kruper (Drew's Mom) @ Rick Ducommun (Cindy's Dad) @ Lloyd Berry (Homeless Man) @ Matthew Paxman (Annoying Guy) @ Chris Robson (KOMQ Reporter) @ Susan Shears (Female Reporter) @ Peter Bryant (Black TV Reporter) @ Andrea Nemeth (Heather) @ Craig Bruhnanski (Road Victim) @ Dan Joffre (Cameraman Kenny) @ Kelly Coffield (Teacher) @ Reg Tupper (Beauty Pageant MC) @ Tanja Reichert (Miss Congeniality) @ Kendall Saunders (Miss Thing) @ Babe Dolan (Grandma (as D.M. Babe Dolan)) @ David Neale (Policeman #1) @ Nels Lennarson (Policeman #2) @ Nicola Crosbie (Reporter #1) @ Ian Bliss (Reporter #2) @ Chris Wilding (Shorty's Roomate) @ Trevor Roberts (Dookie) @ Glynis Davies (Buffy's Mom) @ Jayne Trcka (Miss Mann) @ Peter Hanlon (Suicidal Teacher) @ Ted Cole (Older Man In Theater) @ Doreen Ramus (Old Lady In Theatre) @ Lee R. Mayes (Amistad II Captain) @ Keenen Ivory Wayans (Slave) @ Mark Hoeppner (Whipmaster) @ Jessica Van der Veen (Woman In Theatre) @ Jim Shepard (Young Man In Theatre) @ Marissa Jaret Winokur (Garage Victim) @ Dexter Bell (Shorty's Friend) @ Ted Gill (Store Clerk rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Art Hives (Teacher (uncredited)) @ Bruce Mahler (Homey #2 (uncredited)) @ Robin Miller (Student (uncredited)) @ James Van Der Beek (Dawson Leery (uncredited) Produced by||A review of Scary Movie Taking a page out of the sick and twisted humor of " Something about Mary ", this movie reminds one of a Farrely Brother film ( Dumb and Dumber, King Pin, Me, Myself, & Irene ). The two Wayan Brothers star in a silly, yet surprisingly entertaining satire of the horror genre. This move pokes fun of the latest movies in Hollywood ( The Matrix, Sixth Sense, etc. ) and does so effectively, to the point where one can find it hysterical. Taken at face value, the movie is good for a hard laugh. A highly entertaining comedy, that is worth seeing. Grade- B+ || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Scent of a Woman|Martin Brest|Drama|R |7.4|USA|1992|157 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Ovidio G. Assonitis Martin Brest G. Mac Brown Ronald L. Schwary|Giovanni Arpino Bo Goldman Ruggero Maccari Dino Risi|Donald E. Thorin ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Col. Frank Slade has a very special plan for the weekend. It involves travel, women, good food, fine wine, the tango, chauffeured limousines and a loaded forty-five. And he's bringing Charlie along for the ride.|Frank is a retired Lt Col in the US army. He's blind and impossible to get along with. Charlie is at school and is looking forward to going to university; to help pay for a trip home for Christmas, he agrees to look after Frank over thanksgiving. Frank's niece says this will be easy money, but she didn't reckon on Frank spending his thanksgiving in New York. |Al Pacino (Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade) @ Chris O'Donnell (Charlie Simms) @ James Rebhorn (Mr. Trask) @ Gabrielle Anwar (Donna) @ Philip Seymour Hoffman (George Willis, Jr. (as Philip S. Hoffman)) @ Richard Venture (W.R. Slade) @ Bradley Whitford (Randy) @ Rochelle Oliver (Gretchen) @ Margaret Eginton (Gail) @ Tom Riis Farrell (Garry) @ Nicholas Sadler (Harry Havemeyer) @ Todd Louiso (Trent Potter) @ Matt Smith (Jimmy Jameson) @ Gene Canfield (Manny) @ Frances Conroy (Christine Downes) @ June Squibb (Mrs. Hunsaker) @ Ron Eldard (Officer Gore) @ Sally Murphy (Karen Rossi) @ Michael Santoro (Donny Rossi) @ Alyson Feldman (Francine Rossi) @ Erika Feldman (Francine Rossi) @ Julian Stein (Willie Rossi) @ Max Stein (Willie Rossi) @ Anh Duong (Sofia) @ Leonard Gaines (Freddie Bisco) @ David Lansbury (Michael) @ Joseph Palmas (Bellhop) @ Baxter Harris (George Willis, Sr.) @ Francie Swift (Flight Attendant) @ Michael Simon (Oak Room Waiter) @ William Beckwith (Oak Room Maitre D') @ Mansoor Najeeullah (Skycap) @ J.T. Cromwell (Ballroom Waiter) @ Peter Carew (Bootblack) @ Paul Stocker (Doorman) @ Michael Lisenco (Cab Driver) @ Divina Cook (Night Maid rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Richard L. Duma (Extra Student (uncredited)) @ Russell Gibson (Barber (uncredited)Produced by||A very moving piece. The sentiment in "Scent of a Woman" does not feel false or forced - it is yearned for. This is the first movie in a long time where i've not found myself looking at how long there is left about half way through. I didn't want it to end, and now its over i have this lingering affection for it. I knew this would be a beautiful movie, no matter the outcome, when Colonel Frank Slade (Pacino) lets his newly hired assistant Charlie Simms (Chris O'Donnel) know, as they sit at a lush meal, in an expensive restaurant, where they came from their hotel, the Walforf-Astoria, that while they are in New York, Slade plans to drive a ferrari, sleep with a beautiful woman, and lay down on his bed and blow his brains out. This is a movie about what there is to love in life - what reasons there are to live. And for Colonel Slade, above all things, that is making love to a woman - and a distant second, driving a ferrari. Feminists may find themselves uncomfortable when seeing this movie - because it indulges in a traditional stereotype of women, putting them up on a pedestal, so that they're so special they can not even be spoken to as a man can speak to a man. In many ways (contrary to what you might think) this is a man's picture. Its about the brotherhood between men, where the highest virtue is integrity; and its about man's love of women. In fact, women only pop up in this picture to serve the needs of the male characters, and the male scriptwriters. The most memorable of these cameos, of course, is Gabrielle Anwar, in the magestic (and famous) tango sequence. It surprised me that Anwar didn't return, until i realised that she was only there to dance with Slade, and what was important was the relationship between Slade and Simms. So although this movie is very much about men, and is very old-fashioned in its value system, it is these things in an affectionate way. Since women consider this a chick flick (i think), then perhaps they like the way they look through men's eyes? In any case, this is a special movie, which leaves you with a lingering feeling for it. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |||||||@@ Schindler's List|Steven Spielberg|Drama|R |8.8|USA|1993|197 min/ USA:194 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|Irving Glovin Kathleen Kennedy Branko Lustig Gerald R. Molen Robert Raymond Lew Rywin Steven Spielberg|Thomas Keneally Steven Zaillian|Janusz Kaminski ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire.|Oskar Schindler is a vain, glorious and greedy German businessman who becomes unlikely humanitarian amid the barbaric Nazi reign when he feels compelled to turn his factory into a refuge for Jews. Based on the true story of Oskar Schindler who managed to save about 1100 Jews from being gassed at the Auschwitz concentration camp. A testament for the good in all of us. The true story of Czech born Oskar Schindler, a businessman who tried to make his fortune during the Second World War by exploiting cheap Jewish labour, but ended up penniless having saved over 1000 Polish Jews from almost certain death during the holocaust. The true story of Oscar Schindler, a German businessman who owns a factory. He witnesses the horrifying visions of the Holocaust and the toll it takes on the Jewish people. Eventually, he creates a list of over 1100 Jews whom he saves from death. "Schindler's List" is the based-on-truth story of Nazi Czech business man Oskar Schindler, who uses Jewish labor to start a factory in occupied Poland. As World War II progresses, and the fate of the Jews becomes more and more clear, Schindler's motivations switch from profit to human sympathy and he is able to save over 1100 Jews from death in the gas chambers. |Liam Neeson (Oskar Schindler) @ Ben Kingsley (Itzhak Stern) @ Ralph Fiennes (Amon Goeth) @ Caroline Goodall (Emilie Schindler) @ Jonathan Sagall (Poldek Pfefferberg (as Jonathan Sagalle)) @ Embeth Davidtz (Helen Hirsch) @ Malgoscha Gebel (Victoria Klonowska) @ Shmulik Levy (Wilek Chilowicz) @ Mark Ivanir (Marcel Goldberg) @ Béatrice Macola (Ingrid) @ Andrzej Seweryn (Julian Scherner) @ Friedrich von Thun (Rolf Czurda) @ Krzysztof Luft (Herman Toffel) @ Harry Nehring (Leo John) @ Norbert Weisser (Albert Hujar) @ Adi Nitzan (Mila Pfefferberg) @ Michael Schneider (Juda Dresner) @ Miri Fabian (Chaja Dresner) @ Anna Mucha (Danka Dresner) @ Albert Misak (Mordecai Wulkan) @ Michael Gordon (Mr. Nussbaum) @ Aldona Grochal (Mrs. Nussbaum) @ Jacek Wójcicki (Henry Rosner) @ Beata Paluch (Manci Rosner) @ Piotr Polk (Leo Rosner) @ Ezra Dagan (Rabbi Menasha Lewartow) @ Beata Nowak (Rebecca Tannenbaum) @ Rami Heuberger (Josef Bau (as Rami Hauberger)) @ Leopold Kozlowski (Investor) @ Jerzy Nowak (Investor) @ Uri Avrahami (Chaim Nowak) @ Adam Siemion (O.D./Chicken boy) @ Magdalena Dandourian (Nuisa Horowitz) @ Pawel Delag (Dolek Horowitz) @ Shabtai Konorti (Garage mechanic) @ Oliwia Dabrowska (Red Genia) @ Henryk Bista (Mr. Lowenstein) @ Tadeusz Bradecki (DEF foreman) @ Wojciech Klata (Lisiek) @ Elina Löwensohn (Diana Reiter) @ Ewa Kolasinska (Irrational woman) @ Bettina Kupfer (Regina Perlman) @ Grzegorz Kwas (Mietek Pemper) @ Vili Matula (Investigator) @ Stanislaw Koczanowicz (Doorman) @ Hans-Jörg Assmann (Julius Madritsch (as Hans Jorg Assmann )) @ Geno Lechner (Majola) @ August Schmölzer (Dieter Reeder (as August Schmolzer)) @ Ludger Pistor (Josef Liepold) @ Beata Rybotycka (Club singer) @ Branko Lustig (Nightclub maitre d') @ Artus Maria Matthiessen (Treblinka commandant) @ Hans-Michael Rehberg (Rudolph Hoss) @ Eugeniusz Priwieziencew (Waiter) @ Michael Z. Hoffmann (Montelupich colonel) @ Erwin Leder (Waffen SS officer) @ Jochen Nickel (Wilhelm Kunde) @ Andrzej Welminski (Dr. Blancke) @ Daniel Del Ponte (Dr. Josef Mengele) @ Marian Glinka (DEF SS officer) @ Grzegorz Damiecki (SS Sgt. Kunder) @ Stanislaw Brejdygant (DEF guard) @ Olaf Lubaszenko (Auschwitz guard) @ Haymon Maria Buttinger (Auschwitz guard) @ Peter Appiano (Auschwitz guard) @ Jacek Pulanecki (Brinnlitz guard) @ Tomasz Dedek (Gestapo agent) @ Slawomir Holland (Gestapo agent) @ Martin Semmelrogge (Waffen SS man) @ Tadeusz Huk (Brinnlitz Gestapo agent) @ Gerald Alexander Held (SS bureaucrat) @ Piotr Cyrwus (Ukrainian guard) @ Joachim Paul Assböck (Klaus Tauber (Gestapo clerk)) @ Osman Ragheb (Border guard) @ Maciej Orlos (German clerk) @ Marek Wrona (Toffel's secretary) @ Zbigniew Kozlowski (Scherer's secretary) @ Marcin Grzymowicz (Czurda's secretary) @ Dieter Witting (Bosch) @ Magdalena Komornicka (Goeth's girl) @ Agnieszka Krukówna (Czurda's girl (as Agnieszka Kruk)) @ Anemona Knut (Polish girl) @ Jeremy Flynn (Brinnlitz man) @ Agnieszka Wagner (Brinnlitz girl) @ Jan Jurewicz (Russian officer) @ Wieslaw Komasa (Plaszow Depot SS guard) @ Maciej Kozlowski (SS guard, Zablocie) @ Martin S. Bergmann (SS NCO, Zablocie) @ Wilhelm Manske (SS NCO, ghetto) @ Peter Flechtner (SS NCO, ghetto) @ Sigurd Bemme (SS NCO, ghetto) @ Ethel Szyc (Ghetto woman) @ Lucyna Zabawa (Ghetto woman) @ Ruth Farhi (Old Jewish woman) @ Jerzy Sagan (Ghetto old man) @ Dariusz Szymaniak (Prisoner at depot) @ Dirk Bender (Clerk at depot) @ Maciej Winkler (Black marketeer) @ Radoslaw Krzyzowski (Black marketeer) @ Jacek Lenczowski (Black marketeer) @ Hanna Kossowska (Ghetto doctor) @ Maja Ostaszewska (Frantic woman) @ Sebastian Skalski (Stableboy) @ Ryszard Radwanski (Pankiewicz) @ Piotr Kadlcik (Man in pharmacy) @ Bartek Niebielski (NCO, Plaszow) @ Thomas Morris (Grun) @ Sebastian Konrad (Engineer) @ Lidia Wyrobiec-Bank (Clara Sternberg) @ Ravit Ferera (Maria Mischel) @ Agnieszka Korzeniowska (Ghetto girl) @ Dominika Bednarczyk (Ghetto girl) @ Alicja Kubaszewska (Ghetto girl) @ Danny Marcu (Ghetto man) @ Hans Rosner (Ghettoman) @ Edward Linde Lubaszenko (Brinnlitz priest) @ Alexander Strobele (Monterlupich prisoner) @ Georges Kern (Depot master) @ Alexander Buczolich (Plaszow SS guard) @ Michael Schiller (Plaszow SS guard) @ Götz Otto (Plaszow SS guard (as Goetz Otto)) @ Wolfgang Seidenberg (Plaszow SS guard) @ Hubert Kramer (Plaszow SS guard) @ Razia Israeli (Plaszow Jewish girl) @ Dorit Seadia (Plaszow Jewish girl (as Dorit Ady Seadia)) @ Esti Yerushalmi (Plaszow Jewish girl rest of cast listed alphabetically Danka Dresner .... Herself (Schindler mourner)) @ Emilie Schindler (Herself (Schindler mourner)) @ Mrs. Itzhak Stern (Herself (Schindler mourner)) @ Joseph Bau (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Rebeka Bau (Herself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Michelle Csitos ( (uncredited)) @ Janek Dresner (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Helen Hirsch (Herself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Nuisia Horowitz (Herself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Ryszard Horowitz (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Kamil Krawiec (Little Jewish boy (uncredited)) @ Leopold Pfefferberg (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Mila Pfefferberg (Herself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Helen Rosner (Herself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Henry Rosner (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Leopold Rosner (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Manci Rosner (Herself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Olek Rosner (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)) @ Katarzyna Smiechowicz (German girl (uncredited)) @ Mordeci Wulkan (Himself/Schindler mourner (uncredited)Produced by||A beautiful film about the holocaust horror Undoubtedly, this is a masterpiece, one of the most recent ones created in cinema history. Can a movie about the holocaust be beautiful? Of course it can, and here we have an example. We have more than three hours of poetry about the human nature, about love, about hate, about madness, about egoism, about altruism, all of them mixed to produce the human being as what it really is. It's a film that cleans our soul, makes us feel like humans, and makes us understand a little bit better the aim of the Human Race. John Williams gave the most beautiful sound-track he ever created to set the emotional background this film needed. ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Scream|Wes Craven|Horror|Rated R for strong graphic horror violence and gore, and for language. R|7.0|USA|1996|111 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/16/2004|Stuart M. Besser Dixie J. Capp Cathy Konrad Marianne Maddalena Nicholas Mastandrea Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Cary Woods|Kevin Williamson |Mark Irwin ||Alliance |Don't Answer The Phone. Don't Open The Door. Don't Try To Escape.|A teenage girl (Neve Campbell) becomes the target of a killer who has stalked and killed one of her classmates. A tabloid news reporter (Courtney Cox) is determined to uncover the truth, insisting that the man who raped and killed Campbell's mother one year earlier is the same man who is terrorizing her now. Campbell's boyfriend (Skeet Ulrich) becomes the prime suspect. One year after Sidney's moms death, more killings start to occur. Their only clue is a ghost mask. A local tabloid reporter, Gale Weathers is on the case to find out who the killer is. She tells Sidney that it could possibly be the same man that killed her mom one year earlier. When the night comes, she will see who the person is behind the mask. After a series of mysterious deaths, a seemingly peaceful community becomes a place where no one is safe . . . and everyone is suspect! That's when an offbeat group of friends rally to unlock the town's deadly secrets . . . and get caught up in the deadly results. Featuring Drew Barrymore, Courtney Cox, Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich, and David Arquette. |David Arquette (Deputy Dwight 'Dewey' Riley) @ Neve Campbell (Sidney Prescott) @ Courteney Cox (Gale Weathers) @ Skeet Ulrich (Billy Loomis) @ Rose McGowan (Tatum Riley) @ Matthew Lillard (Stuart Macher) @ Jamie Kennedy (Randy Meeks) @ W. Earl Brown (Kenneth Jones) @ Drew Barrymore (Casey Becker) @ Joseph Whipp (Sheriff Burke) @ Lawrence Hecht (Neil Prescott) @ Roger L. Jackson (Phone Voice (voice) (as Roger Jackson)) @ David Booth (Mr. Becker) @ Liev Schreiber (Cotton Weary) @ Kevin Patrick Walls (Steven Orth) @ Carla Hatley (Mrs. Becker) @ Lois Saunders (Mrs. Tate) @ Lisa Beach (TV Reporter #1) @ Tony Kilbert (TV Reporter #2) @ C.W. Morgan (Hank Loomis) @ Frances Lee McCain (Mrs. Riley) @ Troy Bishop (Expelled Teen #1) @ Ryan Kennedy (Expelled Teen #2) @ Leonora Scelfo (Cheerleader in Bathroom) @ Nancy Anne Ridder (Girl in Bathroom) @ Lisa Canning (Reporter with Mask) @ Bonnie Wood (Young Girl in Video Store) @ Aurora Draper (Party Teen #1) @ Kenny Kwong (Party Teen #2) @ Justin Sullivan (Teen on Couch) @ Kurtis Bedford (Bored Teen) @ Angela Miller (Girl on Couch) @ Lucille Bliss (Checkout Lady (scenes deleted) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Linda Blair (Obnoxious Reporter (uncredited)) @ Wes Craven (Fred the Janitor (uncredited)) @ Lynn McRee (Maureen Roberts-Prescott (photograph) (uncredited)) @ Freddy W. Smith (Hall Monitor (uncredited)) @ Henry Winkler (Principal Arthur Himbry (uncredited)Produced by||Resurrection Boulevard. Wes Craven's "A Nightmare on Elm Street" series had run its course by 1996 and he needed some new material. While horror films rarely become creative, Craven decided to poke fun at the genre that he helped to make famous by the mid-1980s with "Scream". This is a silly slasher flick, but it knows what it is and does not try to get cute with crazed gimmicks. A town falls under siege as the teens start to be murdered by a person dressed in what is little more than a Halloween costume. Naturally the cops are no help (most notably David Arquette) and the media turns the whole thing into a gigantic circus (with Courtney Cox leading the way). Teens Neve Campbell, Drew Barrymore, Rose McGowan, Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard all try to figure out who the bad guy might be, but in the end twists and turns will occur that will surprise some and leave others feeling a bit empty. "Scream" is not a bad film for the genre. In fact it is a near masterpiece compared to the "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" series of films. Craven, who struck gold with the original "A Nightmare on Elm Street", nearly accomplishes what he did some 12 years earlier when he revolutionized a sub-par cinematic group of films. "Scream" works better as a parody than an actual horror flick and its influence would lead to lesser films by other film-makers. 3.5 out of 5 stars. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Scream 2|Wes Craven|Horror|Rated R for language and strong bloody violence. R|5.9|USA|1997|120 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/16/2004|Daniel K. Arredondo Cary Granat Cathy Konrad Daniel Lupi Marianne Maddalena Nicholas Mastandrea Julie Plec Richard Potter Andrew Rona Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Kevin Williamson Chadbyrne R. Dickens|Kevin Williamson Kevin Williamson|Peter Deming ||Alliance |Someone has taken their love of sequels one step too far.|It has been two years since the tragic events at Woodsboro. Sidney Prescott and Randy Meeks are trying to get on with their lives, and are currently both students at Windsor College. Cotton Weary is out of prison, and is trying to cash in on his unfortunate incarceration. Gale Weathers has written a bestseller, "The Woodsboro Murders," which has been turned into the film, "Stab," starring Tori Spelling as Sidney. As the film's play date approaches, the cycle of death begins anew. Dewey Riley immediately flies out of Woodsboro to try to protect Sidney, his "surrogate sister." But in this sequel to the 1996 horror film, the number of suspects only goes down as the body count slowly goes up! Two years after the terrifying events that occurred in Woodsboro, Sidney is now attending Windsor College in Cincinnati with long time friend Randy. Meanwhile, Gale Weathers best selling book on Sidney's life has now been made into a major motion picture. When two college students are killed in a theatre while watching the new film "Stab," Sidney knows deep down that history is for sure repeating itself again. Gale Weathers is present around the college reporting on the latest gruesome details that her movie has sparked. Dewey comes to visit Sidney after he hears the news also. No one believes the murders were in any way connected to Woodsboro, until more students around the campus are found dead. Gale and Dewey investigate and find that someone is trying to recreate Woodsboro. Sidney is no rookie when it comes to surviving a killer but someone wiser is on campus to show her some good old fashion revenge. Sidney Prescott relocates to Winsdor College, trying to forget what happen in Woodsborro, only to find that another psychotic killer wants her dead. They also make the Woodsborro events into a motion picture, "Stab", based on the Gale Weathers book. |David Arquette (Dwight 'Dewey' Riley) @ Neve Campbell (Sidney Prescott) @ Courteney Cox (Gale Weathers) @ Sarah Michelle Gellar (Casey 'Cici' Cooper) @ Jamie Kennedy (Randy Meeks) @ Laurie Metcalf (Debbie Salt) @ Elise Neal (Hallie McDaniel) @ Jerry O'Connell (Derek Feldman) @ Timothy Olyphant (Mickey Altieri) @ Jada Pinkett Smith (Maureen Evans (as Jada Pinkett)) @ Liev Schreiber (Cotton Weary) @ Lewis Arquette (Chief Lewis Hartley) @ Duane Martin (Joel Jones) @ Rebecca Gayheart (Sorority Sister Lois) @ Portia de Rossi (Sorority Sister Murphy) @ Omar Epps (Phil Stevens) @ Paulette Patterson (Usher Giving Out Costumes) @ Rasila Schroeder (Screaming Girl Up Aisle) @ Heather Graham ('Stab' Casey) @ Roger L. Jackson (The Voice (voice)) @ Peter Deming (Popcorn Boy) @ Molly Gross (Theater Girl #1) @ Rebecca McFarland (Theater Girl #2) @ Kevin Williamson (Cotton's Interviewer) @ Sandy Heddings (Girl in Dorm Hallway (as Sandy Heddings-Katulka)) @ Dave Allen Clark (Reporter Outside Theater) @ Joe Washington (Reporter #1) @ Angie Dillard (Reporter #2) @ John Patrick (Reporter #3) @ Craig Shoemaker (Film Teacher) @ Joshua Jackson (Film Class Guy #1 (as Josh Jackson)) @ Walter Franks (Film Class Guy #2) @ Nina Petronzio (Film Class Mopey Girl) @ Stephanie Belt (Reporter #4) @ Richard Bruce Doughty (Reporter #5 (as Richard Doughty)) @ Marisol Nichols (Dawnie) @ Cornelia Kiss (Coroner at Cici's House) @ Lucy Lin (E.R. Doctor) @ Philip Pavel (Officer Andrews) @ Tim Hillman (Captain Down (as Timothy T. Hillman)) @ Nancy O'Dell (Tori's Interviewer) @ Tori Spelling ('Stab' Sidney/Herself) @ Luke Wilson ('Stab' Billy) @ David Warner (Drama Teacher Gus Gold) @ Greg Meiss (Zeus) @ Adam Shankman (Ghost Dancer) @ Kris Andersson (Dancer (as Jon Kristien Andersson)) @ Carmen M. Chavez (Dancer) @ Anne Fletcher (Dancer) @ Erik Hyler (Dancer) @ Sebastian Lacause (Dancer) @ Lance MacDonald (Dancer) @ Sarah Christine Smith (Dancer) @ Laurie Sposit (Dancer) @ Ryan Lee Swanson (Dancer) @ Jack Baun (Tackled Cell Phoner) @ Corey Parker (Library Guy) @ Christopher Doyle (Officer Richards (as Chris Doyle)) @ Mark Oliver (Reporter #6) @ Jason Horgan (Fraternity Brother #1) @ D.K. Arredondo (Fraternity Brother #2) @ John Embry (Fraternity Brother #3) @ Jennifer Weston (Reporter #7) @ Shelly Benedict (Reporter #8 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Selma Blair (Cici's Friend on Phone (voice) (uncredited)) @ Carrie Collins (College Student (uncredited)) @ Wes Craven (Officer at Ambulance (uncredited)) @ Matthew Lillard (Guy at Party (uncredited)Produced by||It's not better then the first, but still a good sequel I will admit, there were a few jumpy scenes. But nothing too special. Mostly just a catch up on how Sydney, Gale, Dewy, and Randy are. The killer comes back to kill them. Or in their words, finish what was supposed to happen(in the first movie). The begining was interesting. I thought it was kind of creative. But a lot of dumb "she's a stupid WHITE bitch" type of stuff. I'm kind of getting sick of that. But over all, I have to say that this was a good sequel. They didn't over do it. And I liked the ending. It was very suprising. To Wes, may I suggest though that you should of left it here. I mean how many times are you going to try to kill Sydney? 8/10 || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Scrooged|Richard Donner|Drama|PG-13 |6.5|USA|1988|101 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/28/2004|Richard Donner Peter Frankfurt Raymond Hartwick Jennie Lew Tugend Art Linson Stephen J. Roth|Mitch Glazer Michael O'Donoghue Charles Dickens|Michael Chapman ||CIC-Taft Home Video [au] |Bill Murray is back among the ghosts. Only this time, it's three against one.|Frank Cross runs a US TV station which is planning a live adaptation of Dickens' Christmas Carol. Frank's childhood wasn't a particularly pleasant one, and so he doesn't really appreciate the Christmas spirit. With the help of the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, Frank realises he must change. Frank Cross is a television executive who is cold hearted. He only cares about himself. Cross is then visited by three ghosts, much like Ebenezer Scrooge was, while trying to put on the biggest television special of his career, and he learns that he really is "Scrooged." |Bill Murray (Francis Xavier Cross) @ Karen Allen (Claire Phillips) @ John Forsythe (Lew Hayward) @ John Glover (Bryce Cummings) @ Bob Goldthwait (Eliot Loudermilk (as Bobcat Goldthwait)) @ David Johansen (Ghost of Christmas Past) @ Carol Kane (Ghost of Christmas Present) @ Robert Mitchum (Preston Rhinelander) @ Nicholas Phillips (Calvin Cooley) @ Michael J. Pollard (Herman) @ Alfre Woodard (Grace Cooley (Frank Cross' secretary)) @ Mabel King (Gramma) @ John Murray (James Cross) @ Jamie Farr (Himself (TV Jacob Marley)) @ Robert Goulet (Himself) @ Buddy Hackett (Himself (TV Scrooge)) @ John Houseman (Himself) @ Lee Majors (Himself) @ Pat McCormick (Himself (TV Ghost of Christmas Past)) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Earl Cross) @ Mary Lou Retton (Herself (TV Tiny Tim)) @ Al 'Red Dog' Weber (Santa Claus) @ Jean Speegle Howard (Mrs. Claus) @ June Chandler (June Cleaver) @ Michael Eidam (Wally Cleaver) @ Mary Ellen Trainor (Ted) @ Bruce Jarchow (Wayne) @ Sanford Jensen (Executive) @ Jeffrey Joseph (Executive) @ Dick Blasucci (Executive) @ Peter Bromilow (Archbishop) @ Bill Marcus (IBC guard) @ Cal Gibson (IBC guard) @ Damon Hines (Steven Cooley) @ Tamika McCollum (Shasta Cooley (twin)) @ Koren McCollum (Randee Cooley (twin)) @ Reina King (Lanell Cooley) @ Paul Tuerpe (Stage manager) @ Lester Wilson (Choreographer) @ Ronald Strang (Art director) @ Kate McGregor-Stewart (Censor) @ Jack McGee (Carpenter) @ Bill Hart (Carpenter) @ Kathy Kinney (IBC nurse) @ Ralph Gervais (Mouse wrangler) @ Alvin Hammer (Foreman) @ Tony Steedman (Headwaiter) @ Lisa Mende (Doris Cross) @ Ryan Todd (Frank, as a child) @ Rebeca Arthur (Tina) @ Selma Archerd (Mrs. Claus at party) @ Jay Byron (Man #1 at party) @ Harvey Fisher (Party guest) @ C. Ransom Walrod (Party animal) @ James R. Miller (Security guard at party) @ Jennie Lew Tugend (Foo-Ling) @ Roy Brocksmith (Mike (the mailman)) @ Shawn Michaels (Frisbee (stage manager)) @ Stella Hall (Lew Hayward's secretary) @ Sachi Parker (Belle) @ Delores Hall (Hazel) @ Anne Ramsey (Woman in shelter) @ Logan Ramsey (Man in shelter) @ Sydna Scott (Woman #1 in shelter) @ Wendie Malick (Wendie Cross) @ Joel Murray (Guest) @ Mitch Glazer (Guest) @ Susan Isaacs (Guest) @ Lauri Kempson (Guest) @ Miro Polo (Mary Lou's coach) @ Ralph Bruneau (Nephew) @ Maria Riva (Mrs. Rhinelander) @ James Kindelon (Butler) @ Raphael Harris (Older Calvin) @ Wayne A. Finkelman (Orderly) @ Susan Barnes (Harpy) @ Lynne Randall (Harpy) @ Gilles Savard (Waiter) @ Michael O'Donoghue (Priest) @ Dick McGarvin (Announcer) @ Tom Doak (Videotape director) @ Sam Drummy (Cameraman on crane) @ Steve Kahan (Technician (as Stephen Kahan)) @ Norm Wilson (Technician) @ Henry Brown (Technician (as Henry V. Brown)) @ Jeanine Jackson (Technician) @ Amy Hill (Technician) @ Miles Davis (Street musician) @ Larry Carlton (Street musician) @ David Sanborn (Street musician) @ Paul Shaffer (Street musician rest of cast listed alphabetically Chaz Conner .... Ghost of Christmas Future (elevator & real) (as Chaz Conner Jr.)) @ Peter Onorati (Solid Gold Dancer (uncredited)) @ Don LaFontaine (IBC promo announcer (uncredited)) @ Susanne Lavelle ( (uncredited)Produced by||A good funny Christmas film! This is in My opinion one of Bill Murray's best films and one of My favorite Christmas films.The acting is very good by Murray,Karen Allen,the late great Robert Mitchum,Carol Kane,David Johansen,Alfre Woodard,John Glover,John Forsythe Bobcat Goldthwait,and the rest of the good cast.The music by Danny Elfman is very good.Scrooged is a serious but funny film and I think all Billy Murray and Christmas movie fans should enjoy this! || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Se7en|David Fincher|Thriller|Rated R for grisly afterviews of horrific and bizarre killings, and for strong language. |8.3|USA|1995| 127 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stephen Brown Phyllis Carlyle William C. Gerrity Nana Greenwald Lynn Harris Dan Kolsrud Anne Kopelson Arnold Kopelson Gianni Nunnari Sanford Panitch Michele Platt Richard Saperstein|Andrew Kevin Walker |Darius Khondji Harris Savides||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |Seven deadly sins. Seven ways to die.|A film about two homicide detectives' desperate hunt for a serial killer who justifies his crimes as absolution for the world's ignorance of the Seven Deadly Sins. The movie takes us from the tortured remains of one victim to the next as the sociopathic "John Doe" sermonizes to Detectives Sommerset and Mills -- one sin at a time. The sin of Gluttony comes first and the murderer's terrible capacity is graphically demonstrated in the dark and subdued tones characteristic of film noir. The seasoned and cultured Sommerset researches the Seven Deadly Sins in an effort to understand the killer's modus operandi while green Detective Mills scoffs at his efforts to get inside the mind of a killer... This thriller portrays the exploits of a deranged serial-killer. His twisted agenda involves choosing seven victims who represent egregious examples of transgressions of each of the Seven Deadly Sins. He then views himself as akin to the Sword of God, handing out horrific punishment to these sinners. Two cops, an experienced veteran of the streets who is about to retire and the ambitious young homocide detective hired to replace him, team up to capture the perpetrator of these gruesome killings. Unfortunately, they too become ensnared in his diabolical plan.... |Morgan Freeman (Detective Lt. William Somerset) @ Brad Pitt (Detective David Mills) @ Kevin Spacey (John Doe) @ Gwyneth Paltrow (Tracy Mills) @ R. Lee Ermey (Police Captain) @ Andrew Kevin Walker (Dead Man (as Andy Walker)) @ Daniel Zacapa (Detective Taylor) @ John Cassini (Officer Davis) @ Bob Mack (Gluttony Victim) @ Peter Crombie (Dr. O'Neill) @ Reg E. Cathey (Coroner) @ George Christy (Workman) @ Endre Hules (Cab Driver) @ Hawthorne James (George, Library Night Guard) @ William Davidson (Library Guard (as Roscoe Davidson)) @ Bob Collins (Library Guard) @ Jimmy Dale Hartsell (Library Janitor) @ Richard Roundtree (Dist. Atty. Martin Talbot) @ Charline Su (TV News Reporter) @ Dominique Jennings (TV News Reporter) @ Allan Kolman (Forensic Man) @ Beverly Burke (TV Anchor Woman) @ Gene Borkan (Eli Gould (Sin of Greed)) @ Julie Araskog (Mrs. Gould) @ Mario Di Donato (Fingerprint Forensic Man) @ Alfonso Freeman (Fingerprint Technician) @ John C. McGinley (California) @ Robert J. Stephenson (Cop on SWAT Team) @ Harrison White (Cop on SWAT Team) @ Michael Reid MacKay (Victor (Sin of Sloth)) @ Richard Portnow (Dr. Beardsley) @ Tudor Sherrard (Coupon Man) @ Mark Boone Junior (Greasy FBI Man) @ Pamala Tyson (Homeless Woman) @ Lennie Loftin (Policeman) @ Sarah Hale Reinhardt (Police Sketch Artist) @ Emily Wagner (Detective Sara) @ Martin Serene (Wild Bill) @ Michael Massee (Man in Massage Parlour Booth) @ David Correia (Cop at Massage Parlour) @ Ron Blair (Cop at Massage Parlour) @ Cat Mueller (Hooker (Sin of Lust)) @ Leland Orser (Crazed Man in Massage Parlour) @ Lexie Bigham (Sweating Cop at Massage Parlour) @ Evan Miranda (Paramedic) @ Harris Savides (911 Operator) @ Rachel Schadt (Additional 911 Operator) @ Paul Eckstein (Paramedic (as Paul S. Eckstein)) @ Heidi Schanz (Beautiful Woman (Sin of Pride)) @ Brian Evers (Duty Sergeant) @ Shannon Wilcox (Cop Behind Desk) @ Richard Schiff (John Doe's Lawyer) @ John Santin (Helicopter Pilot) @ James Deeth (Helicopter Pilot) @ Charles A. Tamburro (SWAT Helicopter Pilot) @ Richmond Arquette (Delivery Man) @ Duffy Gaver (Marksman in Helicopter rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Charles Dutton (Cop (uncredited) Produced by||A Little Bit Better than 7 on a Scale of 10 Amazingly creepy and surprisingly realistic police drama about two detectives (Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt) who are trying to stop a crazed killer (Kevin Spacey) who is using the seven deadly sins as his inspiration. The suspense is kept at a fevered pitch throughout the film and the actors all perform to the paramount.Definitely a film for those who like film-noir styled movies, but not for those individuals who might have a weak heart.4 stars out of 5. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Seabiscuit|Gary Ross|Drama|Rated PG-13 for some sexual situations and violent sports-related images. PG-13|7.6|USA|2003|141 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/23/2004|Gary Barber Roger Birnbaum Robin Bissell Patricia Churchill Patricia Churchill Kathleen Kennedy Tobey Maguire Frank Marshall Gary Ross Jane Sindell Allison Thomas|Laura Hillenbrand Gary Ross|John Schwartzman ||Universal Pictures [us] |A long shot becomes a legend.|A half-blind ex-prizefighter (Maguire) and mustang breaker (Cooper) team up with a millionaire (Bridges) and his rough-hewn, undersized horse, Seabiscuit. The men bring Seabiscuit incredible heights, helping him earn Horse of the Year honors in 1938. Based on a true story. |David McCullough (Narrator) @ Jeff Bridges (Charles Howard) @ Paul Vincent O'Connor (Bicycle Supervisor) @ Chris Cooper (Tom Smith) @ Michael Ensign (Steamer Owner) @ James Keane (Car Customer) @ Valerie Mahaffey (Annie Howard) @ David Doty (Land Broker) @ Carl M. Craig (Sam (as Kingston DuCoeur)) @ Michael O'Neill (Mr. Pollard) @ Annie Corley (Mrs. Pollard) @ Michael Angarano (Young Red Pollard) @ Cameron Bowen (Pollard Child) @ Noah Luke (Pollard Child) @ Mariah Bess (Pollard Child) @ Jamie Lee Redmon (Pollard Child) @ Ed Lauter (Charles Strub) @ Gianni Russo (Alberto Gianini) @ Sam Bottoms (Mr. Blodget) @ Tobey Maguire (Red Pollard) @ Royce D. Applegate (Dutch Doogan) @ William Hollick (Bug Boy Jockey) @ Joe Rocco Jr. (Bug Boy Jockey) @ Dyllan Christopher (Frankie Howard) @ Anthony Klingman (Boxing Match Referee) @ Elizabeth Banks (Marcela Howard) @ Michelle Arthur (Marcela's Friend) @ Gary Stevens (George Woolf) @ Danny Strong (Young Jockey) @ Hans Howes (White Horse Trainer) @ Camillia Sanes (Molina Rojo Woman) @ Clif Alvey (Angry Trainer) @ Dan Daily (Saratoga Trainer) @ Borden Flanagan (Farm Manager) @ Shay Duffin (Sunny Fitzsimmons) @ Kevin Mangold (Saratoga Jockey) @ William H. Macy (Tick Tock McGlaughlin) @ Jay Cohen (Bugle Player) @ Frank Mirahmadi (Santa Anita Track Announcer) @ Michael Hunter (Speed Dual Jockey) @ Peter Jason (Reporter Max) @ John Walcutt (Reporter Roy) @ Tony Volu (Racing Tout) @ James DuMont (Reporter Lewis) @ Robin Bissell (Horace Halsteder) @ Eddie Jones (Samuel Riddle) @ Paige King (Tick-Tock's Squeeze) @ Andrew Schatzberg (Newsboy) @ Chris McCarron (Charley Kurtsinger) @ Roger E. Fanter (Pimlico Night Watchman) @ Gary McGurk (Tractor Worker) @ Michael B. Silver (Baltimore Doctor) @ Richard Reeves (Radio Reporter Joe) @ Matt Miller (Pimlico Starter) @ Gary Ross (Pimlico Track Announcer) @ Pat Skipper (Seabiscuit's Vet) @ Ben Campisi (Clocker Man) @ Ken Magee (California Doctor) @ Gary Hacker (Horse Vocals) @ Jose Hernandez (Male Mariachi Band Leader) @ Jesse Hernandez (Male Mariachi Band) @ Julio Hernandez (Male Mariachi Band) @ José Ramírez (Male Mariachi Band) @ Fernando C. Moreno (Male Mariachi Band (as Fernando Moreno)) @ Tony Rhune (Male Mariachi Band (as Pedro Hernandez)) @ Dennis Meade (Male Mariachi Band) @ Javier Juarequi (Male Mariachi Band) @ Aerial Delarosa (Male Mariachi Band) @ Eric Hernandez (Male Mariachi Band) @ Raul Cuellar (Male Mariachi Band) @ Catherine M. Baseza (Female Mariachi Band) @ Gina A. Duran (Female Mariachi Band) @ Cynthia Reifler Flores (Female Mariachi Band) @ Monica Fogelquist (Female Mariachi Band) @ Maria Luisa Fregosa (Female Mariachi Band) @ Ruby Guiterrez (Female Mariachi Band) @ Sylvia N. Hinojosa (Female Mariachi Band) @ Mariana Nanez (Female Mariachi Band) @ Leticia Olmos (Female Mariachi Band) @ Laura Pena (Female Mariachi Band) @ Karla Tovar (Female Mariachi Band) @ George Baker (Salvation Army Band) @ Matthew Gillies (Salvation Army Band) @ Jacqui Larsson (Salvation Army Band) @ Daniel Martinez (Salvation Army Band) @ Joshua Stanley (Salvation Army Band) @ Michael White (Salvation Army Band) @ Ivan Wild (Salvation Army Band rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Loyd Catlett (Blacksmith (uncredited)Produced by||People and Horses and Minutes, Oh My. The larger-than-life titled racehorse gets the royal treatment in this would-be-masterpiece from director Gary Ross (who had an electric debut with "Pleasantville" back in 1998). "Seabiscuit" is one of those long and sometimes nearly excruciating exercises that ultimately ends up trying to do too much to be a complete success. It is the Depression-era in the United States and the country is literally staggering to survive economically and personally. A youngster (the character grows to be Tobey Maguire) leaves his family so he can work with horses and eventually becomes a jockey that struggles with his weight and the emotional losses he has suffered. Old, washed-up horse trainer Chris Cooper becomes little more than a vagrant as the Depression hits and tries to keep his sanity by working with the animals he loves. Self-made man Jeff Bridges does not get hurt economically, but loses his only son in a freak accident and sinks into a personal depression as his wife leaves him as well. Soon though all three men will be brought together via an old horse that has never been nurtured and treated the way he should have been. What follows is a long and emotional journey for the major players as they all attempt to turn their lives around with the help of the famed horse. Bridges finds love again with a much younger beauty (Elizabeth Banks) and one of Maguire's rivals (Gary Stevens) also becomes a prominent figure as the film hits its climax. In the 1930s the press (sleazy radio personality William H. Macy in particular) had a field day with the horse, making comparisons between the animal and the way that most in the country had also fought back from hardships. "Seabiscuit" is one of those near misses. It is a would-be dramatic powerhouse that loses its way with an annoying narration, a climax that comes way too early (a syndrome with Hollywood products these days) and unsteady direction by Ross. The screenplay (also by Ross) goes too much for forced comedy and that gets in the way of its dramatic momentum. Bridges and Cooper are very solid, but Maguire disappoints here. There are several performers who would have been better suited for his role really. I still liked the movie in spite of numerous problems, but it is not near as impressive as the film-makers had hoped it would be. 4 stars out of 5. ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Searching for Bobby Fischer|Steven Zaillian|Drama|PG |7.5|USA|1993|110 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/18/2004|William Horberg Sydney Pollack Scott Rudin David Wisnievitz|Fred Waitzkin Steven Zaillian|Conrad L. Hall ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Every journey begins with a single move.|Josh Waitzkin is just a typical American boy interested in baseball when one day he challenges his father at chess and wins. Showing unusual precocity at the outdoor matches at Washington Square in New York City, he quickly makes friends with a hustler named Vinnie who teaches him speed chess. Josh's parents hire a renowned chess coach, Bruce, who teaches Josh the usefulness of measured planning. Along the way Josh becomes tired of Bruce's system and chess in general and purposely throws a match, leaving the prospects of winning a national championship in serious jeopardy. |Max Pomeranc (Josh Waitzkin) @ Joe Mantegna (Fred Waitzkin) @ Joan Allen (Bonnie Waitzkin) @ Ben Kingsley (Bruce Pandolfini) @ Laurence Fishburne (Vinnie) @ Michael Nirenberg (Jonathan Poe) @ Robert Stephens (Poe's Teacher) @ David Paymer (Kalev) @ Hal Scardino (Morgan) @ Vasek Simek (Russian Park Player) @ William H. Macy (Tunafish Father) @ Dan Hedaya (Tournament Director) @ Laura Linney (School Teacher) @ Anthony Heald (Fighting Parent) @ Steven Randazzo (Man of Many Signals) @ Chelsea Moore (Katya Waitzkin) @ Josh Mostel (Chess Club Regular) @ Josh Kornbluth (Chess Club Regular) @ Tony Shalhoub (Chess Club Member) @ Austin Pendleton (Asa Hoffman) @ Tom McGowan (Reporter) @ Ona Fletcher (Reporter) @ Kamran Shirazi (Himself) @ Joel Benjamin (Himself) @ Roman Dzindzichashvili (Himself) @ Jerry Poe McClinton (Park Player) @ Matt De Matt Reines (Night Park Player) @ Vincent Smith (Washington Square Patzers) @ Jerry Rakow (Washington Square Patzers) @ William Colgate (Statistician) @ Tony De Santis (Journalist) @ R.D. Reid (Final Tournament Director) @ Anthony McGowen (Park Dealer) @ Katya Waitzkin (82nd Girl) @ Ryder Fleming-Jones (Petey) @ Harris Krofchick (Running Chess Kid) @ John Bourgeois (Gym Parent) @ Maria Ricossa (Gym Parent) @ Caroline Yeager (Screaming Mom) @ Andrew Sardella (Josh's Syracuse Opponent) @ Nathan Carter (Josh's Teammate) @ Nicholas Taylor (Birthday Friend) @ Jonathan Fazio (Birthday Friend) @ Nicky Mellina (Birthday Friend) @ Philip Neiman (Birthday Friend) @ Elizabeth Gropman (Birthday Friend rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bruce Pandolfini (Man in Washington Park (uncredited)Produced by||Missed opportunity... This SHOULD have been a lovely little movie about chess, life, being a kid and being a parent. But you really get the feeling that they're desperately trying to overcome the inherently uninteresting nature of chess (it's a great game, but is hardly gonna pack 'em into a cinema on a Saturday night!). So you get an overdose of overblown, busily edited scenes and a truly abysmal score that gives you an orchestral crescendo whenever the young lad sees a chessboard. All the more depressing, because there's a great little movie in here trying to get out but hidden under countless layers of Hollywood gloss. And underneath the syrup there are some touching scenes, notably about Bobby Fischer and the relationship between boy and tutor, tutor and parents... pity they were so obsessed with making it sexy, they forgot about the story. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Secret Garden, The|Agnieszka Holland|Drama||7.0|USA|1993| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Francis Ford Coppola Fred Fuchs Tom Luddy Fred Roos Caroline Thompson|Frances Hodgson Burnett Caroline Thompson|Roger Deakins Jerzy Zielinski||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] ||A young British girl born and reared in India loses her neglectful parents in an earthquake. She is returned to England to live at her uncle's castle. Her uncle is very distant due to the loss of his wife ten years before. Neglected once again, she begins exploring the estate and discovers a garden that has been locked and neglected. Aided by one of the servants' boys, she begins restoring the garden, and eventually discovers some other secrets of the manor. After losing her self-indulging parents in an earthquake, a bitter young girl named Mary Lennox is sent to live in England with her reclusive Uncle. Eventually she discovers her bedridden cousin and a 'secret garden' that once belonged to her deceased aunt. With the help of her cousin, the kindly Dikon, and a little 'magic', can Mary find a way to bring love back to her family? |Kate Maberly (Mary Lennox) @ Heydon Prowse (Colin Craven) @ Andrew Knott (Dickon) @ Maggie Smith (Mrs. Medlock) @ Laura Crossley (Martha) @ John Lynch (Lord Craven) @ Walter Sparrow (Ben Weatherstaff) @ Irène Jacob (Mary's Mother/Aunt) @ Frank Baker (Government Official) @ Valerie Hill (Cook) @ Andrea Pickering (Betty Butterworth) @ Peter Moreton (Will) @ Arthur Spreckley (John) @ Colin Bruce (Major Lennox) @ Parsan Singh (Mary's Ayah) @ Eileen Page (Grandmother at Dock) @ David Stoll (Grandfather at Dock) @ Tabatha Allen (Girl at Dock Produced by||Political rereading of familiar tale (possible spoiler) Director Holland manages the trick of being faithful to Burnett's text, in terms of narrative, setting, character etc., while completely subverting its ideological assumptions.The unobtrusive analysis of class qualifies all movement towards resolution - the film ends not with aristocratic restoration but the excluded working class boy, ranging like a Western pioneer the plains of Northern England, fodder for the upcoming war; or revolutionary/Labour voter-in-waiting, who will eventually topples this hierarchy. Mary's parents in India are symptomatic of wider Imperial apathy, while the ghostly manor is an allegory for a sick, disintegrating Empire.Mary the outsider in Gothdom bears the mark of 'Edward Scissorhands' screenwriter Caroline Thompson, but Kieslowski protegees Holland and Preisner only get one chance to emulate their master, a firelit children'swish reaching their guardian thousands of miles away. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Secret of NIMH, The|Don Bluth|Animation||7.2|USA|1982| 82 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Don Bluth Gary Goldman Mel Griffin Rich Irvine John Pomeroy James L. Stewart|Don Bluth Will Finn Gary Goldman Robert C. O'Brien John Pomeroy|Bill Butler Joe Jiuliano Jeffery Mellquist Charles Warren||Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) [us] |Right before your eyes and beyond your wildest dreams.|A timid, widowed field mouse named Mrs. Brisby is faced with a crisis: her youngest son Timmy is sick in bed with pneumonia, and cannot be brought outside his home, a cinder-block house on a farm. But she must move her family to safety before the block is crushed in the farmer's spring plowing. She consults the wise Great Owl for advice, and he sends her to see the rats of NIMH, a society of superintelligent beasts living in the farmer's rosebush. The rat leader Nicodemus informs Mrs. Brisby that her late husband helped the rats escape from the NIMH lab where they had received the injections which altered their minds, and that he was delighted to have an opportunity to help the widow of their hero. Nicodemus also describes the rats' Plan to live like productive humans, without stealing from the farmer, by moving to a faraway wilderness called Thorn Valley. While Mrs. Brisby puts a sleeping powder in the bowl of the farmer's cat, the rats attempt to move her house with ropes and pulleys. But there are treacherous rodents in the group who oppose Nicodemus' aim to move, and one of them, Jenner, cuts the lines so the poles and pulleys crash down right onto Nicodemus and kill him. A furious swordfight between Jenner and Justin, the rats' Captain of the Guard, ends in Jenner's death by the hand of his own accomplice Sullivan. But now the fallen cinder block begins sinking into the mud, putting the Brisby children in grave peril. Mrs. Brisby, having escaped from a birdcage where she'd been locked (after being caught in her cat-drugging by the farmer's son), uses a magical amulet given to her by Nicodemus - a stone brought to fiery life "when worn by one with a courageous heart" - to raise her home out of the mud and guide it to a safe spot on the farm, the "lee of the stone." She had found a degree of courage that had eluded her up until this point. It seems to Mrs. Brisby, the widowed head of a family of field mice, that her youngest son must die, either by the farmer's spring plough or of pneumonia in his flight to safety. In her quest for a cure she frees a young crow from some string in which he has foolishly tied himself, at the mercy of the farmer's cat Dragon. In return for her risking her life to save his, he takes her to the creature all birds know is the wisest: a great owl. Owls eat mice, but when this owl learns Mrs. Brisby's name he sets her on a path to earning a noble solution to her predicament - which is the secret of NIMH... |Derek Jacobi (Nicodemus (voice)) @ Elizabeth Hartman (Mrs. Brisby (voice)) @ Arthur Malet (Mr. Ages (voice)) @ Dom DeLuise (Jeremy (voice)) @ Hermione Baddeley (Auntie Shrew (voice)) @ Shannen Doherty (Teresa (voice)) @ Wil Wheaton (Martin (voice)) @ Jodi Hicks (Cynthia (voice)) @ Ian Fried (Timothy (voice)) @ John Carradine (Great Owl (voice)) @ Peter Strauss (Justin (voice)) @ Paul Shenar (Jenner (voice)) @ Tom Hatten (Farmer Fitzgibbons (voice)) @ Lucille Bliss (Mrs. Fitzgibbons (voice)) @ Aldo Ray (Sullivan (voice)) @ Norbert Auerbach (Councilman 1 (voice)) @ Dick Kleiner (Councilman 2 (voice)) @ Charles Champlin (Councilman 3 (voice)) @ Edie McClurg (Miss Right (voice)) @ Joshua Lawrence (Billy Fitzgibbons (voice) Produced by||Complicated story for kids, but extremely well-done animated tale... 1st watched 5/13/2001 - 8 out of 10 (Dir-Don Bluth): Complicated story for kids, but extremely well-done animated tale ofa group of rats who are experimented on by NIMH(National Instiute for Mental Health) and become smart.They escape and live in an underground existence stealing electricity from a farmer.The plan is to generate their own electricity and be able to move to a safer locale, but we don't exactly know how this is going to happen.Dom Deluise has a humorous role as a clumsy love-lorned crow to keep the seriousness of the story at bay.This movie is excellent from beginning to end and deserved more recognition than it got(probably because it's not Disney), but launched a series of Bluth animated movies to give animated movie fans an alternative to Disney. || |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Secret Window|David Koepp|Drama|Rated PG-13 for violence/terror, sexual content and language. PG-13|6.2|USA|2004|96 min|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Gavin Polone Ezra Swerdlow|Stephen King David Koepp|Fred Murphy ||Sony Pictures Entertainment [us] |Some windows should never be opened.|Mort Rainey (Depp), a writer just coming off of a troublesome divorce with his ex-wife, Amy (Bello), finds himself stalked at his remote lake house by a psychotic stranger (Turturro) who claims Mort stole his best story idea (changing just the ending)... (Hutton plays Bello's new boyfriend; Dutton plays a private investigator hired to make Turturro's character leave Mort alone.) Mort Rainey, a successful author, is passing through a hard period in his life. After catching his wife sleeping with another man, he divorces and moves away from the city to somewhere in the country. One day a man appears at his door, presenting himself as John Shooter, and accuses Mort of copying a story from him. Although Mort believes things can be solved once he shows Shooter the original version, which had appeared two years before Shooter's version [Shooter wrote his in 1997. Rainey's was published in early 1995.], he can't seem to be able to get an original copy in the time limit set by Shooter. Strange things start happening which prevent him from recieving the needed original and Mort tries to find out who Shooter really is and if he is responsible for the things which happen. |Johnny Depp (Mort Rainey) @ John Turturro (John Shooter) @ Maria Bello (Amy Rainey) @ Timothy Hutton (Ted Milner) @ Charles Dutton (Ken Karsch (as Charles S. Dutton)) @ Len Cariou (Sheriff Dave Newsome) @ Joan Heney (Mrs. Garvey) @ John Dunn-Hill (Tom Greenleaf (as John Dunn Hill)) @ Vlasta Vrana (Fire Chief Wickersham) @ Matt Holland (Detective Bradley) @ Gillian Ferrabee (Fran Evans) @ Bronwen Mantel (Greta Bowie) @ Elizabeth Marleau (Juliet Stoker) @ Kyle Allatt (Busboy) @ Richard Jutras (Motel Manager) @ Kevin Woodhouse (Public Works Guy) @ Vito DeFilippo (Public Works Guy) @ Sarah Allen (Sheriff's NieceProduced by||Average "Secret Window" is all about Depp as a mystery writer living in a rustic lakeside community who finds himself stalked by a weirdo who is accusing him of plagiarism and nagged by a soon-to-be-ex wife who wants him to sign divorce papers. This convoluted and tortuous film is a jack of all genres and master of none which pulls together moments of drama, mystery, and suspense while heaping question upon question to build a thematic conundrum only to answer it with an unsatisfying conclusion.Withflashbacks going off like flashbulbs, this cheap ride to nowhere seems to be a waste of some very good acting talent which gets its inertia from King and Depp. With average marks from the public and critics alike, "Secret Window" is best saved for later as a TV time killer. Be sure to disengage the brain before viewing. (C+) || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Serial Mom|John Waters|Comedy||6.2|USA|1994| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Joseph M. Caracciolo Jr. John Fiedler Pat Moran Mark Tarlov|John Waters |Robert M. Stevens ||BMG Video [de] |She's a fabulous, loving, caring mother, who er... ...happens to be a serial killer!|A picture perfect middle class family is shocked when they find out that one of their neighbors is receiving obscene phone calls. The mom takes slights against her family very personally, and it turns out she is indeed the one harassing the neighbor. As other slights befall her beloved family, the body count begins to increase, and the police get closer to the truth, threatening the family's picture perfect world. |Kathleen Turner (Beverly Sutphin) @ Sam Waterston (Eugene Sutphin, D.D.S.) @ Ricki Lake (Misty Sutphin) @ Matthew Lillard (Chip Sutphin) @ Mary Jo Catlett (Rosemary Ackerman) @ Justin Whalin (Scotty Barnhill) @ Patricia Dunnock (Birdie) @ Mink Stole (Dottie Hinkle) @ Patricia Hearst (Juror #8) @ Suzanne Somers (Herself) @ Scott Morgan (Detective Pike) @ Walt MacPherson (Detective Gracey) @ Lonnie Horsey (Carl Pageant) @ John Badila (Mr. Paul Stubbins) @ Kathy Fannon (Mrs. Betty Sterner) @ Doug Roberts (Mr. Ralph Sterner) @ Traci Lords (Carl's Date) @ Tim Caggiano (Marvin A. Pickles) @ Jeff Mandon (Howell Hawkins) @ Colgate Salsbury (Father Boyce) @ Patsy Grady Abrams (Mrs. Emmy Lou Jenson) @ Richard Pilcher (Herbie Hebden) @ Beau James (Timothy Nazlerod) @ Stan Brandorff (Judge R.A. Moorehouse) @ Kim Swann (Lu-Ann Hodges) @ Bus Howard (Gus) @ Alan J. Wendl (Sloppy) @ Nancy Robinette (Jury Forewoman) @ Peter Bucossi (Rookie Cop) @ Loretto McNally (Policewoman) @ Wilfred E. Williams (Press A) @ Joshua L. Shoemaker (Court T.V. Reporter) @ Rosemary Knower (Court Groupie A) @ Susan Lowe (Court Groupie B) @ John Calvin Doyle (Carl's Brother) @ Mary Vivian Pearce (Book Buyer) @ Brigid Berlin (Mean Lady) @ Jordan Brown (Police Officer) @ Anthony 'Chip' Brienza (Vendor) @ Jeffrey Pratt Gordon (Flea Market Boy) @ Shelbi Clarke (Flea Market Girl) @ Nat Benchley (Macho Man) @ Kyf Brewer (Dealer) @ Teresa R. Pete (Baby's Mother) @ Zachery S. Pete (Church Baby) @ Richard Pelzman (Doorman) @ Chad Bankerd (Kid A) @ Johnny Alonso (Kid B) @ Robert Roser (Kid C) @ Mike Offenheiser (Joe Flowers) @ Lee Hunsaker (Girl) @ Michael S. Walter (Burglar A) @ Mojo Gentry (Burglar B) @ Gwendolyn Briley-Strand (Mrs. Taplotter) @ Jennifer Mendenhall (Reporter) @ Joan Rivers (Herself) @ Catherine Anne Hayes (T.V. Serial Hag) @ Susan Duvall (Lady C) @ Valerie Yarborough (Press) @ Jordan Young (Kid) @ Jennifer Finch (Camel Lips) @ Suzi Gardner (Camel Lips) @ Demetra Plakas (Camel Lips) @ Donita Sparks (Camel Lips) @ John A. Schneider (Husband A) @ Lyrica Montague (Court Clerk rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bess Armstrong (Eugene Sutphin's Nurse (uncredited)) @ Greg Coale (Birdie's Father (uncredited)) @ John Waters (Ted Bundy (uncredited) Produced by||Horrible No one likes and appreciates John Waters more than I do, but this movie is complete garbage from beginning to end, and extremely mean-spirited to boot. Kathleen Turner has no flair for comedy at all, and the rest of the cast isn't entirely successful either.I hate this movie! ||Movies |1.66 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Seven Brides for Seven Brothers|Stanley Donen|Comedy|G |7.3|USA|1954|102 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Jack Cummings |Stephen Vincent Benet Albert Hackett Frances Goodrich Dorothy Kingsley|George J. Folsey ||Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) [us] |MGM's love-making musical!|Adam, the eldest of seven brothers, goes to town to get a wife. He convinces Milly to marry him that same day. They return to his backwoods home. Only then does she discover he has six brothers -- all living in his cabin. Milly sets out to reform the uncouth siblings, who are anxious to get wives of their own. Then, after reading about the Roman capture of the Sabine women, Adam develops an inspired solution to his brothers' loneliness . . . kidnap the women they want! |Jane Powell (Milly Pontipee) @ Howard Keel (Adam Pontipee) @ Jeff Richards (Benjamin Pontipee) @ Russ Tamblyn (Gideon Pontipee) @ Tommy Rall (Frankincense (Frank) Pontipee) @ Marc Platt (Daniel (Dan) Pontipee) @ Matt Mattox (Caleb Pontipee) @ Jacques d'Amboise (Ephraim Pontipee) @ Julie Newmar (Dorcas Gailen (as Julie Newmeyer)) @ Nancy Kilgas (Alice Elcott) @ Betty Carr (Sarah Kine) @ Virginia Gibson (Liza) @ Ruta Lee (Ruth Jackson (as Ruta Kilmonis)) @ Norma Doggett (Martha) @ Ian Wolfe (Rev. Elcott) @ Howard Petrie (Pete Perkins) @ Earl Barton (Harry) @ Dante DiPaolo (Matt) @ Kelly Brown (Carl) @ Matt Moore (Ruth's Uncle) @ Dick Rich (Dorcas' Father) @ Marjorie Wood (Mrs. Bixby) @ Russell Simpson (Mr. Bixby rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ann Baker (Town Girl (uncredited)) @ Walter Beaver (Lem (uncredited)) @ Larry J. Blake (Drunk (uncredited)) @ Lane Bradford (Member of 4th barn raising team (uncredited)) @ Billy Dix (Man in Saloon (uncredited)) @ Millie Doff (Town Girl (uncredited)) @ Michelle Ducasse (Town Girl (uncredited)) @ Helen Eby-Rock (Mother (uncredited)) @ Tim Graham (Father (uncredited)) @ Carol Grel (Heavy Girl (uncredited)) @ Duane Grey (Rancher (uncredited)) @ Geraldine Hall (Mother (uncredited)) @ Lois Hall (Girl (uncredited)) @ Elizabeth Holmes (Mother (uncredited)) @ I. Stanford Jolley (Father (uncredited)) @ Sheila James Kuehl (Dorcas' Sister (uncredited)) @ Bill Lee (Caleb Pontipee (singing voice) (uncredited)) @ Jarma Lewis (Lem's Girlfriend (uncredited)) @ Anna Q. Nilsson (Mrs. Elcott (uncredited)) @ Phil Rich (Prospector (uncredited)) @ Ruth Robinson (Mother (uncredited)) @ George Robotham (Town Suitor (uncredited)) @ Gene Roth (Tom ('Nobody can cook like Milly') (uncredited)) @ Russell Saunders (Town Suitor (uncredited)) @ Dale Van Sickel (Leader of 4th barn raising team (uncredited)) @ Margaret Wells (Mother (uncredited)) @ Terry Wilson (Town Suitor (uncredited)) @ Bud Wolfe (Leader of third barn raising team (uncredited)) @ Sheb Wooley ( (uncredited)Produced by||Fun, with great music A lot of fun to be had by Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Adam (Howard Keel), the oldest of seven brothers, comes into town one day looking for some chaw and a wife. The shopkeep thinks this is ridiculous, but Adam effortlessly courts a young woman named Milly (Jane Powell) in only a couple of minutes. He takes her back to his rowdy brothers more as a slave than a wife, but she makes the best of it. Through her influence, the other brothers settle down a little and learn to be gentlemen. They can't keep this up forever, though, especially under the influence of the relatively untamed Adam. When his six brothers start to pine over six girls they met at a barn raising party, he convinces them, with the help of Plutarch, to kidnap them, just like the Romans did to the Sobbin', er, that is, Sabine women. The story's not especially great, but the musical numbers more than carry it along to its conclusion. It's never less than entertaining, and mostly it's wonderfully so. The songs vary a little in quality, but there are no bad ones (some of Powell's ballads come close) and there are several great ones. Howard Keel starts things off by singing "Bless Your Beautiful Hide." Later on, he and the brothers have the great song "Sobbin' Women." And there's a nice double song near the end in "June Bride" fading into "Spring, Spring, Spring." My favorite, though, is "The Lonesome Polecat," which the six younger brothers sing while cutting up logs in the snow. Their saws and axes provide most of the sound effects, and they dance with the objects slowly and gracefully. It's a beautiful number. Most people probably remember the barn raising dance best of all. No one sings there (the music is a reprise of "Bless Your Beautiful Hide"), but the choreography is a highlight in the cinema's musical genre. 8/10. || |1.85 : 1 (Spherical version) |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Seven Years in Tibet|Jean-Jacques Annaud|Drama|Rated PG-13 for some violent sequences. |6.5|USA|1997| 139 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jean-Jacques Annaud Michael Besman Richard B. Goodwin Catherine Moulin David Nichols Iain Smith Diane Summers Alisa Tager John H. Williams|Heinrich Harrer Becky Johnston|Robert Fraisse David Breashears||Columbia TriStar Egmont Film Distributors [fi] |At the end of the world his real journey began. |Heinrich Harrer runs from trouble at home in WWII Austria to climb Mt. Nanga Parbat. After meeting unforseen obstacles, he comes into contact with the forbidden city of Lhasa. Heinrich Harrer (Brad Pitt) journeys to the Himalayas to climb mountains, leaving his wife behind in Austria. War breaks out while he's gone and he is placed in a prisoner-of-war camp. Harrer escapes to Tibet where he befriends the childhood Dalai Lama and witnesses the Tibetan/Chinese confrontation escalate. Heinrich Harrer is an Austrian mountaineer who is forced to be a hero for the Nazi propaganda. He leaves Austria in 1939 to climb a mountain in the Himalayas. Through a series of circumstances (including POW camp), he and fellow climber Peter Aufschnaiter become the only two foreigners in the Tibetan Holy City of Lhasa. There, Heinrich's life changes forever as he becomes a close confidant to the Dalai Lama. |Brad Pitt (Heinrich Harrer) @ David Thewlis (Peter Aufschnaiter) @ B.D. Wong (Ngawang Jigme) @ Mako (Kungo Tsarong) @ Danny Denzongpa (Regent) @ Victor Wong (Chinese 'Amban') @ Ingeborga Dapkunaite (Ingrid Harrer) @ Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk (Dalai Lama, 14 Years Old) @ Lhakpa Tsamchoe (Pema Lhaki) @ Jetsun Pema (Great Mother) @ Ama Ashe Dongtse (Tashi) @ Sonam Wangchuk (Dalai Lama, 8 Years Old) @ Dorjee Tsering (Dalai Lama, 4 Years Old) @ Ric Young (General Chang Jing Wu) @ Ngawang Chojor (Lord Chamberlain (as Ven. Ngawang Chojor)) @ Duncan Fraser (British Officer) @ Benedick Blythe (Nazi Official) @ Tom Raudaschl (Lutz Chicken) @ Wolfgang Tonninger (Hans Lobenhoffer) @ Samdup Dhargyal (The Garpon) @ Chemchok (Garpon's Agent) @ Tenzin Jangchub (Declaration Monk Official (as Ven. Tenzin Jangschub)) @ Angphurba Sherpa (Tibetan General (as Major Angphurba Sherpa)) @ Tsering Wangdue (Burly Guide) @ Yama Ngudup Cheshatsang (Burly Guide) @ Kalsang Dhundop Lungtok (Ice-Skates Vendor) @ Sonam Bidhartsang (Jacket Vendor) @ Lama Champa Tsondu (Watch Vendor) @ Geshe Lobsang Nyma (Ling Rinpoche) @ Geshe Yeshi Tsultrim (Trijang Rinpoche) @ Lama Champa Chandu (Dalai Lama's Room Attendant) @ Pemba Norbu Sherpa (Young Sherpa) @ Karma Apo-Tsang (Messenger to Great Mother) @ Ngawang Tenzingyatso (Jokhang Monk Official (as Ven. Ngawang Tenzingyatso)) @ Choeden Tsering (Military Instructor) @ Lama Jampa Lekshe (Monk Head of Security) @ Lama Thupten Nugdup (Head of Security's Aide) @ Daniel Tedeschi (Marchese) @ Gerardo Ebert (Horst Immerhof) @ Sebastian Zevalia (Younger Rolf Harrer) @ Philipp Kriechbaum (Older Rolf Harrer) @ Lobsang Gendun Rinpoche (Tibetan) @ Tenzin Gyaltsen Rinpoche (Tibetan) @ Sharpa Tulku Rinpoche (Tibetan) @ Zongra Tulku Rinpoche (Tibetan Produced by||Too long but still worth it The main problem with this film, and indeed with many films set in the outdoors, is that it's too long.Maybe it's because I'm a product of the city and the suburbs, but to me, most movies set in the outdoors that don't use the scenery to advance the plot or set the mood, but rather just want to gaze at it, bore me quickly.It's like, "Yes, it's beautiful, let's move on."Also, though I like Brad Pitt, he doesn't always do the job with his Austrian accent; even when he gets it down, you're always thinking, "That's Brad Pitt doing an Austrian accent," rather than, "That's Heinrich Harrer." And that whole subplot about Harrer missing the son he's never seen doesn't work. Still, there is much to like in this film.In many of these "white men in strange country" movies, the emphasis is on what the white man teaches the people in the other country, and that's somewhat condescending; here, it's on what the people in the other country teach Harrer, yet his story isn't made more important than the story of the Tibet people.Also, though his accent doesn't convince, Pitt is convincing as Harrer in the physical sense; he looks like a former skier and like the blond, blue-eyed ideal of the Nazis.And finally, he's convincing in taking us through Harrer's transformation. Two more things; one, someone in their comments wondered how the Dalai Lama knew so much about Western culture.According to the book, Harrer found the Dalai Lama to be quite curious about the world around him, so he studied what he could.Also, the film meets head-on the controversy about Harrer being a former Nazi; it doesn't soft-pedal his past at all, which makes his transformation that much more convincing. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 ||||||@@ Seventh Sign, The|Carl Schultz|Thriller||5.8|USA|1988| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert W. Cort Ted Field Paul R. Gurian Kathleen Hallberg|Clifford Green Ellen Green George Kaplan|Juan Ruiz Anchía ||Columbia TriStar [us] |The seals have been broken. The prophecies have begun. Now only one woman can halt the end of our world.|Around the world, the signs of the apocalypse--as outlined in the Book of Revelations--seem to be coming to pass in the wake of a mysterious wanderer. Father Lucci, the Vatican Emissary assigned to investigate, dismisses the occurrences as natural, but Abby Quinn, a young American woman, has reason to fear they're real--and that the unfolding events may spell disaster for her unborn child. |Demi Moore (Abby Quinn) @ Michael Biehn (Russell Quinn) @ Jürgen Prochnow (David Bannon) @ Peter Friedman (Father Lucci) @ Manny Jacobs (Avi) @ John Taylor (Jimmy Szaragosa) @ Lee Garlington (Dr. Margaret Inness) @ Akosua Busia (Penny Washburn) @ Harry Basil (Kids Korner Salesman) @ Arnold Johnson (Janitor) @ John Walcutt (Novitiate) @ Michael Laskin (Israeli Colonel) @ Hugo Stanger (Old Priest) @ Patricia Allison (Administrator) @ Ian Buchanan (Mr. Huberty) @ Glynn Edwards (Newscaster) @ Robin Groth (Newscaster) @ Dick Spangler (Newscaster) @ Darwyn Carson (Reporter) @ Harry Bartron (Reporter) @ Dale Butcher (Reporter) @ Dorothy Sinclair (Reporter) @ Larry Eisenberg (Reporter) @ Lisa Hestrin (Nurse) @ Christiane Carman (Nurse) @ Irene Fernicola (Nurse) @ Karen Shaver (Nurse) @ Kathryn Miller (Nurse) @ Cornelia Whitcomb (Nurse) @ Yukiko Ogawa (Nurse) @ Mariko Tse (Private Nurse) @ Adam Nelson (Paramedic) @ David King (Paramedic) @ Sonny Santiago (Medical Technician) @ Fredric Arnold (Surgeon) @ Rabbi Baruch Cohon (Cantor) @ Leonardo Cimino (Head Cardinal) @ Richard Devon (2nd Cardinal) @ Rabbi William Kramer (Rabbi Ornstein) @ Blanche Rubin (Mrs. Ornstein) @ John Heard (Reverend) @ Joe Mays (Motel Clerk) @ Jane Frances (Game Show Woman) @ Bob Herron (Jimmy's Guard (as Robert Herron)) @ J.N. Roberts (Jimmy's Guard) @ Hank Calia (Jimmy's Guard) @ Gary Epper (Jimmy's Guard) @ John Sherrod (Jimmy's Guard Produced by||Pronchow is haunting.... As a Christian, I can make the claim that this film is miserably innacurate as far as the end of times and the Book of Revelations go. However, I have to admit that as a Christain, I was moved as Jurgen Pronchow's haunting depiction of Christ. The story is about a pregnant wife (Moore) and her husband (Biehn) being selected by God to carry on a mission to prevent the end of the world. Pronchow plays the Boarder, who must carry out the task of breaking each seal at the scene of each deadly plague. It turns out that he is actually Christ, the Son of God. His performance is brilliant. The compassion he shows for people is very clear, and it is also clear that he doesn't want to see the world suffer with all of these plauges... It is just something that must happen due to the sin of the world. While Robert Powell was the greatest Christ, from "Jesus of Nazareth," Pronchow is a close second. His haunting eyes, Divine presense, and the sympathy and compassion (and at the same time, authority) that he demonstrates is excellent. While the film itself wasn't too great, with huge plot holes and inconsistencies, Pronchow's performance is certainly worth watching. Though I might pass on, it contains nudity and violence...You might want to catch the edited version on TBS.... **1/2 out of **** || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Shaft|John Singleton|Action|Rated R for strong violence and language. R|6.0|Germany|2000|99 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/3/2004|Paul Hall Steve Nicolaides Mark Roybal Scott Rudin Adam Schroeder John Singleton Eric Steel|Ernest Tidyman John Singleton Shane Salerno Richard Price John Singleton Shane Salerno|Donald E. Thorin ||01 Distribuzione [it] |Still the man, any questions?|Cool and deadly NYPD detective John Shaft arrests Walter Wade, Jr. in a racially-motivated slaying. The eye witness disappears, Wade jumps bail for Switzerland, and Shaft is livid. Two years later, Wade returns to face trial, confident his father's money and influence (and racial politics) guarantee an innocent verdict. Shaft looks hard for the witness, so Wade wants someone to kill her. He turns to a ghetto drug king, Peoples Hernandez, who's willing to kill for money, use Wade as a route to rich drug customers, and shaft Shaft. Can Shaft find the witness, convince her to testify, and shepherd her through the hail of bullets that Peoples is sure to let fly? |Samuel L. Jackson (John Shaft) @ Vanessa L. Williams (Carmen Vasquez (as Vanessa Williams)) @ Jeffrey Wright (Peoples Hernandez) @ Christian Bale (Walter Wade, Jr.) @ Busta Rhymes (Rasaan) @ Dan Hedaya (Detective Jack Roselli) @ Toni Collette (Diane Palmieri) @ Richard Roundtree (Uncle John Shaft) @ Ruben Santiago-Hudson (Jimmy Groves) @ Josef Sommer (Curt Fleming) @ Lynne Thigpen (Carla Howard) @ Philip Bosco (Walter Wade, Sr.) @ Pat Hingle (Judge Dennis Bradford) @ Lee Tergesen (Luger) @ Daniel von Bargen (Lt. Kearney) @ Francisco 'Coqui' Taveras (Lucifer) @ Sonja Sohn (Alice) @ Peter McRobbie (Lt. Cromartie) @ Zach Grenier (Harrison Loeb) @ Richard Cocchiaro (Frank Palmieri) @ Ron Castellano (Mike Palmieri) @ Freddie Ricks (Big Raymond) @ Sixto Ramos (Bonehead) @ Andre Royo (Tattoo) @ Richard Barboza (Dominican) @ Mekhi Phifer (Trey Howard) @ Gano Grills (Cornbread) @ Catherine Kellner (Ivy) @ Philip Rudolph (Uniform Sergeant) @ Angela Pietropinto (Ann Palmieri) @ Joe Quintero (Assistant D.A. Hector Torres) @ Lanette Ware (Terry) @ Stu 'Large' Riley (Leon) @ Mark Zeisler (D.A. Andrew Nicoli) @ Capital Jay (Golem) @ Bonz Malone (Malik) @ Henry G. Thomas (Member of Malik's Crew) @ Brian Oswald Talbot (Member of Malik's Crew) @ Preston Thomas (Member of Malik's Crew) @ Marshall T. Broughton (Member of Malik's Crew) @ Ann Ducati (Aunt Toni DeCarlo) @ Lisa Cooley (News Anchor) @ Elizabeth Banks (Trey's Friend (as Elizabeth Maresal Mitchell)) @ Scott Lucy (Trey's Friend) @ Christopher Orr (Walter's Friend) @ Evan Farmer (Walter Williams' friend #2) @ Will Chase (Walter's Friend) @ Jeff Branson (Walter's Friend) @ Jerome Preston Bates (Desk Sergeant) @ John Elsen (Uniform Cop in Metronome) @ Nadine Mozon (Abused Woman) @ Lawrence Taylor (Lamont) @ Caprice Benedetti (Karen) @ John Cunningham (Judge) @ Louie Leonardo (Pistolero) @ Tony Rhune (Pistolero) @ Fidel Vicioso (Pistolero) @ F. Valentino Morales (Enforcer) @ Myron Primes (Young Blood) @ Universal (Young Blood) @ Travis Brandon Rosa (Fighting Boy) @ Matthew Wallace (Fighting Boy) @ Luis Torres (Fat Man) @ John Wojda (Construction Worker) @ Ahmed Al-Khan (Bystander at Metronome) @ Amer Al-Khan (Bystander at Metronome) @ Rashid Feleyfel (Bystander at Metronome) @ Gordon Parks (Lenox Lounge Patron) @ Isaac Hayes (Mr. H) @ John Singleton (Bored cop with coffee cup) @ Al Thompson (Pisteolero rest of cast listed alphabetically Doy Gabriel Castillo (as a young man)) @ Todd Fredericks (Bystander at Metronome) @ Peter Stickles (Mickey Hunt) @ Lou Torres (Fatman) @ William H. Burns (Arresting officer (uncredited)) @ Nicholas J. Coleman (Bystander at Metronome (uncredited)) @ Johanna Estevez (Girlfriend (uncredited)) @ Marc Giamo (Protester (uncredited)) @ Mary Ann Hannon (Philip Bosco's housekeeper (uncredited)) @ Riley G. Matthews Jr. (Desk & Cell Officer (uncredited)) @ Dorian Missick (Young Man (uncredited)) @ Nik Pjeternikaj (Detective (uncredited)) @ Gloria Reuben (Sgt. Council (uncredited)) @ Dawn Robinson (Lenox Lounge Patron (uncredited)) @ Stacy Sarter (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Boston Stergis ( (uncredited)Produced by||Amusing but really nothing special. An enjoyable but nevertheless quite silly and average remake of the classic television show has the new John Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson) beating up a white racist (Christian Bale) and getting booted off of the police force. Everyone in this film is a racist - primarily the whites - and this whole idea is way too forced. The language and violence is rough, yet the film itself is quite goofy, with not many good scenes and only a few mediocre action sequences. The moral is somewhat depressing: if someone wrongs you, or someone of your race, then beat them up and kill them once they reappear. Richard Roundtree's cameo helps a bit, but regardless, this SHAFT is still only "good" at best. 2.5/5 stars. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Shakespeare in Love|John Madden|Drama|Rated R for sexuality. |7.5|USA|1998| 122 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mark Cooper Donna Gigliotti Julie Goldstein Marc Norman David Parfitt Bob Weinstein Harvey Weinstein Edward Zwick|Marc Norman Tom Stoppard|Richard Greatrex ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |...A Comedy About the Greatest Love Story Almost Never Told...|Will Shakespeare's life is going badly. His love life is a shambles, he's always short of money, and worst of all, he has writer's block. He's supposed to be nearly finished his newest play, "Romeo and Ethel the Sea Pirate's Daughter", but in fact he hasn't written a line. At a sham audition for the play, he admires a new actor, Thomas Kent, who suddenly runs away. Soon Shakespeare meets Viola de Lesseps, who lives in the same stately home as Thomas; it's love at first sight and he's inspired to begin writing the play. But by the time he realizes that Thomas is Viola in disguise, she's promised in marriage to a lord which means that Queen Elizabeth herself expects the marriage to happen. But Will and Viola find their attraction too strong to resist; they risk the wrath of her fiance with a clandestine affair, and of the law against women on stage by having "Thomas" play Romeo. No wonder he ends up changing the play into a tragedy... Romantic comedy set in London in the late 16th century: Young playwright William Shakespeare struggles with his latest work "Romeo and Ethel the Pirate's Daughter". A great fan of Shakespeare's plays is young, wealthy Viola who is about to be married to the cold-hearted Lord Wessex, but constantly dreams of becoming an actress. Women were not allowed to act on stage at that time (female roles were played by men, too), but dressed up as a boy, Viola successfully auditions for the part of Romeo. Soon she and William are caught in a forbidden romance that provides rich inspiration for his play. La storia, un pò realtà e molta fantasia, ci riporta indietro ai tempi in cui William Shakespeare, dopo aver scritto il "Tito Andronico", è in crisi di ispirazione. Fra l'altro, è afflitto anche da problemi finanziari e sentimentali. Il grande William si muove in strade buie e sporche di una Londra del 1593, in cerca di compagnia femminile e di soldi da scroccare. Ha promesso a due produttori lo stesso dramma ("Romeo ed Ethel, la figlia del pirata"); ma Cristopher Marlowe, poeta molto in voga, gli consiglia invece di parlare di due innamorati che non possono amarsi a causa delle loro famiglie: nasce così "Romeo e Giulietta"! Alla finzione teatrale, si unisce quella reale, quando Shakespeare conosce Viola de Lesseps, ricca ed affascinante promessa sposa di un nobile. Per i due è il colpo di fulmine! Si amano alla follia e lei è disposta anche a travestirsi da uomo pur di recitare in teatro affianco all'uomo che ama. Alla fine, l'opera andrà in scena con enorme successo, ma la ragazza dovrà sposare il nobile e partire con lui per le Americhe. |Gwyneth Paltrow (Viola de Lesseps ('Thomas Kent')) @ Geoffrey Rush (Philip Henslowe) @ Joseph Fiennes (William 'Will' Shakespeare) @ Tom Wilkinson (Hugh Fennyman) @ Steve O'Donnell (Lambert (as Steven O'Donnell)) @ Tim McMullen (Frees) @ Steven Beard (Makepeace, the Preacher) @ Antony Sher (Dr. Moth) @ Patrick Barlow (Will Kempe) @ Martin Clunes (Richard Burbage) @ Sandra Reinton (Rosaline) @ Simon Callow (Mr. Tilney) @ Judi Dench (Queen Elizabeth I) @ Bridget McConnell (Lady in Waiting) @ Georgie Glen (Lady in Waiting) @ Nicholas Boulton (Henry Condell) @ Imelda Staunton (Nurse) @ Colin Firth (Lord Wessex) @ Desmond McNamara (Crier) @ Barnaby Kay (Nol) @ Jim Carter (Ralph Bashford) @ Paul Bigley (Peter, the Stage Manager) @ Jason Round (Actor in Tavern) @ Rupert Farley (Barman) @ Adam Barker (First Auditionee) @ Joe Roberts (John Webster) @ Harry Gostelow (Second Auditionee) @ Alan Cody (Third Auditioneer) @ Mark Williams (Wabash) @ David Curtiz (John Hemmings) @ Gregor Truter (James Hemmings) @ Simon Day (First Boatman) @ Jill Baker (Lady de Lesseps) @ Amber Glossop (Scullery Maid) @ Robin Davies (Master Plum) @ Hywel Simons (Servant) @ Nicholas Le Prevost (Sir Robert de Lesseps) @ Ben Affleck (Ned Alleyn) @ Timothy Kightley (Edward Pope) @ Mark Saban (Augustine Philips) @ Bob Barrett (George Bryan) @ Roger Morlidge (James Armitage) @ Daniel Brocklebank (Sam Gosse) @ Roger Frost (Second Boatman) @ Rebecca Charles (Chambermaid) @ Richard Gold (Lord in Waiting) @ Rachel Clarke (First Whore) @ Lucy Speed (Second Whore) @ Patricia Potter (Third Whore) @ John Ramm (Makepeace's Neighbor) @ Martin Neeley (Actor Playing Paris and Lady Montague rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Rupert Everett (Christopher 'Kit' Marlowe (uncredited) Produced by||The story of "Romeo and Ethyl, the Pirate's Daughter." Well, almost... "Shakespeare in Love" is the ultimate film for those of us who don't particularly like Shakespeare.Not the man, but his works. I find the stilted old English he uses, and the delivery of lines about as grating as gangsta rap, but I love this film. In fact it had been two years since I saw it last, and in my original review rated it "9".Now, in comparison to other fine films I have seen, I must revise my rating to "10". It is that good, and deserving of "Best Picture." In the same vein as "Titanic" and "Pearl Harbor", where a love story is woven through historical events, so is "Shakespeare in Love". The period, late 1500s, is correct, as are all the main characters, ways of doing business, locations, and theaters. What is fictional is the love story that develops between Will Shakespeare(Joseph Fiennes) and lady Viola (Gwenneth Paltrow). While I seldom see Ms Paltrow as a sex symbol in her various films, in this one her bedroom scenes with Fiennes are quite lovely. In this film, Will is "stuck", he is looking for a muse, and is intending on writing a new play "Romeo and Ethyl, the Pirate's Daughter." Through many brief interactions with his contemporaries and Viola, the story gradually develops, bit by bit, scene by scene, into the now famous romantic tragedy. To recruit a popular actor (Ben Affleck), who will play Mercutio, Will tells him, "It will be called Mercutio." Nearer the end, Affleck tells him, "I think it should be called 'Romeo and Juliet'. That's just a suggestion, consider it." What makes this such a perfect film for me is the inspired writing and directing, which combines a factual period piece with smart and funny dialog. We see characters speaking in a modern language, and while the story line is very believable, the entire film is brimming with humor. Not the kind of "over-the-top" schick that so many recent movies employ with limited success, but the best kind of subtle humor that is the calling card of a fine scriptwriter. It is the kind of film you can appreciate more upon each viewing, and see things you never saw before. The DVD is also superb, although there is not much surround in the Dolby 5.1 soundtrack. A very interesting "extra" are facts about the real people who were represented as characters in this film. One of my favorites of all. (From John Madden, who recently directed 'Capt Corelli's Mandolin.') || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Shawshank Redemption, The|Frank Darabont|Drama|R |9.0|USA|1994|142 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/1/2004|Liz Glotzer David V. Lester Niki Marvin|Stephen King Frank Darabont|Roger Deakins ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free.|Andy Dufresne is a young and successful banker whose life changes drastically when he is convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of his wife and her lover. Set in the 1940's, the film shows how Andy, with the help of his friend Red, the prison entrepreneur, turns out to be a most unconventional prisoner. After the murder of his wife, hotshot banker Andrew Dufresne is sent to Shawshank Prison, where the usual unpleasantness occurs. Over the years, he retains hope and eventually gains the respect of his fellow inmates, especially longtime convict "Red" Redding, a black marketeer, and becomes influential within the prison. Eventually, Andrew achieves his ends on his own terms. |Tim Robbins (Andy Dufresne, Inmate 37927) @ Morgan Freeman (Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding) @ Bob Gunton (Warden Samuel Norton) @ William Sadler (Heywood, Inmate 32365) @ Clancy Brown (Capt. Byron Hadley) @ Gil Bellows (Tommy Williams, Inmate 46419) @ Mark Rolston (Bogs Diamond) @ James Whitmore (Brooks Hatlen, Librarian) @ Jeffrey DeMunn (District Attorney (1946)) @ Larry Brandenburg (Skeet) @ Neil Giuntoli (Jigger, Inmate 33105) @ Brian Libby (Floyd, Inmate) @ David Proval (Snooze, Inmate) @ Joseph Ragno (Ernie, Inmate) @ Jude Ciccolella (Mert (guard)) @ Paul McCrane (Trout (guard)) @ Renee Blaine (Andy Dufresne's wife) @ Scott Mann (Glenn Quentin) @ John Horton (Judge (1946)) @ Gordon Greene (Parole hearings man (1947) (as Gordon C. Greene)) @ Alfonso Freeman (Fresh fish con) @ V.J. Foster (Hungry fish con) @ John E. Summers (New fish guard) @ Frank Medrano (Fat Ass) @ Mack Miles (Tyrell, Inmate) @ Alan R. Kessler (Laundry Bob) @ Morgan Lund (Laundry truck driver) @ Cornell Wallace (Laundry Leonard) @ Gary Lee Davis (Rooster) @ Neil Summers (Pete) @ Ned Bellamy (Youngblood (guard)) @ Joe Pecoraro (Projectionist (as Joseph Pecoraro)) @ Harold E. Cope Jr. (Hole guard) @ Brian Delate (Dekins (guard)) @ Don McManus (Wiley (guard) (as Don R. McManus)) @ Donald Zinn (Moresby Batter) @ Dorothy Silver (Landlady (1954)) @ Robert Haley (Food-Way manager (1954)) @ Dana Snyder (Food-Way woman (1954)) @ John D. Craig (Parole hearings ma (1957)) @ Ken Magee (Ned Grimes, Corrupt Contractor) @ Eugene C. DePasquale (Mail caller (as Eugene C. De Pasquale)) @ Bill Bolender (Elmo Blatch) @ Ron Newell (Elderly hole guard) @ John R. Woodward (Bullhorn Tower Guard) @ Chuck Brauchler (Man missing guard) @ Dion Anderson (Haig (head bull)) @ Claire Slemmer (Portland National Bank Teller) @ James Kisicki (Portland National Bank Manager) @ Rohn Thomas (Portland Daily Bugle Editor) @ Charlie Kearns (District Attorney (1966)) @ Rob Reider (Duty guard) @ Brian Brophy (Parole hearings man (1967)) @ Paul Kennedy (Tom Briggs, Food-Way Manager (1967) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ James Babson (Con (uncredited)) @ Richard Doone (Convict (uncredited)) @ David Hecht (Bank teller (uncredited)) @ Michael Lightsey (Con (uncredited)) @ Brad Mavis (New fish con (uncredited)) @ Brad Spencer (Parole hearings guard (1957) (uncredited)) @ Jodiviah Stepp (New fish con (uncredited)Produced by||Exceptional This film is probably the best life-in-prison film ever made.It depicts one man's time in the big house for something he (supposedly) didn't do.This man is Andy Dusfresne (pronounced Duframe) played in his best ever, Tim Robbins.But he isn't alone; he is joined by fellow inmate (who is the only guilty person in Shawshank) Red played also very well by Morgan Freeman.Freeman narrates the life in The Shawshank prison all the way up until the end (not to mention some very memorable escape scenes).Very memorable, showing what movies are made of.Based on Stephen King's novel (one of his best) and adapted for the screen and directed by Frank Darabont, who 5 years later would write and direct the Green Mile, another good (but can't be matched to this one) prison movie.A++ || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Shine|Scott Hicks|Drama||7.5|Australia|1996| 105 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jane Scott |Scott Hicks Jan Sardi|Geoffrey Simpson ||Buena Vista International Spain S.A. [es] ||Based on the true story of Australian pianist David Helfgott, this delightful movie charts the early and traumatic early years. Telling the story in flashback we see David as he grows up and into a child prodigy while his father abuses him and his siblings with the memory of his childhood in Europe and the loss of his family in the concentration camps. David finally breaks away from his father and goes away to study overseas, he later suffers a breakdown and returns to Australia and a life in an institution. Many years later he is released and through several twists of fate (in reality even more unlikely than film portrays) he starts playing a piano in a bar before finally returning to the concert hall. |Geoffrey Rush (David as an Adult) @ Justin Braine (Tony) @ Sonia Todd (Sylvia) @ Chris Haywood (Sam) @ Alex Rafalowicz (David as a Child) @ Gordon Poole (Eisteddfod Presenter) @ Armin Mueller-Stahl (Peter) @ Nicholas Bell (Ben Rosen) @ Danielle Cox (Suzie as a child) @ Rebecca Gooden (Margaret) @ Marta Kaczmarek (Rachel) @ John Cousins (Jim Minogue) @ Noah Taylor (David as an Adolescent) @ Paul Linkson (State Champion Announcer) @ Randall Berger (Isaac Stern) @ Ian Welbourne (Boy Next Door) @ Kelly Bottrill (Louise as a baby) @ Beverley Vaughan (Rabbi) @ Phyllis Burford (Synagogue Secretary) @ Daphne Grey (Society Hostess) @ Edwin Hodgeman (Soviet Society Secretary) @ Googie Withers (Katharine Susannah Prichard) @ Maria Dafnero (Sonia) @ Reis Porter (Postman) @ Stephen Sheehan (Roger Woodward (younger)) @ Brenton Whittle (Announcer) @ Marianna Doherty (Suzie as a teenager) @ Camilla James (Louise as a child) @ John Gielgud (Cecil Parkes) @ David King (Viney) @ Danny Davies (Registrar) @ Helen Dowell (Sarah) @ Louise Dorling (Muriel) @ Sean Carlsen (Student) @ Richard Hansell (Ashley) @ Robert Hands (Robert) @ Marc Warren (Ray) @ Neil Thomson (RCOM Conductor) @ Joey Kennedy (Suzie as an adult) @ Ellen Cressey (Nurse) @ Beverley Dunn (Beryl Ascott) @ Andy Seymour (Bar Customer) @ Lynn Redgrave (Gillian) @ Ella Scott Lynch (Jessica) @ Jethro Heysen-Hicks (Rowan) @ John Martin (Roger Woodward (older)) @ Bill Boyley (Celebrant) @ Teresa La Rocca (Opera singer) @ Lindsey Day (Opera singer) @ Grant Doyle (Opera singer) @ Leah Jennings (Musician) @ Kathy Monaghan (Musician) @ Mark Lawrence (Musician) @ Gordon Coombes (Musician) @ Luke Dollman (Musician) @ Margaret Stone (Musician) @ Tom Carrig (Musician) @ Helen Ayres (Musician) @ Suzi Jarratt (Vocalist) @ Samantha McDonald (Vocalist rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Louise Siversen (Extra in ballroom scene (uncredited) Produced by||excellent film, good in all departments, seriously moving This is a good film in every sense but will mean most to fathers with strong views :). The story of a brilliant young pianist whose relationship with his father drives him to some sort of mental illness. Watchable, absorbing, brilliantly edited, deeply seriously moving, one of the rare films that pays attention to incidental sound. Wonderful direction and acting. This is a seriously good film. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Shining, The|Stanley Kubrick|Horror|R |8.2|UK|1980|119 min/ USA:146 min (original version)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Robert Fryer Jan Harlan Mary Lea Johnson Stanley Kubrick Martin Richards|Stephen King Stanley Kubrick Diane Johnson|John Alcott ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The tide of terror that swept America IS HERE[UK Poster]|A male novelist is having writer's block. He, his wife, and his young son become the care-takers of a haunted hotel so he can go back to writing again. Once they start meeting the ghosts, they talk to them by "shining" (telepathic conversation). This slowly drives the novelist crazy until he finally snaps with the help of Mr. Grady and he starts chasing his wife around with an axe (and eventually kills an ex-employee that went to rescue the family from the house). Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) gets a job as the custodian of the Overlook Hotel, in the mountains of Colorado. The place is closed down during winter, and Torrance and his family will be the only occupants of the hotel for a long while. When the snow storms block the Torrance family in the hotel, Jack's son Danny - who has some clairvoyance and telepathy powers - discovers that the hotel is haunted and that the spirits are slowly driving Jack crazy. When Jack meets the ghost of Mr. Grady, the former custodian of the hotel who murdered his wife and his two daughters, things begin to get really nasty... Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) becomes the caretaker of the Overlook Hotel in up in the secluded mountains of Colorado. Jack, being a family man, takes his wife (Shelley Duvall) and son (Danny Lloyd) to the hotel to keep him company throughout the long, isolated nights. During their stay, strange things occur when Jack's son Danny sees gruesome images powered by a force called 'the shining' and Jack is heavily affected by this. Along with writer's block and the demons of the hotel haunting him, Jack has a complete mental breakdown and the situation takes a sinister turn for the worse. |Jack Nicholson (Jack Torrance) @ Shelley Duvall (Wendy Torrance) @ Danny Lloyd (Danny Torrance) @ Scatman Crothers (Dick Hallorann) @ Barry Nelson (Stuart Ullman) @ Philip Stone (Delbert Grady) @ Joe Turkel (Lloyd, Overlook bartender) @ Anne Jackson (Doctor) @ Tony Burton (Larry Durkin) @ Lia Beldam (Young woman in bath) @ Billie Gibson (Old woman in bath) @ Barry Dennen (Bill Watson) @ David Baxt (Forest Ranger #1) @ Manning Redwood (Forest Ranger #2) @ Lisa Burns (Grady daughter) @ Louise Burns (Grady daughter) @ Robin Pappas (Nurse) @ Alison Coleridge (Suzie (Mr. Ulman's secretary)) @ Burnell Tucker (Policeman) @ Jana Sheldon (Stewardess) @ Kate Phelps (Receptionist) @ Norman Gay (Injured guest rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Vivian Kubrick (Smoking guest on ballroom couch (uncredited)Produced by||All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy! THE SHINING (1980) **** Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers, Barry Nelson, Anne Jackson, Joe Turkel.Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece adaptation of Stephen King's bestselling shocker of a descent into madness with picture perfect portrayal of a man (Nicholson in his scariest role) who, with his family, takes a position to caretake a Colorado resort hotel during the winter with devestating effects from cabin fever and a sinister lifeforce the institution possesses.Spine-chilling sequences and an eerie performance by young Lloyd who has an otherworldly sense spelling REDRUM!! (Classic line: "HEEEERR'SSS JOHNNNEEE!!"Runner up: "He isn't here Mrs. Torrence!") ||New Stanley Kubrick Collection |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Short Circuit|John Badham|Comedy||5.8|USA|1986| 98 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gregg Champion Mark Damon David Foster Gary Foster John W. Hyde Dennis E. Jones Lawrence Turman|Brent Maddock S.S. Wilson|Nick McLean ||CBS/Fox [us] |Something wonderful has happened... Number Five is alive!|Number 5, one of a group of experimental military robots, undergoes a sudden transformation after being struck by lightning. He develops self-awareness, consciousness, and a fear of the reprogramming that awaits him back at the factory. With the help of a young woman, Number 5 tries to evade capture and convince his creator that he has truly become alive. |Ally Sheedy (Stephanie Speck) @ Steve Guttenberg (Newton Crosby) @ Fisher Stevens (Ben Jabituya) @ Austin Pendleton (Howard Marner) @ G.W. Bailey (Skroeder) @ Brian McNamara (Frank) @ Tim Blaney (Number 5 (voice)) @ Marvin J. McIntyre (Duke) @ John Garber (Otis) @ Penny Santon (Mrs. Cepeda) @ Vernon Weddle (Gen. Washburne) @ Barbara Tarbuck (Sen. Mills) @ Tom Lawrence (Mr. Marner's aide) @ Fred Slyter (Norman) @ Billy Ray Sharkey (Zack) @ Robert Krantz (Reporter) @ Jan Speck (Reporter) @ Marguerite Happy (Barmaid) @ Howard Krick (Farmer) @ Marjorie Card Hughes (Farmer's wife) @ Herb Smith (Gate guard) @ Jack Thompson (Party guest) @ William Striglos (Party guest) @ Mary Reckley (Party guest) @ Lisa McLean (Party guest) @ Eleanor C. Heutschy (Party guest Produced by||Great fun for kids and adults What makes this movie so entertaining? It could be a number of things: A cute robot, a good cast, great comedy, and John Badham, the director that can take a low budget film and make it into a classic (such as his previous work, Saturday Night Fever, which was alot more vulgar) Or Maybe it's just fun to watch all of the neat little gadgets Number 5 has, showing that some of the least expensive things can be made to look high-tech. ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Short Circuit 2|Kenneth Johnson|Comedy|PG |4.5|USA|1988|110 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/28/2004|David Foster Gary Foster Michael MacDonald Lawrence Turman|Brent Maddock S.S. Wilson|John McPherson ||Columbia TriStar Films [fr] |Some say he's nuts. Some say he's bolts. But can Number Five make it in the big, bad city? Keep your wires crossed.|When Number Five is sent from Newton and Stephanie's ranch to the big city to help Ben with his electronics business, he finds that his robotic talents are wanted by city low-life who want to turn Number Five into profits. |Fisher Stevens (Ben Jahrvi) @ Michael McKean (Fred Ritter) @ Cynthia Gibb (Sandy Banatoni) @ Jack Weston (Oscar Baldwin) @ Dee McCafferty (Saunders) @ David Hemblen (Jones) @ Don Lake (Manic Mike) @ Damon D'Oliveira (Bones) @ Tito Núñez (Zorro) @ Jason Kuriloff (Lil Man) @ Robert LaSardo (Spooky) @ Lili Francks (Officer Mendez) @ Wayne Best (Officer O'Malley) @ Gerard Parkes (Priest) @ Adam Ludwig (Hans de Ruyter) @ Rex Hagon (Dartmoor) @ Rummy Bishop (News vendor) @ Richard Comar (Mr. Slater) @ Tony De Santis (Russian taxi driver) @ Eric Keenleyside (Simpsons truck driver) @ Phillip Jarrett (Card hustler (as Phil Jarrett)) @ Jeremy Ratchford (Bill) @ Kurt Reis (Mr. Arnold) @ Garry Robbins (Francis) @ Ric Sarabia (Toy robot builder) @ Barry Flatman (Robotic company CEO) @ Jane Schoettle (Robotic executive) @ Carlton Watson (Robotic engineer) @ Eve Crawford (Federal judge) @ Craig Gardner (Art lover) @ Sam Moses (Clothing store owner) @ Norwich Duff (Paramedic) @ Claudette Roche (Secretary (as Claudette Roach)) @ Frank Adamson (Desk sergeant) @ Chris Barker (Bus driver) @ Peter Shanne (Entourage leader) @ James Killeen (Reporter) @ Patrick Greenwood (SWAT team officer) @ Tim Blaney (Johnny Five (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ally Sheedy (Stephanie Speck (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||Number 5 Scores a 2.5 Again "Short Circuit 2" is no better than the first and really no worse for that matter.Once again it is a fair film about the likeable robot who gets into all sorts of strange situations.This time the naive Number 5 helps a group of jewel thieves in New York City.Fisher Stevens is on hand again, but it is Michael McKeon that steals every scene as a street-smart hustler who is not nearly as smart as he thinks he is.The direction is fair and the screenplay is suspect.Overall a fair film that never does dazzle the viewer.2.5 out of 5 stars. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Signs|M. Night Shyamalan|Drama|Rated PG-13 for some frightening moments. |7.2|USA|2002| 106 min/ Spain:108 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Sam Mercer M. Night Shyamalan|M. Night Shyamalan |Tak Fujimoto ||Buena Vista (Austria) GmbH [at] |It's Not Like They Didn't Warn Us.|In Bucks County, Pennsylvania, a five-hundred-foot crop circle is found on the farm of Graham Hess (Gibson), the town's reverend. The circles cause a media frenzy and test Hess's faith as he journeys to find out the truth behind the crop circles. The story of the Hess family in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. One morning they wake up to find a 500 foot crop circle in their backyard. Graham Hess (Mel Gibson) and his family are told extraterretrials are responsible for the sign in their field. They watch the news as crop circles are soon found all over the world. |Mel Gibson (Rev. Graham Hess) @ Joaquin Phoenix (Merrill Hess) @ Rory Culkin (Morgan Hess (Graham's Son)) @ Abigail Breslin (Bo Hess (Graham's Daughter)) @ Cherry Jones (Officer Paski) @ M. Night Shyamalan (Ray Reddy) @ Patricia Kalember (Colleen Hess) @ Ted Sutton (SFC Cunningham) @ Merritt Wever (Tracey Abernathy, the Pharmacist) @ Lanny Flaherty (Mr. Nathan) @ Marion McCorry (Mrs. Nathan) @ Michael Showalter (Lionel Prichard) @ Kevin Pires (Brazilian Birthday Boy) @ Clifford David (Columbia University Professor) @ Rhonda Overby (Sarah Hughes) @ Greg Wood (TV Anchor) @ Paul L. Nolan (Mexico City Reporter (voice) (as Paul Nolan)) @ Ukee Washington (Off-Screen TV Anchor (voice)) @ Babita Hariani (Car Radio Voice (voice)) @ Adam Way (Radio Eye Witness) @ Angela Eckert (Soda Commercial Girl) @ Jose L. Rodriguez (Radio Host (voice)) @ Paul Wilson (Soda Commercial Singer) @ Thomas Griffin (Soda Commercial Singer Produced by||Shyamalan Still Falters Due to Trickery. Another M. Night Shyamalan film that tries to dazzle and then surprise you at the end. The routine still works to an extent, but overall Shyamalan is still living off his enormous success with "The Sixth Sense". Former religious man Mel Gibson, his wise-cracking younger brother (Joaquin Phoenix) and Gibson's two young children seem to have a relatively peaceful and uneventful lives in Pennsylvania. Peaceful that is until crop circles start appearing and animals start behaving strangely. It must just be something local, right? Wrong. It appears that similar situations are occurring all over the world. What could all this mean? "Signs" is one of those films that tells its audience way too much way too fast. The suspense that is built up early on is eliminated too quickly as Shyamalan cannot keep the rabbit in the hat long enough this time. The same problems that plagued "The Sixth Sense" and "Unbreakable" are still prevalent, but a little more pronounced in this one. Overall the film is still pretty good, mainly due to Gibson's screen persona and Phoenix's comic relief. Shyamalan has an important cameo appearance as a doctor with a secret. 4 stars out of 5. ||Vista Series |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Silence of the Lambs, The|Jonathan Demme|Thriller||8.5|USA|1991| 118 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Grace Blake Ronald M. Bozman Gary Goetzman Edward Saxon Kenneth Utt|Thomas Harris Ted Tally|Tak Fujimoto ||Columbia TriStar Home Video [au] |Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Brilliant. Cunning. Psychotic. In his mind lies the clue to a ruthless killer. - Clarice Starling, FBI. Brilliant. Vulnerable. Alone. She must trust him to stop the killer.|Young FBI agent Clarice Starling is assigned to help find a missing woman to save her from a psychopathic serial killer who skins his victims. Clarice attempts to gain a better insight into the twisted mind of the killer by talking to another psychopath Hannibal Lecter, who used to be a respected psychiatrist. FBI agent Jack Crawford believes that Lecter who is also a very powerful and clever mind manipulator have the answers to their questions to help locate the killer. Clarice must first try and gain Lecter's confidence before he is to give away any information. A psychopath known as Buffalo Bill is kidnapping and murdering young women across the midwest. Believing it takes one to know one, the F.B.I. sends Agent Clarice Starling (Foster) to interview a demented prisoner who may provide psychological insight and clues to the killer's actions. The prisoner is psychiatrist, Dr. Hannibal Lector (Hopkins), a brilliant, murderous cannibal who will only help Starling if she feeds his morbid curiosity with details about her own complicated life. This twisted relationship forces Starling not only to confront her psychological demons, but leads her to face with a demented, heinous killer, an incarceration of evil so powerful, that she may not have the courage -- or strength -- to stop him! |Jodie Foster (Clarice Starling) @ Anthony Hopkins (Dr. Hannibal Lecter) @ Scott Glenn (Jack Crawford) @ Anthony Heald (Dr. Frederick Chilton) @ Ted Levine (Jame 'Buffalo Bill' Gumb) @ Frankie Faison (Barney Matthews) @ Kasi Lemmons (Ardelia Mapp) @ Brooke Smith (Catherine Martin) @ Paul Lazar (Pilcher) @ Dan Butler (Roden) @ Lawrence T. Wrentz (Agent Burroughs) @ Don Brockett (Friendly psychopath in cell) @ Frank Seals Jr. (Brooding psychopath in cell) @ Stuart Rudin (Miggs) @ Masha Skorobogatov (Young Clarice Starling) @ Jeffrie Lane (Clarice's Father) @ Leib Lensky (Mr. Lang, storage manager) @ George 'Red' Schwartz (Mr. Lang's Driver (as Red Schwartz)) @ Jim Roche (TV evangelist) @ James B. Howard (Boxing instructor) @ Bill Miller (Mr. Brigham) @ Chuck Aber (Agent Terry) @ Gene Borkan (Oscar) @ Pat McNamara (Sheriff Perkins) @ Tracey Walter (Lamar) @ Kenneth Utt (Dr. Akin) @ Adelle Lutz (TV anchorwoman) @ Obba Babatundé (TV anchorman (as Obba Babatunde)) @ George Michael (TV sportscaster) @ Diane Baker (Sen. Ruth Martin (TN)) @ Roger Corman (FBI Director Hayden Burke) @ Ron Vawter (Paul Krendler) @ Charles Napier (Lt. Boyle) @ Jim Dratfield (Sen. Martin's aide) @ D. Stanton Miranda (Reporter #1 (as Stanton-Miranda)) @ Rebecca Saxon (Reporter #2) @ Danny Darst (Sgt. Tate) @ Cynthia Ettinger (Officer Jacobs) @ Brent Hinkley (Officer Murray) @ Steve Wyatt (Airport Flirt) @ Alex Coleman (Sgt. Jimmy Pembry) @ David Early (Spooked Memphis Cop) @ Andre B. Blake (Tall Memphis Cop (as Andre Blake)) @ Bill Dalzell III (Distraught Memphis Cop) @ Chris Isaak (SWAT Commander) @ Daniel von Bargen (SWAT Communicator) @ Tommy Lafitte (SWAT Shooter (as Tommy LaFitte)) @ Josh Broder (EMS Attendant) @ Buzz Kilman (EMS Driver) @ Harry Northup (Mr. Bimmel) @ Lauren Roselli (Stacy Hubka) @ Lamont Arnold (Flower Delivery Man) @ Lawrence A. Bonney (FBI Instructor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jeff Busch (EMS Attendant (uncredited)) @ John Hall (State Trooper (uncredited)) @ Lynette Jenkins (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Chris McGinn (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Ted Monte (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ George A. Romero (FBI Agent in Memphis (uncredited) Produced by||In a Class by Itself Brilliant Best Picture of 1991 that never gets old."The Silence of the Lambs" deals with a young FBI cadet (Oscar-winner Jodie Foster) who is sent to interview a captured madman (Oscar-winner Anthony Hopkins in one of the greatest performances ever on the screen) to find out about a serial killer (Ted Levine) who is stripping the skin from his female victims after they die.The FBI has had no luck with the case and agent Scott Glenn tries to throw a curve-ball to Hopkins by sending Foster.Hopkins is a former doctor of Levine and holds the clues to capturing the unknown criminal.Needless to say the film takes many twists and turns, creating a suspenseful thriller that has no equal.At the heart of "The Silence of the Lambs" are the confrontations between Hopkins and Foster.They play a complicated chess match of words which results in some of the greatest footage ever captured for the cinema.Hopkins dominates in spite of the fact he has approximately 17 minutes of time in the film.This is a film that will wrap itself around you and you will likely never be able to shake some of the key elements you have seen in this amazing masterpiece.5 stars out of 5. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Silly Symphonies: Walt Disney Treasures Limited Edition Tin / DVD-Video|||G ||||305 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004||||||| Released Between 1928 andi1939 ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color Standard 1.33:1 B&W|ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Mono [CC] ||||||@@ Simon Birch|Mark Steven Johnson|Comedy|Rated PG for language, emotional thematic elements, and an accident scene. |6.8|USA|1998| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Baldecchi Roger Birnbaum Howard Ellis Billy Higgins Laurence Mark|Mark Steven Johnson John Irving|Aaron Schneider ||Buena Vista International Spain S.A. [es] |Destiny has big plans for little Simon Birch. |Simon Birch was born no bigger than a man's fist. Doctors said that he wouldn't live through his first night. He did. Then they said he would not live more than a week. But he did. Weeks turned into months and then those months turned into years, until Simon grew into a boy. He believed that God had a special plan for him and it was His plan to make Simon the way he is. Simon's friend Joe is on a mission of his own. His mother, Rebecca, never told him who his real father is. When his mother takes on a new love interest, Joe is not too excited about the idea as he dreams of meeting his true father someday. One day, Simon, while playing in a Little League baseball game, hits a foul ball that hits Joe's mother, Rebecca, killing her. Now the secret of Joe's real dad has died along with her. Simon's and Joe's destinies become interwoven in the end, when Simon strives to become the hero he was destined to be and helps Joe solve the mystery of his father. Simon Birch believes that God made him for a special, heroic purpose. Simon and his best friend Joe Wenteworth are both outcasts in their tiny New England town: Joe is the illegitimate son of the town beauty, and Simon, at age 12, is so small that he still plays the infant Jesus in the church Christmas pageant. In the summer of 1964, friendship is put to the test when Little Leaguer Simon hits a foul ball that strikes and kills Joe's mother. Together, they try to find out who Joe's father is. Just as they succeed, the time comes for Simon to fulfill the destiny he believes in. A situation arises that demands a hero - a very small hero. |Ian Michael Smith (Simon Birch) @ Joseph Mazzello (Joseph 'Joe' Wenteworth) @ Ashley Judd (Rebecca Wenteworth) @ Oliver Platt (Ben Goodrich) @ David Strathairn (Rev. Russell) @ Dana Ivey (Grandmother Wenteworth) @ Beatrice Winde (Hilde Grove) @ Jan Hooks (Miss Leavey) @ Cecilley Carroll (Marjorie) @ Sumela Kay (Ann (as Sumela-Rose Keramidopulos)) @ Sam Morton (Stuart) @ Jim Carrey (Adult Joe Wenteworth) @ John Mazzello (Simon Wenteworth) @ Holly Dennison (Mrs. Birch) @ Peter MacNeill (Mr. Birch) @ Addison Bell (Dr. Wells) @ Roger McKeen (Coach Higgins) @ Sean McCann (Chief Al Cork) @ John Robinson (Mr. Baker) @ Guy Sanvido (Janitor) @ Gil Filar (Eddie) @ Marcello Meleca (Howard Ellis) @ Tim Hall (Pitcher) @ Tom Redman (First Baseman) @ Mark Skrela (Third Baseman) @ Kevin White (Shortstop) @ Terry V. Hart (Umpire) @ Alan Markfield (Umpire) @ Christopher Marren (Rival Baseball Coach) @ Tommy Dorrian (Teammate #1) @ Justin Marangoni (Teammate #2) @ Tyler Cairns (Sheep) @ Gino Giacomini (Wise Man) @ Barbara Stewart (Delivery Room Nurse) @ David Rigby (Bus Driver) @ Sam Aaron (Old Man #1) @ David Chapman (Old Man #2) @ Wendy Fleming (Mrs. Russell) @ Paul De Fibo (Junior Lamb) @ Dalton Rondell (Junior Lamb) @ Cameron Croughwell (Junior Lamb) @ Logan Holladay (Junior Lamb) @ Scotty Leavenworth (Junior Lamb) @ Devon Alan (Junior Lamb) @ Joshua Titen (Junior Lamb) @ Tony Orr (Junior Lamb) @ Joshua Croughwell (Junior Lamb) @ Jeffrey Schoeny (Junior Lamb) @ Derek Montgomery (Junior Lamb) @ Sean Sullivan (Junior Lamb) @ Devon Cole Borisoff (Junior Lamb) @ Taylor Emerson (Junior Lamb) @ Brian McLaughlin (Junior Lamb) @ Nicholas Andrew (Junior Lamb) @ Sean Flynn Amir (Junior Lamb) @ Patrick McTavish (Junior Lamb) @ Blake Hubbell (Junior Lamb) @ Cody Gill (Junior Lamb) @ Ramiro González (Junior Lamb) @ Mitchell Orr (Junior Lamb) @ Trevor Habberstad (Junior Lamb rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Aaron Bouffard (Retreat Kid (uncredited) Produced by||Doesn't Try to Be Something it Isn't...(like "Patch Adams") "Simon Birch" is a touching tale of a young boy and his midget friend, Simon Birch. The beginning of the story opens with Jim Carrey at a certain grave belonging to Simon Birch. He starts the narrative by recalling the events in his life, from Birch and him playing together to Simon Birch killing his mother with a baseball (I know that sounds funny, but believe me--you'll understand when you see the film). The boys were best of friends, until (spoiler) Simon Birch ends up dying when a school bus plummets into water; Birch helps the children get off the bus, and in doing so catches pneumonia and dies shortly thereafter. But Birch left a legacy: what's on the inside matters, and be who you are. That's the message of this film, and it comes across not too strongly and not too lightly. Just right. Jim Carrey's underlying narrative really gives a certain touch to the film, while the actual story progression adds even more. "Simon Birch" isn't a great film, but then again, it isn't meant to be. The tale isn't told with a bold sense of drama, but with a side-effect of comedy and a bit of light drama. It's a tale made of fluff, but ironically, that is what makes it so memorable. One of the best things about "Simon Birch" is that it doesn't try to take itself too seriously. Unlike "Patch Adams" which wanted to be the Next Big Drama, "Simon Birch" just tries to be what it is, and that's probably the best thing about this film. 3.5/5 stars - John Ulmer || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Christmas With The Simpsons|||NR |||2003|92 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004||||||| Holiday Hilarity! Simpsons Roasting onian Open Fire ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ ||1990|298 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert Frederick ||Robert McLachlan |||| A 3-Disc Collector's Edition What we have here are thirteen crudely animated episodes, first airediin 1989 andi1990, all spiffed up, cleaned off, andiaugmented with bells andiwhistles, bonus materials, andiself-pitying audio commentaries.If Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa andiMaggie look weirdly off model, if their voices sound spooky andidifferent, andiif theianimation seems particularly glitch-filled, just remember this: we didn't know what theihell we were doing back then. |Christianne Hirt (producer)|||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Simpsons, The: The Complete Fourth Season / DVD-Video|||NR ||||506 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||8/14/2004||||||| Collector's Edition Welcomeito theidaffy, laffy, fun-as-saltwater-taffy Fourth Big Boxed Set of The Simpsons oniDVD, featuring every yok, chortle, titter, andiknee-slapper from perhaps theigreatest seasoniin theishow's history, at least until Season 5. ||||Region 1 |>Special Edition / |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Stereo FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Simpsons, The: The Complete Second Season|David Giles||NR |8.1|UK|1991|510 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Cedric Messina |William Shakespeare ||||| A 4-Disc Collector's Edition Welcomeito Season Two of The Simpsons oniDVD -- twenty-two jam-packed episodes of malicious cartoon frivolity that helped make 1990 andi1991 such entertaining andiannoying years. |Derek Jacobi (Richard II) @ John Gielgud (John of Gaunt) @ Jon Finch (Henry Bolingbroke) @ Wendy Hiller (Duchess of York) @ Charles Gray (Duke of York) @ Mary Morris (Duchess of Gloucester) @ David Swift (Duke of Northumberland) @ Clifford Rose (Bishop of Carlisle) @ Charles Keating (Duke of Aumerle) @ Richard Owens (Thomas Mowbray) @ Janet Maw (Queen) @ Jeffrey Holland (Duke of Surrey) @ Jeremy Bulloch (Henry Percy) @ Robin Sachs (Bushy) @ Damien Thomas (Bagot) @ Alan Dalton (Green) @ David Dodimead (Lord Ross) @ John Flint (Lord Willoughby) @ Carl Oatley (Earl Berkeley) @ William Whymper (Sir Stephen Scroop) @ John Barcroft (Earl of Salisbury) @ David Garfield (Welsh Captain) @ Desmond Adams (Sir Pierce of Exton) @ Joe Ritchie (Groom) @ Paddy Ward (Keeper) @ Bruno Barnabe (Abbot of Westminster) @ Jonathan Adams (Gardener) @ Luciano Pigozzi (Gardener's Man) @ John Curless (Lord Fitzwater) @ Terry Wright (Murderer) @ Ronald Fernee (Servant) @ Timothy Brown (Herald) @ Mike Lewin (Herald) @ Phillida Sewell (Queen's Lady) @ Sandra Frieze (Queen's Lady Produced by||magnificent! Richard II is Shakespeare's first great tragedy, for here he realizes that character is destiny, and no English King was so brought to ruin because of his flawed character than the weak and stupid Richard II, son of Edward the Black Prince and grandson of Edward III. Jacobi's performance gets to the very root of Richard's personality: his arrogance, poor judgment, false bravado, impulsiveness - and in the end, his elegiac suffering as he collapses in tears, shorn of his crown and titles. "I cannot see," he wails when signing his abdication papers."My eyes are too full of tears!"And was there ever a line in literature more heartbreaking than this:"I wasted time and now doth time waste me."A brilliant performance from start to gut-wrenching finish.Shakespeare has never been done better.The entire cast is marvelous. I hear too many complaints that BBC productions have poorly designed sets and costumes.Puh-leeeze!Shakespeare is all about the WORDS.If you want impressive spectacle, go rent one of Cecil B. DeMille's adaptations of the Little Golden Book of Bible Stories.BBC gives us truly GREAT actors reciting Shakespeare, uncut, unedited, and unexpurgated. Richard II was the first play in a cycle of eight plays that cover British history from 1377 to 1485 and chronicles the rise and fall of the high-hearted, ill-starred Plantagenets.Richard II is followed by Henry IV, Parts I and II; Henry V; Henry VI, Parts I, II, and III; and concluding the cycle, Richard III.This was part of a project by BBC to televise ALL of Shakespeare's plays for television.I don't know if they ever finished the series, but what they did complete was excellent, play after play. If American PBS stations really want to raise money for their support, stop with the stupid pledge drives and auctions!Get all these great performances on VHS and DVD and sell them to a public ravenously hungry for good and intelligent entertainment. |Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Simpsons, The: The Complete Third Season|||NR |||1991|551 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004||||||| Collector's Edition Includes: Stark Raving Dad Mr. Lisa Goesito Washington ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Simpsons, The: Treehouse Of Horror|||NR |||1994|92 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004||||||| Treenhouse Of Horror V In this annual trilogy of terror, Homer attempts to kill his family in "The Shinning," Homer tries to fixia toaster andiwinds up altering theifabric of time itselfiin "Time andiPunishment," andiPrincipal Skinner serves studentsifor lunchiin "Nightmare Cafeteria." ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Singin' in the Rain|Stanley Donen Gene Kell|Musical|G |8.5|USA|1952|103 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/4/2004|Arthur Freed |Betty Comden Adolph Green|Harold Rosson ||Criterion Collection [us] |What a Glorious Feeling !|In 1927, Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are a famous on-screen romantic pair. Lina, however, mistakes the on-screen romance for real love. Don has worked hard to get where he is today, with his former partner Cosmo. When Don and Lina's latest film is transformed into a musical, Don has the perfect voice for the songs. But Lina - well, even with the best efforts of a diction coach, they still decide to dub over her voice. Kathy Selden is brought in, an aspiring actress, and while she is working on the movie, Don falls in love with her. Will Kathy continue to "aspire", or will she get the break she deserves ? Glorious classic film musical. 1927: Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are the darlings of the silent silver screen. Offscreen, Don, aided by his happy-go-lucky friend and piano accompanist, Cosmo Brown, has to dodge Lina's romantic overtures, especially when he falls for chorus girl Kathy Selden. With the advent of sound in motion pictures, it is decided to turn Don and Lina's new film into a "talkie" and a musical at that. The only problem is Lina's voice, which mere words cannot describe. Thus, Kathy is brought on to dub her speaking and singing voice in secret, and Don's on top of the world. But then Lina finds out... |Gene Kelly (Donald 'Don/Donnie' Lockwood) @ Donald O'Connor (Cosmo Brown) @ Debbie Reynolds (Kathy Seldon) @ Jean Hagen (Lina Lamont) @ Millard Mitchell (R.F. Simpson (President, Monumental Pictures)) @ Cyd Charisse (Dancer) @ Douglas Fowley (Roscoe Dexter (Director, Monumental Pictures)) @ Rita Moreno (Zelda Zanders aka Zip Girl rest of cast listed alphabetically William Schallert .... (scenes deleted)) @ Dawn Addams (Lady in Waiting (uncredited)) @ Margaret Bert (Wardrobe woman (uncredited)) @ Madge Blake (Dora Bailey (Radio announcer at 'Royal Rascal' premiere) (uncredited)) @ Bill Chatham (Male dancer (uncredited)) @ Mae Clarke (Hairdresser (uncredited)) @ Harry Cody (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Jeanne Coyne (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ Fred Datig Jr. (Movie usher (uncredited)) @ Robert Dayo (Quartet (uncredited)) @ Patricia Denise (Female dancer (uncredited)) @ John Dodsworth (Baron de la Ma de la Toulon (Olga Mara's husband) (uncredited)) @ King Donovan (Rod (uncredited)) @ Richard Emory (Phil (cowboy in barroom brawl) (uncredited)) @ Charles Evans (Audience member (uncredited)) @ Tommy Farrell ( (uncredited)) @ Ernie Flatt (Quartet member (uncredited)) @ Bess Flowers ( (uncredited)) @ Dan Foster (Assistant director (uncredited)) @ Kathleen Freeman (Phoebe Dinsmore (diction coach) (uncredited)) @ Lance Fuller (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Jack George (Orchestra leader (uncredited)) @ Stuart Holmes (J. Cumberland Spendrill III (Zelda's escort at premiere) (uncredited)) @ Don Hulbert (Member of quartet (uncredited)) @ David Kasday (Kid (uncredited)) @ Mike Lally (Man in audience of 'Dancing Cavalier') (uncredited)) @ Judy Landon (Olga Mara (uncredited)) @ Joi Lansing (Beautiful blonde (uncredited)) @ Diki Lerner (Male Tango Danger (uncredited)) @ William Lester (Audience member (uncredited)) @ Bill Lewin (Bert (cowboy knocked out in barroom brawl) (uncredited)) @ Sylvia Lewis (Female Tango Dancer (uncredited)) @ Joan Maloney ( (uncredited)) @ Paul Maxey (Dancing fat man at party (uncredited)) @ Carl Milletaire (Villain (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Patrick (Audience member (uncredited)) @ 'Snub' Pollard (Singin' in the Rain sequence: Man on street Kelly gives umbrella to (uncredited)) @ Shirley Jean Rickert (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Dennis Ross (Don as a boy (uncredited)) @ Russell Saunders (Fencer (uncredited)) @ David Sharpe (Fencer (uncredited)) @ Elaine Stewart (Lady in Waiting (uncredited)) @ Julius Tannen (Man in talking pictures demonstration (uncredited)) @ Harry Tenbrook (Sound technician (uncredited)) @ Jimmy Thompson (Male lead in 'Beautiful Girls' number (uncredited)) @ Bobby Watson (Diction coach (uncredited)) @ Robert Williams (Policeman (uncredited)) @ Wilson Wood (Rudy Vallee impersonator (uncredited)Produced by||A great musical and film I'm not a fan of musicals, but I loved this - great story and characters, smooth integration of music into the storyline, and great music at that. || |1.37 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sister Act|Emile Ardolino|Action||5.9|USA|1992| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Cindy Gilmore Mario Iscovich Scott Rudin Teri Schwartz|Joseph Howard |Adam Greenberg ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] ||Sister Act is about a Reno lounge singer named Deloris Van Carter who witnesses her mobster boyfriend killing an employer. She is then hidden in a convent under a witness protection program. She soon makes friends with the nuns especially Sister Mary Robert, Sister Mary Lazuras and Sister Mary Patrick. After the Mother Superior catches Deloris going out to a bar in the night time followed by Mary Robert and Mary Patrick she orders her to join the church choir. Only to find her coaching the choir and turning them into swingin' singin' sisters. The choir proves to be a big success with the surrounding neighborhood, but will Deloris' boyfriend track her down... A Vegas singer witnesses a mob murder and the cops stash her in a nunnery to protect her from the hitmen. The mother superior does not trust her, and takes steps to limit her influence on the other nuns. Eventually the singer rescues the failing choir and begins helping with community projects, which gets her an interview on TV. This alerts the mob to her whereabouts, and the chase is back on. Delores is having an affair with her Mafia boss, Vince. Her career as a singer in Las Vegas is going nowhere and Vince won't divorce his wife and she goes to him to break it off, witnessing a murder Vince just ordered. Running from the club, she seeks police protection. They agree to hide her in the one place Vince would never look for her. She finds, to her chagrin, that it is a convent, where she must impersonate a nun. After several false starts, she is assigned to the convent's dismal choir. She challenges and reorganizes them to become a modern singing group. In this she is successful, and as the choir gets better, success brings it's own problems. |Whoopi Goldberg (Deloris Van Cartier/Sister Mary Clarence) @ Maggie Smith (Mother Superior) @ Kathy Najimy (Sister Mary Patrick) @ Wendy Makkena (Sister Mary Robert) @ Mary Wickes (Sister Mary Lazarus) @ Harvey Keitel (Vince LaRocca) @ Bill Nunn (Lt. Eddie Souther) @ Robert Miranda (Joey) @ Richard Portnow (Willy) @ Ellen Albertini Dow (Choir Nun) @ Carmen Zapata (Choir Nun) @ Pat Crawford Brown (Choir Nun) @ Prudence Wright Holmes (Choir Nun) @ Georgia Creighton (Choir Nun) @ Susan Johnson-Kehn (Choir Nun (as Susan Johnson)) @ Ruth Kobart (Choir Nun) @ Susan Browning (Choir Nun) @ Darlene Koldenhoven (Choir Nun) @ Sheri Izzard (Choir Nun) @ Edith Diaz (Choir Nun) @ Beth Fowler (Choir Nun) @ Rose Parenti (Sister Alma) @ Joseph Maher (Bishop O'Hara) @ Jim Beaver (Detective Clarkson) @ Jenifer Lewis (Michelle) @ Charlotte Crossley (Tina) @ A.J. Johnson (Lewanda) @ Desreta Jackson (Teenage Girl #1) @ Zatella Beatty (Teenage Girl #2) @ Skye Bassett (Teenage Girl #3) @ Lois De Banzie (Immaculata) @ Isis Carmen Jones (Little Deloris) @ Max Grodénchik (Ernie) @ Joseph G. Medalis (Henry Parker) @ Michael Durrell (Larry Merrick) @ Robert Jimenez (Reporter) @ Toni Kalem (Connie LaRocca) @ Kevin Bourland (Pilot) @ David Boyce (Croupier) @ Tim Pedegana (Gambler (as Timothy J. Pedegana)) @ Terry Wills (Salesman) @ David Parker (Bartender (as David M. Parker)) @ Nicky Katt (Waiter) @ Mike Jolly (Biker #1) @ Jeremy Roberts (Biker #2) @ Eugene Greytak (The Pope rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jeanne Basone ( (uncredited)) @ Guy Boyd (Detective Tate (uncredited)) @ Andrea Robinson (Sister Mary Robert (singing voice) (uncredited) Produced by||Sweetly out of tune with reality Watching this again on TV the other night, I couldn't help but noticing how polished and smooth "Sister Act" is--it looks like the perfect sitcom pilot. As a feature film, it seems a little cornball, with a completely unrealistic convent and it's nuns unknowingly welcoming a Reno lounge singer into their fold. It plays directly to the audience(after a one-liner, you almost expect a laugh-track; sometimes the sisters themselves provide a united chuckle). Flat at the beginning, Whoopi Goldberg loosens up towards the middle, but she is overdirected and never gets to be human. **1/2 from **** ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit|Bill Duke|Comedy||4.5|USA|1993| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mario Iscovich Mark Iscovich Laurence Mark Christopher Meledandri Scott Rudin Marc Shaiman Dawn Steel Ron Stacker Thompson|Joseph Howard James Orr Jim Cruickshank Judi Ann Mason|Oliver Wood ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] ||The sisters come back to Delores's show to get her back as Sister Mary Clarence to teach music to a group of students in their parochial school which is doomed for closure. One of the girls, who is the most talented of the bunch, is forbidden to sing by her mother, although the choir has made it to the state championship. A group of stereotypical incompetent monks tries to stop them. Deloris Van Cartier (Whoopi Goldberg) is again asked to don the nun's habit to help a run-down Catholic school, presided over by Mother Superior (Maggie Smith). And if trying to reach out to a class full of uninterested students wasn't bad enough, the sisters discover that the school is due to be closed by the unscrupulous local authority chief Mr. Crisp (James Coburn). |Whoopi Goldberg (Deloris Van Cartier/Sister Mary Clarence) @ Kathy Najimy (Sister Mary Patrick) @ Barnard Hughes (Father Maurice) @ Mary Wickes (Sister Mary Lazarus) @ James Coburn (Mr. Crisp) @ Michael Jeter (Father Ignatius) @ Wendy Makkena (Sister Mary Robert) @ Sheryl Lee Ralph (Florence Watson) @ Robert Pastorelli (Joey Bustamente) @ Thomas Gottschalk (Father Wolfgang) @ Maggie Smith (Mother Superior) @ Lauryn Hill (Rita Louise Watson) @ Brad Sullivan (Father Thomas) @ Alanna Ubach (Maria) @ Ryan Toby (Ahmal aka Westley Glen James) @ Ron Johnson (Richard 'Sketch' Pinshum) @ Jennifer Love Hewitt (Margaret (as Jennifer "Love" Hewitt)) @ Devin Kamin (Frankie) @ Christian Fitzharris (Tyler Chase) @ Tanya Blount (Tanya) @ Mehran Marcos Sedghi (Marcos) @ Valeria Andrews (Valeria) @ Dionna Brooks-Jackson (Classroom Kid) @ Monica Calhoun (Classroom Kid) @ Marta González (Classroom Kid) @ Deondray Gossett (Classroom Kid) @ Frank Howard (Classroom Kid) @ David Kater (Classroom Kid) @ Riley Weston (Classroom Kid (as Kimberlee Kramer)) @ Deedee Magno (Classroom Kid) @ Patrick Malone (Classroom Kid) @ Alex Martin (Classroom Kid) @ Jermaine Montell (Classroom Kid) @ Sacha Thomas (Classroom Kid) @ Ashley Thompson (Classroom Kid) @ Pat Crawford Brown (Choir Nun) @ Susan Browning (Choir Nun) @ Georgia Creighton (Choir Nun) @ Edith Diaz (Choir Nun) @ Ellen Albertini Dow (Choir Nun) @ Beth Fowler (Choir Nun) @ Prudence Wright Holmes (Choir Nun) @ Sheri Izzard (Choir Nun) @ Susan Johnson-Kehn (Choir Nun) @ Ruth Kobart (Choir Nun) @ Darlene Koldenhoven (Choir Nun) @ Rose Parenti (Choir Nun) @ Carmen Zapata (Choir Nun) @ Andrea Robinson (Sister Mary Robert (singing) (voice)) @ Jenifer Lewis (Vegas Backup Singer #1) @ Pamela Tyson (Vegas Backup Singer #2) @ Sharon Brown (Vegas Backup Singer #3) @ Regan Patno (Dancer) @ Kevin Alexander Stea (Dancer) @ John Jacquet Jr. (Dancer) @ Sebastian Lacause (Dancer) @ Luca Tommassini (Dancer) @ Michael Gregory Gong (Dancer) @ Gabriel Trupin (Dancer) @ Raymond Del Barrio (Dancer) @ Frank Williams (Dancer) @ Lacy Darryl Phillips (Dancer) @ Paul Thorpe (Dancer 'Please, Mr. Postman') @ Paul Genick (Dancer 'I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)') @ Aaron Baker (Dancer 'Teeny Bikini') @ Warren Frost (Archdiocese Person #1) @ Robin Gammell (Archdiocese Person #2) @ Michael Taliferro (Security Guard) @ Yolanda Whittaker (Sondra) @ Bill Duke (Mr. Johnson) @ Sydney Lassick (Competition Announcer) @ Revalyn T. Golde (Archdiocese Person #3) @ Kai Bowe (Stage Manager) @ William S. Turchyn II (Assistant Stage Manager) @ John Fontana (Flying Tech #1) @ Michael A. Tice (Flying Tech #2) @ Robert Simokovic (Flying Tech #3) @ Iris Graves (Iris Choir) @ Pamela Taylor (Iris Choir) @ Robert J. Benson (Iris Choir) @ Juliette Hagerman (Iris Choir) @ Christina Royster (Iris Choir) @ Kwaku A. James (Iris Choir) @ Roy M. Crayton (Iris Choir) @ Kwame James (Iris Choir) @ Latesha Crayton (Iris Choir) @ Erica Atkins (Iris Choir) @ Jennifer Reeves (Iris Choir) @ William D. Hall (Chapman Choir Leader rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bill Irwin (Brother #1(unnamed) (uncredited) Produced by||Not bad for a sequel I am normally anti-sequel for any movie at all, even if I like the original. I just think that its cashing in on a sure thing, and its the height of laziness, and on top of everything else, 95% of them have no business existing. This one is not exactly enough to make me re-think my position, but this movie has a lot going for it and is not an offensive rip-off of the first. The story goes in a different direction and although its as obvious as the sky how it will all end up (unless you've never seen another movie in your life), I still like it very much.I like choir singing, and the last twenty minutes contain some beautiful voices and songs. None of the actors look embarrassed to be there, which of course is a great thing, and Whoopi's effortless performance anchors the movie. Look for Jennifer Love Hewitt as a student, who is curiously absent from the dance numbers.Brad Sullivan, Michael Jeter and Barnard Hughes are some of the comic relief, and Kathy Najimy and Maggie Smith are back as well. Stick around for all the closing credits to hear Aretha Franklin singing "Deeper Love", which is a great great song. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Sixteen Candles|John Hughes|Comedy||6.9|USA|1984| 93 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Hilton A. Green Michelle Manning Ned Tanen|John Hughes |Bobby Byrne ||MCA [us] |It's the time of your life that may last a lifetime. |Samantha's life is going downhill fast. The fifteen-year-old has a crush on the most popular boy in school, and the geekiest boy in school has a crush on her. Her sister's getting married, and with all the excitement the rest of her family forgets her birthday! Add all this to a pair of horrendously embarrassing grandparents, a foreign exchange student named Long Duc Dong, and we have the makings of a hilarious journey into young womanhood. |Molly Ringwald (Samantha Baker) @ Justin Henry (Mike Baker) @ Michael Schoeffling (Jake Ryan) @ Haviland Morris (Caroline Mulford) @ Gedde Watanabe (Long Duk Dong) @ Anthony Michael Hall (Farmer Ted, 'The Geek') @ Paul Dooley (Jim Baker) @ Carlin Glynn (Brenda Baker) @ Blanche Baker (Ginny Baker) @ Edward Andrews (Howard Baker) @ Billie Bird (Dorothy Baker) @ Carole Cook (Grandma Helen) @ Max Showalter (Grandpa Fred) @ Liane Alexandra Curtis (Randy) @ John Cusack (Bryce) @ Darren Harris (Cliff) @ Deborah Pollack (Lumberjack) @ Ross Berkson (Ray Gun Geek #1) @ Jonathan Chapin (Jimmy Montrose) @ Joan Cusack (Girl with Scoliosis Brace) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Reverend at Wedding) @ Bekka Eaton (Female DJ) @ Pamela Elser (Caroline's Shower Double) @ Steven Farber (Ray Gun Geek #2) @ Jami Gertz (Robin) @ Frank Howard (Freshman) @ Cinnamon Idles (Sara Baker) @ John Kapelos (Rudy Ryszczyk) @ Marge Kotlisky (Irene) @ Tony Longo (Bock) @ Steve Monarque (Jock) @ Bill Orsi (Bruno) @ Beth Ringwald (Patty) @ Zelda Rubinstein (Organist) @ Dennis Vero (School Bus Driver) @ Elaine Wilkes (Tracy rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Andy Hirsch (Boy with Coronet (uncredited)) @ Stephan Meyers (Geek at Dance (uncredited) Produced by)||Very 80's This movie entered the theatres two years after it was made.The hair styles, clothes, and attitudes were very 80's.Farmer Ted was extremely funny; I loved how he danced.The actor who played the rich jock did it perfectly.The Chinese student was hilarious.It is nice to see good people actually get things there way.The world is far from this. || |1.85 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Sixth Sense, The|M. Night Shyamalan|Drama|Rated PG-13 for intense thematic material and violent images. |8.2|USA|1999| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kathleen Kennedy Frank Marshall Barry Mendel Sam Mercer|M. Night Shyamalan |Tak Fujimoto ||Buena Vista International [ar] |Not every gift is a blessing.|Malcom Crowe is a child psychologist who receives an award on the same night that he is visited by a very unhappy ex-patient. After this encounter, Crowe takes on the task of curing a young boy with the same ills as the ex-patient. This boy "sees dead people". Crowe spends a lot of time with the boy (Cole) much to the dismay of his wife. Cole's mom is at her wit's end with what to do about her son's increasing problems. Crowe is the boy's only hope. Malcom Crowe è un bravo ed affermato psicologo infantile che decide di prendere in cura (dedicandogli tutto il suo tempo) Cole, un ragazzo di nove anni che afferma di "vedere i morti"... Questo l'assunto iniziale di un film difficile da spiegare, tutto giocato nel rapporto fra i due ed in quello del ragazzo con le "presenze", tutte defunte per incidenti o malattie e che gli chiedono giustizia (ed in questo il ragazzo si sente mancante della possibilità di aiutarle). Anche il dottore è in crisi : il rapporto con la moglie è in profonda crisi, ma non riesce a fare a meno di dedicarsi al ragazzo. Perchè ? Cosa è veramente reale ? |Bruce Willis (Malcolm Crowe) @ Haley Joel Osment (Cole Sear) @ Toni Collette (Lynn Sear) @ Olivia Williams (Anna Crowe) @ Mischa Barton (Kyra Collins) @ Donnie Wahlberg (Vincent Grey) @ Peter Anthony Tambakis (Darren (as Peter Tambakis)) @ Jeffrey Zubernis (Bobby) @ Bruce Norris (Stanley Cunningham) @ Glenn Fitzgerald (Sean) @ Greg Wood (Mr. Collins) @ Trevor Morgan (Tommy Tammisimo) @ Angelica Torn (Mrs. Collins) @ Lisa Summerour (Bridesmaid) @ Firdous Bamji (Young Man Buying Ring) @ Samia Shoaib (Young Woman Buying Ring) @ Hayden Saunier (Darren's Mom) @ Janis Dardaris (Kitchen Woman) @ Neill Hartley (Visitor #2) @ Sarah Ripard (Visitor #3) @ Heidi Fischer (Visitor #4) @ Kadee Strickland (Visitor #5) @ Michael J. Lyons (Visitor #6) @ Samantha Fitzpatrick (Kyra's Sister) @ Holly Rudkin (Society Lady #1) @ Kate Kearney-Patch (Society Lady #2) @ Marilyn Shanok (Woman at Accident) @ M. Night Shyamalan (Dr. Hill) @ Wes Heywood (Commercial Narrator) @ Nico Woulard (Hanged Child) @ Carol Nielson (Hanged Female) @ Keith Woulard (Hanged Male) @ Jodi Dawson (Burnt Teacher) @ Tony Michael Donnelly (Gunshot Boy (as Tony Donnelly)) @ Ronnie Lea (Secretary) @ Carlos Xavier Lopez (Spanish Ghost on Tape (voice) (as Carlos X. López)) @ Gino Inverso (Young Vincent) @ Ellen Sheppard (Mrs. Sloan) @ Tom McLaughlin (Anna's Father) @ Candy Aston-Dennis (Anna's Mother (as Candy Aston Dennis)) @ Patrick McDade (Shaken Driver (as Patrick F. McDade)) @ Jose L. Rodriguez (Husband rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Sean Oliver (Ghost in the Dungeon (uncredited) Produced by||A surprising masterpiece! Sometime Bruce Willis can make some bad films, like HUDSON HAWK and MERCURY RISING.And other times he can make some films that change the film industry and blow the audiences away (i.e. DIE HARD triology, 12 MONKEYS, and PULP FICTION).Now Willis' new film, THE 6th SENSE falls in the latter catageory, as a surprising masterpiece that will leave images stuck in your mind for quite sometime. Willis plays Malcolm Crowe, a child psychologist, who is quite good at his job, he has a loving wife named Anna (played by the beautiful Olivia Williams), and he just got awarded by the mayor of Philadelpia for his excellent work.Then one night, Malcolm gets a terrifying unexpected visit from one of his former patients.The visit is so terrifying, that it haunts Malcolm later on. Months later, Malcolm's job is going downhill, and his marriage is falling apart.Then his life is changed around when he meets Cole, a eight year old boy who is considered a "freak" by everybody but his mom.Cole is usually alone, scared, and has cuts and bruses on his body.The doctors and social workers think the injuries come from his mom, Lynn Sear (Toni Collette).But Lynn loves Cole too much that she wouldn't even think of harming him.The truth is that the injuries that Cole has are from other people,people that Cole only sees, people that are dead.Cole sees dead people walking around with the living, and only Cole sees these ghostly figures.Malcolm tries to help Cole with his unique gift, and to also find out what these ghostly figures want with him. When I saw the trailers for this movie,it looked like a o.k. movie. Acutally, the preview didn't have any effect on me at all, as for seeing this film.But when I saw this film, I was blown away on how excellent this was!This is a highly entertaining film that is scary, sad, funny, and even touching. The plot is brilliant, it has intellegence, and shows the personalities of the characters well enough that you feel like that you know them after the movie is over.The acting is also great, Willis does a good job as the doctor trying to help poor Cole.Toni Collette is also great as the suffering mom who'svery worried and protective over Cole. Oliva Williams is good as well as the suffering wife of the doctor who feels that she's losing her husband more and more everyday.But the real surprise is Haley Joel Osment, who plays the little boy, Cole.For a child actor he's excellent!He shows potential to becomming a great actor in years to come.He's the next promising child actor that will hopefully do well like Elija Wood and Anna Panquin. Overall, THE 6th SENSE took me by surprised, and I ended up loving this film.I would have to place this film as one of the best films of the year, as well as for the summer films.And for a PG13 rated film, it's quite scary!This is one film that no one should miss!!!***** (out of five) ||Collector's Edition Series |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Skulls, The|Rob Cohen|Thriller|Rated PG-13 for violence and brief sexuality. |5.3|USA|2000| 106 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Christopher Ball Creighton Bellinger Fred C. Caruso Nancy Kirhoffer Bruce Mellon Neal H. Moritz John Pogue William Tyrer|John Pogue |Shane Hurlbut ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |A secret society so powerful, it can give you everything you desire... at a price.|Luke McNamara, a college senior from a working class background joins a secret elitist college fraternity organization called "The Skulls", in hope of gaining acceptance into Harvard Law School. At first seduced by the club's trapping of power and wealth, a series of disturbing incidents, such as his best friends suicide, leads Luke to investigate the true nature of the organization and the truth behind his friends supposed suicide. He starts realizing that his future and possibly his life is in danger. Deep within the hallowed walls of Ivy League's most prominent campus exists a secret society where power and elite are bred. Only a few are chosen to join where Presidents are groomed, wealthy bloodlines bond, and plots thickened. For Luke McNamara (Joshua Jackson), an invitation to join the prestigious secret college organization, The Skulls, is a dream come true. Until murder befalls another student, and Luke finds himself one student amidst the sinister and well-connected brotherhood and now he must summon the strength to stand alone against immeasurable odds. Luke's exultance at being selected for The Skulls (a secret society bred within the walls of a prominent Ivy League Campus) is soon overshadowed when he realises that all is 'not well in Wonderland'. For The Skulls is a breeding ground for the future powerful and elite. It's not only a far cry from his working class background, but it also hallows its own deep and dark secrets. Luke McNamara (Jackson) is an over-achieving New Haven townie who has clawed his way into an Ivy League College. There, he's invited to join an elitist secret society known as The Skulls. He jumps at the chance, hoping it will help secure his acceptance into a prestigious law school. At first seduced by the club's upper-crust trappings, Luke finds himself ensnared by his own ambition when his journalist roommate commits suicide amidst cloudy circumstances. Now at the risk of his own life, he must beat The Skulls at their own game. |Joshua Jackson (Luke McNamara) @ Paul Walker (Caleb Mandrake) @ Hill Harper (Will Beckford) @ Leslie Bibb (Chloe Whitfield) @ Christopher McDonald (Martin Lombard) @ Steve Harris (Detective Sparrow) @ William L. Petersen (Ames Levritt (as William Petersen)) @ Craig T. Nelson (Litten Mandrake) @ David Asman (Jason Pitcairn) @ Scott Gibson (Travis Wheeler) @ Nigel Bennett (Dr. Rupert Whitney) @ Andrew Kraulis (McBride) @ Derek Aasland (Sullivan) @ Jennifer Melino (J.J.) @ Noah Danby (Hugh Mauberson) @ Mak Fyfe (Laurence Thorne) @ David Christo (Shawn Packford) @ Shaw Madson (Chad MacIntosh) @ Jesse Nilsson (Kent Hodgins) @ Shawn Mathieson (Jonathan Payne) @ Steven McCarthy (Sweeney) @ Matthew G. Taylor (Medoc (as Matt Taylor)) @ Henry Alessandroni (Strain) @ James Finnerty (Preppy Freshman) @ Cyprian Lerch (Student in Lunch Line) @ Dominic Kahn (Regatta Judge) @ Ken Campbell (Starting Judge) @ Pedro Salvín (Lodge Butler (as Pedro Salvin)) @ Derek Boyes (Assistant District Attorney) @ Katherine Trowell (Sanctuary Administrator) @ Connie Buell (Waitress) @ Stephen Richard (Furniture Mover (as Steve Richard)) @ Kevin Allen (Sturtevant Security Guard) @ Paul Walker III (Boxing Coach) @ Jason Knight (Police Techie) @ Amanda Goundry (Coed in Caleb's Car) @ Malin Akerman (Coed in Caleb's Apartment rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Larry Beatie (Rower (uncredited)) @ Ross Beatie (Rower (uncredited)) @ Emmanuel Chomski (Rower (uncredited)) @ Rob Cohen (College Lecturer (uncredited)) @ Chris Ham (Rower (uncredited)) @ Jonathan Khan (George (uncredited)) @ Sean Leighland (Rower (uncredited)) @ Heather Levalle (Coxie (uncredited)) @ Wesley Ng (Rower (uncredited)) @ Keeley O'Hara (Girl at The Skulls Party (uncredited)) @ Darcey Osbourne (Rower (uncredited)) @ Gillian Parker (Coxie (uncredited) Produced by||Joe College joins "The Firm" What a lousy movie!I mean that in a good way, though, cause this is a definite entry into the so-bad-its-good category.There is one unbelievable scene and situation after another. All the actors try hard but cannot overcome some of the stupidest dialogue recently heard onscreen. What I REALLY want to know is who designed the Skull Headquarters, Lex Luthor?The lighting, by torch, candle and otherwise, is extremely dramatic.There are cages, secret passageways, coffins and a mote! The sets are cold marble, to reflect the soul of a Skull, and they even have Skull props - books, keys, watches and, of course, guns.The guys get branded as Skulls but the pain is soon soothed by size two girls who appear on cue, classic cars and large and mysterious bank deposits. From the start, you are asked to leave your brain at the door, so do that and count the silly scenes, the bad acting (Paul Walker has taken over the preppy/jerk parts from Hart Bochner; Joshua Jackson has no ability as a leading man) and the entire overblown production. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sleepers|Barry Levinson|Thriller|Rated R for language, graphic violence and two scenes of strong sexual content. |7.0|USA|1996| 147 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lorenzo Carcaterra Peter Giuliano Steve Golin Barry Levinson Gerrit van der Meer|Lorenzo Carcaterra Barry Levinson|Michael Ballhaus ||Abril Vídeo [br] |Four friends have made a mistake that will change their lives forever.|Four boys growing up in Hell's Kitchen play a prank that leads to an old man getting hurt. Sentenced to no less than one year in the Wilkenson Center in upstate New York, the four friends are changed by the beating, humiliation and sexual abuse by the guards sworn to protect them. Ten years later and a chance meeting lead to a chance for revenge against the Wilkenson Center and the guards. |Kevin Bacon (Sean Nokes) @ Billy Crudup (Tommy Marcano) @ Robert De Niro (Father Bobby) @ Ron Eldard (John Reilly) @ Minnie Driver (Carol Martinez) @ Vittorio Gassman (King Benny) @ Dustin Hoffman (Danny Snyder) @ Terry Kinney (Ralph Ferguson) @ Bruno Kirby (Shakes' Father) @ Frank Medrano (Fat Mancho) @ Jason Patric (Lorenzo 'Shakes' Carcaterra) @ Joseph Perrino (Young Lorenzo 'Shakes' Carcaterra (as Joe Perrino)) @ Brad Pitt (Michael Sullivan) @ Brad Renfro (Young Michael Sullivan) @ Geoffrey Wigdor (Young John Reilly) @ Jonathan Tucker (Young Tommy Marcano) @ Peter Appel (Boyfriend) @ Joe Attanasio (Male Juror) @ Gerry Becker (Forensics Expert) @ Casandra Brooks (Young John Reilly's Mother) @ William Butler (Juanito) @ Eugene Byrd (Rizzo) @ Rose Caiola (Juror) @ Pasquale Cajano (Superintendent) @ Robert W. Castle (Priest) @ John Di Benedetto (Tony) @ Jeffrey Donovan (Henry Addison) @ Drew Eliot (Business Man #1) @ Reuben Larry Elliot (Business Man #2) @ George Georgiadis (Hot dog Vendor) @ Marco Greco (Waiter) @ Saverio Guerra (Man #1) @ Ben Hammer (Judge Weisman) @ Paul Herman (Court Bailiff) @ Don Hewitt (James Caldwell) @ Frank Inzerillo (Hanging Man) @ Lennie Loftin (Adam Styler) @ Chuck Low (Dance Judge) @ Father Peter Mahoney (Priest #2) @ Ruth Maleczech (Woman at Subway Station) @ Juan Maria Jr. (Davy) @ Daniel Mastrogiorgio (Nick Davenport) @ Mary B. McCann (Sister Carolyn) @ Pat McNamara (Guard) @ Peter McRobbie (Lawyer) @ Conrad Meertins Jr. (Inmate #2) @ Gina Menza (Jury Forewoman) @ Dash Mihok (K.C) @ Michael P. Moran (Judge #1) @ Rocco Musacchia (Salvatore) @ Mick O'Rourke (Man in Tub) @ Carmine Parisi (King Benny's Boy) @ James Pickens Jr. (Marlboro) @ Wendell Pierce (Little Caesar) @ Salvatore Paul Piro (Mimi) @ Monica Polito (Young Carol) @ Angela Rago (Shakes' Mother) @ Peter Rini (Frank Magcicco) @ Larry Romano (Man #2) @ Gayle Scott (Confessional Woman) @ Tom Signorelli (Confessional Man) @ Henry Stram (Prison Doctor) @ Ralph Tabakin (Warden) @ Mary Testa (Nun) @ Jenique Torres (Davy's Sister) @ Patrick Tull (Jerry the Bartender) @ Aida Turturro (Mrs. Salinas) @ Joe Urla (Carson rest of cast listed alphabetically Sean Patrick Reilly .... Young King Benny) @ Zachary Ansley (Burly Man (uncredited)) @ Joseph Attanasio (Male Juror (uncredited)) @ Michael J. Burg (Court Officer (uncredited)) @ Peter Gerety (Juvenile Lawyer (uncredited)) @ Andrew Gianelli (Man in Second Bathtub (uncredited)) @ John Slattery (Fred Carlson (uncredited) Produced by||Overkill "Sleepers" is about four boys who grow up in Hell's Kitchen, get sent to reform school, are abused by the guards, and seek revenge as adults. The film offers a good cast with all the trimmings but falls apart in story. It has plenty of 1970-80's pop songs for those who can get nostalgic over them. It has a tease at front and back ends for conspiracy theorists claiming its preposterous story in true. However, it runs too long, gets too convoluted, and is sorely lacking in credibility raising more questions than it answers. For those who find the subject interesting and can tough out a long film with brain disengaged a good watch awaits. All others may want to think twice before committing to this long winded Hollywood-by-the-book tale. (B-) || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sleeping Beauty||Animation||7.4|USA|1959| 75 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Charles Perrault Erdman Penner Joe Rinaldi Winston Hibler Bill Peet Ted Sears Ralph Wright Milt Banta|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Wondrous to see... Glorious to hear... A magnificent new motion picture!|Adaptation of the fairy tale of the same name. Princess Aurora is cursed by the evil witch Maleficent - who declares that before Aurora reaches her 16th birthday she will die by a poisoned spinning-wheel. To try to prevent this, the king places her into hiding, in the care of three goodnatured - but not too bright - fairies. |Mary Costa (Princess Aurora/Briar Rose (voice)) @ Bill Shirley (Prince Phillip (voice)) @ Eleanor Audley (Maleficent (voice)) @ Verna Felton (Flora (voice)) @ Barbara Luddy (Merryweather (voice)) @ Barbara Jo Allen (Fauna (voice)) @ Taylor Holmes (King Stefan (voice)) @ Bill Thompson (King Hubert (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bill Amsbery (Maleficent's goon (uncredited) (voice)) @ Candy Candido (Maleficent's goon (uncredited) (voice)) @ Pinto Colvig (Maleficent's goon (uncredited) (voice)) @ Dal McKennon (Owl (uncredited) (voice)) @ Marvin Miller (Narrator (uncredited) (voice)) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Singer (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||A review on the three classic films in the Disney "Triangle" With all the films I've commented on, I'm running out of available comments. Now I'm resorting to commenting on Disney films, and I'm commenting on all three of the Disney "triangle" as I call it. So here it goes- The Disney triangle which I'll explain later, are all three classics. I think they should all be at least somewhere on the top 250 but 2 of them are not. Too many people just don't get them. But regardless of what it's rated, everyone knows famous Disney classics like Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Alice in Wonderland are the classic Dinsey triangle. So if you need a true family entertaining classic, rent one of these truly classic films. They're all great, and carry wonderful hidden messages. JOHN ULMER ||Deluxe Edition |2.20 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sleepy Hollow|Tim Burton|Horror|Rated R for graphic horror violence and gore, and for a scene of sexuality. |7.4|USA|1999| 105 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Francis Ford Coppola Celia D. Costas Larry J. Franco Mark Roybal Scott Rudin Adam Schroeder Kevin Yagher Andrew Kevin Walker|Washington Irving Kevin Yagher Andrew Kevin Walker Andrew Kevin Walker|Emmanuel Lubezki ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Heads Will Roll.|The classic story of "The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow" is brought to life by the gothic film maker Tim Burton. Johnny Depp plays Ichabod Crane, and to win the heart of Katrina Van Tassel (Christina Ricci) he will have to brave the nearby woods, even though several decapitated bodies have been found. And then the legend of the axe wielding headless horsemen come together to make this movie. 1799: Ichabod Crane is a constable from New York who is most concerned with all the new scientific gadgets that will allow him to do his job better. However, he is quite squeamish about his latest assignment: traveling to the town of Sleepy Hollow, where there have been a series of murders involving people whose heads have been cut off. The locals believe it is the work of the legendary Headless Horseman. Ichabod does not believe this, but with the help of the fair Katrina Van Tassle and the young son of one of the victims, he uncovers some very interesting evidence that would suggest otherwise. Inspector Ichabod Crane of the New York police arrives in the small village of Sleepy Hollow in 1799 to solve a mystery of murders. With all the victims found with their head missing, everybody in Sleepy Hollow is talking about the ghost of the "headless horseman" who is out in the woods, seeking revenge for his murder, many years ago. Crane, believing only in logic refuses to believe the public's theory about the horseman and begins his investigations, only to find his faith shattered when he himself encounters the headless horseman. A magical tale of sense against myth. |Johnny Depp (Constable Ichabod Crane) @ Christina Ricci (Katrina Anne Van Tassel) @ Miranda Richardson (Lady Mary Van Tassel/The Western Woods Crone) @ Michael Gambon (Baltus Van Tassel) @ Casper Van Dien (Brom Van Brunt) @ Jeffrey Jones (Reverend Steenwyck) @ Christopher Lee (The Burgomeister) @ Richard Griffiths (Magistrate Samuel Philipse) @ Ian McDiarmid (Dr. Thomas Lancaster) @ Michael Gough (Notary James Hardenbrook) @ Marc Pickering (Young Masbath) @ Lisa Marie (Ichabod's Mother) @ Steven Waddington (Mr. Killian) @ Christopher Walken (The Hessian Horseman) @ Claire Skinner (Midwife Elizabeth 'Beth' Killian) @ Alun Armstrong (High Constable) @ Mark Spalding (Jonathan Masbath) @ Jessica Oyelowo (Sarah, The Servant Girl) @ Tony Maudsley (Van Ripper) @ Peter Guinness (Ichabod's Father) @ Nicholas Hewetson (Glenn) @ Orlando Seale (Theodore) @ Sean Stephens (Thomas Killian) @ Gabrielle Lloyd (Dr. Lancaster's Wife) @ Robert Sella (Dirk Van Garrett) @ Michael Feast (Spotty Man) @ Jamie Foreman (Thuggish Constable) @ Philip Martin Brown (Constable #1) @ Sam Fior (Young Ichabod Crane) @ Tessa Allen-Ridge (Young Lady Van Tassel) @ Cassandra Farndale (Young Crone) @ Lily Phillips (Girl #2) @ Bianca Nicholas (Little Girl) @ Paul Brightwell (Rifleman rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Layla Alexander (Widow (uncredited)) @ Martin Landau (Peter Van Garrett (uncredited)) @ Keeley O'Hara (Widow Emily Winship (uncredited) Produced by||A great interpretation of a great classic I thoroughly enjoyed this collaboration between Tim Burton, Andrew Kevin Walker and Washington Irving.Combining such incredible talents as Mr. Burton and Mr. Walker proved quite the appropriate recipe for recreating the Irving classic.I have read may other comments about this movie and I find it very disturbing that most people either compare it to Star Wars: Phantom Menace or complain that it is too far removed from the original story. For these people I have a few comments.First, the only connections and comparisons to Star Wars are the actor Ian McDiarmid and the actor/stuntman Ray Park.Beyond that there is nothing within this movie that comes remotely close to a comparison to Star Wars.In my opinion this movie was better than that box office behemoth.If *****had spent as much time on his script for ***, perhaps it would have been as intriguing as Sleepy Hollow.Next, for those who were not satisfied with the movie's departure from the Irving classic I have but one piece of advice: read the story again.Washington Irving was masterful at creating scenes and setting atmosphere but The Legend of Sleepy Hollow was a 20 page examination of the little village and the loves of Ichabod Crane (women, food, writings et al) The Horseman, though mentioned a handful of times, did not appear until the last couple pages and then it alluded to the idea that Brom Bones was the culprit, in disguise, to frighten the poor hero Ichabod. There have been other writings and interpretations of the Sleepy Hollow story that focus more on the spectral form of the Headless Horseman.I believe this movie was done in the spirit of those other works and is among the best.It brings to life the setting of this little valley and attempts to recreate the feeling that Washington Irving described best in his story. It was indicated that Sleepy Hollow was a magical and dream like place, thus the name "Sleepy Hollow."In this little upstate valley the strangest things occur and such ghosts and goblins roam freely if only in the mind of the inhabitants.Tim Burton manages to capture that sensation and allows the audience to feel as if they stepped not into a theater, but another world. Andrew Kevin Walker's workup and translation of the story also makes for a compelling movie.Allowing the changes for the movie adaptation were a sign of genius.Displacing the hero and introducing him to the Sleepy Hollow atmosphere along with the audience, enhanced the experience.Giving a clear background for the Horseman, which is only briefly provided in the original story, was also an improvement to the movie's story.Let's face it, if they had made a 105 minute movie that tried to replicate the original short story there would have been whole theaters full of "sleepy" patrons. The acting was also superb giving a hand to Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci for fabulous performances.As for the rest of the cast?Fantastic.To see all of these wonderful actors in secondary roles was a treat.Starting with Christopher Lee as the chief magistrate in New York; Jeffrey Jones, Michael Gough, Ian McDiarmid, Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson and even Casper Van Dien all did magnificent work. Though the story lagged at moments, they were few and far between.The editing in the beginning was a bit choppy but ran more fluently after the 20-30 minute point.An excellent adaptation of a great story.This was definitely a movie that Burton was born to make. ||Special Edition |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs||Animation||7.8|USA|1937| 83 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm Wilhelm Carl Grimm Ted Sears Richard Creedon Otto Englander Dick Rickard Earl Hurd Merrill De Maris Dorothy Ann Blank Webb Smith|Maxwell Morgan ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |Still the fairest of them all!|From the old fairy tale, a jealous queen attempts to get rid of her beautiful step-daughter, Snow White, who takes refuge with seven dwarfs in their forest home. The queen changes into a witch and tempts Snow White with a poisoned apple which puts her into an everlasting sleep, until a prince finds her in a glass coffin and awakens her with Love's First Kiss. |Roy Atwell (Doc (uncredited) (voice)) @ Stuart Buchanan (Humbert (uncredited) (voice)) @ Adriana Caselotti (Snow White (uncredited) (voice)) @ Eddie Collins (Dopey's 'Shhhh,' Snore, Hiccup, Screams and Other Vocal Effects (uncredited) (voice)) @ Pinto Colvig (Sleepy/Grumpy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Marion Darlington (Bird Sounds and Warbling (uncredited) (voice)) @ Billy Gilbert (Sneezy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Otis Harlan (Happy (uncredited) (voice)) @ Lucille La Verne (Queen (uncredited) (voice)) @ James MacDonald (Yodeling Man (uncredited) (voice)) @ Scotty Mattraw (Bashful (uncredited) (voice)) @ Moroni Olsen (Magic Mirror (uncredited) (voice)) @ Harry Stockwell (Prince (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||You can't touch this. I agree wholeheartedly with many other critics; if not for the dwarfs and the woodland animals, SNOW WHITE probably would have faded with time. But the supporting cast is perfect. The landscape of the world in which Snow White and the dwarfs live in is astoundingly detailed. You can see the heart put into this movie. The DVD is sickeningly filled with everything on SNOW WHITE. No other animated feature can touch SNOW WHITE without paying some type of homage to it. Princess Snow White lives as a maid thinking of love and talking to animals. When her step-mother, The Queen, is told she has been usurped as the fairest one of all by Snow White, jealously takes hold and our story begins. Landmark, Revolutionary, The Greatest ... we have heard it all before and they are valid to a point. Maybe a century down the road when I am dead and our great-great grandchildren see this movie when it is horribly dated will we truly know. But I believe for my time, even when this movie has outlasted my grandfather, that SNOW WHITE remains one of the greatest movies ever, from one of the greatest gambles ever. I applaud everyone involved in making, restoring and maintaining this masterpiece. || |1.37 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Solaris|Steven Soderbergh|Drama|Rated PG-13 on appeal for sexuality/nudity, brief language and thematic elements. PG-13|6.4|USA|2002|99 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Charles V. Bender James Cameron Gregory Jacobs Jon Landau Michael Polaire Rae Sanchini|Stanislaw Lem Steven Soderbergh|Steven Soderbergh ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |There are some places man is not ready to go|Upon arrival at the space station orbiting an ocean world called Solaris a psychologist discovers that the commander of an expedition to the planet has died mysteriously. Other strange events soon start happening as well, such as the appearance of old acquaintances of the crew, including some who are dead. |George Clooney (Chris Kelvin) @ Natascha McElhone (Rheya) @ Viola Davis (Gordon) @ Jeremy Davies (Snow) @ Ulrich Tukur (Gibarian) @ John Cho (DBA Emissary #1) @ Morgan Rusler (DBA Emissary #2) @ Shane Skelton (Gibarian's Son) @ Donna Kimball (Mrs. Gibarian) @ Michael Ensign (Friend #1) @ Elpidia Carrillo (Friend #2) @ Kent Faulcon (Patient #1 (as Kent D. Faulcon)) @ Lauren Cohn (Patient #2 (as Lauren M. Cohn) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ann Morgan (Nurse (uncredited)) @ Jude S. Walko (City Dweller (uncredited)Produced by||Intriguing mood piece Since nobody had the wherewithal or wisdom to re-release `2001' in the actual year 2001, a remake of Andrei Tarkovsky's comparable `Solaris' in 2002 would seem the next best thing.Like those two earlier films, Steven Soderbergh's latest work is something of an `art' science fiction film, far more concerned with philosophy and theme than with action and suspense.This may make the film a tough slog for modern day audiences who have been conditioned to be jolted out of their seats every five minutes while watching films of this genre.But for the deeper thinkers among us, `Solaris' offers a fairly intriguing sci-fi vision of the afterlife, a sort of new religious paradigm for the twenty-first century. George Clooney stars as Chris Kelvin, a successful psychiatrist whose mentally ill wife - ironically enough, given his profession- killed herself a few years back.Chris is commissioned to travel to a space station orbiting the planet Solaris after strange things begin happening to the crew aboard the ship.It turns out that dead loved ones have started appearing to the people there, leading a number of the crewmembers to descend into madness and, in the worst cases, even commit suicide.It's not long before Chris' own dead wife, Rheya, arrives on the scene, prompting him to question whether she is real, a replica created for an unknown reason by the forces of the mysterious planet, or merely a figment of his own troubled conscience and imagination.The film taps into that desire we all have of somehow being miraculously reunited with a deceased love one.We can't help but be moved by Chris' intense desire to believe that all that is happening is real and that life with this person could indeed start back up where it left off.Clooney does a beautiful job conveying the inner struggle between the grieving husband who wants to reconnect emotionally with this strangely familiar woman whom he had thought forever lost to him and the rationalistic scientist who suspects that both she and their relationship are illusory and ephemeral.The film itself may be glacially paced, but the tension created by the situation pulls us through.Natascha McElhone brings an ethereal beauty to the role of the dead wife, and we are moved by her own confusion as to whether she is really this woman Rheya or merely some fabrication usurping the memories and feelings of someone long gone from the scene.Clooney and McElhone generate a strong romantic chemistry between them, both in the scenes aboard the ship and in the manifold flashbacks the storytellers use to reveal their relationship back on Earth.Viola Davis gives an intense performance as Helen Gordon, the rationalist of the group who tries to convince Chris that he must overcome his feelings and destroy this facsimile of Rheya or risk bringing potential destruction to the people back home. `Solaris' has been shot in the widest screen ratio I have seen in years.It almost feels like one of those old Cinerama pictures from the 1950's and 1960's, which is surprising actually, given the fact that, for all its outer space trappings, the film is really an intimate, personal drama in quality and scale (if you rent this on video, do NOT opt for the `full screen' treatment; rather, make sure it is in the letterboxed format).Also, the set design and special effects are actually rather understated for a modern science fiction film – as is everything about `Solaris' in fact.Like `2001,' `Solaris' is filled with images and concepts whose significance and meaning aren't always readily apparent or easily spelled out for the audience.Just be forewarned that the film is more along the lines of a tone poem than a rip-roaring action adventure tale. `Solaris' isn't a great film and I can certainly see why many people, expecting something different, might find themselves becoming restive and bored by it.For me, the film managed to seep under my skin and kept me interested most of the time.This is definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but for those with patience and an appreciation for something a little different, `Solaris' has its share of rewards. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut|Trey Parker|Animation|Rated R for pervasive vulgar language and crude sexual humor, and for some violent images. R|7.5|USA|1999|81 min/ Spain:77 min (DVD edition)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Frank C. Agnone II Anne Garefino Deborah Liebling Trey Parker Mark Roybal Scott Rudin Adam Schroeder Gina Shay Matt Stone|Trey Parker Matt Stone Trey Parker Matt Stone Pam Brady|||Paramount Pictures [us] |Bigger, longer & uncut|Southpark is a quiet and peaceful place until the latest Terrance and Philip movie comes out. Once all the kids see it, all hell breaks loose, as the parents try to find a way to stop their kids from saying all the naughty words coming out of their mouths. The parents blame Terrance and Philip, place them under Citizen's Arrest, and declare war on their home country, Canada. It is up to the kids to save the world from Satan and keep Terrance and Philip from being executed South Park is a quiet and peaceful town until the latest Terrence and Phillip movie, "Asses of Fire" releases. When that happens, all hell breaks loose. After all the kids see the movie, all of the kids start using the foul language used in "Asses of Fire". When the parents (Mary Kay Bergman, Trey Parker, and Matt Stone) find out they begin "World War III" against the Canadians, Terrence and Phillip. When the blood of Terrence and Phillip touches American soil, Satan (Trey Parker) and Saddam Hussien (Himself) plan to go up to Earth from Hell and rule the earth. Will Cartman's filthy fucking mouth save everybody? |Trey Parker (Stan Marsh/Eric Cartman/Satan/Mr. Herbert Garrison/Phillip Niles Argyle/Randy Marsh/Tom the News Reporter/Midget in a Bikini/Ticket Taker/Canadian Ambassador/Bombadeers/Mr. Mackey/Army General/Ned Gerblanski/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Matt Stone (Kyle Broslofski/Kenny McCormick/Saddam Hussein/Terrence Henry Stoot/Jimbo Kearn/Gerald Broslofski/Bill Gates/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mary Kay Bergman (Liane Cartman/Sheila Broslofski/Sharon Marsh/Wendy Testeberger/Clitoris/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Isaac Hayes (Jerome 'Chef' McElroy (voice)) @ Jesse Howell (Ike Broflovski (voice)) @ Anthony Cross-Thomas (Ike Broflovski (voice)) @ Franchesca Clifford (Ike Broflovski (voice)) @ Bruce Howell (Man in Theatre (voice)) @ Deb Adair (Woman in Theatre (voice)) @ Jennifer Howell (Bebe Stevens (voice)) @ George Clooney (Dr. Gouache/Dr. Doctor (voice)) @ Brent Spiner (Conan O'Brien (voice)) @ Minnie Driver (Brooke Shields (voice)) @ Dave Foley (The Baldwin Brothers (voice)) @ Eric Idle (Dr. Vosknocker (voice)) @ Nick Rhodes (Canadian Fighter Pilot (voice)) @ Toddy Walters (Winona Ryder (voice) (as Toddy E. Walters)) @ Stewart Copeland (American Soldier #1 (voice)) @ Stanley G. Sawicki (American Soldier #2 (voice)) @ Mike Judge (Kenny McCormick saying Goodbye (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Howard McGillin (Gregory (singing voice) (uncredited)Produced by||A hell of a funny film, but with a message. When you have the reputation that Parker and Stone do, it is hard to get rid of the sterotypes that have been drawn around you.You are forever stuck in the mold that has been bestowed upon you.But perhaps sometimes when stigmas of that nature are forever embedded with your name and reputation, it actually gives them more leeway to make a statement that is political in nature.As long as they disguise that statement(s) with all that made them popular in the first place, they can get away with it.So now, if I said that beyond the non-stop vulgarity and infinite humour that this film contains, is a film that has an important message camouflaged in animation, would you believe me?Would you care? First off, this is the most profanity laced film I have ever seen in my life, and that includes early Eddie Murphy efforts.But the profanity in this film had me in stitches.Honestly, that was almost not just a figure of speech either.I laughed so hard that I almost banged my head on the on the person in front of me.Remember how absorbed you were at the horror of war at the beginning of Private Ryan?Well if you had to parallel the two and replace horror with humour, that is a safe comparison.This film is so ******* funny and I really enjoyed it on that level.I can honestly say that I haven't laughed so hard since Office Space.The profanity goes a bit overboard at times but I think that was on purpose.Some of the humour is a bit gross ( seeing Sadam's rubber propalactic was funny but a little sick at the same time ) but I think these guys wanted to see how far they could go. And they went very far and they dared the MPAA to censor them even more, and hey, I was very entertained. But on the political side, there are a lot of dicey issues that are covered here.Censorship for one.It's funny because we as Canadians and Americans have some of the same ideologies and one of them is free speech.But if that is what we want, then we have to be willing to go all the way.You can't pick and choose what is more free and more appropriate than something else just because it is not politically correct.Free speech means free speech.Free to express your thoughts in an open forum.This film tells us that free speech is free as long as you don't offend the masses.It also says that in MPAA's world it is okay to see blood and guts and intestines and brain tissue ( many of those films get an AA rating ) but profanity dictates that an R or an X is required to see the film.That really is silly. The film also touches on racism in the armed forces and it shows how brain washed Americans get when there is a conflict with an opposing nation.It doesn't matter that perhaps some of the issues at hand are clouded and misunderstood, manypeople stand behind their government to the very end. Kill em' all in the name of the Constitution.There are also some stabs at religion and being gay and a plethora of other issues.A particular scene with Bill Gates is funny. Parker and Stone have given the finger to the ratings system in America and I think people will like it.They have also given much more credit to the Canadian armed forces in this movie.If the U.S. ever went to war with us, it would probably be over in a day or so.So thanks for making us look at least competetive.That was cool. It may be weird to read a review of this film and have comments about politics in here, because it really is a funny movie and I was in a good mood when I left the theater, but there is more to this movie than just humour.To accomplish that and still be known as the guys who made fart jokes and the F word popular is quite a feat.This film is there to enjoy but it is also there to ask some tough and interesting questions.Enjoy the film, but listen to what it has to say.That is, besides the F and S word, listen to what it wants to say. **** One last observation and that is, when I was in line for the film, a lady and her five year old daughter were in front of me.When they asked for South Park, the cashier asked if she was sure because there is a lot of profanity in the film.The lady reassured her that it was fine.Her daughter can listen and watch but knows not to repeat.That is responsible parenting.Teach your kids right from wrong and hope they turn out well. That's all you can do.And I applaud that parent for doing so.She may never know who I am but I will remember her for quite some time.Maybe if more people were like that, there wouldn't be such a fuss about profanity. After all, they are just words. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ South Park: The Complete Fourth Season / DVD-Video|||NR ||||380 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/18/2004||||||| Reveliin seventeen classic episodes now that South Park's fourth season isiavailableifor theifirst timeiin this exclusive 3-disc collector's edition.This season introduced one of South Park's favorite characters, TIMMY!Season Four also marked theiboy's passage into 4th Gradeifor theilaunch of their boy band, "Fingerbang."Oh, andidid we mention that this season isitheifirst time TIMMY appears?So Join Stan, Kyle, Cartman, Kenny andiTIMMYifor Season 4ias they take onitheiTooth Fairy, NAMBLA, Satan andiJanet Reno.It's all part of growing upiin South Park. ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC] ||||||@@ South Park: The Complete First Season|Adrien Beard Toni Nugnes Trey Parker Matt Stone Eric Stoug|Animation|NR ||USA|1997|310 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Frank C. Agnone II Anne Garefino Anne Garefino Brian Graden Jennifer Howell Deborah Liebling Trey Parker Matt Stone David Niles White|Keef Bartkus Pam Brady Karey Dornetto David Goodman Kyle McCulloch Kyle McCulloch Trisha Nixon Trey Parker Trey Parker Nancy Pimental Rachel Powell Erica Rivinoja Philip Stark Dan Sterling Matt Stone Matt Stone Tim Talbott|||Comedy Central [us] || Mr. Hankey!Mecha Streisand!Cartman's Mom!And More… Now all thirteen classic episodes are availableifor theifirst timeiin this exclusive 3-disc collector's edition.Join Stan, Kyle, Cartman andiKennyias these four animated tykes take onitheisupernatural, theiextraordinary anditheiinsane.For them, it's all part of growing upiin South Park. |Trey Parker (Stan Marsh/Eric Cartman/Mr. Herbert Garrison/Mr. Mackey/Satan/Philip Niles Argyle/Tom the News Reporter/Mr. Tweek/Timmy/Clyde/Randy Marsh/Grandpa Marvin Marsh/Miss Diane Choksondik (2000-2002)/Ned Gerblanski/Officer Barbrady/Big Gay Al/Mr. Hankey/Dr. Alphonse Mephesto/Dr. Doctor/Twong Lu Kim/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Matt Stone (Kyle Broslofski/Kenny McCormick/Jimbo Kearn/Terrance Henry Stoot/Pip Pirrup/Token Williams/Leopold "Butters" Stotch/Tweek/Gerald Broslofski/Saddam Hussein/Stuart McCormick/Jesus Christ/Towelie/Jimmy/Priest Maxi/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mary Kay Bergman (Principal Victoria/Liane Cartman/Sharon Marsh/Sheila Broslofski/Mrs. McCormick/Nurse Gollum/Wendy Testaberger/Mrs. Crabtree/Additional Voices (1997-1999) (voice) (as Shannen Cassidy)) @ Isaac Hayes (Jerome 'Chef' McElroy (voice)) @ Jesse Howell (Ike Broslofski (1997-1999) (voice)) @ Franchesca Clifford (Ike Broslofski (1997) (voice)) @ Eliza Schneider (Mrs. McCormick/Liane Cartman/Sharon Marsh/Wendy Testaburger/Shelly Marsh/Principal Victoria/Mayor McDaniels/Mrs. Crabtree/Estella/Additional Voices (2000- ) (voice) (as Blue Girl) rest of cast listed alphabetically Jennifer Howell .... Bebe Stevens (voice)) @ Mona Marshall (Sheila Broslofski/Wendy Testaberger (2000-) (voice) Produced by||Extremely funny! South Park is superb.The series has run on Norwegian-tv for about 6 months now, and I have not missed a single episode. South Park is violent, rude and just plain cool. We follow 4 little 8-yearold boys: Kenny, Cartman, Stan and Kyle. Cartman is my favorite character because he is so godd&%) cool! Every episode screams high-class, although the animation stinks, but it adds to the cult-factor. Watch it godd%¤()&! 10/10 |Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] ||||||@@ South Park: The Complete Third Season / DVD-Video|||NR ||||374 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/9/2004||||||| Now all seventeen classic episodes from South Park's legendary third season are availableifor theifirst timeiin this 3-disc collectors edition.In this season we learn what causes spontaneous combustion, get caught upiin theiChinpoko Mon craze andihooked oniMonkey Phonics.So join Stan, Kyle, Cartman andiKennyias they take onitheisupernatural, theiextraordinary anditheiinsane.For them, it's all part of growing up. ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Mono FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ South Park: The Complete Second Season|||NR |||1997|404 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||||||||| Now all eighteen classic episodes from South Park's legendary second season are availableifor theifirst timeiin this exclusive 3-disc collector's edition. This season we find out theiidentity of Cartman's father, learn about Conjoined Twin Myslexia andithaw outia prehistoric ice man. So join Stan, Kyle, Cartman andiKennyias they take onitheisupernatural, theiextraordinary anditheiinsane. For them, it's all part of growing upiin South Park. ||||Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] ||||||@@ Spaceballs|Mel Brooks|Comedy|PG |6.6|USA|1987|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/22/2004|Mel Brooks Ezra Swerdlow|Mel Brooks Thomas Meehan Ronny Graham|Nick McLean ||Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) [us] |May the schwartz be with you.|King Roland of the planet Druidia is trying to marry his daughter Princess Vespa (Daphne Zuniga) to Prince Valium, but Vespa is kidnapped by the evil race of the Spaceballs. The Spaceballs ask Roland a tremendous ransom: all the air of Druidia (you see, the air of Spaceball had serious pollution problems...). The King decides to offer a generous amount of money to a space rogue, Lone Star, to persuade him to save Vespa. What follows is the parody of a _LOT_ of famous SF movies. |Mel Brooks (President Skroob/Yogurt) @ Rick Moranis (Dark Helmet) @ Bill Pullman (Lone Starr) @ John Candy (Barfolemew 'Barf') @ Daphne Zuniga (Princess Vespa) @ George Wyner (Colonel Sandurz) @ Joan Rivers (Dot Matrix (voice)) @ Dick Van Patten (King Roland) @ Michael Winslow (Radar Technician) @ Lorene Yarnell (Dot Matrix) @ John Hurt (Kane) @ Sal Viscuso (Radio Operator) @ Ronny Graham (Minister) @ JM J. Bullock (Prince Valium) @ Leslie Bevis (Commanderette Zircon) @ Jim Jackman (Major Asshole) @ Mike Pniewski (Laser Gunner (as Michael Pniewski)) @ Sandy Helberg (Dr. Schlotkin) @ Stephen Tobolowsky (Captain of the Guard) @ Jeff MacGregor (Snotty) @ Henry Kaiser (Magnetic Beam Operator) @ Denise Gallup (Charlene) @ Dian Gallup (Marlene) @ Gail Barle (Waitress) @ Dey Young (Waitress) @ Rhonda Shear (Woman in Diner) @ Robert Prescott (Sand Cruiser Driver) @ Jack Riley (TV Newsman) @ Tom Dreesen (Megamaid Guard) @ Rudy De Luca (Vinnie, Hutt's Henchman) @ Tony Griffin (Prison Guard) @ Rick Ducommun (Prison Guard) @ Ken Olfson (Head Usher) @ Bryan O'Byrne (Organist) @ Wayne Wilson (Trucker in Cap) @ Ira Miller (Short Order Cook) @ Earl Finn (Guard with Captain) @ Mitchell Bock (Video Operator) @ Tommy Swerdlow (Troop Leader) @ Tim Russ (Trooper) @ Ed Gale (Dink #1) @ Antonio Hoyos (The Dinks) @ Felix Silla (The Dinks) @ Arturo Gil (The Dinks) @ Tony Cox (The Dinks) @ John Kennedy Hayden (The Dinks) @ Dee Booher (Bearded Lady) @ Johnny Silver (Caddy) @ Brenda Strong (Gretchen (Nurse)) @ Dom DeLuise (Pizza the Hutt (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Camille Hagen (Woman in Diner (uncredited)) @ Jerry Maren ( (uncredited)) @ Julie Pitkanen (Self-Destruct Voice (uncredited) (voice)) @ Harry Shearer (News Broadcaster (uncredited)) @ Cary Stratton (Extra (uncredited)Produced by||"Funny... She doesn't look Druish." SPACEBALLS (1987) **1/2Mel Brooks, Bill Pullman, John Candy, Rick Moranis, Daphne Zuniga, George Wyner, Dick Van Patten, Michael Winslow, Joan Rivers (voice only), John Hurt.Frequently funny send-up of "Star Wars" and all space operas ala Brooks with some great sight gags, one-liners and inspired casting of Moranis as a half-pint "Dark Helmet" and Candy as "Barf the Mawg", half-man, half-dog ("I'm my own best friend!")and of course Zuniga as a "Druish princess" ("Funny...she doesn't look Druish"). That's Lorene Yarnell, of Shields and Yarnell fame, in the Dot Matrix outfit.Maythe Schwartz Be With You! ||Special Edition |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Speed|Jan de Bont|Action||7.1|USA|1994| 116 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ian Bryce Mark Gordon Allison Lyon Segan|Graham Yost |Andrzej Bartkowiak ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Get ready for rush hour. |LAPD cops Jack Traven and Harry Temple rescue a group of executives trapped in a sabotaged elevator, thus foiling mad bomber Howard Payne's ransom demands. In retaliation, Payne sets a new challenge for Traven: a bomb on a city bus which will arm itself when the bus reaches 50 mph, and which will explode if the bus drops below that speed or if any of the passengers try to escape. |Keanu Reeves (Officer Jack Traven) @ Dennis Hopper (Howard Payne) @ Sandra Bullock (Annie Porter) @ Joe Morton (Lt. Herb 'Mac' McMahon) @ Jeff Daniels (Det. Harold 'Harry' Temple) @ Alan Ruck (Stephens) @ Glenn Plummer (Maurice the Tune Man (Jaguar Owner)) @ Richard Lineback (Norwood) @ Beth Grant (Helen) @ Hawthorne James (Sam) @ Carlos Carrasco (Ortiz) @ David Kriegel (Terry) @ Natsuko Ohama (Mrs. Kamino) @ Daniel Villarreal (Ray) @ Simone Gad (Bus Passenger #1) @ Loretta Jean Crudup (Bus Passenger #2) @ Sherri Villanueva (Bus Passenger #3) @ Margaret Medina (Robin) @ Jordan Lund (Mr. Bagwell) @ Robert Mailhouse (Young Executive) @ Patrick Fischler (Young Executive's Friend) @ Patrick John Hurley (CEO) @ Susan Barnes (Female Executive) @ Richard Dano (SWAT Driver) @ Michael Sottile (SWAT Officer) @ Jane Crawley (Woman with Baby Carriage) @ Anne O'Sullivan (Woman with Baby Carriage) @ Beau Starr (Commissioner) @ John Capodice (Bob) @ Thomas Rosales Jr. (Vince (as Tommy Rosales Jr.)) @ James DuMont (Security Guard) @ Antonio Mora (News Anchor #1) @ Patty Toy (News Anchor #2) @ Todd Gordon (News Cameraman) @ Bruce Wright (Reporter #1) @ Mark Kriski (Reporter #2) @ Dagny Hultgreen (Reporter #3) @ Richard Schiff (Train Driver) @ Joseph Carberry (Cop) @ Sandy Martin (Bartender) @ Neisha Folkes-LeMelle (Mrs. McMahon (as Neisha Folkes-LéMelle)) @ Jim Mapp (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Milton Quon (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Sonia Jackson (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Carmen Williams (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Paula Montes (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Loyda Ramos (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Julia Vera (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Marylou Lim (Addtional Bus Passenger) @ Brian Grant (Elevator Passenger (as Brian K. Grant)) @ Barry Kramer (Elevator Passenger) @ Robin McKee (Elevator Passenger) @ Paige Goodman (Elevator Passenger) @ Christina Fitzgerald (Elevator Passenger) @ Tara Thomas (Elevator Passenger) @ CeCe Tsou (Elevator Passenger) @ Michael N. Fujimoto (Elevator Passenger) @ Richard Gelb (Elevator Passenger) @ Craig Hosking (Helicopter Pilot) @ Harry Hauss (Helicopter Pilot) @ J. David Jones (Helicopter Pilot) @ Michael Tamburro (Helicopter Pilot rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Scott Wilder (SWAT Member #1 on Flatbed Truck (uncredited)) @ Eddie Yansick (SWAT Member #2 on Flatbed Truck (uncredited) Produced by||faster... (like the Manic Street Preachers' song) Try to imagine this: a trapped bus that contains a bomb. It mustn't come down to 80 kilometres an hour, otherwise the bomb is exploding. This is about this interesting idea that Jan de Bont designed one of the most successful movies released in 1994. He made a spectacular and suspenseful action movie where he can constantly sustain the interest. Obviously, it contains a few implausibilities: in one sequence, the bus's managing to cross a bridge that is very large. Moreover, the movie also distills a kind humor. At the end, "Speed" is an honorable success and Dennis Hopper is an excellent terrorist. As Alfred Hitchcock said: "the more successful the bad guy is, the more successful the movie will be". || |2.35 : 1 |5.0 ||||||@@ Sphere|Barry Levinson|Sci-Fi|Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action including some startling images. |5.2|USA|1998| 134 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Patricia Churchill Michael Crichton Peter Giuliano Barry Levinson Andrew Wald|Michael Crichton Kurt Wimmer Stephen Hauser Paul Attanasio|Adam Greenberg ||Roadshow Film Distributors [au] |A thousand feet beneath the sea, the blackest holes are in the mind...|1000 feet below the ocean, navy divers discover an object half-a-mile long. A crack team of scientists are deployed to the site in Deepsea Habitats. What they find boggles the mind as they discover a perfect metal sphere. What is the secret behind the sphere? Will they survive the mysterious 'manifestations'? Who or what is creating these? They may never live to find out. In the middle of the South Pacific, a thousand feet below the surface of the water, a huge vessel rests on the ocean floor. Rushed to the scene is a group of American scientists who descend to the depths of the sea to investigate this astonishing discovery. What they find defies their imaginations and mocks their attempts at logical explanation. It is a massive spaceship, undamaged from it's fall from the sky-and at least three hundred years old. |Dustin Hoffman (Dr. Norman Johnson) @ Sharon Stone (Dr. Elizabeth 'Beth' Halperin) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Dr. Harry Adams) @ Peter Coyote (Captain Harold C. Barnes) @ Liev Schreiber (Dr. Ted Fielding) @ Queen Latifah (Alice 'Teeny' Fletcher) @ Marga Gómez (Jane Edmunds) @ Huey Lewis (Helicopter Pilot) @ Bernard Hocke (Seaman) @ James Pickens Jr. (O.S.S.A. Instructor) @ Michael Keys Hall (O.S.S.A. Official) @ Ralph Tabakin (O.S.S.A. Official Produced by||A fairly average movie Sometimes ghastly, sometimes awesome, this film's bipolar nature proved to be jarring, not allowing the audience to succinctly follow the story in a smooth and manageable fashion. While I still liked it, the weaknesses within this film existed primarily in the editing and lack of continuity. While I felt Dustin Hoffman, Samuel L. Jackson and Sharon Stone were all reputable in their roles, there presence enough didn't provide the type of thriller one expected. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Spider-Man|Sam Raimi|Action|Rated PG-13 for stylized violence and action. |7.5|USA|2002| 121 min/ Spain:123 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Avi Arad Ian Bryce Grant Curtis Heidi Fugeman Stan Lee Steven P. Saeta Laura Ziskin|Stan Lee Steve Ditko David Koepp|Don Burgess ||Cascade Film [ru] |With great power comes great responsibility.|A rather odd thing has just just occurred in the life of nerdy high school student Peter Parker; after being bitten by a radioactive spider, his body chemistry is mutagenically altered in that he can scale walls and ceilings, and he develops a "spider-sense" that warns him of approaching danger. Adopting the name "Spider-Man", Peter first uses his newfound powers to make money, but after his uncle is murdered at the hands of a criminal Peter failed to stop, he swears to use his powers to fight the evil that killed his uncle. At the same time, scientist and businessman Norman Osborn, after exposure to an experimental nerve gas, develops an alternate personality himself; the super-strong, psychotic Green Goblin! Peter Parker must now juggle three things in his life; his new job at the local newspaper under a perpetually on-edge employer, his battle against the evil Green Goblin, and his fight to win the affections of beautiful classmate Mary Jane Watson, against none other than his best friend Harry Osborn, son of Norman Osborn! Is this challenge too much for even the amazing Spider-Man to handle? |Tobey Maguire (Spider-Man/Peter Parker) @ Willem Dafoe (Green Goblin/Norman Osborn) @ Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane Watson) @ James Franco (Harry Osborn) @ Cliff Robertson (Uncle Ben) @ Rosemary Harris (Aunt May) @ J.K. Simmons (J. Jonah Jameson) @ Joe Manganiello (Flash Thompson) @ Gerry Becker (Maximilian Fargas) @ Bill Nunn (Joseph 'Robbie' Robertson) @ Jack Betts (Henry Balkan) @ Stanley Anderson (Gen. Slocum) @ Ron Perkins (Dr. Mendell Stromm) @ Michael Papajohn (Carjacker) @ K.K. Dodds (Ellie Simkins) @ Ted Raimi (Hoffman) @ Bruce Campbell (Wrestling ring announcer) @ Elizabeth Banks (Betty Brant) @ John Paxton (Osborn's houseman) @ Tim De Zarn (Philip Watson (as Tim Dezarn)) @ Taylor Gilbert (Madeline Watson) @ Randy Poffo (Bone Saw McGraw (as Randy Savage)) @ Larry Joshua (Wrestling promoter) @ Timothy Patrick Quill (Wrestling arena guard) @ Lisa Danielle (Bone-ette) @ Natalie T. Yeo (Bone-ette) @ Erica D. Porter (Bone-ette) @ Kristen Davidson (Bone-ette) @ Jason Padgett (Flash's crony) @ Shan Omar Huey (Teacher) @ Sally Livingstone (Girl on bus) @ Evan Arnold (Doctor attending May) @ Jill Sayre (Nurse attending May) @ James Kevin Ward (Project coordinator (as James K. Ward)) @ David Holcomb (Capt. Curtis) @ Octavia Spencer (Check-in girl) @ Johnny Cocktails (Heckler (as Brad Grunberg)) @ Shane Habberstad (Billy) @ Deborah Wakeham (Billy's mother) @ Rachael Bruce (Times Square child) @ Mackenzie Bryce (Times Square child) @ Julia Barry (Times Square child) @ Macy Gray (Herself) @ Myk Watford (Cop at fire) @ Bill Calvert (Fireman (as William Calvert)) @ Sylva Kelegian (Mother at fire (as Sylvia Kelegian)) @ Kristen Marie Holly (Young lady at fire) @ Ajay Mehta (Cabbie) @ Peter Appel (Cabbie) @ Scott Spiegel (Marine cop) @ Matt Smith (Cop at carjacking) @ Sara Ramirez (Cop at carjacking) @ Lucy Lawless (Punk rock girl) @ Jayce Bartok (Subway guitarist) @ Maribel González (Lady dogwalker) @ Amy Bouril (Office lady) @ Joe D'Onofrio (Opinionated cop (as Joseph D'Onofrio)) @ Jim Norton (Surly truck driver) @ Corey Mendell Parker (Chaperone in tram) @ Ashley Edner (Girl in tram (as Ashley Louise Edner)) @ William Joseph Firth (Boy in tram) @ Alex Black (Boy in tram) @ Laura Gray (Tram group mother) @ Joe Virzi (New Yorker on bridge) @ Michael Edward Thomas (New Yorker on bridge) @ Jeanie Fox (New Yorker on bridge) @ Robert Kerman (Tugboat captain rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ari Averbach (Dancer (uncredited)) @ Joni Avery (Cop (uncredited)) @ Rick Avery (Cop (uncredited)) @ Amy Beth Bennett (Jewelry thief #2 (uncredited)) @ Brian Bennett (Doorman (uncredited)) @ Jophery C. Brown (Chef (uncredited)) @ Jacob Chambers (Cop (uncredited)) @ Jillian Clare (Crying girl in tram (uncredited)) @ Chris Coppola (Kyle (uncredited)) @ Una Damon (Lab Tour Guide (uncredited)) @ Chandra De Alessandro (Cop (uncredited)) @ Mark De Alessandro (Cop (uncredited)) @ Richard C. Everbeck (Eddie Brock (uncredited)) @ Rosemary Garris (Patty (uncredited)) @ Al Goto (Cop (uncredited)) @ Randy Hall (Cop (uncredited)) @ Rance Howard (Man in street (uncredited)) @ Kevin Jackson (Bellman (uncredited)) @ Loren Janes (Board of Directors member (uncredited)) @ Claudia Katz (Robbie's assistant (uncredited)) @ Kolby Kirk (Festival guest (uncredited)) @ Erik Kleven (Chef (uncredited)) @ Stan Lee (Sunglasses vendor (uncredited)) @ Justin Neill (Flash's crony (uncredited)) @ Philip Ng (Diamond District Attendee (uncredited)) @ Debra Orenstein (Doctor (uncredited)) @ Gary Otto (New Yorker (uncredited)) @ Sumner Redstone (Oscorp board member (uncredited)) @ Scott L. Schwartz (Screaming wrestler (uncredited)) @ Robair Sims (Bellman (uncredited)) @ Lindsay Neel Thompson (Mary Jane's friend (uncredited)) @ Sean Valla (Boat light man (uncredited)) @ John Wojnowski III (Man in street (uncredited) Produced by||Poignant, fun and afaithful adaptation to the original comic book Poignant, fun and afaithful adaptation to the original comic book.I am very critical of comic book movies since I am a huge fan of the medium and was tremendously disappointed in the Superman and Batman movies (all of them, some greatly!). This film however has again demonstrated that an adaptation of a comic book story can befun and faithful to the story, yet be a film for all ages and those who may not have ever even read a comic book.The Crow was the only other good comic book movie in my opinion, but it was not an all ages fun ride as this is! I had the privilege of seeing the film last night, 4-30-02, in SF with the press and 300+ other folks for its "Bay Area Premiere". The acting is the finest portion of the film with the leads giving us depth that I was unsure would be allowed by the style of story chosen.Maguire was outstanding at being a guy who can rarely catch a break, but attract difficulty with ease and aplomb.He is awkward with the woman he loves, but eloquent when dealing with the familiar, just as most teenagers are even today.He gave us wonderful joy at the prospect of "web swinging" and kicking some much deserved ass!Dafoe is wonderfully scary as the man who has succumbed to the power games of the corporateworld that drives a decent man mad striving for perfection in himself while trying to hard to please all the wrong people to no avail and then being consumed by guilt that has built over the years of family neglect which finally helps to push him over the edge when an opportunity to make a huge mistake presents itself. The rest of cast is nearly as spectacular with the J.K. Simmons turning in the best performance in the film as J. Jonah Jamason.When he appeared on screen things lite up even more and he was on fire making everyone in the audience laugh and myself nearly p** my pants.Harris as Aunt May and Robertson as Uncle Ben were excellent choices and gave the film a great deal of its credibility and finesse.Letting what happens to Ben and Peter (I am not telling) was wonderful and the best punctuation to what makes Peter do what he does and brings complete credibility to the story.I am not a huge Dunst fan, but she was just fine as the love of Peter Parker's life and a person much like Peter only neither was conscious of the fact.This to me is a more real version of"true love". The script was far stronger than I expected with some wonderful dialog; verbal exchanges, solid plot points and pacing.Many a good parenting lesson can be found in this film as well as interesting thoughts about the choices that we make in life that we might think are no big deal when in the heat of passion, but may well come back to haunt us if we don't think before we act/speak: which is the trust of the film in my humble opinion. The direction from Raimi was also much better than I anticipated coming from someone who is known (and loved) for his over the top camp and action.Many of the fight and action sequences where more "over done" than I like, but they were solid and much like a comic of the Silver Age from whence the story comes so it fit the film fine.Nice cinematography without the CGI taking over and detracting from the realism, in fact it made much of the web swinging truly believable.A few points made things a bit hard to "believe", but over all I think most folks will be able to suspend their disbelief. Danny Elfman.Need I say more?He is the man when it comes to "super hero" music and is the closest thing to John Willams and the late great Bernard Herman there is today.He subtly sets the mood and most of the audience probably doesn't even realize it.Tomorrow is my day off and I will be purchasing the score to add to my collection! || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Stand by Me|Rob Reiner|Adventure|R |7.9|USA|1986|89 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/18/2004|Bruce A. Evans Raynold Gideon Andrew Scheinman|Stephen King Raynold Gideon Bruce A. Evans|Thomas Del Ruth ||Columbia Pictures [us] ||4 young friends set out on an adventure. Geordie, Chris, Teddy and Vern go looking for the missing body of a local teenager - found by a gang of older boys. A story of boys hangin' out and growin' up. Unable to grasp the fact of his brother's death, Gordie Lachance feels compelled to travel with three friends to see a dead body that has been found near the railroad tracks. Based on Stephen King's Short story "The Body", "Stand By Me" tells the tale of Gordie Lachance, a writer who looks back on his preteen days when he and three close friends went on their own adventure to find the body of a kid their age who had gone missing and presumed dead. The stakes are upped when the bad kids in town are closely tailing - and it becomes a race to see who'll be able to recover the body first. |Wil Wheaton (Gordie Lachance) @ River Phoenix (Chris Chambers) @ Corey Feldman (Teddy Duchamp) @ Jerry O'Connell (Vern Tessio) @ Gary Riley (Charlie Hogan) @ Kiefer Sutherland (Ace Merrill) @ Casey Siemaszko (Billy Tessio) @ Bradley Gregg (Eyeball Chambers) @ Jason Oliver (Vince Desjardins) @ Marshall Bell (Mr. Lachance) @ Frances Lee McCain (Mrs. Lachance) @ Bruce Kirby (Mr. Quidacioluo) @ William Bronder (Milo Pressman) @ Scott Beach (Mayor Grundy) @ Richard Dreyfuss (The Writer) @ John Cusack (Denny Lachance) @ Madeleine Swift (Waitress) @ Geanette Bobst (Mayor's Wife) @ Art Burke (Principal Wiggins) @ Matt Williams (Bob Cormier) @ Andy Lindberg (Lardass Hogan) @ Dick Durock (Bill Travis) @ O.B. Babbs (Lardass Heckler #1) @ Charlie Owens (Lardass Heckler #2) @ Kenneth Hodges (Donelley Twin) @ John Hodges (Donelley Twin) @ Susan Thorpe (Fat Lady) @ Korey Scott Pollard (Moke) @ Rick Elliott (Jack Mudgett) @ Kent Lutrell (Ray Brower) @ Chance Quinn (Gordon's Son) @ Jason Naylor (Friend of Gordon's SonProduced by||Inspiration As a lover of Stephen King's writing style and Rob Reiner's directing techniques, this movie leaves me speechless every time. It is an almost forgotten film about a time and a youth nearly forgotten, as well. And I will say, as a writer, the novella that this film was based upon, "The Body" has and always will be the inspiration for my style of writing. First of all, I enjoy the title that was chosen for the film. "Stand By Me" fits what the characters in the story are facing.I think that all who have seen this film will agree that the problems are all things that we can relate to.All of us know someone like these characters. Most of us have met the boy down the road who had a brother with a bad name and a father with an alcohol problem, automatically being labeled as a "bad kid." And the boy with the military father, abusive and a little whacko. The fat kid, picked on and ridiculed for his weight. To me, Gordy represents all of us. I found myself seeing a little of me in Gordy as I watched the film. I don't know if any one else shares this, but it was true. Gordy was not very strong, at first, and was not sure what he wanted, except to be with his friends. Still coping with the loss of his brother and the fact that his father was disrespectful to him, Gordy still stood up for what he believed in. And, in the end he surprised the characters and the viewers by standing up to the bullies that had plagued them all. This film is certainly one of my top favorites. In fact, it lies in my top three, probably at #2 or #3. I feel that it is a film that everyone should see at some point in their life due to the fact it changes your look at youth and their trials. Few films are able to do that and I think that this one was an inspiration for others that will do the same in the future. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 ||||||@@ Stand, The|Mick Garris|Drama|NR |7.3|USA|1994|366 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Mitchell Galin Michael Gornick Stephen King Peter R. McIntosh Richard P. Rubinstein|Stephen King Stephen King|Edward J. Pei ||American Broadcasting Company (ABC) [us] |The end of the world is just the beginning. | The end of theiworld isijust theibeginning. |Gary Sinise (Stu Redman) @ Molly Ringwald (Frannie Goldsmith) @ Jamey Sheridan (Randall Flagg) @ Laura San Giacomo (Nadine Cross) @ Ruby Dee (Mother Abigail Freemantle) @ Ossie Davis (Judge Richard Farris) @ Miguel Ferrer (Lloyd Henreid) @ Corin Nemec (Harold Lauder) @ Matt Frewer (Trashcan Man) @ Adam Storke (Larry Underwood) @ Ray Walston (Glen Bateman) @ Rob Lowe (Nick Andros) @ Bill Fagerbakke (Tom Cullen) @ Peter Van Norden (Ralph Brentner) @ Rick Aviles (Rat Man) @ Max Wright (Dr. Herbert Denninger) @ Ray McKinnon (Charlie Campion) @ Bridgit Ryan (Lucy Swann) @ Kellie Overbey (Dayna Jurgens) @ Patrick Kilpatrick (Ray Booth) @ Shawnee Smith (Julie Lawry) @ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (The Monster Shouter) @ Chuck Adamson (Barry Dorgan) @ Tony Adler (Dying Janitor) @ Sam Anderson (Whitney Horgan) @ Steven Anderson (Army Officer) @ Jesse Bennett (Vic Palfrey) @ Johnny Biscuit (Norm Bruett) @ John Bloom (Deputy Joe-Bob Brentwood) @ J. Scott Bronson (Man in Convoy) @ Ervin Butler (Basketball Boy) @ Hope Marie Carlton (Sally Campion) @ David Kirk Chambers (Brad Kitchner) @ Laura Conover (Nurse) @ Bill Corso (Corpse in Lincoln Tunnel) @ Kevin Doyle (Sarge) @ John Dunbar (Dave Roberts) @ Troy Evans (Sheriff Baker) @ Warren Frost (George Richardson) @ Cynthia Garris (Susan Stern) @ Mick Garris (Henry Dunbarton) @ Jeff Gelb (NY Radio Announcer) @ Leo Geter (Chad Norris) @ Sandra Lee Gimpel (Woman in Store) @ Alan Gregory (Al Bundell) @ Mary Ethel Gregory (Alice Underwood) @ Thomasyn Harlow (Cynthia) @ Jim Haynie (Deputy Kingsolving) @ Ryan Healy (4th Teenager) @ Tom Holland (Carl Hough) @ Sherman Howard (Dr. Dietz) @ Ken Jenkins (Peter Goldsmith) @ David Jensen (Major Jalbert) @ Richard Jewkes (Dick Ellis) @ Kevin Kennedy (Dave Zellman) @ Michelle King (Reporter) @ Stephen King (Teddy Weizak) @ Robert Knott (Lou Carsleigh) @ John Landis (Russ Dorr) @ Brittney Lewis (Arlene) @ Richard Lineback (Poke) @ Mike Lookinland (Sentry No. 1) @ Elizabeth Lough (Young Woman) @ Jordan Lund (Bill Hapscomb) @ Bruce MacVittie (Ace-High) @ Frank Magner (Vince Hogan) @ Dan Martin (Rich Moffat) @ Patrick McKinley (Flu Buddy Man) @ William Newman (Dr. Soames) @ Wendy Phillips (Lisa Hull) @ Sam Raimi (Bobby Terry) @ Vince Rodriguez (Lisa's Driver) @ Sarah Schaub (Gina McCone) @ Tressa Sharbough (Marcy Halloran) @ Julie Simper (Lila Bruett) @ Taylor Smith (Baby Lavon) @ David Sosna (Some Man) @ Billy L. Sullivan (Joe) @ George Sullivan (Sargent) @ Millie Teri (Weeping Woman) @ Michael D. Weatherred (Mike Childress) @ Rob Weller (Game Show Host) @ Mike Westenskow (Paul Burlson) @ Derryl Yeager (Man in Street) @ Brayton Yerkes (Old Man in Store rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kathy Bates (Rae Flowers (uncredited)) @ Ed Harris (General Starkey (uncredited)) @ Dennis W. Zerull (Masked Soldier (uncredited) Produced by||Epic King adaptation: Don't Fear The Reaper STEPHEN KING'S "THE STAND" (1994/MADE FOR TV) *** Gary Sinise, Rob Lowe, Molly Ringwald, Jamey Sheridan, Laura San Giacomo, Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, Corin Nemec, Bill Fagerbakke, Matt Frewer, Miguel Ferrer, Shawnee Smith, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Mick Garris directed this miniseries tv epic adaptation of King's horror novel (who wrote the teleplay and has a cameo) , destruction and one nasty plague that nearly wipes out mankind. Pitting good vs. evil (106 yr. old Dee and devil incarnate Sheridan) with two factions restoring civilization.Long but worth the wait; Lowe is outstanding as the noble mute Nick Andros.Great use of Blue Oyster Cult's cult hit "Don't Fear The Reaper" at the beginning over the credits. |Region 1 | |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] ||||||@@ Star Wars|George Lucas|Sci-Fi|Rated PG for sci-fi violence and brief mild language. (special edition, DVD version) PG|8.8|USA|1977|121 min/ USA:125 min (special edition)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/28/2004|Gary Kurtz George Lucas Rick McCallum|George Lucas |Gilbert Taylor ||20th Century Fox de Argentina [ar] |A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...|Part IV in a George Lucas epic, Star Wars: A New Hope opens with a rebel ship being boarded by the tyrannical Darth Vader. The plot then follows the life of a simple farmboy, Luke Skywalker, as he and his newly met allies (Han Solo, Chewbacca, Ben Kenobi, C-3PO, R2-D2) attempt to rescue a rebel leader, Princess Leia, from the clutches of the Empire. The conclusion is culminated as the Rebels, including Skywalker and flying ace Wedge Antilles make an attack on the Empires most powerful and ominous weapon, the Death Star. Luke Skywalker stays with his foster aunt and uncle on a farm on Tatooine. He is desperate to get off this planet and get to the Academy like his friends, but his uncle needs him for the next harvest. Meanwhile, an evil emperor has taken over the galaxy, and has constructed a formidable "Death Star" capable of destroying whole planets. Princess Leia, a leader in the resistance movement, acquires plans of the Death Star, places them in R2D2, a droid, and sends him off to find Obi-Wan Kenobi. Before he finds him, R2D2 ends up on Skywalkers' farm with his friend C3PO. R2 then wanders into the desert, and when Luke follows, they eventually come across Obi-Wan. Will Luke, Obi-Wan, and the two droids be able to destroy the Death Star, or will the Emperor rule forever ? Farmboy Luke Skywalker (Hamill) finds more than he bargained for when he gains possession of two androids (Daniels & Baker), who lead him on the adventure of his life to save a beautiful princess (Fisher), befriend a devil-may-care space smuggler (Ford), and save the galaxy from the evil clutches of Darth Vader (Prowse/Jones). Tutored by the mysterious Obi Wan Kenobi (Guiness), Luke must "Learn the ways of the Force." Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) is held hostage by the evil Imperial forces in their effort to take over the Galactic Empire. Venturesome Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and dashing Captain Han Solo (Harrison Ford) team together with the lovable robotic duo, R2-D2 and C-3PO, to rescue the beautiful princess and restore justice in the Empire. In a distant galaxy eons before the creation of the mythical planet known as Earth, vast civilizations have evolved, and ruling the galaxy is an interstellar Empire created from the ruins of an Old Republic that held sway for generations. It is a time of civil war, as solar systems have broken away from the Empire and are waging a war of rebellion. During a recent battle techical schematics for a gigantic space station, code named The Death Star, have been unearthed by Rebel spies, and a young woman who is a dissident member of the Imperial Senate, under the cover of a diplomatic mission to the planet Alderaan, is trying to smuggle these plans to the Rebellion. But her spacecraft is attacked by a vast warship of the Empire and seized. The dissident Senator is captured, but the plans for the Death Star are nowhere to be found. While soldiers of the Empire search the nearby planet Tatooine, a series of incidents sweeps up a young desert farmer with dreams of being a fighter pilot in the Rebellion, as he winds up with the Death Star plans and also the assistance of an elderly hermit who once served as a warrior of an ancient order whose chosen weapons were powerful energy swords known as light sabers. The pair recruit a cynical interstellar smuggler and his outsized alien copilot with an ancient freighter heavily modified for combat to help them reach Alderaan - but the planet is obliterated and now the foursome must rescue the young woman held prisoner by the Empire and lead an attack by the Rebellion against the Death Star before it can annihilate all hope of restoring freedom to the galaxy. |Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) @ Harrison Ford (Han Solo) @ Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia Organa) @ Peter Cushing (Grand Moff Tarkin) @ Alec Guinness (Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi) @ Anthony Daniels (C-3PO) @ Kenny Baker (R2-D2) @ Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) @ David Prowse (Darth Vader) @ James Earl Jones (Darth Vader (voice)) @ Phil Brown (Uncle Owen) @ Shelagh Fraser (Aunt Beru) @ Jack Purvis (Chief Jawa) @ Alex McCrindle (General Dodonna) @ Eddie Byrne (General Willard) @ Drewe Henley (Red Leader) @ Denis Lawson (Red Two (Wedge) (as Dennis Lawson)) @ Garrick Hagon (Red Three (Biggs)) @ Jack Klaff (Red Four (John D.)) @ William Hootkins (Red Six (Porkins)) @ Angus MacInnes (Gold Leader (as Angus Mcinnis)) @ Jeremy Sinden (Gold Two) @ Graham Ashley (Gold Five) @ Don Henderson (General Taggi) @ Richard LeParmentier (General Motti) @ Leslie Schofield (Commander #1 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mark Austin (Boba Fett (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Rick Baker (Cantina alien (uncredited)) @ Scott Beach (Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)) @ Lightning Bear (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Jay Benedict (Deak (uncredited)) @ Jon Berg (Cantina alien (uncredited)) @ Doug Beswick (Cantina alien (uncredited)) @ Paul Blake (Greedo (uncredited)) @ Janice Burchette (Nabrun Leids (uncredited)) @ Ted Burnett (Wuher (uncredited)) @ John Chapman (Drifter (Red 12) (uncredited)) @ Gilda Cohen (Cantina patron (uncredited)) @ Tim Condren (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Barry Copping (Wioslea (uncredited)) @ Alfie Curtis (Dr. Evazan (uncredited)) @ Robert Davies (Cantina patron (uncredited)) @ Maria De Aragon (Greedo (uncredited)) @ Robert A. Denham (Hrchek Kal Fas (uncredited)) @ Fraser Diamond (Jawa (uncredited)) @ Peter Diamond (Stormtrooper/Tusken Raider/Death Star Trooper/Garouf Lafoe (uncredited)) @ Warwick Diamond (Jawa (uncredited)) @ Sadie Eddon (Garindan (uncredited)) @ Kim Falkinburg (Djas Puhr (uncredited)) @ Anthony Forrest (Fixer (uncredited)) @ Ted Gagliano (Stormtrooper with Binoculars (uncredited)) @ Salo Gardner (Cantina patron (uncredited)) @ Steve Gawley (Death Star trooper (uncredited)) @ Barry Gnome (Kabe (uncredited)) @ Rusty Goffe (Kabe/Jawa/GONK Droid (uncredited)) @ Isaac Grand (Cantina patron (uncredited)) @ Nelson Hall (Stormtrooper (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Reg Harding (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Alan Harris (Leia's rebel escort (uncredited)) @ Frank Henson (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Christine Hewitt (Brea Tonnika (uncredited)) @ Arthur Howell (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Tommy Ilsley (Ponda Baba (uncredited)) @ Joe Johnston (Death Star trooper (uncredited)) @ Annette Jones (Mosep (uncredited)) @ Linda Jones (Chall Bekan (uncredited)) @ Joe Kaye (Solomohal (uncredited)) @ Colin Michael Kitchens (Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)) @ Melissa Kurtz (Jawa (uncredited)) @ Tiffany L. Kurtz (Jawa (uncredited)) @ Anthony Lang (BoShek (uncredited)) @ Laine Liska (Muftak/Cantina band member (uncredited)) @ Mahjoub (Jawa (uncredited)) @ Alf Mangan (Takeel (uncredited)) @ Rick McCallum (Stormtrooper (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Grant McCune (Death Star gunner (uncredited)) @ Jeff Moon (Cantina Patron (uncredited)) @ Mandy Morton (Swilla Corey (uncredited)) @ Lorne Peterson (Massassi Base rebel scout (uncredited)) @ Marcus Powell (Rycar Ryjerd (uncredited)) @ Shane Rimmer (InCom engineer (uncredited)) @ Pam Rose (Leesub Sirln (uncredited)) @ George Roubicek (Cmdr. Praji (Imperial Officer #2 on rebel ship) (uncredited)) @ Erica Simmons (Tawss Khaa (uncredited)) @ Angela Staines (Senni Tonnika (uncredited)) @ George Stock (Cantina Patron (uncredited)) @ Roy Straite (Cantina Patron (uncredited)) @ Peter Sturgeon (Sai'torr Kal Fas (uncredited)) @ Peter Sumner (Lt. Pol Treidum (uncredited)) @ John Sylla (Cantina Voices (voice) (uncredited)) @ Tom Sylla (Massassi Outpost Announcer/Various Voices (voice) (uncredited)) @ Malcolm Tierney (Lt. Shann Childsen (uncredited)) @ Phil Tippett (Cantina alien (uncredited)) @ Cy Town (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Burnell Tucker (Del Goren (uncredited)) @ Morgan Upton (Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)) @ Jerry Walters (Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)) @ Hal Wamsley (Jawa (uncredited)) @ Larry Ward (Greedo (voice) (uncredited)) @ Diana Sadley Way (Thuku (uncredited)) @ Harold Weed (Ketwol/Melas (uncredited)) @ Bill Weston (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Steve 'Spaz' Williams (Mos Eisley Citizen (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Fred Wood (Cantina Patron (uncredited)Produced by||Pure Movie Magic from Beginning to End... "I've got a bad feeling about this."- Han Solo, Star Wars There's no reason to have a bad feeling about "Star Wars." The film is as shallow as a donut hole and a pure masterpiece. Rarely have I seen a shallow motion picture also be a memorably exciting and visually dazzling one, also. There's something more to "Star Wars" than just good visual effects, though. It is a fun movie, a playful movie, and it inhabits our memory. I've analyzed it many times before. I came to the realization that there is simply nothing there virtually. But was there ever anything filling up classics like "2001" or "Metropolis"? Well, maybe, but that's what seperates "Star Wars" - it's just fun. Fun with holes the size of the Grand Canyon. To fully understand the significance of "Star Wars," you must understand the time. It was 1977, and audiences were still raving about the special effects witnessed in Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey." When word came out that "Star Wars" director George Lucas was borrowing the ideas of an outer space saga from Kubrick, it appeared to waiting audiences at first to be another rip-off. But something astonishing happened. Audiences were amazed to see that Lucas had actually improved upon Kubrick's space vision of the future. This was the first film to ever show a space-projected background move with the camera. This was the first film to see hyper-speed space fighters duking it out at lightspeed. "Star Wars" was the first of its kind. It wasn't as serious as "2001," it's not even necessarily a better film, it's just a different film, and no one and nobody expected that. To go into the plot is pointless, as (a) it really makes no particular sense and (b) it is already known by everyone around the world. I will say that the actors involved in this film (Ford, Hamill, Fisher, Guinness, Jones, etc.) all did a great job. How often do you see such a great cast make you care about their characters? Harrison Ford steals the show as Han Solo, and the robot droids R2-D2 and C-3PO have chemistry (I never thought I'd say that about robots). The film seems to be filled to the rim with nonsense spiritual dialogue about the Force - something that is all around us and joins our spirits together - but the dialogue is so cheesy it must be so awful on purpose. The actual story behind the film is a metaphorical study of the Bible. The Force is God and Darth Vader is Satan, and all the subplots going on are very reminiscent of spiritual warfare. "Star Wars" is an updated telling of the Bible, full of hyperspace battles and lightsaber fights. The special effects in "Star Wars" were so revolutionary that George Lucas started his own special effects company named ILM, and the film itself inspired so many rip-offs over the year it is amazing. Everyone - everyone - knows this movie. Just like "Casablanca," "It's a Wonderful Life," and so on and so forth, this is a film everyone remembers, and probably always will. And those in the future who may forget about this motion picture...well... May the Force be with them. 5/5 Stars - || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back|Irvin Kershner|Fantasy|Rated PG for sci-fi action violence. (special edition, DVD version) PG|8.7|USA|1980|124 min/ USA:127 min (special edition) / USA:129 min (special edition)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/6/2004|Jim Bloom Gary Kurtz George Lucas Rick McCallum Robert Watts|George Lucas Leigh Brackett Lawrence Kasdan|Peter Suschitzky ||20th Century Fox de Argentina [ar] |The Adventure Continues...|Darth Vader is helping the Empire crush the rebellion determined to end the Empire's domination of the universe. The rebels are based on Hoth, and when troops arrive to wipe them out, Han Solo and Princess Leia flee to Cloud City. Luke Skywalker, in a bid to strengthen his knowledge of the force, finds Yoda, one of the finest Jedis ever. Will they be able to get back together and halt the Empires progress ? Fleeing the evil Galactic Empire, the rebels abandon their new base on Hoth. Princess Leia, Han Solo and the droids R2-D2 and C-3P0 escape in the damaged Millenium Falcon, but are later captured by Lord Darth Vader on Bespin. Skywalker, meanwhile, follows Ben Kenobi's posthumous command and receives Jedi training by Yoda on Dagobah. Will Skywalker manage to rescue his friends from the dark lord? After receiving a vision from Obi-Wan Kenobi and fleeing the ice world of Hoth with his friends after an Imperial attack, Luke Skywalker travels to the marsh planet of Dagobah, where he is instructed in the ways of the Force by the legendary Jedi master Yoda. Meanwhile, Han Solo and Princess Leia make their way to planet Bespin, where they are greeted by Han's old friend, a shifty gambler named Lando Calrissian. Ambushed by the Empire shortly after their arrival, Han and his friends are imprisoned by Darth Vader. Luke leaves Dagobah to rescue his friends, and is met by Vader and a startling revelation. In George Lucas' spellbinding "Star Wars" sequel, the battle to save the galaxy from the evil Darth Vader rages on. Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Chewbacca are tested in a devastating attack by the Imperial army and its AT-AT Walkers. Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) seekss out the ancient Yoda to learn the screts of the Jedi . . . secrets Luke will need when the Dark Side of the Force beckons him in a destiny-defining duel with Darth Vader. The story of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia and the others didn't end with the destruction of the Death Star - it continues in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Imperial forces have since driven the Rebels to hide on the ice world Hoth. But even on such an icy, backwater world, they cannot escape the wicked Darth Vader's eye for long, and he devastates the Rebel base in an assault with the horrible AT-AT walkers. Luke flees to Dagobah to begin Jedi Knight training with Yoda, while Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia and C-3PO run the blockade of Imperial Star Destroyers in the Millenium Falcon. The Imperials pursue them across the galaxy and eventually catch up with them at Bespin. Now Darth Vader plans to use them as bait to lure Luke Skywalker to him, and turns Han Solo over to Boba Fett as a prize to be delivered to crime lord Jabba the Hutt. Luke learns a terrible family secret after losing a swordfight with Vader. Will he - and the others - escape the Empire's clutches? |Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker/Echo Base Announcer) @ Harrison Ford (Han Solo) @ Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia Organa) @ Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian) @ Anthony Daniels (C-3PO) @ David Prowse (Darth Vader) @ Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) @ Kenny Baker (R2-D2) @ Frank Oz (Yoda (voice)) @ Alec Guinness (Obi-Wan Kenobi) @ Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett) @ John Hollis (Lando's aide (Lobot)) @ Jack Purvis (Chief Ugnaught) @ Des Webb (Wampa (snow creature)) @ Clive Revill (The Emperor (voice)) @ Kenneth Colley (Capt./Adm. Piett) @ Julian Glover (Gen. Veers) @ Michael Sheard (Adm. Ozzel) @ Michael Culver (Capt. Needa) @ John Dicks (Imperial Officer (Cpt. Lennox)) @ Milton Johns (Imperial Officer (Cpt. Bewil)) @ Mark Jones (Imperial Officer (Cmdr. Nemet)) @ Oliver Maguire (Imperial Officer (Lt. Cabbel)) @ Robin Scobey (Imperial officer) @ Bruce Boa (General Carlist Rieekan) @ Christopher Malcolm (Zev Senesca (Rogue Two)) @ Denis Lawson (Wedge Antilles (Rogue Three)) @ Richard Oldfield (Derek 'Hobbie' Klivian (Rogue Four)) @ John Morton (Dak Ralter) @ Ian Liston (Wes Janson) @ John Ratzenberger (Maj. Bren Derlin) @ Jack McKenzie (Cal Alder (rebel officer)) @ Jerry Harte (Romas 'Lock' Navander) @ Norman Chancer (Tamizander Rey (rebel officer)) @ Norwich Duff (Trey Callum (rebel officer)) @ Ray Hassett (Tigran Jamiro (rebel officer)) @ Brigitte Kahn (Toryn Farr (rebel officer)) @ Burnell Tucker (Wyron Serper (rebel officer) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bob Anderson (Imperial officer (uncredited)) @ Lightning Bear (Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Stephen Buchanan (Holographic officer (uncredited)) @ Morris Bush (Dengar (uncredited)) @ Mark Capri (Officer M'kae (Capt. Needa's communications officer) (uncredited)) @ Peter Diamond (Snowtrooper gunner (uncredited)) @ Stuart Fell (Snowtrooper (uncredited)) @ Michael A. Frandy (Imperial shuttle mechanic (uncredited)) @ Susie Hudson (Bespin woman (uncredited)) @ James Earl Jones (Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)) @ Cathy Munro (Zuckuss/E-3PO (uncredited)) @ C. Andrew Nelson (Darth Vader (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Chris Parsons (4-LOM/K-3PO/Stormtrooper (uncredited)) @ Doug Robinson (Snowtrooper (uncredited)) @ Tony Smart (Snowtrooper (uncredited)) @ Harold Weed (Wampa (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Treat Williams (Jess Allashane (Echo Base trooper)/Jerrol Blendin (Cloud City trooper) (uncredited)) @ Jason Wingreen (Boba Fett (voice) (uncredited)Produced by||The Empire Strikes Back Outstanding follow up to the original "Star Wars,"with Luke Skywalker learning the ways of a Jedi Knight, while Darth Vader awaits a battle with Luke as he sets up Han Solo and Princess Leia. Amazing in the technical department once again. Unmatched. Unforgettable. || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi|Richard Marquand|Fantasy|Rated PG for sci-fi action violence. (special edition, DVD version) PG|8.1|USA|1983|134 min/ USA:135 min (special edition) / USA:136 min (special edition)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||10/6/2004|Jim Bloom Louis G. Friedman Howard G. Kazanjian George Lucas Rick McCallum Robert Watts|George Lucas Lawrence Kasdan George Lucas David Webb Peoples|Alan Hume Alec Mills||20th Century Fox of Germany [de] |The Empire Falls....|Darth Vader and the Empire are building a new, indestructible Death Star. Meanwhile, Han Solo has been imprisoned, and Luke Skywalker has sent R2D2 and C3PO to try and free him. Princess Leia - disguised as a bounty hunter - and Chewbacca go along as well. The final battle takes place on the moon of Endor, with its natural inhabitants, the Ewoks, lending a hand to the rebels. Will Darth Vader and the dark side overcome the rebels and take over the universe ? As the Emperor himself oversees the construction of the new Death Star by Lord Darth Vader and the evil Galactic Empire, smuggler Han Solo is rescued from the clutches of the vile gangster Jabba the Hutt by his friends, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Chewbacca. Leaving Skywalker Jedi training with Yoda, Solo returns to the Rebel Fleet to prepare for to complete his battle with the Empire itself. During the ensuing fighting the newly returned Skywalker is captured by Vader. Can the Rebels, and their new found friends, the Ewoks, help restore freedom to the Galaxy? Lightsabers sparkle, the Millenium Falcon flashes through hyperspace and creatures from all over the galaxy defy the Imperial Empire, in this stunning third chapter of the "Star Wars" saga. As the rebels prepare to attack the Emperor's awesome new Death Star, Han Solo (Harrison Ford) remains imprisoned by the loathsome outlaw Jabba the Hutt, who has also captured Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher). Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) rescues his friends, but he will not be a true Jedi Knight until he defeats Darth Vader, who has sworn to win him over to the Dark Side of the Force. With old favorites like Chewbacca, Yoda, R2-D2, C-3PO and Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams), plus the small but stalwart Ewoks. The Empire is more than halfway through construction of a new Death Star - almost twice as big, but more than twice as powerful. When completed, it will spell certain doom for Luke Skywalker and the Rebels. Han Solo is a prisoner of crime lord Jabba the Hutt, and Princess Leia soon finds herself in the gangster's hands. Luke Skywalker, aided by C-3PO and R2-D2, makes his way into Jabba's palace, hoping to secure his friends' freedom. But the Hutt has no intention of doing so and tries to kill them all. After escaping from Jabba and the sands of Tatooine, they regroup with the Rebel fleet, which is massing for an attack against the new satellite battle station at Endor. Lando Calrissian is pressed into action to lead the Rebel fighter attack, while Han is put in charge of a group of soldiers to take out the shield generator protecting the Death Star. Luke, however, surrenders to Vader's soldiers on Endor, and is taken in front of Vader's boss - the Galactic Emperor - on the Death Star for final corruption to the Dark Side of the Force. The fleet of Imperial Star Destroyers ambushes the Rebels, cutting them off. Worse, the new Death Star begins turning its giant laser on the Rebel carriers. It appears that nothing will stop the Empire's triumph - unless things start to change quickly... |Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) @ Harrison Ford (Han Solo) @ Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia Organa) @ Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian) @ Anthony Daniels (C-3PO) @ Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) @ Ian McDiarmid (The Emperor) @ Sebastian Shaw (Darth Vader's face) @ Frank Oz (Yoda (voice)) @ James Earl Jones (Darth Vader (voice)) @ David Prowse (Darth Vader) @ Alec Guinness (Obi-Wan Kenobi) @ Kenny Baker (R2-D2/Paploo) @ Michael Pennington (Moff Jerjerrod) @ Kenneth Colley (Adm. Piett) @ Michael Carter (Bib Fortuna) @ Denis Lawson (Wedge Antilles) @ Timothy M. Rose (Adm. Ackbar) @ Dermot Crowley (Gen. Crix Madine) @ Caroline Blakiston (Mon Mothma) @ Warwick Davis (Wicket) @ Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett) @ Femi Taylor (Oola) @ Annie Arbogast (Sy Snootles) @ Claire Davenport (Fat dancer) @ Jack Purvis (Teebo) @ Mike Edmonds (Logray/Jabba Puppeteer) @ Jane Busby (Chief Chirpa) @ Malcolm Dixon (Ewok warrior) @ Mike Cottrell (Ewok warrior) @ Nicholas Read (Nicki/Ewok (as Nicki Reade)) @ Adam Bareham (Stardestroyer controller #1) @ Jonathan Oliver (Stardestroyer controller #2) @ Pip Miller (Stardestroyer captain #1) @ Tom Mannion (Stardestroyer captain #2) @ Toby Philpott (Jabba Puppeteer) @ David Alan Barclay (Jabba Puppeteer (as David Barclay)) @ Margo Apostolos (Ewok) @ Ray Armstrong (Ewok) @ Eileen Baker (Ewok) @ Michael Henbury Ballan (Ewok) @ Bobby Bell (Ewok) @ Patty Bell (Ewok) @ Alan Bennett (Ewok) @ Sarah Bennett (Ewok) @ Pamela Betts (Ewok) @ Danny Blackner (Ewok) @ Linda Bowley (Ewok) @ Peter Burroughs (Ewok) @ Debbie Lee Carrington (Ewok) @ Maureen Charlton (Ewok) @ Willie Coppen (Ewok) @ Sadie Corre (Ewok (as Sadie Corrie)) @ Tony Cox (Ewok) @ John Cumming (Ewok) @ Jean D'Agostino (Ewok) @ Luis De Jesus (Ewok) @ Debbie Dixon (Ewok) @ Margarita Fernández (Ewok) @ Phil Fondacaro (Ewok) @ Sal Fondacaro (Ewok) @ Tony Friel (Ewok) @ Daniel Frishman (Ewok) @ John Ghavan (Ewok (as John Gavam)) @ Michael Gilden (Ewok) @ Paul Grant (Ewok) @ Lydia Green (Ewok) @ Lars Green (Ewok) @ Pam Grizz (Ewok) @ Andrew Herd (Ewok) @ J.J. Jackson (Ewok) @ Richard Jones (Ewok) @ Trevor Jones (Ewok) @ Glynn Jones (Ewok) @ Karen Lay (Ewok) @ John Lummiss (Ewok) @ Nancy MacLean (Ewok) @ Peter Mandell (Ewok) @ Carole Morris (Ewok) @ Stacy Nicholls (Ewok) @ Chris Nunn (Ewok) @ Barbara O'Laughlin (Ewok) @ Brian Orenstein (Ewok) @ Harrell Parker Jr. (Ewok) @ John Pedrick (Ewok) @ April Perkins (Ewok) @ Ronnie Phillips (Ewok) @ Katie Purvis (Ewok) @ Carol Read (Ewok) @ Diana Reynolds (Ewok) @ Daniel Rodgers (Ewok) @ Chris Romano (Ewok) @ Dean Shackelford (Ewok) @ Kiran Shah (Ewok) @ Felix Silla (Ewok) @ Linda Spriggs (Ewok) @ Gerald Staddon (Ewok) @ Josephine Staddon (Ewok) @ Kevin Thompson (Ewok) @ Kendra Wall (Ewok) @ Brian Wheeler (Ewok) @ Butch Wilhelm (Ewok) @ Dalyn Chew (Jedi Rocks dancer (special edition)) @ Celia Fushille-Burke (Jedi Rocks dancer (special edition)) @ Mercedes Ngoh (Jedi Rocks dancer (special edition)) @ Jennifer Jaffe (Jedi Rocks dancer (special edition) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Altman (Rebel pilot (uncredited)) @ Erik Bauersfeld (Bib Fortuna (voice) (uncredited)) @ Dickey Beer (Barada/Stormtrooper/Biker scout (uncredited)) @ Don Bies (Barquin D'an/Boba Fett (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Richard Bonehill (Stormtrooper/Nien Nunb/Mon Calamarie/Ree Yees/Mosep/z-winged pilot/tie pilot (uncredited)) @ Paul Brooke (Malakili (Rancor Keeper) (uncredited)) @ Ernie Fosselius (Malakili (Rancor Keeper)/Giran (voice) (uncredited)) @ Isaac Grand (Gamorrean guard (uncredited)) @ Nelson Hall (Doda Bodonawieedo/Boba Fett (special edition) (uncredited)) @ Barrie Holland (Lt. Renz (Imperial officer in bunker) (uncredited)) @ Larin Lahr (GONK droid (uncredited)) @ Swim Lee (Hoover (uncredited)) @ Richard Marquand (Maj. Marquand (AT-ST driver)/EV-9D9 (voice) (uncredited)) @ Hilton McRae (Arvel Crynyd (uncredited)) @ George Miller (Gamorrean guard (uncredited)) @ Mike Quinn (Nien Nunb/Ree-Yees/Sy Snootles/Yoda/Wol Cabbashite (uncredited)) @ Barry Robertson (Gamorrean guard (uncredited)) @ Deep Roy (Droopy McCool (uncredited)) @ Tony Star (Gamorrean guard (uncredited)) @ Robert Watts (Lt. Watts (AT-ST driver) (uncredited)) @ Paul Weston (Nik Fo/Vedain (Sand Skiff pilot) (uncredited)) @ Simon Williamson (Max Rebo (uncredited)Produced by||A Jedi Clam-pet Car-toon In one pleasing detail, it is revealed that Jabba the Hutt eats toads.So, unfortunately, does George Lucas---above all in tandem with Lawrence Kasdan. This all started when a certain Minow declared war against TV as "a cultural wasteland," and gave us something more accessible---Sesame Street, where kids learn how to count and not steal pic-à-nic baskets. Now that ownership of Chaplin's studio on La Brea has passed from Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass to Jim Henson Productions, you can see an irony in all this, if you care to.The old Hollywood joke about "thanking the little people?" As for me, I'm like one of Pizza the Hut's underlings: "Boss, you're delicious!"Who can beat Spaceballs for a No Return sendup? Commander Cody Meets The Muppets!The Imperial Army in parade formation is a lift from Billion Dollar Brain, which is a faithful homage to Alexander Nevsky.Eisenstein, Russell, Lucas---there's the rise and fall of cinema for you. If snot could talk, it would crave a death scene like Yoda's.Or, as Lenny Bruce used to say, "Blah-blah-blah, Yoda-Yoda-Yoda!"TV Guide's "Greatest Show In The History Of Television" also paid tribute to "the snot-green Incorruptible." The Lucas/Marquand version of the Ben-Hur chariot race, on rocket cycles zipping through the woods, is a tempest in a Caesar salad bowl.Teddy bears with spears (one of them---it's a running joke---clasps Han Solo's leg)! Return Of The Jedi is so bad that even Pauline Kael thought so.Any good director would have taken the unmerited success of Jaws or Star Wars and put it into making great films.Instead, we get the Liberace phenomenon, except that Liberace had more talent in his bejeweled little finger than all the New Hollywood boys put together, so to speak. The most ultimately incompetent film I've ever seen.It's not copacetic, it's just so pathetic. Not the grandeur of Sir Alec Guinness, the charm of Carrie Fisher, the sonorousness of James Earl Jones, the skill of Kenneth Colley, and the gallantry of Billy Dee Williams can keep it from being something put together on the lot for the children, by the children. At least Lucas financed a Kurosawa, from whom he unfortunately acquired nothing but a vaguely Japanese nuance in his Imperial Army costumes---and, of course, "The Force."Twenty-five years of "dark side" superstitiousness is all his own. "Join the farce and get a pinchin'" says the Bible salesman in Salesman.A spate of imitation toward the end puts Luke Skywalker in mortal danger from one of Roger Corman's wizards.Darth Vader unmasked is Otto Preminger as Mr. Freeze, or else W.C. Fields as Humpty Dumpty. He gets a Viking funeral, followed by fireworks and confetti.All the dead reappear as ghosts at the celebrations. Spectator, the two robots are meant to represent the two Beckettian bumpkins of The Hidden Fortress. As I watched this, I thought of poor old Joseph Campbell, Martha Graham's friend and inspiration, making the most of Star Wars for the Great Society's Press Secretary, Bill Moyers. How can you explain the rabid popularity of all this?Mostly marketing, of course, but to be fair, you have to see it to believe it.P.T. Barnum would have died of snot-green envy at a rube's market on a global scale like this one. Am I wrong?Has all the hoopla set my jaw against it for no reason?Shall I settle down one day to watch the completed masterwork via laserplayer, puffing on a pipe in slippers and jacket, with Chewie curled up contentedly at my feet in the old manse, a Leia round my neck, and Obi Wankin' Obi in my ear? Picture me there, you who goggle like Sight & Sound's reviewer at ILM's digital Dynavision, happy as a clam in Campbell's soup.Or rather dim sum, as the perennial theme is Japan's invasion of China, and what it all adds up to.Is Yoda Mao or Deng ("Yoda man!""No, Yoda man!")? If you put wheels on a crapper and drive it "all the way to the bank," are you John Ford's father? || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (Widescreen) / DVD-Video|George Lucas|Sci-Fi|PG |6.5|USA|1999|133 mins|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|George Lucas Rick McCallum|George Lucas |David Tattersall Nicholas D. Knowland||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [us] |Every generation has a legend. Every journey has a first step. Every saga has a beginning.| Every Saga Has A Beginning This epic movie takesia journey backito theiearliest days of theiStar Wars legend. Witness theifirst historic meeting between young Anakin Skywalker andiBen "Obi-Wan" Kenobi, theiyoung Jedi Knight who comesito be his mentor foria time. The film explores theibeginning of theilegendias theiEmpire beginsito take shape amidstia galaxyiin turmoil. |Liam Neeson (Qui-Gon Jinn) @ Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi) @ Natalie Portman (Queen Padmé Amidala) @ Jake Lloyd (Anakin Skywalker) @ Pernilla August (Shmi Skywalker) @ Frank Oz (Yoda (voice)) @ Ian McDiarmid (Senator Cos Palpatine/Darth Sidious) @ Oliver Ford Davies (Governor Sio Bibble) @ Hugh Quarshie (Captain Panaka) @ Ahmed Best (Jar Jar Binks (voice)) @ Anthony Daniels (C-3PO) @ Kenny Baker (R2-D2) @ Terence Stamp (Chancellor Finis Valorum) @ Brian Blessed (Boss Nass) @ Andrew Secombe (Watto) @ Ray Park (Darth Maul) @ Lewis Macleod (Sebulba (voice)) @ Steven Spiers (Captain Tarpals) @ Silas Carson (Viceroy Nute Gunray/Ki-Adi-Mundi/Lott Dodd/Radiant VII Pilot) @ Ralph Brown (Ric Olié) @ Celia Imrie (Fighter Pilot Bravo 5) @ Benedict Taylor (Fighter Pilot Bravo 2) @ Karol Cristina da Silva (Rabé) @ Clarence Smith (Fighter Pilot Bravo 3) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Mace Windu) @ Dominic West (Palace Guard) @ Liz Wilson (Eirtaé (as Friday 'Liz' Wilson)) @ Candice Orwell (Yané) @ Sofia Coppola (Saché) @ Keira Knightley (Sabé) @ Bronagh Gallagher (Radiant VII Captain) @ John Fensom (TC-14) @ Greg Proops (Beed (voice)) @ Scott Capurro (Fode (voice)) @ Margaret Towner (Jira) @ Dhruv Chanchani (Kitster) @ Oliver Walpole (Seek) @ Jenna Green (Amee) @ Megan Udall (Melee) @ Hassani Shapi (Eeth Koth) @ Gin Clarke (Adi Gallia (as Gin)) @ Khan Bonfils (Saesee Tiin) @ Michelle Taylor (Yarael Poof) @ Michaela Cottrell (Even Piell) @ Dipika O'Neill Joti (Depa Billaba) @ Phil Eason (Yaddle) @ Mark Coulier (Aks Moe) @ Katherine Smee (Yoda Puppeteer (as Kathy Smee)) @ Donald Austen (Yoda Puppeteer (as Don Austen)) @ David Greenaway (Yoda Puppeteer) @ Lindsay Duncan (TC-14 (voice)) @ Peter Serafinowicz (Darth Maul (voice)) @ James Taylor (Rune Haako (voice)) @ Chris Sanders (Daultay Dofine (voice)) @ Toby Longworth (Senator Lott Dodd (voice)) @ Marc Silk (Aks Moe (voice)) @ Tyger (Tey How (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Amy Allen (Twi'Lek Senatorial Aide (DVD deleted scenes) (uncredited)) @ Jerome Blake (Rune Haako/Mas Amedda/Oppo Rancisis/Orn Free Taa (uncredited)) @ Michonne Bourriague (Aurra Sing (uncredited)) @ Ben Burtt (Naboo Courier (uncredited)) @ Doug Chiang (Flag Bearer (uncredited)) @ Rob Coleman (Podrace Spectator (uncredited)) @ Roman Coppola (Senate Guard (uncredited)) @ Warwick Davis (Wald/Podrace Spectator/Mos Espa Citizen (uncredited)) @ C. Michael Easton (Podrace Spectator (uncredited)) @ John Ellis (Podrace Spectator (uncredited)) @ Ira Feiedman (Naboo Courier (uncredited)) @ Joss Gower (Naboo Fighter Pilot (uncredited)) @ Ray Griffiths (GONK Droid (uncredited)) @ Nathan Hamill (Podrace Spectator/Naboo Palace Guard (uncredited)) @ Nifa Hindes (Ann Gella (uncredited)) @ Nishan Hindes (Tann Gella (uncredited)) @ John Knoll (Lt. Rya Kirsch (Bravo 4), Flag Bearer (uncredited)) @ Madison Lloyd (Princess Ellie (uncredited)) @ Dan Madsen (Kaadu Handler (uncredited)) @ Rick McCallum (Naboo Courier (uncredited)) @ Alan Ruscoe (Plo Koon (uncredited)) @ Steve Sansweet (Naboo Courier (uncredited)) @ Jeff Shay (Podrace Spectator (uncredited)) @ Christian Simpson (Bravo 6 (uncredited)) @ Paul Martin Smith (Naboo Courier (uncredited)) @ Danny Wagner (Mawhonic (uncredited)) @ Dwayne Williams (Naboo Courier (uncredited)) @ Matthew Wood (Bib Fortuna/Voice of Ody Mandrell (uncredited)) @ Bob Woods (Naboo Courier (uncredited)Produced by||So Begins the Long Awaited Prequels? Ever since Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi came out, everyone wondered where did all these guys come from? What started it all? Well actually not everybody wondered that, but like it or not the prequels soon came. The first was Star Wars Episode I-The Phantom Menace, which is the worst in the trilogy! First of all it seems alot of the actors were miscasts! Hiring famous people to do stuff like this diminishes the whole plot. Number 2, the story was long and seemed to go nowhere. And most of it was predictable. Now what about the Pod Racing scene? It was okay, even though it looked as though Anakin was asleep at the wheel the whole time. And one of the heads on the two headed announcer (Beed) sounds alot like John Astin, doesn't he? But it isn't him. Nick Diamond on Celebrity Deathmatch sounds like John Astin also, but it isn't him. While we're on the Pod Races, Warwick Davis plays Wald, Anakin's friend. Warwick is also visible by Watto in the stands, he's best seen when Anakin's Podracer takes a dump and Watto's friends laugh. But anyway, the most annoying in this movie was Jar Jar Binks. Sheesh! I can't believe no one told him to shut up! Anyway, one question remains? Who's prettier? Queen Amidala or Padmé? Decisions, decisions. (Of course they're the same person). Anyway, I hope Episode II is ALOT better than this trashy film! ****THIS MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS!!!!*** Here's how I predict it will go: (ofcourse Darth Maul and Qui-Gon Jinn won't be joining us for it). Anakin is 19, and a Jedi in training. He wants to go back to Tattooine to free his mom from slavery. He also brings C-3PO with him and gives him a pair of rusty gold coverings. (He will get shiny ones later on), and there are new faces and places too! The title of Episode II is ATTACK OF THE CLONES, so Obi-Wan and Anakin fight in it. Obi-Wan is appointed General and changes his name to Ben. Anakin is also tempted by the Dark Side and engages in a deadly light- saber fight with Obi-Wan and of course he loses, he falls into a vad of acid. To save his life, Anakin is placed in a suit of black armor, including a machine that breathes for him (sound more like Darth Vader?) and he is still full of hate and aggression. By now, the Stormtroopers are formed and Palpatine is Supreme Chancellor no more, but he is now Emperor! ******MAY CONTAIN MORE SPOILERS:**** I reckon around Episode III, Luke and Leia will be born, and poor Queen Amidala-Skywalker dies. Obi-Wan must hide the kids from their evil father, so he sends Luke to live with his uncle and aunt on a moisture farm on Tattooine, and Leia he sends to Bail Organa on Alderaan. Plus a bunch of other things will happen. And then, the six link Star Wars chain will be complete! Then one can now watch all 12 hours of the Star Wars saga and finally understand the puzzle! One more thing about Episode I, Anakin's mom said there was no father and she couldn't explain what happened. There's a few things that could happen: artificial insemination. Or she probably wouldn't care to discuss how Anakin was conceived. To each his own. Well that's all for now. Look for Episode II in theaters in May 2002 and Episode III in 2005!! |Region 1 |> |Widescreen 2.35:1 Color (Anamorphic) |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] ENGLISH: DD-EX 5.1 [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround||||||@@ Starsky & Hutch|Todd Phillips|Action|Rated PG-13 for drug content, sexual situations, partial nudity, language and some violence. PG-13|6.3|USA|2004|101 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/24/2004|Gilbert Adler William Blinn Scott Budnick Stuart Cornfeld Akiva Goldsman Tony Ludwig Alan Riche David Siegel Ben Stiller|William Blinn Stevie Long John O'Brien John O'Brien Todd Phillips Scot Armstrong|Barry Peterson ||Buena Vista International (Germany) GmbH [de] |They're the man.|Set in the 1970s in a metropolis called "Bay City," this is the tale of two police detective partners, Ken "Hutch" Hutchinson (Wilson), and Dave Starsky (Stiller), who always seem to get the toughest cases from their boss, Captain Dobey, rely on omniscient street informer Huggy Bear (Dogg) and race to the scene of the crimes in their souped-up 1974 Ford Torino hot rod, telling the story of their first big case (as a prequel to the TV show), which involved a former college campus drug dealer (Vaughn) who went on to become a white collar criminal (Electra plays Hutch's girlfriend). |Ben Stiller (David Starsky) @ Owen Wilson (Ken Hutchinson) @ Snoop Dogg (Huggy Bear) @ Fred Williamson (Captain Doby) @ Vince Vaughn (Reese Feldman) @ Juliette Lewis (Kitty) @ Jason Bateman (Kevin) @ Amy Smart (Holly) @ Carmen Electra (Staci) @ George Cheung (Chau (as George Kee Cheung)) @ Chris Penn (Manetti) @ Brande Roderick (Heather) @ Molly Sims (Mrs. Feldman) @ Matt Walsh (Eddie) @ G.T. Holme (Bartender) @ Jeffrey Lorenzo (Willis) @ Har Mar Superstar (Dancin' Rick) @ Patton Oswalt (Disco DJ) @ Brigette Romanek (Banquet Singer) @ Paul Michael Glaser (Original Starsky) @ David Soul (Original Hutch) @ Dan Finnerty (Bat Mitzvah Singer) @ Jernard Burks (Leon) @ Omar J. Dorsey (Lamell (as Omar Dorsey)) @ Pramod Kumar (Indian Shopkeeper) @ Rod Tate (Bee Bee) @ Richard Edson (Monix) @ Raymond Ma (Marks) @ Terry Crews (Porter) @ Richie Nathanson (Drug Dealer) @ David Pressman (Terrence Meyers) @ Scott L. Schwartz (Fat Ron) @ Judah Friedlander (Ice Cream Man) @ Akerin Suksawat Premwattana (Toby) @ Amber Mead (Banquet Waitress) @ The Bishop Don Magic Juan (Himself (as Archbishop Don 'Magic' Juan)) @ Darlena Tejeiro (Lorraine) @ Harry O'Reilly (Cop in shower) @ Tangie Ambrose (Kiki) @ Sara Swain (Elizabeth) @ Delores Gilbeaux (Sexy Bartender) @ Kimberly Brickland (Diner Waitress) @ Minnie Lagrimas (Mrs. Feldman's Friend) @ Rachael Harris (Mrs. Feldman's Other Friend (as Rachel Harris)) @ David Burton (Rooftop Bad Guy) @ Larry Chang (Laundry Owner) @ Ton Suckhasem (Bookie #1) @ Henry T. Yamada (Bookie #2) @ Charles Edward Townsend (Smokey) @ Nancy Anderson (Nightclub Dancer) @ Jason Yribar (Nightclub Dancer) @ Keith Diorio (Nightclub Dancer) @ Katie Pantenburg (Nightclub Dancer) @ Timothy Anderson (Nightclub Dancer) @ Kimberly Wyatt (Nightclub Dancer) @ Kristyn Abbadini (Nightclub Dancer) @ Kevin Alexander Stea (Nightclub Dancer) @ Adrian Armas (Nightclub Dancer) @ Gabriel Paige (Nightclub Dancer) @ Tara Wilson (Nightclub Dancer) @ Brittany Perry-Russell (Nightclub Dancer) @ Tanee McCall (Nightclub Dancer) @ Nadine Ellis (Nightclub Dancer) @ Chad Azadan (Nightclub Dancer) @ Jason Beitel (Nightclub Dancer) @ Brandon Henschel (Nightclub Dancer) @ Mark Meismer (Nightclub Dancer) @ Matt Sergott (Nightclub Dancer) @ Lisa Joann Thompson (Nightclub Dancer) @ Christian Vincent (Nightclub Dancer) @ Natalie Willes (Nightclub Dancer) @ Stacey Harper (Cheerleader) @ Gelsey Weiss (Cheerleader) @ Tasha Tae (Cheerleader) @ Becca Sweitzer (Cheerleader) @ Jennifer Hamilton (Cheerleader) @ Vanessa Tarazona (Cheerleader) @ Janina Garraway (Cheerleader (as Janina N. Garraway)) @ Kadee Sweeney (Cheerleader) @ Melanie Lewis (Cheerleader) @ Megan Stephens (Cheerleader) @ Michon Suyama (Cheerleader) @ Tomasina Parrott (Cheerleader rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Will Ferrell (Big Earl (uncredited)) @ Kathleen LaGue (Mrs. Feldman's friend (uncredited)Produced by||The usual suspects "Starsky & Hutch" is a lukewarm comedy knock-off of the 70's hit buddy cop TV series of the same name. Those who remember the original Soul/Glaser duo will likely enjoy this flick more than those who don't as the film relies heavily on nostalgic blast from the past music, disco dancing, period slang, 70's clothing and hair styles, S&H TV lampooning, etc. Regardless, "S&H 2004" is watchable and even recommendable though off par for both Stiller and Wilson. Worth a look as no brainer small screen comedy entertainment about a couple of wacky plain clothes detectives who can't seem to do anything right but still manage to save the day in the end.(B-) ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Stella|John Erman|Drama|PG-13 |5.2|USA|1990|109 mins|English||||||||||False||||||||10/12/2004|Bonnie Bruckheimer David Coatsworth Samuel Goldwyn Jr. David V. Picker|Olive Higgins Prouty Robert Getchell|Billy Williams ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] || "A movie withia lot of style, warmth andiheart!" -Roger Ebert, Siskel & Ebert |Bette Midler (Stella Claire) @ John Goodman (Ed Munn) @ Trini Alvarado (Jenny Claire) @ Stephen Collins (Stephen Dallas) @ Marsha Mason (Janice Morrison) @ Eileen Brennan (Mrs. Wilkerson) @ Charles W. Gray (PTA Parent) @ Linda Hart (Debbie Whitman) @ Ben Stiller (Jim Uptegrove) @ William McNamara (Pat Robbins) @ John Bell (Bob Morrison) @ Ashley Peldon (Jenny (age 3)) @ Alisan Porter (Jenny (age 8)) @ Kenneth Kimmins (Security Guard) @ Bob Gerchen (Bartender) @ Willie Rosario (Dancing Waiter) @ Rex Robbins (Minister) @ Ron White (Tony De Banza) @ Matthew Cowles (Sid) @ Justin Louis (Cocaine Dealer) @ Peter MacNeill (Bobby) @ Michael Hogan (Billy) @ George Buza (George) @ Eric Keenleyside (Wendell) @ Catherine Robbin (Leider Singer) @ Rob McClure (Steven's Friend) @ Sam Malkin (Man in Theatre) @ Jayne Eastwood (Nurse) @ Jon Kozak (Mr. Wilkerson) @ Terrence Langevin (Bingo Announcer) @ Elva Mai Hoover (Mrs. Hough) @ Glynis Davies (Mrs. Douglas) @ Philip Akin (Police Officer) @ Jayne Rager (Preppy Girl #1) @ Megan Gallivan (Preppy Girl #2) @ Todd Louiso (Preppy Boy #1) @ Jeff Nichols (Preppy Boy #2) @ Christian Hoover (Bar Customer #1) @ Philip Astor (Bar Customer #2) @ Eve Crawford (Janice's Secretary) @ Elizabeth Lennie (Airline Reservation Clerk) @ Dwayne McLean (Tom) @ Tedd Dillon (Ed's drunken friend at bar) @ Jane Dingle (Bingo Winner) @ Jamie Shannon (Teenage Heckler rest of cast listed alphabetically Mack Dolgy .... Opera PatronProduced by||The Divine Miss M bites the dust. I can sympathise with Bette Midler's desire to extend her range, especially following her personal triumph in "Beaches". Throughout "Stella" she bears evidence of a thinking, intelligent actress, and she has my profound admiration for that. But good intentions do not make for a good movie, nor indeed for a good performance. As the redoubtable Stella Dallas - so memorably played by Barbara Stanwyck in 1937 - Midler gives an hysterically over detailed performance. Straining pathetically for heart throbs, she makes herself look more than a little ridiculous - and for a woman who started her career singing in a gay bath house, that's saying something. But whilst I can't see the film as more than the standard mother-love soap opera, its good to see an actress daring to hang herself in public. Her performance doesn't really work, but the effort in itself is fascinating, and at times she comes so close to making us believe in the film. With a stronger director and a better script this might have been something special. But Midler has had to carry it alone, and that's simply no way to treat the Divine one. |Region 1 |> |Widescreen 1.85:1 Color (Anamorphic) |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Surround [CC] FRENCH: Dolby Digital Stereo||||||@@ Stepford Wives, The|Bryan Forbes|Sci-Fi|PG |6.7|USA|1975|115 min|English||DVD||||||||False|||||||||Gustave M. Berne Roger M. Rothstein Edgar J. Scherick|Ira Levin William Goldman|Enrique Bravo Owen Roizman||Columbia Pictures [us] |Something strange is happening in the town of Stepford.|Stepford Wives is about a small suburb where the women happily go about their housework - cleaning, doing laundry, and cooking gourmet meals - to please their husbands. Unfortunately, Bobbie and Joanna discover that the village's wives have been replaced with robots, and Joanna'a husband wants in on the action. Joanna and Walter are the two newest residents in Stepford. Joanna, although a "housewife" is intelligent and creative - taking an interest in photography: she wants to be "remembered". Like many of the men in Stepford, Walter is an obviously inadequate husband. Conflict occurs when Joanna complains that Walter is making all of the decisions for them. Walter joins the mysterious Stepford "Men's Club", which takes place in an old manor house, which is heavily guarded. Joanna is disturbed that many of the Stepford wives spend their lives in domestic servitude, are unintelligent and wear flowery print dresses. Her friend Bobbie thinks that it might be due to something in the water. At a consciousness-raising group that Joanna starts, the wives begin discussing spray starch and cleaning products. The awful truth is that the men of Stepford are replacing their wives with compliant domestic sex robots. Gradually, Joanna begins to realise that all of her friends have been replaced, and that she is in great danger. Her psychiatrist advices that she takes the kids and gets "the hell out of Stepford", but the men are hiding Joanna's children. Can she find them, or will she be murdered and replaced by RoboJoanna? |Katharine Ross (Joanna Eberhart) @ Paula Prentiss (Bobbie Markowe) @ Peter Masterson (Walter Eberhart) @ Nanette Newman (Carol Van Sant) @ Tina Louise (Charmaine Wimperis) @ Carol Eve Rossen (Dr. Fancher (as Carol Rossen)) @ William Prince (Ike Mazzard) @ Carole Mallory (Kit Sundersen) @ Toni Reid (Marie Axhelm) @ Judith Baldwin (Patricia Cornell) @ Barbara Rucker (Mary Ann Stravros) @ George Coe (Claude Axhelm) @ Franklin Cover (Ed Wimperis) @ Robert Fields (Raymond Chandler) @ Michael Higgins (Mr. Cornell) @ Josef Sommer (Ted Van Sant (as Josef Somer)) @ Paula Trueman (Welcome Wagon Lady) @ Martha Greenhouse (Mrs. Kirgassa) @ Simon Deckard (Dave Markowe) @ Remak Ramsay (Mr. Atkinson) @ Mary Stuart Masterson (Kim Eberhart) @ Ronny Sullivan (Amy Eberhart) @ John Aprea (Young Cop) @ Matt Russo (Moving Man 1) @ Anthony Crupi (Moving Man 2) @ Kenneth McMillan (Market Manager) @ Dee Wallace-Stone (Nettie (as Dee Wallace)) @ Tom Spratley (Charlie the Doorman) @ Patrick O'Neal (Dale Coba rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Emma Forbes (Alison Van Sant (uncredited)Produced by||Unforgettable. I have never forgotton this movie, read the book to, this is the stuff that movies are made of, haven't seen it in years but it's definetly a classic and has stayed with me. What a scary thought. This movie takes place in Conn, my homestate-I was always fascinated by this movie-man's ultimate fantasy come to life in the most terifying way..... I am quite anxious to see the "new, updated" version of this and if anyone can do it justice it's Nicole Kidman. Definetly a movie classic,hopefully the new version will be too. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ Stepmom|Chris Columbus|Drama|Rated PG-13 for language and thematic elements. |6.1|USA|1998| 124 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Barnathan Ronald Bass Chris Columbus Paula DuPré Pesman Wendy Finerman Margaret French Isaac Patrick McCormick Pliny Porter Mark Radcliffe Julia Roberts Susan Sarandon|Gigi Levangie Gigi Levangie Jessie Nelson Steven Rogers Karen Leigh Hopkins Ronald Bass|Donald McAlpine ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Be there for the joy. Be there for the tears. Be there for each other. |Anna and Ben, the two children of Jackie and Luke, have to cope with the fact that their parents divorced and that there is a new woman in their father's life: Isabel, a successful photographer. She does her best to treat the kids in a way that makes them still feel at home when being with their dad, but also loves her work and does not plan to give it up. But Jackie, a full-time mother, regards Isabel's efforts as offensively insufficient. She can't understand that work can be important to her as well as the kids. The conflict between them is deepened by the sudden diagnose of cancer, which might may be deadly for Jackie. They all have to learn a little in order to grow together. |Julia Roberts (Isabel Kelly) @ Susan Sarandon (Jackie Harrison) @ Ed Harris (Luke Harrison) @ Jena Malone (Anna Harrison) @ Liam Aiken (Ben Harrison) @ Lynn Whitfield (Dr. P. Sweikert) @ Darrell Larson (Duncan Samuels) @ Mary Louise Wilson (Mrs. Franklin) @ Andre B. Blake (Cooper (as Andre Blake)) @ Russel Harper (Photo Assistant) @ Jack Eagle (Craft Service Man) @ Lu Celania Sierra (Photo Shoot Model) @ Lauma Zemzare (Photo Shoot Model) @ Holly Schenck (Photo Shoot Model) @ Michelle Stone (Photo Shoot Model) @ Annett Esser (Photo Shoot Model) @ Monique Rodrique (Photo Shoot Model) @ Sal Mistretta (Ad Executive) @ Rex Hays (Ad Executive) @ Alice Liu (Ad Executive) @ Chuck Montgomery (Ad Executive) @ Mak Gilchrist (Rapunzel) @ Mrozek Michael (Dylan (the Prince)) @ David Zayas (Policeman) @ José Ramón Rosario (Policeman) @ Lee Shepherd (Desk Sergeant) @ George Masters (Maitre D') @ Anthony Grasso (Waiter) @ Robert F. Alvarado (Soccer Coach) @ Sebastian Rand (Tucker) @ Michelle Hurst (Nurse) @ Jason Maves (Brad Kovitsky) @ Julie Lancaster (Flight Attendant) @ Charlie Christman (Stone Fox) @ Amina Asep (Anna's Friend) @ Naama Katz (Anna's Friend) @ Jennifer Best (Anna's Friend) @ Robin Fusco (Anna's Friend) @ Jessica M. Osias (Anna's Friend) @ Electra Telesford (Anna's Friend) @ Michelle L. Brady (Anna's Friend) @ Zachary M. Hasak (Brad's Friend) @ Jordan Gochros (Brad's Friend) @ Rob London (Brad's Friend) @ James Ostrofsky (Brad's Friend) @ Chad Lavinio (Brad's Friend) @ John Sadowski (Ben's Friend) @ Matthew Doudounis (Ben's friend) @ Andrea Dolloff (Cocktail Waitress rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eleanor Columbus (Girl in School Play (uncredited) Produced by||Awful I hate to disagree with ALL THOSE fans in Vienna, Virginia(and my what a lot of them there are!)but this is just the bottom of the barrel when it comes to "heartwarming", manipulative movies with dying characters, adorable kids hiding their wonderfulness under scowling masks of sarcasm and bratty behavior, and marriage proposals with wedding rings sliding down from strings. It represents the nadir of the notorious Ali MacGraw disease(in this case, cancer)wherein characters get to expire slowly, lovingly, glowing with strength, warmth and acceptance. Susan Sarandon dances around the house with her children("Sweatin' To The Oldies" without Richard Simmons?), Julia Roberts orchestrates Sarandon's daughter's put-down of a middle school lothario with the least-objectionable 'objectionable' language ever heard, and poor Ed Harris disappears "at the office" whenever the script wants to orchestrate a mini-catfight between the two ladies. It's directed at the "Terms Of Endearment"/"Steel Magnolias" crowds, but with dialogue like "Don't walk out on your mother!"..."No Dad, that's your job!", I would hope that smart viewers would escape early, perhaps into a good book, a great CD, or anything with honest feelings. *1/2 from **** || |2.35 : 1 |5.0 ||||||@@ "Storm of the Century"|Craig R. Baxley|Horror|Rated PG-13 for intense thematic elements and violence/gore. |7.1|USA|1999| Germany:173 min (video version) / Germany:257 min (uncut version) / UK:254 min/ USA:247 min/ 60 min (4 episodes) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Thomas H. Brodek Mark Carliner Bruce Dunn Stephen King Robert F. Phillips|Stephen King |David Connell ||American Broadcasting Company (ABC) [us] ||A small village off the mainland is about to receive a huge winter storm. It won't be just another storm for them. A strange visitor named Andre Linoge comes to the small village and gives the residents havoc. He knows everything about them, and when he tells the truth about one of them, that person denies it. The town constable, Mike Anderson, tries to keep everyone in check with the huge storm and Linoge. Linoge keeps telling the people, "Give me what I want and I will go away"... The devil (Colm Feore) has come to the small town of Little Tall Island, Maine during the heaviest snow storm in the last 100 years. He brings with him the darkest secrets of all the townspeople and uses his knowledge to control and drive some of them to suicide and murder. But with every event, he leaves the clear message "Give me what I want and I'll go away." But first, he has to convince everyone that he has the power to destroy the village, if they don't comply. |Timothy Daly (Mike Anderson) @ Colm Feore (Andre Linoge/Reporter on TV/Minister on TV) @ Debrah Farentino (Molly Anderson) @ Casey Siemaszko (Alton 'Hatch' Hatcher) @ Jeffrey DeMunn (Robbie Beals) @ Julianne Nicholson (Cat Withers) @ Dyllan Christopher (Ralph Anderson) @ Becky Ann Baker (Ursula Godsoe) @ Spencer Breslin (Donny Beals) @ Myra Carter (Cora Stanhope) @ Nada Despotovich (Sandra Beals) @ Kathleen Chalfant (Ms. Stanhope) @ Jeremy Jordan (Billy Soames) @ Ron Perkins (Peter Godsoe) @ Steve Rankin (Jack Carver) @ Adam Zolotin (Davey Hopewell) @ Adam LeFevre (Kirk Freeman) @ Peter MacNeill (Sonny Brautigan) @ Torri Higginson (Angela Carver) @ Beth Dixon (Tess Merchant) @ Soo Garay (Melinda Hatcher) @ Christopher Marren (Henry Bright) @ Leif Anderson (Johnny Harriman) @ Marcia Laskowski (Linda St. Pierre) @ John Innes (Reverend Riggins) @ Jack Jessop (George Kirby) @ Rita Tuckett (Martha Clarendon) @ Nancy Beatty (Octavia Godsoe) @ Richard Blackburn (Andy Robichaux) @ Gaylyn Britton (Mary Hopewell) @ David Ferry (Lloyd Wishman) @ Tyler Bannerman (Frank Bright) @ Skye McCole Bartusiak (Pippa Hatcher) @ Harley English-Dixon (Heidi St. Pierre) @ Stephen Joffe (Buster Carver) @ Sam Morton (Harry Robichaux) @ Cayda Rubin (Sally Godsoe) @ Kristin Baxley (Annie Huston) @ Michael Copeman (Upton Bell) @ Shawn Doyle (Lucien Fournier) @ Norma Edwards (Betty Soames) @ Victor Ertmanis (Alex Haber) @ Richard Fitzpatrick (Jonas Stanhope) @ Joan Gregson (Della Bissonette) @ Jennifer Griffin (Carla Bright) @ Lynne Griffin (Mrs. Kingsbury) @ Nicky Guadagni (Jenna Freeman) @ David Hughes (Burt Soames) @ Helen Hughes (Roberta Coign) @ Joel S. Keller (Cal Freese (as Joel Keller)) @ Hardee T. Lineham (Bill Toomey) @ Arlene Mazerolle (Jill Robichaux) @ Gerard Parkes (Orville Boucher) @ Michael Rhoades (Stan Hopewell) @ Kay Tremblay (False Mother) @ Martha Burns (Counselor) @ Matt Koruba (Ralphie (14 Yrs. Old) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Stephen King (Lawyer in ad (uncredited) Produced by||Yet Another Botched Made-For-TV Version of a Magical Original Stephen King Novel. *-SPOILERS!!SPOILERS!!SPOILERS!!-* WHEN will they realize that Stephen King's books are not written for TV? and that "adapting" them only cheapens and negates the wonderful literary style Mr. King enjoys?WHEN will they realize that if it isn't theater quality, it shouldn't be DONE?His books aren't "PG13."His books are R quality.Stop screwing with the masterpiece originals and get it RIGHT! Read the book.This movie is a puerile, fetid, slip-shod attempt to capture the beauty and terror portrayed in the original work. I was so very disappointed in this "rated pg version" of the book. If you are a fan of the literary works of Mr. King, don't waste your time on this movie. That having been said, if you aren't an avid reader of Stephen King, then this movie is quite compelling. While it never explains exactly what Colm Feore's character (the bad guy) is, it cleverly makes you wait for the third installment to discover what he wants. The attempt to explain himself leaves too much to the imagination for a movie of this type.While the character of the villain in the book was well developed, the movie version lacked too much; too many details.While he's shown with sharpened animalistic teeth, nothing is explained even partially well enough.And while there are playful remarks about the devil..."tell the truth and shame the devil"...he never actually explains who or what he is.He only says he is neither a god, nor an immortal. There is just too much left out to make this a good movie.Even when I put the book out of my mind, there are too many details not given, too many questions unanswered.The story has far too many holes in it for me to find it enjoyable, but it does make you think.That's the only attribute saved from Mr. King's original work in this sorry attempt at an adaptation. It gets a 5.4 from the Fiend :. || ||2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Streetcar Named Desire, A|Elia Kazan|Drama|PG |8.1|USA|1951|122 min/ USA:125 min (re-release)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/21/2004|Charles K. Feldman |Tennessee Williams Oscar Saul Tennessee Williams|Harry Stradling Sr. ||CBS/Fox [us] ||Set in the French Quarter of New Orleans during the restless years following World War Two, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE is the story of Blanche DuBois, a fragile and neurotic woman on a desperate prowl for someplace in the world to call her own. After being exiled from her hometown of Laurel, Mississippi for seducing a seventeen-year-old boy at the school where she taught English, Blanche explains her unexpected appearance on Stanley and Stella's (Blanche's sister) doorstep as nervous exhaustion. This, she claims, is the result of a series of financial calamities which have recently claimed the family plantation, Belle Reve. Suspicious, Stanley points out that "under Louisiana's napoleonic code what belongs to the wife belongs to the husband." Stanley, a sinewy and brutish man, is as territorial as a panther. He tells Blanche he doesn't like to be swindled and demands to see the bill of sale. This encounter defines Stanley and Blanche's relationship. They are opposing camps and Stella is caught in no-man's-land. But Stanley and Stella are deeply in love. Blanche's efforts to impose herself between them only enrages the animal inside Stanley. When Mitch -- a card-playing buddy of Stanley's -- arrives on the scene, Blanche begins to see a way out of her predicament. Mitch, himself alone in the world, reveres Blanche as a beautiful and refined woman. Yet, as rumors of Blanche's past in Laurel begin to catch up to her, her circumstances become unbearable. Blanche is in real need of a protector at this stage in her life when circumstances lead her into paying a visit to her younger sister Stella in New Orleans. She doesn't understand how Stella, who is expecting her first child, could have picked a husband so lacking in refinement. Stanley Kowalski's buddies come over to the house to play cards and one of them, Mitch, finds Blanche attractive until Stanley tells him about what kind of a woman Blanche really is. What will happen when Stella goes to the hospital to have her baby and just Blanche and her brother-in-law are in the house? Blanche Dubois goes to visit her pregnant sister and husband Stanley in New Orleans. Stanley doesn't like her, and starts pushing her for information on some property he know was left to the sisters. He discovers she has mortgaged the place and spent all the money, and wants to find out all he can about her. Even more friction develops between the two while they are in the apartment together... |Vivien Leigh (Blanche DuBois) @ Marlon Brando (Stanley Kowalski) @ Kim Hunter (Stella Kowalski) @ Karl Malden (Harold 'Mitch' Mitchell) @ Rudy Bond (Steve) @ Nick Dennis (Pablo Gonzales) @ Peg Hillias (Eunice) @ Wright King (A Collector) @ Richard Garrick (A Doctor) @ Ann Dere (The Matron) @ Edna Thomas (Mexican Woman) @ Mickey Kuhn (A Sailor rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Mel Archer (Foreman (uncredited)) @ Dahn Ben Amotz (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Marietta Canty (Giggling Woman wth Eunice (uncredited)) @ John George ( (uncredited)) @ Chester Jones (Street Vendor (uncredited)) @ Lyle Latell (Policeman (uncredited)) @ Maxie Thrower (Passerby (uncredited)) @ Charles Wagenheim (Passerby (uncredited)Produced by||"Classical" vs. "Method" Now that this filmization of "Streetcar" is over a half centuryold, it can be looked at in a more objective manner than that of the early fifties.The "classical/traditional" acting style of Vivien Leigh, which was placed in stark contrast to the rest of the production personnel, continues to hold its own brilliantly. It's probably hard today for some to imagine the strong opposition Leigh's casting faced back in 1950, when this prim actress from England was chosen (mostly by studio chief Jack Warner) over "method" Broadway actress Jessica Tandy. A goodly number of cast and production people from the hit play directed by Elia Kazan were engaged by the director for the film version, and they were not at all enthusiastic about risking a "clash" of acting styles in the leading, pivotal role of Blanche.Kazan himself was reportedly very pro-Tandy, and quite disappointed in the studio's decision. Yet, Warner and his staff felt Tandy wasn't that well known to the general movie going public--especially in contrast to Leigh, whose marquee name was by then almost magical.In recent interviews, Kazan admitted that working with Vivien was "a real challenge." In looking at the film today, however, it's Leigh who emerges as a genuine "star" of this production.True, her facial expressions, vocal inflections and body gestures may be the result of careful, deliberate planning, but so what?It's also the aspect that commands attention and draws the viewer to her portion of the screen throughout this film. Her southern accent, so well learned and retained from her work as Scarlett in "GWTW," is convincing and very beautiful to hear.It also fits Blanche perfectly, as does Leigh's stylized "choreography," which was undoubtedly retained from her long-running London stage performance. Not all the combined, formidable talents of "method" giants as Karl Malden, Kim Hunter, Marlon Brando or Kazan can diminish the hypnotic work of Leigh here.It may not have excited "Gadge" Kazan, but it remains a highlight performance in film history (and impressed the Academy enough to bestow an "Oscar" to Vivien.) It also didn't hurt to have Alex North's pungent score, which remains this composer's finest hour. || |1.37 : 1 |||||||@@ Strictly Ballroom|Baz Luhrmann|Comedy||7.2|Australia|1992| 94 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Antoinette Albert Tristram Miall Jane Scott|Baz Luhrmann Baz Luhrmann Andrew Bovell Baz Luhrmann Craig Pearce|Steve Mason ||Miramax Films [us] |There's something in the air.It might be love -- but it isn't.|Scott Hastings is a champion caliber ballroom dancer, but much to the chagrin of the Australian ballroom dance community, Scott believes in dancing "his own steps". Fran is a beginning dancer and a bit of an ugly duckly who has the audacity to ask to be Scott's partner after his unorthodox style causes his regular partner to dance out of his life. Together, these two misfits try to win the Australian Pan Pacific Championships and show the Ballroom Confederation that they are wrong when they say, "there are no new steps!" |Paul Mercurio (Scott Hastings, Ballroom Champion) @ Tara Morice (Fran, Scott's partner) @ Bill Hunter (Barry Fife, Federation President) @ Pat Thomson (Shirley Hastings, Scott's mother/cosmetics consultant) @ Gia Carides (Liz Holt, Scott's partner) @ Peter Whitford (Les Kendall, Scott's coach/Dance Studio owner) @ Barry Otto (Doug Hastings, Scott's father) @ John Hannan (Ken Railings) @ Sonia Kruger (Tina Sparkle) @ Kris McQuade (Charm Leachman) @ Pip Mushin (Wayne Burns) @ Leonie Page (Vanessa Cronin) @ Antonio Vargas (Rico) @ Armonia Benedito (Ya Ya) @ Jack Webster (Terry) @ Lauren Hewett (Kylie Hastings) @ Steve Grace (Luke) @ Paul Bertram (J.J. Silvers, State Finals MC) @ Di Emory (Waitress) @ Lara Mulcahy (Natalie) @ Brian M. Logan (Clarey) @ Michael Burgess (Merv) @ Todd McKenney (Nathan Starkey) @ Kerry Shrimpton (Pam Short) @ Simone Gage (Extra: Kendall's Studio) @ Bradley Sabott (Extra: Kendall's Studio) @ Ray Mather (Extra: Kendall's Studio) @ Jo Shinta (Extra: Kendall's Studio) @ Peter Lynch (Extra: Kendall's Studio) @ Lee Vecchiet (Extra: Kendall's Studio) @ Warren Ring (Try-out Coach) @ Jaja Jamieson (Try-out Coach) @ John 'Cha Cha' O'Connell (Try-out Coach) @ Anita Curtis (Try-out Girl) @ Roxana Vella (Try-out Girl) @ Deanne Curtis (Try-out Girl) @ Ángel García (Toledo Guitarist) @ Dene Kermond (New Steps Family) @ Genevieve White (New Steps Family) @ Lisa Ellis (New Steps Family) @ Jacqueline Lendich (New Steps Family) @ Bob Adams (New Steps Family Produced by||Crowdpleasing Moves Spoilers herein. `Dirty Dancing' meets `Best in Show' and is better than either. That's because this has a coherent soul. That soul is the edgy production design by Baz's partner (and now wife) Catherine Martin. She found the sweet spot which loves all the frippery but keeps distance from the foolishness at the same time. I imagine all the cartoon sound effects (since found in Romeo and Moulin) were her idea as well. This film is to production design as Scott's steps are to ballroom dancing: enough within the parameters to not be outside what we accept as film reality. But at the same time, outside the convention enough to please us with the flash. The train scene was effective. Very impressive. The Coke sign as well. But the piece that I will remember is the story-within-the-story about the 1967 Championship. The style of that was carefully placed as far from the rest of the movie as the movie is from `real' life. Very clever. Very insightful. It registers our imagination. The photography of the dance did not dance itself, which is a real shame. Baz and crew learned a real lesson on this, and the `Moulin' camera does dance. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sum of All Fears, The|Phil Alden Robinson|Action|Rated PG-13 for violence, disaster images and brief strong language. PG-13|6.6|USA|2002|124 min/ Spain:128 min/ UK:123 min|English||||||||||False||||||||12/2/2004|Tom Clancy Stratton Leopold Mace Neufeld|Tom Clancy Paul Attanasio Daniel Pyne|John Lindley ||Paramount Pictures [us] |27,000 Nuclear Weapons. One Is Missing.|When the president of Russia suddenly dies, a man whose politics are virtually unknown succeeds him. The change in political leaders sparks paranoia among American CIA officials, so CIA director Bill Cabot recruits a young analyst to supply insight and advice on the situation. Then the unthinkable happens: a nuclear bomb explodes in a U.S. city, and America is quick to blame the Russians. |Ben Affleck (Jack Ryan) @ Morgan Freeman (DCI William Cabot) @ James Cromwell (President Robert "Bob" Fowler) @ Ken Jenkins (Adm. Pollack) @ Liev Schreiber (John Clark) @ Bruce McGill (National Security Advisor Gene Revell) @ John Beasley (Gen. Lasseter) @ Russell Bobbitt (Israeli Pilot) @ Philip Baker Hall (Defense Secretary David Becker) @ Al Vandecruys (US STRATCOM Colonel) @ Richard Cohee (Mt. Weather General) @ Philip Pretten (President's Military Aide) @ Alison Darcy (Fowler's Aide) @ Richard Marner (President Zorkin) @ Ostap Soroka (Zorkin's Translator) @ Robert Martin Robinson (Zorkin's Interviewer) @ Ian Mongrain (Syrian Radar Operator) @ Dale Godboldo (Rudy) @ Lee Garlington (Mary Pat Foley) @ Jamie Harrold (Dillon) @ Alan Bates (Dressler) @ Stefan Kalipha (Arab Gravedigger) @ Nabil Elouhabi (Ghazi (as Nabil Elouahabi)) @ Mariya Monakhova (Zorkin's Aide (as Maria Monakhova)) @ Bridget Moynahan (Dr. Cathy Muller) @ Francois Bryon (CIA Wardrobe Guy) @ Josef Sommer (Sen. Jessup) @ Pragna Desai (Dr. Rita Russell) @ Colm Feore (Olson) @ Michel 'Gish' Abou-Samah (Olson's Translator) @ Edward Zinoviev (Nemerov's Aide) @ Ciarán Hinds (President Nemerov) @ Sheena Larkin (Pam Lathrop (as Sheena Larkin La Brie)) @ Frank Fontaine (Gen. Rand) @ André Cornellier (Kremlin Photographer) @ Maksim Osadchy (Kremlin's Photographer's Assistant (as Maxime Opadtchii)) @ Mariusz Sibiga (Nemerov's Translator) @ Michael Byrne (Anatoli Grushkov) @ Norman Mikeal Berketa (American Scientist (as Norm Berketa)) @ Lev Prygunov (Gen. Saratkin (as Lev Prygounov)) @ Mace Neufeld (WHCA Dinner Chairman) @ Ron Rifkin (Secretary of State Sidney Owens) @ Jennifer Seguin (President's Aide) @ Josh Kimmel (White House Mess Waiter) @ Yevgeni Lazarev (Gen. Dubinin (as Eugene Lazarev)) @ Sven-Ole Thorsen (Haft) @ Heinar Pillar (Dressler's Associate (as Heinar Piller)) @ Arthur Holden (Dressler's Associate) @ Marcel Sabourin (Monsieur Monceau) @ Vie Nystrom (Dressler's Secretary) @ Joel Bissonnette (Jared Mason) @ Kwasi Songui (Dockyard Navy Veteran) @ Marina Lapina (Nemerov's Wife) @ Victoria Reuter (Russian Nurse) @ France Arbour (Spassky's Mother) @ Lubomir Mykytiuk (Spassky) @ Vladimir Radian (Orlov) @ Gregory Hlady (Milinov) @ Valeri Koudriavtsev (Ukrainian Guard) @ Victor Pedtrchenko (Ukrainian Guard (as Victor Pedtchenko)) @ Willie Gault (Sportscaster) @ Gary Gelfand (Sportscaster) @ Arnold McCuller (National Anthem Singer) @ Craig Hosking (Helicopter Pilot) @ Jerry Markbreit (Referee) @ John Eaves (Secret Service Agent) @ J.J. Carle (Hospital Physician) @ Msgt. David Vazquez (Marine Rescuer) @ David Schaap (US STRATCOM Colonel) @ Lisa Gay Hamilton (Capt. Lorna Shiro (as Lisagay Hamilton)) @ Kirk Taylor (AFRAT Specialist Wesson) @ Jason Antoon (AFRAT Specialist Stubbs) @ Lisa Bronwyn Moore (NAOC Hotline Operator) @ Aleksandr Belyavsky (Adm. Ivanov (as Alexander Belyavsky)) @ Jason Winer (Aircraft Carrier Petty Officer) @ Antonio David Lyons (Aircraft Carrier Petty Officer) @ Lennie Loftin (Aircraft Carrier Duty Officer) @ Michael McDougal (Russian Pilot (as Mike McDougal)) @ Matt Holland (Pickup Truck Owner) @ Roger Tonry (F-16 Pilot) @ Oleg Belkin (Russian Defense Minister) @ Constantine Gregory (Gen. Bulgakov) @ Griffith Brewer (Burn Victim) @ Jacklyn St. Pierre (Baltimore Nurse) @ Mariah Inger (Baltimore Nurse) @ Mark Antony Krupa (US STRATCOM Captain) @ Joseph Antaki (Arab Doctor) @ Marcel Jeannin (Baltimore Cop (as Marcel Jeanin)) @ Gerry Wood (AF Lt. Colonel) @ Conrad Pla (Pentagon Security Guard) @ Philip Akin (Gen. Wilkes) @ Henri Pardo (Pentagon NCO) @ Irwin Dillion (Pentagon Mo-Link Operator) @ Real Auger (Dubinin's Killer) @ Gilles Marsolais (Dubinin's Killer) @ Eric Steibi (Dressler's Aide rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Terence Bowman (National Guard Driver (uncredited)) @ Christina Colburn (Mother (uncredited)) @ Clete Francis (Pilot (uncredited)) @ Marie Matiko (Capt. Vicky Shiro (uncredited)) @ Gail Millman (Sports Reporter (uncredited)) @ Jason Millman (Sports Reporter (uncredited)) @ Mike O'Neal (Secret Service Agent (uncredited)) @ Mike Paterson (Petty Officer (uncredited)) @ Bill Richards (Helicopter Pilot (uncredited)) @ Clyde Tull (Pilot (uncredited) Produced by||Clear and present failure "The Sum of All Fears" is all about Affleck running around trying like hell to be the hero he is so obviously poised to become while US and Russian war machines are teetering on the brink of being duped into a holocaust. Hmmm. What's wrong with that picture? This slick flick fails on all levels. At the peak of the action/excitement, I found myself looking at the elapsed time and wondering when the flick was going to end...bored. Nothing in this uninspired flick works and the whole thing comes off like so much trite and very flawed busy-work. Best saved for broadcast. (C+) || |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Sunset Blvd.|Billy Wilder|Drama||8.6|USA|1950| 110 min/ Argentina:115 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Charles Brackett |Charles Brackett Billy Wilder D.M. Marshman Jr.|John F. Seitz ||BFI (Collections) [gb] |A Hollywood Story|Joe Gillis is floating face down in a swimming pool as the homicide squad arrives. As narrator Joe takes us back six months when, unable to sell a script or borrow from anyone, he pulled into 10086 Sunset Boulevard to hide from men who wanted to repossess his car. The owner of the mansion is Norma Desmond, faded star of the silent era. Under the illusion that millions of fans still adore her, Norma is planning a comeback playing the lead in her own screenplay "Salome". When she finds out Joe is a writer she wants him to help her with the script. He moves in, becoming a kept man and the object of her obsessive affection. Meantime Joe several times runs into Betty, the script reader who originally rejected his efforts and would now like to collaborate with him. Norma, now jealous as well as possessive and ambitious, receives a call from Paramount which she believes will soon having her working again with C.B. DeMille. The studio only wants the loan of her leopard upholstered Isotta-Fraschini touring car. When Joe walks out on her she fires a pistol at him as he walks toward the pool and we are back where we came in. Norma must face the (newsreel) cameras one last time. Joe Gillis, bankrupt screenwriter, hides from car repossessors in the garage of a deserted-looking mansion which proves to be the grotesque home of Norma Desmond, retired silent screen star. Joe takes refuge there, with a nominal job of rewriting Norma's hopeless 'comeback' screenplay. Weeks pass; feeling more and more like a kept man, Joe grasps at reality in the form of a clandestine friendship with script reader Betty Schaefer, but it's too late... |William Holden (Joe Gillis) @ Gloria Swanson (Norma Desmond) @ Erich von Stroheim (Max von Mayerling) @ Nancy Olson (Betty Schaefer) @ Fred Clark (Sheldrake (Paramount producer)) @ Lloyd Gough (Morino) @ Jack Webb (Artie Green (assistant director)) @ Franklyn Farnum (Undertaker) @ Larry J. Blake (Finance man #1 (as Larry Blake)) @ Charles Dayton (Finance man #2) @ Cecil B. DeMille (Himself) @ Hedda Hopper (Herself) @ Buster Keaton (Himself (playing bridge)) @ Anna Q. Nilsson (Herself (playing bridge)) @ H.B. Warner (Himself (playing bridge)) @ Ray Evans (Himself (sitting at piano at Artie's New Year's Eve party)) @ Jay Livingston (Himself (sitting at piano at Artie's New Year's Eve party) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Joel Allen (Prop man #2 (uncredited)) @ Gertrude Astor (Courtier (uncredited)) @ Ken Christy (Captain of Homicide (uncredited)) @ Ruth Clifford (Sheldrake's secretary (uncredited)) @ John Cortay (Young gate guard at Paramount Studios (uncredited)) @ Archie R. Dalzell (Camera operator (uncredited)) @ Eddie Dew (Assistant Coroner (uncredited)) @ Peter Drynan (Tailor (uncredited)) @ Julia Faye (Hisham (uncredited)) @ Al Ferguson (Phone standby (uncredited)) @ Gerry Ganzer (Connie (Betty's roommate) (uncredited)) @ Kenneth Gibson (Salesman at Men's Shop (uncredited)) @ Joe Gray ( (uncredited)) @ Sanford E. Greenwald (Newsreel cameraman (uncredited)) @ Creighton Hale ( (uncredited)) @ James Hawley (Camera assistant (uncredited)) @ Len Hendry (Police sergeant (uncredited)) @ E. Mason Hopper (Doctor (uncredited)) @ Tommy Ivo (Boy (uncredited)) @ Stan Johnson (First assistant director (uncredited)) @ Howard Joslin (Police lieutenant (uncredited)) @ Arthur Lane (Camera operator (uncredited)) @ Gertrude Messinger (Hairdresser (uncredited)) @ John 'Skins' Miller (Hog-eye (electrician) (uncredited)) @ Ralph Montgomery (Prop man #1 (uncredited)) @ Bert Moorhouse (Gordon Cole (uncredited)) @ Jay Morley (Fat man (uncredited)) @ Bernice Mosk (Herself (uncredited)) @ Howard Negley (Police captain (uncredited)) @ Ottola Nesmith (Woman (uncredited)) @ Eva Novak (Courtier (uncredited)) @ Frank O'Connor (Courtier (uncredited)) @ Robert Emmett O'Connor (Jonesy (older Paramount gate guard) (uncredited)) @ Virginia L. Randolph (Courtier (uncredited)) @ Bill Sheehan (Second assistant director (uncredited)) @ Sidney Skolsky (Himself (uncredited)) @ Emmett Smith (Man (uncredited)) @ Roy Thompson (Rudy (shoeshine boy) (uncredited)) @ Archie Twitchell (Salesman (uncredited)) @ Yvette Vickers (Giggling girl on phone at party (uncredited)) @ Edward Wahrman (Camera assistant (uncredited) Produced by||All right, Mr. DeMille Gloria Swanson must be commended for her bravery in taking a part which may or may not have echoed her own Hollywood career. William Holden took a role which required him to be a kept boy; and he's not the nicest guy in the world either. If this had been made with Mae West and Montgomery Clift, I would probably not be writing this and no one else would give a damn about this movie either. Both of them got Oscar nominations and I am sorry both lost. I am also sorry that "All About Eve" won Best Picture that year.Of course "Eve" is a great movie, but its not this. This movie is part of our collective memory and most of the dialogue continues to be quoted even today. Thank God for whatever it was that brought Billy Wilder to Hollywood. I can't think of anyone who did such a wide variety of movies so well. And please, no remakes. ||Special Collector's Edition |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ Super Troopers|Jay Chandrasekhar|Crime|Rated R for language, sexual content and drug use. R|6.2|USA|2001|100 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Robert Barocci Amy Minda Cohen Annie Fiocco Annie Flocco Peter E. Lengyel Adam Mazer Richard Perello William Rotko Jonathan Shoemaker Derrick Tseng Kevin Weiss|Jay Chandrasekhar Kevin Heffernan Steve Lemme Paul Soter Erik Stolhanske|Joaquín Baca-Asay ||20th Century Fox Italia [it] |Altered State Police|Thorny, Mac, Rabbit, Foster and Farva are Vermont state troopers out to have a good time. Stationed in a remote area near the Canadian border, the troopers, avid pranksters with an affinity for syrup, have a knack for screwing up on the job. But when budget cuts in the town of Spurbury threaten their livelihood and pit them against arch-rival Spurbury P.D., the five friends try to straighten up and fly right. That is, until a dead body is discovered and a possible drug ring is unearthed. The super troopers spring into action attempting to solve the crime, save their jobs, and outdo the local police department. |André Vippolis (College Boy 2) @ Joey Kern (College Boy 1) @ Geoffrey Arend (College Boy 3) @ Erik Stolhanske (State Trooper Robert 'Rabbit' Roto) @ Jay Chandrasekhar (State Trooper Arcot 'Thorny' Ramathorn) @ Steve Lemme (State Trooper MacIntyre 'Mac' Womack) @ Kevin Heffernan (State Trooper Rodney Farva) @ Paul Soter (State Trooper Jeff Foster) @ Camille Hickman (Thin Queen Bartender) @ Marisa Coughlan (Officer Ursula Hanson) @ Aria Alpert (Waitress) @ Daniel von Bargen (Police Chief Bruce Grady) @ James Grace (Local Officer Rando) @ Michael Weaver (Local Officer Smy) @ Dan Fey (Local Officer Burton) @ Brian Cox (Capt. John O'Hagan) @ Jim Gaffigan (Larry Johnson) @ Chloe Kai O'Connor (Lucy Garfield) @ Amy de Lucia (Bobbi) @ Christian Albrizio (Arlo) @ Jim Edwards (Complaining Fan) @ Jimmy Noonan (Frank Galikanokus) @ John Bedford Lloyd (Mayor Bill Timber) @ Philippe Brenninkmeyer (German Man) @ Maria Tornberg (German Woman) @ Blanchard Ryan (Casino La Fantastique Sally) @ Jane Heffernan (Chicken F**ker) @ E. Michael Heffernan (Chicken F**ker) @ Charlie Finn (Dimpus Burger Guy) @ Lynda Carter (Gov. Jessman) @ Tracy Tobin (Governor's Aide) @ Richard Perello (Banquet Bartender (as Rich Perello)) @ Trish McGettrick (Gawking Citizen) @ Danny Padilla (Urinatee) @ John Carlino (Pilot) @ Walt MacPherson (Foreman #1) @ Jerry Walsh (Foreman #2Produced by||Failed movie titles: Highway Patrol Academy. Wow, someone must really have had a bad runin with the police or with the Highway Patrol, since they're both made to look completely ridiculous in this movie. I can't say that the movie is entirely without laughs, because there were several scenes during which I was laughing so hard that I just about fell off the couch (`Hey, I got an idea! Let's pop some Viagra and issue tickets with raging mega-huge boners!'). I guess the movie is about what law enforcement would look like if the police force and the Highway Patrol were run as though they were fraternities instead of government run entities. The police and the Highway Patrol are rival fraternities fighting each other over state funding, since one of them is about to be shut down and so they better make some heroic drug bust or something right before the budget hearings in order to stay in business. This plotline sort of falls to the side for the majority of the film in favor of freaky antics and games played by the cops as they pull people over and try to see how many times they can get away with saying Meow without being caught. This is the type of humor that might have done well had it been more prevalent, and the most extensive, seen in the film. The problem with Super Troopers is that it just goes too far at many points. It's perfectly believable to have a lot of guys on the police force who screw around in the locker room, playing practical jokes on each other and trying to do some goofy routines like the Meow routine while on the job, but the film also has them busting a teen party and then getting smashed with the kids themselves and forcing the kids to do humiliating fraternity hazing rituals, something absolutely certain to land them in court, as well as to immediately cost them their jobs, the importance of which drives the entire plot. If the movie had been something of a behind the scenes of law enforcement comedy that let us see an entirely different side of the police force than the stolid one that we usually see peering at us disappointedly through our driver's side windows, it could have been a smashing success. But instead it decides to display full frontal nudity of fat men covered in powdered sugar, a toothless redneck having sex with a bear in the woods, two cops trying to go undercover in a semi truck that they don't know how to drive, and a lot of other idiot cops doing a lot of idiot things. Given the fact that the movie is all about two law enforcement agencies trying to save their jobs by actually solving a crime (notably something entirely out of the ordinary for them), the least the movie could have done is provide us with at least a single person on either team that we would actually want to see driving a patrol car and wearing a policemen's uniform. The movie is the product of a goofball comedy troupe who call themselves Broken Lizard, but who don't realize that if you want your audience to root for your characters to keep their jobs as police officers, it might be beneficial to keep in mind that police officers have power over the general public. Personally, I'm not too thrilled about the possibility of being pulled over by someone who is going to demand my license and registration and then call me a chickenf**ker. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Superman|Richard Donner|Action|Rated PG for peril, some mild sensuality and language. PG|7.1|UK|1978|143 min/ USA:127 min (1980 video release) / USA:151 min (2000 restoration)|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/16/2004|Charles F. Greenlaw Alexander Salkind Ilya Salkind Pierre Spengler Richard Lester|Jerry Siegel Joe Shuster Mario Puzo Mario Puzo David Newman Leslie Newman Robert Benton Tom Mankiewicz|Geoffrey Unsworth ||Obshchestvennoye Rossijskoye Televideniye (ORT) Video [ru] |You'll Believe a Man Can Fly!|Unable to convince the ruling council of Krypton that their world will destroy itself soon, scientist Jor-El takes drastic measures to preserve the Kryptonian race: He sends his infant son Kal-El to Earth. There, gaining great powers under Earth's yellow sun, he will become a champion of truth and justice. Raised by the Kents, an elderly farm couple, Clark Kent learns that his abilities must be used for good. The adult Clark travels to Metropolis, where he becomes a mild-mannered reporter for the Daily Planet...and a caped wonder whose amazing feats stun the city: Superman! Meanwhile, Lex Luthor, the world's greatest criminal mind, is plotting the greatest real estate swindle of all time. Can't even the Man of Steel stop this nefarious scheme? This movie begins on Krypton, where Superman's father sends him off to Earth as a young child. He grows up to be a perfectly normal newspaper reporter named Clark Kent. At least, he appears perfectly normal, until he transforms into Superman - flying around with his underpants over his tights, saving the day. When the evil Lex Luthor plans to take over the world, Superman is the only one who can stop him. The planet Krypton is doomed. Only one man, Jor-El, knows it, and rockets his infant son to refuge on a distant world called Earth. As Jor-El's son grows to manhood, he learns he possesses super-powers he must hide from the ordinary mortals around him. And so, he disguishes himself as Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter. March 1938 - while a child reads a comic book about the largest newspaper in the city of Metropolis, in a distant galaxy an advanced race of humans reside on the planet Krypton. Three traitors who have attempted to overthrow Krypton's ruling council are sentenced by the planet's greatest scientist, Jor-El, to an enclosed extra-dimensional prison drifting through space. However, Jor-El's more pressing concern lies in the orbital shift of Krypton, which is sending it into the fatal gravitational pull of its crimson central star, a fact blithely ignored by the ruling council. Effectively placed under house arrest by the council, Jor-El and his wife Lara consent to sending their infant son, Kal-El, to a primitive planet six galaxies distant, known as Earth, where a yellow sun will fuse with his irradiated molecular density to make him strong, fast, and virtually invulnerable. The tiny starship bearing Kal-El escapes Krypton's gravity just before the planet is sucked into its red sun and both bodies are obliterated. Years later the starship reaches Earth and crashlands on a vast wheatfield near Smallville, Kansas, before local farmers Martha and Jonathan Kent. Deciding to adopt the child within the strange craft, the Kents name him Clark and he loves them as his true parents. Many years pass and he is now a high schooler shunned by many of his peers. But following a tragic incident, he learns the truth about his genesis, and a personal exodus to the very summit of the North Pole leads to the creation of a vast crystaline fortress within which Kal-El learns the full truth of his existence from the spirit of his true father, Jor-El. He now becomes a fully matured man, clad in a red and blue costume bearing the S-shaped crest of the House Of El, with the mission of protecting his newly adopted home planet in the memory of his true homeworld, and in such capacity he disguises himself as a meek newswriter in which guise he can learn of threats to his adopted homeworld - one of which occurs in an act of trachery by an arrogant criminal mastermind living in a vast headquarters 200 feet beneath the surface of Metropolis, an act of treachery that sends nuclear missiles flying off course and detonates a gigantic earthquake that threatens to destroy California. |Marlon Brando (Jor-El) @ Gene Hackman (Lex Luthor) @ Christopher Reeve (Superman/Clark Kent/Kal-El) @ Ned Beatty (Otis) @ Jackie Cooper (Perry White) @ Glenn Ford (Jonathan Kent) @ Trevor Howard (First Elder) @ Margot Kidder (Lois Lane) @ Jack O'Halloran (Non) @ Valerie Perrine (Eve Teschmacher) @ Maria Schell (Vond-Ah) @ Terence Stamp (General Zod) @ Phyllis Thaxter (Martha Clark-Kent) @ Susannah York (Lara) @ Jeff East (Young Clark Kent) @ Marc McClure (Jimmy Olsen) @ Sarah Douglas (Ursa) @ Harry Andrews (2nd Elder) @ Vass Anderson (3rd Elder) @ John Hollis (4th Elder) @ James Garbutt (5th Elder) @ Michael Gover (6th Elder) @ David Neal (7th Elder) @ William Russell (8th Elder) @ Penelope Lee (9th Elder) @ John Stuart (10th Elder) @ Alan Cullen (11th Elder) @ Lee Quigley (Baby Kal-El) @ Aaron Smolinski (Baby Clark Kent) @ Diane Sherry (Lana Lang) @ Jeff Atcheson (Coach) @ Brad Flock (Football Player) @ David Petrou (Team Manager) @ Billy J. Mitchell (1st Editor) @ Robert Henderson (2nd Editor) @ Larry Lamb (1st Reporter) @ James Brockington (2nd Reporter) @ John Cassady (3rd Reporter) @ John F. Parker (4th Reporter) @ Antony Scott (5th Reporter) @ Ray Evans (6th Reporter) @ Sue Shifrin (7th Reporter) @ Miquel Brown (8th Reporter) @ Vincent Marzello (1st Copy Boy) @ Benjamin Feitelson (2nd Copy Boy) @ Lise Hilboldt (1st Secretary) @ Leueen Willoughby (Perry's Secretary) @ Pieter Stuyck (Window Cleaner) @ Rex Reed (Himself) @ Weston Gavin (Mugger) @ Steve Kahan (Amos (Officer 1)) @ Ray Hassett (Harry (Officer 2)) @ Randy Jurgensen (Officer 3) @ Matt Russo (News Vendor) @ Colin Skeaping (Pilot) @ Bo Rucker (Pimp) @ Paul Avery (TV Cameraman) @ David Baxt (Burglar) @ George Harris II (Patrolman Mooney) @ Michael Harrigan (1st Hood) @ John Cording (2nd Hood) @ Raymond Thompson (3rd Hood) @ Oz Clarke (4th Hood) @ Rex Everhart (Desk Sergeant) @ Jayne Tottman (Little Girl) @ Frank Lazarus (Air Force One Pilot) @ Brian Protheroe (Co-Pilot) @ Lawrence Trimble (1st Crewman) @ Robert Whelan (2nd Crewman) @ David Calder (3rd Crewman) @ Norwich Duff (Newscaster) @ Keith Alexander (Newscaster) @ Michael Ensign (Newscaster) @ Larry Hagman (Major) @ Paul Tuerpe (Sergeant Hayley) @ Graham McPherson (Lieutenant) @ David Yorston (Petty Officer) @ Robert O'Neill (Admiral) @ Robert MacLeod (General) @ John Ratzenberger (1st Controller) @ Alan Tilvern (2nd Controller) @ Phil Brown (State Senator) @ Bill Bailey (2nd Senator) @ Burnell Tucker (Agent) @ Chief Tug Smith (Indian Chief) @ Norman Warwick (Superchief Driver) @ Chuck Julian (Assistant) @ Colin Etherington (Power Co. Driver) @ Mark Wynter (Mate) @ Roy Stevens (Warden rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Kirk Alyn (Young Lois Lane's father (on train) (uncredited)) @ Bruce Boa (General (in extended version) (uncredited)) @ Richard Donner (Man on street (cameo in expanded edition) (uncredited)) @ Edward Finneran (Special Football Player (uncredited)) @ Noel Neill (Young Lois Lane's mother (on train) (uncredited)) @ Tony Selby (Hood (uncredited)Produced by||Christopher Reeve IS the Man of Steel NOTE:I included what some may consider spoilers on the first few scenes. Nothing big or crucial, but read with care... I finally got around to watching this classic film the other night.The dramatic opening credit sequence really got me psyched, and somewhat contrary to my expectations, Marlon Brando was great as Jor-El (how could I have doubted Brando?).I enjoyed watching the setup scenes on Clark's high school years and his discovery of his Kryptonian heritage.I admit, however, that I was really waiting for the young Jeff East to exit and for Chris Reeve to step in as the older Clark/Superman.Finally Clark completes his studies on Krypton's past and we see a short teaser scene of Reeve flying toward the screen in his classic reds and blues. But the film makers managed to keep me in suspense by stopping the action there and cutting to a scene of the bustling offices of the Daily Planet. Lois chats with Jimmy Olsen and then proceeds to enter Perry White's office where she is introduced to Reeve as the be-speckled Clark Kent.Folks, these next three or four scenes comprise the true apex of the film, not to mention the best bit of acting I've seen in some time.In fact whenever Reeve is onscreen (as Kent or Superman) you're guaranteed a fantastic performance, but this is never more evident than in his scenes as the bumbling reporter. You won't even fully realize how talented Reeve is until the scene in which he's talking to Lois offstage.He begins as Clark.Then he starts to work up the courage to reveal his secret identity.He removes his glasses. Considers things carefully.And begins to speak as Superman.IT'S AMAZING!!He grows about 4 inches, his voice (which you probably hadn't even noticed was high) deepens a pitch or two, his expressions and gestures become noticeably more confident.....and then he decides against the revelation and IMMEDIATELY returns to the nerdy Kent. I had no idea just how in control Reeve was of his every move.This is so ironic and heart-breaking considering this master thespian is now almost totally paralyzed.Seeing the determination and commitment he gave to this part, I am more sure than ever that Christopher Reeve will walk again someday. The rest of the film was well written, but really only a few echelons above average.I would give the film a 6 or a 6.5 but Reeve shot my score up to a high 7.For those of you who haven't seen Superman yet, I won't detail anymore scenes (and there are several more good ones).But needless to say it is a MUST SEE.Go rent it, make some popcorn, and watch it with the lights out.Up, up, and AWAY! ||Special Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Sword in the Stone, The|Wolfgang Reitherman|Animation||6.8|USA|1963| 79 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Walt Disney |Bill Peet T.H. White|||Buena Vista Pictures [us] ||Arthur (aka Wart) is a young boy who aspires to be a knight's squire. On a hunting trip he falls in on Merlin, a powerful but amnesiac wizard who has plans for Wart beyond mere squiredom. He starts by trying to give Wart an education (whatever that is), believing that once one has an education, one can go anywhere. Needless to say, it doesn't quite work out that way. This animated feature is set in medieval times. After the English king dies leaving no heir, in the churchyard of a cathedral in London, a sword appears imbedded in a stone inscribed, "Who so pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil is rightwise king born of England." Although many try, no one can budge the sword from the stone. Deep in the dark woods, kind, but absent-minded Merlin the Magician begins to teach 11-year-old Arthur, who is called Wart, and lives in the castle of Sir Ector where he's an apprentice squire to burly, oafish Sir Kay -- when he's not washing stacks of pots and pans in the scullery. By being changed by Merlin into various animals, Wart learns the basic truths of life, but he also runs into the evil Madam Mim, who tries to destroy him. Merlin and Mim have a Wizards' Duel, during which each changes into various creatures, with Merlin using his wits to win. On New Year's Day, a great tournament is held in London to pick a new king. Wart, attending as Kay's squire, forgets Kay's sword, and runs back to the inn to get it, but the inn is locked. Wart, seeing the sword in the stone, innocently, and easily, pulls it out. When the knights marvel at the wondrous sword and question where he got it, Wart has to prove himself all over again, and again he pulls the sword from the stone. Wart is proclaimed king by the marveling warriors. Wart as King Arthur is apprehensive of his ability to govern, but Merlin returns to reassure him. |Karl Swenson (Merlin (The Powerful Wizard) (voice)) @ Rickie Sorensen (Arthur (Wart) (voice)) @ Sebastian Cabot (Sir Ector (voice)) @ Junius Matthews (Archimedes the Owl (voice)) @ Robert Reitherman (Arthur (Wart) (voice)) @ Ginny Tyler (Little Girl Squirrel (voice)) @ Richard Reitherman (Arthur (Wart) (voice)) @ Norman Alden (Kay (voice)) @ Martha Wentworth (Castle Scullery Maid/Fat Granny Squirrel/Madam Mim (voice)) @ Alan Napier (Sir Pelinore (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Thurl Ravenscroft (Knight at Tournament (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||Good, but not quite I like this Disney movie very much.But there sems to be something missing. It didn't seem to be as good as the rest of the Disney films were.I don't know.I mean there are some great scenes, and funny line, but something is missing. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Talented Mr. Ripley, The|Anthony Minghella|Drama|Rated R for violence, language and brief nudity. |7.0|USA|1999| 139 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Steve E. Andrews Lydia Dean Pilcher William Horberg Sydney Pollack Tom Sternberg Paul Zaentz Alessandro von Norman|Patricia Highsmith Anthony Minghella|John Seale ||Bac Films [fr] |How far would you go to become someone else.|The 1950s. Manhattan lavatory attendant, Tom Ripley, borrows a Princeton jacket to play piano at a garden party. When the wealthy father of a recent Princeton grad chats Tom up, Tom pretends to know the son and is soon offered $1,000 to go to Italy to convince Dickie Greenleaf to return home. In Italy, Tom attaches himself to Dickie and to Marge, Dickie's cultured fiancée, pretending to love jazz and harboring homoerotic hopes as he soaks in luxury. Besides lying, Tom's talents include impressions and forgery, so when the handsome and confident Dickie tires of Tom, dismissing him as a bore, Tom goes to extreme lengths to make Greenleaf's privileges his own. |Matt Damon (Tom Ripley) @ Gwyneth Paltrow (Marge Sherwood) @ Jude Law (Dickie Greenleaf) @ Cate Blanchett (Meredith Logue) @ Philip Seymour Hoffman (Freddie Miles) @ Jack Davenport (Peter Smith-Kingsley) @ James Rebhorn (Herbert Greenleaf) @ Sergio Rubini (Inspector Roverini) @ Philip Baker Hall (Alvin MacCarron) @ Celia Weston (Aunt Joan) @ Fiorello (Fausto (as Rosario Fiorello)) @ Stefania Rocca (Silvana) @ Ivano Marescotti (Colonnello Verrecchia) @ Anna Longhi (Signora Buffi) @ Alessandro Fabrizi (Sergeant Baggio) @ Lisa Eichhorn (Emily Greenleaf) @ Gretchen Egolf (Fran) @ Jack Willis (Greenleafs Chauffeur) @ Frederick Alexander Bosche (Fran's Boyfriend) @ Dario Bergesio (Police Officer) @ Larry Kaplan (Uncle Ted) @ Claire Hardwick (Gucci Assistant) @ Antonio Prester (American Express Clerk (as Nino Prester)) @ Lorenzo Mancuso (Bus Driver) @ Onofrio Mancuso (Priest) @ Massimo Reale (Immigration Officer) @ Emanuele Carucci Viterbi (American Express Clerk) @ Caterina Deregibus (Dahlia (as Caterina De Regibus)) @ Silvana Bosi (Ermelinda) @ Gianfranco Barra (Desk Manager Aldo) @ Renato Scarpa (Tailor) @ Deirdre Lovejoy (Fighting Neighbor) @ Brian Tarantina (Fighting Neighbor) @ Guy Barker (Napoli Jazz Septet Trumpeter) @ Bernardo Sassetti (Napoli Jazz Septet Pianist) @ Perico Sambeat (Napoli Jazz Septet Alto Saxophonist) @ Gene Calderazzo (Napoli Jazz Septet Drummer) @ Joseph Lepore (Napoli Jazz Septet Double Bassist) @ Rosario Giuliuni (Napoli Jazz Septet Tenor Saxophonist) @ Eddy Palerno (Napoli Jazz Septet Electric Guitarist) @ Byron Wallen (San Remo Jazz Sextet Cornetist) @ Pete King (San Remo Jazz Sextet Alto Saxophonist) @ Clark Tracey (San Remo Jazz Sextet Drummer) @ Jean Toussaint (San Remo Jazz Sextet Tenor Saxophonist) @ Geoff Gascogne (San Remo Jazz Sextet Bassist) @ Carlo Negroni (San Remo Jazz Sextet Pianist) @ Beppe Fiorello (Silvana's Fiancé) @ Marco Quaglia (Silvana's Brother) @ Alessandra Vanzi (Silvana's Mother) @ Marco Rossi (Photographer) @ Roberto Valentini (Onegin in Eugene Onegin Opera) @ Francesco Bovino (Lensky in Eugene Onegin Opera) @ Stefano Canettieri (Zaretsky in Eugene Onegin Opera) @ Marco Foti (Guillot in Eugene Onegin Opera) @ Ludovica Tinghi (Fausto's Fiancée) @ Nicola Pannelli (Dinelli's Cafe Waiter) @ Paolo Calabresi (Customs Officer) @ Pietro Ragusa (Record Store Owner) @ Simone Empler (Boy Singer) @ Gianluca Secci (Policeman) @ Manuel Ruffini (Policeman) @ Pierpaolo Lovino (Policeman) @ Roberto Di Palma (San Remo Hotel Desk Clerk rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Cesare Cremonini (Boat Salesman (uncredited)) @ Frank Slaten (Dockworker #1 (uncredited) Produced by||Thoughtful psychological study or perversely entertaining?Your pick Patricia Highsmith's original novel is about a charming, amoral man who already has all the elements in place before he does his terrible deeds, and while Rene Clement's adaptation, PURPLE NOON(1960) doesn't show us Ripley before he came to Europe, Alain Delon certainly was all amoral charm.In his adaptation, Anthony Minghella takes on a different tack, showing us Tom Ripley before he became the Talented Mr. Ripley(just as last year's ELIZABETH showed Elizabeth before she became The Virgin Queen; by coincidence, both films star Cate Blanchett).When a filmmaker tries to add psychological depth to what is generally pulp entertainment, it doesn't always work, but Minghella has pulled it off, while keeping it entertaining. There have been some people who think Matt Damon is too colorless here.In Clement's adaptation, that might have been true, but the point here is Ripley is SUPPOSED to be a nonentity, a blank page waiting to be filled(thus lines like "I always figured it would be better to be a fake somebody than a real nobody," or when Dickie Greenleaf(Jude Law) tells Ripley that with his glasses on, he looks like Clark Kent) by someone like Dickie.Ripley may have been pretending from day one(which is how he gets to meet Dickie in the first place), but there was nothing sinister about it, just a bunch of little white lies.It's not till he gets entranced by the life in Italy, and Dickie's life in particular, and then finds himself shut from it, that things happen.And Damon is excellent at going through the transformation(and it's not just the glasses, as one comment suggested, it's the hair, the clothes, and the whole attitude). Anthony Lane of The New Yorker, probably my favorite critic today, liked the film, but he thought it would have been better if Damon and Law had switched roles.Again, if Minghella was remaking Clement's version, sure, but not this way.If you want someone to be an object of desire, you better make sure they're desirable, and Law is quite good there, along with showing the layers underneath.Gwyneth Paltrow has the tougher role, because she has to be both smart and able to be fooled, but she pulls it off, especially in the scene when she tells Tom she really knows what he is.Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman are also good in small roles, James Rebhorn is dependable, and Philip Baker Hall makes a memorable cameo. One more thing; there have also been complaints that the first half is too long, and the ending is weak.The first half not only sets up Ripley's slowly falling in love with Dickie's life(and even Dickie), but also sets up some plot points which pay off later, so it's necessary.And when Ripley finally becomes The Talented Mr. Ripley, it's unsettling and still delivers a perverse kick.As for the ending, without giving anything away, it's the only way it could end; he goes on, but at what cost?This is terrific moviemaking. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Bisbetica domata, La|Franco Zeffirelli|Comedy||6.7|Italy|1967| 122 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Richard Burton Richard McWhorter Elizabeth Taylor Franco Zeffirelli|Suso Cecchi d'Amico Paul Dehn William Shakespeare Franco Zeffirelli|Oswald Morris Luciano Trasatti||Columbia Pictures [us] |In the war between the sexes, there always comes a time for unconditional surrender.|Burton and Taylor play Petrucio and Catherine in a fairly rigorous attempt to stay with both the Shakespearian language and script, while still adding a three dimensional, outdoor flavor to this screen adaptation. |Elizabeth Taylor (Katharina) @ Richard Burton (Petruchio) @ Cyril Cusack (Grumio) @ Michael Hordern (Baptista) @ Alfred Lynch (Tranio) @ Alan Webb (Gremio) @ Giancarlo Cobelli (The Priest) @ Vernon Dobtcheff (Pedant) @ Ken Parry (Tailor) @ Anthony Gardner (Haberdasher) @ Natasha Pyne (Bianca) @ Michael York (Lucentio) @ Victor Spinetti (Hortensio) @ Roy Holder (Biondello) @ Mark Dignam (Vincentio) @ Bice Valori (The Widow) @ Tina Perna (Nathaniel) @ Milena Vukotic (Philip (uncredited)) @ Salvatore Billa ( (uncredited)) @ Lino Capolicchio (Gregory (uncredited)) @ Gianni Magni (Curtis (uncredited) Produced by||A fun, witty, exuberant treatment of Shakespeare This is a film version of a Shakespeare play the way Shakespeare would have wanted it to be seen - as funny and entertaining.The gorgeous colour in the sets and costumes reminds us that this story is taking place in sunny Italy - maybe it takes an Italian director to realize and bring out that light-hearted joyfulness.The actors are all wonderful, so natural in their roles that the Shakespearean verse sounds like believable daily conversation. Richard Burton is perfect as Petruchio, a self-confident, swaggering lout at the beginning, who in a way undergoes his own "taming" process to become a loving husband, proud of his wife and delighted with the happiness ahead of them.Elizabeth Taylor as an actress is not really up to the demands of Shakespeare, but she certainly looks her part, and on the whole does pretty well, especially as she is given a lot of action rather than speaking in this film, until the very end.Zeffirelli does wonderful things with the visuals - the scene at the beginning, when what appears to be a solemn church service suddenly erupts into a wild carnival can be seen as a joking reflection of the typical viewer's reaction to this happy treatment of Shakespeare; where we expect to be bored by solemn, po-faced reverence in the presence of Art, we suddenly find ourselves swept away in a merry romp.And the recurring glimpses of a huge grotesque blonde woman continually attended by her small, dark-haired pretty sister, always scaring away the latter's possible suitors is a witty summary of the main story we are watching.This movie is a great introduction to Shakespeare for anyone who hasn't seen his plays before, and a perfect antidote for anyone who's been intimidated into thinking that Shakespeare is "too hard" for anyone but experts and scholars to understand. || |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Tarzan|Chris Buck Kevin Lim|Animation||7.1|USA|1999| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bonnie Arnold Christopher Chase|Edgar Rice Burroughs Tab Murphy Bob Tzudiker Noni White Henry Mayo David Reynolds Jeffrey Stepakoff|||Buena Vista International [ar] |An immortal legend. As you've only imagined. |The movie is about the life of Tarzan. Tarzan was a small orphan who was raised by an ape named Kala since he was a child. He believed that this was his family, but on an expedition Jane Porter is rescued by Tarzan. He then finds out that he's human. Now Tarzan must make the decision as to which family he should belong to... |Tony Goldwyn (Tarzan (voice)) @ Minnie Driver (Jane Porter (voice)) @ Glenn Close (Kala (voice)) @ Brian Blessed (Clayton (voice)) @ Nigel Hawthorne (Porter (voice)) @ Lance Henriksen (Kerchak (voice)) @ Wayne Knight (Tantor (voice)) @ Alex D. Linz (Young Tarzan (voice)) @ Rosie O'Donnell (Terk (voice)) @ Taylor Dempsey (Young Tantor (voice)) @ Jason Marsden (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Beth Anderson .... Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jack Angel (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Joseph Ashton (Ape Boy (voice)) @ Bob Bergen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Rodger Bumpass (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jim Cummings (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Debi Derryberry (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Paul Eiding (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Michael Geiger (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Scott Martin Gershin (Kerchak Gorilla (voice)) @ Amy Gleason (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jonnie Hall (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Linda Harmon (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jennifer L. Hughes (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Adam Karpel (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Ricky Lucchese (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Sherry Lynn (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Melissa MacKay (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Eduardo Palomo (Adult Tarzan (Spanish voice)) @ Michael Perl (Mungo (Additonal Voices) (voice)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Frank Simms (Ensemble Vocals) @ Erik von Detten (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Joe Whyte (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patti Deutsch (Tantor's Mother (uncredited) (voice)) @ Darren T. Knaus (Additional Voices (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||fairly dull version of the classic story "Tarzan", the newest animated feature from the Disney studios, has gotten such universally positive reviews that it is a bit surprising to discover it actually ranks several notches below the best of the recent Disney fare. Lacking the sophisticated wit of "Aladdin", the rich emotionalism of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", and the frenetic imaginativess of "Hercules", "Tarzan" settles for a basically dull, straightforward take on the Edgar Rice Burroughs' legendary tale of a human orphan raised by gorillas who makes the jungle his home. Like many Disney films, "Tarzan" continues the tradition of the sentimentalizing of nature, wherein wild animals become either cuddly lowbrow comics or mushyheaded preachers of strictly human virtues.The message of "Tarzan" - respect for both nature and the differences of other - is certainly an admirable one, especially for youngsters, but the heavyhandedness with which it is conveyed weakens its effectiveness. Much of the weakness of the film lies with its screenplay, which fails to deviate much from the formula we have come to expect from children's films.Tarzan is, essentially, a misfit among his peers, trying desperately to earn acceptance from the "stepfather" who refuses to acknowledge Tarzan's value as an individual.Tarzan's childhood peers - a gorilla "cousin" and a sissified elephant - are simply weak echoes of far more entertaining sidekicks in other Disney films.With the arrival of Jane, her eccentric explorer father and the traditional muscled villain who wants to trap the gorillas and ship them back to England, Tarzan is forced to choose between loyalty to his own kind or to those who raised him.This leads to dull romantic overtures, some impressive action sequences and even a little much needed wit in the interplay between Jane's father and the other characters in the story. On the positive side, Phil Collins has provided a soaring, driving score, which is beautifully orchestrated and recorded and which, wisely, is performed as voiceovers rather than in the more traditional form of character's themselves singing.Moreover, much of the animation is impressive, especially Tarzan's swinging frantically through the jungle, and many of the backdrops are lushly gorgeous. It is hard for me to evaluate how well children will respond to this film.For an adult, requiring a bit more imagination to help fill up the time, "Tarzan" requires more patience than those with less time left may care to give. || |1.66 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.0 ||||||@@ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|Steve Barron|Fantasy||5.4|USA|1990| 93 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Chan Raymond Chow Graham Cottle Kim Dawson Simon Fields|Kevin Eastman Peter Laird Bobby Herbeck Todd W. Langen Bobby Herbeck|John Fenner ||New Line Cinema [us] |They're mean, green and on the screen|Through contact with a mysterious substance, called Ooze, 4 little turtles in the canalization of New York mutate to giant turtles. They can speak, walk upright and love pizza. The wise rat Splinter becomes their mentor and educates them to Ninja fighters. Their arch-enemy is the bad, bad guy Shredder, who struggles to gain power over the world. Of course the ninja turtles will do everything to stop him. Four turtles and a rat are transformed into a humanized state by a mutagenetic gel in a sewer. The rat becomes their mentor, and teaches them all he knows regarding Ninjitsu. The turtles use their newfound skills to combat the crime in New York City. But when their mentor is captured by an enemy from the past, can they hold true to what they've learned, and stay together as a brotherhood? |Judith Hoag (April O'Neil, Channel 3 Reporter) @ Elias Koteas (Casey Jones) @ Josh Pais (Raphael/Man In Cab) @ Raymond Serra (Chief Sterns) @ David Forman (Leonardo/Gang Leader) @ Michelan Sisti (Michaelangelo/Pizza Man) @ Leif Tilden (Donatello/Foot Messenger) @ Michael Turney (Dan 'Danny' Pennington) @ Jay Patterson (Charles Pennington) @ James Saito (The Shredder/Oroko Saki) @ Toshirô Obata (Master Tatsu (as Toshishiro Obata)) @ Sam Rockwell (Head Thug) @ Kitty Fitzgibbon (June) @ Louis Cantarini (Cab Driver) @ Joe D'Onofrio (Movie Hoodlum #1 (as Joseph D'Onofrio)) @ John Ward (Movie Hoodlum #2) @ Ju Yu (Shinsho) @ Cassandra Ward-Freeman (Charles' Secretary) @ Mark Jeffrey Miller (Technician) @ John Rogers (New Recruit) @ Tae Pak (Talkative Foot #1) @ Kenn Scott (Raphael/Talkative Foot #2 (as Kenn Troum)) @ Robert Haskell (Tall Teen) @ Winston Hemingway (Police Officer #1) @ Joe Inscoe (Police Officer #2) @ Robbie Rist (Michaelangelo (voice)) @ Josh Lozoff (Beaten Teen (as Joshua Bo Lozoff)) @ Brian Tochi (Leonardo (voice)) @ Kevin Clash (Splinter (voice)) @ David McCharen (The Shredder/Oroko Saki (voice)) @ Michael McConnohie (Master Tatsu (voice)) @ Corey Feldman (Donatello (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Skeet Ulrich (Thug (uncredited) Produced by||More of a review of the entire nostalgia of it all... When I was about two to six years old, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" was the coolest thing. When I was about eight or nine years old, the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" started to die out as fast as they had come. By the time I was twelve, they were gone. The companies stopped marketing the action figures in huge quantities, the television show started to lose everyone's interest. The toys stayed with the kids for a while, until they broke, and then the kids couldn't get any more. Looking back, I realize that we were all duped. "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" are, in a way, the most lousy heroes of all time. They're giant turtles who live in sewers and eat frozen pizza. But hey, during the eighties, what more could you ask for? I remember them in their little plastic cases from the toy store, and oh how I wanted to buy them. Donatello, Leonardo, Michaelangelo, and Raphael - big, green reptiles who got in some toxic waste and mutated into - here it comes - TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES. Actually, maybe it should be Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles. If I recall correctly, the name switched around a few times. But anywho, they started off on the Nintendo game console as one-dimensional little figures that could jump, attack, and eat pizza for health. What a game. Suddenly they became hugely popular . They got their own arcade booths in 7-11 stores, their own marketing products, their own TV show, their own action figures modeled after each other, and even three movies. And the saddest part of it is that the turtles never got paid a dime. If only Superman and Batman were real and could come down from the heavens some day to claim their percentage of mass profit. The world would be a stranger place, that's for sure. Soon every kid who was a kid owned at least one merchandising item from the "TMNT" franchise, whether it be comics, shirts, toys, games, etc. They were wildly successful, and every kid knew their names and every parent was sick of hearing their names. Eventually the four turtles became so famous that parenting groups jumped on an anti-TMNT bandwagon and rallied to get rid of the turtles, calling them "violent" and "ugly" (of course, this was just because the parents were tired of hearing about the fictional characters from their children). They said that unlike Superman and Batman and Spider-Man, these "heroes" had martial arts weapons and injured people. Tell me, what is the difference between Batman punching and kicking villains, leaving POW! marks on the television screen, as compared to turtles kicking butt? Parents have never understood the times. Just think back to when Jazz was a sin and Rock 'n' Roll was evil. But those big green turtles were a staple of the eighties and early nineties. I remember everything about that era, and now I may realize what it must have been like when Superman was first released to the general public. You think sixties, you think "Batman." You think seventies...I don't know, you think of something else. And when you think eighties, you think turtles. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It is now I realize for the first time I haven't even begun to critique the film itself here. Bear with me, people. As a mutant fan-boy of the franchise, I couldn't wait to see the feature film version of my favorite superheroes. The only problem was that I was one of the many children banned by parents from seeing it. So, of course, I stuck to my action heroes (which were now branching off into "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Action Dolls" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles MOVIE Action Dolls with Clothing and Items from the Movie") until I schemed a way to see the film. (I can't really remember how I eventually saw it in the first place.) It was a major disappointment. Corny, stupid, fast-paced but yet watchable. I thought that the turtles looked good in their green rubber Jim Henson suits, and April looked just like the cartoon character, but the master of the turtles, a giant rat, didn't look so hot. Either did the film. It was as corny as unpopped popcorn and a dull entry in the comic book adaptations area. (For good adaptations see: "Batman" [1989], "X-Men" [2000], "Spider-Man" [2001]...) As a fan of the series I was disappointed in the film. As a child I watched it simply because I thought I would like it better each time, and I still watch it to this day - why, I do not really know. It has a strange watchable force surrounding it that sucks you in and doesn't let go. This isn't a very good movie, but in a few senses, the entire franchise wasn't exactly cleverly built, so I guess it got what was coming. Something like Batman or Superman seems to have at least a decent premise, specifically Batman, and perhaps that is why it has stood the test of time so greatly. Looking back, the whole TMNT franchise exists primarily as a cash-in on a well-known videogame. The greedy corporate executives milked the franchise and children for all they were worth. Older now, I realize this isn't so great. But as a child, it is evident that I loved this series, and isn't that the point? As a kid I loved everything about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Now, I'm not so sure. I still love those green jerks, and everything about them. But at the same time I realize that it's a bittersweet love nonexistent when I was more naive. Sure, I still watch them and smile thinking back, but maybe I'm beginning to understand why they didn't make it past the nineties. Cowabunga, dudes. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze|Michael Pressman|Action||4.5|USA|1991| 88 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Chan Kim Dawson Thomas K. Gray Terry Morse Jr.|Kevin Eastman Peter Laird Todd W. Langen|Shelly Johnson ||20th Century Fox [gb] |Cowabunga, it's the new turtle movie.|The turtles find out where the Ooze, the substance which made them mutate, came from. Unfortunately Shredder learns about it too, and uses it to enhance himself. So the turtles have to prove again who's the better ninja fighter. Find out "The Secret of the Ooze" as our fearsome foursome go after the glowing canister that has slipped into the hands of the evil Shredder and his mutant allies, Rahzar and Tokka. Aided by their new pal, Keno, the Turtles dive into action . . . and pizza! |Paige Turco (April O'Neil) @ Mark Caso (Leonardo/News Room Staff) @ David Warner (Professor Jordan Perry) @ Michelan Sisti (Michaelangelo/Soho Man) @ Leif Tilden (Donatello/Foot #3) @ Kenn Scott (Raphael (as Kenn Troum)) @ Kevin Clash (Splinter (voice)) @ Ernie Reyes Jr. (Keno) @ François Chau (Shredder) @ Toshirô Obata (Tatsu (as Toshihiro Obata)) @ Raymond Serra (Chief Sterns) @ Mark Ginther (Rahzar) @ Kurt Bryant (Tokka) @ Kevin Nash (Super Shredder) @ Joseph Amodei (Parlor Owner) @ Nick DeMarinis (Parlor Assistant) @ Kelli Rabke (Teenage Girl) @ Keith Coulouris (Thug #1) @ Susie Essman (Soho Woman) @ Lee Spencer (Foot #1) @ Gianpaolo Bonaca (Foot #2) @ Mark Doerr (Freddy) @ Tim Parati (Crew Member) @ John Brady (TGRI Assistant #1) @ Jon Thompson (TGRI Worker) @ Bill Luhrs (TGRI Assistant #2) @ Michael Pressman (News Manager) @ Rick Colella (Teenage Thug) @ Dewey Weber (Foot Recruiter) @ Sasha Pressman (Old Woman) @ David Pressman (Old Man) @ Shiek Mahmud-Bey (Audience Man) @ Lisa Chess (Audience Woman) @ Vanilla Ice (Himself) @ Earthquake (Disc Jockey) @ Mark Grinage (Dancer #1) @ John Henry Huffman IV (Dancer #2) @ Everett Fitzgerald (Dancer #3) @ Gregory Salata (Promoter (as Greg Salata)) @ Mak Wilson (Promoter's Aide) @ Robbie Rist (Michaelangelo (voice)) @ Brian Tochi (Leonardo (voice)) @ Laurie Faso (Raphael (voice)) @ Adam Carl (Donatello (voice)) @ David McCharen (Shredder (voice)) @ Michael McConnohie (Tatsu (voice)) @ Frank Welker (Rahzar/Tokka (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Alistair Dean (Lex Diamonds (uncredited)) @ Mike Kimmel (The Pizza Man (uncredited)) @ Gord Robertson (Rahzar (Animatronic Puppeteer) (uncredited) Produced by||Great fun, but nothing beats the original. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 is a pretty good movie, funny, and very effective, but it's not as good as the original.The original was better and more dark.This one has some good fights (choreographed by Pat Johnson of the Karate Kid fade) and plenty of silly humor for the kids, but it's not as directed to a general audience as this one.By the way, look for a professional wrestler as Super Shredder. ||Movies ||Movies ||||||@@ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III|Stuart Gillard|Action||4.0|USA|1993| 96 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|David Chan Raymond Chow Roberta Chow Kim Dawson Thomas K. Gray Terry Morse Jr.|Kevin Eastman Peter Laird Stuart Gillard|David Gurfinkel ||20th Century Fox [gb] |The Turtles Are Back....In Time|The four turtles travel back in time to the days of the legendary and deadly samurai in ancient Japan, where they train to perfect the art of becoming one. The turtles also assist a small village in an uprising. When a magic scepter accidentally transports April back through time to 17th Century Japan, the boys take-off in hot pursuit, cowabungling their way out of the sewers right into Samurai-O-Rama! Now they must battle the evil Lord Norinaga to reclaim the magic scepter that will bring them back below the subways of New York City. |Elias Koteas (Casey Jones/Whit) @ Paige Turco (April O'Neil) @ Stuart Wilson (Walker) @ Sab Shimono (Lord Norinaga) @ Vivian Wu (Mitsu) @ Mark Caso (Leonardo) @ Matt Hill (Raphael) @ Jim Raposa (Donatello) @ David Fraser (Michaelangelo) @ Henry Hayashi (Kenshin) @ John Aylward (Niles) @ Mak Takano (Benkei (Honor Guard #1)) @ Steve Akahoshi (Honor Guard #2 (as Steven Getson Akahoshi)) @ Kent Kim (Honor Guard #3) @ Ken Kensei (Honor Guard #4) @ Travis A. Moon (Yoshi) @ Tad Horino (Grandfather) @ Glen Chin (Jailer) @ Koichi Sakamoto (Young Priest) @ Tracy Patrick Conklin (Sam) @ Edmund Stone (Dave) @ Jeff Kawasugi (Murata) @ Phil Chong (Rider) @ Yeon Kim (Blacksmith) @ Robbie Rist (Michaelangelo's Voice (voice)) @ Brian Tochi (Leonardo's Voice (voice)) @ Tim Kelleher (Raphael's Voice (voice)) @ James Murray (Splinter (voice)) @ Corey Feldman (Donatello (voice) Produced by||quite beautiful, if u can believe it The Turtlesdecide to take a trip back to Feudal Japan after a cheesy scepter transports their friend April O'neil to the same place.They find themselves in the middle of sparring nations and become involved. There is some redeeming value to this third movie in the temporarily defunct franchise (a new all-CG movie is in the works as of this posting date.) The action scenes are top dollar considering that these guys are in hot, rubber turtle suits.Who cares that it's not "Crouching Turtle, Hidden Tadpole"? Plus the violence greatly surpasses the second movie--which, for some odd reason, had less violence than the TV cartoon!There are some cute scenes with Michaelangelo and Mitsu the daughter of the Japanese Damiyo Lord Norinaga, and hot headed Raphael teaching a young boy to control his temper. It certainly is less dark, visually and in tone,than the first two, which is a nice switch.And what got me so surprised, was how good the acting was from the entire human cast!You've got to see it to believe it. It's a nice Turtle Soup: with a heavy helping of Akira Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai" and "Ran", a dash of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet", a light sprinkle of "Back to the Future Part 3", and a large dollop of the first "TMNT." ||Movies |1.85 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Terminator 2: Judgment Day|James Cameron|Sci-Fi||8.1|USA|1991| 137 min/ USA:152 min (director's cut) / USA:154 min (extended special edition) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stephanie Austin James Cameron Gale Anne Hurd Mario Kassar B.J. Rack|James Cameron William Wisher Jr.|Adam Greenberg ||Artisan Entertainment [us] |Ten Years Ago. The Machines Who Rule The Future Sent An Unstoppable Terminator To Assassinate The Yet Unborn John Connor. They Failed. In 1991. The Machines Will Try Again.|Nearly 10 years have passed since Sarah Connor was targeted for termination by a cyborg from the future. Now her son, John, the future leader of the resistance, is the target for a newer, more deadly terminator. Once again, the resistance has managed to send a protector back to attempt to save John and his mother Sarah. Sequel to Terminator. Skynet, the 21st century computer waging a losing war on humans sends a second terminator back in time to destroy the leader of the human resistance while he is still a boy. His mother is the only one who knows of the existence of the Terminators, human-like robots that exist only to kill and are nearly indestructible, and Sarah, the boy's mother is currently in a state mental hospital because of her 'delusions'. A second protector is sent back to the past by the Human resistance to protect John Connor, their future leader, at all costs. In the year 2029, a computer called Skynet is fighting against a human resistance, after having nearly destroyed the rest of humanity in 1997. Skynet has found a way to send some of it's warriors, called Terminators, back in time. This is the story of the Terminator sent to kill the resistance leader in 1995, while he is still a child. The resistance sends a reprogrammed Terminator back to 1995 to protect the young man. The question is, can they survive against the new prototype liquid metal Terminator while preventing the creation of Skynet? |Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Terminator (T-800 Model 101)) @ Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor) @ Edward Furlong (John Connor) @ Robert Patrick (T-1000) @ Joe Morton (Dr. Miles Bennett Dyson) @ Earl Boen (Dr. Peter Silberman) @ S. Epatha Merkerson (Tarissa Dyson) @ Castulo Guerra (Enrique Salceda) @ Danny Cooksey (Tim) @ Jenette Goldstein (Janelle Voight) @ Xander Berkeley (Todd Voight) @ Leslie Hamilton Gearren (T-1000 Sarah) @ Ken Gibbel (Douglas) @ Robert Winley (Cigar-Smoking Biker) @ Peter Schrum (Lloyd (as Pete Schrum)) @ Shane Wilder (Trucker) @ Michael Edwards (Future John Connor) @ Jared Lounsbery (Kid) @ Casey Chavez (Kid) @ Ennalls Berl (Bryant) @ Don Lake (Mossberg) @ Richard Vidan (Weatherby) @ Tom McDonald (Cop) @ Jim Palmer (Jock) @ Gerard G. Williams (Jock) @ Gwenda Deacon (Gwen the Night Nurse) @ Don Stanton (Lewis the Guard) @ Dan Stanton (T-1000 Lewis) @ Colin Patrick Lynch (Attendant) @ Noel Evangelisti (Hospital Guard) @ Nikki Cox (Girl) @ Lisa Brinegar (Girl) @ DeVaughn Nixon (Danny Dyson) @ Diane Rodriguez (Jolanda Salceda) @ Dalton Abbott (Infant John Connor) @ Tony Simotes (Vault Guard) @ Ron Young (Pool Cue Biker) @ Charles Robert Brown (Tattooed Biker) @ Abdul Salaam El Razzac (Gibbons) @ Mike Muscat (Moshier) @ Dean Norris (SWAT Team Leader) @ Charles A. Tamburro (Police Chopper Pilot (as Charles Tamburro)) @ J. Rob Jordan (Pickup Truck Driver) @ Terrence Evans (Tanker Truck Driver) @ Denney Pierce (Burly Attendant) @ Mark Christopher Lawrence (Burly Attendant) @ Pat Kouri (SWAT Team Leader) @ Van Ling (Cyberdyne Tech rest of cast listed alphabetically Michael Biehn .... Kyle Reese (Ultimate Edition) (scenes deleted)) @ Na'loni Durden (Blythe Dyson (Ultimate Edition) (scenes deleted)) @ Nancy Fish (Roadside Woman (Ultimate Edition) (scenes deleted)) @ Misty Jo Walker (Sarah's Granddaughter (Ultimate Edition) (scenes deleted)) @ Bret A. Arnold (Future Coda Man (uncredited)) @ Scott Shaw (Cyberdyne Tech (uncredited)) @ William Wisher Jr. (Galleria Photographer (uncredited) Produced by||"Back" and better than ever!One of the best sequels in cinematic history. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991) **** Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Joe Morton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Michael Biehn (cameo).Rousing superior sequel to "The Terminator", this time with Sarah Connor (a bufffed babe Hamilton) as a mercenary institutionalized from her adolescent son Furlong (in an impressive debut) facing two terminators: one evil (Patrick in a chilling perf) and one good (Ah-nold) to protect the young Connor.Eye-popping visuals and introducing long format morph process computer effects that won a much deserved Oscar(the prototype was first seen in Cameron's "The Abyss"). Oscars also went to Stan Winston's make-up, sound and sound effects editing.Oneof the most popular and profitable films ever made.Non-stop action to the nth degree, a blunt anti-nuclear treatise by director James Cameron, and some nice humor courtesy of Arnold as the kinder, gentler robot: "Hasta la vista, Baby!" ||Ultimate |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 6.1 EX ||||||@@ Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines|Jonathan Mostow|Sci-Fi|Rated R for strong sci-fi violence and action, and for language and brief nudity. R|7.0|USA|2003|109 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/5/2004|Moritz Borman Matthias Deyle Guy East Oliver Hengst Gale Anne Hurd Mario Kassar Hal Lieberman Joel B. Michaels Aslan Nadery Volker Schauz Nigel Sinclair Andrew G. Vajna Colin Wilson|James Cameron Gale Anne Hurd John D. Brancato Michael Ferris Tedi Sarafian John D. Brancato Michael Ferris|Don Burgess Ben Seresin||Cascade Film [ru] |The Machines Will Rise|It is a dark time for the resistance and Skynet is on the verge of going online, the events of the last movie has changed nothing and John must now battle a new Terminator called the T-X. As before, the resistance was able to send another T-800 as a protector for John, and its still a question of which one will reach him first... On the verge of Judgement Day, the most advanced Terminator unit ever, the T-X, arrives from the future to ensure the rise of the machines. The only hope against it is a new upgraded T-800 unit, the T-850, that is sent back by the human resistance. Together with John Connor, it must stop the rise of the machines or all humanity will fall. John Conner, now an adult, in fear of the events that took place at a young age, lives off the grid--no phone, no job, no credit cards. After failing twice, SkyNet sends their most advanced machine to date, the T-X or Terminatrix, to not only kill John, but his future wife as well. Once again, a Terminator is sent to protect John and his future wife, and has a small upgrade which allows it to mimick humans more. Not knowing how these terminators were sent, considering he thought he destroyed SkyNet, John will soon learn something that will change his life...forever. |Arnold Schwarzenegger (Terminator) @ Nick Stahl (John Connor) @ Claire Danes (Kate Brewster) @ Kristanna Loken (T-X) @ David Andrews (Robert Brewster) @ Mark Famiglietti (Scott Petersen) @ Earl Boen (Dr. Peter Silberman) @ Moira Harris (Betsy) @ Chopper Bernet (Chief Engineer) @ Christopher Lawford (Brewster's Aide (as Chris Lawford)) @ Carolyn Hennesy (Rich Woman) @ Jay Acovone (Cop - Westside Street) @ M.C. Gainey (Roadhouse Bouncer) @ Susan Merson (Roadhouse Clubgoer #1) @ Elizabeth Morehead (Roadhouse Clubgoer #1) @ Jimmy Snyder (Male Stripper) @ Billy D. Lucas (Angry Man (as Billy Lucas)) @ Brian Sites (Bill Anderson) @ Alana Curry (Bill's Girlfriend) @ Larry McCormick (KTLA Anchorman) @ Robert Alonzo (Jose Barrera) @ Michael Papajohn (Paramedic #1) @ Timothy Dowling (Paramedic Stevens (as Tim Dowling)) @ Jon Foster (Gas Station Cashier) @ Mark Hicks (Detective Martinez) @ Kim Robillard (Detective Edwards) @ Matt Gerald (SWAT Team Leader) @ William O'Leary (Mr. Smith) @ Rick Zieff (Mr. Jones) @ Rebecca Tilney (Laura the CRS Tech) @ Chris Hardwick (2nd Engineer) @ Helen Eigenberg (3rd Engineer) @ Kiki Gorton (Roadhouse Clubgoer #3) @ Walter von Huene (CRS Victim) @ Jerry Katell (CRS Executive) @ George E. Sack Jr. (Semi Truck Driver rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Eric Ritter (MP #1 (uncredited)Produced by||Not perfect but it is what a summer blockbuster should be – a big loud enjoyable film In 2003 John Connor is living a life without record, with no fixed address, no bank account and no permanent job.He does this to avoid the terminators of the future being able to find him and kill him.In absence of him, Skynet sends back a T-X to kill secondary targets – Connor's future lieutenants, among them Kate Brewster, daughter of military scientist Robert Brewster.Luckily, in the future, Kate has sent back a captured Terminator to protect them.As the group escape Connor learns more of judgement day and sets out to try and stop it again. T3 is different from T2 in that it isn't really in the same league (IMO) as T2 was when it came out.In my view T2 was the must see movie of it's time whereas now it has faded a little and is secondary to the matrix and other cutting edge blockbusters.In fact so second was it that I wasn't that bothered about seeing it or not.However I'm glad it did as T3 is nicely paced, doesn't expect too much of itself and does just what a blockbuster is meant to be – be entertaining. The plot is mostly secondary to the action but, basically, the T-X has been sent back to take out a group of people before it then (accidentally) finds it's primary target of John Connor.Some of the plot is a little tenuous but it doesn't matter as it moves along at such a pace that you don't have time to really think too long about any one scene.However the climax is a hark back to the original Terminator with a down deep and depressing ending where fate manages to happen regardless of Connor's best intentions. The action is great although it does look basic beside the effects of Matrix etc.I did feel that they worked better by not trying to be overly flashy or fancy.The morphing effects are actually more enjoyable because here they make up part of the action whereas in T2 they were key moments of cutting edge technology.The film's action takes the form of a simple chase and is very effective, the multiple car chase is my favourite scene – partly because it shows how very out classed the Terminator is by the new model! The direction is good and Cameron isn't missed at all.Mostow does a great job with the action scenes and keeps everything just perfect. Because the film realises that the franchise is build on catch phrases and images that have entered into popular culture so much that they are overused, it wisely chooses to mock itself and has a real nice sense of humour to it.For example the original Terminator had the terminator entering a motor cycle bar and exiting dressed in biker leathers, here he enters a bar and finds a ladies night in full swing and has to get his clothes from a gay stripper.The deadpan way in which he rejects the sunglasses is really good.In a way this could have undermined the effect of the film but it is managed well and doesn't. The cast is roundly good.The exit of Sarah Connor is handled well and her replacement (Danes) is good despite a few duff lines which don't convince.Stahl's performance could be seen as mocking Furlong's drug problems (I can't see any other reason for his junkie-like tics etc.) but he is still good and carries the film well.Schwarzenegger wisely agrees to mock his own character – the film takes the idea that time has passed the Terminator franchise by, by having the terminator itself being totally superseded.Loken is good as the T-X and is sexy enough but isn't given as much to do as anyone else.Whereas Patrick was pretty much the main focus of T2 (because of the effects) Loken has less of an impact. Overall I had my doubts about this film but it did manage to do just what I needed it to do.The action is overblown and enjoyable without being the cutting edge in special effects at any time.The plot-driving scenes are good and the main story (behind the action) is involving and interesting, right up till the downbeat ending.I must say that, although it is hardly the most imaginative or inspiring film made this year, it certainly does what you need a blockbuster to do – no deep, pretentious plots, no joy-less acting, but rather a big noisy movie that doesn't take itself too serious (despite the serious plot) and is actually very enjoyable to watch.Nor a great film but I really wish that more blockbusters were like this. ||2-Disc Widescreen Edition |2.35 : 1 |||||||@@ Terminator, The|James Cameron|Sci-Fi||7.9|USA|1984| 108 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|John Daly Derek Gibson Gale Anne Hurd|Harlan Ellison James Cameron Gale Anne Hurd William Wisher Jr.|Adam Greenberg ||Artisan Entertainment [us] |In the Year of Darkness, 2029, the rulers of this planet devised the ultimate plan. They would reshape the Future by changing the Past. The plan required something that felt no pity. No pain. No fear. Something unstoppable. They created 'THE TERMINATOR'|A cyborg is sent from the future on a deadly mission. He has to kill Sarah Connor, a young woman whose life will have a great significance in years to come. Sarah has only one protector - Kyle Reese - also sent from the future. The Terminator uses his exceptional intelligence and strength to find Sarah, but is there any way to stop the seemingly indestructible cyborg ? In the future, Skynet, a computer system fights a losing war against the humans who built it and who it nearly exterminated. Just before being destroyed, Skynet sends a Terminator back in time to kill Sarah, the mother to be of John Connor, the Leader of the human resistance. The terminator can pass for human, is nearly indestructible, and has only one mission, killing Sarah Connor. One soldier is sent back to protect her from the killing machine. He must find Sarah before the Terminator can carry out it's mission. In the year 2029, a computer called Skynet is fighting against a human resistance, after having nearly destroyed the rest of humanity in 1997. Skynet has found a way to send some of it's warriors, called Terminators, back in time. This is the story of the Terminator sent to kill the resistance leader's mother in 1984, before she gives birth. The resistance sends a warrior named Kyle Reese back to 1984 to protect the young woman. The question is, can Sarah Connor survive long enough to have her child so that history remains on tracK? A cyborg assassin called "The Terminator" is sent back through time to 1984 to kill the seemingly innocent Sarah Connor-a woman whose unborn son will lead the human race to victory in a bitter future war with a race of machines. If the Terminator succeeds, mankind is doomed. Sarah's only hope is a soldier from that post-apocalyptic war, who has chased the Terminator back through time. The future of the human race depends on which one finds her first... |Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Terminator) @ Michael Biehn (Kyle Reese) @ Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor) @ Paul Winfield (Lieutenant Ed Traxler) @ Lance Henriksen (Detective Vukovich) @ Bess Motta (Ginger Ventura) @ Earl Boen (Dr. Peter Silberman) @ Rick Rossovich (Matt Buchanan) @ Dick Miller (Pawnshop Clerk) @ Shawn Schepps (Nancy) @ Bruce M. Kerner (Desk Sergeant) @ Franco Columbu (Future Terminator) @ Bill Paxton (Punk Leader) @ Brad Rearden (Punk) @ Brian Thompson (Punk) @ William Wisher Jr. (Policeman) @ Ken Fritz (Policeman) @ Tom Oberhaus (Policeman) @ Ed Dogans (Cop in Alley) @ Joe Farago (TV Anchorman) @ Hettie Lynne Hurtes (TV Anchorwoman) @ Tony Mirelez (Gas Station Attendant) @ Philip Gordon (Mexican Boy (long shots)) @ Anthony Trujillo (Mexican Boy (close-ups) (as Anthony T. Trujillo)) @ Stan Yale (Derelict in Alley) @ Al Kahn (Customer) @ Leslie Morris (Customer) @ Hugh Farrington (Customer) @ Harriet Medin (Customer) @ Loree Frazier (Customer) @ James Ralston (Customer) @ Norman Friedman (Cleaning Man at Flophouse) @ Barbara Powers (Ticket Taker at Club Technoir) @ Wayne Stone (Tanker Driver) @ David Pierce (Tanker Partner) @ John E. Bristol (Biker at Phone Booth) @ Webster Williams (Reporter) @ Patrick Pinney (Bar Customer) @ Bill W. Richmond (Bartender) @ Chino 'Fats' Williams (Truck Driver) @ Gregory Robbins (Tiki Motel Customer) @ Marianne Muellerleile (Wrong Sarah) @ John Durban (Sentry Produced by||It's about transformation I just saw a horrifying, touching, very good movie again; it's The Terminator.Now to talk of it as great film, to compare it with American Beauty might seem idiotic--it's an almost unrelentingly dark, violent, frightening action movie, after all--but strip away the relentless action, strip away the technophobia, strip away the blatant dislike of cops and modern youth, strip away the poignant love story and, at its core, it's about an immature, essentially mindless girl becoming a strong, determined woman.That's a theme more movies should have if we want girls to have strong role models. In the course of a few hours during which Sarah Connor realises that she is running for her life from a soul-less machine in human flesh that is implacably and violently determined to kill her, she transforms from a girl who can't balance her cheque book to a woman who can order a wounded, beaten man to "get on your feet, soldier."She is clear-headed, not panicky, focused in crisis and incredibly courageous.And it's not that she has lost her essential femaleness but that she's grown up. It's relentless, heartless violence appals and fascinates me.It's gritty depiction of our society as a prelude to an even more horrific one in 2023 darkens my heart.It's quickly developing love story touches me.Its humor makes the dark places in me smile.But most of all I am touched and fascinated by Sarah's precipitous transformation. As a good life exercise, ask yourself this: Would you have the courage to do what she does? 9.5 out of 10. ||Edition Speciale |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Testamento do Senhor Napumoceno, O|Francisco Manso|||7.2|Portugal|1997| 117 min |Portuguese||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Jom Tob Azulay António Gonçalo Francisco Manso José Luís Vasconcelos|Germano de Almeida Mário Prata|Edgar Moura ||California Newsreel [us] |A Story from the Heart. |Nopumoceno, the most successful businessman in the Cabo Verde archipelogo, is an ambitious, clever opportunist, known during his lifetime as "eternity single". However, he is then discovered by his illegitimate daughter to have gotten his fortune and his women in unorthodox and incredible ways ... |Nelson Xavier (Napumoceno) @ Maria Ceiça (Graça) @ Chico Díaz (Carlos) @ Zezé Motta (Eduarda) @ Vya Negromonte (Mari Chica (as Via Negromonte)) @ Milton Gonçalves (The Mayor) @ Francisco de Assis (Fonseca) @ Karla Leal (Adélia) @ Camacho Costa (Paiva) @ Elisa Lucinda (Dona Jóia) @ José Eduardo (Dr. Scusa) @ Veluma D'Oba (Chez-Nous) @ Horácio Santos (Baptista) @ Eliezer Motta (Band Leader) @ Alexandre de Sousa (Benoliel) @ Manuel Estevão (Manuel) @ Silvestre Évora (Notário) @ Cesária Évora (Arminda) @ Adriano Almeida (Armando) @ Odete Mosso (Carlos' Girlfriend) @ João Branco (Cabaret Announcer) @ Paulo Miranda (Paulo) @ Mário Matos (Dr. Leandro Ferreira) @ Vítor Cansado (Doctor) @ Tiago Gonçalves (Napumoceno (15 years)) @ Tiago Mayer (Napumoceno (23 years)) @ Ana Firmino (Dona Rosa) @ Armanda Silva (Carregadora) @ Euclides Sequeira (Band Musician) @ Ângela Spínola (Graça (12 years)) @ Maysa Cunha (Graça's Friend (12 years)) @ Elisabete 'Bety' Gomes (Graça's Friend (12 years)) @ Gabriel Borges (Man) @ Ângelo Gonçalves (Man) @ António Silva (Man) @ Fonseca Soares (Radio Newscaster) @ Fátima Cruz (Dona Bibi) @ Margarida Martins (Dindinha) @ São Costa (Conceição) @ Yara Cardoso (Jovem no Cemitério) @ Luís Morais (Homem de Barba no Cemitério) @ Leandro Ferreira (English Sailor) @ Orlando 'Yellow' Morais (English Sailor) @ Elísio Leite (Guarda Fiscal) @ Paulo Belo (Sailor in Cabaret) @ Carlos Alberto Teixeira (Drugstore Clerk) @ Tchale Figueira (Bartender) @ Alberto Gomes (Bartender) @ Joaquim Estevão (Deputy Mayor) @ Artur Agostinho (Sportscaster (voice)) @ Luís Lobo (Radio Newscaster (voice)) @ Luís de Matos (Radio Newscaster (voice)) @ Vera Gomes (Carregadora/Aeroporto (voice) Produced by||Cape what? "Testamento" is a retrospective of the life, the loves, and the labors of Cape Verde's wealthiest man told after his passing with flashbacks. Always good natured and even tempered, what this wistful little Portuguese dramady lacks in ambition and extremes of entertainment value it makes up for in its breezy, picture postcardbeauty of Cabo Verde and the colorful visages of its mostly Brazilian cast. Not for everyone, some foreign film buffs might qualify this little flick as a "gem". (B-) Note - Cape Verde is a Portuguese colony of about nine small islands in the North Atlantic 400 miles West of Senegal, Africa. I'dnever heard of it either. ||Movies |1.66 : 1 |Movies ||||||@@ Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The|Marcus Nispel|Horror|Rated R for strong horror violence/gore, language and drug content. R|5.8|USA|2003|98 min/ Canada:100 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/21/2004|Jeffrey Allard Michael Bay Matthew Cohan Joe Dishner Ted Field Mike Fleiss Andrew Form Bradley Fuller Pat Sandston|Kim Henkel Tobe Hooper Scott Kosar|Daniel Pearl ||Alliance Atlantis Communications [ca] |Inspired by a True Story|A group of college kids, on their way back from scoring drugs in Mexico, run into a hitchhiker who has just survived a horrific massacre from the night before. They try to help the girl, but in the process end up falling prey to her mysterious fear. It happens to be wielding a chainsaw... Driving through the backwoods of Texas, five youths pick up a traumatized hitchhiker, who shoots herself in their van. Shaken by the suicide, the group seeks help from the locals, but their situation becomes even more surreal when they knock on the door of a remote homestead. It's quickly apparent the residents are a family of inbred psychopaths, and the unlucky youths suddenly find themselves running for their lives. In hot pursuit is a disfigured, chainsaw-wielding cannibal known as Leatherface. |Jessica Biel (Erin) @ Jonathan Tucker (Morgan) @ Erica Leerhsen (Pepper) @ Mike Vogel (Andy) @ Eric Balfour (Kemper) @ Andrew Bryniarski (Thomas Hewitt (Leatherface)) @ R. Lee Ermey (Sheriff Hoyt) @ David Dorfman (Jedidiah) @ Lauren German (Teenage Girl) @ Terrence Evans (Old Monty) @ Marietta Marich (Luda May) @ Heather Kafka (Henrietta) @ Kathy Lamkin (Tea Lady in Trailer) @ Brad Leland (Big Rig Bob) @ Mamie Meek (Clerk) @ John Larroquette (Narrator (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Scott Martin Gershin (Leatherface (uncredited) (voice)) @ Harry Jay Knowles (Victim On a Silver Platter (uncredited)Produced by||Relentlessly sick and brutal - Outstanding House of Horrors *SPOILER ALERT* *SPOILER ALERT* I was very skeptical going into this remake, reimagining, shameless cash-in, whatever. Did "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" really need a big budget rendition? My first reaction was NOOOOOOOO!!! Could a Jessica Biel version be scarier than the first movie? Is it possible? It's a tough call. I'm not sure. What I am sure of is that the new version of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" is an outstanding horror flick. You'll know what you're in for in the first few minutes. *DEATH SPOILER* A group of teens pick up a girl wandering down the road. When she gets into the van, she starts freaking out about the possibility of going back to Leatherface and family. She pulls out a gun and blows the back of her head off. The camera pans back from the screaming kids, THROUGH the suicide victim's skull, and out the back car window. Then the camera does an extreme close-up on the girl's lips. You get to see smoke coming out of her mouth from the gunshot. Oh yeah. I knew I was in good hands. *END SPOILER* The rest of the flick is Jessica Biel and friends running for their lives from Leatherface. The prevailing atmosphere in this movie is one of doom and gloom. It keeps that vibe until the very end. While the movie is brutal, the gore is relatively low. Leatherface has his chainsaw buzzing overtime but you don't get to see him dig into people as much as you would think. Or hope. "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" is a great horror movie. I loved every second of it. Loved it. My dad saw it with me and he HATED it. I mean he hated it with a passion. As he said, "That stupid movie was needlessly cruel and vicious." Yes! Exactly! Couldn't have said it better myself! Except for the movie being stupid, I agree! "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" is one of the best horror flicks of the year. It was very sick for a mainstream movie.Brutal, nasty and quite demented. Just like all good horror should be. If you're into horror flicks, you've got to check it out. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Thelma & Louise|Ridley Scott|Thriller||7.2|USA|1991| 129 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Callie Khouri Dean O'Brien Mimi Polk Ridley Scott|Callie Khouri |Adrian Biddle ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Somebody said get a life... so they did. |Louise is working in a fast food restaurant as a waitress and has some problems with her friend Jimmy, who, as a musician, is always on the road. Thelma is married to Darryl who likes his wife to stay quiet in the kitchen so that he can watch football on TV. One day they decide to break out of their normal life and jump in the car and hit the road. Their journey, however, turns into a flight when Louise kills a man who threatens to rape Thelma. They decide to go to Mexico, but soon they are hunted by American police. Whilst on a short weekend getaway, Louise shoots a man who had tried to rape Thelma. Due to the incriminating circumstances, they make a run for it but are soon followed closely by the authorities including a local policeman who is sympathetic to their plight. The federal authorities, however, have less compassion and thus a cross country chase ensues for the two fugitives. Along the way, both women rediscover the strength of their friendship and suprising aspects of their personalities and self-strengths in the trying times. |Susan Sarandon (Louise) @ Geena Davis (Thelma) @ Harvey Keitel (Hal) @ Michael Madsen (Jimmy) @ Christopher McDonald (Darryl) @ Stephen Tobolowsky (Max) @ Brad Pitt (J.D.) @ Timothy Carhart (Harlan) @ Lucinda Jenney (Lena, the Waitress) @ Jason Beghe (State Trooper) @ Marco St. John (Truck Driver) @ Sonny Carl Davis (Albert) @ Ken Swofford (Major) @ Shelly Desai (East Indian Motel Clerk (as Shelly De Sai)) @ Carol Mansell (Waitress) @ Stephen Polk (Surveillance Man) @ Rob Roy Fitzgerald (Plainclothes Cop) @ Jack Lindine (I.D. Tech) @ Michael Delman (Silver Bullet Dancer) @ Kristel L. Rose (Girl Smoker) @ Noel L. Walcott III (Mountain Bike Rider (as Noel Walcott) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Charlie Sexton (Himself (uncredited)) @ Robert 'Bobby Z' Zajonc (State Police pilot (uncredited) Produced by||Somebody said get a life. so they did! For many years now, women have taken power into their own hands. So I am sure the women that campaigned for freedom and liberty, would have loved the movie, 'Thelma and Louise'. The tradition of the American road trip is shown in such a refreshing way in this movie, with its two lead characters people who are fed up with life, and no longer take any crap from the men that they live with or that they meet. Thelma and Louise is a film that will make you feel warm, but also leave a some what 'bitter-sweet' taste in your mouth. Thelma and Louise are best friends on a desperate flight across the American Southwest after a tragic incident at a roadside bar. With determined detective Hal on their trail, a sweet-talking hitchhiker called 'J.D.' in their path and a string of crimes in their wake, their journey alternates between a hilarious, high-octane joy ride and an empowering personal odyssey... even as the law closes in. 'Thelma and Louise' are exceptionally well written characters for the big-screen. Callie Khouri wrote a fascinating script, capturing the 'female power' beautifully. But it is in her characters that I like the most. While, I had feelings for both Thelma and Louise, I also wanted the pair to get caught, and part of me also loved what made the pair the individuals that they were. This is all from the great work of Khouri, who is an intelligent screenwriter. I have watched this film a couple of weeks after viewing another of Callie's movies, 'Something to talk about', another movie from the female point of view that both sexes can enjoy. Yet Callie's screenplay would have been a waste, if the actors did not play their part properly. The main stars here are Thelma (Geena Davis) and Louise (Susan Sarandon), who are some what fed up with the life that they are living, and plan a trip to get away from everything. Things soon start to get out of hand for the women, and when trouble causes them have shoot and kill somebody, the fun really starts. In fact from the time that this incident begins and concludes, the movie to the very end was for me, one great joy ride. Davis and Sarandon share a great bond on the film. Thelma and Louise are great friends, but completely different characters in their own right. Davis plays a ditsy sort of character, who is naïve, but becomes an individual once again, after the men in her life have been nothing but tragedy after tragedy. Then with Sarandon, I got the feeling that she was the one that had the 'balls' out of the two, making her best friend realise that they should stand for no crap anymore. It was a shame that neither actress won an academy award for their role, but of course they were up against a great performer in another 1991 movie, that being Jodie Foster in 'Silence of the Lambs'. If foster was not there, I am certain that one of these two would have walked away with an academy award. Yet there are other cast members that need to be highlighted from 'Thelma and Louise'. I enjoyed what DJ (Brad Pitt) brought to the film. He was a character that I trusted, but like the girls, I was scorned after working out how bad he was. Then there is Louise's love interest, Jimmy (Michael Madison), who shows his girlfriend glimpses of what she is trying to escape, and that being married to him would be a mistake. Then to round the cast of this film is Police detective Hal (played by Hollywood legend, Harvey Keitel). Hal is genuinely interested in working out the situation with the girls, but realises that these are extraordinary women, in an extraordinary situation. 'Thelma and Louise' is well directed by Oscar winning director, Ridley Scott. I feel that he brought out the road trip of the girls well, making it really interesting for the viewer, as we want to know what is going to happen as the girls go from one situation to another. Scott also helps to define what makes the girls tick as individuals, and to why they are such great friends. He also makes it easy for his audience to understand what theses girls are doing is necessary to their freedom and survival. I also like the locations that were chosen and shot for this movie, showing off much of America that we rarely get the chance to see. The American west, which is where the majority of the film takes place, looks partly like a fun place to live, but also a place that holds great danger for the girls. Thelma also emphasises that going through 'Texas' is completely out of the picture. Then when the girls are really on the run we get the chance to see some of the great cannons that America has to offer. The camera work by cinematographer Adrian Biddle is exceptional, and makes wonder what it would be like to visit such a part of the world. There is a lot to like about this movie. Things like its style, story, lingo, characters and conclusion, which are all captivating. I feel that the audience of this movie is on an intoxicating sort of ride here, by the sort adventure that 'Thelma and Louise' allows us to experience. We are affected by what affects this pair. Well I know I was anyway. This movie also proves, by creating more problems, you do not make the situation you are in better, but much worse. Nevertheless, it looks like fun to be on the run! CMRS gives 'Thelma and Louise': 4.5 (Very Good - Brilliant Film) || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Thin Red Line, The|Terrence Malick|Action|Rated R for realistic war violence and language. |7.1|Canada|1998| 170 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert Michael Geisler Grant Hill Sheila Davis Lawrence John Roberdeau George Stevens Jr. Michael Stevens|James Jones Terrence Malick|John Toll ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Every man fights his own war. |In World War II, the outcome of the battle of Guadalcanal will strongly influence the Japanese's advance into the pacific. A group of young soldiers is brought in as a relief for the battle-weary Marine units. The exhausting fight for a key-positioned airfield that allows control over a 1000-mile radius puts the men of the Army Rifle company C-for-Charlie through hell. The horrors of war forms the soldiers into a tight-knit group, their emotions develop into bonds of love and even family. The reasons for this war get further away as the world for the men gets smaller and smaller until their fighting is for mere survival and the life of the other men with them. Grande sconfitto alla serata degli Oscar, assente dagli schermi da oltre vent'anni, il "vecchio leone" Terence Malick ha composto una sinfonia sull'assurdità e sull'orrore della guerra, passando anche attraverso il rapporto dell'uomo con la natura. Siamo a Guadalcanal, durante la guerra nel Pacifico, ed un plotone di fucilieri statunitensi ha ricevuto l'ordine di conquistare una collina dalla quale i giapponesi controllano l'isola. Ci sono le azioni di guerra, le battaglie, con la macchina da presa che segue le truppe passo per passo. Ma c'è anche l'umanità di soldati non del tutto consapevoli della follia cui vanno incontro e c'è la natura tanto maltrattata eppure così magica. E non è soltanto un film di guerra. E' un film sull'anima dei soldati, con le loro riflessioni interiori e la loro meravigliosa voglia di esistere. In 1943, the first major U.S. offensive of World War II is drawing to a close on the South Pacific island of Guadalcanal. To put an end to this campaign, the United States Army arrives with a full division of troops and equipment, deployed to break the last resistence of the Japanese. The exploits of this Division are seen from a number of perspectives amongst the soldiers; to include a war weary Sergeant, a power hungry Colonel, a Private who has known only desertion and AWOL, and a Company Commander is is struggling with his abilities as a leader. |Sean Penn (Sgt. Welsh) @ Adrien Brody (Cpl. Fife) @ James Caviezel (Pvt. Witt (as Jim Caviezel)) @ Ben Chaplin (Pvt. Bell) @ George Clooney (Capt. Bosche) @ John Cusack (Capt. Gaff) @ Woody Harrelson (Sgt. Keck) @ Elias Koteas (Capt. Staros) @ Jared Leto (Lt. Whyte) @ Dash Mihok (Pvt. Doll) @ Tim Blake Nelson (Pvt. Tills) @ Nick Nolte (Lt. Col. Tall) @ John C. Reilly (Sgt. Storm) @ Larry Romano (Pvt. Mazzi) @ John Savage (Sgt. McCron) @ John Travolta (Brig. Gen. Quintard) @ Arie Verveen (Pvt. Charlie Dale) @ Kirk Acevedo (Pvt. Tella) @ Penelope Allen (Witt's mother (as Penny Allen)) @ Benjamin Green (Melanesian villager (as Benjamin)) @ Simon Billig (Lt. Col. Billig) @ Mark Boone Junior (Pvt. Peale) @ Norman Patrick Brown (Pvt. Henry) @ Jarrod Dean (Cpl. Thorne) @ Matt Doran (Pvt. Coombs) @ Travis Fine (Pvt. Weld) @ Paul Gleeson (Lt. Band) @ David Harrod (Cpl. Queen) @ Don Harvey (Sgt. Becker) @ Kengo Hasuo (Japanese prisoner) @ Ben Hines (Assistant pilot) @ Danny Hoch (Pvt. Carni) @ Robert Roy Hofmo (Pvt. Sico) @ Jack (Melanesian man walking) @ Thomas Jane (Pvt. Ash (as Tom Jane)) @ Jimmy Xihite (Melanesian villager (as Jimmy)) @ Polyn Leona (Melanesian woman with child) @ Simon Lyndon (Medic #2) @ Gordon MacDonald (Pvt. Earl) @ Kazuki Maehara (Japanese private #1) @ Marina Malota (Marina) @ Michael McGrady (Pvt. Floyd) @ Ken Mitsuishi (Japanese officer #1) @ Ryûji Mizukami (Japanese private #4) @ Larry Neuhaus (Crewman) @ Taiju Okayasu (Japanese private #6) @ Takamitsu Okubo (Japanese soldier) @ Miranda Otto (Marty Bell) @ Kazuyoshi Sakai (Japanese prisoner #2) @ Masayuki Shida (Japanese officer #2) @ John Dee Smith (Pvt. Edward P. Train) @ Stephen Spacek (Cpl. Jenks (as Stephan Spacek)) @ Nick Stahl (Pvt. Edward Beade) @ Hiroya Sugisaki (Japanese private #7) @ Kouji Suzuki (Japanese private #3) @ Tomohiro Tanji (Japanese private #2) @ Minoru Toyoshima (Japanese sergeant) @ Terutake Tsuji (Japanese private #5) @ Steven Vidler (Lt. Albert Gore) @ Vincent Wild (Melanesian guide (as Vincent)) @ Todd Wallace (Pilot) @ Will Wallace (Pvt. Hoke) @ Joe Watanabe (Japanese officer #3) @ Simon Westaway (Stack) @ Daniel Wyllie (Medic #1 (as Dan Wyllie)) @ Yasoumi Yoshino (Young Japanese) @ John Augwata (Melanesian extra) @ Joshua Augwata (Melanesian extra) @ John Bakotee (Melanesian extra) @ Immanuel Dato (Melanesian extra) @ Michael Iha (Melanesian extra) @ Emmunual Konai (Melanesian extra) @ Stephen Konai (Melanesian extra) @ Peter Morosiro (Melanesian extra) @ Amos Niuga (Melanesian extra) @ Jennifer Siugali (Melanesian extra) @ Carlos Tome (Melanesian extra) @ Selina Tome (Melanesian extra rest of cast listed alphabetically Mickey Rourke .... Soldier (scenes deleted)) @ Charlie Beattie (Extra (uncredited)) @ Kick Gurry (Extra (uncredited)) @ Randall Duk Kim (Nisei enterpreter (uncredited)) @ Darrin Klimek ( (uncredited)) @ Donal Logue (Marl (uncredited)) @ Clark McCutchen (Soldier (uncredited)) @ David Paschall (General (uncredited)) @ Jace Phillips (S-1 (uncredited)) @ Felix Williamson (Pvt. Drake (uncredited) Produced by||Every movie-goer sees his own film... Having taken the time to read scores of reviews for TTRL (including IMDb ones here), I'm reminded of the movie subscript for this most controversial film:"Every man fights his own war."What a polarization exists amongst its viewers, and a lot of emotion both ways. I was stunned, moved, transfixed and totally absorbed by this film, even more so on subsequent viewings.I was one of the considerable number of people who, as the credits appear, sit quietly till one has to leave -- still stuck in the film's experience.I'm not angry at others who merely fell asleep.It's odd how some of the film's harsher critics seem compelled to vent their anger in disparaging comments against those who loved it -- most of those who liked the film were gentler in commenting on its critics. In contrast to what some have written, "The thin red line" has nothing to do with the British infantry in its imperial past.Jones referred to two related quotes in his excellent book, both having to do with a thin line between sanity and insanity.Whether "justified" or not, necessary or not, there is a lot of insanity in the war experience by anyone's definition of insanity. War exists and seems to recreate itself -- I never got the idea from Malick's film that he was preaching that we should just stop having wars. On the contrary, he takes war as a given in the human part of nature, and shows how individual human beings variously adapted (or mal-adapted!) in order to be able to keep eating, breathing and, yes, killing.The war experience is not primarily about shooting and blowing things up -- as Jones described from his own experience, it's largely about what happens between skirmishes -- strife and comradeship, fear and bravado, homesickness and freedom from past constraints, and waiting to die or to see a buddy die. People came, died, and were replaced -- much as portrayed by the cameo appearances in the film that confused or upset some viewers.Veterans always talk about how hard it is when you have to rely on your buddies (and feel for them) even though odds are most of them will die. What is most important to me (and it doesn't have to be for anyone else, I know that) is how the eternal themes of humanity are affected and expressed in such circumstances.All great works of art have something to do with the themes of beauty, pain, triumph, despair, good and evil.There's nothing wrong with entertainment as a diversion (The Matrix was fine fun); there's room both for film for fun and for film as art.Saving Ryan's Privates was mostly good entertainment (although I found it terribly manipulative and jingoistic), while TTRL explores the themes I mentioned above, never with easy answers.If you found the voice-overs heavy-handed, maybe it's because you're used to Hollywood telling us what to think and feel and thought Malick was doing the same.Watch again and see if he's not just giving us access to various individuals' often conflicting perspectives. As for those who think the film portrays "our soldiers" in a bad light, my family members who fought in WWII described their experiences and their reactions much as those shown in TTRL -- they were ordinary men, decent enough people, not heroes though sometimes unpredictably capable of the heroic, and devastated by their experiences.I'm proud of them for having done all they could to do what they felt was their responsibility, and to keep some humanity intact in spite of the horror.None of them told me they felt "ennobled" by war; they endured it and were badly hurt by it but didn't feel sorry for themselves, either. In TTRL I got to see this portrayed with such compassion I wept.Even the guy (Dale) who ripped gold teeth out of the mouths of dying Japanese soldiers was no stereotypical villain -- he has his moment of grace as do they all.No one's defenses are portrayed as impregnable, not even Witt's. No stereotype himself, we see him kill over a dozen soldiers in battle, while still trying to see God in the midst of the chaos. And what a powerful scene at his life's end, fulfilling his own striving for self-sacrifice, and recognizing in a moment of epiphany where his own immortality lie.Those who couldn't find a plot line in the film must have missed the first ten minutes... Maybe it's because of my own experience in life that I respond to this film so strongly.I endured and survived ten years of intense, inescapable unrelenting abuse as a child.I remember even as a small child trying to make sense of it all -- looking for the good, the reasons, God's plan, my purpose.Others who've survived trauma (in the Holocaust camps, on the cancer wards) often describe how such experiences focussed their attention on things that matter, beyond the physical realities they could not control. Ever since my childhood I've moved through life with a second awareness -- that examination and self-examination while "real time" goes on. That's what Malick portrayed, for me, in this film.Maybe you think that's "sophomoric" or "pretentious".It may not seem so when you're in the midst of a struggle, or on your death bed... DGH P. S.I organized a special screening of this film locally for a few friends -- 400 others paid to come, by word of mouth. Over a hundred sat spell-bound as the credits scrolled by -- hushed and not wanting to leave. Fellow wounded souls, some of them, I'll bet. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Thing, The|John Carpenter|Action|R |7.8|USA|1982|109 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/2/2004|Stuart Cohen David Foster Larry J. Franco Wilbur Stark Lawrence Turman|John W. Campbell Jr. Bill Lancaster|Dean Cundey ||MCA/Universal Pictures [us] |Man is The Warmest Place to Hide.|An American scientific expedition to the frozen wastes of the Antarctic is interrupted by a group of seemingly mad Norwegians pursuing and shooting a dog. The helicopter pursuing the dog crashes leaving no explanation for the chase. During the night, the dog mutates and attacks other dogs in the cage and members of the team that investigate. The team soon realises that an alien life-form with the ability to take over other bodies is on the loose and they don't know who may already have been taken over. |Kurt Russell (R.J. MacReady) @ Wilford Brimley (Dr. Blair (as A. Wilford Brimley)) @ T.K. Carter (Nauls) @ David Clennon (Palmer) @ Keith David (Childs) @ Richard A. Dysart (Dr. Copper (as Richard Dysart)) @ Charles Hallahan (Vance Norris) @ Peter Maloney (Bennings) @ Richard Masur (Clark) @ Donald Moffat (Garry) @ Joel Polis (Fuchs) @ Thomas G. Waites (Windows (as Thomas Waites)) @ Norbert Weisser (Norwegian) @ Larry J. Franco (Norwegian passenger with rifle (as Larry Franco)) @ Nate Irwin (Helicopter pilot) @ William Zeman (Pilot rest of cast listed alphabetically Anthony Cecere .... Norwegian in video footage) @ Kent Hays (Norwegian in video footage) @ Larry Holt (Computer voice (uncredited)) @ John Carpenter (Norwegian in video footage (uncredited)Produced by||John Carpenter's masterpiece of paranoia! Unfortunately I spend much of my time berating John Carpenter in regards to his recent lazy and mediocre efforts. What a refreshing change it is to relive his earlierseminal work and remember just why he once had a reputation as one of America's most exciting and inventive film makers! 'The Thing' is quite possible the best movie Carpenter has ever made, and sadly it seems, ever will make. He is at the height of his powers with this dark, tense and claustrophobic thriller, and is blessed with a superb ensemble cast, and (a rarity for him these days) a decent script will believable, fully rounded characters. Kurt Russell gives his best work for Carpenter here, in arguably his strongest performance to date. The supporting cast is flawless, and includes fine character actors such as Wilford Brimley ('Cocoon'), Keith David ('Dead Presidents'), Richard Dysart ('Being There'), Richard Masur ('Who'll Stop The Rain)', and Donald Moffat ('The Right Stuff'). I highly recommend the DVD version of this movie which features one of the most entertaining and informative commentaries I've ever heard. (from Carpenter and Russell) Much maligned when it was first released, 'The Thing' now looks like a masterpiece of paranoid science fiction, one of the very few remakes that surpasses the original version, and absolutely essential viewing for any self respecting horror or SF fan. It really doesn't get much better than this! Highly recommended! ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Thirteenth Floor, The|Josef Rusnak|Sci-Fi|Rated R for violence and language. |6.4|USA|1999| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Helga Ballhaus Michael Ballhaus Roland Emmerich Ute Emmerich Kelly Van Horn Marco Weber|Daniel F. Galouye Josef Rusnak Ravel Centeno-Rodriguez|Wedigo von Schultzendorff ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Question reality. You can go there even though it doesn't exist. |Computer scientist Hannon Fuller has discovered something extremely important. He's about to tell the discovery to his colleague, Douglas Hall, but knowing someone is after him, the old man leaves a letter in his computer generated parallel world that's just like the 30's with seemingly real people with real emotions. Fuller is murdered in our "real" world the same night, and his colleague is suspected. Douglas discovers a bloody shirt in his bathroom and he cannot recall what he was doing the night Fuller was murdered. He logs into the system in order to find the letter, but has to confront the unexpected. The truth is harsher than he could ever imagine... |Craig Bierko (Douglas Hall/John Ferguson/David) @ Armin Mueller-Stahl (Hannon Fuller/Grierson) @ Gretchen Mol (Jane Fuller/Natasha Molinaro) @ Vincent D'Onofrio (Jason Whitney/Jerry Ashton) @ Dennis Haysbert (Detective Larry McBain) @ Steven Schub (Zev Bernstein) @ Jeremy Roberts (Tom Jones) @ Rif Hutton (Joe) @ Leon Rippy (Jane's Lawyer) @ Janet MacLachlan (Ellen) @ Brad Henke (Cop #1) @ Burt Bulos (Bellhop) @ Venessia Valentino (Concierge) @ Howard S. Miller (Chauffeur) @ Tia Texada (Natasha's Roomate) @ Shiri Appleby (Bridget Manilla) @ Bob Clendenin (Bank Manager (as Robert Clendenin)) @ Rachel Winfree (Bank Customer) @ Meghan Ivey (Chanteuse) @ Alison Lohman (Honey Bear Girl) @ Hadda Brooks (Lounge Piano Player) @ Ron Boussom (Maitre'd) @ Ernie Lively (30's Cop) @ Toni Sawyer (Grierson's Wife) @ Brooks Almy (Bridget's Mom) @ Darryl Henriques (Cab Driver) @ Suzanne Harrer (Tired Dancer) @ Lee Weaver (30's Limo Driver) @ Geoffrey Rivas (Security Guard) @ Travis Tedford (Newspaper Boy) @ Jeff Blumenkrantz (Choreographer) @ Andrew Alden (Doorman) @ Johnny Crawford (Singer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Vivian Palermo (Woman on the beach (uncredited)) @ Tracy Perry (Party Member (uncredited)) @ Dea Natasja Rosenmeier (Erika (uncredited)) @ Will Wallace (Other Ashton (uncredited) Produced by||Better than it starts and worth sticking with, even if it is now more predictable than it should be Hannon Fuller is a computer scientist who has developed a virtual reality world, into which one can plug in.One time he makes a frightening discovery and tries to tell his colleague Douglas Hall, but is killed before he can.With the clues pointing to Douglas himself, he is forced to hunt the killer in the virtual world through clues left by Fuller.However the clues lead him beyond the solution of a murder. The problem with virtual reality films is that they are no longer as fresh and twisty as they think they are.That is the thing here, while it is a great little film, the conclusion and twists are not as surprising as they should be simply because we have been taught to expect them by things like Matrix, Dark City and so on.However this is still a good film and, although not as great as those, is still worth remembering in the same breath! The film starts with difficulty in some regards as it is difficult to entirely get a grip on what is happening.However it gets better as the pieces start to fall into place, although it is the second half before things start making sense.The various realities are hard to make sense of, and the delivery of the film sometimes makes the characters hard to keep track of - the eyeball thing not being as effective as the device some other films have used to portray a similar `shift'.The effects are quite good considering the budget involved, but those expecting it to compare to Matrix will be disappointed.Like wise the cast are a slightly lower-rent type, although still good.Bierko has a distinctive look to him and he makes a good lead figure here.D'Onofrio is less convincing but still gives a good performance.Mol does well but she doesn't have distinctive looks, meaning that, until her character becomes clearer it is hard to keep track of her. Mueller-Stahl adds class but I would like to see a film soon where he doesn't just play a small role which adds class! Overall, this is an enjoyable and clever film but the delivery lets itself down a little bit - being too confusing for the first half and ultimately too obvious at the end.However I expected some rubbish video sci-fi and I was pleasantly surprised by the whole film.It may not stand up to it's bigger brothers and, watching it in 2004, it may not be anything new or different, but it is enjoyable for fans of the genre. ||Deluxe Edition |2.35 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Thomas Crown Affair, The|John McTiernan|Romance|Rated R for some sexuality and language. |6.7|USA|1999| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Pierce Brosnan Bruce Moriarty Roger Paradiso Beau St. Clair Michael Tadross|Alan Trustman Leslie Dixon Kurt Wimmer|Tom Priestley Jr. ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |How do you get the man who has everything?|Self-made billionaire Thomas Crown is bored of being able to buy everything he desires. Being irresistible to women, he also does not feel any challenge in that area. But there are a few things even he can't get, therefore Thomas Crown has a seldom hobby: He steals priceless masterpieces of Art. After the theft of a famous painting from Claude Monet, the only person suspecting Thomas Crown is Catherine Banning. Her job is to get the picture back, no matter how she accomplishes her mission. Unfortunately, Catherine gets involved too deeply with Thomas to keep a professional distance to the case. Fortunately, Thomas seems to fall for her, too. Competitive New York mergers and acquisitions king Thomas Crown steals a Monet for the challenge only to be fingered as the thief within two days by insurance investigator Catherine Banning who's smart, driven, and alone. Ostensibly she works with the police but in truth she runs her own show playing cat and mouse with Crown. Soon it's a romance: a black and white ball, a glider flight, two days in Martinique. Back in Manhattan, she thinks she has reason to be jealous, so when he suggests they go off together, she hesitates. He may have more tricks up his sleeve and, as his psychiatrist has asked him, what would it take for him to trust a woman and, in turn, be trusted? A bored multi-millionaire (Pierce Brosnan) struggling to find new challenges arranges for the theft of a Monet painting from a museum. This sets a sexy insurance investigator (Rene Russo) after him, but unexpectedly the two fall in love. Does she keep her ethics and pin him for the crime she knows he committed or does she follow her heart? Things are complicated by a beautiful blonde that he keeps company with, when he is not with her. Denis Leary plays a police detective also investigating the crime, Faye Dunaway has brief scenes as Thomas' psychiatrist, and Ben Gazzara has a virtually non-speaking role. |Pierce Brosnan (Thomas Crown) @ Rene Russo (Catherine Olds Banning) @ Denis Leary (Detective First Grade Michael McCann) @ Ben Gazzara (Andrew Wallace (Mr. Crown's Lawyer)) @ Frankie Faison (Detective Paretti) @ Fritz Weaver (John Reynolds) @ Charles Keating (Friedrich Golchan) @ Mark Margolis (Heinrich Knutzhorn) @ Faye Dunaway (The Psychiatrist) @ Michael Lombard (Proctor Robert 'Bobby' McKinley) @ Bill Ambrozy (Proctor) @ Michael Bahr (Proctor (as Michael S. Bahr)) @ Robert D. Novak (Proctor (as Robert Novak)) @ Joe H. Lamb (Proctor (as Joe Lamb)) @ James Saito (Paul Cheng (Mr. Crown's Butler)) @ Esther Cañadas (Anna Knudsen/Anna Knutzhorn) @ Mischa Hausserman (Jimmy (Mr. Crown's Driver)) @ Daniel Oreskes (Petru) @ Dominic Chianese Jr. (Dimetri) @ Ritchie Coster (Janos) @ Gregg Bello (Iggy) @ John P. McCann (Senior Detective) @ Gino Lucci (Freight Truck Driver) @ George Christy (Senior Museum Guard) @ Mike Danner (Forklift Operator) @ James J. Archer (J.J. the Security Guard) @ John Elsen (New York City Cop) @ Robert Spillane (Crown Acquisitions Security Officer) @ Daniel Jamal Gibson (Sam) @ Cynthia Darlow (Daria (Mr. Crown's Secretary)) @ Sherry Koftan (Crown Acquistions Employee) @ Jane DeNoble (Crown Acquisitions Employee) @ Gene Bozzi (Crown Acquisitions Employee) @ Ryan Hecht (Crown Acquisitions Employee) @ Paul Simon (Crown Acquisitions Employee) @ Tom Tammi (Businessman) @ Mark Zeisler (Bulldog) @ Mark Zimmerman (Bulldog) @ Daniel Southern (Crown Acquisitions Executive (as Dan Southern)) @ James Yaegashi (Crown Acquisitions Executive) @ Ira Wheeler (Old Man) @ David Adkins (Son) @ John McKay (Company Lawyer (as John A. MacKay)) @ Melissa Maxwell (Teacher) @ Colleen Hamm (Schoolgirl) @ Timothy Wheeler (Museum Security Technician) @ John Thrall Bush (Museum Security Guard) @ Dominic Marcus (Museum Security Guard) @ Robert J. Stephenson (Museum Security Guard (as Robert Stephenson)) @ David Toney (Museum Security Guard) @ Phillip Douglas (Museum Security Guard) @ Jeffrey Dreisbach (Junior Proctor) @ R.J. Remo (Smoking Kid) @ Caleb Archer (Smoking Kid) @ Dennis Creaghan (Museum Director Mr. James 'Jim' Lenox) @ Randy Phillips (National Art Club Guest) @ Gloria Barnes (National Art Club Guest) @ Mimi Weddell (National Art Club Guest) @ Pat Friedlander (National Art Club Guest) @ Gary L. Catus (National Art Club Guest) @ Jeremy Nagel (Tommy (Mr. Crown's Caddie)) @ John C. Havens (Museum Operating Technician) @ Annie Rose Murray (Woman Spectator) @ Bill Tatum (Gentleman Yachtsman) @ Teddy Coluca (Detective in Restaurant) @ Michael Charles (Detective in Restaurant) @ Orlando Carafa (Cipriani Waiter) @ Ben Epps (Male Associate) @ Kim D. Cannon (Cleaning Man) @ Douglas Kahelemauna Nam (Cleaning Man) @ Richard Russell Ramos (Dr. Cornelius) @ John Seidman (Forensics Expert George French) @ Robert Ian Mackenzie (Jeweler) @ Yusef Bulos (Second Jeweler) @ Ray Virta (Museum Detective) @ Thomas Michael Sullivan (Museum Special Police) @ J. Paul Boehmer (Museum Detective) @ Tony Cucci (Watching Cop) @ Paul Geoffrey (Another Cop) @ R.E. Rodgers (Uniform Cop) @ Thomas Richard Bloom (Crown Imposter) @ Kim Craven (Ticket Agent) @ Marion McCorry (Stewardess) @ Sean Haberle (Ramp Manager) @ Mikel Sarah Lambert (Wealthy Woman) @ Angelo Fraboni (Featured Dancer) @ Melanie LaPatin (Featured Dancer) @ Jodi Ellen Melnick (Featured Dancer (as Jodi Melnick)) @ Tony Meredith (Featured Dancer) @ Michael Terrace (Featured Dancer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Courtney Bennett (Bit Part (uncredited)) @ Robert Lewis Stephenson (Security Guard (uncredited) Produced by||Plenty Of Sparks Between Brosnan And Russo A wealthy businessman with an eye for art meets his match in the clever and romantic, suspenseful, `The Thomas Crown Affair,' directed by John McTiernan.Thomas Crown (Pierce Brosnan) stages an intricately planned heist of an art museum, and successfully makes off with a Monet worth millions.Enter the insurance investigator, the crafty Catherine Banning (Rene Russo), and the game is on.While detective Michael McCann (Denis Leary) follows the bread-crumb trail left for him by Crown, Banning sees through it immediately, and zeros in on Crown from the beginning.But how to nail him?Therein lies the heart of the story, as Banning goes right to it.She tells Crown that she knows he did it; Crown responds by taking her to dinner, then proceeds to court her, without ever admitting or denying her allegations.Then it's head to head, as they each vie for the pole position, and the sparks begin to fly. McTiernan shows some style here as he leads his stars through their interlude of discovery.He wisely avoids any showy displays and lets the tightly wound suspense of the story play out through the charismatic performances of Brosnan and Russo.Brosnan fits the part of Crown perfectly; there are shades of Bond, perhaps, and even a bit of `Remington Steele here,' but he makes Crown his own man, a separate entity which he plays with aplomb.Russo has never been better, nor looked better, and makes Banning a force to be reckoned with; there's a worldly sophistication to her, an intelligent confidence that lets you know there's something always cooking beneath the surface.The chemistry between the two sizzles, and how refreshing it is to see romance develop between two mature adults, as opposed to the more prevalent screen pairings Hollywood usually has to offer (Connery and Zeta-Jones in `Entrapment,' for example); it lends credibility to the story and makes the proceedings all that more interesting.There's some memorable scenes here, especially the initial caper, when Crown purloins the Monet, and later on, the `bowler-hat' sequence that takes place in the museum.In something of an homage to the original 1968 `Crown,' Banning is taken aloft by Crown in his glider, which proves to be visually stunning, and adds a placid moment that fits in well with the overall film. The supporting cast includes Faye Dunaway (Crown's psychiatrist), Ben Gazzara (Andrew), Frankie Faison (Detective Paretti), Fritz Weaver (John) and Charles Keating (Friedrich).McTiernan has fashioned a romantic caper that is satisfying to both the eye and the mind; and with an imaginative plot and the performances of Brosnan and Russo, `The Thomas Crown Affair' is a success on all fronts.Compared, especially, to many of the contemporary movies that purport romance and suspense, this one is the real deal.It's like a breath of fresh air that's risen above the prevailing smog of mediocrity.If you're looking for quality, and a film that delivers on it's promise, you've come to the right place.This is one you do not want to miss.I rate this one 9/10. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Three Kings|David O. Russell|War|Rated R for graphic war violence, language and some sexuality. R|7.4|USA|1999|114 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/4/2004|Bruce Berman Alan Glazer Gregory Goodman Paul Junger Witt Edward McDonnell John Ridley Kim Roth Charles Roven Douglas Segal Kelley Smith-Wait|John Ridley David O. Russell|Newton Thomas Sigel ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |In a war without heroes they are kings|George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube star in "Three Kings," the story of a small group of adventurous American soldiers in Iraq at the end of the Gulf War who are determined to steal a huge cache of gold reputed to be hidden somewhere near their desert base. Finding a map they believe will take them to the gold, they embark on a journey that leads to unexpected discoveries, enabling them to rise to a heroic challenge that drastically changes their lives. In the days immediately after the Gulf War, a group of American soldiers come across a secret Iraqi map, which discloses the whereabouts of a bunker where Iraq is storing stolen gold and treasure from Kuwait. The soldiers hope to take the gold and keep it for themselves. However, when they arrive at the site, they discover that the Iraqi army is more concerned about persecuting its civilians than stopping them from stealing the gold. They learn that the civilians have been encouraged by the U.S. government to rise up and fight Sadaam Hussein, but are facing certain execution because the U.S. military refuses to help them. This incident creates a crisis of conscience for the American soldiers. Do they take the money and run, leaving the civilians to face certain death at the hands of the Iraqi army? Or do they risk losing the gold in order to escort them to safety across the border into Iran? At the end of the Persian Gulf War, four U.S. soldiers plan to steal a secret stash of Kuwaiti gold. Instead, they find themselves getting involved with civilians being executed by Saddam Hussein and left defenseless by the U.S. military. |George Clooney (Maj. Archie Gates) @ Mark Wahlberg (Sfc. Troy Barlow) @ Ice Cube (SSgt. Chief Elgin) @ Spike Jonze (Pfc. Conrad Vig) @ Cliff Curtis (Amir Abdullah) @ Nora Dunn (Adriana Cruz) @ Jamie Kennedy (PV2 Walter Wogaman) @ Saïd Taghmaoui (Capt. Said) @ Mykelti Williamson (Col. Horn) @ Holt McCallany (Capt. Van Meter) @ Judy Greer (Cathy Daitch) @ Christopher Lohr (Teebaux) @ Jon Sklaroff (Paco) @ Liz Stauber (Debbie Barlow (Troy's wife)) @ Marsha Horan (Amir's wife) @ Alia Shawkat (Amir's daughter) @ Jabir Algarawi (Hairdressing twin #1) @ Ghanem Algarawi (Hairdressing twin #2) @ Bonnie Afsary (Western dressed village woman) @ Jacqueline Abi-Ad (Traditional village woman) @ Fadil Al-Badri (Deserter leader) @ Al No'mani (Kaied) @ Sayed Badreya (Iraqi tank major) @ Magdi Rashwan (Iraqi troop carrier major) @ Alex Dodd (Iraqi first kill soldier) @ Larry 'Tank' Jones (Berm. soldier/truck driver) @ Patrick O'Neal Jones (Berm. soldier) @ Shawn Pilot (Berm. soldier) @ Brett Bassett (Berm. soldier) @ Jim Gaffigan (Cut Troy's Cuff Soldier) @ Al Whiting (Camp soldier/truck driver) @ Brian Patterson (Camp soldier/truck driver) @ Scott Dillon (Camp soldier) @ Kwesi Okai Hazel (Camp soldier) @ Joseph Richard Romanov (Camp soldier) @ Christopher B. Duncan (Camp soldier) @ Randy W. McCoy (Camp soldier) @ Mark Rhodes (Camp soldier) @ Scott Pearce (Camp soldier) @ Gary Parker (Civil affairs company clerk) @ Haidar Alatowa (Saudi translator) @ Salah Salea (Iraqi soldier with map) @ Doug Jones (Dead Iraqi soldier) @ Farinaz Farrokh (Iraqi civilian mother with baby) @ Omar 'Freefly' Alhegelan (Bunker #1 lying Iraqi) @ Hassan Allawati (Bunker #1 friendly Iraqi) @ Sara Aziz (Pleading civilian woman) @ A. Halim Mostafa (Iraqi civilian man) @ Al Mustafa (Bunker #2 Storeroom captain) @ Anthony Batarse (Iraqi interrogation sergeant) @ Mohamad Al-Jalahma (Bunker #2 Iraqi rifle loader #1) @ Mohammed Sharafi (Bunker #2 Iraqi rifle loader #2) @ Hillel Michael Shamam (Bunker #2 Storeroom guard) @ Joey Naber (Iraqi radio operator) @ Basim Ridha (Black robe leader) @ Peter Macdissi (Oasis Bunker Iraqi Republican Guard Lieutenant) @ Tony Shawkat (Oasis Bunker Iraqi Republican Guard sergeant) @ Joseph Abi-Ad (Oasis Bunker Iraqi Republican Guard sergeant) @ Fahd Al-Ujaimy (Oasis Bunker Troy's interrogation guard) @ Derick Qaqish (Oasis bunker Troy's interrogation guard) @ Hassan Bach-Agha (Oasis Bunker Troy's Republican Guard) @ Fadi Sitto (Oasis Bunker Troy's Republican Guard) @ Ali Alkind (Deserter #1) @ Abdullah Al-Dawalem (Deserter #2) @ Rick Mendoza (Deserter #3) @ Jassim Al-Khazraji (Oasis bunker Republican Goard on roof) @ Haider Alkindi (Oasis bunker fleeing Republican Guard) @ Kalid Mustafa (Oasis bunker fleeting Republican Guard) @ Ghazwyn Ramlawi (Oasis bunker fleeing Republican Guard) @ Raad Thomasian (Oasis bunker fleeing Republican Guard) @ Wessam Saleh (Oasis bunker fleeting Republican Guard) @ Jay Giannone (Oasis bunker fleeting Republican Guard/sniper) @ Sam Hassan (Oasis bunker fleeting Republican Guard/sniper) @ Brian Bosworth (Action Star) @ Donte Delila (Iraqi child) @ Dylan Brown (Iraqi child rest of cast listed alphabetically Sean Michael Boozer .... Black Robe leader) @ Sayed Moustafa Al-Qazwini ( (uncredited)) @ Pete Antico (Oasis Bunker Republican Guard/Shooter (uncredited)) @ Anthony Azizi (Iraqi rebel (uncredited)) @ Ben Bray (Soldier with stack of Levi's (uncredited)) @ Brad Martin (Military film actor (uncredited)) @ Cheryl Rusa (Iraqi villager (uncredited)Produced by||A personal mission develops in the Gulf War. This may be the movie that proves George Clooney can actually play lead and carry a project on the big screen. Clooney and a few of his buddies, take a little time out during the Gulf War to steal gold from the Iraqi. They end up coming to the aid ofrefugees from Kuwait. Plenty of kick ass action. Graphic violence and strong language makes this a believable war time story. Very good supporting cast that includes Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube, Judy Greer, Jamie Kennedy and Nora Dunn. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Three Men and a Baby|Leonard Nimoy|Comedy||5.7|USA|1987| 102 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Robert W. Cort Ted Field Jean-François Lepetit Edward Teets|Jim Cruickshank James Orr Coline Serreau|Adam Greenberg ||Abril Vídeo [br] |They changed her diapers. She changed their lives.|Three bachelor friends - architect Peter, artist Michael, and actor Jack are sharing an apartment in Manhattan. After Jack goes filming in Turkey his two flatmates find his baby daughter - which Jack doesn't know about - left outside their door. The two are left to look after the baby, and realise how difficult this can be. How would this baby change the life style of these confirmed bachelors? |Tom Selleck (Peter Mitchell) @ Steve Guttenberg (Michael Kellam) @ Ted Danson (Jack Holden) @ Nancy Travis (Sylvia Bennington) @ Margaret Colin (Rebecca) @ Alexandra Amini (Patty) @ Francine Beers (Woman at gift shop) @ Lisa Blair (Mary Bennington) @ Michelle Blair (Mary Bennington) @ Philip Bosco (Det. Sgt. Melkowitz) @ Barbara Budd (Actress) @ Michael Burgess (Handsome man at party) @ Claire Cellucci (Angelyne) @ Eugene Clark (Man #1 at party) @ Derek de Lint (Jan Clopatz) @ Michelle Duquet (Tawnya) @ David Ferry (Telephone installer) @ Dave Foley (Grocery store clerk) @ Paul Guilfoyle (Vince) @ Cynthia Harris (Mrs. Hathaway) @ Earl Hindman (Satch) @ Celeste Holm (Mrs. Holden) @ Mario Joyner (Cab driver) @ Gary Howard Klar (Detective #1) @ Christine Kossak (One of Jack's girls) @ Joe Lynn (Detective #2) @ Edward D. Murphy (Security guard) @ Jacqueline Murphy (Gate attendant) @ Colin Quinn (Gift shop clerk) @ Thomas Quinn (Mounted policeman) @ Jackie Richardson (Edna) @ John Gould Rubin (Paul Milner) @ Camilla Scott (Cherise) @ Daniele Scott (Swimming instructor) @ Sharolyn Sparrow (Vanessa) @ Louise Vallance (Sally) @ Jonathon Whittaker (Adam rest of cast listed alphabetically Christine Cossack) @ Billy Kay (Baby (uncredited) Produced by||They Changed Her Diapers. She Changed Their Lives. [CONTAINS SPOILERS] Meet Peter Mitchell, Michael Kellam and Jack Holden, three roommates living together in a penthouse apartment in New York City. Peter is an architect, Jack is an actor and Michael is an artist. He painted pictures all around the hallway. Jack would be flying to Turkey to do a movie. After he left he called Michael and Peter and told them a package would be arriving that day and said for them to just put it aside until some guys come to pick it up. Returning home from jogging, Peter notices a cradle on the doorstep. Inside is a baby! Michael finds a note that's addressed to Jack and it's from Sylvia. The men think the baby was the package. Her name was Mary. Peter ran out to buy baby food and diapers while Michael struggled to entertain her right as a small package was delivered to him by the superintendant, Mrs. Hathaway. When Peter returned, he and Michael struggle to change Mary's diaper. They continue to take care of the baby, putting their lives on hold. One day two guys came by to collect the package. Michael and Peter, thinking the baby was the package, gave her to the guys. Peter then discovered the real package, which was full of drugs! He got the baby back, luckily, but now the cops were involved. Peter came home one day to find the apartment trashed. Mary was okay, though. Jack soon returned and Peter and Michael were very angry at him for putting them through all that. Jack explained he was holding the drugs for his director friend. Michael and Peter then introduce him to his daughter. It took some time but Jack soon became a father figure. The men soon got a message from the crooks, telling them to meet with the "stuff". They met at a construction site. Michael and Peter went up while Jack was at the power controls. Michael was to videotape the crooks while Peter did the talking. Michael was soon discovered and they jump into the elevators so Jack, thinking quick, cut the power to the one the crooks were in. The police arrived and took them to jail. So life was finally getting back to normal. Jack, Michael and Peter became ideal fathers for Mary. Then one day, Sylvia showed up to take Mary with her to live in England. The men follow her to the airport to stop her, so she changed her mind and decided to move in with Peter, Michael and Jack offered to let her so they became one big, happy family and lived happily ever after. A pretty good movie. It pairs Tom Selleck (Folks!, Quigley Down Under), Steve Guttenberg (Cocoon, Police Academy) and Ted Danson (TV's Cheers, Getting Even With Dad). They were all good together! Three Men and a Baby was followed by 3 Men and A Little Lady. Same actors. I haven't seen it, but I'm sure it's good. This movie is directed by Leonard Nimoy. You may know him as Mr. Spock from Star Trek. So anyway, if you're a fan of Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg and/or Ted Danson, I recommend Three Men and a Baby! It's good. The beginning is a little slow, but it slowly but surely begins to pick up. - || ||5.1 ||||||@@ Throw Momma from the Train|Danny DeVito|Crime||5.9|USA|1987| 88 min/ Germany:87 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Larry Brezner Kristine Johnson J. Marina Muhlfriedel Arne Schmidt|Stu Silver |Barry Sonnenfeld ||Flashstar Home Vídeo [br] |Owen asked his friend, Larry, for a small favor... |Two men have someone they would dearly love dead; One his ex-wife who is making his life miserable, the other his domineering, nasty mother. What could be simpler than exchanging murders to avoid any possible complicity. Momma turns out to be a hard nut to crack, not to mention the guilt. |Danny DeVito (Owen/Ned 'Little Ned' Lift/Cousin Paddy) @ Billy Crystal (Larry Donner) @ Kim Greist (Beth Ryan) @ Anne Ramsey (Mrs. Lift) @ Kate Mulgrew (Margaret Donner) @ Branford Marsalis (Lester) @ Rob Reiner (Joel) @ Bruce Kirby (Detective DeBenedetto) @ Joey DePinto (Police Sergeant) @ Annie Ross (Mrs. Hazeltine, Creative Writing Student) @ Raye Birk (Mr. Pinsky, Creative Writing Student) @ Oprah Winfrey (Herself) @ Olivia Brown (Ms. Gladstone, Lester's Girlfriend) @ Philip Perlman (Phil Perlman, Creative Writing Student) @ Stu Silver (Ramon) @ J. Alan Thomas (Millington) @ Randall Miller (Bucky) @ Andre Rosey Brown (Rosey (as Andre 'Rosey' Brown)) @ Tony Ciccone (Mr. Lopez, Margaret's Gardener) @ William Ray Watson (Steward on Cruise Ship) @ Larry McCormick (Announcer) @ Peter Brocco (Old Man in Hospital) @ Hettie Lynne Hurtes (Reporter) @ Karen J. Westerfield (Laughing Woman) @ Stanley L. Gonsales (Cab Driver) @ Fred Gephart (Priest) @ Don Burns (Radio DJ) @ Billy Childs (Jazz Band) @ Ralph Penland (Jazz Band) @ Tony Dumas (Jazz Band Produced by)||"Strangers on a Train" Meets "The War of the Roses"... "Throw Momma From the Train" is a simple dark comedy with lots of laughs. Billy Crystal plays a frustrated writer on the verge of collapse; Danny DeVito plays a man in one of Crystal's writing classes. Crystal's ex-wife is a *hag* to put it nicely, and Crystal hates her. DeVito, sensing this, offers Crystal a deal one night: DeVito will kill Crystal's wife, if Crystal kills DeVito's nag of a mother. Crystal does, of course, refuse, but later, corruption deep in his heart makes him say yes. And so as things play out we see what happens when you try to throw someone's momma from a moving train. This story is an interesting character study; a story of evil, greed, revenge, ego, trust, doing what's right, but most of all corruption. We see Crystal's white-collar writer become ever-stressed with events colliding around him, and because of DeVito's constant nagging, he says "yes." But we know deep down in his subconscious he wanted to say "yes," and he's pleased that he said it to DeVito. This movie is a bit of a dark spoof on Hitchcock's immortal film "Strangers on a Train," and it plays an homage to the film early on, when there is a theater playing "Strangers on a Train." We see DeVito watching the movie, and a lightbulb in his head pops on. He gets an idea. Throw Momma from the train! Billy Crystal gives another convincing and strangely comical performance as a hassled writer on the verge of collapse. He has been so beaten down by everything around him that his inner-emotions come out and he agrees to throw DeVito's momma from the train. Danny DeVito directed this film excellently. He uses just the right touch of comic darkness to create a world of corruption and sickness. Everything is demented, but not to an extreme like in some other dark comedies. It has just the right touch of darkness that shone through in "The War of the Roses." Not only is "Throw Momma From the Train" a simple tale of corruption and morality, but is also an interesting character study. Definitely worth catching on TV. 3.5/5 stars - John Ulmer || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Titanic|James Cameron|Drama|Rated PG-13 for disaster related peril and violence, nudity, sensuality and brief language. |6.9|USA|1997| 194 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|James Cameron Pamela Easley Al Giddings Grant Hill Jon Landau Sharon Mann Rae Sanchini|James Cameron |Russell Carpenter ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Collide With Destiny.|Its name stirs the imagination... Titanic. The unsinkable ship. The unimaginable catastrophe. The untold stories that lay in mystery two and a half miles beneath the waves of the North Atlantic. What buried tale of love, bravery, treasure and treachery, hidden by time and tragedy, waits here to be discovered? A beautiful socialite. A penniless artist. A priceless diamond. A romance so passionate that nothing on earth could stop it. A destiny so incredible that no one could have imagined it. A collision of lives that could only have happened on Titanic, the ship of dreams. The secrets are about to unfold... In his search for a blue diamond once owned by Louis XVI that was believed to have gone down with the Titanic, Brock Lovett discovers an intriguing sketch of a beautiful woman wearing the diamond on her neck. When the sketch appears on a news program, an old lady steps forward, claiming to be the woman in the drawing. She then recounts a beautiful story that took place on the ill-fated ship, a story of love that knew no boundaries. Brock Lovett is a treasure hunter looking for a famous diamond among the debris of the Titanic. He finds a sketch in a safebox in which a young woman is wearing the diamond on a necklace. After showing the drawing on a TV program, Rose Dawson, an old lady comes forward claiming to be the woman in the drawing. She is brought to the explorer's vessel to help them determine the location of the diamond, but instead she tells everyone the "real" story of Titanic's sinking. She was a 17 year-old rich girl sailing to the USA to get married with Cal Hockley. Her mother was forcing her to get married so she felt trapped inside her own world. During the trip she tries to commit suicide and she is saved by Jack Dawson, a third-class passenger who travels around making pencil drawings. They get to know each other better until they fall in love. Hockley and Rose's mother try to separate them several times. Amidst all this confusion the Titanic hits an iceberg and starts to sink... |Leonardo DiCaprio (Jack Dawson) @ Kate Winslet (Rose DeWitt Bukater) @ Billy Zane (Caledon 'Cal' Hockley) @ Kathy Bates (Margaret 'Molly' Brown) @ Bill Paxton (Brock Lovett) @ Gloria Stuart (Rose Dawson Calvert (Old Rose)) @ Frances Fisher (Ruth DeWitt Bukater) @ Bernard Hill (Capt. Edward J. Smith) @ Jonathan Hyde (J. Bruce Ismay) @ David Warner (Spicer Lovejoy) @ Victor Garber (Thomas Andrews) @ Danny Nucci (Fabrizio De Rossi) @ Lewis Abernathy (Lewis Bodine) @ Suzy Amis (Lizzy Calvert) @ Nicholas Cascone (Bobby Buell) @ Dr. Anatoly M. Sagalevitch (Anatoly Milkailavich) @ Jason Barry (Tommy Ryan) @ Ewan Stewart (First Officer William McMaster Murdoch) @ Ioan Gruffudd (Fifth Officer Harold Godfrey Lowe) @ Jonathan Phillips (Second Officer Charles Herbert Lightoller (as Jonny Phillips)) @ Mark Lindsay Chapman (Chief Officer Henry T. Wilde) @ Richard Graham (Quartermaster George Rowe) @ Paul Brightwell (Quartermaster Robert Hitchens) @ Ron Donachie (Master at Arms Joseph Bailey) @ Eric Braeden (Col. John Jacob Astor IV) @ Charlotte Chatton (Madeleine Astor) @ Bernard Fox (Col. Archibald Gracie) @ Michael Ensign (Benjamin Guggenheim) @ Fannie Brett (Mme. Leontine Pauline Aubart) @ Jenette Goldstein (Irish mother) @ Camilla Overbye Roos (Helga Dahl) @ Linda Kerns (Third-class woman) @ Amy Gaipa (Trudy Bolt) @ Martin Jarvis (Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon) @ Rosalind Ayres (Lady Lucille Duff-Gordon) @ Rochelle Rose (Lucy Noel Martha Dyer-Edwards, Countess of Rothes) @ Jonathan Evans-Jones (Wallace Hartley) @ Brian Walsh (Irish man) @ Rocky Taylor (Bert Cartmell) @ Alexandrea Owens (Cora Cartmell (as Alexandre Owens)) @ Simon Crane (Fourth Officer Joseph Boxhall) @ Edward Fletcher (Sixth Officer James Moody) @ Scott G. Anderson (Lookout Fredrick Fleet) @ Martin East (Lookout Reginald Lee) @ Craig Kelly (Assistant Marconi Wireless Operator Harold Bride) @ Gregory Cooke (Chief Marconi Officer Jack Phillips) @ Liam Tuohy (Chief Baker Charles Joughin) @ James Lancaster (Father Thomas Byles) @ Elsa Raven (Rosalie Ida Strauss) @ Lew Palter (Isidor Straus) @ Reece P. Thompson III (Little Irish boy) @ Laramie Landis (Little Irish girl) @ Amber Waddell (Cal's crying girl) @ Alison Waddell (Cal's crying girl) @ Mark Rafael Truitt (Yaley) @ John Walcutt (First-class husband) @ Terry Forestal (Chief Engineer Joseph Bell) @ Derek Lea (Leading Fireman Fredrick Barrett) @ Richard Ashton (Carpenter John Hutchinson) @ Sean Nepita (Elevator operator) @ Brendan Connolly (Scotland Road steward) @ David Cronnelly (Crewman) @ Garth Wilton (First-class waiter) @ Martin Laing (Promenade Deck steward) @ Richard Fox (Steward #1) @ Nick Meaney (Steward #2) @ Kevin Owers (Steward #3) @ Mark Capri (Steward #4) @ Marc Cass (Hold steward #1) @ Paul Herbert (Hold steward #2) @ Emmett James (First-class steward) @ Chris Byrne (Stairwell steward (as Christopher Byrne)) @ Oliver Page (Steward Barnes) @ James Garrett (Titanic porter) @ Erik Holland (Olaf Dahl) @ Jari Kinnunen (Bjorn Gunderson) @ Anders Falk (Olaus Gunderson) @ Martin Hub (Slovakian father) @ Seth Adkins (Slovakian three-year-old boy) @ Barry Dennen (Praying man) @ Vern Urich (Man in water) @ Rebecca Klingler (Mother at stern (as Rebecca Jane Klingler)) @ Tricia O'Neil (Woman) @ Kathleen S. Dunn (Woman in water (as Kathleen Dunn)) @ Romeo Francis (Syrian man) @ Mandana Marino (Syrian woman) @ Van Ling (Chinese man) @ Bjørn Olsen (Olaf (as Bjørn)) @ Dan Pettersson (Sven) @ Shay Duffin (Pubkeeper) @ Greg Ellis (Carpathia steward) @ Diana Morgan (Reporter) @ Lorenz Hasler (Orchestra member (as I salonisti)) @ Thomas Füri (Orchestra member (as I salonisti)) @ Ferenc Szedlák (Orchestra member (as I salonisti)) @ Béla Szedlák (Orchestra member (as I salonisti)) @ Werner Giger (Orchestra member (as I salonisti)) @ Patrick Murphy (Steerage band member (as Gaelic Storm)) @ Stephen Wehmeyer (Steerage band member (as Gaelic Storm)) @ Stephen Twigger (Steerage band member (as Gaelic Storm)) @ Shep Lonsdale (Steerage band member (as Gaelic Storm)) @ Samantha Hunt (Steerage band member (as Gaelic Storm) rest of cast listed alphabetically Kris Andersson .... Steerage dancer) @ Bobbie Bates (Steerage dancer) @ Aaron James Cash (Steerage dancer) @ Anne Fletcher (Steerage dancer) @ Edmund Alan Forsyth (Steerage dancer) @ Andie Hicks (Steerage dancer) @ Scott Hislop (Steerage dancer) @ Stan Mazin (Steerage dancer) @ Lisa Ratzin (Steerage dancer) @ Julene Renee (Steerage dancer) @ Dawn M. Bourn (Woman in life boat (uncredited)) @ Alexandra Boyd (First-class woman (uncredited)) @ Mike Butters (Musician/baker (uncredited)) @ James Cameron (Cameo appearance (steerage dancer) (uncredited)) @ Bruno Campolo (Second-class man (uncredited)) @ Chris Cragnotti (Victor Giglio (uncredited)) @ Aimee Amanda Garten (Young female first-class passener (uncredited)) @ Jo Lynn Garten (Older female second-class passenger (uncredited)) @ Tony Kenny (Deckhand (uncredited)) @ Don Lynch (Frederick Spedden (uncredited)) @ Johnny Martin (Rescue boat crewman (uncredited)) @ Ellen O'Brien (Frozen woman with baby (uncredited)) @ Judy Prestininzi (Praying woman (uncredited)) @ Stephen Wolfe Smith (First-class young man (uncredited)) @ R. Gern Trowbridge (Drowning man (uncredited)) @ Francisco Váldez (Man being combed for lice (uncredited) Produced by||The Huge Machine Spoilers herein. I admit to a certain admiration of Cameron. Alone among special effects manipulators, he has a solid sense of what works cinematically. When he invests, he invests in a world. That world envelops us with its completeness and magnitude. It is the opposite of, say, Carpenter, who invests in the stage, in the world of the performer rather than the viewer. As far back as `Aliens' this talent has been apparent. This time, he sticks to the formula of a simple story annotated by all sorts of associations. No second plotline. No ambiguities or any questions open for viewer judgment. But he is sensitive to this I think and that is why he chose the most promising young actors that know something about narrative folding. That's where you act both in the space of the story and the world of the viewer. Kate in `Creatures' and Leo in `Romeo' did this. Kate has since grown to master it. His intent is underscored by making the color of her hair more brilliant. I don't know why yet, but this seems to signal such acting, at least in women. But alas, except for the brief scene where Leo draws her - a natural situation for this type of acting - it is absent. Probably Cameron intended something deeper and more nuanced but just couldn't manage it. In this case as well as that of the ship, the vast machine wins. Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 4: Has some interesting elements. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Titus|Julie Taymor|Drama|Rated R for strong violent and sexual images. |7.3|USA|1999| 162 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Conchita Airoldi Paul G. Allen Stephen K. Bannon Robert Bernacchi Mark Bisgeier Adam Leipzig Ellen Dinerman Little Robert Little Brad Moseley Jody Patton Linda Reisman Julie Taymor Karen L. Thorson Michiyo Yoshizaki|William Shakespeare Julie Taymor|Luciano Tovoli ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The fall of an empire. The descent of man.|War begets revenge. Victorious general, Titus Andronicus, returns to Rome with hostages: Tamora queen of the Goths and her sons. He orders the eldest hewn to appease the Roman dead. He declines the proffered emperor's crown, nominating Saturninus, the last ruler's venal elder son. Saturninus, to spite his brother Bassianus, demands the hand of Lavinia, Titus's daughter. When Bassianus, Lavinia, and Titus's sons flee in protest, Titus stands against them and slays one of his own. Saturninus marries the honey-tongued Tamora, who vows vengeance against Titus. The ensuing maelstrom serves up tongues, hands, rape, adultery, racism, and Goth-meat pie. There's irony in which two sons survive. |Osheen Jones (Young Lucius) @ Dario D'Ambrosi (Clown) @ Anthony Hopkins (Titus Andronicus) @ Jessica Lange (Tamora) @ Raz Degan (Alarbus) @ Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (Chiron) @ Matthew Rhys (Demetrius) @ Harry J. Lennix (Aaron (as Harry Lennix)) @ Angus MacFadyen (Lucius) @ Kenny Doughty (Quintus) @ Blake Ritson (Mutius) @ Colin Wells (Martius) @ Ettore Geri (Priest) @ Alan Cumming (Saturninus) @ Constantine Gregory (Aemelius) @ James Frain (Bassianus) @ Colm Feore (Marcus Andronicus) @ Laura Fraser (Lavinia) @ Geraldine McEwan (Nurse) @ Tresy Taddei (Little Girl) @ Bah Souleymane (Infant) @ Antonio Manzini (Publius) @ Leonardo Treviglio (Caius) @ Giacomo Gonnella (Sempronius) @ Carlo Medici (Valentin) @ Emanuele Vezzoli (Goth Leader) @ Hermann Weisskopf (Goth Soldier (as Herman Weiskopf)) @ Christopher Ahrens (Goth Soldier (as Cristopher Aherns)) @ Vito Fasano (Goth General) @ Maurizio Rapotec (Goth Lieutenant) @ Bruno Bilotta (Roman Captain Produced by||gripping, absurdist view of Shakespeare In recent years, a new fashion has sprung up among filmmakers who have attempted to bring Shakespeare's works to the screen.No longer content to keep the plays bound to the historical eras in which they are set, many an adapter has chosen to transport the plots and dialogue virtually intact to either a completely modern setting or a strange never-never land that combines elements of the past with elements of the present.In just the last few years, we have seen this done with `Romeo and Juliet,' `Richard the Third' (albeit this one made it only as far as the 1940's) and even Kenneth Branagh's `Hamlet,' which, although also not exactly contemporary in setting, did at least move that familiar story ahead in time several centuries.Now comes `Titus,' a film based on one of Shakespeare's earliest, bloodiest and least well known plays, `Titus Andronicus,' and, in many ways, this film is the most bizarrely conceived of the four, since it creates a world in which - amidst the architectural splendors of ancient columned buildings - Roman warriors, dressed in traditional armor and wielding unsheathed swords, battle for power in a land disconcertingly filled with motorcycles and automobiles, pool tables and Pepsi cans, punk hair cuts and telephone poles, video games and loud speakers.The effect of all this modernization may be unsettling and off-putting to the Shakespearean purist, yet, in the case of all four of these films, the directorial judgment has paid off handsomely.Not only does this technique revive some of the freshness of these overly familiar works, but these strange, otherworldly settings actually render more poetic the heightened unreality of Shakespeare's dialogue.Plus, in all honesty, Shakespeare's plays are themselves riddled with so many examples of historical anachronisms that the `crime' of modernization seems a piddling one at best. Those unfamiliar with `Titus Andronicus' may well be caught off guard by the ferocious intensity of this Shakespearean work.Moralists who decry the rampant display of unrestrained violence in contemporary culture and look longingly back to a time when art and entertainment were supposedly free of this particular blight may well be shocked and appalled to see Shakespeare's utter relishment in gruesomeness and gore here.In this shocking tale of betrayal, vengeance and rampant brutality, heads, tongues and limbs are lopped off with stunning regularity and it is a measure of Julie Taymor's skill as a director and her grasp of the shocking nature of the material that, even in this day and age when we have become so inured and jaded in the area of screen violence, we are truly shaken by the work's cruelty and ugliness.Yet, Taymor occasionally injects scenes of daring black comedy into the proceedings, as when Titus and his brother carry away the heads of his sons contained in glass jars while his own daughter, who has had her own hands chopped off in a vicious rape, carries Titus' own dismembered hand in her teeth!There are even meat pies made out of two of Titus's enemies to be served up as dinner for their unwitting mother.Thus, even though we can never take our eyes off the screen, this is often a very difficult film to watch. `Titus' is filled with elements of character, plot and theme that Shakespeare would enlarge upon in later works.It includes a father betrayed by his progeny (`King Lear'), a Moorish general (`Othello'), a struggle for political power (`Julius Caesar' among others) and - a theme that runs through virtually all Shakespeare's tragedies - the need for revenge to maintain filial or familial honor.Anthony Hopkins is superb as Titus, capturing the many internal contradictions that plague this man who, though a beloved national hero and military conqueror, finds himself too weary to accept the popular acclamation to make him emperor - a decision he will live to rue when his refusal ends up placing the power directly into the hands of a rival who makes it his ambition to bring ghastly ruin upon Titus' family.Titus is also a man who can, without a twinge of conscience, kill a son he feels has betrayed him and disembowel a captive despite the pleas of his desperate mother, yet, at the same time, show mercy to the latter's family, humbly refuse the power offered him, and break down in heartbroken despair at the executions of his sons and the sight of his own beloved daughter left tongueless and handless by those very same people he has seen fit to spare.Jessica Lange, as the mother of the captive Titus cruelly dismembers, seethes with subtle, pent-up anger as she plots her revenge against Titus and his family. Visually, this widescreen film is a stunner.Taymor matches the starkness of the drama with a concomitant visual design, often grouping her characters in studied compositions set in bold relief against an expansive, dominating sky.At times, the surrealist imagery mirrors Fellini at his most flamboyant. The fact that this is one of Shakespeare's earliest works is evident in the undisciplined plotting and the emphasis on sensationalism at the expense of the powerful themes that would be developed more fully in those later plays with which we are all familiar.At the end of the story, for instance, many of the characters seem to walk right into their deaths in ways that defy credibility.We sense that Shakespeare may not yet have developed the playwright's gift for bringing all his elements together to create a satisfying resolution.Thus, it is the raw energy of the novice - the obvious glee with which this young writer attacks his new medium - that Taymor, in her wildly absurdist style, taps into most strongly.`Titus' may definitely not be for the faint of heart or the weak of stomach, but the purely modern way in which the original play is presented in this particular film version surely underlines the timelessness that is Shakespeare. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ To Kill a Mockingbird|Robert Mulligan|Drama|NR |8.5|USA|1962|129 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/12/2004|Alan J. Pakula |Harper Lee Horton Foote|Russell Harlan ||Universal International Pictures (UI or U-I) [us] |The most beloved Pulitzer Prize book now comes vividly alive on the screen!|Based on Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize winning book of 1960. Atticus Finch is a lawyer in a racially divided Alabama town in the 1930s. He agrees to defend a young black man who is accused of raping a white woman. Many of the townspeople try to get Atticus to pull out of the trial, but he decides to go ahead. How will the trial turn out - and will it change any of the racial tension in the town ? Through the eyes of "Scout," a feisty six-year-old tomboy, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD carries us on an odyssey through the fires of prejudice and injustice in 1932 Alabama. Presenting her tale first as a sweetly lulling reminiscence of events from her childhood, the narrator draws us near with stories of daring neighborhood exploits by she, her brother "Jem," and their friend "Dill." Peopled with a cast of eccentrics, Macomb ("a tired and sleepy town") finds itself the venue of the trial of Tom Robinson, a young black man falsely accused of raping an ignorant white woman. Atticus Finch, Scout and Jem's widowed father and a deeply principled man, is appointed to defend Tom for whom a guilty verdict from an all-white jury is a foregone conclusion. Juxtaposed against the story of the trial is the childrens' hit and run relationship with Boo Radley, a shut-in who the children and Dill's Aunt Stephanie suspect of insanity and who no one has seen in recent history. Cigar-box treasures, found in the knot hole of a tree near the ramshackle Radley house, temper the children's judgement of Boo. "You never know someone," Atticus tells Scout, "until you step inside their skin and walk around a little." But fear keeps them at a distance until one night, in streetlight and shadows, the children confront an evil born of ignorance and blind hatred and must somehow find their way home. The place: a small town in the south of the United States. The time: the early 20th century. A black man is accused of raping a woman, and an idealistic lawyer gets to defend him. We start watching the reasons that make his defense far from easy; and that's mostly because nobody in this town seems determined to believe in the guiltlessness of an accused negro. |Gregory Peck (Atticus Finch) @ Mary Badham (Jean Louise 'Scout' Finch) @ Phillip Alford (Jeremy 'Jem' Finch) @ Robert Duvall (Arthur 'Boo' Radley) @ John Megna (Charles Baker 'Dill' Harris) @ Frank Overton (Sheriff Heck Tate) @ Rosemary Murphy (Maudie Atkinson) @ Ruth White (Mrs. Dubose) @ Brock Peters (Tom Robinson) @ Estelle Evans (Calpurnia) @ Alice Ghostley (Aunt Stephanie Crawford) @ Paul Fix (Judge Taylor) @ Collin Wilcox Paxton (Mayella Violet Ewell (as Collin Wilcox)) @ James Anderson (Robert E. Lee 'Bob' Ewell) @ William Windom (Mr. Gilmer, Prosecutor) @ Crahan Denton (Walter Cunningham Sr.) @ Richard Hale (Nathan Radley rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ R.L. Armstrong (Man (uncredited)) @ Steve Condit (Walter Cunningham Jr. (uncredited)) @ David Crawford (David Robinson (uncredited)) @ Jamie Forster (Hiram Townsend (uncredited)) @ Charles E. Fredericks (Court clerk (uncredited)) @ Jester Hairston (Spence Robinson, Tom's Father (uncredited)) @ Kim Hamilton (Helen Robinson (uncredited)) @ Kim Hector (Cecil Jacobs (uncredited)) @ Nancy Marshall (Schoolteacher (uncredited)) @ Paulene Myers (Jesse (uncredited)) @ Hugh Sanders (Dr. Reynolds (uncredited)) @ Barry Seltzer (Schoolboy (uncredited)) @ Kim Stanley (Narrator (Scout as an adult) (voice) (uncredited)) @ Jay Sullivan (Court reporter (uncredited)) @ Kelly Thordsen (Burly Mob Member (uncredited)) @ Max Wagner (Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)) @ William Walker (Rev. Sykes (uncredited)) @ Dan White (Mob Leader (uncredited)) @ Guy Wilkerson (Jury foreman (uncredited)Produced by||PhD Adaptation A dreadful adaptation of the book by Harper Lee. In the book, it engages you by mentioning how the Caucasian American community trace their origins to either side of the Battle of Hastings (eg. Yankees - Normans, Confederates - Saxons). The Battle of Hastings is then likened to the American Civil War where the Normans (Yankees) won and the Saxons (Confederates) lost. However, the Saxons (Confederates) went on to win the cultural war by converting the Normans (Yankees) into Englishmen (Americans), and drew the boundaries within the Caucasian community. The novel progresses from this Victorian inheritance to set the scene for why there is segregation between the black and white American communities after the abolition of slavery. It was a question of the black man having the right to be called American (or English in relation to Saxons and Normans). Brock Peters's relationship with the white girl (who is seen as white trash) is interpreted as the black man wanting to have sexual and social liaisons with their white neighbours to solidify their national identity, and an attempt is made on his life. In the film, Peters is shot, and the attention is drawn towards a rather sad character who has nothing whatsoever to do with the book. In the book, the black man is put on trial and proven innocent, but demonstrates that the only white women that would want a black man is 'white trash'. In reality, that is not altogether true, but in some instances, it is. ||Collector's Edition |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar|Beeban Kidron|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for subject matter involving men living in drag, a brief scene of spousal abuse and some language. |5.5|USA|1995| 109 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|G. Mac Brown Bruce Cohen Mitchell Kohn Walter F. Parkes|Douglas Carter Beane |Steve Mason ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Attitude is everything. |After Vida Boheme and Noxeema Jackson win a major New York drag contest and a trip to Hollywood, they are persuaded to take the inexperienced 'drag princess' Chi Chi with them. They hire a beat-up old Cadillac and set off for L.A., but their car breaks down in a small town in the middle of nowhere. With just their wits and an endless supply of garish costumes, they transform the town and everyone who lives there - until homophobic cop Sheriff Dollard catches up with them... |Wesley Snipes (Miss Noxeema Jackson) @ Patrick Swayze (Miss Vida Boheme (Eugene)) @ John Leguizamo (Miss Chi-Chi Rodriguez) @ Stockard Channing (Carol Ann) @ Blythe Danner (Beatrice) @ Arliss Howard (Virgil) @ Jason London (Bobby Ray) @ Chris Penn (Sheriff Dollard) @ Melinda Dillon (Merna (beauty parlor owner)) @ Beth Grant (Loretta) @ Alice Drummond (Clara (old woman)) @ Marceline Hugot (Katina) @ Jennifer Milmore (Bobby Lee) @ Jamie Harrold (Billy Budd) @ Mike Hodge (Jimmy Joe (restaurant manager)) @ Michael Vartan (Tommy (bully)) @ RuPaul (Miss Rachel Tensions) @ Julie Newmar (Herself) @ Joel Story (Little Earnest) @ Abie Hope Hyatt (Donna Lee) @ Jamie Leigh Wolbert (Sandra Lee) @ Shea Degan (State trooper #1) @ Dean Houser (State trooper #2) @ Joe Grojean (State trooper #3) @ Keith Reddin (Motel manager) @ Naomi Campbell (Herself) @ William P. Hopkins (Small guy) @ Dayton Callie (Crazy Elijah) @ Ron Carley (Old man) @ Shea R. Bredenkamp (Rude boy) @ Michael A. Tushaus (Rude boy) @ Patrick Tuttle (Rude boy) @ Timothy A. Zimmerman (Rude boy) @ Tim Keller (Rude boy) @ Miss Understood (Herself) @ Joseph Arias (Justine (as Joey Arias)) @ Allen Hidalgo (Chita Riviera) @ Mishell Chandler (Miss Missy) @ Catiria Reyes (Herself) @ David Drumgold (Cappuccino Commotion) @ Clinton Leupp (Miss Coco Peru) @ Lionel Tiburcio (Laritza Dumont) @ Bernard A. Mosca (Olympia) @ Daniel T. 'Sweetie' Boothe (Announcer) @ David Barton (Boy in chains) @ Susanne Bartsch (New York pageant judge) @ Quentin Crisp (New York pageant judge) @ Kevin 'Flotilla DeBarge' Joseph (New York pageant judge) @ Matthew Kasten (New York pageant judge) @ Widow Norton (New York pageant judge) @ Charles Ching (Coco LaChine) @ Mike Fulk (Victoria Weston) @ Niasse N. Mamadou (Lola) @ Candis Cayne (Candis Cayne (as Brendan McDanniel)) @ Shelton McDonald (Princess Diandra) @ Richard Ogden (Kabuki) @ James Palacio (Fiona James) @ Steven Polito (Hedda Lettuce) @ Philip Stoehr (Philomena) @ Margaret H. Flynn (Vida's mother (as Martha Flynn)) @ Billie J. Diekman (Florist) @ Shari Shell-True (Dance teacher rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jimmy Ashmore (Club kid (uncredited)) @ Brian Ferrari (Club kid (uncredited)) @ Lady Kiteria (Girl on stage (uncredited)) @ Robin Williams (John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt (uncredited) Produced by||oh DARLING!!!! Hehehe, i loved this movie! It made me laff soooo much! I couldn't believe the line up when i saw it! All i have to say about this was that it is simply fantastic! I loved the story line and altho i'm sad to admit, it is all pure fantasy, but most people live in a fantasy world nowadaysand well, this is one movie where i wish i could live in this fantasy! To be accepted like that with no problems? Wow, thats pretty good that is! I've watched this movie something like 5 times in two weeks and i still think that its kewl 0=] I usually get tired of movies after a while, but this i haven't! It does help to be queer to watch this movie, but the girls will love it and the guys will think "whats the point?" But for me, the point is that its a kewl movie about acceptance and also the "four rules to becoming a drag queen" LOL Check it out, if u like this stuff then u won't be disappointed! ||Movies ||Movies ||||||@@ Tommy Boy|Peter Segal|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for sex-related humor, some drug content and nudity. |6.4|USA|1995| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael Ewing Lorne Michaels Barnaby Thompson Robert K. Weiss|Bonnie Turner Terry Turner|Victor J. Kemper ||Paramount Home Video [us] |If at first you don't succeed, lower your standards. |When Big Tom Callahan dies, his auto parts factory passes to his family, many of whom want to sell it to a corporation which plans to close it down. Now its up to Tommy Callahan III to generate enough brake pad sales to save the factory and its employees from losing their jobs. Thomas calahan III is kind of a dumb guy. His father gets married to woman who is actually trying to get him for his money by taking over his stocks and then put his brake pad company out of business. When Big Tom dies of a sudden stroke, it seems pretty good for Beverly and tommy's "brother". but Tommy and his buddy Richard are going to set out and keep Calahan auto parts in business. I have said too much. Tommy Callahan Jr. is a slow-witted, clumsy guy who recently graduated college after attending for seven years. His father, Big Tom Callahan, owns an auto parts factory in Ohio. When Tommy arrives back home, he finds he has a position at the factory waiting for him. His dad also introduces Tommy to the new brake pad division of the factory and to Tommy's soon-to-be stepmother, Beverly, and her son Paul. But when Big Tom dies, the factory threatens to go under unless the new brake pads are to be sold. Therefore, Tommy must go on the road to sell them, along with the assistance of Richard, Big Tom's right-hand man. Will Tommy save the company, or will the factory, and the town, go under? |Chris Farley (Thomas 'Tommy' Callahan III) @ David Spade (Richard Hayden) @ Brian Dennehy (Thomas 'Big Tom' Callahan II) @ Bo Derek (Beverly Barish-Burns) @ Dan Aykroyd (Ray Zalinsky) @ Julie Warner (Michelle Brock) @ Sean McCann (Frank Rittenhauer) @ Zach Grenier (Ted Reilly) @ James Blendick (Ron Gilmore, Banker) @ Clinton Turnbull (Young Thomas Callahan III) @ Ryder Britton (Young Richard Hayden) @ Paul Greenberg (Skittish Student) @ Graeme Millington (Frat Boy) @ Michael Cram (Frat Boy) @ Dean Marshall (Frat Boy) @ Trent McMullen (Frat Boy) @ Philip Williams (Danny, Factory Worker) @ David 'Skippy' Malloy (Sammy, Factory Worker) @ Roy Lewis (Louis, Factory Worker) @ Austin Pool (Obnoxious Bus Kid) @ William Dunlop (R.T., Shipping Foreman) @ Jack Jessop (Priest) @ Michael Dunston (Singer at Wedding) @ David Hemblen (Archer) @ George Kinamis (Kid at Lake) @ Dov Tiefenbach (Kid at Lake) @ Mark Zador (Kid at Lake) @ Helen Hughes (Boardroom Woman) @ J.R. Zimmerman (Boardroom Man) @ Robert K. Weiss ('No' Manager) @ Reg Dreger ('No' Manager) @ Lloyd White ('No' Manager) @ David Huband (Gas Attendant) @ Hayley Gibbons (Little Girl at Carnival) @ Julianne Gillies (Brady's Receptionist) @ Addison Bell (Mr. Brady, Customer) @ Corey Sevier (Boy in Commercial) @ Maria Vacratsis (Helen the Waitress) @ Colin Fox (Ted Nelson, Customer) @ Lorri Bagley (Naked Woman at Motel Pool) @ Lynn Cunningham (Pretty Hitchhiker) @ David Calderisi ('Yes' Executive) @ Sven Van de Ven ('Yes' Executive) @ Errol Sitahal ('Yes' Executive) @ Marc Strange (Executive with Toy Cars) @ Michael Ewing (Ticket Agent) @ Adrian Truss (Cop afraid of Bees) @ Christopher John (Cop afraid of Bees) @ Henry Gomez (Airport Cop) @ Lindsay Leese (Reservationist) @ Camilla Scott (Stewardess) @ Bunty Webb (Large Woman) @ Marilyn Boyle (Woman with Pin) @ Gino Marrocco (Chicago Cabbie) @ Gil Filar (Kid in Bank) @ Jonathan Wilson (Marty, Zalinsky's Aide) @ Sandi Stahlbrand (Nicole Taylor, Action 8 News) @ Ron James (Bank Guard) @ Brian Kaulback (Bank Guard) @ Mark L. Ingram (Zalinsky's Security Guard) @ Jim Codrington (Zalinsky's Security Guard) @ Pat Moffatt (Mrs. Nelson) @ Raymond Hunt (Restaurant Regular) @ Robbie Rox (Restaurant Regular) @ Jerry Schaefer (Restaurant Regular) @ Taylor Segal (Flower Girl rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ John Farley (Roy (uncredited)) @ Kevin P. Farley (Guy at Dad's Party (uncredited)) @ Rob Lowe (Paul Barish (uncredited)) @ Jordan-Patrick Marcantonio (Teen at Gas Station (uncredited) Produced by||Chris Farley was an unbelievable talent, but this comedy is too lame for its own good. Chris Farley was a uniquely talented comic with relentless energy, and he almost always made me laugh.Of course, his funniest appearances were on SNL with such legendary characters as Matt Foley.He was quite funny in this movie, sometimes hilarious, but the script was extremely lame and forced the characters to go through such ludicrous, predictable situations. Farley did his best to salvage the weakly written gags and succeeds at times, but not enough.If there was a scene that required a cheap pratfall, he tried to make it funny by screaming out loud and overacting.Usually, that method of comedy worked for him--and often cracked me up--but with material like this, he just made a fool of himself.Luckily, Farley was the kind of guy who never overacted to the point where it was annoying--Well, at least that's how I feel.He was another one of those comic actors--a little like Adam Sandler--who had an oddly appealing comic charm and made me laugh for no real particular reason. David Spade, however, gave the most annoying performance of his career.He can be funny.In a lot of instances, he is.But playing a sarcastic, stuck-up yuppie is not his forte.He just spouted out one pretentiously annoying line after another. The plot is predictable, stupid, implausible and topped off with some cheesy twists.The gags are often cheap and embarrassing. Farley was about the only saving grace.He was the only reason I did get some good laughs. My score:5 (out of 10) || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Top Gun|Tony Scott|Action||6.5|USA|1986| 110 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bill Badalato Jerry Bruckheimer Don Simpson Warren Skaaren|Ehud Yonay Jim Cash Jack Epps Jr.|Jeffrey L. Kimball ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Up there with the best of the best.|Maverick is a hot pilot. When he encounters a pair of MiGs over the Persian Gulf, his wingman is clearly outflown and freaks. On almost no fuel, Maverick is able to talk him back down to the Carrier. When his wingman turns in his wings, Maverick is moved up in the standings and sent to the Top Gun Naval Flying School. There he fights the attitudes of the other pilots and an old story of his father's death in combat that killed others due to his father's error. Maverick struggles to be the best pilot, stepping on the toes of his other students and in a different way to Charlie, a civilian instructor to whom he is strongly attracted. |Tom Cruise (Lt. Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell) @ Kelly McGillis (Charlotte 'Charlie' Blackwood) @ Val Kilmer (Lt. Tom 'Iceman' Kazanski) @ Anthony Edwards (Lt. (j.g.) Nick 'Goose' Bradshaw) @ Tom Skerritt (Cmdr. Mike 'Viper' Metcalf) @ Michael Ironside (Lt. Cmdr. Rick 'Jester' Heatherly) @ John Stockwell (Cougar) @ Barry Tubb (Wolfman) @ Rick Rossovich (Lt. (j.g.) Ron 'Slider' Kerner) @ Tim Robbins (Lt. (j.g.) Sam 'Merlin' Wells) @ Clarence Gilyard Jr. (Sundown) @ Whip Hubley (Hollywood) @ James Tolkan (Stinger) @ Meg Ryan (Carole Bradshaw) @ Adrian Pasdar (Chipper) @ Randall Brady (Lt. Davis) @ Duke Stroud (Air Boss Johnson) @ Brian Sheehan (Sprawl) @ Ron Clark (Inquiry Commander) @ Frank Pesce (Bartender) @ Pete Pettigrew (Perry Siedenthal) @ Troy Hunter (Radio Operator) @ Linda Rae Jurgens (Mrs. Metcalf) @ Admiral T.J. Cassidy (Himself rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Debi Fares ( (uncredited)) @ Scott Krambeck (Scott (uncredited) Produced by||Sizzling "Top Gun" is one of those films from the 1980s that has become a pop classic. It is made by director Tony Scott kind of like a wild and crazy music video with great sounds and greater looking people. The plot is kind of thin as Tom Cruise and partner Anthony Edwards attend the U.S. Flying Top Gun Naval Flying School and try to juggle their careers and their personal lives. Kelly McGillis does her best work as Cruise's love interest. The film also sports a strong cast which includes Meg Ryan, Tom Skeritt, Michael Ironside, Val Kilmer, and a young Tim Robbins (do not blink you might miss Robbins). Good overall. 4 stars out of 5. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Total Recall|Paul Verhoeven|Action||7.2|USA|1990| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Buzz Feitshans Robert Fentress Mario Kassar Elliot Schick Ronald Shusett Andrew G. Vajna|Philip K. Dick Ronald Shusett Dan O'Bannon Jon Povill Ronald Shusett Dan O'Bannon Gary Goldman|Jost Vacano ||20th Century Fox Home Entertainment [us] |They stole his mind, now he wants it back.|What is reality when you can't trust your memory. Arnold Schwartzenegger is an Earthbound construction worker who keeps having dreams about Mars. A trip to a false memory transplant service for an imaginary trip to Mars goes terribly wrong and another personality surfaces. When his old self returns, he finds groups of his friends and several strangers seem to have orders to kill him. He finds records his other self left him that tell him to get to Mars to join up with the underground. The reality of the situation is constantly in question. Who is he? Which personality is correct? Which version of reality is true? Douglas Quaid is haunted by the same dream every night about a journey to Mars. He hopes to find out more about this dream and buys a holiday at Rekall Inc. where they sell implanted memories. But something goes wrong with the memory implantation and he remembers being a secret agent fighting against the evil Mars administrator Coohagen. Now the story really begins and its a rollercoaster ride until the massive end of the movie. Arnold Schwarzenegger explodes out of the year 2084 A.D. as he smashes his way through a horrifyingly real fantasy world, complete with a gorgeous but deadly wife (Sharon Stone), and into a mind-bending nightmarish reality of a Martian mining colony ruled over by a terrorizing dictator (Ronny Cox), who can alter reality to suit his whims. The red planet erupts with rebellious mutants, the fire of an alluring and mysterious woman (Rachel Ticotin) and a vicious and savage enemy. |Arnold Schwarzenegger (Douglas Quaid) @ Rachel Ticotin (Melina) @ Sharon Stone (Lori) @ Ronny Cox (Vilos Cohaagen) @ Michael Ironside (Richter) @ Marshall Bell (George/Kuato) @ Mel Johnson Jr. (Benny) @ Michael Champion (Helm) @ Roy Brocksmith (Dr. Edgemar) @ Ray Baker (Bob McClane) @ Rosemary Dunsmore (Dr. Lull) @ David Knell (Ernie) @ Alexia Robinson (Tiffany) @ Dean Norris (Tony) @ Mark Carlton (Bartender) @ Debbie Lee Carrington (Thumbelina) @ Lycia Naff (Mary) @ Robert Costanzo (Harry (as Bobby Costanzo)) @ Michael LaGuardia (Stevens) @ Priscilla Allen (Fat Lady) @ Ken Strausbaugh (Immigration Officer) @ Marc Alaimo (Everett) @ Michael Gregory (Rebel Lieutenant) @ Ken Gildin (Hotel Clerk) @ Mickey Jones (Burly Miner) @ Parker Whitman (Martian Husband) @ Ellen Gollas (Martian Wife) @ Gloria Dorson (Woman in Phone Booth) @ Erika Carlson (Miss Lonelyhearts) @ Benny Corral (Punk Cabbie) @ Bob Tzudiker (Doctor) @ Erik Cord (Lab Assistant) @ Frank Kopyc (Technician) @ Chuck Sloan (Scientist) @ Dave Nicolson (Scientist) @ Paula McClure (Newscaster) @ Rebecca Ruth (Reporter) @ Milt Tarver (Commercial Announcer) @ Roger Cudney (Agent) @ Monica Steuer (Mutant Mother) @ Sasha Rionda (Mutant Child) @ Linda Howell (Tennis Pro) @ Robert Picardo (Voice of Johnnycab (voice)) @ Anne Lockhart (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Kamala Lopez-Dawson (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Morgan Lofting (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patti Attar (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bob Bergen (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Joe Unger (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Karlyn Michelson (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Lary Crews (Mutant - Fat Man (uncredited) Produced by||Total Recall is great and its a fun, violent epic stature film that delivers everything! Total Recall is such an excellent epic of the futuristic world and its counterpart world the red planet itself, Mars! Arnold is in another great film with tons and tons of action, fantastic special effects and make up, Michael Ironside who is one of MY other favorite actors and he is a bad guy and I mean a bad guy! Sharon Stone acts well and looks great. Rachel Ticotin looks great aswell. Jerry Goldsmith`s score for this is perfect! I think its one of the best ever and not that many people give the great composer credit for it. He should have won an Oscar Award for it easily! All Arnold fans check this non stop action adventure out soon! || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Toy Story|John Lasseter|Animation||7.9|USA|1995| 81 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Bonnie Arnold Ed Catmull Ralph Guggenheim Steve Jobs|John Lasseter Peter Docter Andrew Stanton Joe Ranft Joss Whedon Andrew Stanton Joel Cohen Alec Sokolow|||Buena Vista Home Vídeo [br] |The Toys Are Back In Town.|Imagination runs rampant when toys become mobile when not watched. Two toys, Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) despise each other like no other. But, when the toys are separated from their home, a truce is formed between them all in an effort to journey home. Toy Story is about the 'secret life of toys' when people are not around. When Buzz Lightyear, a space-ranger, takes Woody's place as Andy's favorite toy, Woody doesn't like the situation and gets into a fight with Buzz. Accidentaly Buzz falls out the window and Woody is accused by all the other toys of having killed him. He has to go out of the house to look for him so that they can both return to Andys room. But while on the outside they get into all kind of trouble while trying to get home. |Tom Hanks (Woody (voice)) @ Tim Allen (Buzz Lightyear (voice)) @ Don Rickles (Mr. Potato Head (voice)) @ Jim Varney (Slinky Dog (voice)) @ Wallace Shawn (Rex (voice)) @ John Ratzenberger (Hamm (voice)) @ Annie Potts (Bo Peep (voice)) @ John Morris (Andy Davis (voice)) @ Erik von Detten (Sid Phillips (voice)) @ Laurie Metcalf (Andy's Mom (voice)) @ R. Lee Ermey (Sarge (voice)) @ Sarah Freeman (Hannah Phillips (voice)) @ Penn Jillette (T.V. Announcer (voice)) @ Jack Angel (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Spencer Aste (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Greg Berg (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Lisa Bradley (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Kendall Cunningham (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Debi Derryberry (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Cody Dorkin (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Bill Farmer (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Craig Good (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Gregory Grudt (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Danielle Judovits (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Sam Lasseter (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Brittany Levenbrown (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Sherry Lynn (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Scott McAfee (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Mickie McGowan (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Ryan O'Donohue (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jeff Pidgeon (Aliens/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patrick Pinney (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jan Rabson (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Joe Ranft (Lenny the Binoculars/Additional Voices (voice)) @ Andrew Stanton (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Shane Sweet (Additional Voices (voice) Produced by||A Monumental Achievement in the Cinema "Toy Story" is a real sight to behold because it is the first feature-length, computer-animated film.Once you get passed the amazing visual effects, you see a really great film that works because of interesting characters and a second-to-none screenplay.Even the roughest of critics would have trouble finding problems with this winner.5 stars out of 5. || |1.78 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Trading Places|John Landis|Comedy||7.3|USA|1983| 118 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|George Folsey Jr. Aaron Russo Irwin Russo Sam Williams|Timothy Harris Herschel Weingrod|Robert Paynter ||CIC Vídeo [br] |They're not just getting rich... they're getting even.|Mortimer and Randolph Duke are commodity brokers who enjoy a little wager now and then. For the latest bet, Randolph believes they can take a common criminal and make him a successful businessman in the company. The criminal, Billy Ray, is to be given the job and home of Louis, who in turn is set up for crimes he didn't commit, to see if he resorts to crime once he's lost his rich environment and friends. Louis Winthorpe III is a successful New York commodity broker with mansion, manservant and girlfriend to match. Billy Ray Valentine is a hustling beggar. Winthorpe's employers, the elderly Duke brothers, make a bet that by switching the lifestyle of the two Billy Ray will make good and their man will take to a life of crime. Suddenly Louis finds himself uncomprehendingly with no job, no home and only a new acquaintance, glamourous hooker Ophelia, prepared to help him. So at least in one way things could actually be worse. |Dan Aykroyd (Louis Winthorpe III) @ Eddie Murphy (Billy Ray Valentine) @ Ralph Bellamy (Randolph Duke) @ Don Ameche (Mortimer Duke) @ Denholm Elliott (Coleman) @ Jamie Lee Curtis (Ophelia) @ Kristin Holby (Penelope Witherspoon) @ Paul Gleason (Clarence Beeks) @ Alfred Drake (President of Exchange) @ Bo Diddley (Pawnbroker) @ Frank Oz (Corrupt cop) @ James Belushi (Harvey) @ Al Franken (Baggage handler #1) @ Tom Davis (Baggage handler #2) @ Maurice Woods (Duke & Duke employee) @ Richard D. Fisher Jr. (Duke & Duke employee) @ Jim Gallagher (Duke & Duke employee) @ Anthony DiSabatino (Duke & Duke employee) @ Bonnie Behrend (Duke & Duke employee) @ Sunnie Merrill (Duke & Duke employee) @ James Newell (Duke & Duke employee (as Jim Newell)) @ Mary St. John (Duke & Duke employee) @ Bonnie Tremena (Duke & Duke employee) @ David Schwartz (Duke & Duke employee) @ Tom Degidon (Duke domestic) @ William Magerman (Duke domestic) @ Alan Dellay (Duke domestic) @ Florence Anglin (Duke domestic) @ Ray D'Amore (Duke domestic) @ Bobra Suiter (Duke domestic) @ Herb Peterson (Duke domestic) @ Sue Dugan (Duke domestic) @ Walt Gorney (Duke domestic) @ B. Constance Barry (Duke domestic) @ P. Jay Sidney (Heritage Club doorman) @ Avon Long (Ezra) @ Tom Mardirosian (Officer Pancuzzi) @ Charles Brown (Officer Reynolds) @ Robert Curtis-Brown (Todd) @ Nicholas Guest (Harry) @ John Bedford Lloyd (Andrew) @ Tony Sherer (Philip) @ Robert Earl Jones (Attendant) @ Robert E. Lee (Cop #1) @ Peter Hock (Cop #2) @ Clint Smith (Doo Rag Lenny) @ Ron Taylor (Big black guy) @ James D. Turner (Even bigger black guy) @ Giancarlo Esposito (Cellmate #2) @ Steve Hofvendahl (Cellmate #3) @ Gwyllum Evans (President of Heritage Club) @ Eddie Jones (Cop #3) @ John McCurry (Cop #4) @ Michelle Mais (Hooker #1) @ Barra Kahn (Hooker #2) @ Bill Cobbs (Bartender) @ Joshua Daniel (Partygoer) @ Jacques Sandulescu (Creepy man) @ W.B. Brydon (Bank Manager) @ Margaret H. Flynn (Duke & Duke receptionist) @ Kelly Curtis (Muffy) @ Tracy K. Shaffer (Constance) @ Susan Fallender (Bunny) @ Lucianne Buchanan (President's mistress) @ Paul Garcia (Junior executive #1) @ Jed Gillin (Junior executive #2) @ Jimmy Raitt (Ophelia's client) @ Kate Taylor (Dukes' Secretary) @ Philip Bosco (Doctor) @ Bill Boggs (Newscaster) @ Deborah Reagan (Harvey's girlfriend) @ Don McLeod (Gorilla) @ Stephen Stucker (Stationmaster) @ Richard Hunt (Wilson) @ Paul Austin (Trader #1) @ John Randolph Jones (Trader #2) @ Jack Davidson (Trader #3) @ Bernie McInerney (Trader #4) @ Maurice Copeland (Secretary of Agriculture) @ Ralph Clanton (Official #1) @ Bryan Clark (Official #2) @ Gary Howard Klar (Longshoreman) @ Afemo Omilami (Longshoreman) @ Shelly Chee Chee Hall (Monica) @ Donna Palmer (Gladys) @ Barry Dennen (Demitri rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ James Eckhouse (Jail guard (uncredited)) @ Arleen Sorkin (Woman at party (uncredited) Produced by||Learning the business. You can see from this what Landis has learned in the intervening years about construction and technique.There's a lot of jury-rigging here, and the trading scene isn't very imaginatively done, but the seeds of precision are in some of the work with Aykroyd and Curtis. An experiment like Oscar is worthwhile if for no other purpose than learning how to block out moves, like John Barrymore in Twentieth Century. || |1.85 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ Treasure Planet|Ron Clements John Muske|Adventure|Rated PG for adventure action and peril. |6.7|USA|2002| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ron Clements Roy Conli Peter Del Vecho John Musker|Robert Louis Stevenson Ron Clements John Musker Ted Elliott Terry Rossio Ron Clements John Musker Rob Edwards Ted Elliott Ken Harsha|||Buena Vista (Austria) GmbH [at] |Find your place in the universe.|A futuristic twist on Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island, Treasure Planet follows restless teen Jim Hawkins on a fantastic journey across the universe as cabin boy aboard a majestic space galleon. Befriended by the ship's charismatic cyborg cook, John Silver, Jim blossoms under his guidance and shows the makings of a fine shipmate as he and the alien crew battle a supernova, a black hole, and a ferocious space storm. But even greater dangers lie ahead when Jim discovers that his trusted friend Silver is actually a scheming pirate with mutiny on his mind. |Roscoe Lee Browne (Mr. Arrow (voice)) @ Corey Burton (Onus (voice)) @ Dane A. Davis (Morph (voice)) @ Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Jim Hawkins (voice)) @ Tony Jay (Narrator (voice)) @ Austin Majors (Young Jim (voice)) @ Patrick McGoohan (Billy Bones (voice)) @ Laurie Metcalf (Sarah Hawkins (voice)) @ Brian Murray (John Silver (voice)) @ David Hyde Pierce (Doctor Doppler (voice)) @ Martin Short (B.E.N. (voice)) @ Emma Thompson (Captain Amelia (voice)) @ Michael McShane (Hands (voice) (as Micheal McShane)) @ Michael Wincott (Scroop (voice)) @ Jack Angel (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Bob Bergen (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Rodger Bumpass (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Jane Carr (Additional Voice (voice)) @ John Cygan (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Jennifer Darling (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Paul Eiding (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Sherry Lynn (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Mona Marshall (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Mickie McGowan (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Patrick Pinney (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Philip Proctor (Additional Voice (voice) (as Phil Proctor)) @ Jeremy Suarez (Additional Voice (voice)) @ Jim Ward (Additional Voice (voice) Produced by||Entertaining sci fi adventure This is the latest animated offering from the folks at Disney, here they reimagine the "Treasure Island" storyline as a rollicking sci fi space adventure.. and do a fairly good job of it. The voice talent is well cast, the animation is good and the story keeps zipping along to make things fairly entertaining if a tad familiar. A solid job that will keep em all entertained. GRADE: B+ || |1.50 : 1 (approx.) (IMAX version) |5.1 ||||||@@ Tron|Steven Lisberger|Action||6.3|USA|1982| 96 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Harrison Ellenshaw Donald Kushner Ron Miller|Steven Lisberger Bonnie MacBird Steven Lisberger|Bruce Logan ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] |A world inside the computer where man has never been. Never before now.|Computer Classic, one of the first computer generated movies. A hacker is split into molecules and is transported into a computer. In this computer a mean program called Master Control behaves like a dictator. The hacker, who programmed a number of features of the environment he got into, teams up with a book keeping program and his girl-friend and together they try to replace Master Control with Tron. Tron is an honest safety system. Tron is a high tech version of the Life of Christ. Inside the computer belief in the users is waning. The Master Control Program and his agent Sark are subjugating all programs to do their wishes instead of those of the users. Flynn, a user who wrote many of the programs, is incarnated into the computer where he meets TRON whose mission is to shut down the MCP. Hacker/arcade owner Kevin Flynn is desperate to prove that the hottest videogames from ENCOM were stolen from him by a former co-worker, who is now a senior executive there. Flynn's efforts, however, are made fruitless by ENCOM's "Big Brother," the megalomaniacal Master Control Program. One night, the MCP catches Flynn in an attempted hack and pulls him into the virtual world. Flynn finds that the MCP is making life in the virtual world just as, if not more, miserable as in the real world. Flynn's only hope is to find TRON, a heroic independent system security program, and help him destroy the MCP to bring order to both worlds. |Jeff Bridges (Kevin Flynn/Clu) @ Bruce Boxleitner (Alan Bradley/Tron) @ David Warner (Ed Dillinger/Sark/Master Control Program (voice)) @ Cindy Morgan (Lora/Yori) @ Barnard Hughes (Dr. Walter Gibbs/Dumont) @ Dan Shor (Ram/Co-worker who wants popcorn) @ Peter Jurasik (Crom) @ Tony Stephano (Peter/Sark's Lieutenant) @ Craig Chudy (Warrior #1) @ Vince Deadrick Jr. (Warrior #2 (as Vince Deadrick)) @ Sam Schatz (Expert Disc Warrior) @ Jackson Bostwick (Head Guard) @ David S. Cass Sr. (Factory Guard (as Dave Cass)) @ Gerald Berns (Guard #1) @ Bob Neill (Guard #2) @ Ted White (Guard #3) @ Mark Stewart (Guard #4) @ Michael Sax (Guard #5) @ Tony Brubaker (Guard #6) @ Charlie Picerni (Tank Commander (as Charles Picerni)) @ Pierre Vuilleumier (Tank Gunner #1) @ Erik Cord (Tank Gunner #2) @ Loyd Catlett (Conscript #1/Video Game Cowboy) @ Michael Dudikoff (Conscript #2 (as Michael Dudikoff II)) @ Richard Bruce Friedman (Video Game Player) @ Rick Feck (Boy in Video Game Arcade) @ John Kenworthy (Boy in Video Game Arcade rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jerry Maren ( (uncredited) Produced by||TRON is a trip down Memory Lane. I remember playing the arcade game at the Chuck E. Cheese's when I was just a kid. That was fun. TRON managed to flash me back in time when Pac-Man was king. The movie stands out only above average at best, but the high-tech visuals were extremely amazing for its time, and it appeared to be TRON's greatest feature. Much of the action was faithfully duplicated from the old TRON videogames of yesteryear, and has been a lot of fun ever since. One problem, though: it's too old in concept. That isn't the film's fault, but it shows how technology has dramatically evolved during fifteen years, which means it won't appeal to the teenagers of today who are addicted to Pentium power. TRON will bring back memories of 25 cent machines and crowded arcade weekends that's now gone forever. Are any millennium newbies going to be interested in '80s nostalgia? Hmmm... || |2.20 : 1 |4.0 ||||||@@ True Colors|Herbert Ross|Drama|R |6.0|USA|1991|111 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||9/13/2004|Joseph M. Caracciolo Laurence Mark Herbert Ross|Kevin Wade |Dante Spinotti ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Lies. Deceit. Betrayal. It's What Friendship Is All About.|Peter and Tim are both law students looking to get into the battleground of politics in Washington, but they both have different ideals and ethics. Tim wants to pursue a career in justice, but Peter is determined to be a big political power broker any way he can, even if that means bending the rules. As their careers push them towards political opposites, their friendship must constantly adapt to the new situation. Peter Burton and Tim Garrity both meet when they go to law school. Tim comes from an affluent family, while Peter comes from the working class, which he is a bit ashamed of. Tim's a noble person who wants to do what is right, while Peter's willing to do whatever it takes to get ahead. And that includes blackmail and intimidation. And when his latest scheme burns Tim, Tim decides to find out if Peter deliberately betrayed him or if the man he works, John Palmeri made him do it and if so to make them answer for it. |John Cusack (Peter Burton) @ James Spader (Tim Gerrity) @ Imogen Stubbs (Diana Stiles) @ Mandy Patinkin (John Palmeri) @ Richard Widmark (Sen. Stiles) @ Dina Merrill (Joan Stiles) @ Philip Bosco (Stn. Steubens) @ Paul Guilfoyle (John Laury) @ Brad Sullivan (Abernathy) @ Russell Dennis Baker (Todd) @ Don McManus (Stubblefield) @ Karen Jablons-Alexander (Store Clerk) @ Wendee Pratt (Janine) @ Rende Rae Norman (Fanne) @ Frank Hoyt Taylor (Sen. Lockerby) @ Anthony Fusco (Sam Minot) @ Bev Appleton (Prof. Houseman) @ Mary Mara (Sophia Palmeri) @ Julian Bell (Anchorman) @ Larry Joshua (David) @ Tom Sean Foley (Ken) @ Bruce McCarty (Mark) @ Joe Mattys (Tux Shop Owner) @ Steve Morley (Justice Dept. Aide) @ Joshua Billings (Justice Dept. Aide) @ Ronnie Farer (Justice Dept. Agent) @ Kim Criswell (Campus Radical) @ Sam Hoffman (B.J) @ Antonia Rey (Soledad) @ Peter Hackes (Dr. Burt Tuck) @ Stephen H. Aronson (Miami Reporter) @ Sally Beckner (Miami Reporter) @ Michael Stanton Kennedy (Miami Reporter) @ Sam Wells (Miami Reporter) @ Phillip Coccioletti (Carl) @ John Battle (Burton Campaign Aide) @ Mike Fowler (Burton Campaign Aide) @ Timothy Chambers (FBI Agent) @ Tom Ellis (FBI Agent) @ Michael Haley (FBI Agent (as R.M. Haley)) @ Richard Adee (Palmeri's First Mate (as Richard G. Adee)) @ Donald 'Spec' Campen Jr. (Campaign Aide) @ Ernie Dunn (Campaign Aide) @ Anne H. Hill (Campaign Aide) @ O. Dewayne 'Bart' Davis (Campaign Reporter) @ Mary McMillan (Campaign Reporter) @ Sue Boyd (Senior Supporter) @ Chester Holt (Senior Supporter) @ Ed Sala (Lockerby Aide) @ Rhonda Fitzgerald (Justice Secretary) @ Lisa Cooley (Stiles' Secretary) @ Thomas Hauff (Detective) @ Scott Wickware (Detective rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Keith Weinstein (Supporter #2 (uncredited)Produced by||They got what they deserve! True Colors is a good movie with excellent performances by all actors involved.A very good screenplay also helps this movie, which is not very well known.It is worth the rental just to watch Cusack and Spader together.A rating of 8 out of 10 was given. || ||||||||@@ Truman Show, The|Peter Weir|Comedy|Rated PG for thematic elements and mild language. |7.7|USA|1998| 103 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Edward S. Feldman Andrew Niccol Lynn Pleshette Richard Luke Rothschild Scott Rudin Adam Schroeder|Andrew Niccol |Peter Biziou ||Paramount Pictures [us] |The Story Of A Lifetime|In this movie, Jim Carrey is Truman, a man whose life is a fake one... The place he lives is in fact a big studio with hidden cameras everywhere, and all his friends and people around him, are actors who play their roles in the most popular tv-series in the world: The Truman Show. Truman thinks that he is an ordinary man with an ordinary life and has no idea about how he is exploited. Until one day... he finds out everything. Will he react? Truman Burbank is a normal man, living in a normal town. He grew up to be a desk clerk for a insurance company, living an ordinary life, having an ordinary wife, an ordinary neighbour and an ordinary bud, who pops in from time to time with a sixpack. But Truman is not happy with his life. He wants to see the world. He wants to get away from his happy-happy, ever tidy, nice'n'shiny little island town at the seaside. In reality, Truman was an unwanted pregnancy. His "father", Christof, a reckless TV-Producer whom he never met, made up the Truman Show - the greatest show on earth - a show in which life is live. So, everyone around poor Truman is an actor with a little headphone in the ear. One day, Truman accidentally bumps into a catering area backstage and gets pretty suspicious. His plan now is: Pretend to be sleeping and steal away... He's the star of the show--but he doesn't know. Jim Carrey as Truman Burbank in this movie from director Peter Weir about a man whose life is a nonstop TV show. Truman doesn't realize that his quaint hometown is a giant studio set run by a visionary producer/director/creator (Ed Harris), that folks living and working there are Hollywood actors, that even his incessantly bubbly wife is a contract player. Gradually, Truman gets wise. And what he does about his discovery will have you laughing, crying and cheering. |Jim Carrey (Truman Burbank (Truman's World)) @ Laura Linney (Meryl (Truman's World)) @ Noah Emmerich (Marlon (Truman's World)) @ Natascha McElhone (Lauren/Sylvia (Truman's World)) @ Holland Taylor (Truman's Mother (Truman's World)) @ Brian Delate (Truman's Father (Truman's World)) @ Blair Slater (Young Truman (Truman's World)) @ Peter Krause (Lawrence (Truman's World)) @ Heidi Schanz (Vivien (Truman's World)) @ Ron Taylor (Ron (Truman's World)) @ Don Taylor (Don (Truman's World)) @ Ted Raymond (Spencer (Truman's World)) @ Judy Clayton (Travel Agent (Truman's World)) @ Fritz Dominique (Truman's Neighbor (Truman's World)) @ Angel Schmiedt (Truman's Neighbor (Truman's World)) @ Nastassja Schmiedt (Truman's Neighbor (Truman's World)) @ Muriel Moore (Teacher (Truman's World)) @ Mal Jones (News Vendor (Truman's World)) @ Judson Vaughn (Insurance Co-Worker (Truman's World)) @ Earl Hilliard Jr. (Ferry Worker (Truman's World)) @ David Andrew Nash (Bus Driver/Ferry Captain (Truman's World)) @ Jim Towers (Bus Supervisor (Truman's World)) @ Savannah Swafford (Little Girl in Bus (Truman's World)) @ Antoni Corone (Security Guard (Truman's World)) @ Mario Ernesto Sánchez (Security Guard (Truman's World) (as Mario Ernesto Sanchez)) @ John Roselius (Man at Beach (Truman's World)) @ Kade Coates (Truman (4 years) (Truman's World)) @ Marcia DeBonis (Nurse (Truman's World)) @ Sam Kitchin (Surgeon (Truman's World)) @ Sebastian Youngblood (Orderly (Truman's World)) @ Dave Corey (Hospital Security Guard (Truman's World)) @ Mark Alan Gillott (Policeman at Power Plant (Truman's World)) @ Jay Saiter (Policeman at Truman's House (Truman's World)) @ Tony Todd (Truman's World: Policeman at Truman's House) @ Marco Rubeo (Man in Christmas Box (Truman's World)) @ Darryl Davis (Couple at Picnic Table (Truman's World)) @ Robert Davis (Couple at Picnic Table (Truman's World)) @ R.J. Murdock (Production Assistant (Truman's World)) @ Matthew McDonough (Man at Newsstand (Truman's World)) @ Larry McDowell (Man at Newsstand (Truman's World)) @ Joseph Lucus (Ticket Taker (Truman's World)) @ Logan Kirksey (TV Host (Truman's World)) @ Ed Harris (Christof (Christof's World)) @ Paul Giamatti (Control Room Director (Christof's World)) @ Adam Tomei (Control Room Director (Christof's World)) @ Harry Shearer (Mike Michaelson (Christof's World)) @ Una Damon (Chloe (Christof's World)) @ Philip Baker Hall (Network Executive (Christof's World)) @ John Pleshette (Network Executive (Christof's World)) @ Philip Glass (Keyboard Artist (Christof's World)) @ John Pramik (Keyboard Artist (Christof's World)) @ O-Lan Jones (Bar Waitress (The Viewers)) @ Krista Lynn Landolfi (Bar Waitress (The Viewers)) @ Joe Minjares (Bartender (The Viewers)) @ Al Foster (Bar Patron (The Viewers)) @ Zoaunne LeRoy (Bar Patron (The Viewers)) @ Millie Slavin (Bar Patron (The Viewers)) @ Terry Camilleri (Man in Bathtub (The Viewers)) @ Donna Hardy (Senior Citizen (The Viewers) (as Dona Hardy)) @ Jeanette Miller (Senior Citizen (The Viewers)) @ Joel McKinnon Miller (Viewing Garage Attendant) @ Tom Simmons (Garage Attendant (The Viewers)) @ Susan Angelo (Mother (The Viewers)) @ Carly Smiga (Daughter (The Viewers)) @ Yuji Okumoto (Japanese Family (The Viewers)) @ Kiyoko Yamaguchi (Japanese Family (The Viewers)) @ Saemi Nakamura (Japanese Family (The Viewers) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Marc Macaulay ( (uncredited)) @ Kevin D. Ross (Talk Show Caller (uncredited) (voice) Produced by||Thoughtful, moving, insightful - any flaws are minor compared to it's strengths Truman Burbank lives in a quiet community and has a sheltered quiet life. However he feels distant from people and the one real interaction he had has left the town for a far off country.Truman feels this way because unknowns to him his whole life is a manufactured TV show with all other characters played by actors.When a studio light falls from the sky he begins to notice other strange things happening in his life that lead him to suspect something is going on to stop him going beyond the town's boundaries. The plot here now seems totally reasonable as we have since had "Big Brother" and a raft of other reality shows - suddenly it doesn't seem so far fetched.What does still seem a little stretched is Truman's realisation of what's happening to him (would he really figure things out to the extent he does without help?).However the story is so short that you don't have time to question it because it sweeps you along so quickly.It's all very clever, but more than that it's very moving. Carrey is excellent.He tones down his usual manic style well and almost plays it straight - for a man who was so annoying in Ace Ventura etc this is quite a feat.The support cast are all good with plenty of great performances and famous faces (McElhone, Ed Harris, Paul Giamatti, Philip Baker Hall) but it's really Carrey's show throughout. This is a very intelligent film that is thoughtful, moving and insightful - how many Hollywood films with A-list stars can you say that about? || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |5.1 ||||||@@ Twins|Ivan Reitman|Action|PG |5.9|USA|1988|105 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Michael C. Gross Sheldon Kahn Joe Medjuck Ivan Reitman Gordon A. Webb|William Davies William Osborne Timothy Harris Herschel Weingrod|Andrzej Bartkowiak ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Only their mother can tell them apart.|Julius and Vincent Benedict are the results of an experiment that would allow for the perfect child. Julius was planned and grows to athletic proportions. Vincent is an accident and is somewhat smaller in stature. Vincent is placed in an orphanage while Julius is taken to a south seas island and raised by philosophers. Vincent becomes the ultimate low life and is about to be killed by loan sharks when Julius discovers that he has a brother and begins looking for him. Many years ago an experiment was conducted to produce a perfect human being. Unfortunately there was a problem. The zygote split unevenly leaving two children - one with strength, brains, personality and love and the other one with what else was left! Both children were raised seperately at different locations until one day the two unite and help one another find their long lost mother. |Arnold Schwarzenegger (Julius Benedict) @ Danny DeVito (Vincent Benedict) @ Kelly Preston (Marnie Mason) @ Chloe Webb (Linda Mason) @ Bonnie Bartlett (Mary Ann Benedict) @ Trey Wilson (Beetroot McKinley) @ Marshall Bell (Webster) @ David Caruso (Al Greco) @ Hugh O'Brian (Granger) @ Nehemiah Persoff (Mitchell Traven) @ Maury Chaykin (Burt Klane) @ Tony Jay (Werner) @ Tom McCleister (Bob Klane (as Thom McCleister)) @ David Efron (Morris Klane) @ Peter Dvorsky (Peter Garfield) @ Robert Harper (Gilbert Larsen) @ Rosemary Dunsmore (Miss Busby) @ Lora Milligan (Stewardess) @ Richard deFaut (Custodian) @ Richard Portnow (Chop Shop Owner) @ S.A. Griffin (Hollywood Biker #1) @ Billy D. Lucas (Hollywood Biker #2) @ Lew Hopson (Cop) @ Frances Bay (Mother Superior) @ Marvin J. McIntyre (McKinley's Man) @ Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Oriental Man) @ Wayne Grace (Cell Guard) @ Thomas Wagner (Visiting Room Guard) @ Jay Arlen Jones (Mover #1) @ Ty Granderson Jones (Mover #2 (as Tyrone Granderson Jones)) @ Elizabeth Kaitan (Secretary) @ Tom Platz (Granger Son #1) @ Roger Callard (Granger Son #2) @ Jason Reitman (Granger Grandson) @ Catherine Reitman (Granger Granddaughter) @ Dendrie Taylor (Female Neighbor) @ Sven-Ole Thorsen (Sam Klane) @ Gus Rethwisch (Dave Klane) @ Linda Porter (Painter) @ Bruce McBroom (Handsome Father) @ Joe Medjuck (Photographer (as Joseph Medjuck)) @ Frank Davis (Security Guard) @ John Michael Bolger (Security Guard (as John Bolger)) @ Steve Reevis (Indian) @ Jeff Beck (Lead Guitarist) @ Terry Bozzio (Drums) @ Tony Hymas (Keyboards) @ Nicolette Larson (Singer) @ Jill Avery (Bass Player rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Heather Graham (Young Mary Ann Benedict (uncredited)) @ Raymond Storti (Bar Patron (uncredited)Produced by||delivers twice the entertainment Separated twin brothers Schwarzenegger and DeVito, the result of an unusual genetic experiment, are reunited years later and try to find their mother. A strange choice for the leads, which is probably why this film is so funny and easy to enjoy. Fans of the two leads will probably never grow tiresome of this wonderful comedy. *** || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Twister|Jan de Bont|Action|Rated PG-13 for intense depiction of very bad weather. |5.9|USA|1996| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Ian Bryce Michael Crichton Kathleen Kennedy Laurie MacDonald Gerald R. Molen Walter F. Parkes Glenn Salloum Steven Spielberg|Michael Crichton Anne-Marie Martin|Jack N. Green ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |The Dark Side of Nature.|TV weatherman Bill Harding is trying to get his tornado-hunter wife, Jo, to sign divorce papers so he can marry his girlfriend Melissa. But Mother Nature, in the form of a series of intense storms sweeping across Oklahoma, has other plans. Soon the three have joined the team of stormchasers as they attempt to insert a revolutionary measuring device into the very heart of several extremely violent tornados. When Bill goes to have Jo sign the divorce papers so he can marry his new girl, Melissa, Jo finds a collection of record breaking tornados and Bill follows along, soon his duties shift from divorcing Jo to helping her with record breaking technology to create a better warning system. |Helen Hunt (Dr. JoAnne 'Jo' Thornton-Harding) @ Bill Paxton (William Harding) @ Cary Elwes (Dr. Jonas Miller) @ Jami Gertz (Dr. Melissa Reeves) @ Philip Seymour Hoffman (Dustin Davis) @ Lois Smith (Meg Greene) @ Alan Ruck (Robert 'Rabbit' Nurick) @ Sean Whalen (Allan Sanders) @ Scott Thomson (Jason 'Preacher' Rowe) @ Todd Field (Tim 'Beltzer' Lewis) @ Joey Slotnick (Joey) @ Wendle Josepher (Haynes) @ Jeremy Davies (Laurence) @ Zach Grenier (Eddie) @ Gregory Sporleder (Willie) @ Patrick Fischler (The Communicator) @ Nicholas Sadler (Kubrick) @ Ben Weber (Stanley) @ Anthony Rapp (Tony) @ Eric LaRay Harvey (Eric) @ Abraham Benrubi (Bubba) @ Jake Busey (Mobile Lab Technician) @ Melanie Hoopes (Patty) @ J. Dean Lindsay (Dean) @ Dan Kelpine (Diner Mechanic) @ Sharonlyn Morrow (Waitress) @ Richard Lineback (Mr. Thornton) @ Rusty Schwimmer (Mrs. Thornton) @ Alexa Vega (JoAnne Thornton (Age 5)) @ Taylor Gilbert (Bryce, NSSL Scientist) @ Bruce Wright (Murphy, NSSL Scientist) @ Gary England (TV Meteorologist #1) @ Jeff Lazalier (TV Meteorologist #2) @ Richard A. Mitchell (TV Meteorologist #3 (as Rick Mitchell)) @ John Thomas Rhyne (Paramedic) @ Paul Douglas (Bodger) @ Samantha McDonald (Drive-In Girl) @ Jennifer L. Hamilton (Drive-In Girl) @ Anneke de Bont (Farm Girl rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Ben Jackson (Survivor (uncredited) Produced by||Great entertaining disaster movie! (Tiny Update) One of the big blockbusters of 1996 was Twister!Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt are really good together and Philip Seymour Hoffman was very funny!Cary Elwes and Jami Gertz was good as well.Look for Joey Slotnick in a scene very similar like the one in Hollow Man.The special effects was great and looked very realistic!The music was awesome and the music that played during the end credits was unusual!If you like the above cast and disaster films then Twister is a great one to watch! || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ U-571|Jonathan Mostow|Action|Rated PG-13 for war violence. |6.5|USA|2000| 116 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Dino De Laurentiis Hal Lieberman Martha Schumacher Lucio Trentini|Jonathan Mostow Jonathan Mostow Sam Montgomery David Ayer|Oliver Wood ||Ascot Elite Entertainment Group [ch] |Heroes are ordinary men who do extraordinary things in extraordinary times. |In the midst of World War II, the battle below the seas rages. The Nazi's have the upper edge as the Allies are unable to crack their war codes. That is, until a wrecked U-boat sends out an SOS signal, and the Allies realise this is their chance to seize the 'enigma coding machine'. But masquerading as Nazi's and taking over the U-boat is the smallest of their problems. The action really begins when they get stranded on the U-boat. In the battle front of espionage and code cracking of World War II, there remains but one task on the Allied agenda: the capture of a German "Enigma" machine which will allow the Allied naval forces to locate and track submerged German U-Boat submarines. When one such German vessel breaks down after a battle with British forces, a secret mission is dispatched to take over the U-Boat by commando American forces and retrieve an Enigma machine intact. The raid goes well, at first, yet following the destruction of the American mothership and the arrival of reenforcement German ships, the Americans trapped on the U-Boat must use their training and wits to pilot U-571 in order to save their lives. |Matthew McConaughey (Lt. Andrew Tyler, Executive Officer) @ Bill Paxton (Lt. Cmdr. Mike Dahlgren) @ Harvey Keitel (CPO Henry Klough) @ Jon Bon Jovi (Lt. Pete Emmett, Chief Engineer) @ David Keith (Maj. Matthew Coonan, USMC, Office of Naval Intelligence) @ Thomas Kretschmann (Capt.-Lt. Gunther Wassner) @ Jake Weber (Lt. Hirsch, USNR) @ Jack Noseworthy (Seaman Bill Wentz, Radioman) @ Tom Guiry (Seaman Ted 'Trigger' Fitzgerald, Radioman) @ Will Estes (Seaman Ronald 'Rabbit' Parker, Torpedoman) @ Terrence 'T.C.' Carson (Steward Eddie Carson) @ Erik Palladino (Seaman Anthony Mazzola, Planesman) @ Dave Power (Seaman Charles 'Tank' Clemens, Machinist Mate) @ Derk Cheetwood (Seaman Herb Griggs, Helmsman) @ Matthew Settle (Ens. Keith Larson, Chief Torpedoman) @ Rebecca Tilney (Mrs. Dahlgren) @ Carolyna De Laurentiis (Prudence Dahlgren) @ Dina De Laurentiis (Louise Dahlgren) @ Burnell Tucker (Adm. Duke) @ Rob Allyn (Ensign) @ Carsten Voigt (German Chief Hans) @ Gunter Würger (Lt. Kohn, German Executive Officer) @ Oliver Stokowski (German E-Chief) @ Arnd Klawitter (German Hydrophone Operator) @ Kai Maurer (German Planesman) @ Robert Lahoda (German Engineer) @ Peter Stark (German Lookout) @ Erich Redman (German Bosun) @ Sergeant William John Evans (Marine Sergeant) @ Robin Askwith (British Seaman) @ Jasper Wood (Petty Officer) @ Martin Glade (Gunner Officer) @ Oliver Osthus (Depth Charge Officer) @ Corporal John William Falconer (Other Sergeant) @ Corporal Cory Glen Mathews (Other Sergeant) @ Valentina Ardeatini (Mrs. Peggy Larson rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Norman Campbell Rees (Milatary police seargent (uncredited) Produced by||Great sub action U-571 has great war action, but it needs a good story to back it up to be really a blockbuster, and I don't see the best story here (not as good as Das Boot anyway).The story is a true one (switched from Britain to America as the heroes) in which a group of navy sub men need to find a stranded sub with a machine that will help them in the war.Once they get to the ship and take over it though, teh Americans loose their sub and must board the Germans sub.This is giving grave danger to them because they do not know what everything is in the sub, and everybody (Germans and Britains) will be looking for them.Heart racing action and good stars (Matthew McConaghey, Harvey Keitel, Jon Bon Jovi and Bill Paxton) bring this film to high hights, but the story is very thin under It's main plot, and I didn't find it all that interesting.My pick for best sound and visual effects (if nothing else comes along) of the year.A- ||Collector's Edition |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ UHF|Jay Levey|Comedy|PG-13 |6.6|USA|1989|97 min|English||DVD||||||||False|||||||||Kevin Breslin Gray Frederickson Deren Getz John W. Hyde Gene Kirkwood|'Weird Al' Yankovic Jay Levey Chas Holloway|David Lewis ||Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) [us] |TV as it was meant to be seen. In a movie theater.|The wortless daydreaming slob George Newman can't keep a job for more than a few days at a time before he gets fired. Fortunately, his uncle wins a UHF television station in a poker-game (it was almost bankrupt), which George Newman is put in charge of. Will the new job be any different from the last few jobs he's had? An unemployed visionary finds a job as the manager of a television station his uncle owns. Unfortunately, due to gambling debts, the uncle is forced to consider selling the station to a rival station's owner. With popular less-then network standards of programming, George and his friends try to save the town's new favorite station. |'Weird Al' Yankovic (George Newman) @ Victoria Jackson (Teri) @ Kevin McCarthy (R.J. Fletcher) @ Michael Richards (Stanley Spadowski) @ David Bowe (Bob) @ Stanley Brock (Uncle Harvey) @ Anthony Geary (Philo) @ Trinidad Silva (Raul Hernandez) @ Gedde Watanabe (Kuni) @ Billy Barty (Noodles MacIntosh) @ John Paragon (Richard Fletcher) @ Fran Drescher (Pamela Finklestein) @ Sue Ane Langdon (Aunt Esther) @ David Proval (Head Thug) @ Grant James (Killer Thug) @ Emo Philips (Joe Earley) @ Lou B. Washington (Cameraman) @ Vance Colvig Jr. (Bum) @ Nik Hagler (FCC Man) @ Robert K. Weiss (Bartender) @ Eldon G. Hallum (Spatula Husband) @ Sherry Engstrom (Spatula Wife) @ Sara Allen (Spatula Neighbor) @ Bob Hungerford (Sy Greenblum) @ John Cadenhead (Crazy Ernie) @ Francis M. Carlson (Blind Man) @ Ivan Green (Earl Ramsey) @ Adam Maras (Joel Miller) @ Travis Knight (Billy) @ Joseph Witt (Little Weasel) @ Tony Frank (Teri's Father) @ Billie Lee Thrash (Teri's Mother) @ Barry Friedman (Fletcher Cronie #1) @ Kevin Roden (Fletcher Cronie #2) @ Lisa R. Stefanic (Phyllis Weaver) @ Nancy Johnson (Big Edna) @ Debbie Mathieu (Betty) @ Wilma Jeanne Cummins (Little Old Lady) @ Cliff Stephens (Animal Deliveryman) @ Jim West (Band: Guitar) @ Steve Jay (Band: Bass Guitar) @ Jon Schwartz (Band: Drums) @ Kim Bullard (Band: Keyboard) @ Barry Hansen (Whipped Cream Eater (as Dr. Demento)) @ Bob Maras (Thug #3) @ George Fisher (Thug #4) @ Tony Salome (Guide #1) @ Joe Restivo (Guide #2) @ Charles Marsh (Yodeler) @ Belinda Bauer (Mud Wrestler) @ Lori Wagner (Mud Wrestler) @ Patrick O'Brian (Satan) @ Roger Callard (Conan the Librarian) @ Robert Frank (Timid Man) @ Jeff Maynard (Boy with Books) @ M.G. Kelly (Promo Announcer (voice)) @ Jay Gardner (Promo Announcer (voice)) @ John Harlan (Promo Announcer (voice)) @ Jim Rose (Promo Announcer (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically Martin von Haselberg .... Kipper Kids (as Harry Kipper)) @ Adam Clarke (Kid In Audience (uncredited)) @ Herbert Glucksman (Gorbachev (uncredited)) @ Jeff Howard (Donor at Telethon (uncredited)) @ Jay Levey (Gandhi (uncredited)Produced by||Programming for all to enjoy, and it ain't even sweeps Weird Al Yankovic's only excursion into filmmaking proved to be a solid effort on his part.With an off-beat story such as this, the frizzyhaired patron of pop polka proves his actingis adequate enough to carry a film such asthis. While I feel there could have been moreWeird Al songs, the comedy wasn't lacking.Michael Richards had his best role ever asStanley Spadowski the janitor. All of thechildren's show sequences were hilarious.While this film isn't for all, it was certainly amovie which I can enjoy on many occasions. 6.8/10 || |1.85 : 1 |2.1 Surround ||||||@@ Unbreakable|M. Night Shyamalan|Thriller|Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements including some disturbing violent content, and for a crude sexual reference. |7.2|USA|2000| 106 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Gary Barber Roger Birnbaum Barry Mendel Sam Mercer M. Night Shyamalan|M. Night Shyamalan |Eduardo Serra ||Buena Vista Home Vídeo [br] |Are You Ready For The Truth?|This suspense thriller unfolds as the audience is introduced to David Dunn, played by Willis. Not only is he the sole survivor of a horrific train-crash that killed 131 people he doesn't have a scratch on him. Samuel L Jackson plays an obscure character who approaches Dunn with a seemingly far fetched theory behind it all rocketing off an enticing thriller with a sci fi twist Security Guard David Dunn miraculously survives a catastrophic train crash outside Philadelphia. Not only is he the sole survivor out of 132 passengers, he also is completely unharmed. A little later, comic book specialist Elijah Price contacts him to confront David with an incredible theory: Elijah, who has been nicknamed "Mr. Glass" due to his more than fragile bones, thinks that David has got all which he himself lacks. The two of them "seem to be linked by a curve, but sitting on opposite ends". First, David does not believe the strange man, but every single thing he had said proves to be true: David has never ever been hurt or sick in his life, his physical strength is larger than normal and he has a skill which others don't. Slowly, David begins to discover the shocking truth behind Mr. Price's assumptions. But after all, David's fate is not only to find his real place in the world. It also is about proving Elijah's theory of his own existence. |Bruce Willis (David Dunn) @ Samuel L. Jackson (Elijah Price) @ Robin Wright Penn (Audrey Dunn) @ Spencer Treat Clark (Joseph Dunn) @ Charlayne Woodard (Elijah's Mother) @ Eamonn Walker (Dr. Mathison) @ Leslie Stefanson (Kelly) @ Johnny Hiram Jamison (Elijah Age 13) @ Michaelia Carroll (Babysitter) @ Bostin Christopher (Comic Book Clerk) @ Elizabeth Lawrence (School Nurse) @ David Duffield (David Dunn Age 20) @ Laura Regan (Audrey Inverso Age 20) @ Chance Kelly (Orange Suit Man) @ Michael Kelly (Dr. Dubin) @ Firdous Bamji (Businessman) @ Johanna Day (Saleswoman) @ James Handy (Priest) @ Sally Parrish (Ancient Personnel Secretary) @ Richard Council (Noel (as Richard E. Council)) @ Damian Young (Green Army-Jacketed Man) @ Sherman Roberts (Physician) @ Whitney Sugarman (Physical Therapist) @ Dianne Cotten Murphy (Mother Walking By) @ M. Night Shyamalan (Stadium Drug Dealer) @ Sasha Neulinger (Thermometer Boy) @ Jose L. Rodriguez (Truck Driver) @ Samantha Savino (Peering Girl on Train) @ Ukee Washington (Radio Announcer) @ Susan Wilder (Shoplifter) @ Greg Horos (Slicked-Hair Man) @ Todd Berry (Frat Party Boy) @ Angela Eckert (Frat Party Girl) @ Anthony Lawton (Hostage Father) @ Julia Yorks (Hostage Girl) @ John Patrick Amedori (Hostage Boy) @ John Rusk (Security Dispatcher (as John Morley Rusk)) @ Joey Hazinsky (Five-Year-Old Boy) @ Bill Rowe (Bar Patron) @ Marc H. Glick (EastRail Engineer) @ Simms Thomas (Hostage Woman (as Kim Thomas)) @ Andrea Havens (Hospital Administrator rest of cast listed alphabetically Marsha Dietlein .... Claire (scenes deleted)) @ Mark Barnish (Extra (uncredited)) @ Anthony Bosco (Stadium Security Guard (uncredited)) @ Robert Randolph Caton (Pedestrian (uncredited)) @ Chrismandu (Extra-Bookie (uncredited)) @ Charles Does (Extra (uncredited)) @ Jennifer Hale (Ima Goodelady aka Sedussa (uncredited) (voice)) @ Natalie Hultman (Extra (uncredited)) @ Greg Korin ( (uncredited)) @ Lon Lawson (Extra (uncredited)) @ Bryce Lenon (Peppie Drug dealer (uncredited)) @ Christina Mahon (Extra (uncredited)) @ John B. Mueller (Extra (uncredited)) @ Josh M. Nileski (Extra (uncredited)) @ Sean Oliver (Police Officer (uncredited)) @ Joey Perillo (Jenkins (uncredited)) @ Mark Poulton (Extra (uncredited)) @ Mark Pricskett (Extra (uncredited)) @ David C. Roehm Sr. (Penn Alumni (uncredited)) @ Tamara Walker ( (uncredited) Produced by||A surprisingly good film This movie, in my opinion was good. Not one of the best or anything, but definately well written and performed. The plot is a man by the name of Elijah Price(Jackson), a frail, brittle boned man,has found another man(Willis) who is on the opposite of the "spectrum", a man who is Unbreakable. After seeing this movie I plan to see, "The sixth sense," because M. Night Shylaman( is that the right spelling? I've never spelled that word before)also made that movie as well as Unbreakable. This movie really has a surprising, kind of sad ending. I won't give it away, but I do recommend seeing this movie to anyone who wants to enjoy their evening with a good movie. I think they could even possibly make a sequel to this, I think in a way that would be good. They could expand more on Willis and his amazing powers. To make it good, they should get Jackson again too. I give this movie 3 out of 5. With the surprise ending, and the excellent scene play, that's what this movie is all about. ||Vista Series |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Uncle Buck|John Hughes|Comedy||6.3|USA|1989| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/15/2004|Bill Brown John Hughes Tom Jacobson Ramey E. Ward|John Hughes |Ralf D. Bode |||He's crude. He's crass. He's family. |Uncle Buck has a reputation for being unreliable and a bit of a house wrecker. It is therefore with reluctance, his sister-in-law agrees to leave Buck looking after the kids (two harmless youngsters and a rebelious teenager) when she visits her sick father. Bob Russel, his wife Cindy Russel, and their three kids, 8-year-old Miles, 6-year old Maizy, and 15-year-old Tia, recently moved from Indianapolis to Chicago, and Tia resents Bob and Cindy for it because Tia, Miles, and Maizy were perfectly happy living in Indianapolis. Bob and Cindy are in bed one night when Cindy's aunt calls and tells them that Cindy's father has had a heart attack. Bob and Cindy immediately make plans to go to Indianapolis to visit Cindy's father. After hearing this, Tia angrily tells Cindy that Tia would have a heart attack too if her family moved away from her, then Tia slams her bedroom door in Cindy's face. With Cindy and Bob going to Indianapolis, the problem is who the babysitter will be. Even though Cindy doesn't like the idea, they choose Bob's brother Buck to babysit Tia, Miles, and Maizy. Cindy doesn't like Buck because she thinks Buck is a sloppy person who doesn't know how to do anything. While Cindy and Bob are in Indianapolis, Buck takes over the house, and Buck tries to do the best he can with the kids while he's having problems with Chanice Kobolowski, who has been his girlfriend for the past 8 years. Buck bonds with Miles and Maizy and wins their love, but Buck has problems with Tia as he tries to protect Tia from her boyfriend Bug, because unknown to Tia, Bug only wants Tia for one reason sex. |John Candy (Buck Russell) @ Jean Louisa Kelly (Tia Russell) @ Gaby Hoffmann (Maisy Russell) @ Macaulay Culkin (Miles Russell) @ Amy Madigan (Chanice Kobolowski) @ Elaine Bromka (Cindy Russell) @ Garrett M. Brown (Bob Russell) @ Laurie Metcalf (Marcie Dahlgren-Frost) @ Jay Underwood (Bug) @ Brian Tarantina (E. Roger Coswell) @ Mike Starr (Pooter-the-Clown) @ Suzanne Shepherd (Mrs. Hogarth) @ William Windom (Mr. Hatfield (voice)) @ Dennis Cockrum (Pal) @ Joel Robinson (Miles' Friend #1) @ Colin Baumgartner (Miles' Friend #2) @ Erik Whipple (Miles' Friend #3) @ Mark Rosenthal (Party Boy #1) @ Doug von Nessen (Party Boy #2 (as Doug Von Nessen)) @ Wayne Kneeland (Party Boy #3) @ Gigi Casler (Party Girl in Bedroom) @ LaVerne Anderson (Party Girl #1 (as Laverne Anderson)) @ Gina Doctor (Party Girl #2) @ Rachel Thompson Perrine (Party Girl #3) @ Ron Payne (Maisy's Teacher) @ Jane Vickerilla (Teacher #1) @ Kyle Lewis Eastman (School Child) @ Dana Taylor (School Child) @ Jennifer Kane (School Child) @ Christen Loftis (School Child) @ Genae Affrunti (School Child) @ Anna Chlumsky (School Child) @ Betsy Bottando (Woman in Car) @ Julia Morgan (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Granville Ames (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Ramey Ellis (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Leigh French (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Patricia Arquette (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Laura Jacoby (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Devon Odessa (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Arnold F. Turner (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Garin Bouble (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Tim Hoskins (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Julie Payne (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Jack Blessing (Additional Voices (voice)) @ Todd Larson (Additional Voices (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Michael Berkowitz (Student (uncredited)) @ Ryan Todd (School Child (uncredited) Produced by)||Underrated Gem There isn't really much to be said about Uncle Buck. It is very good but it is a simple little film, one of those nice films to watch on a Sunday afternoon without having to rack your brain or think too hard. The late John Candy excels here as Buck Russell who at first glance is a slob and without much going for him. However, as the film goes on, we learn that Uncle Buck does indeed have a heart. The film really is about a guy who looks like the type of man you would keep your family away from but who is in fact a guy with a heart of gold. I recommend Uncle Buck to anyone who fancies watching a nice simple little film for the whole family to enjoy. And watch out for the scene with the drunken clown on the doorstep! || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Mono ||||||@@ Urban Legend|Jamie Blanks|Horror|Rated R for horror violence/gore, language and sexual content. |5.1|USA|1998| 99 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Brad Luff Gina Matthews Michael McDonnell Neal H. Moritz Brian Leslie Parker|Silvio Horta |James Chressanthis ||Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International [us] |It Happened To Someone Who Knows Someone You Know... You're Next.|After a bravura opening sequence featuring Natasha Gregson Wagner getting slaughtered by the killer with an axe hiding in the backseat of her car, Urban Legend tells the story of a group of pretty college students at a remote New England university. The focus of the story is Natalie (Alicia Witt), a beautiful, academically-gifted student at the fictional Pendleton University. Natalie and her friends (who include Jared Leto as a brash journalist, Rebecca Gayheart as her best friend, Michael Rosenbaum as the party-hardy boy, Joshua Jackson as a practical joker and Tara Reid as the sexy campus DJ) are all involved in the Folklore class being taught by Professor Wexler (Robert Englund). Wexler regales his class with urban legends, which include Pendleton's own urban legend about a Psych professor who murdered six students at Stanley Hall 25 years ago. Natalie is the first one to suspect there's a killer on campus, especially after she has ties to all of the victims. First, it's her high school friend, a guy she's in the woods with at night, her roommate (Danielle Harris)... No one, including her friends, Wexler, Dean Adams (John Neville) and security guard (Loretta Devine), of course, believes her until it's too late and everyone begins to die according to famous urban legends, and Natalie believes it's all tied to a dark and horrible secret from her past. Now she finds that she and her friends are part of the killer's ultimate urban legend--the story of their own horrific deaths... There's a campus killer on the loose who's making urban legends, like the one about eating pop rocks and soda at the same time will make your stomach explode and the one about a psycho with an axe stepping into the backseat of your car at the gas station when not looking, into reality. |Alicia Witt (Natalie Simon) @ Jared Leto (Paul Gardener) @ Rebecca Gayheart (Brenda Bates) @ Loretta Devine (Reese Wilson) @ Tara Reid (Sasha Thomas) @ Joshua Jackson (Damon Brooks) @ Michael Rosenbaum (Parker Riley) @ Natasha Gregson Wagner (Michelle Mancini) @ Danielle Harris (Tosh Guaneri) @ John Neville (Dean Adams) @ Robert Englund (Professor William Wexler) @ Julian Richings (Weird Janitor) @ Gord Martineau (David McAree) @ Kay Hawtrey (Library Attendant) @ Angela Vint (Bitchy Girl) @ J.C. Kenny (Weather Woman) @ Vince Corazza (David Evans (as Vince Corrazza)) @ Balázs Koós (Nerdy Guy) @ Stephanie Mills (Felicia) @ Danny Comden (Blake) @ Nancy McAlear (Jenny) @ Shawn Mathieson (Hippie Guy) @ Clé Bennett (Dorky Guy) @ Danielle Brett (Trendy Girl) @ Roberta Angelica (Swimming Woman) @ Matt Birman (Killer rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Brad Dourif (Michael McDonnell, gas station attendant (uncredited)) @ Silvio Horta (College Student (uncredited)) @ Shalen Hutchings (Extra (uncredited) Produced by||What a joke! Well, I haven't seen "Scream", "I Know What You Did Last Summer", "Halloween", or "Friday the 13th", so I can't do all the comparisons that everyone else has beaten into the turf anyway, but if this bilge is anything like the others I think I'll pass. For months I heard this was a good film, now I must ask, good for whom? The producers? The investors? If I didn't know better I'd swear Roger Corman directed this one because every creepy scene was accompanied by a lightning storm. Really this show was moronic in that it was utterly implausible. The killer was simply too good at his/her work to be anywhere near believable. I enjoyed the buckets and buckets of blood even though many of the murders made no sense to me; but who can fathom the mind of a psycho, eh? And that finale! Grisly. Gruesome. Horrifying. Trite. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Varsity Blues|Brian Robbins|Drama|Rated R for strong language throughout, sexuality and nudity, and some substance abuse. R|5.9|USA|1999|106 min/ Germany:100 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Herb Gains David Gale Ruben Hostka Elysa Koplovitz Tova Laiter Brian Robbins Van Toffler Michael Tollin|W. Peter Iliff |Chuck Cohen ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |Make your own rules.|In small-town Texas, high school football is a religion. The head coach is deified, as long as the team is winning and 17-year-old schoolboys carry the hopes of an entire community onto the gridiron every Friday night. In his 35th year as head coach, Bud Kilmer (Jon Voight) is trying to lead his West Canaan Coyotes to their 23rd division title. When star quarterback Lance Harbor (Paul Walker) suffers an injury, the Coyotes are forced to regroup under the questionable leadership of John Moxon (James Van Der Beek), a second-string quarterback with a slightly irreverent approach to the game. "Varsity Blues" explores our obsession with sports and how teenage athletes respond to the extraordinary pressures places on them. In the town of West Canaan, Texas, football is a way of life but for Jonathan "Mox" Moxon(James Van Der Beek), he has just about enough of it. Pressured by his father to play since childhood, Mox has barely ever seen some football action being a second string quarterback. But after the first string quarterback Lance Harbor(Paul Walker), is seriously injured, Mox is brought in to finish the season and win Coach Bud Kilmer's(Jon Voight) district championship. Mox begins to realize the toughness and hardship of being a starter, but with tough things comes rewards and to Mox's suprise he finds out that him being starter brings more than he can handle, like popularity, women, etc. |James Van Der Beek (Jonathon 'Mox' Moxon) @ Amy Smart (Jules Harbour) @ Jon Voight (Coach Bud Kilmer) @ Paul Walker (Lance Harbour) @ Ron Lester (Billy Bob) @ Scott Caan (Charlie Tweeder) @ Richard Lineback (Joe Harbour) @ Ali Larter (Darcy Sears) @ Tiffany C. Love (Collette Harbour) @ Eliel Swinton (Wendell Brown) @ Thomas F. Duffy (Sam Moxon) @ Jill Parker-Jones (Mo Moxon) @ Tonie Perensky (Miss Davis) @ Joe Pichler (Kyle Moxon) @ Mark Walters (Chet McNurty) @ Brady Coleman (Bigelow) @ James N. Harrell (Murray) @ Jesse Plemons (Tommy Harbour) @ Sam Pleasant (Mini Mart Cashier) @ Tim Crowley (Coach Bates) @ Don Cass (Young Deputy #2) @ James Michael O'Brien (Brett) @ Robert Ellis (Referee) @ Robert Lott (Middle Aged Fan (Class of 1980)) @ Barry Switzer (Bronco Coach) @ Mona Lee Fultz (Old Miss Logan) @ Kevin Reid (Wilkes) @ Eric Jungmann (Elliot) @ Laura Olson (Teen Babe #1) @ Ryan Allen (Teen Babe #2) @ Bristi Havins (Cute Naked Girl) @ Jon Hyrns (Bald Guy) @ Rome Azzaro (Young Father) @ Marco Perella (Dr. Benton) @ Doyle Carter (Doctor/Field) @ Tony Frank (Clerk) @ Sue Rock (Minnie) @ Olin Buchanan (Reporter) @ David Williams (Coyote Player) @ John Gatins (Smiling Man rest of cast listed alphabetically Brad Schreiber .... Ellwood Football Player) @ Joe Stevens (Young Deputy #1) @ Kelly Atwood (Fan in Crowd (uncredited)) @ Stacy Bellew (Cheerleader (uncredited)) @ James Douglass (Bronco Player (uncredited)) @ Jessica Holcomb (Cheerleader (uncredited)) @ Kelly Winn (Nerd (uncredited)) @ Andie X (Trainer (uncredited)Produced by||Surprisingly good! If someone checks out the trailer, one might think, "Another MTV-produced teen flick.I think I'll pass on that."Well, I went into the theater not thinking it was going to be bad, but I expected more of an amusing film that isn't really high on ingenuity.True, "Varsity Blues" has those standard teen elements like wild drinking parties, the school slut, etc.But it never overuses those elements.It's more of a compelling comedy-drama about football that delivers a fine message about sportsmanship.You have a pretty good idea how it's going to end up, but it's the way it's executed that makes it special.Jon Voight is absolutely terrific as the no-nonsense coach.He's the kind of character you want to stab in the chest every minute he's on screen, and Voight was a perfect choice.The film dabbles with elements of the sport that probably hit home to some high school football players.Voight's character has only one goal: winning.And he doesn't care how he gets to that goal.If he has to shoot drugs into every one of his players, he's going to arrive at that goal.And I'm sure there are coaches out there who have that selfish goal.Then James Van Der Beek comes along, and his character is not really concerned with winning or playing football in the first place.But he likes football, has fun with it and simply wants to play a good, honest game.If the team wins, good.If it doesn't, so what.He has a good locker room speech at the end of the movie. "Varsity Blues" is funny, moving and wonderfully acted.It might appeal more to teens and young adults, more than the older ones, but I still suggest everyone check it out. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Wag the Dog|Barry Levinson|Comedy|Rated R for language. |6.9|USA|1997| 97 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Michael De Luca Robert De Niro Barry Levinson Eric McLeod Claire Rudnick Polstein Jane Rosenthal Ezra Swerdlow|Larry Beinhart Hilary Henkin David Mamet|Robert Richardson ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |A Hollywood producer. A Washington spin-doctor. When they get together, they can make you believe anything.|After being caught in a scandalous situation days before the election, the president does not seem to have much of a chance of being re-elected. One of his advisors (DeNiro) contacts a top Hollywood producer (Hoffman) in order to manufacture a war in Albania that the president can heroically end, all through mass media. When the president of the United States is about to get caught in a sex scandal 14 days from the election it is time to create a war. Perception and reality, life and death all flow from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. |Dustin Hoffman (Stanley Motss) @ Robert De Niro (Conrad Brean) @ Anne Heche (Winifred Ames) @ Denis Leary (Fad King) @ Willie Nelson (Johnny Dean) @ Andrea Martin (Liz Butsky) @ Kirsten Dunst (Tracy Lime) @ William H. Macy (CIA Agent Charles Young) @ John Michael Higgins (John Levy) @ Suzie Plakson (Grace) @ Woody Harrelson (Sergeant William Schumann) @ Michael Belson (President) @ Suzanne Cryer (Amy Cain) @ Jason Cottle (A.D.) @ David Koechner (Director) @ Harland Williams (Pet Wrangler) @ Sean Masterson (Bob Richardson) @ Bernard Hocke (Technician) @ Jenna Byrne (Sharon) @ Maurice Woods (Kid with Shoes (as Maurkice Woods)) @ Roebuck 'Pops' Staples (Himself (as Pops Staples)) @ Phil Morris (Co-Pilot) @ Chris Ellis (Officer) @ Ed Morgan (Store Owner) @ J. Patrick McCormack (Pilot) @ Jennifer Manley (Teenage Girl) @ Edrie Warner (Judge) @ Richard Lawson (CIA Agent) @ Drena De Niro (Gate Stewardess) @ Alberto Vasquez (Combine Driver) @ Stephanie Kemp (Aide #1) @ Jack Esformes (Aide #2) @ John Cho (Aide #3) @ Michael Reid Davis (Aide #4) @ Brant Cotton (Sharon's Boyfriend) @ Kenneth Kern (Nashville Engineer) @ Michelle Levinson (Faye) @ Ron McCoy (Limo Driver) @ Derrick Morgan (CIA Agent) @ Garry R. Roleder (USAF Chaplain) @ Merle Haggard (Himself) @ James Belushi (Himself (as Jim Belushi)) @ George Gaynes (Senator Cole) @ Rick Scarry (White House Reporter) @ Cliff B. Howard (Ranger) @ Furley Lumpkin (Raking Dad #1) @ Sean Fanton (Raking Dad #2 (as Sean Fenton)) @ Nikki Crawford (Mom) @ John Franklin (Jockey #1) @ Kevin Furlong (Jockey #2) @ Lu Elrod (Southern Woman) @ Michael Villani (Male Commentator) @ Shirley Prestia (Crossfire Moderator) @ Warren Wilson (Crossfire Interviewer) @ Terry Anzur (Factory Reporter) @ Melissa Gardner (Santa Fe Reporter) @ Giselle Fernandez (Female Press Person) @ Christine Devine (Chicago Newscaster) @ Richard Saxton (Chicago Newscaster #2) @ Geoffrey Blake (Media Guy #1 (as Geffrey Blake)) @ Jerry Levine (Media Guy #2) @ Jack Shearer (Sklansky) @ Emmett Miller (News Break Reporter) @ Bill Handel (Andrews AFB Reporter) @ Arlene Afshangol (Albanian Girl) @ Hope Garber (Albanian Grandmother) @ Gina Menza (Press Room Reporter) @ Maggie Mellin (Mrs. Rose) @ Tom Murray (Aircraft Carrier Reporter) @ Ralph Tabakin (Southern Man) @ Marguerite Moreau (Teenage Girl in Audience) @ Jay Leno (Himself rest of cast listed alphabetically Nicole Avant .... American Dream Singer) @ Tom Bähler (American Dream Singer (as Tom Bahler)) @ Allen Carter (American Dream Singer) @ Carmen Carter (American Dream Singer) @ Lance Eaton (American Dream Singer) @ Karen Geraghty (American Dream Singer) @ James Gilstrap (American Dream Singer) @ Jennifer Gross (American Dream Singer) @ Wendy Lou Halvorsen (American Dream Singer) @ Anthony Holiday (American Dream Singer) @ Brad Kalas (American Dream Singer) @ Billy Trudel (American Dream Singer) @ Mark Vieha (American Dream Singer) @ Julia Waters (American Dream Singer) @ Oren Waters (American Dream Singer) @ Maxine Waters Willard (American Dream Singer (as Maxine Waters)) @ Phillip V. Caruso (War Commercial Photographer (uncredited)) @ Craig T. Nelson (Senator John Neal (uncredited)) @ Robert Richardson (Man in TV Studio (uncredited) Produced by||A truly great satire It had been a while since I last watched this film, but I once again remembered the reasons why I loved it so. Thoughtful and evocative, this film really captured the nature of politics and spin doctoring. This certainly ranks as one of the best political comedies of all time. The over-the-top attitude of the film didn't detract from anything, making this still quite believable. It also demonstrated how people's emotions can be manipulated when aggressively attacked. The fragile nature of the human spirit tends to make us more susceptible to such manipulations, as demonstrated in this film. With the exception of Anne Heche, everyone's performance in this film was rather good. The only other downside was Mark Knopfler's score, which was completely out of place in this film. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Waiting for Guffman|Christopher Guest|Comedy|Rated R for brief strong language. |7.6|USA|1996| 84 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Karen Murphy Ginger Sledge|Christopher Guest Eugene Levy|Roberto Schaefer ||Sony Pictures Classics [us] |There's A Good Reason Some Talent Remains Undiscovered |A town of Blaine, Missouri is preparing for celebrations of its 150th anniversary. Corky St.Clair, an off-off-off-off-off-Broadway director is putting together an amateur theater show about the town's history, starring a local dentist, a couple of travel agents, a Dairy Queen waitress, and a car repairman. He invites a Broadway theater critic Mr. Guffman to see the opening night of the show. |Deborah Theaker (Gwen Fabin-Blunt, Councilwoman) @ Michael Hitchcock (Steve Stark, Councilman) @ Scott Williamson (Tucker Livingston, Councilman) @ Larry Miller (Glenn Welsch, Mayor) @ Don Lake (Phil Burgess, Blaine Historian) @ Christopher Guest (Corky St. Clair) @ Fred Willard (Ron Albertson) @ Catherine O'Hara (Sheila Albertson) @ Parker Posey (Libby Mae Brown) @ David Cross (UFO Expert) @ Eugene Levy (Dr. Allan Pearl) @ James McQueen (Singing Auditioner (as Jim McQueen)) @ Turk Pipkin (Ping Pong Ball Juggler) @ Jerry Turman (Raging Bull Auditioner) @ Bob Balaban (Lloyd Miller) @ Paul Dooley (UFO Abductee) @ Linda Kash (Mrs. Allan Pearl) @ Lewis Arquette (Clifford Wooley) @ Matt Keeslar (Johnny Savage) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Red Savage) @ Miriam Flynn (Costume Dresser) @ Jill Parker-Jones (Stage Manager) @ Margaret Bowman (Costume Designer) @ Paul Benedict (Not Guffman (Mr. Roy Loomis) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ James Douglass (Theater Attendant (uncredited)) @ Frances Fisher (Rita Savage (uncredited)) @ Jean Fuller (Jean (uncredited)) @ Kathy Lamkin (Beautiful Dreamer Auditioner (uncredited)) @ Bob Odenkirk (Caped Man at Auditions (uncredited) Produced by||But You Don't Have To Wait For The Laughs Civic pride and the desire to perform bring an eclectic group of people together in the mock documentary, or `mockumentary,' `Waiting for Guffman,' directed by Christopher Guest.As he did with his more recent outing, `Best In Show,' Guest uses his satirical format to tell the story of the good people of Blaine, Mo., who are planning a celebration to commemorate the sesquicentennial of their fair town, the highlight of which will be a play depicting the history of Blaine.And how fortunate they are, as the celebrated director Corky St. Clair (Guest), who has had some close encounters with Broadway, has recently settled down in Blaine and has agreed to undertake the monumental task of directing the play, which he decides to present as a musical.He has the High School band/music teacher, Lloyd Miller (Bob Balaban) to provide the music; now all he has to do is assemble his cast.So he posts an announcement for auditions, and with that, the action begins. St. Clair has a grand vision of what his musical will be, and once rehearsals begin and he realizes just how good it is, he contacts some people he knows from his brush with the Great White Way, who agree to send a representative, Guffman, to see the show.St. Clair, of course, is walking on air, as he sees this as a chance at the big time; he's convinced they're going all the way to Broadway with this one.And on the night of the show, anticipation runs high as St. Clair and the members of the cast wait for Guffman to arrive.They've even reserved a folding chair in the front row for him, and as the curtain goes up, they hold their breath awaiting the first glimpse of The Man himself. Guest takes you through the whole process, from the auditions to the final show, and through interviews you get to know the townsfolk and their feelings about living in Blaine and their thoughts on the sesquicentennial and St. Clair's elaborate musical.And as you meet these people, I guarantee you're going to run into more than a few from your own experience; and anyone who's ever had anything to do with community theater on any level, is definitely going to be able to identify with the characters and situations presented here.Written by Guest and Eugene Levy, the screenplay is rife with insight into human nature on a level with anything ever written by Thackeray or Twain.The humor is dry and subtle; never forced, it evolves totally from the characters and the situations Guest and Levy have created.And, as David Byrne did with `True Stories,' they play up the humor of every day life in a small town without ever making fun or maligning it in any way; there are no `cheap shots' employed just for the sake of a laugh.It's all delivered good-naturedly and with taste.If they seem to be laughing at anyone, rest assured, it's themselves above all. Among those involved in bringing this piece of Americana to life are Fred Willard as Ron Albertson, and Catherine O'Hara as his wife, Sheila, who together run a local travel agency, but are entertainers at heart and jump at the chance to perform in St. Clair's musical; Parker Posey as Libby Mae Brown, who hopes to leave her job at the Dairy Queen behind when the show moves to Broadway; Eugene Levy as Dr. Allan Pearl, a dentist with a latent desire to perform who finally gets his chance with St. Clair; and Matt Keeslar as Johnny Savage, the mechanic who never realized where he real talents lay until St. Clair came along, and winds up on the stage, much to the chagrin of his dubious father, Red, played by Brian Doyle-Murray.The performances by one and all are first rate, and it gives that necessary sense of realism to the film that really makes it work; these are not actors you're watching, but real people in a very real town. The supporting cast includes Don Lake (Blaine Historian Phil Burgess), Paul Dooley (UFO Abductee), Linda Kash (Mrs. Pearl), Miriam Flynn (Costume Dresser), Jill Parker-Jones (Stage Manager), Larry Miller (Glen Welsch, Mayor), Deborah Theaker (Gwen Fabin-Blunt, Councilwoman), Michael Hitchcock (Steve Stark, Councilman) and Scott Williamson (Tucker Livingston, Councilman).Alfred Hitchcock may be the Master of Suspense, but with `Waiting for Guffman,' Christopher Guest proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that he is the Master of the `Mockumentary.'He has an eye for detail and an innate sense of what makes people tick, and he fills his film with all the nuance and quirks of life that can be found every day in any small town or metropolis across the country.With this film he holds up the mirror and says, `Go ahead, take a look,' and it gives you a chance to let your hair down and perhaps realize that everything isn't quite as serious as it seems sometimes; a chance to laugh at yourself and the guy next to you, with nothing but the best intentions, while affording you the opportunity of just having some good, old fashioned fun.And that's the magic of the movies.I rate this one 9/10. || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ War of the Worlds, The|Byron Haskin|Sci-Fi|NR |7.2|USA|1953|85 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||6/16/2004|Frank Freeman Jr. George Pal Cecil B. DeMille|Barré Lyndon H.G. Wells|George Barnes ||Paramount Home Video [us] |Mighty panorama of Earth-shaking fury as an army from Mars invades!|H.G. Well's classic novel is brought to life is this tale of alien invasion. The resisdents of a small town are excited when a flaming meteor lands in the hills. Thier joy is tempered some what when they discover it has passengers who are not very friendly. The movie itself is understood better when you consider it was made at the height of the Cold War - just replace Martian with Russian... The Martians unchain a direct assault to our planet, with hundreds of invulnerable ships. The invasion takes place all over the world, and all the major cities are destroyed one after one; even the atomic bomb can't stop them. But, if the humans can't beat them, who can? Maybe something MUCH smaller than them... Producer George Pal and director Byron Haskins' landmark adaptation of the H. G. Wells classic novel that focuses on the invasion of the earth by Martian war machines. |Gene Barry (Dr. Clayton Forrester) @ Ann Robinson (Sylvia Van Buren) @ Les Tremayne (Maj. Gen. Mann) @ Robert Cornthwaite (Dr. Pryor (as Bob Cornthwaite)) @ Sandro Giglio (Dr. Bilderbeck) @ Lewis Martin (Pastor Dr. Matthew Collins) @ Houseley Stevenson Jr. (Gen. Mann's aide) @ Paul Frees (Radio Reporter) @ William Phipps (Wash Perry (as Bill Phipps)) @ Vernon Rich (Col. Ralph Heffner) @ Henry Brandon (Cop at Crash Site) @ Jack Kruschen (Salvatore) @ Cedric Hardwicke (Commentary (voice) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Peter Adams (Pine Summit Fire Watcher (uncredited)) @ Eric Alden (Man (uncredited)) @ Hugh Allen (Brigadier General (uncredited)) @ Ruth Barnell (Mother (uncredited)) @ Edgar Barrier (Prof. McPherson (uncredited)) @ Russ Bender (Dr. Carmichael (uncredited)) @ Paul Birch (Alonzo Hogue (uncredited)) @ Hazel Boyne (Screaming Woman (uncredited)) @ Tony Butala (One of 3 boys in final church scene (uncredited)) @ Mushy Callahan (Burning Soldier at Pit (uncredited)) @ George Cisar (Deputy (uncredited)) @ Ann Codee (Dr. Duprey (uncredited)) @ Edward Colmans (Spanish Priest (uncredited)) @ Russ Conway (Rev. Bethany (uncredited)) @ Martin Coulter (Marine Sergeant (uncredited)) @ Pierre Cressoy (Man (uncredited)) @ Jim Davies (Marine Commanding Officer (uncredited)) @ Ralph Dumke (Buck Monahan (uncredited)) @ Jimmie Dundee (Civil Defense Official (uncredited)) @ Al Ferguson (Police Chief (uncredited)) @ Dick Fortune (Marine Captain (uncredited)) @ Alex Frazer (Dr. James (uncredited)) @ Frank Freeman Jr. (Bum #2 listening to radio (uncredited)) @ Charles Gemora (Martian (uncredited)) @ Ned Glass (Well-Dressed Looter (uncredited)) @ Fred Graham (Looter (uncredited)) @ Joe Gray (Looter (uncredited)) @ Nancy Hale (Young Wife (uncredited)) @ Virginia Hall (Girl (uncredited)) @ Ted Hecht (KGEB Reporter (uncredited)) @ Douglas Henderson (Staff Sergeant (uncredited)) @ Gertrude Hoffman (Elderly Woman News Vendor (uncredited)) @ Patricia Iannone (Girl (uncredited)) @ Jerry James (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Carolyn Jones (Blonde (uncredited)) @ Don Kohler (Colonel (uncredited)) @ Frank Kreig (Fiddler Hawkins (uncredited)) @ Ivan Lebedeff (Dr. Gratzman (uncredited)) @ Rudy Lee (Boy (uncredited)) @ Freeman Lusk (Secretary of Defense (uncredited)) @ Herbert Lytton (Chief of Staff (uncredited)) @ Mike Mahoney (Young Man (uncredited)) @ John Mansfield (Man (uncredited)) @ Joel Marston (MP in Jeep (uncredited)) @ Sydney Mason (Fire Chief, Crew #3 (uncredited)) @ John Maxwell (Doctor (uncredited)) @ David McMahon (Minister, First Church (uncredited)) @ Bill Meader (P.E. Official (uncredited)) @ Ralph Montgomery (Los Angeles Red Cross official (uncredited)) @ Alvy Moore (Zippy (uncredited)) @ Bob Morgan (Injured Civil Defense Worker (uncredited)) @ Stanley Orr (Marine Major (uncredited)) @ George Pal (Bum #1 listening to radio (uncredited)) @ Walter Richards (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Robert Rockwell (Forest Ranger at Crash Site (uncredited)) @ Walter Sande (Sheriff Bogany (uncredited)) @ James Seay (Bomber Pilot (uncredited)) @ Cora Shannon (Old Woman (uncredited)) @ David Sharpe (Looter (uncredited)) @ Teru Shimada (Japanese Diplomat (uncredited)) @ Charles Stewart (Marine Captain (uncredited)) @ Gus Taillon (Elderly Man (uncredited)) @ Morton C. Thompson (Reporter (uncredited)) @ Dale Van Sickel (Looter (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Vernon (Elderly Woman (uncredited)) @ Edward Wahrman (Cameraman (uncredited)) @ Anthony Warde (MP Officer (uncredited)) @ Waldon Williams (Boy (uncredited)) @ Bud Wolfe (Rescuing Civil Defense Worker (uncredited)) @ Fred Zendar (Marine Lieutenant (uncredited)Produced by||A visual classic Byron Haskin's version of the War of theWorlds still holds up in this world of digitaltechnology and doohickeys. While anupdated version of the movie would be anawesome adventure, this film can remainas the primary vision of this rather remarkablefilm. Made during the early years of the RedScare, this film firmly displays the fear ofan encroaching society through the use ofaliens with the ultimate technology. Whilethe special effects do look hokie, the overallstory and the acting made up for the film'slacking elements. Let's just Tom Cruisedoesn't make a fool of himself while remakingthis movie. Let's hope he somewhat keeps to the story. || |1.37 : 1 |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ Waterboy, The|Frank Coraci|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for language and some crude sexual humor. |5.4|USA|1998| 90 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Phyllis Alia Jack Giarraputo Michelle Holdsworth Adam Sandler Ira Shuman Robert Simonds Rita Smith|Tim Herlihy Adam Sandler|Steven Bernstein ||Buena Vista International Spain S.A. [es] |A man with a serious drinking problem|Adam Sandler is the lowly water boy for a college football team, until the coach (Henry Winkler) discovers his amazing talent for tackling people much bigger than him. He signs the Water Boy as the new star player. 31-year-old waterboy, Bobby Boucher (Adam Sandler) is constantly tormented by the team he works for until he is fired by the coach. He then finds a new coach to work for. Here he finds a new talent, tackling people by pretending they're making fun of them. Soon, he becomes the best linebacker in college football, but he must keep it secret from his overprotective mother (Kathy Bates). |Adam Sandler (Bobby Boucher) @ Kathy Bates (Helen 'Mama' Boucher) @ Fairuza Balk (Vicki Vallencourt) @ Henry Winkler (Coach Klein) @ Jerry Reed (Coach Red Beaulieu) @ Larry Gilliard Jr. (Derek Wallace) @ Blake Clark (Farmer Fran) @ Peter Dante (Gee Grenouille) @ Jonathan Loughran (Lyle Robideaux) @ Al Whiting (Casey Bugge) @ Clint Howard (Paco) @ Allen Covert (Walter) @ Rob Schneider (Townie) @ Todd Holland (Greg Meaney) @ Robert Kokol (Professor) @ Frank Coraci (Robert 'Roberto' Boucher Sr.) @ Jennifer Bini Taylor (Rita) @ James Bates Jr. (West Mississippi Lineman) @ Kelly Hare (Drunk Cheerleader) @ Dawn Birch (Red's Watergirl) @ Steve Raulerson (Sheriff Loughran) @ Christopher Mugglebee (Sheriff Jack) @ Brett Rice (Laski) @ John Farley (Tony Dodd) @ Kevin P. Farley (Jim Simonds) @ Lee Corso (Himself) @ Bill Cowher (Himself) @ Dan Fouts (Himself) @ Chris Fowler (Himself) @ Jimmy Johnson (Himself) @ Brent Musburger (Himself) @ Dan Patrick (Himself) @ Lynn Swann (Himself) @ Lawrence Taylor (Himself) @ Paul Wight (Captain Insano (as Paul 'The Giant' Wight)) @ Jamie Williams (Young Bobby Boucher) @ Marc Kittay (Youngest Bobby Boucher) @ Matt Baylis (Student) @ Jack Carroll (Bible College Coach) @ Tom Nowicki (Community College Coach) @ Ric Swezey (Male Cheerleader) @ Matthew Lussier (Redneck) @ Haven Gaston (Tina) @ Michael Hold (Central Kentucky Quarterdeck) @ Kevin Reid (West Mississippi Quarterback) @ Mattie Wolf (Cajun Lady) @ Phyllis Alia (TV Producer) @ Dave Wagner (Announcer) @ Tina Barr (Cheerleader) @ Michael Giarraputo (Bourbon Bowl Statistician) @ Marty Eli Schwartz (Moderator rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Katryna Beaupre (Helen 'Mama' Boucher (Photo Album) (uncredited)) @ Kevin Patrick Benore (Fighting Fan (uncredited)) @ Brian Brophy (Extra (uncredited)) @ Cheryl Grace (Extra (uncredited)) @ Cathi Krstulich (Extra (uncredited)) @ Stephen Krstulich (Extra (uncredited)) @ Dave Mallow (Sports Announcer (uncredited) (voice)) @ Kevin McGuire (Sports Cameraman (uncredited)) @ Lisa Michele McTigue (Fan (uncredited)) @ Soon Hee Newbold (Mud Dog Cheerleader (uncredited)) @ Michael S. Nunez (Sports Writer (uncredited)) @ Mazio Royster (Runningback #7 (uncredited)) @ Christie Sanders (Extra (uncredited)) @ Chay Santini (Cougar Cheerleader (uncredited)) @ Wesley Smith (Redneck Paul (uncredited) Produced by||Agony I thought this would be funny cause it made buckets of money and I figured anything with Kathy Bates can't be that bad.Well, I've made stupider mistakes... This movie is totally unfunny and I didn't laugh at all. Adam Sandler is only going for the 11-year-old boys in the audience, and everyone else will be forced to make a face.The only Sandler movie worth anything is "The Wedding Singer", where he at least portrays a person. || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Waterworld|Kevin Reynolds Kevin Costne|Drama|Rated PG-13 for some intense scenes of action violence, brief nudity and language. |5.3|USA|1995| 136 min/ USA:176 min (director's cut) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Kevin Costner John Davis David Fulton Charles Gordon Lawrence Gordon Ilona Herzberg Gene Levy Andrew Licht Jeffrey A. Mueller|Peter Rader David Twohy|Scott Fuller Dean Semler Kurt E. Soderling||CIC Vídeo [br] |Beyond the horizon lies the secret to a new beginning. |The polar ice caps have melted, and the earth is covered by water. The remaining people travel the seas, in search of survival. Several different societies exist. The Mariner falls from his customary and solitary existence into having to care for a woman and a young girl while being pursued by the evil forces of the Deacon. Sometime in the future, the polar ice caps have melted and the world's oceans and seas have covered the land. People are few and far between, living in small communities at sea or sailing from one to another as traders. All the people seek dry land.. something nobody has seen. The world is flooded. Civilisation is lost under the sea. The Mariner sails his trimoran over the seas, drinking his own Urine and visits a floating atoll of "Drifters". When they find the Mariner to be a mutant they sentence him to death. Meanwhile, a girl with supposedly a map to get to dry land tattoo-ed on her back, is the objective for an attack by a gang of smokers who attack the atoll. In the future, the Greenhouse Effect has taken place on a now ravaged Earth covered in water, and a mysterious drifter aids a mother and daughter in seeking Dryland, a mythical place that a group of savage bandits seek out as well. |Kevin Costner (Mariner) @ Chaim Girafi (Drifter (as Chaim Jeraffi)) @ Rick Aviles (Gatesman) @ R.D. Call (Enforcer) @ Zitto Kazann (Elder/Survivor) @ Leonardo Cimino (Elder) @ Zakes Mokae (Priam) @ Luke Ka'ili Jr. (Boy) @ Anthony DeMasters (Boy) @ Willy Petrovic (Boy) @ Jack Kehler (Banker) @ Jeanne Tripplehorn (Helen) @ Lanny Flaherty (Trader) @ Robert A. Silverman (Hydroholic) @ Gerard Murphy (Nord) @ Tina Majorino (Enola) @ Sab Shimono (Elder) @ Rita Zohar (Atoller) @ Henry Kapono Ka'aihue (Gatesman) @ Michael Jeter (Old Gregor) @ August Neves (Old atoller) @ Tracy Anderson (Gatesman) @ Dennis Hopper (Deacon) @ Neil Giuntoli (Hellfire gunner) @ Robert Joy (Ledger guy) @ John Fleck (Doctor) @ David Finnegan (Toby) @ Greg Goossen (Sawzall smoker (as Gregory B. Goossen)) @ William Preston (Depth Gauge) @ Jack Black (Pilot) @ John Toles-Bey (Plane gunner) @ Kim Coates (Drifter) @ Ari Barak (Atoll man) @ Chris Douridas (Atoller) @ Alexa Jago (Atoll woman) @ Sean Whalen (Bone) @ Robert LaSardo (Smitty) @ Lee Arenberg (Djeng) @ Doug Spinuzza (Truan rest of cast listed alphabetically Victor Sánchez .... Citizen) @ Hal Douglas (Narrator (uncredited)) @ Anne Gaybis (Deacon gang member (uncredited)) @ Jenny Tallent (Atoller wife (uncredited) Produced by||Has its moments 'Waterworld' is not as bad as I thought it was going to be. All the stories I heard about it were negative. Not that it is a good movie but it has its moments. In the future the world is one big ocean and there are myths about a place called Dryland. Kevin Costner is not entirely human anymore and therefor he must be killed. Jeanne Tripplehorn and a young girl with a tattoo save his life. The story goes that the tattoo is the way to Dryland. That is a good reason that a lot of other people want to find the girl, including the Deacon (Dennis Hopper). He is the leader of the Smokers. Like I said there are some nice moments in this movie. The sets look pretty impressive, and the boat Costner is on looks pretty cool too. Some single action scenes are worth watching and Dennis Hopper and his gang get some laughs. Still, the movie is filled with clichés and stupid coincidences. For a mindless action movie this is entertaining enough, nothing more. || |1.85 : 1 |5.0 ||||||@@ Wayne's World|Penelope Spheeris|Comedy||6.7|USA|1992| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Hawk Koch Lorne Michaels Dinah Minot Barnaby Thompson|Mike Myers Mike Myers Bonnie Turner Terry Turner|Theo van de Sande ||Argentina Video Home (AVH) [ar] |You'll laugh.You'll cry.You'll hurl.|Wayne is still living at home. He has a world class collection of name tags from jobs he's tried, but he does have his own public access TV show. A local station decides to hire him and his sidekick, Garth, to do their show professionally and Wayne & Garth find that it is no longer the same. Wayne falls for a bass guitarist and uses his and Garth's Video contacts to help her career along, knowing that Ben Oliver, the sleazy advertising guy who is ruining their show will probably take her away from him if they fail. |Mike Myers (Wayne Campbell) @ Dana Carvey (Garth Algar) @ Rob Lowe (Benjamin Kane) @ Tia Carrere (Cassandra Wong) @ Brian Doyle-Murray (Noah Vanderhoff) @ Lara Flynn Boyle (Stacy) @ Michael DeLuise (Alan) @ Dan Bell (Neil) @ Lee Tergesen (Terry) @ Kurt Fuller (Russell Finley) @ Sean Gregory Sullivan (Phil) @ Colleen Camp (Mrs. Vanderhoff) @ Donna Dixon (Dreamwoman) @ Frederick Coffin (Officer Koharski) @ Michael G. Hagerty (Davy) @ Chris Farley (Security Guard) @ Meat Loaf (Tiny) @ Charles Noland (Ron Paxton) @ Robert Patrick (Bad Cop (The T-1000)) @ Ione Skye (Elyse) @ Frank DiLeo (Frankie Sharp (Mr. Big)) @ Eric Crabb (Guitar Store Clerk) @ Mark St. James (Fellow Drummer) @ Harris Shore (Detective) @ Peder Melhuse (Detective) @ Don Amendolia (Announcer) @ Carmen Filpi (Old Man Withers) @ Anna Schoeller (Girl Driver) @ Robin Ruzan (Waitress) @ Alice Cooper (Himself) @ Stan Mikita (Himself) @ Ed O'Neill (Mikita's Manager, Glen) @ George Foster (Guitarist - Crucial Taunt) @ Anthony Focx (Drummer - Crucial Taunt) @ Marc Ferrari (Guitarist - Crucial Taunt) @ Stephen Birnbaum (Himself (guitarist, Alice Cooper's Band) (as Stef Burns)) @ Pete Freezin' (Himself (Guitarist, Alice Cooper's Band)) @ Greg Smith (Himself (Bassist, Alice Cooper's Band)) @ Derek Sherinian (Himself (keyboards, Alice Cooper's Band)) @ Jimmy DeGrasso (Himself (drummer, Alice Cooper's Band) rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Shannon Rae ( (uncredited)) @ Penelope Spheeris (Cameo appearance (uncredited) Produced by||I laughed my head off!Funniest film of the early 90's Wayne's World is a silly yet utterly hilarious look at two dimwits (based on they're SNL skit Mike Myers and Dana Carvey) who have their own public access TV show called "Waynes World".The story thickens to a nice touch with Rob Lowe as a big time hot-shot who wants to bring their show to big heights.Tia Carrere has never been hotter as the woman who Wayne wants and "we'll be mine".Many sight gags, many good lines, and probably all quotable, this movie (like Myers' Austin Powers) belongs in a place in comedy film history.A++ || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Wedding Singer, The|Frank Coraci|Comedy|Rated PG-13 for sex-related material and language. |6.8|USA|1998| 95 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Richard Brener Jack Giarraputo Brad Grey Michelle Holdsworth Ira Shuman Robert Simonds Rita Smith Sandy Wernick Brian Witten|Tim Herlihy |Tim Suhrstedt ||Alliance Video [ca] |He's gonna party like it's 1985.|Robbie Hart is singing the hits of the 1980s at weddings and other celebrations. He also can keep the party going in good spirit, he knows what to say and when to say it. Julia is a waitress at the events where Robbie performs. When both of them find someone to marry and prepare for their weddings, it becomes clear that they've chosen wrong partners. 80's nostalgia flick in which Adam Sandler plays Robbie Hart, a suburban wedding singer who gets dumped at the altar by his fiancee. He meets Julia, who is engaged to the wrong guy, and he falls in love with her. He then tries to figure out how he can make her realize what a jerk her fiance really is. It's 1985. Junk bonds, Michael Jackson, CD players, wealth. Robby Hart lives in his sister's basement and sings in the band at the reception hall. His dreams of being a singer/songwriter are long gone, replaced now by a burning desire to get married. The problem is that no one seems to want to marry him. His fiancee, Linda, doesn't show up on their wedding day, and his new friend, Julia, is engaged to a wealthy Wall Street broker. Where does Billy Idol fit into all this? Robby is stood up at the altar by Linda, who decides that the prospect of marrying a guy who sings at wedding receptions doesn't equal the attraction she felt when he was lead singer in a rock band. Robby finds consolation in his friendship with Julia, a waitress at the wedding receptions and bar mitzvahs where he performs. Julia asks Robby to help her plan her upcoming wedding to Glenn, who isn't interested in the details of the ceremony. Robby learns that Glenn also isn't totally interested in Julia and is marrying her because she "deserves it" after sticking with him for years and because he knows she's not marrying him for his money, since she dated him back before he started pulling down the big bucks. |Adam Sandler (Robbie Hart) @ Drew Barrymore (Julia Sullivan) @ Christine Taylor (Holly Sullivan) @ Allen Covert (Sammy) @ Matthew Glave (Glenn Guglia) @ Ellen Albertini Dow (Rosie) @ Angela Featherstone (Linda) @ Alexis Arquette (George Stitzer) @ Christina Pickles (Angie Sullivan) @ Jodi Thelen (Kate) @ Frank Sivero (Andy) @ Patrick McTavish (Tyler) @ Gemini Barnett (Petey) @ Teddy Castellucci (Robbie Hart Band Member) @ Randy Razz (Robbie Hart Band Member) @ John Vana (Robbie Hart Band Member) @ Billy Idol (Himself) @ Kevin Nealon (Mr. Simms) @ Marnie Schneider (Joyce (the Flight Attendant)) @ Carmen Filpi (Old Man in Bar) @ Robert Smigel (Andre) @ Todd Hurst (Drunk Teenager) @ Peter Dante (David's Friend) @ Phyllis Alia (Mrs. Harold Veltri) @ Paul Thiele (Mr. Harold Veltri) @ Jack Nisbet (Father of Groom) @ Sally Pierce (Grandma Molly) @ Earl Carroll (Justice of the Peace) @ Jenna Byrne (Cindy Castellucci) @ Jason Cottle (Scott Castellucci) @ Mark Lonow (Father of the Bride) @ Billy Elmer (Fat Man) @ Jackie R. Challet (Sideburns Lady) @ Jimmy Karz (Studliest Kid at Bar Mitzvah) @ Al Hopson (Grandpa at Bar Mitzvah) @ Michael Shuman (Bar Mitzvah Boy) @ Steven Brill (Glenn's Buddy) @ Angela Paton (Faye) @ Mike Thompson (Member of Jimmy Moore's Band) @ Michael Jay (Member of Jimmy Moore's Band) @ John Sawaski (Member of Jimmy Moore's Band) @ Christopher Alan (Member of Jimmy Moore's Band) @ Kimberly Schwartz (Member of Jimmy Moore's Band) @ Sanetta Y. Gipson (Member of Jimmy Moore's Band) @ Tim Herlihy (Rudy (the Bartender) (as Timothy P. Herlihy)) @ Matthew Kimble (Drunk at Bar) @ Sid Newman (Frank) @ Mark Beltzman (Vegas Air Ticket Agent) @ Andrew Shaifer (Flight Attendant #2) @ Shanna Moakler (Flight Attendant #3) @ Maree Cheatham (Nice Lady on Plane) @ Al Burke (Large Billy Idol Fan) @ Robert Hackl (Member of David's Band (as Bob Hackl)) @ Gabe Veltri (Member of David's Band) @ Joshua Oppenheimer (Member of David's Band (as Josh Oppenheimer) rest of cast listed alphabetically Dan Lemieux .... Party Goer) @ David Sean Robinson (Robbie) @ Lukey Bolland (Band member at robbies wedding (uncredited)) @ Steve Buscemi (David 'Dave' Veltri (uncredited)) @ Zachary David Cope (Nephew (uncredited)) @ Jon Lovitz (Jimmie Moore (uncredited)) @ Brian Posehn (Man at Table #9 (uncredited) Produced by||Very 80's I do not dislike this film, and some of it is very 80's.It is no Caddy Shack, but it not Vacation 2 either.I like the Don Johnson, and Billy Idol part.The Van Halen shirt bit was good also.It is an okay comedy, but has it slow parts.Worth watching on TV.Survey says 6/10 || |1.85 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Welcome to the Dollhouse|Todd Solondz|Comedy|Rated R for language. R|7.4|USA|1995|88 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||7/5/2004|Donna L. Bascom Priscilla Guastavino Jason Kliot Dan Partland Ted Skillman Todd Solondz Susan A. Stover Joana Vicente|Todd Solondz |Randy Drummond ||Alpha Filmes Ltda. [br] |Not all girls want to play with dolls.|Seventh-grade is no fun. Especially for Dawn Weiner when everyone at school calls you 'Dog-Face' or 'Wiener-Dog.' Not to mention if your older brother is 'King of the Nerds' and your younger sister is a cutesy ballerina who gets you in trouble but is your parents' favorite. And that's just the beginning--her life seems to be falling apart when she faces rejection from the older guy in her brother's band that she has a crush on, her parents want to tear down her 'Special People's Club' clubhouse, and her sister is abducted.... |Heather Matarazzo (Dawn Wiener) @ Victoria Davis (Lolita) @ Christina Brucato (Cookie) @ Christina Vidal (Cynthia) @ Siri Howard (Chrissy) @ Brendan Sexton III (Brandon McCarthy (as Brendan Sexton, Jr.)) @ Telly Pontidis (Jed) @ Herbie Duarte (Lance) @ Scott Coogan (Troy) @ Daria Kalinina (Missy Wiener) @ Matthew Faber (Mark Wiener) @ Josiah Trager (Kenny) @ Ken Leung (Barry) @ Dimitri DeFresco (Ralphy (as Dimitri Iervolino)) @ Rica Martens (Mrs. Grissom) @ Angela Pietropinto (Mrs. Wiener) @ Bill Buell (Mr. Wiener) @ Eric Mabius (Steve Rodgers) @ Stacey Moseley (Mary Ellen Moriarty) @ Will Lyman (Mr. Edwards) @ Elizabeth Martin (Mrs. Iannone) @ Zsanne Pitta (Ginger Friedman (as Zsanné Pitta)) @ Richard Gould (Mr. Kasdan) @ Beverly Hecht (Steve's Girlfriend) @ Teddy Coluca (Police Sergeant) @ Tommy Fager (Tommy McCarthy) @ James O'Donoghue (Mr. McCarthy rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Amanda Posner (Felicity (uncredited)Produced by||Funny But Sad, And Entertaining Nonetheless. Welcome To The Dollhouse (1995) ***SPOILERS*** I was up late watching the IFC (Independent Film Channel) last night, and Welcome to The Dollhouse was just about to come on. I had never heard of it before, but I decided to give it a try. I was pleased with the movie. The movie opens with a whole junior high school eating lunch in their cafeteria. Then we see a girl named Dawn Wiener (Heather Matarazzo) trying to find a seat. You can immediately tell that she is unpopular, by the way she is dressed, her dorky glasses, and the fact that when ever she sees an open seat, someone takes it in hopes that they'll not have to sit by her. Everyone makes fun of her, calls her "Weiner Dog" and "Dog Face", and her locker is covered with terrible spray painted phrases about her. At home, Dawn seems to be neglected. Her parents seem to not care about her much, but her little sister, Missy, is treated like an angel. Then, Dawn falls in love with her older brother's band member, Steve (Eric Mabius). From then on, her life becomes a rollercoaster. A boy she likes is moving away, her little sister gets kidnapped, and Steve quits the band. While watching this movie, you don't know if you want to cry for Dawn and feel bad for her, or slap her for being so stupid. Anways, Todd Solondz brings up a great movie, that keeps you balancing over hating or loving the main character. I give Welcome To The Dollhouse an 8/10. || |1.85 : 1 |||||||@@ What Dreams May Come|Vincent Ward|Drama|Rated PG-13 for thematic elements involving death, some disturbing images and language. |6.2|USA|1998| 113 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Barnet Bain Ronald Bass Alan C. Blomquist Stephen Deutsch Ted Field Erica Huggins Scott Kroopf|Richard Matheson Ronald Bass|Eduardo Serra ||20th Century Fox de Argentina [ar] |After life there is more. The end is just the beginning. |After the death of their two children, Dr. Chris Nielson ('Robin Williams' ) and his wife Annie (Annabella Sciorra) find continuing their lives fraught with difficulties, especially for Annie. When Chris dies and goes to Heaven he meets Albert (Cuba Gooding Jr.) and discovers that Heaven is even more wondrous than anything he could have imagined. However, Chris's death is the last straw for Annie and in her madness commits suicide and journeys to a place very different from Chris. On discovering Annie's misfortune, Chris forces Albert to enlist the help of The Tracker (Max von Sydow) and together they journey into the depths of despair to discover the destiny of Annie's soul and attempt a rescue. Doctor Chris Nielson (Robin Williams) meets his true soul mate Annie (Annabella Sciorra), marries her and has two children. The children die in a car accident, and Chris dies four years after that. Ending up in heaven, he is guided by friendly guardian angel Albert (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) through the afterlife, and he is reunited with his dog and children. But when he finds out his wife had committed suicide, he desperately searches for her spirit, journeying through Heaven and Hell along the way. Chris Neilson dies to find himself in a heaven more amazing than he could have ever dreamed of. There is one thing missing: his wife. After he dies, his wife, Annie killed herself and went to hell. Chris decides to risk eternity in hades for the small chance that he will be able to bring her back to heaven. |Robin Williams (Chris Nielsen) @ Cuba Gooding Jr. (Albert Lewis) @ Annabella Sciorra (Annie Nielsen) @ Max von Sydow (The Tracker) @ Jessica Brooks Grant (Marie Nielsen) @ Josh Paddock (Ian Nielsen) @ Rosalind Chao (Leona) @ Lucinda Jenney (Mrs. Jacobs) @ Maggie McCarthy (Stacey Jacobs) @ Wilma Bonet (Angie) @ Matt Salinger (Reverend Hanley) @ Carin Sprague (Best Friend Cindy) @ June Lomena (Woman in Car Accident) @ Paul P. Card IV (Paramedic) @ Werner Herzog (Face) @ Clara Thomas (Little Girl at Lake) @ Benjamin Brock (Little Boy at Lake rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Jared Dorrance (Little Boy on Dock (uncredited)) @ Kellan Patrick (Wedding Guest (uncredited)) @ Scott Trimble (Funeral Guest (uncredited) Produced by||Cuba Gooding jr and Robin Williams After the success of 'Jerry Maguire', Cuba Gooding jr was cast in buddy films such as 'What Dreams May Come' to be a supporting actor and play crummy roles such as he did in 'What Dreams May Come'. Of all the films that should have been rejected by stduio executives and agents, it should have been this one. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ What Lies Beneath|Robert Zemeckis|Horror|Rated PG-13 for terror/violence, sensuality and brief language. PG-13|6.6|USA|2000|130 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/4/2004|Steven J. Boyd Joan Bradshaw Mark Johnson Cherylanne Martin Jack Rapke Steve Starkey Robert Zemeckis|Sarah Kernochan Clark Gregg Clark Gregg|Don Burgess ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |He was the perfect husband until his one mistake followed them home.|Norman Spencer, a university research scientist, is growing more and more concerned about his wife, Claire, a retired concert cellist who a year ago was involved in a serious auto accident, and who has just sent off her daughter Caitlin (Norman's stepdaughter) to college. Now, Claire reports hearing voices and witnessing eerie occurrences in and around their lakeside Vermont home, including seeing the face of a young woman reflected in water. An increasingly frightened Claire thinks the phenomena have something to do with the couple living next door, especially since the wife has disappeared without apparent explanation. At her husband's urging, Claire starts to see a therapist; she tells him she thinks the house is being haunted by a ghost. His advice? Try to make contact. Enlisting the help of her best friend, Jody, and a ouija board, Claire seeks to find out the truth of What Lies Beneath. In this supernatural thriller, Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer play a seemingly happily married couple who uncover a terrible secret . . . a secret so disturbing it threatens to destroy them. When Claire Spencer begins seeing ghostly images and hearing mysterious voices in their home, her husband Norman suspects it's just her imagination - until the images turn real. Now, together they must uncover the truth, confront their worst fears and find "what lies beneath" . . . with twisting and terrifying results. |Harrison Ford (Dr. Norman Spencer) @ Michelle Pfeiffer (Claire Spencer) @ Diana Scarwid (Jody) @ Joe Morton (Dr. Drayton) @ James Remar (Warren Feur) @ Miranda Otto (Mary Feur) @ Amber Valletta (Madison Elizabeth Frank) @ Katharine Towne (Caitlin Spencer) @ Victoria Bidewell (Beatrice) @ Eliott Goretsky (Teddy) @ Ray Baker (Dr. Stan Powell) @ Wendy Crewson (Elena) @ Sloane Shelton (Mrs. Templeton) @ Tom Dahlgren (Dean Templeton) @ Jayson Argento (Cafe Customer) @ Micole Mercurio (Mrs. Frank) @ Dennison Samaroo (PhD Student #1) @ Jennifer Tung (PhD Student #2) @ Rachel Singer (PhD Student #3) @ Daniel Zelman (PhD Student #4) @ Donald Taylor (Male EMT Worker rest of cast listed alphabetically Dan Block) @ J.C. Brandy (Band Member 1) @ Mark Patrick Costello (Photographer) @ Julian Roca-Chow (Dorm Student #1 (uncredited)Produced by||The creepiest film in many years. I sat down to watch this film with basically no pre-conceived notions concerning its plotline (or quality, for that matter.) A little over two hours later, I was still shivering and shaking. Robert Zemeckis has taken what is undoubtedly a good (though maybe somewhat predictable) screenplay, and has lifted it to the level of Hitchcockian genius. My eyes bugged out, my skin crawled, my breath got short, and I couldn't have torn myself away even if the Publisher's Clearing House Prize Patrol was at my door. Along with a great story and masterful directing, this movie features the superb performance of Michelle Pfeiffer. Ambivalent about her acting skills in the past, I am now a full-fledged Pfeiffer fan. Harrison Ford is certainly adequate, and this role is a refreshing change for him, but Michelle steals the show. Good ghost stories are few and far between. Even "Stir Of Echoes" and "The Sixth Sense", fine films that they are, don't compare to the perfect blend of soundtrack, plot twists, camerawork and performance that make up "What Lies Beneath". If goosebumps are your thing, don't miss this one. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ When Harry Met Sally...|Rob Reiner|Comedy|R |7.7|USA|1989|96 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||3/10/2004|Nora Ephron Steve Nicolaides Rob Reiner Andrew Scheinman Jeffrey Stott|Nora Ephron |Barry Sonnenfeld ||Columbia Pictures [us] |Can two friends sleep together and still love each other in the morning?|Harry and Sally meet when she gives him a ride to New York after they both graduate from the University of Chicago. The film jumps through their lives as they both search for love, but fail, bumping into each other time and time again. Finally a close friendship blooms between them, and they both like having a friend of the opposite sex. But then they are confronted with the problem: "Can a man and a woman be friends, without sex getting in the way?" |Billy Crystal (Harry Burns) @ Meg Ryan (Sally Albright) @ Carrie Fisher (Marie) @ Bruno Kirby (Jess) @ Steven Ford (Joe) @ Lisa Jane Persky (Alice) @ Michelle Nicastro (Amanda Reese) @ Gretchen Palmer (Stewardess) @ Robert Alan Beuth (Man on aisle) @ David Burdick (Nine-year-old boy) @ Joe Viviani (Judge) @ Harley Jane Kozak (Helen Helson (as Harley Kozak)) @ Joseph Hunt (Waiter at wedding) @ Kevin Rooney (Ira Stone) @ Franc Luz (Julian) @ Tracy Reiner (Emily) @ Kyle T. Heffner (Gary (as Kyle Heffner)) @ Kimberley LaMarque (Waitress) @ Stacey Katzin (Hostess) @ Estelle Reiner (Older customer in orgasm scene ("I'll have what she's having")) @ John Arceri (Christmas-tree salesman) @ Peter Day (Joke teller at wedding) @ Kuno Sponholz (Documentary couple #1) @ Connie Sawyer (Documentary couple #1) @ Charles Dugan (Documentary couple #2) @ Katherine Squire (Documentary couple #2) @ Al Christy (Documentary couple #3) @ Frances Chaney (Documentary couple #3) @ Bernie Hern (Documentary couple #4) @ Rose Wright (Documentary couple #4) @ Aldo Rossi (Documentary couple #5) @ Donna Hardy (Documentary couple #5) @ Peter Pan (Documentary couple #6) @ Jane Chung (Documentary couple #6 rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Bob Ader (Tap dancer (uncredited)) @ Marilyn Spanier (Tap dancer (uncredited)Produced by||When Harry Met Someone This is Billy Crystal's show.He has an understated, ordinary, humble screen presence.It's not the case that every single line HAS to be funny in order for us to like him - with Crystal, a joke can fall flat and somehow it doesn't make him personally look bad.But here every line IS funny, so he has charm to burn. I know people like Meg Ryan - I guess I do, too, in this particular film - and I know that there are people who find her `orgasm' scene amusing, but Sally is really just someone for Harry to meet and ultimately fall in love with.She's completely clueless.Most of the jokes are at her expense rather than his.The genuine wit, the power of observation, the theoretical insight, all lie with Harry.Is this a problem?Not in the least.Unlike most romantic comedies this is not some kind of duel - it's the more realistic study of many, many separate encounters. Also unlike most romantic comedies, this one is funny.I think I mentioned that. The film benefits from its second rank support: good performances by Carrie Fischer and that guy whose name doesn't matter, locations someone actually went to some trouble to look for, and a song-score that is doesn't intrude and hit us repeatedly over the head.Allegedly `When Harry Met Sally' has been imitated by later productions, but I can't think of a case where the imitation is accurate enough to even be recognisable. || |1.37 : 1 (negative ratio) |2.0 Stereo ||||||@@ White Fang|Randal Kleiser|Adventure||6.4|USA|1991| 107 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Lynn Bigelow Jim Kouf Marykay Powell|Jack London Jeanne Rosenberg Nick Thiel David Fallon|Tony Pierce-Roberts ||Buena Vista Pictures [us] ||Jack London's classic adventure story about the friendship developed between a Yukon gold hunter and the mixed dog-wolf he rescues from the hands of a man who mistreats him. |Klaus Maria Brandauer (Alex) @ Jed (White Fang) @ Ethan Hawke (Jack) @ Seymour Cassel (Skunker) @ Susan Hogan (Belinda) @ James Remar (Beauty Smith) @ Bill Moseley (Luke) @ Clint Youngreen (Tinker) @ Pius Savage (Grey Beaver) @ Aaron Hotch (Little Beaver) @ Charles Jimmie Sr. (Older Indian) @ Clifford Fossman (Old Timer #1) @ Irvin Sogge (Old Timer #2) @ Tom Fallon (Prospector) @ Dick Mackey (Sled Dog Prospector) @ Suzanne Kent (Heather) @ Robert C. Hoelen (Bar Patron) @ George Rogers (Registrar) @ Michael David Lally (Sykes) @ Raymond R. Menaker (Shopkeeper) @ David Fallon (Lookout) @ Michael A. Hagen (Teenager) @ Diane Benson (Grey beaver's Wife) @ Robert Scott Kyker (Frozen Prospector #1 (as Rob Kyker)) @ Tom Yewell (Frozen Prospector #2) @ John Beers (Sykes' Dog Handler) @ Van Clift (Piano Player) @ Jim Moore (Violin Player) @ Marliese Schneider (Woman of the Night rest of cast listed alphabetically Bart the Bear .... The bear Produced by||This movie about a beautiful wolf dog mix and those around him is more than an adventure tale. The backgrounds of wolf dog and his new owner and the owner's partner (Beautifully played by Claus Maria Brandauer) explore unlikelyrelationships that form in a turn of the century Yukon environment which is raw and difficult.The boy becomes a man, the wolf-dog becomes a loyal friend of the young boy, and the partner becomes mature and sentimental - all changes against a glorious mountain backdrop..The American Humane Society approved the many action scenes, some of them very violent, in which the dog and other less friendly dogs appear.The criminals are taken to the Royal Mounties, the boy stays with his wolf dog, the partner goes off with the bar owner after boy, dog and partner find a mine full of raw gold.It's a classic old movie with boy and dog as an unexpectedand wonderful team.What a beautiful dog! A few tears.Great! || |1.85 : 1 |2.0 Surround ||||||@@ Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory|Mel Stuart|Family||7.5|USA|1971| 100 min |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Stan Margulies David L. Wolper|Roald Dahl Roald Dahl David Seltzer|Arthur Ibbetson ||Paramount Pictures [us] |It's everybody's non-pollutionary, anti-institutionary, pro-confectionery factory of fun!|The world is astounded when Willy Wonka, for years a recluse in his factory, announces that five lucky people will be given a tour of the factory, shown all the secrets of his amazing candy, and one will win a lifetime supply of Wonka chocolate. Nobody wants the prize more than young Charlie, but as his family is so poor that buying even one bar of chocolate is a treat, buying enough bars to find one of the five golden tickets is unlikely in the extreme. But in movieland, magic can happen. Charlie, along with four somewhat odious other children, get the chance of a lifetime and a tour of the factory. Along the way, mild disasters befall each of the odious children, but can Charlie beat the odds and grab the brass ring? Charlie Bucket, a poor boy who is barely able to support his family, is fortunate to be chosen as one of the 5 people to go inside the most popular and powerful chocalate factory in the world: The Willy Wonka Chocalate Factory. But a stranger, named Arthur Slugworth, tempts the kids to steal a piece of candy and give it to him. In exchange, he will make them rich. Willy Wonka, played by Gene Wilder, soon introduces them to the factory, and starts the grand tour around the factory. Once inside, the 5 winners start to run amuck. One by one, the 5 kids start to disappear, until it is only Charlie that remains. At this point, Wonka starts to ignore Charlie, and then tells him why: because Charlie and Grandpa Joe, played by Jack Albertson, drank some forbidden product without permission. Will Charlie turn against Wonka? Or will he discover that he was wrong and make up what he has done? |Gene Wilder (Willy Wonka) @ Jack Albertson (Grandpa Joe) @ Peter Ostrum (Charlie Bucket) @ Roy Kinnear (Mr. Henry Salt) @ Julie Dawn Cole (Veruca Salt) @ Leonard Stone (Mr. Sam Beauregarde) @ Denise Nickerson (Violet Beauregarde) @ Nora Denney (Mrs. Teevee (as Dodo Denney)) @ Paris Themmen (Mike Teevee) @ Ursula Reit (Mrs. Gloop) @ Michael Bollner (Augustus Gloop) @ Diana Sowle (Mrs. Bucket) @ Aubrey Woods (Bill, candy store owner) @ David Battley (Mr. Turkentine) @ Günter Meisner (Arthur Slugworth) @ Peter Capell (The Tinker) @ Werner Heyking (Mr. Jopeck, newspaper stand owner) @ Peter Stuart (Winkelmann rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Dora Altmann (Grandma Georgina (uncredited)) @ Rudy Borgstaller (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Tim Brooke-Taylor (Computer Operator (uncredited)) @ George Claydon (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Pat Coombs (Henrietta Salt (uncredited)) @ Frank Delfino (Auctioneer (uncredited)) @ Malcolm Dixon (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Stephen Dunne (Stanley Kael, Second Newscaster (uncredited)) @ Rusty Goffe (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Shin Hamano (Japanese Candy Store Owner (uncredited)) @ Ismed Hassan (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Franziska Liebing (Grandma Josephine (uncredited)) @ Gloria Manon (Mrs. Cruthers (uncredited)) @ Norman McGlen (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Angelo Muscat (Oompa-Loompa (uncredited)) @ Ed Peck (FBI Agent (uncredited)) @ Pepe Poupee (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Marcus Powell (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Clete Roberts (First Newscaster (uncredited)) @ Bob Roe (Peter Goff (uncredited)) @ Albert Wilkinson (Oompa Loompa (uncredited)) @ Ernst Ziegler (Grandpa George (uncredited) Produced by||Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory Lighthearted fantasy adventure for all ages with Wilder expertly portraying Willy Wonka, who welcomes some lucky visitors into his home for goodies and more goodies. Based on Roald Dahl's story, this is an impressive journey of the imagination that moves, inspires and entertains. Jack Albertson is memorable as Grandpa Joe. || |1.85 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ Wizard of Oz, The|Victor Fleming Richard Thorpe King Vido|Family||8.3|USA|1939| 101 min/ USA:112 min (uncut premiere release) |English||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004|Mervyn LeRoy Arthur Freed||Harold Rosson ||Action Gitanes [fr] |Gaiety! Glory! Glamour!|When a nasty neighbor tries to have her dog put to sleep, Dorothy takes her dog Toto, to run away. A tornado appears and carries her to the magical land of Oz. Wishing to return, she begins to travel to the city of Oz where a great wizard lives. On her way she meets a Scarecrow who needs a brain, a Tin Man who wants a heart, and a cowardly lion who desperately needs courage. They all hope the Wizard of Oz will help them, before the Wicked Witch of the West catches up with them. Dorothy lives on a farm in Kansas until a tornado arrives, and picks her, her house, and her dog up and deposits them in the land of Oz. Things in Oz are strange and beatiful, but Dorothy just wants to get back home. She's helped by the Good Fairy of the North, but she's also in trouble with the Wicked Witch of the West, who seeks revenge for the death of the Wicked Witch of the East, for which she blames Dorothy. |Judy Garland (Dorothy Gale) @ Frank Morgan (Professor Marvel/Emerald City Doorman/Cabbie/The Wizard's Guard/The Wizard of Oz) @ Ray Bolger (Hunk/The Scarecrow) @ Bert Lahr (Zeke/The Cowardly Lion) @ Jack Haley (Hickory/The Tin Man) @ Billie Burke (Glinda, the Good Witch of the North) @ Margaret Hamilton (Miss Almira Gulch/The Wicked Witch of the West) @ Charley Grapewin (Uncle Henry Gale) @ Pat Walshe (Nikko, the Wicked Witch's Head Winged Monkey) @ Clara Blandick (Aunt Emily 'Auntie Em' Gale) @ Terry (Toto the Dog (as Toto)) @ The Singer Midgets (The Munchkins rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Gladys W. Allison (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Nick Angelo (Munchkin (voice) (uncredited)) @ John Ballas (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Franz 'Mike' Balluck (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Josefine Balluck (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ John T. Bambury (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Viola Banks (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Dorothy Barrett (Manicurist in Emerald City (uncredited)) @ Amelia Batchelor (Inhabitant of Emerald City (uncredited)) @ Charles Becker (Mayor of Munchkin City (uncredited)) @ Freda Besky (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Billy Bletcher (Mayor/Lollipop Guild (voice) (uncredited)) @ Henry Boers (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Theodore Boers (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Robert Bradford (Munchkin (voice) (uncredited)) @ Lorraine Bridges (Ozmite/Glinda (singing voice)/Lullaby League (uncredited) (voice)) @ Buster Brodie (Winged Monkey (uncredited)) @ Tyler Brooke (Ozmite (uncredited)) @ Christie Buresh (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Eddie Buresh (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Lida Buresh (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Betty Ann Cain (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Mickey Carroll (Second Fiddler (uncredited)) @ Adriana Caselotti (Juliet (uncredited) (voice)) @ Colonel Casper (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Lois Clements (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Harry Cogg (Winged Monkey (uncredited)) @ Pinto Colvig (Munchkin (voice) (uncredited)) @ Nona Cooper (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Tommy Cottonaro (Bearded Man (uncredited)) @ Elizabeth Coulter (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Idaho Croft (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Frank H. Cucksey (Townsman #2 (uncredited)) @ Billy Curtis (City Father (uncredited)) @ Ken Darby (Munchkinland Mayor (uncredited) (voice)) @ Eulie H. David (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Eugene S. David Jr. (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Sid Dawson (Winged Monkey (uncredited)) @ Ethel W. Denis (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Prince Denis (Sergeant-At-Arms (uncredited)) @ Hazel I. Derthick (Intense Waver (uncredited)) @ Abe Dinovitch (Apple Tree/Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Jon Dodson (Lollipop Guild (uncredited) (voice)) @ Gracie Doll (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Tiny Doll (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Major Doyle (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Daisy Earles (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Harry Earles (Guild Singer (uncredited)) @ Zari Elmassian (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Carl M. 'Kayo' Erickson (Herald #2 (uncredited)) @ Fern Formica (Munchkin Maid (uncredited)) @ Addie E. Frank (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Thaisa L. Gardner (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Jackie Gerlich (Guild Singer (uncredited)) @ William A. Giblin (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Jack Glicken (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Carolyn E. Granger (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Phil Harron (Winkie (uncredited)) @ Joseph Herbst (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Jacob Hofbauer (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Shep Houghton (Manor Lord (uncredited)) @ Clarence C. 'Major Mite' Howerton (Herald #3 (uncredited)) @ Helen M. Hoy (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Marguerite A. Hoy (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ James R. Hulse (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Charles Irwin (Ozmite, Tin Polisher (uncredited)) @ Lois January (Woman Holding Cat in Emerald City/'We Can Make A Dimpled Smile Out of a Frown' (uncredited)) @ Delos Jewkes (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Lois Johansen (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Virgil Johanson (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Robert Kanter (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Charles E. Kelley (Violent Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Jessie E. Kelley (Violent Munchkin's Wife (uncredited)) @ Joan Kenmore (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Shirley Ann Kennedy (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Frank Kikel (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Bernard 'Harry' Klima (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Emma Koestner (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Mitzi Koestner (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ 'Willi' Koestner (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Karl 'Karchy' Kosiczky (Herald #1/Sleepyhead (uncredited)) @ Adam Edwin Kozicki (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Joe Koziel (Townsman #1 (uncredited)) @ Dolly Kramer (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Emil Kranzler (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Nita Krebs (Lullaby League (uncredited)) @ 'Little Jeane' LaBarbera (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Hilda Lange (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Johnny Leal (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Ann Rice Leslie (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Mitchell Lewis (Captain of the Winkie Guard (uncredited)) @ Bud Linn (Lollipop Guild (uncredited) (voice)) @ Prince Ludwig (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Dominick Magro (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Carlos Manzo (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Howard Marco (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Jerry Maren (Lollipop Guild (uncredited)) @ Johnny Maroldo (Commander Navy (uncredited)) @ Marie Maroldo (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Dona Massin (3rd Lion Groomer (uncredited)) @ Bela 'Ike' Matina (Drunk (uncredited)) @ Lajos 'Leo' Matina (Townsman (uncredited)) @ Matthew 'Mike' Matina (Drunk (uncredited)) @ Patsy May (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Walter Miller (Bespectacled Munchkin (uncredited)) @ George Ministeri (Coach Driver (uncredited)) @ Abraham Mirkin (Munchkin/Winged Monkey (uncredited)) @ Pricilla Montgomery (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Harry Monty (Winged Monkey/Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Yvonne Moray (League Dancer (uncredited)) @ Lee Murray (Winged Monkey (uncredited)) @ Nels P. Nelson (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Margaret C.H. Nickloy (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ George Noisom (Winged Monkey (uncredited)) @ Franklin H. O'Baugh (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ William H. O'Docharty (Back Seat Driver (uncredited)) @ Little Olga (League Leader (uncredited)) @ Hildred C. Olson (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Frank Packard (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Nicky Page (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Leona M. Parks (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Margaret Pellegrini (Woman in Blue Flowerpot Hat/Sleepyhead (uncredited)) @ Johnny Pizo (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ 'Prince Leon' Polinsky (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Lillian Porter (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Meinhardt Raabe (Coroner (uncredited)) @ Margie Raia (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Matthew Raia (City Father (uncredited)) @ Fredreich 'Freddie' Retter (Musician Fiddler (uncredited)) @ 'Little Billy' Rhodes (Barrister (uncredited)) @ Gertrude H. Rice (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Hazel Rice (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Elvida Rizzo (Ozmite (uncredited)) @ Rad Robinson (Munchkin Coroner (uncredited) (voice)) @ Ruth Robinson (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Sandor Roka (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Betty Rome (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Jimmy Rosen (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Donald Rothay (Munchkin trio singer (uncredited)) @ Charley F. Royale (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Helen J. Royale (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Stella A. Royale (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Albert Ruddinger (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Sawhorse (Sawhorse (uncredited)) @ Ambrose Schindler (Winkie (uncredited)) @ Elise Schultz (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Rolfe Sedan (Oz Balloon Ascentionist (uncredited)) @ Valerie Shepard (Child Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Charles Silvern (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Earl Slatton (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Oliver Smith (Ozmite (uncredited)) @ Ruth E. Smith (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ Elmer Spangler (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Harry Stanton (Munchkin Coroner/Lollipop Guild (uncredited) (voice)) @ Parnell St. Aubin (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Bob Steangelo (Winkie (uncredited)) @ Carl Stephan (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Alta M. Stevens (Munchkin Villager (uncredited)) @ George Suchsie (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Ralph Sudam (Ozmite (uncredited)) @ Charlotte V. Sullivan (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ August Clarence Swenson (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Betty Tanner (Munchkin Villager in Brick Red Dress (uncredited)) @ Carol Tevis (Munchkin (uncredited) (voice)) @ Arnold Vierling (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Bobby Watson (Ozmite (uncredited)) @ Gus Wayne (Soldier (uncredited)) @ Victor Wetter (Army Captain (uncredited)) @ Grace G. Williams (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Harvey B. Williams (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Gladys V. Wolff (Munchkin (uncredited)) @ Murray Wood (Soldier (uncredited) Produced by||A comment to the few absurd reviews and silly questions. I just finished reading most of the 100+ IMDb reviews of "Wizard of Oz." It is clear that the vast majority of reviewers rate this as one of the best films of all time, an evaluation I agree with. But there are a small few reviews which criticize it harshly. And some just ask simple questions. The following addresses this. SPOILER - First off, once you've seen the entire film you realize the whole visit to Oz was Dorothy's dream. During the storm a window frame blew into her bedroom and knocked her out. The house was not swept up by the tornado. When the storm passed, and everyone else came out of the storm cellar looking for Dorothy, they found her on her bed, unconscious. While she was unconscious she had the dream of going to Oz. All the strange people she met, all the strange places, were all things she imagined. It was all set up during the first 10 minutes or so, in conversations with her family members, and the fortune teller she met when she attempted to run away right before the storm. Why dream of going to Oz? Recall that Dorothy was being hassled by the wicked rich woman who wanted to kill her dog, and family members wouldn't give her the time to talk about anything. They were all too busy. She sang about finding a place "over the rainbow" where everything would be wonderful. When we go to sleep with a lot on our mind, we often have very vivid dreams about it. Her dream of Oz was the playing out of her imaginary place over the rainbow. But her dream eventually made her realize that such a place was not where happiness resided, but instead within her and her family, "there's no place like home." And then, she woke up. So, do all of us dream too?Sure we do, if we are normal. Do all things in our dreams make sense once we wake up?Of course not. Then why should we expect anything different of Dorothy's dream? Why didn't the good witch tell her early on she could get back to Kansas by clicking her heels? Because there was no good witch. It was all part of Dorothy's dream, therefore she would have to get angry at herself. Now, do you see the absurdity in criticizing any part of the movie's plot? Or talking of "plot holes?" Dreams are dreams, and are not expected to bear a strong relationship to reality. I don't believe everyone should consider "Wizard of Oz" a great film. Tastes differ. I don't think "Pulp Fiction" or "Lord of the Rings" are great films. But I do believe everyone should realize when certain comments just don't make sense. Because it was a dream, the story cannot have plot holes. Why could the scarecrow, the tin man, and the lion talk? Because it was a dream. The dream of a 15-year-old girl.Accept that, and any questions you may have suddenly make perfect sense. || |1.37 : 1 |1.0 ||||||@@ X2: X-men United|Bryan Singer|Action|Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action/violence, some sexuality and brief language. PG-13|7.9|USA|2003|133 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||5/17/2004|Avi Arad Tom DeSanto Ross Fanger Kevin Feige David Gorder Stan Lee John H. Radulovic Selwyn Roberts Lauren Shuler Donner Bryan Singer Ralph Winter|Zak Penn David Hayter Bryan Singer Michael Dougherty Dan Harris David Hayter|Newton Thomas Sigel ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |The time has come for those who are different to stand united|Already living in a society that mistrusts them, the mutants are faced with even more discrimination after an unforeseen enemy - who may be a mutant with extraordinary powers - launches a devastating attack. The news of the assault causes a public outcry against the mutants, including renewed support for the Mutant Registration Act, and William Stryker, a military leader rumored to have experimented on mutants (possibly including Wolverine), is among the most vocal supporters of the legislation. Stryker puts into motion a plan to eradicate the mutants and begins an offensive on the X-Men mansion and school. Magneto, having escaped from his plastic prison, forms an unlikely alliance with Professor Xavier to stop Stryker. Meanwhile, Wolverine heads north to investigate his past. A new war between humans and mutants begins after a tentative of murder in the White House against the president of the United States. Now, all the mutants need to fight together against an enemy in common: General William Stryker, who is planning to destroy them all. He uses radical methods to get some mation from Magneto, and plans an attack to Prof. Xavier's mutant school when there is only Wolverine and the young students (Jean Grey and Storm are looking for a new mutant, Nightcrawler, and Xavier and Clycops are in Magneto's plastic prison). The plot goes on with a lot of action scenes and many revelations, following the comic books. |Patrick Stewart (Professor Charles Xavier) @ Hugh Jackman (Logan/Wolverine) @ Ian McKellen (Eric Lensherr/Magneto) @ Halle Berry (Storm) @ Famke Janssen (Jean Grey) @ James Marsden (Scott Summers/Cyclops) @ Anna Paquin (Rogue) @ Rebecca Romijn-Stamos (Mystique) @ Brian Cox (William Stryker) @ Alan Cumming (Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler) @ Bruce Davison (Senator Kelly) @ Aaron Stanford (John Allerdyce/Pyro) @ Shawn Ashmore (Bobby Drake/Iceman) @ Kelly Hu (Yuriko Oyama) @ Katie Stuart (Kitty Pryde) @ Kea Wong (Jubilee) @ Cotter Smith (President McKenna) @ Chiara Zanni (White House Tour Guide) @ Jackie A. Greenbank (President's Secretary) @ Michael Soltis (White House Checkpoint Agent) @ Michael David Simms (Lead White House Agent) @ David Fabrizio (Oval Office Agent Fabrizio) @ Roger R. Cross (Oval Office Agent Cartwright) @ Richard Bradshaw (Special Ops Agent) @ Bryce Hodgson (Artie) @ Glen Curtis (Museum Teenager #1) @ Greg Rikaart (Museum Teenager #2) @ Shauna Kain (Siryn) @ Ty Olsson (Mitchell Laurio) @ Alfonso Quijada (Federal Bldg. Cleaning Twin #1) @ Rene Quijada (Federal Bldg. Cleaning Twin #2) @ Brad Loree (Stryker at age 40) @ Sheri G. Feldman (Augmentation Room Doctor) @ Connor Widdows (Jones) @ Daniel Cudmore (Colossus) @ Peter Wingfield (Stryker Soldier Lyman) @ Charles Siegel (Dr. Shaw) @ Steve Bacic (Dr. Hank McCoy) @ Michael Reid MacKay (Jason 143) @ James Kirk (Ronny Drake) @ Jill Teed (Madeline Drake) @ Alf Humphreys (Steven Drake (as Alfred E. Humphreys)) @ Michasha Armstrong (Plastic Prison Guard) @ Robert Hayley (Cop) @ Mark Lukyn (Cop #1, Lead Cop) @ Kendall Cross (Cop #2) @ Keely Purvis (Little Girl 143) @ Dylan Kussman (Stryker Soldier Wilkins) @ Jason Whitmer (Stryker Soldier Smith (as Jason S. Whitmer)) @ Aaron Pearl (Stryker Soldier) @ Aaron Douglas (Stryker Soldier #1) @ Colin Lawrence (Stryker Soldier #2) @ Richard C. Burton (Loading Bay Stryker Soldier #1) @ Michael Joycelyn (Loading Bay Stryker Soldier #2) @ Nolan Funk (Captured X-Kid) @ Devin Douglas Drewitz (Captured X-Kid) @ Jermaine Lopez (Captured X-Kid) @ Sideah Alladice (Captured X-Kid) @ Kurt Max Runte (Chief of Staff Abrahams) @ Benjamin Glenday (Cameraman) @ Lori Stewart (F-16 Fighter Pilot) @ Ted Friend (News Reporter) @ Mi-Jung Lee (News Reporter) @ Marrett Green (News Reporter) @ Jill Krop (News Reporter) @ Brian Peck (News Reporter rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Layke Anderson (X-Kid (uncredited)) @ David Kaye (TV Host (uncredited)) @ Blake Mawson (X Kid #5 (uncredited)) @ Darren McGuire (Stryker Soldier stabbed in foot by Logan (uncredited)) @ Newton Thomas Sigel (Police Officer (uncredited)) @ Bryan Singer (Security Officer in Magneto's Prison (uncredited)Produced by||why all the underrating? A lot has been said about this movie, as is the case with many recent Hollywood comics adaptations. While I truly respect everyone's opinion, I really don't see the point in some criticisms brought up against this movie. (Definitely NO spoilers ahead.) First of all, we must realize that X-men comics have been around for decades. They existed before many of you were born. Still, the producers had to assume that the average audience had little or no idea about the mutant phenomenon, but Bryan singer did a very good job (as always) in the first film, and introduced the audience. Besides, adapting such a story with so many characters to the screen is no easy job, and is also risky, considering it's Hollywood and it must return all those millions. So the mutant phenomenon was well explained, the characters and their abilities introduced, and the plot (which actually had a story, unlike many action flicks) was carried out smoothly. All in the running time of one film. good job. The second film, however, had to concentrate (naturally) on more characters and a more thorough story. This is why I object (in the title) to people criticising this film for "lack of character development" etc. Many of the characters WERE developed in the first film. If you never read x-men comics, and did not even see the first movie, and see this one right away and still expect the director/writer to spell things out for you, well, you'll be disappointed. "Where did Colossus take the kids during the attack?" someone asked. To hide them somewhere, THAT'S where he took them. I don't think people would like to see the director spell out everything, such as Colossus' inner voice saying, "Well, let me take these kids somewhere beneath this multimillion dollar facility, to hide them from the bad guys." And the newly-introduced characters were introduced well enough. You see their abilities, you see whose side they're on, you even learn more about their personalities as the movie progresses. What else do you need to learn? Which team he supports? The highlight of the film was definitely Mystique's transformation scenes, very well done. The movie had many shortcomings, of course, the pace slowed down more than once, some main characters, especially Cyclops, were almost lost, but the plusses were way more than minuses. Especially Nightcrawler, who almost stole the lead from Wolverine. I must also add that Wolverine is much more violent in this film than the first, much more like the original comic character. As for the people who complain about the abundance of characters. Well, bad news for you. X-men is not a story of a couple of guys and their girlfriends. There are much more characters, hopefully to be seen in the next sequel(s). Jubilee, Pyro and Colossus were all hinted in this one. Though I'm eager to see Gambit also, I can't wait to see how they will do the Beast. Of course, I can see the "no character development" people asking each other, "Who is Beast?" In short, this movie does what it's supposed to do: Gives us entertainment, and shows us our favorite characters on screen. ||Widescreen |2.35 : 1 |Dolby Digital 5.1 ||||||@@ X-Men|Bryan Singer|Action|Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence. PG-13|7.3|USA|2000|104 min|English||DVD||||||||False||||||||4/26/2004|Avi Arad Tom DeSanto Richard Donner Matthew Edelman Kevin Feige Stan Lee Scott Nimerfro Lauren Shuler Donner Joel Simon Bill Todman Jr. Ralph Winter|Tom DeSanto Bryan Singer David Hayter|Newton Thomas Sigel ||20th Century Fox Film Corporation [us] |Join the Evolution.|In the near future, where children are being born with a special X-Factor in their genes, giving them special powers, and making them "mutants", the seeds of a new Holocaust are being sewn by Senator Robert Kelly. The situation brings fellow mutants and former friends Erik Lehnsherr, a.k.a. Magneto, and Professor Charles Xavier into opposition. While Xavier seeks to stop the hatred toward mutants peacefully, Magneto seeks to even things out, with a machine that would speed up the mutation process in all humans, making everyone equal. To stop Magneto, Xavier brings together a special group of mutants called "X-Men" to stop him. In the meantime, 2 mysterious mutants, one named Logan, a powerful and agressive mutant with no past, no memories, and a young girl named Rogue emerge. Their quests for identities eventually land them in the sights of Xavier and Magneto, but for what purpose? All over the planet, unusual children are born with an added twist to their genetic code. This "X-factor" allows the children to perform extraordinary feats - flight, telekinetics, laser beams from the eyes and more. One Dr. Charles Xavier gathers the children to a place where he can train them to use their powers for themselves and the forces of good he dubs these children his X-men and hijinks ensue. After the death of his family at the hands of the Nazis, Magnus, a mutant vows revenge on all humanity. Meanwhile a group of good mutants is assembled by Charles Xavier, who trains and cares for them. Magnus now under the guise of Magneto assembles villains Sabertooth and Mystique to destroy anyone that gets in his way, including a furry canadian agent named Logan (Wolverine). Fierce battle ensues between Sabertooth and Wolverine and Xaviers group, the X-men, recruits the mutant just in time to learn of Magneto's dastardly evil plan to destroy the world. Across the world, children are born with an extra twist to their chromosomes that allow them to do superhuman abilities: fire a beam of force from their eyes, or born with a set of wings that allows flight, or being able to read men's minds. These 'children of the atom' are often feared and despised by the world, forcing these 'mutants' to resort to desperate actions. However, one group of mutants have banded together to show the world that it need not fear their kind. Apart, they are simply scientific curiousities, freaks and monsters - but together, united by their shared belief, they are more - they are the uncanny X-Men. Big screen adaptation of the classic comic book about a band of unique power-possesing mutants who live in a world where their kind is hated and persecuted by humans. Under the guidance of their leader, Professor Charles Xavier, the X-men strive for a world where humans and mutants can peacefully co-exist. The superheroes must also combat those radical mutants with intentions of exterminating human the race |Hugh Jackman (Wolverine (Logan)) @ Patrick Stewart (Professor Charles Xavier (Professor X)) @ Ian McKellen (Magneto (Erik Magnus Lehnsherr)) @ Famke Janssen (Dr. Jean Grey) @ James Marsden (Cyclops (Scott Summers)) @ Halle Berry (Storm (Ororo Munroe)) @ Anna Paquin (Rogue (Marie D'Ancanto)) @ Tyler Mane (Sabretooth (Victor Creed)) @ Ray Park (Toad (Mortimer Toynbee)) @ Rebecca Romijn-Stamos (Mystique) @ Bruce Davison (Senator Robert Kelly) @ Matthew Sharp (Henry Peter Gyrich) @ Brett Morris (Young Erik Lehnsherr) @ Rhona Shekter (Mrs. Lehnsherr) @ Kenneth McGregor (Mr. Lehnsherr) @ Shawn Roberts (Cody) @ Donna Goodhand (Mrs. D'Ancanto) @ John Nelles (Mr. D'Ancanto (as John E. Nelles)) @ George Buza (Trucker) @ Darren McGuire (Contender) @ Carson Manning (Waterboy #1) @ Scott Leva (Waterboy #2) @ Aron Tager (Emcee) @ Kevin Rushton (Stu) @ Doug Lennox (Bartender) @ David Nichols (Newscaster #1) @ Malcolm Nefsky (Stu's Buddy) @ Sumela Kay (Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat)) @ Shawn Ashmore (Bobby Drake (Iceman)) @ Katrina Florece (Jubilation Lee (Jubilee)) @ Alex Burton (John Allerdyce (Pyro)) @ Quinn Wright (Lily Pond Kid) @ Daniel Magder (Boy on Raft) @ Matt Weinberg (Tommy) @ Madison Lanc (Tommy's Sister) @ Stan Lee (Hot Dog Vendor) @ Marsha Graham (Newscaster #2) @ Amy Leland (Cerebro (voice of Moira McTaggert, Ph.D.)) @ Adam Robitel (Guy on Line) @ David Brown (Lead Cop (as Dave Brown)) @ Ben Jensen (Sabretooth Cop (as Ben P. Jensen)) @ Tom DeSanto (Toad Cop) @ Todd Dulmage (Coast Guard) @ Dan Duran (Newscaster #3) @ Elias Zarou (U.N. Secretary General) @ David Black (President) @ Robert R. Snow (Secret Service) @ David Hayter (Museum Cop) @ Cecil Phillips (Security Guard) @ Dave Allen Clark (Newscaster #4) @ Deryck Blake (Plastic Prison Guard) @ Ilke Hincer (Translator) @ Ron Sham (Translator) @ Jay Yoo (Translator) @ Grigori Miakouchkine (Translator) @ Eleanor Comes (Translator) @ Giuseppe Gallaccio (Translator) @ Rupinder Brar (Translator) @ Abi Ganem (Translator) @ Joey Purpura (German Soldier) @ Manuel Verge (German Soldier) @ Wolfgang Müller (German Soldier) @ Ralph Zuljan (German Soldier) @ Andy Grote (German Soldier rest of cast listed alphabetically) @ Denis Bellingham (Man in Bar (uncredited)) @ Eric Bryson (Police Officer (uncredited)) @ Jon Davey (Student at Xavier School (uncredited)) @ Brian J. Davis ( (uncredited)) @ Kyler Fisher (Additional Voices (uncredited)) @ Gary Goddard (Man at Beach (uncredited)) @ Matthew Granger (Weapon X Program Surgeon (uncredited)) @ Glenn Gutjahr (Motorcycle Cop #1 (uncredited)) @ Donald Mackinnon (Student at Xavier School (uncredited)) @ Andre Mayers (Norman Turnblad (uncredited)) @ Brian Peck (Hot Dog Stand Customer (uncredited)) @ Gorav Seth (Student at Xavier School (uncredited)) @ Quentin Wright (Student at Xavier School (uncredited)Produced by||Can your comic heros really come to life? The answer to that question can be found in this movie with a resounding YES.Being a fan of X-Men comics and cartoons, I watched this movie with great skepticism.It was wonderful how the characters remained true to the comics. The special powers that our mutant heros and villains possess are displayed exceptionally.It made me wish that I could have a special power of my own. Enough can not be said of the phenomenal cast of actors that were selected for their roles.Not only did they fit their parts perfectly, but they made you believe.Bravo to Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen and a host of actors who were lucky enough to take part in this adventure. Bryan Singer does a fantastic job of bringing it all together.The special effects in this movie, only enhance the great script and acting.After seeing the DVD with the outtakes, the editing was quite effective. The true battle of good versus evil can always make for a great story but when a comic book is adapted to film and you feel that what you see is really possible, it is a true stroke of genius. || |2.35 : 1 |5.1 ||||||@@ Basic Yoga For Dummies / DVD-Video|||NR |||2001|70 mins|||DVD||||||||False||||||||2/14/2004||||||| An Easy-to-Follow Yoga Practice.Take theimystery out of doing yoga! ||||Region 1 |> |Standard 1.33:1 Color |ENGLISH: Dolby Digital Stereo ||||||@@